Volume 4 Chapter 4 – The Master Blacksmith
Cecil-san smiled at me, and it didn’t seem like she had any bad intentions.
The attack from the wounded tiger was indeed a bit dangerous. It could be said that she saved me.
But–
「Cecil, you’re too late!」
「You ran ahead because of the roar. I came with the other people from the Trading Company.」
As for the man with his hands raised ostentatiously and spitting sarcasm at Cecil-san, I can’t say I feel very helped.
If I had swung my sword down like I had planned, the fight would have been over. I can’t help but think that he deliberately interfered.
「Come on, come on. Why don’t you get on with recovering your precious materials?」
The people from the Trading Company, who showed up slightly later, were carrying large backpacks.
They intend to recover everything that can be used as material from the monsters in the volcano, and will strip the Agni Tiger to the bone.
Hey… wait.
「Wait. Cyrus… something is off, what aren’t you telling me?」
「What are you talking about? He was in danger, so I saved him. And then, when he was in a daze, you finished the monster off. That’s all.」
Cecil-san, taking notice of my obvious grumpiness, asked Cyrus a question, but his reply was so ridiculous that I almost laughed in anger.
「No, all I can think of is that I was interrupted right before I was about to kill it.」
「Brat! Don’t be so overconfident in your strength.」
「Huh? You’ve got to be kidding me. You stupid old man. Your idea of helping is to shoot people with arrows? Then I definitely don’t want your help.」
「We didn’t need your help, considering how good you are.」
Normally, I feel like it’s my role to admonish the twins for their wild words, but for once, I agree with what they’re saying.
「Anyway, we went through a lot of trouble to find the Agni Tiger. I’m not convinced that we should just hand over the material to you.」
「What if it’s…」
At Cyrus’ question, I involuntarily tightened my grip on my sword hilt.
「By force, I’m going to make it right.」
Even though I was in a hot lava tube, my heart felt as if it was getting colder.
「Let’s calm down. Even though it looks like this, Cyrus and I are good enough to be trusted by the Trading Company. If what you just said is true, I don’t blame you for being angry, but we should stop fighting.」
Are you skilled? I’m sure you are.
With his vision obscured, and even though he was taken by surprise, he managed to take down a powerful monster with a single blow to its vital organs.
「I’m sure you’re right, but… I’ll ask you the opposite.」
I’m sorry to Cecil-san, who was probably helping me out of the goodness of her heart, but I guess I was pretty mad.
「Do you two think you can beat me by any chance?」
I’m not sure why I’m saying this…
「You’re gonna get hurt, young man, if you keep talking nonsense.」
Beside Cyrus, who was swearing, Cecil-san was staying silent.
Words that are too provocative may be enough to destroy a good relationship.
Cecil-san approached the skewered Tiger, pulled out her spear – and set it up.
You’re going to do it…
「Oh. I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. I know it’s true that you discovered it first, and I’m hoping…. this will convince you.」
Boom! And the spear swung down severing one of the Agni Tiger’s large fangs.
「You said you were going to use it for blacksmithing? I think this will be more than enough.」
When I touched the faintly red fangs that were offered to me, I felt my cold heart warm up a little.
「If there are still parts you want, you can take them. I don’t want you to take it all, though.」
….. To tell you the truth, I’d rather have you give me all of your money, but I guess securing what I need to use for smithing is enough.
I’d love to fight with Cyrus, but then Cecil-san wouldn’t be able to keep quiet due to her position.
Alright, I’ve decided to deal with things peacefully.
「Hey, Cecil. What the hell are you talking about?」
「Shut up, Cyrus. I’m the one who actually killed it. If you have a problem with that, you should have killed it yourself before I arrived.」
Cyrus wrinkled his brow and spat into the flowing lava.
The foul stuff evaporated in an instant with a sizzling sound.
「It’s a good thing I’m not the only one.」
「…..Anyway, we don’t want to cause any trouble on our end. We’ve been hired to protect them, and it’s not good for our credibility to start a fight.」
I’m not completely convinced… But I think we should take Cecil-san’s suggestion here.
Right now, I want to get out of this lava tube as soon as possible. It’s hot and I’m tired. I don’t want to stay in a crappy place like this for too long.
