"So how is our lady planning to make a drain after inflicting such an insult on the blacksmiths?"
Armin asked Esben.
The fact that there was a black aura flowing through her body and that that black aura was familiar to him was still a secret that he could not tell anyone.
A secret that he can't tell even to Diana.
[Because in this castle, there will be more trust in Marquis Lochen than in me.]
Armin recalled the image of his wife, a miserable woman, munching on bread.
Judging from the way she said such things so casually, it seemed that she also had no faith in the Wilhelm family.
That meant that even if he asked her about the black energy flowing through her body, he wouldn't get an answer.
"She said she was going to meet the blacksmith who pulls the horse-drawn carriage."
"Going to meet him?"
At that moment, Armin Wilhelm's eyebrows rose at the answer he heard from Esben...
"Are you saying that the Archduchess herself will go out of the castle?"
***
In the village of Urdu, the Yon merchants held a market every fortnight.
The North, even outside of Wilhelm's domain, was largely short of supplies
Although there was an abundance of iron and timber, the land was barren and difficult for people to live in, so there was a shortage of labor, which soon led to a shortage of supplies.
So, to process iron and wood to make goods, trade with other regions was essential.
Unprocessed iron ore was sent to other regions to be processed into iron powder, and because there was not enough capacity to process iron ore, iron products for daily necessities were purchased from other regions in an attempt to resolve the shortage of materials caused by the lack of manpower.
Because of this, even in villages with iron mines and villages with large forests, people would wait for the merchant to buy scissors or paper.
The village of Urdu was also such a place.
However, one thing that was a little different about this village was that there was a wandering blacksmith who came by horse-drawn carriage, so he didn't pay much attention to the utensils, hinges, scissors, etc of the upper Yon.
The wandering blacksmith, Johan.
He had a hideous burn scar under his right jaw, and he seemed to have no intention of covering it up.
He would wear sleeveless clothes most of the time, except in winter, and would heat iron in front of a hot furnace and quickly create items that were ordered.
What were just lumps of copper and iron became scissors, needles, and hinges in his hands.
"Are you an alchemist, sir?"
That's why.
Michael, the youngest son of a family famous for making chick bread in the village of Urdu, would sit in front of the carriage with his nose sticking out and watch Johan whenever he saw him.
"Alchemist?"
The hot heat crumpled Johan's face, which had a firm, coppery skin rarely seen in the North.
"They say alchemists can make gold, but why do you always make scissors? If I were you, I would make gold and live a luxurious life."
Johan, who lost the time to grasp the shape of the scissors due to the absurd question, clicked his tongue and dipped the broken iron into oil.
Michael opened his mouth wide as he watched the fire rise.
"Wow! As expected, you're an alchemist!"
While Michael was surprised, Johan got out of the carriage again to take out the scrap metal.
Michael chased after Johan and started talking to him.
"If you have a lot of gold. You can get a pretty wife and buy a house, right?"
Michael blocked Johan's eyes, who didn't even look at him, let alone answer.
Then Johan spoke rudely, lifted Michael up, and moved him aside.
"I don't need that."
The two women standing in line giggled as they watched his biceps flex as he carried his luggage.
Johan didn't even look at those women.
"Why? I think I'll be happy if I just have a pretty wife and a house. I'll never starve my wife or children or beat them. My mom said that's what a good husband is. My dad wasn't a good husband though."
At those words, Johan, who had been searching through his luggage and taking out scrap metal, looked blankly at Michael.
Then Michael chuckled.
"Now you feel sorry for me, Sir? Now you're going to teach me how to handle fire, right? I knew you would."
"What."
Johan stood awkwardly and looked down at Michael.
"When I talk about my father, the adults feel sorry for me. They try to give me even a single potato."
"..."
At those words, Johan burst into laughter.
"...Gibberish."
"It's true."
"You must have only met good adults. When I was your age, more guys would take advantage of a child's weakness if they told him or her about it."
"So, you were always surrounded by people like my dad? Was your dad that kind of person, too?"
Johan, who was holding onto the carriage pillar to get back on top of the carriage and in front of the oar, suddenly stopped moving.
