Chapter 114: Chapter 114: Dull Steel
[DULL STEEL]
<Titles>
- Official Alchemical Name: Ferrum Obtusum
- Hunter Association Name: Dull Steel
- Common Name: Dull Steel
<Effect>
- Produces steel of high carbon content, extremely durable and wear-resistant.
- Can hold a very good edge, but never honed to razor sharpness.
- Favored for heavy-duty blades, armor plating, and tools that need toughness over fineness.
<Formula>
Charcoal (Base) + Weak Steel (Main) + Animal Blood (Reagent) + Animal Bone (Reagent) + Manganese (Binding Agent) = Dull Steel (Product) + Organic Ash (Residue) + Organic Vapors (Byproduct)
<Details>
- Base: Charcoal
Element: Earth (🜃)
Description: Contains Carbon (C). Provides the necessary carbon infusion that transforms weak steel into durable high-carbon alloy.
- Main Ingredient: Weak Steel
Element: Earth (🜃)
Description: Poorly processed, low-carbon iron. Serves as the substrate that will accept carbon and transformation. Its flaws make it open to change.
- Sub Reagent 1: Animal Blood
Element: Water (🜄)
Description: Supplies reactive carbon and nitrogen compounds. In alchemical symbolism, blood "feeds" the metal with vitality and binds it to life essence.
- Sub Reagent 2: Animal Bone
Element: Earth (🜃)
Description: When calcined, yields bone char and mineral fluxes (calcium phosphate). Helps carbon bond with iron and stabilizes the alloy’s structure. Represents the skeleton — the enduring framework of life.
- Binding Agent: Manganese (Mn)
Element: Air (🜁)
Description: Ensures carbon fully dissolves into the steel, prevents brittleness, and lends toughness.
- Product
Dull Steel
Element: Earth (🜃 )
Description: A dense, dark gray steel that resists wear and impact. Blades forged from it bite deep and endure long battles, though they lack the razor fineness of lighter steels.
- Residue: Organic Ash
Element: Earth (🜃 )
Description: Heavy impurities and calcined remnants skimmed from the melt. Sometimes recycled as flux or ground into fertilizer.
- Byproduct: Organic Vapors
Element: Air (🜁)
Description: Acrid, blood-scented smoke produced from burning organic material in the forge. Dangerous if inhaled.
"Is this what I think it is?" George said.
"Aye. A recipe for a type of steel."
Siderius didn’t give George everything. There were very special applications of the Dull Steel recipe that he left out.
The paper that Siderius gave him also had some information redacted. The mentions of the Hunter Association and Alchemy. The additional alchemical seals that could assist with the process.
Those were pieces of knowledge that Siderius would share with George if he could prove his loyalty. Otherwise, he would tolerate no betrayal.
"I’ve never heard of using blood and bones to forge a seal. Is this... Magic?" George squinted his eyes. The idea of using organic material sounded like a gruesome ’ritual’ to him.
"Not magic. My dear George. And it is not a ritual. You need animal blood and bones. The stronger the animal the better. Pig’s blood and bones are obviously inferior to horse’s, buffalo’s or predator’s.
There is a detailed process in that paper. Go back to your workshop, George. Practice it. Master it.
I give you three days to learn it. I saw your schematics. You are a brilliant craftsman. It should take no more than three days to master this blood forge.
Once you complete it, come to me. Then our work can begin."
George folded the piece of parchment carefully and put it inside his chest. He held it like the most precious thing in the world.
"But why dull steel? The name of the steel doesn’t sound... powerful at all." George said.
"You read the recipe yourself. It is a piece of durable steel but lacks sharpness. Now I don’t know how ’indestructible’ Petrinium Steel is. But I guarantee you, this dull steel will be more resilient than any metal you have come across.
As for why it has that name. Because it is a piece of low-grade steel, of course."
George’s body shivered slightly. "Do you mean... that you have recipes for even better steel?"
"I do, George. Steel that can cut a solid boulder in half. Steel that can withstand the power of a thousand horses. Steel that can never degrade or rust.
Interesting?"
George nodded repeatedly. His eyes were filled with light of curiosity.
"Prove your worth, George. Then I shall open you to a word of iron and fire. If you can’t even make Dull Steel, how can I entrust you with much powerful material?"
George took a deep breath. He didn’t know if any of it was true. But if it was, he could become the greatest blacksmith that had ever lived. His dream came as close to reality as ever.
George kneeled down. "I cannot express my gratitude enough, Lord Watcher. Believe me, I will create Dull Steel for you."
Siderius smirked. People were easy to manipulate and control. As long as they had something to yearn for, Siderius always knew how to give them an offer they couldn’t refuse.
"Go, Master of the Forge. Makes me proud."
George nodded and quickly ran away. He couldn’t wait to test out the new recipe.
Suddenly, he stopped mid-way and turned back.
"This recipe... Finn will know if I try to forge the Dull Steel."
"You can share whatever knowledge you have, my dear George. Just remember, the guild and your identity are sacred.
You must keep it a secret. For the sake of the guild and also for your own safety. We have many enemies."
George nodded solemnly. "I understand, Lord Watcher."
In Scalize, Finn Schmidt returned to his workshop.
The last name Schmidt belonged to his ancestors, the first ever blacksmith in Scalize. They had taken the name Schmidt as a testament to their profession, smithing. All the males in Finn’s family were destined to follow their father’s footsteps.
Finn entered the workshop from a backdoor. This door led to the living quarters, separating from the workshop in the front of the building.
The blacksmith of Scalize slumped down on a chair, pinching the middle of his forehead.
"What is even going on in the estate?"
Baron Jude Fisher had been going crazy the last few days with those haunting deaths. He couldn’t figure out what had killed those people.
Finn was summoned to take a look at the corpses. But even with his expertise, he couldn’t determine what those cuts were.
The cuts were obviously coming from a blade. But it wasn’t a knife or a sword. The alignment of the wound didn’t match. It wasn’t coming from a curved weapon either.
The weird thing was how the cut was able to penetrate into the flesh without tearing the fabric of the clothes. It almost seemed like the blade phased through the fabric.
Hammering noise spread to Finn’s room.
"George is still up this late? I need to tell the guy to rest. He isn’t young anymore."
Finn left his room and went over to the front workshop. There, George was still hard at work, hammering a piece of iron on the anvil. Sparks of fire were flying everywhere.
"Get some rest, my friend..." Finn said.
But George didn’t hear him. After hammering the piece of iron, he put it into a container.
Then George poured a mixture of blood and bone inside the container.
"What the?!" Finn froze in place.