Abe the Wizard

Chapter 15: Learning How to Forge

Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales

Since there was no drying powder here, Abel rubbed his hands with some mud he found on the ground. His mind might have been old, but his body still belonged to that of a child. With that being the case, it was very important for him to take care of himself in whatever small ways he could.

Whilst standing in front of the 150-pound lock, Abel had his legs parallel to the middle of the bar. When he tightened his grip, his thumbs were separate from his other fingers. When he picked the lock above his head, he did it in one motion and had his arms completely straight while doing so.

It was a beautiful lift, smooth and well-coordinated. The lock was only 150 pounds, yes, but in Master’s Bentham’s eyes, Abel clearly did it better than Gedon. Not only was he faster, but he also seemed more effortless when he was doing it.

The Knight of Marshall, on the other hand, was more focused on the way Abel used his muscles. He began by setting his feet up as a base, channeled his power through his thighs, waist and upper back, and executed the movement with his whole body moving in one with his arms.

Abel might not know yet, but what he did was the same as strength conservation, which was an advanced technique of the knights. For a child to have such a good understanding of muscle movement, Abel was truly blessed with talent.

After dropping the 150 pounds, Abel walked towards the 200 pounds and easily raised it. His form was the same as last time, and his speed was just as fast.

250. Easy. And just like that, as Master Bentham and Gedon watched in total shock, Abel was already standing in front of the 300 pounds.

This time, Abel had his hands closer to the middle of the bar. After doing a few prep hinges without any weight, he raised the lock and had it locked near his shoulder, meanwhile standing up with his legs slightly bent. His forearms were bent whilst pointing forward, and his chin was parallel to the bar. Then, slowly and steadily, he straightened his arms and raised the lock on top of his head.

As though woken up from a dream, Master Bentham turned to the Knight of Marshall, “Where did you find this monster, Marshall?”

The Knight of Marshall wasn’t too pleased with what Master Bentham was saying, “Hey, who are you calling a monster here? He’s a rank four Novice Knight, goddammit! If he can’t even lift 300 pounds off the ground, what kind of rank four Novice Knight is he?”

“Oh, my spirits!” Master Bentham exclaimed as he looked towards Abel, “A rank four Novice Knight? How old are you, child?”

“Turning thirteen soon, Sir,” Abel replied.

“You’re twelve? You’re a twelve-year-old, rank four Novice Knight,” Master Bentham threw a dirty look at the Knight of Marshall, “Marshall? What kind of madman would send a genius like him to be your son?”

“Why you looking at me like that?” the Knight of Marshall cried out loud, “Hey, you. I’m an Intermediate Knight myself!”

“Yeah, but didn’t you just become one? Marshall, isn’t it better to send him to a commander? Actually, for someone as talented as him, you reckon we can send him to the head commander?”

“Just… Ugh! Don’t you worry about it. Just let him stay with you and teach him how to forge, okay friend?”

The Knight of Marshall was a good friend with Master Bentham. If it wasn’t for that, he would’ve never had him come over to the Harry knight’s domain. That being said, however, Master Bentham was quite a loudmouth. His “straightforwardness” has caused a lot of headaches in the past.

“So be it, then,” Master Bentham agreed but decided to keep on talking, “I’ll let Abel stay, but are you sure you’re the right man to teach Abel how to be a knight, Marshall? I’m just saying, the kid’s got a bright future ahead of him.”

“Alright Abel, be a good boy for me. Stay here and learn from Master Bentham during the day. At night, You’ll learn the techniques of a knight inside the castle.”

Having said that, the Knight of Marshall rushed out of the blacksmith shop. For a second there, he looked like he was trying to escape the scene here.

Master Bentham, too, started walking back to his workshop. “You should’ve taught him the basics first, Gedon,” he said before he left.

Gedon said to Abel as it was just the two of them now, “Wow Abel. You’re pretty strong, aren’t you?”

“You are pretty strong yourself, Gedon,” Abel replied. Even without being trained as a knight, Gedon was already strong enough as a normal human being.