Chapter 15:  Sword War (3)

“Personal gain, you say… Strictly speaking, it isn’t.”

I clasped my hands behind my back and looked at the dozens of swords on display.

Tapping one of them lightly with my finger, I spoke.

“The order I received was only to help Master Schmidt craft a sword superior to the Western Grand Duke’s House.”

The half-dwarf, meeting my gaze, unconsciously swallowed hard.

As if someone’s face flickered across my own.

“This blueprint was designed by me personally. It’s my intellectual property, wholly unrelated to the Grand Duke’s House.”

I laid the blueprint down on the round table with confidence.

Then, in a voice full of certainty, I began.

“You don’t need to worry about profit distribution. I will only take a 70-30 split from this contract.”

“Only 30…?”

On the surface, it sounded like terms absurdly unfavorable to me.

But if I rashly proposed a 50-50 share and he reported it to Chief Secretary Debier with a negative impression, the consequences would be much more serious.

All I needed now was just enough capital to lay the foundation for my business.

“Yes, I respect the master that much.”

Schmidt folded his arms across his chest, as though suspicious of my confident attitude and unconventional terms.

However, perhaps understanding my intentions, he lifted his thick lips in a slight smirk.

“You’re only asking for a little because you’re worried I might tattle to Debier. Since you’re helping me, you figure you might as well pick up some crumbs while you’re at it.”

I gave the dwarf, whose pointed ears twitched, a sly smile.

“In any case, both sides profit from this, don’t we?”

Schmidt stared straight into my lifeless eyes, then showed a bright smile full of white teeth.

After that, folding his arms alone, he exclaimed.

“I kept wondering who you reminded me of—so it’s Debier in his younger days…! Back then, he was always careful to secure his share as well.”

The dwarf seemed to think he saw a trace of the Chief Secretary in me.

Considering that I had been the Chief Secretary in my previous life, he had quite a good intuition.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Indeed. If this blueprint truly comes from your own knowledge, you’re certainly qualified.”

Perhaps because I had named such a modest amount from the start,

The middle-aged dwarf signed the contract without hesitation.

“And you’ve even been humble about the sum you wanted.”

“I’m truly glad you see it in such a positive light.”

Afterward, the workshop chimney belched thick smoke for the first time in a long while.

The smoke was dense enough to be seen from far away.

Even from the carriage of the Western Grand Duke’s House, waiting behind the workshop.

“Hm—.”

Helena opened the window, savoring her tea.

She gazed steadily at the smoke rising vigorously from Schmidt’s workshop.

“My lady, it seems the master has begun his work,”

The Western knight sitting in the coachman’s seat said in a satisfied voice.

However, the Grand Duke’s daughter shook her head firmly.

“No, that isn’t the sword I ordered. The heat from the forge is much stronger than usual.”

Helena studied the workshop’s unusually vigorous smoke with keen attention.

Then, her blue eyes, resembling those of a predator, opened wide.

“Don’t tell me that candidate secretary actually persuaded the dwarf.”

The Grand Duke’s daughter let out a short, incredulous laugh at the idea that a mere secretary candidate had moved the stubborn dwarf.

Then, stepping briskly down from the carriage, she spoke to the knight.

“I need to get down and see for myself. Just what sort of sword are they making?”

「――――――」

The smoke from the workshop was so dense it could be seen even from Nord Academy.

Even Debier, standing at the academy entrance, had noticed it.

“Chief Secretary, what are you looking at?”

Echina, the Grand Duke’s daughter of the North, dressed in a white uniform, asked as she spoke with him.

Debier gave a slight laugh and shook his head.

“It’s nothing.”

Echina blinked her eyes slowly at the rare change in the Chief Secretary’s expression.

In that moment, she looked like a black cat whose round eyes had widened.

“It seems I’ve found a rather interesting talent.”

Debier glanced down at his spare wristwatch.

Then, confirming that it was already noon, he prepared to leave.

“It’s about time I returned.”

“You’re going to Master Schmidt’s workshop, aren’t you?”

Echina spoke, hands clasped behind her back, to the Chief Secretary heading toward the carriage.

At that, Debier turned his head slightly, leaving her with a meaningful remark.

“Yes, because he has picked up the hammer again.”

“Is that so…? That’s good news. As it happens, the edge of my sword is quite worn down.”

Echina lightly brushed her fitted skirt with the back of her hand.

Then, gracefully sweeping back her black hair fluttering in the wind, she spoke.

“I’ll come with you.”

The two Grand Duke’s daughters of the Empire converged on a single place.

To the workshop of the master craftsman, filled with scorching heat.

――――――

The forge located behind the workshop.

