Chapter 88: I Want to Talk (4)

Chapter 88: I Want to Talk (4)

I got off the boat as late as I could to avoid all the events I might get involved in.

To be honest, I hadnt planned to get off that late, but it somehow ended up like that. What the Archmage said about me being quite popular in Jacrati was an utter understatement.

Less than five minutes after disembarking as quietly as possible, I was suddenly surrounded by a gathering of a hundred people. In addition, my distinct appearance made it impossible to mistake me for anyone else.

No, they didnt even give me time to deny anything before rushing toward me, full of confidence.

Youre Jacratis hero now.

Because of that, even Windhand, whod grown a bit more distant from me, briefly sympathized with me. This was so unfair.

Given how things went, Windhand should also be treated as a hero, so why was I the only one!

Dang. This is the first time Im glad my face is so plain.

He only had to change his clothes and could walk around all leisurelyhe even brought those seven million Gal to me without much troublewhich made me feel strangely aggrieved.

Had I known things would turn out like this, I wouldnt have made my characters hair two-toned!

Open the road.

Still, when the escort sent by the Lord arrived, the crowd dispersed. That definitely felt more comfortable.

Youre here.

It was comfortable, but I never asked the Lord to welcome me like that right before the castle gates!

After counting how many guards were lined up behind the Lord, I met her eyes. While I knew this could be comparable to a stroll in her front yard, I wondered why she only took ten people with her.

Was there some reason behind it?

Ah, the others are probably resting in the rooms we provided them. Dont worry. Weve also prepared one for you.

Meanwhile, the Lord seemed to have interpreted my gaze as me looking for my companions. Her answer revealed the location of my party members to me.

I wasnt all that curious about it, but it wasnt bad to know.

More than that, let me welcome you to Jacrati.

Not needed.

Is it? Still, let me do this much. I came out as I felt rather regretful that we couldnt even give our savior a proper Jacrati welcoming ceremony.

I walked behind the Lord, who had turned around seemingly to try and lead me somewhere. As such, the personnel guarding the Lord and those accompanying me here merged into one big group.

To note, seeing that Windhand and his crew had also almost reached the castle, the guards became even more cautious.

I heard you werent feeling well because of the curse. Are you feeling better now?

Curse? Well, that wasnt exactly wrong. It seemed the Archmage didnt give her all the facts.

The sword.

I quickly changed the subject. Unless someone was trying to exploit your weakness, people usually wouldnt ask any further questions if one changed the topic so blatantly.

Dont worry. The sword has been completed.

See? She wouldnt say anything further about the other matter, right?

Its just that the craftsman said he desperately wanted to meet you. Would that be fine with you? If you feel offended by this request, then

That aside, why was he asking for me? There was no reason to refuse, but was he calling for me?

Something like I need to know wholl wield my masterpiece! maybe?

I dont mind.

If the sword was well made, it wouldnt be such a difficult request for me to fulfill. Moreover, he was none other than the craftsman himself.

Understood. I shall call him here tomorrow morning, then.

Ill go to him myself.Updated from novelb(i)n.c(o)m

Ah, I needed to buy some more things. Id never managed to go to a blacksmiths shop myself, after all.

I see. In that case, I shall provide you with a guide.

Someone who wont get in my way.

They would never dare.

Instead of getting angry at my rude responses, the Lord always gave me gentle answers.

The guards standing around us would occasionally flinch. However, they didn't dare to stare daggers at me like before.

We have placed your reward in your room. For your convenience, we have divided it into platinum, gold, and silver coins. I hope its to your satisfaction.

The Lord even paid out the bounty she had promised me.

It was rather unexpected. From what Id heard on the ship, the Lord was currently scraping together everything she had to rescue people.

As such, I was prepared to hear a request to delay the payment date a bit, but it seemed that was an unnecessary worry.

Let me know if you would like to request anything else. Given the situation, fulfilling some may be a bit difficult, but that doesnt mean we are completely incapable.

Could they actually afford that, though?

