Chapter 24
Blew Through Our Activity Funds (2)
"Nice to see you, Winter."
"Ah, hello."
"You're just as adorable today, too."
"Th-th-thank youuu!"
Winter answered as if screaming. The Vice-Commander was briefly startled, then smiled with satisfaction.
I couldn’t say I didn’t understand how Winter felt. The title of Vice-Commander of the Imperial Knight Order was quite high-ranking. It was only because she approached us without hesitation that we could treat her comfortably now.
Normally, even speaking a single word to her would be a highly political matter. Knowing this, Winter felt both overwheld and honored.
"Is this setup really right...?"
"Since it’s co to this, do you want to get a weapon too?"
"Huh? But I'm in the Divine Departnt..."
"Is that so? I guess I’ll have to tell Bereninche."
"A spear! Ssspear! I want a spear!"
The mont Bereninche was ntioned, the answer ca out imdiately. I shook my head in disbelief.
Just because she used a spear, now she was making Winter want one too. Honestly, a spear was a difficult weapon for soone like Winter, who had short arms and legs.
"Wouldn’t a spear be a bit too much?"
"Huh? Uh, but Bereninche said she’d absolutely make sure I could use one..."
The Vice-Commander also offered a word of concern. Winter looked at with a face that begged for help.
Was Bereninche even talented at teaching? I wasn't sure. I shrugged my shoulders. Sohow, it felt like this would end up being more of a body modification than actual training.
"Leave the spear to her. Are there any weapons a priest could use?"
Winter was quite an important asset. The reason I was investing this much ti into her self-developnt was because of how critical her role was.
Precisely because she was so important, I had no intention of putting her in danger. In other words, she wouldn't be getting into fights all that often.
But there was nothing wrong with having a weapon to defend herself. You never knew what the world would throw at you.
"I'd like to give her a staff, at least."
"It won’t be of much use for divine magic."
The Vice-Commander wanted to give her sothing more practical. But divine magic was different.
The staffs used by magicians aided in casting spells. However, divine magic used a different energy source than regular magic.
It didn’t use mana, but divine power. So staffs that worked with mana were aningless.
"Let’s look for a dagger, then."
"A dagger?"
"Yeah, maybe one coated with deadly poison. Or cursed with sothing strong. Just sothing she can use once, at a critical mont."
"……Would they even sell sothing like that here?"
Winter looked skeptical. I let out a small laugh at Winter’s pouty expression.
I patted her shoulder a few tis and started walking.
"I wonder if we even have any money~"
"Shut up."
"You always tell to shut up~ So an~"
In the end, Canis followed after us too. You’d think she’d be hurt by how reluctant we were, but instead, she clung on with an even brighter smile.
I quickly learned the skill of ignoring her.
“I need to exchange so things. Do you think that’ll be alright?”
“Of course. What are you exchanging?”
“Jewels. I gathered so before I got excommunicated.”
Gold coins were on hold. It’d be a problem if soone recognized them. I planned to handle the more manageable jewels and valuables first.
“Jewels? Jewels? Jeweeeels~”
“…What do you want to do about that.”
“I wanna see them too~”
As expected, Canis reacted to the ntion of jewels. She held out one hand.
I frowned. Just in case, I asked—but of course, she didn’t betray expectations. Still, since I intended to get rid of them anyway, I handed her one of the jewels.
“Hm?”
“What now.”
“Hmmmm.”
A red jewel about the size of a thumb joint. I didn’t know much about gems, so I had no idea what kind it was.
Canis accepted the jewel and examined it seriously. The Vice-Commander, also a magician, quietly joined in.
They checked its clarity under sunlight and tested the hardness by pressing it with their fingers.
Canis’ calm gaze turned toward . She looked deep in thought.
“I’ll buy the whole lot on behalf of the Ulbushis family~”
“No. The Imperial Knight Order will purchase half.”
The two suddenly clashed. I didn’t know what kind of jewel it was, but it was clear now that it was high-grade.
“1.5 million Knuckles~ For the whole batch!”
“The Imperial Knight Order offers 1.8 million Knuckles.”
