19. Read the Terms and Conditions Carefully!
19. Read the Terms and Conditions Carefully!
Ego Weapon.
A term for weapons with their own will. Among all the equipment in this world, they're consistently graded as top-tier.
Even mana, this world's primary energy source, requires human will to draw it out. So isn't it absurd for a weapon to manage that on its own and create synergy with its owner?
For someone like me to approach such a weapon and imprint myself as its owner—that alone would be an enormous feat.
At least, I definitely thought so, but...
"You look like you're expecting something amazing, so let me spell it out: forcing a contract with an Ego Weapon is a power closer to a curse than a blessing."
"Huh? A curse?"
"Whether it's a holy sword or a magic sword, Ego Weapons are fundamentally stubborn about the purpose they were forged for."
Holding the mithril spear in one hand, she examined its surface closely and continued her explanation.
"For example, a magic sword will inevitably rampage if it isn't periodically bathed in blood. A holy sword carries an obsession with fulfilling its mission that it tends to force on its wielder. So what do you think happens when the owner ignores that purpose and tries to abuse its power?"
"...The weapon tries to kill its user?"
"You could suffer a fate worse than death. You might end up as a puppet whose mind is devoured by the blade. You could be punished for disobeying its will. In extreme cases, you could be sealed while kept barely alive..."
Just hearing those examples made my throat go dry.
Utterly indifferent to my anxiety, she began idly tapping the edge of the spear with her fingers.
"Moreover, unlike people, Ego Weapons care only about the reason they were forged. Their obsession with their contracted partner is fanatical. Ideally, you shouldn't use such a weapon by forcing master-servant recognition—you should cooperate only when your goals happen to align."
Right. In my excitement over handling a rare weapon, I'd briefly forgotten.
My ability is a far cry from something that makes people like me just because they remember me.
I'd already gotten myself blacklisted by the Adventurer's Guild without even trying. So how could I possibly feel anticipation after hearing that?
"Th-then. What about the weapon in my hands right now...?"
"Don't worry. An Ego Weapon needs to develop somewhat before its ego properly awakens. This one's newly forged—only instinct, no self-awareness. If it becomes a problem, I can just melt it down and make another."
"...Is it really okay to melt down an Ego Weapon that easily?"
"Normally, you couldn't. A fully developed Ego Weapon would violently resist if it knew you were trying to kill it."
Ah, I'd meant it more in the sense that it was a valuable item...
But the reason she gave turned out to be a much bigger issue than I'd thought.
Rumor had it that a berserker possessed by a magic sword once cut down a thousand soldiers, and a holy sword carved out the heart of a Demon Lord's Army Executive... If a weapon boasting that kind of power went on a rampage, it wouldn't end with just one area devastated.
"Still, it feels like a waste to send you back like this."
She treated such dangerous weapons with utter nonchalance as she smirked and pointed the spear's shaft at me.
As if telling me to grab it.
"I've never seen an ability produce such an effect just by holding an Ego Weapon. And you've never properly tested your ability either. You wouldn't want to let an opportunity like this slip, would you?"
The moment she encouraged me to hold the spear again.
This time, I knew it wouldn't end as a simple test.
Even if nothing was certain, who knew when I'd get another chance to handle such a precious weapon?
-Ba-dump, ba-dump.
My heart swelled with anticipation, and despite the warnings, my hand slowly reached for the spear's shaft.
It wasn't just the material. The allure of the Ego Weapon itself felt immense.
The risk was huge, but the return was equally real...
And most of all—even if it wasn't as much as I'd hoped, I'd discovered a way to actually use my ability. How could I, a pathetic Foreign Worker who hadn't escaped his lowly status in two years since coming to this world, just brush off an opportunity like this?
"...What would you want me to do?"
But even so, I couldn't help hesitating.
Life never goes exactly as you expect.
I had no idea what she was thinking by making this offer. Wouldn't grabbing it right away be reckless?
"Nothing much."
Sensing my wariness, she kept holding out the spear shaft and spoke nonchalantly.
"I'll lend you this spear. Use it for a week, then come back and return it to me."
"A loan, you mean?"
"You get to briefly experience a weapon you can't afford on your current budget, and I get to see how my Ego Weapon reacts to your ability. Isn't that reason enough for a deal?"
A loan, not a transfer or a sale...
It was nothing more than a temporary experience, but arguably, this was the most ideal outcome for now.
The weapon was far too valuable to just give away on a whim, and it wasn't something I could afford to buy anyway.
"You can refuse if you'd rather not. This is just a suggestion, not coercion."
Tasian spoke softly, watching me still hesitate.
As strength gathered in her half-closed eyes, I began to feel it.
"But if you accept, you'd better understand this. If you fail to keep a promise, it's only natural for something to happen to you."
"...No matter what happens?"
"Yes. No matter what happens."
The moment her voice carried a weight that overshadowed all her earlier indifference.
