Chaotic Craftsman Worships The Cube

The next day the shop was packed. Word had spread fast that they were selling air conditioners, resulting in a constant stream of people coming in and out, with more than a few spending far longer inside the shop than they needed to just to escape the heat.

While they were primarily a weapon shop, it wasn’t like they didn’t have a few other items too, so both Ben and Falk made sure they were displayed prominently, hoping to snag a few extra sales on items as the townsfolk came in to get what they really wanted.

Falk had more than a few items like pots, pans, and kitchen knives that anyone could purchase at the ready while Ben quickly whipped up a few smaller things to appeal to any young children that were brought along by parents. Frisbees with air enchantments tied to them to keep them flying longer, metal tops with earth enchantments on them so they could keep spinning, and what he was most proud of as a way to capture some customers’ attention, a snow cone machine.

He’d explained the idea to Falk before the shop opened and he was all for it, both of them working together to quickly build one with enough time for Ben to apply the various enchantments they’d need to make it work. Instead of the shaved ice he would be able to get in his world, he built it so that it would constantly produce snow from the water loaded into it, giving it a nice and light texture to enjoy.

While he was doing that, Falk had run back with a huge jug of water to keep it stocked, as well as some fruit juices to flavour it, and as the day stretched on it was clear to see it was a hit. The bigger issue was keeping up with everything. Falk was handling constructing the air conditioners and taking the sales, while Ben was in charge of focusing on adding the enchantments to them while he handed out snow cones. Neither had ever seen the shop so busy, and as nice as it was it also meant they didn’t have time to work on anything else. Other stock slowly diminished but as items ran out they couldn’t even take the time to make more, a fact that showed just how important it would be to prepare for the next day. There were still going to be a lot of hot days left after all, and they were sure the whole town wouldn’t be showing up all at once.

The flow of it all was only briefly broken by a courier who’d come by, moving through the crowd to hand Falk a letter he didn’t have time to glance at before getting back to the task at hand, but that little distraction was all but forgotten by Ben as he tried to do something else while he focused on all of his tasks. Improving his skill library.

He and his teacher still had the same deal after all, customers got discounts so long as they had either a skill he didn’t have access to or one he did but at a higher level than he’d previously seen, and with the influx of individuals that normally would have no reason to come to a weapon shop, he was finding a lot of people who had multiple ones who were more than happy to take that deal, meaning that on top of the already hectic day, he was making skill rings and doing his best to ensure that his book of skills stayed updated so that he didn’t end up with any repeats.

It was hard to express just how profitable the time had been for him in that regard. Numerous skills he had on rings that had previously only been between the zeroth to second level when he got them from Zandale he now had access to at the fifth, as well as a mountain of new ones too. One of the bigger benefits of living in a town composed of numerous races and mixed-breed groups was the sheer variety that he could find. From gaining access to specialized forms of magic like sound and purification to the low forms of combined magic like explosion and mud to skills he’d never even heard of like intensity and fall, this would end up being the best day for him in a long time.

While there was a good chance that the new forms of magic he was seeing would actually be worse for him compared to their base forms since he could enchant with the standard affinities at such a high level compared to the levels he’d gained of their specialized forms, he didn’t care. It was an excuse to learn more about them, and by extension to learn about magic as a whole. How could he pass that up? With how much they were selling it wasn’t like he’d be at a loss by taking a few things he didn’t need after all.

As he devoted himself to all of those tasks he still had plenty of minds left, spinning ideas on just how he could use the new skills at his fingertips, what he would make and how he would push them to their limits. It felt like he’d just gained access to the tools he needed to push his current crafting and enchanting even further beyond where they currently were, and it was like that the hours passed, with more and more complex ideas forming in his mind as the flow of customers slowly came to a trickle and they were finally able to close the shop.

“Good work out there today boy,” Falk said as he wiped some sweat from his brow, not from the heat but from the constant running around. “I’d guess we can probably expect a couple more days like that, with our volume still probably up if we keep selling these snow cones while it’s so hot out. Let’s take some time to replace some of the stock and then have a well-deserved rest.”

“Sounds good to me, I’ll start on making some pans and then figure out where to go from there.”

His teacher gave a satisfied nod as Ben went to grab the materials he’d need, and as Falk caught his breath after the long day he finally opened the letter he’d tossed to the side earlier, his brow creasing in anger as he read every line.

Ben for his part was ignorant of his teacher's suddenly worsening mood, instead devoting himself to his task, going from one pan to another at a rapid pace to not only replace everything they’d sold but also have more than enough for the next day. It wasn’t particularly challenging work, he couldn’t say he was pushing himself in a way that would help his skill level up faster, but there was something satisfying about how rhythmic it was, getting lost in his task as he went from one pan to the next, each one being made perfectly, or at least as perfectly as he could manage. It was only when he ran out of metal to grab that he took notice of his teacher nearby and the look on his face.

