'Become a Blacksmith Apprentice!'
Seeing the golden text appear before him, Roland's heart filled with joy, and he didn't hesitate for a second.
'I can have multiple Professions anyway, so it doesn't matter which one I choose first.'
He didn't know the Attribute and Skill requirements for other Professions, and agonizing over it would just be a waste of time.
Besides, given his current situation, any path he took was a step up.
He would have gritted his teeth and taken a job shoveling manure by the village gate, let alone the Blacksmith Apprentice Profession, which was so closely tied to his current circumstances.
[Profession Change Successful. Current Profession: Blacksmith Apprentice]
[Acquired Attribute Bonus: Power +1, Agility +0.5]
[Acquired Trait: Modest Apprentice]
[Modest Apprentice: Significantly increases the learning efficiency of forging-related knowledge.]
As the text on the panel flickered, Roland felt a surge of power well up from nowhere within him. The iron tongs, which had felt a bit heavy just a moment ago, now seemed much lighter.
'Changing Professions doesn't just raise my Attributes, it also grants new Traits?'
Before Roland could fully process the changes in his body, Hawke's booming voice echoed in his ears.
"Alright, boys, gather around!"
"Yes, sir!"
Hearing the call, the boys' eyes lit up. They all put down their tools and hurried forward.
Roland was no exception.
This was the time of day when Hawke would personally teach the art of forging.
And if one wanted to pass the assessment, the skill of forging was an absolute must-pass, everything else aside.
"Watch me closely!"
Seeing the boys' expressions of Concentration, Hawke nodded in satisfaction.
He then used a pair of tongs to place a heated Metal Bar on the anvil, picked up his hammer, and began to strike it forcefully.
With a series of rhythmic clangs, the rough surface of the Metal Bar gradually smoothed out, and its strange shape stretched and elongated in the process.
In just a short while, the rough shape of a Dagger began to emerge.
"Did you all see that? The force, frequency, and position of your strikes are all extremely important!"
"If the force and frequency are wrong, the Metal Bar will break easily! And if the position is wrong..."
The hammer in Hawke's hand tapped out a crisp rhythm on the anvil as he demonstrated the standard forging posture, meticulously breaking down the essentials of each movement.
The eyes of the boys from Blacksmith families shone, and they nodded occasionally in sudden understanding. But the eyes of most of the boys were filled with confusion.
Although Hawke's explanation was detailed, it covered too much and was riddled with technical jargon.
For someone with absolutely no foundation in the craft, it was indeed quite difficult to understand.
In the past, Roland had been just like the other boys; even when he listened with his full attention, he was always left completely baffled.
Coupled with the rule that forbade them from touching the ore without permission, he never even had a chance to try, so he could never get the hang of forging.
But now, as Hawke's voice reached his ears, he had a completely different experience.
It was as if his mind had entered an ethereal state, and some invisible shackle had suddenly been broken.
The once-obscure secrets of the craft now unfolded before him, layer by layer, transforming into clear, simple principles that he rapidly understood and absorbed.
"Alright!"
After using the tongs to pick up the rough Dagger and toss it into a basin of cold water, Hawke clapped his hands lightly, set down his hammer, and said at a leisurely pace,
"You've all been learning for some time now. Who wants to come up and give it a try?"
Hearing Hawke's question, a flash of excitement appeared in the boys' eyes, and they were all eager to try.
However, just as they were about to step forward, a confident-sounding voice suddenly spoke up.
"Let me, Mr. Hawke."
Before the words had even faded, a tall youth walked slowly out from the crowd.
'It's Marco...'
Roland's brow furrowed slightly as he recognized the newcomer.
Marco's father was the most famous Blacksmith in Black Water Territory. It was said that even the Lord Baron treated him with great courtesy.
Every boy present knew full well what it meant to offend him.
Thus, many of them pulled back their feet, and some even took half a step back, clearing a path for Marco.
"Oh? Marco?"
Hawke raised his thick eyebrows.
"How has your father been lately?"
"Thank you for your concern, Mr. Hawke. My father is still quite hale and hearty."
Marco smiled faintly, then strode to the forge and picked up the hammer.
"BANG! BANG! BANG!"
After a flurry of strikes, the red-hot Metal Bar quickly began to change shape.
Although a few small cracks appeared on its surface, the result wasn't far off from what Hawke had produced so effortlessly just moments before.
Seeing this, Hawke's brow furrowed.
After a long moment of contemplation, the short-tempered old Blacksmith finally spoke slowly.
"There's a problem with the frequency of your strikes, but... I'll count it as a pass..."
"Thank you, Mr. Hawke!"
Marco beamed at his words and strode proudly back into the crowd like a triumphant lion.
Seeing this, the other boys quickly hid the envy in their eyes and scrambled to try their luck.
Unfortunately, it wasn't praise that awaited them.
"Useless! Utterly useless! Did my words just go in one ear and out the other?"
"Force, frequency, and position—not one can be lacking! Is this how I usually teach you?"
"Get back! And don't let me see you again!"
The roar was like a clap of thunder, sending a shiver through all the boys.
Still simmering with anger, Hawke let out a long breath before saying in a gruff voice a moment later,
"Anyone else?"
Hearing the question, the boys looked at each other in dismay, then all lowered their heads, not daring to meet Hawke's gaze.
Just as an oppressive atmosphere began to settle over the area, a clear voice suddenly broke the silence.
"Mr. Hawke, let me try."
As soon as the words were spoken, Roland was already standing before Hawke.
"Who's this guy?"
Seeing Roland's somewhat slender frame, the boys began to mutter amongst themselves.
"I think his name is... Roland? I heard he's really skilled at Ore Burning. Mr. Hawke even praised him this morning..."
"Hmph!"
A boy who had just been yelled at, seemingly trying to save face, said dismissively with a flushed face,
"So what if he's good at Ore Burning? That skill and forging are two completely different things!"
Hawke paid no mind to the other boys' chatter. He simply nodded and handed the hammer over.
"Thank you, Mr. Hawke."
Roland accepted the hammer with a calm and respectful demeanor, then stood before the anvil and took a deep breath.
The knowledge of forging seemed to come alive in his mind, roaming and gathering until it coalesced into a practical and easy-to-follow set of steps.
"CLANG!"
As the first heavy blow fell, Roland's eyes lit up.
[You have successfully performed a forging action. Gained 1 Experience Point.]
[You have learned the Skill: Forging.]
'I learned the Skill on my very first try?'
A wave of pleasant surprise washed over Roland as he stared at the flashing golden text.
He knew from experience that his previous Skills, whether it was Bellows or Ore Burning, had required dozens of repetitions before he could have an Awakening once the movements were perfected.
The standard for gaining Experience Points was even stricter, often requiring the entire sequence of actions to be executed flawlessly.
But now, after changing his Profession to Blacksmith Apprentice and activating the Trait, he had managed to have an Awakening for the Skill on his first attempt and even gained an Experience Point!
'Is this... the transformation that comes with changing Professions?'