Reformation of the Deadbeat Noble - Chapter 250

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Dionysus

Chapter 250: I've Waited So Long (2)

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Vulcanus, the dwarven blacksmith.

His name carried a reputation any swordsman would recognize, and inside Airen Farreira's heart, it lingered even more vividly than that.

'He picked me as the winner without me swinging my sword even once, so, well, he was never an ordinary dwarf to begin with.'

A man who'd sensed the presence of The Man in the Dream, something an ordinary person could never have detected.

A man who'd already forged nine masterwork swords that any swordsman would kill to own, and yet still wasn't satisfied, still pushed himself further for the sake of his own growth.

Someone who'd hammered iron with a passion like a burning flame. How could Airen ever forget a man like that?

...Or so he wanted to say, except the current situation made that sound almost laughable.

'I definitely... told him I'd come find him within a year.'

Airen looked back on what had happened in Derinku, the artisan city.

Vulcanus's face, his expression, his sheer ambition when he'd sworn to forge a sword surpassing Airen's Sorcery Greatsword within a year, all of it surfaced belatedly in his mind.

An ordinary swordsman would not even have said goodbye. They would have spent the entire year restlessly waiting, wondering when the sword would finally be finished. That was how much confidence Vulcanus had shown.

But...

'...I had too many things happen to me to keep something like that fixed in my mind.'

True enough.

Strictly speaking, this wasn't really his fault.

Forgetting his promise to Vulcanus completely could only be blamed on the sheer avalanche of events that had poured down on him, the kind an ordinary person would never experience in an entire lifetime.

Meeting Ignet Crescentia, the continent's greatest talent.

Reuniting with Judith and Brett Lloyd after five years apart.

Training under Zet Frost, the 101st swordsman.

Competing for the title of Proof Land Champion against someone impossibly precious to him, someone he now liked as more than a friend, Illia Lindsay.

And through all of it, reaching the rank of Master.

If that had been the end of it, fine, but it wasn't. If anything, it was only the beginning.

Meeting Karakum, Tarakhan, and Gurgar, and the Five Elements Divine Technique.

The secret of his Past Life finally coming to light, and the appearance of the Jester Demon.

Countless other events, countless other bonds, more than he could ever list one by one, had swept past Airen.

Once again, he was innocent.

Of course, that was purely his own subjective opinion.

From the perspective of Vulcanus, who'd spent every waking moment waiting for Airen, that was nothing but a ridiculous excuse.

His body brimming with anger that had built up over a long, long time, the short, sturdy dwarf launched himself in a full-body slam.

Startled, Airen reflexively channeled his Aura.

Thud.

"Aaaaargh!"

Vulcanus went flying, sent tumbling off into the distance like he'd smashed straight into a boulder.

Watching him crash and roll across the ground, Airen felt another jolt of shock.

"Vulcanus-nim!"

"Ugh... you little punk!"

Thankfully, Vulcanus was fine.

His face twisted in pain, but thanks to a body forged from years of hammering iron, a few shakes of the head seemed to be all it took for him to snap back to his senses.

Seeing that, Airen stopped mid-step toward him and looked back.

Spotting Lulu's flustered face and Kiril's utterly baffled one, he said.

"Run!"

"Y-yeah!"

"Run? Oppa, did you do something wro..."

"Let's head home first! I'll explain there!"

"Where do you think you're going!"

Fwip!

Ignoring Vulcanus as he lunged again, Airen moved fast toward the estate.

Lulu did the same. Trembling like a criminal caught red-handed by a witness, she vanished with a soft popping sound.

Given the situation, Kiril had no choice but to make herself scarce too.

Rising into the sky on her Sorcery carpet, she called out.

"Something's clearly going on, but my brother isn't inconsiderate, so he'll be back soon!"

"What nonsense! If he were considerate, would he leave me hanging this long?"

"See you later!"

No idea what was happening.

Better go see her parents first, since it had been so long, and think it over after.

Thought settled, Kiril shot off toward the manor in an instant.

"The baron and lady are away at the moment. Nothing serious, they were invited by Baron Fried's house... though they should be back within the week."

And so Airen's group made it safely back to the lord's manor.

The one who greeted them warmly wasn't their parents, but the servant Marcus.

Still wearing that same warm smile.

But instead of the worry he'd shown when they left, his eyes now carried pride as he looked at Airen and spoke.

"Seems you've already run into blacksmith Vulcanus, young lord?"

"Ah, yeah. What in the world happened? How long has he been here?"

"About a month now. I've got plenty of questions myself, about how your two-year journey went and how many of the rumors floating around are actually true... but I think it'd be best to deal with that matter first."

"Yeah. Probably a good idea."

Airen nodded firmly.

He wanted to tell Marcus everything too, his own story, his friends' stories, every bit of it except the parts involving the demon.

But the situation right now was urgent. If he didn't go hear the full explanation and pay Vulcanus a visit immediately, it felt like the man might do something drastic.

Fortunately, Marcus was good at summarizing things, so it didn't take long to get the picture.

Once he'd heard the explanation, Airen spoke up to sum it up in his own words.

"So basically, he waited and waited in Derinku, figured I wasn't coming anytime soon, so he came all the way here to my hometown, and told you to find him a place to live since he planned to wait until I showed up. And along the way, he opened up a forge and started making all kinds of things."

"That's right."

"And word got around that Vulcanus was here, so more and more people started coming from other places too?"

"Yes. Merchants, sure, but even more swordsmen have been showing up. Not entirely because of Vulcanus, mind you, but..."

Marcus looked at Airen again, his eyes brimming with emotion.

