Chapter 25: Camellia

Lutz sat down at the blacksmith and removed the sheath and hilt of the demon sword. Today is the last time I call this sword a demon sword.

A soft, sweet smell wafts through the air. It was different from perfume or baked sweets, and it was a sweetness that almost numbed my brain to the core.

“I see, this one is scary…”

Despite his words, a smile appeared on Lutz’s lips. His interest in the bizarre is greater than his fear of it, especially when it started with him.

He took an inscription cutter from his toolbox and used a small hammer to engrave small characters on the stem of the sword. Only the sound of the hammering and cutting echoed in the forge. It was a strange thing to hear.

It is still daytime. Claudia and Ricardo are in the next room. There is also a donkey outside. There is a river flowing a short distance away. It was impossible not to hear anything. But Lutz was in silence. Was this also the effect of the demon sword?

I felt the presence of someone behind me. From the sound of footsteps and the atmosphere, it was probably a woman. At first, I thought that Claudia had come to check on me, but that did not seem to be the case.

Thin fingers touch Lutz’s neck and grab him firmly from behind. He is in a position to strangle him at any time. If he turned around, he would probably be killed for real.

He wonder if being strangled is only a hallucination, and if in fact he will have to poke himself in the throat.

Even in this situation, there was no fear in Lutz’s heart. He was strangely calm, even to himself, and continued to tick off the inscription as it grabbed him by the neck.

“I threw you out, and you might think, now what, ……”

Without resting his hand, Lutz spoke to something behind him.

“Thanks to you, I was able to help Claudia, and we even developed an affectionate relationship. She has helped me in many ways since then. She connected me with many other people and entrusted me with big jobs. I think my life has expanded a lot since that day.”

The feeling of touching my neck remained the same, but the woman behind me didn’t seem to have any intention of exerting any force.

“You started it all, thank you.”

He thanked her without changing his expression and with his eyes fixed on the sword. The woman behind him made no reply.

The inscription was finished. Camellia, by Lutz. I gave it away without being able to engrave it in my hectic days, but now I think that this was the right course of action.

I don’t know if I should call this a romance or an afterthought.

“Camellia, that’s your name.”

As he talks, he wipes the old oil from the blade with a cloth and applies new sword oil. The blade pattern is as beautiful as that day..

I thought that the ancient runes shining in the color of blood also played a part in the beauty.

As I assembled the sword’s grip and hilt and placed the blade in the scabbard, the fingers that had been around my neck suddenly slipped away. I noticed that the sweet smell and the strange chill had disappeared.

“What the hell, Ricardo’s sword, You threatened me all over the place.”

Lutz said dismissively and stood up, sword in hand.

“She’s a good, honest girl, huh?”

When Lutz entered the living room, Ricardo turned to him with a terribly pale face.

“Are you safe!?”

“Safe or not, I just put an inscription on it.”

“If it were an ordinary sword, yes, but you never know what kind of mischief that demon sword could do.”

Lutz glared at Ricardo after handing over his sword.

“It’s camellia, that’s what you call it from now on. It’s not a demon sword.”

“Oh, oh…”

“I just did some unfinished business, so there’s no need to pay for it. Lutz workshop, that’s the end of today’s business. We’re closed, and now we’re home. We look forward to seeing you again in due course.”

Ricardo was pushed out and half forcibly kicked out. As soon as he stepped outside, he was politely barred from the inside.

The surrounding landscape is peaceful and warm, and the sun is shining. Donkeys brayed, butterflies danced, and a river flowed. It was such a change that I was puzzled and wondered if I had been in a world between worlds.

It felt like there were still a lot of things he wanted to ask and talk about, but Ricardo had no choice but to head home without being able to come up with a specific one.

“They’re going to get along, aren’t they?”

When Claudia asked, Lutz answered while looking at his right hand. Just a moment ago, it was a hand carved that engraved an inscription wishing for happiness.

“I would like to believe that the sword is in the hands of the right person.”

“Lutz-kun looks dry, but he’s surprisingly romantic.”

“I don’t think so.”

Lutz replied with a wry smile.

“That’s right, speaking of inscriptions, Claudia, your dagger didn’t even have a name yet.”

“I don’t need an inscription, because I don’t want to destroy the existing letters. I don’t want to enchant it either. I’ve given it a name on my own.”

“… what did you put on it?”

“A love letter. Nice name, huh?”

Lutz’s eyes watered at Claudia who answered proudly.

“A love letter, a killer phrase that pierces the heart. Lovely, if you can turn a blind eye to the fact that it’s going to scrape away my sense of shame. I have a feeling I’m going to be tossed around with the same stuff for the rest of my life.”

When Lutz spoke in a dark voice, Claudia deliberately whistleed.

“Well, well, will you stay with me for the rest of your life?”

She wondered if he would interpret her words that way, but if you think about it carefully, there is nothing incriminating about it.

“…if you’re okay with it”

“Fuun, then maybe I should do that.”

Her tone was playful, but her eyes were full of love and happiness.

I can’t resist that smile.

Even now, I wanted to chase after Ricardo and tell him that the woman in his hallucination was not as scary as the woman in reality.

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