Zeke's Sword (5)
Clang. Clang. Clang. Clang. Clang—
After Zeke left.
In the silence, the sound of hammering steel echoed at steady intervals.
From some point on, once Aleng found his rhythm, he forgot everything else
and devoted himself solely to striking the metal.
Each blow sank in like a stone dropped into a still pond—
deep.
Deeper still.
It felt as if nothing existed in the world but the steel before his eyes and himself.
Clang. Clang. Clang. Clang. Clang—
After hammering the glowing red-hot steel for a long while, Aleng suddenly set his hammer down with a clunk.
He wiped the quenched blade clean with a dry cloth.
The forge's flames reflected off the silvery edge, shimmering like a cold sunset.
"This... I made this..."
Had he ever poured so much focus into crafting a single sword before?
The result was several levels beyond any blade he'd forged in the past.
Of course, even so, it might still fall short of being called a true masterwork sword by objective standards.
Yet the exhilarating sense of having shed a layer of his old self
was more than enough to set Aleng's heart pounding.
Gazing at the sword, the image of a silver-haired girl flashed vividly in his mind.
That man must feel the same.
Without him, he never could have created something like this.
Aleng turned around.
The chair where the man had sat was empty, as if he'd already left.
'Didn't even notice him go...'
"Hm? What's this...?"
A single sheet of paper lay on the chair.
Aleng picked it up. A neatly written note.
[Here's the address of the mansion. Come find me once the sword is complete. We'll settle the remaining payment after I see the result. And if it's good, I'll keep commissioning you regularly, so give it your all.]
He read it over and over, at first unable to grasp the meaning.
Gradually, the words pieced together in his mind, revealing their intent.
His entire body trembled.
A thrilling shiver raced up his spine.
Finally. Finally.
Someone had recognized the swords he made first.
Someone who helped him forge a proper blade
and now reached out a hand toward a new future.
He'd thought the man was just some weirdo, but he turned out to be a benefactor at the edge of the abyss.
Feeling his heart race, Aleng meticulously inspected the sword he'd crafted once more.
"This the place?"
"Yeah. He said you'd be standing there looking like an idiot."
At that moment, four men entered his forge, one of them carrying an unconscious woman slung over his shoulder.
"Who the hell are you!?"
Aleng whipped around and shouted.
They looked like the kind of scum who never lived an honest life.
He swallowed hard.
"Who the hell are we? Kick. What a pain in the ass."
"Who else? Lorden sent us to make sure you ain't up to no bullshit again, you little shit."
"When's Brother Kutan coming?"
"Even with just three little brats, he'll be here soon enough."
They strode forward, dumped the unconscious woman beside him,
and snatched the sword from Aleng's hands.
"Huh? What's this? A rapier?"
"Why the fuck are you making crap like this again?"
"Shit. Brother's gonna lose his shit. We should've left sooner. Tsk."
"Hey, you little fuck. We told you to make a normal sword, so why the hell are you making this garbage again!"
They roughly tried to hurl the rapier to the floor.
"No!!!"
Like a mother bird shielding her chick from a threatening snake,
Aleng lunged forward, hugged the sword tight, and threw himself over it.
"Ha. What the fuck is this guy? Hilarious."
"Ah, so that's why they told us to bring tools."
"Yeah, he can still make knives without a foot or two, right?"
"Beat his ass first."
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Indiscriminate kicks rained down on Aleng's back.
But he clenched his teeth and hugged the sword even tighter.
Then, something small and shiny tumbled out from his embrace.
'Ah.'
Clink.
At the sound, the short man’s eyes gleamed.
"H-Hey? Isn't that a gold coin...?"
"Lemme see. Holy shit, it is! This bastard... Whining about being broke, but he's been hoarding 'em."
"Hahaha! This fucker was hiding these?"
"Hey, hey. Looks like more comes out if we hit him. Beat him harder!"
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
'Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.'
Once they took his money, their violence escalated without limit.
Aleng's state was beyond pitiable—no longer even human.
Blood trickled from his mouth, his clothes torn to shreds leaving him nearly naked.
Forge grime and bruises covered his body.
But he protected the sword to the end.
"Huff. Huff. Fuck. I'm tired of kicking. Hey, nothing more coming out?"
"Was that all his savings? Tsk. He ain't hiding more somewhere?"
"Look at this stubborn fuck refusing to let go of the sword."
The thugs who had beaten him panted heavily.
"Hey, but Brother Kutan’s running late, huh?"
"Probably stopped somewhere. Heh. Or maybe at that bakery? Those girls were pretty cute."
A burly man made a vulgar gesture, threading one finger through a circle formed by the other hand.
Hearing that, the short man spoke up.
"...Then... why don't we just take her for ourselves? If Brother Kutan gets started, he won't be back till dawn..."
"What if we get caught!"
"It's fine. It's fine. Just kill this guy now, and no one knows but us."
