We walked back to the city, and on the way there, it was relatively peaceful! Very nice. Killing that bandit surely helped make things easy. Imagine if that bandit was still walking along with us, that would be so annoying always keeping watch of him. Yeah, one of the reasons I wanted him gone was so I didn’t have to make him my problem coming back to the city. Things would go smoothly without him.
Was that being too heartless? Eh, don’t care. He wanted to do terrible, unspeakable, voracious, repulsive, unthinkable, horrifying, unimaginable things to me. His pathetic way of death was justified. Besides, he was being unnecessarily nosy upon hearing I was a princess. Who knows what kind of problem that may cause.
It took some time before we reached the city. At least now I had an idea how long the walk was. I could finally set my schedule tomorrow before going back here around the afternoon. Afternoon because I intended to launch my mission at night. Always do stealth missions at night. Yeah, gonna go full agent Estelia tomorrow night!
Going back inside the city went smoothly, they didn’t even check what we had or anything. Maybe because the guards recognized us from before, or they just didn’t care much. We promptly headed straight to our ship.
“How’d it go?” As we stepped onto the deck, Taneva asked with a hint of displeasure. I did leave him behind so…
“It went pretty nicely,” I said. I looked around, the deck of the ship was filled with people as the sky was about to darken. “Did you and the others go out into the city again?”
“Oh yeah, I had some annoying guys going after the ladies. But we took care of it.”
“See? Your help is needed.” I smiled.
“Yeah, yeah. Did you fight any monsters?”
“Of course. It didn’t go as well as I hoped.” I was hoping that it would be easy, so that’s that…
“Haha. Well, they're not too different from the mystic race you faced.”
“At least at that time, I had my knights. Plus, they actually have intellect. The monsters here are… animals.” Beasts were more unpredictable, sort of say. And savage.
“Heh. That’s how it is. But trust me, those are the better sides. Savage monsters that can actually think or strategize are the most annoying. Well, if you don’t hold back, you should survive most of it.”
Yeah, well, that was the issue. I had to hold back if I wanted to prevent my painful death as long as possible.
“The region around the city should be a bit safer, so I don’t think I should worry about that.”
“Indeed. But still, it all comes down to luck. These lands and their environments tend to be quite unpredictable.”
“I know.”
“Hm. At any rate, did you find what you needed?”
“We found the bandit base.”
“Good. But it sounds like you haven't caught the guy you’re after yet. Can I come along if you go?”
“No,” I curtly said in an instant. It was my personal time to process myself. Anyone else had no room in it.
Taneva formed a pouty face, but I disregarded him.
“Heya, Princess.” Hartwin walked towards us with a casual wave. “You’re still alive. Done with the job yet?”
What the hell was up with the ‘You’re still alive’ part?
“Not yet.”
“When are you finishing it?”
“Tomorrow night.”
“Oh. Can I come along?”
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
“No.” I crossed my arms.
“Dang. Alright then, guess I’m hanging out at the bar tomorrow night.”
I frowned. “Bar?”
“Yeah, found a bar that’s willing to serve me the good stuff.”
“Oh. Then do whatever you want.” I turned to Velar. “We'll be moving out around tomorrow afternoon. I still have to get my dagger at the smith.”
“Alright.”
“I might be sleeping until noon tomorrow as well. Don’t disturb me.”
Velar was a bit puzzled. “That’s a long time of sleep.”
“I need a decent amount of rest before doing my mission.”
“I understand.”
I nodded. “Okay. I’m going back to my room to sleep.”
“Wait, this early? Light hasn’t even completely gone out yet,” Hartwin said.
But I disregarded him and headed straight back to my cabin with a wave directed at them. I was so tired, after all the walking and the heavy spellcasting. The spellcasting was what especially strained me. If I were to face a powerful monster on the way tomorrow, I should consider letting Velar and the Cursed Children take care of it completely.
After changing into sleeping clothes, with a heavy sigh, I jumped to bed and fell asleep.
***
It was around early afternoon. Velar and I made our way to the smith. The man on the counter was Esagi’s father, he had a slight frown on his face. He must not like watching over the counter that much. Which made me wonder how this place lasted this long. Maybe Esagi, his daughter, carried the customer service, or the wife.
