WeTried Translations

Translator: [IncomeElastic]

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ I Became a Blacksmith the Rankers Are Obsessed With ◈

Chapter 021

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Chess Noob

* * *

Looking for a bed.

It was soft, and a decent one, too.

At the end of the hallway is Dolores’s study.

Next to it is her bedroom, next to that is Ruby’s room, and next to that is mine.

No, ‘what used to be my room’ is there.

The bed in my room had vanished.

Late that evening, the three of us, Ruby, Dolores, and I, ended up sleeping together.

My subtle goal of sleeping alone starting today had fallen apart.

No helping it, we’d just have to cozily sleep as three…

This must be how a beaver feels when its home gets wrecked.

I lay down on the bed.

Ruby is sleeping in the middle.

As always, the order is Dolores, Ruby, me.

How long did I lie there, eyes wide open?

“Shh…”

Dolores pressed a finger to her lips and rose from her spot.

Then she slowly walked around the bed to the far side, my side.

“Ruby, once she falls asleep, doesn’t wake easily.”

“Seems that way. She sleeps a lot.”

“…To be honest, she’s a bit frail. Ruby is.”

Dolores wore a bitter expression.

Was she seeing herself in the girl?

“Is something wrong with her?”

“Mm, no. Nothing specific’s wrong. Though ‘frail’ is a bit off, too.”

Ruby’s frail, huh… but nothing’s wrong?

I wondered whether there was anything I could do.

That was when it happened.

“Lionel.”

Gently stroking my forehead as I lay there, Dolores whispered.

“Yes.”

“Earlier, you said you’d start with the feet, didn’t you?”

“…I, I did.”

Dolores always wore shoes, so I could never tell for sure.

If the shoes themselves had been equipment, they’d have caught my eye, but they were ordinary pumps, so no info window popped up either.

That was when it happened.

She slowly slid the blanket down.

- Rustle…

“This is what I usually wear.”

Dolores perched on the edge of the bed and slipped off her house slippers.

“…”

And what came into view.

─────────────────

[Tmir’s Ice-Bound Soles]

[Unique Equipment] [★★★★★]

[Compatibility Rating][2/100] - [Extremely Toxic]

─────────────────

[Cold seeps into the bone and amplifies; holds a Yin amplification synergy with Gorgonyu’s White Gloves. Currently manifested at half strength.]

[The cause behind the sealing of 2 of the 9 meridians in the Nine Yin Meridian Affliction.]

─────────────────

『The frozen heart walks on frozen feet.』

- Tmir, Queen of the Frost Tribe -

─────────────────

A translucent pair of socks made of thin, sky-blue fabric.

Snowflake patterns were etched across the surface, as if veiled behind a film.

And what caught my eye, as ever, was the Compatibility Rating, the Extremely Toxic verdict… and the part about sealing 2 of the meridians, I suppose.

And on top of that, it had synergy with Gorgonyu’s White Gloves, so I can’t even imagine how severe the yin energy must’ve been before those gloves came off.

“Dolores.”

“Mm.”

“Is all your equipment cold-type like this?”

A fundamental question came to mind.

Could this woman really be kitted out entirely in chilly gear like this?

Dolores studied me for a moment, then gave a small laugh.

“…Just the gloves and shoes that cover the body’s extremities.”

“I see.”

“The rest isn’t this bad.”

I nodded. Though I did hear somewhere that covering just your hands and feet keeps the whole body warm.

But wrapping them in something this cold probably does the opposite.

So the reason I hadn’t been able to tell from the shoes was that the real equipment was the socks.

- Wriggle.

As if embarrassed by the bare feet now on display.

Dolores’s toes shifted just slightly.

Her feet, white and fair.

They might just give me a preference I never had before.

Good thing only I can see them.

“…These…”

Back then, I’d wanted to strip the gloves off right away too, but there hadn’t been enough trust for that.

Now, though, it’s different, right? I think I can ask this much.

“Maman.”

“Mm.”

“Would you be able to, maybe, go without them?”

“…What?”

I proposed to Dolores that she go sockless.

* * *

“Mmm… Lionel, my feet feel a little strange.”

“I’ll make you something soon.”

She went about with a light, quick step, getting ready to go out.

No socks inside her shoes.

I’d told her to take them off, sure, but I hadn’t told her to stop wearing socks altogether.

She stood at the front gate with her pumps on, feet completely bare.

