Unfortunately, I can’t find any more books that mention the giant acid caterpillar, which apparently is the name given to it in the guide. Among the materials, the organ that produces acid isn’t mentioned.

  “Excuse me,” I call to the blonde girl back at the counter. “I was wondering if you have any materials available for this monster.”

  I point to it in the book.

  “Give me a minute.”

  She searches through several papers until she finds what I assume is a list of available materials.

  “I’m sorry, but we don’t have anything available. It’s not a monster that’s usually hunted because there’s no demand for its materials and there’s no mission posted. Not even other insects eat it in its larval stage.”

  “Larval stage?” I ask, confused. The book didn’t say anything about that.

  “The book is a bit outdated. They turn into moon moths. They’re fairly harmless. The silk they produce sells well, but it’s very difficult to collect, so in general they’re not usually hunted either.”

  “What would I have to do to post a mission?”

  “Post a mission?” a male voice asks behind me. “Hi, Valien. Is Ciened available?”

  “Welcome, Fred. I’ll let him know right away.”

  “Well, tell me everything about that mission,” my brother says, focusing on me.

  “I just wanted the organ this caterpillar uses to produce acid.”

  “What the hell do you want that for?”

  “What I really want is the acid, but it seems more complicated to collect the acid than to just bring the entire organ.”

  The look of disbelief on my brother’s face is wonderful.

  “Are you telling me you want to post a mission so someone brings you a bunch of acid that can easily kill a fully armored human?”

  “Yes,” I say, smiling, satisfied with myself. “Good summary. I think it could be pretty useful. And if I’m right, it could be a fairly important source of income for the family.”

  His expression shifts quickly from disbelief to curiosity.

  “How sure are you?”

  “Sure enough to risk part of the money Father gave me.”

  “All right,” he says when he sees Valien coming back. “Don’t tell the others until you’ve confirmed whether it works or not.”

  “Thanks for trusting me.”

  Valien accompanies my brother, and I wait anxiously at the counter. I have no idea how much a mission like this might cost.

  I prop myself up on the counter as soon as I see her return.

  “How much could the mission cost me?”

  The girl laughs at my expectant look.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  “Let’s start from the beginning. What exactly do you need?”

  “I want the organ the caterpillars use to produce acid. With acid inside,” I add after hesitating for a second. “Actually, I only need the acid, but I don’t think it’ll be easy to collect.”

  “All right. How many units do you need?”

  “One could work, but ideally it’d be good to have a few more just in case. And if it works, I’ll probably need more in the future.”

  “Should I ask why someone as young as you needs acid?” she says, laughing.

  “It’s for an experiment,” I say proudly.

  “All right. As I was saying, nobody usually hunts these caterpillars, but there are plenty of adventurers who go into the dungeon. If we set the right price, it’s quite likely someone will accept. The problem is that it doesn’t seem very advisable to stick your hand into a caterpillar known for melting people.”

  “The book doesn’t say anything about its blood being acidic, so I don’t think that’ll be a problem. In fact, if its blood were like that, it’d be a great help.”

  “I see. It’s true there’s no record of its blood being harmful. All right. I think 9 crowns for 3 organs would be a good starting point. If demand increases, prices will likely drop as more people are willing to hunt them.”

  I’m dangerously close to running out of money. If this fails, it’ll take me a long time to recover. But if it works, I could obtain very good steel. It’s the only way to succeed. If I don’t take risks now, I’ll never be able to. I’ll settle into a mediocre routine that provides just enough to live comfortably.

  But I still want to explore dungeons.

  “All right,” I say, handing her a real. “But at that price, I’d like you to add as detailed a report as possible about the caterpillars.”

  “No problem,” she replies with a smile, handing 1 crown back to me.

  “One more thing. What do you do with old adventurer equipment that’s no longer usable?”

  “We separate the metal parts and the leather,” she says thoughtfully. “I think those get bought on the artisans’ street. The rest we dispose of.”

  “Even broken magic gems?” I ask curiously, remembering the one I have in the workshop.

  “Yes. Once they’re broken, they’re useless. They’re crushed and thrown away.”

  “Do you think you could give me some?”

  “What do you want them for?” she asks curiously.

  “I want to investigate a way to reuse them.” Maybe I shouldn’t reveal so much, but it’s the only way to get more.

  “I don’t see why I can’t set some aside for you,” she replies with a shrug. “If you discover any method, we can trade them officially.”

  I don’t even want to think about how much those gems would cost if they were useful. If I can repair even one, it could be a good source of income—or better yet, a way to make better equipment.

  “Personally, I’d tell you not to waste your time on that. Gems break once they completely exhaust their magic. If it’s possible to repair them, no one has found the way. And given how expensive they are, many have tried.”

  After a productive morning in the city, I ran as soon as we reached the mansion. Fred asked me about the acid on the way back, but I didn’t want to give him details about what I’m planning. He didn’t want to tell me anything about what he discussed with the guild master or the knights either.

  I grab the food I had asked to be prepared and eat it on the way to the workshop. Almost 24 hours have passed since I left the punch to cool. This is the most critical moment of the entire process. The tempering.

  I tremble with contained excitement, nerves, and fear all at once. Whether it goes well or not, it’s the first time I temper a tool.

  The forge is completely out when I arrive, but that was to be expected. It hurts to light it just for this, but I need to heat the punch.

  Before starting, I make sure I have everything ready for the fifth time. I really only need the punch, the tongs, and a barrel of water, but I’m so nervous my hands are sweating inside the gloves. I don’t want to make any mistakes.

  I make sure to heat the fire well, patiently. When I’m completely certain it has reached the right temperature, but the flame isn’t white yet, I carefully insert the tip of the punch. The tip is the only part that gets tempered, to prevent the structure from becoming too brittle.

  I check the color every so often. It’s the only way to know when it’s ready for quenching.

  “Don’t crack,” I repeat over and over under my breath.

  The hiss it makes when I finally submerge it in the water is strangely satisfying, but my mind won’t be at ease until I see the result. When I pull it out and see it, my heart feels like it’s racing a mile a minute.

  I don’t waste a single second analyzing it.

  Low-Quality Punch:

  Durability: 25

  Effects: none

  I did it!

  I’ve forged my first tool. My first piece of steel. Maybe it can only be considered a partial success, but it’s still a success. That’s when I realize something I had overlooked. Several messages.

  Fire Control has increased to Level 2.

  You have reached Blacksmith Level 3.

  Basic Fire Magic has increased to Level 1.

  I stare at the message.

  Did blacksmiths learn fire magic?