“Oof, bad news there Falk?”

“Bah, an annoyance has just gone and shoved their nose into my business is all. Might be a bit of a pain to deal with. For now, put a pin in the pans boy, let me see you work on something else.”

“Uh, sure, what?”

“Whatever you’re feeling. You’re an artist on top of being a craftsman right? Show me what your heart screams for. Make me the best item you can.”

What my heart screams for huh? Not the easiest question. He wasn’t sure what had Falk asking him this, but his teacher seemed serious so he gave it the proper thought. If he could make anything, what would he make? Really, he just liked making things in general. Before coming to this world he’d enjoyed the arts in all of its forms, at least all he could personally try, and if there was one good thing about ending up there it was that he got to try so much more. Really, was there anything he wanted to make that he hadn’t already made? He had enough money and resources that he could easily jump into anything that struck his fancy.

It can’t be a weapon, they’re fun to make but it doesn’t scream out to me as something I want in my core; maybe armour? Admittedly it doesn’t feel right either, as much as I’d like to improve my long-term survival odds. Really need to make a helmet or something eventually but this isn’t the time. Maybe something from my world…

His thoughts drifted off as he thought of the one thing he could truly say his heart screamed for. Something he’d never be able to create in this world, not in any meaningful way, but a topic he wanted to put the work into anyway as soon as the thought passed his mind.

“It’s going to be more of an enchantment than anything, is that okay? I’ll still need to make the item to hold the enchantment.”

“That’s fine. Show me your best work,” Falk saw the change in his apprentice's eyes just before he asked the question, a gentle sadness filling them, along with the dedication needed to bring whatever he envisioned into reality. With no idea what he was going to be shown he watched patiently, focusing entirely on the boy's process.

With his teacher's consent, Ben went to the storage room and grabbed the materials he’d need. The base wouldn’t be anything too complex, it just needed to be something that could hold a complicated light magic enchantment, ending up with a flat silvery disk about as big as a plate. With that done he closed his eyes and took a moment to entirely focus on the image in his head.

With how many minds he had at his disposal, each constantly struggling to find a way to keep entertained he really didn’t need to, but his teacher wanted him to put his all into this so he took his time to carefully plan out every little detail, before he took all the rings he thought he could use from his skill library and began constructing the enchantment.

Falk watched from the side, his mana sense carefully trained on exactly what the boy was doing. Even if it was a blessed skill, any time he saw it he could hardly believe that someone who only had enchanting at the eighth level was able to work mana so delicately, the level of the boy's innate magic control being staggering. Even without wanting to test him he was sure he was good enough, but he wanted to see just where Ben was at before asking a favour of him, and reaffirming what he knew from the start. If he got Ben to do what he was going to ask, the boy wouldn’t humiliate himself, he’d be a contender for the top.

It was as Ben finished, a bead of sweat dripping down his brow and on the edge of mana exhaustion, that Falk let out a low whistle. “You never fail to impress boy, this is a thing of beauty.”

“Ha, thanks, but I haven’t even turned it on yet,” As it sat there, no mana running through it, it was nothing more than a disk to anyone without a mana sense developed for enchantments, but to both Ben and Falk, the amount of technique and skill was as plain as day. Ben couldn’t help but critique himself, seeing places where he could do better and comparing his skill against anything from his teacher and those on the items of gods, while Falk couldn’t help but compare it against the few blessed enchanters he’d met, as well as against himself when he was at that level, knowing full well that neither he nor anyone else could make it to the level of skill the boy kept putting out if they’d met at the same place in life.

The yeti shook his head, eager to see just what would be revealed when a bit of mana was run through it but put it off to ask a question. “So why don’t you have a spot for one of your mana batteries? It’s pretty plain to see that it’s gonna be tough on you to power that for long and it’s not like making a spot for one would do you any harm.”

“It just felt more appropriate this was,” Ben told him with a sad smile and a shake of his head as he touched the side of the disk, pouring his remaining mana into it and activating the light enchantment that made up its core, making Falk understand what the boy meant.

With mana flowing through it a scene built itself up above the disk, a light magic illusion similar to the one he had on his music player, but to a significantly higher degree of detail and complexity, showing a scene both foreign and familiar. It was the sort of sight anyone would be used to, a family playing in a park, two parents cheerfully watching from the side as their young son kicked a ball around, enjoying the sun and the day. It wasn’t what Falk had in mind when he’d asked, but this was without a doubt something Ben’s heart longed for, even if it was unattainable to him, and they both stood in silence as the image of his family faded away.

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