ch41-ch60 · 054-ch54

Chapter 54: The Dwarf's Shop and the Nagamaki

"Whoa."

The surface headquarters building was impressive, but passing through the Dungeon Gate inside and stepping out into the Association facilities within the dungeon proper, I couldn't help but exclaim.

There was a city inside the dungeon.

No, calling it a metropolis might be more accurate.

There were some pretty tall buildings too.

They probably stretched all the way to the wall at the edge of the first floor.

Speaking of which, the walls at the edges of outdoor areas like the headquarters or Chiba were transparent.

There was also a ceiling wall that limited how high you could go.

The walls weren't indestructible, but there was precedent of America breaking one and losing a dungeon entirely, so attacking the walls was prohibited by adventurer regulations.

Oh, there's something that looks like a building under construction.

How do they build those?

Are high-level adventurers doing some extreme construction work?

"They disassemble the heavy machinery, bring it inside the dungeon, and reassemble it. Lately, they've apparently brought in cranes that can operate right up to the height limit, so there are quite a few taller buildings now. There are also buildings made by production-class job holders, but those are used more as exhibition models than for practical purposes."

Watanabe-san answered my question.

She knows a lot.

As expected of a receptionist. Sasuke.

"The shop we're looking for is near the edge, so we'll have to walk a bit. Hehe. Don't get lost now."

I was completely acting like a country bumpkin visiting the big city for the first time.

There were so many people too.

There might actually be more people dressed casually like Watanabe-san than those equipped with weapons and armor looking like adventurers.

I passed quite a few people wearing suits as well.

Nobody was dressed as casually as me.

Hmm? The crowd seems to be thinning out.

Was I being led somewhere with fewer people?

My heart's starting to race.

"It's down this street."

We'd probably come almost all the way to the wall by now.

Looking at the street, it looked like a shuttered shopping district no matter how you looked at it.

No, but then again, real craftsmen tend to be in places like this.

As expected of Watanabe-san, she knows what's what. Sasuke.

"It's pretty deserted."

I figured I should ask why at least.

"This is an area the Guild rents out cheaply to production-class job holders. However, recently major corporations have started developing weapons for adventurers, so most people have moved to the regional branches."

In other words, those who remain must be skilled [Blacksmiths] who can compete with the big corporations.

"It's right here. Let's go in."

Watanabe-san entered one of the shops.

There was a sign out.

It's open.

I followed her inside.

"Welcome. Oh, Kasumi-san. What's up? A work request?"

Huh? It's a kid. The shopkeeper's daughter?

No, wait, kids aren't allowed in the dungeon.

Could it be... a dwarf?

"Hello. I've brought a customer. This is Kasugano-san. Kasugano-san, this is Mia-san."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Kasugano Haruki."

I introduced myself with my full name and bowed my head.

"Yo. Name's Mia. Well, ain't my real name. Been doin' all sorts, so I just go by Mia. Nice to meet ya."

An unexpected ore-girl speech pattern. Well, for a [Blacksmith], isn't that exactly the image you'd expect?

Except she wasn't a dwarf at all, just a short girl.

A girl? ...Probably older than me though.

Since she owns a shop and all.

She had short brown hair, and looking closely, the roots were black.

She was wearing a denim apron, looking like she was in the middle of making something... but her hands were beautiful.

Her face wore no makeup, and her skin was so clear she looked like a child.

She didn't look like she did blacksmithing work at all.

There's also the possibility she's just a shop clerk.

"So, if this is work-related, this Haruki guy wants a weapon?"

"Yes. Previously, you made a spear that was rented out to Kasugano-san. This time he wants his own spear, so I'm introducing him to you, Mia-san."

"Ah, that one. Where I said 200,000 yen but you got it for 100,000? But a spear, huh. Ain't great with those. Cheaper and faster to buy the shaft separate, y'know. So, what kind ya want? What's your budget?"

"My budget is up to 300,000 yen, and for the spear, the stronger it is, the better."

"300,000!? You look young, but ya rich or somethin'? If it's 300,000 for Kasumi-san's introduction, guess I'll give it my all. That said, strength, huh. What's your job, spear class? Take a look 'round the shop and find somethin' my skills can work with. I'll make somethin' similar. Lemme know if ya got any other requests."