A black carriage arrived at the place where hot air billowed from the chimney.

“Master Schmidt has truly begun working again…!”

Military boots and black stockings stepped lightly on the carriage steps.

The Grand Duke’s daughter of the North pushed her beautiful black hair behind her ear as she moved through the crowd.

Kaang―――. Kaang―――!!

From the Luton workshop rang out crisp, resounding strikes of metal.

At the source of that sound stood Schmidt, the master swordsmith, sweating profusely in front of the furnace.

With one hand, he gripped the blade firmly with tongs.

With his other thick, powerful hand, he struck the steel with a hammer.

He looked as imposing as a blacksmith out of legend.

And next to him stood a man calmly serving as his assistant.

In that workshop where it was almost impossible to keep one’s eyes open, he quietly held the blueprint and helped without complaint.

At the sight, Echina softly furrowed her graceful brow and murmured under her breath.

“Julius Roger…?”

“Yes, I brought him along for today’s inspection.”

Standing side by side with the Grand Duke’s daughter, Debier answered her muttering.

“He said he personally persuaded Master Schmidt and intends to craft a sword rivaling the Western Grand Duke’s House.”

“Why go out of his way to choose such a difficult task? I heard Schmidt’s passion had already run dry.”

At the second daughter’s words, Debier gently stroked his sharp chin.

Then, wearing a serious expression like an eagle surveying all things from the sky, he spoke.

“Someone who picks and chooses when to seize an opportunity isn’t the kind of talent the Grand Duke’s House needs.”

Echina’s black hair swayed faintly in the workshop’s hot air.

Resembling the Grand Duke’s handsome features, she stood with her arms crossed, silently observing this rare scene.

“It’s finally finished…!”

The craftsman, drenched in sweat, emerged carrying ten completed swords.

To have forged such a number of swords just in the morning—

Even Debier frowned, thinking it was absurd.

“Ah, Chief Secretary. You came at the perfect time!”

Schmidt called out in his characteristic hearty dwarf voice.

Then, as if to show off, he handed the Chief Secretary a single black sword.

“This is the newly reborn ‘Luton Sword’…!”

Debier and Echina received the sword that appeared before their eyes, wearing stunned expressions.

For now, hearing that Schmidt had rekindled his passion for blades, they decided to trust and watch.

“This is…”

The Chief Secretary pulled a monocle from his inner pocket and set it against his eye.

He slowly inspected the sword, then tilted his head, looking puzzled.

“Isn’t this just the same sword as before, with the blade further thinned?”

“You’ve grown old, haven’t you? Your eye for detail isn’t what it used to be.”

Schmidt chuckled, folding his arms across his chest.

“Look carefully at the pommel at the end of the hilt.”

As the master instructed, Debier looked at the counterweight attached to the end of the sword.

The last time he’d seen it, it was a plain iron orb, but this time it was different.

It had been carved from Julmano stone into the roaring head of a ‘Black Lion.’

“This was the most splendor I was willing to allow. It doesn’t compromise the performance of the blade, and it’s suitably elegant.”

“……”

The Chief Secretary silently studied the sword—a simple bastard sword whose pommel alone had been transformed into a black lion.

Indeed, through the hands of Schmidt the swordsmith, the Black Lion’s head had been beautifully sculpted.

Whoever designed it had achieved something truly graceful and dignified.

However, it was still uncertain whether this alone was enough of an innovation to overturn the current order.

“It certainly is improved, but I’m not yet convinced it can rival the Leonil Sword.”

Raising his monocle, Debier.

With a somewhat disappointed expression, he handed the Luton Sword to me as I followed behind.

“It’s not as if you reforged it anew—it’s just an old failure with a bit of decoration added on.”

He wasn’t wrong.

If they had truly re-smelted every blade from scratch, even a dwarf master would have needed several days.

However.

Debier still did not know the true worth of the new Luton Sword.

“No, Chief Secretary.”

I dared to contradict him.

Opening my mouth with the same lifeless black eyes that so resembled his own.

“To the eye, it may not look like there’s much difference. But the greatest strength of this sword lies elsewhere.”

The moment a mere twenty-year-old candidate voiced an objection, not only Echina but every worker in the workshop turned their attention to me.

Bolstered by their stares, I confidently strapped the Luton Sword to my waist.

A thin cross-guard and hilt made of ordinary steel.

At a glance, it seemed so plain it could have been a practice greatsword.

“It certainly looks like the sort of design students might carry.”

“It’s too unremarkable.”

The reactions of the master and the staff were indifferent.

As though they were looking at an ordinary student’s sword.

But.

