kscans

Chapter 6 - The Grossa Army Headquarters

"Come on, Sensei. We’ll be at the Grossa Army headquarters soon."

"Is that so. You must be busy, I appreciate you showing me the way."

"Not at all."

After that, I followed Militar down a narrow back alley. Apparently, it was a shortcut. Militar, walking ahead of me, radiated the aura of a veteran hero. To think she had become so distinguished before I knew it... Though I was no parent of hers, I was getting a little choked up when Militar suddenly cried out, "Ah!"

"Sensei, I’ve been dragging you all over the place, but is your schedule okay? I’m sorry, I just went ahead and made plans without asking."

So that’s what she was worried about. That sort of consideration for others was something that hadn’t changed about her since she was a child.

"Ah, you don’t need to worry about it. I don’t have any plans. In fact, I was wondering what to do with myself."

"Is that right. I’m glad to hear that. Did you come to the Royal Capital for sightseeing?"

"Yeah, I was kicked out of my guild."

"What! You were kicked out!?"

I had never heard Militar raise her voice so loudly. Was it really that surprising? I gave her a brief explanation of what had happened.

"...To think they would expel a blacksmith as capable as you, Sensei... That guild master is the very height of incompetence."

For a while, Militar fumed with anger. I think I managed to gloss over the part about being unemployed without actually using the word.
As we walked, I asked her something I had been wondering about for a while.

"By the way, Militar, why do you call me Sensei?"

"Could it be... that you don’t like it?"

Militar turned around, backlit by the sun, her posture as dignified as a goddess.

"N, no, it’s not that I don’t like it. I was just wondering why you’d call a shabby old guy like me Sensei..."

"That’s because you taught me so many things, of course."

"So many things..."

The way she said that could be easily misunderstood.

"My parents were always away at work, but you taught me how to study, how to cook simple meals... You taught me so many things that are important for living."

"Did I? I feel like we were just playing around."

"You’ve always been too modest, Sensei."

Now that she mentioned it, I did seem to remember doing things like studying and cooking together. I was single back then, too. I had a lot of free time after work. I tried to recall my memories from fifteen years ago. How many other neighborhood kids were there besides Militar? ...Three... no, five...? With my rusty forty-year-old brain, I could only conjure a hazy scene.

"I wonder what the other kids are up to these days."

"You don’t need to talk about anyone but me... Ah, Sensei. You can see the headquarters now. Let’s go inside right away."

"Whoa, so this is the Grossa Army headquarters. It’s huge."

When she muttered something in a low voice, a number of barracks appeared. They had dark gray triangular roofs and brown brick walls. I followed Militar onward. Armed soldiers were coming and going everywhere, and when they saw Militar, they would stop and salute. Without breaking her stride, Militar simply raised a hand in response.

"A Legion Commander really is a big deal, huh."

"I tell them they can be more relaxed around me... but the soldiers can be a bit too formal."

"Oh, should I have saluted too? I just walked right past them."

"You don’t need to do anything like that, Sensei."

I could see a large open square in the back of the grounds. A group of several dozen soldiers were sparring with wooden swords. It was probably a training ground. They must be practicing. If I were in there, I’d probably get injured in an instant. As I was making these observations in my head, we arrived in front of one of the barracks. It was a size larger than the surrounding buildings, and this one alone had a plaque of a hammer above the door. Militar opened the door with a click.

"This is the Grossa Army’s blacksmith facility. It’s where new armaments are made and repaired."

"Wow... As expected of a forge directly under the national army. There are so many weapons."

The guild in Rieten was a decent size, but this space seemed to be twice as large. The walls were lined with weapons like swords, axes, and spears, and there was armor in the corners as well. There was a forge in the back, so it looked like it served as both a blacksmith shop and an armory.

"Excuse me."

"...Your Excellency, Legion Commander! Salute!"

There were more than a dozen soldiers inside, but as soon as they saw Militar, they all fell into line. They executed a flawless, beautiful salute. I tried to return the salute but felt too embarrassed, and just ended up giving a half-hearted wave. One of the soldiers asked Militar a question.

