A Promise Nearly Forgotten

While agonizing over whether to keep using Niku as a hug pillow going forward, I decided to handle it the Japanese way and postpone the problem, maintaining the status quo for now. First, I'll head back to our dungeon――but before that, since I'm here, I figured I'd stroll around the Imperial Capital a bit.

Father's gate still had one more use, so returning would be instant. But the next time I visit, I'd use [Deployment] to warp to the dungeon we set up this time, then blast through at full speed in a Golem Carriage for half a day. A normal carriage would take a full day.

… Then again, without the derived dungeon, it'd take weeks just to get here by regular carriage service. Compared to that, popping over has become pretty easy.

Incidentally, derived dungeons normally can't be placed this far from the original, so this time was a special arrangement. If it weren't for that, Haku-san would probably have set up a dungeon closer to Tsuia Mountain.

So, I brought Niku and Ichika to the Adventurer Guild headquarters.

Rokuko was having a tea party with Haku-san in the palace. How elegant.

I hadn't really checked what kinds of commissions were available in the Imperial Capital, so I figured I'd take a look. Last time I came, I only ended up meeting Misha.

I figured the Imperial Capital would have great commissions, but there weren't many good ones. At best, they were things like dungeon culling.

"Prolly 'cause of the mornin' rush, yeah? Deliveries, odd jobs, anythin' with good pay woulda been snatched up already."

"That's true. Of course other people want the good commissions too."

"Exactly. There's a famous sayin': 'You ain't the only adventurer out there.'"

That said, I don't want to come here during the morning rush just to check commissions. Maybe I should give up… Ah, what about high-ranking commissions?

What's left on the bulletin board is C-Rank at most. Certain C-Rank and above commissions, along with all B-Rank and above commissions, are classified as high-ranking and aren't posted on the board. You have to ask directly at the counter, and they're restricted by rank and track record.

I'm B-Rank now, more or less, so I should be able to check. A place this big probably has a decent number of high-ranking commissions, but there's unlikely to be anything that can be wrapped up in a single day. If a high-ranking commission had good pay, other adventurers would have already taken it.

Well, let's just take a look. I thought that and started heading toward the counter when it happened.

"Huh, aren't you Kehma-san? Why're you in a place like this?"

"Hmm? Who?"

I turned around to find two adventurers standing there.

Who? No seriously, who?

"It's Uzoh! You saved my life, Kehma-san!"

"It's Muzoh! The ones who promised to bring you a magic sword!"

"… Ohhh. Right, those guys."

"We haven't forgotten our debt to Kehma-san for a single day! Right, Muzoh?"

"But saving people like us must be an everyday thing for Kehma-san. Can't blame him for forgetting, Uzoh."

Well yeah, I only met them once a year ago.

The Uzoh Muzoh brothers. The C-Rank adventurer duo whose lives I saved in the dungeon, and the very first customers at our inn, [Dancing Doll's Pavilion]. If I recall, they got stuck in the test room in a way I hadn't expected and gave us a ton of DP.

"By the way, why's Kehma-san in the Imperial Capital? Did you move away from Tsuia?"

"Had a commission to take care of. I finished it, so I'll be heading back to Golen Village soon."

"Golen Village? Was there a village by that name nearby…?"

"Ah, you wouldn't know. The area around that inn has become a village now. It kind of grew on its own, and the name ended up being Golen Village."

"I see."

I don't use the name much, so even I tend to forget what the village is called.

"By the way, I'm the Village Chief."

"That's impressive, or rather, sounds like a lot of work. Right, Muzoh?"

"But if it's Kehma-san, he'll manage somehow, Uzoh."

What kind of evaluation is that? It beats being badmouthed, but being overestimated is its own problem.

"… Which reminds me, it's been about a year since then."

"Ah――umm, Kehma-san. There's something we have to apologize for."

"We said we'd get a hold of a magic sword and give it to you within a year, but, uhh…"

Uzoh and Muzoh trailed off awkwardly. I see, so that's what this is about. They set a one-year deadline themselves and now feel bad for not delivering.

"What, the magic sword? Don't worry about it. I don't mind waiting another year."

When I said that, Uzoh and Muzoh frantically shook their heads.

"No, we did manage to get one! But, well…"

"It's a magic sword with a drawback… not exactly fitting to give to someone who saved our lives."

"A drawback? What kind of magic sword is it?"

