Grave Keeper of the Fallen Kingdom

Three days have passed since I spent at the dragon’s hearth.

In the name of honoring the souls of the blacksmiths here, Ren went back and forth to the graveyard every morning and evening.

– Why are you so late today!

“It’s late to see the sword that Caleb-nim has been working on since it’s finally finished.”

– Tsk. useless anyway.

To Ren, the sword was better than any sword he had seen in the dragon’s brazier for three days.

All the blacksmiths were admiring and envious, but only Caleb and Carter couldn’t erase their dissatisfied faces.

Kang! Kang! Kang!

A loud hammering sound echoes.

The blacksmiths were moving their arms harder than before, as if they were motivated by Caleb’s sword.

“Are you here?”

“Can I see the sword?”

“I see.”

It seems that he has neither attachment nor lingering attachment to his own sword.

The dissatisfied face he had seen before going down to the tomb had disappeared before he knew it.

– … … Ren, can I borrow your body and talk to you?

Carter said in a serious voice.

Ren nodded without speaking.

“Caleb.”

At the sudden call, he looks at Ren with a puzzled look.

“He is my disciple.”

At those words, his eyes widened.

“Why are you still not forgetting me?”

“… … what… Are you doing it?”

“How long are you going to keep anxiety hidden inside your body?”

thud!

“Aren’t you asking what I’m doing right now!”

He slammed the desk with his fist and shouted loudly.

Then all the eyes of those around him were focused on this place.

“You are a sufficiently excellent blacksmith. He has qualities that can surpass me.”

At the same time as those words, Caleb’s eyes shook violently.

“My disciple. Do you remember the day I first gathered you? The day I buried myself in the snow and looked at the sword I made.”

“That… how… … ?”

“I was convinced when I first saw you that day. You can become the best blacksmith.”

A single tear trickled down his cheek from his reddened eyes and wet eyes.

“S… win… … sir?”

On the other side of his memory, a line of memory that was hidden deep inside overlapped with Ren’s current appearance.

“My body is just lying down there in a coffin. I’m always watching you don’t be anxious disciple… … .”

“Huh… , teacher… You’re… … .”

Caleb knelt on the ground and began to sob.

It was the first time the family at Dragon’s Brazier had seen Caleb like this since Carter’s death.

Carter followed Caleb, knelt on the floor, eye level, and hugged him tightly.

“I have been watching your metallurgy for a long time. That’s great… … .”

“Huh… … , Master Nim… … .”

“I guess I raised you too much like a child. It’s because you’re so anxious that only one such ugly teacher is gone.”

“no… , I am… Because I’m a bad disciple… … .”

The blacksmiths around them couldn’t understand what the hell was going on.

The atmosphere between the two was so affectionate that it was ambiguous to intervene.

“Now believe in yourself. Make your own sword.”

“Master… … , All right. I was foolish.”

– Now it’s done. Thank you. donate to the cemetery

[“Subquest – Carter’s Truth” has been resolved.]

– You said you came to ask for a sword from Caleb. There are ingredients that are just right for you.

Caleb, who had been breathing, calmed him down and Carter pulled him up.

“I want you to make a sword that I couldn’t try.”

“… … All right.”

Caleb nodded.

And Carter, who has lost control of his body, looks at him with a pleased expression.

I slowly looked around with a warm gaze.

The blacksmiths and the visitors were looking at me and Caleb with strange eyes.

“Caleb.”

Caleb’s eyes changed completely at the sudden change of atmosphere and tone.

“What have you all been watching! Are you going to work again after the lights are out? I’m not going back to my place soon!”

Surprised by Caleb’s recovery, the blacksmiths went back to their seats.

“… … You come with me.”

“yes.”

I moved to Caleb’s room I had been to before.

When Caleb took a weapon from the wall and rammed it into the wall behind him, the wall moved, revealing a hidden space.

“here is… … .”

A small space not too big compared to the outside.