I didnt even pay any mind to that talk of additional compensation and just looked around indifferently.

After finally entering the castle, the first things I saw were the stone walls and floor. The halls looked somewhat desolate.

Is there really nothing else you wish for?

Was this how they looked originally? I didnt think this place seemed so desolate last time.

Suspecting something was wrong, I looked more closely at the castle and soon realized what had happened.

Everything that had served to decorate the castle, including carpets, curtains, and decorative pieces, had disappeared. When people said she was scraping together everything she had, they meant it literally.

What are you looking at so seriously? Ah, youre feeling awkward because the interior has changed, right? This style is fairly popular these days, so I did some restructuring.

Was this what one called vintage? But it would be rather strange for this style to reach any form of popularity in this world.

I withdrew my gaze from the bare walls after hearing the Lords words, which clearly served as cheap excuses. However, there are sometimes matters one should just turn a blind eye to, even if one knows the truth.

This way.

Anyway, after walking for some time, we reached the annex building. There were several signs that our group was staying here.

Wait, before you go in, please take this.

Then, just when I was about to go in, the Lord stopped me.

Originally, we intended to hand this to you during the victory ceremony, but things somehow turned out like this in the end.

White light flowed from her hand as she took something from her escort. It wasnt made of Arcane Power or anything, just pure light.

Highest praise to the savior of Jacrati.

Like the light of the moon, fractured into small pieces and scattered in all directions by a massive jewel.

And the honor to go with it.

A medal was placed in my hand.

No matter what anyone may say, you are the benefactor of this land, a hero who lifted the dark clouds of despair and brought us the flame of hope. Even if hundreds of years pass, this fact will never disappear from our minds and will be remembered in this land for all generations to come.

It was my second Medal of Honor.

So, please do not forget this for even a moment. Some may think of you as the deepest darkness, but you shine brighter than any light in this world.

Looking back, it seemed I really hadnt received my first one properly after all.

If you have the money to spend on something as useless as this, it seems you dont care much for your people, after all.

Haha. Are you worried about them? No need. This isnt something I ordered to be made, but something the citizens made voluntarily and delivered to me.

!

So, please accept it. No, take it. This is the gratitude of the people whom you have saved.

In the end, I received even more stuff to clutter my inventory.

But I didnt feel too bad about it.

* * *

Instead of saying anything more, Pion chewed her lip a couple of times as she looked at that persons departing back.

She hadnt realized the last time she saw him because of the fierce expression he always wore, but looking at him closely now, he seemed rather young.

What a strange thing.

Pardon?

All the shelves were empty, as though everything really had been sold. Deb, who seemed to have come to replace his broken kukri, lowered his ears and tail in disappointment.

I could make you one, though.

I dont have the time to wait until its done, so its fine.

Tsk.

Meanwhile, the craftsman went to the workshop and rummaged through a box. Not long after, he pulled out something completely wrapped in cloth.

This is it. Check it over.

After setting the sword on a display table, he lifted the cloth.

For a second, admiration was about to press itself between my teeth.

I made the blade by melting down those things that looked like scales, and the hilt and scabbard were made from carving those bones. To not cause too much distraction, I only placed some small gold and jadeite decorations on it. What do you think?

I placed my hand on the half-exposed sword. The first thing my fingers touched was the pommel inlaid with jadeite.

Then, I passed my hand over the ivory hilt wrapped in a jet-black leather strap and reached the dark blue blade.

Pretty

I ignored Debs muttering and silently swept my fingers over the blade. The blade, a dull dark blue not the least bit shiny but with an elegant yet dangerous charm, was cool to the touch.

I was completely satisfied with its appearance.

Rustle.

?

Huh?

Its appearance really was more than satisfactory.

It really was, but

Its short.

The truth revealed as I removed the cloth covering the sword while sweeping over the blade was truly gruesome.

The blade was far too short. The blade alone was only about 30 to 40 cm long, and counting the hilt, it amounted to merely about 70 cm. That should give one a rough idea.

It almost seemed more like a dagger.

