Harem Sync: Divine Edition-Chapter 58: MEMORY OF IRON

CLANG.

A different sound, louder and more definitive.

Metal hitting metal.

They stopped the carriage immediately.

Kira jumped before it even stopped completely, running back to the workshop door.

Gandloaf was standing.

Not steady. Trembling, his whole body swaying slightly as if he needed to remember how to stand upright.

Disoriented, his eyes blinking slowly trying to focus, his head turning to see the workshop as if for the first time.

He looked at the extinguished forge, then at the hammer in his right hand which he gripped with excessive force, his fingers white from so much pressure.

He didn’t seem ’healed’. He looked like someone who had decided to suffer standing instead of sitting.

The group came right behind Kira, entering the workshop slowly.

Haru tried to take advantage of the moment. "Mr. Gandloaf..."

Gandloaf interrupted, his voice hoarse as if he hadn’t spoken properly in days:

"Show us." "...What?"

"The weapon." He looked directly at Haru for the first time. "Show what needs repair."

Haru nodded.

[Vorath’s Sword Selected]

He extended his right hand into the empty space beside him and pulled Vorath’s sword from his inventory.

To the others, it was as if Haru had torn space-time and ripped it from another plane.

Two meters of corroded and perforated blade, massive and too heavy to have been hidden anywhere physical.

It looked like summoning magic.

Everyone admired it, the guards’ eyes widened, Yukihime gave a small squeal of surprise, Kira tilted her head in fascination.

But Isabela...

Isabela involuntarily took a step back.

She looked at Haru, then at the sword, then back at him. Something changed in her expression, not direct fear, but growing distrust.

She remembered the village half-wiped, remembered Haru telling her that Custodians hunt "anomalous beings," remembered Kaelthar’s sanity and his words, "Every Gamer has a purpose, to dominate."

...She remembered that Haru had killed Corvus without hesitation, too fast and efficient.

≈fear≈

And now he was conjuring a giant sword out of nowhere.

She said nothing, only observed with renewed attention, storing it in her memory.

Gandloaf picked up the sword with his right hand, had to use force to lift it, placing it on the anvil with a heavy sound of metal striking metal.

His posture straightened slightly, shoulders pulling back instinctively.

His eyes focused for the first time since they had arrived, and for a second glowed a faint green, not from reflection, but from magic.

His fingers recognized the weight, running over the blade’s surface with the automatic familiarity of someone who had done it thousands of times.

The blacksmith’s instinct is awakening.

He ran his thumb along the sharp edge of the blade, testing it, cutting himself and bleeding, but he didn’t react to the pain. He just kept examining it.

"It’s not dull." He looked deeper, turning the blade over. "It’s kind of... numb."

Gandloaf tapped lightly with his fingers, listening to the sound that returned.

"It’s not ordinary metal." He ran his hand over the corroded perforations. "But the alloy... I’ve seen it before. Long before..."

He looked at Haru.

"Where did you get this?"

"I killed the previous owner..."

Gandloaf nodded as if that made perfect sense, continuing to examine it.

"It was forged by someone skilled." He touched the base of the blade where there were still faint inscriptions engraved. "And it’s ancient, centuries old."

He took a file from the workbench, tried to scrape a small area of the blade.

It didn’t leave a mark.

Not even a scratch. The file glided across the surface without affecting anything. He picked up the small hammer, tapped lightly on the blade, and a deep sound echoed out, not normal metallic, but a resonance that vibrated in the chest of those nearby, like a giant church bell being rung in the distance.

"Could it be what I think it is!?" thought Gandloaf, pausing, his eyes shining brighter now.

"This sword..." he said slowly, with genuine respect in his voice, "...wasn’t made to rust."

He looked at the corroded perforations again.

"What you see here isn’t true rust. It’s..." he searched for words, "...spiritual dross. Residue of energy used for a long time. The blade is dormant beneath it all."

He remained silent for a long time, just looking.

Finally he declared:

"I can restore it."

Pause.

"If you bring me what I need."

Haru approached. "What do you need?"

Gandloaf went to the dusty bookshelf, pulled out an old book, flipped through it until he found a specific page, and showed an illustration of a glowing hexagonal crystal.

"Resonance Crystal."

He explained, pointing. "Function: awakens the memory of the metal. Removes accumulated spiritual dross. Allows you to polish and mold impossible alloys without breaking them."

He closed the book.

"But..."

He looked out the window towards the mountains surrounding the village.

"It only exists in the Surrounding Mountains. Deep caves. Places that... no one has gone to since the attack."

Heavy silence.

