Volume 3 Chapter 14 Booze, Old Men, and Incorrodible Steel
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Gaedaf led us to a craftsman’s street on the outskirts of town.
This area was filled with workshops, and the sounds of metal being struck and wood being carved echoed in the streets.
It was lively, but also messy and crowded.
We stepped further into a quiet back alley.
Gaedaf walked with a familiar stride down a rough and tumble path.
”We’re here.”
He stopped in front of a house that looked like a ruin.
The outer walls were peeling, and the tiled roof was falling apart in places.
The entrance door was tilted, as if it could fall apart at any moment.
”This is it?”
The words slipped out without thinking.
This couldn’t be a blacksmith’s workshop.
It looked more like a ruin or a house that had been abandoned for a long time.
”Ah, it may look like this, but the skill is real.”
Gaedaf said with a thin smile.
His confident manner suggested that the resident of this house was no ordinary person.
”Is that so…”
I felt a bit tense.
How could someone with such skill set up shop in a place like this?
Did he have the skill to attract customers even in such a place?
”Well, we’ll find out. Let’s go.”
Gaedaf beckoned us lightly, and we stepped into the dilapidated house.
I felt a hint of unease about what we would find inside.
Inside, the house was as run-down as it looked from the outside.
It was in such disrepair that it seemed it could collapse at any moment, with walls cracked and floorboards warped.
There were holes in the floorboards, and chunks of metal were carelessly piled up.
It looked like nothing but trash and scrap.
There was no sign of swords or weapons.
As I was looking around the room, Gaedaf called out loudly towards the back.
”Hey, old man! Are you there? Old man Beckus!”
There was no answer.
I started to worry if he was really there.
”Old man! Are you alive!?”
”Impudent! You don’t have to shout so loud to be heard!”
After calling for a while, a grumbling voice echoed from the darkness in the back.
Immediately after, the sound of hard footsteps clattered, and a small, old man appeared.
”Hey, isn’t that your from the Dawn? Came to ask for another sword, huh?”
”No, it’s not me. The client is this guy.”
Gaedaf points at me, and the old man peers at me with a squint.
The old man has long white hair and an impressive beard.
He has a charming expression, but his eyes hold a craftsman’s sharp gleam.
He’s wearing a well-worn leather apron.
That apron is covered with countless burn marks, telling of his years dedicated to blacksmithing.
But most distinctive is his height.
He’s only about chest-high on me, with a sturdy build and thick muscles covering his entire body.
He doesn’t look like an ordinary human.
”What, boy. Is a dwarf that rare around here?”
The old man, called Beckus, speaks up to my stunned silence.
His voice has a mix of pride and teasing.
He seems to be a dwarf.
”Sorry, it’s my first time meeting a dwarf.”
As I stumble over an apology, Beckus snorts with laughter.
”Well, we might be rare in these parts… whoa!?”
He looks at me, then suddenly his eyes go wide as he stares at something behind me.
”Now that’s a horny girl! Hey, got some interesting tastes, Dawn!”
There stands Kéa in her bikini armor.
The sudden compliment, or rather the rude comment, makes Kéa blush furiously.
”…Um, er, what?”
Kéa sends me a pleading look for help.
”It’s not my taste, old man. She’s just a companion.”
Gaedaf shrugs and follows up.
Yeah, Kéa’s outfit is my thing.
But Beckus doesn’t budge an inch, instead his eyes shine even brighter as he speaks.
”I see, I see. Little lady, how about some tea in the back?”
”Um, that, well, I’m…”
”Hehehehe! No need to be shy!”
The old man wiggles his fingers and creeps closer.
Kéa is confused and takes a step back.
”Really, is this guy?”
He looks like nothing but a perverted old man.
Gaedaf answers my question with a sigh.
”Ah, even this, such a thing, he’s the best blacksmith in Dungeon City. Cut it out, old man. They’re the customers.”
Gaedaf chuckled and warned, then Beckus finally turned his reluctant gaze back to us.
”So, what do you want? I’m busy, you know.”
”I want to commission a sword.”
As I spoke up, Beckus answered immediately.
”Refuse.”
I was stunned speechless for a moment by his immediate rejection.
”What’s so fun about making a sword for a man? And what about that sword at your waist. Is it no good?”
Beckus’s eyes sharpened as he looked at the sword at my waist.
It seemed he could tell the quality of the sword at a glance.
”No, not mine, I want to commission a sword for Kéa.”
I explained while indicating Kéa with my gaze.
”A sword for the little lady, huh…”
Beckus turned his gaze back to Kéa and began to observe her meticulously from head to toe, almost like he was licking her over with his eyes.
He especially scrutinized her chest and bottom.
”…Hmph, I see.”
Crossing his arms and resting his chin on his hand, he muttered to himself.
”Could it be, dual wielding?”
He asked with a curious tone.
He was looking at Kéa’s figure and the two swords at her waist.
”Rare. But for a little lady’s physique, that might work, I see…”
He seemed to notice the compatibility between Kéa’s physique and dual wielding.
He had a sharp eye.
”So, can you make it for us?”
As I asked, Beckus finally opened his mouth.
”For this little lady, it’s not a bad request. But there are some conditions.”
Conditions?
”Right now, I don’t have the materials! If you want me to make it, you gotta get them ready yourself!”
Beckus declared loudly.
What’s with a blacksmith having no materials?
That’s nothing to be proud of, right?
I thought to myself, but I nodded in agreement.
If he says I need to prepare what’s necessary, I have no choice but to comply.
”Specifically, what kind of materials do we need?”
”The Sword Deer’s antlers and the Mirage Brown Snail’s shell should be good. Both must not be broken. The antlers need to be a pair, and not damaged. Bring the shell while keeping its shape!”
”What? If that’s all, I’ll go get them right away!”
I answered casually.
I have defeated both monsters before.
Plus, collecting the materials is not a problem.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply