Chapter 448 – Wiggle Your Finger.

‘Great… The moment I try to leave, I’ll probably be attacked by a bunch of assassins or ambushed by a mercenary group. Then if I actually manage to get back in one piece, Lucienne will be all alone and something might happen to her… I’ve been trying to contact Robert for weeks already and even Lucille isn’t responding… Just great…’

Roland wandered through the Institute halls as he returned from the visit to the Headmistress’s office. His mind was a whirlwind of worries and uncertainties. As he walked, he couldn’t shake off the feeling of impending danger looming over them. Almost everything he had hoped to avoid during this trip had already happened and he wasn’t sure what to do about it.

‘I need to make the prototype first…’

While there was a lot on his mind, he couldn’t give too much attention to everything at once. His priority now was to focus on his research and develop the prototype for the prosthetic arm he had promised Bernir. With the materials he had gathered and the institute forge at his disposal, he could at least start working on that aspect of his plan.

‘As long as I’m in here, the nobles can’t get to me but can I trust that Headmistress not to sell me out?’

The encounter with the institute’s most influential figure, Yavenna Arvandus, proved to be rather perplexing. It appeared that she didn’t display much concern for the events occurring within the institute. On one hand, she seemed to prefer not being bothered but on the other hand, she did intervene to aid him when he was captured by Fortuna. She remained quite the enigma, but for some reason, Roland felt inclined to believe that she was on his side.

With these conflicting thoughts swirling in his mind, Roland finally arrived at the workshop he would be using for his prosthesis project. It was a spacious area filled with all manner of tools and equipment for crafting magical items. Other Runesmiths and apprentices bustled about making this a more novel experience as he would need to share his workspace with others.

Throughout the years, Roland had become accustomed to crafting his own tools and working within the confines of an enclosed space. Even Bernir, who collaborated with him, had his own separate workshop that was insulated. But now, in this shared environment, Roland had to adapt. Greeting the other Runesmiths and apprentices with a polite nod, Roland proceeded to set up his workspace. Fortunately, being a tier 3 class holder, he had already earned the trust and respect of the craftsmen in the workshop. They eagerly followed his instructions and even began to anticipate what new invention he would conjure up next. The runic puzzles he created for the mages had piqued their interest, and now, many onlookers were curious to see what he was working on.

‘I guess, I’m popular with older men… I want to go home…’

Despite his desire to depart, Roland knew he couldn’t leave just yet. Before he could, a prototype needed to be made. There was a chance that once he returned, he wouldn’t have access to any research materials. He might need to make trips to the library or seek advice from Arion or the other smiths in the workshop.

‘Now then, I want to imitate a hand, so first…’

He was making a prosthesis that would read the mana phantom and move on its own. This was his main goal, thus first he needed to get something that looked like a person’s arm. Luckily, this was a true forge and had some old golem parts that could be repurposed for this task. He had taken such an apparatus that looked like a basic human arm. It was made from a magical steel alloy similar to the ones that he had worked with in the past.

It was an empty shell without any runes and perfect for a prototype. Even though it was a fully-sized arm, it didn’t need to put runes on the entire structure. For the time being he decided to focus only on the index finger. If he could get it to wiggle then he would have all the data he needed to make it function for the entire arm.

‘Arion said that he would help me with the runic operating system once I’ve figured out how to interpret the mana phantoms but first let me try to attune it to regular mana.’

Research for such a thing already existed. Rune mages of the past created systems that interpreted mana hand spell usage that could be superimposed onto golemic limbs. It allowed them to use these robust metallic creations while using a basic spell that mimicked limb movement. Once this was created, he would just need to make it react to the mana phantom instead of spells that could only be created by mages.

With his plan set in motion, Roland began the intricate process of attuning the golemic arm to regular mana. He carefully inscribed a series of runes onto the arm, each one designed to interact with mana in a specific way. It was a delicate operation, requiring precision and finesse, but Roland was no stranger to such tasks.

‘I guess, I should go to work but before that…’

Roland glanced around and could see many people looking in his direction. While he understood their curiosity about his work, he was reluctant to reveal his entire work process to others. This space was open and everyone had their own workstation but it was possible to hide himself with the use of spellcasting.

Thus, after pulling out a few runic batteries and placing it inside a specialized runic device, the space around him started to shift. The other runesmiths and their helpers started frowning as the area around Roland began to turn into a dark color, successfully concealing him from view. Satisfied with his new gained privacy, Roland returned his focus to his work on the golemic arm.

After arriving at the forge clad in his armor, Roland realized it was ill-suited for runesmithing work. The bulky gauntlets restricted his movement, and he was reluctant to further degrade the runic structures adorning it. This armor stood as his primary and sole true defense and should it fail, he would find himself severely handicapped.

To address this, he had prepared a lighter version specifically tailored for this work. While lacking the battle features of his main armor, this alternative provided everything he needed for crafting. It was made of fewer components and lacked anything below the waist. It prioritized mobility and functionality for his craft but also left him unprotected during his work. However, with the shroud of blackness around him, no one would be the wiser.

Typically, softening metals required heating them up inside a proper forge. However, with his current skill set, Roland had become a forge unto himself. It was a simple task for Roland to elevate the temperature surrounding the metal arm, allowing him to forcefully inject the runes directly into the metal without requiring a proper smithing hammer. Although this method consumed more mana than necessary, Roland no longer needed to concern himself with such limitations. His skills had ascended to a level beyond that of Master Runesmiths, who could only dream of achieving such control over metal.

All his worries seemed to fade away once he engrossed himself in work. He had spent multiple weeks absorbing knowledge and thinking about runic theory but deep inside, the process of crafting was what he truly enjoyed. What had begun as a means to an end gradually transformed into something akin to meditation for him. In the act of creation, his mind cleared, and he found a deeper sense of peace.

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Hours passed by in a blur as Roland lost himself in his craft. The other Runesmiths and apprentices in the workshop had long since ceased their curious glances and returned to their own projects. They understood the need for focus and concentration when delving into the intricacies of runic crafting.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity of meticulous work, Roland stepped back to admire his creation. The once lifeless golemic arm now pulsed with magical energy, the runes he had inscribed glowed faintly in the dim light of the workshop. He cautiously extended his mana toward it and the apparatus reacted to his mana hand spell.

‘Even though it’s just a single digit, this should do.’

What would have previously taken him days or weeks of research and experimentation now could be accomplished in a few hours. The index finger that he had focused on was moving up and down in tandem with his mage hand spell. It read the input from his mana pattern correctly and reacted just as he expected. With this out of the way, he could move on to the hard part, making it react to his spiritual energy that took on the form of the mana phantoms.

From within his storage space, Roland retrieved all of his current research material, including a floating monster soul encased in a glass container. This soul served as the primary focus for the prototype. Roland hypothesized that if he could synchronize the movements of the finger-wiggling golem arm with his spiritual energy, it should, in theory, begin to react accordingly.