Chapter 108
I’m translating the chapter now and preserving the in-universe system text in styled HTML blocks as required. I’m keeping the narration in novelistic English and checking the glossary terms for consistency.CHAPTER_TITLE: Dandanium Axe, Karoum Axe, Stolen Goblin
“Thank you so much, Your Majesty!”
Joren bowed low.
As much as he had worried about the fanatical elves’ formidable magic, this Black Dragon Belt Armor was reassuring in the extreme. It would block any kind of magic without fail once every five hours.
“D-do you like it that much? I’m glad.”
“To bestow upon me such a precious royal treasure—I am moved beyond words. Truly, Your Majesty. Hrk.”
“It is fine. I have no need for it.”
“No need for it...? Then you gave it to me as though doing me some great favor with a discarded thing? Sob sob.”
Seeing Joren deliberately put on a crestfallen expression, Daisy panicked.
“No, that is not it. I meant no such thing! I have always been physically robust and not easily afflicted by magic, so I thought it would be more useful to another than to me.”
Joren thought her flustered look was rather adorable.
“You are always trying to protect everyone else. Yet you never seem inclined to protect your own body. You even launched yourself like a cannon shot.”
“You saw that, did you? I was in such a desperate hurry then...”
The leap strike he had used against the hobgoblin was now so well known that there was hardly anyone in the palace who had not heard of it.
“Bravery that ignores the state of one’s own body is an admirable virtue in a soldier. But for a knight, it is a double-edged blade that must be wielded with care. Especially for one who bears responsibility for so many. You must learn to preserve your own safety as well. For the sake of protecting even more people.”
“I shall keep that in mind. I am honored that you worry over me.”
As he was thanking her for her thoughtfulness, a strange sense of familiarity washed over him.
Huh? What Her Majesty just said sounds a lot like what I said to Lilian... So why does it feel so new? What do you call that again? It’s not deja vu.
The source of that odd feeling was simple: the speaker had changed. When he had said those words to Lilian, he had been the one worrying about her. Now he was the one being worried over by Daisy.
“Joren Tamer. Remember this well. I have gone to the trouble of preparing even a treasure like this for you, so if you do not return safely, I will ensure that you do not remain safe.”
“I shall remember it well. Then I take my leave, Your Majesty.”
“Wait!”
Daisy caught him as he stepped back.
Positive event occurred! Advanced buff [Treasure Hunt Chance] has been activated.
Item acquisition events occur more frequently.
Duration: 7 days
The reward for achieving the special feat [This Item Is Now Mine], earned by stealing Lucy Perhela’s item, was [Treasure Hunt Chance].
Oh? Is she giving me one more?
Joren silently cheered.
“Take this as well.”
Legendary
Passive / Equipment
A hammer that can only be swung with a righteous heart. It can crush or repel wicked beings. It is especially excellent for smashing the undead.
“The royal heirloom, the White Silver Hammer. They say it was made by blending blessed white silver with dandanium.”
“A hammer... you say?”
What she placed in Joren’s hand was a solid metal rod. It was longer than a dagger and shorter than a longsword.
Is this the handle of a hammer? It feels incredibly hard and sturdy, but... there’s no hammer head.
As Joren looked on in deep puzzlement, Daisy explained how to use it.
“Wrap aura around the hand that grips the shaft.”
“Oh... oh?”
When he did as she said, a blinding silver force surged from the end of the rod. The energy gradually took on the shape of a round hammer head and a maul.
The White Silver Hammer can be used by one who is righteous enough to wield aura. Rest assured, using this item does not consume additional aura. This hammer can only be swung at what its user considers “just.” If the user believes their own heart to be wicked, its power may weaken or even break altogether. The hammer’s shape varies slightly from user to user.
- Background -
It is said to be one of the hammers left as a parting gift to King Kain by the dwarf who became the first governor of Gallia. Beginning with His Majesty Harold bestowing the White Silver Hammer upon the first holy knight, a tradition arose in which the hammer was granted to the most upright among the Holy Knight Commanders. Those who received that honor were commonly nicknamed Hammer Commander.
“You will soon have to fight against a vile lot. There is no telling what kind of evil arts those fanatical elves may use. That is why I am giving you this treasure.”
“To receive a treasure that only the finest among holy knights are said to possess... I am deeply, profoundly honored!”
“Though you are not a holy knight, you have an upright heart. The White Silver Hammer has shown its form as proof.”
“But this hammer... the head is round and round, and the opposite side has a nail puller. Rather than a warhammer, it looks more like a prybar hammer.”
A prybar hammer was a term used on construction sites and the like. In other words, it looked more like a tool than a weapon.
