WeTried Translations
Translator: [IncomeElastic]
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Became a Blacksmith the Rankers Are Obsessed With ◈
Chapter 045
──────
The First Step of an Heir of Flame
* * *
I quietly swallowed a breath, inside where no one could see.
It had definitely worked.
Both Dolores and the Princess, the moment they saw it, their eyes had gone soft.
And then.
A faint sound came from the direction of the throne.
The Emperor had leaned forward off the back of his seat, eyes fixed on the earrings.
Then, without a word, he shook his head slowly.
A broad smile spread across his lips.
I carried the case, still open just as I'd shown the Princess, over to the table where the appraisers waited.
The elderly man wearing a monocle made room for me.
"This way..."
The moment I set the case down, all the elders leaned in at once.
From here on, well, it was out of my hands.
For a while at first, everyone just stared at the earrings.
"... Huh."
"... Well, this is something...."
Then, one by one, they started pulling out their tools.
Someone used a magnifying glass, someone else a lens, each analyzing the earrings with their own instrument.
Only the sound of someone muttering echoed through the audience chamber.
"The level of craftsmanship...."
"Huh, really...."
"The thickness is perfectly even. How does this even make sense...."
"Even poured into a mold, this would be difficult...."
Unnamed instruments kept piling up on the table.
Then, in the middle of it all.
"... Look at the back of the gem."
"The back...?"
"I said, turn it over."
- Click.
Someone carefully turned the earring over.
"This is insane...."
One of the elders blurted it out before he could stop himself, voice raw, then quickly clapped a hand over his mouth and glanced around.
Fair enough. I hadn't expected anyone to actually recognize this.
The back of the gem held one of the Elf tribe's secret techniques, after all.
"... This doesn't make sense. A human hand did this...?"
"Has the appraisal report come out yet?"
"Quiet, let me look a little longer."
Just as they were taking their leisurely time looking it over,
"Um, sorry, but,"
the Princess suddenly stepped closer and spoke up.
"When will this be finished?"
"It's nearly done, Your Highness."
"... All right."
Even after hearing the answer, the Princess didn't step back.
She took one step back, then came right back again.
Then someone brought out a massive machine and set it down on the table.
It was bigger than I'd expected.
The exterior was iron, with something like a wound spring fitted along the side, and a narrow slot at the top where paper would feed out.
So that's what an appraisal machine looks like.
The elderly man with the monocle stood in front of it and spoke.
"This appraisal machine, the finest in the Empire, will print out the item's name, grade, and Origin Script."
I flinched, just for a second, at the mention of Origin Script.
It would be fine.
I lifted my head.
"Additionally, we will compile the opinions written by the appraisers and report a comprehensive assessment based on their average."
- Clack, clack, clack.
With the earring placed on top, the appraisal machine whirred to life,
and each appraiser wrote something down and handed it to the elder.
How long had passed?
Right around when I noticed the Princess's restless little foot-tapping growing more pronounced,
- Whirrr....
the appraisal machine printed out the report.
The elder looked at the printed report and flinched.
You read it, didn't you.
The elder couldn't tear his eyes from the paper for a while, then fed it into another machine set beside him.
- Clatter, clatter.
Paper spilled out in a steady stream.
It seemed to be a copier.
The printed sheets were handed out to everyone,
and a copy of the appraisal report ended up in my hands too.
─────────────────
[The Cradle of the Earth][★★★☆☆]
[Unique Equipment] [Divine Implement (神具)]
─────────────────
Smoothed the earth and laid the sprout to rest within it.
Hands that, the whole time they worked, pictured only one person.
Ground that stays silent even when trodden, that opens its embrace even when dug into,
an ode sent to that warm, welcoming earth.
─────────────────
『I'll make you something so no other shoddy accessory will ever cross your mind again.』
- Certified Blacksmith L -
─────────────────
Okay.
Three stars, Unique Equipment.
Nothing seemed distorted or off.
The problem was....
『I'll make you something so no other shoddy accessory will ever cross your mind again.』
Obviously, this.
If you thought about who had actually gifted the Princess those shoddy accessories she used to wear.
Right as cold sweat started running down my back,
"Ha ha ha ha ha!"
laughter burst out from the direction of the throne.
The Emperor.
He was just laughing outright, openly.
I turned my head, bewildered.
The Prince, who'd put on noticeably more weight than before, was also looking at the paper, trying to hold back his own laughter.
Last of all,
I turned my head toward the Princess.
- Flutter....
She was gripping the appraisal report tightly in one hand, lips pressed firmly together,
while fanning her face with the other.
Her face was flushed red. I'd never seen her look this red, this full of life.
Just as I started to feel like the mood in the room had taken a strange turn,
"Yes, yes...."
the Emperor swallowed his laughter and wiped the corner of his eye with the back of his hand.
"An accessory made only for my daughter, Yustia."
I wanted to correct him.
That the true recipient was Gaia.
