Volume 4 Chapter 3 I'm Getting New Equipment, But...
Three days after bringing Aina to Kyunei's clinic, I stopped by my familiar weapons shop.
Inside the store, as usual, there was no sign of anyone except for the burly old man with a beard.
"This shop manages to stay open, huh?"
"None of your business."
Even though it hadn't been that long since my last visit, it felt like ages. It made me realize just how tough things had been.
"So, what brings you here today?"
"Oh, you know. I got into a bit of trouble during the recent commotion. My equipment's all worn out."
For the past few days, I've been dressing like a regular villager, just like when I first came to the royal capital. Usually, I wear my mercenary equipment as everyday clothing, but it got severely damaged in the fight against the demon. It wasn't reliable as armor anymore, and it didn't look too good either.
I spread out the damaged equipment I had brought in a bag and the remains of a big hatchet on the counter table.
Then, I placed a leather bag full of coins.
"First, I need to get rid of this broken equipment. Then, I'll need a set of armor and a new big hatchet within this budget."
Although the king had reimbursed me for the worn-out equipment, the amount was much more than I had expected. I accepted it gratefully without thinking twice about it.
With the savings I already had, I had quite a generous budget for equipment. I decided to use this opportunity to completely replace I equipment rather than just repairing it.
"Wait a moment."
The old man didn't even glance at the bag of coins and disappeared into the back of the shop. Somehow, his footsteps seemed lighter as he walked away.
"Did something good happen?"
"I dunno."
After a little while, the old man came back holding a big box. He moved some damaged equipment aside on the counter, then laid out the contents of the box in the empty space.
What he took out was a set of armor, just like I had mentioned. It looked similar to what I had worn before, but with some differences in the details. The materials used were completely different.
Having some experience as a mercenary and having seen the equipment of other mercenaries, I could tell. This armor was of much higher quality than what I had worn before.
"Here, your desired item."
"...Quite well-prepared, isn't it?"
It was as if he had known my order beforehand with such readiness. And the old man, with a somewhat proud expression, crossed his arms.
"Haha, I see. That king sure knows how to make things interesting."
I looked puzzled at Gram, who was chuckling.
"Why is the king showing up here?"
"These guys (equipments) use a lot of materials from the dragon my partner split in half. Right, old man?"
The old man grinned. It seemed Gram was right.
Looking closely, I noticed familiar materials in the armor displayed on the counter.
Come to think of it, I had no idea what happened to the dragon I split in half.
"A while ago, someone from the royal family came by and left it here. They knew you'd be getting your equipment from this shop. They asked me to make armor for you with it."
Was this old man acquainted with Aina personally? Maybe they were connected through their families. I should ask Aina about it next time.
"A while ago... how long ago exactly?"
"About a week ago."
"...It's amazing that you were able to make it in such a short time. It would take a week just to prepare the materials for the evil dragon."
When Gram was surprised or interested, the old man laughed out loud.
"For that matter, I brought my magician and alchemist acquaintances with me and did it by force. Ah, even if I say I did it by force, I'm confident in the result, so you don't have to worry!"
If I look closely, I can see dark circles under the old man's eyes. Maybe he hasn't slept much this past week.
"Well, it's been a long time since I've had a job that required me to put my skills to work, and I couldn't help but get excited about it. But thanks to that, I think this is the best work I've done in a while. That's thanks to all the people who helped with the production."
It must have been a very good performance, as his face looked tired, but more than that, he looked satisfied.
"Look, go ahead and try it on right away."
Following his prompt, I quickly equipped the armor made from evil dragon materials.
"It's not much heavier than the previous one, and it feels about the same, but it's way sturdier. Plus, it's got better fire and cold resistance. Probably not many 2nd-rank mercenaries around here with equipment like this."
As the old man said, wearing it didn't feel much different from my old equipment, but I felt much safer.
Seeing me excited about my new equipment, the old man grinned.
"Don't get too satisfied just yet."
With that, he pulled out another item from under the counter – a big hatchet in a sheath, which was my other order.
"This big hatchet is made from the toughest 'horns' of the evil dragon. You won't even dent it with a bit of rough use."
No extra decorations, just what I asked for: sturdy and thick. But compared to the usual, it's clearly different at first glance. When I pulled it out of the sheath, the thick blade gleamed with reflected light.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)