Lu Mingfei, become the King of Elden!

Chapter 100 The Spirit Trainer

"The girl you brought."

Xiu Gu slightly lifted his wrinkled eyelids, his gaze passing through the flames rising from the forge and landing on Lu Mingfei. His hammer continued its relentless strikes against the red-hot iron, producing a rhythmic clanging sound, the metallic melody devoid of any discernible emotion.

"She seems to have suffered countless setbacks and can no longer wield a sword. But she has the potential to wield spirits. I saw it a long time ago; the color of her eyes is proof of that."

"What, is she your lover?"

Lu Mingfei quickly waved his hand, the movement so forceful that he almost knocked over a pile of scrap metal nearby.
"How could that be? I just felt sorry for her and thought that the Round Table Hall was at least a sanctuary for the faded, so I brought her here."

"Hmph," Xiu Gu sneered, slamming his hammer down heavily, sparks flying. "You're being kind, but this is a rare sight in the border region. Don't lose your life because of something like this one day."

"Yes, yes, yes," Lu Mingfei nodded and bowed, "I will certainly keep your wise words in mind."

"okay!"

Xiu Gu impatiently interrupted Lu Mingfei's incessant chatter, placing the hammer in his hand next to the red-hot anvil.

"What's the matter with you?"

Lu Mingfei rubbed his hands together and chuckled dryly twice:

"I just haven't figured out how to bring it up yet."

After saying that, he gestured towards the door with his lip:
"It's still about that girl. Her name is Rodrik, and she'll probably be settling down in the Round Table Hall from now on. I've gotten to know you a bit better here, so I'd appreciate it if you could look after her a little?"

The hybrid blacksmith's scaly, horny face visibly stiffened. His eyes widened slightly, and his tone carried a hint of absurdity:

"Are you really telling the truth? You're entrusting that girl to that ugly bastard who only knows how to forge weapons? What about that hundred-eyed, hundred-eared brat? Don't you know him? And that wild, untamed girl from the wilderness! Aren't they all better than me?"

Lu Mingfei shrugged, his expression helpless:
"Neferi is a good person. But she's rarely in the Round Table Hall. As for Baizhi..."

He gave a rare, mocking smile:

"Grandpa, are you serious?"

Xiu Gu shook his head:
"That's too foolish. That girl would never agree to that."

“No, don’t worry, Rodrigo is a good girl.” Lu Mingfei winked at him.

However, the mixed-race old man still refused to believe it. His past experiences made him unwilling to open up. It was already extremely rare for him to have such a friendly conversation with Lu Mingfei, and this was only after Lu Mingfei had pestered him relentlessly.

His tone was filled with deep wariness:
"Impossible, I don't believe such a thing could happen. I don't want to doubt you, but I'm tired of being ridiculed."

"Don't worry, don't worry," Lu Mingfei patted his chest firmly, assuring the old man with absolute certainty, "I've already told her about your situation, there's absolutely no problem. Or, how about I call her in to chat with you for a bit, and then you can decide?"

"You kid."

Xiu Gu glared fiercely at Lu Mingfei with his cloudy old eyes, but Lu Mingfei's skin was too thick, and this little bit of skill was no match for his release.

The mixed-race old man was certain that if the goddess Marika had used Lu Mingfei's shamelessness to repair the city's defenses in Rodel back then, the royal city probably wouldn't have been breached by a mere ancient dragon.

"Ok."

Xiu Gu finally nodded helplessly. He knew that if he didn't agree to this annoying kid's request, Lu Mingfei would keep bothering him from night to day.

Lu Mingfei chuckled, a smug look on his face, turned around and called Rodrigo back in, then tactfully left the workshop.

Then, he stood outside the door, idly kicking at the pebbles with his toes, his ears perked up, trying to hear the conversation inside. After a while, Rodrigo came out and nodded to Lu Mingfei:

“Thank you, Mr. Lu Mingfei. Mr. Xiu Gu said I have the potential for spirit training. He said that for your sake, he would be willing to teach me about spirit training.”

Lu Mingfei grinned, winked at Rodrik, and looked a little smug.

"See, I didn't lie to you. Grandpa Xiu Gu is a really good person. Wait a minute, I'll go in and say a few words to him."

He cautiously peeked into the workshop, and the familiar heat wave hit him. Lu Mingfei tentatively called out:
"Old man?"

Xiu Gu raised his head, his cloudy old eyes looking at Lu Mingfei, his voice as low and hoarse as ever:
"I chatted with that girl for a bit. She really does have the potential to train spirits. I told her everything I knew."

The person who used to take good care of me happened to be a spirit trainer. I guess this is a way of repaying a debt of gratitude.

He paused, his tone earnest:

"I'm sorry, I doubted you before."

"Hey," Lu Mingfei shrugged, "Look at what you're saying, there's nothing to apologize for! I'm the one who caused you trouble, and you're still being so polite with me."

He laughed it off, trying to downplay Xiu Gu's apology with his usual glib tongue.

However, Xiu Gu remained silent, his eyes fixed on him, churning with complex emotions that Lu Mingfei couldn't decipher. Perhaps, the appearance of Lu Mingfei and Rodrika did indeed cast a unique glimmer of light in the eyes of this weathered old bastard, accustomed to being rejected.

"No, that's not what I meant."

Lu Mingfei waved his hands repeatedly, trying to dispel the awkward silence in the air. He blinked, his eyes full of curiosity.

"So, Master Xiugu, what exactly is spirit manipulation?"

The old man looked Lu Mingfei up and down strangely with his cloudy old eyes, as if he were looking at some rare prehistoric creature.

"You don't even know?"

Lu Mingfei shook his head.

Xiu Gu's face rarely showed any emotion.

This is unusual.

This kid knows how to behave and is polite, he doesn't seem to be from a peasant background; he's incredibly strong, clearly having been guided by a master; he seems like the heir of some faded family who's ventured out into the world, yet he's completely ignorant of these widely circulated common knowledge about the border regions.

A rare, intense curiosity arose in the old blacksmith's heart.

But Xiu Gu is, after all, Xiu Gu. Exploring the secrets of others is not his style. He only needs to focus on the hammer and the anvil; that is his mission, and almost his entire life.

He snorted coldly, picked up the hammer again, and impatiently tapped the doorway with the handle, as if shooing away a noisy crow.

"Want to know? Go ask that little girl! I've told her everything I need to!"

Then, he waved his hand, signaling Lu Mingfei to get lost:

"Go away, go away. Don't bother me unless you need forging."

(End of this chapter)