The Journey (14)
After hearing the explanation, we went to the carriage to sort through the remaining iron. I wanted to confirm just how much we had left…
"I already have a rough idea," Young Master said, as if he knew the whole inventory by heart. "Ten kilograms of Black Iron, eight of Silver Iron, and twenty-three of Scrap Iron."
That much? A typical sword took about one and a half kilograms of iron. Thicker or longer blades would need more, of course, but an ordinary sword sat around that weight. By that measure, the amount we had was staggering.
"If we made swords, that would be enough for about thirty blades."
"We could make even more than that."
Well… fair enough.
"By the way, are you planning to make your shields entirely out of iron?"
"It'll be heavy, but wouldn't that be better?"
"Well, that's your business. No reason for me to interfere."
Young Master clearly found Priest Daniel's approach less than ideal. Still, we decided to settle how the iron would be used first.
"I'll use Scrap Iron for the shields," Priest Daniel declared, setting aside roughly fifteen kilograms for both a large kite shield and a buckler.
"Does it really take that much?"
"If you're making them from iron alone, yes."
Apparently, most shields were built on a wooden base, with iron only reinforcing the rim, the center, or a thin facing. All-iron shields were rare. Even a small one made purely of iron would weigh over three kilograms and be nearly unusable.
"Of course, that wouldn't be a problem for a knight," he added.
For ordinary soldiers or adventurers, though, it was simply too heavy. That was why adventurers rarely bothered with shields—they were treated as consumables—while knights preferred other options. Shields were mostly tools for common troops.
"Because pure iron is so heavy, shields are basically made of wood," Young Master explained. "But every Holy Knight of the Church can use blessings. Weight isn't an issue for them."
On top of that, Holy Knights were the shields of the Church itself, so defensive gear was essential for them.
"I see."
We set aside about fifteen kilograms of Scrap Iron.
"What about your sword?"
Priest Daniel's current blade was an ordinary iron sword, so he would almost certainly want a replacement.
"Since Silver Iron resonates well with Holy Power, I was thinking of having one made from that."
The strength might be lacking, but he could compensate with Holy Magic or raw Holy Power.
"Then we'll need to set some Silver Iron aside as well."
I portioned out a generous two kilograms.
"I'll also take enough for my own sword and one for my father," Young Master said, dividing off about three and a half kilograms of Black Iron.
"Didn't you say you were making a dagger too?"
"I'm still deciding between Black Iron and Scrap Iron."
His main sword would obviously be forged from Black Iron—its performance was overwhelmingly superior—but a dagger was only a sidearm. There was no real need to use the best material for it.
"Miss Julian, didn't you say you wanted a dagger made as well?"
"I did say that, didn't I?"
"Black Iron is excellent. How about that?"
Personally, I was leaning toward Silver Iron, the way Priest Daniel had. My power came from Holy Power, so something with high resonance seemed appealing. Then again, it was only a sidearm. There was no need for anything fancy.
"It's not even a primary weapon. No point using something expensive."
At best I'd pull it out for cooking or butchering. A good blade was wasted on that.
"More importantly, Daniel—don't you need armor?"
"It would be nice to have, but…"
He seemed to think we didn't have enough iron left.
"If we're short, we can just make more."
The mine was right next door. Getting materials would be easy. After some thought, Priest Daniel decided to use the remaining Scrap Iron and Silver Iron for gauntlets and greaves.
"You're not making the most important piece—the breastplate?"
"Armor can be made from ordinary iron."
Is that so?
"Gauntlets can be used offensively, so mana conductivity matters. Armor doesn't," Young Master explained. I nodded.
So that left roughly two kilograms of Silver Iron and six of Black Iron?
"The rest is all yours, Young Master. You decide."
He nodded without a moment's hesitation.
"Then I'll use the remaining Black Iron for a sword for Miss Emma, and the Silver Iron for something Miss Julian can use."
"You don't have to do that…"
"You refined these materials, Miss Julian. You have a share in them."
When he put it like that, it was hard to refuse.
"Th-thank you."
We decided the remaining Silver Iron would go toward a dagger and a short saber. Young Master Maximilian suggested it, pointing out that I could handle a sword. A sidearm, he said. And since my spear was basically a short lance, I could even dual-wield spear and blade if I felt like it.
"It's nothing."
The last of the Black Iron would go toward Young Master's sword-breaker gauntlet.
There was just one problem: finding someone skilled enough to forge these pieces who could also keep the secret of the metals. We decided to worry about that tomorrow. By the time we finished sorting the iron, evening had arrived, and we ate dinner at the temple.
The temple staff had clearly wanted to prepare a full banquet, but I declined. I asked for the same food the nuns and priests ate.
"Temple food is nice too."
It was simple, but it felt plentiful. After dinner, I asked the bishop to look into blacksmiths for us.
