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The Silver Mask and the Cursed Girl – Part 05

Hikaru was walking through the streets of Pond, not wearing a mask or a black robe. He was just a normal novice adventurer.

As he passed by the hot dog stall, the owner stared at him.

Awkward…

Hikaru ignored him, but the man kept his gaze fixed. A customer appeared, but he ignored them anyway, and continued staring at Hikaru.

“What is it?” Hikaru gave in and went over to the stall.

The vendor shooed his customer away and held out a hand to Hikaru. “Thirty gilans.”

“It better not be extra spicy.”

“…”

The man handed him the hotdog.

He didn’t even say anything!

“Hmm?!”

The hotdog looked flawless, with a beautifully-grilled sausage, and a vibrant contrast between the red ketchup and the yellow mustard.

Hikaru swallowed and brought the hotdog to his lips.

His eyes widened.

The acidic sauce blended with the meat juice in the mouth to create a harmony of umami. In short, it was a normal hotdog.

“…”

Hikaru looked at the vendor.

“H-How is it?” the man asked.

“…Normal.”

“What?!”

“Tastes normal. It’s good.”

The vendor’s eyes widened. His whole body relaxed.

“What’s the matter?” Hikaru asked.

“Nothing. It’s just, you finally approved of my hotdog, Master!”

“…”

What did he just say? Why are you looking at me with a twinkle in your eyes?

“A-Anyway… You just need variety now,” Hikaru said. “You could add cheese as a topping, chopped onions, or use spicy vinegar instead of mustard, like a salsa sauce.”

“Understood! I’m doing this. I’m gonna take over the world with this hotdog!”

“R-Right…”

Hikaru seemed to have flipped some sort of switch inside the man.

Pond Hotdog would later cross national borders and spread across the continent—but that’s a story for another day.

---

As Hikaru entered the Leniwood Weapons Workshop, a weapon shop ran by an elf, he was surprised to find not only Leniwood, but also the dwarf Dodorono inside. Dodorono ran an armor shop, though it seemed he was more interested in dressmaking. Seeing the two completely mismatched individuals, a blacksmith elf and the stylish Dodorono, standing side by side, Hikaru couldn’t help but question whether what he considered conventional wisdom was wrong.

“Oh, Hikaru!” Leniwood said, rolling up his skinny sleeves.

“You look well,” Dodorono added. A ribbon was tied on his braided beard.

“Hello,” Hikaru greeted.

That was all he could say.

“Where’s your spirit, young man? You gave me such a tough job!”

“Yeah! Don’t you have any work for me?”

“No.”

“Bummer…”

The sight of a dwarf in a well-fitted suit looking dejected was so surreal, but Hikaru chose not to comment, since he would only be wasting his time. Instead he turned his attention back to Leniwood.

“So how was it? Did you manage to work the drakon’s hair into the weapon?”

Hikaru had asked Leniwood to modify his weapon. He had encountered a Fire Drakon in the deepest part of the Forest of Deception, and after saving its life, was granted two wishes. The first was to fly to the royal castle and force the king to abdicate, but Hikaru couldn’t come up with a second wish. In response, the drakon gave him its own hair.

The hair was about a meter long, and there were five of them. Although they appeared white, they were actually transparent, with sparkling particles moving inside them.

“You told me to just coil it around a staff,” Leniwood said.

“It didn’t work?”

“More like that was the only thing I could do!” the elf exclaimed with confidence.

Apparently, no blade could cut it, and it repelled magic. However, wrapping it around a staff worked, amplifying magical power.

“Here’s the final product. Wood seems to be a better match than metal.”

“Oh…”

Leniwood handed Hikaru a short wand, approximately sixty centimeters long. It was cut out of black wood, with a groove carved where the hair could be wrapped around. Its tip was inlaid with fire elemental magic stone that could be replaced at any time.

“Wow. It looks cool.”

A short wand that looked like something a real Mage in a world of fantasy would use. Not that Hikaru could use magic, of course.

“No fair, no fair, no fair!” Dodorono whined. “I wanna use rare materials too!”

It was one thing if a cute girl threw a tantrum, but when a stern-looking dwarf did it, it was just unsightly. Dodorono had learned that Leniwood obtained an interesting material, so he came just to see that. He even closed his own shop.

