[Congratulations! Your [Novice Equipment Mold (S) has leveled up to 19.]

Daru closed the notification, opening his inventory and checking the item's updated success rates instead:

==

Name: Novice Equipment Mold

Type: Crafting Item

Tier: S

Description: An equipment mold…[Tap to expand].

Maximum Forged Equipment Level Requirement: 45

Mold Level: 19 (2100 Experience Points needed to level up)

Crafting Success Rate:

S = 2.02%

A = 7.77%

B = 15.32%

C = 32.97%

D = 54.74%

E = 76.11%

F = 92.21%

==

He smiled in satisfaction.

He had been crafting nonstop for the past hour, using up all the crafting materials in his inventory.

Daru was fairly happy about the results of his first equipment forging session.

While there were quite a number of failed results, he was ultimately able to successfully forge a total of ninety-two pieces of equipment — all of which varied in tiers, though most were of the D-tier or lower.

Nonetheless, Daru was able to secure an entire level forty C-tier Steel Armor Set for himself, scrapping the rest to recover a smaller number of materials and use them for re-forging to further level up his mold, until the entirety of the crafting materials he had farmed in the past three days were all used up.

He chose not to salvage the extra C-tier ones, storing all four in his inventory.

He shall research what to do with them later to maximize his gains.

For now, Daru closed the information window, swapping out his level 15, B-tier Triumphant Novice Set for the level forty C-tier Steel Armor Set.

This was still quite far from his goal of a B-tier level forty-five set.

But this would make material gathering faster and easier, granting him more attempts the next time around.

Daru couldn't deny that he was getting absolutely hooked on the [Auto-forge] feature.

Aside from great molds being extremely difficult to obtain, he couldn't understand how Bladeborns who excelled as Blacksmiths thrived with manual forging.

He thought the [Auto-Forge] feature was good enough to wipe them out of existence.

Of course, this was Daru's inexperience talking.

If he knew the extent of what skilled smiths are capable of, he would shake his head at his own naivety.

There were naturally instances where [Auto-Forge] was better, like mass-producing armor sets for common and elite guild members.

However, if one's goal was truly top-tier equipment for the top-tier bladeborns, then one could only rely on skilled smiths.

Daru knew he would eventually come to learn of such matters in due time.

Hence, he didn't think about the matter too deeply, summoning his [Cross-eyed Albino Zebra] with two claps, passing by a few Waykeepers and gifting them with whatever was available in his inventory before heading out to hunt.

He planned to gather more materials, this time for a level forty-five Reinforced Steel Armor Set, and way more than what he gathered for his first test-forging session, as he was now more knowledgeable about the topic.

It would be more time-efficient if he gathered a lot in a single trip.

For a whole week, Daru didn't think much about his level and focused on forging.

This was an inevitable sacrifice he had to make that his competition at the apex didn't have to.

They were born with a silver spoon in their mouths — a few like Skylar with gold.

He would naturally fall into a disadvantage at some point.

However, to Daru, this only made the competition more exciting, as this was his first time feeling like a true underdog.

He shall surpass the rich brats.

For two whole days, his experience bar barely moved, but he was able to gather a little over seven hundred units of [Raw Hide] from the level 27 Warrior Warthogs.

This would allow for the same number of attempts, but only if he could gather the same amount of Steel Horns and the additional crafting material: Bronze Chitin from level thirty-six Slitthroat Spiderlings.

He already obtained and sold quite a number of them in the past, so Daru was able to efficiently farm them.

After exactly nine days, he had gathered enough materials for a little over seven hundred attempts, plus he learned a lot more about forging, thanks to his diligent efforts to study for at least an hour every night, sometimes for longer if he felt like he still had the mental and physical energy to do so.

He had watched a few A-rankers proceed to the area next to the Crystal Hollows, and quite a number of B-rankers were already leveling at the max-level zones, hunting level fifty elites and Field Bosses with a full party.

But Daru was unfazed, fully knowing he would be able to catch up and even surpass the privileged young Bladeborns once he was done forging a level forty-five equipment set for himself.

Besides, it wasn't like he didn't level up from hunting the level 46 Steelhorn Skinks and a few elites he came across.

He only leveled up from 43 to 44.

However, his experience bar was already three-fourths of the way to level forty-five, and with the small amount of experience points he would obtain through Auto-Forging, there was a chance he would level up in Agaron.

…Daru's mount cantered at a maintainable pace.

Soon, the city walls came into view, ramping up his excitement another notch as his anticipation for the satisfying sensation of leveling up his mold and the thought of a level forty-five, B-tier armor set for himself tickled his heart.

He could not wait to see the Muscle Mommy.

Finally, after a few more minutes, he arrived, jumping down from his zebra before eagerly processing all 703 units of [Raw Hide], unknowingly leveling up his [Tanning] skill to thirty.

A notification suddenly appeared in front of him, causing Daru's brows to curve upwards in surprise.

[You have obtained a secondary title: [Novice Tanner].]

He quickly checked it, immediately losing interest upon reading the straightforward effects of merely reducing tanning time.

Nonetheless, a bonus was still a bonus, and Daru was happy he obtained the secondary title.

It was just that the effects weren't worth going crazy over.

Once he was done processing all his units of [Raw Hide], he mounted his zebra once more, heading over to the towering female blacksmith with slightly ragged breathing.

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