Chronicles Of The Crafting Hero [REMASTERED]

Tyler sat on a heavy grey brick inside the narrow alleyway, the sounds of the bustling crowd drifting in from the main street. He kept his crafted leather cuirass resting securely in his lap. Beside him, the beggar sat slumped against the rough brick wall, his knees pulled tightly to his chest.

The young man kept his head down, his dark hair hiding his face as he actively avoided Tyler's gaze.

"So..." Tyler started, his voice quiet. "You couldn't ask for any help?"

The young man gave a slow shake of his head. "No. When I found you, you were bleeding heavily. It looked like if I took too long, you were going to die. There was barely anyone on the street, so I figured I had to help you myself."

He lifted his head just enough to catch Tyler staring, then immediately snapped his gaze back down to his dirt-stained feet. "Plus, even if I asked for help, I don't think anyone would listen."

"Why not?" Tyler asked. The relaxed posture left his shoulders. He stared down at the scuffed leather of his own boots, his jaw tightening.

"After I sealed your wounds with rags, it looked like the bleeding had stopped," the young man explained, his voice dry and flat. "But then you started bleeding again. I thought you were going to die. I decided to go get some help, to try again, to at least alert the guards. But when I told them, they just ignored me. They said it was just an excuse to beg for money. Said I was probably crazy."

Tyler turned his head, watching the beggar closely.

"When I came back, you were gone," the young man continued. "There was a trail of blood. I followed it, thinking I might find you, but it just ended. I wondered where you were, if you were even still alive. But there were no rumors of any death. No bodies found."

The stranger’s voice carried no relief. His features remained completely slack. He just looked hollowly exhausted, his crimson red eyes staring blankly at the alley floor. "I figured you wouldn't be dead because of that. And I was right."

"Thank you," Tyler said. The corners of his mouth lifted.

The young man slowly turned his head, meeting Tyler's eyes with a dull, empty expression.

"I mean it," Tyler added. "You saved my life back there. If it wasn't for you, I could have died. I owe you my life."

A faint smile touched the beggar's lips, but the movement was stiff and rigid, carrying a bitter, almost sarcastic edge. "Don't worry about it."

He dropped his gaze back to the narrow space between his feet.

*Honestly, I don't even know why I helped. Maybe it's because he reminded me of someone.*

Tyler watched him, a heavy weight settling in his chest.

*This guy looks completely broken down. I don't blame him. He doesn't have a home. If James hadn't taken me in, I probably would have ended up exactly like him. Or dead.*

The smile on Tyler's face softened, growing warmer.

*This is the guy who actually gave me a second chance at life. I thought it was over, but someone actually came and helped. I promised myself I wouldn't waste it. He has to know exactly how grateful I am.*

"What's your name?" Tyler asked.

The young man looked up. "My name is Kai."

"Kai," Tyler repeated. He pushed himself up from the grey brick and stood. "Kai, I want to properly thank you for saving my life." Tyler dipped his chin, bowing his head once.

Kai's eyes widened. "Don't do that," he muttered, his voice dropping into a low, sharp hiss.

"Huh?" Tyler asked.

"Don't bow your head for a beggar. People are going to see that and think you're pathetic. Even just seeing me talking to you right now..." Kai shifted his gaze away, staring out toward the bustling main street. His crimson eyes looked dry as he folded his hands tightly over his knees.

*After all that, it's not like it matters.*

"Nothing matters," Kai added quietly.

"What do you mean?" Tyler said. "You saved my life. Of course it does. Let me help you."

Kai’s posture stiffened. "You want to help me?"

"Yeah." Tyler nodded, a warm smile pulling at his lips. "You helped me get a second chance to change my life. To become someone different. I want to help you do the same." Tyler extended his open hand toward the sitting man.

Kai paused, staring at the offered palm.

*Change my life? Is that even possible? Why would someone want to help me? Go through that much trouble?*

"You can't," Kai said, locking his red eyes dead onto Tyler's.

Tyler lowered his arm. "Why not?"

"I don't wanna put you through that much trouble. I'm just a beggar. I'm not worth it."

"Don't say that. You're the person who saved my life." Tyler turned his gaze toward the heavy crowd on the main street. "I know life can be hard sometimes, but—"

Tyler’s jaw clicked shut. He stopped himself, looking back at the blank, vacant stare anchored in Kai's expression. It was the exact same heavy, exhausted look Tyler used to give Mike back on Earth every time his friend launched into a grand, hopeful speech.

Tyler drew a long breath through his nose. "Just... hang in there, alright? I promise, I'll help you."

He slipped his hand into his pocket. A silver coin seamlessly transferred from his inventory into his grip. He pulled it out and extended it toward Kai.

Kai drew in a sharp breath. "You're... giving me a silver coin?"

