Magic Tower Armor - 2
Magic Tower Armor - 2
***
Even calling it a consultation room, it was at the level of a small storage room attached to the Magic Tower workshop.
The one table that was there was piled high with junk. It seemed consultations were not a common occurrence.
While Elbridge sat on a chair waiting, Rombel brought a kettle as large as his face and two water cups larger than his fists.
Rombel roughly swept the table with his thick arm, then handed one water cup to Elbridge.
"Take it."
Rombel tilted the kettle and poured a liquid full into Elbridge's water cup and his own, then sat across the table. When he smelled it, there was a musty smell of grass.
"Elbridge. I definitely heard you were stuck in a seal."
"I was."
Elbridge took a sip of the tea.
He wondered how old the tea leaves were, as it tasted like licking old paper.
'Then again, there's no way a dwarf would know tea...'
However, Elbridge forced himself to sip the tea.
Because of the hope that he might be able to get a discount on the armor.
"...But I'm freed now."
"How did that happen?"
"Well. I don't know well either."
"Did someone smash the seal or something?"
Elbridge shook his head.
"No. There was nothing like that. There were no traces of the seal being damaged."
"Was it a seal that was made wrong from the beginning? I heard that seal was made in a hurry."
"Maybe it was."
The expedition force to seal the Great Archdemon also included mages. If things had gone without any problems, the mages would have constructed the seal.
But things went wrong when the mages intended for the seal died in battle.
Even the mages brought as reserves all died.
Come to think of it, the fact that Elbridge was stuck in the seal was half because of the mages.
If even one mage had survived, the paladins wouldn't have had to haphazardly construct the seal, and there would have been no reason for Elbridge to become the core of the seal.
"But what can you do? That was the best at the time."
"I suppose so. But Elbridge. There's something else I'm most curious about."
"What is it?"
"...If you were freed, was the Great Archdemon freed along with you?"
Elbridge answered awkwardly.
"Probably?"
Rombel sighed.
"...That's the most shocking news I've heard recently."
"Everyone will come to know soon."
Now it was Elbridge's turn to ask questions.
"By the way, Rombel. Why are you here?"
Just two hundred years ago, Rombel was a warrior of the Order of the Steel Anvil, an order of dwarves.
As befitting a dwarf, he had good dexterity, so he would often fix the party's equipment when it broke, but he was not a professional blacksmith like this.
"Because there's no reason to continue remaining a warrior in a world without demons."
"Now that demons are returning, will you quit being a blacksmith and return to being a warrior?"
"...Well."
"Why?"
"I'm almost three hundred years old."
Elbridge looked at Rombel.
Instead of the young and spirited dwarf Elbridge remembered, a middle-aged dwarf sat across the table.
"...Actually, it's not because of my age."
"Then?"
"Skill is the problem. Even in those days, I wasn't an outstanding warrior, was I."
Contrary to the person's own words, Rombel's skill was not significantly lagging behind any paladin. The skill itself, that is.
Rombel's biggest problem was the god he served.
As one could tell from the name, the God of the Steel Anvil was not a god who bestowed combat-related powers.
Even so, Rombel could not turn his back on the God of the Steel Anvil. Because it was a custom for dwarves to belong to the Order of the Steel Anvil and serve the God of the Steel Anvil as a matter of course.
A dwarf who did not serve the God of the Steel Anvil was thoroughly ostracized in dwarven society, so in effect, there was no freedom of religion for dwarves.
Thanks to that closed atmosphere, the God of the Steel Anvil was able to stably maintain seats, receiving the support of over 99.8% of all dwarves.
'The Order of the Steel Anvil, huh...'
At that moment, the Goddess's voice reached Elbridge's ears.
- Elbridge. Now is the time.
There was no detailed explanation. But Elbridge immediately understood what the Goddess's oracle meant.
Elbridge put on a very serious expression and said.
"Rombel. You know your problem isn't your skill. The problem isn't you, it's your order."
"..."
"I know your faith wasn't that deep. I also remember that you secretly admired the paladins of combat orders. And... if you've served the God of the Steel Anvil for almost three hundred years, you've done enough."
"Ngh."
Now was the time to subtly reveal his true intentions. Elbridge stealthily brought up the topic.
"And recently, there's that thing, the benefits for changing orders or whatever. If it's a dwarf who has maintained their faith for three hundred years, they could receive tremendous benefits."
- Archbishop Elbridge. It will surely be helpful if you tell him the specific conditions.
"...For example, if it were our Order of the Rusted Shield, we would guarantee you the position of a cardinal. And if you bring in other followers, we would distribute additional benefits to you according to those followers' performance. It's what you call network marketing, and the earlier you join..."
Elbridge explained while forcing down the tasteless tea. Because he thought it would leave a better impression than leaving the tea he was served as it was.
However, making Elbridge's efforts meaningless, Rombel let out a deep sigh.
"No."
"Why? It's not like the God of the Steel Anvil can retaliate against you just because you turned your back on the order. That's an action strictly prohibited by the celestial council."
