—Tink!—Tink!
The sound of metal striking metal rang through the air as sparks flew in the makeshift smithy. Well, "makeshift" wasn't really the right word.
Because that room had appeared out of nowhere right behind the house where Saeko's group was taking refuge.
And inside, there were all kinds of things like anvils, hammers, furnaces roaring with orange fire, and even a shelf full of ingots. Iron, silver, gold, orichalcum, aceralith, luminite…
The truth was, most of those materials couldn't be found even in dreams in this world.
A long finger picked out an aceralith ingot, placed it on an iron shovel, and slid it into the roaring furnace's mouth.
The hand belonged to Yuu. His face was calm, but in his golden eyes burned sharp focus. You could tell at a glance he was enjoying what he was doing.
He was the one who created this forging place. And he was the one who placed the minerals there. They were minerals he'd collected throughout his life from the different planets he'd visited.
The reason for suddenly doing all this? His cute followers needed proper equipment, of course.
In truth, all this work could be considered absurd from the perspective of anyone who knew him. After all, he had enough power to create anything he wanted with the concept of creation.
However, from his point of view, that was the worst thing someone who aspired to recover his emotions could do.
Because a handmade gift was different from one made without effort. It had weight. It had value.
"I want to feel that emotion again…"
The emotion of giving a gift made by his own hands. It was far more satisfying to hand it over this way.
The shovel went back into the furnace to pull out the ingot, now glowing red. Aceralith was an incredibly hard metal, basically considered a headache when it came to forging since it was impossible to melt with normal fire.
However, the heat inside this furnace was several times more intense, since they were Yuu's flames, and more than enough to melt it with ease.
Carefully, Yuu took the glowing ingot and placed it on the anvil.
"Alright. Time to give it shape."
The hammer came down.
—Clang!—Clang!
And the sound of the impact made the air around vibrate. Sparks burst from the metal and scattered quickly, lighting up the forge room.
—Clang!
He hammered, turned the metal, reheated it in the furnace, and repeated the process.
The bar of aceralith slowly took shape, stretching and flattening. Even a novice's eyes could tell it was becoming noticeably similar to the blade of a katana.
Meanwhile, not too far away, several people were watching.
Up until recently, they'd been chatting with each other to get acquainted. But when they saw the new building behind the shelter and sensed Yuu's presence inside, curiosity led them to take a look.
And what they found was actually quite shocking.
Yuu was working shirtless.
His bare, broad, well-defined back tensed every time he raised the hammer. His muscles contracted tightly with each motion, and beads of sweat slowly rolled down his fair skin.
—Gulp!
Rei swallowed unconsciously.
Saeko watched calmly. Since she had a faint smile, it seemed she was quietly enjoying a show reserved only for them.
"Ah, what should I do…?"
Jin-ah, on the other hand, had her eyes locked on him as she murmured those words. Her big eyes were completely mesmerized by Yuu's tall figure and his movements as he worked.
Shizuka wasn't much different.
Saya, who had gotten used to Jin-ah's addition to the group, now covered her face with her hand. Though she left a gap between her fingers to peek.
"Ugh… why's he working without a shirt…?"
Even though she said that, she didn't stop spying.
They were all blushing.
They couldn't help it.
Yuu, who already knew the girls were watching him, didn't care and kept working silently.
The rhythm of the strikes continued, accompanied by sparks hitting the floor.
Blow after blow, the blade took shape.
Once the blade was ready, Yuu stopped hammering.
He moved toward a wooden barrel placed off to the side.
At first glance, it looked ordinary, but the liquid inside was anything but water. It was silver-colored, and small red sparks floated gently up from it.
"Kami-samaaa~!"
Something soft pressed against his back, and a delicate scent, like that of a flower, drifted around him.
He didn't need to turn around to know who it was.
"Hey, Shizuka. Something up? Ah, just so you know, I'm all sweaty, you know?"
"Doesn't matter~"
The voluptuous woman ignored what he said and rubbed against him even more, resting her chin on his shoulder while her lazy yellow eyes lingered on the work he was doing.
She hummed softly, and in a light, lazy tone, said.
"This is the first time I've seen someone working in a forge… Sure, I recognize common metals like iron or silver, but that stuff you're using… it's not. And that liquid… hehe, it's really beautiful, what is it?"
"This? It's called Stelaria's Blood."
A while back, when he was being chased, he'd ended up in a world with almost constant volcanic activity. There, deep inside a crystal-filled cavern, he'd found a spring that spouted this silver liquid. Only later did he learn it was used for forging.
"Stelaria's Blood. Doesn't sound pretty at all~ And what's it for?"
Though Shizuka always showed a disinterested air, this time she seemed genuinely intrigued by something that didn't belong to her world.
—Shhhhhh!