"Then what do we say happened?"
The short man giggled softly.
"Say he flipped out and came at us with a sword after we yelled at him for making another shitty blade. We had no choice but to kill him."
"Still, that’s kinda..."
When the burly man hesitated, the short one pressed on.
"Exactly. Have one of us take a light wound to the thigh or something! Pocket the gold. Who’s gonna bitch if we say we killed him after one of us got ambushed?"
"Ooh! Ooh! You genius!"
"So, who’s volunteering to get stabbed?"
"But we'll get chewed out for getting hurt like idiots."
"One gold nyang is worth a hundred silver. Stabbed guy gets 40 nyang, the rest of us 20 each."
At those words, their eyes changed.
A small wound for 40 silver nyang. That could buy 4,000 glasses of cheap ale.
Gulp.
As they eyed each other to see who’d take the wound,
one of the men who’d been quiet pulled a bottle from his pocket.
"We'll decide with this."
"What's that? Strong liquor?"
"Everyone takes one swig, then throws a weapon from that wall at him. Whoever kills him wins. Perfect for stabbing the bastard clean through, right?"
Money, booze, and a bet too!
Irresistible. Their eyes lit up.
They each downed a gulp of the potent liquor.
"""Gah!"""
Aleng bit his lip bloody as he lay collapsed.
It was heartbreaking. Infuriating.
Just when he'd finally met a benefactor who recognized his swords.
Just when he finally understood what it meant to forge a true blade.
Their greed had brutally kicked away the hope he'd barely clung to at the precipice.
Whoosh—
Thud.
An axe thrown by one man grazed past his back.
A weapon he'd made himself now turned against him.
Aleng whipped around.
Behind him lay the unconscious woman.
A mature beauty with brown hair.
Thankfully, the thrown weapon had missed her too.
'You filthy bastards!'
No matter how much Aleng ground his teeth, the drunken thugs kept picking weapons.
"Hey, can't you even land one hit? Loser."
Smack!
"Ah! That woman behind him distracted me! Clear her out and let's go again!"
With booze in their systems, their voices boomed through the forge.
"Hilarious. Heh. T-That's not how it works—one chance per turn? If no one hits, we go again! Come on out!"
"First, that woman back there! Get rid of her!"
Smack!
As the man approached the woman, he scrutinized her face.
Then he turned to his comrades.
"Hey, can't we just wake her up and have some fun?"
"B-Brother said leave her be for now. Something useful later."
"But Brother Kutan's probably having his fun right now too...?"
"True that? Fuck! Yeah! One taste won't ruin her!"
The men smacked their lips.
They'd noticed her alluring figure when they kidnapped her, stirring their sadistic urges despite the pity.
Now, with gold in hand and liquor clouding their judgment,
they advanced on the woman.
"Heh heh, just one bite, then I'll send you on your way nice and quiet. Just one bite."
For a moment, Aleng thought showing them the note with the Yohayden name and mansion address might make them back off.
"Yo! Yohay—!"
As he started to shout,
"Y-Yes, sir."
Five ragged-looking men dragged their feet into Aleng's weapon shop.
The thugs' eyes turned that way.
The short one blinked and tilted his head.
"Hmm. Who's that...?"
"What the? Looks like Brother, but no way our Brother got beat that bad..."
"Did he get wrecked? Huh?"
Kutan ground his teeth at the sight.
They were supposed to keep quiet, but one was groping at the woman's clothes,
another posed to throw a sword,
and the other two had red faces with a liquor bottle in front.
"W-What the fuck did you assholes do!"
Zeke frowned at the scene inside.
'This is that weapon shop... These fucks... Crossed the line?'
"Alright, student-exclusive free show's over."
Late into the night.
Serena Yohayden stood at the mansion's front gate in her nightgown, a silk shawl over her shoulders,
arms crossed as she waited.
"Miss, please come inside. It's cold out."
The butler fidgeted behind her and urged.
"......"
"Instructor's whereabouts?"
"We've only assigned guards to you, Miss Serena... But we sent someone, so he'll be back soon..."
Serena's insides boiled.
Of course, she trusted he wasn't off doing something stupid.
He was probably still overseeing the sword-making.
She'd respected his freedom and refrained from interfering as much as possible,
but it'd been a full day since he left the weapon shop—
shouldn't he at least consider the person waiting at home?
Serena tapped her foot impatiently, striking the ground.
As she waited,
one of the knights she'd sent earlier came running up, pale and frantic.
"S-Serena! Fire at that weapon shop!"
"What!?"
Serena jumped and rushed to the knight.
"The instructor!?"
"No idea. Flames are too fierce to see inside or get close."
Serena bit her nail. Something had gone wrong, clearly.
'Instructor...!'
"Butler, prepare my outing clothes. I have to go."
"Miss Serena! Leave it to the knights! It could be dangerous!"
"No. I have to go myself."
