Jac had not a single clue that Leonel had finished. His hands continued to move at their same steady and quick pace, his expression unhurried, and his brows focused. However, it wasn't long before everyone began to realize that something was wrong, even those who were completely uninformed on matters of Force Crafting.
Everyone had expected things to come to a conclusion after Jac completed his staff. But, rather than doing this, Jac continued on to diligently and calmly complete a spear, then a glaive, then he even completed a halberd before he came to a stop.
His brows furrowed in thought for at least a half hour before he shook his head. He couldn't think of any way to complete a bow with just a single ore.
He might be able to apply some principles he used to forge his flexible polearms to make the main body of the bow. But, not only did he feel like it would be no good, he couldn't even begin to think of a method to forge the bowstring out of Polished Glass. Any attempt he made would end in failure, that he was certain of.
Realizing this, Jac finally allowed his gaze to regain focus. He stretched his body, feeling only a slight tinge of fatigue. But, if he needed to, even doing this ten more times wouldn't be much of an issue. After all, he was a Fifth Dimensional existence while this was nothing more than a few Tier 6 treasures.
Jac looked up for the first time to find Leonel sitting in silent meditation. His lip twitched. Had this brat really finished before him?
But, when he saw the mere five weapons before Leonel, his brows raised.
His first thought was that Leonel had been stumped when it was time to form his spear much like he had been stumped at the forming of a bow. After all, Leonel was just a kid, it didn't make much sense for him to be proficient in so many weapons.
Compared to the sword, the spear was a much rarer weapon in terms of how many used it. The learning curve needed to learn it was far more difficult.
However, when Jac's gaze landed on Leonel's staff he froze. A moment later, fury lit his features, a wild Force whipping out from his body.
"BOY!"
Leonel, who had been in meditation, frowned and opened his eyes. Though he seemed to be mostly able to ignore Jac's pressure, he still didn't like the feeling. It made him feel as though a bucket of honey was being dropped over his head. The stickiness and discomfort was about the same.
"You're finished?" Leonel said plainly.
"Are you trying to humiliate me? Do you think that I'm so simple to handle?!"
Leonel's frowned deepened. "If you want to take it that way, I can't stop you from doing so."
Jac's chest bellowed, heaving up and down. It might have been a nice side had he been a woman, but unfortunately, he was just an old man who had lost himself to his rage.
If before Leonel wasn't already certain that Jac had some terrible memories surrounding Craftsmen Duels, he was certain now. This man was usually much too good at hiding his intentions to be acting like this due to what he thought was a single slight.
However, Jac thought he had a reason to be infuriated.
The spear was indeed more complex than the staff, but the principles behind their creation was almost identical. The main difference was in the blade and in ensuring that the spear was properly balanced even with such an addition.
Seeing that design of Leonel's staff, Jac's immediate thought was… genius. For several seconds, the equivalent to an eternity for a person with his power, he couldn't take his eyes off of it.
At that moment, he understood that Leonel was looking down on him. For him to complete exactly five weapons, just enough to claim victory in a Medley with nine rounds… It was nothing short of abject humiliation.
How could he not be furious?
Leonel could only sigh. This sort of disrespect was something he would never do, especially when Jac was giving him a high level of respect back. The two most important pillars of Leonel's life were Respect and Persistence, concepts his father had long since ingrained into his very being. How, then, could he slap Jac's face when it wasn't warranted?
He would always return the same energy he was given.
Unfortunately, though, this time, there was really nothing Leonel could do.
Creating a weapon meant embodying its spirit at every step. If there was a way Leonel could circumvent this, he would. But, for a Spear Master like himself to create a spear, it was impossible for his Spear Force to not take center stage. The moment this happened, whatever he was working on would shatter no matter what step of the process he was at.
Trying to force this not to happen would be akin to trying to use the Silver Grade technique on a much higher level than he was currently. Such a thing would drain him completely.
Even if he did succeed, the product would be faulty since he didn't put his heart into it. And, beyond that, his stamina would have been completely drained in the attempt, meaning he wouldn't be able to continue to make more anyway.
No matter how he looked at it, it simply wasn't worth it.
"Bring out your knife!" Jac restrained his voice, reining in his emotions. Since this brat wanted to play, he would play. He would make sure he was crushed so thoroughly that he could never raise his head agin.
Leonel reached out a hand, causing the short sword to zip into his palm. He swung it lightly, causing the wind in the surroundings to sing.
Before the first round even began, just looking at this scene, Jac's expression sunk.. At that moment, his heart trembled uncontrollably.