Kobold Wizard's Journal

Chapter 366 God and the Blacksmith
God blinked.

“You and your companions are all very different… Besides, I am not a god. I am not like those guys who spend decades on a secluded island and actually think of themselves as gods. You know, I am just a wizard apprentice, and every wizard apprentice needs to eat.”

The man smiled, lowered his head and took a big bite of the pancake, but he ate the two pieces separately.

Ruger listened to his words and felt a slight stirring in his heart, but he continued chewing without changing his chewing motion.

"Did you see that companion of ours who always gets drunk?"

Ruger chewed something and mumbled something.

“I’ve seen him passed out drunk by the roadside a few times, but I didn’t disturb him. He gives me a very dangerous feeling; he must be a very powerful wizard apprentice,” the man said while eating. “I didn’t dare to investigate rashly; that would be very impolite. But I’ve been here for a long time, and he often comes and goes from your courtyard, so I’ve noticed him…”

"That was a wise choice. He often goes crazy when he's drunk. Don't disturb him, just let him sleep like that."

Ruger raised his hand and stuffed the last bit of the biscuit into his mouth.

"Kurt! You lazybones, the god of sorrow won't like your pain. You'll become someone the god hates because you're always groaning without feeling pain, putting on airs... You bastard, swallow your damned pancake and get back here..."

Suddenly, a loud and forceful shout came from a street corner not far away.

That booming, gruff voice was enough to demonstrate the robustness and health of its owner.

The god who was about to say something—or perhaps we should call him Kurt now—shrank back upon hearing the voice and immediately swallowed his words.

"Sorry! I have to go now!"

God suddenly looked flustered.

“I’m graduating next month, so I can’t afford to upset old Ethan now,” he said, turning to leave. But then he turned back. “You must have something to discuss with me. You can wait until I finish work tonight, or come to the shop and pretend to be a customer. I can serve you… Oh, by the way, I’m a blacksmith’s apprentice now… Old Ethan’s most prized disciple…”

"Kurt! You greedy little brat! I'm going to dock your pay—"

The owner of the shouting had clearly seen the god, and seeing that he was still standing there, he became furious.

"I really have to leave..."

Kurt said, stuffing the unfinished pancake into his pocket and running towards the street corner.

The street wasn't straight, and the blacksmith's shop was obscured; only half a swaying sign with a simple hammer-shaped pattern was visible.

Ruger stood there for a moment, then went to the side and bought ten more cakes. He put eight of them into his spatial storage with a wave of his hand and gave them to Aiskin and Big Fool.

He looked at the two remaining pancakes in his hand, stood on the street, eating them while listening to the angry curses from the blacksmith's shop in the distance.

Clearly, the previous disregard had fueled the anger of the hot-tempered old blacksmith, Ethan.

Luger tilted his head and ate more slowly this time. After he finished the pancake, the cursing in the distance gradually subsided.

He strode toward the blacksmith's shop.

The clanging and banging sounds had already begun.

An old blacksmith with good skills seemed to have quite a reputation on this street. The people nearby saw his shouting and cursing just now, but they didn't seem annoyed. Even the little boy selling pancakes looked at him with respect.

Ruger arrived at the blacksmith's shop and looked around curiously.

Old Ethan was swinging his hammer, occasionally switching to hammers of different sizes. Each strike seemed rhythmic, and his wrinkled face revealed the pride in each blow—the confidence and arrogance of a craftsman.

Meanwhile, the god, the ordinary-looking Lord Kurt, used a slightly smaller hammer to strike Old Ethan during the intervals between his hammer blows. The two seemed to work together very well, except that Old Ethan would always glare at Kurt during the intervals.

That look of disgust suggested he was still angry about what had just happened.

Ruger pursed his lips and slowly walked into the small blacksmith shop. Besides the two of them, another person was also working hard to pull the bellows, so Ruger wandered around by himself.

