I'm not a goblin Frankenstein's monster.

Chapter 19: The Pet Reel and Extraterrestrial Star Iron

The female mage pursed her lips and remained silent.

Xia Lin's heart skipped a beat.

【Fellowship Scroll (Old Scroll - Autonomous Summoning)】

Made primarily from the hide of a certain monster, its magical properties have diminished due to its age, but the patterns on it remain fine and regular, subtly revealing an ancient and elegant rhythm, making it an extraordinary piece.

Effect: After use, it can summon a magical pet whose form can be selected by the summoner (common forms include cat, crow, lizard, etc.) and establish a mental connection with the user (the actual summoning effect depends on the remaining magic power of the scroll, the user's magical affinity and mental concentration).

"Thirty-five," the female mage spoke again, her voice lowered, "It can't be any less."

The shopkeeper chuckled and pushed the scroll back: "I can't accept this price." His gaze fell on the short staff at the female mage's waist, and he changed the subject, "However... if it were the wand you're holding, I might consider it."

Xia Lin followed the gaze.

The wand was no longer than a forearm, with a crystal embedded at its tip. Even without examining it, one could sense the pure magic flowing within it.

Rich people!

The female mage snatched the scroll back into her bosom: "You wish."

The deal fell through, and she turned and left, her steps somewhat hurried.

Xia Lin watched her retreating figure for a while.

That's strange. He's dressed respectably, so he shouldn't be unable to come up with even a few dozen gold coins.

The female mage Eileen breathed a soft sigh of relief as she stepped out of the shop.

She actually slipped out of the tower while her mentor was away.

Apprenticeship was so dull and boring that she longed for a real adventure, like the ones sung about in bards.

The reality is that she barely managed to scrape together the two silver coins needed to register as an adventurer, let alone afford food and lodging along the way.

That's when he thought of selling that old, unused scroll to make some money, but unfortunately the shopkeeper didn't recognize its value.

Go back? The thought had barely crossed her mind when she suppressed it.

"I'll at least complete a few decent missions before I go back," she whispered to herself. "I'll show those guys in the Tower what's what."

She gripped her staff tightly and walked towards the Adventurers' Guild.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Xia Lin left the Adventurers' Guild and turned into the street that was always filled with coal smoke and the smell of metal.

The signboard of the blacksmith shop, "Anvil and Fire," gleamed in the glow of the furnace.

Seeing Xia Lin enter, Xinda's men didn't stop: "It's you again. Did you chip the sword again, or dent the shield?"

"Yes, we have them all."

Xia Lin took off his longsword and the standard shield from his back and placed them on a stone platform to the side.

The longsword "Veteran" had several tiny chips on its blade, and the shield had a dent in the center with traces of burning along the edges.

Sinda stopped what she was doing, grabbed a cloth to wipe her sweat, walked over, picked up the shield, tapped the dent with her finger, and snorted, "The hardwood lining isn't broken, and the iron sheet is still sturdy. Just flatten it."

He picked up the "veteran" again, squinted and looked along the blade. "The steel is still okay, but it's been used quite heavily. If it hits a tough spot a couple more times, it won't be long before it's scrapped."

"So I'd like to ask you to take a look at this." Xia Lin took out the half of the pitch-black shaft and the rusted, broken spearhead from his bag and placed them next to the sword.

The dwarf's attention was immediately drawn to it.

He picked up the spearhead, glanced at it in the firelight, and snorted, "Who made this? The forging is uneven, and the quenching is a mess. Even a farmer wouldn't bother with it for chopping wood."

But when he picked up that dark section of the pole, his expression changed.

He scraped the surface vigorously with his short, thick fingernails, then brought the object close to his ear and tapped it lightly with a small hammer.

He then walked quickly back to the furnace, carefully clamped one end of the rod with tongs, put it into the fire for a moment, pulled it out, and stared at the unfamiliar patterns that appeared on the surface after heating.

"Huh?" Sinda frowned. "This material is wrong."

"It does contain meteorite iron. But that's not all; it also contains other good stuff—heavier, tougher, I've never seen anything like it before. It's like star iron from outer space, I'm not sure."

His voice grew louder and louder, then turned into a tirade: "What idiot did this?! To melt such good stuff together with ordinary pig iron! What a waste! It's like mixing horse piss into golden barley!"

He held up the pole, which was less than his forearm length: "But with this little bit of material, it's barely enough to forge a decent dagger, let alone a suit of armor."

Xia Lin: "What if we used it to upgrade the veteran's longsword?" He pointed to the longsword lying quietly on the stone platform.

"It's been with me for quite a while now, and I'm used to it. It's just that the material is ordinary; I'm afraid it won't last long enough for some tough battles."

Sinda glanced at the longsword, then looked at the dark, heavy shaft.

He reached out and picked up "The Veteran" again, tracing the crisscrossing scratches and slightly curved blade with his fingertips, then flicking the blade with his fingers, listening to the still clear echo.

"You old buddy..." the dwarf muttered, "Steel Mouth is just average, but you've raised him to be quite decent."

He hesitated for a moment, then finally said, "Okay, I'll give it a try."

We'll use the little bit of good material in this damn thing to reforge it, and then we'll strengthen your old buddy and repair its edge.

However, we need to sort out the treasures inside first, which will be laborious and require a lot of firepower.

Xia Lin's heart skipped a beat; could it be that "more money is required"?

Fortunately, the dwarf was an honest man. He clattered the longsword back onto the stone platform and said, "Leave the sword and shield here. I'll have the shield repaired and flattened for you. Come back in two days to pick it up."

Xia Lin breathed a sigh of relief and was about to thank him when Xin Da raised his hand to stop her.

"Don't thank me yet."

The dwarf pointed at Xia Lin's leather armor, which looked even more tattered after the fierce battle in the mine. "You look like a beggar in this state. Since you have the money to replace the sword's bones, why not replace your own skin too?"

He pulled out a neatly folded light armor and unfolded it.

The light armor is made of hard leather, with steel plates embedded in key areas, flexible joints, and clean, taut lines overall.

"Look at this. It's not a high-end enchanted item, but it's made of swamp buffalo hide. Thin steel plates are embedded in the chest, shoulders, elbows, and back."

"It's ten times better than the ragtag thing you're wearing. It'll be enough to block out green, scrap wood and rusty knives."

He glanced at Xia Lin and quoted the price: "Since you brought some rare stuff, I'll charge you 2 gold coins in total."

"Sigh—"

The exorbitant price made Xia Lin gasp, but to be honest, the dwarves weren't asking for a high price.

Most of the premium likely comes from smelting unknown minerals, as well as the subsequent upgrades and modifications to the "Veteran" longsword.

After all, it's our livelihood, so we should spend money on it when necessary.

Xia Lin reached out and touched the light armor. He gritted his teeth and counted out two gold coins.

"Alright, come back in two days." The dwarf casually tossed the coins into his leather pouch, turned, and grabbed his hammer.

Dwarfs, let the battle begin!

The clanging and hammering sounds resumed, continuing incessantly.

Xia Lin took one last look at his old partner lying quietly on the stone "sickbed," then turned and walked out of the blacksmith shop.

The sunlight outside the alley was blinding, and he weighed the new light armor in his hand.

After a round of spending, I still have 8 gold and 20 silver coins left.

It was time to go to the dwarf tavern, as agreed with Targen.