Shining in my hand was a red jewel that I don’t remember taking out. Although I was puzzled by its obviously out-of-place presence, I had no doubt that it had been in my [Stranger’s Box].
That’s right. In most worlds, language and money were still usable, but in worlds where barter was preferable, or to prove that I have a lot of money, I have a number of precious metals and gems tucked away in my [Stranger’s Box].
Moreover, this gem looked vaguely familiar, so I’m guessing it’s not something that Tia, who recently learned [Single Bank] put in there, but something I bought in some other world. How it ended up rolling around here, I wonder, …… did it get caught in a brick or something?
“Oh well. Hey Tia ….”
It’s a reasonably sized gem, so it would be a shame to leave it lying around and lose or destroy it. Then I turned around to quickly put it away in the [Stranger’s Box] and I hastily stopped myself from saying anything when I saw Tia sleeping peacefully.
Well, even if you don’t get sleepy, it doesn’t mean you can’t sleep. …… I’ll probably have to keep Tia here for my own reasons, so it’s simply good news that he has so many ways to pass the time.
“If that’s the way it’s going to be, I guess I’ll do it as quietly as possible.”
I shoved the jewelry in my hand into the bag at my waist and resumed bricklaying. After spending about an hour preparing the furnace, the next step was refining.
This time, however, refining was in name only, and the purchased iron ingots were directly melted down for use. If one is concerned about quality, one should do it oneself from the ore refining stage, but ingots bought in miner’s towns were usually of high quality, so …. it’s rather better to use this one if I don’t use [Master Smith]…. as it is.
“Fufufu, it’s in good shape.”
After checking for heat leakage and melting of the steel, I nodded in satisfaction. From here on, it’s the forging process, so it won’t exactly be quiet. … Is it better to wake her up beforehand rather than startle her with a big noise?
“Hey Tia, wake up”
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“Unn,…, Ed. Good morning.”
“Good morning ……, Well, I don’t know if it’s morning or not.”
“Hmm? Oh, yeah.”
Tia’s face, which had been sleepy for a moment, quickly cleared up. The ears, which had been drooping slightly, were now stretched out, a sign that she was fully awake.
“Wow, it feels strange…..I was not particularly sleepy, but when I lay down and closed my eyes, I fell asleep, and the moment I realized that I was awake, I lost all sleepiness.”
“Heh, that’s how it feels. Besides, I’m going to start forging now, so it’s going to be a little noisy.”
“Nah, it’s fine. Good luck.”
“Ye!”
Turning my face back from Tia, who was sitting on the bed, smiling and waving, I switched my attention to the forge and began to work. I haven’t used [One Heart Engage] so all I had now was this one arm that I trained under my … master.
Then that is exactly what I will do with all my strength. I read the flames, faced the iron, swung the hammer, and questioned my five senses and experience about what [Master Smith] would tell me if I used it. I identified the slight errors I made, that would not have occurred if I had used my skills, and swung the hammer down with more skill and force than before in order to return it to its proper alignment.
Hit, Fix, Alter, Pile, and finally, when it was all finished, Tia’s voice came from behind me.
“Are you done?”
“Yes, that’s it. What do you think?”
Looking back at Tia with the newly made sword in my hand, Tia, who was staring hard, tilted her head slightly and said.
“Hmm… normal?”
“Hahaha, right?”
I chuckled at her honest impression. Yeah, I guess that’s it. This is my real skill. Of course, if I were to start with proper preparation, I could make a better sword than this, but I was still a long way from being a real blacksmith like my master.
But that’s okay. It was enough for now that I was able to strike a sword that was neither excessively praised nor mercilessly dismissed, and that someone … would pay for and judge it worthy of entrusting their lives to it for a fee.
“Oooh, now that I’ve got some closure on things, it’s time to move on!”
“Oh, you’re done? I’m still fine, okay?”
“It’s okay. It’s not very good to get too deep all of a sudden, and this is, well, it’s like a … break.”
My Master’s teachings were firmly alive in me. The sword I forged was a good sword, if not a great one. It was a great confirmation of this, but I was a little short-handed to continue.
“Maybe I should get the right minerals and ores before I continue forging. I want a little more practice.”
My [Stranger Box] contains dark night stones and sunshine stones given to me by my master, as well as pure mithril lumps that I obtained in the first world.
However, it was difficult to purchase large quantities of metal. If the quantity bought did not match the quantity made, the government would suspect that I was smuggling weapons, so I could not do anything reckless in the previous world.
It was possible to buy new armor and immediately melt it down and turn it into material as a subterfuge, but this was an insult to the craftsmen who made them and I would not want to do it unless I was in a situation where I had to.
“Whether it’s a noble or an outlaw, as long as I get a hero it should be resolved nicely.”
“That’s a great choice. … I’m not saying never, but don’t do anything too reckless, okay?”
“Don’t look at me like that. I’m not going to do anything reckless. We’ve been through this before, haven’t we?”
“Well, that’s true.”
I’m not going to do anything that would make my master or the guys I’ve met so far embarrassed, and I’m not going to do anything that would make Tia sad. We may get a little bit of attention from the state authorities, but I’m not going to do anything wrong, just something suspicious that would draw their attention.
“So, let’s go.”
“Yes yes. Ah, my dear Bed-chan. Please wait until my next return.”
I stood in front of the next door, hand in hand with Tia, smiling as she left the bed regretfully. We put our hands on the knob of the door, which was inscribed with the number 007, and it turned around without any resistance.
“If you’re that reluctant to leave, how about we go get some more sleep before we go?”
“Ugh. …… that’s a tempting suggestion, but I’m afraid it would make it less special. Since I’ve just bought a luxury bed, I’d like to look forward to enjoying it for a longer time.”
“I see. Surely a bed where you only sleep once every six months is pretty special.”
“Right! I’m a genius after all, to be able to look forward to going to the next world and coming back from it!”
“Yes. Tia is a genius.”
“…… I feel like I’m being made fun of again, just a little bit.”
“It’s just your imagination.”
Our bodies disappeared behind the glowing door as we exchanged idle chit-chat. Now, let’s see which world will be the next one, and hope for Tia-sense’s great luck…..Ah, I’ve opened it….