As soon as they were kicked out of the cemetery, the red-haired director, whose face was flushed crimson, couldn’t help but burst into laughter. While laughing, he vigorously patted Leon on the back.
"Good grief! That old Third Generation’s expression when watching your forging was as if you were cooking something foul in his rice pot, his face turned blue!"
"Ah hahaha, oh no, I can’t take it anymore, I really can’t!"
Putting an arm around Leon’s shoulder, the red-haired director leaned against him, trying to mimic the square-headed old man’s face. He gasped for breath between fits of laughter, saying,
"That old Third Generation... haha... although... although he’s not a bad guy, that mouth of his is really annoying!
Taurus His Excellency is such a nice person, but every time that old guy sees her, his first question is always when she might die. I’ve long wanted to teach him a lesson! Ah hahaha!"
After finishing his tale of petty grievances with the square-headed old man, the red-haired director laughed and said,
"Leon! Do you know what he said to me before you came back? He said he looks down on the current Forge Masters, thinks they focus too much on the process, they’re just a bunch of hopeless trash.
But when it came to teaching you, he couldn’t help but want to stand right behind you, guiding your hands step by step. Every time your hand trembled, his face twitched along with it...
Oh no, I’m about to die of laughter!"
*If he were merely an onlooker, Leon would probably laugh along with him. But being the person who had personally ’cooked the foul dish’ in the joke, he just couldn’t bring himself to laugh.*
Watching the red-haired director laugh so hard he was nearly sprawled against him, Leon couldn’t help but say helplessly,
"Director, with you , I can’t walk. We’ve been kicked out for a while now, and we haven’t even walked ten meters..."
"Okay, okay, then I’ll... haha... I’ll hold it in!"
Pursing his lips tightly, the red-haired director finally managed to stifle his laughter. Then he hummed softly with a bitten lower lip,
"Just as well, you’ve probably held back for quite a while. Whatever questions you have, just ask!"
"Then let me ask... Did you do all this on purpose just now?"
"I did, but not entirely~"
The red-haired director said with a sly smile,
"The reason I brought you over was actually to ask him to help you make a new primary anomalous object and to teach you some Secret Smithing Techniques, maybe even trick him out of a few good materials.
You saw how many things he’s hoarded; some have lost much of their power because they’ve been buried for so long. Instead of letting them waste away completely, it’s better to use them to make anomalous objects for you."
"But... I didn’t manage to create anything."
Recalling what he had forged, Leon’s mouth twitched slightly before he sighed and said,
"Leaving them buried in his coffin might’ve been better than letting me waste them."
"That might not be the case."
Hearing this, the red-haired director shook his head and then reminded him with a grin,
"Did you forget? Besides the [Lust Dream Invader], Third Generation His Excellency made you another anomalous object. Don’t you want to look at it first?"
*Another anomalous object? The black snake skin? Could its ability change the anomalous objects I create? But how do you know?*
Hearing the red-haired director’s reminder, Leon asked in surprise,
"Director, you understand forging? You can tell the function of that snake skin?"
"I don’t understand forging, but I understand luck."
The red-haired director said with a grin,
"Today is my birthday. Every Cleaner gets a blessing from the Master of Starry Skies on their birthday, granting luck akin to having wishes come true. As long as the wish isn’t utterly impossible, there’s a chance it will happen.
So far today, I’ve made two wishes, and the second one was to help you get the most suitable anomalous object. My intuition tells me that snake skin is definitely what suits you best."
Hearing the red-haired director’s words, Leon couldn’t help but be slightly taken aback.
*Last year, on my birthday, I inadvertently triggered this blessing. But according to the Black Goat, the blessing comes with a curse: after the stroke of good luck, there comes misfortune, and with each wish fulfilled, bad luck follows.
A wish so precious, available only once a year and with a cost, was used to help me get an anomalous object? How could I ever repay this kindness?*
Looking at the smiling red-haired woman in front of him, Leon said with grateful eyes,
"Alright, no need for thanks—just take care of my first wish later."
After securing a promise from Leon, the red-haired director eagerly urged him,
"Quick, just touch that snake skin. I’m super curious to know what abilities the most suitable anomalous object for you will have!"
Hearing this, Leon nodded, then carefully took out the black snake skin, gently caressing it with great care.
[Name: Unfair Snake Pact (Trade, Contract)]
[Appearance: A roll of smooth black snake skin, which unfolds into a black contract that can be rewritten repeatedly.]
[Ability: Equitable exchange, forced contract-making.]
[Cost: Cannot be signed through ordinary means, requires a substantial consumption of the user’s blood to inscribe text onto the contract.]
[File: An anomalous object personally forged by the anomalous "Spirit of Forging," made from the black snake tail that mutated from the body after the Goddess of Fortune swallowed the Snake Spirit. Contains a special authority called "Everything Can be Exchanged" along with part of the Goddess of Fortune’s "Contract" authority. When the user uses their own blood as a catalyst and writes their name and their trading target’s name on the "Unfair Snake Pact," a one-sided trading contract will be forcibly established. Any item currently possessed by the other party can be written for a fair equivalent exchange.]
[Evaluation: Please do not use your ability to obtain intelligence on the opponent’s anomalous objects, nor should you write any evidence gathered onto the contract as a target for forced exchange. Moreover, do not use those high-Contamination Value garbage objects you yourself have created to forcibly exchange for other people’s valuable core anomalous objects. Methods such as these are far too despicable, and even if you win the battle, you won’t be happy!]
[Contamination Value: 59 (6.5)]
Having read the description of the [Unfair Snake Pact] and understood the effects of this "most suitable" anomalous object, Leon gasped in surprise.
*Just by touching the opponent’s anomalous object and writing it on the [Unfair Snake Pact], an equitable exchange can be forced?*
Thus, when the other party loses a powerful core anomalous object, they receive an equivalent value of a new anomalous object that possibly makes the right foot look better, can suggest a stylish demon name, can grow a cool wolf-neck scarf, can transform the voice into a sexy bass, can reveal what was eaten for the last lunch, or even can serve as a digestive aid?
*Despicable! Truly too despicable!*