"Sorry about this guy. He can be obnoxious most of the time."

"Excuse me for that unsightly appearance… But can I meet the blacksmith?" Like a proper man, Makoto recollected himself quickly.

"I'm sorry and I cannot fulfill the dear customer's request. He is still busy working behind."

Lucy flat out rejected them without giving them any leeway with her piercing gaze. Brian could actually call Richi, but he decided to respect Lucy's wariness towards the other group.

He already knows why they headed to their blacksmith with an obvious aura coming out from them. Or to be more specific, the female elf's aura. She should be really angry to give out that kind of presence.

But that does not give them the excuse to do anything they like especially with a bad first impression. Brian wanted them to know that, and Lucy is giving it to them.

The rejection created an awkward silence before their Giant decided to leave the situation and instead, check around and see if there are anything in the blacksmith that is as good as the previous weapon he just broke. He can barely move around with his height, but thankfully the door was wide enough for him to crouch down and enter the blacksmith.

Both Makoto and the elf saw that and thought they were making quite a scene for themselves. So they followed their teammate and just look around to lessen the uncomfortable air.

"Is there any way I can try this?" The three-and-a-half-meter giant picks up a mithril hammer that was almost the same height as him.

Lucy looked over her Boss because it would be impossible for this customer to swing around the enclosed space even though it was quite spacious. They have that training dummy, but it does not accommodate people of his size.

"You need to pay first before you can take it outside. But if you're not satisfied with it, we'll return all your money as long as there are no damages on it."

Brian gladly explained to them. Seeing the random human was the one who replied, the party assumed he is someone with importance in the blacksmith.

"I've got no problems with that. I'll just be swinging it right outside so I'll be back immediately."

The giant dropped more than 3 gold and dozens of copper coins on the counter. Paia seems interested in counting the money so Brian let her be.

His weapon testing seems to have gathered everyone's attention since all except Lucy and Paia went outside to watch him swing the gleaming hammer.

"One…! Two…! HEAVY SMASH!"

He said heavy smash but did not smash the ground or anything in consideration that he still has not decided to buy it or not. However, after another swing or two, a big smile appeared on his big and unsightly face.

"You don't need to return my money. I'll be bringing this home."

"Brother Atlas was satisfied with it? I guess the wares here are not that bad considering the cheap prices."

"Human… You're the boss here, right?"

"How did you know?" Brian was genuinely surprised when the giant patted his humongous hand on Brian's shoulder when he was heading back inside.

"I'm old enough to understand how people work. So what is this Boss name?"

"You can call me Bry… I'm glad you were happy with that."

"I'm more than satisfied."

Brian felt Atlas was someone the same as him. Someone who saw the consequences of many wars up close and have live to tell the tale. He felt he can be good friends with the giant teasing the small slime girl.

Atlas seems to be well respected within his party despite not being the leader because his purchase made the rest of them try their preferred type of weapon. Even the elf who has hers on the back picked something up. This time, they can use the training dummy feature of the shop.

"Boss Bry, can I try the Makaze?"

'At last' with a big smile, Brian replied, "Of course"

Carefully removing the treasure from the glass container, Lucy handed him the Makaze. This is the first time something was taken out of this display.

The S-grade weapon was immediately the center of attraction when it was taken out. Compared to the other things displayed in Nova Blacksmith, even if it is made out of mithril, nothing beats the mysterious and powerful existence of those at the top.

Makoto holds it like it was a treasure piercing the heaven. He then went towards the training dummy of unknown origin.

"Don't worry if you use all your strength. Neither the sword nor the training dummy will be damaged."

Makoto nodded on the advice of Brian. Accepting the challenge, he pointed the tip of the sword on the dummy's face.

*BANG* A loud clap echoed inside the blacksmith unfitting for the smooth slice a sword should produce. However, that bang did not come from the Makaze or the dummy. Instead, it was made by the hard stomp of Makoto as he slashes downwards with all his might.

One might think that people would be careful handling the blacksmith's property, but Makoto was different. Since he has already the permission, he did not hold back and use tens of tons of force on his strike.

In his mind, Makaze was already perfect for him. From the grip to its appearance, he can feel it has become a part of his body. The only thing that was stopping him is the quality. Everything would be useless if the sword in its hand cannot handle his strongest strike. It will only kill him on the battlefield.

"Ha~ There's really no damage on the dummy."

"Brother Two Horns handsome with father's sword! Brother ugly with no sword." A cute small voice gave her criticism.

"Hahaha! This adorable girl called you ugly, Makoto. You need to buy that sword because it is your makeup."

Brian smiled wryly when he heard the comments of her daughter. She was still speaking in a broken monster language, but it was enough to express her message. Fortunately, the elf finds it funny and helps mock her leader.

Makoto's pride was hurt a little bit when he saw the results of his strikes. However, it was immediately replaced by a joyful feeling when he touched the clean smooth blade of Makaze.

"I never imagined that I would see the lost swords of the past here so close by. I guess the art wasn't lost like how the records dictate it to be."

"Don't start feeling emotional. That's disgusting."

Makoto coughs at the remark of her elf teammate. That also put him back to reality and looked towards the Boss of the Blacksmith.

"I understand why your blacksmith doesn't want to show himself. Nevertheless, please tell him I am grateful to him for letting me meet my beloved partner."

"Ok…" Brian felt shivers on his back wanting to avoid any confrontation with the sword freak any further. But Brian will happily accept them since they are rich and willing to spend their gold in his place. And by rich, he means very rich.

'As expected of a famous Mithril Rank party.'

The spending of Makoto's group did not end there. The slight hesitations of his other teammates were gone, and now they swap their current damaged set of armor. They did not just replace it with a simple steel one, each one of their choices was the most or one of the most expensive ones in the shop.

Too bad they do not have anything that can fit Atlas.

Paia's eyes were glistening when she saw gold coins spread out on the counter where Lucy was stationed. She has never stopped giving them praises when they tried the things her father was selling. Her opinions seem to have affected them a bit especially the girls of their group.

Brian saw that and thought her daughter might be growing up to be someone crafty. It was a good trait for the daughter of a merchant so he did not scold her or anything. Besides, she is not saying anything that can harm.

"Thank you, Boss Bry. With this, you have saved us some time to head back to our task."

"We'll come here next time when we need repair."

Brian bid his farewell happily as he counted the profit in his thoughts. Excluding the System's share, he earned more than 60 gold today. Making his total earnings reach 300.

'There are only four more days left before the deadline. I have no choice but to tour the whole Soliel City. Hopefully, our name will spread enough.'