Chapter 91: New Gear
Thankfully, this time around, they were being led by Mimi from start to finish, so they didn’t get lost, nor did they have to stop for directions in order to reach their destination, deep in the bowels of the station.
The crafter’s section was almost an entirely different world, those who worked within clearly having spent at least some time to spruce up their workplaces, in a way and to a degree that regular scientists and engineers never could have managed. Or would have tried, really.
Burnished metal formed into subtle reliefs, sections of wall that appeared almost grown, rather than built, gorgeous murals, carpets that looked like they wouldn’t be the least bit damaged by a tank brigade driving over them … it was a beautiful sight. Chaotic and disorganized as all get out, but beautiful.
However, a couple of minutes after they’d entered the crafter’s area, the chaos ceased. Instead, things became much more orderly, more consistent, a series of very specific forges, each different from the last, lined the walls, clearly specialized for hyper-individualized actions that could not be unified into a single device.
And space that wasn’t actively filled with tools or machinery held trophies, weapons, examples of the kinds of craftsmanship the owner of this space could deliver.
This was the workshop of Helmut Stagmer, one of the finest craftsmen in the world, and the guy Isaac had recommended for processing their loot from The Error. Apparently, those two had a business relationship that went all the way back to the earliest days of the [System].
“Hello,” the man himself greeted them when they reached the entrance, a broad, warm, friendly grin on his face. “That World Boss you guys helped kill had some seriously abstract attributes, and the items it made … I believe you’ll be satisfied.”
He gestured at the showroom beyond, its walls covered in weapons, an armor stand in each corner, but it was a small table with four squares of cloth covering presently unknown objects that took pride of place, but apparently, there was something the blacksmith wanted to do first.
“First of all, I managed to use spare pieces to make a utility item I think you’ll find useful,” Stagmer declared, handing over a small box that was a little too large for a ring, and too small for a wristwatch, yet in the style of the kinds of containers those sorts of things were traditionally sold in.