Chapter 61
A noise woke me. The room was still dim, and Lyle was already getting dressed.
“Oh, Noah, you’re up too! Let’s hurry and pick up our gear!”
Lyle, who usually slept later than anyone else, had woken up earlier than the rest of us for once.
“There’s no need to rush. The workshop isn’t even open yet.”
When I said that, Lyle looked back with a grin as he buckled his belt.
“I know. But today’s the day, right? Our new gear is finally finished!”
His voice brimmed with anticipation he couldn’t hide.
I sighed and got out of bed, too.
The large bed shifted slightly whenever one of us moved.
As if in response, the blanket beside me rustled faintly.
“...You’re noisy.”
“Kai, you’re awake too!”
“You woke me.”
Kai poked half his face out from under the blanket, then sat up and began changing without a word.
Despite grumbling, he was the quickest of us all to get dressed.
“Lyle, calm down a little.”
On the other side of the room, Elena sat up, smoothing her disheveled hair with her fingers.
“I know how excited you are, but it’d be a nuisance to the people at the workshop if we showed up before they opened.”
“Ugh... I know, but...”
Kai quickly put on his shoes and stood up, looking ready to bolt out of the room at any moment.
“Wait. Let’s have breakfast first.”
I hurried to stop him.
“That’s right. You’d just start complaining about being hungry halfway there.”
Elena added, folding her arms.
“I wouldn’t! ...Probably.”
“See?”
Elena sighed.
“All right, then. It’s settled.”
I clapped my hands lightly.
“Then let’s eat and get going!”
“That’s why I told you to calm down.”
Even as Elena chided him, Lyle’s steps were light.
The four of us left the room together.
As we went downstairs, the morning air carried the aroma of freshly baked bread and soup.
“Oh! That smells great.”
“See? I told you it was better to eat first.”
As Elena proudly puffed out her chest, Kai was already walking toward the dining room in silence, drawn by the aroma.
Breakfast was freshly baked rolls and soup filled with chunks of vegetables and meat.
Lyle gulped down his soup and shoved bread into his mouth without hardly chewing.
Beside him, Kai ate in silence, moving his spoon at a steady pace.
He skimmed the oil from the surface and emptied his bowl completely.
Just as I finished the last of my soup, Lyle shoved his wooden chair back and sprang to his feet.
“All right, thanks for the meal! Let’s go!”
“All right...”
I got up and pushed open the inn’s heavy wooden door.
We crossed the morning streets, heading first for the armorer’s workshop.
The door was already open, and the dry clang of metal being struck rang from within.
“It’s open!”
Lyle called out happily, quickening his pace.
“See? Perfect timing.”
Elena walked beside him with a satisfied expression.
“Shall we go in, then?”
The workshop was filled with heat and the smell of iron.
An apprentice near the entrance called out.
“Master! Customers!”
“Ah, you’re here.”
“Is our gear ready?!”
“You’re here first thing in the morning, huh... Well, all right. This way.”
Two sets of armor sat on a sturdy workbench.
Iron chest and shoulder guards gleamed dully.
Alongside them was lamellar armor made of rows of small metal plates.
“Whoa, this is it...!”
Lyle walked toward the bench as if drawn to it.
Before him lay real equipment made just for him.
“All right, let’s finish the fitting. Up on the platform.”
At the master’s instruction, Lyle and Kai stepped onto a raised platform.
Elena and I watched from a little farther away.
“Just like you asked when you placed the order, I left plenty of room for adjustments. ...First, Lyle, let’s tighten the strap under your right arm. Tell me if it hurts.”
The master’s large hand gave the strap on Lyle’s chest armor a firm tug.
“...! I’m fine! It fits perfectly!”
Lyle took a deep breath and puffed out his chest.
The master nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Kai.
Kai said nothing, simply raising his arms and waiting while the master fine-tuned the lacing of his lamellar armor.
“Kai, how’s the overlap at the shoulders? Try moving your arms around.”
Kai slowly rotated his arms as instructed.
The faint scrape of metal against metal was the only sound in the workshop.
Kai looked steadily into the master’s eyes and gave a single nod.
“All right, nothing’s rubbing or catching. You can both wear these for another two years, easy. If you get taller, bring them back to me. I’ll let them out in no time.”
“Heh, thanks, Master! Just watch, Noah, Elena. With this, we’re full-fledged adventurers!”
Lyle proudly thumped his chest, clad in his new armor.
Kai silently tested the feel of the gauntlet protecting the back of his hand.
“Then, here’s the rest of the payment.”
I took the gold coins from my pocket.
“All right, got it.”
The master put away the coins and entered the payment in his ledger.
“Okay, next up, the sword!”
Lyle, who’d been waiting impatiently for us to finish paying, took off at a run.
“Wait a second, Lyle!”
Elena called after him, and we followed with wry smiles.
As we crossed the bridge leading to Ulrich’s workshop, the smell of iron grew even stronger.
“Ah, it’s ready...”
Ulrich casually held out a single bastard sword.
Lyle drew it from its sheath and swung it slowly, testing its balance.
“...This is it. Just like I asked, the balance point is close to the hilt. It’s like my arm got longer!”
Beside it stood a large tower shield for Kai.
At its center was a single, wickedly beautiful spike.
It was a “wall” to crush enemies—and a “bludgeoning weapon” that could take their lives.
“Kai, how is it?”
When I asked, Kai silently took hold of the handle on the back of the shield and lifted it.
It had to be heavy, but he handled it as easily as a feather.
He tried a few different stances to test it, then nodded quietly.
“...Good.”
“Heh, if you like it, get going. Don’t fight so timidly that this shield doesn’t get a single scratch.”
After receiving Ulrich’s rough send-off, we left the workshop with our new gear.
“Then, we’re off to Albusvolt!”
Lyle tapped the hilt of his new bastard sword and shouted, gazing up at the sky.
His face brimmed with the excitement of getting new gear and the anticipation of heading somewhere unknown.
“Lyle, keep your voice down. You’re drawing way too much attention.”
Elena sighed, glancing at the people around us, though the corners of her mouth were curled in amusement.
Kai remained as quiet as ever, adjusting the heavy tower shield on his back and getting ready to go.
“First, we’re heading to Regenstein in the north.”
I announced it and took a step forward.
The footsteps of all four of us rang out powerfully across the city’s stone streets, lit by the morning sun.