Chapter 284: translated
I Killed the Demon King. It Was a Mistake.
Chapter 284
The next day, Giggs stood in front of Nameless with a chisel and hammer.
"Do you think just by engraving a name this cursed sword will be purified?"
"Yes, I do."
Giggs placed the chisel on the blade.
Nameless' blade was made of the world's strongest alloy, For Honor.
It was impossible to know how long it would take to engrave a name on it.
"Very well. Have you thought of a name?"
Giggs placed the chisel on Nameless.
The sword's base desires crept up through the chisel.
"Yes."
Giggs looked at Raven and said.
"So don't look for me for a while. I'll seal this workshop. I've sent all the servants away."
"I'm not sure if it's right to leave you alone, Master Giggs."
"It's work that requires that much concentration."
"If something goes wrong, you could be injured, Master Giggs."
"I know. But I'd rather die than have my masterpiece bear the disgrace of being a cursed sword."
"That's not what I mean."
Raven grabbed Giggs's wrist.
"Nameless almost turned Yan into a devil too. I'm saying you could become a devil as well. Wouldn't it be better if at least I stayed by your side?"
"If I try to become a devil, will you stop me even if you have to blow off my wrist?"
"Yes."
"If that happens, I'll ultimately have to classify my masterpiece as a cursed sword and personally seal it in the deep sea."
"...Isn't that better than you becoming a devil, Master Giggs?"
"Maybe not."
"Aren't we talking about reducing the risk?"
Giggs covered Raven's hand with his own.
"Please."
A blacksmith's magic wave is different from that of ordinary people.
A blacksmith's magic wave is very pure and clear.
Giggs was afraid. Giggs wasn't afraid of becoming a devil himself.
He was afraid that Raven might intervene in the middle and prevent him from finishing his work.
Raven looked into Giggs's eyes, seeing his determination, and said.
"I understand."
"Thank you."
Raven took in the sight of Giggs. And made a small prayer.
Just as Giggs had no regrets about his choice, may Raven have no regrets about her choice. As Raven closed the door and left, Giggs picked up the hammer.
Clang!
Giggs's hammer struck the chisel. The chisel made only a tiny mark on Nameless.
***
Caesar looked up at the house surrounded by high walls.
Ding! Ding!
Caesar's necklace rang strongly as he approached the house.
"Is this it?"
In front of the house, Holy Knights and blacksmiths were glaring at each other, engaged in a heated argument.
"I'm telling you, the Master has sealed the workshop! You absolutely cannot enter!"
"There are many demonic reactions happening around this area. We need to search inside."
"It's still absolutely not allowed. If you want to come in, get permission from His Majesty the Emperor and the Pope."
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Despite the fierce argument assaulting his senses, the sound of striking steel from beyond the wall made its presence clearly known.
Caesar frowned as he looked at the wall.
"Surely not... It can't be."
"Huh? Lord Caesar?"
Caesar turned around at the familiar voice. Though the face was hidden under a deeply pulled hat, the figure was all too familiar.
"Gloria? Raven?"
As soon as Gloria's eyes met Caesar's, she ran over like a puppy.
"Are you feeling better? I was so worried when we lost contact with you."
"How did you recognize me? I'm wearing a mask."
"I can tell just by looking at your eyes. Red eyes like yours aren't common."
Indeed, hadn't Caesar also guessed Gloria and Raven just by their builds?
"More importantly, weren't we supposed to meet at Undertour by November 15th? Why are you two here?"
"Ahaha... Well..."
Raven opened her mouth with a blunt tone.
"Blood Moon broke, so we came to get it repaired."
"...What? Blood Moon broke?"
Raven pulled her hat down deeper, seemingly aware of people's stares.
"Yes. Let's move somewhere else to talk about the details. There are too many eyes here."
***
Caesar sat in the hotel lounge where Gloria and Raven were staying.
"So you're saying that Kos, that guy, has no sense of direction and got a bit senile, causing you to wander around in the wilderness?"
Ding! Ding!
Kos, hanging on Gloria's wrist, rang violently.
Caesar laughed off Kos' anger-filled curses.
"Well, it's good that you successfully hunted the Drake.
What did you do with the Drake's internal organs?"
"I ate them all without leaving anything. That's why my stomach feels a bit bloated."
"It's evidence that your body is changing, so use your Body Strengthening Technique whenever you have time. Drake organs will take quite a while to absorb."