Neither of them showed any sign of compromise. I looked at Winter. She looked back like she didn’t understand why I was looking at her.
“Let’s split it half and half at 1.6 million. That’s the best outco for both of you.”
Once the owner spoke up, both of them fell silent. I pulled out the jewels from the bag I had brought.
Honestly, most of what I had were gold coins and valuables, so I didn’t have many jewels. Still, there were about twenty of them.
“Here! The price is fair market rate. You trust , right~?”
Canis coolly handed over a check from her family. I shook my head at her comnt about trust. The only reason I sold at this price was because of what the Vice-Commander said.
It felt like I was being treated unfairly, but I didn’t feel the need to be kind to soone who tried to tempt into sothing disgraceful the very first ti we t.
The Vice-Commander, looking a bit apologetic, promised to pay the balance later. Just like that, I had 1.6 million Knuckles in cash.
“Is there a decent store around here?”
“I’ll guide you to the one I go to.”
First, we were going to check out weapons. Winter’s artifact could co afterward.
It was best to go sowhere familiar, if possible. The magic sword the Vice-Commander carried looked like a solid piece of work.
The Vice-Commander took the lead with bold strides. I followed behind, putting a sweet candy in Winter’s mouth.
“Sir, are you in?”
We arrived at a workshop that felt a bit upscale. In the dia, master craftsn were always in rundown little places. This felt oddly realistic.
The Vice-Commander carefully opened the door and called out softly.
“Oh? What’s this. It’s been a while.”
“It’s been a while, sir.”
Inside the store, where various weapons were on display, a middle-aged woman with bold features stepped out from behind the curtain behind the counter.
“Is it for an enchantnt? Or did it break or sothing?”
“It’s nothing like that. I’m here to get a weapon for soone I know.”
Since when did she beco soone you know? I shook my head at Winter’s suspicious gaze.
Don’t fall for it. That’s just sales talk to get a discount. Even as I whispered that to her, the doubt didn’t leave her expression.
“Soone you know, huh? Hm. I feel like I’ve seen you before.”
The middle-aged woman tilted her head and examined my face. I also felt a bit puzzled.
Not to brag, but mine wasn’t the kind of face you’d just see anywhere. Fierce eyes, a rough look, sea-colored hair, and sun-darkened skin.
There wasn’t a single thing ordinary about . Just as I was thinking that, the woman suddenly clapped her hands loudly.
“You! You’re that maniac’s family!”
There was a hint of delight in her expression. If she said “family,” there was only one possibility—Bereninche.
What on earth did she do to be known as a maniac even here? I let out a deep sigh.
“A maniac?”
“Yeah, soone just like her ca by before. Said they wanted a spear made—do you know what they brought out?”
“What?”
“A spirit tree struck by lightning! Seriously. How the hell did they even get their hands on sothing like that.”
Fortunately, the shop owner had liked it. A spirit tree hit by lightning was indeed a rare and valuable material. That made her the one responsible for giving this shop such a morable gift.
“So? Younger sister? Or older brother?”
“Older brother.”
“Doesn’t matter either way. Here to look at weapons, huh? Though she looks so scrawny, I can't say she’s reassuring.”
The Vice-Commander looked apologetic. I shrugged. This sort of thing was sothing I’d heard too many tis before.
So much so that even Winter didn’t seem to care anymore. That’s how notorious Davide was at the academy.
“I’d like to take a look at so swords.”
“Wait a bit, you husk.”
The shop owner left those words behind as she disappeared behind the curtain. Her provocative tone left a strange feeling behind.
The Vice-Commander looked flustered as she noticed my furrowed brow. She must not have expected to be treated this way after bringing here.
I wasn’t even angry. I glanced at Winter. Her eyes darted around—this kind of place must have been a first for her.
Following my gaze, the Vice-Commander looked at Winter too, and her face quickly softened into a motherly smile.
“If you’d like to touch sothing, go ahead.”
“Ah, okay. It’s just… everything looks so fascinating.”
“Hehe.”
I stepped in for Winter and reached for one of the swords on display.
Shiiing!
The mont I unsheathed it, a sharp, clear sound rang out. The blade was polished so well, it could reflect my face.
