CHAPTER 74: VULCANUS DOMAIN

Vulcanus stepped back and crossed his arms. "The first rune is JUR. It means Binding. Once activated with your mana, it causes chains to sprout from the wounds of whatever you cut. The more cuts, the stronger the binding."

He pointed to the second rune. "The second is LIQ. It transmutes your mana into flame, the chains too, if you desire. Flaming bindings that sear into flesh and tough hide alike. Keranous is gold-ranked. Reforged from scarp materials, inscribed by my hand."

Kaelor backed away, drawing a slow, horizontal slash across the air.

The air howled, literally howled, like a beast freshly gutted. The sheer weight of the sword caused a ripple in the surrounding air.

He channeled mana through his arms into the blade. For a heartbeat, nothing happened.

Then the second rune flared to life, and the entire blade erupted into fire.

Brilliant, crackling flame coursed along Keranous, the edges glowing red-hot. The sudden heat shimmered in the air, filling the forge like a dragon’s breath.

Kaelor blinked. "Why didn’t you inscribe this onto Ignis? Was it not strong enough to handle runes?"

Vulcanus shook his head slowly. "You weren’t. You had no mana back then. So I gave you a gemstone, one that could activate with your will alone. But now... you’re finally worth forging for."

Kaelor sheathed the sword into the thick scabbard Vulcanus handed him, the hiss of metal-on-leather sharp in the quiet.

Then he paused, sensing there was more.

"I have to tell you something," Vulcanus said, wiping his hands on a cloth as he turned fully toward him.

Kaelor raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

Vulcanus looked him in the eye, and for once, his tone lost its usual dryness. "Come and learn the smithing runes when you have the time. You might not believe it, but mastering them will make you a far greater fighter than any sword ever could."

"I shall. But could you step out with me?"

Vulcanus raised an eyebrow but came out of the forge with Kaelor. Kaelor pointed at the two new storey buildings beside his forge. Vulcanus forge wasn’t far from the town square and had quite the space around it because of the kind of work Vulcanus did.

Blacksmithing was quite noisy.

’System, fuse these two buildings with the forge. I want it to have the features of a forge, every inch of it.’ Kaelor had begun to see that if he made his request more direct, the system had a tendency to follow.

[200 FP deducted!]

With this gone he now had about four hundred and seventy fusion points but it was all worth it. Before his eyes, blue flames consumed the storey buildings.

The flames rose high and when the town folks saw it, they gathered, some who were working, paused, watching with rapt attention to see what would emerge.

The well cut stones and finely cut timbers nailed, tied and sealed were all uprooted by the unseen might of the system and it flung both buildings at the forge like two Titanic hands were at work.

The blue flames roared dozens of feet high and spread out swallowing an entire plot of land

The forge stood like a living monument of fire and iron. Its presence dominated the plot of land it was built on, not merely a workshop, but a smithing sanctuary sprawling across a wide courtyard, combining utility, tradition, and the brute force of creation.

The structure itself was built in a rugged L-shape, crafted from timber beams, rough-cut stone, and a thick shingle roof colored in hues of dark slate and crimson. The forge’s design was both practical and artful, shaped to allow maximum airflow and light while keeping the central furnace sheltered from wind and rain.

At its core was an open-air workspace beneath a wide, sloped roof supported by sturdy timber columns. Here, glowing embers shimmered from the massive stone hearth, its chimney rising tall like a tower, spewing thin smoke high above the rooftops. The anvil stood beneath the heart of this covered area, surrounded by barrels of tools, ingot molds, stacks of iron rods, and crates filled with rare gemstones and heaps of wrought iron.

Above the workspace, tools of the trade hung from the rafters, tongs, hammers, chisels, and bellows, each perfectly placed for speed and precision.

The right wing of the building housed the refining and smelting area, where raw ores were processed in blistering crucibles. A smaller furnace burned hotter here, used for melting specific metals for weapon forging or rune inscriptions. Behind it, storage rooms, made to be packed with metal bars, ancient blueprints, and enchanted smithing implements.

To the left of the central forge lay the armory extension, a well-organized space where completed weapons and armor were displayed not for sale, but for testing and review.

A small, raised stone platform sat at the edge of the courtyard, used for testing blades and enchantments.

At the forge’s edge stood a modest two-story structure, likely Vulcanus’ quarters and smithmaster’s records room, with narrow windows and a wooden staircase leading up to the loft. Smoke curled from its chimney, hinting at a fire that never went out.

Outside, the open space surrounding the forge was lined with worktables, anvils, water troughs, and quenching barrels. The ground was hardened and blackened, seemingly from years of molten metal splashing over it.

This forge was not merely a place of work, it was a living engine of progress. It breathed fire and exhaled iron, its heartbeat the sound of hammer ringing on steel.

[You have successfully created Vulcanus Domain, a massive workplace suited for blacksmiths. Those who work here will possess a latent ability to learn faster and minimize waste.]

[You have massively impressed Vulcanus. Loyalty increased to 85% Lord Kaelor, you have gained 1000 FP]

[Town loyalty increased to 65%]

[Total FP: 1,470]

Kaelor turned to Vulcanus, whose eyes remained fixed on the miracle before him. Though this forge was smaller than the one he once ruled, Vulcanus could feel it, without a doubt, the quality here far surpassed the old. More than that, the entire space thrummed with a will... his will.

It seeped into every corner of the forge, subtly influencing the minds of every blacksmith that would step in here. Their thoughts would flow faster, their hands would work truer. This place made them more, more focused, more inspired, more productive.

"I’ll be on my way," Kaelor said, already turning. "I’m leading an expedition into the Ivory Hills. Keraunos arrived just in time, but I’ll need more weapons. My army grows."

With that, he strode off.

Vulcanus watched him go, eyes narrowed in thought. "You are a wonder, young lord," he murmured.