Well, whatever.

Given her eye for quality, going barefoot was probably better than wearing some half-hearted substitute.

“I’m off. Ruby, rest well today… and you too, Lionel, get plenty of rest. Your right hand stays off-limits through today.”

“Yes…”

“Yes.”

Dolores bent down, planted a kiss on the foreheads of sleepy Ruby and me, and headed out.

She’d left to buy the ores and the lubricant I’d asked for.

She could’ve just sent a servant, but she seemed set on seeing to it personally.

Though honestly, leaving it to a servant would’ve been…

Anyway, I’d asked to tag along, since her eye for quality worried me, but.

‘Lionel’s face can’t be shown around right now.’

With that, she’d issued a lockdown order.

Well… I got the reasoning.

I watched her figure disappear past the mansion gates.

“Haaah…”

- Snatch.

I caught hold of Ruby, who was yawning and heading back to her room.

“Eek.”

“It’s your day off, right?”

“And… what about it.”

“Play with me today.”

From what I’d seen of Ruby’s daily habits.

Ruby barely ever did anything outside.

A kid her age ought to be running around, frankly, tumbling and rolling about.

Back in elementary school, there was a kid just as frail as Ruby. Once they sent him to a taekwondo dojo, he got healthy.

Even entered a tournament and came back with a trophy.

It wasn’t exactly a hasty generalization. Ruby’s case seemed to match.

Besides, she’d apparently never gone to school until she was 13.

And Dolores had said nothing specific was wrong with her either.

“Play…?”

“Yeah, big brother’ll play with you.”

“You’re not my big brother.”

Whoa, where’d that sudden seriousness come from…

[Whew]

“Fine. Then just follow me.”

I took Ruby’s hand and set off.

I had a destination in mind that I’d scouted earlier.

We crossed the corridor and stopped before a large door.

“Here it is.”

“This is…”

This was where Dolores had carried me in her arms the other day, over that whole +20 chore gloves business.

The room where I’d had to sit perched on her knee and take my lecture.

I remembered glancing around the room back then. It was packed with stuff.

Exercise equipment.

A chessboard.

It looked perfect for playing in.

I grabbed the handle and pushed the door open.

- Creeeak…

Beyond the door: a plush sofa. A bed.

A chessboard, bookshelves stuffed with books, exercise equipment.

And a jumble of other unidentifiable things scattered about.

“How about here?”

“Here.”

Ruby stretched out wide, then added.

“it’s the teacher’s sisters’ room.”

“…?”

Dolores’s sworn sisters, I knew, were the people she’d climbed the Tower with.

Ah, so it’s like a private lounge of sorts…

- Twitch.

My body stiffened.

I’d figured this was a room we could use freely.

Should we retreat, then? Using it without permission feels a bit risky.

That was when it happened.

“Anything’s fine, except chess. Teacher said so.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“I like it here, too…”

Phew, what a relief. Ruby likes it here too.

Relieved, I stepped into the room and naturally drifted toward the exercise corner.

Beside a brutish-looking barbell sat a jump rope, plus a few other things that looked usable.

“Ruby, over here…”

But no.

Ruby had already made for the bookshelves, burrowed into the beanbag by the desk, and opened a book.

“…Ugh.”

Sheesh.

Well, whatever.

She’ll come around when she gets curious.

I decided to start exercising.

Truth is, Ruby isn’t the only problem.

I’m a problem too.

I’d felt it keenly yesterday, pumping that pedal, and a few days ago, swinging the hammer.

I needed to build up strength.

Sure, they say lifting weights as a kid stunts your growth.

That’s a myth.

As long as the weight isn’t enough to crush your growth plates, it actually helps.

Right, Yuna?

[Yeah, that’s the conclusion]

“Alright, then.”

I rolled up my sleeves.

I picked up the jump rope sitting closest to me.

Cardio first. Let’s go.

Thirty minutes passed like that.

“…”

I was sprawled on the floor, face planted into it.

Why the hell is this so hard.

Jump rope, lifting a dumbbell I’d estimate at 1kg, push-ups.

A circuit loop through all three.

My body gave out exactly on the fourth lap.

And that push-up was knees-down, the dumbbell held in both hands.

Sweat was pouring off me like rain.

Right, I’m a baby here, after all…

Baby heart rate, baby lungs, baby stamina…

I just need to build it all up from here…

I barely managed to lift my head and look over at Ruby.

