28. Gran Cappadocia (1)
#28
“Butterfly Rose?”
“Attach the instructor. And smoking is prohibited on campus.”
Bronze skin and light gray hair. The Sentai Sword Saint Nabirose was standing there. On her back was a slanted strap that was longer than her own height.
Ronan shook off his cigarette but stood up.
“It’s been a while since I saw you. “What’s going on here?”
“That’s what I want to ask Ronan. What happened to the Imperial Swordsmanship class?”
“I was kicked out because I did too well. “Because I’m sad.”
Ronan who was rummaging through her pockets presented her early completion certificate to Butterfly Rose. I nodded at her with butterflies when I saw her curly certificate of completion.
“I guess it was a bit boring as expected. “I expected it.”
“It’s nice to learn something I didn’t know before but I don’t feel like I’m accomplishing anything. “It was fun to teach myself the instructor’s techniques.”
Ronan recalled the time he imitated Butterfly Rose’s spinning sword at her inn. Although it took some time for her to get used to it it was a worthwhile experience.
I opened her mouth with a butterfly as she pondered something.
“Unsheath your sword.”
“yes?”
“Let’s spar sometime. “There’s nothing to do anyway.”
“No but you’re saying we’re sparring here?”
Instead of answering Butterfly Rose placed her hand on the hilt of her stand. Ronan also had no choice but to draw his sword. I frowned at her as I saw the state of her black iron sword.
“…Did you keep swinging it around?”
“Oh yeah. “Until I get a new sword this weekend.”
“Treat your weapons with respect. “The sword is the prosecutor’s life.”
“It doesn’t matter who wields it all swords are there. Of course I will choose something as sturdy as possible.”
“What?”
Suddenly Nabirose’s face hardened. She let go of the hilt of her sword and let out a soft sigh.
“I wanted to figure out the skills first but the sparring was canceled. “Give me the knife.”
“Oh.”
Nabirose grabbed Ronan’s sword without saying a word. She began stroking the body of the black iron sword with her fingers. Every time she felt the rough scars on her fingertips Butterfly Rose’s frown narrowed.
“Management was negligent…no it was just not done well. Why do you think so many swordsmen search for famous swordsmen with their eyes lit up and why do they care for their loved ones as if they were their own children?”
“Is it because you lack skills?”
“…Well you might not know. Because I haven’t even reached the level of a sword user. “It might not mean much to someone who doesn’t know how to feed mana to a weapon.”
Ronan’s eyes widened when he heard those words.
“What did you know?”
“okay. “It’s hard to believe that he can display such power without using any mana.”
“It’s not that I don’t use it it’s that I can’t use it. “I’m going crazy too.”
“You don’t have to worry too much about that. Because someday I will be able to use it. However if you don’t get into the habit of choosing and managing good weapons from now on you will have trouble using your mana later.”
Nabirose walked to the lakeside. The wide lake was rippled by the spring breeze. Her feet were also in a butterfly position and I opened her mouth.
“Look carefully. “I will teach you the importance of weapons.”
Whoosh! Nabirose’s arm disappeared from sight for a moment. The sword energy flew sideways from her and landed in the center of the lake. Sigh! A fan-shaped spray of water rose up obscuring the forest across the lake.
“Ohh.”
Ronan was impressed. Her swordsmanship was surprisingly clean. With a butterfly I threw her black iron sword at Ronan.
“It’s an item that’s worse to use than I thought. “This is just a piece of iron.”
“That’s too much. “Is it that much different from the instructor’s sword?”
Ronan tilted his head. Even when compared to his memories of his past life it was an excellent blow. As of now Nabirose was undoubtedly one of the leading swordsmen on this continent.
Slurp. Butterfly Rose silently pulled out her sword. Her arm disappeared from sight again. Same posture. Same technology.
-Aaaah!
Different results.
A wall of water filled my vision. The spray that rose from end to end of the lake blocked the sun. The sword energy that flew towards the water created a slope that stretched from the surface of the water to the bottom of the lake.
Ronan’s eyes widened as if they were about to pop out.
“Nimi what is this….”
Ronan lowered his gaze to her green slopes. Below I could see the bottom of a waterless lake.
Mud was splashing around her stab wound. For the first time in my life I experienced wind and the water plants were gently swaying. Several fish that had been unluckily cut into pieces were blinking.
“Sign up for my class Ronan. Originally you could take the course starting from the second year but we will give you special permission.”
Shoot… the spray that covered the sky began to pour down as rain. Students walking by the lakeside were running away covering their heads.
Nabirose spoke with the lake closing with a roar in the background.
“But there is a condition. “Bring a weapon that suits you and that you can wield for half a lifetime.”
****
“…something like that happened.”
Ronan opened his mouth with a serious expression. The first weekend at Phileon.
Asher and Marya who had changed into casual clothes were blindly led by Ronan’s hand and were walking somewhere.
“Pyeol-ah!”
Sitting on Ronan’s shoulder was Sita who returned the day before. After hearing Butterfly Rose’s story Asher opened her mouth in admiration.