“The White Silver Hammer changes according to who holds it. For example, if Sir Demis held it, it would form angular hammer heads on both ends. He is a stern holy knight with an unbending will.”
“That does seem likely.”
Joren nodded, imagining it. If Sir Demis Ezef were to hold this hammer, both heads would surely become identical squares.
“Compared to the stubbornly straight Sir Demis, you may be a little softer. But rigid, hard-edged uprightness is not always the best thing. Sometimes what is needed is a softer and finer sort of uprightness.”
“I shall take Your Majesty’s words to heart.”
At any rate, this was a remarkable haul for Joren.
The Black Dragon Belt Armor gave me armor, and now I’ve got the White Silver Hammer as a weapon too! Hah... this feels like I’ve fully maxed out both offense and defense.
Moved to the point of tears, Joren saluted grandly.
“For the sake of the kingdom, I shall draw forth my courage!”
“Wait.”
Daisy grabbed him again as he turned.
Positive event occurred!
Oh? Is this the third item? Right, Koreans do love a third try!
Joren’s heart leapt at the thought that [Treasure Hunt Chance] might be triggering again.
“Your Majesty, even after giving me two legendary treasures, are you still worried about me? To bestow three precious treasures upon me would be an honor far beyond my station...”
“Who said anything about a third one?”
“Pardon?”
Daisy’s expression hardened at the sight of Joren smiling broadly.
“You are quite shameless, I see. As if receiving two royal treasures were not enough, you still dare covet a third? What an infuriating wretch!”
Huh?
“I heard that you emptied your household coffers to prepare supplies for the people of your territory, and that you even used the reward I granted you for the soldiers’ sake. I thought you were a carefree fellow with no greed in you, yet you were this brazen? When I was a child and heard the tale of the Dandanium Axe, Karoum Axe, Stolen Goblin at the temple, I thought, ‘Even a stolen goblin could not be this shameless. This must be a story invented to teach children a lesson.’ And yet now that I see that sly smile on your face, you are more disgusting than that goblin!”
Daisy’s edification level drops significantly.
The C+ grade receded into the distance.
“Did the royal house owe you a debt or something?! Those treasures are the heirlooms of my family before they are the state’s national treasures. And what was that? I gave them to you because I was worried about you? Who do you think would worry over a man like you? If you die and fall over, there will be no one to manage Tamer Territory, so I bestowed these treasures out of concern for my precious subjects! And now I am worried about the family heirlooms entrusted to your hands.”
For the first time in a while, Joren felt the tension he had almost forgotten and collapsed, trembling, to the floor.
Negative event is abou...
“I have committed a sin worthy of death!”
Before the status window could even fully appear, Joren cried out in supplication.
Apologize before Daisy reclaims the item. A clumsy excuse may backfire.
It was a rare message framed in dark red.
Reclaim the item...? You mean she’ll take back the legendary-grade item I worked so hard to get? No way!
Joren cautiously lifted his head and tried to use Edification on Daisy, but...
Ability activation failed! The target’s mental strength is too high!
He shut his eyes, unable to bear the blazing brilliance in her golden irises.
You cannot use [Edification] on Daisy for the time being. Try persuading her using [Influence].
“I let greed get the better of me! I am a warrior as well, so I suppose I lost my head at the sight of such fine armaments. My family home has never been well off, even since I was young... While other children swung swords, I was swinging only wooden sticks. When other children were obtaining dandanium shields by paying cash in games, I was carrying a wooden shield.”
Joren was speaking from his own experience, but the key was that it matched Joren Tamer’s life exactly.
The only real difference was that the “swords” Joren mentioned were toy blades, whereas the children of the Kain Kingdom wielded real swords.
“As Your Majesty said, I have no interest in flexing or in riches and glory. However, the resentment of childhood experiences has built up in me... I suppose I wanted only my weapons to be of good quality.”
“Hmm... Though you are shameless, you are at least properly remorseful about your fault.”
Daisy’s anger eased.
“Come to think of it, you were the one who took the ancient mana stone I bestowed upon you, that precious jewel, set it into iron and made a weapon out of it. I see now that you were not coveting treasure for your own advancement. As you say, it would be strange for a man of arms to have no interest in his weapons. I shall regard your zeal for defending the kingdom and its people as having simply gone too far.”
If Joren had made a half-baked excuse, or if he had babbled with his own mouth that he was only doing it “for the sake of protecting the kingdom,” he would have found himself in grave trouble.
Negative event canceled.
Joren let out a relieved breath, but for now he had only escaped the worst-case scenario.
However, be warned that the originally scheduled positive event may also be canceled. This event will be of great help in the progression of Chapter 2, Twisted Sunset.