Chapter 11: Dying Wish XI

Chapter 11: 11: Dying Wish XI --- John passed the other miners. Their faces were hollow. Afraid. But in some of their eyes he saw more. A flicker. A spark. They had watched him stand. They had seen him command. They followed. One by one. By the time he reached the tunnel’s main passage, ten men trailed behind him. Some limped. Others leaned on each other. All of them carried the weight of chains that were no longer fastened. John stopped. The passage forked ahead. One path led deeper. The other led out. He turned to them. "You can leave if you want," he said. "No one will stop you now." No one moved. John looked at the walls. The mana veins pulsed faintly. The System spoke in his mind once more. [Ding! Resource detected. High concentration. Extraction possible. Mana signature suitable for forging Trade grade tools.] He stepped toward the wall and pressed his palm against it. The glow brightened. The System whispered again. [Would you like to absorb this material?] "Yes" Energy flowed into his hand. It was not heat or liquid. It was pure pressure. The weight of potential compressed into light. It flooded through his arm and vanished into his chest. [Three more units of Raw Mana Crystal were collected. Inventory slots updated.] He turned back to the others. "We are not leaving empty handed" A man stepped forward. Older than the rest. Skin like parchment. Eyes sunken. "What are you planning" he asked John studied him. "Do you know what metal is strongest in this mine" "Storm steel," the man said. "Rare. Buried deeper. It takes a strong pick to reach it. But it holds enchantments well" John nodded. "Then show me" The mine sloped downward into the earth. The tunnels were tighter here. Hotter. The veins along the walls grew thicker. Some stones glowed red instead of blue. Others pulsed like hearts. The deeper they went, the more the ground felt alive. They found the Storm steel near the base of a collapsed shaft. It shimmered with a silver hue tinged in violet. The System confirmed it instantly. [Storm Steel Ore. Grade compatible with structural blueprint designs Durability rating A Heat resistance rating A Mana conductivity rating B Current form: unrefined Required for: weapon conversion module.] John pressed both palms against the ore. The stone resisted. Then it cracked. Pieces broke free and vanished into light. Two units of Storm Steel Ore acquired He turned to the others. "I need tools." One of the men frowned, "What kind of tools?" "Anything I can use to shape metal." They brought what they had. Old hammers. Bent chisels. A fire pit once used to warm food. John lit it with a spark drawn from a nearby mana stone. The flame caught quickly. The System adjusted the heat automatically. [System notification: Internal heat calibration complete. The fire pit temperature stabilized at eight hundred degrees.] John laid the ore beside it and sat down cross legged. The others watched him in silence and awe. He opened the blueprint module. A wave of light filled his vision. Dozens of shapes and images danced across the screen. Weapons of Earth. Machines from memory. Tools no one in this world had ever seen. He focused. Selected. And Confirmed. [Ding! New blueprint created. Item name: Semi Automatic Mana Pistol. Chamber type: Three bursts. Core required: Raw Mana Crystal. Structure: Stormsteel grade. Total crafting slots required: Two.] He exhaled slowly. Then he began. The process took hours. Storm steel was not easy to shape. Even with mana heating it to softness, it fought back. Every strike of the hammer rang through the tunnel like a gong. Sparks leapt with each blow. Sweat dripped down his face and steamed in the fire. He used the chisel to etch lines along the barrel. The System guided him. One line at a time. One plate after another. Piece by piece it came together. The others gathered around him without speaking. The silence grew reverent. They had never seen anything like this. Not even the mages who passed through the noble cities could craft something without spellbooks and glyphs. John used no spells. No incantations. Just his hands and fire and memory. When the final piece locked into place, the System responded. [Item completed. Mana Pistol Prototype One added to inventory Charges: Three shots per crystal. Reload method: Manual core insertion Firing mechanism: calibrated.] John lifted the weapon. It felt cold. Solid. The barrel shimmered faintly with violet lines of compressed Storm steel. A trigger curved beneath his finger. The handle fit perfectly in his grip. He loaded one crystal. Click! The weapon hummed. He stood and walked to the nearest wall. The stone surface pulsed with mana. He raised the pistol. And fired his first shot. Boom! A sound like thunder cracked through the tunnel. A lance of blue light punched into the wall and exploded in a burst of smoke and shattered rock. Debris scattered in every direction. The wall split down the center. A second later the entire section collapsed. The others stumbled back in shock. John lowered the weapon. He turned to face them. "This is only the beginning." After saying that he shot the second shot. Smoke drifted through the tunnel like mist. It clung to the ceiling in curling tendrils, lit from below by the pulsing glow of shattered mana stones. Pieces of stone and debris lay scattered across the floor. The scent of scorched dust and heated steel hung thick in the air. The men stared at the hole blasted into the wall. They had seen magic before. Mages conjured flame and ice and lightning. But none of them had ever seen a weapon like this. A single pull of the trigger. A blast that tore through stone. No chants. No circles. No mana formations. Just precision. Power and Brutality.