Chapter 84 : Chapter 84
Chapter 84
Hasker the blacksmith was said to be over a hundred years old.
No one knew of his youth. All the blacksmiths here were men who had entered the industry only after Hasker had established his own smithy.
“Our master is a very peculiar old man. You can never tell what he’s thinking. The only time he reveals his inner thoughts is when he’s talking with Ria.”
Blacksmith Kron was already letting his guard down.
His attitude of treating me like a suspicious outsider had subtly warmed.
“He didn't even bat an eye when Ria was going through that problem. He didn't get angry, nor did he laugh, he just watched. Just like watching a flower blooming on the roadside. Do you know what I mean?”
“I do.”
“But well, I have no complaints about that. Our master may always seem quiet, but he gets things done when he has to. Just look at his attitude towards you now……”
“You seem to have considerable trust. In Hasker.”
“I do. The blacksmiths here are guys who would follow that old man even if he spouted nonsense.”
Indeed, the apprehension towards Reinhardt had vanished without a trace.
Not just from Blacksmith Kron right beside me, but from everyone in this smithy.
“How is Ria? Does she listen well to Hasker?”
“That kid is an exception in any problem, you could say. She’s a real handful. Of course, when I say handful, it’s not because I dislike her……”
“You mean she causes a lot of trouble.”
“Sir Outsider, you understand my feelings quite well.”
A faint sense of favor could even be felt in Kron’s voice.
It was likely the result of his trust in Hasker combined with his desire to solve Ria’s problem.
“There she is. Do you need any more help?”
“No.”
In front of me was Ria.
She was dressed similarly to how I had seen her in the game.
But she was a bit younger.
Unlike the fully grown Ria of the original game, she was still a young girl now.
Reinhardt took a step toward Ria.
Despite making my presence obvious, she didn't even react.
Her gaze was fixed on the top of the anvil.
A red Sealing Stone was placed squarely on it.
[Injustice Detected.]
*You have discovered an ore that contains the power of a demon.
*Destroy it or take a commensurate action.
*If you turn a blind eye to this injustice, the effect of [Justice] will decrease.
[Buff Applied: Justice x1]
[All stats increase by 81.]
A familiar message appeared.
For a moment, my emotions simmered faintly, but now I could handle a single stack of Justice well enough.
‘It’s certainly bearable.’
Reinhardt checked his own condition and walked to the opposite side of Blacksmith Ria.
Then, I examined Ria’s expression.
‘She’s intoxicated.’
She was clearly in a state of magic poisoning.
Her eyes were bloodshot.
Dark circles hung under her eyes from who knows how many sleepless nights, and her expression was very serious.
At a glance, she also looked extremely annoyed.
“Ria.”
“Don’t talk to me. I’m busy.”
She answered, but her gaze did not move.
Reinhardt looked at Blacksmith Kron. He just let out a deep sigh with a ‘see-what-I-mean’ expression.
I looked at Ria again.
She was the very picture of a genius fixated on something.
Reinhardt knew how to converse with such a person.
“You’ll change your mind when you see this.”
“I said I was bus……”
Ria’s eyes widened.
Her crumpled expression smoothed out, and then her gaze shifted to Reinhardt’s face.
“Is it a job? I’ll do it!”
Focus returned to her half-dazed pupils.
Her tone became polite.
Vitality returned to her face. It was as if water had been sprinkled on a dying weed.
“I’m thinking of entrusting it to you, but there’s a condition.”
“A condition? What is it?”
“If you give up your current commission, I will entrust this to you.”
“……You want me to give this up?”
“Yes.”
Ria had already been in contact with the Sealing Stone for too long.
It was time to get her away from it.
‘No matter how important proficiency is, it’ll be a problem if the poisoning symptoms get worse.’
Of course, Ria would be fine.
She wouldn't become a wreck, and in the end, she possessed more than enough talent to succeed in processing the Sealing Stone.
It was the same in the original game.
‘If that happens, there will be a problem with crafting my weapon.’
But that didn't mean she would be in a ‘normal state’.
If the magic poisoning continued, she would process the Magic Stone while half out of her mind, and that would prevent Reinhardt from getting the result he wanted.
“Are there no other conditions?”
“There is no compromise.”
“This was the first commission I received. I even requested to take it on myself.”
“Failing to produce something isn’t the blacksmith’s responsibility, is it? As long as you don’t damage the raw materials.”
Ria laughed as if it were absurd.
“Failure? Hey. I don’t fail. It just takes a little longer.”
“Is there no deadline set by the client?”
“Not at all. They know my skill too. They know that if they take this elsewhere, it won’t be processed properly anyway.”
“So if they leave it, you’ll complete it someday?”
“Yes. Can I touch that? If not, I’d at least like to take a closer look.”
“No. If you accept the condition, I’ll entrust it to you.”
“Are you a competitor or something?”
A competitor to warlocks.
It was an assessment that didn't need denying.
“Something like that.”
“That’s troublesome…… Trust is really important in our industry, you know? If I just ditch a commission that came in first to take someone else’s.”
“As I said, you won’t be held responsible for failure.”
“I told you I won’t fail! That’s why you came to me too, isn't it? Just by seeing the name Ria.”
That was true.
No other blacksmith could properly process a Magic Stone.
The more precious the material, the more the people who could handle it were determined.
Someone who could minimize the loss rate and draw out the power of the ore to its limit.
“So, your choice?”
“Can’t I do both?”
“No.”
“Is there no way at all?”
“There is no room for compromise.”
Ria began to contemplate with a serious look.
