"Finally done!"

Rogers and his disciple both raised their hands high with bright smiles across their faces before slapping their palms together loudly in celebration.

Clap!

The sound echoed throughout the workshop.

Sweat dripped down from their bodies onto the floorboards while the roaring steam furnace behind them slowly lost its heat.

The disciple hurried over and shut the machine down properly.

Hissssss...

Steam escaped heavily from the pipes one last time before the workshop gradually became quieter.

Ezra stood nearby with his arms folded while silently examining every single part of the Barrett M107 arranged across the massive metal table.

The upper receiver: Barrel assembly, top rail and the bolt path.

Which acts as the primary alignment structure.

The Lower receiver: Trigger assembly, pistol grip, magazine well, safety mechanism.

Which connects to the upper receiver through hinge and lock pins.

The Barrel system, Bolt system, Recoil system, Feeding, Controls, stability and Optic components.

Everything had been arranged carefully and neatly across the table.

The sniper parts looked brand new.

Smooth, clean and polished.

The faint sunlight entering through the workshop windows reflected softly off the metallic surfaces.

The grade didn’t increase.

Ezra thought quietly to himself while staring at the sniper parts.

But now, with the circuits inside these parts...

He narrowed his eyes slightly.

... Which I can barely even see them unless I completely focus my senses and reinforce my vision using Cognis.

Well...

At least the sniper should survive heavy usage for a longer span of time now.

A faint smile slowly appeared on Ezra’s face.

"Ezra-boy..."

Rogers suddenly appeared beside him so quickly it almost felt creepy.

The old man stared at Ezra with the exact expression of a begging puppy.

The faint smile on Ezra’s face instantly disappeared.

"Please stop making that face Uncle Rogers."

Ezra sighed while taking out the carrying bag.

"It’s honestly disturbing."

He calmly started packing the sniper parts back inside one after another.

"Nooooo!"

Rogers immediately reached forward dramatically like someone whose heart had just been shattered.

"Can’t you at least show me how it looks after assembly?!"

He clasped both hands together and began begging shamelessly despite already being an old man.

Ezra completely ignored him and continued packing the parts quietly.

"You selfish boy! Humph!"

Rogers folded his arms and pouted openly.

Seeing the old blacksmith behave like this...

Both younger boys inside the workshop almost looked like they wanted vomiting blood.

"Master, please stop embarrassing us."

His disciple pointed at him angrily.

"But...but..."

Rogers pointed helplessly toward the bag.

"I’ve never worked on such a complicated sniper rifle before!"

He sounded genuinely wronged.

"If I could at least see its completed form once..."

His fists tightened while excitement burned inside his eyes.

"...I would become the happiest old man alive."

Then suddenly...

He pointed toward his disciple.

"Aren’t you curious too?!"

The disciple instantly stepped backward.

"Argh..."

In truth, he also desperately wanted to see the sniper assembled properly, but unlike his shameless master...

He still had dignity.

At least a little.

"It’s Ezra’s choice whether he wants to show us or not."

The disciple stared seriously at Rogers while resisting the temptation.

"Didn’t you always teach me that all Alchemists have their own secrets? And you said revealing their secrets carelessly could make them lose their advantage."

He pointed accusingly toward Rogers.

"So, isn’t it wrong for you to force him into revealing his secret weapon?"

The disciple practically now sounded like a mother scolding a naughty child.

Rogers’ eyes widened briefly, then the old man burst into loud laughter.

"Hahaha! I really got scolded by my own disciple."

He rubbed the back of his head before turning toward Ezra again.

Ezra already had narrowed suspicious eyes on him the moment he saw him turn.

"I apologize for my uncultured behavior..."

Rogers said politely, but then...

"You know..."

He still tried continuing.

"...I’m not an Alchemist so technically I won’t ha..."

"No."

Ezra replied firmly before he could finish, and an awkward silence filled the workshop for a brief second.

"Tch."

Rogers clicked his tongue and looked away bitterly like a sulking child.

"Master Ezra!"

Lucy suddenly appeared near the workshop entrance carrying her suitcases and space bag.

