WeTried Translations
Translator: [IncomeElastic]
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Became a Blacksmith the Rankers Are Obsessed With ◈
Chapter 73
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New Spring
* * *
"......."
"......."
On the way to the dressing room, even though it was only five in the afternoon, my heart pounded like a kid who'd woken up before dawn, about to head to an amusement park.
I wanted to shake my parents awake right that second and beg them to take me to ride a rollercoaster....
Fortunately or unfortunately, right now, my parents and the rollercoaster were both Dolores.
"... First of all, you worked hard, Lionel."
She said that as she carried me in her arms up to the second floor, but by my own standards, it hadn't really been hard work at all.
Save the Dolores was my top priority as a blacksmith anyway.
Now that the underwear was done, I needed to get moving on gear for both Ruby and Dolores.
- Clack.
But right now, if there was one enormous worry weighing on me.
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[Spring Breeze Bearing Fire][★★★★☆]
[Unique Equipment] [Compatibility Rating][ - /100]
─────────────────
[An underwear set crafted from the Spirit Thread of a high-rank Wind Spirit.]
[The Heir of Flame's engraving drinks in sunlight and continuously supplies the wearer with pure Yang energy.]
[Within it dwells a will even a god would covet.]
[The wearer gains a measure of divinity.]
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【For the sake of a single wearer, the artisan poured out everything he had.】
【Material and skill... the moment will and tenacity locked together in perfect alignment. Just this once, the maker transcended his own limit.】
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『Wind... pairs well with fire. Your will is so sacred, it's hard to believe it comes from a lowly creature like you.』
『So if you offer that garment to me, even now... I'll forgive you for everything. And if you want, I could even hold you in my arms.』
- Ignia, Goddess of Fire -
『Not even worth laughing at. That's not something you should covet, it belongs to my daughter.』
- Gaia, Goddess of the Earth -
『A-ah... its standing... it's grown too... too high....』
- the Queen of the Faraway Wind Spirits -
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Spring Breeze Bearing Fire.
Because of how noisily the gods had been chattering away up above, there was something I'd almost missed.
Turns out the Origin Script hadn't actually ended there.
Below it.
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『Is it really that lewd? Then it passes.』
- Skilled Blacksmith L -
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Fuck.
What do I do, seriously?!!!!!!
The one saving grace was that since this was her underwear, she wouldn't be taking it to an appraiser.
Honestly, who takes their underwear in for an appraisal...?
For the rest of my life, that underwear's Origin Script stays sealed.
Anyway, lost in those thoughts, I found we'd already arrived in front of the door.
- Creak....
Dolores, still holding me, gestured at the air, and the door swung open a little.
She held me even tighter and walked slowly inside.
"......."
Two weeks ago, since I'd come at night, I hadn't been able to take in the whole layout at a glance.
Now, in the relative daylight, I could see everything.
The layout had changed since then, too. A comfortable-looking sofa now sat by the entrance.
Across from it, by the window, a white curtain hung drawn shut.
But there was one problem with a white curtain.
When sunlight streamed in through the window, whatever was behind the curtain showed through.
As if to prove it, I could make out the shadow of a cot that hadn't been there before.
Not in full detail, just a faint silhouette....
"The room's laid out a little differently now...."
"Mm, I've been getting it ready."
She'd clearly prepared for this, but I doubted even Dolores had expected the fitting to happen in broad daylight.
In the daytime, that curtain wasn't doing its job as a curtain at all.
- Slip.
Dolores set me down on the sofa.
I carefully held out the underwear I'd been cradling and handed it to her.
"...... Here you go."
The Spirit Thread gave off a soft white glow. Honestly, I'd made it myself, but even at a glance, I could tell it was on a different level.
The corners of Dolores's mouth twitched, unable to hide it....
"... S-sorry."
- Slide.
In the end, she couldn't stop the corners of her mouth rising, and covered her mouth with her hand.
Nothing to apologize for. If she liked it, that was all I wanted.
"I'll go try it on...."
"Okay."
- Rustle....
Dolores took the underwear and disappeared behind the curtain.
And my honest reaction was.
'I can see everything.'
Forget silhouette, I could make out the whole outline.
