A Creative Alchemist Enjoys His Freedom – After Being Banished from His Hometown, He Is Now Free to Create Magical Items with Incredible Effects Under the Control of the Demon King - Episode 9

Episode 9: “Interlude: Events in the Imperial Territory”

　──After Thor headed for the Demon King’s territory, in the Empire Duke’s household──

“Butler-dono. There has been an inquiry from the royal court regarding the repair of a magic sword.”

　A few days after Thor headed to the Demon King’s territory.
　The butler serving the Duke of Regus household was receiving a report from his subordinate.

　The butler and the captain of the guards were close aides of Duke Regus.
　He also helped the duke send Thor as a sacrifice to the Demon King’s territory.

　The Duke had been in a good mood lately.
　The butler himself was also very satisfied, however…

“Repairing a magic sword? Have we received such a request?”
“Have you forgotten? Wasn’t it a request to repair the magic sword that the Princess will use? It’s a sword from the time of heroes.”
“Oh, I remember now. I’m sure I submitted a repair request through the government office.”

　Finally remembering something, the Duke’s butler nodded.

　In the Empire, alchemists had a low status.
　Therefore, nobles try to avoid direct involvement as much as possible and make requests through the government office.
　The magic sword used by the Princess was also sent for repairs following the same procedure.

“Okay. I’ll check it out.”

　With that, the black-robed Duke’s butler hurried off to the office.

“What? You can’t repair it.”
“Yes. I took it to a alchemist workshop, but they turned me down.”

　The head of the office replied.

“But the documents indicate that the 『repairs are 80% complete.』”
“It is……”

　The director looked uneasy.

“The truth is… one of our staff secretly repaired the magic sword using his 『Alchemy』 skill.”
“What?”
“The budget for our department is being cut every year. We try to do what we can on-site without using the budget. Of course, we get permission from our superiors.”
“Okay. Then summon that employee.”
“He won’t be here any more.”
“It would be foolish to let such a person go! Are you still in charge of personnel matters!?”
“No, no… I didn’t fire him…”
“Shut up! Who is that employee?!”
“Thor Kanan-dono.”

　The director muttered softly.

“No, Kanan was his mother’s surname. Now that he has returned to Duke’s household, could you call him Thor Regus?”
“…”
“That guy was amazing. He checked each item one by one and made any necessary repairs.”
“Wh, what do you mean? I haven’t received any such report!”
“I recall that it was the Duke who told us not to mention his name?”

　Rather, the head of the government office tilted his head in confusion.

“『Don’t let Thor Regus’s name come out into the open. Don’t let the Duke or other nobles see the content or results of his work.』 That’s the order I received from the Duke’s family, so I couldn’t report or record anything about his work.”
“…Grrr.”
“Thor-sama has returned to the Duke’s household, right? If so, I would appreciate it if he could fix it…”
“Shut up! Stop interfering with the affairs of nobles!”
“──Huh?!”

　The butler stomped his foot on the ground and shouted.
　The civilian director’s face turned pale at his threatening attitude.

“Don’t mention Thor Regus! His name is taboo even in the Duke’s household. Don’t ever mention his name again!”
“I, I understand. Then what about the magic sword…?”
“I will request it from the alchemist’s workshop. That will be fine!”
“But the alchemist says that it’s impossible to repair.”
“That must be because they commissioned a low-level workshop.”

　The Duke’s butler picked up the magic sword.
　 It was a beautiful silver-coloured double-edged sword. However, some of the parts were missing. The location was near the tsuba (hand guard) of the sword. It was as missing as a little finger nail.
　However, according to the records, the defects and cracks seemed to reach the centre of the blade.

(Are they saying that Thor Regus repaired it up to this point? )

　If that was the case, there was no way another alchemist couldn’t fix it.
　Thor Regus must have asked a low-quality workshop to do it, in order to impress the Duke by showing that he could repair it himself. What a foolish thing to do.
　Even if he had done so, his fate would have been the same.

　Thinking that far, the Duke’s butler nodded.
　He pretended not to notice the cold sweat trickling down his forehead.

　Duke Regus, the guard captain, and the butler himself ridiculed his incompetence, and Thor Regus, who was exiled from the empire, must be incompetent.
　What if he was talented and had special powers?

(Doesn’t that mean that the Duke and ourselves were wrong?!)

　As if to shake off the thoughts that came to his mind, the Duke’s butler shook his head.

“Listen, forget about this magic sword.”

　The Duke’s butler spoke to Thor Regus’s superior.

“By the authority of the Duke’s family, I will have the repairs of this magic sword entrusted to the most outstanding alchemist workshop in the Imperial Capital. You. Forget about this sword. Understand? If you care about yourself, never mention Thor Regus again!!”