"I’m ready to leave."

She bowed politely toward both Ezra and Rogers before lightly waving toward Rogers’ disciple with a soft smile.

The disciple awkwardly waved back.

"Okay."

Ezra nodded while moving toward the workshop exit.

"You should stay longer. The unveiling party is only two days away anyway, so why not relax here until then?"

Rogers spoke while following Ezra out of the workshop, with his disciple trailing behind him.

The cold wind outside immediately brushed against their faces the moment they stepped out of the workshop entrance.

"Well..."

Ezra adjusted his space bag resting over his shoulder.

The bag of the Barrett M107 parts and Lucy suit cases were already place inside.

"Unfortunately, I realized we don’t actually have proper clothes for the party. So, we need to buy them."

His voice remained plain as usual, but he still sounded polite.

I completely forgot a noble party like that would require elegant clothing.

Tch.

That means even more money will be disappearing without earning a single dim back.

Ezra sighed inwardly.

The moment Rogers heard him say those words, he burst into loud laughter.

"Hahahaha!"

Even when Rogers tried sounding calm...

His naturally loud voice still echoed around the snowy yard.

"Okay then! I wish you luck on your journey."

This time his tone softened slightly, though his voice still sounded booming enough to make nearby birds fly from the trees.

"Thank you."

Both Ezra and Lucy bowed politely.

"Thank you again for teaching me about Blacksmithing and circuit alignment."

Ezra added while still bowing respectfully.

"Don’t worry about it."

Rogers proudly placed both hands on his waist while looking down at Ezra.

"Honestly...I should be the grateful one instead."

His silver beard slightly moved as he grinned brightly.

"In all my years working as one of the Head-Chief Blacksmith for the family...I’ve only ever taught one other person who is quick witted like you. Out of all the Mainline kids, only Vera came begging for me to teach her my ways when normally..."

Rogers continued loudly.

"...I’ve never even seen Alchemists bothering to learn from Blacksmiths before."

He shook his head while laughing again.

"You and that little brat are both strange."

His tone briefly turned straight and thoughtful before quickly becoming loud again.

"Ezra."

He suddenly pointed directly at him.

"Watching you these past few days showed me something."

His expression gradually became more serious.

"It showed me how much you genuinely love the creation of firearms and even more than that...how badly you want to deepen your understanding."

Rogers slowly stroked his silver beard while admiration appeared clearly on his face.

"Even though I call you a genius...I still watched you stay awake late into the night rereading everything I taught you over and over again."

The old man suddenly turned toward his disciple.

"Unlike this brat."

He pointed accusingly.

"Who sleeps like a dead log the moment night arrives."

"Hah?"

The disciple immediately glared at him with annoyance.

"You’re teasing me again?!"

Rogers completely ignored the protest.

"You still have a long road ahead of you, Ezra Ashenlocke."

His voice lowered slightly now.

"In Blacksmithing, in circuit alignment and in understanding weapons themselves."

The snowy wind quietly passed between them while Rogers stared at Ezra with a deeper gaze than usual.

"But once you finally reach the peak of that understanding..."

He paused for a moment.

The disciple beside him also unconsciously became quiet, then Rogers smiled softly.

"...the firearms that will come from your hands will become something truly unbelievable."

His eyes held genuine expectation.

"I just hope this old body of mine lives long enough to witness that day."

For the first time since the two met the old man...

The noisy blacksmith sounded almost emotional.

"Thank you once again."

Ezra bowed respectfully again.

"And thank you for adding circuits to my dual stiletto needles too."

Lucy quickly opened her space bag and carefully brought out the pair of slim steel weapons.

The blades reflected faintly beneath the snowy light.

"It’s no big deal."

Rogers waved casually, though the proud look on his face clearly showed he was pleased hearing the gratitude.

"Okay, we should leave now."

Ezra turned toward the snowy road they originally used when coming to Rogers’ workshop.

The moment his eyes landed on the distant snowstorm rolling through the mountain paths...

He couldn’t stop himself from frowning slightly.

The wind in the distance looked violent.

