562 - - 560th victory, indeed.

The king asked me to instruct a group of prestigious spiritists who work in his castle. As a result, my intentions and the spirits' intentions got mixed up, and I wondered if this might be brainwashing.　I educated them to a level that made me break out in a cold sweat. I am sure that the likability of the genie is going to increase in the future, but I regret that I overdid it. Brainwashing is a bad idea.

"Yuta. Those three guys broke into Mel's workshop. And there's an added bonus..."

"Oh, you came already?"

After the training at the castle, we left the capital immediately because we had overdone it and we felt that relaxing might cause more problems.

After arriving at the labyrinth city and dropping Mel off at his workshop, we checked in at Torque's inn as usual.

We were mentally tired after all that had happened, so we took a short rest and went back to the hotel the next day. We were supposed to have a final meeting with Mel after noon today, but he came to his workshop first thing in the morning.

The last time they came to Mel's workshop was right after he came back, so I guess the three of them are taking turns to check Mel's workshop.

It is a good thing that I asked Sylphy to keep an eye on Mel's workshop.

I would have liked to spend the morning at leisure if possible, but if they had come, so be it. Let's get moving too. But first, let's check out .......

"Sylphie, what's the bonus?"

Does this mean that Mr. Gorden and his group have a new member?

I don't care if it's a group of idols, but I don't want to see the proliferation of hot, muscular blacksmiths.

"Sounds like a big shot in the blacksmith's guild. He doesn't seem to like it, but the three of them have been pulling him in."

It was not a proliferation. I'm glad to hear that, but big man?

It's surprising that those three had the power to pull out the big guns of the guild, but if the powers that be are out there, I'm a little worried about Mel.

She is stubborn and determined when push comes to shove, but usually she is more of a timid girl than a normal .......

Naturally, she is scared of authority figures.

She was in a bad way when she met the king.

"How's Mel doing?"

"He's serving tea and apologizing to the people in the blacksmith's guild. Apparently, Mel knows them too."

Mel knows. That's a little reassuring that he won't do anything rash, but it would be better to join him as soon as possible.

I was looking forward to it when Mr. Toruku told me he had developed a new soy sauce menu, but I guess we'll have to skip lunch today.　

I don't want Belle and Gina to see the ugly argument between ...... old men, so I'll let Belle and Gina go for a walk as usual, and Gina and Belle to visit her parents' house and her mentors.

**

"There you go again. I don't care if you're a necromancer or a blacksmith, don't be a prick."

He entered Mel's workshop and complained as soon as he laid eyes on Gorden.

I said, "You're here again? At least be considerate and ask him after lunch.

Also, it's fine to be bossy, but it's so obvious that you're scared that it makes you look pathetic.

"Mel. Are you okay?"

I don't have time to worry about a troublesome old man, so I ignore him and call out to Mel.

"Oh, yes, I'm fine."

As Sylphy said, he looks apologetic but does not seem to be overstraining himself.

The blacksmith guild official who is drinking tea with a grim expression on his face seems to be a real acquaintance of Mel's.

Then we can't ignore him like we did Goldens.

"How do you do? I'm Mel's master of the spiritual arts. I'm Yuta.

"......Tablet, head of the workshop management department of the Labyrinth Branch of the Blacksmith's Guild."

He was still grumpy, but he returned my greeting with a proper greeting. I have a feeling that he is not a bad person.

Is he a craftsman as well as a guild official?　I sense a lack of affection characteristic of craftsmen.

But still, it's a workshop management department.

It seems that in a labyrinth city, there are clearly defined places where workshops can be set up, so it wouldn't be surprising if there is such a department.

And since it has to do with workshops, Mr. Gorden and the others dragged us here.

We arrived in the labyrinth city yesterday, so he might be in a bad mood since he was pulled out of the labyrinth city on such short notice.

"Thank you very much for your cooperation. So, you're here on such short notice, in such an important position as the head of a department. How can I help you?"

If you take the side of Mr. Gorden and the others, then you are an enemy, even if you are a great one. He doesn't seem to be a bad person, and I would prefer not to have him as an enemy, but what do you think?

"It has long been complained that one of the valuable workshops in the labyrinthine city is being wasted. The staff had been dealing with it, but when they couldn't get anywhere with it, they came to me directly with a complaint."

Mr. Tabre points at Mr. Gorden and the others with his chin.

Mr. Gorden and the others, not only complaining to Mel, but also working for the Blacksmith's Guild?

Annoying, but not a bad strategy.

Maybe they were well-prepared to get Mel's workshop, but they got impatient when I showed up.

So they brought out the guild leaders to counter me as much as possible.

They're called the workshop management department, so they can't be accused of being in charge of the workshop.

I'm probably the reason why the head of the department himself came out here, even though it was a direct appeal. I am aware that I have done something of that magnitude.

But it's a good thing that I'm not a clear enemy. It would be very bad for my public image if I had to go after the Adventurers' Guild and then the Blacksmiths' Guild.

