As I left the town and walked on the empty and peaceful path, it suddenly occurred to me.
..Can’t I just make the katana myself?…
The material used to make modern-day katana is tamahagane. A kind of steel made from charcoal or iron sand.
Charcoal, I can make. After all, I am a former Japanese salary man. And the number of times I’ve dreamt of living a peaceful life after retirement where I burnt charcoals couldn’t be counted. It was also a very important resource during winter in the Forest of Gana.
Procuring iron sand is even simpler. The representative black triiron tetraoxide is different from the ferric oxide that I use as feed for my metal and iron slimes, but it’s still a compound of iron (Fe) and oxygen (O) [1]. As such, using alchemy, I can get as many as I need back at the mines.
As for the forging method, well I have that too.
Actually, my dad was a swordsmith. I’ve seen him work countless times as a kid. He also used to bring me to the workshop where he manufactured iron. When I’d grown up a little, he even asked me to help out. In that way, he secretly taught me how to forge the katana.
But unfortunately, he quickly saw that I didn’t have any talent for forging.
I have the knowledge and I can procure the ingredients. The only thing missing is the technology. Which is why I probably won’t be able to make something practical. Or at the very least, I won’t be able to make it anytime soon. If I really want to make one, it would be best to learn from someone first. But again, that would take time.
Still, making one by myself does seem like an interesting idea.
“I only wonder if this would break some rule. I should’ve asked.” [Ryouma]
Whatever. I’ll ask Asagi-san next time.
As I decided that, I suddenly realized something.
It’s not a katana, but I think I have something I can use…
“Item Box.” [Ryouma]
As soon as I got back to the mines, I set the monsters free in the open area, while I went off on my own to look for something.
I’m pretty sure I put it here somewhere… Ah, found it!
The weapon I took out was none other than the weapon of a bandit I defeated in the past, Melzen’s spear.
It’s a bit long, but it’s neither rusted nor deformed anywhere. Considering its length, it was actually quite light. It wasn’t made out of iron, though… Flame crystal? I used Identify on it, but I couldn’t really understand the result. I’ll have to ask someone about it. Anyway, this should serve me just fine for now.
The metal slimes and the other slimes were rolling down a slope as they enjoyed their free time.
After making sure that there weren’t any slimes nearby, I started swinging Melzen’s spear.
“…No problem with swinging it. But as expected…”
The technique I inherited from my dad in its original form is said to be a technique passed down by a samurai who lived through the warring period.
His social standing was up there, so he was fairly proficient in martial arts and was himself also interested in the discipline.
But because he wasn’t the oldest son, he lived his life as he pleased. I don’t know if he was kicked out of his family or if he left, but apparently, he lived quite the destitute life.
He didn’t think much of it when he was young and passionate, but in his later years, he changed.
He was poor. He had no children and no wife. He was skilled in the sword, but he wasn’t famous. When he looked back to his life, he wondered what he’d been doing until now. As he realized that he had no legacy to leave, he became sad.
As a result, he decided to leave behind his technique and knowledge. It is said that from that moment on, he started looking for students and did his best to teach them.
The main weapon he used to survive the warring period was a spear. The katana was nothing more than a secondary weapon for when the spear was lost. That’s why samurais, as well as me, have inherited the skill and are able to use the spear effectively.
But honestly speaking, katanas are easier to use.
This doesn’t have anything to do with the times. If I had to put the blame on something or someone, then I would say it’s my dad’s fault.
The things I’ve learned from my dad include the katana, the spear, the staff, the wakizashi, the bow, the shuriken, the kusarigama, and the hidden weapons.
My dad taught me the techniques in a particular order. Hand-to-hand combat and the katana were the most prioritized. In fact, I wasn’t even allowed to touch the other weapons until I was good enough with them. And because Iwas learning for the first time with the katana, I was instructed to spend a lot of time with it.
It wasn’t because he was a swordsmith that he favored the katana. No. Most probably it was because the katana and the one’s unarmed fists were easier to use in modern times.
After all, techniques with weapons can only be used when you have the weapon equipped. But modern laws forbid citizens from carrying weapons.
Depending on the place, one would also be subject to a search via a metal detector.
It was a time where even carrying a stick of wood would subject one to questioning.
But hand-to-hand combat can be used without a weapon, and katanas are considered as a work of art, so people are allowed to possess them. It’s also shorter than spears or rods, so it’s easier to hide. So, I think that’s why he prioritized those two.
I didn’t actually hear the reason from him directly, though.
I do think his common sense is fairly unique compared to the world’s common sense. Although he acted friendly to outsiders, so he was often appraised highly.
I wonder how much my katana can cut if it were used to cut humans.
“!? …” [Ryouma]
“KURURURU” [Rimel Birds]
Dad!?… Wait…
There’s no one around. There’s no presence of people. My monsters are just doing as they please and no one’s acting like anything is out of the ordinary. If anything, I supposed the rimel birds are a little shocked. But that’s my fault.
“…My imagination, huh.” [Ryouma]
I walked around and checked the place, but really… Nothing was out of the ordinary
I was probably just imagining things because I was thinking about dad.
“Still, I wish I’d asked for my dad’s katana before transmigrating…”
Dad wanted to test the katana for its original purpose, but if he’d cut someone, then he wouldn’t be able to forge katanas anymore. That’s why he couldn’t cut anyone.
His personality aside, dad was a person who lived to forge the greatest katana.
He was someone who received acclaim as a swordsmith, so he should’ve been really good.
If only I had his katana. How unfortunate.
“Let’s stop thinking about this… There’s nothing I can do about it now, so… Yeah.” [Ryouma]
Anyway, if I recall correctly, this spear is supposed to be a magic weapon. If I let mana course into it, it should be able to cast a spell.
Let’s try it out.
My interest shifted to the spear and I became excited at the prospect of another experiment.
When I tried pouring mana into the spear, fire came out.
…So this spear can cast fire magic.
Can it cast anything else other than ignition and fire ball?
It seems it doesn’t really matter how much mana I feed it. Its output seems to be standardized.
It doesn’t matter what attribute your mana is either.
…But it seems to consume less mana when you use mana of the same attribute.
So, it’s best just use fire with it.
Like this I investigated Melzen’s spear, or rather… I fiddled with Melzen’s spear.
“The sun is starting to set…” [Ryouma]
I should put an end to this soon.
…I fiddled with Melzen’s spear a lot, but it didn’t seem all that useful.
Magic weapons allow one to use magic easily like alchemy, but it’s not very flexible.
It’s useful for people who can’t use magic when fighting a monster that’s immune to physical attacks, but the thing is I do know how to use magic. And in fact, my fire magic is stronger than the one this spear casts. I can also cast a greater variety of fire spells. So, as interesting as the weapon is, it’s not really much different than a normal spear.
As I concluded that, I stored Melzen’s spear into my Item Box.
Now then, I better make supper.
[1] – Author included the chemical symbols, so I figured I might as well.
Tl Note: 3 out of four releases for this week. There’s one more remaining release for this week that I need to make up for, but we’ll just add that to next week’s. Also, if you play Nioh, I believe that game has many of the weapons that Ryouma mentioned. The kusarigama is just a sickle with a chain and ball.