“A Pendulum?”
“This.”
As Galbas tilted his head, I showed him the hidden weapon with a string that I took out from 【Shadow Storage】, and lightly swung it around. Galbas’s face lit up like a child seeing a toy.
“Is it a weapon to stab with? Or to bind with the string?”
“I use it for both. Originally, it used weights. Sometimes I swing it around to cut, but in that case, the power drops, so I want to do something about that.”
“The drop in power is a matter of the center of gravity. The balance between not being too light and not being too heavy is important. What material are you thinking of?”
“I don’t have any particular preference, but I’d like something that blood doesn’t stick to easily.”
“In that case, Demon Iron is the best… Victor! Is Demon Iron ore available?”
Victor…? When Galbas called out that name, the old man of the general store, who had been looking at the hidden weapon with interest, grinned.
“There’s nothing I can’t get in this town! Ash-covered girl, this weapon isn’t from this country, is it? A weapon from the West… rare.”
“That’s a weapon from the Justa Empire… Hey, Ash-covered girl, it seems like you’re not with Viro the kid anymore, but do you still have my knife?”
“Of course.”
When I offered the Black Knife that I had tied behind my waist, Galbas pulled the Black Knife from its sheath and frowned slightly.
“It looks like you’re taking care of it, but you’ve been in quite a flashy battle… Magic Steel weapons aren’t as good as Mithril, but like Monster Materials, they regenerate little by little with the owner’s Mana. That’s why there are fine scratches left, and even blade chipping.”
“Sorry…”
“You idiot! It’s natural for weapons to get damaged! This is a half-baked weapon that only has sharpness but not enough power. From what I can see, you’ve become quite strong, haven’t you? It might be a good time to make your own weapon.”
This Black Knife was Galbas’s work from when he was young, and he gave it to me because it was a half-baked weapon that was just right for me. That’s why he seemed to think that this knife no longer suited me.
But, that’s not it.
“No. This is good for my fighting style. Even if no one else can use it properly, this knife was born for me to use.”
The reason the knife gets scratched is because my skills are still immature. When I said that, Galbas crossed his arms and quietly closed his eyes.
I’m not the type to be particular about weapons, but even though I almost lost it several times, this knife has continued to remain in my hands, so I’ve come to think that it suits me very well.
Galbas picked up one of the large gold coins scattered on the table and threw it, and Victor caught it in the air.
“Victor!! You prepare the materials with that. I’ll design the weapon.”
“Okay, leave it to me.”
“…Are you going to make it for me?”
When I asked the two who had suddenly started getting excited, they each took only one gold coin and pushed the rest back to me.
“Leave it to me, you idiot! What else could be more interesting than this job!”
“But, that’s not enough for a Demon Iron weapon, is it…”
Viro had said before. A Magic Steel knife costs 5 gold coins. Galbas’s early works cost at least 10 gold coins.
“Don’t worry about such things, kid! Right, Victor?”
“That’s right. This kind of thing is like the old man’s hobby. Hahaha.”
“…Thank you.”
When I bowed to the two of them, they laughed as if it was funny, and Victor stroked my head as if I were his grandchild.
“Ash-covered girl, come here again in about a month. And leave that knife here. I’ll fix it along with the new weapon.”
“…Okay, I understand.”
A month, huh. That would be fast for making a new weapon.
I thanked the two of them again, handed over the Black Knife, and was about to leave the smithy when Galbas hurriedly called out to me.
“Hey, Ash-covered girl!! Are you going to go without a replacement weapon? What are you going to do for a month?”
“I don’t particularly want to use anything other than that knife. Besides, I have weapons.”
When I lifted the slit on the left side of my skirt and showed the knife holder strapped to my thigh, Galbas and Victor spat out the alcohol they were drinking and clutched their heads as if they had a headache.
“That equipment is… Gelf’s, huh. She makes strange things…”
“…Hey, listen, Ash-covered girl. It doesn’t matter to old men like us, but if you’re a young woman, don’t easily show your legs in front of men!”