I just pressed my lips shut and sat quietly on the sofa, watching.
I finally understood why there was a sofa here at all.
Behind the curtain, Dolores lifted the underwear I'd made up to eye level and gazed at it for a long while.
- Squeeze....
She hugged the underwear close, her body trembling slightly.
... Well, I was grateful she liked it that much.
A moment later, Dolores turned around, and she began undressing.
- Rustle.
The clothing draped over her shoulders slid down.
- Slip....
The layers wrapped around her waist slipped to the floor, one after another.
Before long, Dolores turned her back toward me.
Not on purpose, probably, but she'd stepped a pace closer to the curtain, and she brought both arms behind her back.
- Click.
With the sound of the clasp coming undone, the bra dropped to the floor.
"......."
Ah, this wasn't good.
The outline had gotten a lot more detailed, so I had to blur my vision on purpose.
Now the hooks connecting the garter belt came undone, and the bottoms slid down too.
"......."
Time to put it on now, right?
As if my thought had somehow reached her, Dolores bent down and picked up the clothes I'd made.
The bottoms first.
Then the band that would fasten around her waist.
And then the top.
- Rustle.
Sitting on the edge of the cot, Dolores pulled Spring Without Frost up beneath the underwear I'd made....
- Tap, tap, tap, tap.
The instant the last hook at her back clicked shut.
- Flash....
The sunlight pouring through the window suddenly intensified.
Even with the curtain there, I had to shield my eyes.
"......."
- Fwoosh....
A warm wind swirled through the room, and behind the curtain, Dolores let out a small gasp of wonder.
"...... Ah."
I wanted to throw the curtain open right away to see what was happening, but I held myself back.
I hadn't checked the Compatibility Rating yet either, so I didn't even know if it suited her or not.
Come on, hurry up already....
"Lionel...."
"Yes."
I answered right away at the faint excitement in Dolores's voice.
"Would you... come over here?"
"......."
As I got up and walked over, Dolores's pale white hand poked out through the gap in the curtain.
Wondering what she wanted, I reached my hand toward hers, and right then.
- Whirl!
"Ugh?!"
Pulled by a force I couldn't resist, I was hauled straight in through the curtain.
- Flop.
"...... Shh."
What came into view before me was.
Dolores, sitting on the bed wearing the very pieces I'd made with my own hands, looking at me.
A soft light was glowing faintly from her body.
"...... If we're too loud, Ruby might get jealous."
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[Spring Breeze Bearing Fire][★★★★☆]
[Unique Equipment] [Compatibility Rating][100 /100]
─────────────────
[Reaching 100 Compatibility, all of the gear's effects manifest at their maximum.]
[The Skilled Craftsman's sun engraving continuously supplies Yang energy, removing the Yin energy amplification.]
[With prolonged wear, permanent reopening of meridians 1, 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the Nine Yin Meridian Affliction's nine meridians becomes possible.]
[Halts the worsening of the Meridian Affliction.]
[With prolonged wear of gear infused with the sun's energy, once sufficient accumulation is reached, a full cure of the Meridian Affliction becomes possible.]
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"......."
The message floating before my eyes.
One line stood out to me more than any other.
[Halts the worsening of the Meridian Affliction.]
Before I could even collect myself.
[★★★★☆] [Reached the very limit of a 4-star item's Compatibility Rating.]
[Target: Elysia von Dolores]
[Title Acquired: 'One Who Brought a New Spring']
And then.
[Elysia von Dolores]
[Remaining Lifespan][7Y : 11M : 11D : 19H : 48M]
The lifespan I'd extended before, now a smaller number than it had been back then.
[Remaining Lifespan][7Y : 11M : 11D...]
[Recalculating.......]
[Factor: the Meridian Affliction's worsening halted, possibility of a permanent cure opened]
[The confirmed cause of death has been halted.]
[The existing lifespan timer will be stopped.]
[※ Caution ※]
[If the gear is removed or its supply is not continuously maintained, the Meridian Affliction will worsen and the cause of death will occur again.]
Along with news almost too incredible to believe.
At last.
[Remaining Lifespan][undetermined]
Dolores's death timer.
The time bomb that had been chasing her from the moment she was born until the moment she died, its countdown had finally stopped.
