The Cracked Blade

I shoved every other concern aside and decided to deal with the crack in Hwaryeonbido's blade first. Post-war cleanup wasn't my job anyway, so it hardly mattered.

When a person is sick, you go to a doctor. When a machine breaks, you go to an engineer. When something goes wrong, the best move is always to find a specialist. I headed for the dwarf slave village in Tevra.

"Welcome, my lord! Just as you ordered, we forge weapons and armor every single day!"

The moment I appeared in the village, the dwarves dropped flat on their faces. Given how thoroughly I tended to lose my temper over every little thing, this was the survival instinct they'd cultivated. With a serious expression, I surveyed the Frost Hammer Tribe and spoke.

"This is an order. Assemble every dwarf."

Looking uneasy, the dwarves spread my command through the village. In less than ten minutes, every last one of them had gathered at the center.

"M-my lord… was there a problem with the goods we delivered…?"

Peses, chief of the Frost Hammer Tribe, stammered, trembling with fear.

In answer, I summoned Hwaryeonbido.

"Hiiiiiieeek?!"

The instant I drew a blade without warning, the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠dwarves let out undignified shrieks and collapsed onto the ground.

"P-please spare us!"

"If we've made a mistake, we'll fix it at once! Just give us a chance!"

"D-don't tell me we've outlived our usefulness?"

I frowned. Their pathetic thrashing was getting on my nerves. Should I kill one as an example? I seriously considered it before realizing this was not the time.

"Look at this! There's a crack in Hwaryeonbido's blade!"

"It's hard to see from here. May we take a closer look?"

"Fine. Be careful. If that crack gets any bigger — or if Hwaryeonbido breaks — every last one of you dies."

"Hiiiek! W-we'll be extremely careful!"

Peses approached. He examined the cracked section with the utmost caution, and his face grew grave.

"My lord. May I inspect it more thoroughly?"

"Go ahead."

Peses held out his hand, asking me to hand over Hwaryeonbido. Parting with it to anyone else sat poorly with me, but if it meant getting the blade fixed, I had no choice.

"Huuuuh!"

The moment Peses took Hwaryeonbido, he jolted in shock and dropped it straight onto the ground.

"You little—!"

"Hiek! I-I'm sorry!"

Peses pulled on the gloves hanging from his belt and gripped Hwaryeonbido again. His expression was grim — and not only because he'd dropped ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it.

"You lot. Come look at this sword."

Peses called to the dwarves around him. They stole glances at me, unable to hide their curiosity as they edged closer.

"Hoo…. This is practically a cursed blade already. Hey — you're the demon-sword specialist. Anything come to mind?"

"Hmm…. I've deliberately forged cursed blades a few times, but this is on another level entirely. It's turning into one on its own. And wasn't this sword made from Red Dragon scales and dark iron? To force a blade into a cursed state artificially, you'd need to kill at least hundreds of thousands of people and pile their vengeful souls into it…."

"Hundreds of thousands…?"

"That's the bare minimum. Look at the blade. There are traces of a reforge that washed the souls out of it. And it's still like this."

"Can't we just reforge it again?"

"Are you insane? Didn't you see the chief scream the second he grabbed the hilt? Try reforging this and you won't get more than a few hammer strikes before you're dead. Best thing to do with a sword like this is destroy it."

Even as he said it, the dwarf seemed to realize his mistake and glanced at me. I fixed him with a hard stare. He dropped his eyes and mumbled.

"D-destroying a masterpiece like this must never be allowed. You all agree, right?"

"O-of course."

"A legendary blade that will go down in history can't just be thrown away."

Every one of them was watching my face for a reaction.

"Stop spouting nonsense and repair Hwaryeonbido."

The dwarves started muttering among themselves. I didn't like it, but there was nothing I could do. I was the one in a hurry.

Their conference ended. Peses, still holding Hwaryeonbido, carefully approached me.

"My lord… please don't get angry, and listen calmly."

"As long as you don't start talking garbage, I won't have any reason to get angry."

"Ahem…. W-well…."

Peses hesitated. He looked around as if searching for help, but the other dwarves only watched him with cold eyes.

"Haa. I'll be honest. Our skill isn't enough to repair Hwaryeonbido."

"You just don't want to do it?"

"N-no, absolutely not!"

"I heard what you were saying earlier. Something about Hwaryeonbido being a cursed blade."

"A cursed blade. In other words, a demon sword. It means a weapon corrupted by vengeful souls or a curse. They possess special abilities, but… more often than not, those abilities lean toward the unpleasant."

"Get to the point. Just the point."

"…Hwaryeonbido is a blade ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠currently in the process of becoming a cursed sword. The problem is that the crack in the blade has halted that transformation. Normally, at this stage, the malevolent energy — the souls and curses — would leak out and leave you with ordinary scrap metal…. But Hwaryeonbido isn't doing that."

"So why can't you repair it?"

