Chapter 108: Blacksmithing
Well then, Spirit.
As we spend more time together and I rename you, you’ll grow bigger, but how should I handle that? Well, I can think about it later. First, I need to capture one.
I wonder if there’s a dragon out there, not just a regular one? If there is, it’s probably in the east, right?
“Jean, you’re thinking something strange, aren’t you?”
“It’s just your imagination.”
Led by Retze, I’m making my rounds at the blacksmiths.
Laura? Rose? No, it’s Rosa. Everyone keeps mentioning Amedeo’s name, so I’m starting to mix up the others.
Since the troublesome Gold Rank lackeys have cleared out of the city, I’m looking for someone to process the Magic Iron that Ash gave me. Specifically, I’m being shown around by Chris, Dean, and Retze to their favorite blacksmiths.
By the way, it seems those two happily headed to the Adventurer’s Guild early this morning. Dinoss and the others avoided the busy morning crowd and took their time having breakfast. I know because I delivered the eggs I forgot to give them yesterday.
“Actually, there are more craftsmen in the Fortress City, but…”
“I think it’s packed with Rosa’s lackeys.”
Indeed, both Dean and Chris go all the way to the Fortress City for serious repairs on their main weapons.
The Fortress City is technically in a neighboring country, so normally, entry and exit are strictly regulated, making it feel both close and far. However, that doesn’t apply to adventurers. When heading to the Royal Capital or moving away from demon beast-infested areas, the treatment is poor, but there’s more freedom when it’s nearby.
At the blacksmiths here, aside from requesting maintenance for parts that can’t be handled with regular upkeep, it seems the main focus is on maintaining dismantling knives and sub-weapons.
It’s said that craftsmen in the Fortress City won’t meet you without an introduction, and they’ve told the two that they’ll guide them if they decide to go there. Then the topic of the brothel came up again.
“Aren’t you treating her like a complete villain? She’s famous as a benevolent healer, you know.”
“To me, she just seems like a troublesome person. Instead of gathering only spirit-possessed folks, she should gather proper citizens. I can’t understand what kind of country she wants to revive.”
I walk alongside Retze, engaging in small talk.
“If they become a strong group, most will flock to them.”
As Retze said, both farmers and townsfolk would likely side with whoever seems to be winning, putting on faces as if they’ve been cheering from the start.
“So, did you find any craftsmen you liked?”
“Is processing Magic Iron the same as regular iron?”
“I’ve heard that if it’s a furnace possessed by a Fire Spirit, it gains more pliability and improves. The process is said to be treated the same as regular iron.”
“Hmmm. I feel bad for saying this after you guided me, but I think I’ll try forging it myself.”
I’ve watched the process, but it just doesn’t click for me.
I can’t help but compare it to the impressive blacksmiths I saw among the northern tribes.
“You’re skilled, but do you have the equipment?”
“I do, I do.”
“…I won’t ask where it is, though.”
I bought a sandwich with stewed offal from a stall and stepped aside to munch on it. The meat is processed outside the walls, where they dismantle it, and from there, it splits into butcher shops and offal shops. It seems they have a pretty strict division of labor.
Unlike elsewhere, the meat is abundant, and since the cooking isn’t overly salty, Kanum’s cuisine is on the better side. However, many towns have a basic flavor of salted meat, making them excessively salty.
“Ugh. This smells a bit.”
“Now that you mention it, it does have a smell.”
Retze doesn’t seem bothered, but it’s quite pungent. Well, it was already stinking near the stall.
There was a time when carpenters and stonemasons invited me to their pots in a cold place, and those didn’t smell as bad.
“I wish I at least had some shichimi.”
“Shichimi?”
“It’s a spicy seasoning made by mixing seven kinds of spices based on chili pepper.”
“Really?”
Well, I doubt they have that here.
“I’m a bit scared that if I get used to Jean’s cooking, I’ll find fewer and fewer things I can eat outside.”
“Just learn how to cook.”
The butler has picked up quite a bit and even delivered asparagus pizza the other day.
“It’s not exactly cooking, but I’ve gone from eating out all the time to grilling meat at home now.”
“That’s a good thing. Make sure to eat your vegetables too.”
So, here we are at the blacksmithing.
I’ve gathered the materials. The bellows are ready, the long-handled tongs for holding hot metal are set, the anvil is good to go. I have hammers for pounding and bending, a round-headed hammer and a flat-headed hammer, and a heavy two-handed hammer for fusing two metals together. So many hammers!
Water? Check. Charcoal? Check. Borax? Check. Various things like straw ash? Check. And I’ve got my apron made from the skin of a Giant Lizard! Fire Spirit, lend me your assistance!
First, I’ll pound the steel into a square plate with a stick attached. The stick part can be iron. Then I’ll layer more steel on top—
The tiny spirits flit around the furnace, and an orange butterfly spirit dances in the breeze from the bellows.
To average out the carbon content, I’ll stretch the steel, fold it back, stretch it again, and repeat this process multiple times to add pliability, increase strength, and beat out impurities. Watching the glowing orange steel, I adjust my strength as I work.
A fire lizard licks the orange-hot mass with its long tongue.
This seems like a task that usually requires two people, but instead, the Fire Spirits are helping me.
The completion… will be tomorrow. I forgot the whetstone for sharpening the blade!