“Huh? Okay.”
According to that woman’s “knowledge,” young women often showed their legs, but I don’t really understand, but certainly, hidden weapons shouldn’t be flaunted too much.
“…Wait a little.”
Galbas, who had been nodding with a serious face, stood up and went to the back for some reason, and handed me something wrapped in leather that he had brought.
“Take this with you instead. It’s probably a good weapon for you right now.”
When I opened the leather wrapping, there was a strangely shaped Magic Steel Dagger inside.
The blade length is about the same as the Black Knife. It’s a piercing weapon with only a point without a blade on the side, but the cross-section is a square with sharp corners, and it seems to have considerable strength.
I lightly swung it and thrust it out as if stepping forward. It’s heavier than the Black Knife, but with this, I should be able to penetrate even the thick skulls of Monsters and the joints of armor without bending.
“What are you saying, you stubborn old man? That’s the one you’ve been steadily making after you gave the knife to Ash-covered girl, right?”
“Shut up from the side, you stubborn old man!!”
I bowed my head to the two who had started fighting again for some reason.
Equipping the Black Dagger instead of the Black Knife, I headed to the Adventurer’s Guild.
Even in the frontier area near the border, the Guild in this town, which is close to the Monster Habitat and near the ruins, boasts the largest scale in this area.
There are always more than a hundred Adventurers coming and going, and it is said that 30% of them are Rank 3 or higher, so even the Baron of the territory cannot force the Guild to do anything unreasonable.
When I opened the door and entered the Guild, there were about twenty Adventurers, and I received dangerous gazes from a few of them.
It’s not like it’s the first time. Before, I was with Viro, so nothing happened, but if a child before adulthood has decent equipment, there are some half-baked Adventurers who don’t like it.
From experience, if I take off my cloak and show that I’m a “woman,” the atmosphere of the “place” will change somewhat, but either way, the reason for getting involved will only change, so I proceeded to the counter as it was, and the receptionist woman looked at me and widened her eyes slightly.
“Oh, you are…”
“I would like to confirm my registered rank. I am a 【Rank 3】 in close combat.”
The reason I came to the Adventurer’s Guild is to raise my 【Rank】.
The reason I had left it at Rank 1 until now was because if I didn’t keep it at an age-appropriate rank, I would be unnecessarily bothered, and because I could deceive my opponents.
But, now that I have grown to about 13-14 years old, I have judged that the merits outweigh the demerits.
At Rank 1, I can only enter and exit the town I registered in, but at Rank 2, I don’t need to pay a toll to any town in that territory, and at Rank 3, I only need to pay a toll when crossing the territory, but entry and exit to all towns is free.
But as expected, there was someone who didn’t like it.
“A kid is Rank 3!? Don’t exaggerate so much!”
One of the Adventurers, who seemed to be negotiating with the receptionist at a nearby counter, suddenly shouted.
“…”
Overall Combat Strength around 200. A human male in his late twenties. Judging from his stamina and Mana Capacity, he’s a typical Rank 2 front-line type.
If his Combat Strength is 200, it’s barely possible to be Rank 3, but with this number, he probably raised his Combat Strength by working hard and raising multiple Skills, but he couldn’t become Rank 3.
If he were up against a Rank 3 who had only raised one or two Skills, this man, who also has experience, would probably be stronger.
That’s why he felt like he was being “cheated” by a child becoming Rank 3, and I think this man couldn’t forgive it.
But… what does that have to do with me?
“The Guild judges the rank of Adventurers! Please don’t say whatever you want!”
The receptionist woman I called out to stood up from her seat and retorted.
But that’s counterproductive in this case.
“If this kid is Rank 3, then I should be Rank 3 too! The appraisal is wrong! If this guy is Rank 3, then I’ll judge him!”
