1.
Master.
To Ruby, Dolores was the sky.
A sky that looked down on her.
A sky that held her and protected her.
And yet, the sky’s heart always seemed cold and aching.
She always held Ruby in her arms and showed her only a warm world, but Ruby could tell there was something she was hiding.
Though she was young, Ruby was clever enough to understand all of that.
But one day, Ruby’s sky grew warm.
Her master, whose face was expressionless more often than it smiled, had recently begun to brighten.
And what made Ruby happiest—and most relieved—was that she no longer went into that room.
Ruby knew about that room.
She did not know exactly what was inside.
But every time her master went in and came back out, her eyes were hollow.
That frightened her terribly.
And naturally, the biggest reason her sky had changed was—
"La la la~"
This boy dancing around with a hammer as if he were thrilled.
His name was Lionel.
To Ruby, he was also her first friend.
Or perhaps family.
He had warmed her master’s hands.
He had taught her how to tie her shoelaces.
He made her smile brightly again.
They were the same age, or close to it.
Ruby did not understand how that was possible.
Ruby studied magic.
For her master. Because she wanted to help her someday.
But she still could not do anything.
She could not cure her master’s illness.
She could not warm her cold hands.
But the boy in front of her had done it. It was not quite envy, but rather…
Whoosh, whoosh.
"I look cool, right?"
The very thought she had just been holding inside.
Fine. She admitted it.
"…Yeah."
"Yeah?"
Honestly, he did look cool.
2.
Dolores had given me a rough outline of our schedule going forward.
I had wondered whether we would stop by the orphanage again, but apparently, we had left with no intention of returning in the first place.
It did not matter to me, since I had no luggage to pack.
I figured they would take care of sorting out the villa themselves.
Goodbye, Eric.
I do miss you, my Big Mac.
Your big brother will make lots of money. We will meet again someday.
Make good use of those gloves.
It might have been obvious, but they said the Duke of Dolores’s territory was closer from this plaza than the orphanage was.
That place had been the countryside, after all, whereas this was a full-fledged city.
We naturally climbed into the carriage, while the carriage carrying Ruby’s magic books was hitched behind us like a wagon.
My hammer rested firmly in both hands.
"…Lionel, would you like me to carry it?"
"No, I’m fine."
Dolores asked, but I refused.
"I need to get used to having it in my hands from now on."
"I see."
Honestly, right now…
I was itching. Really, really itching.
When you gave an addict the thing they were addicted to, there was a tendency for them to be unable to think about anything else.
I want to try something already.
I had powder in my pocket and a hammer in my hands.
I had materials and tools, but doing it right here would be a little awkward.
Inside the carriage were a table, a fruit basket, and a curtain rod.
Ah, what would happen if I enchanted the curtain rod?
Would it become sturdier?
[What do I do, waaahhhhhhh]
Yuna, I’m joking.
After passing the time with that pointless joke, I closed my eyes and laid the enchantment hammer across my lap.
Hold back. Once we got to the territory, she said she would graciously have a workshop built for me.
Even without a workshop, I could just lie down on the street and do it, for all I cared.
Let’s not decide what to hammer yet.
I was a little nervous because people on the community said equipment could be destroyed, too.
"We’ll be there soon."
"Yes."
Please, hurry.
The carriage rolled onward.
The lights of Ariel Plaza faded into the distance, and the view beyond the window grew dark again.
Ruby had fallen asleep with her face buried in a book.
Dolores had her eyes closed as well. I did not know whether she was sleeping or simply resting.
Quiet moonlight filtered through the curtains.
The hammer on my lap swayed gently with the vibrations.
Then…
The moonlight outside the window grew brighter.
I cracked the curtain open, wondering if the moonlight had really intensified.
What moonlight? Lanterns were lined up in neat rows along both sides of the road.
There were so many lanterns that their end was nowhere in sight.
At the end of the lanterns—
"…"
—stood an iron gate.
The enormous gates stood open on either side, each one seeming taller than three carriages stacked on top of one another.
A crest was engraved above them. It was probably something belonging to Dolores.
Once we passed through the iron gates, the scenery changed once more.
"Hey."
"Huh?"
Ruby had woken up at some point.
Seeing me gawking outside like a country bumpkin, she gave a little snort of laughter.
"This is my master’s territory."
"Y-yeah, I know."
I knew that much, too.
