468: A Regular Shop
After finishing my hunt, I put on the glasses I had taken off, and I felt as if I had become a different person, not a hunter, not a soldier. It had been a little unsettling at first, but I had come to like it, as the change of pace was rather relaxing.
If you kept a bowstring taut, you would break the bow itself. There were times when you had to loosen and unstring the string that you could not draw without putting your strength into it.
…And Bridget-sama had praised me, saying, “It looks good on you.”
I took the two birds I had caught, processed only their innards, and went to sell them at a familiar butcher shop. The shopkeeper, a canine beastman in an apron, who reminded me a little of my father, put down his meat cleaver and waved to me.
“Hey, little archer. Nice ducks.”
“I caught them today. The usual, please.”
“Sure thing.” He took them and checked their condition.
“Your prey is always in good condition. I’ve been wanting to ask, but are you doing anything special?”
“…Not really.”
“…Ah, a hunter’s secret?”
I shook my head.
“There’s nothing special, no secret. If it’s a bird, I just aim for it when it’s on the ground, and I shoot it, avoiding the body, before it takes off.”
There were times when I would aim for a flying one, for practice, but the meat would be damaged when it fell. And the same for not aiming for the body. —If I were to use a Listrean military bow on an ordinary bird and hit it in the body, it would probably be shattered by the impact.
So, it was only natural that this bow was ‘weak.’ There was a right strength for everything.
The shopkeeper blinked.
“That… every time?”
“Yes. And since these two ducks were together, the trouble of retrieving and processing them was only once—”
“Wait a minute. They were together? If you shot one… and then shot the other as it was flying, then one of them would have more feathers and meat… like this… damaged.”
“Then you just have to shoot it before that, right?”
He shook his head and shrugged.
“Little archer. That kind of skill, normally… is called ‘special’…”
—It was something that all the archers in Litalside could do, unless they were a new recruit. And for me, the leader of the archer unit, it was a matter of course.
Since I had some extra income, I decided to indulge in a leisurely tea time. It was a cafe that had been around since before the war, but it had been destroyed to the point where it was unrecognizable in that Seventh Battle of Litalside—so it was a shop that had been one of the first to reopen, in an open-air cafe style, with only stalls and tables.
Later, the main shop had also been rebuilt, but this one had remained as a branch, and I frequented this one. The reason I came here, which had a smaller menu than the main shop, was solely because they welcomed me, even in my hunter’s attire, with my bow and quiver.
“If it isn’t the hunter sister. Welcome. It’s been a while.”
The familiar dark elf waitress, with her silver hair tied back at her neck, called out to me with a smile as I sat down at a round table. A white shirt, a black vest. A black and white striped waiter’s apron, from her waist to her knees.
“Yes. I’ve been away for a while.”
I had been away from Litalside for a while, as I had been accompanying Bringit-sama to the capital.
“The usual?”
I liked the sandwiches. Incidentally, the ‘usual’ was the ‘whimsical sandwich.’ The charm was that you could change your mood without having to think about what to order. …And since it used ingredients that were a little off, due to the stock and the market situation, it was also a little cheaper than the others.
“No, I’ve already had a light meal. —Do you still have the chocolate cake?”
“You’re in luck. It’s the last one.”
It was the most expensive item on the menu, a small number of which were wholesaled from the main shop. Since the space was small, the number they could keep was limited, and it often sold out.
“Then I’ll have that and a coffee.”
“Sure thing. You’re doing well.”
“I had some extra income from the hunt.”
“And I’m glad you came to our shop.” She smiled and headed for the stall, which had a minimal kitchen. She was friendly, but the distance she kept was comfortable.
Just imagining the sweetness of the chocolate, which I hadn’t had in a long time, made my cheeks relax.
“Ah, welcome!”
“It’s you.”
The dark elf shopkeeper, with his full white beard, looked up from his workbench. He was wearing small, round glasses. Unlike mine, they were probably an item that was imbued with various spells, from vision enhancement to the analysis of enchantments. Originally, glasses were an item for technicians.
The bright voice that had greeted me was his granddaughter, a still-young beastman girl. Her white cat ears and tail, which were similar to the shopkeeper’s faded silver hair, swayed.
I sat down on a high stool at the counter. This was a weapon shop. I had asked them to adjust the fittings on my knife, but they were particularly skilled with bows, and I had bought this bow here.
“What can I do for you today?”
“I’ve come to buy a spare string. And I’d like you to check my bow and my arrows. And if necessary, please adjust them.”