It seemed my show was more interesting to Ruby than her book.

- Jump!

The moment our eyes met, she flinched, whipped her head away, and hurriedly fixed her gaze back on the book.

I’d have to keep it a secret that her book was upside down.

I hauled myself up with great effort.

I felt like I was dying, and Ruby kept stealing glances at me gasping for air, which did something weird to my pride.

“…Oh, what’s this.”

Pretending to be interested in the chessboard, I took a break and studied it.

Truth was, I’d played a fair amount of chess in my day.

Originally it was one of the calm games Yuna had recommended to wean me off rhythm games.

But then I suddenly started playing chess 17 hours a day.

Yuna watched for two weeks, then banned chess too.

The online chess matchmaking environment back then was… absolute hell.

And the AIs, having even learned to mimic human move patterns, had started playing in a way that slipped past detection.

Which meant undetectable cheaters ran the whole scene, and playing in that environment had been one hell of a training gauntlet.

Of course, being an AI-hater, I never used them myself.

Around that time I’d had a full Luddite mindset installed, wanting to exterminate all machines.

My online chess rapid rating was around 2500.

Yeah, I know. It’s genuinely insane, but the point is to act like it’s no big deal.

As if it were nothing. Not for me.

So just glancing at a board, I could tell who was winning…

“…But black’s getting shredded?”

This is a straight-up massacre.

Piece counts are roughly even, but… a couple more moves and black’s toast.

“Ruby, whose game is this?”

“…White is Teacher.”

Oh, Dolores.

She’s absolutely obliterating black.

“She comes by sometimes and they take turns playing. One game Teacher plays, then she comes back whenever and plays another… but she hasn’t come in about a year. She’s about due.”

“…I don’t think she’s ever coming back.”

I wouldn’t either, if it were me.

I’d lock myself away forever before playing another game here.

Shaking my head at black’s pathetic skill.

“I’m gonna go get some water.”

“I’ll have lemonade.”

“Can I pour it on your leg?”

“Let me think about it. Hmm, no.”

Trading idle jokes with Ruby, I headed for the kitchen.

We’d gotten pretty close, it felt like. Guess that’s what sleeping together does.

Even this was probably Dolores’s doing, huh…?

The kitchen was at the far end of the mansion’s first floor.

A few servants were quietly getting the afternoon ready.

“Could I get a glass of water and a lemonade, please.”

“Of course, Young Master. I’ll have it ready in a moment.”

- Click-clack.

One servant filled a glass with water.

Another poured out a lemonade that had been prepared in advance.

As I waited, I stole a glance at the mirror by the kitchen.

“Whoa.”

It reflected my sorry state in full.

Hair soaked with sweat, face flushed red, shirt wet all the way up to the collar.

I looked like an outright beggar.

Glass in one hand and lemonade in the other, I left the kitchen.

I was walking down the corridor toward the lounge when it happened.

- Clack.

At the far end of the corridor.

A woman draped in black was walking steadily toward me.

The exact opposite palette from Dolores.

A black velvet dress, black gloves, even black boots.

Even her hair was black with a tinge of purple, drinking up the light entirely.

And, decisively, she was tall.

‘Okay.’

I knew it in an instant.

A person of standing.

I dipped my head slightly.

“Hello.”

The woman paused for a moment and looked me up and down.

“Espresso.”

“…Pardon?”

“Grind the beans twice, and not too fine. Water at eighty-five degrees. No higher.”

What the hell is she on about.

She left it at that, opened the lounge door, and walked right in.

- Gasp!

I thought I heard Ruby gasp in fright inside.

The door shut.

So she wants me to brew her a coffee?

“Sigh.”

Well, if I’m told to brew, I brew. She looked like someone important.

And I do look like a wreck.

She probably mistook me for a servant. Or just didn’t care.

I set the lemonade and water aside and headed back to the kitchen.

Back in the kitchen, I spoke to a maid.

“Um… a lady came in. Espresso. Beans ground twice, not too fine. Water at eighty-five degrees. She said no higher.”

“…!”

I recited the request exactly as Yuna had noted it down. I’d never have remembered it without her.

At that, an elderly servant from the back of the kitchen walked out.

“So Lady Isabella has come.”

“Yes, and she was quite black, all over.”

“When the Duchess steps out…”

The servant looked at me for a moment, then smiled gently.