Then, a sudden voice.
"What's going on."
Serena whipped around.
Zeke approached the gate with a nonchalant face.
"Uh... Uh...!"
Her heart sank at his voice.
She ran to him and checked his body.
"Instructor! Are you okay? The weapon shop's on fire!"
"Ah, that. It's fine."
Zeke added,
"Just a minor accident. No scratches, so what's the problem."
"That's not the point!"
His casual tone made her angry yet relieved at the same time.
Haa—
A sigh of relief escaped.
'Hm?'
Sniff. Sniff.
The strong whiff of alcohol made Serena wrinkle her nose.
'But... this smell. Alcohol? I was worried sick about a fire, but he was just drinking and came back late?'
Grind.
Serena ground her teeth.
"In.struc.tor?"
"What's up."
Zeke replied with an innocent expression.
"Do you have any idea how I feel right now!"
"Here, take this."
Zeke handed her a box slung over his back.
Caught off guard, Serena accepted it.
'Th-This... You think this'll make up for it...'
She thought, but her lips twitched upward.
Opening the box revealed a beautiful rapier.
Holding it, it felt like a weapon born for her.
More familiar than the sword she'd wielded and tamed for seven years before it broke.
Light and sharp. The grip fit her hand perfectly, comfortably.
Her hands itched to swing it.
'Th-This... You think this'll make me feel better... Yeah...'
Serena's expression grew dreamy as she stared at the sword.
"H-How is it. I, I put my best into it."
"It's... really beautiful. Instruc— Hm?"
Distracted by the sword, she didn't immediately recognize the voice.
Serena looked up.
Behind Zeke stood the weapon shop owner, reeking of booze, face and body filthy like he'd rolled in the dirt after drinking.
Her brows furrowed again.
'I'm grateful for this! I am! But really! He was drinking with this guy all this time!?'
As she resolved to call him out and vent her anger,
"Thanks to Sir Zeke, I survived."
"Eh?"
"He saved me from those loan shark bastards."
"Ah... So the fire..."
"Yes. Exactly."
'Nice one, Aleng! Earning your keep. Yeah, if you're gonna latch on here, that's how you do it!'
Zeke cheered Aleng inwardly.
Zeke had beaten everyone there senseless.
Including the ones who'd raided Soy Spoon's place.
Then he extracted info. There had to be a boss, and who knew how he'd react.
'They'll fuck with Soy Spoon's family again too.'
Even in a romance-fantasy world, Zeke had no mercy for those who'd crossed the line.
He knocked them all out after getting everything,
doused them in the remaining liquor for evidence disposal, added mana, and burned the whole shop down.
Thanks to that, Aleng—who'd been eating and sleeping there—lost his home in an instant, like a beaver.
Feeling a twinge of responsibility,
Zeke had brought him to Serena's mansion.
But Serena's mood looked sour at first glance, so he hadn't spoken up.
Only now did Zeke recall how much she'd looked forward to today amid the cold reception.
'Told her we'd go out together, but we didn't hit a single spot.'
So he'd shoved the gift at her first.
Fortunately, Serena seemed pleased.
And Aleng was explaining the situation without being asked—
Perfect for Zeke.
He had no intention of lying to Serena anyway.
Aleng gestured emphatically as he recounted events to her.
Sure enough, third-party testimony worked better than his own stiff, boring face.
"That was too dangerous!"
"No, sir. Sir Zeke swung that baguette whoosh-whoosh, and the enemies went flying tumble-tumble-tumble. They collapsed without a peep! Later they were crying! Sobbing! Sir Zeke was a true hero. Those scum deserved death! And they were so vile that..."
Mm. Mm. Zeke nodded in agreement.
Serena's face shadowed briefly at the mention of killing,
but she'd already executed Ciela herself.
Sword users had to stand above death.
From the story, they really were human trash.
'Hm? Baguette, though?'
Serena looked puzzled for a second,
but forgot it at Aleng's next words.
"And he saved the woman who was with them too!"
"Wo.man?"
Serena's face hardened.
But Aleng, oblivious, kept chattering.
"Yes! He was like a knight in shining armor from a tale."
"Ah. Ah. Saved her? Like me?"
'Hey... Aleng? I had plans with Serena today. Saying I met another woman might be a bit much, no?'
Zeke tried to signal him inwardly,
but Aleng's eyes sparkled like stars.
"Ooh! As expected of Sir Zeke! You saved the young lady too!! Yes! And took her home after!"
"Took. Her. Home."
'Aleng? Ease up?'
"Yes!! And at her place, he even got thanks from more ladies!"
"More. La.dies."
A chill seeped into Serena's smiling facade.
"We had baguettes too! Best I'd ever tasted! Sooo good!"
"......"
Aleng landed the final blow flawlessly.
Cold sweat dripped down Zeke's back.
'Yeah. I'm fucked.'
He nodded.