“You’re a good archer. I don’t think you need my adjustments.”
I placed my bow and my quiver on the counter.
“You’re too modest. To compare the daily adjustments of a user with the maintenance of a skilled craftsman.”
His white beard twitched. At first, I had thought I had angered him, but as I had frequented the shop, I had realized that it was a movement to maintain his stern expression, so as not to reveal his good mood. That said, it wasn’t a compliment. Even though it was for hunting, not for military use, it was a weapon that I entrusted my life to, as there was a possibility of fighting a dangerous magical beast. A reliable craftsman, to whom you could entrust such a thing, was precious.
Clink, a small cup was placed on the counter. A gentle, grassy scent. Herbal tea.
“Here you go, it’s just a rough tea.”
“Thank you.”
I met her blue eyes and thanked her, and I took a sip.
“That looks good on you, big sister. …What happened? Are you, perhaps, changing your profession to a craftsman?”
The granddaughter, who was pointing at her own eyes. She seemed to be interested in the glasses.
“No. This is… ‘fashion glasses’…” I stopped. What was the purpose of wearing these? They had little practical use. Then…
“…Fashion?”
“Why the question mark?”
“No, it was a gift… and she said she wanted to sell them to the public eventually… but I wonder what people think of them.”
I hadn’t been told anything at the butcher shop or the cafe, but I was curious what a person in the craftsman field would think. The shopkeeper was checking the straightness of the arrow in his hand, as if he didn’t care.
“I… think it’s good. Because glasses are something I admire.”
A proper pair of work glasses was an expensive item. You would rarely wear them in the city. She had said that she wanted to follow the same path as her grandfather. In that sense, too, she must have been interested.
I asked.
“Want to try them on?”
“Huh? —Is it alright?!”
The granddaughter’s expression brightened. But she erased her smile and timidly glanced at her grandfather. He opened his mouth, without looking up from his work.
“I will not deny a customer’s fashion. As long as it does not infringe on our field. That is the domain of a craftsman.”
“…So I can wear them?”
“Where is the old man who would deny his granddaughter’s fashion?”
Though he was curt, she, who had received his permission, took the glasses I had offered.
“They might be a little big. And they don’t have any special magical effects.”
“Yes.”
She put them on and, while holding the slightly crooked glasses with her hand, she blushed.
“Do they suit me?”
Her white fur ears twitched.
…I understood a little of what that person had said.
She was very cute. So, I decided to praise her honestly.
“They suit you.”
“Hehe…” She smiled. And she glanced at her grandfather.
“…I wonder if I can be like you, grandpa.”
“I can’t let you touch a customer’s item, but I’ll teach you after work. For now, watch me. That is your training.”
“—Yes.”
When his granddaughter was not around, he had said that he was looking forward to her future, as she had a good sense. He had also said that since the demand for weapons might decrease after the war, he was worried about her future, when she would take over… but a town weapon shop like his did not deal in military goods, and the future where weapons for self-defense, for hunting and for preparing against magical beasts, would become obsolete—was probably a long way off.
He seemed to be planning a solid succession, by making connections now through customer service and having her take over his regular customers when she took over, and as long as her skills were good, she should be able to do well. Though I didn’t know her skills as a craftsman, even though I knew she was good at making tea.
“—I’m sure you’ll be a good craftsman. When that time comes, please take care of my bow.”
“…Thank you.” She smiled, holding the temples of her glasses with her hand.
I didn’t know her skills. And she probably knew that my words were just a social courtesy.
“I’m really looking forward to it.”
And yet, I didn’t think that this old craftsman would be blinded by his love for his granddaughter. And if you looked at her, who was watching his work closely, even while talking to me, you could see her enthusiasm.
Natural talent—might exist, but for most, it was irrelevant. The skill of a bow was the time you had spent drawing it. When I had been able to draw the string of a strong bow, which was difficult for an ordinary person to even draw, to its limit, and when I had been able to fly an arrow as I wished, I had felt as if all of my efforts had been rewarded. The days when my fingers had bled, the nights when I couldn’t sleep, from the pain. At first, it had been just to follow in my father’s footsteps, and later, to protect this country where my father was. I had tried to be an archer.
She had her own path. And she was already, though slowly, walking it.
A talent without effort was worthless. I didn’t know if she had a talent for a craftsman, but she had resolved to hone it. If there was anything I could do… it was probably to cheer her on, even if it was a little irresponsible. Believing that she would grow into a craftsman to whom I could entrust my bow, in the future.
“—Thank you.”
The blue eyes behind the glasses smiled.
