NOVEL NEXT Chapter 181: Weapons with Durandal Attribute~
" ... " Faced with the city's strongest smith, Finn was left speechless.
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"By the way, Tsubaki. The 'Durandal' equipment you prepared, it's about time you showed us too."
"Hah, I've been waiting for those words! I've carried them all this way, so I'll hand them over now."
Even equipment with the "Durandal" or "Indestructible" property would lose sharpness after frequent use, so when they first entered the dungeon, Tsubaki didn't give it to them right away, but only took it out now.
Tsubaki stood up, called Finn, Gareth, Riveria and the others into the tent, and laid a huge bundle on the ground.
One by one, finely crafted weapons were revealed before everyone's eyes.
"The Roland Series, five in total, all of them third-tier weapons with the 'Durandal' attribute."
Fron, Ais, Riveria, and Lefiya stood nearby, carefully examining these special weapons known as the [Roland Series].
"A full series, huh? As expected of the city's strongest blacksmith."
Tsubaki tilted her head, smiling at Fron:
"Fron, I heard you can forge first-tier special weapons too? And not only that, you combined 'Smithing' and 'Mystery' to create a never-before-seen staff-lance with the 'Durandal' property. Is that true?"
"Uh, just luck, pure luck. Since my combat style is a bit unusual, I made something tailored for myself."
"Tch, being too humble is just annoying, man!"
"..." Faced with Tsubaki's overwhelming aura, Fron quickly raised his hand and laughed awkwardly.
"Well, if you insist on saying I'm an excellent smith, then I'll gladly accept the compliment."
"That's better. For us blacksmiths, the most important thing is confidence! Only with confidence can the weapons we forge reach even greater heights. Remember that, kid!"
"Y-yes, I'll keep that in mind!"
"Ahem. Tsubaki, thank you. Honestly, these weapons are perfect."
Finn tested a silver spear before resting it on his shoulder. Beside him, Gareth picked up the double-bladed axe with the "Durandal" property and weighed it in his hands.
"Didn't expect a 'Durandal' weapon to be this light. Better than I thought."
"But, but… there's no giant double-blade I ordered."
At that, Tsubaki shrugged:
"Ah, that one was impossible. If I spent all my time making something that extravagant, I wouldn't have had time to forge the rest. So make do with this great sword for now."
Hearing this, Fron nearly burst out laughing.
Tiona, the weapon-destroyer, had already bled Goibniu Familia's smiths dry, and now she was giving Hephaestus Familia's blacksmiths trouble too…
"Huh? Not only did Miss Tiona change her weapon, even Tione switched to a different one! That's… a halberd?"
Trying out her new weapon, Tione looked very satisfied.
"Yeah, the monsters in the coming floors are all large types, so using larger weapons will be more convenient."
"I see."
"By the way, just so you know, because of material limitations and the added 'Durandal' property, their power isn't top-tier. But they still have at least second-tier offensive strength. In that regard, Fron's craftsmanship is actually better."
Fron's [Scholar · Argon] not only had the "Durandal" property but also powerful "Magic Conduction" and "Magic Amplification" abilities. Even with reduced raw power, its performance was at the level of first-tier weapons.
From this weapon alone, one could see the unique combination of "Smithing" and "Mystery." Even Tsubaki, the city's strongest smith, could never forge something like that!
"Well, I only got that far thanks to the convenience of having the 'Mystery' development ability."
"I told you already, stop being so humble! Having 'Mystery' itself is proof of your strength!"
"..."
After everyone finished inspecting the weapons, they returned to their seats.
Finn clapped his hands to draw attention and quiet the group.
"As planned, let me confirm again."
"Starting from the 51st floor, a special assault squad composed of selected members will carry out the 'Deep Expedition'."
"The rest of the members, along with Hephaestus Familia's smiths, will guard the camp. You must stay vigilant, absolutely no repeats of the last incident. Having suffered once already, you won't let it happen again, right?"
As the commander of the defense team, the beast-human Cruz responded with full confidence:
"Leave it to us, Captain. This time we've prepared plenty of arrows, throwing weapons, and magic swords. They won't escape alive!"
"Haha, then I'm reassured!"
"Now then… let's decide on the assault squad members."
"This time, the lineup will be led by me, Gareth, and Riveria. Then Ais, Tione, Tiona, Bete, and Fron."
These were the main forces, [Loki Familia's] top-tier adventurers.
"The supporters will be Raul, Anakitty, Elfy, Alicia, and Lefiya."
"And lastly, Tsubaki, you'll join us as equipment manager. Of course, Fron can help you lighten the load."
"Haha, the 'Deep Floors,' huh? Never thought I'd get the chance to see the sights down there. I'm super excited!"
For a member of Hephaestus Familia, exploring below the 50th floor was normally impossible, so Tsubaki couldn't hide her excitement. Though… perhaps what thrilled her wasn't the scenery, but the potential drop items from the Deep Floor monsters. What blacksmith could resist that?
Thinking back to Fron's performance in the last expedition, the expectations on him were even higher this time.
"Alright everyone, rest well tonight and conserve your strength. Dismissed!"
"Yes, sir!"
Fron downed the last of his soup, then stood and went to fetch his pack.
"Ais, hand me your [Desperate]. After cutting down so many monsters, it needs maintenance."
"Understood."
"Tiona, Tione, what about you two?"
"Well, we'll be using the Roland Series great swords against new species, but for regular monsters, [Urga] works better. So I'll leave it to you!"
Tione and Tiona also handed their weapons to Fron, then followed him to the side of the camp.
From the 50th floor's rock wall, a small stream flowed across a flat stone plate. It was one of the main reasons the team had chosen this spot to camp.