She took parchment from her desk drawer and pulled a fountain pen, handing it over. "You can draw the weapon's blueprint according to your vision, so that I can more intuitively understand what you want. Is that okay?"
"No problem."
Using only abstract concepts, it was indeed difficult to depict the specific appearance of an entrenching tool, as it was, after all, a crystallization of modern industry. However, drawing it was much simpler.
He stood in front of the desk and sketched according to the impression in his memory.
The shovel head had a triangular outline with serrated edges. The handle could be folded. The crowbar could be freely combined, retracted, and adjusted for length, and so on.
Zephyr described all the functions in as much detail as possible, though his drawing was a bit sloppy. After confirming there were no omissions, he handed the hand-drawn blueprint to Hephaestus.
"It's like this."
"Are you sure this is a weapon?"
The moment she saw the drawing with her own eyes, a clear sense of strangeness appeared in Hephaestus's eyes, and she scrutinized Zephyr carefully.
"This looks... more like a shovel?"
"Yes." Zephyr nodded.
He explained in detail to Hephaestus how this thing combined with all the uses of Dungeon exploration, "The shovel head can hack and slash, and it can cut through the defenses of ordinary monsters."
"The handle is foldable for easy carrying, and the segmented structure allows for adjustments to handle the various complex situations in the Dungeon."
"The most important thing is, the surface area of the shovel should ideally be a bit larger."
"Larger?" Hephaestus frowned.
She understood the drawbacks of such a design. Once the shovel head became larger, its rigidity when hacking would decrease significantly. If one were not careful, the shovel head would easily get damaged.
She looked at Zephyr, who had designed something that broke conventional thinking, something that didn't look like a weapon, but rather like multi-purpose equipment for the Dungeon.
She asked, "Why?"
"If the shovel head is too big, it will affect the hacking effect. It's hard for ordinary craftsmanship to balance structural strength and cutting ability."
"Zephyr scratched his head, he hadn't thought of that.
As for the idea of increasing the shovel head's surface area, it was purely based on the consideration that if the Dungeon environment acted up, he would have a tool to cook with when alone.
"I was thinking, if the shovel head could be made a bit bigger, in the future, when exploring the Dungeon, if an emergency happens, I can also use the shovel head of this weapon to cook some simple meals to ensure my survival environment."
"?"
Looking at Zephyr's matter-of-fact and open expression, Hephaestus felt an indescribable sense of weirdness inside.
"You're commissioning a weapon just to make it easier to cook in the Dungeon?"
"That's right." Zephyr nodded.
There was a precedent for this before he transmigrated—a shovel could be used as an iron plate, and you could just grill directly over a flame.
Hephaestus's mind went blank.
What on earth is inside this guy's head?
The shovel head can cook, fight, and cut ingredients. So, is what he wants to commission actually a weapon, or some kind of multi-purpose kitchenware disguised as a weapon?
She cast her gaze at Loki. She felt like she was being played by these two, but seeing Loki struggling to hold back laughter, she soon realized that Zephyr was likely serious.
However, she didn't refuse. After all, it was a brand-new weapon that subverted conventional thinking, and she was curious about what kind of result this thing would eventually produce.
She placed the parchment on the table and nodded. "No problem. As for the specific forging costs... it's a brand-new weapon, so I don't know how to charge for it yet. When the time comes, I'll talk to Loki."
"Okay."
Hearing this, Zephyr knew it was not a problem. He reckoned that many devices in Orario that existed in modern society were the result of the gods bringing them over, so perhaps designing a multi-purpose entrenching tool could be replicated in Orario.
"Thank you, Hephaestus-sama."
Finally, Zephyr cast his gaze toward Loki in the distance, who was squinting and clearly having found some amusement.
"You don't need to worry about the forging costs. You didn't rest well after exploring the Dungeon yesterday, so go back to the Familia first. I still have some things to discuss with her." Loki waved her hand.
She supported all of Zephyr's actions. After all, it wasn't her being troubled.
After watching him leave the office, she turned her head, unable to stop the smile on her face.
