1.
It was a game I’d first encountered during puberty.
There wasn’t a game I couldn’t play, so naturally, this one should have been no exception.
"Wow, hey, it must actually be hard to play like this. That’s a talent too."
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[Results]
[Excellent] [12]
[Great] [65]
[Good] [135]
[Bad] [67]
[Miss] [56]
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But the results said otherwise.
The GOOD rating meant I was about half a beat off from the exact timing.
It was something difficult to pull off even if you were specifically told to hit only those notes.
Yet back then, I’d achieved it through sheer natural talent.
"This bastard is fucking terrible at—"
"Who the fuck are you calling a bastard?"
That was the moment I kind of snapped.
I couldn’t accept that a game had handed me such a shitty report card.
Being told I had no talent was one thing, but what made me even angrier was this.
I just couldn’t accept it. There was no way I could be bad at such a crude game.
I’d always had a tendency for my passion to veer off in strange directions.
The moment I focused on something, I wouldn’t leave the house until I saw it through to the end.
There had even been a time when I’d focused on something for nearly a week without eating anything.
In other words, once something hooked me, I went all the way to the death.
And that something was rhythm games.
The problem was that the deeper I dug, the more addictive they became.
I started in middle school, then continued through high school, college, my master’s program, and all the way into my doctorate.
Whenever writing my thesis pissed me off, I played.
Most of my life was like that.
I’d write papers in the lab, play rhythm games, eat, play games, then say, “Just one round before bed,” and suddenly it was four in the morning.
After graduating, while I was knocking on the doors of the job market, Yuna and I once came to a conclusion.
[Maybe the problem is that you play too many games?]
Then I’ll just die.
[I’m being serious.]
In the end, the negotiations hurtled toward disaster.
It was Yuna’s and my first war.
Yuna blocked every game on all my devices, I minimized Yuna’s access privileges, Yuna covered my monitor with a hologram, and I covered Yuna’s holographic projection with a towel.
After a week-long war, I finally succeeded in quitting.
Well, if quitting would have gotten me a job right away, I wouldn’t have needed to call Yuna in the first place.
It wasn’t because of rhythm games. The world simply had no need for humans.
In the end, nothing changed.
And just when I’d rubbed my face dry in that empty lab and buried my head in my hands—
I came to this world, and now—
[Aaaaah!!]
Yuna was suffering from PTSD.
We both had a hard time back then.
"...You trust me, right?"
[I’d rather trust that old man we met for the first time today.]
Don’t worry, Yuna.
Earlier, it was only because I hadn’t been thinking at all.
If I tried again, I was confident.
No, that wasn’t enough. To put it properly—
I wasn’t confident that I’d fail.
There was no music playing, but just watching was enough.
I immediately picked up the hammer and tried to give it another go, but...
"...Tch. What a shame."
There were simply too many restrictions.
This hammer wasn’t mine, and neither was this powder.
It even looked precious enough to Henrik that he kept it in a safe.
I’d managed to gather enough from the residue left behind, but I wasn’t shameless enough to take out more and keep doing this.
That was when it happened.
"Thank you for waiting, Lionel."
"..."
Henrik came out from the back, studied my face closely, then raised the corners of his mouth.
"...Haha. Did you find a good hammer?"
"What? No, not exactly."
"You looked so happy."
"..."
"I assumed that was it."
Had I? Without realizing it?
At those words, I didn’t bother suppressing the smile that was slipping out.
"I suppose I did."
I just smiled even more.
2.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
There were two choices before me.
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[Earthborn Hammer] [★★☆☆☆]
[Compatibility —/40]
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『Forged solely from that which comes from the earth. It has no splendor, but neither does it lie.』
— An Unknown Craftsman —
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A two-star forging hammer.
By my standards, it was the best hammer I’d handled today.
According to Henrik, it was the most suitable hammer for a beginner.
Its weight distribution was even, the two faces of its head were asymmetrical, and its handle was just the right length.
It was the textbook example of a forging hammer, like the one I’d explained to Dolores yesterday.
What was more, it was Earthborn—a hammer made entirely from materials that came out of the ground, without any alloys.
I could even expect some synergy with the Sun Dwarves.
It was solid. And there was nothing bad about solid.
But the second option was making me hesitate.
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[Basic Enchant Hammer] [★☆☆☆☆]
[Compatibility —/20]
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『Do not dare mistake enchantment for luck.』
— 4th Wise Craftsman Ogeron —
─────────────────
During a short break, I’d looked into enchantment.
Naturally, my source was the Inner Tower community. Enchantment was one of its most popular keywords.
Title: [Why Dwarf Enchantments Are Rigged.txt]
─────────────────
(Photo of a successful +17 enhancement)
Thank you.
Mathematically, it makes no sense for everyone to be lucky. The more you enhance, the more you inevitably regress toward the mean.
I was lucky today. You’ve been unlucky your entire life.
When my good luck combines with yours, it averages out.
In other words, I hit the jackpot thanks to all of you.
I owe you a lot.
So I hereby bestow upon you the title of Guardians of Balance. You are my true benefactors.
Please support me with my next enhancement too.
─────────────────
Yeah: Someone ban this fucking bastard.
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There had been all sorts of posts, but the conclusion was simple. Enchantments were in considerable demand.
Besides, I’d realized that outside of the place called the Dwarf Company, there was virtually nowhere that performed enchantments.
There were posts claiming a few other places existed, but for some reason, every account making those claims had been banned for illegal advertising or something.
‘They got banned.’
They must have been lying in their ads.
But if the Dwarf Company was the only place that officially performed enchantments, and that was common knowledge in this world—
Wouldn’t it cause a huge stir if I started enchanting things?