The moment I paused and folded my arms alone,

The part of the hilt that had been hidden behind my arm finally came into view.

“Wait a moment.”

Echina raised her sharp eyes, fierce as a black lion.

The Chief Secretary also adjusted his monocle to examine the conspicuous area more closely.

The pommel embedded at the end of the hilt.

There, the proud head of the Black Lion rose boldly, drawing every gaze.

“It’s better than I expected, Debier.”

The Grand Duke’s daughter of the North immediately recognized the sword’s value.

Seeing how sharp her eye was, I allowed a small smile to play at my lips.

“Indeed, it does feel different when you actually wear it.”

Even Debier, who would acknowledge what deserved it, responded in his flat voice.

“It’s true—in these times, swords spend more time sheathed than drawn.”

I looked at the Grand Duke’s retainers as I continued my explanation.

Gripping the scabbard of the Luton Sword, I lifted it for all to see.

“In those moments, the first thing that catches the eye is the hilt—and second, this pommel.”

I angled the end of the hilt toward everyone, making sure they could see it clearly.

The Black Lion, symbolizing the Luton family, let out a silent, powerful roar.

“If the hilt is too ornate, it interferes with performance. In contrast, as long as the pommel maintains the proper weight, there’s no real drawback.”

Most of the families whose children attend the long-established academy value ‘honor’ over mere ostentation.

To people like them, something understated like this would be far more appealing than a gaudy lion carved across the entire sword.

“Adults may care about the design, but any parent with a child will always look at performance first.”

I humbly drew the Luton Sword.

Raising the blade, honed razor-sharp by the master’s hand, up before my face, I added.

“And so, naturally, all their children will end up using the Luton Sword.”

Schmidt leaned back against the wall with a satisfied expression.

I folded my arms alone and let out a long breath.

“When they grow up and become officers, they’ll choose the same brand.”

The other craftsmen exchanged glances and nodded silently, as if in agreement.

“There’s certainly logic in that…”

In the midst of this atmosphere, Echina studied the Luton Sword with a serious expression.

It looked as though she were imagining the day when the Luton Sword would be all the rage at the Academy.

But.

Someone appeared to shatter her concentration.

“An interesting idea.”

Elegant footsteps in heels echoed from the back of the workshop.

Then emerged the Western Grand Duke’s daughter, Helena, now dressed in platinum leggings and a blouse.

“Refining such a plain design to target Academy students instead—I must say, it’s an excellent alternative.”

At the arrival of the Western Grand Duke’s daughter, the workshop staff parted before her like the sea.

Having shed her uncomfortable dress, she approached me without hesitation.

“But it seems you’re already too late.”

Within Helena’s golden eyelids, her blue eyes glinted sharply.

Her gaze was directed past me, toward Debier, who had returned from the Academy.

“The Chief Secretary must have seen it, too. Just how many of the knights at Nord Academy are already wearing a different sword.”

The Chief Secretary gave no reply to her question.

He simply clasped his hands behind his back, maintaining a blank expression.

“Already three out of ten students wear the Leonil Sword. And before long, once word spreads, that number will rise to four.”

A golden lion badge was fastened to the front of Helena’s taut blouse.

She proudly tapped that emblem as she continued.

“The students have already come to understand what ‘refined elegance’ really means.”

Standing before the now silent Schmidt workshop, Helena looked slowly around at everyone.

Even though the crowd on all sides belonged to the Luton family, she showed not the slightest sign of intimidation.

Like a golden lioness strolling unchallenged through the territory of another beast, she stood tall.

“Well, Julius—your proposal was very impressive. Enough that I can hardly believe you’re only a candidate secretary.”

The Western Grand Duke’s daughter folded her arms.

“If we had someone with your talents in the West, I would have made you a full employee immediately.”

Helena stepped closer to me.

Her blue eyes, like a tranquil lake, gazed steadily up at mine.

“This petty label—‘candidate’—it feels like judging a person as if they were merchandise. Don’t you think?”

At her handsome face drawing so near, I swallowed hard.

I suddenly understood why Helena’s house supported her so fervently.

She knew exactly how to win over people’s hearts.

“I could make such ability truly worthwhile.”

The Grand Duke’s daughter reached out a finger to the collar of my wrinkled dress shirt.

Just as she was about to gently smooth the creased fabric—

“What do you think you’re doing?”

In an instant, Echina, who had been standing at a distance, closed in on us.

“How dare you show such impropriety before one of my subordinates, Helena Grand Duke’s daughter.”

From within Echina’s black hair, her golden eyes flashed with a chilling light.

The two women stood before me, staring each other down with cold, cutting gazes.

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