Kruger seemed no different than an ordinary Orc. In fact, he looked even more normal than the Orcanine and the Orcupine Orcs simply because they were a variant species of Orcs. Meanwhile, Kruger was just a simple, ordinary Orc with a huge stature and two tusks coming out of his lower mouth.
The fact that he was simply a projection of mana made it seem like he was even more unimpressive. It didn't help the fact that he was wearing a simple training attire, with a plain white shirt and brown shorts.
"You're a Heavenly Knight?" he asked.
"In the flesh. Well, actually not haha. But, for all intents and purposes, I am a Heavenly Knight before you," Kruger said, with his hands behind his back looking scholarly and dignified.
"As you might have noticed, I am a master of the Way of the Axe. Do you know anything about the Ways?"
Michael heard most of it from Yuna and Agnes, who were a little bit more knowledgeable on the fact, but it wouldn't hurt to hear it from a Heavenly Knight himself.
"In this current age, we have considered 10 different weapons as mastered arts in our field. In other words, a Way is the field of mastery in which a Knight takes in order to achieve Heavenly status.
Through hard work, talent, and a little bit of luck, I was able to achieve perfect mastery over the Way of the Axe, giving me the title of Heavenly Knight.
There are ten of us currently, each one a master of their own weapon."
Michael saw pride in Kruger's eyes. He seemed confident and assured of himself that he was truly a master at his field. It made him wonder what he would see in terms of mana when he saw Kruger face to face.
"Now that I have introduced myself, would you care to do it too?"
Michael reciprocated and simply replied the truth.
"I am the leader of the Reborn company," he said plainly.
"Ahh yes. The Reborn company… It has not been long since I have caught wind of its name, but I am already quite impressed with what you have achieved.
They say your company has tremendous smithing skills that are almost equal to the Dwarves. They say that your products are addictive and novel.
They say that your company has established the Orcus Town as your own—now known as Neo Orcus. But perhaps the most impressive of which is the fact that you have both the Orcupine and the Orcanine tribe under your employ.
I could hardly believe it when I heard it. Many of my Orc comrades even deem it as a myth, especially since no one has ever confirmed the sightings of these Orcs together.
I would have asked you to confirm this yourself, but I know that sometimes, one has to keep their hands in the dark.
So, all I have to say to that is thank you. I am deeply grateful that you were able to save my brethren from their own folly."
Michael shrugged. "They just needed to hash things out," he said.
Kruger laughed, knowing the difficulty in getting those two Orc tribes to work together.
"Either way, your arrival here in the Queens region has driven quite a splash. I am sure that there are many players in the field that are quite surprised at your arrival. You have single-handedly thrown all their plans out the window."
Kruger walked around the room as he talked, eventually stopping at the window overlooking the main Court, with Knights and Squires training with strangers in their midst.
There was a Dragon-like creature, a hooded figure, and a violet slime, talking and mingling with the Knights with merry joy. Usually, those Spear Knights disliked talking with people they do not know, but they seemed to be quite happy with chocolate bars in their hands.
"But let us get to the bottom of why I have requested to meet with you.
Your friends down below…even while I am a projection, I could see that they are brimming to the top with talent.
It is quite rare to see a collection of them under one banner, and in such an early stage of their career.
They have proven themselves in the tomb, fighting a 6-star Apex Jaguar and defeating it quite handily. But of course, not without the help of those certain weapons…Mithril Relics."
Of course, Michael knew that this would happen. He just didn't expect that he would lure such a big shot so soon.
Kruger wanted to meet Michael to discuss these very weapons.
"What do you want to know about them?" he asked Kruger.
The Heavenly Knight Orc looked back at Michael, surprised that he would admit it so easily.
"So it is true?"
"There's no point in hiding it," he replied.
"You do know that these are weapons of great power, once thought to be erased from the annals of time. Even our Order spent great resources and time gathering bits and pieces of Mithril Relics. How were you even able to procure such a large amount for your allies?"
"I made them," he replied.
Kruger's projection momentarily shimmered as his mental state was disturbed for a moment. A Heavenly Knight such as himself should have achieved inner peace, allowing him to stay unperturbed even in the most surprising of events.
Yet, this single piece of news, so casually revealed to him by Michael, made him so unstable that his projection almost disappeared.
"Is this true? How is that even possible? Even the Dwarves have lost the method of their creation."
Michael shrugged once again. "Not anymore. Long story short, I was able to figure out the method myself with their help. Now, our nations are working together to create more."
Kruger had to sit down on the chair to center himself, lest he lose control of his projection again.
"You…you are quite the dangerous man. This is the first I've even heard of the dwarves allying with a human."
Michael reached into his pocket to reveal a simple Mithril Artifact piece. It was one of the test pieces he had when he first started making them.
It looked like an ordinary crystal, transparent, and with a small red light coming off of its center.
"That is the real deal," Kruger said, making his way towards Michael.
His eyes couldn't leave the Mithril piece, as if it was glued to it. His curiosity eventually got the better of him, and he reached out to the Artifact.
However, his hands just passed through the Mithril piece.
Regret filled his face. He wished he had taken the time to meet with Michael face to face right now. If he did, then he would have been able to touch upon the Mithril Artifact with his own hands.
"Are you not afraid that such a treasure of yours will attract bad intentions?"
Michael simply snapped his fingers, with the Fire mana leaving the Mithril Artifact and dissipating into the air.
The transparent crystal eventually lost the red light inside its core, leaving it desolate.
With no mana inside, the Mithril Artifact turned ashy white, before eventually turning into a crumpled piece of metal even more fragile than paper.