In the small blacksmith shop, some finished products that he considered presentable were hanging on the wall, as well as some unfinished products.

Ruger stroked his chin, looking at a set of fairly exquisite knives.

Those weren't kitchen utensils, or rather, they might have been a bit too big for cooking, but they were just right for Aiskin and Big Fool. "Guests, what do you need?"

Kurt, a simple and honest man, walked over, wiping his hands on his leather apron.

The clanging and banging sounds from the side didn't stop, but it was clear that they had reached a point where they no longer needed him.

“I want all of these knives, from big to small,” Ruger said with a smile, “and I also want a little bit of faith power.”

Upon hearing this, Kurt paused for a moment, nodded, and began to tidy up the knives. After arranging them neatly, he even tore off a piece of tattered leather to wrap them up.

"I'll take all of these. I can give you a discount, sir. Just give me five Moon Coins in total."

He handed over the carefully wrapped items as he spoke.

Ruger looked at him curiously and handed him five shiny silver coins.

He waved goodbye and put away the newly bought knife.

God, seemingly finally moved by Luger's curious gaze, smiled helplessly.

“My childhood wish was to make my family happy, to make everyone on the street happy, to have my mother, sister, and older sister eat hot roasted meat, and for my father and uncle to enjoy fine wine. That has always been my wish,” he said, looking at Ruger with a smile. “As for myself, my dream is to become a respected blacksmith. All sorts of beautiful and sturdy things, transformed in his hands, under the sweat and hammering, are created. As a child, I stared wide-eyed, unable to understand or see clearly. Sometimes I would run to the blacksmith’s shop near my house on an empty stomach to peek, but only from the doorway, it was too far away… I had heard of magic, heard adults talk about it, and back then, I always thought that the clanging and hammering sounds were spells being cast…”

Kurt laughed as he spoke, his laughter becoming more natural and wider.

"Your name is really Kurt?"

"Ruger said curiously."

The man nodded.

"The power of faith isn't hard to obtain; the key lies in the capacity to bear it. You're not on this extraordinary path and can't bear the power of faith. At this point, as a lowly apprentice, there are probably only two options," Kurt said softly. "One is to obtain a vessel, since you're a demon hunter wizard..."

"Apprentice, apprentice demon hunter wizard."

Ruger corrected.

Kurt smiled.

"It's the same for us. It represents a channel for obtaining resources that we can't access, such as a low-level carrier. It shouldn't be difficult for you. You just need to accumulate some merit stones. Besides, you don't seem to lack time."

As Kurt spoke, he looked him up and down, scrutinizing his dog-like face.

Generally speaking, bloodline modifiers, especially during the wizard apprenticeship stage, are generally considered to have a significant advantage in lifespan compared to ordinary wizard apprentices, because most people do so, and human lifespan is far too short compared to that of extraordinary beings.

"What's the other solution?"

Ruger raised an eyebrow.

Kurt smiled.

“That is to try to become a practitioner on the path of a faith wizard, or a half faith wizard, just like the well-known path of the Beast King Wizard. Some people who regretfully miss it will try to make up for it in order to become a Beast King Wizard halfway through. The same is true for faith wizards…” Kurt said softly and unhurriedly.

Ruger blinked.

Did he become a religious sorcerer halfway through his life?
Or one could become a so-called half-faith wizard, meaning one who doesn't focus on this path but has some involvement in it.

It sounds interesting, he thought.

"For us, who are on this path in a relatively normal way, we need to start from the early stages of our apprenticeship, with targeted training from the selection of meditation methods. For example, the most common ones are temple meditation methods, and we also need to choose solidified zero-ring spells. There are also many aspects involved, such as the god you want to become or the god you want to create. I don't have a powerful teacher, so what I know is the more common supernatural knowledge on this path. However, for your situation, these common things may be better..."

Kurt patiently explained with examples.

As Ruger listened, something else was on his mind.

(End of this chapter)