CHAPTER 135: TESTING

"Huff! Time to craft the last one!" Adam exhaled before getting to work on his last creation for the day.

Where Lux’s wand was a creation of warmth and radiance, Blake’s was an instrument of darkness.

Adam turned to the piece of Nightshade Ebony, its blackness almost unsettling under the forge light. He ran his thumb along the grain and felt the faint pulse of dormant shadow energy. "This one’s a bit wild," he muttered. "Needs taming."

He began shaping it with heavier tools than before, chipping away excess with a dwarf-made gouge before refining it with the same razor-thin knife. His movements were slower now, deliberate, as though the wood resisted being shaped. The air seemed cooler, the forge’s light dimmer — an illusion, perhaps, or the wood’s natural aura asserting itself.

The wand took shape in a straighter form than Lux’s, with sharp, angular ridges running along its length instead of smooth spirals. Adam carved a small groove at the base, a space for the Voidglass core.

Preparing the Voidglass was the most dangerous step. Adam placed the jagged shard into a containment ring etched with runes, then began heating it in the forge’s darkest flame — a special vent that burned with blue-black fire. The crystal shifted in color, its surface swirling like ink in water. He struck it with his hammer just once, and the sound was deep, like a distant bell tolling in an abyss.

With care, he inserted the refined Voidglass into the groove at the wand’s heart, sealing it with a paste made from Shadowvine Resin — an adhesive that could only be harvested under a moonless night. The resin darkened as it hardened, binding wood and crystal into a seamless union.

To enhance the wand’s affinity for stealth and control, Adam traced Obsidian Runes into the ridges, each symbol channeling darkness more efficiently. The runes glimmered faintly with silver-violet light, only visible when viewed from the corner of the eye — an enchantment that mirrored Blake’s elusive and unpredictable nature.

Finally, he polished the wand with Black Wyvern Oil, which not only gave the wood an obsidian sheen but also repelled most magical detection spells. When he held it up, the wand seemed to disappear for a heartbeat before reappearing, as though it had slipped between shadows.

Both wands completed, Adam placed them side by side on a velvet-lined table. One radiated a soothing golden warmth, the other exuded a cold, silent weight. Two opposites, crafted in the same forge, by the same hands, yet meant for wielders as different as night and day.

But there was still one last step.

"Time for the final touches!"

Adam took a deep breath and extended his hands over the creations. His mana stirred, the Law of Earth wrapping around his arms like molten stone. "May your strength never fail," he intoned. "May your bond with your wielders be true."

Golden runes swirled around Lux’s wand, settling into the spiral grooves. Dark silver runes coiled around Blake’s wand, seeping into the ridges. Both wands pulsed once with light — one bright, one dim — before settling into stillness.

The forge was quiet now, save for the faint hiss of cooling metal and the gentle crackle of embers. Adam leaned back against the wall, his breathing slow, his face damp with sweat. His arms ached, his fingers throbbed, but his eyes... his eyes were bright with pride.

Five weapons.

Five masterpieces polished to the limit of his current skill’s level.

One for the Dragon who overexerted himself beyond reason.

One for the Princess who fought even with an arm lost.

One for the frost-born Khione, calm yet deadly.

One for the Saint whose light healed and guided.

One for the Raven whose darkness devoured the battlefield.

Adam packed the wands carefully into separate velvet cases, labeling each with the name of its intended wielder. Soon, they would awaken, and when they did, they’d find not only weapons — but a piece of Adam’s own resolve, forged into every grain, every rune, every inch of steel, wood, and crystal.

He exhaled deeply, wiping his brow with the back of his gloved hand. "Aye... now I’ve done all I can. The rest... the rest is up to them."

And for the first time in days, the dwarf prince allowed himself to leave the forge, his heavy boots echoing against the stone floor, carrying him toward the quiet of his quarters. Behind him, the twin wands rested in the forge’s glow — one bathed in light, the other cloaked in shadow — waiting for the hands they were destined for.

•••

The forge’s heat still clung to Adam’s skin as he stepped out, a towel slung over his shoulder, crumbs of bread still lingering on his beard from his hurried lunch. The rhythmic pounding of other smiths’ hammers echoed in the distance, but here, in the heart of the testing grounds, all was quiet—at least for now.

The testing area was massive, built like an arena. The floor was reinforced obsidian laced with magic inscriptions to prevent damage from high-tier combat. The walls were thick, embedded with shimmering runes that absorbed and diffused destructive force.

Above, instead of a simple ceiling, a wide dome glowed with a pale golden light, its enchantments creating a sky-like illusion. In the very center of the arena, a summoning array lay dormant, its silver lines etched deep into the stone.

Adam carried Nero’s new sword in his right hand. It was a masterpiece—black steel forged from dark steel and mithril, the edge shimmering faintly as though the blade itself was breathing. Its balance was perfect; even the weight distribution spoke of care and precision.

A low hum vibrated under his boots as he approached the control pillar at the edge of the arena. He placed his hand on the crystal embedded in its top.

"Testing mode," he muttered. "Target: Golem horde. Tier... let’s say intermediate to start."

The runes on the floor flared to life. The summoning array pulsed, lines shifting as if alive, and then—KRRRRRSHHHH!—stone burst upward. Ten golems emerged, their bodies carved from reinforced obsidian and veins of glowing prana crystal. Some carried greatswords, others massive shields, while a few in the back clutched staves etched with magical runes.

