Hero of Darkness

Kahn stood in front of the old man with a firm stance and expectant eyes.

"What are you doing here?! You can't be seen with me or you'll be killed!" shouted the old man and quickly pulled Kahn inside the house and shut the door.

"I see that you remember me, master Albestros." replied Kahn and glanced at the living room. To meet his expectations, it was just as he thought. Barely enough furniture for one man and not a single piece of decoration inside the entire living room.

"Are you stupid, boy! I heard that you were some talented swordsman but don't you know what happens to those who are seen having any connection with me?!" raged the old blacksmith.

"Even if they were to find out, I couldn't care less. I've come to seek your expertise. Besides, I don't think anyone else in this entire city will be able to forge what I want." replied Kahn nonchalantly.

"Are you out of your goddamm mind, boy?! Didn't I tell you that I don't make any weapons anymore? So why are you pestering me?" asked the old man in a baffled tone.

"Let me show you this first." said Kahn and took out all the scaly body parts of the drake dungeon boss that were left by Rudra.

Clang! Clang!

The heap of the scaly hide and fortified armor-like body parts were put on the display. The old Grandmaster rank blacksmith gasped in surprise after looking at the contents that suddenly appeared in front of him.

"What?.. Where did you get these?" asked Albestros as he hurriedly picked up the scales and started inspecting them carefully as if he was holding a treasure.

"Can you make something useful out of it?" asked Kahn.

"Something useful? I can make a lot many things out of this much quantity. A full body armor.. Even a weap.." just then, the old stopped in his words and glanced at the sword hung on Kahn's back.

"Show me that sword." said the old man.

"Huh? This?" asked Kahn and gave his longsword to the old man.

"You.. What have you done to this sword? What were you fighting against? Boulders?!" said the blacksmith in an enraged tone.

"Do you know how hard it was for me to make this Mythril sword? Do you know how many days I spent back then just to make it perfect?!" shouted the man at Kahn.

"Wait! You made my sword? I bought it from the Black Griffin weapon shop. I thought one of their blacksmiths made it." replied Kahn after recovering from his initial surprise.

"Yes.. But I secretly sold it a few years ago to them. I was in need of money so I had to sell one of my finest works to them. Since I didn't leave my mark on it, no one could've known it was me who made it." replied the old man as he started checking the sharpness and edges of the sword.

"Shame.. I don't do this work anymore. Even if this is something as rare as Drake's scales, you can't goad me into accepting the job. No matter how much money you pay me, I still won't accept this commission." replied the old blacksmith as he folded his arms together.

"I know that. That's why, I'm not offering you any money.. But what I'm offering you holds far more importance to you than any treasure in this world." spoke Kahn

"And what is that?" asked the old blacksmith.

For the next 10 minutes, Kahn and the old man discussed the terms of exchange.

Thud!

The old man dropped on the knees, crying without holding back and looking at a hooded figure that stood in front of him like a grim reaper. There was a black aura leaking from this hooded figure.

"I'll do it!" bellowed the grandmaster blacksmith.

"I'll do anything you want. I'll give you my soul in exchange if you want as long as you keep your promise." said Albestros.

In just ten minutes, the whole direction of the conversation had shifted to an entirely different topic and the mood inside of this hall had turned to that of sorrow.

"No need. Just deliver upon our deal. I shall deliver upon my promise as well." replied the hooded figure in a grim voice.

"I can remake the sword as well.. Into something far stronger that not even an epic rank sword can face off against." spoke Albestros again.

"Fine. Take as many days as you need. And you'll keep hearing some news about our deal from the public." declared the hooded figure and the next second, it completely disappeared from the sight of this old man.

The old blacksmith on the other hand kept weeping tears of pain and suffering as if a dam of grief inside him had broken and all the sadness that he had been holding back had finally found an outlet.

"Finally.. He'll make them pay.. He will make them all pay!" screamed Albestros in joy as he started wiping off his tears.

For the first time in the past 4 years, the once most talented and famous Grandmaster Blacksmith of Flavot city smiled again.

When the night finally came and dark clouds filled the sky, giving the entire city a touch of an eerie and terrifying feeling like a bad omen.

The chilly breeze had forced a lot of people to get inside their houses earlier than their usual time. Even the night businesses and entertainment establishments were hugely affected by this sudden change in the climate.

Soon, the dark clouds poured a dense rainfall on the city and the sound of thunders with flashes of lightning had covered the entire city under them.

Many people felt a foreboding that something sinister and chaotic was going to happen very soon.

Because in the dark rainy clouds of this night.. A hooded figure stood on one of the tallest towers of this city. Its clothes fluttered in this heavy rain and suddenly a bolt of lightning flashed in the sky just right behind this figure.

On this ghastly and stormy night.. Reappeared the Judge, the Jury & the Executioner.

Because on this very night.. Azrael had returned.