"Yeah," Tyler said. "This is nothing compared to the gratitude I feel towards you for saving my life."

Kai reached out, his dirt-stained fingers trembling slightly, but Tyler closed his fist over the silver.

"I need you to agree to something first. I want you to let me help you."

Kai's shoulders slumped further under his ragged cloak. He let out a heavy sigh. "Alright."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Can I have the coin now?"

"Of course," Tyler said. He flicked his thumb, tossing the silver piece through the air.

Kai snatched it quickly. "Thank you."

"I'm only giving you one silver coin because it's all I can give right now," Tyler said, lifting a hand to scratch the back of his neck. "It's the only coin I have on me at the moment."

*He doesn't have a lot of money, does he?* Kai thought, his fingers curling tightly around the cool metal.

"Anyway, again, thank you," Tyler said. "That shelter is where you live, right? I can find you there?"

"No," Kai said. "I wander around the marketplace half the time. Begging for food."

"Oh, right." Tyler nodded. "That means I'll find you in the marketplace."

"Yeah." Kai placed a hand against the brick wall and pushed himself up, a low groan escaping his chest.

A translucent blue system panel flickered to life, floating directly over Kai's head.

Kai: Level 23.

Tyler blinked.

*He's a higher level than me. But I feel like I'm stronger than him.*

His eyes swept over Kai's incredibly frail, skinny frame.

"I have to get going," Tyler said.

"Wait, mister," Kai said, his voice scratching his throat. "I didn't catch your name."

"My name is Tyler."

"Tyler... Thank you." Kai lowered his chin in a small bow. The expression on his face remained dull, but the absolute, crushing emptiness from earlier had lifted just a fraction.

Tyler smiled. "No worries. I'll see ya."

"Goodbye, I guess." Kai gave a slight, hesitant wave as Tyler turned and walked out of the alleyway.

Left alone in the shadows, Kai uncurled his fist, staring down at the gleaming silver coin.

*With this, I can eat for a couple more days.*

He slid the coin safely into the pocket of his ripped brown trousers, hidden beneath the cloak. "I'm thirsty," he muttered to the empty alley. "I wonder if I have enough mana for this."

He held out his open palm. A faint, watery light shimmered just above his skin. A small droplet materialized from the air. The droplet swirled, pulling in moisture until it grew to the size of a tennis ball.

*Guess that's all I can drink right now.*

The small orb of water hovered steadily over his palm. Kai leaned forward, pressing his dry, cracked lips against the floating sphere, and swallowed the liquid. A harsh, metallic tang immediately coated his tongue. He wiped the excess moisture from his chin with the back of his sleeve.

*Tastes horrible as always. It should become drinkable if I level up twice.*

A heavy sigh rattled in his chest.

"As if that would ever happen."

Meanwhile, Tyler navigated through the dense marketplace crowd.

*Did I overdo it? Why did I say I'd change his life?*

He lifted a hand, slapping his palm against his own forehead.

*I haven't even figured out how to live a fully stable life in this world myself yet, and I just promised to help someone else. That was stupid...*

He dropped his hand and shook his head, his stride steadying.

*Still, I'm going to do everything I can to help him. But to help him, I gotta turn mine around first.*

He came to a halt in front of the building Hector had described. The storefront bore a strong resemblance to the blacksmith shop, but the stone architecture was significantly larger and wider.

Tyler pushed the double wooden doors open. The hinges glided smoothly, revealing a pristine, crystal-clean wooden floor that faintly reflected his boots and silhouette in a slight blur. A long counter stretched across the room. Behind it sat a petite woman wearing a black and brown dress. Her blonde hair was tied back into a neat ponytail. She rested her elbows against the counter, her cheeks pressed firmly into her palms as she stared blankly ahead.

"Oh, good evening," she said, dropping her hands and straightening her posture. "How may I help you?"

"Hi," Tyler said, stepping up to the wood. "Do you sell dead berry powder?"

"Yes. You want to buy some? I'm not sure if we still have it." The woman turned toward the doorway behind her. "Hold on, let me check."

She disappeared into the back room. Tyler glanced around. The layout of the building was similar to Hector's shop, featuring a large storage room sectioned off behind the main counter.

"The shop looks empty. All the stuff they sell must be back there."

The woman returned a moment later, carrying a small, dark pouch. "This is the only one left. It's two silver."

Tyler reached into his pocket, retrieved the two silver coins, and set them on the counter. The woman swept them up and handed him the pouch. Tyler adjusted his grip, feeling the dense, granular weight shifting inside the fabric. It felt exactly like holding a small sack of fine sand.

The woman's brown eyes shifted down to the leather cuirass tucked under his arm. "Are you a hunter?"

"No," Tyler said. "Why do you ask?"

"You're carrying armor. I just thought you were a hunter."

