Magicraft Meister Part 1

Gloria senses that Jin's gaze is fixed on the wall behind her,

"Hmm?　Oh, this collection, it's my hobby.

She said.

"It's not a practical collection, but I display beautiful things."

But Jin was still staring at the wall, or rather at the sword on the wall.

"What is it, Jin-dono?"

Gloria asked him suspiciously, and he finally looked back at her,

"No, it's quite a collection, it's very informative.

He replied, "No, it's quite a collection.

"Reference?"

Gloria seemed to have an idea and clapped her hands together.

"I see!　So you are interested in swords!　Most of the swords on display here are ceremonial swords, but they still have some utility. The top one on the right is a replica of the one used by the knights of the kingdom about 150 years ago, but it is quite different from the current one and has a warp. The warped shape is useful for slitting, but it requires a lot of skill to make it, so the replica was made by casting instead of forging. The one below that is made of silver. It is often considered as a mere decoration, not even mithril, but I like it because it is an example of successfully putting magic in it and it is quite a nice design. The one below that was purchased from the Kingdom of Leonard and is wider as it goes to the tip of the sword, I think because it is more convenient for slashing with its weight. The bottom one is a recent one and is used as standard by the Magic Knights. ..."

Jin was slightly taken back as he began to ramble on at once.

(......)

"He looks a bit like my brother Rai."

Erza muttered in a whisper. Hannah was not listening from the beginning. She is picking up some snacks that were served with the tea. Reiko is not interested in her.

(A beautiful woman is a beautiful woman, but a regrettable beauty. ......)

Jin was half listening to the conversation with this impression in his mind.

"...... So, if you're interested in swords, we can talk about it quickly. Let me tell you why I came all the way here.

Gloria said after a few words and drank the tea in one gulp, moistening her dry mouth,

"Could you make me a sword too?"

She then said, "Could you make me a sword?

"A sword for Gloria-san?

"Yes. Of course, it's not for display here. I finally broke my favorite sword the other day. I have a few spare swords, but none of them are any good.

He looked Jin straight in the eye,

"I have seen Licia's sword, and it is a good one. I wonder if you could make me one of your swords.

After he finished, he bowed his head lightly.

"Why don't you make one for her?

Hannah, seeing Gloria's condition, said to her, "Oh, Hannah, I want you to make one for me.

"Oh, it's Hannah, isn't it? How about it, Jin-dono?

"Brother Jin, since you're saying this..."

Even Erza said so, so Jin broke down.

"I don't mind if you make it, but what about the ingredients?

But it's not good if you don't have the materials.

"Oh, I know a blacksmith who can help you with that.

"I see. ......"

Well, if you have the materials, I have no objection to making it. If Elsa and Hannah want to make it, that's even better. Jin just thought that he had come all the way to Alban to see the sights.

"Well then, let's go make it.

Since time is limited, the sooner the better.

"Well, you say so!　Okay, let's go now!

Gloria stood up. But then she looked at Hannah,

"Oh, your sisters can stay here if you want, what are you going to do?

What do you want to do? She seemed to have taken care of me in her own way.

"I want to stay here with my sister.

I'll go with my brother Jin."

Both of them said yes, so Gloria nodded and we all agreed to go together.

We left Gloria's house and walked straight for about 10 minutes in the direction of the city walls. The blacksmith's workshop was located right next to the wall.

The blacksmith's workshop was located a little far from the residential area because of the noise and fire involved in the blacksmithing work.

"This is it. He's a skilled blacksmith who would normally be a member of the Royal Knights, but he's a bit eccentric and has taken up residence here, saying that his job is to forge the tools of the common people."

As Gloria was explaining this, a stout man came out from inside,

"You're the one who's calling people bigoted and whatnot. ...... Oh, what's that, girl?" he said.

He said, "You're a bigot or something. He was about the same height as Jin. But his arms were thicker than his body would allow.

"Duston, I'm already 23, you can't have a little girl.

The old blacksmith called Duston laughs and says.

"Well, you're still a little girl in my eyes. So what can I do for you today?

"Well, I broke my favorite sword," he says.

But Duston interrupts Gloria as she is about to say that,

"No, no, no, no, no. I've decided I'm not making any more weapons. I can't ask you to do me this favor."

He shakes his head. But Gloria says something to that effect.