"Someone skilled who can keep a secret, is that right?"
"Yes. I know it's a difficult request."
"I will find such a person."
I left the troublesome business to the temple and decided to rest properly for the night.
Early the next morning, the nuns brought water for me to wash my face and body, along with a fresh set of clothes. I had meant to live quietly, yet somehow things had ended up like this. Still, once I was dressed in a clean new nun's habit, I ate breakfast and prepared to go out.
"Are you going to the mine?" the bishop asked, inquiring about my schedule.
"Yes. I thought I'd look around the area."
He offered to assign a guide, but I refused. We had plenty of time, and I wanted to wander without a fixed destination. While I was at it, I could also search for a blacksmith willing to take our commission.
Then the situation took a slight turn.
"Wait—Daniel and Mary aren't coming?"
"We'll remain at the temple."
So it would just be Young Master, my sister, and me?
"You're coming, right, Sister?"
Emma looked faintly put out, then shook her head.
"You two go."
"What?!"
Even she was bailing? I hadn't expected that. I turned a helpless look on Young Master. He looked equally awkward—though something like quiet delight seemed to be hiding underneath.
"Well… what would you like to do?"
He was asking for my opinion, but the answer was already set. If I wasn't going to cancel the outing entirely, I either went alone or went with him. And no matter how safe the city was, a young woman wandering by herself was still a risk. There was no real choice.
"Ugh, fine. Are you all right with that, Young Master?"
I asked in case it might be inconvenient for him. He smiled gently.
"Yes, of course. Shall we leave right away?"
"Yes, yes. Let's go."
We exchanged a few idle words and started to leave the temple. The worshippers waiting nearby—or simply standing close by—looked at me with faintly startled eyes.
"The Saintess is…"
They murmured something, but their voices were too low for me to catch.
"Anyway, we're heading out."
Young Master and I left the temple in our nun's habit and priest's robes.
I had noticed it on the way in, but this city was remarkably well developed. The mine was the main reason—with so many merchant caravans coming and going, goods of every kind were naturally abundant.
From a merchant's perspective, traveling all this way just to buy iron would be a loss, so they brought other goods to sell and cover the cost. That circulation of goods had grown the city's resident population as the mine expanded. More residents meant more goods sold, and the city kept growing in a virtuous cycle.
"It doesn't lose to the Capital or Valdeck Territory."
The only major cities I knew were three: the Capital, Wizheim, and Valdeck. This place held its own against any of them. Of course, it was still smaller than the Capital or Wizheim.
"Yes. It's my first time here as well, but it is certainly large."
We headed first for the commercial district near the walls. Because so many caravans passed through, there were fewer independent shops and more stores run directly by the trading houses themselves.
We stepped inside a few to browse. The variety was impressive—gems, ornaments, foodstuffs… and above all, equipment. Weapons and armor forged from mine iron by the local craftsmen were everywhere.
"How does the quality look?"
Honestly, I hadn't seen many fine pieces in my life, so everything looked decent enough to me.
Young Master swept his gaze over the gear, then smiled. Why smile instead of answering? He said nothing until we left the shop.
"So? What did you think?"
"Inferior goods."
Inferior? He didn't mean the kind of yawn you make when you're sleepy, surely…
"The quality is that bad?"
"Yes. The iron is poor, and the smithing looks half-finished—the work of mediocre blacksmiths. Some of the swords didn't even have a proper balance point."
Besides, he added, it was strange for equipment to end up in a trading house at all. A true master craftsman would never hand his work over to merchants.
I understood at once. Anyone called a master already had their own workshop. Why would they sell through someone else? Customers would come to them. So what did that make the goods in the trading houses?
"They look like pieces made by apprentices and journeymen trying to earn a living," he said. "They forge to build their skill, but they can't sell those pieces through the workshop, so they pass them to the caravans at a low price."
"Ah…"
That made perfect sense.
"I see…"
Nothing worth looking at here except daily necessities, then.
With that in mind, we wandered the area a while longer. As we walked, though, I kept spotting adventurers buying gear from nearby shops and looking genuinely pleased about it.
So there was demand after all.
Equipment made by real masters from good iron was naturally expensive—beyond what ordinary adventurers could afford. So they bought something adequate here, even if the quality was a step down.
"People are buying them, at least…"
"You called them inferior. Are they really that bad?"
"To be honest, I'm not sure. My standards may simply be too high."
Well, he was a noble. Of course inferior goods wouldn't catch his eye. Everything around him was high-end; comparison would be difficult.
"Well, it's not our concern either way."
I could hardly walk up to someone celebrating a purchase and ask why they'd bought junk. We weren't looking for a fight.
When I said that, Young Master smiled softly.
"True enough."
We finished our tour of the commercial district and headed for the residential quarter.