"No, I'm not. By the way I heard you sell metal ores here," Tyler said.

The woman nodded. "Yeah. We do sell ores here. You want to buy some?"

Tyler shook his head. "No, but how much is it? I might want to buy some in the future."

The woman let out a brief sigh. "So you just want to know the prices. I think it's easier for me to show you. Come on, follow me."

"Oh, okay," Tyler said.

The woman turned and walked back through the doorway. Tyler stepped around the long counter, following closely behind her.

*Does she allow customers back here every time?*

He stepped through the frame, his footsteps slowing. The back room was massive, much more spacious than Hector's soot-filled forge. The floor transitioned into smooth, gleaming stone that looked thoroughly polished. Along the walls sat rows of massive metal crates, each filled to the brim with raw, unrefined chunks of metal ore in varying shapes and colors.

Translucent blue system panels flickered to life, hovering directly over each crate to label their contents.

"These are all the ores we sell," the woman said. She pointed toward the crates lined up along the far right wall near a window. "In this row, we have the bronze ores. The first two crates of every line hold small metal ores. The next two hold medium pieces, and the last two right in front of us hold the large chunks. We stock iron, steel, bronze, and zinc."

She turned to face him. "You can buy whichever one you want."

Tyler's brow pulled together. "Wait. You mine bronze and steel?"

The woman tilted her head, giving him a deeply confused look. "Yeah. How else would you get them?"

Tyler raised a hand, rubbing his chin as he stared down at a crate of rough steel ore.

*I didn't really focus much in school, but I'm pretty sure my teacher said these things aren't mined. They're alloys, made by mixing ingredients together, if I remember correctly. Making bronze involves tin and something else.*

"You wanted to know their prices, right?" the woman asked, breaking the silence.

"Yeah," Tyler said, dropping his hand and snapping out of his thoughts.

The woman gestured toward the first row of crates. Tyler held up a hand. "Oh, and can you please tell me why they're priced the way they are?"

The woman blinked, her hand dropping to her side. "Huh?"

"I want to know their values," Tyler clarified. "Why they are priced that way."

"Okay..." the woman drew out the word, her posture stiffening slightly. "Zinc and bronze are the cheapest. Mainly because they aren't as strong, and they are currently the easiest to mine."

Tyler frowned. "How is it you can mine bronze?"

The woman paused, staring at him for a long moment. Then, her brown eyes widened, a sudden spark of realization lighting up her features. "Oh! I understand why you were surprised earlier. Not a lot of people want to learn about this."

"About what?" Tyler asked.

"About the metals." She lifted her palm, her tone shifting into eager enthusiasm. "My father used to tell me it wasn't always like this. He said people actually used to make bronze by hand, but the mana veins deep in the dirt ended up merging copper and tin together on their own. I don't really get how it works, but it's pretty interesting, right?"

*Wait. So there is mana inside the ground as well? I thought it was just in the air.*

"A lot of people don't care about how the process happened," the woman continued, her words speeding up. "So basically—"

"Wow, okay. I was just curious," Tyler said, raising a hand. "I don't want to hold you up. I just wanted to know the prices."

The woman snapped her mouth shut. Her shoulders slumped slightly as the eager energy drained from her posture.

"I'll just tell you about the prices, then," she said, her voice flattening out. "For the bronze ore, one small chunk is worth two copper. The medium is worth four copper, and the big one is worth six."

"That is pretty cheap," Tyler said, rubbing his chin.

The woman moved down the aisle, pointing to the next row of crates. "The zinc ore is priced the same as the bronze. Two, four, and six copper."

"Is it because their value is the same?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I'm pretty sure you know, but zinc isn't very strong either."

"Yeah," Tyler said.

She moved to the next row. "Iron ore. The small one is worth four copper, the medium is eight copper, and the large is one silver. The metal is obviously stronger, but it isn't the most expensive because it's much more common than steel."

"Steel is the most valued?"

"Well, gold is, but in terms of crafting, steel is," she clarified. "The smallest chunk of steel is worth one silver."

"One silver?" Tyler's eyebrows shot upward.

"Yes. Steel is pretty rare, plus it's incredibly tough. So the price is higher. The medium is worth two silver, and the biggest one is worth three. And that's all of them."

*Hmm. I only have five copper on me right now, and I have broze, but is it the right size. I'm lucky it's cheap.*

"I'll buy one medium bronze, please," Tyler said.

The woman tilted her head. "Did you bring anything to carry it in?"

"Uh, no," Tyler said. "But it's alright. I'll just hold it."

The woman glanced down at the leather cuirass already tucked under his arm. "Alright. We do sell sacks for two copper, you know."

"Oh, no, it's alright. I live near here."

