An Old Man from the Countryside Becomes a Swords Saint: I Was Just a Rural Sword Teacher, But My Successful Students Won’t Leave Me Alone! - Chapter 33

33 - The Old Man From The Countryside Looks For A Sword

“Hmm, I still feel uncomfortable…” I said.

It’s been a few days since the new Adventurer training and the battle with the Named monster, Xeno Glaive.

After my usual breakfast at the inn, my fingers naturally reach for my waist as I step out.

Now then, I wonder what I’m going to do now.

Well, I’m going to continue to instruct the knights, and I heard that the requests for assistance at the Adventurer’s Guild have settled down the other day, so I’ll be going back to my normal business… business? I mean, I can go back to it.

However, although Guild Master Nidas wasn’t blatant about it, I got the sense he wanted to keep me somehow.

Well, the newcomers won’t just be Porta’s trio, and if what Selena said was true, I know she wants to devote herself to newcomer training.

But you know, why would they want the leader of a dungeon raid to be an old man like me?

The other day’s match battle against Xeno Glaive was pretty chaotic. Without Selena, I would have definitely lost. Even if there weren’t any more Named coming out of the woodwork soon, I’d like to avoid them as much as possible.

As an old man, I want to live a bit more comfortably here.

In that sense, the role of Knight-Captain wasn’t out of the question.

“… Nope, I’m off my mind,” I said.

I shake my head lightly to help rid the thoughts.

For now, I’d like to get a replacement to my broken sword as soon as possible.

If I’ve got a wooden sword, I can train, but in the end, a swordsman needs a sword. I’ve lived with swords for so many years, it’s uncomfortable to be without one.

“Well, if it’s an iron blade… maybe a blacksmith,” I muttered to myself.

The blacksmith I went to with Alexia had some good swords on offer and my specialty was longswords. It’s the usual type sold by blacksmiths in the countryside.

As I’m not an Adventurer, I don’t travel around the country, so I don’t want top quality. Well, it would be a good idea to have something better than the old one… but my pockets aren’t as deep as I’d like them to be.

As for the sword, Selena knew she had broken it, and there was talk of the Adventurer’s Guild compensating me for it.

However, I refused.

The thing is, I don’t want to borrow money from the Adventurer’s Guild. I don’t have any bad blood with them nor do I feel that neither Nidas nor Meigen were bad people.

Somehow, I was wary of making a debt itself.

They aren’t bad people.

However, unlike the Knights, the Adventurer’s Guild was clearly for-profit. They have a way of seeing things through gains and losses. And to be honest, I was honestly hoping I wouldn’t be spotted by such a world.

“I wonder if any blacksmiths are open at this hour,” I mumbled.

I walk through the streets of Baltrain and talk to myself.

I did get tangled up with Lucy at a time like this, but today, no such thing happened. I was able to walk while calmly gazing at the capital’s cityscape, unpopulated this early in the morning.

“… Huh? Is that you, Master?!”

“Hmm? Kuruni?” I asked.

After I walked for a while, I saw a petite female running up to my front.

When she got close enough for us to recognize each other’s faces, the woman’s—Kuruni’s expression suddenly changed.

“Is something wrong? It’s so early,” I asked.

“I’m going for a run,” Kuruni said. “The Knights rely most on their bodies!”

She laughs but she’s sweating profusely even though it’s so early in the morning.

… Maybe she’s been running from the East District, where her house is. That would normally be a distance you’d use a horse-drawn carriage for.

“… Did you just run from the East District?” I asked.

“Hm? Yeah, I did?” Kuruni replied.

“Hahaha… you’re quite skilled, aren’t you?” I said.

No, I can’t come close to her. It’s amazing how young people are.

“What happened to you this morning, Master?” Kuruni asks, her blue eyes growing wide.

It’s hard to ignore the girlish aura, but Kuruni has a well-rounded face. I can’t help but feel wicked because of the age difference but I’m also a little worried about how defenseless she looks. I feel like I’ve become a parent. I don’t even have any children.

“I like talking a walk early in the morning,” I said. “I was wondering if I should go check out a blacksmith.”

“A blacksmith… you said?” Kuruni said.

“Yes. Look,” I said, patting my waist.

It was where the scabbard of my longsword would usually be.

“… Oh, I see, you’re without a sword, huh?”

As she knows my work, Kuruni seems to have a good idea of what happened.

“It broke,” I said. “I have to find a new sword.”

“I see!” Kuruni said. “… Oh!”

Kuruni seems fired up but I wonder if that was worth getting excited over.

Well, for a swordsman, choosing a sword was certainly a big event. It’s not unusual that you’d get excited. I’m used to it.

“Isn’t it made-to-order when it comes to your swords, Master?” Kuruni asked.

“No, no, I’m not thinking of something like that,” I said.

Is it okay for her to take a break from her running?

As Kuruni lined up next to me, we talk while walking leisurely together.

Made-to-order swords, as the name implied, involved specifying all the elements of your sword, from the materials it was made of, the balance of the length and the center of gravity, and the material of the handle.

Inevitably, every human has different measurements. The size of your hands, the length of your arms, the position of your waist, everyone’s is different.

And also inevitably, the best-fitting weapon for a person will vary. Of course, there’s a large element of personal tastes, but it’s not uncommon for swordsmen to have custom-made swords.

However, although it was also to be expected, made-to-order swords have ridiculous prices, since they’ll be made from scratch. You can’t meet just once, you need to repeatedly check on the progress with the blacksmith and scrutinize the details. If it’s made-to-order, it comes with a huge cost of time and money.

“Aww, that’s a waste, isn’t it?” Kuruni asked.

“It is,” I said. “I don’t have that much money.”

I was kicked out of my family home, the dojo at Bidden Village, and I have to pay the innkeeper every day.

It seems that there’s a great discount for a long-term stay, but even so, there’s not enough leeway for discretionary spending.

No, I shouldn’t call buying a sword a waste.

“Well, I’m going to go around the stores for a while,” I said.

“Okay,” Kuruni said. “I hope you can find a sword you like! … Ah.”

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

I’d been having a good conversation with Kuruni but she gasped as if she’d just remembered something.

“No, I still have to sharpen my sword, I forgot to do it…” Kuruni mumbled.

“Hahaha, still the same as ever, Kuruni,” I said.

From the time she was learning at the dojo, Kuruni has always been so forgetful and too hasty.

It seems this personality flaw, or rather, this core aspect of her personality, hasn’t changed over the years. As a knight, though, it might be better to be more dignified.

“Oh, that’s right!” Kuruni said. “I hope you’ll come with me after today’s lesson, Master!”

“Huh?” I asked. “Do you have a recommendation?”

I was previously introduced to the Knight’s preferred blacksmith by Alexia, but is there anyone else?

“We’ll go see how Mr. Valder’s doing!”

“… By ‘Valder’, you don’t mean ‘that’ Valder?”

“I do!” Kuruni said.

Ho-hou.

It’s another nostalgic name.