"No, I'm not asking Duston to make it for me. I'm just asking him to share his materials with me.

Duston frowns when she says this.

"Really?　Well, you're the only one who asked me to do that, so I'm willing to do it. But who are you going to ask?"

"Yes, to Master Jin here."

What?　What? That little bastard can't even handle a hammer!

Reiko was about to jump out of her skin when she heard those words, and Jin quickly put his hand on her head. That dissuaded Reiko.

"Onii-chan is amazing!"

Hannah was not silent.

"Oh, sweetie?"

Even stubborn Duston couldn't yell back when a girl as old as his grandson yelled at him.

"Onii-chan makes everything!　Ponpu, riyakaa, minto!

She stared at him. But Duston heard a word in Hannah's words that caught his attention.

"What did you just say, little girl?　Didn't you say pump?"

"Yes!　He said I was in trouble, and he pumped!"

"What did you say? ......"

Duston stared at Jin with a surprised look on his face. And Gloria felt the same way. She looked as surprised as Duston.

"Po, it was Jin-dono who made the pump?　I never heard that before, that's amazing!

"Yes, yes, well..."

Jin, who was the main topic of conversation, could not keep up with the tension of the people around him and was a bit withdrawn.

"......Well, I know that a magecraftsman can do some amazing things."

After the excitement had died down, Duston invited the group into his workshop and sat them down in a chair in a corner.

"I've always wanted to make tools and magic tools. It's fun to make tools that are useful for everyone.

Jin also said in a quiet tone. He must have been quite honest about this, since he had been going through a lot of rough times recently.

"Oh, you know what you're talking about, young man!　Yes, the common people's life is the first thing to be taken care of!

Duston heard Jin's line and got excited again.

"That's why I make knives and spoons and kitchen knives!"

"Ah, Duston, I'm sorry, but they don't have much time either, so it would be great if you could share your materials with us soon. ......"

Gloria opened her mouth, knowing that if she remained silent, her business would never seem to end. Deep down, she too was eager to hear what Jin, the supposed developer of the pump, had to say.

"Mhm, ah, yes, I guess so. What do you want?　I don't have any adamantite or mithril.

To which Jin replied.

"Iron would be nice. And, if you don't mind, I'd like to take a look at your work.

"Hmm?　I've got plenty of iron. And a tour, yes, that's fine, but is it interesting?

Duston said, but Jin looked at Elsa and Hannah alternately,

"Elsa, you should see how to make blades without using magic. And Hannah, this little father of yours is the same man who works with Hannah's grandfather.

"Hmm. If Brother Jin says so...

What?　With grandpa?

Erza nodded and Hannah looked puzzled.

"So your grandfather was a blacksmith too. Good, go ahead and take a look.

With that Duston got up. He lit the furnace. The furnace seemed to be powered by magic, and there was no charcoal or coal to be found.

I don't make my own iron. I make tools from iron I buy.

Saying this, he grabbed an ingot that had been broken into pieces of appropriate size and heated it in the furnace.

When the ingots turn red, they are removed from the furnace, placed on an anvil, and stretched by hitting them with a hammer.

When the material cools and hardens, it becomes hard to work with, so it is put back into the furnace several times during the process to heat it up.

"Wow, it's forming into a shape!

Hannah exclaims in surprise. Duston hammered the iron into the shape of a knife.

When the shape of the knife was roughly formed, he finished it with a chisel and a file.

The shape of a kitchen knife classified as a beef knife was completed.

"You have to burnish it. I'm sorry, but it's a secret, so I can't show you ......, but if you want to watch from a distance, that's fine.

With these words, Jin and the others retreated to a corner of the workshop.

Watching from a distance, Duston finally grabbed the knife and put it in the furnace.

This time he stared at it carefully, and when the knife turned orange, he took it out and dipped it into the water at once.

Steam rose up with a whoosh sound. Even from a distance, it was powerful in its own way.

Elsa and Hannah, who had never seen it before, looked a little surprised.

"Well, that's it for the hardening process. The last step is tempering.

Duston explained in a mumbled voice and finally grabbed the knife again.

This time he does not put it inside but holds it over the furnace to sear it. After a few moments, he pulled it away from the furnace.

"It's done!"

He waits for the knife to cool, files the surface, and then sharpens it with a whetstone. Finally, the handle is attached.

It took about an hour to complete one knife.