Snow swirled endlessly through the air like white smoke while the dark sky above slowly dimmed further.

"Don’t worry Master Ezra!"

Lucy immediately stepped beside him with a bright smile.

She raised her fist confidently into the air.

"I’ll protect you!"

Her eyes sparkled full of determination while they started walking toward the direction of the storm.

But somehow...

That only made Ezra frown harder internally.

Before the two could walk far...

"WAIT YOU TWO!"

Rogers’ loud voice suddenly exploded behind them like thunder.

Both Ezra and Lucy stopped immediately and turned back.

The old man stood near the workshop entrance waving one massive arm toward them.

"Come back. I’ve got a better route for you."

The moment Ezra heard those words...

His mind immediately started processing possibilities rapidly.

A hidden road? Underground transport? Secret pathway?

A way that isn’t filled with snowstorms...

His thoughts raced one after another while he calmly followed Rogers back into the house together with Lucy.

The old wooden floor creaked beneath their feet as Rogers led them deeper inside into the basement of his house.

The disciple hurried forward and pulled aside several wooden crates stacked near the wall.

Rogers then grabbed a hidden iron handle attached to the floor.

Creeeak...

A heavy underground hatch slowly opened.

Cold air mixed with the scent of damp stone flowed upward from below.

Blue lamp lights glowed faintly inside the darkness beneath them.

An underground tunnel.

"This tunnel leads directly toward the town."

Rogers pointed downward while explaining proudly.

"I’m honestly sorry for the stress you two went through while coming here earlier."

He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"I normally don’t trust strangers, even if they’re somebody from Vera."

His disciple nodded beside him seriously.

"So usually, this tunnel remains a secret that even she as to keep to herself."

Rogers laughed lightly.

"It’s okay."

Ezra nodded calmly.

"I understand your reasoning clearly."

If anything, Ezra actually respected the caution.

Because a careless person would never survive long protecting valuable knowledge and weapons.

Without wasting more time...

Ezra climbed down after Lucy had already gone ahead of him energetically.

The blue lamp lights reflected faintly across the damp stone walls while soft echoes of footsteps traveled through the passage.

And just like that...

The two turned back and waved one final goodbye toward Rogers and his disciple standing above.

"Travel safely!"

Rogers shouted loudly.

"Make sure you don’t die before showing me that completed sniper rifle!"

The disciple immediately covered his face in embarrassment.

"Master, please stop shouting everything out loud!"

Ezra only gave a small nod before continuing deeper into the tunnel.

After their figures gradually blurred farther into the blue-lit passage...

Rogers slowly turned his head toward his disciple.

A dangerous smile had already appeared on his face.

Meanwhile... the disciple still stood staring quietly toward the tunnel entrance.

He was already missing them a little.

Especially Lucy.

She was cheerful enough to actually hold normal conversations with him unlike his master who shouted like thunder every single day, and even Ezra...

Despite sounding stiff and flat most of the time...

Still made the workshop feel more alive these past few days.

The disciple unconsciously smiled softly.

For most of his young life...

He had only spent his days beside one noisy old man inside a furnace-filled workshop.

So having people close to his age around genuinely felt nice.

But then...

"You..."

Rogers’ voice suddenly flowed into his ear like a cold blade sliding across his spine.

The disciple’s body instantly stiffened.

He sharply turned around while stepping backward instinctively.

"You seem to have grown some courage lately..."

Rogers slowly cracked his massive knuckles one after another.

Crack, Crack, Crack.

"...correcting your master openly huh?"

"M-M-Master?"

The disciple continued stepping backward until...

Thunk.

His back hit the wall, leaving nowhere for him to run.

The shadow cast by Rogers’ large body slowly covered him completely.

"I guess..."

Rogers rolled his shoulders while grinning dangerously.

"...you need more discipline, DISCIPLE!"

The old man suddenly lunged forward.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

The disciple’s scream exploded through the basement loudly enough that even Ezra and Lucy heard it echoing through the underground tunnel.

The two quietly continued walking afterward.

And without realizing it...

Both carried faint smiles on their faces already knowing exactly what was happening behind them.