She raised her eyebrows playfully and asked with a laugh, "He's the one I was talking about. What do you think?"
Hephaestus answered truthfully, "His personality is quite steady, and his ideas are quite imaginative."
However, she still didn't understand.
Could these things really attract Loki?
She recalled yesterday's conversation about him being more talented than Alfia.
How did he manage to earn such a high evaluation from Loki?
Honestly, she couldn't figure it out.
Adventurers possess many unknowns, and even gods might not necessarily see the secrets they contain.
She looked at Loki. "It shouldn't just be that, right?"
"Of course." Loki nodded with a smile.
However, she had no intention of continuing to explain.
Hephaestus frowned as she recalled the details of her conversation with Zephyr, especially that line about the shovel head being able to cut ingredients.
Multi-functional... survival equipment...
First of all, where would one find ingredients in the Dungeon?
Hephaestus raised her head, her eyes filled with shock and suspicion. "So this child of yours is related to Gluttony from the Zeus Familia?"
"Hehe."
—
Leaving Hephaestus's office, Zephyr didn't think much of it. Gods have things they need to discuss, and besides, his weapon commission was settled.
He wasn't in a hurry to return to the Familia residence. His peripheral vision caught a glimpse of a familiar figure standing in front of a shelf in the corner of the shop.
Lili was looking up, her eyes fixed on the axe on the top shelf and the price tag next to it.
1,000,000 Valis.
Does Lili want to fight too?
A trace of confusion flashed through Zephyr's mind.
"Let's go back to the Familia residence to rest."
Lili came back to her senses after hearing the voice. She turned around and looked at Zephyr. A trace of panic flashed across her face, but it was quickly covered up.
She nodded. "Okay."
Even if she took the money she had saved while in the Soma Familia and added the pocket money given by the Loki Familia, she still couldn't save enough to buy a gift for Zephyr.
...
On the way back, a dazed expression hung on her face. In the end, she couldn't hold it back and took the initiative to ask, "Did the weapon thing go smoothly?"
"It should be smooth." Zephyr answered.
After all, if the top forging Familia in Orario couldn't handle a multi-purpose entrenching tool, then he would really be out of options.
Speaking of a weapon, he remembered Lili standing in front of the weapon shelf earlier, seemingly considering her future path, and became a bit curious.
"Lili, why were you looking at weapons earlier?"
Eh? I was discovered!
Lili looked up nervously. When she met Zephyr's gaze, her heartbeat accelerated inexplicably, and she almost exposed her true thoughts.
When fighting in the Dungeon, Zephyr needed to borrow Charles's weapon to fight normally and since Charles was leaving Orario tomorrow, that axe would naturally be taken away.
In future explorations, they would definitely encounter more dangers in the Dungeon. Considering Zephyr's financial level, although Loki had already taken it into account, she also wanted to do something. Even if it was just offering a trivial bit of help to Zephyr, it would count as a surprise prepared for him.
Lili shook her head. "It's nothing, I was just looking around."
"Hmm? For real?"
"For sure."
Zephyr looked at Lili carefully, feeling that her attitude was a bit off.
Going forward, the Dungeon exploration was gradually getting on track. But as a Supporter, Lili might be worried about the distance gradually widening, worried about not being able to keep up with his pace of exploration in the future.
That must be it!
Case closed.
After all, coming to a top-tier faction like the Loki Familia, there were a large number of excellent Supporters within the Familia, so the competitive pressure must be significant.
Zephyr could understand this feeling, just like the inexplicable sense of urgency a regular student feels after entering an advanced class.
He smiled relaxedly and said, "I can understand your thoughts. If you want to learn how to fight, or how to become a qualified Adventurer, you can come to me."
"?"
Lili's expression turned strange.
She looked up at Zephyr with an extremely complicated gaze, unable to understand his way of thinking.
How on earth did he come to that conclusion?
Those were clearly two completely different things!
Her lips couldn't help but twitch, but looking at Zephyr's earnest appearance, she ultimately swallowed back everything she wanted to say.
"...Fine. Thanks a lot."