The Ultimate Sage Who Faked Incompetence and Was Disinherited Just Wants to Enjoy His New Life! - Episode 85: Different Than Usual

Episode 85: Different Than Usual

With a *thud*, the magic stone fell to the ground. And almost at the same time, we let out our breaths. Since it was our first time fighting this opponent, it seemed we had unknowingly tensed up our whole bodies.

Elise, having taken a breath, headed toward the two.

“Hey, Ardan, isn’t your arm cracked!? Look, it won’t move!”

“Thought so. No wonder it hurt.”

Only Ardan would brush it off as just pain. The Mithril Golem’s attack was heavier than expected. The fact that it could damage Ardan, who normally wouldn’t flinch at an average Golem’s attack, showed just how monstrously strong it was.

“We managed to defeat it somehow.”

“That’s right. I think we’re pretty amazing for being able to defeat a Mithril Golem. Maybe we should call ourselves ‘Golem Killers’?”

Joking around, we picked up the magic stone that had fallen to the ground. The size of the stone might be about the same as a Big Fire Turtle’s. It was quite large. If we sold it, it would probably fetch a decent amount of money.

While we were at it, we cooled the mithril down with ice magic. It made sizzling sounds and released white steam.

“Ohoho, this is mithril!”

Jill’s excitement over finally getting his hands on mithril was reaching weird levels. He was rubbing his cheek against the mithril chunk lying on the ground.

Lilia looked at Jill like she was watching someone strange. I was probably making the same face. I didn’t expect Jill to act like this. He must have really wanted mithril badly.

“With this much mithril, we could probably make two swords.”

“Yeah. Let’s bring it to a skilled blacksmith and have them make them.”

“If that’s the case, wouldn’t Rugald-san be a good choice? He’s a dwarf, so I’m sure he can work with mithril.”

“Yeah. Let’s talk to him when we get back.”

Hearing our conversation, Jill suddenly froze. It seemed he had expected the sword to be made right away. He kept putting his hand on the mithril and taking it off again. Uh-oh, did Jill break?

“Well then, let’s put the mithril in the magic bag and head back.”

“Are we really not going to make the sword until we return to the royal capital? My sword’s busted, you know.”

Jill showed us his sword. The blade was jagged and the tip was chipped. Maybe we were really on the edge there?

“Let’s bring out a new sword. Oh, looks like I have about three left.”

Jill’s face turned gloomy like he’d been caught in a heavy rain. And seeing that, Ardan’s voice was caught in his throat. Seemed like he didn’t expect that reaction. Elise frowned like she didn’t know what to do.

“Right, we can at least ask a town blacksmith if they can make something.”

Ardan gave in. In contrast, Jill’s face brightened up like sunlight breaking through clouds.

“Yeah, let’s do that. We’ve got mithril now. It’d be a waste not to turn it into a weapon soon!”

Jill said that, but it’s not like mithril rots or rusts. So, there’s no real rush to make it into a weapon. Personally, I’d rather take the time to have something good made than rush and get a half-baked one.

Normally, Jill would understand that much. But the fact that he finally got his long-awaited mithril seemed to have completely made him forget. What a sinful metal it is.

Seeing this, Elise shook her head side to side but didn’t try to stop him. She probably knew it was useless to try. They were childhood friends, after all.

“Well then, let’s head back to town quickly and talk to a weapon shop.”

“Yeah, that’s best. But if we’re going to descend the mountain at this hour, we’ll need Elise’s enhancement magic.”

All eyes — four people and one creature — turned to Elise. Running down a mountain path while using magic is tough. It’s a totally different matter than running down a highway with enhancement magic. Knowing that, Elise was hesitating.

“It’s okay, Elise. I’ll take responsibility and carry you.”

Jill said with a bright smile. Elise’s cheek twitched.

No one could stop Jill once he got like this. This turned into a good learning experience.

—

By the time we descended the mountain and arrived at the fishing town of Mizuna, the sun had already set. When we went to the inn we stayed at previously, thankfully, a room was available. We quickly rented a four-person room and immediately had dinner. It seemed we just barely made it in time for business hours. 

“That was close. We almost had to eat preserved food.”

“We almost used it up in a weird situation.”

Ardan let out a big sigh. As the leader of the party, he seemed to want to avoid consuming our trump card — the preserved food. After all, it’s the party’s lifeline.

We could make water with magic as much as we wanted, but meals were another story. If we were lucky, we might be able to hunt some wild animals. But, there’s no guarantee they’d be edible.

“We’re going to visit weapon shops tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah. First, we’ll storm into the weapon shop. Then we’ll ask if they can make weapons from mithril.”

While eating, Jill answered as if it were the most obvious thing. Well, I guess that part is already decided. The problem is whether a weapon shop like that even exists. That’s something we won’t know until we go check.

“I don’t think there were any dwarves in this town, were there?”

“That’s right. I didn’t see any dwarves either. I wonder if there are any races besides dwarves that can process mithril or orichalcum?”

Holding a cup filled with fruit juice, Lilia tilted her head. I also believed that only dwarves could process mithril. Hearing that, Ardan also started thinking. He was placing a hand on his chin.

Elise… looked pale and was sipping her drink slowly. It was probably because she felt sick from being carried by Jill. Seems like she already knew it would turn out like this and didn’t want to be carried by Jill in the first place. I hope she recovers quickly.

“We’ll only know once we go.”

Jill seemed completely blinded by excitement. But blacksmithing skills vary from top to bottom. Naturally, even among those who can process mithril, their skills differ. If we don’t get a good craftsman, the weapon might break mid-use.

“Shouldn’t we be a bit more careful about this?”

“…Yeah, I think so too. Maybe we really should wait until we get back to the royal capital?”

“Then, I’ll just have mine made. How about that?”

We looked at each other. This was no good. Jill couldn’t be stopped. We had no choice but to agree.

The next day, Jill headed straight for the weapon shop. Ardan went with him, since he had the magic bag containing the mithril. I, Lilia, and Pii-chan stayed behind at the inn with Elise.

Apparently, Elise’s damage was worse than expected.

“Elise has it rough too. Wouldn’t it have been better if Ardan carried you?”

Elise was still lying flat on the low table. Lilia gently patted her head, looking worried.

“If it weren’t for Ardan’s armor, I would’ve done that. But when you’re carried by that hard armor, you end up covered in bruises without realizing it…”

Seems like she had already experienced it before. Yeah, that would be a problem. For a guy, maybe not so much. But for a girl, that’s a big issue. Even though we have healing magic, there are things it can’t fix — like bruises. Apparently, unless the skin is cut or torn, healing magic doesn’t activate. I guess it doesn’t consider that an injury.

“Ardan without his armor wouldn’t be Ardan.”

I tried to imagine it, but Ardan’s toughness and strong defense were what made him who he was. Without that, he’d be a much weaker asset in battle.

“That’s it! Fel could carry me instead!”

“Ah—that too…”

“No way. No. If that happens, Fel would get crushed. Elise doesn’t know how weak Fel is.”

Hm, isn’t that a bit harsh? I’ve been training my muscles every day with Ardan and the others, you know. Even if I’m a Sage, I think I’m stronger than your average person.

But Lilia didn’t seem to trust my muscles. She clung to my face with a firm stance of absolute refusal.

Seeing us, Elise let out a sigh.

“It’s okay, Lilia-chan. I have no intention of taking your Fel away.”

“You’re especially bold today, Boss lady~”

“Silence, you.”

Lilia sharply scolded Pii-chan. I see… jealousy, huh?