Chapter 423: Eighty-percent Constructed Smithy
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Hammer against metal. Steel against steel. An eighty-percent-constructed smithy with the unmistakable smell of molten steel and heated charcoal. The Turkish mountain of a man known as Husnü with thick, muscular arms seemed softer when he worked. He was bent over an anvil, shaping a glowing bar of steel. Around him, the forge was in organized chaos: crates of raw ore, stacks of freshly cut lumber for fuel, and barrels of quenching oil lined the walls.
’Nice, nice.’
Kazi walked into the workshop, taking it all in with an appreciative grin. The forge itself was already taking shape as a masterpiece of black-blue. The central furnace was a towering structure of reinforced blue firebrick, its interior glowing black from the flames. Ventilation shafts spiraled up toward the high ceilings, designed to siphon smoke efficiently while keeping the heat centralized. A custom double-acting piston bellows system flanked the furnace, the anvil and the forge, connected to a series of gears that allowed for both manual and automatic operation.
On the floor were tools of various sizes, tongs, chisels, and a few delicate instruments for more intricate work.
Everything Kazi had funded and Husnü brought forth.
"This is what I like to see." Kazi applauded and walked toward the furnace. He ran a hand over the polished edge of the framework surrounding it, nodding in approval. "You worked fast. Did your sons help out? It’s beautiful."
Husnü straightened, wiping sweat from his brow with a soot-stained rag. "You don’t pay me for beautiful," he grunted. "You pay me for efficient. And yes, they did help."
Kazi chuckled, stepping over the weapons clattered on the floor. This early on, it was okay to be messy. "Call it whatever you want, but I know quality when I see it. What’s that?" He pointed to a stack of blue-glinting ingots.