I Became a Slave to a Mythical Shepherd

Episode 12. Blacksmith (3)

“Make this child your disciple.”

For a moment, my mind goes blank.

student? For what?

Really just for one pair of scissors?

“It is nothing but an honor.”

it’s god Is that also Hephaestus?

“Yes, it is an honor. good night. Skleos, what about that piece?”

“I only used it yesterday, but it was quite useful.”

Perhaps, in this era, scissors could only be seen in faraway Egypt or farther and farther Mesopotamia.

In order to know the identity of this object, you would have to be familiar with the culture of the East or across the distant sea, but a blacksmith who cannot travel far would not be able to know.

However, it was surprising that Hephaestus, a god of color, did not know about scissors either. Is it because he is a god who only plays in the realm of ancient Greece?

Anyway, as if to stop talking about the scissors, Hephaestus snapped his fingers again and sent the scissors somewhere unknown. Then he looked back at me and Skleos and sighed.

“Then… from now on, think about what to do with this child. #$@#$@ You won’t be seen by the king.”

…what king?

“I don’t want King $@#$% to find out about this, so why don’t we stay with our shepherd parents and occasionally go around pretending to leave the town’s goods at our smithy?”

“That’s not a bad idea either. Think about it some more…”

It would certainly not be common for a mere shepherd’s child to hear the king’s name. That’s why I realized it now.

I thought it was only my name that I couldn’t hear properly, but now it’s hard to understand even the name of the king of this country as if there’s some noise.

More precisely, I have the feeling that I know who it is referring to, but I do not know the pronunciation.

“Hey.”

“Uh… ah, yes? Hephaestus?”

“It is not easy for us to collect you. It will be bad for both you and us if you get caught in the king’s eyes, so teaching you skills will have to be done very secretly.”

“It is as Hephaestus said. People from your village have little contact with the outside world, so it doesn’t matter if they know about it.

Why?

“…I leave the detailed explanation to you.”

“I understand, Hephaestus.”

“Scleos, teach me the basics well. From now on, I will visit your smithy myself, so make sure you set aside time to teach the child. There was a workshop outside the city walls, right?”

“Yeah, let’s work on that side unnoticed. I will also tell my colleagues.”

“Ok, fine···. Sometimes I take him as an assistant. You can come up with some kind of excuse. Like parents selling their children by lending them out for a while because they couldn’t pay for them.”

Hephaestus replied with satisfaction and slowly backed away.

[Scleos, above all, respect the child’s will.]

His figure gradually becomes blurry, but soon overlaps with the marble statue and scatters into the air.

[Little boy.]

A loud voice again. But somehow it feels softer than before.

[See you later.]

and,

sheen.

As the intimidating feeling of seeing it for the first time gradually returned, volcanic heat and light poured from the place where Hephaestus was.

I couldn’t win against it, so I backed away and covered my eyes, but when I finally regained my sight,

there was nothing.

However, there are still many parts that have not been explained.

Why should I not be noticed by the king, and why should I keep learning blacksmithing a secret?

Uncle Skleos nodded and said as if he knew that my curiosity had not gone away.

“Do you remember the shape of Hephaestus-sama’s legs?”

“The left side was particularly short and twisted.”

“okay. right.”

You have to limp to walk, and you need a cane to stand upright.

“You don’t know why?”

“As far as I know, Hera, the mother of Hephaestus-sama…”

“… you’ve never met God, but you know the story? You are right. It’s amazing.”

I took one of the two and it seems to fit.

There are two stories about the legs of Hephaestus.

One theory is that he sided with Hera in an argument between Zeus and Hera, and then an angry Zeus threw him to the ground, injuring his leg.

The other theory is that Hera, who felt a competitive spirit when Zeus gave birth to Athena, gave birth to Hephaestus alone and threw him to the ground because he was ugly.

Perhaps in this world, the latter seems to be the orthodoxy.

Skleos smiled, stroking his chin in interest.

However, that brief smile soon turns into a complaint.

Skleos, who had been silent for a moment and gave off only a shuddering silence, pulled back the cloak that was quietly covering him and showed his legs.

Just like Hephaestus, lame with a damaged left leg.

I stopped when I saw it. Skleos’ bitter smile deepened.

“Then do you know why my legs are like this?”

“···I do not know.”

“When we were young apprentices, kings and nobles would gather us who had not yet grown up and say:”

Skleos looked at me with eyes that seemed to be possessed by something for a moment. I’ve seen a lot of similar eyes.

Usually, such a state is expressed in terms familiar to modern people.

post traumatic stress disorder.

“’Blacksmiths, whose master, Hephaestus, suffers cripples, how can they, as servants, not share in the pain?’”

Uncle Skleos spoke as if he was printing out what was injected. Unknowingly, he stroked the burn mark on his left leg.

Although it was a wound that seemed to have healed a long time ago, Skleos frowned in pain and flinched as if blood and ooze were still flowing from it.

Maybe it’s psychological pain.

“Everyone, excuses. I knew, but I couldn’t help it. I threatened to cut off my ankle if I didn’t.”

After Skleos finished speaking, he lowered his head.

“Each blacksmith has the power to arm hundreds of men and feed a small town. Our knowledge and the skills we have acquired give us wealth and power.”

“…

“…Well, it’s only natural that those in power try to monopolize the blacksmith’s craft. It would be a huge loss if the blacksmiths left in search of a new owner.”

So, the legs are broken, and a pharynx is applied to crush them to stop their growth. It twists the muscles and bones and prevents them from leaving in pain.

