The Tale of A Man Who Believed That His Reincarnation Had Granted Him A Japanese Sword And The Greatest Battle Sense, Only To Have The God Finally Inform Him "Huh, I Didn't Give You Any Combat Sense… That's Scary…" - Episode 26

The moon rises in the sky over Edinburgh. Streetlights flicker to life, and people hurrying home cross paths with those heading into the city. In the end, I couldn’t find a store that sold clothes for Lyra, so I was heading to a certain place with her.

“I never thought Enri would take me somewhere. So, where is he taking me?”

“I found a nice bar with a good atmosphere yesterday, just off the main street. The drinks and food were delicious, so I was thinking of going there with Lyra-san. …By the way, I’m a bit short on cash.”

“It’s okay. I’ll pay for it, so don’t worry.”

With a broken expression and a chuckle, I enter “Jottem’s Hammer,” run by Luise and Dantsu, whom I found yesterday.

I rang the doorbell with a clatter, opened the door, and saw the same scene as yesterday: Mr. Dantsu, with his muscular build and suspenders stretched tight, and Ms. Luise in an apron, standing on a stool and doing the dishes.

“Welcome… Oh, if it isn’t Enri. I’m glad to see you again today.”

“Hmm? Oh, Enri-chan. It’s been a while since yesterday, welcome… Oh, you’re bringing a girl today, huh? Nice going, you little rascal…”

“Suke? ………. Sukeve ni kurai koi poshakee!! Poshakee kudasaii!!”

By the way, the black-clad, black-haired older sister who was sulking just like yesterday was also complaining today. After being impressed by the stylish, slightly dark atmosphere of the shop, Lyra-san sat on a stool, slightly unsettled by the drunkard slumped over the table at the very back. Following Lyra-san, I also sat next to her.

“It’s a lovely place, Enri. To find such a nice bar with this kind of atmosphere in just one night, you must be loved by luck, Enri.”

“I came here for the first time yesterday, and the atmosphere and the owners, Luise and Dantsu, were so nice that I feel lucky to have found such a place.”

The two store clerks at Jottem in Otsuchi, who had heard my and Lyra’s words, broke into grinning smiles, saying “Ehehehe~” happily. Then, Dantsu-san pulled his suspenders with a snap and leaned his face towards me.

“When I heard your name yesterday, I thought maybe, but it really was that Enri from the swordsmanship tournament, huh?”

“By the way, yesterday I only introduced myself by name, didn’t I? Um, yes. I’m Enri, participating on the recommendation of the Grosvenor family.”

“I knew it! So, that beautiful brown-haired lady over there is…”

“My name is Lyra Grosvenor. You look great in those suspenders, bartender.”

After placing several orders with Luise-san in a practiced manner, Lyra-san turned to Dantsu-san, gave a slight bow, and introduced herself.

“Enri, your fighting was magnificent. I was in the audience for both the first and second rounds, and it’s been a while since my warrior’s bl00d surged like that! Well, when I got hit by Raijin’s lightning, I thought I was done for!”

“Hahaha!” Dantsu laughed heartily, shaking his chest muscles as if they were about to rip through his shirt. After a little while, Luise came over with two drinks. The short dwarf, Luise, stretched up desperately from the ground and handed the drinks to me and Lyra, who were sitting on stools.

“Sorry to keep you waiting! Lyra-chan, you have the ‘Honey of the Golden Land’ with honey, whiskey, and juniper berries, and Enri-chan, you have the ‘Very Berry from Sweet’ with juice mixed with three kinds of berries, ice cream, and strawberries!”

I receive the tall glass from Luise’s small hands. It seems that Lyra ordered a berry juice float for me instead of alcohol.

From the drink called “Honey of the Golden Land” that Lyra ordered, a sweet scent of honey mixes with the aroma of whiskey. In the somewhat dimly lit bar, her figure as she leans on the bar counter, brings the glass to her lips, and tilts it, is truly picturesque.

The look on Lyra’s face as she enjoys her drink is devoid of the wariness and sharpness that used to be there. She seems somehow happy, as if relieved or having let go of a burden. Watching her, I bring my drink to my lips.

