The Bladesmith's Enchanted Weapons: Volume 2 (eBook)

Kazuma Ogiwara (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2025
250 Seiten
J-Novel Club (Verlag)
978-1-7183-3184-6 (ISBN)

Infos

Lutz, Patrick, and Gerhard have officially joined forces to create the greatest katana the world has ever seen. However, when they receive an impossible order for a katana that is to be used as a peace offering between their kingdom and the federation to the south, they are left cradling their heads in their hands.
As Count Maximillion and Marquis Beowulf get plunged further into the messy world of politics, they will have to overcome the threat of ambushes, spies, and corrupt noble elites. Will they be able to out-maneuver a traitorous faction and deliver a katana equal in value to the incredible jewel, The Iris of the Overlord, all in time for the signing of the peace treaty?
The fate of the entire kingdom rests on the shoulders of three eccentric craftsmen. When they combine their skills, is anything truly impossible? This could be their chance to create a katana that will brand its name into the pages of history-and maybe save a princess while they're at it.

Textauszug

Chapter 1: Too Beautiful to Call Hell

During the gathering of weapon lovers at Marquis Beowulf Eldenburger’s mansion, Count Maximillion Shander made a secret deal with the Marquis. Behind the scenes, there were peace talks proceeding between their kingdom and the neighboring country with whom they were at war. The Marquis said that it might be necessary to give the Count’s katana as a peace offering and asked for his cooperation if it were to come to that.

Maximillion carried feelings of anxiety and uncertainty in his heart, but also a faint sense of excitement. Perhaps it was a chance for him to step out onto the world stage.

On the way back from the Eldenburger domain to the Shander domain, Count Maximillion sat in the middle of the three-carriage escort. Sitting with him was his personal enchanter, the old man Gerhard, who had become something akin to an advisor to him as of late, as well as Gerhard’s apprentice, the high-ranking knight, Djoser.

Gerhard studied the sword that the Count had received from the Marquis with great interest. “Hmmm...”

So, this was the sword that was passed down through the generations of the house of Eldenburger, the one that the head of the house would use when they stood on the battlefield? It was incredibly valuable simply as a sword, while also bearing notable historical value. Gerhard had no qualms with it being called the treasure of the house of Eldenburger.

When the Count first said that he had left the Kikokuto with the Marquis, Gerhard honestly thought he had gone and done something incredibly stupid, but after seeing that sword, he was convinced that there was nothing else that could be seen to be of equal value.

A battle raged in Gerhard’s mind between the side of him that was simply excited to look over the treasure of the Eldenburger house and the side that felt his heart freeze over at the loss of the Kikokuto. He had no idea what sort of face he should be making.

Djoser looked over at his master with worried eyes. “Master, how do you appraise that sword?”

“Hmm. The cutting edge looks good, it seems rather durable, and it has a certain beauty to it. However...”

“However?”

“It lacks flair.” Gerhard returned the sword to its sheath with a sigh.

Gerhard asked permission from his lord, who was sitting in front of him, to allow Djoser to inspect the sword up close as well, and Maximillion gave an approving nod.

When Djoser received the sword, he began to study the blade as Gerhard had. It was a fine blade, but that was as far as it went. There was nothing in particular that left a deeper impression on him.

“Master, does a sword really need to have flair or some kind of seductive quality?”

“Not really,” Gerhard responded.

“Ah, right...”

The words of his master were rather apathetic indeed.

“In terms of usability, a sword doesn’t need flair, seductiveness, or a beautiful blade. The ornamentation of the saya or sheath can be summed up in one word: useless. However, even still, to truly live your life with a katana, to entrust your life to a katana, it can’t just be a tool for cutting things. Do you understand what I’m trying to say? You’ve got to understand.”

“I don’t understand.”

While Djoser had recently started to understand some of the charm of katana, it seemed he was still far from the level of passion that his master demonstrated.

Even Ricardo, who had once made fun of people who treated katana as if they were human, was now leading the charge of the katana lovey-dovey brigade. He would hold his katana close to him and start ranting about it. Tsubaki did this, Tsubaki did that... There were few things that Djoser found more irritating.

Djoser could understand the feeling of a young man wanting to brag about his love life, but his partner was a damn katana. How was someone supposed to react after listening to all that?

I really am the last sane person here.

Seeing his master and his lord share a nod of intimate understanding, Djoser felt somewhat alienated.

“Do you not feel somewhat lonely without the Kikokuto by your side?” asked Gerhard.

Maximillion tilted his head in thought. “I’m sure that about now, the Kikokuto is making all kinds of sounds in his strong hands. More vibrant sounds than it ever made with me...”