Michael couldn't understand why Johan's broad back had stopped.
After pausing for a few seconds, Johan put strength into his hands again, climbed onto the carriage, and spoke.
"No. That guy... was the nicest adult I've ever met."
Michael, completely unaware of the brief recollection in his voice, simply watched in admiration as Johan put the scrap metal back into the hot furnace and created a pair of scissors.
Johan created a pair of scissors like an alchemist again and took the next order.
Most of the customers who came to Johan were those who wanted to fix broken items or sharpen knives.
Because commoners prefer to repair things and use them rather than buy new ones.
"Please sharpen this dagger."
And most of them were women.
This time, the robed guest who held out a dagger was a woman.
Michael was quite impressed when he saw the woman's side face revealed under the robe.
'...Pretty.'
She was a pretty woman.
He knew that all the women of the village flocked to see Johan and that there were some pretty young women among them, but this was the first time Michael had seen a woman this pretty.
'It's like the doll is talking...'
Michael stared blankly at the woman's profile and made up his mind.
He must become Johan's assistant and become an alchemist.
That's the shortcut to getting a pretty wife.
Even Johan, who treated Ine like a stone, seemed a little trembling in front of this woman, the second daughter of a hunter's family who was considered the most beautiful in the village of Urdu.
Judging from the fact that he couldn't immediately accept the dagger the woman offered him and just stared at the dagger and the woman's face for a while.
Michael was looking at the scene with interest.
Johan took the dagger from the woman and said.
"It doesn't seem like something I made."
What does it mean?
Michael knew that Johan sharpened swords that he didn't make.
'Could it be that the world's best Johan is flirting with a woman?"
It was while Michael was being surprised.
The woman answered.
"Still, I think I can do it. I heard that the blacksmith of the carriage that comes to the village of Urdu is quite capable."
The woman's eyes looked up at Johan.
Michael clearly saw Johan's eyes tremble at that gaze.
Michael felt his heart flutter for some reason as if he had seen Ine and Eric kissing behind the pigsty one day, and he hid behind the carriage and stole a glance at the two.
"You look like a noble lady, but you have trouble hearing what I say."
This time, the woman's eyes trembled.
"I asked if you knew who made this dagger."
The woman narrowed her eyes.
But Johan looked at the woman with unwavering eyes.
Michael looked at that and became puzzled.
Were the two people not flirting with each other, but rather wary of each other?
But why?
"How did you know I was a lady?"
It was a sharp moment in the woman's voice.
Johan said in a loud voice.
"Michael! Stop hiding and come here."
Michael, who had been hiding at those words, flinched and bit his lips.
"Immediately."
But Michael could no longer resist Johan's low, growling call.
When Michael came out from behind the carriage, Johan said to him.
"Tell the guests standing here to come back in 30 minutes."
"Yes?"
But these women were not waiting for the items: they were standing there to admire the craftsmanship of making them.
When Michael looked troubled. Johan said.
"If you can make these guests come in 30 minutes, I will let you make a pair of scissors yourself next fortnight."
"...!"
Michael's eyes widened at those words.
Johan urged Michael like that.
"Are you going to do it or not?"
"Ha, I will!"
Michael said that and quickly ran away.
While the witty little Michael was persuading each guest, Johan glared at the woman.
"There's no girl in this town who would walk around with her pink hair so shiny. And..."
Johan gestured with his chin to two muscular men loitering around the corner from the village.
"Those guys have been looking for the girl with pink hair for a while now."
At those words, the eyes of the woman hidden under the hood widened.
She had doll-like, light green eyes.
She bit her lip and looked at the men as if in despair.
"I thought I had left you behind..."
"What..."
It was a time when Johan was bewildered.
The woman glared at Johan, holding the dagger to his chest.
"Take me somewhere where we can talk alone. Leon Kowalski."
The woman smiled bitterly as she watched Johan's eyes grow wide.
'You didn't realize that hiding your name wouldn't hide your skills. You ungrateful bastard.'
It's a skill you learned from my father.
The woman, no, Diana swallowed those words deep in her throat.
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