by Hiro Ainana
“I heard there was a master swordsman here. Is it really true that he can split the ironshell fruit?”
“Just look around, Miss Kobold! Can’t you see the pile of halves right here?”
“…S-so it is true.”
Wow, so that’s a kobold?
So their race had rather pale skin and a dog head—no, wait. The “head” was actually a helmet.
“Show me with this sword, then. It’s a blue-steel sword forged by kobolds.”
The girl came up to me and shoved a large curved blade into my hands.
I could see a tooth protruding from her lips that was like a little fang. The headgear covered most of her face, but her mouth was that of a dazzling woman.
I unsheathed the sword she handed me. It was a beautiful weapon. The handle had a guard to protect the wielder’s hand, and the single-edge blade was slightly curved. It was a bit too long for me to hold with one hand, but it was definitely a saber of some kind.
In addition, true to the metal’s name, the steel blade had a blue sheen to it.
According to my AR, the material was called kobold alloy blue steel. But the kobold alloy kitchen knife I had was the same color as ordinary metal…
Well, there was no point in nitpicking about the materials of a parallel world.
I gave a light practice swing to test the balance. It weighed about the same as an ordinary steel sword.
Then, taking a breath, I readied the blue-steel sword in front of an ironshell fruit.
If I used Spellblade, I could ensure that the sword wouldn’t break, but the stats in the AR display indicated that it should be fine either way, so I simply took a swing.
“Splendid.”
I somehow lopped the fruit open without breaking the sword. The kobold girl seemed impressed.
“This is a good weapon.”
I shook off the traces of sap from the sword, returned it to its scabbard, and handed it back to the young woman.
“Having seen your skill, I have a favor to ask of you, sir. If you would, I request that you take me to Bolehart, where the dwarves live, or Bolenan Forest, the home of the elves. As a reward, I will give you this blue-steel sword, Bluefang.”
Speaking quickly and resolutely, the girl held it out toward me with one hand.
Considering how heavy that thing was, she had to be strong.
“Do you mind if I ask your reason?”
From her tone, I didn’t think she was planning to bring trouble to the elf village or anything, but if it was an urgent errand, she probably wouldn’t want to accompany us on our easygoing sightseeing journey.
If that was the case, she’d be better off borrowing an elder sparrow from the forest giants and flying there alone.
After warning me she couldn’t speak about it here, the girl brought Liza and me to the back of the factory to explain.
“The reason I asked to travel with you is that it would be too difficult for us to get to Bolenan Forest alone.”
Right, there were only three kobolds here. The girl was a low level, too, so she needed a bodyguard.
“Why do you want to see the elves of Bolenan Forest?”
“Because the very existence of the kobolds is at stake.”
“Existence?”
“When a kobold child is born, a gemstone called a blue crystal is needed, but our mines have all run dry.”
The mines dried up…?
Hmm? Could it be…?
“Is that why the silver mines in Kuhanou County were attacked?”
“That’s right. Baron Muno’s magistrate told us that there were blue crystals hidden deep in those silver mines.”
The magistrate… Isn’t that the hell demon?
I wonder if I can search that on the map?
It would be rough to investigate the mountains at random, so even if I could find sources of ore nearby, that would make the search easier.
“So are blue crystals always found near silver veins?”
“No, there’s no guarantee of that. However, the elves or dwarves should surely have access to them in their bluesilver mines.”
Blue steel, bluesilver, blue crystals… These guys really like blue.
If it were green like my mithril sword, would it be called greensilver?
“The crystals have a beautiful color, like the leaves of the Mountain-Tree,” she said, indicating the deep-evergreen foliage.
Maybe their perception of color was different?
I reached into the back of my robe, pulled out the mithril dagger from Storage, and showed it to her.
“Is this made of bluesilver, then?”
“Ooh, what a beautiful dagger. Yes, surely that’s the source of its lovely blue color.”
In other words, then, they had to find a mithril vein.
Figuring I might as well, I searched the mountains of the Muno Barony for mithril veins.
First, I tried the nearest mountain to the village as the target, but I didn’t find anything there.
I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but… Oh right! If I remembered correctly, there had been papers about proposed mine sites in the Lesser Garage Bag I found in the haunted fortress.
