A Bug In Fate

"Strange?"

Alden muttered, a thoughtful expression appearing on his face.

He had expected compliments or at least some praise.

Reality, however, seemed determined to humble him every now and then.

"Pff..."

"Hahahahaha! Oh my God, look at your face!"

Unable to hold it in any longer, Mary burst into laughter as she looked at Alden’s serious expression.

"You..."

"Hahaha... I was just joking."

She wiped the corners of her eyes, still smiling.

"It does taste strange... but I like it."

I’ll remember this.

Alden silently engraved the scene into the back of his mind, not caring how petty he was being over a simple joke.

"Well, that’s only natural."

"It’s your first time tasting something like this. You’ll get used to it."

Mary nodded before looking at the chocolate again.

"It’s really good."

"Thank you for letting me taste it."

There wasn’t a trace of politeness in her voice anymore.

Her gratitude was genuine as she licked the remaining chocolate from her finger with obvious delight.

"It’s nothing."

Alden waved his hand dismissively before turning his attention back to the pot.

He searched around the kitchen until he found a flat tray.

Carefully, he poured the silky paste onto it, spreading it evenly across the surface.

A thoughtful look slowly appeared on his face.

Now... I just have to wait.

Anticipation filled his heart as he stared at the tray.

He couldn’t wait to see the final result.

If he had access to his Ice affinity, he could have sped up the cooling process considerably.

Unfortunately, cultivators couldn’t use elemental affinities that freely.

One had to reach the Rupture Realm before learning elemental spells related to their affinity.

As for directly converting mana into elemental energy...

That required reaching the Metamorphosis Realm.

When will I finally get to use those cool abilities from fantasy novels?

The desire to grow stronger quietly burned inside him.

Still, Alden understood one thing better than most.

Everything took time.

Trying to rush his cultivation would only damage the very foundation he was trying to build.

Mary left the kitchen to attend to the customers waiting outside, leaving Alden alone with his latest creation.

Not wanting to waste the remaining ingredients, he began making another batch.

This time, he followed the same process even more carefully, making small adjustments with each attempt. Sometimes he added a little less honey, hoping to leave a faint bittersweet aftertaste lingering on the tongue for a little longer. Other times, he adjusted the amount of milk, trying to find the perfect balance.

Although he had no recipe to follow, he was enjoying every moment of experimenting.

Once everything was finished, Alden cleaned up the mess he had made in the kitchen until it looked almost the same as before.

Only then did he carefully carry the trays filled with chocolate paste back to his room, where the cooler temperature would help them set.

"Done."

He gave his creations one final satisfied glance before leaving the room.

Walking downstairs, he waved at Mary, who returned the gesture with a smile before going back to her work.

Alden then stepped out of the V-Light Inn with a content expression.

Above him, the sun shone brightly while the twin moons still lingered faintly in the sky.

Below, the streets of Ravenfall bustled with life as people carried on with their daily routines.

Alden wandered through the bustling streets until his footsteps came to a stop in front of a familiar blacksmith shop.

Clang!

Clang!

The old blacksmith stood behind the forge, repeatedly bringing his hammer down on a glowing piece of metal. Sparks burst into the air with every strike, yet the old man never once looked away from his work. His entire focus remained on the weapon taking shape beneath the hammer.

Alden chose not to disturb him.

Instead, he looked toward the front of the shop.

There, the familiar young boy was busy talking to three customers, patiently explaining the differences between several swords and spears displayed on the racks.

"Hello."

Alden called out with a smile as he walked over.

The boy looked up.

His eyes instantly brightened.

"Oh! It’s you!"

Ron greeted him with a wide smile, though there was something else mixed into his expression.

Admiration.

Gratitude.

Perhaps even a little excitement.

"We’ve been waiting for you."

He turned toward the three customers.

"Please take your time looking around. If you decide on anything, just let me know and I’ll handle the payment."

The customers nodded before continuing to browse the weapons on display.

