Demon Hunter: I have a red gourd

Chapter 31 Technological Breakthrough

The next morning, when Ivan got ready and came to the blacksmith shop, Philip had been waiting there for a long time.

"Ivan, how have you been these past two days?" Seeing him approach, Philip smiled and greeted him warmly.

"Not bad. I took a job and made a little money." Ivan smiled slightly, his tone relaxed. "How about you, how are you getting along with your fiancée?"

"Alas, it's not going well." Philip's smile immediately became forced, and his face turned bitter: "It's still the same. We always disagree on future plans. She doesn't agree with my ideas at all."

"She still doesn't want you to join the army?"

"That's right. She seems to only want me to work under Lord Veserad, thinking that would be safe and respectable." Philip sighed, his tone revealing helplessness. "I told her what the Lord had done to me, but she advised me to just bear it, saying that as long as I could get through it, everything would be fine."

Hearing this, Ivan frowned and couldn't help but sneered in his heart:

"You didn't let your fiancé join the army, and your reason wasn't worrying about him getting into danger? And you even tried to persuade him to continue enduring those humiliations? Philip, your vision is really not very good."

Ivan patted his shoulder and said, "You've already made up your mind about what I want to do. Let's solve the problem at hand together first."

Philip nodded, and the two of them walked into the blacksmith shop together.

What greeted me was the unique heat wave of the blacksmith shop, and the clinking sound of iron hammering echoed in my ears. It seemed that the two blacksmiths had started working early in the morning.

Fergus was swinging a sledgehammer at the furnace, while Una was still carving a piece of metal in the corner.

Yuna, with her golden pigtails, was the first to notice their arrival. She stopped what she was doing and smiled. "Demon Hunter, you're finally here. We've repaired your armor. It's on the table over there. Go try it on."

Ivan walked over to the table and carefully examined the armor, now shining brightly. Every scratch had been expertly repaired. The large tear in the breastplate had vanished, leaving almost no trace of the damage. The metal had been meticulously polished, and even the slightly worn shoulder pads now appeared sturdy and fitted. Ivan nodded in satisfaction, untied his cloak, and began to put it on.

After donning his armor piece by piece, Ivan felt a familiar sense of security wash over him. He gently moved his limbs, his movements effortless and unrestrained. He then tried casting a sigil (a spell), and the magic flowed just as smoothly. It seemed Yuna had not only perfectly repaired the armor, but also re-carved the grooves to better suit the flow of magic.

Ivan gave Yuna a thumbs up. Fergus also put down the hammer in his hand, took a sword from the shelf next to him and threw it to Ivan.

"I reforged your silver sword myself. Come and try it out and see how it works," he exclaimed, a hint of pride in his tone. The elementary silver swords of the Griffin School were not complex to forge, nor did they require master-level craftsmanship. This reforged silver sword must have been the work of this dwarf.

Ivan caught it steadily and slowly drew the blade. The blade shone with a cool silver in the morning light. He gently ran his fingertips over the blade, feeling the delicate, smooth surface, without a single flaw. The reforged blade was incredibly sharp, the cut clean and sharp, as if it had never been broken.

He swung the sword a few times, and the blade emitted a steady humming sound. The perfect balance of weight made his movements feel very smooth and natural. It seemed that although Fergus's skills were not as good as Yuna's, he was also a qualified blacksmith.

"Thank you both very much." Ivan showed a satisfied smile on his face. "The repair is quite good, much better than I expected." Before Yuna could say anything, Fergus was already patting his chest.

"Of course! Master Fergus's craftsmanship is well-known to everyone in Velen! With this set of equipment crafted by a professional master, hunting that beast will be a piece of cake for you!"

Ivan chuckled softly, not intending to expose the vain dwarf's ulterior motives. He knew full well that the true master blacksmith was his dwarf partner, Yuna, and that the dwarf Fergus was merely seeking credit.

Just as he was about to leave with Philip, Yuna called him from behind.

"Witcher? Ivan, right? Can I ask you a favor?"

Could it be a commission? Ivan turned around and raised an eyebrow. "I'm a demon hunter. If it's a commission to hunt monsters, I'll accept any offer."

"That's not it." Yuna shook her head, her eyes falling on Ivan's armor. "I guess this set of armor and silver sword are just the basic equipment of your school, right?"

Ivan was stunned for a moment, then nodded. Just as he was about to speak, Yuna continued, "I think you've figured out what the partnership between Fergus and I is. I'm the true master blacksmith, but I'm just relying on him. The title of dwarf makes my craftsmanship more convincing, so we can earn more gold."

"Yuna, what are you talking about!" Fergus yelled in dissatisfaction.

Ignoring the dwarf's complaints, Yuna's tone remained calm. "I came from Skellige. There, my craftsmanship had reached a bottleneck, and it was difficult to make any further breakthroughs. That's why I chose to try my luck in the northern kingdoms."

Her gaze fell on Ivan's armor again, a glint of anticipation flashing in her eyes. "Your armor gives me hope. Back in Skellige, I once forged equipment for a witcher from the School of the Bear. That experience successfully allowed me to become a master blacksmith."

"Your armor is far more complex than his. It's not just the metal alloy, it also incorporates many traces of magic. I have a feeling that if I could see the blueprints for your school's more advanced equipment and craft it myself, my skills would definitely reach new heights."

"If you want to create higher-level equipment in the future, how about coming to me? You only need to provide the monster tissue and blueprints required for the equipment. I can cover all other materials and I won't charge you a single oren for the processing fee. How about that?"

Ivan's eyes lit up. This win-win situation was certainly acceptable to him. Demon Hunter equipment blueprints weren't something worth keeping secret. After all, each school's equipment was custom-made, and no one except the demon hunters themselves could truly utilize the equipment's advantages. Furthermore, helping Yuna achieve a breakthrough in her skills was a worthwhile investment for him.

"I can't refuse your offer." Ivan stared into Yuna's emerald green eyes. "However, I'm only a demon hunter apprentice right now. More advanced blueprints can only be obtained after passing the school's assessment. You'll probably have to wait a long time."

"It's okay." Yuna's tone was remarkably firm. "This may be my only chance in this life. I will wait for you here in Crow's Nest."

"Yuna, what was the name of the Bear School witcher you met in Skellige?"

"His name is Ivo, Ivo of Belhaven."

(End of this chapter)