By the time the two boys returned home, Raine's basket was brimming with wild blueberries, hazelnuts, and chestnuts.

Thanks to George's connection, they had slipped into the estate woodland and gathered everything they could carry.

It had been a rich harvest.

Roughly seventy percent of the forest around Goldflash Town belonged to Habsburg Estate. Only the remaining thirty percent was public woodland, and the townspeople had long since stripped it of wild fruit and nuts.

It was already lunchtime. The autumn sunlight felt warm on Raine's back, and as he neared home, he saw white smoke curling from the chimney in the distance.

The sight put him in a good mood.

Then he glanced toward the house next door and stopped.

A girl in a gray linen coat sat on the wooden steps, basking in the sunlight while taking tiny bites from a piece of bran cake.

Bran cake was even worse than black bread, yet Anna treated it like something precious. One hand held the cake while the other cupped beneath it to catch every falling crumb. She tipped those crumbs into her mouth, unwilling to waste even a speck.

After a few bites, she narrowed her eyes against the sun. The simple pleasure of having a piece of bran cake appeared to satisfy her completely.

Raine stood frozen, watching her eat with such care. His chest tightened.

How much hardship had she endured to find happiness in a piece of bran cake?

He looked down at the wild fruit and nuts in his basket. His lips parted, but he didn't know what to say. They barely knew each other. If he approached her directly with a gift, she might refuse it.

Raine went inside and set aside a portion of the harvest for his family. Then he handed the remaining half-filled basket to Mint.

"Mint, take these to Sister Anna next door. Make sure she accepts them."

He crouched and met his sister's puzzled gaze.

Perhaps she understood something from his expression, because she nodded firmly.

"Mm! Sister Anna has such a hard time living alone. She'll love these. Don't worry, Brother. I'll make sure she takes them."

Mint blinked her large eyes and raised one small hand in solemn promise.

She came running back a short while later.

"Brother! Sister Anna accepted them. She asked me to thank you. We also agreed to plant more vegetables in the garden this afternoon."

"Well done, Mint."

Relieved, Raine rubbed her head.

---

After lunch, Raine made his way to the town blacksmith shop.

It stood on the main road, and the ringing of hammers against iron reached him long before he arrived.

Heat rolled over him the moment he stepped inside. Several brawny helpers and apprentices worked at different stations, while the blacksmith himself, Boris Patton, forged an iron pot.

A few apprentices watched in confusion as Raine walked up to Boris.

"Uncle Boris, could I help at the shop? I'll do any work you have."

Boris turned and looked him over. "Little Raine. You've filled out since I last saw you. But I'm sorry, the shop doesn't need more hands."

"I'll work for free, Uncle Boris. Give me any task you like."

The offer of free labor caught Boris's interest. His expression turned thoughtful as he considered what work Raine could perform without secretly learning a valuable craft.

One of the apprentices raised an eyebrow. "Master, let him work the bellows for me."

Boris glanced at the man and considered it.

"Fine. Raine, don't touch anything else in the shop. You'll operate the bellows this afternoon. Drus, show him how."

Raine had no objection.

The bellows were perfect.

All that mattered was earning EXP.

If trimming donkey hooves could raise Blacksmith Apprentice EXP, operating a forge bellows certainly could.

Raine sat beside the bellows and followed Drus's instructions.

Several of the larger apprentices glanced his way. With those thin arms, they doubted he would last long.

Raine found the rhythm of the bellows and kept pulling.

[Practice: Bellows Operation]

[Skill Acquired: Bellows Operation]

Delight surged through him.

*Just as I expected.*

After that, almost every pull brought another increase in Bellows Operation EXP.

+1. +1.

Blacksmith Apprentice EXP began rising soon afterward.

Raine's grin widened. He worked the bellows like a tireless machine.

The apprentices stared at him.

They couldn't understand why this new boy attacked the dullest, most repetitive job in the shop with such enthusiasm.

Did he understand what working for free meant?

Why was he working harder than the official apprentices who were actually paid to be there?

They had never seen anything like it.

Raine kept pulling until nightfall, taking so few breaks that they could be counted on one hand.

His effort changed Boris's opinion of him.

The blacksmith seized the opportunity to berate his own apprentices. He told them to learn from Raine and see what real diligence looked like. The apprentices exchanged uneasy glances.

Among all trades, blacksmithing was punishing work, but the rewards were among the best. None of the apprentices said so aloud, yet every one of them treasured his position.

Raine's arrival disrupted their comfortable routine and forced them to appear industrious.

Boris watched the transformation with an amused smile. He had agreed to let the boy operate the bellows on a whim, only to light a fire under his entire shop.

---

Before long, the system notice Raine had been working toward appeared.

[Practice: Bellows Operation]

[Bellows Operation EXP +3]

[Blacksmith Apprentice EXP +1]

[Blacksmith Apprentice has reached Lv. 3]

Raine immediately opened the second page of the panel.

[Blacksmith Apprentice Lv. 3 (0/500)]

[Bellows Operation Lv. 2 (245/300)]

[Hoof Trimming Lv. 2 (295/300)]

[Horseshoeing Lv. 1 (56/100)]

[Remaining Attribute Points: 1]

[Remaining Skill Points: 2]

He had known the class would probably level today. Seeing it happen still filled him with irrepressible joy.

The true reward appeared at the bottom of the panel: one new attribute point and one new skill point.

Raine might have worked at Boris's shop for free, but those two points were the finest wages he could have earned.