The hammering comes to a halt in the foundry. Taking the heavy tongs from the artificer, Lava submerges the red-hot dagger into the ice cold water. As bubbles and white smoke erupt uncontrollably out of the water, in unison with an intense searing sound, she finds herself unable to take her eyes away. The cooled dagger sits atop a smithing table, and Lava herself personally etched a crude depiction of her own horns on it. 'That's so sick! Miss, I want one too!' The children of the slums rarely get to eat anything tasty, and they have certainly never seen the sweet treats that Lava is so fond of. Ever since Lava removed the small, sweet-smelling pouch dangling from her waist and carefully divvied the snow-white, delicious treats evenly among all the timidly outstretched hands, the children here forgot all about the stories their parents had told them about 'Devils'. They even began looking forward to this super cool lady coming to play with them. When she sees that the animosity in the children's black eyes has faded bit by bit, from both time and her displays of goodwill, Lava finally asks a question that she's wanted to ask for a very long while. 'Do you guys know what Arts are?' Lava starts to manifest red, burning flowers one after another, their branches glowing beautifully under the night sky. The children want to approach, but are too scared to. Lava then takes their hands and crouches down to teach them the basics of Arts. Lava has never seen them imitate her so excitedly, and, surprisingly, she finds a few of them managing to eke out a few sparks. Their Arts may be crude and imperfect, but they certainly lit up their elated faces. Lava decides to do something that she's always wanted to do. Even just for material reasons, it's a good idea to learn Arts. It helps you find a stable job and fills your stomach. You won't have to starve in the cold slums anymore. It's how you escape the fate that's haunted you your whole life. As time goes by, one day after another, the world hasn't gotten any better. Nor has it gotten any worse. It yet fosters both misfortune and joy, as well as life and death. The children here have learned the Sarkaz's Arts. They haven't become any better or worse, and they continue to live here, peacefully as ever. But their future has already started to change. By passing this newly forged dagger around from one tiny, curious hand to the next, Lava is slowly changing things her own way.