am-books Chapter 91: The Holy Sword, and the Oath (7)
Chapter 91: The Holy Sword, and the Oath (7)
chapter 91: the holy sword, and the oath (7)
chapter 91: the holy sword, and the oath (7)
“w-wait a moment! just hear me out!”
‘quick as ever to read the room.’
realizing the opponent in front of him wasn’t someone he could possibly defeat, rob shouted desperately.
lucy turned to look at me.
her eyes seemed to ask, what should we do?
i hesitated for a moment... and then nodded.
we could spare a moment to hear an excuse. it wouldn’t hurt to listen to whatever he had to say.
“there’s a dragon there, sure, but there’s also a mana vein!”
rob exclaimed, looking like he might die from the injustice of it all.
“adamantium is a mineral that forms because of the mana that seeps from ancient dragons in the first place!”
he pounded his chest as if to vent his frustration, trying to make his case.
rob even went as far as invoking a mana oath to prove his innocence.
at this point, there was only one thing i could say.
“i see. it seems i was mistaken.”
certainly, i had been mistaken about one thing regarding rob.
“r-right?”
relieved at my words, rob deactivated his defensive artifact.
i smiled and spoke to him.
“not just your forging skills but your talent for lying has grown immensely as well.”
that habit of trying to fleece clients hadn’t changed in ten years. but judging by this performance, it seemed he’d only gotten better.
“if it weren’t for me, anyone else would’ve fallen for your trick.”
sure, there’s likely adamantium there.
after all, rob had staked a mana oath on it, and it aligned with the lore i remembered.
but... even if it was there, claiming it could repair the holy sword was complete nonsense.
the holy sword was made entirely of mysticism.
mysticism—the kind found in artifacts—was its sole component.
no matter how excellent adamantium was as a material, to a sword composed purely of mysticism, it was nothing more than an impurity.
and there was no way rob, who had managed to partially repair the holy sword, wouldn’t know this.
‘indeed, a clever one is a clever one.’
a mana oath was no light matter.
in this world, the only people who knew the material of the holy sword were me and that dwarf.
most people would’ve fallen for rob’s act.
his lie was incredibly convincing.
if his client were devoured by the dragon? he’d keep this rare-looking sword for himself.
if they succeeded in bringing back adamantium? he’d pocket the valuable metal, claim the repair failed, and wash his hands of the matter.
either way, rob would profit handsomely.
it was no wonder he’d grown wealthy enough to own a mansion like this.
“sir... i think there’s been some misunderstanding.”
“a misunderstanding, you say.”
but alas for rob.
this was someone who had sunk over 5,000 hours into bone and blood.
trying to scam someone like me with in-game lore was a doomed endeavor from the start.
i signaled lucy.
immediately, she drew her sword and aimed it at rob with a chilling glare.
“i-i’m really innocent! what evidence do you have to accuse me of being a con artist? miss, please, put the sword away!”
...honestly, this guy is something else.
even going so far as to squeeze out fake tears.
the commotion finally settled down, and i left the blacksmith district, my steps carrying me forward.
‘i wonder if lucy is managing all right.’
riding a train back to the mansion with over a hundred dwarves in tow...
it was practically a confession that we were the culprits behind the mass disappearance of dwarves.
under lucy’s guidance, the dwarves were being sent to the encampment of the aspiring recruits for the black fangs.
they were likely moving discreetly at this very moment to avoid being seen.
with everything except the holy sword entrusted to her, i walked the streets alone, my mind inevitably drifting to countless random thoughts.
‘...this wasn’t what i came here for, was it?’
my original purpose was simply to retrieve something i’d commissioned.
but somehow, i ended up with over a hundred dwarf slaves, an absurd amount of gold coins, and three priceless artifacts.
it wasn’t just theft...
no, calling it simple theft would be an understatement—it was as if i’d stripped an entire village bare.
not just their possessions, but the residents themselves, plundered down to the last detail. even a legendary thief would be hard-pressed to match this scale.
the fact that all of this happened somehow was enough to leave my head spinning.
as i trudged forward with a complicated mix of emotions, i found myself standing near the station for the mana train.
‘come to think of it, this is a problem too.’
lucy, a noble, had left to escort the dwarves to their encampment. boarding the mana train was out of the question for her.
flying back to the mansion would be quicker, but it would also draw too much attention—practically begging the empire to issue a bounty on me.
it seemed i’d have to take the long way and walk.
that was my plan until i passed by the station and felt it.
“...?”
how to describe it?
a peculiar sense of urgency washed over me—a feeling that i needed to return to the mansion immediately.
the whispering earring had activated.
after a moment of hesitation, i sprinted toward the mana train station.
dressed in fine clothes that clearly set me apart from commoners, no one stopped me as i moved through the station.
before long, i spotted a familiar face.
“ah! it’s you, the one who dealt with that terrorist this morning...”
it was the conductor from before—the one who’d promised to remember me and help if i ever needed it.
i approached him, fabricating an appropriate story to request his assistance.
thankfully, his offer of help hadn’t been just empty words.
he allowed me to board the mana train as a staff member.
‘is all this really necessary?’
the thought briefly crossed my mind.
sure, taking the train was faster and more convenient than walking, but this was a risky move.
if the conductor hadn’t been so accommodating, i might’ve ended up arrested.
acting purely on intuition like this seemed a bit excessive when viewed rationally.
still... i shook the doubt from my mind.
the whispering earring’s accuracy had always been a bit unpredictable, but even without it, my instincts were screaming at me.
something was wrong.
something was very wrong.
before long, the mana train arrived at its destination.
after thanking the conductor, i exited the station and dashed toward the mansion as fast as i could.
i prayed that, as usual, my intuition was off the mark.
but the sight that greeted me was...
“...”
the front gates of miss rubia mansion—smashed and half-destroyed, as if by some tremendous force.
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