CHAPTER 818: CHAPTER 818 - A LECTURE ON WEAPONS

Zohran, who carried his double sabres on his back, pulled one from its sheath to inspect it closely. "What do you mean... they’ve degraded?" he asked sceptically. "I’ve been using these since Zahra allowed me and Nasir to pick a weapon from the pile. They certainly don’t feel degraded!"

Nasir, who usually clutched his spear in one hand at all times, keeping it by his side, inspected his weapon as well, a focused frown across his brow.

Erik smirked and shook his head. "Of course they don’t," he stated calmly, and walked over to a nearby table holding several weapons. Casually, he picked up a random sword and gave it a few swings. The weapon’s dangerous edge sliced through the air and produced a clear, crisp sound as aetherium thrummed around it.

One thing was obvious to anyone: this sword was dangerous and ready to be wielded.

With a look of professional awe, Erik then palmed the edge in his other hand to inspect it with a gentle smile.

"These weapons are of stunning quality, and definitely fashioned from high-rank materials that I couldn’t even dream of adding to my forge yet," he muttered softly, desire spilling from his lips. "They were certainly both wielded and created by people far more powerful than any of us."

His words drew the curiosity from everyone in the room, as even Zahra looked up from her thoughts. Elora, having recovered from her disappointment, smiled lightly at the look in Erik’s eyes. She already knew what he was going to say, but, like anyone in love, she enjoyed listening to her partner talk about something he was passionate about.

Sliding his finger almost lovingly across the metal, Erik continued.

"Materials like these wouldn’t degrade with the mere passage of time," he muttered on. "They will remain sturdy and sharp for aeons, if not indefinitely..."

Then, he sighed regretfully. "Unfortunately, while high-ranking materials are crucial to creating a powerful weapon, they have very little direct impact on that power."

He gave the weapon a few more swings as the room hung on his lips. "A weapon’s true power comes from the runes and sigils inscribed into the metal during the forging process. The materials used need to be of high rank to withstand and properly channel the aetherium these runes and sigils require. Endurance, as well as several affinity-specific properties, are merely useful by-products."

He swung the sword in the direction of Zohran and Nasir, using it to point at them with a slight smirk. "That’s why they feel fine to use, and even ’are’ fine to use. What’s degraded isn’t the materials, but the runes and sigils giving them their power."

Flourishing the sword one last time, he put it back on the table and looked around the grand hall and armoury. "We don’t yet know how these cities appeared exactly, or where they’ve been since our planet was cut off from aetherium, but wherever they were, I doubt it had any more aetherium than the world did. It’s this lack of aetherium that mainly degraded them."

Finally, he sighed and shrugged while slotting his hands in his pockets. "Anyway, it’s a blessing and a curse. As a smith myself, I hate seeing these marvels of weaponry like this, but the fact that they’ve degraded is also the only reason we can even wield them effectively. Perhaps the ancients foresaw this?"

Now enlightened, Nasir and Zohran looked at their weapons with much deeper respect and awe than before.

Meanwhile, Astrid came up to him, one hand stroking her chin, the other resting on her hips. "Could you repair them?" she asked, curiously.

"At some point, probably," he nodded, smiling as he pulled Astrid closer. "For now, though, absolutely not. Wouldn’t even want to, as then we’d be unable to use them again. With a little bit of luck, I might figure out a way to repair them slowly, basically upgrading their rank one step at a time. That way, we’d be able to use them until they reach their maximum."

Astrid cheekily grinned up at him. "Heh, well, I’d much prefer to wield the weapons you made for me."

Chuckling, Erik bends down to kiss her. "And I’d much prefer making them from scrap for you! The difference would be negligible, anyway. Especially for you as a Runebound."

That comment caused Zahra to cock an eyebrow and step closer. After getting pulled from her thoughts, she seemed ready to enter the conversation. "Why does it matter that she’s a Runebound? Aren’t these weapons for Runebound, anyway?"

Erik looked at her and blinked. Then, he looked enlightened and chuckled. "Ah! I hadn’t even considered the fact that you were still weaponless despite this place." He shook his head. "No, weapons are absolutely useful for Arcanists, as well—just in a different capacity."

Zahra looked surprised. Could she have been using a weapon all this time, she wondered?

"Runebound use weapons largely in what, to us, is the traditional way," Erik continued with a shrug, still hugging Astrid closer to him. "But Arcanists are a little different. For them, weapons can be used to channel and increase their power."

"They do use them to clash physically as well, but..." a deep rumble left his throat as a chuckle as his powerful muscles rolled across his naked chest, "...but that would be inadvisable when facing a Runebound."

Then, deflating a little, he added wryly. "Except for these confessors, and whatever they’ve done to their bodies."

"So I could have been using a weapon from this place all this time...?" Zahra muttered, utterly perplexed. She turned to Kara. "Why didn’t you tell me?"

Blinking innocently, Kara cocked her head. "I’m sorry, Mistress. You never asked." She actually sounded apologetic, but Zahra could only groan a little. Somehow, now that she’d been forced to realise the truth, Kara’s lack of sentience became all the more glaringly obvious.

Suddenly, Emma, who’d been silently observing as she did most of the time, walked up next to Erik as she looked around hopefully. "Do you think... There could be something for me and Big Em here, Master?" she asked, curiously.

Before he could even answer, she quickly blushed and looked at him. "N— Not I would prefer it over a weapon you made, Master, but—!"

"Hehe, I know," Erik chuckled, grabbing her head to kiss her forehead. "I’d also love to create weapons for you and your sister, but we don’t have any light- or dark-materials to use. Material choice is less important for Runebound, since weapons mostly just need to hack and slash, but for Arcanists, material choices are crucial. Without the right material, your spell won’t just not be any more powerful, they might even be weaker."

Now, he looked around the room. "As for finding something for you here... There’s only one way to find out."