Still unsure of how their lord was feeling as he was saying such a thing, the two of them couldn’t just casually agree with him.

“When we get back to the castle, I intend to train so that I can wield the Marquis’s sword as well. Thinking about that, how should I put it...” Maximillion hid his mouth with his hand, but from the tone of his voice, it was obvious that he was smiling. “I’m a bit excited, actually.”

As Maximillion let out a twisted laugh, Djoser looked at him with a tired gaze.

Even my lord has succumbed to this madness...

It seemed that everyone who was involved with one of Lutz’s katana changed like that. Would Djoser fall to the same fate someday? Would he be calling his sword my cute little Knight Killer and going to sleep with it in his arms? If he were asked to lend it to someone else, would he lose his mind in anger? He simply couldn’t imagine it.

“Just to make sure, Master, you aren’t going to start trying to lick your katana or anything, are you?”

While his master was also a person who was easily influenced by his surroundings, Djoser believed him to be someone who still valued his pride, or rather, he had endeavored to protect that pride by setting a line he refused to cross.

“In my case, you see, when I look at my katana, I can’t help but see the face of an old bastard about the same age as me.” There was a tint of melancholy in Gerhard’s voice.

Gerhard’s friend of several decades, Borbus, had died whilst forging the beloved katana that now rested on Gerhard’s hip. While he could see the katana as a friend, he certainly couldn’t see it as a lover. Besides, the idea of holding such feelings for a katana was ridiculous.

With a loud thud, the carriage jolted as it came to an abrupt stop. Something was off. They should have still been quite far from where they were planning to stay for the night.

“What is it?!” Djoser yelled through the small window to the coachman.

They turned to him with a confused expression. “Maybe it’s somebody’s idea of a prank. The road ahead is blocked by a bunch of large logs. I’ll go ahead and clear them out of the way, so just wait a moment.”

“Wait!” Djoser yelled to the coachman and other servants who were about to get off the carriage. “It’s a trap. All noncombatants, don’t set foot outside of the carriage.”

Gerhard had already hopped out of the carriage as if it were just business as usual.

Djoser grabbed hold of his Knight Killer and gave a bow to his lord. “Your Grace, if there are any bandits, I will be sure to kill every single one of them.”

“I look forward to your victory in battle.” Maximillion’s face was pale, but he answered Djoser with dignity and grace.

That was the lord that Djoser had dedicated himself to. He was a man worth risking his life for. With his will invigorated, he jumped out of the carriage.

With that, Gerhard and Djoser, as well as one more person from the front carriage, stepped out onto the road. The other man was the personal adventurer of the Shander house, the hero, Ricardo.

Studying the profile of Ricardo’s face as he looked around with an intense caution, Djoser thought about how much Ricardo had changed as well. A little while back, Djoser had just thought of him as a talented young man. However, his innate talent still hadn’t manifested as true strength. There was a clear imbalance within him. Because of that, the title of hero just came off as a bit of a joke. Looking at Ricardo now, though, he had an air of maturity, a certain presence. He seemed motivated to become a swordsman worthy of his beloved katana. It was reassuring to have him there alongside them.

There were no foes in sight, but they could feel murderous desire hanging in the air. As they continued to stay on guard, they suddenly heard the sharp sound of a blade splitting through the wind as it flew their way. It was an iron axe, spinning as it headed directly toward Gerhard.

“How naive!” In a flash, Gerhard swung down his beloved katana, Ittetsu, splitting the axe cleanly in two, the pieces dropping unceremoniously to the floor. “You fools! Don’t you dare challenge us with such cheap toys!”

From the sound of Gerhard’s booming voice, the bandits were certain that they were dealing with someone rather experienced, even if they weren’t entirely sure what he was going on about. One by one, they stepped out into the open.

There were ten of them, wearing filthy armor that didn’t even fit them properly. They had likely stolen it from somewhere. They were many in numbers, but few in strength.

While the Count’s entourage technically outnumbered the bandits, most were noncombatants.

A man who looked like their leader charged at them, nostrils flaring. “You’ve got a lot of nerve calling our weapons cheap toys! I’ve heard that His Grace the Count’s got himself a...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 23.10.2025
• Reihe/Serie: The Bladesmith's Enchanted Weapons
• Illustrationen: CARIMARICA
• Übersetzer: Ryan Burris
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Fantasy / Science Fiction ► Fantasy
• Schlagworte: Blacksmithing • Katana • Light Novel • Magic • male protagonist • multiple PoV • swords
• ISBN-10: 1-7183-3184-3 / 1718331843
• ISBN-13: 978-1-7183-3184-6 / 9781718331846