Anyone who has ever known Matthias knows that the master blacksmith is blessed with such a special character that he is able to sweep away the small things of life as if they were just grains of sand. Just as his acquaintances also know that the amount of these small things in the case of a blacksmith is much larger than in the case of average people.
Perhaps this is why when his soul magic blacksmith master told him after a decade of teaching that his soul magic was so strong that he could live for centuries thanks to it, Matthias only shrugged his shoulders in reaction. Then he told his master that he doesn't care hoe long he can live as long as he could forge. And if he could no longer forge, the sea would take him back into its embrace and he would become one with the foam, as he had learned in his childhood.
It was also clear from this that although Matthias had long ago left the coral reefs of the southern seas, there were still some ideas that remained with him. Like his people, he was able to shut out everything else from his mind when he concentrated on his work. He could stand in front of the anvil for days without even needing to eat or sleep. It was the secret ability of the undersea-walkers who lived under the southern seas. A skill that Matthias had perfected to make his own work easier.
Slowly the years passed and the blacksmith who would later become world-famous eagerly learned from his master. Until that certain day. Or rather, night. Because nothing interesting happened during the day. The fateful event took place in the middle of the night. Matthias was usually at the forges very late and only retired to sleep in the middle of the night, so he was not surprised that he heard no noise when he entered his master's house to retire to his own room.
"And how did you get here?" He squinted his eyes to sharpen the blue outline that had appeared at the top of the stairs. But he didn't get an answer to his question, it was as if the person belonging to the outline was trying to hide from him. "I know you're there. What are you doing here?" He demanded an account of the stranger and at the same moment he released his soul magic to assess the energies in the house.
"No one who..." The stranger finally began to answer, when Matthias grimaced.
"Well, now I need look for a new master." The blacksmith sighed and ran one hand in front of his face. Then he just turned around and left the house where his former master lived. Although Matthias was not versed in human affairs, he knew that if a stranger was in the house where he lived and if the stranger wanted to hide from him, and he felt the energy of his former master leaving this plain next to the stranger, then a murder had definitely taken place there.
Most people would have run for their lives in such a situation, or tried to get revenge on the person who killed someone important to them. But Matthias didn't care about such things. For him, death was a simple event. Something that was destined for a person before they were born. Something that you couldn't escape, that you just accepted and moved on. And besides, his master, although close to him, was not his family, and Matthias was able to leave even his family behind.
That was why, as he had done in every city before, he left here with a bundle on his shoulder and his tools at his side. He set out to find a new master. This time, however, his task was much more difficult. Not so much finding someone, but getting that someone to take him on as an apprentice. The masters had repeatedly sent him away from their workshops, claiming that they could not teach him anything new.
Matthias traveled the world like this for over a hundred years, when he decided that if no one wanted to teach him anything new, then now was the time to open his own workshop. The only problem was that he didn't know where to open a workshop. The world was wide open to him, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make peace with the land. He was drawn back by the sea, as it does to all its children.
Then he heard about a special place. A city floating on water, a city that was rumored to be ruled by an assassin organization, Floating Barracks. Of course, Matthias didn't believe the rumors. He didn't think it was possible for an entire city to be supported by an assassin organization.
However, since the city was floating on the surface of the sea, it seemed like the perfect place to open a workshop. So he went to the floating city and asked for an audience with the city's owner at the town hall, no matter how strange this sounded to him. To his great joy, he was quickly granted an audience and was led into a smaller room of the town hall, where he found himself facing a familiar figure.
"You are the murderer from that night." This was the first thing Matthias said, and although usually the founder of the city and therefore its owner would have punished someone for something like this, he just chuckled at the situation.
"Ah, the strange blacksmith's apprentice. How can I be of any help to you?" He asked the question that made Matthias's face take on angry features.
"I'm over a hundred and fifty years old, I'm not a child." He finally shook his head.
"Believe me, compared to me, you're still a child." The answer came with a shrug. "So what do you want so much that you had to ask me for a meeting?" The owner of the city brought the conversation back to the original topic.
"I want to ask permission to open a blacksmith shop in your city." Matthias pulled himself together and if he had seen, he would have known that his comment made the eyes of the man sitting at the table across from him sparkle.
"You have no idea how much of a burden you've lifted from my shoulders!" The owner of the city tapped the table enthusiastically. "It's starting to get to me that I have to have the Mist bring me the weapons from miles away! Choose a house and it'll be yours." The man announced. But his words made Matthias blink for a few minutes as he tried to comprehend what he had heard and that Floating Barracks seemed to be run by an organization of assassins.
"Could I build the workshop on the seabed?" He finally asked cautiously.
"Why would you do it there?" He got the question he was expecting.
"There is a volcano nearby, if I can use its heat I can make much more powerful weapons and armor." Matthias explained, holding his chin with one hand.
"I already know which house will be the most suitable for you." The owner of the city began to answer, then added as if the matter had just occurred to him. "What is your name?"
"Matthias Mullen. May I know your name?" The blacksmith asked back.
"Mukei Vietryk, leader of the Immortal Mist, at your service." The man extended his hand to Matthias, which the blacksmith accepted. "I have a feeling we'll make great partners!" He chuckled. "Come and I'll show you the house I had in mind, then just tell me what needs to be changed and the Mist will take care of it." He walked past the blacksmith and headed towards the city. Matthias didn't know it at the time, but choosing Floating Barracks as his new home was one of the best decisions of his life.