Lizarius finally spoke.
"Black Iron."
Lían blinked.
"...Black Iron?"
Lizarius didn't respond.
His golden eyes remained fixed upon the rough piece of ore resting within his claw.
Within his mind—
he continued analyzing its properties.
*Earth-Grade material.*
*The Lightning Essence fused into it has altered its natural properties.*
He paused.
*If it's refine it into a weapon...*
*Its grade may increase that's in the case if it was one that knows how to create a weapon.*
Another thought surfaced.
*Though I have never forged a weapon before.*
*I could attempt to shape it directly.*
He considered the possibilities.
*That would suppress some of its properties.*
*But that's precisely what I want.*
*There is no need to create an Earth-Grade weapon for him.*
*I only need to shape it into a sword.*
*That should be sufficient.*
Lían continued staring at the ore.
Then—
his gaze shifted toward Lizarius.
"...Is it some kind of spiritual treasure?"
Lizarius nodded.
Lían hesitated.
"What are you going to do with it?"
"Create a sword."
Lían froze.
"...Create a sword?"
Lizarius gave no further explanation.
Lían's eyes widened.
"For me?"
Silence.
Lían stared at him for several moments.
"You're really going to make me a sword?"
His expression gradually brightened.
"Wow..."
His mind immediately began racing.
*Master is actually going to forge a sword for me.*
*He's making one himself.*
Lían's gaze shifted toward the rough Black Iron.
*How strong will it be?*
He quickly shook his head.
*No.*
*I can't have something too powerful.*
*That would only attract unnecessary attention.*
Meanwhile—
Lizarius continued examining the ore.
He slowly opened his jaws.
Then—
blue flames suddenly erupted from his body.
**WHOOSH!**
The entire cavern was illuminated by brilliant blue fire.
Lían's eyes widened.
"...Flames?"
The temperature around him immediately began to rise.
Yet the flames didn't spread throughout the cavern.
They remained tightly controlled around Lizarius' body, moving as though they were an extension of his will.
His golden eyes remained fixed upon the Black Iron.
Within his mind—
his thoughts remained calm.
*First.*
*I need to melt it.*
The blue flames intensified.
The Black Iron began to glow.
The faint white cracks running across its surface brightened.
Then—
the hard exterior slowly softened.
Lían stared without blinking.
"...It's melting."
The rough ore gradually collapsed inward.
Its rigid shape disappeared as the metal began transforming into a molten mass.
The glowing Black Iron continued floating before Lizarius.
He maintained the flames at a precise intensity.
Not too hot.
Not too weak.
Within his mind—
he calmly calculated the next step.
*Once it has completely melted...*
*I only need to shape it into the form of a sword.*
Time slowly passed.
The hard ore gradually became completely liquid.
The entire piece eventually melted into a single red-hot mass.
Lían stared at it in amazement.
"...It's completely melted."
He glanced toward Lizarius.
Then—
the blue flames surrounding Lizarius slowly faded.
The molten Black Iron remained suspended in the air.
Lían blinked.
"...That's it?"
Lizarius didn't respond.
He slowly descended toward the ground.
Lían instinctively took a step backward as Lizarius landed.
Then—
Lizarius' attention shifted toward the ground.
He began manipulating the earth beneath him.
Within his mind—
he calmly calculated the dimensions.
*Twelve inches.*
The earth suddenly shifted.
Soil and stone moved together as though they had become liquid.
Then—
**CRACK!**
A sword-shaped mold emerged from the ground.
It was exactly twelve inches long.
The surrounding earth hardened around it, forming a precise cavity for the molten metal.
Lían stared.
"...Wow."
His eyes widened slightly.
"This is actually pretty cool."
He examined the earthen sword mold.
Then—
his expression suddenly changed.
"...Wait."
He looked toward Lizarius.
"Don't pour it yet."
Lizarius paused.
Lían quickly continued.
"Can you make it one inch longer?"
Lizarius slowly turned his gaze toward him.
Only for a moment.
Lían immediately became startled.
"...Sorry."
He scratched the back of his head.
"I was just saying."
Within his mind—
he couldn't help but think.
*What's with that look?*
*If it's going to be my sword...*
*I should at least be allowed to give my opinion.*
Before he could say anything else—
Lizarius had already moved.
The molten Black Iron slowly poured into the hardened earthen mold.
Lían stared closely.
The red-hot metal flowed into every part of the sword-shaped cavity.
He watched without speaking.
The molten Black Iron gradually filled the entire mold.
Then—
nothing happened.
Time passed.
The brilliant red glow slowly began to fade.
The molten metal gradually cooled.
Lían remained beside Lizarius.
His eyes stayed fixed upon the forming sword.
Neither of them spoke.
They simply watched—
as the Black Iron slowly hardened within the earthen mold.
After a while—
the sword had completely cooled.
Lían tilted his head slightly.
"...It seems to have cooled, right?"
Lizarius didn't answer.
Suddenly—
the earth beneath the sword shifted.
The newly formed blade slowly lifted from the hardened mold.
Lían's eyes followed it.
The rough, unfinished sword floated quietly before Lizarius.
Lizarius raised one claw.
