The well-Balanced Yamamoto-san Gets Caught up in a Death Game

Chapter 11

After being rocked in the carriage for four hours…

That small building was deep in the forest.

“Okay, done with the death sentence~ So, is this Gaga-san’s workshop?”

“I’ve got a lot of questions about your incomprehensible carriage, but if you’re asking if this is my workshop, then yeah, it is.”

“Huh…”

What’s this? I was told it was the home of a [Blacksmith] specialist, so I expected something more rugged, like a stone fortress. Instead, it’s a slightly old-fashioned, stylish house with vines climbing up the walls.

It looks like something that could appear in a Gib** world. I guess this is what they mean by “don’t judge a book by its cover.”

“But why have a workshop so deep in the forest? Isn’t there an artisan district in town?”

Apparently, Gaga-san’s workshop is considered a safe area, so monsters don’t come near. It’s a place where we can relax and let our guard down.

Hmm, maybe because I’ve been rocking in the carriage for so long, but I still feel like the ground is swaying.

“It’s simple. In town, weapon and armor blacksmiths have a weak position. We can’t get good locations recommended to us, so I made my own.”

“Huh? What? Is that really how it is?”

“It is, that’s why I set up my workshop in such a remote place…”

“But… why?”

“The answer is simple. There’s a deep-rooted belief among monsters that those who fight with weapons and armor are weak.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course not! Even the Demon Lord and the Four Heavenly Kings use their favorite weapons when they fight seriously! But there are many monsters who fight with just their bodies. Those guys look down on those who use weapons and armor. Well, for those who can actually fight with just their bodies, weapons might seem like mere tricks…”

“Is that really the case?”

“Well, it doesn’t seem to resonate much with you…”

“No, the strongest people use weapons when they’re at their strongest, so obviously having weapons makes you stronger. I don’t understand why they’d look down on weapons and armor. Or could it be that they’re just too poor to buy equipment?”

When I stated this firmly, Gaga-san looked taken aback for a moment, then slowly started laughing. He then began patting me on the shoulder.

“That’s right! The strongest guys are at their strongest when using weapons, so the logic that weapon users are weak doesn’t make sense!”

“Please stop patting me, Gaga-san. My head might come off.”

“Again?! Isn’t your head coming off too easily!?”

Hmm. I wonder if the joint has loosened from Gaga-san’s reactions on the way here? I’ll push it in firmly. There we go.

“So, will you teach me [Blacksmithing] in this workshop?”

“Yeah, I’ll teach you. In exchange, you’ll help me with making magic swords, right? It seems you’re better than me at magic and [Alchemy].”

“Sure, that’s fine~”

Rather, is this a chance to learn how to make magic swords? For me, it’s absolutely no problem at all!

“For now, let’s go inside and eat. It’s about lunchtime, and you must be hungry.”

Oh, food!

Since we’re deep in the mountains, I wonder if we’ll have some hearty wild game dishes?

■□■

“From now on, I’ll do the cooking!”

“Huh?”

I’m an idiot! A complete idiot! How could I have expected decent cooking from this rough blacksmith fool!

What came out was just two dishes: hard black bread and a salty soup made by rehydrating salted dried meat in hot water…

There was no umami or proper broth! The only flavor was salt, and it completely lacked richness! For my palate, trained at the Dragon’s Slumber Inn, this is absolutely intolerable!

At the very least, vegetables! Couldn’t you have added some leafy greens or mushrooms to the soup!? The meat is dry and tasteless!

Having silently fumed like this, I’ve had enough. I’ve decided that from now on, I’ll do the cooking. I’ve brought some ingredients with my [Storage] skill anyway!

“Uh, sorry…?”

“Oh, it’s fine. I just expected too much. It’s not a problem at all.”

“You’ve got quite a sharp tongue, don’t you?”

I quickly clear away the dishes after we finish eating.

Hmm. The cutlery and silverware are quite nice.

Could these possibly be handmade?

If so, Gaga-san must be skilled in [Crafting] as well.

“Now that we’re done eating, let’s get started with the [Blacksmithing] work right away!”

“Understood.”

“But before that, let me check something. Do you know the three essential elements for [Blacksmithing]?”

“Um… Furnace temperature, materials, and water?”

“You idiot! That’s completely wrong!”

He hits me on the head with his fist.

But it doesn’t hurt at all.

The one who seems to be in pain is Gaga-san, who’s crouching down and holding his fist.

“Damn it, you’re too hard!”

“Well, I can’t help that…”

“Anyway, I’ll tell you the correct answer! The correct answer is physical attack, stamina, and agility!”

Apparently, these three parameters influence [Blacksmithing].

“Without physical attack and agility, the strength of the weapons and armor decreases, and the shape becomes distorted! Stamina is constantly consumed while handling hot materials! So, at the very least, you need to develop these three elements! Got it, you numskull?”

“Yes, I understand!”

So, it means that top-class blacksmiths excel in these three parameters.

My parameters are pretty flat, so I wonder if I’ll be okay with [Blacksmithing]?

“Besides, fire, water, and materials are the absolute basics! It’s a given that you have those!”

Apparently, my answer was about things that everyone is supposed to know as a prerequisite.

Yeah. I kind of knew it, but Gaga-san is exceptionally bad at teaching, isn’t he? Will this be okay?

“Anyway, practice is better than all this talking! Learn with your body!”

“Yes!”

And so, the [Blacksmithing] tutorial, disguised as practice, begins.

“First, decide what you’re going to make. The materials change depending on that, but this time we’ll make a classic [Iron Knife]. The material is one [Iron Ingot]!”