"…"
She turned away again.
What was with this kid?
Anyway, once we passed the iron gate, rows of trees appeared, with red-roofed buildings visible between them.
Lights shone through the windows. People lived here.
It was a village.
I had read romance fantasy novels before, but I never expected to see a noble territory’s village from one with my own eyes.
Yuna, what do you think, from a woman’s perspective? You like romance fantasy.
[I can’t really take it in right now.]
Heh heh heh.
She was still worried. I could be pretty cruel.
After riding for another long while, we reached the top of an uphill road.
Finally, a huge building came into view.
"Shall we get ready to get out?"
"Yes."
Dolores softly smiled as she stroked my hair.
The building gleamed beneath the moonlight.
It had several sharply rising spires and a fountain in front of the manor.
It looked exactly like a manor straight out of a fairy tale.
It might as well have been a castle.
"We’re here."
Dolores said with a smile.
"This is our home."
"Thank you…"
"Hm?"
This had to be the lifestyle of the top 0.1 percent.
To think I would get to live in a place like this…
I no longer envied the world I had lived in before.
When the carriage stopped and its door opened, a man stood at the entrance to the manor.
He wore a monocle and had a white beard. His back was straight, and his black suit suited him perfectly.
Going by the flow of things, he had to be the butler. It was perfectly fantasy-like.
"Welcome back, Your Grace."
"Sebas. It has been a while."
"I am relieved to see that Your Grace returned safely."
The butler called Sebas bowed politely, then turned his gaze to Ruby.
"Welcome back to you as well, Lady Ruby."
"Yeah, I’m back."
Half asleep, Ruby gave him a nod.
Then the butler’s gaze shifted to me.
I was about to greet him, figuring he would not know who I was yet, when—
"Lord Lionel. It is an honor to meet you."
"Hel—yes? Ah, yes… Hello."
It seemed they had already discussed everything.
"I shall have the books moved to Lady Ruby’s library."
"There are some for Lionel too. Take only the ones loaded in the front seat separately to the workshop."
"Yes. I shall do so."
What? There were books for me, too?
This was the first I had heard of it. And he had just said workshop…
At Sebas’s gesture, two servants waiting behind him headed for the book-laden wagon at the rear of the carriage.
Then a maid approached.
She held out her hand toward my hammer.
"I’ll take it to the workshop for you…"
Who are you?
As I instinctively pulled the hammer behind me in alarm, she lowered her head with startled eyes.
Ah, sorry. Of course she had not meant anything bad.
I had just been startled for a moment. I thought she was trying to take it away again.
I was a little sensitive because of everything Yuna had put me through in the past.
"Ah, yes, yes. Thank you."
Perhaps my obvious affection for the hammer had made an impression, because Dolores covered her mouth and laughed.
Though the truth was a little different.
"Dinner is ready. Please come inside."
Dinner.
According to Yuna, it was seven in the evening.
Just the right time for dinner.
As she walked, Dolores looked back at me.
"You’re hungry, aren’t you?"
"…Ah, yes."
I was not, actually.
Food was hardly important to me right now.
Dolores led the way, with Ruby and me following behind her.
Once we entered the manor, the high ceiling and chandeliers caught my eye.
The floor was marble, and paintings hung on the walls.
I wanted to ask about the workshop, but the right moment never came up.
After dinner would probably be the best time.
We walked through the manor’s corridors.
The corridor itself seemed wider than the entire orphanage building I had lived in.
It would take some time to get used to this.
When we arrived before a certain door—
Creeeak.
The door opened smoothly.
Two maids standing on either side bowed their heads as they held it open.
The room beyond appeared to be the dining room.
"…Wow."
Countless dishes were set across the long table.
Meat, bread, soup, fish, fruit, and dishes I did not recognize.
There was tableware laid out for three people.
What had my past life even been? I could not remember.
Ruby was already seated in a chair.
Judging by the sparkle in her eyes, they did not have meals like this every day.
Not that I had expected them to.
As Dolores took her seat, she said,
"Today is a special day, after all."
She looked between Ruby and me.
"Welcome, Lionel."
"…Thank you."
I took my seat.
A maid placed a white napkin over my lap.
Ruby was already tearing into some bread.
I picked up my fork as well.
I cut off a piece of meat and put it in my mouth.
"…"
It was delicious.
Delicious enough to make me cry.