In the documents, I discovered a description of a possible vein within the large forest.
It was a wide area for a search, so I checked the mountains in the forest one by one until I discovered a mithril vein in the third one.
And in a cave at the bottom of the mithril vein, I found the blue crystals in question.
Now, how would I explain this to her…?
Time for my “Fabrication” skill to go to work.
“I don’t know whether there are blue crystals there, but I do happen to know of a mithril vein.”
“R-really?!”
“Yeah, a mysterious man calling himself ‘the masked hermit’ told me about it.”
I drew a map in the dirt to the mountain where the vein was located.
“The hermit lives in this mountain. He explained that he was searching for a mithril mine to obtain a powerful sword.”
“Then if I give him this one…”
The kobold girl leaped up joyfully, but then she paused.
“No, that won’t work. I’ve already promised to give it to you. And all I have other than that are some tools…”
What a conscientious girl.
“The only thing I did was give you information. If you feel you must pay me, perhaps you could spare a tool made of blue steel?”
“Are you sure that’s enough?”
“Yeah, definitely.”
The girl left to make preparations to travel to the mountain, so I began to brainstorm how to make my little tale a reality.
I should probably go to the mountain tonight and create a tunnel to the blue crystals there. It would be an easy matter if I used my Pitfall spell.
Then I could make a log cabin at the entrance of the tunnel and leave a carved wooden mask inside with a paper handing over the vein to the next person to find it. Since she might not be able to read Shigan letters, I’d have to place some mithril ore and blue crystals with it, too.
Tonight’s going to be a busy night.
As it turned out, things were busy even before night fell.
After we’d drawn out the liquor from the ironshells and carved out samples of the fruit with small knives, the plant workers and I heard a thud and felt the ground shake.
Braidbeard, the giant who’d been on an expedition outside the barrier, had returned.
“I HAVE BROUGHT THE HEAD OF A HYDRA, GNOME. USE IT TO MAKE MEDICINE.”
The thirty-foot-tall giant loomed outside the workshop. As his name suggested, he had an impressively woven beard.
A little gnome came tumbling out of the alchemy store next to the workshop.
Then, as he examined the hydra head the giant had placed on the ground, he shook his own head sorrowfully.
“Lord Braidbeard, I cannot use this head. Since the poison glands have been destroyed, the venom I need to cr
eate the material has drained away…”
“WHAT?!”
The gnome quivered before the irrational anger of the giant. The other people of the village, too, shuddered at the giant’s incensed roar.
Even Liza looked ready to faint, so I supported her with an arm.
Quickly, I checked the hydra corpse I had in Storage.
It was no good. Since the heads had been smashed to bits, there were no venom glands remaining.
…No, it was too soon to give up. The poison itself was the key here.
“Sir Gnome, would you happen to have any Black Warped Stone?”
“Why would I have such an impractical ingredient? I don’t know who you are, but I’m busy right now.”
Just as I thought…
“Sir Swordsman, I do.”
A spriggan man came forward and said he would go and get it from his house. An onlooker told me that he was a prospector who searched for ore and gemstones.
“Sir Gnome. I am Satou, a peddler currently imposing upon the home of Sir Lank. I have in my possession Dragon Stone and Serpent’s Blood Stone. If that spriggan gentleman is kind enough to bring back some Black Warped Stone, you should be able to create a universal antidote, correct?”
I grinned broadly as I spoke, but the gnome’s face was still pale.
“I’m sorry. I have not the skills to make such an advanced medicine. My master would likely be able to, but…”
This was unexpected. It hadn’t occurred to me that he wouldn’t be able to make it.
I had no choice, then. I couldn’t bear to make the suffering children wait until someone could get another hydra head.
“…Let me make it, then. I may not look the part, but I have studied under the witch of the Forest of Illusions. I have no doubt that I can succeed.”
After that, I received a large bag full of Black Warped Stone from the spriggan man, and I gave him three intermediate health potions as compensation. Despite his being a prospector, he didn’t seem to be a very greedy man.
Borrowing the alchemy shop’s equipment, I was able to make three small casks’ worth of antidote: universal. The reason I made it by the cask was to account for the forest giants’ large build.