**Tap.**
The tip of his claw lightly touched the blade.
Lían stared.
Then—
a tiny spark of lightning appeared across Lizarius' scales.
**ZZZT.**
The spark suddenly intensified.
**BOOOOM!**
Brilliant lightning erupted around his body.
Lían's expression changed instantly.
He instinctively jumped backward.
His eyes squeezed shut.
"...What is that?!"
The intense light filled the entire cavern.
Lían raised one arm in front of his face and quickly put more distance between himself and Lizarius.
*So bright...*
The lightning crackled violently.
The cavern walls illuminated with flashes of white light.
For several moments—
Lían could barely see anything.
Then—
the brilliant light gradually weakened.
Lían slowly opened his eyes.
He cautiously looked through the gap between his fingers.
Then—
his expression froze.
"...Lightning?"
He stared at Lizarius.
"Master can use lightning?"
Lizarius didn't respond.
The lightning had already spread from his claw.
It traveled directly into the sword.
**ZZZT—!**
The entire blade became covered in crackling lightning.
White arcs crawled across its surface.
Lían stared without blinking.
The lightning intensified.
Then—
something unexpected happened.
The outer layer of the sword began to crumble.
Tiny pieces of black metal broke away.
They fell toward the ground.
**Clink.**
**Clink.**
Lían's eyes widened.
*What is happening?*
The brilliant lightning continued coursing through the blade.
The outer layer was gradually destroyed.
Yet the sword itself remained intact.
The lightning seemed to be burning away something hidden within the metal.
Lían watched in silence.
*It's changing.*
The outer layer continued breaking apart.
Piece after piece fell away.
Then—
the light slowly faded.
Silence returned to the cavern.
Lían blinked.
He stared at the sword.
The rough outer layer was gone.
What remained was a smooth, dark-black blade.
Thin white lines ran through its surface.
They resembled veins of lightning embedded within the metal itself.
Occasionally—
a tiny spark traveled through one of the white lines.
**ZZT.**
Lían's eyes slowly widened.
A smile appeared on his lips.
"...Wow."
He stared at the sword.
"It actually looks good."
He took a cautious step closer.
The sword floated silently in the air.
Its dark surface reflected the faint light of the cavern.
Those strange white veins continued pulsing softly within the blade.
Lían's eyes remained fixed upon it.
"...And those lines..."
He leaned closer.
"They're Lightning, aren't they?"
Lizarius finally nodded.
Lían's smile widened slightly.
"So the lightning didn't destroy the sword."
"It removed the impurities?"
Lizarius remained silent.
Lían took another step forward.
His gaze moved along the entire length of the blade.
"...It's completely different from how it looked before."
He reached out slowly.
His fingers approached the sword.
Then—
he hesitated.
*What if it's still dangerous?*
He glanced toward Lizarius.
"...Can I touch it?"
Lizarius said nothing.
Lían interpreted the silence as permission.
He slowly placed his hand around the hilt.
The moment his fingers closed around it—
**ZZZT!**
A tiny spark jumped across his hand.
Lían's eyes widened.
"...Ah!"
He almost released the sword.
But the spark disappeared immediately.
He stared at his hand.
Then—
at the blade.
"...That didn't hurt."
He tightened his grip.
The sword felt surprisingly light.
Lían slowly swung it through the air.
**SHH!**
The blade cut through the air with a sharp whistle.
A faint streak of white lightning followed its movement.
Lían's eyes brightened.
"...This is amazing."
He looked at Lizarius.
"Master..."
He raised the sword.
"I like it."
For once—
Lizarius' expression remained completely unchanged.
But his golden eyes quietly observed the blade.
Within his mind—
he began analyzing the result.
*The Lightning Essence has been successfully integrated.*
*The Black Iron's structure remained stable.*
*The weapon's original Earth-Grade properties have been suppressed.*
*However...*
His gaze shifted toward Lían.
*It appears the Lightning Essence is still active.*
A faint spark traveled along the blade.
**ZZT.**
Lizarius continued observing.
*Interesting.*
*The material may possess greater potential than initially calculated.*
Lían, completely unaware of Lizarius' thoughts, continued examining his new sword.
He raised it toward the cavern entrance.
"...Now I actually have a weapon."
His expression became determined.
"With this..."
He tightened his grip.
"I should be able to hunt demon beasts."
Then—
Lían glanced back at Lizarius.
"...Master."
Lizarius looked toward him.
Lían lifted the sword slightly.
"What should I call it?"
Silence.
Lían blinked.
"...It should have a name, right?"
Lizarius remained expressionless.
Lían scratched his cheek.
"Well..."
He looked at the dark blade again.
"The black metal..."
"The white lightning..."
His eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
"...Maybe I should call it..."
He paused.
Then—
a faint smile appeared on his face.
"...Thunder Vein."
The blade gave off a faint crackle.
**ZZT.**
Lían's eyes widened.
"...It sounds pretty good."
He looked toward Lizarius.
"What do you think?"
Lizarius stared at the sword.
Then—
his golden eyes shifted back toward Lían.
"..Humm."
Lían smiled.
"Then it's decided."
He raised the sword.
"From now on..."
"This is Thunder Vein."