Volume 6 Chapter 28 The Blacksmith
As Ice secured Rebellion Flame's cooperation, Sandra was walking down the main street of Karditsa.
"Here."
She stops by a chicken skewers stall on the side of the road.
"Welcome! Oh, Sandra-chan! What'll it be today?"
"Just 3 sticks, please."
"Sure thing!"
The vendor wraps up a few skewers for her. With one in her mouth, Sandra enters the blacksmith's shop next door.
"Ah, welcome... you look familiar."
"Sandra from Wade's party."
"Ah, that makes sense. Nice to meet you, Sandra. I'm Sylvia. I'm part of Rebellion Flame."
"Nice to meet you too."
"Yeah, nice to meet you."
As she approach the blacksmith's counter, the two exchange brief greetings. Then, Sandra looks around curiously.
"Are you looking for something? Or do you have a blacksmithing request? Maybe you're here to buy a weapon?"
"I'm here to pick up Wade's sword."
"...Oh..."
When Sandra says this, Sylvia makes a very weary face.
"Can't you tell him? My brother's been pushing himself way too hard lately, and he won't listen when I tell him to stop――"
"With this, the preparations are finally complete!"
"Ugh..."
As soon as Sylvia says that, a voice that sounds like Gold's can be heard from the back, and Sylvia makes a disgusted face.
Sandra, on the other hand, remains expressionless, leaning her body to try to peek at what's going on behind the counter.
"What is he doing?"
"Well... it's hard to explain in one sentence, and I don't really understand either. Want to see? I think it's going to be a bit of an eyesore."
"Show me."
As soon as she answers Sylvia, Sandra finishes eating her skewers and hops over the counter. "You should just use the front door... Oh well, whatever. This way," she follows Sylvia towards the back.
And the sight that greets her is a bit too unexpected, and Sandra can't help but exclaim, "Wow!"
There, standing in the center of a strange magic circle, was a bald man with his upper body bare and his right arm covered in magic seals. He was panting heavily.
"...What's going on here?"
"I don't understand. This is the only way to make the best sword."
Sylvia shook her head in response to Sandra's question. Then, Gold seemed to notice Sandra.
"Oh? You're... Sandra from Wade's place. Good timing. We're just about to start forging from here. It's before noon now, so we should be able to finish before dawn."
"That's fast."
"My brother is an iron magician, so he can shorten the process. I hear it normally takes a week or two."
Then, Gold said,
"Ah, I'll have Sylvia help me today too. I want to finish it quickly. As quickly as possible. My intuition tells me that if I give my sword to Wade, the war will end."
"Where does that confidence come from... or rather, why are you asking me to help when you always scold me for getting in your way, brother?"
"Well, you've been practicing rune magic diligently lately, so I thought I could trust you with this. Besides, I can't do it all by myself this time."
With that, Gold got up from the magic circle. Then, he explained.
"Sylvia, I need you to follow my instructions from here on. Sandra, you too, try not to be too surprised and just watch."
"What, what? What are you going to do?"
"Okay."
"Don't just agree to anything, Sandra."
Anyway, the 2 of them got into a listening position. Gold began his explanation.
"First of all, I want to talk about the magic seal on this arm. As you can see, this magic seal is directly engraved on my arm. It's drawn to a level that my own abilities could never reach."
"...What do you mean?"
As Sylvia tilted her head, Sandra's expression hardened.
"That's a pretty bad one. Divine punishment might come down."
"Huh? What? What are you doing, brother!?"
"Ah, it's okay. Normally, divine punishment would come down, but it won't as long as I'm inside this magic circle. This magic circle is inscribed with rune magic to 'hide from the eyes of the gods'. In fact, I haven't been punished by the gods, have I?"
Sandra looked down at the crude magic circle drawn simply with charcoal. This was what was keeping Gold alive.
"Hey, can you hurry up and tell me about this important stuff, brother?!"
"I'm telling you now. So, here's the real deal."
Sandra and Sylvia were already shocked by what they had heard, but Gold's story didn't stop there.
Gold started talking about his plan.
"I'm going to turn my arm into iron and then cut it off. I'll use that as the core to forge a sword. The arm of a magic seal-engraved magician, pushed to its limits, will be the core of the sword."
The two girls were speechless at his explanation. Gold's eyes, which were shining brightly, held no hesitation.
"It will be a formidable sword. A versatile sword with magic seal iron hidden inside. I've already decided on a name for it. 'Durandal'. I'll give this to Wade, who loved the stupid sword I made."
Silence fell. There was a madness that was beyond their comprehension. And Sylvia couldn't bear it.
"Hey... no, I mean, what do you mean? Are you sick, big brother?"
"I'm perfectly healthy. I've engraved magic seals all over my arm. And then I'm going to cut it off. From there, you're the one who has to do it, Sylvia."
"Huh, I, I don't understand. N-no. I don't want to. I don't. What is that? Don't involve me in this."
Shaking her head from side to side, Sylvia shed tears of fear as she spoke. Grasping Sylvia's arm, Gold said.
"I've already engraved the magic seals. I'm stuck in this magic circle for the rest of my life until I cut off my arm. It's too late to turn back. So give up and help me."
"What is this?! I don't, I don't get it! No! You're crazy, big brother! Why are you saying you're going to make Wade's sword and cut off your arm?! Are you out of your mind?!"
"I'm an unskilled blacksmith."
Gold said, his eyes unwavering.
"But I believe there is a sword that only I can forge. I thought I would forge it someday, but now, Fist of the Dragon has arrived. A weapon that can even defeat a great hero is needed now."
"What do you mean?!"
"I thought I needed to make a sacrifice. A sacrifice great enough to make up for my inexperience. I talked to Wade, and surprisingly, I came to this idea very smoothly. Even the name was decided at that moment."
Gold stroked his bald head and smiled gently.
"I guess it was said at that moment. By the creator, 'Forge it.' 'Forge a sword that will become a legend.' I didn't have the word 'Durandal' in my head. But it came to me. That's it."
"I don't understand! I don't understanddd...!"
Sylvia cried, clinging to Gold in panic. Sandra stared at her, unable to hide her surprise.
"The creator said so, huh?"
"Yeah. It didn't feel like it was said by a god. Something even higher. That's why I thought it was the creator."
"...I see."
The creator. The one who created this world, humans, demons, and all. A supernatural being who does not answer prayers. A being who does not seek faith, but simply blesses all with 'life'.
There are those who say that they were loved by God or that they were ordered by God. This is because it actually has a good effect, so it is often used. Or, there are those who lie for the purpose of using it.
But the creator does not do such things. People don't even hear stories that they did. In this world, the creator is an existence that is rarely spoken of. It is something that people know but should not speak of. Such an existence.
If the creator whispered it, then it must be real for Gold.
Sandra stood quietly at the entrance of the room. Sylvia was looking at Sandra with confused eyes, still crying.
"What...? Sandra, what are you doing...?"
"Sylvia, I'm sorry. I don't want to say something so harsh on our first meeting. But... you should forge the sword. You should forge the sword using your brother's arm as the core."
"――――"
Sylvia recoiled in horror, shaking her head and sobbing uncontrollably. But it was too late. The forging had already begun. Gold would not see the light of day unless the forging was completed.
"Then, I'll cut it off."
"No! No! Please stop! Stop it, brother! No!"
Sylvia pleaded, her voice trembling with fear. Gold took a deep breath. With the mere utterance of the words "Iron Arm," his arm transformed into steel. Then, he swung his greatsword down towards the base of his arm that remained human.
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