Henrik had said so too. That it was difficult for humans.
That was why I was looking forward to it.
As I sat there with my chin propped in both hands, making a grave face wholly unsuited for a thirteen-year-old as I deliberated, I could feel Henrik repeatedly glancing my way.
He seemed to want to say something, but I pretended not to notice.
Henrik was great and all, but... he had a bit of a tendency to talk too much.
It wasn’t bad, but right now was time to think.
Then, at that moment—
Jingle.
Dolores returned.
"Lionel?"
As soon as she entered, Dolores called my name gently.
For some reason, she looked happier than usual.
"Yes."
I hopped down from the tall chair and ran over to her.
I really did feel like I had become Dolores’s family. I even ran to her whenever she called.
Behind Dolores, Ruby was hugging a thick book to her chest.
Her eyes were sparkling too.
Dolores lightly held up a fairly luxurious outfit she had in one hand before me.
"It’ll suit you well."
"...Thank you."
"Mm, good. Lionel? That’s what you say."
Stroke, stroke.
Apparently satisfied with my reply, Dolores stroked my hair.
"There’s no need to refuse. Just say thank you."
"Yes..."
I kind of felt like I was being domesticated.
Dolores put the clothes into her spatial storage and headed for the counter.
Then, all of a sudden—
Swoop.
She lifted my body up with one arm.
"So, did you choose a hammer?"
"Uh, uh..."
Despite being thirty years old, I couldn’t help being flustered by this kind of physical affection.
Dolores gently set my flustered self down on top of the counter.
In an instant, we were at eye level.
"These two?"
"Ah, no. I was trying to decide between them."
"Trying to decide?"
Dolores glanced down.
"Henrik, how much are they?"
"Ten thousand gold in total."
"Mm, I see."
She met my gaze now that we were at the same height.
Then she gently brushed up my bangs.
"Do you want both of them?"
"Ah, um... that is..."
The truth was, I did want them. Both of them.
But saying I wanted ten thousand gold’s worth of goods bought for me felt a little... Regardless of how wealthy she was, I couldn’t just boldly ask her to buy them for me.
"...I don’t think you yet understand the weight of what you have done for me."
Dolores murmured quietly as she looked at me.
Only then did I notice what lay beyond Dolores’s face.
The view outside the store.
A carriage piled high like a mountain with books.
The one book Ruby was holding wasn’t the end of it.
Apparently, everything outside had been purchased today.
Slide.
Dolores took my hands and placed one atop each of the two hammers.
"Now, Lionel. Repeat after me."
"..."
"I want them."
"I-I want them..."
"Good job."
Dolores smiled with satisfaction and nodded at Henrik.
"We’ll take both of these."
"Yes."
Henrik bowed his head.
"What does each hammer do?"
"This one is a forging hammer, and this one is... um, for enchanting..."
"Enchanting."
Dolores narrowed her eyes.
"Lionel, yourself?"
"Yes."
There was a touch of bewilderment in Dolores’s voice.
Making equipment was understandable since I was an Heir of Fire, but suddenly saying I would perform enchantments was bound to sound absurd.
"...I think I can do it."
I was confident.
Dolores looked at me.
When Dolores stared intently at me, she was usually judging whether what I said was true.
After a brief silence, she smiled softly and nodded.
"All right."
Dolores did not ask any more questions.
It meant she believed me.
"Then you’ll need powder too."
Since it was apparently such a well-known concept, she seemed to know about enchantment powder.
That was when—
"...We’ll include the powder as a complimentary gift."
Henrik pulled out a cloth pouch from beneath the counter and held it out.
It was the very same pouch he had taken from the safe earlier.
Dolores tilted her head.
"If someone who can use it is willing to take it, there could be nothing better..."
Henrik gave a bitter smile.
"Think of it as a bundle deal."
"All right."
Dolores snickered and paid for them.
Just as I was about to pick up the hammers with both hands, wondering if I was supposed to carry them—
"Please wait just a moment~"
The woman came out from the back.
She took the Earthborn Hammer and the Basic Enchant Hammer one at a time and set them on the counter.
Then she drew a small brush from her apron pocket and began painting something onto the ends of their handles.
At that moment, I saw the woman’s lower abdomen glow.
Which meant this was magic. She was using mana.
Swish, swish.
Each stroke of the brush etched a gray line into the hammers.
Before long—
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[Enchantment List]
[Weight Reduction] [LV.2]
──────────────
The same interface I had seen on Tozar’s mace appeared before me.
"They aren’t very heavy to begin with, so level two should be enough."
So the person who had enchanted things was the woman.
They were quite a capable couple.
She handed me the hammers, and when I lifted them lightly—
"...Wow."
Their weight now fit perfectly in my hands.
Both hammers did.
"Are you... returning to your territory, Duchess?"
"Yes. Don’t you want to return to the territory with us, Mia?"
"I appreciate the offer, but... hohoho."
While payment was being settled, I walked over to Ruby with the two hammers in hand.
Heh heh. I couldn’t resist showing off my lucky haul.
There had to be something about them that a mere book couldn’t match.
I approached Ruby, waving the hammers in front of her.
Wave, wave.
As I continued hovering around in front of her, Ruby’s brow furrowed slightly.
"...What?"
"Cool, right?"
Wave, wave.
Then—
"...Yeah."
"Yeah...?"
Ruby nodded.
Huh? What was that?
That wasn’t the reaction I expected.
When I stared at her—
"What."
Ruby suddenly turned her head away and pretended to read her book.
Her ears had turned slightly red.
I stepped closer to Ruby.
"...W-what? Why?"
"Wipe your mouth."
"...Grrr!"
Ruby still had chicken skewer sauce around her mouth.
Honestly, how careless.
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