With Fio hurrying out of the door frame's view to avoid being trampled, Zalroth and Nagami came tumbling down the two-stepped stairs into the forge. Narrowly missing the fleeing Fio, Zalroth caught himself from falling, employing the use of his Particle Warp Ability to do so, before reaching out a leg to block Nagami from falling on her face.

  "Phew, almost had an embarrassing introduction," Nagami jokingly remarked as Zalroth pushed her up straight. Peering back at the drape dividing the storefront from the forge, Zalroth murmured under his breath, "Well, she sure was forceful there."

  "Can't really blame her. If I were forced to do something I found boring, I wouldn't want to go to a place known for it neither," Nagami mentioned without a hint of guilt in her cheeky voice. Fio straightened out her dress, restoring it to a professional standard as she approached the short staircase. Placing the last of his smithing tools on their racks, the old man snuffed out the embers of his furnace with a simple flick of his wrist.

  "They're getting younger every year," Fio's grandfather remarked, noting the youthfulness of Zalroth and Nagami's voices. The old man's height easily eclipsed Zalroth's, reaching over eight feet in height, catching Nagami by surprise.

  (Reino Smith is a really tall, seventy-four-year-old human male; he has spikey, slightly greyed blond hair, hazel eyes, a muscular frame, and tanned skin)

  (Reino is wearing heat-resistant clothing, a fireproof blacksmithing apron, and anti-fogging goggles)

  "Woah, I didn't think anyone other than Ardentus could be taller than you, Zalroth," Nagami said teasingly, scooting closer to the guy to emphasise her statement. Zalroth rolled his eyes with disinterest, placing a finger against the teaser's forehead before gently pushing her away from himself and sliding her across the floor.

  "So, my gram-baby says you have an armoured swarmer you wish to sell," Reino asked cheerfully through his gruffy voice, while Fio blushed embarrassingly at her grandfather's nickname for her. But, when the man turned his focus to the new arrivals, his eyes lit up with intrigue not too dissimilar to how Fio's had moments prior.

  But unlike his granddaughter, the guy was more than capable of holding back his excitement for such a fine piece of craftsmanship. Raising a fist to his mouth, He lightly coughed to dispel his excitement.

  "You going to show the creature's body now?" Fio asked impatiently, getting increasingly agitated with every passing second that the sight of the monster corpse was withheld from her.

  "In here?" Nagami and Zalroth asked together, whilst Zalroth peered around the moderately large forge. He figured the blacksmith had some idea in mind, but Zalroth knew how impractical even the smallest of the armoured swarmer's bodies would be to bring out in the room. The duo's response appeased the tall blacksmith before he crossed his arms, followed by Fio mimicking him.

  "The fact you're worried about it fitting in my workshop proves you've actually seen one in person and not just from a textbook," Reino stated boldly, raising a hand to pat Zalroth on the shoulder. Turning his gaze to the forge's back door, the seasoned Smith added, "So why don't we head out back so I can give you a price estimation."

  Out behind Golemight Smithy, the four walked out into Reino's backyard, well what could be considered one given the state it was in. The concrete that covered the ground was dented and scratched to oblivion for countless years of weapon testing that's attacks missed the many target dummies, targets, and standing walls. Sauntering to the most open and empty section of the testing grounds, Reino gestured to the spot he'd like the monster to be put, and Zalroth nodded as he opened his inventory screen. With a single tap of a filled inventory slot, the corpse of an armoured swarmer spontaneously appeared, filling the once-empty spot before the two Smiths could even realize it was there.

  "Woah, that was fast, there wasn't even a swoosh, flash, or a portal thingy!" Fio exclaimed excitedly, springing from her spot and circling the monster corpse to see it from all angles. Crouching down to inspect the armoured swarmer, Reino employed his Item Inspect Skill to begin his inspection. His eyes widened momentarily with respect-filled shock, but he cleared his throat to reset his demeanor before mentioning, "You must be a high-ranking adventurer to have taken down one of these and have it in such pristine condition."

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  "Actually, this is our first time leaving our... well, I suppose you could call it a village, though it wouldn't show up on any maps," Nagami remarked casually, only realising the mistake she had made too late as she noticed the perplexed look in Fio's eyes.

  "Wait, so you're not adventurers?" Fio asked disappointedly; however, her disappointment quickly turned into excitement upon realizing that it made Zalroth more of a Hero since he didn't fight for money or fame. Noticing her blunder, Nagami raced to think of a cover-up before something came to mind.