Liza and I rode on Braidbeard’s shoulder to the Mountain-Tree.
Even though he was walking slowly, the size of his strides meant that he was moving as fast as a car.
Since Liza was afraid of heights, she clung onto me during the entire trip. It was adorable. I would never have expected it from her.
On our way to the Mountain-Tree, a fruit came falling from above, but the giant Braidbeard simply caught it deftly in his hand.
Returning to the living quarters of the forest giants, Braidbeard told Stonehammer and the others that he had the antidote, and we went to the children’s room.
Stonehammer and the other forest giants followed behind us.
The tremors on the ground were something else. The brownies working in the forest giants’ neighborhood were rolling and tumbling all around below us.
“MEDICINE. FOR THE CHILDREN.”
“WHO IS THE HUMANFOLK BOY?”
“HE MADE THE MEDICINE.”
“HUMANFOLK MEDICINE? I’M NOT SURE…”
It was only natural that a mother would be reluctant to give her child medicine made by a random stranger.
“SIR SATOU IS AN ATTENDANT OF THE ELF LADY MIA. YOU CAN TRUST HIM.”
Although Stonehammer vouched for me, the mothers still seemed unconvinced.
“THEN I WILL TASTE IT FIRST.”
I spoke up in the giants’ language, scooped out a dose of the medicine with a vial, and drank it down.
This convinced them at last, and the giant mothers gave the medicine to their children. The children were upward of sixteen feet tall, so it was a remarkable sight.
Having drunk the medicine, the children lay down limply on their beds.
This should have healed them, but their Poisoned status didn’t go away.
A dejected silence fell on the forest giants as they watched over the children.
…That’s strange. I’m sure I made the medicine properly. Didn’t I?
As if in answer to my question, the children’s breathing stabilized, and their faces cleared.
Perhaps because the children were so large and the poison so severe, the antidote took some time to go into effect.
At last, their status in the AR display changed from Poison/Hydra [Chronic] to Asleep.
Having been poisoned for so long, their bodies were probably weakened and exhausted.
Shortly afterward, the gnome who seemed to be the attending physician confirmed with his “Analyze Person” skill that the children were no longer poisoned.
I received hugs and kisses of thanks from each of the mothers in turn, which only reminded me how much bigger they were than me.
My body got all sticky, and their busts were many sizes larger than Miss Karina’s and threatened to suffocate me. The only thing I felt was that I could really use a nap.
> Title Acquired: Friend of the Giants
When the forest giants calmed down, their chief, Stonehammer, gave me his thanks.
“WE ARE TRULY GRATEFUL FOR YOUR HELP. IF THERE IS ANYTHING YOU WISH FOR, YOU NEED ONLY ASK. IF IT IS WITHIN OUR POWER, WE WILL GLADLY GRANT IT.”
For a moment, Miss Karina’s face came to mind, but I didn’t mention her request.
It seemed inexcusable to ask the forest giants to go to a humanfolk city and drive out a hell demon when there were only ten of them. If it came down to it, it’d be easier if I put on my silver mask and took care of it myself.
“YOU SEE, A HELL DEMON IS RUNNING RAMPANT IN MY FRIEND’S HOMETOWN—”
“VERY WELL. FOR YOUR SAKE, WE SHALL GLADLY SET OUT AND FIGHT THIS DEMON.”
Braidbeard cut into the middle of my sentence to volunteer. His bearded face looked truly impressive.
“NO, THAT WOULD BE FAR TOO MUCH TO ASK, I BELIEVE. I WISH ONLY TO INQUIRE IF YOU MIGHT LEND ME SOME WEAPON OR TOOL THAT MIGHT WEAKEN A HELL DEMON, IF YOU HAPPEN TO HAVE SUCH A THING?”
“IN THAT CASE, WE DO INDEED HAVE SOMETHING THAT WILL BE OF USE. IT IS KNOWN AS THE DEMON-SEALING BELL, CRAFTED LONG AGO IN THE FLUE KINGDOM. IT IS SAID A SINGLE SWING WILL REVEAL THE DEMON’S IDENTITY AND TEMPORARILY LESSEN ITS POWER.”
That sounded like a good deal to me. It might be the perfect item for Miss Karina.