"So, what is your decision, Mr. Tabre?　You want Mel to give up his workshop?"

But please answer carefully, because I am prepared to make enemies of the Blacksmith's Guild if you force Mel to be unreasonable.

My public image has been near rock bottom for some time now, and I'm willing to abandon it.

It's a pity, because it's only recently recovered, but still, it's not expensive, so it's easy to make a decision to throw it away.

...... I'm starting to feel like crying.

"The workshop belongs to the girl. Even the Blacksmith's Guild has no authority to force her to give it up."

"Mr. Tabouret!"

Mr. Gorden interrupts Mr. Tabre's words, looking impatient. Were they not communicating?

"But it is also true that the workshops in the labyrinthine city are valuable. There are many who, like these men, do not have access to their own workshops and are therefore not able to use them to their full potential. If they are wasting their workshops, then the Blacksmith's Guild needs to penalize them."

Mr. Tabre stopped Mr. Gorden's intervention with his hand and continued with his words.

Mr. Gorden is all smiles at the mention of the penalty, but Mr. Tabre is not taking Mr. Gorden's side, is he?

I'm just explaining the natural response of the Guild of Blacksmiths.

It's your business what you do with your personal belongings, but the workshop is treated in a special way in the labyrinth city, so if you are really slacking off, there will be a penalty.

But if you are really slacking off, there will be a penalty for that.

"So, as long as I'm not wasting the workshop, there's no problem, right?

"That would be the case."

It would be all right if the king would show a degraded version of Damascus here and then build a stuffing station, but that would keep the dissatisfaction smoldering.

Many blacksmiths want to take possession of the workshop, not only Goldens, whose smiles were restored by Mr. Tabelle's words.

Some blacksmiths will be dissatisfied if they misunderstand that Mel has kept the workshop because of my and the king's intervention.

Even the degraded version of Damascus may be suspected that I was behind it.

So I was thinking about how to get the public to recognize Mel's ability, and it is convenient that the bigwigs of the blacksmith guild have come out of the woodwork.

I'm going to involve the Blacksmith's Guild itself in this.

Mr. Gorden, you seem to be proud of yourself, but you're just setting the stage for Mel.

He's strangling himself, but I guess Mr. Gorden and the others who are convinced that Mel is slacking off can't even imagine that .......

In a way, it's very pathetic.

"So, how about the Blacksmith's Guild hosting a competition for Mel's workshop?"

In this kind of blacksmithing issue, a tournament event is a temptation, isn't it?

The bottleneck was how to organize the competition, how to manage it, how to inform the blacksmiths, and how to legitimize the competition, but it would be easy if the blacksmith guild came to the rescue.

If a blacksmith guild came out, it would be easy. We could ask a blacksmith guild that has the know-how to organize it.

"d*mn it, you don't want to give up your workshop to us! Too bad!　We are one of the best among the younger generation. If you hold a competition, there's a good chance one of us will win!"

For some reason, Mr. Gorden and his team are so proud of their victory that they are declaring themselves the winners. What are you talking about?

...... Ah, I see, you misunderstood that we have given up Mel's workshop, but we are at least trying to give it to other craftsmen instead of ourselves.

But we are confident in our skills and we will be the winners. You're proud of yourselves for your futile resistance.

Don't worry, we're not thinking about that at all.

"Oh no ...... master ......"

No, Mel. Why did Mel betray us?　What are you looking like?　Hey, hey, don't be mad at Meral or Merrill Serio.

Sylphy, help me!

Thank goodness ...... Sylphy calmed Meral and Merrill Serio down. That misunderstanding almost caused a catastrophe in the labyrinth city.

Well, if it had come to that, I'm sure Sylphy and the others would have taken care of it, but I'd rather not even entertain the possibility because it would have been heartbreaking.

"You don't mind?　We don't have to hold a competition, we can just show the results of our workshops, right?"

After all, Mr. Tabre is not a bad guy, and he tells us how to do things without having to make a big deal out of it.

"No, you don't have to backtrack now!"

Mr. Gorden, who had been so proud of his victory, interrupts me with a panicked look on his face. He seems to be panicking that his big mouth is about to choke him.

But there is no need to worry, because he has no intention of canceling the tournament.

It's just an event to show Mel's skills to the blacksmiths in the labyrinth city. There is no reason to stop it.

Besides, Mel can make a Damascus that is recognized by the country, even if it's a degraded version.　How could we lose?

If they can achieve more than this, there is no way that they can stay in the labyrinth city where it is hard for new blacksmiths to enter.

In other words, Mel is sure to win. It's just a race.

Thank you so much, Mr. Gorden, for helping us to show what Mel can do.

The workmanship is excellent, just look at the finish ......, but first I have to explain to Mel who is in shock at being betrayed.

Why can't Mel be sure of his victory when he can build Damascus, albeit a degraded version?

Mel's feeble-mindedness is giving me a bit of a headache.