Yuu plunged the glowing blade into the barrel. The moment it touched the surface, the heat was absorbed.
"This liquid compresses the metal's molecular structure. The atoms squeeze together, and the empty space gets filled with Stelaria's Blood."
He pulled the blade back out.
The aceralith, which had originally been black, now had a fine red line running from base to tip.
"With this process, the metal becomes heavier for its size, but incredibly hard and tough. Also… it doubles as a container."
"Container?"
Shizuka tilted her head. And combined with her voluptuous looks and mature charm, the gesture made her seem pretty cute.
"Heh, you'll understand someday."
Yuu chuckled softly, grabbed her by the waist, and moved her off his back. He lifted her into the air like she weighed nothing, and they locked eyes for a few seconds.
"Now let me get back to work."
"Hmph…"
Shizuka pouted as she was set down.
From the side, the rest of the girls had been listening carefully to his explanation.
"That's enough, Shizuka-sensei. Don't bother someone who's working."
Saya sighed with an annoyed look and grabbed Shizuka by the arm.
"Muu…"
Shizuka wasn't happy, but let herself be dragged off to the side.
Yuu refocused on the blade, as if nothing had happened.
"The handle… mm…"
Yuu muttered as he picked up a block of black wood from the shelf with tongs. At first glance it looked cold and hard, but once worked, it'd turn smooth and silky to the touch.
He considered this wood pretty special, since it had grown from a tree he'd planted in his old garden.
"This might fit it."
He closed his eyes and imagined the person who would wield that weapon. In his mind, a woman moved with elegance, her serene face wearing a smile that could freeze the blood of her enemies.
His work began to reflect that vision.
With a gouge, he hollowed the wood bit by bit, millimeter by millimeter, making sure the blade's tang fit perfectly. A katana had to feel natural in the hand of whoever wielded it.
He then applied an adhesive and placed two pieces of ray skin, the samegawa, on each side. The skin was rough, but that was how it had to be, since that way it provided a proper grip that wouldn't slip in the palm during combat.
Before wrapping it, he added the menuki, the ornaments that'd stay hidden under the cord. He hesitated a moment over what design to use, but in the end chose something simple.
On the rough white skin he fixed two small figures of luminite he'd shaped on the anvil. They were white snakes with tiny golden eyes. A representation of Ouroboros, though in this case, the head didn't devour the tail.
Then he took a red silk cord, the same color as the crimson line running along the blade.
His fingers moved back and forth in quick succession. The diagonal tsukamaki pattern tightened around the handle, creating a texture that molded like a glove to the grip of a hand.
"Mm. A firm grip for a hand that'll never waver."
Finally, he tied the cord in a special knot at the end of the handle. The black wood, red silk, and the golden glint in the eyes and the guard gave it a pretty dangerous look.
Then, he pricked his fingertip. A drop of white blood fell onto the blade and was absorbed instantly. The katana glowed with light, and strange symbols began engraving themselves along the edge.
They were hieroglyphs. Like a Blessing pattern.
Because that's what it was.
The sword had received Yuu's Blessing.
A Status.
"Done."
Yuu lifted the freshly finished katana, slowly turned it to check the balance, and nodded in satisfaction.
"Yeah. It turned out pretty well."
Then he turned his head.
"Saeko, come here for a moment."
The girl blinked in surprise, but obeyed and walked toward him.
"What is it?"
"Take it."
Yuu raised the katana, holding the grip in one palm and the blade in the other, and extended it toward her calmly.
Saeko's purple eyes widened.
"Hm? I-it's for me…?"
"Of course. I made it with you in mind."
Saeko's heart skipped a beat. She hesitated for an instant before reaching out and carefully receiving it. Holding the grip with both hands, she lowered her gaze to the blade.
"Yuu-sama… you… you did all this… for me?"
"Well, yeah."
Saeko stared at him. Her chest tightened. She had seen him hammering tirelessly to the point he was drenched in sweat.
Despite being a god…
All this time, he'd been working to make this for her.
"I don't know what to say."
"You don't have to say anything." He chuckled softly. "If it fits your hand well, then it was worth it."
She closed her eyes for a second. In her hand she felt the katana's weight, and she felt the warmth of the red silk on the handle, and she felt Yuu, sweating, working at the forge. It all came together and made her heart race wildly.
Is this… love?
There was no other answer. Yes, it was.
Saeko looked up with her cheeks slightly flushed.
"Yuu-sama, thank you. Truly. I'll treasure it for all eternity."
"Well, well, don't look at me like that or I'll get nervous."
He reached out and caressed her cheek.
'My heart. It's beating so hard right now.'
She lowered her face, her expression hidden beneath her purple bangs. But her rosy lips curved into a soft smile.
A smile that would've terrified anyone else who saw it.
Her love for Yuu had only grown stronger.
×××
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