The rich sweetness of the ice cream, reminiscent of thick milk that has melted into juice, first hits your palate. Then, the sweetness combined with the unique tartness and astringency of the berries flows through your mouth, leaving behind the texture of the strawberry seeds to enjoy. At first, it feels quite cloyingly sweet, probably because of the ice cream, but the taste of the strawberries leaves a refreshing aftertaste. In other words, it’s delicious. This place really never misses.

“Wow, that’s really disappointing. The final match is a month away, huh?”

I heard such words from Dantsu, who was wiping the glass while showing off his bicep muscles like logs, with a disappointed expression. The final match is in a month? What does that mean? Since the first and second rounds were held one day apart, the final should be held at least two days later.

Lyra also placed the glass she was drinking from on the bar counter and looked towards Dantsu.

“Mr. Bartender with the lovely mustache, what was that all about?”

“Oops, Miss Grosvenor, haven’t you heard? Uh, where did I put it… Hey, Luise! The newspaper! You know, the special edition we were distributing this evening!”

“Newspaper~? … Ah, yes, yes, yes, yes. That, right?”

From the kitchen at the back of the bar counter, I could hear Louise’s voice. Then, immediately, Louise came hurrying over, holding a newspaper, with a pattern of footsteps.

“Yes, darling. The newspaper.”

“Oh, sorry about that. Here you go, you two, this is it.”

Mr. Dantsu handed over the newspaper he received from Ms. Luise directly to Ms. Lyra. After receiving the newspaper and expressing her gratitude, Ms. Lyra took out a case from her handbag that was on the bar counter.

She opened the case and took out a pair of slightly thick round glasses. “Lyra-san, you wear glasses when you read small text?” “Wait, you wore glasses?” I’ve been with her for about a month, but I never knew. With the round glasses on, Lyra-san gives off a very quiet, lady-like vibe.

After starting to read the newspaper, Lyra, exactly one minute later, murmured “I see” and gave a concise explanation of the newspaper’s content.

“Let me get straight to the point, Enri. First, all the participants in the third round, except for the Twilight Knight and you, have withdrawn and the round has been canceled. Now, only the final remains, and that final has been postponed for about a month at the king’s request.”

“Abandoning the match, huh? … I wonder why everyone stopped fighting.”

“If you face Enri, you’ll get your head cut off, and the Twilight Knight has some kind of power that allows him to crush his opponents literally without touching them. Considering the risk and return, I think it’s understandable that you chose to forfeit.”

The word “king” slipped out of Lyra’s mouth. I think I was told during Utsuho’s passionate lecture that this place I was reincarnated in is the Retain Kingdom. So, when she mentions the king, she must be referring to the king who rules this Retain Kingdom. But why did the king postpone the finals of the swordsmanship tournament by a month?

“I’m having a hard time understanding the postponement. Why did the king decide to delay the finals of the swordsmanship tournament?”

“The newspaper says, ‘The schedule has been postponed to adjust the plans of the king and the goddess so they can watch the swordsmanship tournament finals together.’ But there are also the aftermath of this occupation incident, venue repairs, reviewing the management and security systems… those are probably factors for the postponement too.”

A goddess, huh? I’ve met a god before, but the one from the previous world who reincarnated me seemed like an ordinary person, though a bit like a gal. If it’s a goddess who protects the kingdom, maybe she’s like a Valkyrie? Holding a shield and spear, dressed in a way that screams “I’m protecting the kingdom.”

“Whoa~! Goddess, Goddess, I’ll protect you~! You’re so small and cute today too~! Big sister will give you a kiss~! …Ugh, that’s gross.”

The drunken man in black who had been face down in the back reacted to the word “goddess,” suddenly lifted his face and made a gesture as if to embrace the void, but his face quickly turned pale. When he received a bucket from Ms. Luise, he ended up in a state that shouldn’t be looked at too closely.

Since you were making such a painful sound, I couldn’t bear it and started rubbing your back. I understand, I understand, it feels so much better after it’s out, but getting it out is incredibly painful, isn’t it?

“Ah, thank you, little boy… Ugh! (The sound of rainbow-colored vomit being expelled, a sound I really don’t want to hear) … Hah, hah, hah… Sorry, more… rub me…”

“Hey, you were pretty drunk yesterday too, weren’t you? If you drink too heavily, you won’t be able to enjoy the alcohol.”

