CHAPTER 531

FLAMES OF DESTRUCTION (II)

Flames in the furnace churned strong, the sounds of crackling mixing with the stirring, echoing sounds of the hammer striking against the hard steel. Droplets of sweat flew off in arches of the Lino's glistening skin, his abyss-darkened eyes immovable from the surface of the red-heated plate beneath his fingers. Each strike of the hammer jammed the surface of the plate downward, slowly tempering the shape properly.

He had long since lost the count of minutes and hours, and even possibly days, as he devoted his concentration entirely to crafting. It was hard to remember when was the last time he felt this way, when was the last time he abandoned the worries of the external and simply focused on creating something never created before. As he was approaching his sixties, Lino had realized that most of his later years of life were spent fighting and worrying, interspersed with the few moments of joy and tranquility. He had abandoned the hammer in lieu of the sword, his heart waning.

Taking a deep breath, he sat down for a moment, resting. His breaths were short, somewhat ragged, but his expression was hardly one of tiredness. The full, slightly dry lips, were unable to flatten from the curve of the smile, the wrinkles around his eyes arched in crescent.

The break didn't last long, just a few minutes, before he got up again and returned to work. He wasn't certain how long he exactly had worked, but it should be a little over a year at least. He'd spent nearly six months going through Ataxia's life, which means it's been just over half a year since Ella left. Though time was a constraint, it was more than enough for him.

Truth was that he could easily just take any random armor and grant it Ego, making it almost as strong as the Divine Sword – but for his and Hannah’s items, he settled on going through the entire process, partly because the end-products were slightly better, and partly because he missed the sensation. For the few rest that will end up forging, he will go through the quick one.

Besides Hannah and he, very few were capable and willing; none of the captors of the Holy Grounds met the bill, and most of the people Lino knew simply weren’t strong enough. The one he had the most faith in was Y’nn as he was just slightly beneath Hannah in terms of strength, but it was still just the three of them which was far from enough. Even if he had already put Primul in charge of the planetary formations, those had a limit, especially so considering he only had a year and a half to create them.

Naturally, Ataxia, Astrum and other Writs would also fight, but their roles would be heavily limited since their strength was extremely conditional. In the end, however, as with most other battles, the outcome would depend entirely on who won the fight of the highest order. He simply didn’t want to lose any more people than necessary.

“… huuuh, finally,” exhaling deeply and wiping his forehead, Lino smiled at the finished breastplate. It shimmered in strong gray, edges lined in double-layers, flexibility pronounced around the armpits and the waist areas. It looked relatively ordinary, much like the sword, yet Lino knew it was anything but. He traced his fingers across the still-cooling surface, tapping a few times, producing deep and hollow drumming hums. “Flames ever disappoint…”

[Breastplate of Infinity – Divine Artifact]

[Eternal] – unconditionally blocks 3 attacks at will; recharge time dependent on the Maker’s ability

[The Guardian] – the armor will never break or be pierced on the condition the Maker’s Will is never broken

[Last Bastion] – should the Maker's life be in danger, the Ego will forcefully repel everyone within 60km radius, replenishing the Maker's Vitality to the maximum; recharge time dependent on the Maker's ability

[Bound] – the breastplate cannot be worn by anyone else except the Maker; in return, its Ego is incorruptible

[Union] – the breastplate can either tighten or loosen, depending on the Maker's wish, providing either a triple increase of all movement or a triple increase of all resistances

[Singularity of Eternity] – channeling Chaotic Binds into the breastplate’s core creates a temporary singularity that will suck in all the incoming attacks and reflect them at triple the damage unconditionally; can only be used once a day

Note: I will never let you be harmed…

Lino chuckled faintly as the breastplate shuddered and hovered, floating next to the sword. The two seemed to be conversing in some invisible ways, so Lino left them alone and focused on the next item – the belt. Unlike the sword and the breastplate, Lino had no intention of granting the Ego to the belt as it was unnecessary; it was there to simply act as a conduit between the top and bottom armored parts, but that didn't mean he could craft just anything.

He deliberated for good three-four days on the design before finalizing it and slowly beginning the craft. Though he wasn't as careful as he was with the sword and the armor, he still didn't cut too many corners; despite being a conduit, the belt would have to be firm and have high endurance, not only by connecting two pieces of armor but also as an intermediary of two Egos.

In the end, he spent just over a full day on crafting the belt and was rather satisfied with the end result. The loop was made out of sleek leather, binding to the center where a steel-cast, horizontal grid of bars lay encased within an iron-overlay with dotted slits on top and bottom that will be used to connect the pieces. It wasn't much to look at, but it wasn't shabby-looking either. As a personal touch, Lino added a pair of flaming, silver wings at the very center of the belt, though they were rather hard to spot from anywhere but up-close.

[Sacred Belt – Origin Tier]

Defense: ½ the Base Defense

3* to Vitality

2* to Strength

Special Effect – has the innate capacity of managing Ego-infested items

Special Effect – proportionally decreases weight upon the wearer, making it easier to move

Nodding slightly, Lino's lips curled up into a smile once more. Even if it didn't touch even the realm of the sword and the breastplate, it was everything he needed at the moment.

Rather than taking a break, he simply took out a gourd of wine, freshening up his parched throat and slowly moving over onto designing the leggings. It was by far the most difficult part as he had to find the perfect balance of weight and length so that his agility wasn’t bogged down unnecessarily. Just like the breastplate, he would smooth out the surface for the easier deflection while also maintaining some proportions of good defense.

In the end, if he had to rely on the armor to survive, it would mean he had already lost. It was there to support him rather than to carry him which is the mindset he had while crafting it. Sounds of the hammering soon filled the smithy once more, the crackling of the flames, the occasional, deep groan, and the screeching of tempering; altogether they formed a strange song without a singer and even stranger sight.

Lino worked meticulously; unlike the breastplate, the leggings were a bit more delicate since a rather deep precision was necessary, which meant his work was slightly slower. Days ticked by, one by one, and soon a week had passed.

He switched between hammering, tempering, smoothing and resting frequently, sometimes simply sitting down to stare at the flames for a little while, and sometimes even taking a nap if he felt too much mental exhaustion. From the feelings of anxiety he entered the smithy with to today, the entire paradigm had shifted; he wouldn’t lose.

A hammer descended swiftly upon the redshifted steel.

He wouldn’t conform.

Sparks flew out like fireflies with each strike, alighting the dark walls.

He would overcome.

His heart thumped in the rhythm of the hammer’s descent.

He’d lost too much to lose more.

The time itself seemed to slow down in the midst of his creation.

He’d suffered too long not to defy.

Thump.

He was above it.

The steel sizzled as he shoved it into the barrel of water.

He was beyond it.

The last piece of the puzzle fit, two steel-cast shapes laying still on the wooden table.

“… ‘nother one,” Lino chuckled, taking a sip of wine. “Holy hell, I should really vent this fucking room a bit.” The air was rather stuffy, but he ignored it for the moment as light blasted off the leggings, lifting them up into the air, right next to the sword and the breastplate.

[Amarath – Divine Artifact]

[Unseen] – increases movement speed proportional to the momentum

[Unmatched] – increases damage dealt proportional to the momentum

[Solitude] – doubles the Origin Energy while protecting the weak

[Destroyer] – high chance of destroying the weapons striking it unless they are at least 3 Tiers above

[Sky] – enables permanent flight at no personal expense

[Bound] – can only ever be worn by the Maker; in return, it cannot be destroyed unless the Maker’s Will is destroyed

[Sacrilege] – instantaneously teleport the Maker out of the danger at no personal expense; can be used twice a day

Note: I’ll protect you forever, Father…