The Legend of the Meta-Defying Smith Who Saved the Kingdom

Author's note: The Steward's personal journal was largely overlooked as a document of historical significance, owing mainly to the text predominantly being occupied with concerns about his younger sister. However, upon examination in the University of Cordova archives, where it was discovered only recently after having been misfiled, it sheds much light on the Steward's motivations and why the Legendary Smith was permitted to walk unescorted in the city streets.

Editor's note: It is tragic that the Steward's journal was lost, likely destroyed, in the Year of Dissolution that saw much of Cordova razed.

The Steward looked across the table at the Smith.

He felt his already poor opinion of the boy sink even further.

He had a hundred and one things that needed to be done now that they had returned to the capital. Suero himself, his Lord, had been in meeting after meeting without break, and that was just within the Knights Order. Suero was relying on Sebastian to go into the city and collect vital information, changes in the political and business landscape, as well as purchase necessary furnishings and confirm that the web of debts Suero had created was in good order, and deal with whatever had come up in the intervening two years.

Sebastian also had to check in on his little sister, whom by now he hadn't seen in over one hundred weeks.

It had been the hardest thing Sebastian had ever done in his life, to leave his sister behind while he went with his Lord out to the frontier, so that his Lord could obtain the Elixir.

Upon transfer to the frontier, and every second year thereafter, a Knight would receive a vial of precious Elixir directly from the Royal Family. Both as protection for their lives, but also as something of an encouragement for Knights to volunteer for the duty, rather than just staying put in the capital or their hometowns.

Two years of his Lord's effort, and his own separation from what mattered most to him, had been spent on a foreigner boy; found nearly dead, carrying stolen goods, who had attacked his Lord on sight.

Suero had assured him it was all part of the plan, the night he had returned. The boy had to be some kind of master Enchanter, because of the armor he had been wearing and the hammer he was wielding. The hammer, especially, had intrigued the Adventurers who had been part of the expedition Suero was leading in the mountains. According to them, it was solidly in the intermediate level of enchantments, while the armor was certainly at the advanced level.

It turned out they were mistaken. An enchanter in Corto had confirmed they were basic enchantments, though unusually strong.

And then at the boy's trial, his insults to the Magistrate had nearly gotten him executed on the spot. The sheer insolence of the boy had been galling, and then the Head Priest had confirmed the boy's Classes and Levels.

Smith and Enchanter, both level sixteen.

Astounding.

The Enchanter they had consulted in Corto had been level nine, midway through his career. Of course, it was only natural for an Enchanter working on the frontier to be a lower level than the Enchanters of the capital. But Enchanters of the boy's level in the Capital were renowned experts, simply unavailable for commission by individuals as they often worked on projects for the Royal Family.

Suero and Sebastian had tried and failed to hire one of them, before Suero decided to seek Elixir.

So why had such a high level Enchanter been wearing junk armor, with basic enchantments, and nearly dead when chanced upon?

That had been revealed while Sebastian drove the carriage, grinding his teeth.

[Forging] at level five. [Basic Elemental Enchanting] at level seven.

Not a single Skill even matched his Class level, let alone exceeded it.

And he claimed to have slain a dragon!

Suero had spent an inordinate amount of time assuring him that although the boy was unskilled, that he would be worth it. As a retainer, it was Sebastian's error to take up so much of his Lord's time on his own concerns.

But…!

Two entire years, the precious Elixir, spent on this… coward.

Sure, Cordova had some areas that were less safe than others. But Sebastian had grown up on these streets. They were generally very safe. At worst, James might get harassed; jeered at, perhaps. Nothing to justify the terror in the boy's eyes across the table.

His younger sister was brave enough to walk the streets unescorted, even before her Choosing Day.

There was so much to do tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that… Meetings, purchases, and checking on his sister. He didn't have time to hold his fellow retainer's hand all day.

The Steward sighed and pinched his nose. "Yes, James, by yourself."

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"That's—"

"James." The Steward clasped his hands in front of himself and set them on the table. "I simply do not have time to babysit you all day while you receive training. As a retainer, you cannot shirk your duties out of fear."

He was careful not to actually call the boy a coward to his face.

"But!"

"But what? James, I grew up in this city. It's more than safe enough. Just a simple walk from here down to the Guild district, and back. I'm not asking you to visit Saint Alejandro's district."

Sebastian would be going there himself, later this week.

The Smith closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and his hands stopped trembling. He reopened them to meet the Steward's gaze.

