The Dwarven Race

The dwarven race was looked down on.

However, the dwarves true home was different.

To start with, the image of them being stubborn workers wasnt wrong.

At least if you were to talk about what is said in their workshops Iron! Sometimes, mithril! Occasionally, orichalcum!

They were even more extreme if you went to their house. One sake, two sake, three sake, even five of them. They heartily enjoyed their sake, continuing on with their work the next day, silently waging war against metal.

The first to escape was Lulu. She was a delicate elf, so they ignored her.

Gig couldnt pass as a child. His huge build getting smashed was laughed at.

Even though Shizuna was unexpectedly strong against the sake, she was still within the scope of a humans common sense. Drowning in the dwarven wives fruit liquors, she continuously vomited a mass of gold in the end.

Only Ria fought.

Lets spell out the memories of that sublime battle here.

In a large dwarven settlement, where should one go to meet the highest ranking dwarf?

Getting information about it and going down the road they were told about, there was a large smithy made of wood.

Here, Ria leveraged her [Roar] Gift.

The heck, so noisy.

An old dwarf with a calm face came out, the head foreman.

Ria passed over the letter shed held on to from the Ogre King.

Hmm.

Bring it on. Cordova has been a thorn in our side for a while now.

The head foreman continued with a, However.

Dwarves were a race that werent suited towards having a structured system after all.

The head foremans glance kept flickering towards Rias waist. More accurately, towards the katana sheathed there.

Right, take a look at this. What do you think of it?

Presenting Nagasone Kotetsu, still in its scabbard, she passed it to the head foreman. He smoothly unsheathed it.

With earnest eyes, the foreman gazed at the blade.

This is a worthy specimen. It doesnt look like it can take in magic, but it should easily be able to cut through mithril. But just how was it forged?

It was a challenge to the dwarf.

The sort of feeling of wanting to give it a shot. However, it wasnt his specialty. He had hammered out countless swords, but never a katana.

Ive never made a katana. But my youngest son can, hes in now. Other people say that its useless though

You dont use swords? There are a lot of good things about swords.

Oh?

Saying that much, she had plenty of interest in weapons made by dwarves.

The trial began.

The thick lumber was easily bisected.

Although iron was taken out as well, it was also easily cut in two.

Forged by a dwarf, the steel sword was placed on the trial stand in front of Ria.

Hah!

Nagasone Kotetsus blade wasnt marred at all.

Next, a mithril blade was taken out. Its strength was improved with magic. Thinking sensibly, it wasnt possible to be broken by an iron blade.

The heck is that? Even if you could cut through it, Id think there would be a nick or bend

Isnt it just normal iron? But it couldnt be that strong from normal forging I dont get it.

It was called the metal of the gods, a metal far more expensive than pure gold.

Im going to give it a serious shot, that good?

Well, it was more like she wanted to slice through it.

Iyaaaah!

The lump of orichalcum cracked in half.

The head foreman raised his hands in defeat. He literally raised his hands.

He then took Ria alone to a corner of the village, arriving at a small hut.

Though an apprentice called out inside the hut, there wasnt a reaction for a while.

The work process finishing at last, a still-young, yet also obstinate, dwarf came into view.

Your katana, please show him it.

Quickly drawing the blade, the foreman looked it over.

They werent bad. Rather, they were actually good.

However, they were still crude. There was a problem of technology, but the feeling of skill remained.

Oi you.

What dwarf forged this? Tell me. Please.

That drew the attention of the other dwarves for a moment.

Im sorry to say that that person is already dead

However, Rias knowledge of it was limited. They were a lot of legends, as well. Opening with that, Ria spoke of Nagasone Kotetsus life.

To destroy the magnificent armor that he himself had created, he began to forge

Before forging it, he first started by carefully examining iron as a material.

The consequences of his fame, including the forgeries that appeared on the market in his lifetime, Ria spoke about everything she knew of Nagasone Kotetsu.

By the time she realized it, it had already grown dark outside.

Its a wide world out there.

As for me, I want you to forge a katana that exceeds this one.