When the man drew his longsword, the Adventurers in the Guild cheered and egged him on as if a festival had begun.
Probably, this kind of thing happens often. None of the Adventurers stopped him, the other staff members retreated to the back as if they had given up, and the man’s companions surrounded me to prevent me from escaping, so that the man could do as he pleased.
There are five opponents, including the man.
If the man is satisfied, they will probably step in before it becomes a killing match, but since he has drawn his blade, the deaths of about five people are within the acceptable range (……..).
With a snap, I flicked the metal fitting of my cloak and dropped it to the floor, and the illusionary “ash” thinly sprinkled on the hair hidden in the hood shimmered slightly.
The auras of several people who realized I was a girl and a child wavered, and the leering face of the man who seemed to be their scout turned pale in an instant, spraying an abnormal amount of sweat.
“I… I have nothing to do with this!!! This guy just picked a fight on his own! I have nothing to do with him!!!”
The scout screamed as if in agony, dropping his weapon and backing away.
“H-hey?”
“What’s wrong?”
When his companions called out to the scout, who had turned pale, he screamed, shaking off their outstretched hands.
“Stop it! Don’t get involved with me! I won’t be your enemy! So please don’t kill me!! “Our Guild” won’t antagonize the ‘Ash-Covered Princess’!!”
“…………”
As the scout screamed and scrambled out of the Guild, several of the adventurers who had been jeering also turned pale and fled the Guild, leaving a strange atmosphere in the air.
…Ah, I see. That guy wasn’t an adventurer’s scout, but a member of the ‘Thieves’ Guild’ in this Barony.
‘Ash-Covered Princess’ is the “moniker” that started to be used by the Thieves’ Guild after my body started to grow like it is now.
Normally, a moniker wouldn’t matter once you left the area, but I don’t know what kind of network they have, because all the Thieves’ Guilds call me that, and recently even the Adventurer’s Guild and Assassins have started calling me that too.
The fact that the scout acted like that is probably also influenced by the destruction of the “militant faction” of the Marquis Kendras Territory’s Thieves’ Guild, which was feared in this northern frontier region along with Dandole’s Guild.
I wonder what kind of “heinous rumors” are circulating… At least the Thieves’ Guild in this area doesn’t seem like they’ll bother me unnecessarily.
“Tch…”
Perhaps overwhelmed by the strange atmosphere even though he didn’t understand why, the adventurer who had picked a fight clicked his tongue and walked away, his companions looking at me eerily as they followed after him.
“I’m sorry. If possible, please forgive him. His hometown is in a bit of a mess, so he’s on edge… Even so,”
The receptionist from earlier said, looking at me intently and dropping her shoulders in disappointment.
“You… were a “girl,” huh?”
I remembered from her words that she was the receptionist who had helped me when I registered at the Adventurer’s Guild, and I had good memories of her at that time.
Even so, what happened in this Barony with the soldiers at the gate and the man from earlier?
“Did something happen?”
“That is…”
“Aria?”
Suddenly, a boyish voice called out to me, and when I turned around, a somewhat familiar boy was staring at me with a dumbfounded expression.
Behind him, with an even more stunned look than the receptionist, a girl of about 10 years old was kneeling on the floor with both hands and knees, looking dejected.
“Aria… was a girl,”
Seeing her reaction, I finally remembered the two of them.
“Long time no see, Jill, Shuri.”
They were the orphaned brother and sister from the Slums I had first met in this Baron’s town.
Next time, the details of the trouble that occurred in this area.
How will Aria act?
Additional notes.
Regarding how Aria is called, there is “Ash-Covered” and “Ash-Covered Princess,” but those who have been involved since the destruction of the Assassin Guild tend to use the latter.
Just as Aria has knowledge but may not understand the subtleties of men and women, the fake Heroine also does not understand the need to interact with ordinary women, because the Heroine in the game only interacted with men on the screen.
I think the appearance is now close to the state I wrote about in the activity report once.