“Amazing…weapons are important.”
“Yes it is important to know how to manipulate mana. “I’ve decided to use my weapons more sparingly now.”
“Sounds like a good idea. By the way how was last week? The timetable was scary…”
Asher also knew Ronan’s murderous timetable. Ronan sighed and took out a bundle of paper from her inner pocket and held it out to Asher.
“This?”
“Notice of dismissal.”
All the crumpled papers were early completion certificates. Asher’s eyes widened.
“How many sheets are there in all? “Imperial sword skills imperial spear skills basic fighting skills basic shield skills…”
“Nine chapters. Thanks to this the timetable was completely empty.”
Ronan grumbled. There were numerous X’s drawn on the packed timetable. All subjects were completed early.
“If there are any other classes that are good please introduce them to me. “I’m working hard on my physical strength.”
Most of the classes I completed early were basic martial arts subjects. He was processed early in a similar situation to Abar’s class.
– I have nothing more to teach you.
– I’m glad there are no more cadets like you. Because I would have starved to death.
– Let’s be honest. Have you ever dealt with original windows?
Marja frowned her eyebrows. Until yesterday she had been going through Avar’s hellish training.
“I was very full. “This is why I hate geniuses.”
“No I don’t know if it’s difficult but it’s simple.”
“Do you know how much your classmates envy you? “If you had handled Mana well it wouldn’t have been strange if half of you had dropped out.”
After hearing the word Mana Ronan quietly took out a cigarette. Just thinking about it made her feel like her hair was falling out. Asher who had intervened without notice tilted his head.
“Ah you still can’t sense mana well?”
“…okay. They looked at me like I was a monkey. “I heard there’s something fundamentally wrong.”
Twice a week. Despite taking classes from some of the best professors in the empire Ronan was ultimately unable to respond to mana. Among his classmates he was the only one who did not even reach the level of a sword user.
“A second seat who can’t even sense mana. Isn’t it fucking funny? “The chief sari became an auror at the age of eleven.”
Ronan chuckled self-deprecatingly. Asher said clenching his fists.
“Someday… no sooner or later I will definitely be able to do it…!”
“I know man.”
Ronan hit Asher on the head with the tobacco pipe. Although he was frustrated the challenge was worth it. Marja said clasping her hands behind her head.
“If there is a potion that helps with mana sensitivity I will bring it to you. So where are we going now?”
“That’s right. “I was curious too.”
I felt like I had been walking for a while but there seemed to be no plan to stop. Asher was looking around the increasingly gloomy streets with anxious eyes.
“Ah. I thought about it carefully and I thought that if we were going to go it would be better if we all went together.”
“Where?”
Ronan rummaged through her inner pocket and took out her metal card. Marya’s eyes widened as she recognized the identity of her metal plaque. Ronan said catching the card he had thrown in the air again.
“A place that can make decent weapons.”
****
The blacksmith shop Schlieffen mentioned was located at the westernmost end of Workshop Street.
After walking for about thirty more minutes the three were able to arrive in front of a blacksmith shop with the stupid name [Hammer Hammer Hammer]. Ronan feeling strange tilted his head.
“…isn’t it here?”
The three people looked around. Something was strange. Aside from the fact that everyone was falling apart there was no sign of popularity. Ronan muttered.
“There’s no way that bastard lied… Let’s go in first.”
Ronan entered the blacksmith shop and looked around. It seemed like a long time had passed since it had not been touched by human hands. The furnace was cold and all the weapons hanging on the wall were rusty.
“Is there anyone?”
Ronan’s voice echoed in the darkness. At that time a clattering sound was heard from inside and a man walked out holding his head.
“Ugh hangover…what are you guys?”
He was a giant with two more heads than Ronan. The upper body exposed as it had nothing on was covered in shaggy hair. He behaved more like an animal than a human.
“Hey…”
Asher was frightened and hid behind the brazier. Ronan frowned. The man smelled of alcohol iron and a terrible dog.
His man asked back irritably.
“Why did you come?”
“I came to get weapons. “I heard this place makes really good knives.”
“Ha… I don’t think I’ll have much luck. It’s been a while since I’ve been in business. “Can’t you see that the fire in the furnace is off?”
The man spat on the floor. Ronan took a deep breath and suppressed his anger. If he went on a rampage here people outside could hear him.
Ronan rummaged through his inner pocket and took out his metal card.
“Now look.”
“ok?”
Ronan thrust the metal card in front of his man’s eyes. For a moment the man’s eyes widened. He looked back and forth at Ronan Asher and Marja behind the metal plaque then snorted.
“The bill of exchange from the Grancia family. So what are you saying?”
“yes?”
“So are you Grancia? Damn I don’t know where the information is leaking. “Get the hell out of here kid.”
The man scratched his crotch. He yawned profusely and opened his mouth with his eyes fixed on Marya and Asher.
“But if possible leave those behind.”
“That one?”
“Those damn brats. “It looks very delicious.”
