Ch.12Chapter 12 – Journey with Serin Ekatos (4)

To Serin Ekatos, the sword Diamant was more than just a weapon; it held a deeper significance.

Many craftsmen create weapons under their own names, but only a few are crafted well enough to be called legendary swords.

And even among those few, a sword only earns the title of “legendary” when it’s chosen by an owner who achieves great feats on numerous battlefields.

In other words, even if someone chooses a sword, if its owner falls in battle without accomplishing anything noteworthy, it remains merely a high-quality sword rather than a legendary one.

In that sense, Diamant truly deserved to be called a legendary sword.

Diamant’s owner was Count Delon Ekatos, Serin Ekatos’s grandfather and the previous head of the Ekatos family, known as a “Hero.”

Count Delon Ekatos made great contributions to suppressing a rebellion plot by fallen nobles fifty years ago by defeating their leader, a swordsman of fallen noble origin, in a duel.

As a result, the Emperor of the Gelebrio Empire officially bestowed upon Delon Ekatos the title of “Hero” and simultaneously issued an official statement recognizing his sword, Diamant, as a “legendary sword” of the Gelebrio Empire.

Therefore, Diamant was not only the sword used by her grandfather—the pride of their family—but also his heirloom and her treasure.

She always handled Diamant with great care.

Every day, she wiped the blade with an oiled cloth to prevent rust, and the scabbard that housed Diamant was enchanted with various preservation spells, ensuring the blade wouldn’t deteriorate even if left unattended for a day or two.

That’s how much she cherished Diamant, even more than herself…

“D-Diamant…”

While trying to protect a man named Pathos, whom she was assigned to guard at Justin’s request, the sword had broken in two.

Serin was shocked to see Diamant broken in half.

Diamant was the legacy left to her by Count Delon Ekatos, her pride.

Having grown up listening to her grandfather’s heroic tales, Diamant was a precious treasure that she meticulously maintained every single day without fail.

Serin slept with this sword in her arms, and whether eating meals or going out shopping, she never parted with it.

She even took Diamant with her when bathing—her love for the sword was acknowledged by everyone who knew her.

It was no wonder that her nickname in Oak Village was “Sword Fetishist.”

That’s how inseparable Diamant was from Serin’s life, like a constant companion.

“No! No! Diamant, my Diamant!”

That’s why tears began to well up in Serin’s eyes when she saw Diamant broken.

“Um… Serin…?”

However, as Serin stared at Diamant with eyes on the verge of tears, she turned her head at the sound of a man’s voice behind her and looked at him.

It was a man named Pathos, with black hair and black eyes—the typical appearance of someone from the Eastern Continent.

He was also the person she had been assigned to protect at Justin’s request.

“…What?”

Serin’s voice as she looked at Pathos seemed ready to burst into tears at any moment.

Being human, she initially resented both Justin and Pathos.

She resented Justin for “giving her this mission that resulted in her sword being damaged.”

And she resented Pathos for “why he had to appear in the village and request protection when she happened to be there.”

But she suppressed these feelings of anger and stopped blaming them.

After all, Justin’s request had been for cooperation, not an order.

If she had judged that she didn’t want to guard him, she could have passed the task to someone else.

But she had become curious about Pathos after witnessing his strange abilities at the inn, and so she had accepted the guard duty.

In other words, Serin herself knew better than anyone that everything had happened because of her own choices.

Though she felt wronged and resentful toward the two, she wasn’t someone who had just started gaining social experience—she was a veteran among veterans with years of mercenary work behind her.

That’s why she was barely able to suppress her emotions and refrain from expressing her resentment toward Pathos.

What could he possibly want to say? Would he be grateful that her sword broke while protecting him?

A thousand thoughts were racing through Serin’s mind.

But what actually came out of Pathos’s mouth was something she hadn’t expected at all.

“It seems your sword broke while protecting me. Would it be alright if I fixed it for you?”

It was because Pathos had offered to repair Serin’s broken sword, Diamant.

◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈

I approached the sniffling Serin.

She had attacked the golem’s weak point as I had instructed, but as a result, her sword had broken in two.

Moreover, her weapon wasn’t just an ordinary sword but Diamant, known as a legendary sword.

It must have been something incredibly precious to her, and I couldn’t even begin to imagine the sense of loss she felt from its breaking.

Therefore, there was only one thing I could do for her, whose sword had broken while protecting me.

“It seems your sword broke while protecting me. Would it be alright if I fixed it for you?”

That was precisely it—to repair Serin’s broken sword, Diamant.

I had already tested my ability on other objects and knew it would work on items like swords.

The dagger in my sack had also had part of its blade missing.

Yet now that dagger had been restored to a blade without any damage, as if newly made.

In other words, if I used my ability on the broken Diamant, it could be restored to its original state.

This wasn’t a matter of possibility—it was certainty.

When I asked myself if I could fix the broken Diamant, I felt a strong conviction that I would definitely succeed.

“You can… fix the sword…?”

Serin asked in return with a tearful voice.

“Of course. I told you, didn’t I? My ability is… the ability to fix anything.”

I picked up Diamant from where it had fallen in front of Serin and placed it on the rock that had been maintaining the golem’s body.

The rock’s flat, wide shape made it perfect for placing something on and hammering it.

I untied my sack and took out a hammer.

This was my tool that had made the soft and chewy bread that had filled my hungry stomach earlier.

It was also the tool that had made my possessions like new.

I held the hammer in my right hand and gripped the broken Diamant with my left.

Serin’s eyes were fixed on Diamant in my left hand.

Seeing this, I brought the hammer down forcefully on Diamant.

—Clang!

As the hammer struck Diamant, the dull, heavy metallic sound characteristic of a broken sword rang out.

—Ting!

When the hammer struck Diamant a second time, the metallic sound became somewhat clearer.

—Ting!

When I swung the hammer to strike Diamant for the last time, a clear and beautiful metallic sound rang out, and the split Diamant was enveloped in a faint glow.

Then, the blade portion lying on the rock flew toward the broken part of Diamant and attached itself.

A moment later, when the faint glow completely disappeared, there was no longer a broken sword.

“D-D-D-Diamant…?”

What I now held in my left hand was Diamant, Serin’s personal weapon and the sword she cherished most.

The Diamant in my hand had returned to its state before breaking.

Upon examining the sword, I noticed that even the small scratches that had accumulated over time had all disappeared.

Diamant’s blade gleamed so brightly that I could see my face reflected in it.

When I lightly tapped the blade with the hammer, a clear sound rang out, indicating that the repair of Diamant had been successful.

I approached Serin and held out Diamant in my left hand.

“Here you are, Serin. Diamant’s repair is complete.”

As I held out Diamant, Serin carefully took it.

The sadness that had been on her face, which looked ready to cry at any moment, visibly disappeared, and I could clearly see vitality returning to her features.

Serin stood up, assumed a stance, and swung the sword a few times.

After swinging it several times, she sheathed Diamant and approached me.

“Pathos! Are you interested in my family?”

Then she suddenly grabbed my hand and started saying things I couldn’t understand.