　And with that, the Duke’s butler rushed outside.

　The next day.
　The Duke’s butler was visiting the alchemist’s workshop with a magic sword in hand.

　He summoned the alchemist, who was the owner of the workshop, and placed the magic sword in front of him.
　Meanwhile, the alchemist and everyone in the workshop bowed deeply.
　Of course. Everyone in the Empire aimed to be the 『Strongest』.
　Alchemists who were barely strong enough to fight should bow down in the name of the Duke of Regus.

　With these thoughts in mind, the butler handed the magic sword to the alchemist, but…

“…It can’t be repaired?”
“Sorry. This is beyond our control.”

　──The alchemist who was the owner of the workshop simply shook his head.

“How ridiculous! This is the largest workshop in the royal capital!”
“Repairing a magic sword is difficult. Please take a look.”

　The male alchemist placed a silver-long magic sword on the cloth laid out on the table.
　The long sword with a complex pattern on the hilt seemed to shine faintly.

　The alchemist pointed to the blade.

“See that crack here? No, there were… That’s what I would say. The crack on other side has been completely filled. But there are still a few left, right?
“I’m telling you to fix that!”
“Magic swords are not that simple.”

　 The old alchemist sighed.

“If it’s a normal sword, the blacksmith can reforge it if I ask. However, this is a magic sword. I need to add attributes such as 『Fire』 or 『Earth』 to the metal that makes up the blade.”
“…Uh, yeah.”
“That’s why repairing it requires the 『Alchemy』 skill. We have to create metal that has the same attributes as the original metal of the sword so that they will accept and connect together.”
“If you understand, you should just do it, right?!”
“There are no alchemists with that skill in the present Empire.”
“……Not present?”
“They existed in the time of the hero. However, they are no longer around. Alchemists have become like assistants to blacksmiths, and the technique of repairing magic swords has been lost. If we don’t train new talent, the valuable items from the time of the hero will just end up being lost… That’s something I often talked about with my friends when I was younger.”

　The alchemist spoke with a faraway look in his eyes.
　Then he shifted his gaze to the magic sword.

“No, there is still someone who has repaired this magic sword crack. If so, why don’t you ask the person who repaired it to continue?
“……Uh”

　The butler stammered.
　Without even looking at him, the alchemist stroked the back of the magic sword’s blade with his fingertips.
　He had a dreamy look on his face.

“This restoration technique is really splendid. The document says that there was a crack in the centre of the blade, but it has been repaired to the extent that it is not visible. The missing part and the other parts are perfectly connected. Amazing…”

　Saying this, the alchemist raised his head.

“I’m begging you. introduce me to the person who repaired this? I’d like to ask about his teaching. With this much technology, the empire will develop further──”
“Ugh, shut up!”

　The butler shouted.
　There was no way he could introduce him to him. Thor had already left for the Demon King’s territory.

　He couldn’t ask him to work or call him back.

　The Duke also said, “He’s as good as dead now.”
　Either being killed by a demon or demi-human in the Demon King’s territory or being sacrificed when the Empire causes trouble with the Demon King’s territory.

“That’s enough. Fix it. The blade is just chipped, right?”
“Therefore, it is not possible to repair in the same way.”
“Duke Regus says that as long as the appearance is fixed, that’s fine!”

　It was true.
　The butler was told by the Duke, “I left it to you. Just fix it nicely, and that’s fine.”

　Besides, this magic sword was necessary for the ceremony.
　It was true that Her Highness the Princess would use it, but it was not used to subjugate demon beasts.
　As long as it looked good, that was fine.

“Can you fix it superficially?”
“You mean there’s no need to perfect it as a magic sword?”
“That’s right”
“However, if different materials are used for combining the parts, there might be issues with its strength…”
“This is used for ceremonial purposes. There are few who can draw out the power of the magic sword from the Hero’s time. There should be no strain on the sword.”

　The butler stared intently at the elderly alchemist.

“Or will you refuse the Duke’s request?”
“…If that’s what you want, then I’ll accept it.”

　The alchemist let out another long sigh.

“However, it is a request to improve the appearance only….I’d like you to write the commission.”
“A commission?”
“It would be a problem if we were blamed for anything.”
“…I, I understand.”

　There was nothing he could do.
　This magic sword needed to be repaired within this month.

　While telling himself that, Duke’s Butler signed the commission paperwork.

Translator Note:- I always try to maintain the author’s original writing style. That’s why some sentences are short while others are complex. I change my writing style according to the author and the story background. I hope it is not difficult for the readers to read it.
• I want everyone to feel my translation is close to genuine.