by Yuu Tanaka
But the part about being an Intelligent Weapon… I’d have to talk to Garrus about that. Most of our guildsmen had assumed Fran hid the Daemon crystal, so it wouldn’t be too much of a problem. The story only changed from “I took the crystal” to “my sword ate it.”
Good thing we didn’t get greedy with the Daemon carcass. Everyone had gotten bonuses because of it. We should treat the hall to drinks today too. No faster way to build rapport than a mug of beer.
“Today’s on me.”
“What?! We can’t let a little girl like you treat us!”
“It’s okay. I got my bonus.”
“High roller!”
“I’m not high.”
“Hahaha! You’re somethin’ else, little girl!”
“Yes! Time to make up my losses with drink!”
“Bwahahaha!”
We spent 100,000G on drinks that day…
Epilogue
Fran was asleep. She hadn’t had anything to drink, but today had been a series of rough battles. The Daemon was strong, and I honestly thought we were going to lose. To think that I actually fought against a Daemon and won… Me, the guy who had an average job a couple of months ago, killing a Daemon in the form of a magic sword. Could you believe it?
It had been a few months since I was reborn as a sword. Time went by so fast when you were out killing monsters. I fought a Goblin, then a Lesser Wyvern, Slimes, Saber-Tooths, and Hobgoblins.
If I had come to this world as a human, the first goblin I saw would’ve killed me. I was initially shocked by the fact that I was a sword, but I now thought it wasn’t such a bad deal. With my magic and abilities, I was a force that only existed in storybooks back on Earth.
Then I met Fran. I couldn’t believe it had only been five days since we ran into each other. We had grown so close over such a short period of time. I saved her from slavery and she saved me from the magical forest. She became an adventurer, met tons of interesting people, battled an entire goblin horde, and conquered a hobgoblin dungeon by herself. To top it all off, she had a fight to the death with a Daemon and his Dungeon Master. After all that, it was no wonder we were so close.
It was strange of me to say this as a sword, but I actually felt more alive in those five days than I ever had in my previous life.
“Hmm…”
Fran?
She turned in her sleep. I used Telekinesis to reposition her blanket.
She looked so innocent when she was asleep. No, I wasn’t a lolicon. Fran was cute, don’t get me wrong. With her black hair, white skin, and fluffy ears, it was hard not to think of her as cute.
But I cared for her the way a parent would. I wasn’t sure if this was my dormant fatherhood finally awakening or if this was how all swords felt toward their users. Looking at her peaceful face made me want to protect her all the more.
Five days…
It’d only been five days, but I didn’t even want to think about leaving Fran alone. If someone offered to send me back to Earth, I would refuse. That was the conclusion I had come to after being reborn a few months ago and meeting Fran five days ago.
This fantasy world…
I looked out the window at the night sky. The giant, silver crescent was surrounded by four lunar orbs. The more I looked at it, the more it drilled home the fact that this fantasy world was my reality now.
May as well buckle down and enjoy it.
We’ll see what this world has to offer us…
Bonus Story:
My First Supper with Fran
It was some time after dinner when Fran resumed carving up monster carcasses. I told her to leave it until tomorrow, but she seemed to be getting the hang of it and was enjoying herself. I thought she was a bit crazy for enjoying what was effectively an autopsy, but maybe it was a hobby among the children of a world inhabited with dangerous monsters.
Just take it easy.
“I will.”
I took a monster carcass from my Pocket Dimension for Fran to work on. She was getting used to using our Shared Skills. She got rid of the smell with Cleansing Magic, while washing her carving knife clean with the occasional water spell.
I should carve up a monster carcass of my own too. As fine of a monster carver as Fran was, some carcasses were impossible for her to take apart. It was all a matter of tools. Take, for example, the Tyrant Saber-Tooth I had laid in front of me: Its ten-meter-long body notwithstanding, its fur and hide were tough and difficult to penetrate. It took all of Fran’s might to get the tip of her small carving knife an inch through it. That was when I knew I had to step in.
Boy was it huge, though. I kept carving and carving, and it felt like there was no end in sight. But I kept at it because Fran needed to eat, and we could use the Saber-Tooth’s meat. Back on Earth, the meat of a carnivore would have a stink that turned you off from it. The rules worked a little differently here, where maxing out my Cooking skill had enabled me to judge whether a product was fit for eating. As it turned out, monster meat could be used to make delicacies that were quite delicious.
The Tyrant Saber-Tooth was one of those monsters suitable for cooking. I’d have to get rid of the tough parts, but, even then, the giant cat yielded a large amount of edible meat.
Disassembly also gave me the ability to judge the value of harvested materials. It made me marvel at just how powerful Skills were in this world. Just equip some and you were an instant prodigy. Disassembly told me the Saber-Tooth’s fur and bones could be used to make equipment. The fangs and mane were especially valuable.
I took my time carving around those areas to minimize the damage. Raising Fran was going to take money, and this was the golden ticket. I needed to be extra careful with it.
I was getting used to making fine movements with my blade, something I didn’t need to do back in the plains. I was surprised that I could neatly separate hide from flesh to within a millimeter. It took close to an hour, but I was finally done. I looked over to Fran, who was still working on her carcass. She was hard at work, sweat trickling down her forehead.