Brewing the coffee took about five minutes.

She held out a tray to me.

“…Normally I’d bring it myself, but since it was Young Master Lionel she asked, I can’t very well take your place. That’s just the sort of person Lady Isabella is…”

“Of course, I’ll bring it.”

She looked deeply troubled.

I didn’t really mind.

At my answer, the servant set the cup on the tray with a slightly relieved look.

“And Miss Ruby, would you happen to know where she is?”

“She was in the lounge.”

At my answer, the servant gave a wry smile.

“I see. Then I’ll leave her to you.”

The servant carefully set the tray into my hands.

Coffee in hand, I stepped back into the corridor.

Judging by her reaction, and the attitude she’d shown the moment we met.

‘Hmm, she’s a real piece of work.’

She struck me as someone truly hard to deal with.

It even crossed my mind that a noble as easygoing as Dolores had to be in the top percentile for temperament.

If I assumed she was one of the sworn sisters, odds were she was a High Ranker.

Before I knew it, I was at the lounge.

- Knock knock.

For some reason, I felt I should knock.

There was no answer, so I opened the door and stepped inside.

The first thing I saw was the beanbag where Ruby should have been.

It was empty.

Where’d she run off to now.

I was turning my head to deliver the coffee when it happened.

“…”

Miss Isabella.

Was sitting before the chessboard.

“Heh…”

I had to hold back my laughter.

So the chess noob was you?

You look like a grandmaster on the outside.

So you were the chess noob all along.

As if deep in thought, she raised a finger toward her lips, then lowered it.

Sorry, but no amount of thinking was going to save that position.

“Your coffee’s here.”

“Leave it.”

I set the coffee on the table beside her and, pretending to leave, hid behind her back and watched the board.

- Slurp.

“This house… it’s the coffee that’s the problem, huh.”

People who can’t play sure love blaming everything else.

“If it weren’t for the gloves, I wouldn’t have come at all… Ugh, I hate this…”

She kept muttering to herself.

But one thing she just said I couldn’t let slide.

Gloves?

Could she be talking about my +20 grind-fest chore glove? The only person who knows about it is Dolores.

She might have told her.

She wouldn’t have said something like, ‘hope he drops dead,’ about me.

I trust Dolores. I’ve handed her all the authority over this anyway.

And.

A long think ends in a blunder, as they say.

Isabella’s fingers settled on a knight.

And the knight lifted slightly off the board.

Sorry, but the moment you pick that up, the queen gets taken within three moves.

Of course, Dolores would have to respond with the theoretically correct move, but even without that, the kingside falling apart was a foregone conclusion.

She’d already picked the piece up off the board, so no take-backs.

Once you’ve let go, you have to move. That’s the rule.

A pretty important rule, if you ask me.

But then she suddenly shook her head.

And set the knight back… on its original square.

“Whoa, that’s against the rules.”

“W-what?”

I tilted my head with the bright, innocent look of a child who knows nothing and asked.

“Isn’t that against the rules?”

I can put up with a lot, but cheating is where I draw the line.

Fucking cheater. My lifelong nemesis.

Isabella stared, dumbfounded.

She opened her mouth, and looked at me.

“Who the hell are you?”

“I’m Lionel, Ruby’s friend.”

“…You’re not a servant?”

Isabella, who’d been looking at me as if flabbergasted.

Then, suddenly, she curved her lips upward.

“I’m not in the mood anymore.”

- Clatter…

She knocked the whole board over.

Well, well. You found yourself a good excuse.

Then.

- Rattle…

She neatly set the pieces back up on the board.

“So you’re good at chess. Know the rules and all.”

“Just a little.”

“Close with Ruby? Which house are you from… eh, skip that.”

“I’m not, and I couldn’t say about her.”

So she’d been asking about family, thinking I was probably some noble house’s child.

Surprisingly, Isabella didn’t seem upset.

She seemed pleased to have found a pretext to flip that board.

To be fair, if I were her…

With a genuinely delighted smile, she asked me.

“Want to play a game with me?”

“…”

Chess?

“…With me?”

“…Yes, I’d like that.”

You?

Suppressing my laughter.

I sat down across from her.

“I’ll take white.”

- Fwip.

The board spun around.

At the sight of her snatching the advantageous white pieces while playing against a child.

‘Wow.’

I felt she needed to be taught a lesson.

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