I felt like I’d heard the name “Flue Kingdom” before, so I checked in Storage and found the currency of that area in my spoils from the Valley of Dragons. It wasn’t the Orc Empire the old folks’ leader had mentioned before.
A group of gnomes came forward with two wagons full of handbells and magic weapons.
The weapons included swords, spears, axes, and bows. My AR display informed me that they were all well made.
Along with the handbell, there was a large sword, a battle-ax, and a longbow that were leagues above my weapons in performance, except for my Holy Swords.
“CHOOSE ANY WEAPON YOU LIKE. WHILE WE CANNOT GIVE ALL OF THEM TO YOU, ANY ONE SHOULD SERVE YOU WELL.”
Hmm… The sword wasn’t as strong as my Holy Swords, and I wasn’t really into battle-axes. But you couldn’t go wrong with a long-distance physical attack, so I decided to go with the bow.
“THEN, IF I MAY, THIS SCARLET LONGBOW—”
“SO THAT IS YOUR CHOICE…,” Stonehammer murmured in a voice steeped with emotion. “THE MAGIC SWORDSMAN WHO PRESENTED US WITH THAT MAGIC BOW WAS A SPRIGGAN WHO ACQUIRED IT AS PROOF HE HAD DEFEATED A POWERFUL MONSTER CALLED A FLOORMASTER.”
As he spoke of the Magic Bow’s history, the giant took it from the wagon and skillfully drew its string with the tip of his fingernail.
So it was a drop from a mini-boss in a labyrinth? No wonder it seemed so powerful, then.
“THIS BOW CAN PIERCE ROCK FROM A GREAT DISTANCE AWAY, EVEN HARM A DRAGON’S SCALES…”
Stonehammer released the string, and the vibration crea
ted a mysterious sound.
“AND THUS, IT CHOOSES ITS OWN MASTER.”
Staring down at me with expectation in his eyes, Stonehammer handed me the bow.
“LITTLE CHILD, SATOU. LET US SEE YOU DRAW ITS BOWSTRING.”
I accepted the highly decorated Magic Bow. It was made of an enchanted red metal called scarletite, with an orichalcum string that glowed gold.
When I tried giving it a light tug, the resistance surprised me.
This time, I took correct posture and drew it in earnest. I was worried that the string might break, but that turned out to be a needless concern.
When I fully drew the string and let it loose toward the sky, a buzz arose among the giants and attendants.
> Title Acquired: Powerful Bowman
> Title Acquired: Magic Archer
> Title Acquired: Magic-Bow Master
“ADMIRABLY DONE! THIS MAGIC BOW NOW BELONGS TO YOU.”
“I WILL BE SURE TO TAKE GOOD CARE OF IT.”
Stonehammer nodded with satisfaction and pointed at the bow.
“IT APPEARS THAT THE BOW HAS ACCEPTED YOU AS ITS NEW MASTER, AS WELL.”
I didn’t necessarily believe the giant’s dramatic claim, but for whatever reason, I did notice a slight glow from the patterns on the weapon.
“IT SEEMS YOU ARE QUITE SKILLED, SATOU. I IMAGINE YOU MAY HAVE USED SOME FORM OF STRENGTH-ENHANCING SKILL, BUT NEVERTHELESS, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME IN SEVEN HUNDRED YEARS THAT ANYONE BUT A GIANT HAS BEEN ABLE TO DRAW THAT BOWSTRING.”
“I NEVER IMAGINED THAT ANYONE BUT US WOULD BE ABLE TO DO IT.”
The other giants praised me, too, grinning heartily.
Around then, the little giants came in with casks of wine to celebrate the children’s recovery, and the conversation turned toward holding a banquet.
“WE SHALL HAVE A GREAT FEAST THIS NIGHT. LET US INVITE EVERYONE IN THE VILLAGE FOR A GRAND CELEBRATION!”
“YES!”
The giants seemed uncharacteristically excited, probably due to the children’s recovery.
Though the banquet was decided suddenly, there was no shortage of participants or food from the village.
Miss Karina didn’t participate, but Whitefinger brought my kids along.
We sat as guests of honor at the head table next to the giants. Amusingly, given the enormous meat, fruit, and other dishes surrounding us, we felt as if we’d been shrunk.