Chapter 109: Where Passion Lies

Two weeks had passed since the meeting at Patrick’s workshop, and no progress had been made in swordsmithing. Although there was no set deadline, the lack of progress was starting to cause anxiety.

It wasn’t that they hadn’t done anything. Lutz had forged several katanas during these two weeks, but none of them could be considered masterpieces.

He hadn’t cut any corners; he had earnestly faced the steel. They were all good products—beautiful and sharp. But that was all there was to them. They lacked the passion of the craftsmen, that something special.

Lutz decided to take one of the katanas to the decorative artist Patrick for his opinion.

“Hmm, it’s not bad,” Patrick said with a serious expression.

It was as if he was treating it purely as a commodity, lacking the eye of an art connoisseur.

Lutz didn’t feel angry. He accepted that it was the natural evaluation.

In the end, the construction of the sword’s hilt was done by Patrick’s apprentices, the magical enchantment was entrusted to a different enchanter than Gerhardt, and Claudia sold it for a decent price.

It was a complex feeling to see pieces he wasn’t particularly fond of sell for a good price, but that was business. Ultimately, it was Lutz’s fault for not creating masterpieces.

One day, Lutz was sitting in the living room with Claudia.

“It’s strange how a single scandal can tarnish the reputation of katanas. It’s not just the sword that lost its enchantment, right?”

Lutz complained, and Claudia answered with a troubled expression.

“Katanas are just trendy items in our country, not traditional weapons. If people start thinking, ‘What’s the point of this?’ they’ll quickly give up on them.”

“Regardless of whether katanas are superior or not, does it really matter?”

“When it comes to close friends, you can forgive them, but isn’t there something you can’t forgive when someone else messes up?”

Admitting that katanas weren’t traditional weapons, Lutz couldn’t argue with Claudia’s statement.

He had always seen it as his strength, a technique that only he knew. But now it had become his weakness, and he couldn’t complain. His sense of aesthetics and ethics didn’t allow it.

“…Lutz, I’m sorry.”

“Huh? What for?”

Claudia had been wearing a gloomy expression since earlier. It was an unusual sight for her.

“It might have been a mistake to make the katana-making process public. If only you could make katanas, the reputation wouldn’t have suffered.”

“What are you talking about? Who could have predicted an incident like this? Besides, I’m in the same position because I went along with your idea.”

“I should have realized there was a risk of getting involved in someone else’s mess. It’s my responsibility for underestimating the risks while being intoxicated by the grand strategy.”

Claudia slumped down and let out a deep sigh.

Lutz no longer cared about the Earl, the King, or the reputation of the katanas. The problem was that he had made Claudia feel responsible and depressed. And it was his own incompetence that caused it.

“I’m sorry, it’s for both of us.”

Smiling gently, Lutz stood up. He had found the passion he had been seeking welling up inside him. Now, he felt that he could create a masterpiece.

“We’re fine, no problems at all. It’s just an offering to improve the reputation. If the King can dispel the bad rumors, everything will be fine.”

“But it won’t be easy to present a sword to the King, right?”

“That’s true, but we misunderstood one thing.”

“Misunderstood?”

“We weren’t specifically requested by the King to make a sword this time. It was the Count who decided to present it as a gift on his own. So even if the King doesn’t like it and wants to return it, we won’t be in any real trouble.”

“Well, it’s different from a high-stakes game like the peace conference.”

“Exactly. That’s why we should have approached it more lightly. Making a sword with a moderate level of tension mixed with relaxation often leads to creating masterpieces.”

Lutz’s intention was to cheer Claudia up, but as he spoke, he started to believe in his own words. He realized that he had put too much pressure on himself in the past in his pursuit of creating masterpieces.

“I’m sorry for my sake.”

“For our sake.”

Smiling, Lutz left the workshop, whistling a tune. He ignited the forge and blew air with the bellows, contemplating what kind of sword to create.

“All the talk about the King and such doesn’t matter anymore.”

Lutz had only caught a glimpse of King Rattbald Walshaite during the peace conference. He was just a stranger to Lutz. It would be impossible to create a sword that would please him.

Lutz realized that even such obvious things had eluded him. He had become narrow-minded due to his impatience.

No matter what theme he chose, as long as he could create a masterpiece in the end, that was enough. Amaterasu, which had been presented to the King of the Allied Nations, expressed anger against the unfairness of this world, not something made specifically for the King.

“Maybe I should try making a sword with the image of a gift for Claudia.”

That was how he felt at the moment. As the pieces of the puzzle fell into place in his mind, he felt a sense of impending completion.

A smile naturally formed on Lutz’s face. Creating a masterpiece with his own hands was a pleasure that only a craftsman could experience. He had chosen to become a swordsmith for moments like this.

After making sure the forge was sufficiently heated, Lutz inserted the tamahagane into the furnace.

When he brought the sword to Patrick’s place again, he saw Patrick eagerly examining the blade.

Patrick covered his mouth and nose with his hand to prevent his breath from touching the blade and examined it closely, making humming sounds. His behavior was suspicious and would surely lead to his immediate arrest if seen by the knights. In fact, it would be considered dereliction of duty if they didn’t arrest him.

But Lutz didn’t find him creepy; instead, he regarded him with respect.

…As expected of Patrick, he’s sensitive to good things.

Lutz trusted Patrick’s eye for quality, and seeing his peculiar behavior made him feel relieved.

The blade was sharp and smooth, like a young girl’s skin. Lutz himself couldn’t quite remember how he had achieved this glossy beauty.

“Well, you’ve shown me something good. It adds another ten years to my life,” Patrick said, blowing away the dust on the table with his breath.

“By the way, are you planning to propose to the King?”

“Why would I do such a thing?”

“Because I feel love from this sword.”

Lutz widened his eyes in surprise. How could Patrick and Gerhardt even sense that? It was still an area beyond his reach. There was still so much he could learn from them, even if their professions were different.

“I want to pour love into this sword for all the citizens.”

“…You’re joking, right?”

“I am.”

They laughed together. Lutz left the sword behind, saying only, “I’ll leave the rest to you.”

The theme was love—those were the words he left with Patrick. What would Patrick do with them? Lutz was confident that something good would come out of it.

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