The sound of violent things bursting out that seem to destroy the entire atmosphere of the bar.

Before I knew it, Lyra-san also joined in taking care of the drunkard, and with Lyra-san and me rubbing his back, the drunkard vomited out everything he had inside him. After that, the drunkard had Lyra-san wipe his mouth with a towel that Dantsu-san had prepared for him, and then he comfortably fell asleep on the bar counter.

Lyra and I borrowed the restroom, washed our hands at the faucet carved with a lion design, and then returned to the bar counter. Lyra put her round glasses back in their case, took a sip from her glass, and then said as if she had just understood something.

“I see. The reason Utsuho was hurriedly doing something after the trouble in the second round was because the schedule got messed up because of this, so she was trying to prepare a carriage or a fast horse for the return trip.”

“Huh, could it be that we need to go back to Lancaster once because of the postponement?”

“Yeah. Originally, I had scheduled about seven days of work outside the house, so it wouldn’t interfere with my plans, but now that’s all gone awry.”

If it’s a job for a family called one of the five major merchant houses, then there must be an enormous amount of paperwork, meetings, and resolutions. Speaking of which, when I first met Lyra, she had been kidnapped by thieves, and when she returned home, she had been away for about three days for a medical examination.

Due to various circumstances piling up, there must be quite a lot of work accumulated. When I was hospitalized for overwork in my previous life and came back, I had so much work piled up that I was practically peeing bl00d. Well, not exactly peeing bl00d, but there was a bit of bl00d. It was tough. Very tough.

Ms. Lyra, swirling the remaining cocktail in her glass as if toying with it, murmured softly.

“I’m going back home. I’m feeling a bit down… I think Utsuho will find out where I am and come to pick me up soon.”

As if her words had pulled the trigger, the door of Jottem’s great hammer slowly opened. There stood a green-haired maid, taller than the door, with two horses behind her, standing like a guardian.

“Lady Lyra, Lord Enri. I was tracking the scent to find your whereabouts, so I apologize for the delay in coming to greet you.”

With a cheerful smile, Utsuho, slightly panting with her tongue out, left her horse waiting at the front of Jottem’s blacksmith shop and entered the store with her head bowed.

“Wow, wow, wow! Darling! Today is a huge success, it’s our fourth customer! Amazing, so big! It’s a big maid, isn’t it?”

“Sniff sniff… I see, this is a bar. I apologize for entering so suddenly, but could I please have a glass of water?”

Mr. Utsuho places several gold coins from the pocket of his maid outfit onto the bar counter. Ms. Luise, with a delighted “Yay!” voice, stretches up to collect the coins and immediately brings over a mug filled to the brim with water.

Ms. Utsuho received the mug, placed her hands on her hips, and within a few seconds, drank all the water.

“Utsuho. Is it really bad if we don’t return to the Lancaster mansion soon? I think it wouldn’t be a problem to stay here for another day or two.”

“Phew… *ahem*, that’s not possible, Lady Lyra. This trip to Redinbara was already a forced decision, made by postponing all the accumulated work.”

“Since there is no longer any reason for you to stay in Redinbara, you must return quickly, or Lord Logias, who is fighting alone, will explode.”

Mr. Logias. In other words, he’s Lyra’s father. I feel like it’s been a while since I heard his name, but it seems he stayed behind at home to become a human pillar so his daughter could go on her journey. Poor Mr. Logias. He’s probably trying to handle an endless amount of work, like dried seaweed that keeps expanding when you add water.

So, it looks like my life in Redinbara is coming to an end for now. Since this is the first city where I could explore various places on my own, I feel a bit nostalgic.

“Well then, Lady Lyra, Lord Enri. Let’s go. It’s already night, but Utsuho will lead the way. We’ll attach lanterns to the saddles of the horses, so if you follow those… Lady Lyra?”

Utsuho, with her green short bob swaying, tried to head outside, but noticing that Lyra hadn’t stood up at all, she turned around from the entrance towards the stool where Lyra was sitting.

Lyra-san placed her finger on her lips, pondered for a few dozen seconds, then turned to me and uttered an unexpected remark.

“Hey, Enri. Until the swordsmanship tournament resumes… how about trying ‘living alone’?”