Excluding Brondin, who insisted on guarding the workshop, the other three of us—me, Da-eun, and Ashie—set out from the workshop.
I was unintentionally dragged along by Da-eun, and as we walked down the street, she filled me in on the events that led to our departure.
After hearing the story, I couldn’t help but feel incredulous.
“…You gave an extra key to the magic engineer you partnered with?”
…Why?
“They said it was inconvenient to let them in every time, and that there could be times when they’d need to stop by the workshop when you weren’t around.”
“Master believed that magician.”
“Oh, I see.”
“…You can accept that so easily?”
“Why not?”
Considering the Dwarves’ personalities, it almost seemed natural.
“Dwarves generally don’t trust others, but once they do, they trust them to the end.”
“Huh? Really? That’s unexpected…I thought they’d be easy to befriend.”
“Just because you’re close doesn’t mean there’s trust.”
“Is that…so?”
Da-eun tilted her head, clearly not understanding, so I decided to give her a light explanation.
“When Dwarves say ‘trust’, they don’t just mean believing. It’s something deeper… umm…”
As I pondered over the right word, Da-eun was quicker to find it.
“Is it closer to trust or loyalty than what ordinary people call belief?”
“Yeah, loyalty.”
There might be individual differences, but Dwarves are generally hearty and boisterous.
Additionally, as I mentioned before, they have a personality that keeps faith with someone they trust until the end.
For this reason, some people use the term ‘true friend’ to describe Dwarves.
‘Wow, that friend is truly a gem.’ That kind of feeling.
For Dwarves, loyalty is as crucial as life itself, so even if they are betrayed, they wouldn’t turn their backs unless it was truly a severe situation.
Not suspecting Ashie, who was a strong candidate for the culprit, probably stemmed from this trait.
“Oh… so that’s why Brondin was hesitant to mention it. He thinks it’s an act of betrayal.”
“Probably.”
“Separate from that, I didn’t like that magician guy.”
“Why?”
“The atmosphere was off. His impression was also not good.”
“…I’ve heard that somewhere before.”
I caught a glimpse of Da-eun muttering to herself about “Those experts in physiognomy who pop up whenever an incident occurs?” and turned to Ashie.
“Tell me more.”
Atmosphere and impression are ultimately subjective.
Since they aren’t proven scientifically or magically, I could have brushed it off, but I didn’t dismiss his words.
Even if he had questionable tastes and was half out of his mind due to the fall of his homeland…
Hmm, thinking that way suddenly lowers my trust level.
…Anyway, if it were someone else, it might have been different, but since Ashie said it, it was worth looking into.
When he was a prince, Ashie’s judgment was renowned.
Everyone around him was someone he personally selected, all individuals of exceptional ability.
Therefore, there were often nobles or royals trying to solicit them with flattery…
But nobody fell for it, swearing, ‘I’ll follow Ashie for the rest of my life’ as they rejected the advances.
“He always has a smile, but there’s this feeling that behind that smiling face is something else going on. It just didn’t feel good. But that’s just my feeling, so take it lightly.”
“Hmm….”
The problem is, no matter how close to 100% Ashie’s judgment might be, it ultimately relies on feelings, so there’s no solid proof to convince others.
That’s why Ashie tells me to take it lightly.
“No. I believe you.”
But I shook my head.
“Because you said it.”
It’s not hard to keep in mind; I can manage that much.
As I spoke lightly, I suddenly noticed that the surroundings had become quiet and looked up.
Da-eun and Ashie had stopped walking, staring at me intently.
“…What?”
Do I have something on my face?
Confused by the glaring looks, Ashie sighed deeply.
“…This is why I can’t let go of the past.”
“…?”
“Kana, you shouldn’t say things like that so carelessly. It could be misunderstood.”
“…???”
…What does that mean?
Stuck between the sighing Ashie and the gently stroking Da-eun, I kept asking what it was, but they didn’t seem inclined to answer.
What in the world…?
*
Kana unintentionally put Ashie in a stunned state, but the group successfully arrived at the workshop of the magician that Brondin had partnered with.
Objectively speaking, “successfully” wasn’t entirely accurate because it was not a very dangerous situation.
However, to someone who couldn’t let go of their attachment after achieving a 2nd confession, it might well be appropriate to use that term.
Max’s workshop.
Da-eun observed the unembellished sign that simply stated its purpose.
“I guess the magician’s name is Max?”
“That’s right. Max Gramoff. A man from the Arka Empire’s nobility.”
“Empire?”
Her ears perked up.
“Empire… magician…?”
It’s a voice that anyone could find cute, but why does it send chills down my spine?
‘…Well, I already know the reason.’
Ashie smirked.
Garid and Ashie had a good relationship.
Garid was blindly devoted to Grasis, and Ashie held his abilities in high regard, so there was no reason for them to be on bad terms.
Things only started to get complicated when Ashie began to take an interest in Kana.