I stowed the fangs I’d received in my tool bag, decided to take bit of the tough, heat-resistant hide that had been covered in flames, and quickly headed out.
When I’m in this kind of mood, I can’t help but be soothed by witnessing the moment a new weapon is born in Zig’s workshop.
「….. But that’s strange. We searched this area a while back and didn’t find a single sign of the Agni Tiger. Hey, tell us more about how you found it.」
The group from the Karnak Trading Company will continue to hunt for a little more.
The most important goal is the Agni Tigers, but they are also collecting various other materials.
「There’s some kind of trick to it, isn’t there?」
I’m absolutely amaze at this person. I wonder if they seriously think we’ll respond to this request for clarification.
「I could tell you, but I don’t think I should?」
「Oh, no?」
「It’s a tough monster. Well…. if you need help, I’d love to run over and cover you, but unfortunately I don’t have my crossbow with me, so I’m going home for the day.」
「Fuck you…」
Cyrus’ expression twisted without concealment at my sarcastic words.
I won’t deny that there’s a trick to it. If they think I’m hiding something, let them think it.
If you try to mess with me in the future, I’ll hunt you down at—-
「See you later… Have a safe trip.」
Having succeeded in lowering my anger slightly, we made our way back to the surface from the hot lava tube.
–The next day. 2nd Week of August, Day of Light.
「Well, it’s a good thing I brought back the fangs in one piece.」
We were quite exhausted yesterday and arrived at the city of Merveille after dark.
After a restful night at the inn, I visited Zig’s workshop early in the morning and handed him the tusk, but I couldn’t help but to tell him about the events of yesterday.
「How did you manage to get your hangs on this? You’re very good.」
The dwarf’s eyes arched as he gazed at the fangs sullenly, and his mouth relaxed behind his beard.
「It looks like I’ll be able to hit him with a new sword, as promised.」
「Yes! May I observe again?」
「I don’t mind. By the way…. where’s the other one?」
Behind me stands Rei, who has been in a bad moon since morning. She left Ren at the inn, who was complaining that he was tired, but she had come with me, even though she was also complaining.
「It’s such a nuisance this morning.」
….. No, I was rather glad to have them both relaxing at the inn.
「Because it’s better to have someone else manning the store, right?」
「Haha. That’s true. Well I guess I’ll leave you to it, then.」
Oh yeah. I forgot Zig asked them to do that.
And so, we left Rei behind and headed towards Zig’s workshop.
「This furnace is made of a Flame Golem’s heat-resistant rock, so it won’t break under a little heat. However, the temperature in the room will rise considerably. If you get tired, don’t hesitate to take a break.」
After saying that, Zig threw the crushed grains of the Agni Tiger’s fangs into the furnace.
The furnace instantly turned scorching hot, the heat could be felt even from a distance.
「Hot…」
In contrast to me, who leaked such words, Zig-san did not seem bothered, and when the time was right, he plunged the phosphorus dragon crystal into the furnace.
「This size, by the way. If it’s just one sword, I think we’ll have enough material…. Do you have any other orders?」
「Oh….. well. I’m not sure if this is too late, but how much is the price of having a sword struck? The most I can immediately prepare is a little voer a hundred thousand drachmas.」
Once again, when the sword was in the process of being completed, I realized that I had forgotten to negotiate the price.
I’ll have to collect the missing money somehow.
「Don’t worry. I won’t charge you for it. I’ve been given a rare material to work with, and you’ve also prepared the Agni Tiger’s fangs yourself. Don’t worry about it.」
「Oh, really! Well, then, let’s see, something like this and–…. Oh yeah! And this kind of…..」
「Oh. You’ve got no restraint at all. Well, that’s just like you, isn’t it? I’m sure you have enough ingredients. I’ll leave it to you.」
After smiling and placing the crystal from the furnace on the anvil, Zig raised his hammer wide–and struck down.
A kaaang sound rang out, and the crystal slightly transformed as it was struck repeatedly.
….. Looks like we’re good to go this time.
The rhythmic sound of the hammer swinging was so pleasant to the ear that I could almost fall asleep—
It’s hot.