The Emperor composed his expression again and shifted his gaze toward the appraisers.
"So."
He asked, his voice raised a notch.
"What is your assessment?"
The elder looked down at the paper in his hand.
It seemed to have all the assessments the other appraisers had written earlier, laid out in full.
"... If I may be so bold."
He looked as though he meant to go through what was written, one item at a time.
"First, allow me to speak on the craftsmanship."
"Speak."
"It's a technique where White Iron is drawn out into thread and woven together, and the thickness of that wire never wavers, not once, from beginning to end."
The old man's voice trembled slightly.
"This humble servant has spent forty years in this trade... but I have never once, not a single time, seen a three-star piece hold craftsmanship this refined."
"......."
"Next, the gem."
- Rustle.
The elder turned a page.
"The surface has been left smooth and understated, but every facet that produces light has been placed entirely on the back."
His explanation went on like that.
The gem, the craftsmanship, the construction, on and on.
It felt like every element I'd considered and thought through was being reevaluated through someone else's eyes.
It wasn't a bad feeling.
Someone was interpreting and analyzing every detail of mine, after all.
Maybe you'd call it the feeling of effort finally bearing fruit.
The conclusion they reached was simple.
The elder folded the paper, gripped it in his hand, and bowed at the waist.
"Allow me to summarize."
The audience chamber fell silent.
"These fingertips can hardly be called human. A pinnacle of craftsmanship none of us have ever laid eyes on before has gone into this."
"A mere three stars cannot contain what this earring truly is."
"And the divine power held within it is beyond anything this humble servant would dare to measure."
"And so, the conclusion we have reached is...."
The elder lifted his head.
"This is, without question, a divine implement whose depth loses nothing even set beside a five-star accessory."
The moment his assessment ended, Richard walked in carrying something.
Two saplings.
Each sat in its own pot, a flower bud forming at the tip of its branch.
I'd asked for these to be prepared in advance, before I ever entered the chamber.
The garbage appraisal machines of this era couldn't confirm an ability like this with any real clarity, after all.
So I'd have to show them, this way.
The thing people trust more than words out of someone else's mouth,
'What they've seen with their own eyes.'
The most certain proof is always something else entirely.
I walked over toward it.
I pulled the two accessories out from inside my coat and laid them side by side next to the pots.
One, the Moonlight Essence Necklace.
The other, the Sun Rising Pendant.
I could feel eyes on me.
Taking in that gaze,
I picked up the Sun Rising Pendant.
"This is something Her Highness the Princess once wore."
- Coil, coil.
I wound the necklace around one of the pots.
And then.
As though it had been waiting for exactly this,
- Wither....
the leaves began drying one by one.
What had been green leaves spread brown,
and the flower bud lost its strength and drooped, its head bending over.
"Ohh...."
"How could something like that...."
Ten seconds? Maybe fifteen, if it took a bit longer.
In that span, one sapling died.
The Emperor's expression darkened with bitterness.
He'd just watched with his own eyes, once again, proof that the accessory he himself had gifted had been draining away life.
I unwound the pendant and took it back.
Then, standing in front of the sapling beside it,
I set the Cradle of the Earth briefly on top of the Sun Rising Pendant.
'Set blessing target.'
This seemed like it should work. Setting the target didn't seem like it would be difficult.
- Hum.
Sure enough, a short hum came back.
This time, I hung the Cradle of the Earth on the sapling first.
And then,
I wound the Sun Rising Pendant tightly around it.
How much time had passed by then?
Long enough that it should have wilted already, and more.
Then.
- Hush....
The flower bud, which had been tightly closed,
- Tap....
- Tap....
began unfurling, one layer, then another.
This time, instead of draining vitality away,
it had become something that gave vitality instead.
The most intuitive kind of change, one extreme to the other.
A difference clear enough for anyone to see.
"......."
"......."
Every eye in the room converged on that spot.
It seemed like the right time to put it into words now.
I took my hand off the pot and stepped back.
"The Cradle of the Earth. This earring protects whoever the wearer designates. It also breathes vitality into the wearer."
I gestured once toward the fully bloomed flower.
"As you can see, it cuts off the Moonlight Essence Necklace's interference, letting the Sun Rising Pendant finally do its job."
I looked toward the Princess, then the Prince, one after the other.
"So, for Her Highness the Princess, this earring."
"......."
"And for His Highness the Prince, the Sun Rising Pendant."
"......."
And last of all.
The one thing left on the table.
The Moonlight Essence Necklace.
- Tremble, tremble, tremble....
Funnily enough, as if the necklace had realized its own situation,
it was shaking.
It really was an awkward case.
I couldn't exactly suggest smashing it.
It was a goddess's accessory, after all.
Well, it was pretty, at least....
I gathered my thoughts quickly and spoke.
"... This necklace."
"......."
"It might be best to simply put it on display."
Even after I finished speaking, no sound came for a while.
Then.
Someone rose from the direction of the throne.
