NABC Chapter 676 Reading Dwarf
Chapter 676 Reading Dwarf
chapter 676 reading dwarf
karl gently straightened the two blades and passed them to the clerics, who looked overjoyed to have such an interesting pair of test samples in their hands.
"we could test how much energy can be passed through them, but that would be destructive testing. what i am more interested in is the fact that one of the two really is stronger than the other, despite having the same active rune.
perhaps it's the intent behind them, proving the superiority of this method on human tools. or perhaps there is some more profound meaning that i have missed with my incomplete translations." karl explained, then moved on to the next page of the manuscript.
the details there were about how to enhance elven steel for durability, as even the dwarves recognized that it had a very fine edge. their words about the things that elves did with trees were far less polite than the insults they had hurled at the humans' craftsmanship, and karl did his best not to laugh as he read it. nôv(el)b\\jnn
"well, we can say for certain that this author was not a fan of elves. or perhaps not a fan of their supposedly hedonistic ways. but as i don't have an elven crafted weapon to test any theories on, we can keep going." karl translated, as the clerics dutifully copied the pages.
they were blue dragon clerics. the fact that they couldn't actually read the pages would not stop them from transcribing them exactly as they appeared in the tome. one of them had some skill with runes, but not at the level of having the runecrafting skill, as the librarian had not yet had time to finish a duplicate for the others to copy.
[the artistry of dwarven runecrafting is not just about appearances, as many of the other races believe. in fact, the matrix of the runes, even irrelevant filler, is integral to the even distribution of the flow of power across the surface of the item.
i have no idea why i'm writing this, perhaps my memoir will be a children's book, full of facts that any small child should know? or perhaps just so that the basic knowledge is not lost if runecrafting should fall out of favour in the future.
the diagram of what karl first thought might be a pickaxe, but with a battleaxe blade on the scoop side, took the entire page, with the description of how to place the runes on the opposite page.
the two sides were different, as the runes were not duplicated, but wrapped around the head to give even mana flow, and stopped just short of the sharpened edge.
they weren't just bare runes, though. instead, a grid pattern had been stamped into the metal, serving as a guide for the rune work, but also turning the runes into a decorative pattern of line work that hid its true meaning, while keeping an apprentice's work on track.
one of the clerics snapped his fingers. "that, we have some of those axes. not with the runes, but the design survived the years, and there are some in the armoury. we've been using the design as a polearm, on a long spear's handle. but you could certainly cut it down to hand axe sized."
karl nodded. "should we continue transcribing, or should we call for a delivery, and test the lesson that we are learning?"
that was one of the great challenges of their lives. prioritizing knowledge.
"we have all day, so we should at least try one sample of the art, as a proof of concept to show the others that we have been productive, and that the tome we are transcribing has value." the leader of their team reluctantly agreed.
as much as he wanted to see what was on the next page, testing what was on this one was still the priority.
as long as the delivery got here quickly.