BXBX NOVEL Chapter 168: The King of Blacksmiths
After all, high-grade gemstones were used to enchant these crafts.
It was getting late and most of the viewers were starting to feel the pangs of hunger so the commentator decided to start the last round lest the people watching start to lose interest.
"Since our distinguished judges and honorable blacksmiths are ready, I shall not prolong things. We shall start from Sir Doran."
Shockingly, the administrators decided to start with the king, Doran Birmingham.
Slow footsteps sounded.
Doran took his time walking towards the judges, deep-seethed confidence oozing out of his pores as he walked towards the judging table while carrying his steel-tier battle axe in front of him.
Then, once he arrived at the judging table, he gently put down his battle ax in front of his mentor, Vulcan.
"Haha…You don\'t greet me now? You cheeky little bastard…" Vulcan crudely said as he grabbed the handles of Doran\'s battle ax and proceeded to inspect it.
He knew that his student was still angry at him and the guy had every right to be.
After all, he suddenly left Doran alone, went to another city, and started his own corporation, Vulcan Equippables.
Naturally, even though he was angry, Doran still respected the guy so he kept his mouth shut lest he shoot his mouth off and humiliate the old man.
As for Vulcan, he was a professional so he wouldn\'t let his feelings get in the way of his job.
The World Blacksmith Association paid him a lot of money to be one of the judges after all.
"Well-crafted as always. I\'d price this at around 21,000 silver coins"
A psychological explosion happened inside Shye\'s brain upon hearing the price that one of the judges gave.
He couldn\'t believe that a steel-tier weapon could cost so much.
\'What the shit is this old man talking about…21,000 silver coins?! Isn\'t he too biased?!\' Shye inwardly complained.
The blacksmith king of Valenzia, Doran, had a special place in every Valenzia adventurer\'s heart.
However, he was just too much of a Meido fanboy right now, thus, hearing Doran\'s battle ax fetch such a high price sounded like an unholy hymn to his ears.
Shye was skeptical.
He didn\'t believe one bit that the true cost of the steel tier battle ax was 21,000 silver coins so he waited for the other judges to debunk the crazy old man\'s claim.
Unfortunately, it seems like he was the crazy one as the next judge, Nick Tackton, priced it even higher than Vulcan.
"I\'d say you\'re selling him short Sir Vulcan! A weapon shop could definitely sell this for 23,000 silver coins!"
Shye felt dizzy after hearing the ridiculous numbers.
He already couldn\'t believe the price of 21,000 so his psychological wallet underwent a tribulation after confirming that the sky-high price was basically true.
He was having a hard time accepting such ridiculous prices.
However, the price must be true since even the professional appraiser said so.
\'Okay…My bad, old man…Let\'s say that the price is indeed around 20,000ish…\' Shye thought.
Still, there was a bit of hope that the last judge would bring all of them out of this nightmare.
Another reason why Shye was so affected by the ridiculous prices was because as an adventurer, he naturally dreamt that someday, he would be able to make a custom request to his preferred blacksmith, Meido Chan.
If Meido becomes the best blacksmith someday, then the prices of her work would naturally cost the same, possibly even more.
If a customized steel-tier weapon already costs this much, then a higher-tiered request would be even more expensive.
Slightly dejected, Shye waited for the last judge\'s verdict.
Once Nick was done, he handed the battle ax to the last judge.
Erwin grabbed the handles of Doran\'s craft and inspected it for a good few minutes, rotating the handles, slightly swinging the ax, checking minute details that even Nick didn\'t.
A frown then appeared on his face, making the last bit of hope in Shye\'s heart ignite.
"Hmm…to be fair…even if you compare this work to the works of the top blacksmiths in other regions, I\'d say this work would be able to hold its own…but!"
Just when Shye was about to smile, Erwin\'s next words stupefied him.
"I don\'t like its design…I\'d say 22,000…"
Shye almost fell from his seat, he really got his hopes up for nothing.
\'So that steel-tier battle ax is indeed worth that much huh?\' He inwardly sighed.
Even after luckily obtaining a shitload of silver coins from the labyrinth, he couldn\'t even purchase this Doran brand steel-tier battle ax.
\'I\'ll just have to work harder if I want to have such quality equipment…I guess…\'
His high-quality equipment addiction was becoming more and more severe as he grew stronger.
Just like a modern-day passionate gamer\'s addiction to a brand-new, faster, better gaming rig.
Not only Shye but even the other adventurers who watched the proceedings were slightly dejected.
After all, everyone wants to don a full set of Doran brand equipment but unfortunately, the reality is, that not all of them could.
Thus, the equipment of the other blacksmiths started to look better in everyone\'s eyes.
Once Doran\'s final score of 22,000 silver coins was decided, the judges moved on to inspect the works of the other blacksmiths.
15,000 silver coins…18,000 silver coins…19,500 silver coins…20,000 silver coins…
The other blacksmiths were close…However, none of them managed to shake the king\'s throne.
Finally, after a series of rigorous appraisals, the judges were down to one last blacksmith–Meido Chan.
Light footsteps sounded as the young female blacksmith walked toward the judging table with a rebellious aura.
She simply refuses to bow down to the king, Doran.
Then, upon reaching the judging table, She gently laid down her dagger in front of Vulcan, the first judge, whose eyes suddenly widened upon seeing her dagger closely.
"This!...Hohoho…Doran, my dear student. You have a feisty little challenger…21,000!"
A commotion started after Vulcan priced Meido\'s dagger the same as Doran\'s ax.
As for Shye, he clenched his fists in happiness, thinking that he did have a good eye for good products.
Meanwhile, the dagger had already made it to the next judge, Nick who after knitting his brows for a good few minutes, priced the dagger at 22,500.
"Formidable!! Blacksmith Meido is truly formidable!! However, her dagger is 500 silver coins short!! Will our distinguished judge, Erwin see a hidden value in her dagger?! Will she snatch Blacksmith Doran\'s crown?! "
Suddenly, the commentator\'s vibrant voice sounded from the corner of the stage upon realizing that Doran finally had a challenger.
The audience, including the entire Colzen student group, waited for Erwin\'s judgment with bated breaths.
For the past few decades, Doran reigned supreme so this would truly be history in the making if such a young blacksmith dethroned him right now.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity for the viewers, Erwin opened his mouth.
"Truly fascinating…what a talented young blacksmith…I liked everything, even the design of your dagger. However…I truly think that the battle ax earlier was a wee bit superior. 21,900!"
Shye\'s heart went through a roller coaster of emotions.
After a promising opening, it seemed like Meido would be crowned the new king. Unfortunately, even she fell a little short.
Meido subtly gnashed her teeth and lightly clenched her fists in frustration.
She was so close!