Bishop Part 3
I found myself in the artisan district. Why was I there? Because I asked Klua-san to show this place to me, and… today was the day. The meeting point was at the entrance of the district… anyway, I heard her voice. When I looked around to see where she was, I found her sporting her usual look. Her hair was tied to one side and she wore tight clothes.
“Good morning, Klua-san.”
She spoke up again when she got to me. “Good morning, Relius-san. It’s good to be here.”
“Yeah, it’s good to see you.”
After a respectful mutual greeting, Klua-san looked back at the artisan district.
“Come to think of it, how was that ancient manuscript? Did you find anything?”
“I did.”
“…Right, like I thought― wait, what!?” She turned to me in surprise.
Well, I only thanked her in the letter, I didn’t say I solved it. “That turned out to be a blueprint for a weapon. I can now create that weapon with my Blacksmith ability.”
“…I-I see. You destroyed it and found out… Blacksmith is an amazing occupation after all.”
“Yes. Thank you so much, I really mean that.”
“I’ll give you more, if I can find them again.”
“Thank you.”
I might get in touch with another new weapon in the future. It was so exciting to think about it.
I walked around the artisan district with Klua-san. At some point, she stopped. “This is the workshop that helped us lately. The owner was an acquaintance of my master’s, and I’ve only known him for a short while.”
“I see.”
I was a little nervous. I’m a craftsman, but to be honest, it was almost heretical for me to say that since my way of making things was so abnormal.
I followed her inside. The place looked like a furniture shop; there was a lot of processed wood around. A man with a bandana on his head noticed us come in and stopped what he was doing.
“Oh, Klua-chan. Is he the craftsman who made a contract with you?”
“Yes. This is Relius-san.”
“Ooh. You seem to be training a little, but is your physical strength sufficient? A craftsman’s work is deeply physical, you know?”
Certainly, the man in front of me looked solid. His way of making things is, after all, totally different from mine.
“I’ve been able to manage it so far.”
“Is that so? Well, you talked about wanting to see other craftsmen, didn’t you? What do you want to see?”
“I was wondering what kind of work they were actually doing.”
“Hey, hey. Even though different craftsmen make different things, the work itself is mostly the same, isn’t it?”
“Uh… right, yeah.”
The man kept his chin up and showed us around. “First of all, we process the lumber into rough shape here. After that, we cut and refine the rough shapes into individual parts, before finally combining them.”
The work done in front of me was quick and smooth. “There are people who can move really fast, but what in the world is that?”
“Ah. You should know it’s a rare skill that craftsmen sometimes have; it accelerates one’s movements as they work.”
“I see…”
“You don’t have it, then? That’s a bit disappointing, though you’re in the 80% of people who don’t have it, but they still manage to do good work.”
So that’s what it is. I took a closer look at my surroundings. There were people creating tableware, such as forks and knives, in another area of the workshop. It seems that craftsmen can create almost anything as long as it’s not recognized as a weapon.
It might be difficult to make things bigger than that.
So this is how all these things get produced. I’d never been to an artisan district since I was a child. Having only seen completed furniture, I didn’t know how it was made. Even so, some people mass-produce the same product, while others make one-offs. Even in this workshop alone, there were many kinds of craftsmen.
“That’s about how it goes.”
The man turned to me with his arms folded. Klua-san followed his gaze to look at me.
“Thank you very much. This was very helpful.”
“I see. Well, make sure you won’t be a craftsman who leaves Klua-chan with regrets, understand?”
“Yes. I’ll do my best.”
After respectfully saying goodbye to the craftsmen, we left the workshop. Outside, it was already evening. We’d really been looking around in there for a while.
“Thank you very much for today, Klua-san.”
Briefly hesitating, she replied, “No problem, Relius-san.”
I want to give it a shot, too ― finding something that only I can make. I want to make the greatest weapon ― to go one step further as a Blacksmith.
“Umm, Klua-san? Will you listen to one of my dreams?”
“What is it?”
I told her what I’d come to desire. “I… I think I want to spread my weapons to the whole country. I want to make weapons that are every bit as good as Divine Treasures.”
“Really? I certainly think it would be difficult right now. If you do, you’ll first have to find someone who wants that kind of weapon and sell it to them. I’ll be on the lookout for such customers.”
“Are you still going to cooperate with me?”
I just wanted to consult her about that, about my persistent wish to do something like that. I had worried that I might have to cancel our partner contract in the future.
“As long as you enjoy your work, Relius-san, I’ll be happy.” She smiled, faintly nervous.
“Thank you very much.”
“Likewise. You’ve also helped me out a lot. I’m really grateful for everything you make that has high value. Everyone praises me, and can’t stop saying how amazing it is.”
“I’d like to keep doing my best, so that they’ll continue to say that in the future.”
“Oh, yes, but I wasn’t trying to pressure you or anything.”
“I know.”
We parted ways after that. For my own weapons ― regardless, I’ll have to increase my level and expand my repertoire. I also want to find more blueprints. If there’s any information on them at all, I’ll search far and wide to get them.
Bound Pleasures 
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