I got fire in my soul

The boy's mind was as sharp as his heart was enthusiastic. When Artorias posed the question of testing their blade to him, Titus took a moment to collect his thoughts, then suggested stabbing something like a melon or a ball. Artorias gave a hearty chuckle and grinned down at his young nephew. "Those are indeed good tests to put a blade through! Though stabbing usually tests the strength and sharpness of the tip more than the blade itself. We will be putting it through a stab test as well though." As he finished honing the opposite edge of the blade, Artorias brought the sword up to eye level, scanning and analyzing the edges on all four sides for any obvious signs of cracks, chips, or imperfections. When he didn't see any, he nodded his head, giving it the seal of approval from the smith. Then he looked to Titus and motioned him over to the other side of the forge.

On the opposite side of the room stood a battle worn training dummy that had clearly seen many seasons of abuse and repair by the bladesmith. Its limbs were made out of thick tree branches, its body a straw-stuffed sack, and its head a solid leather ball. All perfect for testing the lethality of a blade on. "To test the sharpness of a blade, we cut something with it," he explained to Titus, taking the sword up in his jaws and giving it a few simple flourishes to test its weight and balance. Every sword was unique and the first thing any fighter should learn was their weapon's balance. Shooting a roguish grin to his nephew, Artorias lined up his strike, and with a spin and a flourish, he brought the sword clean through the front two legs of the dummy, cleaving through the branches as if they were made of butter.

The wood fell to the floor with a clatter as Art brought the sword back around, checking the edges for any chipping or cracking from its first blow. Lowering himself to his belly, he held the sword for Titus to see as well, running a claw carefully along the sharp edge. "Look at the edge. We always check our weapons after testing for signs of damage or failure. Cracks, chips, bends, warps, anything that is no longer straight or sharp. Do you see any signs of failure in this blade?"

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian"