Chapter 389: Guests from the North (4)
Chapter 389: Guests from the North (4)
A minor misunderstanding occurred along the way... but regardless, I decided to head to the Yarnshard territory with Fay.
Per Carla’s suggestion, the whole group would be going this time as well.
For Nana and the others, it was just a matter of wrapping up their current tasks and packing their bags, but Iona mentioned it would take her a little time since she had only recently returned to her professorship.
Well, it would be a day at most. It was the perfect amount of time for Baru to recover from the fatigue of traveling all this way without rest.
The next day, once all preparations were complete.
Perhaps finally feeling self-conscious, Baru stood stiffly as he looked over the members of our party. I spoke to him.
"Should I call you... Sir Baru?"
"Call me whatever you find comfortable. To be honest, even being addressed with such respect feels burdensome right now."
Baru shrunk back slightly as he spoke.
I suppose it made sense. A Huscarl of a Great Territory would usually be on par with a Knight Commander... but in this group, that position wasn't particularly impressive.
There was me, a Duke of the Empire; Helena, the Saintess of the Church of Light; Elisha and Iris, who had recently officially reclaimed their status as High Elves; and even Iona, a Lord-class vampire and war hero.
Even Fay was the daughter of a Yarl, so the only person here with a lower social status than Baru was Carla.
And even Carla was a special case—a slave in name only, who could become the Duchess of Lindelheit in my stead whenever she wished.
Being a warrior, he was likely sensitive to hierarchy and thus being cautious. He was trying to maintain his dignity as the representative of the Yarl he served, but he was clearly feeling the pressure.
Since he had to act as our guide, I shrugged and cracked a joke to ease his tension.
"You shouldn't ask me to speak comfortably to you. Cyclic Life tried that once and now she has to listen to me call her 'Mother.'"
"...Please, continue calling me Sir Baru as you were."
"Alright, Sir Baru. You said you came here by land?"
"That is correct."
"We still have some time left, so if you have any horses or carriages you brought with you, go ahead and bring them. It would be a waste to leave them behind."
"Hmm. I appreciate the consideration, but I have no such things, so it is fine."
"???"
Wasn't being "magically challenged"—to the point of never even considering teleportation—a racial trait of dwarves?
I assumed he would have naturally used a mount for long-distance travel...
Was my reaction too obvious? Baru’s stiff expression softened slightly as he lifted one leg.
His legs were typical of a dwarf—short but densely packed with muscle. They looked like logs split and stacked for the winter.
"As you can see, a dwarf's legs are short and thick."
"Um... they look masculine?"
"Thank you. As you say, they are masculine legs and indeed quite sturdy... but they are not suited for riding horses."
"Ah."
I briefly imagined him trying to mount a horse with those legs. No matter how I pictured it, it didn't look right.
For starters, he wouldn't be able to climb up in one go. Unless the stirrups were linked together like a long ladder, that is.
Even if he somehow managed to get on, that wasn't the end of it.
Horses are surprisingly large creatures. With legs like that, it would be difficult to even grip the horse's flanks properly.
Fay is a half-breed, so it isn't that extreme for her, which is why I'd never really thought about this problem before.
"Wait, then did you seriously run all the way here?"
"Of course I ran. But I did not simply run."
At my incredulous reaction, Baru smirked as if he had been waiting for this.
He then pulled off one of his boots and showed it to me.
From above, I thought they were just ordinary steel greaves, but the soles were shaped entirely differently.
I wasn't sure what they were, but through a transparent material, I could see thick gears, springs, and a purple mana stone.
In the center of the sole, there was even a hole that looked like a thruster nozzle; it was clear at a glance that this was no ordinary piece of equipment.
Good heavens, what is that?
As I stood there dazed by the sheer "cool factor" of the design, Baru’s voice, filled with pride, continued.
"Lokan Yarl is a magnificent lord and an exceptional craftsman. Every Huscarl receives his name as their surname and is granted the right to request one item of their choosing."
"So you asked for these greaves, Sir Baru."
"Indeed. I can run faster than a horse without exerting much effort. If necessary, I can even achieve short-term flight using the mana stone."
"Whoa..."
Boots that not only increased movement speed but also had boosters attached?
Except for enchanting—where design skill is more important than magical talent—dwarves were a race inept at magic, but there was a reason they stood shoulder-to-shoulder with those who were gifted.
Dwarves had the ability to create magical things without using magic.
"I am a dwarf myself, so I can handle basic hammer work... but since I was young, I preferred hammering heads over hammering iron, so it would be difficult for me to make something of this caliber. However, the Yarl finished these in just one week."
