CH 17

“Ginjiro-chan, I’m sorry~”

Bernie’s hamburgers were very popular, but he broke the handle of the mincer because he used too much force.

It was decided that Bernie would have the mincer repaired by a blacksmith who had helped him when he was an adventurer, and Ginjiro took it to the said blacksmith.

After leaving Hungry Bear, I proceeded toward mountain side, which is different from the usual, as I was told.

After walking for a while, I started to see a lot of smoke, which somewhat excited me.

After passing all the workshops lined up along the river, Ginjiro arrived at the building he was looking for at the far end.

It was a large building with a magnificent chimney, and a simple sign hanging at the entrance that stated “Hartman Blacksmith”.

“Excuse me, is anyone here?”

Ginjiro calls for someone, but no one comes out.

“Is anyone here? Excuse me.”

I shouted loudly and repeatedly, and a craftsman came out from inside.

“Excuse me. Bernie-san from Hungry Bear requested this cookware to be fixed.”

The person who responded seemed to be an apprentice, and he immediately led me to his master.

“What is it?”

The man called Master was an old, unfriendly man with a beard.

“Bernie-san from Hungry Bear requested this cookware to be fixed.”

The old man snatches the mincer from me and looks at it closely.

“I’ve never seen this metal before, and it’s an interesting creation. It’s a bit soft, but once this is attached, it will be ready for use.”

Apparently, they would fix it.

“Wait there.”

I looked at the swords and spears on the shelves in the room as I waited, and then the master and his apprentices returned.

“That guy’s stupid strength will break it again soon, so I reinforced it. Now let’s just use it and see if it works.”

With that, Master tells his apprentices that today’s work is finished, and leaves the workshop, holding the mincer in one hand.

Ginjiro thanked the apprentices and hurried after him.

===

“I haven’t seen you rely on me since you were retired as an adventurer. For this pleasant occasion, I need a drink, and a very good one at that.”

Despite his curtness earlier, Master was smiling as he sat down by the counter.

He put his hand on the chair next to him and motioned for Ginjiro to sit over here.

The sun is still high in the sky, as Bernie is still preparing for the night.

By the way, Clara is doing laundry and her sons are apparently napping.

When we sit down, Bernie puts a bottle made of ceramic on the counter.

There are two cups.

Master picks up his own cup and pours the mead into it.

Ginjiro, who receives the bottle, also fills his own cup.

“This looks good, progit.”

The pottery liquor was an old mead liquor.

Since it’s room temperature, I could feel the alcohol content as soon as I put it in my mouth, but the heavy taste and the mouthfeel that goes against it make my mouth stick to the cup until the end.

“Good.”

When Ginjiro unconsciously spoke out, Master smiled a little and offered the ceramic bottle toward Ginjiro.

While Ginjiro was drinking happily with the master, Bernie began to use a mincer to prepare the minced meat for hamburgers.

“I reinforced it so that it would be able to withstand your stupid strength, but the force isn’t flowing well. I guess remake it using mithril would be better.”

Apparently, the master is trying to make a mincer exclusively for Bernie.

Can he make it just by looking at it for a moment?

He is checking the size of the mincer, the thickness of the handle, and other details with Bernie.

The two had not seen each other since Bernie quit his job as an adventurer, but this exchange and the way they looked at each other showed the kind of trust between a father and son, which Ginjiro thought was nice.

Bernie-san is still not talkative, but he brought out delicious snacks one after another.

We were having a good time, but sadness came suddenly.

Master turned the ceramic bottle upside down and shook it, but only a little bit of the mead came out.

“Is there another bottle?”

Bernie shakes his head.

“I see …”

Master is staring at the ceramic bottle with a lonely look on his face.

Silence …… silence ……

Ginjiro, unable to bear the silence any longer, proposes to treat them to some good sake from his hometown.

From the item box, he pulls out a tortoise-shell bottle of domestic whiskey.

He pours it into a cup by twisting the cap, and the master drinks the whiskey straight down in one gulp.

“What the hell is this? It’s good. It’s like being hit in the head with a hammer.”

Is it good to get hit in the head with a hammer? I wondered, but  Master is happy with it, so I guess it’s okay.

Ginjiro also took a gulp, the straight whiskey certainly gave a shock like being hit in the head with a hammer.

Though I’ve never been hit by a hammer…….