“Ingot? Where do you get ingots from?”

“You don’t even know that?! If you [Mine] in dungeons and such, you’ll get [Iron Ore]! You can turn that into ingots using [Alchemy]! You can make them with [Blacksmithing] too, but [Alchemy] is recommended because it’s less troublesome! Anyway, if you don’t have any, use mine for today!”

▶Acquired: [Iron Ingot]

I see. The dull metallic gleam is nice. And it’s smooth and somewhat cold to the touch.

Hehe. This is a nice ingot…

“Hey, stop that creepy smile. And don’t rub it against your cheek…”

Gaga-san glares at me with a very put-off expression.

But even if you say that…

This is my “first” [Blacksmithing], so I’m a bit excited.

“Tch, there are various types of ingots besides iron, but this time we’re using the cheapest iron for practice. Besides the ingot, we need charcoal and water. We’ll use what I have in my workshop for those, so you don’t need to worry about them now.”

Apparently, there are usually several types of charcoal and water to choose from.

By the way, the charcoal is Gaga-san’s own make. He says he has a charcoal-making hut behind the house. How fancy~

“After we light the furnace, we wait for it to heat up. I want to check if you can light it with magic, so shoot a [Fireball] into the furnace.”

“Okay~”

So, when I shot a [Fireball] into the furnace, the charcoal went flying. Looks like the power was too high.

“You’re useless!”

“Now, now.”

“Why are you the one consoling me?!”

I got scolded really badly.

But somehow I managed to calm him down, and we ended up using regular lighting tools to start the fire.

And from here, the [Blacksmithing] part of the game begins.

Apparently, the [Blacksmithing] process consists of three stages, and by clearing them in order, you can create weapons and armor.

First is the heating stage.

Using tongs, you hold the ingot in the furnace and wait until it starts emitting an orange effect.

When this starts, a gauge appears in the upper left corner of your vision, gradually decreasing as time passes.

By the way, the closer you get to the furnace, the faster this gauge decreases, but the ingot’s state changes more quickly. If you’re aiming to save time or have plenty of stamina to spare, you might want to be more aggressive.

But since this is a tutorial, let’s not overdo it.

That said, my time gauge is unusually long and decreases slowly. Is this also a benefit of my stats? Like, I’m unfazed by being exposed to fire? That’s ridiculous. Hahaha.

Once the ingot reaches a red-hot state, we move to the second stage: forging.

When you place the red-hot ingot on the anvil, music suddenly starts playing and a rhythm game begins. Parts of the ingot will glow white in time with the rhythm, and you’re supposed to hit those parts with the hammer.

This time, maybe because we’re making something simple, I can hammer away with ease! By the way, I’m good at rhythm games, so this is super easy!

“Good, no problems so far.”

With Gaga-san’s stamp of approval, we quench the red-hot ingot… which has already taken the shape of a knife… by dipping it in water to cool it.

Actually, the gauge in the upper left corner was gradually decreasing even while I was hammering the ingot, so if you dawdle, you might fail the task at this point.

Anyway, once the rough shape is formed, we move on to the final process: sharpening.

We use what looks like nothing more than a cloth file to rub and put an edge on the knife. This part of the process is quite fantastical, perhaps because it was difficult to accurately translate real sword forging into a game.

However, this sharpening process is quite tricky.

When you start sharpening, the words “Slash・Pierce・Blunt” appear in the upper right corner of your vision along with numbers, which change as I sharpen the knife.

I think the performance of this iron knife changes based on my sharpening results.

The higher the “Slash” number, the better the knife will cut. The better the “Pierce” number, the more specialized the knife becomes for stabbing.

“Blunt” is rather for a dull blade that doesn’t cut well, but it might be a necessary element when making non-blade items.

So, I was trying my best to get good numbers, but the more I tried, the more it seemed like the overall numbers were decreasing…?

“If you sharpen too much, the durability will decrease.”

I wish you’d tell me that kind of negative information sooner!

Anyway, I compromised to some extent and finished it.

Yeah, it’s finished, but it’s just the blade part. The handle is just a thin iron rod, which looks a bit lonely.

As I was thinking that, Gaga-san made a wooden handle and a leather sheath for it. Oh, it looks nice in its simplicity!

“If you want to focus on design, you should learn [Crafting], [Leatherworking], and [Engraving]. It’s not impossible with [Alchemy], but the work becomes rough. If you want to do detailed work, you should learn at least those three I mentioned.”

“Yes!”

Well, it’s a simple and cool [Iron Knife], but in its current state, it could be called rugged. Or rather, with the wooden handle, it can’t help but look like a dagger.

Actually, it might look more like a kitchen knife.

By the way, here’s the data for my first creation, the [Iron Knife]:

[Iron Knife]

Rarity: 1

Quality: Medium Quality

Durability: 65/65

Created by: Yamamoto, Gaga

Performance: Physical Attack +7 (Slash attribute)

Note: An unremarkable knife

Considering that a longsword’s attack power is 12, can you imagine how impressive the sharpness of a knife with 7 attack power is?

I worked hard on sharpening it! As a trade-off, the durability is a bit low. Apparently, normal durability is around 100?

“Well, it’s pretty good for someone who didn’t even know what an ingot was.”

Yes, I’ve received Gaga-san’s seal of approval!

“Then, I’ll keep working hard like this from tomorrow!”

“You can work hard, but at least prepare your own ingots, will you? I don’t have an endless supply to give you.”

……………

…Whaaaat!?