“…that’s one of the reasons why you shouldn’t find out that you’re learning blacksmithing. Do you understand?”

At Skleos’ words, I swallowed my saliva.

What I wanted to be was a high-income high-tech engineer blessed by God, not someone’s toy who lives in a cage for the rest of his life.

The words of Skleos and Hephaestus must mean that they will prevent such a disaster before it happens.

“So you must not be seen by King $%%^# just yet. If you learn blacksmithing, it must be done in secret, and it must be done because you want it.”

Skleos makes eye contact with me.

“How are you? Will you learn to handle iron with me? Like I just said, it’s really dangerous. You may reject it. I will tell Hephaestus.”

The gods in Greek mythology are cruel, impetuous, and selfish.

Ordinary other gods would either kill or inflict a terrible curse on the person they were trying to make their disciple if they refused the offer.

But what I felt when I saw Hephaestus approaching me was rather…

Tenderness, compassion, caring and altruism…

He was eager to help me. I don’t know if it’s because of just one pair of scissors or what.

Will you take the risk and learn your craft as a blacksmith?

Or will you refuse God’s offer and live as a shepherd, quietly buried in the mountains?

If I had been given this option not too long ago, I would have chosen the latter without even thinking about it for a moment. All I wanted was a peaceful and monotonous life.

But now, will this world leave me alone?

Did you go through a death crisis just because you went alone during a festival? Those mysterious moments still haunt me with fear.

Besides, if I was able to stand out in the eyes of the gods, as I do now, wouldn’t the future knowledge or behavior I would inadvertently show attract someone’s attention?

Just like when I was about to take a sip and almost got caught as a traitor.

It’s hard to survive while being afraid and taking care of yourself for the rest of your life. I am just a slave with nothing. In other words, it is only a property that can be killed if the owner wants to kill it.

“I will learn.”

I need a card to hold.

When I live in this world and am in danger, I need at least one special skill to preserve my body.

The status of blacksmith and metallurgy, which are only allowed to very few people in this era, may give me a chance to survive.

“I’m glad he likes you too.”

When Uncle Skleos heard my answer, he smiled and tousled his hair.

“Very, very special. The young guy made a difficult decision without crying or being scared.”

“thank you.”

“You probably don’t even know what decision you made. It’s a very dangerous thing. Will you be okay though?”

When I nodded, the uncle stroked my head harder. When I ran to the temple earlier, I was in a hurry and couldn’t see the wound on my leg.

I turned my head away to keep my eyes from going that way, but the man seemed to know why I turned my head.

“Come on, let’s go. Your father must have already gone home, so I’ll just tell you where you’ll be coming from and I’ll take you home.”

Limping, Uncle Skleos walked out of the temple. As if he had lost his energy, his limp was a little worse than before.

I followed him beyond the open door and into the scenery of the city.

“From now on, the place I will go to is a blacksmith that was abandoned a long time ago. It was only used in my father’s generation, but after a few wars, it was moved to quickly evacuate blacksmiths inside the walls.”

Uncle Skleos spoke in a whisper, and I quietly nodded.

“It will be difficult for you to come by yourself, so you can tell your parents or so… but you shouldn’t reveal the location to others. Even if you tell me that you are learning blacksmithing, you must not reveal its location.”

“I won’t tell anyone.”

“okay.”

After answering so briefly, the blacksmith crossed the gate. The soldiers guarding the fortress bowed their heads and greeted him.

“I will have to walk for quite a while, so please bear with me even if your legs hurt. If you want to go there, maybe… north?”

Skleos led the way, holding my hand. At first, I went on a paved road, then I fell into a muddy trail, and after a while, it was just grass without soil.

“The road ends here, but now I just have to go through the forest over there.”

“… I’m sure I’ll never get caught.”

“yes? Probably the only people living in that city who remember this location are me and my blacksmith colleagues.”

I walked through the grass that came up to my waist for a long time. It was not hot at all because the trees that covered the sky densely overhead blocked the sunlight.

And not long after, the sky opened up and the sunlight fell on my head again.

“uuu! It’s here!!”

– It’s jam-packed.

The door finally opens as the hinges scream and twist their joints.

As soon as we entered, the smell of dust hit us and we had to choke for a while as we entered.

Cobwebs stretched like curtains everywhere, and white dust was spread like a carpet.

“It needs a little cleaning. Next time I come, I’ll have to bring a mop.”

···little?

When I distort my face, he laughs awkwardly and scratches the back of his head.

“It’s a place that has been neglected for decades. For now, let’s just find out where things are and go back.”

Well, nothing great.

Dusty molds of this and that shape, dusty shelves, dusty braziers, dusty anvils, dusty hammers, and dusty… Ugh.

“Cool! Cool! Kaaagh!”

Perhaps even an adult could not stand the turbid air, but Mr. Skleos was able to continue introducing the facility again only after coughing so hard that his face reddened.

“I put the firewood and charcoal that I originally dug up there. Right now the hole is blocked, but over there is a wind hole…”

“Hey, what about that door?”

“What door? uh… huh? Was there anything like that over there?”

The only door here that is not dusty.

In this place where everything is shabby and crooked, the table is rattled because the leg lengths do not match each other, and the doors do not fit together and scream every time they are opened and closed.

“I’ve never seen one.”

I guess so.

because it wouldn’t have been

After realizing that this world is a mythical world, a strange certainty begins to linger. That door originally did not belong here. That door…

Without hesitation, I opened the door, and the bronze hinges moved smoothly and silently, revealing the view beyond the door.

“This is beyond my expectations.”

Upon entering the door, I couldn’t help but admire.