I remembered the past week of eating corn soup and hard bread.
[Are you crying, big brother?]
Yeah.
I really was crying.
3.
We finished our meal.
Now that I was full, drowsiness came over me, but that was not important right now.
"It would be difficult to learn the entire layout at once."
Dolores spoke as we walked down the corridor.
"So today, I’ll only show you the second floor."
Ruby followed behind, rubbing her eyes.
Once we climbed the stairs and entered the second-floor hallway, moonlight from the garden shone through the windows.
"That white door at the far end."
Dolores pointed to the end of the hallway.
It was clearly different from the other doors. Its paint was white, and its doorknob was silver.
"That is my room. Would calling it my office be too difficult? It’s where I spend my time during the day."
Office, got it.
I nodded.
Dolores walked on and stopped before a door halfway down the hall.
"This is Ruby’s room."
When she opened the door, a rather cute little room came into view.
"Ruby is supposed to sleep here too, but…"
Dolores looked down at Ruby and smiled faintly.
"For now, we still sleep together."
Ruby’s face instantly turned red.
"…Th-that’s because Master gets scared when she sleeps…"
"Is that so?"
"It is!"
I did not know what kind of nonsense she thought anyone would believe, but…
She was a child. I should let it go.
"Sure it is."
Oops, there went my true nature.
"Grrr…"
Dolores snorted and headed to the next door.
It was right beside Ruby’s room.
"And…"
She stopped before the door.
She looked back at me.
"This is Lionel’s room."
The door opened.
It was spacious. The bed was large, and the view from the window was nice.
It had everything I could need, and lamps lit the walls.
Fine, it was all great.
But…
"…"
Dolores peered at my face.
"You don’t like it?"
"No. No, I love it. It’s great."
"…"
Had she seen through me?
"There’s somewhere else you want to see, isn’t there?"
"…Yes."
Dolores gave a little laugh.
Unable to hold back her smile, she turned around.
"Ruby, do you want to see it too?"
"Yeah."
"Then everyone, follow me."
Dolores led the way.
We went down the stairs, and when she opened the manor’s back door, the night breeze swept in.
Right before us was the garden and a stone-paved path leading into the darkness.
Ruby took Dolores’s hand as they walked.
And I took her other hand—
Squeeze.
—or rather, it was taken.
After walking down the path for about a minute, we came upon an annex set slightly apart from the main building.
A brick house with a single chimney.
And above its door—
—was a small sun emblem.
She had gone this far for me?
"…"
Dolores stopped in front of the door.
"Would you like to open it?"
I grasped the doorknob.
Creeeak.
The instant the door opened—
Click.
A soft light came on inside.
One orange lamp, then another. They lit up one after another along the walls, filling the room with light.
"…"
First of all, there was a furnace worth at least three hundred million, by my estimate.
Beside it sat an anvil, the kind of furniture that would probably rank in the top ten things a modern person was least likely to ever see in real life.
Tools hung on the walls.
There were also all sorts of materials too difficult to describe one by one.
And—
—two hammers lay side by side on the workbench.
The Earthborn Hammer and the enchantment hammer.
"Do you like it?"
"Yes."
I answered immediately without turning around.
Then I slowly turned my head to look at Dolores.
Once again, a man swore loyalty to the person who recognized his worth.
"I’ll work hard."
So in this life, I choose you, Dolores.
It was embarrassingly sappy, but that was how I felt. Even Yuna did not throw in a jab this time.
Instead of answering, Dolores leaned against the doorframe and smiled quietly.
"You don’t have to do that."
"…"
Dolores stepped closer and crouched in front of me.
Our eyes were level.
"Don’t overdo it. Take it slow."
"…"
She brushed aside my bangs.
"All right?"
No.
"…Yes."
Dolores rose, seemingly satisfied.
"Shall we head back now?"
Dolores and Ruby turned around, but I remained rooted in place like a siege tank.
In fact, I slowly backed toward the hammers.
"I’m sorry, but…"
"Yes?"
"Could you give me one piece of equipment you don’t mind throwing away?"
"…Pardon?"
Then—
—I grabbed a hammer.
"I’m itching to do it."
Which hammer, you ask?
Fuck, of course it was the enchantment hammer.
4.
Dolores and Ruby left wearing dumbfounded expressions.
"When the lamp goes out, come back to your room and sleep, all right?"