Indeed, it wouldn't fly to say "it doesn't activate my skills" after it's already made.

Since she said she'd make it herself, she's apparently the shop owner, or rather the [Blacksmith].

Her hands and face aren't burned, so maybe it's a skill?

She might have something like [Fire Resistance].

"Come to think of it, I never asked what kind of spear you'd like."

"No, I was planning to choose from what the shop had in stock."

I looked around the shop.

Come to think of it, I was so busy looking at Mia-san that I hadn't looked at any of the weapons at all.

There's quite a variety.

They had the usual weapons like three-section staffs and sai (those fork-looking things).

"Do these kinds of things sell?"

"They sell. Actually, these sell better. I'm a lower-class [Blacksmith], so I can only make beginner to intermediate-level stuff. High-rank guys already got their own weapons from better shops. But they got money, so when they occasionally want weapons like these, they come to my shop. Get quite a few orders from the regions too, that's how I make my livin'."

"I see. That's helpful to know."

Indeed, I want some too.

It's a niche business.

Being made by a [Blacksmith], the craftsmanship is solid.

Major corporations probably don't make stuff like this for dungeon use.

She's an ore-girl but good at business.

She explains things properly too.

"The spears are over here, Kasugano-san."

Oh, there's a fork over there too.

What Watanabe-san's holding is a trident.

Weapon shops are fun.

"Ah, they have cross spears too. I want one of those. But since thrusting is the main attack, what happens to those cross parts when you thrust deep?"

"That's right. You should consider compatibility with your job and skills. There was a time when I used a spear about 3 meters long, but to fully utilize my skills as a [Naginata User], I settled on something around 2 meters even at longest. Spears are difficult to carry due to their length. You can't really switch between different ones on the fly."

Indeed, I can't carry two or three of them around.

But actually, I have a solution for that.

Rental storage, plain and simple.

If I keep different spears in storage and retrieve them with [Gate], I can use various types.

Well, that's assuming I have the money to buy several types of spears.

In that sense, I might be relying on Mia-san for a long time.

She seems like she'd make crazy weapons for me.

I want a really long one.

"Do you have anything like a drill? Like a drill attached to the spear tip?"

"Ain't no way that exists? This is a weapon shop, y'know? C'mon, pick somethin' serious."

If [Charge Spearman] is a romantic job, I would think pursuing drills is natural... but they don't have them?

"That's the thing, Kasumi, they do exist. Don't stock 'em in my shop, though. In Europe, they mainly use powered suits, right? Apparently havin' drills or chainsaws on their hands is normal over there. A company like that opened a store in the new large mall, so ya might find one if ya look."

So they do exist.

America has guns, Europe has mechanization, and there are even countries where everyone gets tested for special skills.

Each country in the world is trying to conquer dungeons in their own way.

Huh? What about Japan? Katanas are popular.

"Eh? Does a drill count as a spear? Hmmmm."

Watanabe-san pondered deeply.

Oh, what Mia-san's holding—is that a naginata? I can tell it's not a spear.

A large sword?

"Ah, this. It's popular right now. You could probably use your skills with it, Kasumi. But it might not work for Haruki. It's called a nagamaki."

Saying that, she clicked the tsuba loose and held the handle out to Watanabe-san.

Watanabe-san smoothly drew it out.

A beautiful blade was revealed.

"It's a katana. Awesome."

"I said it's a nagamaki. Well, it's basically a katana with a long handle."

The handle was about as long as the beautiful blade itself.

When Watanabe-san flicked the blade with the back of her finger, it made a high-pitched ringing sound.

She flicked the blade again, and this time it made a solid "kon" sound.

She flicked the handle too—yep, solid kon-kon sounds.

That probably means the weapon enhancement was successful.

So [Weapon Enhancement・Naginata] can enhance a nagamaki?

Well, they're similar, so I guess it makes sense.

This is where people who can and can't do it would probably differ.

"As expected of Kasumi-san. Next, Haruki, you try."

Sasuke.

My turn.

I received the long-handled sword—the nagamaki—from Watanabe-san.

First, I'll flick it without enhancing.

