The Villainous Me Turned the Losers into Blackened Bosses-Chapter 166 - Master Sculptor?

—

“After all the effort to finish your iron staff, now you’re bringing me something else?!”

“Yeah, just use this to craft the base of a shield. I haven’t found the rest of the materials yet.”

Will stood outside the blacksmith’s shop, speaking as casually as if he were ordering lunch.

“Wait, you said the staff is done? Quick, quick, let me see—”

“Here, take it.”

The blacksmith, though he grumbled impatiently, couldn’t hide the slight pride in his expression as he handed over the staff he had forged.

“Even though your request was weird, I think I did an amazing job!”

He puffed out his chest with pride.

Will held the “Ancient Flame Staff—Prototype”—a name he’d given it for now, knowing it would eventually be upgraded. His hands trembled slightly as he admired it.

It was beautiful.

As expected from a blacksmith in a major city like Yavik, and one of the most expensive ones at that.

The craftsmanship was exquisite, flawless without any unnecessary embellishments. The iron shaft gleamed, and the crystal orb atop it sparkled brilliantly.

The surface had been given a matte finish, lending it an air of elegance.

And most importantly, the small emblem engraved on it.

The adorable witch’s hat emblem.

It added a touch of charm to the otherwise cold, metallic staff.

Leah holding it…

Would be perfect.

However, while the iron from the Ironfire Bastion was relatively lightweight due to its lower density, it might still be a bit heavy for petite Leah.

“Lost in admiration? Why don’t you just keep it for yourself? I think it suits you,” Shuna teased, patting Will on the shoulder with a grin.

“No way, this was custom-made specifically for Leah’s physique. Ahaha… though the main reason is…”

Will scratched his head sheepishly.

“My father gave me a staff that’s even better and more expensive than this. Besides, this is just a prototype—it’s meant to be improved later.”

One day, Leah would wield the “Ancient Flame Staff—Final Form” and defeat the ice demon that fate had set for her.

Absolutely!

As Will entertained this thought, the blacksmith let out a groan—

“This crystal is impossible to work with!”

“No problem, we’ll pay triple!”

Will immediately offered, startling even Shuna.

“…You really are a young master, throwing money around without a second thought.”

The blacksmith placed the crystal stones from the bag onto the table.

“Money won’t help! My toughest hammer can’t even dent this. You’ll have to find someone else.”

“We don’t know any other blacksmiths. You’re the best we’ve got.”

“Head to the capital. There’s a century-old workshop there that specializes in shield crafting.”

The blacksmith pointed in the direction of the capital—a place Will was all too familiar with.

After all, he had lived there for three years.

“Alright.”

Will hoisted the bag of crystal ore onto his back.

It was far too heavy. He’d have to figure out a way to stash it in his ring for easier transport.

Then…

Shuna glanced at the stones in the bag.

“This is strange…”

She moved behind Will, picking up a piece to examine.

“The carved edges on this…”

“…look exactly like the Green Wraith Stone we have.”

—

Sitting in a small tavern across from the Yavik Adventurer’s Guild, the two of them adopted a serious, almost academic demeanor as they scrutinized the tiny fragments on the table, which looked like they might blow away with a gust of wind.

“If… dungeon rulers all have their own strange hobbies…”

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Will studied the fragment in his hand intently.

It was a tiny piece, but the white section in the middle clashed so starkly with the green stone that it seemed almost deliberate.

It was as if someone had intentionally cut a piece out of the fragment.

“Maybe it’s not just a hypothesis. From the ones I’ve met, some are into architecture, some love painting, some enjoy chatting… Oh, and then there’s the one who loved telling terrible jokes. They’re all over the place.”

It was already 8 or 9 p.m., and the outside air had cooled considerably.

A perfect time for tavern talk.

“So, the Empress of Moonlit Ice Extreme… could she… be really into sculpting?”

“Maybe that’s not even a guess.”

Shuna looked at the fragments on the table, recalling her experiences in the Moonlit Ice Extreme dungeon.

The eerie ice sculpture exhibition on the first ten floors.

The “ordinary” but slightly off-looking monsters between the 20th and 40th floors.

And the exceptionally unique boss on the 40th floor. Despite being a crystal creature, it had been “creatively” sculpted to resemble regular ice armor, fooling even two experienced adventurers.

All of this was undoubtedly…

The handiwork of the Empress, the “Ice Queen.”

In that case…

“Little Will, this is great news!”

“It really is.”

If the Ice Queen was particularly skilled at sculpting, especially with crystals and gemstones, Will could even speculate on what had been done to the Green Wraith Stone.

The Green Wraith Stone they had seen was likely “internally sabotaged.”

If that were the case…

A strong external force wouldn’t have been able to keep the Green Wraith Stone intact.

But if the inside had been meticulously cut into small pieces while the surface remained connected, it would shatter into irreparable fragments, just like now.

Considering the sculpted ice armor on the Crystal Ice Lizard’s back, it was entirely possible that the dungeon’s “Empress” had the skill to do this.

“In that case, we definitely need to go ask her. Let’s hope she’s someone we can reason with!”

“The next ten floors will lead us straight to her!”

Shuna excitedly took a sip of her drink.

Since they had defeated the 40th floor and received such promising news, Will had made an exception, allowing Shuna—who was notoriously easy to get drunk and a terror when she was—to have a small celebratory drink.

“This is great. We can probably hire two or three mercenaries. But when it comes to facing the boss, I’ll likely be the main fighter!”

Shuna’s expression was that of someone already gearing up to land a few punches on the boss.

“I’m ready for the Ice Queen!”

“Calm down, calm down!”

“She shouldn’t even be called the Ice Queen anymore. How about… Master Sculptor?”

“Hey, hey, don’t go renaming her before we even meet her!”

“By the way, you’re letting me drink tonight—even though you banned me from drinking before. This isn’t just because we cleared the 40th floor, is it?”

“Well… about that…”

Will had intended to surprise Shuna.

But now that she had figured it out, there was no point in hiding it.

He rummaged through his pocket and finally pulled out—

A new adventurer team card!

Though it wasn’t the bright, eye-catching red of an A-rank card, the layer of glitter on it made it shimmer.

“That’s right! Our success in clearing the Ironfire Bastion has been recorded! And now, the 40th floor of this dungeon has been added to our achievements. So…”

Proudly, he slapped the card onto the table.

“Morning Star has officially been promoted to B1 rank!”