"Change occupation to Blacksmith Apprentice!"

Roland made the choice without hesitation, joy rising in his chest.

Since he could hold multiple occupations at once, it hardly mattered which one came first.

As for the attribute and skill requirements of other occupations, he had no idea what they were, and brooding over it would only waste time.

Besides, in his current situation, any path was a step upward.

Never mind Blacksmith Apprentice, which fit his circumstances perfectly—if the occupation on offer had been shoveling manure at the village gate, he would have gritted his teeth and taken it.

[Job change successful. Current occupation: Blacksmith Apprentice]

[Attribute bonus gained: Strength +1, Agility +0.5]

[Trait gained: Humble Apprentice]

[Humble Apprentice: Significantly improves learning efficiency for forging-related knowledge]

As the panel updated, strength surged through Roland's body. The iron tongs that had dragged at his arm moments ago now sat light in his hand.

"So changing occupations raises attributes and grants traits too?"

Before he could explore the changes, Hawk's voice boomed through the workshop.

"Boys, gather over here!"

"Yes, sir!"

The youths brightened, set down their tools, and hurried forward. Roland went with them.

This was the hour each day when Hawk personally taught forging technique.

Whatever else they lacked, if they wanted to pass the examination, their forging had to meet the standard.

"Watch carefully, all of you!"

Hawk nodded at the intent faces around him.

He set the heated ingot on the anvil with a pair of iron tongs, took up his hammer, and began to strike.

Crisp clangs rang out. The ingot's rough surface smoothed under the blows, its lumpen shape stretching and lengthening until the crude outline of a dagger emerged.

"Did you see that? Force, rhythm, and placement. Every strike needs all three."

"Get the force or rhythm wrong and the ingot can crack. Get the placement wrong..."

Hawk tapped the hammer against the anvil in a steady cadence, demonstrating the standard forging stance and breaking down each movement.

The boys from smithing families watched with shining eyes, nodding along as the lesson landed.

Most of the others just looked lost.

Hawk explained everything in detail, but the material ran deep and came laced with jargon. Without a foundation, it was hard to follow.

Roland had been the same. However hard he listened, he had always ended up adrift.

And since the rules forbade touching ore without permission, he'd never had a real chance to try. Forging had simply never clicked.

Now, as Hawk's voice reached him, something was different.

His mind settled into a clear, weightless state, like an invisible lock coming undone.

Points of technique that had once been opaque unfolded layer by layer, resolving into plain principles he absorbed almost as fast as he heard them.

"All right!"

Hawk lifted the dagger blank with his tongs and dropped it hissing into cold water. He clapped his hands, set down the hammer, and swept his gaze over the crowd.

"You've been learning for a while now. Who wants to come up and try?"

Plenty of the boys looked ready to volunteer.

Before any could, a confident voice cut in.

"Let me, Mr. Hawk."

A tall youth stepped out of the crowd.

"It's Marco..."

Roland recognized him, and his expression tightened.

Marco's father was the most famous blacksmith in Blackwater Territory. It was said even the baron treated him with considerable courtesy.

Everyone present understood what offending him would mean.

More than a few boys quietly withdrew the feet they had lifted. Some even retreated half a step, opening a path for Marco.

"Oh? Marco?"

Hawk raised his thick eyebrows.

"How has your father been lately?"

"Thank you for asking, Mr. Hawk. My father is still in fairly good health."

Marco smiled thinly, strode to the forging table, and picked up the hammer.

Bang, bang, bang!

Under a round of hammering, the red-hot ingot began to take shape.

A few cracks marred the surface, but next to what Hawk had produced offhand, it came close.

Hawk frowned.

He deliberated a long moment before the hot-tempered old blacksmith finally spoke.

"Your striking rhythm is off, but... I'll count that as a pass."

"Thank you, Mr. Hawk!"

Marco beamed. Like a lion returning to its pride in triumph, he lifted his chin and strode back into the crowd.

The other boys swallowed their envy and pressed forward to try.

No praise was waiting for them.

"Trash! Trash! Did everything I just said go in one ear and out the other?"

"Force, rhythm, and placement. Not one of them can be missing! Is this how I teach you?"

"Get back there! I don't want to see you again!"

The roar cracked like thunder and set the boys flinching.

Still simmering, Hawk blew out a long breath. "Anyone else?"

The youths traded glances and dropped their heads one by one, none daring to meet his eyes.

A heavy silence settled over the group.

A clear voice broke it.

"Mr. Hawk, let me try."

Roland was already standing in front of him.

"Who's that?"

Murmurs ran through the boys at the sight of Roland's thin frame.

"His name's... Roland, I think? Supposedly he's good at ore smelting. Mr. Hawk even praised him this morning."

"Hmph!"

One of the freshly scolded boys, cheeks still burning, sneered to salvage some face. "So he can smelt ore. That has nothing to do with forging."

Hawk ignored the chatter, nodded, and handed over the hammer.

"Thank you, Mr. Hawk."

Roland took it, planted himself before the anvil, and drew a deep breath.

The forging knowledge seemed to stir in his mind, drifting together until it settled into a set of practical, workable steps.

Bang!

The first blow landed solid and true, and Roland's eyes lit up.

[You have successfully performed forging work. Experience +1]

[You have comprehended the skill: Forging]

"Comprehending a skill on the very first try?"

Roland stared at the flickering golden text.

Every skill before this—Bellows Pulling, Ore Smelting—had taken dozens of repetitions to awaken, and only once his movements were practiced.

Earning experience had been stricter still. Usually the whole sequence had to be up to standard.

But now, with the Blacksmith Apprentice occupation and its trait, he had awakened a skill on his first attempt and pocketed a point of experience besides.

"Is this what taking an occupation does?"