Adam stepped forward, rolling his shoulders.

"Alright... let’s see if this sword lives up to what I think it can do."

One of the sword-wielding golems stomped forward, each step shaking the ground. It swung down in a heavy arc, the sheer force of the blow enough to shatter unreinforced stone. Adam met the attack head-on, raising the blade—and with a small grunt, he let his Law of Earth flow into it.

The moment the two blades met, a dull BOOM rang out, the shockwave sending dust swirling. Adam’s feet didn’t budge; instead, the golem’s sword cracked along its edge.

"Good... not a dent." He smirked.

The golem pulled back, but Adam was already moving. His strikes were efficient, each swing clean and precise. Despite not using the Law of Fire like Nero, Adam made full use of Gravity Manipulation. With a flick of his wrist, gravity intensified around the nearest golem, forcing it to its knees. One smooth horizontal slash followed, cleaving it cleanly in two. The sword’s edge barely slowed.

The backline mage golems began chanting, their staves glowing with elemental runes. Bolts of fire, arcs of lightning, and shards of ice shot toward Adam in a relentless barrage.

He spun the sword in his grip and stabbed it into the ground.

"Gravity Well."

The air warped instantly. The magical projectiles bent off course, dragged into the sword’s gravitational pull and crushed into harmless bursts of light. The arena floor beneath the well cracked in spiderweb patterns, dust rising in a halo around him.

He pulled the sword free and dashed forward—his short dwarf legs moving faster than expected thanks to bursts of earth magic beneath his boots. A shield-bearing golem moved to block him, but Adam’s strike didn’t aim for brute force. Instead, he let gravity guide the blow downward, so heavy that the shield sank into the golem’s own arm. One follow-up slash sheared the construct’s head clean off.

The sword performed flawlessly.

As the last golem fell into rubble, the summoning array pulsed again.

"Round two," Adam muttered. "Advanced tier."

This time twenty golems appeared, each one faster, stronger, and far more coordinated. Several knight golems formed a frontline, while the mages prepared more complex spells—multi-layered constructs of fire and wind, or water and lightning.

The first wave hit hard. Adam was forced on the defensive, his sword ringing with each block. He reinforced his stance with earthen pillars that rose from the floor, redirecting heavy blows. The sword cut through enchanted stone with ease, its durability unmatched.

When two mage golems combined their spells into a swirling vortex of lightning and ice, Adam charged straight into it, gravity magic shielding him by condensing the air around his body into an invisible armor. He emerged from the storm with his beard dusted in frost, swinging the blade in a wide arc that sent three golems tumbling.

The fight dragged on for nearly half an hour, but Adam’s grin only grew wider. When the final golem’s core shattered under his blade, he rested the sword on his shoulder, nodding in satisfaction.

"This one’ll do, Nero."

He walked to the weapon rack on the side of the arena and carefully placed the sword down before grabbing Elreth’s spear. Its shaft was made from reinforced hardwood infused with mithril filaments, while the blade gleamed silver-white with a razor tip. Balanced perfectly for both thrusting and sweeping attacks, it was a weapon made for speed and precision.

"Alright, let’s see how you dance."

The summoning array lit up again. This time, Adam requested aerial golems—floating constructs of stone and crystal with bladed wings and ranged energy cannons.

The first dove toward him at blistering speed. Adam twirled the spear in his hands and struck upward. The tip met the golem’s wing, slicing through it cleanly as sparks erupted. He spun the spear behind him, using the shaft to block another strike before slamming the butt end into the ground.

"Pillar Rise!"

A massive spike of stone erupted beneath two incoming golems, sending them smashing into the dome ceiling. Adam then hurled the spear—his Law of Earth guiding it mid-flight—to impale a distant mage golem. The weapon returned to his hand in a smooth arc, pulled by magnetic-like gravity control.

With the spear, Adam moved faster, weaving between enemies and striking in fluid motions. The weapon’s durability was tested against high-speed collisions, magical blasts, and even when clashing tip-to-tip with another spear-wielding golem. It passed every test flawlessly.

Next came Khione’s wand—crafted from ancient frostwood with a mithril core. While Adam was no mage, he could channel elemental force through it with enough finesse to mimic basic spells. He tested its durability by channeling pure Earth Law through the wand, firing compressed rock projectiles at armored golems. Despite the recoil, the wand remained unblemished, the mana flow steady.

Finally, he picked up the last two creations: Lux’s wand, crafted for precision spellwork, and Blake’s wand, forged to handle overwhelming mana surges without cracking. He summoned more advanced mage-type golems for these tests, letting them duel him at range. Every blast, parry, and redirection of magic only proved that the weapons could channel raw elemental power without losing efficiency.

By the time Adam had tested all five weapons, the arena floor was littered with shattered stone, glowing cores, and scorch marks. His arms ached, sweat rolled down his face, and his lungs burned—but his grin was wide.

He wiped his brow, looked at the weapons lined up before him, and nodded in satisfaction.

"They’re ready... and when they wake up, they’ll fight with weapons worthy of their names."

The golden dome’s light dimmed, the runes cooled, and Adam gathered the creations with the same care a father would give his children, ready to deliver them when the time came.