Chapter 52: Material for a Holy Sword
"This thing is new! Brand spanking new!"
In a large dwarven settlement, or rather, a dwarven town, an old dwarf held a black ore and proclaimed as much. This was one of the eight major dwarven clans, and the first city that Rhodes's party had encountered. In the Age of Myth, most races lived in small settlements; a town like this was a rare sight.
"Could you be a bit more specific? This isn't an antique roadshow."
Rhodes was at a loss for words. What was this dwarf even talking about? He was starting to feel like he was on some kind of appraisal TV show.
The black rock in the dwarf's hand was the one he had found in the dragon's lair. He had figured that the dwarves, being master smiths, would be able to identify it, so he had sought out the old dwarf before him. It seemed this particular dwarf was quite famous in the town; when he had asked for the best smith, everyone had pointed him to this workshop.
"It's an Eternal Ore!" the dwarf said, his voice trembling with excitement. "I haven't seen one of these in who-knows-how-many years! And in such pristine condition! It's as if it was just mined!"
"What is it used for?"
"A weapon or a suit of armor forged from Eternal Ore will not be eroded by time, not even after a thousand years."
Perfect. The material for the hero's holy sword is secured.
Rhodes couldn't believe it. He had just been idly thinking about it before, and now he had actually found the material.
"For real?" Eirik was in disbelief. He couldn't imagine that such a plain-looking black rock could possess such a miraculous power.
"Of course it's for real!" The dwarf was clearly a little annoyed by Eirik's doubt, his beard bristling. "Outlander, sell me this ore! I'll give you whatever you want."
"Sure."
Rhodes's reply surprised everyone, but the old dwarf was instantly overjoyed.
"Then give me a few dozen grimoires," Rhodes said.
The smile on the old dwarf's face froze. If he had asked for a powerful weapon, or some precious gems, he could have provided them. But he didn't have any grimoires. What use would a dwarf have for such things?
"Well then, it seems we have no deal," Rhodes said with a mock sigh, pretending to take back the ore.
The old dwarf was now in a panic. "Outlander, do you know how precious Eternal Ore is? Only we dwarves know how to work it. For you to have it is a complete waste!"
"Don't worry," Rhodes said, pointing a thumb behind him. "One of my companions is a dwarf."
The old dwarf followed his gesture and saw Somme, who was admiring the wares in the workshop.
"Where's his beard? What kind of a dwarf has no beard!?"
His words made Somme feel a little awkward.
"That's none of your concern," Rhodes said coldly, cutting him off. "If there's nothing else, we'll be going."
"Wait!" the old dwarf stamped his foot in frustration. "There's another way!" Since he couldn't buy the ore from them, he would have to try a different approach. The old dwarf's reaction was exactly what Rhodes had been expecting. He was very familiar with the art of negotiation.
"And what way is that?"
"I can forge this Eternal Ore for you."
"But I have my doubts about your skill. What if you ruin my ore?" Rhodes said, feigning reluctance.
"Are you looking down on me, you whelp? Even on a global scale, I am confident that my skill is second to none!"
Seeing that the hook had been set, Rhodes didn't hesitate. "In that case, I'd like to commission you to forge this ore into a sword."
Serie, who had been standing to the side with her arms crossed, added, "A holy sword that can be infused with, and store, mana."
The old dwarf's eyes widened. "You have a lot of nerve. Do you know how difficult it is to forge a holy sword that can be infused with mana?"
Even Somme's battle-axe didn't have such a function. His axe had been forged with a mana-infused ore, which was why it had a special explosive ability. But that was completely different from what Serie was asking for. She wanted a sword that could be filled with mana, which it would then store, and release in battle. Something like a certain holy sword from another story.
"Didn't you just say your skill was unmatched? Or can you not do it?" Rhodes goaded. His taunt was clearly effective.
"Who says I can't do it? Give me a month!"
The more powerful the weapon, the longer it took to forge. The legendary weapon of the Dwarven Kingdom, the one that could harm a god, was said to have taken nearly a decade to create, using a variety of precious minerals, with Eternal Ore being just one of them. But there was no way to know if the legend was true.
"But," the old dwarf said, looking Rhodes and his party up and down, "are you even worthy of using a holy sword?"
Of the group before him, only the elf looked powerful, and she was clearly a mage, not a warrior. As for the others, the blond human and the beardless dwarf looked like they might be warriors, but he couldn't tell how strong they were.
Faced with the old dwarf's skepticism, Eirik puffed out his chest defiantly. "What? You don't believe in our strength?" he said, pulling a dragon scale from his bag.
"A dragon scale!?" The old dwarf immediately recognized it as the scale of an adult red dragon, and his attitude softened considerably. "I would have never guessed. You all are incredibly strong." He rubbed his rough hands together. "But the holy sword you require is an extremely complex piece of work. It will require many more materials..." He trailed off, but his eyes kept darting to the dragon scale. He clearly wanted it as payment.
"As long as you can forge the sword we described, this scale is yours," Rhodes said.
"Hmm... but these materials are all very precious." Clearly, the old dwarf wanted more. An adventurer who could kill a dragon must have a great deal of treasure.
What a greedy old man! Rhodes cursed inwardly, but before he could speak, Norne stepped forward.
"And these gems as well," he said, taking out a small bag of glittering gems. He hadn't brought that many with him; he had taken them from Eirik's bag. He ignored Eirik's silent protest. They had finally found someone who would accept these gems as payment, and they had to make use of the opportunity. He had no desire to carry these pretty but useless rocks on his adventure.
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