Raven sighed and said.
"More importantly, Blood Moon is the problem. I originally wanted to entrust it to Master Giggs, but it looks like I'll have to find another blacksmith."
"Couldn't you find another blacksmith?"
"They're all extremely busy. Apparently the Pope placed a lot of orders? They say they have to reduce sleep just to meet the deadlines."
"It seems Master Giggs had some free time?"
"...I'm not sure of the exact circumstances. But it seems he had some time."
Caesar sensed a subtle emotional change in Raven's tone. He could try to read it through psychometry, but decided to just ask.
"You know what Master Giggs is doing right now, don't you?"
Raven hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"Master Giggs said he wanted to try purifying Nameless and asked for it. So I gave him Nameless."
Caesar let out a surprised breath at this unheard-of story.
"What? Purify Nameless?"
"Yes. He said purification is possible if a proper name is engraved on Nameless. But..."
"Rumors suddenly started circulating about devils appearing at Master Giggs's house, right?"
"...That's right."
Caesar felt a headache coming on.
He understood why Raven had handed over Nameless. If Giggs succeeded in purifying Nameless, he could restore his honor and return Nameless to Yan.
But it seems Raven never anticipated that Giggs might become a devil.
"Is there a way to get inside Giggs's house?"
"Magic is impossible."
"Why?"
"Anti-wizard devices are installed throughout Giggs's walls and various places. Using spatial movement magic would be disastrous."
"I guess invisibility or clairvoyance magic would be impossible too?"
"That's right. Of course, we could secretly climb over the wall, but..."
"The Holy Knights and blacksmiths are probably watching 24 hours a day, so that would be difficult too."
"Right."
Caesar stroked his chin.
"I might be able to do it, don't you think?"
"You're saying you'll go secretly and check it out?"
"I'll go alone quietly at night. Wouldn't it be enough to just see what's happening?"
Raven didn't answer immediately, seemingly reluctant.
"...Master Giggs asked me for one thing."
"What?"
"He asked me not to interfere with his work until it's finished. That's why I'm just watching and not going inside."
Indeed, it didn't make sense that Raven couldn't find a way to get inside despite the anti-wizard devices being installed.
"So what do you want to do?"
"...I don't know. I think we shouldn't interfere with Master Giggs, but on the other hand, I wonder if it would be better to go in now and stop him..."
Raven hung her head low, seemingly conflicted.
"I really don't know."
Gloria looked at Caesar with a gloomy expression and said.
"But what if Master Giggs has really become a devil?"
Neither Caesar nor Raven could easily answer Gloria's question.
Caesar finished his tea and said.
"Let's set aside problems we can't solve right away. Instead, we should focus on problems we can solve."
Caesar stood up.
"Then shall we first go and get Blood Moon repaired?"
"But there's no one qualified to take on Blood Moon? Without skills at Master Giggs's level, restoration would be impossible."
"I know one exceptional blacksmith. Though his personality is quite eccentric."
***
Caesar took Raven and Gloria to Pesson's house. Except for strange mechanical clusters moving around the yard, Pesson's house hadn't changed much.
"Lord Caesar! Have you been well... Ugh! Cough! Cough!"
Theon ran toward Caesar as soon as he saw him, but choked and retched. I wonder if that old man will ever die of natural causes.
"Why are you jumping out like a puppy in such excitement? It seems someone who was meant to come has arrived."
Pesson said as he opened the cabin door.
"Come in and have some tea. Tell me why you haven't sent a proper letter all this time."
It seems Pesson was somewhat hurt that I hadn't contacted him.
"By the way, your company has grown. Are these ladies?"
Raven removed her hood and greeted without showing any discomfort.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Raven."
"...I never thought I'd meet the Green-eyed Magician like this. Pleased to meet you. I'm Blacksmith Pesson."
Gloria also removed her hood.
"I'm Gloria, Sir Caesar's disciple. Nice to meet you."
Pesson, seemingly embarrassed, strode into the cabin saying.
"Ahem! Come in and have some tea. Don't make me look like a terrible person who keeps guests standing outside."
***
Caesar, Gloria, and Raven entered the cabin.
The cabin was still dirty and cramped. Neither Raven nor Gloria particularly liked dirty places, but having rolled around in the wilderness until recently, this level of filth was tolerable.
"You wouldn't have come here without a reason. What brings you here?"
"The reason for visiting a blacksmith is obvious."