Ron then returned his attention to Alden.

"Sorry about that."

Alden scratched the back of his head.

"I didn’t mean to interrupt you while you were working."

"It’s alright."

Ron waved his hand dismissively before his gaze drifted to the sword hanging at Alden’s waist.

His eyes immediately lit up.

"Umm...."

"Can I take a look at your sword?"

He asked eagerly, unable to hide the anticipation in his voice.

Alden was confused for a moment, but understanding soon dawned on him. He took out his sword, but deliberately pulled it out slowly while watching Ron.

Ron’s breathing quickened as tension built up in the surroundings.

He could tell the sword was being drawn slowly, but he couldn’t complain as his eyes seemed to be glued to the blade.

With every inch the sword came out, his excitement grew, and his eyes widened when the sword finally left the sheath.

"This..."

"Unbelievable... this is amazing."

Ron didn’t have the words to properly convey his emotions, but his facial expressions said enough.

The sword was the very same one he had created with his own hands. When his master had made that bet, he hadn’t believed it was possible for his sword to last even two weeks.

But the sword before him wasn’t broken, nor did it have any major dents.

It was actually fine.

"I... thank you."

Ron said as tears began streaming down his cheeks.

Alden was surprised by such an emotional breakdown. He hadn’t expected Ron to get emotional to this extent, and one thought crossed his mind.

*Sigh.... how the hell am I supposed to calm him down?*

"Um... calm down, bro. I won’t say this is the best sword, but it has helped me a lot with my mana control."

Alden said as he walked closer and patted Ron on the shoulder. He felt like an older brother who had just saved his little brother from being bullied.

"Umm... thank you, but can I say something?"

Ron gradually calmed down, wiped away his tears, and asked in a hesitant tone.

"Yes, you can ask anything."

*..If it helps you calm down, of course.*

Alden thought to himself as he waited for the question.

"You’ve never had a girlfriend, right?"

"Um... yes. Why do you ask?"

"You’re terrible at comforting someone."

Ron said with a smile.

Alden was speechless for a moment.

He had been teased multiple times recently, and now even someone younger than him wasn’t taking him seriously.

"First, look at yourself. You’ve calmed down, haven’t you?"

Alden pointed a finger at Ron while barely holding back the hand that was twitching for some reason—probably because it wanted to smack someone on the back of the head.

"Huh?... Yeah, you’re right."

Ron nodded in agreement and looked down at himself.

At that moment, a shadow loomed over him and stopped behind Alden.

"You brat, the first thing you did was make my disciple cry."

The old man’s voice came from behind as his palm moved toward the back of Alden’s head, seemingly intending to smack him.

But Alden’s feet moved on instinct.

He sidestepped with ease.

"I just showed him the sword..."

"And if he’s crying just because a sword lasted two weeks, maybe you should pay more attention to building his confidence."

"..."

Silence followed.

The old man and Ron stared at Alden with shocked expressions.

The silence stretched on for several moments.

The old man couldn’t find a reply because, deep down, he knew Alden was right. He had been so focused on teaching Ron how to forge weapons that he had neglected building his confidence to match his skills.

As for Ron...

He was simply wondering what kind of courage it took to question his master so directly.

"Why is everyone here so silent?"

The awkward silence was broken by a new voice coming from the shop entrance.

Soon, two familiar figures walked inside.

They were Liam and Mina

.

"What are you two doing here?"

Alden asked as they walked toward them.

"Hello, Ron. Hello, old man."

The two greeted Ron and his master before turning to Alden.

"We were looking for you, and Mary said you had already left."

Mina took the lead and answered in an unusually calm tone. Or perhaps she had always been this calm and simply treated Alden differently.

"And why were you looking for me?"

Alden asked.

* What a timing, good job you two*

He was secretly grateful they had arrived when they did, as the awkward atmosphere from a moment ago had finally disappeared.

"We’re here to fight you."

"Huh?"

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