The man chuckled vulgarly. Asher and Marya’s expressions hardened. Ronan looked back at the two and opened his mouth.
“Watch your mouth bro. “Then you could be crippled for the rest of your life.”
“Is it wrong to say something that looks delicious looks delicious? “If they tease you attack them.”
“I guess so.”
Ronan tugged at the hilt of his sword. The tip of the black iron sword was aimed directly at the man’s shoulder blades. It was the moment the sword struck the man’s skin.
-Changerang!
As the impact passed through her hand the sound of something breaking into pieces rang out.
“what?”
“Ro Ronan! A knife!”
Ronan narrowed his eyes. In his hand was a black iron sword cut in half. The broken half of the sword body was stuck on the wooden wall.
“…It’s pretty good.”
The man laughed as if he was dumbfounded. He didn’t even realize that the sword had been fired. Marya who was glaring at her man suddenly screamed.
“uh?! “Armor?”
The man’s upper body who was clearly wearing nothing was covered in armor. No one present saw the man putting on her clothes.
The man patted the area where Ronan had hit and sighed.
“Damn I can’t believe the enchantment is removed by just blocking it once. “I need to reinforce it a little more.”
“What kind of magic did you do?”
Ronan frowned. Judging by the fact that the black iron sword was broken it was not ordinary armor. He seemed to have equal or greater hardness than Lord Madoros.
But it wasn’t that there was no way to break through. Ronan was about to swing the sword that had been cut in half again. Her man raised both his hands and waved at her.
“Whoa whoa stop it. Since you passed you can come in. Damn it this is the first time in my life I’ve seen such a sharp sword.”
“Passed?”
“okay. Even if you look at it a guy who is not Grancia is showing you a Grancia card so you can’t just let him in. I tried provoking you once to show you my skills. “Who gave you the note?”
Ronan didn’t answer. He said pointing with his thumb at Asher and Marya in the back.
“First of all apologize to those bastards.”
“That’s right. Sorry everyone. “It wasn’t my intention.”
The man immediately bowed his head to her politely. The two people embarrassed by the unexpected action awkwardly accepted the apology. It was only after Ronan saw that that he answered the question.
“Schlieffen.”
“That little brat? “It’s a big deal.”
Her man grinned and hit his leg with her hammer. Again her metal sound rang out before her hammer touched her leg. Another armor appeared.
It completely covered the legs and the top and bottom were connected making it a stylish piece of armor that a knight might wear. Ronan lowered his sword.
“A blacksmith werewolf this is really novel.”
“What did you notice?”
“The smell of a dog must be so strong. “Are you the owner of this blacksmith shop?”
The man burst into laughter. He looked down at Ronan curiously who did not lose her composure.
“no. I’m just an apprentice. “The ones who can be said to be the owners are the old people below.”
“Then why are you here and not helping with the blacksmith work? “If it were the gatekeeper role he could appoint someone else.”
“I wanted to test the transparent armor I developed this time. Originally I was going to ask the knights of the Grancia family to use a technique but you came.”
With those words her man’s body began to transform. Her muzzle stretched and grey-brown fur sprouted from all over her body.
Her head rose even higher almost touching the ceiling. It was almost as big as a Were Lion or Were Tiger.
“Heeeeeeeek!”
“A werewolf?”
“Bwaaaaaa…!”
Asher and Marya were scared and backed away. Sita fluffed her fur as if threatening. Ronan asked with a sour expression.
“Why did you suddenly transform?”
“I wanted to show the excellence of my masterpiece. “Look at this even though my physique has changed it doesn’t peel or break.”
Now that I think about it she was definitely amazing. Her strange armor opened at the seams of its own accord adjusting precisely to the anthropomorphic man’s physique. The man said triumphantly.
“Isn’t it awesome? Magic refining is the forefront of technology. “Blacksmiths who only beat iron in an old-fashioned way can no longer survive.”
Just by looking at the man’s expression you could feel his enthusiasm for his job. Ronan chuckled and put the black iron sword cut in half into her scabbard.
“It’s definitely worthy of being made exclusively for the Grancia family’s weapons.”
“What did you even know that? Hahaha! “I’m also proud of my workplace.”
Her big tail was swinging from side to side. The man who cut her mouth to the side of her ear held out his hand for her.
“It’s Didican.”
“Ronan.”
“Okay Ronan. “What exactly is the purpose of visiting the blacksmith shop?”
“To obtain a useful weapon.”
“Then you have come to the right place. Let’s go in. “And my friends there.”
“You’re going in?”
“So you really thought this was our workplace? “Follow me.”
The three people and one horse followed Didican into the blacksmith shop. It looked very narrow from the outside but the space was wider than expected.
Didican stopped behind the furnace. He said looking back at Ronan and the others.
“Everyone stick next to me. “I don’t know if I can ride all of this at once.”
The group gathered together around Didican. Didican who was fumbling with the wall of the furnace pressed down on a specific section.
The building seemed to tremble slightly and the floor they were standing on began to slowly fall.
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