A nice ringing sound.

Nice.

I end up flicking it multiple times.

Ring, ring, ring.

This is a good one.

"So you can't do it after all. Guess a spear job enhancing this would require someone at Kasumi-san's leve—"

"No, I haven't used the enhancement yet."

"Why the hell not? Hurry up and do it."

I got scolded.

Well, I can do it.

([Charge・Spear], [Charge・Spear・Weapon Enhancement・Spear])

Kon-kon.

Well, that's about right.

Might as well do the handle too.

Kon-kon.

(Disengage.)

MP decreases, you know.

"Wha... You, are you really a spear job? Not bad."

I got praised.

Watanabe-san's eyes widened in surprise too.

Honestly, I think I can activate [Charge・Spear] on pretty much any stick of sufficient length now, or rather, I can enhance them all.

The trees on Floor 2.

And the old man and old lady at the Sanzu River.

Battles against strong enemies have made me grow.

"Did you deliberately pretend you couldn't enhance weapons to catch me off guard?"

She seems suspicious of me somehow. Well, that's actually what happened.

"No, it just consumes MP, so I wasn't using it because I was thinking about the dungeon exploration afterward."

"Hmm? What're ya talkin' about? Weapon enhancement don't use MP, right? Huh? Am I wrong??"

Mia-san, who doesn't know I'm a [Charge Spearman], is confused, but I'm not convinced either.

Why don't other jobs consume MP for weapon enhancement?

Is it circulating? But you can use it even at 0 MP, right?

Passive skills don't consume MP either.

I don't understand, but with [Gate]'s MP consumption being 1, I don't really have the right to complain.

I guess I'll just have to accept it as "because it's the dungeon."

Ah, Watanabe-san is still suspicious.

I should have said I only recently became able to do it.

"Don't really get it, but I get that you're impressive. Actually, this nagamaki here—it was returned by some stupid [Sword User] who said he couldn't enhance it. Not bein' able to enhance a weapon is your own damn skill issue. But you proved otherwise, Haruki."

It's said that [Sword Users] are the most common job among Japanese adventurers.

Why are there so many [Sword Users]?

Because they look cool.

And recently, the common wisdom is to tell beginners to carry a shield.

So beginner [Sword Users] wielding a shield in one hand were born.

To unleash a katana's full power, you need to use both hands.

Naturally, they struggled.

That's where this nagamaki—which can only be wielded with both hands—came in.

The exhilarating feeling of using a two-handed weapon.

Things you couldn't cut before, you can cut now.

The nagamaki became hugely popular.

However, these were people who jumped at [Sword User] for their first job choice, and further blindly believed the advice to use shields.

Naturally, their proficiency was low.

As a result, they ended up buying them but being unable to enhance them.

But since both Watanabe-san and I were able to enhance it, a new theory emerged that this nagamaki might actually be a spear...

"I'll give ya this nagamaki, Haruki. It'll take a while to make the spear, so use this in the meantime and tell me what ya think. If ya like it, I'll make ya an even better one. Ah, but I'm definitely chargin' the full 300,000 for the spear. This is business, after all."

She started calling me by my first name.

She's in a good mood.

But this is a flag collection moment.

Getting a weapon after being recognized by the weapon shop owner!

Except it wasn't a tough-looking old man but a child shopkeeper.

But I'm in trouble if you give it to me now, you know?

I'll get caught if I try to take it out, right?

I looked at Watanabe-san.

"...Haruki...-san is affiliated with the Chiba Branch, so please send that nagamaki to Chiba. Cash on delivery to me is fine."

Haruki-san?

What's with the sudden change?

"Ah, ...you two like that? I see. Weren't usin' an introduction letter, you came together... Sorry, Kasumi. Ain't familiar with that sorta thing. Not that there was any special meanin', okay? Anyway, Haruki. Not bad. You look young, but how old are ya actually?"

Ah, this pattern again?

Everyone wants to steer the conversation this way.

And you're the one who looks young.

"I'm 18."

"Huh? 18? Don't tell me you're a high school student?"

"Yes."

"Kasumi. That's definitely not okay."

No "Sasuke" this time.

Watanabe-san was taken to the back workshop...