Although the dwarves were a race of proud blacksmiths, he said such a thing, lowering his head.

I expected that. I also love katanas, after all.

Then, the fight started.

Ria declared.

There was a mixture. Hearing that, the dwarves had strange looks on their faces. Eliminating impurities from the iron, it was further hardened by the addition of carbon. That was the reasonable way to make weapons.

Though shed researched the areas around here as well as Anise, the ultimate steel hadnt been completed.

Ria created some titanium. It wasnt a magical metal.

In fact, there was a theory that the most excellent katanas were made between the Heian and Kamakura periods, even compared to modern ones.

Though its said that they may have intentionally left things behind when they made the iron, since the exact method of iron refinement from those times hasnt been confirmed, it couldnt be brought to a conclusion.

At any rate, in order to make iron, they began with making another furnace.

Collecting the iron to use as materials was also a problem. Though there was a lot of good quality iron and steel to make use of in the village, iron sand was necessary in the manufacturing method that Ria knew of.

Even for Ria, this was a process of continual trial and error. She had knowledge of it as well as some experience in it. However, she hadnt been in the position of supervising everything.

The head foreman did his best to support them.

Pumping the bellows together with many heave hos, the three day long steel manufacturing began.

They failed many times. Perhaps the iron was bad, or maybe the soil, or maybe the coal. It could have been anything.

Dozens of kilos of iron was used before she managed to figure it out. A month had passed.

Profound, boorish lumps of iron. When you looked inside, it shined white like the moon.

This was iron. More valuable than gold, it was iron.

They then began to forge the katana.

There was no one to rely on for feedback. Only the foreman had forged katanas in earnest among the dwarves, and his apprentices were definitely not at the point of being able to forge the iron.

Though Ria gripped the hammer and asked that, the foreman just nodded.

They then worked on forging katanas.

Simultaneously advancing, they both struck katanas countless times using separate methods.

What kind of water to use? Well water or river water? What temperature for the water?

They failed many, many times.

Ria and the foreman hardly slept.

It was primarily the apprentices role to sharpen. They werent looking for a true sharpening. Simply a rough sharpening to see the color of the iron.

Yet another month passed by.

Its body was wide and the blade had a shallow curve.

Ria stared fixedly at the katana, whose blade just finished its rough sharpening.

Kind of similar to Kiyomaro.[]

He was born in an age after Nagasone Kotetsu, a swordsmith that was his rival. The appearance is different of course, but the katana has ambition.

The foreman nodded. In the corner of his eyes, something was gleaming.

Now then, Ive been meaning to ask something.

I want you to forge a katana with this.

Even the head foreman, who was the most knowledgeable of them all, couldnt figure out where it came from. Without putting on any airs, Ria told them.

With those words, the movement of every dwarf male ceased.

Ria bowed.

His response? An immediate, Impossible.

His eyes said that he wanted to do it.

The head foreman muttered to himself. He was motivated.

Another brought up the hammer that would be needed.

The dwarf village was filled with motivation.

Ah, heres more or less my advance payment.

You cant eat iron right?

Brandishing their cups of sake, the dwarves cheered.

Leaving the dwarf village the next morning.

Serge, who was a liberal arts youth in his previous life, didnt hide his true feelings.

On the back of his favorite horse, Carlos was groaning as though dying.

Theyre a bunch of good guys.

Even Ria was shaking back and forth on Matsukazes back.

Drinking and making a racket with the dwarven men, Ria was crushed.

Still though, I really do think dwarves have sake flowing in them instead of blood.

Lulu quipped. She was the kind of person that would get drunk off of a single glass of wine.

Right, even dragons would get drunk after drinking sake.

Rias strength against sake depended purely on her body.

Still, it took longer than I thought.

A bird flew from the sky to such a Ria.

The bats feet hovered in front of Ria, a letter attached to them.

As for who would use a bat like that, it was probably a report from Asuka.

A short sentence was written inside the letter.

Spurring Matsukaze forward, Ria hurried down the road towards the village.