Reinhardt placed the Magic Stone squarely on the anvil.
Its blue hue captivated Ria’s gaze. The refined mana had the power to draw people in just by looking at it.
“Alright. I’ll do it.”
Ria said after much deliberation.
Instead of readily handing over the Magic Stone, Reinhardt confirmed.
“You’ll return that material, right?”
“I have to return it. Though I don’t like it. It’ll be recorded as Blacksmith Ria’s first failure.”
“Kron.”
“I’m on it.”
Blacksmith Kron quickly came out and took the Sealing Stone.
He was wearing thick gloves he had brought from somewhere.
It was a wise decision.
It meant that he too knew instinctively. That nothing good would come from direct contact with the Sealing Stone.
“I entrust it to you. The product to be made is a sword.”
“So I just need to process this and make a sword? What’s the deadline?”
“There is none.”
Ria grinned.
“Thank you. I won’t fail twice, so don’t you worry.”
“I’ll trust you and wait.”
Fortunately, the immediate obstacle was overcome.
To Ria, the Magic Stone was a more attractive material than the Sealing Stone.
Reinhardt stepped aside to let Ria work.
Blacksmith Kron followed him.
“I didn’t expect that kid to give up so easily.”
“It’s because she’s a genius.”
“That might be it. It’s true that Ria’s innate talent is exceptional. By the way, this thing, it’s damn ominous. Just looking at it makes my mood sink miserably.”
“I can imagine. It’s an item used by warlocks.”
“What……”
[Injustice Detected.]
*You have discovered a trace of a warlock. Punish them.
*If you turn a blind eye to this injustice…….
…….
The familiar message appeared, and Reinhardt looked Kron straight in the eye.
The corners of his eyes were trembling.
It was a natural reaction.
It was only natural for an ordinary person to tremble just at the mention of warlocks.
“Do you know where the client is staying?”
“No way. I know nothing about them.”
“Then I must meet with Hasker. I will explain the situation on their behalf.”
“Wa-wait a minute! Are you serious? Warlocks!”
“They probably aren’t warlocks. Just minions carrying out a warlock’s orders.”
Kron’s shoulders slumped in relief.
“So you were serious.”
“They were after Ria from the start.”
“Ria?”
“Because she’s a talented child. They knew she wouldn’t be able to give up once she saw the Sealing Stone. Just as I knew.”
In the first place, this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.
The city of Lockfort.
There, Nepas’s warlock was clearly targeting the talent of the young Irien.
If Reinhardt hadn't acted in time, the most talented mage in human history would have become an ally of the demons.
“It’s alright. I can handle this.”
Reinhardt said to the pale-faced Kron.
“When it comes to problems like this, there’s no one who can solve them as cleanly as I can.”
***
Hasker was a unique character.
According to rumors, a blacksmith who had lived for over a hundred years.
However, he was not seen in the original game.
If the rumors were true, it was only natural. No matter how long-lived a human was, it was impossible to live for such a long time.
“If you permit me, I will take this item. Of course, I will also deal with the ones who commissioned it, and the warlocks behind them.”
“Where are you from?”
“The Taton Knights of the gateway city, Serigel. I am accompanying a knight from Paganoa.”
“What is your name?”
“Knight Reinhardt.”
Hasker was an old man who seemed peaceful throughout.
Even after hearing stories of warlocks and demons, unlike Blacksmith Kron, he showed no emotional turmoil.
“Sometimes, you know.”
Hasker began, his voice rough but friendly.
“I think that the gods are playing pranks. If a priest from some order heard me, they’d raise their voice and call it blasphemous, but that’s just how it seems after living for so long.”
Reinhardt kept his mouth shut and just nodded.
“Usually, such pranks were packaged under names like ‘coincidental fate’. Every time that happened, I had to resist the urge to shout into the air. That this was the gods’ prank. That they were watching us from up in the heavens and giggling.”
Grin.
Hasker smiled, revealing his white teeth.
“Well, Sir Knight, it seems you’re thinking something similar to this old man. Indeed.”
“I think there might be some truth to that.”
“Right? But humans, they’re so scared of something that they tremble just hearing such stories. As if the beings who play such pranks would get angry at a conversation like this.”
Reinhardt was impressed by Hasker’s insight.
Of course, I knew he was a character designed that way.
But Hasker was now speaking to Reinhardt right before my eyes.
Every time he made an amused face, wrinkles that showed the traces of time appeared, and every time he laughed heartily, a thick, phlegmy sound came out.
The expression ‘lifelike’ was not enough.
At this moment, the old man named Hasker was clearly alive before Reinhardt’s eyes.
‘He’s not wrong, either.’
The gods of this world were all personal gods.
It meant they were no different from humans.
Of course, they wielded transcendent abilities, but in truth, didn't that make them just the same as humans with transcendent abilities?
“What can we do? We are human. The fact that a warlock approached Ria, and that you, Sir
Knight, came to find Ria. In the end, isn’t it all a board set by those above?”
“That may be so.”
“I will comply.”
Hasker said so and chuckled, then asked Reinhardt a question.
“What would you have me do?”
“I will take the item they commissioned.”
“Good. And?”
“That is all. I will take care of the rest myself.”
“Simple is good. Maybe because I’m old, but if it gets even a little complicated, this thing here can’t keep up.”
Hasker tapped his head with his index finger and continued.
“Let’s do that. I must go give my beloved apprentice one last lesson before I die. Thank you for the good gift.”
With those words, Hasker turned away.
He paid no attention to Reinhardt or the situation the smithy was in, simply taking a step towards Ria.