"The problem isn't that the god will retaliate against me, but that my own kind will ostracize me. That's legal. Because it's not the god directly retaliating."
"What's wrong with being ostracized? It's not like you interact much with your own kind anyway... Wait. It's been two hundred years, so has it changed a bit?"
Rombel scratched the back of his head vigorously, then unnaturally changed the subject.
"Anyway! The reason I can't just lower the price of the armor however I want isn't because I'm a heartless dwarf. It's because the Magic Tower sets the price, not me."
Excessive proselytizing tends to backfire. Elbridge cleanly gave up on proselytizing.
"True, I've never heard of a stingy dwarf in the world. And it's not a big problem even if I can't get a discount."
"Really?"
"It seems the price of Magic Tower armor has gotten much cheaper than before. I heard I could buy a breastplate and gauntlets for a hundred and twenty gold coins? And I don't have to wait for years either."
"The era has changed. Almost no one looks for Magic Tower armor anymore. Now, Magic Tower armor is just a collectible for wealthy nobles."
"Even so, the fact that it takes a lot of effort to make Magic Tower armor is the same now as it was then. I didn't know it would get this cheap."
"It's not the same."
Rombel rested his chin on his hand, then filled Elbridge's teacup full of tea again.
For Elbridge, it was a slightly troubling matter.
"Elbridge. You must have seen how much knights and paladins have declined over the past two hundred years, right?"
"...Of course."
"As long as there are no demons, the decline of paladins and knights is inevitable. But the other parts of the world are different. Rather, as time passes, they are developing at a frighteningly fast pace."
"It didn't seem to be to that extent. Solenion is almost unchanged from two hundred years ago."
"That's because this is the eastern boondocks. In the central part of the continent, things that would make you fall over in surprise are happening. Would you believe it if I said carriages run without horses, and people fly in the sky riding giant balloons?"
It was an absurd story. A story that even children wouldn't believe.
"Rombel. Just because I was sealed for two hundred years doesn't mean I became an idiot."
"I'm not joking. The mages in the central part of the continent have achieved amazing things. Now they call themselves magi-engineers, not mages."
Elbridge observed Rombel's expression to gauge whether that story was serious or a joke.
However, it was not easy to grasp the expression of a dwarf covered in a bushy beard.
"...Let's say for now that such things exist. Anyway, what about it?"
"There's only one thing I want to say. That unlike the regressed knights or paladins, mages have continued to develop. Thanks to that, the unit price of Magic Tower armor has also dropped significantly."
Thinking about it that way, it did seem to fit together more or less.
Now Elbridge's thoughts headed in a different direction.
"Rombel. If that's the case, could mages seal the Great Archdemon?"
"Well. I think that wouldn't be easy... It felt like the development of mages was flowing in a direction somewhat far removed from combat."
This time as well, when Elbridge forced himself to drink all the tasteless tea, Rombel checked the inside of the teapot.
"We're out of tea. Do you want to drink mine too?"
"No."
"Is that so?"
Rombel stood up from his seat, then poured the tea in his teacup into the quenching water barrel.
A hot anger burned in Elbridge's chest.
'...This son of a bitch?'
However, Elbridge's efforts were not in vain.
"Anyway, it was nice to see you after a long time. Even if I can't lower the price, I will use the best materials possible without holding back."
"Thanks. Rombel."
"I'll tell the mage in charge of enchanting to pay attention too. If I say it's an item for you to use, they'll put their heart and soul into it."
Elbridge waved his hand in denial.
"...Don't mention that. I'm currently acting while pretending to be my descendant, not myself."
"Why on earth?"
Elbridge pondered for a moment.
Would Rombel, a dwarf, be able to understand the behavior of humans, who are driven by jealousy and hatred based on imagination, endlessly seeking scapegoats?
No. He didn't think so.
"Just, there's a reason."
"Understood. Shall I make the gauntlets and breastplate first?"
"Yes. Shall we take the measurements first?"
"I've confirmed it with my eyes, so measurements aren't necessary. What kind of functions should I put in?"
"For the breastplate, internal distortion defense. For the gauntlets, grip strength enhancement. Is that possible?"
"Let's see... The price is 110 gold. Because the grip strength enhancement function is on the cheaper side. I'll have it finished within fifteen days at the latest."
"Thanks. Rombel. See you next time."
Elbridge stood up from his seat.
At that, Rombel asked Elbridge in a cautious voice.
"By the way, Elbridge. There's one thing I want to ask."
"What is it?"
"...You, didn't you always show me respect in the past? Saying you couldn't treat an elder disrespectfully."
Rombel was a young dwarf, but even in those days two hundred years ago, he was over ninety years old.
On the other hand, Elbridge had first met Rombel before he even turned twenty.
"Rombel. You're almost three hundred years old now, so in human terms, you're about sixty, right?"
"A dwarf's lifespan is roughly four hundred years. A human's lifespan is about eighty years, so... it's about that."
"My age is over two hundred years old by human standards. Rombel."
Hearing that story, Rombel made a bizarre expression that Elbridge had never seen before.