Test Begins

"Master, what are you doing here?" Rubella said, noticing Minos.

"We're going to stay here for a couple days. I'll be staying at the usual inn, so make sure to come back before it gets dark."

"Okay master!" Rubella said, the group immediately going back to playing.

Minos watched for a moment before leaving, heading back towards the inn. With his current environment, it was impossible to actually refine any weapons, so he just shut his eyes and ran over the process in his mind over and over.

While it couldn't compare to actually refining weapons, it was better than nothing. Just like that, Minos spent three-days going over and refining the process in his head.

…

In almost no time at all, the day of the test was upon him. Waking up bright and early, he headed to the Weapon Refining Union, having no plans on missing it.

Despite the day still being young, the Weapon Refining Union was actually more dense than it normally was, young faces all around, some filled with anxiety, and others confidence.

It seemed everyone took this test as seriously as Minos, arriving hours before the test was actually set to take place.

Minos soon found an empty seat next to an distressed young lady, who was constantly tapping her foot in anxiety.

Hearing Minos sit down, the anxious girl looked up towards him. Seeing Minos's nonchalance appearance, she couldn't help but wonder why he seemed so confident. Gathering courage, she managed to squeak out the question.

"Umm excuse me, I don't mean to bother you, but you seem quite confident. Do you have any strategies for keeping calm?" She asked, hoping for some advice.

Minos wasn't expecting such a question. Turning to face her, he looked her deep in the eyes, causing her to divert her gaze from the pressure.

"Keeping calm? Easy, knowledge." Minos answered as he turned away.

"Knowledge, what do you mean?" The young girl asked, not quite sure what Minos meant by his advice.

"Knowledge, to the point where failure is no longer an option. When you've mastered a craft so thoroughly, anxiety vanishes since success is all you've come to know." Minos said.

"But how can anyone reach such a point?" She kept asking, not feeling content with such an answer.

"You can't, no one can. Even the greatest masters fail sometimes, but you act like you've already attained it. Fake it until you make it." Minos said with a smile.

"Ahh, I understand, but still, it seems impractical?" She said, feeling such a state of mind wasn't by any means easy to attain.

"You're right, it takes years of brainwashing to ever reach such a level." Minos said with a loud laugh.

"Let me ask you, why are you afraid of failure?" Minos suddenly said, as he finished laughing.

"Isn't it obvious? Failure means getting farther from your dreams rather than closer. Especially today… If I fail this test, heavens only know how long until I can successfully become a Certified Weapon Refiner."

"My family has already invested so much into me, yet I've failed the test every time. We already have no money left, if I don't pass this time, it'll take years before we can earn the Nux Stone required for another try…"

"That's why I'm afraid of failure, because I quite literally can't afford to fail any longer. Without the Weapon Union Badge, I won't be able to sell my weapons, and I'll never be able to escape this hole, rather, I'll just dig deeper in…"

"You need a Weapon Union Badge, to sell weapons? As far as I'm aware, you aren't required to do the same thing for talismans." Minos suddenly asked, feeling curious as to where the difference was.

"That's because talismans are much cheaper, whereas even the worst One-Moon weapon is at least 50 Nux Crystals. Besides, there are no Talisman Union's here, or else they would likely have the same requirements." She answered.

"I see, I guess failure really does weigh heavily on you. Seems there's no real advice I can give to someone in a position like yours." Minos said, as if he had given up on the idea of helping.

"It's my fault, I was naive to think there was some sort of instant answer to my dilemma. I guess I can only try my best…" She said, letting out a long sigh of depression.

"While I can't give you any advice, I can help you in other ways. How about we make a bet?" Minos said with a smirk.

"Bet? What do you mean?" She asked curiously.

"Simple, I'll pay for your test this time. If you fail, you don't have to give me anything, but if you pass, you'll have to pay me back double." Minos replied.

"Seriously? So if I fail, I don't have to pay you anything?" She couldn't help but clarify, making sure she had heard correctly.

"That's what I said." Minos answered.