“Thank you, Mr. Leniwood,” Hikaru said. “So, what’s the total cost, including labor?”

“Let’s see… 10,000 gilans, everything included.”

“Wait, really? That sounds too low. This wood looks like it’s from an aromatic green tree, but the color is different.”

“Ah, you know your stuff! Aromatic green wood is usually used for furniture because of its beautiful grain, but there are some that have aged well and are perfect for Mage staffs because they conduct mana easily.”

“Doesn’t that make it more expensive, then?”

“Well, if it’s older, it could get pricey, but this one was just sitting in the warehouse, so no problem there.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, it’s all good. Just let me know how it works out for you, okay?”

After bidding farewell to Leniwood, Hikaru left the shop. Dodorono was still throwing a tantrum.

There was only one more thing Hikaru had to do before departing.

He made his way into a tunnel that led to an underground waterway. It was here that the hideout of Kelbeck, the Artificer for the Thieves’ Guild, was located. Although the name suggested a criminal organization, they actually carried out jobs that were just borderline illegal.

Hikaru had not been here since he sold the gem he obtained by defeating a Black Dragon in the Forest of Deception for 5 million gilans. Converted into Japanese yen, it was worth about 50 million yen. He also sold other miscellaneous loot, so Hikaru now had plenty of money, enough to give Paula an allowance.

“Hello,” Hikaru greeted.

“Well, if it isn’t Mr. Moneybags!”

“Hahaha. Says the guy who made a lot more profit than I did.”

“Hahaha. You think I do this job for free?”

“You still made a fortune, though. Easy money, left and right.”

“Do you wanna know how much trouble I went through to keep the source of that gem secret?”

“Nah, I’m good. Ahaha.”

“I’m open for business anytime. Hahaha.”

Kelbeck’s henchman watched them with an uneasy gaze, as if he were looking at strange creatures.

The office was so impressive and bright that it was hard to believe it was right next to the underground waterway. The room was illuminated by a number of magic lamps that served as indirect lighting, a reflection of Kelbeck’s quirk as an Artificer.

“So, is it ready?” Hikaru asked.

“Yeah, it’s done. I gotta say, I’ve never had anyone request something like this for personal use before.”

“Really? It could be useful in battles against monsters or in narrow spaces like dungeons.”

“It’s just too expensive. Considering the materials necessary, it costs at least 3,000 gilans to make one.”

“Life is priceless. So, it’s 3,000 gilans for one, then?”

“Are you stupid? I won’t make any profit that way. How about 10,000 gilans?”

“Ugh…”

“Don’t give me that look. Fine, I’ll make it 5,000 gilans, research costs included.”

“A reasonable price, I guess.”

“Hey, I put a lot of effort into this. At least show some gratitude.”

Unbeknownst to Hikaru, Kelbeck himself had crafted the magic item that Hikaru had requested—the Blade Bomb, an exploding sword. Even Kelbeck’s henchmen were surprised at this fact. They expected Kelbeck, as head of this branch, to produce only high-end and expensive products.

In truth, Kelbeck seemed to be enjoying his interactions with the enigmatic young man, although he would never admit it.

“So, how many smoke bombs did you make?” Hikaru asked.

“Five. I ran out of materials. Once activated, white smoke will spray out in just one second. It has an effective radius of about five meters, causing coughing if inhaled, and temporary blindness if it gets into your eyes.”

“And how long does the effect last?”

“About fifteen seconds.”

“Can we test it out here?”

“Are you messing with me? Don’t you dare.”

“Your reaction kinda makes me want to do it.”

“Try it, and you’re gonna get it.”

Kelbeck laid a small black ball on the table, which was smaller than Hikaru’s fist. The ball had one button and numerous holes from which smoke would come out.

Hikaru’s Stealth was difficult to use once he was spotted by the enemy, so he was considering methods to obstruct the enemy’s vision, even if just temporarily. One of the solutions was this smoke bomb—to create a smoke screen.

Once the transaction was done, Kelbeck asked, “So, are you going somewhere?”

“Why do you think so?”

“You looked relieved when you saw the finished product.”

Sharp guy, Hikaru thought, chuckling.

“Yeah, to Einbiest.”

“I see. Be careful out there. Apparently, a fort city bordering Einbiest was attacked.”

“What?”

This was the first time Hikaru had heard of the fall of Leather-elka.