Divine Beast Ascension

Chapter 488: Rykard Willis, King Grade Smith

About five minutes passed before the receptionist approached Oli at his seat. She bowed and held out a parchment folded to be its own envelope. On the seam was a wax seal bearing Icicle Palace’s brand.

Oli accepted it with a polite bow and listened carefully to the woman’s instructions. Then, Oli departed and made his way out of the market area.

As shops and stands were replaced with homes and then gated estates, Oli could feel the class shift of the residents. This was the north side of Avalanche City, the area nearest to Permafrost Palace. Oli followed Icicle Palace’s instructions to eventually find a fairly large estate. On the front placard was the name “Rykard Willis”, proving to Oli that the address alone wasn’t exactly a secret. But Oli continued to follow instructions as he found a knocker on the front gate.

Clung, clung...

There was a strange bell-like resonance from the knocker, but it definitely did its job to alert the huge house of a new arrival. A minute or two passed by the time a casually dressed man approached the gate from the inside. “Yes, how may I help you?”

“Excuse me, but I’m seeking out Master Willis for his services, on the recommendation of Icicle Palace,” Oli recited from memory, giving a full bow while extending the folded parchment through the bars of the gate.

The man silently took the parchment and unfolded it, showing no expressions or hints of reaction. It took him a few seconds to look up and nod. “Very well. I’ll inform my master of this and return to let you in. You’ll be allowed a short visit to see whether your job will be accepted.”

.....

“Thank your very much, sir.” Oli bowed once more.

The man left at a leisurely pace, clearly not in a hurry. That time it took almost ten minutes for the man to return and open the gate. “Follow me. If my master doesn’t take kindly to you, then we’ll ask you to leave.”

“I understand.”

Oli followed him into the large home. It was the size of the old inn his team was staying at, but obviously in far better condition and crafted as a mansion. They passed the entryway and Oli was directed to a lounging area.

“Please, wait here. My master will call you in after he finishes his current business.”

“Very well. Thank you.”

The man left Oli unattended but returned with a cup of warm tea, the most common drink throughout the chilly city. However, Oli could tell from the aroma alone that there was nothing cheap about the tea, not even the cup.

So Oli patiently waited. He sipped his tea and spent his time admiring the lavish, well-decorated space. The most eye-catching thing was that a majority of the decorations had something to do with weaponsmithing. Some weapons were either hung on the wall or displayed on a self. There were also a couple of unique hammers that Oli had never seen before, each inscribed with a different complex formation.

That continued for over an hour. Oli considered cultivating while he waited, but decided against it. He didn’t want to be discourteous to someone he wanted to order from and hadn’t yet met.

“Huuuuh...” a voice sighed from down the hall, one that Oli hadn’t heard before.

A few moments later, a figure appeared from around the corner. His head was covered in shaggy brown hair and his frame was short and thin, nothing Oli had expected. Sweat stained the cheap fabric of the man’s clothes, enough for Oli’s keen sense of smell to pick up before the man was close enough to be seen.

“So, you’re the one asking for something?” asked the man, scratching his unkempt hair. “Sorry, but I don’t do dealings with anyone hiding their identity. Either ditch the mask, or I’ll have you escorted out.”

Without skipping a beat, Oli stored both the mask and the cloak. He smiled and bowed his head. “I like how straightforward you are. My name is Oliver, and it’s an honor to meet you, Master Willis.”

“No need for master this, master that. So, what do you want? And are you able to pay?” questioned the Rykard, leaning over the back of a sofa while eyeing Oli.

“It’s a long-pole axe with an ice core. I’m looking for peak-perennial grade,” stated Oli, being as clear as possible.

Rykard swayed his head up and down, side to side. It seemed as if he wasn’t fully convinced by the piece. “... Hm... I don’t know. It doesn’t sound very interesting.”

Oli smiled. From such a response, Oli could infer a lot about this strange weaponsmith. “Interesting, huh? I’ve only recently started to learn about weapons, their classifications, and such, so I’m not entirely sure what you mean by ‘interesting’. Can you elaborate, please?”

Noticing the intrigue in Oli’s eyes, Rykard shrugged and slid onto the couch. “I guess I can... By interesting, I mean something unique, something worth creating and putting my energy into...”

As Rykard paused and sighed, Oli asked, “That’s understandable... But if that’s the case, then how come you still have pieces appearing in the new moon auctions?”

Chuckling, Rykard replied, “Because I can churn out a handful in just a week, and because I already have too many in my collection. All I have to do is submit a few every month and my living expenses are more than covered. Money isn’t all that attractive anymore, so I won’t make a piece unless it’s interesting.”

“I see... I can get behind that. Doesn’t that mean I just have to make the request interesting?”

Rykard’s bored expression showed a crack as a tinge of curiosity appeared on his brow. “... How do you suggest doing that?”

Oli took a moment to readjust himself and sit up. Also, he leaned forward and eyed Rykard with a somewhat fiendish grin as an idea flashed through his mind. “So... you’re at that point as a craftsman, where it’s no longer quality or quantity that you’re chasing. You’re after creating one-of-a-kind pieces, multiple masterpieces. Is that because you’re bored, or because you’re now lacking inspiration?”