Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, Vol. 4 (15 page)

And I don’t have any complaints about Mr. Welf…But there is something.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking after talking with the goddess last night. I might as well see what Lyu has to say on the subject, so I tell her Mr. Welf’s full name and that he is a very talented smith.

Wow, I really am talking behind his back a lot…

“Crozzo…”

She freezes in place after hearing Mr. Welf’s family name. The name practically fell from her lips.

She normally doesn’t react to anything like this. It’s making me a little nervous.

“D-do you know anything about him…?”

“No, nothing about him personally…However, Crozzo is a name that is impossible for elves to ignore.”

E-elves can’t ignore it?

I never expected to get information about the Crozzo family here.

“If you don’t mind, could you tell me why? I want to know as much about Mr. Welf as I can…”

“…Very well. I would like to caution you that this is most likely not the information you’re seeking.”

She jumps into her story after giving me that short disclaimer.

“I believe you have heard about their magic swords, but are you familiar with where those blacksmiths resided?”

“No, I’m not.”

“A kingdom called Rakia. Of all the countries in the world, that kingdom is relatively close to Orario.”

Rakia…I think I heard that name a few times in my hometown before coming to Orario.

Things like “That country’s starting a war again,” or “They’re sending expeditions all over the place,” and others.

“The country itself is governed by one god who declared himself
king using his
Familia
. The Crozzo family offered their services in exchange for nobility. Those services were, of course, producing a large supply of magic swords.”

Everything she said so far matches up with Lilly’s telling very well. I nod and Lyu continues.

“Perhaps due to the fact that its ruler considered himself a god of war, Rakia was an extremely aggressive nation. That is still accurate to this day. Whenever a neighboring country or city shows weakness, Rakia moves to invade.”

So the rumors are true…

“Within that country’s long history of repetitive wars, the full power of Crozzo’s Magic Swords was unleashed many times.”

She’s about to get to the point, I can feel it. I’m on the edge of my seat, or at least I would be if I were sitting down.

“An army of common soldiers armed with magic swords—can you picture that, Mr. Cranell?”

“…Don’t tell me they…”

“You are correct. At that time, Rakia had a mobile inferno under its command. They didn’t bother with strategy or planning. They just annihilated everything in their wake with overwhelming firepower.”

Victory after victory, undefeated and invincible, a god of war who couldn’t lose.

She says that no one knew how to stop Rakia when it was blessed with magic swords.

“Rakia was too aggressive. Their wars changed the very face of our world. Thus, prairies and cities alike were burned to ash, leaving nothing behind…And then their flames reached a forest inhabited by elves.”

It’s said that humans and demi-humans and elves didn’t interact very much before the gods descended to this world. There are some very close-minded people around now who still don’t.

The best examples are the elves. I’ve heard there is a group of them who are so proud that they absolutely hate interacting with other races. They’ve shut themselves off from the rest of the world in a forest somewhere.

So basically, that means…

“They were chased out of their home, those elves? The forest they lived in was destroyed by a war?”

“They were smoked out, to be more precise. Their homeland went up in flames.”

Their forest burned to the ground.

I gulp down a mouthful of air once the meaning of those words hits home.

Lyu finishes her story by saying that the surviving elves sought help from other gods. They joined
Familias
in the surrounding nations, received blessings, and took revenge on Rakia.

Unfortunately for the kingdom, they no longer had magic swords in their arsenal. Lyu said that those elves got their retribution relatively easily.

“Rakia’s soldiers spread devastation as if it was a game. For those on the receiving end of magic swords, hating the Crozzo family might be a case of misplaced anger…However, there are still many elves who haven’t gotten over the past.”

“…”

“So that is why the name Crozzo is impossible for elves to ignore.”

“…What about you, Lyu?”

“No, I harbor no ill will.”

Her quick denial surprises me.

I’ve heard that elves consider their entire race to be a family, filled with pride in themselves and one another.

Lyu says that’s an exaggeration, and that her own homeland was not directly affected…I’m absolutely stunned.

Of course, Syr—and the others as well—cares for me, but to think Lyu hasn’t known me very long at all, yet shares something like this and worries about me so much…She’s very important to me.

“Be-ll! Sorry to keep you waiting!”

“…It’s time. Mr. Cranell, please be careful in the Dungeon today.”

“Ah, yes…”

Lyu gives me a slight bow as Syr comes through the door.

She goes back inside the bar without another word. I watch in silence as the door closes behind her.

“I’m a little late…”

I’m speed-walking my way through West Main. Morning bells ring out from the east as I make my way through an ever-growing crowd of people. Lilly and Mr. Welf are waiting for me at the base of Babel Tower. I have to get there as soon as possible.

My feet are moving, but my thoughts are somewhere else entirely. I’m so wrapped up in what I just heard from Lyu that I don’t even notice a person walking right up to me.

“Oh, this really
is
your route.”

“Ah,” I say as everything comes into focus. It’s Mr. Welf, and he’s waving at me.

Isn’t this strange? I told him we were meeting at the same place as yesterday…Did he want to meet me halfway?

“Hey, Bell. Mornin’.”

“Good morning. Umm…Mr. Welf, what are you doing out here?”

“Got a message for you from Li’l E. She can’t join us for dungeon crawling today.”

“Eh?”

He explains that he was waiting at the base of Babel when a very animated Lilly rushed up to him. She said that on top of being busier than usual recently, the gnome she works for collapsed. She’s the only one around who can take care of him. Apparently she bowed enough times to make Mr. Welf dizzy watching her.