Not just a few extra years added on, the death timer itself....
had stopped.
- Slip....
In that overwhelming moment, the system display slowly faded away.
And beyond it, Dolores came back into view.
"......."
At some point, Dolores had let her hair down long, and she was looking at me with her lips pressed tight.
Wetness shimmered at the corners of her eyes.
This wasn't a change in my body, it was a change in Dolores's.
She'd know it better than anyone. It was the illness that had tormented her body for the past several decades.
"... Dolores."
Still sitting on the floor, I let out a small laugh and spoke.
"Congratulations."
"......."
At those words, the dam Dolores had been barely holding back seemed to finally burst.
- Trickling....
Tears spilled out, and then.
"That's a relief. Now you'll definitely live to see Ruby get marri....."
I didn't want things to turn somber.
Not on a day this happy... I tried to cut her tears short with a joke right away, but.
- Grab!
I was pulled into a fierce, tight embrace.
Even though Dolores was half-undressed, wearing nothing but the underwear, in a moment like this, it didn't even register.
"Thank... thank you, Lionel...."
The arms wrapped around me tightened little by little.
"How on earth did you... it's a curse on our family that's gone unstopped for centuries...."
Dolores's voice trembled.
"But Lionel, you saved my life...."
"... Well, it's me."
I answered calmly and patted her back.
"You're not completely cured yet, though."
"Mm... I know that...."
The way it actually felt to her was probably different, though.
"You'll need to keep wearing it from now on. And I'll have to keep making you new gear too."
From what I could tell, the Meridian Affliction's hard counter seemed to be Yang energy.
...... Not that kind of Yang energy. Something with a higher standing, like the sun's Yang energy engraved by the Heir of Flame's engraving.
"... Whatever you make for me, I'll always just gratefully wear it, from now on too."
"Good."
"I really don't know how to thank you enough...."
"Hm...."
Still held in her arms, I let the corners of my mouth curl up.
There was something I'd always wanted her to do, once she got better.
In one corner of this mansion's study sat a fairly sizable collection of books.
An unusually large number of them were about climbing the Tower.
Some Dolores had written herself, others were fairly recent works by other Rankers.
Looking at them, the thought that always crossed my mind was that Dolores still wanted to climb the Tower.
"Then climb the Tower again."
"......."
I'd hoped that someday she'd set her sights upward again and start running for it.
I'd brought it up once before, but she'd seemed mostly skeptical about it.
From what I'd heard, the Meridian Affliction seemed to worsen the harder she pushed her body.
Climbing with a body that hadn't fully recovered probably felt like too much of a risk.
But now?
There was no more risk.
The time bomb chasing her from behind was gone.
"I think that'd be enough for m-"
- Smooch....
My sentence wasn't even finished yet.
A soft touch pressed against my cheek.
Dolores, still holding me close, had gone and kissed my cheek.
That made two cheek kisses now. Unbelievable.
"... Wouldn't that alone not be enough?"
Dolores whispered with a smile, tears still streaming down her face.
"I'll climb again. This time... all the way to the top."
Now that was good news to hear.
If you're born into this world, you might as well dream of conquering the Tower. Yeah, yeah.
"And in five years... when you and Ruby climb up... I'll be waiting at the top."
"......."
It really, truly was touching, but.
I don't really want to climb the Tow....
But I couldn't bring myself to break the touching mood.
"Yeah... sure...."
The moment I answered.
- Smooch....
This time, Dolores pressed a long kiss to my forehead.
"See you in five years, then? Lionel."
As she said that.
- Tap, tap.
She lightly tapped my lips with her finger.
With that, my very first and biggest goal, 'Save the Dolores,' came to a satisfying close.
Time to really get to work making gear now.
For the five years left, both Ruby's gear and Dolores's.
I'd remake everything for both of them, pieces with Compatibility that clicked together perfectly.
The Rankers out there had better brace themselves, since I was planning to enchant every last piece too.
...... Of course, I had zero intention of ever climbing the Tower myself, but just in case, I'd make something for myself too.
Lost in those happy thoughts, I stayed quietly nestled in Dolores's arms.
"...... Mm."
Her embrace... felt just a little warmer than before.
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