Currently, there were several prepared crystals and metal bands. Lena had assumed it was now time to input the crystals into the rings, but she got proven otherwise when Merath spoke. "Thus far, we have merely been making the ring operable. Capable of keeping and utilizing mana. But using it for what?"

"Um." Lena thought back to earlier. One of the runes was to create an enhancing effect. She assumed that was the point. "One of the runes enhances the wearer, right?"

Merath nodded. "That’s one of the uses, yes. If it were just that, the ring would be passable, but not fit for your level. I notice you and Lumi have gotten much stronger."

Lena nodded.

The old man continued. "Therefore, you can handle a much stronger effect. Let’s move on to infusing the ring band."

"The metal must be heated to exactly the right temperature." Merath said, placing the materials over a magical flame he produced. It was different from last time, where he heated up the metal directly with his magic. "Too cool, and the mithril won’t integrate properly. Too hot, and the silver’s molecular structure becomes unstable."

"How do you know when it’s right?" Lena asked.

"Experience. But also this." Merath gestured, and a small thermometer-like device appeared, hovering near the crucible. "Magical thermometry. It measures both physical temperature and mana resonance."

The rings began to glow as it heated. Merath watched the readings carefully, adjusting the flame’s intensity with minute gestures.

When the measurements reached the optimal range, he began the actual infusion process. He took out a bunch of Ems...

"What." Lena blinked.

"What?" Merath said, pouring the coins to be melted on the ring.

Lena looked on in disbelief. "What are you doing?"

"Don’t you know?" Merath tilted his head, puzzled. "Ems provide a magical enhancing effect."

Lena couldn’t react other than a single flat word. "How."

Now Merath was the one confused. "Don’t question me about how the world works. Why do you think Ems are used as money, anyways? Because they have inherent value as a magical material! Now pay attention!"

He moved on. The powdered mithril was added gradually, stirred with a crystalline rod that wouldn’t contaminate the mixture.

Lena was still too baffled to speak. She had never knew... why wasn’t she told? What the heck. How did that make any sense?

She violently shook her head from side to side to recalibrate herself. Once she had reset her mental state, she asked. "Why use a crystal rod?"

"Metal would dissolve slightly into the mixture." Merath explained. "Wood would burn. Glass would leach impurities. Crystal is inert and heat-resistant."

Lena filed that information away.

With the infusion complete, Merath poured the molten metal into ring-shaped molds. Steam rose as the material settled.

"These will need to cool for approximately fifteen minutes." Merath said. "Can you tell what this did?"

"I... can’t?" Lena entirely admitted. "I have no idea about the Ems, but I’m guessing they act as a very general enhancer. As for the mithril, they were added after the runes, so I can only suppose that they enhance the existing runes."

"Very good." Merath nodded. "You have it correct, but you are still missing something. There are many ores that can enhance what we did. Why Mithril?"

"Hmm," Lena considered the information. "I have no idea what Mithril’s properties are. However, given that the rings are for us, and we are magicians, it likely boosts our magic attack in some way."

"Exactly!" Although it had nothing to do with crafting, and more just context clues, Merath was happy enough that Lena had got it right. "Now that the rings are cooled, we merely need to slot the jewel into the ring."

"Can I try?" Lena asked impulsively, then immediately regretted it. "Sorry, that was presumptuous."

Merath glanced at her. "No, it’s a fair question. But the answer is no, not yet. If you’d like to try, do it on cheaper materials on your own time. I’m sure you’ll get it in a few attempts."

Lena’s face lit up. "Really?"

"Really." Merath confirmed. "Your observational skills are excellent, and you grasp concepts quickly. With proper practice, you could become a skilled accessory crafter."

That praise meant more to Lena than Merath probably realized. She redoubled her focus, determined to absorb as much knowledge as possible.

After a while, finally, Merath held up the completed first ring. It glowed with a soft internal light when held up to the air, yet otherwise looked like a fancy, but mundane silver ring.

"Woah..." Lena’s eyes shone as she looked at the ring.

Merath smiled. "I hope you learned something. The rest of the rings will take too long to do now. I’ll move on to the potions."

Lena nodded. "Thank you for teaching me."

"Thank you for being a good student." Merath replied. "Most people lose interest after the first hour."

"This is too interesting to lose interest in." Lena said honestly.

Merath smiled slightly. "Good answer. Will you stick around for the potions?"

"Sorry." Lena put on an apologetic face. "I really wish I could, but I need to get going."

"That’s alright." Merath smiled at her, and got back to his work.

...

As the day drew to a close, Lumi and Lena prepared to log out of Masteria for the night.

"Tomorrow’s the big day." Lumi said to Lena as they walked toward a safe area to disconnect.

"The raid." Lena confirmed. "Are you nervous?"

"A little." Lumi admitted. "A lot can go wrong."

"But a lot can go right too." Lena pointed out. "You’ve planned this well. Everyone is excited. We have good information about the target."

"True." Lumi said. "I’m only worried about Eden. We’ll have to keep him safe."

"Of course." Lena said confidently. "I’ll die for him."

Lumi smiled at that. "Get some rest tonight. Tomorrow will be intense."

"You too." Lena said.

They reached a quiet corner of Elenora where they could safely disconnect without being disturbed. And with that, both of them logged out, their consciousness returning to Earth.