"Huh... I'm a layman in these matters so I don't know for sure, but isn't that incredibly fast?"
"It is beyond fast; it is shocking. Usually, even for a master, such an item would take at least a month. But Lokan is a Yarl and a Meister at the same time."
Aha. Then it made sense.
Most dwarves offer their faith to Clashing Steel.
However, it isn't the kind of faith where they devote their entire lives to a god like humans or elves; rather, it's a form of faith where they want their creations to be evaluated and recognized.
Because of that, technological inflation in the dwarf kingdom of Nidavellir is naturally insane.
It’s a place where almost every house has a simple forge, and people make or repair their own daily necessities.
In such a country, one has to be at least at the "Master" level just to survive as a blacksmith.
It’s said that craftsmen who would be lucky to find one or two of in the large cities of the Levantine Empire are practically rolling around every rural village there.
To be recognized as a Meister in such a nation, one would have to be at this level to produce such items.
Well, Iris could probably make something like this if she put her mind to it...
But that would be a magical tool through and through. These boots didn't have any particular enchantments other than the booster powered by the mana stone.
In other words, if placed in the hands of a skilled mage, they could be enhanced even further. This was surely why people went crazy for dwarven equipment.
While I was marveling, Baru glanced at me and asked in a suggestive tone.
"Would you like to see how they are used?"
"If possible, yes."
"There is no reason why not."
Baru nodded and took a stance. Then, he lightly kicked off the ground.
"Whoa."
His body soared two or three meters in an instant. He hopped around in all directions—north, south, east, and west—and even drew circles in the air, showing off how freely he could change direction.
Finally, he used an ignition spell to hover in the air for a brief moment. It was the first time I’d ever thought a dwarf’s physique—resembling a halved log—looked cool.
I was busy applauding reflexively when...
Suddenly feeling a chill from behind, I slowly turned my head.
"……."
"Gah!"
I locked eyes with Fay, who was staring this way with dead, unfocused eyes.
"Junior. Do you like those boots that much?"
"F-Fay Senior. It's not like that..."
"It's not? Then why are you looking at them with such envy? If you weren't interested, you wouldn't have asked for a demonstration, would you?"
"Wait, calm down and listen to me. I'm talking about boosters! Any man is bound to be interested in boots with boosters. This is just a natural phenomenon."
Baru nodded as if he fully understood my words.
Yes. This was a sentiment any man could relate to. ...But the only men here were me and Baru.
To be fair, Fay used to like this kind of equipment too, but right now her eyes had snapped, so she was an exception.
What exactly triggered her? Was it because I was impressed by equipment made by Lokan? Or because I was eyeing other gear when I already had her as my exclusive smith?
One thing was certain: Fay was jealous. There was only one thing to do.
"I'm hurt, Fay Senior. Did you really think I was envious of Sir Baru's equipment?"
"Aren't you?"
"Of course not! I wasn't envious; I was just imagining what would happen if we made this into a full-body suit of armor instead of just boots! You could make that, right, Fay Senior?"
"...Keep talking."
Fay prompted me with a tilt of her head. Perhaps because of her messy bangs, the atmosphere felt even more ominous. It felt like she might pull a kitchen knife from her robes if I stumbled over my words even slightly.
But that wouldn't happen. I already had the perfect model in mind.
I thought of a hero movie I’d enjoyed back on Earth. Specifically, the world's greatest tycoon who fought as a vigilante in a high-tech suit, and I continued my explanation.
A helmet with communication and simple support functions, a torso with a power source and shield generator, arms that could fire projectiles or magic, and legs that could fly through the sky.
"The most important thing is that it has to be compact enough to carry around normally, but then it should unfold and equip automatically when needed. As you know, Fay Senior, full-body armor is a hassle to carry and a pain to put on by yourself, right?"
"Hmm..."
Maybe I got a bit too excited because it had been a while since I'd thought about Earth.
Fay let out a low hum at the explanation, which had turned out longer than expected. She pondered for a long time before tilting her head.
"Hey, Junior. Can't you just use Dragonification?"
"...Huh?"
"You don't need to carry anything at all, it happens automatically with just your will and a bit of a knack for it, and I doubt there's anything sturdier than Dragon Scales infused with mana. Plus, all your abilities get a massive boost."
"Th-that's..."
"No matter how I think about it, it seems much better for you to just use Dragonification, Junior."
"……."
Today, one of my dreams died.
Gack.