Hearing that I always arrive from West Main, he decided to come out and meet me.

“So, what do we do? Hit the Dungeon as a two-man cell?”

“W-well, ummm…”

We won’t be able to collect as many magic stones and drop items without Lilly with us. But if we don’t go into the Dungeon, I won’t have anything to do all day…I’d like to avoid that.

Should I go grab my old backpack and gather stones and drop items, like I did back in my solo days?

“…Bell. If you’ve got nothing else going on, can I have some of your time today?”

“What?”

I tilt my head to the side at his suggestion.

The corner of his mouth rises in a grin; his hands wave from side to side.

“I made you a promise, didn’t I? A full set of new equipment.”

“Y-you know, Mr. Welf, I’m fine with just the light armor…”

“No need for modesty. A smith never goes back on his word.”

Mr. Welf is heading somewhere at a brisk pace and I’m doing my best to keep up.

I know I already agreed to it, but the thought of receiving brand-new equipment for free makes me feel like I’m taking advantage of him…I feel kind of guilty.

I try a few more times to decline the offer, but he just waves me off, saying, “Leave it to me.” I watch his black coat swish back and forth as we make our way up the street.

“Bell, I don’t pretend to know everything, but you should go after the best stuff you can get. Adventurers never know if there’s a tomorrow. Because you don’t know what’s coming, you should always have the best weapons and armor on you at all times—right?”

“Yeah…”

He makes a very good point. I can’t help but agree.

Everything is pointless if you die. I don’t know how many times Eina has said that.

And I promised the goddess that I wouldn’t leave her alone. All things in moderation, but…the most important thing is not to make the big mistake, I guess.

I think about it for a while, but in the end I decide to take Mr. Welf’s offer.

The moment I say, “I’m looking forward to your work,” Mr. Welf grins from ear to ear and says, “Coming right up.”

“Mr. Welf. Can I ask you where we’re going?”

“My workshop.”

Workshop? He must’ve looked over his shoulder and seen the confusion on my face, because Mr. Welf starts to explain.

A workshop is where a smith creates armor and weapons. He says everything he needs to create my new equipment is already there: a forge, various metals and tools, etc.

Apparently his
Familia
assigned him his own workshop…and that’s something special about being a member of
Hephaistos Familia
.

“You mean everyone having their own workshop isn’t normal?”

“Doubt it. It’d be much cheaper to have everyone use the same space; be more efficient, too.”

“Then, why?”

“So that other smiths don’t see your techniques. My way is
only
my way, yeah?”

Must be an artisan thing…Or maybe it’s his pride as a smith?

Members of his
Familia
are also his competition. That’s got to be one stressful working environment.

“Don’t be thinking I’m doing something shady, now. Lady Hephaistos wanted it this way.”

Laughing at his own joke, Mr. Welf starts to pick up speed.

We’re moving along Northeast Main Street right now.

Large and small shops on both sides of the street have awnings over their entrances. Shops selling tools and other items are all over the place, with not a bar to be seen. The people around here are wearing all kinds of different worker’s gear as they get ready to start the day. Only a few of them have
Familia
symbols on their clothes, so I guess most of them are free workers. I can see large, boxy buildings all over the place…I bet they’re factories.

If I remember right, all of the magic-stone products that Orario is known for are made along Northeast Main.

The Industrial District, that’s what it’s called.

“We’re turning up there.”

I’m distracted for a moment by a dwarf lumbering along the side of the street while carrying a massive tree trunk over his shoulder, but I follow Mr. Welf.

Our path suddenly narrows as we turn off the main street. It’s still morning, but the sun’s rays have yet to reach this stone-paved side street. It’s quite cool back here. The brilliant blue stripe of sky above us is absolutely magnificent.

All the buildings around here are made of stone as well. Just when I think we’re going to go all the way to the city wall, Mr. Welf comes to a stop.

“Whoa…”

After winding our way through so many back streets, here it is.

A compact, one-story building stands in front of us.

Burn marks and soot cover the stone walls, but this is the real thing! The aura of an actual forge oozes out of every inch of this place. A smokestack juts out of one corner of the roof. The whole building is rather charming.

“You might already know, but this is the area most workers call home. Can’t walk two steps without seeing another workshop or factory. My
Familia
’s home is just around the corner.”

Of course, this is all news to me. “Oh, I see,” I say, my head on a swivel as I take in all the sights.

Mr. Welf’s workshop is quite a ways away from Main Street. This area reminds me a lot of my home, being a bit dark and out-of-the-way.

Echoes of metal on metal ring out from every direction…I can feel the presence of other smiths already hard at work, as well as hear them.

Above all, it sounds like
Hephaistos Familia
prepares a workshop for each of its members in this area.

Each member is in charge of taking care of their own area…but still, it’s really generous.

“What’re you standin’ around for? Come on in.”

“Ah, sure.”

I say a quiet thank-you as I follow Mr. Welf into his workshop.

The first thing I notice is the strong smell of iron. Mr. Welf opens the shutters, bathing the dark room in the crisp morning light.

A wide array of tools hanging on the wall starts glistening. Hammers, tongs, random utensils…A lot of them. I’ve never seen anything like any of these before.

A large fireplace is nestled in the corner, behind a medium-height bench. Isn’t that thing called an anvil?

There are no dividing walls in here, just one big space devoted to forging armor and weapons.

Now
this
is a smith’s workshop.

“Sorry, bit of a pigsty in here. Can you put up with it for a bit?”

“Don’t worry about me, I’m fine!”

Actually, I want to see him in action…Starting to get excited, I take another look around the room.