I wondered if even the masterpiece he had made was hidden, but it wasn’t.

There was only a small wooden box in it.

“Do you know why our forge is called the dragon’s brazier?”

“I do not know.”

“There is a legend that a dragon who turned into a human came to visit the ancestor who built this blacksmith in the past. Then he gave me some ore and asked me to make a sword out of it.”

“yes.”

“The ore cannot be melted with ordinary fire, so the ancestor asked the dragon to melt the ore with the dragon’s breath.”

“Did the dragon ask for it?”

“I don’t know. However, according to legend, the dragon eventually breathed out and melted the ore, and the ancestors said that they made the greatest sword in history. Since then, the name of our forge has become Dragon’s Brazier.”

– right. I haven’t forgotten and I remember it well.

Carter helped him.

“okay.”

“The dragon was very satisfied and delivered another ore to the ancestor. That’s it.”

Caleb opened the wooden box.

What is contained in it is an ore that exudes a cool green aura.

Caleb casually grabbed the ore, but I couldn’t put my hand on it.

“Why but?”

“A terrifying sensation… … .”

“As expected, it seems to feel more special to you.”

– Yes, this ore had this power.

“What do you mean by that?”

Caleb asked Ren’s self-talk as if he was curious.

“Are you talking to Master by any chance?”

“you’re right.”

“I wonder if it was Master who talked earlier… … . I was not mistaken.”

“yes. Ghosts sometimes come to me. Everything I said to Caleb was his will.”

“It seemed so. He said he was an excellent gravekeeper… … , it really was. What does Master say?”

– Now that I’m a soul, I know. It seems to have the power to suck in souls.

Ren did exactly what Carter had to say.

“It is the power to suck in souls… … .”

“I feel the spiritual power.”

As soon as Ren looked at the Eternals, he noticed that the energy emanating from them was similar to spiritual power.

Where did this ore come from?

“Maybe this too is destiny.”

Caleb murmured and grabbed the Eternal.

“It is a tombstone that communicates with the soul and an ore containing the power of the soul… … , Isn’t it a combination that really suits you?”

“That word… … ?”

“Master said so. I want you to make me a sword that I couldn’t do this time.”

He placed the Eternals in the wooden box and closed the lid.

“I will make you the best sword that contains the power of the Eternals.”

“thank you.”

Caleb’s face was smiling brightly as if he were relieved, and there was no worry or concern like before.

* * *

Kang! Kang! Kang! Kang!

A hammering sound that resonates steadily and cheerfully.

When you enter the forge, everyone around you is watching only one person holding their breath.

Once inside, Ren passed the crowd and spotted a middle-aged man standing in front of an anvil.

Kang! Kang! Kang!

Although drenched in sweat, his eyes are still focused on the heated sword.

Full of swollen muscles, closed mouth, and regular breathing.

For a moment, Ren had no choice but to stand there blankly and watch his work.

The sword, which seemed to be completed even tomorrow, entered the hot furnace again, and the sound of hammering, which seemed to stop now, was resounding again.

When Caleb picked up the hammer, he didn’t move from the spot for almost half a day.

Eating or sleeping is only for a short time to the extent that it is hard to see.

He immersed himself in his work as if he were about to burn out all the flames just before he died.

Anxiety left in the corner of my heart after Carter’s death.

After the pillar that always protected oneself, pointed out mistakes and praised good things, disappeared, no matter how hard one knocked on iron, it felt uncomfortable and frustrating.

But not anymore.

Kang! Kang! Kang!

Because I know that Master will always be by my side.

Now that she knew that the stern Master truly acknowledged her, she could be sure.

The impurities that had been buried like soot on the inside of the best yard in Kormir, which supported the dragon’s brazier, had completely disappeared.

“ha… … .”

Beads of sweat run down your cheeks and drip to the ground.

If he didn’t like it, he threw the iron into the furnace without hesitation.

shhh! Hiss! Hiss!

