Chapter 811: December ??th: If there is logic in pushing past what is illogical, then that is nothing short of understanding the illogical, or so the blacksmith told herself
Author's Preface
If I don't really have the motivation to write any of the perspectives I have to write, I should just create a new perspective that I do have the motivation for.
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Blacksmithing. In Shangri-La Frontier, the creation of weapons and armor is not something entrusted to NPCs.
Players can craft their own equipment, enhance it, evolve it...... and even envision what lies beyond that. This is recognized as part of the anomalous reality and freedom within the game called Shangri-La Frontier, and it's not at all uncommon to find players who pour their passion entirely into creating those things, rather than swinging a sword or raising a staff.
Throughout all ages and places, hack-and-slash and dynamic action are certainly the highlights of some games, but games themed around producing and expanding creations—depending on an individual's social standing and real life—were also classified as a form of the "extraordinary."
Let's get back on track.
The creation of weapons and armor in this Shangri-La Frontier... boasts a high degree of freedom, falling perfectly in line with the game's overall quality and open-ended nature.
That said, it isn't literally just real-world blacksmithing. As a piece of game content, it's akin to a certain kind of minigame that is "lighthearted" and moderately "light" on effort.
First and foremost, a player begins with the "design" of the weapon they want to make. What kind of weapon is it, what does it look like, and what kind of performance does it have? The method for setting this varies from person to person; some design it from scratch, while others adopt preset designs provided by the system. In truly rare cases, there are even those who scan actual items they've made in reality and bring them into the game.
However, if every single idea were actualized, it wouldn't be a game. If everyone ran around holding swords that killed enemies just by being raised, it might serve as a simulation of a slow descent into despair, but whether it could be called a game is a bit debatable.
Therefore, whether an ideal design and ideal performance can be achieved is determined by the subsequent steps... namely, the selection of materials and the results of the actual blacksmithing.
For example, let's say someone wants to make a "staff that increases the power of water-attribute magic." If they tried to achieve this using tree branches found lying around or stones dropped from hitting rocks with a pickaxe, what they'd end up with at best is a misshapen club with stones embedded in wood—it would be presumptuous to even call it a staff. If one were to genuinely attempt crafting a "staff that increases the power of water-attribute magic" without compromising...... they would need, at minimum, ores mined near water, underwater, or underground water veins, or materials from aquatic monsters. And if high performance is desired, the materials used must be of higher quality.
Every material item possesses a Resource Point value, and if these points meet the required numerical value for crafting the weapon, and provided the blacksmith player's "Forging" magic level also meets the requirements... a "staff that increases the power of water-attribute magic" will be born in their hands.
Good materials yield ideal weapons; poor materials distort even the design. Therefore, players who have taken up the blacksmith job must either acquire ideal materials themselves... or entrust that task to others, seeking the components that will shape their ideal weapons.
That said, all the information up to this point is nothing more than............ a prerequisite, the bare basics. The players in this game who have earned the title of exceptional blacksmiths or master craftsmen consider all of this a given, and aim for what lies beyond...... no, they aim for the absolute limits.
To apply prerequisites and common sense. Or to affirm paradoxes using those very prerequisites and common sense. To craft ideal equipment, high-quality materials are needed, and the skill of the blacksmith processing them... that is, their proficiency in Forging magic... is crucial. Which means, conversely...
───With high-quality materials and the high skill of a blacksmith, theoretically, any weapon can be crafted. This is nothing less than the proof of that inverted logic.
"It's done...... Finally, finally, finally, finally! It's done! Before the new year! I achieved iiiiittt!!"
Inside a certain "workshop" within the Rabbit Palace of the Land of the Vorpal Bunnies, a single human let out a cheer of wild, ecstatic joy.
Though having the appearance of an unkempt, unfriendly, and dangerous-looking middle-aged man, her name is Imron. Some call her the "Hero of the Holy Hammer," while others call her "The Highest-Leveled Blacksmith Player."
She is the master craftsman—or "Master Craftsman"—who birthed the masterpiece "Super Cat Teaser Lv.100," the famous "Excessive Core Heat Sword: Crimson Heat-Riser," and the bizarre "Imron's Seven Deadly Sins Series," which is still spoken of with awe today due to its sheer impact and immense karma. Believing that the path to the highest blacksmith class, the hidden highest-tier job "Divine Craftsman," lay within this land of rabbits, she spent her days locked away in the workshop granted to her in this country, emerging almost solely to acquire materials.
The reason she was currently rejoicing was that, at this very moment, she had successfully overcome a "wall" that had long obstructed blacksmith players.
"I! Have surpassed my limits! Did you see that, ShanFro management!? I beat the server AI! I wooooooon!!"
It is largely forgotten now, but it was a "wall" every blacksmith player had considered overcoming at least once in the past...... that is, the "creation of guns."
Shangri-La Frontier is a game that can be described as half-sci-fi and half-high fantasy, blending two eras: the "Present Age" representing swords and magic fantasy, and the "Divine Age" representing mechs and guns sci-fi. This is hinted at even during the tutorial, and any player who has toured the ruins and areas where remnants of the Divine Age remain would think at least once, "Could I use a gun?"
To cut to the chase, even if you brought a blueprint for a gun into ShanFro, you couldn't actually build one due to the "inability to create precision parts." Ultimately, the widespread use of firearms had to wait until a certain player exposed the divine beast, the fish that swims through the stars: Bahamut.
And now, with the second Bahamut, Behemoth, appearing on the Old Continent, players above level 50 can easily acquire guns.
The wall of "creating guns" that once stood before all blacksmiths had been reduced to an obstacle easily bypassed by obtaining a Gunsmith License within Bahamut.
That is exactly why Imron challenged it—the daunting task of creating a gun without relying on Divine Age civilization. She gathered the shattered fragments of that old challenge and built the "wall" anew. Armed with the pride that her current self could overcome it───!
"To create a gun by throwing away the common sense of what a gun is......... a state I only reached after getting some alcohol in me! The origin point I arrived at after gaining the know-how of Divine Age weapon crafting!! Argh man, should I go negotiate directly with management to make a title for this right now!?"
Where Imron directed her passionate gaze, a strange object rested. It was far too......... no, it lacked everything needed to be called a gun".
"Basically, when you pull the trigger, something just needs to fly out!!"
Perhaps it might not be recognized as a gun. In the first place, the person who made it was thinking, "Isn't this... not a gun?" more than anyone else. But even so, it had been created.
No matter how terrible its usability, or if there was even anyone out there who could use it......... society at large might very well call it a "failure."
But even so, Imron, her eyes burning with a heat bordering on madness, saw a path to victory. It was frustrating to recall, but these were the words of the Vorpal Bunny blacksmith who was one step... no, two or three steps ahead of her on the path to the summit she aimed for, the "Divine Craftsman."
"Even if the effect seems like a failure at first glance, he will use it... he can use it."
She had a tester in mind.
Sitting coldly and sharply upon the anvil......... Staring at the twin swords-guns, Imron waited with bloodshot eyes for that tester to return to Rabituza.
Author's Afterword
If the current Yashirobird saw it, he would scoff at it as a novelty item, but the Yashirobird when he was still wielding a bow would hand over his entire fortune for the very same thing.
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