Caesar took out Thunder and Lefty.
"I've been rough with these axes, so I came to get them repaired."
Pesson nodded after examining the damage on Thunder and Lefty.
"Well, I heard you went through quite a lot in the demon realm... This condition is acceptable. Give me a few days. I'll fix them."
"Thank you, old man. But there's something more urgent I need to ask you."
Raven took out Blood Moon from her dimensional pocket.
Pesson's eyes sparkled.
"Oh... This is..."
"Do you recognize it?"
"This looks like Blood Moon... Is that right?"
"Yes, it is."
Pesson examined Blood Moon from all angles as if he'd discovered an interesting toy. He tapped it and touched the blade part.
"It's my first time seeing such a fascinating sword in my life."
"In what way?"
"When making a sword using Terra, the blacksmith's will inevitably seeps into the Terra. So even if swords have the same shape, their abilities differ subtly depending on the blacksmith."
This is well implemented in the Valent Saga game system.
Even with longswords of the same shape mixed with ordinary Terra, the added stats or characteristics vary depending on which blacksmith made and sold it.
"In this sword's case, there's a clear will to kill devils infused into it. But it seems that not only a blacksmith was involved in creating this sword, but a magician was involved as well."
Kos vibrated.
Caesar used psychometry to hear what Kos had to say.
-The blacksmith is right.
-During the making of this sword, Magician Hades engraved a magic that makes blood explode.
"The Terra itself has changed in nature because of that influence. This has become a completely different kind of Terra alloy from any developed so far."
"What exact properties has it acquired?"
"I'll need to examine it closely to know that. But my guess is it has the ability to make blood explode."
Pesson looked at Raven and said.
"Wizard Raven, does this sword appear to have magic cast on it from your perspective?"
"No. It doesn't feel like an artifact. There are traces of magic, but they're not active."
"Then my guess is correct. Wendy's ability to evaporate and explode devils' blood wasn't the power of magic, but the power of the altered Terra alloy."
Caesar stared at Kos.
-...W-what are you looking at?
-Am I a blacksmith? I was just a knight.
-Blood would explode when it got on it, so I just thought it was exploding by magic. Do I have to know all the details?
Gloria can read people.
This guy is just a senile old man. How could she not know the process behind her sword's abilities? She either completely disregarded it or lost her memory.
Gloria carefully asked.
"Can you repair it?"
"This will take some time. Research is needed."
"We only have 3 weeks to give you."
"3 weeks... It's a bit tight, but that should be enough."
Gloria's expression brightened. She was relieved, having thought they wouldn't be able to use it after all that hardship.
"Caesar, leave your axes here too. Since we're at it, I'll fix them together."
"Please fix Thunder first. I might need to use Lefty."
"For what?"
Caesar said calmly.
"It seems there's a devil living in Master Giggs's house. I'm thinking of sneaking in to check."
Crash!
The teacup in Pesson's hand fell and shattered on the ground.
"...What did you say?"
"Are you alright? The teacup..."
"Say that again. A devil lives in Giggs's house? What about Giggs? What happened to him?"
"Are you acquainted with Giggs?"
"Tell me now! Where is Giggs!"
Caesar was startled, having never seen Pesson so angry before. Caesar used psychometry on Pesson.
-A devil in Giggs's house.
-That bastard Giggs, surely he hasn't died…
-No. If he had died, I would have received an obituary.
-What the hell is this...
Pesson looked extremely confused. Gloria carefully said, reading the situation.
"Master Giggs has sealed himself in and hasn't come out of his house."
"...What does that mean? If Giggs is the only one in the house but there's a devil there. Are you saying Giggs has become a devil?"
"We're not sure about that..."
Pesson stood up abruptly.
"Him becoming a devil? That's nonsense! His mind is as strong as steel! What madman would say such absurd..."
Pesson's expression hardened, and his eyes turned toward Raven.
"...Don't tell me you gave Nameless to Giggs?"
Raven nodded briefly.
"He took it, saying he would try to purify Nameless."
"Damn it all!"
Pesson kicked open the door and ran out.
"Pesson!"
Caesar couldn't stop Pesson who was running like mad. Caesar said to Raven and Gloria.
"You two stay here with Theon since having your faces known won't do any good. I'll go with him alone."
"What are you going to do?"
"I don't know. I won't let Pesson into Giggs's house. I need to calm him down and send him back."