"Your Excellency, Legion Commander, who is this gentleman...?"

"Ah, I apologize for the late introduction. This is Dareth-dono. He is the peerless blacksmith who created my magic sword, Shinma. Please, Sensei, step forward."

"H, hello. I’m Dareth."

The moment Militar said he created Shinma, the barracks filled with murmurs. The soldiers were looking at each other and talking.

"Hey, did you hear that? He’s apparently the creator of Shinma. I never thought I’d meet him in my lifetime."

"Huh, an old guy like that. He doesn’t look like such an amazing blacksmith."

"You don’t think he’s tricking the Legion Commander, do you? I heard the creator’s name isn’t inscribed on Shinma."

It was a mix of praise and doubt. Well, it couldn’t be helped. It was hard to believe that an old guy like me had made the Legion Commander’s sword. Even I was still half-doubting it.

"So, where is Nanahikari-dono? I would like to introduce Dareth-dono."

"Yes, he was just repairing our swords, but... he worked for a little while and then disappeared."

The soldier timidly looked toward the forge in the back. Hammers and bellows were scattered about carelessly, and the forge itself was unlit and silent. The blacksmith who was supposed to be its master was nowhere to be seen. From their troubled expressions, I could tell the man wasn't very well-liked. Militar spoke with a sigh.

"Again... I wish he would at least finish his work properly before going out."

"We apologize, Your Excellency, Legion Commander. We have tried to tell him as much, but he refuses to listen..."

I suppose their respective positions made it difficult for them to be too forceful. I took a discreet look at the tools near the forge myself, and it seemed they hadn't been maintained at all. As a helpless atmosphere settled over the barracks, the door was thrown open with a bang!

"Tch, this place is as stuffy and grimy as ever."

"N, Nanahikari-dono!"

A man entered. Was he around twenty years old? He had the appearance of a blond, blue-eyed prince, and it was obvious at a glance that his clothes were expensive. A shirt with fine embroidery, crisply creased trousers, and polished leather shoes. ...Those aren't work clothes, are they? He had the same air about him as Shion... no. I shook my head, correcting my thoughts. I shouldn’t judge people by their appearance. Maybe he had been meeting with someone important. Militar, her expression still stern, spoke to him.

"Nanahikari-dono, where have you been? It is a problem when you disappear without permission."

"Don’t get so worked up. Just a little date. Unlike you mob soldiers, I’m popular, you know, hyahaha."

I had a feeling that might be it, but it seemed I was mistaken about him meeting someone important. Nanahikari listlessly walked over to the forge and plopped down. One of the soldiers approached him hesitantly.

"Excuse me for bothering you while you’re busy... but about the longsword I requested a repair for..."

"Yeah, yeah, I’m working on it, so don’t worry. Here you go."

"Uwah!"

Nanahikari picked up a sword that was lying on the ground and tossed it over carelessly. Unsheathed. Wha, seriously? What a reckless guy. And who puts a repaired sword on the floor? No one, that’s who. That single action told me just how much of a problem this man was.

"I fixed it up perfectly for you. You should be grateful."

"Ah, thank you."

The soldier looked down at the sword with a dejected face. I caught a glimpse of its condition, and it was awful. The blade was full of nicks and covered in scratches. The hilt was clogged with soot, and the pommel was chipped. It was painfully obvious that it hadn’t even been cleaned, let alone repaired.

"What’s wrong? I went to the trouble of fixing it for you, so you should be happier."

"Ah, well, but..."

Nanahikari slung an arm around the soldier’s right shoulder, a smug grin on his face. But as he looked at the intimidated soldier, his expression gradually turned vicious.

"Hey! I’m the one who fixed this, so why the long face!"

Nanahikari raised his left hand to punch the soldier in the face. That’s it, as a fellow blacksmith, I can’t just stand by and watch.

"Hey, if you’re a blacksmith, you should repair things properly."

Before I knew it, I had grabbed Nanahikari’s left arm.