Fathers with daughters desire their kids to find good partners and be happy, but at the same time, they can’t help but want to keep them close.
As a result, the relationship became delicate from the time Ashie began courting Kana, but they never doubted each other’s abilities.
It was simply that Ashie felt flustered by Garid, who viewed him as a “thief who wants to steal his daughter.”
For this reason, Ashie could fully understand the feelings Kana would experience when Garid died.
Though perhaps not to the same extent as Kana, Ashie was also filled with a sense of regret.
Additionally, he also shared the same negative sentiments towards the Empire.
“If there’s a sword fight here, it won’t end well for anyone.”
“I know.”
Kana responded grumpily.
What a reliable answer, thought Ashie.
Da-eun, looking at Kana with concern, shifted her gaze.
“But really, is it necessary to open a separate workshop? If you’ve partnered, couldn’t you just work in the same one? It might be better financially and in terms of convenience.”
With concerns about land prices and such, Da-eun worried about the financial matters of a stranger she had never met.
However, her statement was misguided.
“Collaboration and merger are different. Even if you have a partnership, the work you’re doing is distinctly different, so how could you work in the same workshop?”
“…Ah?”
“And if you do that, the magicians wouldn’t last long.”
After all day of banging sounds, people sometimes get on edge.
Even Ashie, who had begun to get accustomed to blacksmith work, could easily imagine how the noise would affect the mages, who are typically more sensitive to their surroundings.
Having a workshop blown up while engraving a magic circle is unwelcome for both blacksmiths and magicians.
And for Ashie, who is a blacksmith’s apprentice, it’s an unthinkable scenario.
No more chit-chat; Ashie, who was familiar even if they weren’t close, stepped forward and knocked on the door.
Knock knock.
“Is anyone there?”
The wooden door shook slightly at his knock, but there wasn’t a single sound from inside.
There was no voice asking who it was, nor were there any footsteps approaching the door.
After a moment of listening, Ashie knocked again.
“Max, it’s me. I’m Ashie, Brondin’s apprentice.”
“Uh? You’re using a pseudonym?”
“Yeah… better to avoid troublesome situations.”
Upon catching on to Da-eun’s intention, he shrugged.
Perhaps it wouldn’t have been much of an issue if he used his real name.
It’s not something easy to imagine that a former prince of a nation is now working as a blacksmith.
But just in case, Ashie decided to only reveal his real name to Brondin but use a pseudonym with everyone else.
“Isn’t that too similar?”
“If someone can recognize me, I’m sure they’ll recognize me no matter what name I use. If they’re going to recognize me, it’s better to just use a familiar name.”
Is that so?
With the persuasive words, Da-eun tilted her head in understanding and withdrew.
“By the way, why aren’t they coming?”
The knocking sounds changed from gentle taps to loud bangs, to a point where I couldn’t even tell if he was knocking or just hitting the door.
A bead of sweat trickled down Ashie’s forehead as his lips, tightly clenched, turned pale.
As Kana stepped forward, she said, “Should I break it down?”
“No.”
“….”
Her firm refusal made Kana sulk as she stepped back.
Seeing her hand go toward the sword sheath made it clear she wasn’t joking; Da-eun hugged her tightly from behind.
It was a mix of wanting to feed her curiosity and wanting to prevent her from doing something reckless.
Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, the tightly shut door remained unbroken and unopened.
Panting and backing away, Ashie had been defeated by something that wasn’t even a dimensional creature or monster.
But it wasn’t without results.
“…Hey, why the heck are you banging on someone else’s workshop door so loudly? If the door is closed, you should just leave quietly.”
The wizard from next door couldn’t take it anymore and burst out.
At the same time, the three heads turned sharply toward him, and the wizard found himself being scrutinized by three sets of eyes.
“What… what is it? Did I say something I shouldn’t have…?”
Although he tried to act tough, his voice was already losing strength.
As Ashie stood in front of him, his voice wavered to a whisper.
With the average-sized wizard standing before the much taller Ashie, it almost felt like a thug was demanding money.
“Do you know Max?”
“W-well, I do know him….”
“I’m Ashie, Brondin’s apprentice who has a partnership with Max. I came to see him, but the door is closed. Do you know where he might be?”
“I don’t know. I’m not really that close with him.”
“Even so, don’t you have any leads?”
“Well….”
As soon as the wizard sensed Ashie had no intention to threaten him, his demeanor changed immediately.
The uninterested reply he gave previously turned more cordial as he looked at Ashie.
The wizard reluctantly replied, his voice gradually softening.
“Uh, let’s see… oh! I did see him last night with a big bag. He seemed kind of rushed, but I didn’t ask where he was headed since we’re not that close.”
“Do you remember which way he was going?”
“…Not sure.”
“How about this.”
Ping!
Ashie flicked a gold coin out with his fingers.
The wizard’s eyes widened as if they were about to pop out.
He gulped.
“If you help me find him, I will give you all this gold.”
Will you help me?
His answer, of course, was affirmative.
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