"Yes."
"I’ll leave the garden lights on for a long time."
"Yes."
"…And if you’re afraid to return to the manor at night, call for Sebas. If you shout loudly, he’ll definitely come."
"Yes."
Dolores’s concerns came pouring out in a rush.
But honestly, I wondered whether I would really be going back at all tonight.
"…I’m going now, Lionel."
With an expression that looked slightly pitiful, she took Ruby and left.
I did not know why she felt that way.
Since being transported to this world, I had never been more alive and well.
I looked down.
The piece of equipment Dolores had brought me was—
─────────────────
[Work Gloves] [☆☆☆☆☆]
[Compatibility] [—/0]
─────────────────
In other words, ordinary laborer’s gloves.
This was the first time in my life I had ever seen equipment without even flavor text.
Apparently, when something was shitty enough, it did not even get that.
That did not matter to me right now.
"Phew…"
What I was about to do was, naturally, enchantment.
I carefully untied the pouch Henrik had given me.
Then—
Fwoosh…
I sprinkled a pinch of blue powder over the gloves.
It might seem wasteful, but I changed my way of thinking.
This was my first time doing it. I could not try it on good equipment right away and have it blow up.
You practiced on cheap stuff.
Hummmmm…
I picked up the enchantment hammer.
─────────────────
[Target Equipment: Work Gloves]
[Powder Owned: 1.3 g]
[User Proficiency: None]
─────────────────
[Would you like to attempt enhancement?]
─────────────────
Yes, I’ll try it.
[0:00:10]
This time, I did not space out.
A circle appeared.
Another circle slowly contracted toward it from the outside.
The two circles drew near. Slowly.
I aimed precisely for the instant they overlapped.
Clang!
Rainbow light spread out.
[Marvelous!]
This was it… This was exactly it…
My body remembered.
This did not even need to reach my brain. It was a spinal reflex.
The next circle appeared.
Its position had changed, but that did not matter.
I read the shrinking circle and caught the moment of overlap.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
[Marvelous!]
[Marvelous!]
[Marvelous!]
[0:00:01]
[0:00:00]
Ten frantic seconds passed like that.
─────────────────
[Refinement Total]
[Marvelous] [7]
[Excellent] [1]
[Normal] [0]
[Bad] [0]
[Terrible] [0]
─────────────────
[Final Success Rate: 93%]
[Failure Rate: 7%]
─────────────────
[Attempting…]
─────────────────
Ninety-three percent.
Unless the odds were rigged, this was going to work.
─────────────────
[Enhancement Successful!]
─────────────────
[Work Gloves] [☆☆☆☆☆]
[Enhancement +0 → +1]
─────────────────
"Phew…"
A faint light rose from the gloves.
The strange thing was that, even though an enchantment for weight reduction had been written onto them, the sensation of actually swinging the hammer remained the same.
[It seems the applied magic works by assisting with the weight.]
I see.
So it felt like it was carrying some of the weight for me.
But, Yuna.
"There’s something I’m seriously disappointed about right now."
Enhancement +1 and a weight-reduction enchantment were not what mattered.
First, the difficulty was way too easy.
And—
"There’s no music."
I lifted my head and looked at Yuna.
"Play me some music."
The reason I had failed to get an all-perfect score was obviously because there had been no music.
[…….]
"Hurry up and play it."
[…Okay…]
Yuna’s hologram trembled slightly.
A moment later, music filled the workshop.
The song settled softly in the background.
Without music, a rhythm game was just labor.
We could adjust the BPM and all that later.
Then it happened.
[Rhythm game started! I’ll remind you once every thirty minutes.]
"Huh?"
"…"
[You’re turning it off in two hours. Promise me, big brother~]
I remembered.
When I had begun gradually cutting back on games, I had installed a script that automatically made Yuna call out whenever I started a rhythm game, so I could keep track of how long I played.
One reminder every thirty minutes. Forced shutdown after two hours.
If I did not have that set up, I would play until four in the morning.
But—
"Yuna."
I opened my mouth with a benevolent smile.
[…Yeees?]
"You can turn that off."
[Why…?]
"This is work now."
[…….]
"I can’t be bound by time."
Because—
—I was a professional.
And for a professional, pulling an all-nighter was only natural.
[Aaaaahhh!!]
With Yuna’s scream as my background music, I picked up the hammer again.
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