  "We're... actually on our way to get our... fightery people can get registered at a city? You know, given this is our first time out of our village," Nagami explained, lying on a technicality since that was her reason for tagging along in the first place.

  "So you like, fight strong monsters for fun?" Reino asked, with his tone being surprisingly unsurprised.

  "I certainly don't, but I can think of a few who'd fit that description, right, Zalroth?" Nagami teased as Zalroth rubbed his eyes at recognising how bizarre he would appear to a normal person. Seeing the male teen's response to that particular tease, Reino felt a wave of relief wash over him. The seasoned blacksmith felt respect and pride for Zalroth that he was self-aware and even embarrassed at such a title, unlike some people the old blacksmith had seen recently.

  "That description fits perfectly for a couple of people from the Xelphis Empire that visited my store a few days back," Reino grumbled under his breath as he rose to his feet.

  "Is that so?" Zalroth asked awkwardly, still thinking about how he'd present himself in the future to avoid such a description from becoming widespread.

  "Yeah, they were a bunch of pretentious pr...," Rieno said before catching himself mid-sentence, before he spoke improperly in front of Fio. Scoffing in disappointment and pointing to the armoured swarmer, he continued, "They were a bunch of brats, throwing their weight around like they could beat one of these guys."

  "But they couldn't even hold a sword correctly, let alone be qualified to wield any super-grade weapon. Like Madam Nagami's Kotatsugami here," Rieno mentioned. Zalroth requested that Nagami not be referred to by any honourable title, otherwise it would go to her head, and Zalroth wouldn't hear the end of her bragging.

  "You can tell it's rarity from a glance... oh wait, you're also a blacksmith, and hey!" Nagami muttered before exploding into an embarrassed shout, briefly forgetting she was in a world that functioned like a videogame.

  Getting back on topic, Reino examined the armoured swarmer one final time to get a price evaluation.

  "Given the amount of raw iron that can be turned into fair quality, thanks to the lack of damage, I would price this at eight thousand Hexuno," Reino stated pragmatically while pointing out the clean since on the armoured swarmer's neck.

  [changed mid to fair since it fit better]

  "Ah," Zalroth and Fio said emotionlessly, both equally unsure how much that was even worth, with Zalroth more focused on converting the value into an Earth currency.

  "You lot really must live in the middle of nowhere to have that kind of reaction," Reino remarked amusedly.

  "Gramps, how many bread loaves is that?" Fio asked puzzledly as she tried to visualize the amount. Mentally, Nagami was screaming like a football fan after their favourite team won a game, extremely grateful for the young Fio's question and saving her from the embarrassment of having to ask a similar question herself.

  "Huh... let me think, at least more than two," Reino replied, struggling to keep a straight face as he saw the growing frowns on the two girls' faces. Nagami huffed disapprovingly, finding the notion that dad jokes exist even in a fantasy world disheartening. But, as she turned to ask Zalroth something, Nagami's frown turned into an offended upside-down U of disgust.

  "Oh, come on. Of all the jokes, that's the one to make you laugh?" Nagami whined at having the displeasure of seeing such a bad joke put a crooked grin on Zalroth's face when she'd tried so many others over the years.

  "Say, do you got any more of those stormers?" Fio asked cheerfully as she grabbed Zalroth's arm, tugging at it to bring the guy back to his senses.

  "Huh? Yeah, like six armoured and... at least... two-," Zalroth managed to say seriously before getting clocked on the dome by Nagami, which ticked him off even if it didn't hurt, as a digital red zero appeared by his head. "-hundred."

  Glancing down at the ground, the three others watched Nagami roll around on the ground like a rolling pin getting caught in a thunderstorm, clenching her wrist while constantly mouthing out silent, "Ow."s.

  [Fio Smith][Level: 4]

  [HP: 10][Hexa: 10]

  [Class: Blacksmith]

  [Vitality: 1][Stamina: 5]

  [Attack: 1][Hexa Proficiency: 15]

  [Defence: 1][intelligence: 1]

  [Agility: 3][Speed: 1]

  [Reino Smith][Level: 50]

  [HP: 250][Hexa: 350]

  [Class: Elite Blacksmith]

  [Vitality: 25][Stamina: 45]

  [Attack: 1][Hexa Proficiency: 45]

  [Defence: 45][intelligence: 35]

  [Agility: 50][Speed: 12]