"If you can bring one of these crystals..." he touched the sword again, "...I think this blade will truly awaken, and when it awakens..."

He looked directly at Haru.

"...it will be a weapon worthy of whoever conquered it."

Haru looked at the mountains through the window. "And why didn’t you go get those crystals yourself? You know the way, you know where to look..."

Isabela slapped Haru’s head hard. "Watch that rubbery mouth of yours!"

"But I only asked!" Haru grumbled.

Gandloaf sighed without looking at them. "I can’t."

"Why?" Haru asked.

A long silence followed. Gandloaf patted his shoulder.

Everyone stopped. They looked at him with renewed attention.

"But on the bright side... I’m not human," he continued. "I’m a Dwarf..."

"What does that mean!?" Kira asked curiously.

"Our forges are different from yours," Gandloaf replied, going to the unlit forge and touching the cold stone.

"Dwarves forges are connected by the Path of Flame... An ancient flame that, when lit..." he stared into the void, remembering, "...allows us to walk through iron, from one forge to another. Instantaneously."

Isabela frowned. "Walk... through iron?"

"Flame Path." The veteran guard murmured, recognizing it. "I’ve heard of it, it’s extremely rare."

Gandloaf nodded.

"My Flame Path, in the mountains... went out," he said, somewhat embarrassed. "When the flame dies... the blacksmith is trapped where he is."

Understanding dawned on everyone at once. He hadn’t gone to retrieve the crystals because his forge in the mountains had gone out, and he couldn’t now because he wasn’t in a condition to travel.

Haru processed this. "So bringing the crystal isn’t enough."

Gandloaf went to an old chest in the corner, opened it with difficulty using only one hand, and pulled out a small book of burnt leather.

"Fragment of a Blacksmith’s Ember." He read from the page. "A rare item because it’s somewhat difficult to make... it’s a piece of crystallized flame... usually kept in the main forges."

He closed the book.

"If the forge in the mountains has survived long enough... maybe there’s still a fragment there."

Gandloaf looked at Kira for the first time with real attention.

He didn’t thank her. He just observed her for a second, then said:

"You cleaned it."

Kira shrugged, naturally.

"It was dirty."

Something passed between them, not gratitude, not friendship, but mutual recognition. A small micro-bond created without words.

Gandloaf turned back to the group, his posture becoming more rigid, more formal.

"I make no promises." He declared firmly. "If you bring the crystal... I’ll work, if you rekindle the flame... I’ll forge." No emotion, no heroism, just a raw contract.

"But if you fail..." he glanced at Vorath’s sword on the anvil, "...this blade stays as it is."

Haru sighed. "Wait, wait, wait, let me see if I understand... we’re going to have to go to the mountains, look for a distinctive hexagonal crystal, and then find a forge in the middle of nowhere and use a crystallized flame to summon you there!?"

"Where exactly are these mountains?" the guard asked.

Gandloaf pointed out the window. "Northeast. Three hours on horseback to the base. Then..." he gestured upwards, "...climbing. Deep caves. The forge is there."

"Dangers?" Isabela asked.

"Creatures that were drawn by the... event. They might still be there, and the mountain itself."

"Total travel time?"

Gandloaf thought. "One day. Round trip. If all goes well."

Haru heard the word ’adventure’ implied in all of this and became visibly annoyed, closing his eyes and sighing deeply.

"Another one... always another one...this still feels like a web novel, written by a frustrated guy," Haru muttered to himself. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Before they resumed arguing, Gandloaf murmured something, looking at the ground, "If you find the culprit... don’t fight... Run."

Haru opened his eyes. ’culprit?’

"I never saw the creature, I only heard it pass by and roar... I called it the culprit," Gandloaf said somewhat awkwardly.

"What Rank would it be?" Isabela asked tensely.

Gandloaf looked directly at her.

"Lower Maestro 2."

Silence fell over the group.

One of the guards called out, worried. "Sir Haru... not everyone needs to go. Some of you should stay here helping Mr. Gandloaf."

Kira stepped forward before Haru could speak. "The master and I can handle it. The rest stay."

Haru nodded. "Three stay. Help him put coal properly in the forge, organize tools, prepare everything."

He looked at Isabela, Yukihime, and the two guards.

"You stay. Kira comes with me."

Isabela wanted to protest, "Haru, what’s your rank anyway?!"

"I’ll go." He cut her off firmly. "Discussion closed."

Kira and Haru exchanged glances, nodding in unison.

"We leave now," Haru said. "The sooner the better."

Yukihime tugged at his clothes. "Is Papa coming back?"

Haru bent down, patted her head. "I’ll be back. I promise."