The Blacksmithing Town of Corky (3)

After staying overnight at the inn, I gave a quick greeting at Gozoh's family home before deciding to head over to Kantra's. After all, Gozoh's family were just ordinary adventurers. Wataru was still going strong from yesterday's drinking, and Shikina was still passed out drunk. I'd pretend I didn't see that noble young lady puking in her sleep.

So, my purpose in visiting Kantra's place… sightseeing? Observation, maybe. I was curious to see proper blacksmithing firsthand.

By the way, Ichika and Rokuko came with me.

Niku stayed behind. She didn't seem up for a walk (due to her hangover).

"Even soooo… heheh, heeey～ Goshujin-sama～"

"You're too close. What's with you being so clingy today? Did something happen?"

"Ehhh～? C'mon～ y'know～? Well, if Goshujin-sama has somethin' he wants to say, I'm all ears～"

"Hey, Ichika? You're too close. Clinging to him like that will make it hard to walk."

Rokuko wedged herself between Ichika and me. Then Rokuko started clinging to me too, making it even harder to walk, but good job. After all, I knew nothing. I had absolutely zero idea whatsoever, not the slightest inkling, why Ichika was in such a good mood and being so clingy today.

"Of course I know Rokuko-sama is the legal wife! Yep, yep. We slaves are just hug pillows. Items for Goshujin-sama to use however he pleases… Think of it like a pet being playful, so that much should be fine, right?"

"I see, a pet! Then that's fine. I let Feni and the others sit on my hands and shoulders too."

Rokuko's pets were Feni the phoenix and Dia the Jewel Turtle. Ichika was on the same level as them?

… Ah, that actually fit. The treatment was about the same.

Funny, Niku seemed more dog-like and pet-like, yet somehow Ichika fit the pet label better? Maybe because Niku was the hug pillow.

"So, this is where Gozoh said Kantra's family home is…"

We'd come from the back way, but… dwarves were busily going in and out, and the sounds of metal being hammered rang out. Smoke billowed from what was clearly a furnace, and just standing here I could feel the heat.

But thinking about it now, would they really show us around a smithy?

Well, Kantra had shown me around his own workshop, but this was his family's place, his master's forge essentially. A higher-level operation. It was an important workplace, so whether outsiders would be allowed in was anyone's guess.

If they said no, I'd just give up. I wasn't that interested.

At best, if they showed me around, I could record it with Menu-san's function and maybe reproduce it with golems to some extent, or it might serve as reference for Nerune's work.

Honestly, I could even process orichalcum with [Create Golem], so the only real advantage would be recreating the workshop to mass-produce items without depending so heavily on [Create Golem].

… Wait, wouldn't Kantra's place be enough for that? Maybe I didn't need to see this one? No, no, the more samples I had for learning this world's standards, the better.

"Hey, Kehma. Are we not going in?"

"Ah, well, I'm having second thoughts about how to enter now… Alright, go ahead, Ichika!"

"Eh, me? Well, if ya think of it as sendin' in a herald, that makes sense. I'll go then… Excuse meee! Is this Kantra-han's place～?"

When Ichika went over to call out, a white-bearded dwarf with a cane came out to respond.

"Hm? Kantra's our brat, but who are you?"

"Ah, I'm from a place called Golen Village. Kantra-han's always been good to us, so I came to pay my respects. He even looks after my weapon for me～"

"What? Let me see that."

Ichika handed over the short sword at her waist, the Golem Knife, to the dwarf.

The dwarf took it, held it up to examine, and flicked it with his finger, producing a clear ring.

"Oho, a magic sword. And this one's definitely been looked after by Kantra."

"Ya can tell just from that? Amazing, as expected of a dwarf blacksmith～"

"Hmph, of course I can tell. He's my son. A father knows his own brat's handiwork."

"Ohoh. So you're Untara-han then?"

"Aye, I'm Untara."

With that, the dwarf, now revealed to be Kantra's father Untara, burst into hearty laughter.

"Sounds like Kantra's doing well for himself. How about a drink to celebrate?"

"Oh, I'd appreciate that. But first, could I introduce my Goshujin-sama and the others? He's Golen Village's Village Chief."

Oh, our turn now. But wow, Ichika could really talk. Chatting so smoothly with someone she'd just met. She seemed well-practiced at this sort of thing.

"Err, nice to meet you. Kantra has always been a great hel—"

"Oh, so you're the Village Chief. Pretty scrawny, aren't you? I heard it's a village of adventurers. Are you okay being so thin?"

"He's fine. Goshujin-sama might look like this, but he's seriously skilled. On the way here, he practically single-handedly held off more thieves than ya could count on both hands."

"Is that so!? Alright, let me see that sword at your waist. I'm excited already!"

Ichika's one comment raised the bar considerably, and he was eagerly slapping my back. Come to think of it, I hadn't really used Sleepsword Siesta as a weapon at all… Actually, I couldn't use it as one, so maybe I should carry a staff instead?

"Ah, it's a magic sword, so please be careful."

"Yeah. Let me just… what…!? Close one!"

Untara had barely begun to draw Siesta from its sheath before immediately slamming it back. He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand, clearly breaking into a cold sweat.

"What is this thing? I nearly blacked out just from slightly unsheathing it… To wield this, you must be quite the swordsman despite your looks. But how do you maintain this blade?"

"Ah…"

Come to think of it, I hadn't really maintained it. Well, I hadn't cut anything with it, and it was a magic sword, so maybe it didn't need it…

I tried sending a thought, "Do you want to be maintained?" to the magic sword, the same way I would with Neru, the Succubus Ring spirit. A response came back: "Mm." Uh… that probably meant yes.

Right. This thing was listed under the monster category in the dungeon's named list, after all. Being able to communicate with it wasn't that strange.

"… Umm, then I'll have you maintained, so please don't emit drowsiness during that, okay?"

"Mm."

I still couldn't tell if that "Mm" was affirmative or negative… ah wait, I could understand the feeling behind it since it was telepathy. That was a yes. This one was just taciturn. The silent type reminded me of how Niku used to be. Well, even more silent since there were no ears or tail to read.

"By the way, when you normally emit drowsiness, can you direct it only at enemies?"

"… Mm."

Ah, that was a no. The feeling was tinged with considerable regret… it couldn't even distinguish between the wielder and others, let alone friends and foes. Telepathy really did convey things well.

Well, anyway, since it could turn the effect on and off, I asked Untara to maintain the sword.

"… I had it stop emitting drowsiness for a while, so could you maintain it?"

"What!? … Oh, really, drawing it now doesn't affect me at all. You really are a suitable wielder for it."

Untara drew the sword again with a grin on his face.

I couldn't exactly tell him it was the result of negotiating directly with the sword. Though if you phrased it as "communing with the blade's soul," that actually sounded pretty cool.

"Hey, Kehma. I want mine maintained too!"

"Eh? Have you ever… actually used that rapier?"

"Gahaha! That's for self-defense for the young lady, right? Best if she never has to use it!"

She'd been reaching for the crossbow instead during our last fight, anyway. It was basically decorative. Well, it was true that Rokuko never having to fight with a sword was for the best.

By the way, when I later gave him some of Feni's eggshells and Igni's scales as gifts, he happily granted us a tour of the smithy. Fire-attribute items apparently made great materials for fireproof bricks.

They were just leftovers and scales that had gotten stuck on birdlime, but he was delighted to have them.

"I'll make you anything for free! Any weapon in my shop, or anything you want, just name it!"

He said with bloodshot eyes. There wasn't really anything I needed, but… a knife? No, maybe I could have him make a Beddhism holy symbol.