"Because if we try, we could be crushed to death by the curse and the vengeful souls. O-of course, we're prepared to risk our lives to repair your Hwaryeonbido. But if we die for nothing… neither the blade nor we would come out of it well."

"What if you remove the souls or the curse?"

"It's already been reforged once. Purify it in this state and… Hwaryeonbido won't hold. It'll shatter."

"Then what the hell am I supposed to do? You said the crack ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stopped the cursed transformation. Just leave it alone?"

"I-I'm sorry! Hwaryeonbido's durability is exceptional, so it won't break anytime soon! In my estimation, you could use it without issue for at least a hundred years!"

"You little—…."

"Hiiiiiieeek!"

I let out a sigh. These incompetent dwarves were one of my cash cows — a lifelong revenue stream I could milk forever. Killing them in a fit of rage would cost me far more than it was worth.

"Fine. I'll find another way. Get back to work."

"M-my lord. Looking at Hwaryeonbido's condition, it seems you killed something extraordinary…. May I ask what it was?"

"You can tell that much?"

"Our conclusion is that killing an ordinary creature wouldn't produce a state like this…."

"Hmm. I killed a Red Dragon. An adult."

"Huk! I-I see. So that's why…."

Peses and the other dwarves nodded as if that explained everything.

I went looking for other people. I couldn't give up on Hwaryeonbido this easily. Peses claimed it would last a hundred years without trouble, but for someone using the Amusement Life App, a century didn't feel particularly long.

In the Radiant Ascension world, a hundred years is nothing. I'll keep Hwaryeonbido in my inventory for daily life, but…

I went to Yuria first. She handled most problems for me. As it happened, Sharnell and Priscilla were with her. Priscilla was an Ancient Dragon, so I asked her for advice.

Yuria's eyes went wide when she saw Hwaryeonbido's condition.

"This is… remarkable."

"Dulibard's half-formed soul is still vividly bound to it. That shouldn't normally happen…. Perhaps because the blade was forged from dragon scales?"

"I-I can't really tell just by looking."

Yuria shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Master. This doesn't appear to be something I can fix."

"Touch this carelessly and the curse will transfer to your body. It's not even usable as material for a magic tool. I recommend discarding it."

I sighed at their reactions.

Yuria and Priscilla had given up. Meaning there was no way to repair Hwaryeonbido in this world.

But it was still too early to abandon it completely.

I had the Amusement Life App. Sooner or later, I'd obtain some item that could repair Hwaryeonbido.

And if not, I just need to go to a world where it can be fixed.

I stared at the blade with a complicated expression. The crack caught my eye — less than a centimeter long, yet it grated on me endlessly.

……If I sand it down, would the crack disappear?

Maybe it was my imagination, but I could have sworn Hwaryeonbido trembled slightly.

The moment the war ended, Melissa returned the Arhen ducal title without a shred of regret. She abandoned a seat above all others and came back as my maid.

The Duke of Arhen proclaimed a new kingdom.

The Arhen Kingdom.

Exhausted by Dulibard's tyranny and endless war, the people threw their support behind the Duke of Arhen.

The continental war was over. The flames that had scorched the continent finally died down.

My marriage to Melissa was postponed until the Arhen Kingdom finished sorting itself out.

I led the army onto the road home. The distance made the return a chore in itself — but thinking of everything waiting for me once I got back, my steps felt light.

Fifty thousand troops survived the war…. That's a lot.

Twenty thousand slave soldiers. Thirty thousand elite troops.

Considering I'd marched out of my territory with a hundred and twenty thousand, more than half were dead. That alone was catastrophic damage… yet fifty thousand was still too many.

I took too many slave soldiers…. I'll need to cull them at the right moment.

Once we returned to the Rapheli Kingdom, the slave soldiers and elite troops would head back to their own homes. Fewer than ten thousand soldiers would remain in my territory.

These are men with real combat experience. And once they've tasted plunder and rape… it wouldn't be strange if they turned bandit.

I didn't care what they did in other countries. But the Rapheli Kingdom was my territory. I wasn't about to sit still and watch them cause trouble in my backyard.

I need to eliminate them before they become a problem. Wiping them all out would draw too much attention… so I'll leave about twenty thousand.

The question was how to kill thirty thousand men.

I couldn't do it openly. Allied soldiers would resist, and it would stain my reputation.

I'll use a demon.

The plan unfolded without a hitch.

I had Yuria construct a massive trap and led the army straight into it. A magical natural disaster erupted — the ground split open, hail fell from the sky. On top of that, I conjured the image of a demon with magic and showed it to the soldiers.

"A demon! A demon has come to kill us! Kill the demon!!"

I roared with everything I had.

All of this was the demon's doing. That was the story I needed them to believe.

And once roughly thirty thousand of our own forces were dead, I stepped forward myself and struck the demon down.

"We suffered great losses, but we defeated the demon and claimed victory! Come — let's go home!"

The soldiers raised a cheer.

I laughed at them inwardly. Idiots, every last one.

And so we returned to the Rapheli Kingdom and disbanded the army.