“Hi,” I said as I approached him. “We’re here for my dagger that Esagi was working on.”
The man grunted and went into the back. I could faintly hear his voice through the walls.
“Esagi! It’s the girl with the daggers!”
A moment later, Esagi came out to meet us. She was all smiles, full of excitement, as she carried something wrapped in cloth.
“You’re here. Just in time.” She promptly placed the object on the desk in front of us. “I have to say, it wasn’t easy. Really had to stay up late at night.”
I smiled a little. “And from the looks of it, you still did it.”
“Of course! Who do ya think you’re talking to?” She placed a hand on the cloth. “Behold! Your newly upgraded dagger!”
Oooooooh!
My eyes widened as she slowly unwrapped the dagger. My eyes were practically twinkling with excitement. My heart started racing a little in anticipation and impatience to try out my target killing weapon. Yeah, it was exclusive for that purpose. The finest blades should be used for the finest purpose and opportunity. This blade had a special place in my heart.
And then, the dagger was fully unwrapped. My fancy and favored blade was still whole, but I noticed it was just a bit shinier than before. Like it had been cleaned and more polished. I slowly picked it up, holding it in a way as though I was holding a holy object. I tilted it around under direct light, and the blade glittered like a thousand shining stars.
I let out a breath of captivation. The glittering dust went even to the gold and silver decorations. And the dagger did not even change in form whatsoever. How she managed to preserve it, it was awesome.
“Amazing, Miss Esagi!” She had my utter respect. “You truly are the most exceptional craftsman that I have ever met!”
She grinned haughtily. “Of course, of course. You’re welcome to praise my talents!”
I cast magic into the blade. I could feel the smoothness of the mana’s flow. The dagger began to glow. This was perfect, perfect for tonight. I had been waiting for this to be complete. The weapon I would use to eliminate the target. I dispelled the magic from the blade.
Extending my hand towards Esagi, I gave her my genuine thanks. “Thank you so much. I am incredibly pleased with the result.”
She shook my hand. “It was a fun weapon to work on. It gave me a lot of necessary and interesting experiences.”
Our hands let go, and I sheathed my dagger behind my waist.
“Remember,” Esagi said. “Careful to use it on hard monsters. It doesn’t have the increased durability.”
“I’ll remember. Besides, I don’t plan on using this on some random monster.”
She nodded with a wide grin. “By the way, it’s your most favored weapon, right? Like a signature weapon.”
“That’s right.”
“What’s the name?”
“Name?”
She slightly tilted her head. “You don’t have a name for it? People here usually name their most favorite weapon. It's what makes it special.”
“... I see.” It was just a dagger, I wasn’t really into the idea of naming it. Nothing but a tool. Besides, it wouldn’t be easy thinking of a badass name. And there was not really any significance in naming it but adding more sentimentality to the thing. However… “I’ll think about it.”
What should I even name it? Flesh cutter? Okay, I wasn’t being serious about that one. Stabby stab? Rendering Golden Blade? Rendering blade? Or something, something.
Eh, whatever, I’ll think of something. Eventually.
Or maybe never, you’d never know. I mean, I had not even thought of a new name for my ship! Naming stuff just wasn’t on my priority list.
“Better think of a good name for it. If you won’t, the horrible name might end up in history.”
I dryly laughed. “I’ll try thinking of something good.”
“Nice. So, you’re leaving town anytime soon?”
“Don’t know when exactly, but it won’t be tomorrow yet. We might need to shop for some more equipment.”
She nodded. “Well, if you need something pretty good, we’re always here.”
“Of course. See you then.” I turned around and started walking back to the door.
“See you. Take care and enjoy your newly revamped dagger!”
I waved at her.
Ooooh, I fully intend to enjoy this.
Velar and I left the building and headed straight out of the city. My hand occasionally touched my dagger’s hilt behind me. I was just so excited. But because of that, in the middle of the road, I pulled out my newly upgraded dagger and played around with it. And for some reason, Velar just stared at me with an amused face, as though he were looking at a kid.
I’m not a kid who just got a new toy…