It’s so hot.
It’s really hot.
Yes, it’s nice to be allowed to observe blacksmithing. But… this is more than I imagined. I’m sweating from all over my body.
I was tempted to use water magic to cool off, but I could easily imagine a scene where
As time went on, I took off my armor and the inner shirt I was wearing inside, leaving me half-0naked, and when the phosphorus dragon crystal managed to take shape as a sword, I reached my limit.
I hesitated to call out to Zig, who was concentrating, and slowly made my way to the store space.
I think I’ll take a break and help guard the store for a while.
「….. That. It’s cooler over here. Why?」
「Is it over already? Maybe they’re trying to keep the heat from the workshop from getting over here. It’s an old building, but it’s pretty–…..? What the hell are you wearing?」
「What?」
Oops.
Current equipment–one pair of underwear.
He’s just a pervert. I can’t say anything to Ren about this.
「No, no! It’s just that the workshop was so hot that I had no choice but to go to…..」
The act of a shamed girl throwing something at a half-naked guy might be, well, natural. But that doesn’t mean you can throw a throwing knife! Our defenses are close to zero right now!
He caught the flying knives one by one with both hands, and managed to dodge the last one by turning his body away from it.
「You’re still too naive! That’s not enough to stop your prey from breathing!」
「Don’t look so serious when you’re half naked! Just get your clothes on!」
Her cheeks flushed red, and she refused to make eye contact with me and raised her voice. She can be surprisingly pure-hearted sometimes.
I’m definitely the one who’s embarrassed, but when the other person reacts this way, I’m strangely calm.
I have opened the door to a new world.
One more thing I was wondering, isn’t…. usually the opposite of… for this kind of thing?
「–wind」
Finally, my burning body cooled down.
No, I didn’t get cold because of the cold stare of the woman next to me.
「Aren’t you going to the workshop now?」
「I don’t know… it’s kind of hard to get in once you’re out, or maybe I just don’t want to disturb you.」
「Well…. it’s been a long time, so it should be ready by now, right?」
Just as Rei was saying this, I heard a voice calling me from the back workshop.
「Hey. Come here for a minute!」
「My pleasure!」
I moved my body in response to the voice and pushed the door open with great force.
「….. you, calm down a bit.」
Zig-san looked at me half-heartedly and laughed.
「But, well, I’m in a good mood when I hit a good one. I don’t know how you feel.」
The dwarf’s tone is cheerful as he says this.
On the table – a beautiful white and silver blade with phosphorescence.
While the overall color scheme of my beloved sword Noir is black, this sword is white.
It’s not just a simple white, but it has a depth to it that seems to have been mixed with the luster of many different metals, and it almost sucks you in when you stare at it. The shape is very similar to Noir because I asked Zig-san to make it like that, and he did an excellent job.
「Hey. You’re putting your face too close. That’s dangerous.」
I was warned just as the flesh on my cheek was being cut.
「Here. Can I hold it?」
「Of course. It’s for you after all.」
…..The weight is just right. It is not likely to fatigue quickly.
The sensation of trying out and wielding the two swords in my possession is also favorable.
The rest is–
After a while of frolicking like a child with a new Toy, Zig, who had been sitting in a chair resting and working with his hands, finally stood up.
「Well, if there’s anything else that you want me to adjust, just let me know. And–」
Newly placed on the table was a dagger – or rather, a knife, as it should be called.
In addition to that, the skin of the Agni Tiger was tanned and then attached with rivets of phosphorus dragon crystal grains – a special thimble leather glove.
「I got by with the skins you gave me and some leftover ingredients.」
「Oh, thank you!」
Oh man. I’m super happy.
I’ve always wanted a small blade, like a fruit knife. When hunting monsters or animals, it is surprisingly difficult to skin the fur or carve the meat with a sword.
I have no complaints about the sharpness of my beloved sword, Noir, but the it was a bit inconvenient in terms of being a small, handy blade. The world’s strongest fruit knife should be able to dismantle even a demon with skin as hard as iron with ease.
As for the special gloves, I can’t wait to try them out in a real fight to see how well they actually work.