The woman walked over to the middle crate in the bronze row. She hoisted out a medium-sized chunk of ore and carried it over, extending it to Tyler. He reached out and took it with his free hand. The dense weight of the raw rock and metal pulled his arm down slightly. He gripped the rough, uneven edges, feeling the sharp grit against his palm.

Tyler set the leather cuirass down onto the polished stone floor. He slipped his empty hand into his pocket. With a quick mental command, four copper coins seamlessly transferred from his inventory into his physical grip. He pulled out four of the coins and dropped them into the woman's open palm.

She closed her fingers over the copper. Tyler bent down, scooped his cuirass back up, and gave a firm nod. "Thank you."

"You're welcome" she replied.

Tyler followed her back through the main shop, opened the heavy double doors, and stepped out into the bustling street, pulling the door shut behind him.

"What is he doing with that raw ore?* the woman thought, watching the door close. *Did a craftsman send him?*

Tyler merged into the heavy crowd, his eyes darting around to make sure no one was paying him any direct attention. Once he found a pocket of space, he slipped the heavy bronze ore under the hem of his tunic. The stone shimmered with a faint blue light against his stomach before dissolving completely into his inventory.

He carried the cuirass the rest of the way home. By the time he reached the front yard, the sun was already setting, casting long, dark shadows across the dirt. A blue light washed over the leather armor, sending it into his inventory as well. He gripped the latch and pushed the door open.

"Hello, I'm home," Tyler called out.

The bedroom door opened. Lisa stepped into the living room, wearing a long green dress patterned with small white flowers. "Welcome back. Did you go to work today, or did you do more training?"

"I did a little bit of both," Tyler said. "We finished training early, so I headed to Hector's after that."

"Both? You must be exhausted. Your food is right in the kitchen, okay?"

"Thank you. I'll eat it later."

"Okay," Lisa said, turning back into her bedroom.

Tyler crossed the living room and stepped into his own room, pulling the door firmly shut behind him.

*Alright. I have everything I need to craft the hand cannon. I think I can use the leftover branches as wood. I wonder what it's going to look like.*

A glowing system panel materialized in the air.

CRAFT HAND CANNON: YES / NO

Tyler mentally selected YES. The text shifted instantly.

CRAFTING...

A circular loading bar appeared beneath the word, slowly ticking upward. Tyler watched the glowing light, his mind racing.

*The System can turn Hector's waste materials into pure ingots. I wonder if it turns raw metal ores into ingots as well. If it can do that, I have a massive advantage. Refining ores back in my world was an incredibly intense, industrial process. I wonder how they do it here, considering my system does it instantly. I don't have to go through the grueling manual labor that regular craftsmen do.*

He let out a slow sigh, bringing his hands together and cupping his empty palms.

"Wait... If my System can bypass that and instantly turn raw ore into ingots... I could make a fortune. I need to ask Hector how hard it is to refine metal here just to be sure."

A sharp chime echoed in the quiet room.

CRAFTING COMPLETE.

Tyler ignored the floating text, keeping his hands extended. A bright blue light flared over his open palms. A dense, crushing weight instantly dropped into his grip, forcing his forearms to dip. The blue glow faded, revealing a heavy, rugged hand cannon.

The weapon featured a dark, polished wooden stock and a thick, matte-brown bronze barrel etched with deep relief patterns. Thick metal bands bound the wood and metal together, studded with heavy iron rivets that felt cold and rough against his skin. A small, circular touch hole sat drilled into the top rear of the barrel.

"Wow," Tyler muttered, his breath catching in his throat. "So this is what it looks like."

He turned the heavy weapon over in his hands. The wooden handle possessed a slight curve, shaped comfortably for his grip, though it lacked the mechanical trigger of a modern gun.

A small status bar flickered into existence just above the barrel.

ATK: 10 - 70 (Depends on the projectile used)

"Its attack can go all the way up to seventy," Tyler whispered. "This thing is incredibly dangerous. I started having some doubts because it isn't exactly a gun, but... the attack power is massive."

He leaned in, peering closely at the small touch hole on top of the barrel. Packed tightly inside was the dark, granular texture of the dead berry powder.

"So this powder acts as the gunpowder? If so, how exactly do I use this thing? Do I just... light the hole with a spark?"

The interface shifted.

CORRECT.

A second panel instantly layered over the first.

NOTE: ANY PROJECTILE CAN BE INSERTED AND USED AS A BULLET. ONCE THE TOUCH HOLE IS LIT, THE HAND CANNON FIRES. HOWEVER, ATK DAMAGE DEPENDS ENTIRELY ON THE PROJECTILE USED.

Tyler stared at the text, the heavy weight of the bronze and wood pressing firmly into his palms.

"So this thing is literally like a miniature ship's cannon. It can fire anything."

A wide, thrilled grin broke across his face.

"Nice."