“She really sharpened this one.”
The arming sword with a cruciform crossguard glead nacingly. It felt a little heavy to wield with one hand.
After a few swings, the slicing sound of it cutting through the air gave a sharp thrill. With this much weight, it could probably double as a blunt weapon without issue.
―Thud.
“……”
“……”
“…Uh, no, it’s nothing.”
Just as I was savoring the feeling in my hands, sothing suddenly smacked on the head. It didn’t hurt, but it was annoying.
I turned around with a fairly sharp glare. The Vice-Commander stood there, mouth agape. Winter frantically waved her hands, insisting on her innocence.
―Thud.
“…Why is she throwing a tantrum now?”
The culprit quickly revealed herself. Anaye had hit on the head. The Holy Scripture had dropped onto .
The Anaye-style forced repentance continued. She was like a sulky little sister. The forced repentance only stopped once I put the sword back.
“Hmph.”
―Thud.
The mont I picked the sword up again, the scripture dropped without hesitation. I let out a disbelieving chuckle.
“My Goddess… no, but I do need a weapon too.”
―Thud.
“Huh? I an, the shovel was okay, and Canis’s crystal sword was fine too. So why not this one?”
Didn’t she approve of the dagger, too? Wondering if it was this specific weapon she disliked, I tried picking up other weapons—but got the sa reaction every ti.
Winter glanced at the Vice-Commander. From an outsider’s view, I must have looked like a lunatic believer talking to himself while playing around with a holy scripture.
“You’re stronger than you look.”
The shop owner, who’d returned at so point, looked surprised. I shrugged as I put down the heavy axe I’d been testing out.
In her hand was a rapier that looked a bit lighter.
“Co here a sec.”
I obediently walked over at her beckoning. She held out her hand, and I stared at it blankly.
“Let see your hand for a bit?”
“Oh, sure.”
Her tone oddly reminded of Bereninche. I held out my hand. She examined it thoroughly.
“You, so kind of holy man?”
“I’m a religious person. That was rude.”
“Right, religious. My bad.”
She looked a bit troubled, then backed off. Winter clearly looked offended at the sudden slur.
Not that I cared much, but I pretended to be offended for propriety’s sake. Surprisingly, she apologized quite easily.
“Here. How about this? This one’s for the little lady.”
“The little lady…”
I took the sword. It looked sowhat like what they call a kukri, but much bigger.
It was a short sword, about 70 cm long, called a falcata.
The blade was noticeably thicker at the end, with the weight concentrated toward the front. Unless it was ant to be thrown, it was more of an axe than a sword.
More than the uncommon design, what really stood out were the strange letters engraved into the blade.
“Looks like it’s from your type of weapons? Recognize it?”
“Never seen this script before.”
“Oh, I see. Anyway, I bought that one from so paladin, but it hasn’t sold well.”
Not surprising. With arming swords being the usual pick for knights, few would go out of their way to get a falcata.
And if it’s for this kind of use, it’s cheaper to buy an axe since it uses less tal. Still, it wasn’t bad.
Sothing about the short, hefty feel of it caught my eye.
But it seed our Goddess didn’t like it.
―Thud.
As expected, the scripture dropped on my head again, killing the mood in the room. I let out a small sigh and put the falcata down.
“The scripture? So you’re an Apostle.”
“Ah, yes.”
The shop owner recognized the faintly glowing scripture imdiately. I gave her a vague answer.
“Which Order are you from?”
At so point, her speech had beco informal. I narrowed my eyes. The Vice-Commander looked like she had completely given up.
As long as soone’s skilled, she didn’t care about their manners.
“The Anaye Order.”
“Ahh, I see.”
The mont she realized it wasn’t a major faith, her tone dropped. Opportunistic.
A woman with a very simple life philosophy. I didn’t dislike people like her. But Winter clearly did.
She didn’t like seeing —soone who held the highest status in her Order—being looked down on.
She seed more upset than I was, which made feel like I was the one in the wrong for being so indifferent. I couldn’t just let it go when she was being like this.
“Show us sothing else, ma’am.”
“……”
“……”
“Ma’am? ?”
“Yes. Ma’am.”
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