"You may have grown up in this city, but I grew up in my village and I still got abducted. It's not a matter of how safe or dangerous an area is. Going out by myself is a bad idea. If I had just let my mother escort me, back then…"

The Steward scoffed. "This, from a dragon-slayer?" He couldn't help it. When he thought of his precious little sister walking the streets alone, compared to this young man…

James narrowed his eyes, frowning. His right hand clenched, as it often did when the dragon was mentioned. "I was wearing armor and wielding just the right hammer for that situation, and it still nearly cost me my life, and everything." He paused, and in that moment Sebastian wondered. He had only seen the boy after the Elixir had been administered, and had a hard time imagining the man in front of him missing one arm, and with the other hand ruined from frostbite.

The Smith's eyebrows raised, and he continued. "How about this: I'll get some of my armor and a couple hammers out of the magic bag. At the very least, I won't get taken out in one hit." The way he had been by the river of his village, by the bandit he had never seen coming.

The Steward shook his head. "No, that's out of our hands. The Bag of Holding is to remain sealed until our Lord has time to sell off the contents and return it to the Royal Family. I couldn't allow it if I wanted to."

James furrowed his brow. "Then, perhaps I could borrow some armor, and a hammer? Or make my own set?"

Now Sebastian frowned. "Absolutely not. We cannot shame our Lord by walking around wearing junk, advertising your incompetence to the entire city."

"And I suppose me getting abducted is less shameful?"

Sebastian's hands clenched, and his [Intimidation] flared for a moment before he got it under control. He had been surprised that his Butler class was able to get the Skill, in addition to his Pugilist class, and the Synergy Skill had proven very useful over the last several decades.

The boy across from him paled even as Sebastian regained control of his emotions.

"You will need to learn to watch your tongue, now that you are a retainer to a Knight, Smith."

Sebastian stood, having wasted enough time with this conversation. There was much he needed to do tonight, as well.

"In the morning, I will walk with you to the Smithing Guild, and in the afternoon I will return and bring you back here to the Knights Order Headquarters. If you can't manage to control your fear even just at the Smithing Guild alone, then we will need to have a discussion with our Lord. Understood?"

James, still pale, nodded.

Sebastian turned on his heel and left. His Lord's chambers would need to be swept for traps, cleaned properly, the bed made, and so much more before he could turn to his own chambers.

In the morning, after a scant few hours of sleep, Sebastian arrived to find the Smith ready to go, and they quickly made their way out of the Knights Order Headquarters, across to the main street, and down the slope to the Guild district. There he watched the Smith enter the building and then hurried on to his first stop, the Merchant's Guild. Both to gather information and confirm the favors his Lord owed and was owed with the various businesses in the capital, but also to check on his little sister, who was employed by Madame Swandeen. The owner of a trading firm had employed his sister as a favor to Suero, and with his Lord's help, she had grown the company and was herself now an executive of the Iberteria Merchant's Guild.

Eliza, his sister, was alive and well. Thriving, even.

His concerns about his fellow retainer were swiftly pushed to the back of his mind.

It was only when, two hours into a thirty-minute meeting with the head Attendant and head Accountant of House Sanchez, and a servant entered the room to light candles as the sun fell blow the city walls, that Sebastian recalled the Smith. The head Attendant was wasting his time on purpose, arguing over nonsense regarding a loan that had already been repaid, which would inevitably require arbitration by the city Magistrate.

The Steward wasn't too worried. Even if House Sanchez had somehow corrupted the current Magistrate, he kept extremely detailed records and receipts on his Lord's behalf. And his Lord's finances were handled by the Royal Bank via the Merchant's Guild, neither of which House Sanchez had the ability to influence in the slightest.

All this because his Lord had been promoted ahead of Sir Sanchez.

It was another hour, well past dark, when dinnertime had freed him from the interminable argument over terms of the loan long since repaid and pressure to sign a new loan to 'sweep this all under the rug.'

Sebastian sighed as he walked through the dark streets. The street boys were out, leaning against walls with their hands in their pockets, smoking their little cigarillos, but a sharp glance was more than enough to keep them minding their own business. Most Knights didn't have half the social life and entanglements that his Lord did, but they also didn't promote as fast as he did.

If only his Tournament performance had been better, they wouldn't have to deal with so much petty harassment. It was an apparent weakness that all the back-biters latched onto.

The Steward's ruminations abruptly halted when he arrived at the Smithing Guild, windows dark, long since closed.

He wasn't too worried. The cowardly Smith had probably just gotten tired of waiting and walked back to the Knights Order Headquarters on his own.

Still, he did hasten his pace. The sooner he got back to his Lord, the sooner they could plan to deal with House Sanchez.

It was only when he met his Lord exiting the Knights Order and heading for the main street that he became concerned. The Aspirant Knight was wearing his dress uniform, the one for formal events, and he stopped when he recognized the Steward.

"Come with me," he ordered with a grim expression. "The Smith has been arrested."