What happened?

I hurriedly urged the guy to tell me the cause of this. The elderly man watching us a few steps away simply shrugged his shoulders.

You cant blame me for the lack of raw materials, can you?

There werent enough raw materials?

Yes.

No, seriously? That wasnt enough? Of course, if he made it using only those materials, it might not have been enough But wouldnt one usually mix in some other materials to make up for what was lacking?

If there wasnt enough, couldnt you just make up for it by using other metals?

Hah, if that were possible, I would have done it right away!

It didnt work?

From iron to copper and zinc I tried mixing in every metal Ive ever used, but nothing worked. They just kept separating like water and oil. I couldnt even get into contact with the commissioner, either! What could I do?

It didnt work

So, I had no choice but to make it with what little material I had. If you have any more, I can melt it again and add it in. If not, it seems youll have to be satisfied with this.

I did have more materials: the Archmage told me hed secured more parts of the dragon corpse in my stead.

But those parts were on the mainland. It would be somewhat difficult to get them here.

As such, I felt utterly disappointed. This wasnt the old mans fault, and it wasnt hard to call it my fault, either, so I felt even more heartbroken.

Erm, then what should we do?

What should you do? You either take it or have it remade.

Even still, this blade was incredibly beautiful.

In a daze, I lifted the blade that was a little longer than a dagger but far too short to call a one-handed sword. Even considering it as a dagger, it was very light.

Its light.

Yeah. Its light. Compared to an iron blade of the same length, its a lot lighter. Its sharper and more durable, as well

The old man spoke as he held something up to me. It was an iron rod, 4 cm in diameter.

Hit the rod with it as hard as you can.

I swung the sword as if possessed. Although I could feel some resistance, I easily cut through the iron rod. Even though I didnt use any Arcane Power, the iron rod was in pieces.

When I tested it, I only managed to get it stuck in the iron. But anyway, its harder than an iron sword, and its sharpness is excellent. Almost nothing could dull or ruin this blade.

I quickly checked over the blades options: everything was marked with ???. Damn System.

Just letting you know, but I ruined many hammers on that thing.

Definitely a sword worth having. You cut through that iron rod as if it were a radish.

I could tell it was a very well-made sword, even if I couldnt see its options. The problem was that it was just too damn short!

I checked it over a few more times, feeling the urge to hit my forehead repeatedly against a wall.

It was a very, very well-made sword, and its design was also gorgeous, but that length caused by the lack of materials was just too much. Had the blade been longer than 50 cm, it would have at least been usable.

Hey, Hanta. You there?

?

As I was lost in lamentation, a familiar voice reached my ears.

Windhand?

Huh? What? Why are you here? Ah, it looks like the Lord let Hanta forge it.

Suriya.

Yeah.

Why did you come here? Shouldnt you go make some money?

I'm not doing that today. Im bringing those landlubbers back to the mainland. And Well, I stopped by to tell you I dont have any money to give you. I wont be able to help out for at least a few days.

What?

Sorry.

Tsk, whatever. If you say you cant help, there must be a reason for it.

By the way, why was the conversation between the craftsman and Windhand so loud?

Barely suppressing the urge to cry, I put the blade into its special sheath.

While the blade was dark blue, the scabbard was gray-white with an ivory texture and decorated with gold, lending it a certain charm. Looking at it, I wanted to cry even more.

Why did this have to happen to me?

Ill take it as is.

But in the end, there was only one choice I could make in this situation.

No matter how hard I try to think about it, I couldnt use it with this length However, just because I couldnt use it didnt mean it was useless.

The old mans gaze landed on me again.

Then get out.

A really cold treatment.

Right. Lets go, Mister.

No, wait. I still had some business left to do.

Clatter.

I put my hand into my bag for a moment, took something out, and placed it on the desk. A clear, crisp sound came from the pouch Id dropped, making it evident that it contained something metallic.

?

For your trouble.

I didnt particularly like its length, but it was a very well-made sword, so I should at least give him a tip.