"Well, it seems to be a magic sword that spreads drowsiness. If it just put enemies to sleep, that'd be great, but it spreads sleepiness indiscriminately, and even the wielder gets drowsy."

"In fact, since the wielder is closest to the sword, they're the first to get sleepy. We considered selling it, but the buyers lowballed us because of the effect…"

"That's…"

A magic sword that spreads sleepiness…?

If that's true, that's an incredible effect.

"Alright, show it to me. That magic sword, come on, hurry. Hurry!"

"Eh? Ah, well, I don't mind showing you."

Uzoh pulled a sheathed magic sword from a bag. It was a dagger in a simple scabbard without any major ornamentation. If anything stood out, it was a round, black, dark-attribute magic stone set in the center of the hilt. About the size of a plastic bottle cap, the magic stone was so pitch-black it seemed to suck you in.

"Hmm… how do you use it?"

"Draw it from the sheath and it spreads drowsiness proportional to the magical power you put in."

"Mind if I draw it a little?"

"Just a bit, it'll bother people around us."

I drew the magic sword from its scabbard… O-ooh… Aah, what a lovely drowsy sensation.

… Wonderful. I just want to give in to this sleepiness. Absolutely swoon-worthy.

"Kehma-san, sorry, please put it away. I'm already sleepy."

Hearing Uzoh's sleepy voice, I sheathed the magic sword.

What a great sword. The best. With this, my sleep life will improve even further.

"Are you really okay with this? Me having it?"

"… Nn, sorry, Kehma-san. Must've been half asleep still. It sounded like you said you wanted this magic sword."

"I did. If I'm going to take one, I want this magic sword."

"Y-you're serious?"

"Kehma-san, if we sold that magic sword and combined it with our savings, we could manage to buy a different one. Wouldn't you rather…"

What are these two even saying?

"I've never seen such an amazing magic sword. This is fine. No, this is the one I want!"

"O-oh."

"Kehma-san…!"

Oi, what's with that? Why are you looking at me with tears in your eyes? Don't give me that warm, pitying look. It's fine, isn't it? It's not like I'm going to use it in battle.

"What's this magic sword's name?"

"It doesn't have one. A magic sword's name is given by its first wielder. If you really intend to use it, Kehma-san, you should name it yourself."

I see. I thought about a name for the sword.

… REM sleep, so REM Blade? No wait, REM stands for rapid eye movement, so that's not quite right. Sleep… is there a good-sounding name related to sleep? Ah, got it.

"Siesta. Sleepsword Siesta. The napping sword."

"Haha, a napping sword. That's a pretty laid-back name, but it fits this magic sword perfectly, right, Uzoh?"

"Yeah, Sleepsword Siesta. Good sense, Muzoh."

Sleepsword Siesta. It seems I've obtained the greatest magic sword ever.

Still, even if they were just repaying a debt, receiving a sword this good means I owe them some change. I removed the Golem Blade from my waist, scabbard and all, and handed it to the Uzoh Muzoh brothers.

"It's secondhand, but here's your change. Take it."

"Kehma-dono, this is…"

"Same type of magic sword as the one from the [Greed Trap] where you guys got stuck. I never gave it a name, so feel free to call it whatever you want."

I never named it, and I barely used it, so it's practically new.

I'd been planning to make a new orichalcum Golem Blade for myself anyway, and now I have Sleepsword Siesta too. Giving them the old one is no problem.

"Nn, hold on. One sword for two people isn't quite right… Here, take another."

With that, I pretended to pull it from my bag while actually taking a spare Golem Blade out of [Storage]. This one was a knife-type I'd kept as a backup for Niku, but since the Uzoh Muzoh brothers are a swordsman-and-scout combo, it works out perfectly. I'll make a new one for Niku anyway.

"A-are you sure?"

"Yeah, think of it as my appreciation for keeping your promise."

"We'll gratefully accept…!"

Making them is free, after all.

With that, the Uzoh Muzoh brothers left the guild, bowing over and over. Apparently, they had a commission to get to. What hard workers.

"Goshujin-sama, ain't it a bad idea to be handin' out magic swords willy-nilly like that?"

"This much is fine. Sleepsword Siesta is worth that and more."

"… Well, if Goshujin-sama says so, then I guess it's fine…"

Hmm? Come to think of it, wouldn't this sword be seriously strong in combat if combined with [Faint Resistance]?

… Maybe I'll treat them to an A-Rank meal next time they come to our inn.