Chapter 139: Guiding the Blade Pattern

“Gwen-san, that’s what we call cheap guarantee in everyday terms.”

“Ah, my apologies…”

It was a rare sight to see Lutz furrow his brows and scold Gwen.

“But you know, Lutz, this is an opportunity. I had to make it happen this way to replace the chief and involve them in trading. In fact, if we took too much time, the conversation might have drifted away.”

“What concerns me is that Gwen-san took on sword-making on his own. It’s really a problem to agree and then later ask craftsmen, ‘Can you do it?'”

I feel like these problems won’t disappear for centuries to come. That’s because even those who bring in work have their own interests. Lutz swept away unpleasant thoughts from his mind and continued speaking.

“It’s frustrating to think that making a sword with four characters is thought to be easy. Every time, we’re struggling with our heads in our hands.”

“But, can you do it?”

“Yes, I can. I’ll do it. But if you agree to something like this again, I’ll decline for real.”

“That’s quite an exaggeration…”

Gwen’s words were interrupted by the loud bang of Lutz hitting the desk.

“I’m speaking on behalf of all the craftsmen in this world. Deadlines, budgets, skills, craftsmen’s availability—don’t ignore these and bring in work!”

“Yes, understood…”

At this moment, Gwen, a seasoned hero, seemed to be overwhelmed. The resentment of the craftsmen seemed to run deep.

Lutz let out a deep sigh and sat in a chair. The creaking sound seemed to represent the heaviness in his heart.

“Also, the fact that the enemy has a four-character magic sword is a problem.”

“Why’s that? Lutz, you should be able to prepare something like that too, right?”

“My ‘White Lily,’ Gwen-san’s ‘Lotus,’ and Ricardo’s ‘Tsubaki’ are all four characters. Four-character magic swords are in a world where you don’t know what kind of high-level cursed object might come out. So, even if we have four-character swords, it doesn’t mean we’re safe.”

“Is there’s a chance we might lose due to compatibility?”

Lutz nodded deeply. Gwen was quick to understand when the conversation turned this way.

“If it were just about preparing a four-character magic sword, lending your sword would be enough. But…”

“Give me a break. Telling a knight to lend his sword is like telling him to lend his wife for a night.”

“Some people get excited about that.”

“Who’s that pervert?”

“Our Count.”

“I see… Yeah, I see.”

Gwen’s gentle eyes seemed to convey, “You’re going through hardships too.”

“Anyway, we’re getting off track. To ensure a definite victory, we need to know the effects of the chief’s magic sword. Depending on the situation, we might have to counter it with magic enhancements.”

“If that’s the case, we’ll have to ask Melty again. It might remind her of what happened when her brothers were killed…”

“To avoid repeating such tragedies, we have no choice.”

“Strike while the iron is hot.” The two stood up and Gwen led the way to Melty’s house.

On the way, Gwen pondered. Why did he care so much about Melty’s feelings? Questioning to win, shouldn’t he just accept that as a given? It was a puzzle he was questioning himself about.

“What now, you’re here again…”

Come in quickly, Melty beckoned, inviting the two into her house. For an unmarried woman to have male visitors and for strangers to visit the chief’s daughter, it could lead to misconceptions if observed by others.

“Let me introduce him. This person is the blacksmith who will make your sword this time.”

“I’m Lutz, a swordsmith.”

With Gwen’s introduction, Lutz bowed. Melty regarded the two with skepticism.

“He’s quite young.”

“No need to worry. He’s been holding a hammer before he even knew what his ‘thing’ was, raised with his father’s excellent education. He has way more experience in years than most other craftsmen.”

“Gwen-san, your wording… Your choice of words is bad.”

Melty’s eyes were still skeptical. Gwen shrugged off his tasteless joke. Well, there was no helping it. Gwen drew the sword from its sheath at his waist and handed it to Melty.

“It’s Lutz’s work. If this doesn’t convince you, you can forget about challenging the chief.”

Impressed by Gwen’s seriousness, Melty took the sword and unsheathed it. Her gaze was fixed on the gleaming blade.

“I see, so this is the sword that beheaded Weneg, right?”

“Yes. If execution was unavoidable, I wanted to give a painless death. This sword perfectly answered that request.”

The third prince, Weneg, who was executed, had grown so obese that the boundary between his neck and shoulders had disappeared. Even if someone tried to decapitate a man like that, a normal axe or sword would stop midway through the neck, and Weneg would likely have writhed in pain.

Or perhaps, this might have been the intention of the new king, Arsames. However, Gwen couldn’t accept that.

He was the lord’s son. He wanted to at least grant him a peaceful death. Sharing these thoughts with Lutz, this sword was created. In terms of weapon creation, Gwen had complete faith in Lutz.

“Alright, I’ll believe in it.”

Melty sheathed the sword and returned it to Gwen with a slightly reluctant expression.

“Could you tell us about the characteristics of the chief’s magic sword?”

Lutz leaned forward to ask. This was his first experience in making a sword to counter other magically enhanced swords, like this time.

“I don’t know all the details. I only observed from a distance as my father and brothers fought…”

After clarifying that, Melty began to speak.

“After the two confronted each other for a while, my brother suddenly swung his sword in an unexpected direction, and he began to stagger. Father seized the opportunity and struck down my defenseless brother, ending the battle. All three duels ended with similar results.”

“It’s troublesome,” Lutz muttered.

Enchanted weapons can be divided into two categories.

The first category includes those that enhance the sharpness of the blade or ignite the wounded area, requiring the blade to make contact with the opponent. Even with a magic sword, it’s meaningless if the wielder is inexperienced.

The second category includes those that cause the opponent to self-destruct or are capable of exerting effects even from a distance, like crushing them with gravity. These can be used to unilaterally attack regardless of the opponent’s skill.

Without a doubt, the chief’s sword belonged to the latter category. Perhaps it could even induce hallucinations. It’s uncertain; no definitive conclusion can be reached yet.

“Are there any other distinctive features?”

“Well, the odd thing is that there were strange patterns emerging on the blade.”

“Patterns?”

“It’s hard to describe. They are strange shapes, like when you pour colored water into a tub of water, or you could say it’s like wood grain…”

Melty answered while gazing into space, lost in thought. A hypothesis formed in Lutz’s mind.

A blade with a wood grain pattern—like an ancient sacred sword, something rarely seen in the kingdom. While concealing his inner turmoil, Lutz opened his mouth.

“Melty-san, after this battle is over, could you hand over the chief’s sword to me?”

“What?”

“In exchange, I’ll cover all the costs for the sword we’re making this time. What do you think?”

“That sounds quite favorable. What are you plotting?”

“The possibility has arisen that the chief’s sword is an object of great desire for us blacksmiths. Of course, for those unrelated to weapon crafting, it’s worthless.”

“And if I decline?”

“We’ll accept the job at the regular price. I’d like you to prepare about fifty gold coins.”

Melty contemplated. Well, it might be more accurate to say she feigned contemplation. The current Saligari village couldn’t afford fifty gold coins. There was no room for choice. Moreover, using that money to compete for the chief’s seat, instead of using it for the people, was out of the question.

…Is that sword even important to me in the first place?

No, it’s a cursed sword that deceived her father and killed her brothers. If they can take it away to a place beyond her sight, that might even be a good thing.

“Alright, I’ll give it to you. Provided I’m alive after the festival, that is.”

Melty gave a wry smile, and Lutz responded with a confident smile.

“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely make you win.”

Now that the true nature of the magic sword was becoming clear, there should be a way to counter it. And if he discussed this matter, there was a man willing to cooperate fully; with his help, they could create anything.

This was the foundation of Lutz’s confidence.

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