It was the Emperor.
- Footsteps.
He began descending the steps.
A faint smile lingered at the corners of his mouth.
Without meaning to, my back straightened.
- Wave, wave.
Partway down the stairs, the Emperor lightly raised one hand and waved it.
At that single gesture,
the appraisers all bowed at once and began withdrawing.
Attendants, knights, appraisers, all filed out.
Everyone left the room except for the imperial family, Richard, and Dolores.
- Thud.
The door closed,
and six people remained in the wide audience chamber.
The Emperor, the Princess, the Prince, Richard.
Me, and Dolores.
Having come down the stairs, the Emperor stopped in front of me.
Seen up close, he seemed even bigger.
He looked down at me and slowly opened his mouth.
"...... Was the Triple-Lion Plate not enough?"
I froze for a moment.
I tried to work out what he meant.
Was he testing me, or was he genuinely curious?
[An honor far beyond what I deserved.]
"It was an honor far beyond what I deserved."
"......."
The Emperor looked down at me, smiling.
Then,
"To me, it looks like it wasn't enough."
He took one more step toward me.
"To think you'd bring me something like this...."
"......."
"I genuinely have no idea what to give you this time."
Only then did I understand what he really meant.
I let out the breath I'd been holding in a rush.
'... He's complimenting me....'
He'd simply been saying it because he was pleased.
I caught my breath briefly and lifted my head.
"To hear such words from you, I hardly know where to put myself."
"...... Somehow, dealing with you never feels like dealing with a child."
That was a compliment too, probably.
The Emperor crossed his arms.
The smile still lingered at the corners of his mouth.
"What do you need?"
"......."
"For over ten years, nothing in this Empire could make it happen. I called for physicians. I brought in every priceless thing there was to offer."
He went on, calm and even.
"But instead of any improvement, I very nearly killed my own children with my own hands."
"......."
"So I don't intend to discuss a price. That would turn into haggling, and the instant it becomes haggling, I become a father who put a price on his own children's lives."
He closed his eyes for a moment.
He seemed to be weighing something.
The Emperor raised his right hand and laid it over his own chest.
"So let it be declared, here and now."
"......."
"Theodore."
- Flinch.
The moment the word left him,
the Princess, the Prince, and Dolores all trembled.
[The Emperor's... name....]
Along with that bit of news from Yuna.
"On the name of the Empire's Emperor, on my own name...."
He smiled warmly and met my eyes.
"Whatever you ask for, I will grant it."
My throat went bone dry.
I wasn't stupid enough to miss what those words actually meant.
A blank check.
In a moment like this, asking for something as small as an ultra-high-heat furnace made no sense.
Staking his own name on it, an Emperor's name no less, and then asking for some petty little reward,
would honestly be more disrespectful than anything.
In that case.
The thing I'd been mulling over the whole time.
The thing I'd already discussed with Dolores.
Something even bigger than that.
"...... I'll make my request."
"Speak."
"Something the imperial family manages and controls...."
I lifted my head and met his eyes.
"The mana stone mining rights to the Belua Mountains."
The air in the room went stiff.
Mana stones.
The mineral that serves as the raw material for enchant powder.
『An Heir of Flame must properly regulate both the supply and quality of enchant dust.』
As an Heir of Flame, I had a duty to manage this.
And,
since I intended to raise every single piece of Dolores's gear to the highest level I could work it to,
I wanted to secure the most important raw material for enchant dust.
Scraping it together from the market wasn't even close to enough.
So I needed to secure the source itself,
and the source was... there were, primarily, two places.
One was the Empire's Belua Mountains.
The other was... inside the Tower, the Kargon mountain range on the 89th floor.
The inside of the Tower wasn't somewhere I had any way to reach.
So naturally, my target was the mana stone mining rights to the Belua Mountains,
and the mining there, currently, unsurprisingly,
was contracted out to and handled by Dwarf Company's head office.
But.
This was where it got important.
"As I understand it, the contract expires at the end of every year."
I lifted my head.
"So, I ask this."
"......."
"I'd like House Dolores to purchase those mining rights."
The imperial family never grants mining rights for more than a single year at a time.
Even if it continues year after year, it's still just a fresh contract each time.
So the original plan had been,
'Please give me priority rights to next year's mana stone mining contract.'
That was what I'd meant to say.
But.
Honestly, one or two years wouldn't mean much.
More than anything,
a short contract meant having to fight for it all over again every time it came up.
There was no telling what the company might try in the meantime, and no guarantee His Majesty would even still be on the throne by then.
Right now, while he was holding out this blank check to me,
'This was something I could only say now, or never.'
I steadied my breath once.
So what actually came out of my mouth couldn't help but differ from what I'd rehearsed.
"Would you grant me a long-term contract?"
An Heir of Flame's first step.
One of the core sources of the enchant powder that formed the very foundation of Dwarf Company's enchanting business.
I intended
to take it away from them.
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