Three days after the private meeting with the king, the combined army stood stalled before the first fortress.
「What in the world is that thing!?」
「Again and again and AGAIN it appears right in front of us!! So irritating!!」
「By the way, Your Majesty… where are the Holy Knight-sama and Saintess-sama?」
「The two of them received a divine oracle. They are currently forging the holy sword to defeat that terrifying being.」
「Oho! Then we need only endure a little longer!」
「You lot… show some restraint. They are fighting for us, complete strangers, out of the goodness of their hearts.」
「A mere commoner is of no consequence… Well then, I shall take my leave for now.」
With that, the noble strode out of the tent.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
「Forgive me, Yuuki-dono.」
Once everyone had left, the king spoke apologetically.
「No, it’s fine. I just didn’t expect there to be nobles quite that awful…」
「Indeed. That one is a duke from the demon side, related to the queen by marriage. He controls one of the kingdom’s largest grain-producing regions… and he’s currently supplying the provisions for this entire expedition.」
「So that’s why his attitude is so huge… What a pain.」
「Truly… I apologize.」
Well, when it comes to military logistics, whoever feeds the army holds real power…
(Still… the way he spoke so disrespectfully about Amilia really pisses me off.)
I want to make him hurt, but burning the supply wagons would cause its own problems…
「Maybe just kill him?」
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
The king flinched.
「If necessary, I could always bring him back to life〜」
「You can do such a thing…?」
「Well, yeah… though there’s a limit to how many people I can revive.」
「You truly are beyond common sense…」
「Alright. This is getting annoying. Let’s just kill him and revive him! While we’re at it, we’ll make sure his loyalty to Amilia skyrockets too!」
No more messing around.
Half-kill him, make him beg for mercy, and be done with it.
「Understood… Just try not to cause casualties among the soldiers…」
「Don’t worry. I’ll handle it carefully!」
With the plan decided, I quickly returned to the city.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
――Clang――Clang.
The steady ring of hammer on metal echoed through the workshop.
「Alright… time to cool it…」
――Hissssssssss.
Steam exploded upward as the glowing iron block met water and rapidly cooled.
I followed the forging method I’d been taught yesterday, shaping the steel with careful, rhythmic strikes.
「Fuu…」
I placed the heated metal back on the glowing coals and channeled mana-infused flame over it from above.
「The color is starting to turn faintly blue… Yes! Success.」
This was my third attempt, counting failures.
For a proper magical sword, the steel needed to be infused with magic power from the very beginning.
「Infusing magic power while… striking straight down, one clean blow at a time…」
――Clang――Clang.
Normally, folding the metal back on itself isn’t necessary, but it’s essential when infusing magic power into the steel.
「I heard this technique has mostly been lost now, only fragments remain in old documents. I really have to thank the craftsmen at the guild!」
With one final, powerful strike, the blade gave off an especially brilliant shine.
「Yes! It’s done!」
The core 『Magic Power Steel』 was complete.
「With this weapon, even Amilia should be able to cut down the Evil God.」
Wiping the sweat from my brow, I stretched, and just then, the workshop door opened.
「Oi, kid! You alright…? Wait, seriously…!?」
The dwarf uncle who stepped inside froze, eyes wide.
「Ah, perfect timing, it just finished.」
「You actually made it…」
He stroked his beard, completely dumbfounded.
「Alright, next step then…」
「Yeah! Now we use the failed magic power steel pieces for the outer layer. I’ll handle the hammering, you take a break.」
「Got it. I’ll go grab some late-night food.」
「Sure thing. The Saintess is in the dining hall〜」
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
I didn’t exactly come here because the dwarf uncle said so… but somehow I ended up at the dining hall anyway.
「Let’s see… Amilia is… oh, there.」
Peeking inside, I saw Amilia standing over a pot, tasting something and humming thoughtfully.
(Is that stew? She keeps nodding like 『Mhm, mhm』…)
(Should I go in? If she needs help, I can always lend a hand.)
「Haa〜 I’m starving…」
Muttering to myself, I stepped into the dining hall.
Amilia’s shoulders jumped.
「Y-Yuuki!? Are you done?」
「The core magic power steel part is finished. Right now, the old man’s hammering the outer steel to match it.」
「I see… Um, Yuuki… you’re hungry, right…?」
「Yeah, starving. It’s been about ten hours since I got back, after all.」
「Then… I made stew… Would you like some?」
「Is it okay?」
「Of course! Though… it tastes different from what you make, so I’d really like your advice after you try it.」
Amilia gave a slightly sheepish smile.
I peered into the pot, a beautiful white stew bubbled gently inside.
「Alright, just one bite then…」
I ladled a little into a bowl and tasted it.
The reason was immediately clear.
「Ah, this is it, the meat you used is different.」
「The meat makes that big of a difference?」
「Yeah. The stew at the castle used rabbit or chicken, but this time you used beef jerky, right?」
「Yes, I rehydrated the dried beef.」
「And the soaking liquid?」
「I threw it out…」
「Ah, got it. When you rehydrate dried meat, a lot of the umami leaches into the water. After a light rinse to remove dust, you should cook it with the soaking liquid included.」
「I see… I’ll remember that next time.」
「For this one, let’s sear the meat first before adding it in.」
「Got it!」
Amilia pulled out a frying pan.
I reached into my Item Box and took out the fresh meat I’d bought earlier and stored away.
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