Chapter 9: Forging with Fire

She activated Extract and began removing the iron ore from the golem a little at a time. After a few minutes, Harmony had finished collecting the ore from the golem. Her and Vault agreed it would be best to return to their home base to recover and go over the loot they got.

Harmony stole a glance at the cave entrance before following Vault back into the forest. Standing in the cave’s doorway was a cloaked figure.

The stranger smiled as a golem walked up from behind them. “Too bad the range is only just a little bit outside the cave. Those two would have easily been defeated if they went into the dungeon.”

The golem kneeled and offered a ride to the stranger on their shoulder. They sat down on top of the golem’s shoulder and went further into the cave.

“Time to level up some more. Gonna need some new skills to show them what a real other worlder is capable of.”

***

Harmony and Vault had returned to their little cave home and were sitting cross legged in front of each other. They had laid out all the materials from their excursions between them and began sifting through the loot. Wolf furs, wolf fangs, a few pearls from the clams, and ironed ore from the golem.

Vault claimed it was possible to make weapons or armor with the iron ore for one of them. Realizing that they both didn’t have much to shield their sensitive human skin, armor was probably the better option. Felicia insisted that Vault make it for himself, but Eunice insisted that she take it instead.

Eunice made Harmony gathered the ore in front of Vault. “If we survive longer then the Extract skill can be used to easily acquire more. Clearly you see the logic in this.”

Vault gave her an unamused look. “That makes it sound like you're saying you’re more important. It also feels like a roundabout way to call me useless.”

Eunice gave Vault an unamused look. “Did those words exit our mouth? I'm thinking strategically. At the end of the day, has my skill not proven to be useful? There is also the fact I will always value my safety above yours of course.”

Vault took a step back away from Harmony. The conversation was starting to make him uncomfortable. It sounded like if he was in trouble then she might stop Harmony from helping him. There was already signs of that when they had first met.

Felicia regained control and noticed Vault looking uneasy. “What is wrong with you?! No one's life is more important! I told you we shouldn't treat each other like that! Here I thought you were starting to help us, but all you’re doing is using people!”

In the mental world, Eunice was still facing away from Felicia. She poked her finger in the pond water and had a lost look on her face. It was almost as if she wasn’t sure what to do with herself.

In the real world, Harmony placed a reassuring hand on Vault’s shoulder. She suggested they make some armor parts for both of them. Incomplete, but useful nonetheless. Having some protection was better than none. At least this way, both their chances of surviving the next battle, would go up a little for both, instead of just one.

This became a mutual agreement between the two of them, but Eunice still wanted to prioritize Harmony's armor set. However, she remained silent, unsure if she should say anything at all.

Vault got to work right away. They started a campfire and tossed the iron ore into it. It was the first time Felicia had seen Vault use his crafting skill.

She was confused at first by the action, but it made sense when she thought about it. Most smiths in stories used a forge of some sort when working with metal. The energy of the flames was a necessary component for altering the shape of the material after all.

Vault pointed his hands at the flames and they burst with energy. The flames greatly expanded and almost burned them along with everything in the cave. Vault began to sweat profusely as the flames began to shrink little by little.

“I need to keep the flames under control while working on molding the item. It's extremely difficult. Lose too much control and it breaks. Restrain it too much and it could break. I need absolute concentration, but it also leaves me vulnerable to attacks.”

The flames made shadows dance around the cave. Meanwhile the item in the center began splitting into parts and changing shape. It was truly an amazing site, but it also explained why he didn't spend all day crafting.

It took time and focus. Being vulnerable like this during a survival game is risky, especially if you're on your own. Harmony stood near him while also keeping an eye on the entrance to their cave home.

“Don’t worry man, you’re not going through this survival game alone anymore. I got your back. No one is going to sneak up on you.”

A smile formed on his face and he relaxed a little. Her words were a bit reassuring. Since he started this thing he had been left to fend for himself. Even his patron didn’t really talk to him. It was nice having someone else he could rely on and now this person was relying on him to make something to protect both of them.

Part of him began to wonder for a moment. If things were different and this game never happened. Would the two of them have become friends?

The flames condensed themselves until it became its normal size. Smoke exploded out of the fire and smothered the room. The two of them began coughing as it began to clear. They saw a little twinkle in the darkness from the shine of the metal.

After a minute, the smoke had finished dispersing and the creation was left in the center. Two iron breast plates were lying on top of a pile of ash. A system notification went off for Vault.

“You have created 2 E- rank Basic Iron Breast Plates!”