"Raven feather... Modified?"
The first part of the name was quite fitting, as the gauntlet truly resembled the color of a raven's feathers, but what did that 'Modified' mean?
Noah casually picked up a piece of rubble from mining.
The stone was about the size of a fist, just right for Noah to grip.
"My body hasn't fully developed yet, and my stats are just starting out. To meet the conditions for smithing with my own physique, I specifically developed this equipment."
As he spoke, he activated Raven feather and with just a slight exertion, he crushed the stone in his hand.
"Whoa!"
Seeing this, the others were amazed.
Just a pair of gauntlets could grant such monstrous strength to a young child.
The primary driving force of the first-generation Raven feather came from hydraulic devices—bulky, inflexible, and only suitable for tasks like wielding a hammer.
After switching to magic power drive, it only required embedding magic stones inside to utilize the Spell-Weaver's direct manipulation of magic, thereby controlling the gauntlets.
In other words, for those who couldn't directly manipulate magic, these were just a pair of cool-looking but rather useless gloves.
"You actually managed to create something like this, Noah! You're amazing!" Taro, also a smith, expressed his admiration for the craftsmanship.
Ais seemed quite impressed as well, but since she was still sulking, she didn't say a word.
...
The mining continued for half a day.
Five pickaxes had already been worn out.
After all, this was platinum ore. The hardness difference between an iron pickaxe and platinum was like night and day—it was essentially like hitting a rock with an egg.
So, Noah put in the effort to break apart all the stone portions within the rich ore vein, barely managing to separate the precious resources inside.
"Amazing! This is platinum ore! Woah! Adamantite? Is this adamantite?"
Watching Taro, who was beside himself with excitement, Noah smiled contentedly.
Platinum was excellent material, and finding it in the upper levels was truly fortunate, not to mention the adamantite and gemstones inside.
In such a massive rich ore vein, the gemstone was only about the size of a fist, currently in his hand.
If carefully cut, it could likely be divided into three portions for use.
As for the amount of adamantite, while it was indeed present, it was pitifully small—about the size of two gemstones.
The iron ore was left behind on the spot because their backpacks couldn't carry it all.
If anyone passing by discovered it, they could consider it a gift.
"Don't let your guard down. In the Dungeon, anything can happen until we return to the surface."
...
The harvest was plentiful, absolutely massive!
Noah was genuinely happy today.
Even after splitting the ores equally, there was enough for him to craft quite a few things.
First, he'd make a good weapon, then sell equipment made from the remaining materials.
Not bad at all.
The only regret was that the Strengthened Species didn't drop any items.
After exiting the Dungeon, the four of them went to the guild together and exchanged the monster magic stones for money.
The total amount was 89,000 valis.
After splitting it equally, each person received 22,250 valis!
Once Alicia and Ais reported their encounter with the Strengthened Species to the guild advisor, it was time for the final distribution.
"Um, Ais and I don't need our share of the materials. Instead, could you craft equipment for us?"
The elf lady asked with a hint of anticipation.
Taro scratched his head.
To be fair, he was extremely tempted to agree.
This was a perfect opportunity to get connected with an elf beauty!
But he couldn't.
"Ah, I'm very sorry, but I probably won't have much free time coming up."
Noah glanced at him.
'So this guy isn't completely a lecherous dude after all.'
He knew why Taro had no time—it was simple.
Taro was on the verge of leveling up.
Perhaps tonight, after returning, his status would be updated, and he would become an upper-class adventurer at Level 2.
Everyone except him was leveling up.
'Sigh.'
"I see..."
Although Alicia's tone was dejected, her eyes weren't really on Taro at all.
From the start, she had wanted to ask Noah for help.
She just thought that since Taro was Noah's senior, bypassing him to ask the boy directly might cause trouble for him.
Now, however, it worked out perfectly.
"What about you, Noah?"
"Sure, I'm available. Do you have any specific requirements for the equipment? If you haven't decided yet, you can come find me at the Hephaestus Familia later."
"Really? That's great... Actually, I've already thought about it. First and foremost, it's definitely a sword. My current one just won't cut it in the upcoming floors, so I want something with better performance."
"Alright, a straight sword then? Should the style be the same as the one you're carrying now?"
"Yes."
"Okay, understood. What about you, Ais? Is there anything you want?"
"Hmph."
"Okay, so you haven't decided yet. If you think of something, you can come find me. I'm usually at the smithy at 7-130 Adventurer Street."
...
Noah quickly ran back to the Hephaestus Familia base, eagerly taking out all the materials he had obtained this time, filling up the already cramped room.
With Taro's permission, he had exchanged all the adamantite for a complete gemstone.
Although adamantite was an extremely precious material, one that could only be obtained in large quantities in the lower or even deeper floors, for him at the moment, the gemstone was more useful.
Gemstones and crystals were vessels capable of storing magic power.
A monster's core, or magic stone, was a pure crystallization of magic power, but using it directly was highly inefficient.
Moreover, once the magic power in a magic stone was depleted, the stone would shatter and disappear.
Additionally, magic stones were actually too fragile; in high-level battles, even the pressure from wind could cause them to disintegrate.
Gemstones and crystals were superior substitutes for magic stones.
Not only could they store magic power, but they could also release it when needed.
If used on the Raven feather, then the Raven feather's basic performance would likely rival that of third-tier armaments.
But enough about that for now.
Before Taro finished his preparations, he should get ahead of him and go update his status.
Noah took off the Raven feather.
Inside the Familia base, he could afford to relax a little.
Knock, knock.
"Lady Hephaestus, could you update my status, please?"