Noticing that Raine was just staring blankly at the Shield, Old Henry looked over with interest.
"All kinds of people come to my place: those peddling inferior leather and tanning agents, those begging to repair their family heirlooms, and those wanting to buy a cheap piece of Leather Armor just to keep up appearances." He spoke unhurriedly in a hoarse voice, his gray eyes sweeping over Raine like a falcon. "But this is the first time someone has walked in and immediately taken an interest in my old, pitted Shield."
With that, a hint of impatience surfaced on his wrinkled old face, and he rapped his knuckles against the workbench—KNOCK KNOCK.
"Apologies. You must be the renowned Master Henry of this town?" Raine retracted his gaze and offered a perfectly measured smile, intentionally using the respectful title.
He had his own considerations for speaking so politely. On one hand, he wanted to negotiate a better deal when having his Leather Armor made. On the other hand, he needed to maintain a gentle and humble posture to extract information about the Griffin Group emblem from this eccentric old craftsman. Raine was well-versed in this approach, thanks to his past life’s experience of constantly mediating between clients and bosses.
"That’s me." Old Henry was quite receptive to the title, and even his tightly pursed lips relaxed a fraction. He casually turned the potatoes on the stove with a wooden stick and drawled, "That is not for sale. I won’t sell it for any amount of money. If you want to buy a Shield, you can leave now. Go find that stinky Old Kent at the Blacksmith’s Shop, and don’t hold up my breakfast."
"No, Master, I don’t intend to buy it," Raine replied calmly, his eyes falling once more on the mottled Metal Shield. His tone carried genuine admiration as he continued, "I just feel that it seems to bear many unknown stories and glory. The owner who left behind such a Shield must have been a true Warrior." Drawing cleverly on the item’s description, he directed his praise precisely toward Old Henry’s ancestor.
"Hmph, of course!" Undisguised pride immediately surfaced on Old Henry’s weather-beaten face. He subconsciously sped up turning the potatoes, as if the wooden stick in his hand were a Longsword being swung on a battlefield.
"This was left behind by my ancestor!
"He was a Warrior who personally participated in ending the Black Tide War! The Legend of his fierce battles with those Demons is enough to be written into an Epic!
"His story is full of twists and turns, making one’s blood boil. It’s absolutely much better than the bullshit hymns sung by those Minstrels!
"Those glib fools know nothing but how to kiss the stinking feet of nobles and utter a few auspicious words! They have buried the true Warriors!" Old Henry grew more and more agitated as he spoke, nearly flipping the potatoes onto the floor.
"My thoughts happen to coincide with yours, Master. Please allow me to pay my highest respects to your ancestor." Raine appropriately expressed his respect, then seamlessly shifted the topic to ask the core question, "Then, what exactly does such a majestic emblem on this Shield represent? My knowledge is shallow, so I beg you to solve this mystery for me, Master."
Perhaps feeling that he got along with Raine, or perhaps reminiscing about his ancestor’s great achievements, Old Henry opened up. He cleared his throat and, with a solemn tone fit for narrating an Epic, pointed to the five flying Griffins on the Shield.
"Look closely, boy! This is the symbol of the Five Nations Alliance Army, formed when the various nations of the Human Race put aside their past grievances to fight the Black Tide! Every Griffin represents a great Human Race Kingdom, or at least, a once-great one," Old Henry declared. He first tapped his thin, withered finger on the most magnificent Griffin in the center, whose mane flared like raging flames. "This represents our Solan Kingdom, the inheritance of the ’Lion Heart’, and the symbol of the Knight’s Kingdom!
"This represents the Grim Kingdom of the Northern Territory." Moving his fingertip upward, he pointed to a Griffin with silvery-white fur that seemed draped in ice and snow. "Hmph, a bunch of barbarians living in an ice cellar, but I have to say, their Warriors are indeed as tough and hard to chew as the permafrost.
"This is Kara of the Sun Kingdom in the south!" he continued, pointing to the Griffin at the bottom, whose feathers were the color of gravel and whose eyes were as sharp as an eagle. "They say the sand in that place is hot enough to boil an egg, and could even suffocate a brainless Red Dragon. However, the Golden Sand Spirit they brew is quite excellent, and the waists of those Dancing Girls from an Exotic Realm, tsk tsk...
"This getup is already quite obvious, isn’t it? The Holy Pharos Kingdom. A bunch of overly mystical folks, nothing much to say about them," he noted, moving to the pure white Griffin on the left, which had a faint halo around its head.
"And here is the Arcane Federation of Lorenia, a realm ruled by Mages, and the most mysterious country of the Human Race," he concluded, finally pointing to the Griffin on the right, whose wings flowed with vibrant colors and whose eyes resembled purple Crystals. "Last time, an Adventurer from Lorenia even bragged to me that their valiant Governor led the Guard Arcane Legion and actually expanded part of their territory into other planes. What a load of nonsense."
Raine listened quietly, as if a massive, archaic scroll of the various nations of the Human Race was unfurling before his eyes. The corresponding positions of the five Griffins were almost identical to the map of the Five Human Countries. It turned out that the Five Griffin Emblem deep within that cave was actually the symbol of the Human Race Alliance Army from back then. He wondered if Kaelin was so obsessed with finding it because her ancestor had also been a member of the Alliance Army. What exactly was hidden behind the seal of that powerful Magic Barrier? If she was merely tracing her ancestor’s footsteps, he couldn’t help but wonder why she appeared so incredibly anxious.
Seeing Raine lost in thought, Old Henry coughed lightly in slight impatience, his grayish-white eyebrows knitting together. "Hey, boy, what exactly are you here for? This isn’t a history classroom."
Raine collected his thoughts and placed the rolled-up Razor Beast Hide from his backpack onto the broad oak counter with a heavy THUD. He smiled and said, "I’d like to ask you to custom-make a fitted piece of Leather Armor out of this, Master." As he spoke, Raine slowly unrolled it flat in front of the older man.
Upon seeing that roll of completely intact, glossy hide, Old Henry’s absent-minded expression shifted. He carefully inspected the texture and luster of the fur, then suddenly snatched up the polished Cow Bone Hammer by his side. With a swiftness that belied his age, he struck the edge of the leather with absolute precision—THWACK.
"Hmm..." Feeling the solid resilience and unique vibration rebounding from the material, he nodded slightly. "The hide of a Razor Beast. Its integrity is remarkably high, and it was processed in a fairly timely manner, so the foul stench didn’t ruin the foundation."
His eyes narrowed slightly as if recalling some old memories, his tone carrying an imperceptible sigh of lament.
"It really is a fine piece of work. Was it last year, or the year before? An Adventurer Captain in town known as ’Iron Butterfly Tie’ also brought in a piece like this, though its quality was far worse than yours.
"At that time, that two-meter-tall giant cried like a child. He was the only one in his entire squad to crawl back with half a life left. After that, I never saw him in town again." He lifted his eyelids, his gaze landing on Raine once more with undisguised scrutiny. "Tell me, where did you pick up this hide, or how much wasted money did you spend buying it from some profiteer?"
"We killed it ourselves," Raine responded calmly, his tone completely undisturbed.