The Strongest Gun Magus: I Cast Bullet!-Chapter 14: Forging More Guns

Reynard groaned, realizing that now he would be forced into it, too.

’Damn it... The Hunt is a great way to earn money, get Fire Mana, and get mauled by wild beasts. And without preparation, it will be the third one for me!’

The sun was almost setting, but now Reynard knew he couldn’t afford to go to sleep.

He clenched and unclenched his hands, feeling the vigorous mana flowing through his meridians. He didn’t fully recover from his projection, but the stream was going to be at least five or six times stronger than Reynard had before. His body was filling with new power, too.

’Alright. Time to see what magic I can do now.’

*** 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

A security guard—not even a mage, just a soldier—folded his hands over his chest. His shoulders were broad enough to block the entire entrance to the workshop area, but he still had no chance against Reynard in a fight.

Although Reynard was much more slender, he was easily carrying with a single hand a bag of iron that the guard would struggle to pick up with two.

That didn’t stop the man from looking down at Reynard.

"Hey! Did you forget, after studying here for years, that the workshops are closed at night? You might be a powerful magus, but you are still a student and rules are rules!"

Reynard smiled and showed a palm with a pair of silver coins.

"Are they, really?"

The guard snorted.

"I heard you were richer than that now, boy."

Reynard scowled.

"Yeah, and I would prefer to STAY rich. Take it or leave it... I mean, or I will leave."

"Fine, fine... But only the first time. Hmph. I will escort you."

The guard swiped the silver and gestured for Reynard to follow him through the gate.

Behind his back, Reynard exhaled in relief.

’Phew! I really should have sold more herbs. The dinner with Marien had exhausted my funds... Now I don’t have any coins left at all. How familiar.’

The workshop area was separated from the rest of the school by a fence, and the workshops had locks... And all of that could have been bypassed by a magus easily enough.

The real purpose of a guard was to complain to teachers if he heard someone working in workshops at night!

But now he left Reynard alone in his preferred workshop.

There, Reynard lit up a magical lantern and set out his materials and his tools. The alchemical tools were put aside; instead, Reynard pulled a small anvil in the center.

There was an oven, too, but Reynard didn’t stoke the fire in it. Instead, he put an iron ingot over it, flexed his fingers, and began to slowly cast a spell.

He made an effort to double-check every word and gesture, but he didn’t adjust to his mana yet, and the first attempt went out with a sizzle.

Reynard huffed.

’I think I get it. My aura is more balanced now than it was before, so I don’t need to put so much Venus and Mercury influence in my spells. I should also widen the channels for the extra mana I’m putting through them.’

With this in mind, Reynard cast the spell again. This time, it worked successfully.

An invisible beam of magic hit the iron, and it rapidly heated up until it was white-hot, and the heat was blowing in Reynard’s face.

He gasped.

’White-hot! At First Cycle, I could only heat the iron until red in a single cast. This is amazing... And it will make the smithing process much faster and easier!’

Still, a lot of caution and care were required.

Reynard put on work gloves, took out a smithing hammer, and set to work.

***

An hour later, the iron ingot became a slender iron tube with a bent part—a handle—on one end.

Reynard wiped sweat off his brow and pulled out a small silk bag of Black Salt.

Using an alchemical weight, he carefully measured an ounce and sprinkled the salt over the still-hot metal.

Then, Reynard carefully cast another spell—Black Salt Tempering.

This was the most valuable piece of magic he knew, and without it, creating guns would’ve been impossible. It was also the only white-class spell in Reynard’s repertoire.

Unlike other crude spells, this one was much more profound. Adjusting it to Reynard’s changed aura was harder than simply balancing a few planetary effects: there were several times more factors playing into each magical pass.

The first attempt of the spell went out of Reynard’s control. Mana in his hands went out in a flash, and all the Black Salt on the gun went out with it.

Reynard cursed, pulled out more Black Salt, and tried again.

Only on the third try did the spell work as intended. The Black Salt melted into the metal, and the iron darkened, becoming tough like steel!

’No... Even tougher!’ realized Reynard, examining his gun. ’My crafting spells became more powerful, and this included Black Salt Tempering. I should be able to make larger-caliber guns now. But for now... Let’s just make more of these. I have enough materials for a dozen! And the night...’

Reynard yawned.

’The night is still young.’

***

Outside of the workshop, a tired night guard was leaning on a fence.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Each sound made him wince.

’And if I refused this boy’s silver, I could have caught some sleep right now,’ the guard thought. ’Damn it! If he comes again, I will ask him double... No, triple the amount!’