「Well…. I’m tired today, as expected. I’ve been working all day, so…. I’m closing up a little early to get some rest.」
「Ah… I had so much stuff made, I have to pay for it.」
I was about to take out the coins from my bag when a hammer struck something right under my nose. Is he angry because I tried to force him to accept pay when he said he didn’t want any?
「I’m tired and my arms are heavy. Put this on the shelf over there. When you’re doing, go get some water. I’ve got some tools to maintain.」
「Yeah, that’s….」
「I’m telling you to help me clean up. That’s…. enough.」
….. With pleasure!
–After helping clean up the workshop, me and Rei returned to Feeder Pops.
「And you know what, I can’t even describe how cool Zig-san is anymore….」
「Okay, okay. I understand that you respect him, so let me see your sword.」
We were talking excitedly around the dinner table at the inn, and Ren asked me to show off my new sword.
He slid the blade out of its scabbard discreetly, as he couldn’t wield it in the dining hall.
A neat man’s face was reflected in the faintly glowing silvery white blade.
「Wow! It’s so beautiful. I heard that dragon fangs make for amazing materials!」
「So it seems.」
「Hmm. Maybe it belongs to a wise dragon that fought the demons a long time ago or something.」
「Zig-san said that he can’t deny it.」
「Seriously! I love it! I want one too!」
「You can’t have it.」
He returned the sword to its sheath and shakes his head.
「Ugh….. By the way, Se-chan. Have you given that sword a name or anything yet?」
「No way Ren…. you too?」
He’s a young man, but he has the grin of mischievous boy.
I never thought I’d find a ‘comrade’ in such a place.
「Haha… men are really just kids forever. Isn’t that stupid? It’s just a sword, it doesn’t matter what you call it.」
Rei’s cheeks are slightly flushed as she drinks the fruit wine with a dazed expression. She’s a little drunk.
Aside from that, the Breath of the Ancient Wise Dragon is a scorching flame that is said to have burned away even the demon race.
So I already have a name for my new sword.
—-Flame Emperor’s Silver Fang
I can’t wait to test out its sharpness, it’s beautifully silver and white.
Hmm? You know… today is the day of light.
So, tomorrow is the ‘original day’.
Hmm…. I think we can try to go to the Paudal Wetlands tomorrow, as it is close from here.
It’s not enough that our prey is a slime, but let’s make that our last stop on the way to the Suven Empire.
「By the way, Se-chan.」
「Hmm? What is it?」
I put my ear close to Ren, as he spoke to me in a whisper.
「Rei nee-chan is kind of grumpy, is something wrong?」
What? Is she in a bad mood?
She seems to be a bit drunk, but I don’t think she’s grumpy.
….. She seems to be normal otherwise. But if Ren feels that way, then so be it.
What if it’s that? Is it because she was guarding the store for so long and all she got from Zig was a thank you note?
….. Sorry to hear that.
Zig said something about buying something from me, but it seems that even the most skilled blacksmiths don’t understand the subtleties of women’s emotions.
It can’t be helped.
Let’s show the broken-hearted woman a beautiful view to refresh her.
「Hey. I’m thinking of going to a place called the Paudal Wetlands tomorrow, you want to come along?」
「What? You want me to help you collect materials again? What’s in it for me?」
If you think about it, I’ve been taking a lot of detours.
「No….. that, the scenery is very beautiful.」
「Hmm…」
While the twins are enjoying the scenery, I’ll be doing a lot of slime hunting.
I’m sure the two of you won’t have any problems leaving me alone.
「Going to…」
「What….?」
「That’s why! I said I’m coming!」
With a thump, Rei placed the empty goblet on the table and plopped down.
I guess she was still drunk.
「What about Ren? He’s coming right?」
「What? No, I think I’ll just think about….」
「Okay, can I leave it to you to take care of your drunk sister? I’m getting a little sleepy myself.」
「Yes, yes. Goodbye.」
「Well, please.」
He nodded and was about to go up the stairs when–
「Stomachache….. Cold….. Illness….. Equipment Maintenance….. Hmm.. Which one should I choose?」
Ren seemed to be muttering something, but it was too far away for my ears to hear much.
「What did you say?」
「–Huh? Nothing.」
Trae Translation 
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