CH 5.45

The Blacksmith, the Magician, and Winged Bird*

Translated by Mlzkzr

Edited by Mlzkzr

(TN: The kanji used in the title can also mean happily married couple)

Before dusk, I was brought to Kauschmann’s atelier after leaving the inn.

His atelier, which he inherited from his master, the dwarf Rajudol, was equipped with a forge.

I feel a strange sense of nostalgia in that forge.

Perhaps, yes, I feel the same atmosphere in this place as I did in that blacksmith forge in Vistkort in the Kingdom of Ludria.

The furnace must have been left unburned for a long time, but the smithy was kept clean, which tells me that this place is very well cared for.

That’s why I, for one, felt some closeness with Kauschman.

Even if he can’t do blacksmithing, he who takes care of the smithy…… No, he who can take care of the smithy even though he can’t do blacksmithing will definitely become a good blacksmith.

“I will teach you blacksmithing. You will teach me magic. At the same time, each of us will cooperate in the creation of the magic sword by taking advantage of our respective areas of expertise. When we squabble, we fight fist to fist, Dwarf style…… there’s no problem in these conditions, right”

Kauschman nodded at my confirmation and once again held out his right hand.

And I also squeezed his hand back strongly.

Now, I wouldn’t go so far as to say that he and I share a common destiny, but we are important companions.

The winds of destiny, which I have not felt at all since I came to Odine, are now blowing with great force.

Unable to control my heart pounding in my chest, I lit the forge furnace.

Because first and foremost, I am so happy to be able to work in this forge that even feels nostalgic.

“Well then, I’m thinking of hitting something right away, but what’s good? Kauschman, how far have you learned? What do you want to learn from?”

I put the charcoal I bought at the blacksmith union into the furnace and watch for the mood of the spirit of fire.

The fire spirit, who had been sleeping without a fire to dwell in for a long, long time, made a great big yawn.

The surrounding air is sucked into the furnace, and the fire becomes stronger.

The atmosphere in the forge changed dramatically when the furnace was set on fire.

Yes, just as the spirit of fire was awakened, so did the forge.

Slowly, the heat emanates and fills the room.

Kauschman narrowed his eyes at the appearance of such a forge,

“Ah, no…… anything, anything is fine. Right now, I just want to hear the sound of steel being struck.”

What a nice answer to my question.

He must have loved his Dwarf mentor for magic.

Well, I like my shitty dwarf master even more than he does.

No, yeah, rather than that kind of thing, what should I strike.

“I agree. ……Then, first of all, yeah, I’m going to strike the magic sword eventually, so let’s start with a sword.”

Kauschman’s eyes lit up at my words.

Just like a boy.

I can understand what he wants to say, as if he can take it in my hand.

And that feeling is by no means unpleasant at all.

I am a blacksmith, Kauschman is a magician, and we are both birds with only one wing each.

Before the goal of creating a magic sword, we had to fly in cooperation with each other.

Yes, at least until they get the other’s technology and become both wings of the team and aim for our own goals on our own and no longer need each other.

And surely then we can be friends with each other.

From the next day on, I spend my mornings learning magic from Kauschman.

The first step is to interfere with the magic power in my own body.

If I can’t do this, no matter how much I learn magic, it would be useless, since I won’t even be able to handle magic tools.

But I’ve already experienced that feeling once, during the aptitude test.

If I try to reproduce it while remembering that, interfering with the magic power inside my body won’t be that difficult.

However, even after passing the aptitude test, it seems that there are many apprentices who stumble and take their time here, and Kauschman used to be one of them, and his eyes are a little complicated when he sees me who cleared it without any trouble.

Well, I can’t help it.

Maybe before I say anything about me, High Elves are such unreasonable creatures.

As for the differences between races, unless you are a god-like being, you can’t do anything about it.

By the way, once you have grasped the sensation of interfering with magic and pushing it out of the body, all you have to do is learn the technique.

Then, speaking of what a technique is, it represents all the elements that affect magic power.

Depending on the words, will, patterns, etc., the magic can be affected and altered, or attributes can be added.

All of these things are called techniques.

Err, for example, if one emits magic power with feelings of anger, the person who receives it will feel something like pressure.

Unless you’re a magician or someone who is naturally sensitive to magic power, you won’t notice it when you’re bathed in it.

However, by adding a technique of anger to it, it was possible to apply a slight amount of physical pressure.

Of course, there are many things other than emotions that can be used as a technique, such as the words one utters and the patterns engraved on objects.

Magicians examine the effects of these and other techniques on magic, analyze the laws, record and accumulate them, and combine them to create magic.

In other words, magic was a technique that was a crystallization of the accumulated efforts of the magicians who had gone before them.

I can see why magicians dislike the art of spiritism, which is more effective than magic simply because it allows us to talk to spirits that we are born with.

From their point of view, the elves who can borrow the power of the spirits would only look like cheaters.

“But it’s like how I envy birds that can fly. It’s like saying I’m jealous of dragons that can breathe fire. You don’t care about such petty jealousy. If you want to learn magic and you have the aptitude for it, then you can learn magic.”

Kauschman told me this as he taught me the technique of making my magic power heat up, both using words and patterns.

He is willing to disclose his knowledge to me.

Yes, in the end, it was nothing more than a difference between races.

Something that no one can do anything about.

Then I don’t have to worry about it at all.

I became enthusiastic with Kauschman all over again.

We took turns teaching each other blacksmithing and magic, while at the same time discussing what kind of magic sword would be ideal.

Pursuing the true nature of the sword, the ideal would be a magic sword with enhanced sharpness.

Or is it the feel of the strength of the magic sword that is sturdy, hard to break, and follows its owner without deteriorating.

Or the fascination with the flashiness of a magic sword that emits flames.

We innocently talked about such childish fantasies without getting bored.

Because, yes, we’re boys.

We can’t help but like, and love such a weapon full of romance.