"Deal!" She said with excitement, shaking Minos's hand firmly. She didn't mind at all having to pay double, since if she passed, she would be able to make an income and easily earn back those 2 Nux Stones.

"By the way, I'm Zatiana, what's your name?" Zatiana said as she released Minos's hand.

"Minos, it's nice to meet you Zatiana." Minos replied with a smile.

Minos and Zatiana kept talking, with Zatiana doing most of the talking and Minos occasionally replying. Zatiana kept telling Minos about her voice, but a voice suddenly interrupted her story.

"Welcome everyone, the test will begin now. Please form an orderly line and show the front desk your I.D card. Once you've registered, you can enter the test room." A young receptionist said.

"Well, it seems the test has begun. Good luck." Minos said to Zatiana.

"Thank you. I hope you can succeed as well!" Zatiana said with renewed confidence. Without the worry of having to pay the failure fees, she felt like a massive weight had been taken off her shoulders, feeling very grateful towards Minos.

The two quickly joined the long line, and soon registered. Under the receptionist's lead, they came to a large room, furnaces dotting the floors.

An old man was seated on an elevated stage at the front of the room. While his head was bald, he had a long thin white beard that he constantly twirled between his fingers.

"Welcome everyone. Let's not waste any time on pointless speeches. Get the material you need and then find an empty furnace." The old man said with a voice that reverberated across the room, seemingly not at all matching his advanced age.

Everyone took the old man's words seriously, the large group of people walking towards the material pile and taking what they needed.

Minos quickly found what he needed, before saying a final goodbye and good luck to Zatiana. Finding an empty furnace, he got his materials ready as he waited for the old man's signal.

It was only after entering the test room did Minos realize why so many people seemed to fail. Most weapon refiners work in privacy, so being forced to work in this environment would naturally affect the quality of their weapons.

Minos guessed that this was also part of the test, checking to see if the weapon refiners had the confidence to work well regardless of their surroundings.

It was also likely to stop cheating, since with the old man standing at the front of the room, he could keep his eyes on everyone, watching for any suspicious behavior.

"Begin!" The old man said as everyone took their places. With his signal, everyone rocketed into work.

Minos was unaffected despite the loud and somewhat obnoxious environment. Heating up the furnace, Minos waited patiently for the heat to reach the required level.

He completely ignored the surroundings, focusing all his senses on his own work. The world seemed to vanish under this strange state of mind.

The sounds of others working, slowly quieted down as Minos entered this special state. Soon, the only noise left behind was the sizzle of his own furnace.

The second the heat reached the right level, Minos tossed his metal inside, flipping it with his tongs occasionally.

Having already succeeded once, Minos's body almost entered autopilot. He didn't need to think much, and just followed the usual steps to success.

The ore was soon red-hot, ready for hammering. Minos pulled it out and put it on the anvil. With his left hand holding the tongs and stabilizing the ore, and his right hand holding the hammer, Minos got straight to work.

Sparks soon began flying everywhere as he hammered at the red-hot metal. Its shape slowly changed with Minos's rhythm, soon forming the right shape.

With the hardest part done, Minos flew through the other steps, soon holding a sharp blade with an exquisite sheen, even better than his first work.

With the blade done, Minos quickly finished the handle, soon hammering the two parts together. Just like that, he had a fresh Wood-Shift Dagger on hand.

Minos appreciated the shining dagger for a moment before placing it down on the table. While he naturally wanted to test its quality, he couldn't do it now.

Even then, he wasn't anxious about his work. While he hadn't been refining weapons for long, he had already built a slight sense for quality with touch alone.

Intuitively, he knew his work this time was even better, so with confidence, he waited for the test to end.

The old man couldn't help but look over to Minos, who was the first to finish the test. The old man soon focused his vision on Minos's work, and couldn't help but smile with appreciation as he kept twirling his beard.

Minos looked up, noticing the old man's gaze. With no fear, Minos looked him in the eyes, giving a nod of acknowledgement before focusing back on his dagger.