Beinala's two wives, especially, were shaken to their core. They had already decided that Leonel must be of an elite class family just for knowing of the existence of the Craftsmen Duel. However, the scene before them made them realize just how true this had to be.
They didn't have enough knowledge to know whether what Leonel wielded was a True Metal Spirit or a Metal Spirit Embryo, but regardless, an Embryonic Metal Spirit was worth more than even many True Spirits.
Still, after some were shocked that Leonel was actually ahead of Beinala, many realized that he seemed to be quite tired.
"Did he overextend himself trying to show off?" On the top of a distant building, Sael frowned.
However, when she saw Leonel's grin, something about it made her brain switch off. It was as though it said: "I've won."
…
Jac was completely lost in his own world. He had no idea about Leonel's progress, nor did he care to know.
He carefully rolled the Polished Glass between his fingers, making sure that there was an even distribution of heat.
Then, with practiced movements, he began to roll the metal within the many wells of his Workbench. This allow him to press the metal out, forcing a new surface to the top. Whenever he spotted a new impurity, he would target it with his Embryonic Flame Spirit, burning it to ash and separating it out.
His hands were a blur. Compared to Kaela who had to sweat every single step, Jac was a master of his craft, plowing through the refinement stage with a deft pace. If it wasn't for the fact Leonel was contrasting him, his speed would have definitely been a point of shock.
20 minutes after Leonel, Jac managed to finish, moving onto his first Craft.
The knife and the short sword had a thin line of separation between them. However, what was most important for either was their light weight, their sharp edges, and, most importantly, their balance.
Thinking through this, Jac believed he had decided on a perfect path.
By now, though, Leonel had long since begun and was only putting the finishing touches. Despite the fatigue between his brows, his speed didn't seem to slow in the slightest. In fact, it even seemed to faintly increase.
Leonel knew, much like Beinala, that the knife category also encompassed short swords. Without hesitation, he began to make a foot and a half long blade. Polished Glass was the best for its edges and sharpness. Leonel believed that a short sword could more easily take advantage of this.
However, the striking differences between his actions and that of Jac's once again left the crowd in silence.
Jac had to melt his refined metal down, delicately picking out molds and using the wells of his Workbench to fine tune the final product down to his specifications.
But Leonel…? All he had to do was send a perfect image of what he wanted to Little Tolly through his Dream World. In the blink of an eye, Little Tolly would envelop the appropriate amount of refined metal, and by the time the little guy released, a perfect mold would be left behind.
To the eyes of a layman, it looked like Leonel was cheating. Only the Force Crafters in the audience who were well aware of how difficult it was to control Metal Spirits stood in awe, their hands trembling.
Leonel, however, couldn't be bothered to consider the thoughts of those on the outside. Whether they believed he cheated or not didn't matter to him. What was most important was that they knew BLACKSTAR existed and that they knew if he could 'cheat', then how could he possibly have made a faulty product?
'I'll add a Force Art to help its swiftness… If I modify this Force Art like this, it'll be able to gather the wind's momentum behind it with each successive combo it lands, effectively giving it a small wind domain…'
…
'This sword has an incredibly thin blade, but Polished Glass is too brittle in such large quantities. I'll give it a heat treatment and space out some Force Arts to make it more ductile. Most importantly, I'll add an impact dispersal Force Art… I should probably use this dispersal Art on the rest as well…'
…
'A saber is heavier than a sword, it'll be more difficult to forge out of Polished Glass. I'll add a strong curve to it, with that, the force on the blade will be applied in increments rather than all at once. I'll modify the dispersal Art…'
…
'The battle ax is actually must easier than the saber in this rare case. The blade of a battle ax would be just as large as a saber, but it has a more defined structure to support it. If I make the blade especially thin as the edge and widen it very gradually, there'll be a natural force dispersal. It will slice through anything thanks to its weight and sharpness long before the structure fails… Just to be cautious though, I'll add…'
…
'Polished Glass has none of the flexibility a staff needs, I need something more than just dispersal Arts for this, I need to change the whole structure….
'Alright, I'll hollow out the center and weave a double helix structure down its middle and fuse it to the inner wall of the staff. I'll add dispersal Arts at all the joints of the double helix, making the structure even stronger.'
…
Leonel worked one miracle after another, his smile becoming brighter and brighter. If others didn't know better, they would think that he was actually recovering the longer he worked… But, that was exactly what was happening!
Compared to using a technique reserved for Silver Crafters, this was like a walk in the park for Leonel. His Dream Force was recovering far faster than he was using it at this moment, so how could he not be getting better and better?
The moment Leonel finished his staff, he rose it high with a triumphant pride.
He swung it down with all his force. Under the astonished eyes of all the Crafters present, the staff bowed under his strength. Yet, the brittle Polished Glass showed not a single sign of snapping.
Leonel grinned, satisfied. The double helix structure could be seen through the transparent casing of Polished Glass, it gave those watching on the feeling of watching a work of art rather than a weapon.
Then… Leonel sat with his five weapons before him, a calm smile on his face.
However, those who knew the rules of the One Ore Weapon Medley suddenly had warped expressions.
Why did he stop? Wasn't this too arrogant?!