Fairy Tail: Igneel's eldest son in Anime Multiverse

After a full day of dungeon crawling, Welf was exhausted but genuinely felt like he had grown a great deal.

So the first thing he did upon returning was head straight to Hephaestus to have his status updated.

Charles, on the other hand, returned first to his own "workshop." Given that its main structure had been obliterated, repairing it was practically the same as rebuilding it from scratch.

Even with the efficiency of the Gubernu Familia, only the basic framework had been restored. It would take at least another two days to return it to its original state.

Charles had even spent extra to commission a more reliable reinforcement design from the Gubernu Familia.

When Charles returned to the Hephaestus mansion, he happened to see Welf coming out of Hephaestus's forge room, grinning from ear to ear.

Charles walked over and asked, "So? Did your stats go up?"

Welf nodded enthusiastically. "I didn't expect such a big jump just from one dungeon trip. It's all thanks to your guidance, Charles."

Charles waved it off. "You worked hard for it too. Well, since we're both done, why don't we go out for a meal? Call it a celebration of our first team-up."

Welf laughed and said, "Let me treat, then. Consider it my thanks for your help."

Charles didn't turn down Welf's goodwill and nodded. "Then I won't be shy."

Welf couldn't help but marvel at how his luck seemed to be turning—he had actually found a reliable companion.

Suddenly, his gaze fell on something laid out on the floor of the hall. He walked over quickly and began to examine it closely.

"This is…?"

Charles followed him and explained, "That's a piece of equipment I made. My workshop accidentally exploded earlier. I'm guessing Lady Hephaestus helped move it here."

"You made this?"

Welf could hardly believe it. He had thought Charles was simply a powerful adventurer—he didn't expect him to be such a skilled smith as well.

He picked up one of the gauntlets from the Twin-Headed Dragon Armor, holding it like a priceless treasure as he ran his hands over it. "This is absolutely first-rate gear. The material must be scales from the Labyrinth Tyrant, Amphisbaena! Looks like white adamantite was mixed in too.

But the most striking part is the pattern. How did you even create such a beautiful design?"

Charles had completed this set of Twin-Headed Dragon Armor a while ago. Gone was the murky, grayish finish—it now gleamed white like the finest jade.

Under the lighting, crimson diamond-shaped grid patterns shimmered across its surface, giving the impression of transparent dragon scales overlaying it.

And of course, Welf—coming from a family of smithing nobles—was able to identify the materials at a glance.

Charles summoned Fal and introduced him, saying, "This is my partner. You can think of him as a spirit. It's thanks to his magic being infused into the forging process that those patterns were created."

Welf's eyes widened. "A spirit?!! You mean a real spirit? Charles, you're incredible—you're a spirit contractor?! I've only ever heard of ancient heroes being able to form contracts with spirits!"

Charles patted Fal on the head. "I'm honored to have been chosen by him."

Suddenly, Welf seemed to realize something. "Wait a second! If you infused spirit magic into the forging process, then those patterns aren't just decorative, right? They have special effects?"

Charles nodded. "That's right. The Twin-Headed Dragon Armor doesn't just offer outstanding defense—it also greatly reduces damage from fire-based magic.

And it's got good thermal insulation. It should be perfect for use in cold environments."

Welf held the gauntlet almost reverently. "A spirit's power is amazing—it can even form functional patterns.

I once tried something similar: I attempted to carve magic circuits into weapons the same way magic swords are made. But not only did it fail to work, it actually weakened the weapon."

Charles was no longer a rookie blacksmith himself, and he understood what Welf meant.

The patterns that appeared on weapons were tied to both the forging techniques and the additives used in the materials.

Only master craftsmen could create equipment with consistent, functional patterns. The grid-like design on the Twin-Headed Dragon Armor, where every segment was uniform, wasn't something that just happened by accident.

Trying to intentionally form a particular pattern—especially complex, precise formations like magical circuits—was an almost impossible task.

The fact that Welf had managed to carve such patterns, even without effect, was actually quite impressive.

But even so, due to the nature of the materials, attempting to forge functional magic circuits into ordinary gear would never yield results.

Magic swords and magical devices were technologies developed over millennia. The barriers between them and regular weapons weren't so easy to cross.

Charles was about to comment further when Welf added, "After all, magical circuits aren't the same as divine script. Their limitations are huge."

Charles froze. It was as if a bolt of lightning had cleaved open the fog in his mind. The problem that had been bothering him for so long had finally offered up a clue.

He reached into his coat and pulled out a piece of paper containing several strange characters.

"Welf, take a look. Are these divine characters too?"

Welf glanced at the sheet and said, "Yeah? These are definitely divine characters, though I can't read them myself."

"I see."

That answer was more than enough for Charles. The symbols on the paper were copied from that earring he'd recovered—the one tied to Jara.

As he had suspected, the power source behind that magic item was divine script.

With that confirmation, Charles couldn't stay calm. He immediately said, "We'll save the celebration for later—I've got something I need to do!"

Before Welf could say anything, Charles had already turned and rushed toward Hephaestus's forge.

Hephaestus looked visibly surprised to see Charles return so suddenly.

Without wasting a second, Charles said, "Lady Hephaestus, do you have any materials on divine script? I'd like to study them."

Hephaestus put down her book and looked at him. "I thought you'd come asking a little later than this. Everything's already prepared—it's on the bookshelf to your left."

Hephaestus had known for a while that Charles was researching magical devices, but she had intentionally chosen not to guide him directly.

She understood that the process of exploration was just as important as the results. The time and effort Charles had invested wouldn't be in vain.

Charles turned to look—and sure enough, several volumes on that bookshelf had been slightly pulled out from the rest.

"Thank you so much. I'll be going now!"

He scooped up the books and left Hephaestus's room, arms full.

Back in his room, Charles dove straight into another round of intensive study.

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