Along with the chills running down my spine, I suddenly recalled what the old man had told me before I came here.
'That friend of yours is extremely sensitive about promises. If you ever have to make one, be very careful.'
Be careful with promises...
If that wasn't just a polite warning, it would surely apply to this deal as well.
It wasn't only the danger of the Ego Weapon.
If I didn't return the weapon after the deal, there was a risk that I couldn't guarantee what might happen to me.
"...So, what do you say? Want to try?"
Would I take a chance on this weapon, prepared for the danger from both the deal and the weapon itself?
Or would I refuse, accept standard gear, and just walk away?
"I..."
My answer at that crossroads wouldn't come for quite some time.
Balancing desire and safety was something I had to decide very, very carefully...
* * *
"Smoking away every time I see you. Same as always."
How much time had passed since then?
As she leaned at the entrance smoking a cigarette to pass the quiet, someone approached the smithy tucked away in the secluded alley.
The sharp clacking striking the street was quite familiar to Tasian's ears.
"...So it was the brat."
"Heh heh. You're the only one who calls the veteran of these streets a brat."
Colloquially known as Alley Chief Jang.
As the old man burst into good-natured laughter, Tasian clicked her tongue in annoyance and shot back.
"So, brat. What brings you here this time? Did you get lost?"
"I'm not senile enough to get lost. I merely came to entrust you with repairing an item gifted by a Great Being..."
So saying, he pulled up a nearby tattered chair and sat, handing over the cane he'd been tapping against the ground.
Looking down at it, Tasian frowned and spoke in a sharp voice.
"Where did you jam it? Into some magic tool?"
"You can tell at a glance?"
"Because wounds made by human-generated aura aren't this clean. It looks like it was measured with a ruler."
Unlike tools designed to regulate the flow of mana, human will is highly fluid.
Muttering as she assessed the damage, Tasian brought her thumb to the staff.
-Crunch.
The moment the crushed section unbent under the force of her thumb.
After roughly checking its condition, she tossed the cane back to Jang and inhaled the smoke from her cigarette.
"Use it properly. I didn't make it for you to abuse."
"Hoho, you're saying exactly the same thing as before."
"I wonder. Was it about three hundred years ago?"
"If you met me back then, that would have been my ancestor, not me."
A voice too blunt to be a joke.
Yet even that wasn't an exaggeration by her standards.
In the first place, she was a being who had lived a span of time utterly beyond human comparison.
To her, even he was just a passing encounter. His significance might be less than a maple tree she saw at the roadside.
"Anyway... Didn't a young man named Woo Hyosung come by here?"
So what about the one he had introduced?
"Yeah, he did."
Jang's eyes involuntarily widened at her immediate answer. He stared at her.
She, who barely registered the passage of time, recalled a name at once? Anyone who knew her identity would be shocked.
"...It's curious. The older I get, the harder it is to remember people, but that young man felt familiar the moment I saw him."
But he had a vague guess.
Stroking his beard, Jang squinted and studied her expression.
"Don't tell me... it was the same for you?"
"...Hmph."
No answer came.
She simply withdrew her interest and directed her displeasure elsewhere.
"Hey, brat."
"Call me Jang. We've known each other for over half a century; isn't it time you remembered?"
"Do I really have to memorize the names of every short-lived species that can't even reach a hundred years?"
No matter how high they soared, they were merely insignificant creatures who graced only a single era.
Of course, the human who passed through here earlier was somewhat interesting, but he was just a variable as an otherworlder. Someone who merely happened to catch her eye. Memorable at best. Calling him a special existence would be a stretch.
"Anyway. I told you not to bring annoying pests here."
"Annoying pests..."
Jang flinched at her irritable voice.
For a moment, he wondered if she meant the young man he'd introduced. But soon he felt a foreboding presence, and his expression hardened.
"...I see."
Not one person. Several.
Since this wasn't the first time, he had a fair idea of what was happening.
"I apologize. But you know, don't you? Just as you have a Vow with that 'person,' I have one with him as well. How could this old body possibly control all the troublesome things that arise from it?"
"...You only ever bring up promises at times like this."
Insolent, for a short-lived species.
Tch. Clicking her tongue, Tasian removed the cigarette from her mouth and addressed the figure at the head of the group entering the alley.
"I'm sorry, but we aren't taking customers today. If you have business, please make a reservation—"
-BOOM!
Before she could finish, hellfire erupted.
Tasian's body was caught in the flames and blown backward, crashing deep into the forge.
Where she had stood, flames blazed. Her body was already completely charred to ash.
"Who dares to open their mouth without permission in my presence?"
Despite having burned a person in such a manner, the intruder's voice was utterly cold.
Yes, he had the right.
The fact that the flames blazing on his body didn't so much as singe his skin proved it.
"Do not annoy me, you insignificant mortal."
The basis for the cruel smile on his lips.
It was surely the Ego Weapon blazing in his hand.