Roughly blasting the bellows, raising the sparks and taking out the iron.

I didn’t compromise until I got closer to Caleb’s perfect image.

It doesn’t have to be completed forever like this. Caleb was satisfied with just being able to work while immersed in something like this.

No worries, no worries, no doubts.

I had forgotten for a while that just being able to immerse myself in my work is such a happy and enjoyable thing.

Kang! Kang! Kang!

Eternals were a more tricky, sensitive, and difficult ore than I thought.

From smelting and refining to forging.

This process of slowly taming this picky and arrogant guy was a difficult time even for Caleb.

And finally, the guy started to change as Caleb intended.

Caleb’s face lit up with joy.

Kang!

Just as he wanted, like a perfectly tamed pet, the sword revealed what he had been hiding.

Suddenly, a feeling of pleasure swept through my body.

As if drunk, there was no sensation left.

I just wanted to complete this sword as soon as possible.

“hahahaha… … .”

My eyeballs were stuffy, as if they were bloodshot, and my heart was beating like crazy.

My hands trembled and my muscles all over my body stopped responding.

He let out a low moan and stopped.

After staring blankly at the finished sword, I looked out the window in the distance, and before I knew it, the blue dawn was hanging over me.

match.

Ren, who had been watching the old man’s work all night, clapped his hands.

Then, the few remaining blacksmiths poured out applause after him.

Caleb, who came to his senses, grabbed the handle of the finished sword and lifted it.

A long, sharp sword blade and a luxurious looking guard.

Even the rust-colored jewels embedded on it.

It’s not very flashy, but the shape of the sword, which creates an aloof and mysterious atmosphere by itself, was busy exclaiming not only Ren but also other blacksmiths around him.

“It belongs to you.”

Caleb took a quick look at the sword and handed it to Ren without hesitation.

It is an excellent sword that is regrettable in its name.

Shouldn’t it be called a treasured sword?

“thank you. I will write well.”

Ren took the sword and gripped the handle.

ugh-

In an instant, the green jewel embedded in the sword radiated light.

pounding.

My heart raced.

The spiritual power that filled his body naturally flowed into the sword, and he felt as if the sword were one body with him.

A mysterious sensation that I feel for the first time in my life.

I remembered what I said when I first met Caleb.

– Nothing really touches me. I wanted to find a sword that was like my life partner. ha ha ha. Did I sound too dreamy?

Even saying it myself, I thought it was absurd.

however… … .

ugh-

The sword vibrated in resonance with the sound of my heartbeat.

It was as if he was talking to me.

As if he understood the meaning of my gaze.

‘Partners for life… … . Ha, I really thought there would be.’

Caleb came to me with a smile.

“You look satisfied.”

“Is there any swordsman who would not be satisfied with this sword?”

“It is the greatest masterpiece of my life. until now… No, to the extent that it will never come out.”

he laughed bitterly

“Now that I’m old, I don’t think I’ll be able to work like this again.”

It was worth it.

It was because everyone who watched from the side was overdoing it to the point of worrying about his safety.

“Can you name this guy?”

Ren was lost in thought as he ran his left hand over the blade of his sword.

“The sword that summons the soul… … . The name of this sword is yes, Chohon (招魂). It should be the first marriage.”

ugh-

The sword resonated again.

‘Are you saying you like it?’

The moment Ren smiled.

“First marriage… … , that’s a good name I will remember-.”

dump.

“Caleb!”

Surprised, Ren grabbed Caleb as he fell.

The nearby blacksmiths were also startled and rushed around Caleb.

Ren checked Caleb’s breathing and pulse and let out a sigh of relief.

“You seem to be very tired.”

“cadet… … . Good luck!”

“I thought it was going to be a real big deal when I overdid it again.”

“I will support you. There is a Travis person around here, so if you ask the Travis family, they will connect you with a priest.”

Ren put the chohon into the simple sword sheath and went out to the forge with Caleb.