Fran, you can leave it until tomorrow if you’re tired.
“Just a little more.”
All right.
If she wanted to do it, well, I wasn’t one to stop her. I still needed to make her supper. We took a variety of cooking utensils from the slaver, like a pot, a pan, a chopping board, and a bowl, among other things. I laid them all out while trying to think of what I could cook with them.
As for seasoning, we had salt, pepper, and mock-miso at hand. Mock-miso was the digestive fluids of something that looked like a pitcher plant. It was safe to use as seasoning so long as you cooked it. It tasted like a cross between miso and shoyu, only less salty. What a fantastic world I live in. I could also use the flour we took from the cart and some wild herbs we had picked along the way.
We also had some Crush Boar and Rock Bison meat leftover from yesterday. Could we make something with them? Fran had an immense appetite for such a tiny frame, so I doubted they’d be enough. Should I cut them into chunks anyway?
No, I should use the Saber-Tooth meat I carved just now. I’d mix the pork-like Crush Boar, the beef-like Rock Bison, and the juicy Saber-Tooth steak to make a delicious burger.
I proceeded to mince the three meats and added salt and pepper to the mix. Next, I threw in some diced, chive-like plant into the mix. I then kneaded the mixture with Telekinesis until it all combined and formed into a patty. Meat by itself was good; triple meat must’ve been three times better.
I wrapped the patties in Rock Bison caul fat and heated my frying pan on a makeshift stove made from Earth Magic and Fire Magic. Was it too big? Not that Fran would mind; she would drool at the sight of it. I used Crush Boar lard as cooking oil. I turned up the heat to get the pan going then turned it down to stop it from burning.
That looks good.
I set the giant patty on a plate and proceeded to make the sauce. I added mock-miso, strawberries, and crushed grapes to the cooking juices to
make a slightly tangy gravy.
This was delicious by itself, but I wanted to make it lighter since it was supper. I took the remaining flour and made a thin crepe out of it. I topped it off with some herbs and my Tortilla Hamburger (kind of) was complete.
Fra—
“I’m here!”
Well, someone was enthusiastic. Fran was already behind me before I could say, “Order up!”
She stared at the Tortilla Hamburger in awe.
Wash your ha—
“Done!”
She put her hands up as if to show me. She’d been waiting for this.
Supper is served.
“Thank you for the meal.”
Fran took huge bites out of the burger, and it didn’t take long before she devoured it all. She had a big, healthy appetite. I was glad I cooked it for her, but it seemed I underestimated her appetite.
She looked at me expectantly. “Seconds?”
Uhhh, hang on…
I didn’t think she’d need seconds. Oh well.
I made a steak from the Tyrant Saber-Tooth this time. Seeing her enjoy her meal was so delightful that I felt I was getting seconds too. When we’d first met, she’d been so quiet because of her life as a slave, but now she was opening up and selfish enough to ask for seconds again. She was regaining her will to do things on her own again. She could ask for seconds now, and I was sure it was the same as when she said she wanted to keep carving earlier. It made me so happy I could just zip around camp.
Didn’t think I’d see the day I’d consider selfishness a virtue.
I had the honor of being the recipient of Fran’s budding trust. I swore I would never betray her.
Afterword
Hello, my name is Yuu Tanaka. I would like to thank you for buying this book, first time readers and long-time fans alike. If you bought this on the internet, please recommend it to your friends. If you’re reading this in the bookstore, take it to the register and buy it! Why wait?
The revised manuscript for this novel was initially posted on the website Shousetsuka ni Narou (Let’s Be Novelists). I didn’t expect it to be published when I first wrote the story. I even joked to my friend, “I’ll sign a copy for you if I get published.”
Well, the website is called Let’s Be Novelists, so I had an inkling of expectation. Becoming a novelist is my dream and I’ve worked very hard at it. I had tried once before but it didn’t go very well. That’s when I found Let’s Be Novelists.
I didn’t need to get published for people to begin reading my work. I thought it’d be good practice since I’d be able to get feedback on my writing. That was all I had in mind when I first posted to the site. I didn’t have that many readers for a while, and I was just doing it as a hobby. I’d read the comments people left behind on my stories and I’d be sad or happy depending on what they said. There were even times I got depressed if the comment was particularly harsh.
At some point, I started gaining more readers and began climbing the charts. That was when I first started thinking, “Hey, maybe…”
Then I got published. I wasn’t confident enough to say something like, “Now I’m a real novelist!” but it made me certain enough to continue writing. I’m really glad I posted my work on Let’s Be Novelists.
A final word of gratitude for now.
I would like to thank Micro Magazine for looking at my crude work and giving it an award. I would also like to thank my Editor, I-san, for being so patient with me in the writing process. I am forever in your debt. Thank you Llo for making Fran insanely cute; I feel faint every time I see her.
Thank you to Let’s Be Novelists for publishing this book.
Thank you to my friends and family for being with me when times got hard.
Thank you to everyone involved in the publishing process.
And thank you to my readers who have been with me since this novel was on the internet. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
See you in Volume 2.
Thanks for reading!
Thank you for reading!
Get the latest news about your favorite Seven Seas books and brand-new licenses delivered to your inbox every week -
Sign up for our newsletter!
Or visit us online -
gomanga.com/newsletter