Still hard to believe.

That timid, delicate boy, the one people used to call the lazy lord, had become a Sword Master!

Marcus had no family of his own, but he wondered if this was what it felt like to be a parent.

"Thanks, Marcus."

Airen understood that feeling too.

Which was exactly why he wanted to sit down with tea right now and catch up properly, but he figured he should go see Vulcanus again first.

"Let's go right now. Marcus, want to come along?"

"I'd love nothing more. I'd like to see it myself, the tenth Numbering Sword!"

"All right. Lulu, don't be scared."

"Waaah! That dwarf looked at us with the scariest eyes ever!"

"It's fine, it's fine."

"Right. What's the problem? Isn't this actually good news? If it were me, I'd have kicked the guy who broke his promise to the curb and given the sword to someone else. Say what you want, but that dwarf's got a kind heart."

"That's true, actually. He said he refuses to show it to anyone but the man himself, so... nobody's laid eyes on it yet. Not even his old friends."

"Friends? Ah..."

Airen nodded slowly.

He thought he understood. Who those friends probably were, too.

* * *

"Finally, I get to see it!"

"Seriously, this is ridiculous! No need to hide it this carefully!"

"Right. I mean, does it really have to go to that kid? Just give it to some other swordsman."

"I agree."

"Shut up! That kind of talk goes against everything I believe in! No matter what, this sword exists because of that kid, and it's meant for him alone. I wouldn't hand it over even if some other Master showed up!"

Vulcanus glared around at everyone.

Not that his friends cared. They already knew how foul his personality could get.

More than that, they were about to lose their minds with curiosity over the soon-to-be-revealed tenth Vulcanus Numbering Sword.

'Just how incredible could this sword possibly be...'

'...to make him this confident about it?'

'The guy's brutally hard on himself, of all people.'

'I have to see this. No matter what, I have to see it!'

The two blacksmiths who'd been with him since Derinku, the dwarf Dwanson and the human Pablo.

The renowned eastern continental gem cutter, Rashad White.

The finest sculptor of the northern continent, the elf Zamari.

The reason all of them had stayed by Vulcanus's side for ten straight months was to witness the greatest masterpiece of his life with their own eyes.

As fellow blacksmiths, or fellow creators in their own right.

There was no inspiration greater than witnessing an object infused with a master's passion and talent.

They shifted their weight from foot to foot like children eyeing candy, and fortunately, it wasn't long before today's star finally showed himself.

Spotting Airen's face, Vulcanus grinned and said.

"Welcome back, you son of a bitch!"

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. It wasn't intentional, I..."

"Forget it! It's my own fault. Means I didn't build up enough anticipation, that's all."

"..."

"But the second you see this sword, you'll regret it. Why didn't I show up right on the year mark? Why did I wait this long to come claim such a magnificent blade? Stupid me. Stupid Airen Farreira! I'm so sorry, Vulcanus-nim!"

"..."

"...If you say something along those lines, then I'll gladly forgive you and recognize you as the rightful owner of this sword, the tenth Vulcanus Numbering Sword."

'What a ridiculous man.'

Kiril's expression soured.

Cursing at her brother like that, and on top of it wearing an expression so arrogant it went beyond mere pride. Nothing about it sat well with her.

But she didn't pick a fight.

She was too curious.

Just how incredible a sword had he made?

How confident did he have to be to talk like that?

"...Could we see it? The sword."

Kiril wasn't the only one thinking that.

Marcus felt it too.

So did Lulu.

The four friends standing beside Vulcanus, and Airen Farreira as well.

Everyone watched Vulcanus's back with expectant eyes as he went to fetch the sword.

And a moment later.

When the tenth Numbering Sword was finally revealed, disbelief spread across the four creators' faces.

"This is..."

"..."

"Insane."

"Waiting months was... worth it."

"Ha, of course it was."

Satisfied with the reaction from his friends, especially the blacksmiths Dwanson and Pablo, Vulcanus flashed a grin.

Not once in his entire life had he made something that truly satisfied him.

But this time was different.

The shock of meeting Airen nearly two years ago.

And the shock of seeing the Sorcery Greatsword he wielded.

He'd poured every bit of the inspiration born from that straight into this sword.

'It might still not be quite as sturdy as his Sorcery Greatsword.'

But a sword wasn't something you judged by sturdiness alone.

Sharpness.

And balance.

Along with countless other factors that decided a blade's quality.

In Vulcanus's mind, he was certain this tenth Numbering Sword surpassed Airen's old, crude Sorcery Greatsword in every category except sturdiness.

"Well? What do you think, Airen Farreira!"

"..."

"Hard to compare? Then summon your old greatsword. Swing them both, one after the other. Then you'll know. Which sword is truly better. Which one deserves to walk beside you as a companion for your whole life as a swordsman, you'll know for certain!"

Vulcanus spoke with a booming voice.

His expression, his eyes, were absolutely brimming with confidence.

The four friends, and even Marcus, found themselves nodding without meaning to.

That was how it looked to their eyes too.

Vulcanus's tenth Numbering Sword, finally complete after all these long years.

A sword worthy of ranking among the finest in the continent's long history, one that could stand shoulder to shoulder with relics of a mythic age.

That was what everyone was thinking, in that very moment.

Fwish.

Airen Farreira, who'd been silently watching the Numbering Sword, summoned his own blade.

His expression somehow apologetic, careful.

The reason became clear at once.

Dwanson and Pablo, laying eyes on the Sorcery Greatsword, now utterly transformed from its old, crude appearance, let out a string of curses.