Chapter 422: Matching Weapons (2)

How I managed to persuade the two of them and bring them into Areum’s workshop.

For Hunters who hadn’t even been officially working for a month, a Dwarf workshop was bound to be an unfamiliar place.

For one thing, Dwarves themselves have strong pride and tend to be reluctant to accept guests unless they’ve personally approved them.

Because of this, people usually find out through a friend’s introduction, and if you’re skilled enough to know a Dwarf craftsman, you tend to be quite cautious even with introductions.

After all, if the relationship between the introducer and the Dwarf craftsman soured, it would inevitably affect the introducer as well.

Still, I figured that Jin-ah and Seon-ah showed just as much potential for growth as Min-ah.

So I thought it would be okay to introduce them to Areum and brought them along.

Besides, fitting the kids with weapons was the most pressing matter, leaving no time to worry about such things.

“Wow… is this really Oppa’s friend’s shop?”

“Jin-ah, your address.”

“Ah, r-right. I have to call you Sungchul Unnie here.”

“It feels a bit awkward having to call you Oraboni ‘Unnie’. Until now, the only Unnie we knew was Min-ah Unnie.”

“If it feels too awkward, you don’t have to. I’ll handle getting your weapons sorted out anyway.”

“No, no. This feeling is refreshing, I like it, Sungchul Unnie.”

Even though it’s a title that should feel unfamiliar, why does it sound so cute?

Unlike Seon-ah, who looked up at me with a smile while answering, Jin-ah was still spouting childish nonsense even after coming all this way.

“…Actually, right now, I don’t really have trouble fighting without a weapon…”

“Tsk.”

“B-but it wouldn’t hurt to have one! S-so, that’s just…!”

Are they really planning to be stingy even after coming this far?

Seeing that side of her, Jin-ah actually seemed more like Min-ah than Seon-ah did.

Even their thrifty nature could be considered part of their charm, I suppose.

Still, they needed a scolding for not knowing the difference between saving money and spending it where it counts.

…Areum seems to be working in the workshop out back today, too.

As soon as they entered the shop, I gave one last warning to the two of them, who were looking around curiously.

“I’m going to call the shop owner, so don’t wander off. And Jin-ah, be careful not to mess up the address when you call me.”

“Why aren’t you warning Seon-ah too? Why just me?”

Well, I suspect she knows the reason better than anyone.

Without bothering to answer Jin-ah’s question, I rang the call bell on the counter.

Immediately, a welcome voice, unheard for a while, came from the workshop inside the shop.

“Yes, yes! I’ll be right out!”

The sound of slow footsteps emerged from behind the shop door, heading outside.

Waiting for the shop owner to appear, my two younger sisters and I looked towards the inner door leading to the workshop.

Finally, a half-Dwarf young lady, covered in soot around her clothes, appeared from beyond the door.

“It took me a bit ’cause I was workin’. So, what brings ya…”

“It’s been a while, Areum-ah.”

“……”

Soo Areum blinked, her eyes widening in a daze the moment she saw my face.

Worried she might not recognize me after such a long time, I waved my hand again and called her name.

It took less than a few seconds to realize that was an unnecessary worry.

“Areum-ah?”

“Unnie-ya…!!”

“Huh? Y-yes?!”

For some reason, Areum suddenly ran towards me with a brightly beaming smile.

It was a somewhat overwhelming charge for meeting after a while, but I felt a sense of unease that she might get hurt if I dodged.

So, I opened my arms and ended up hugging her as she rushed towards me.

“Unnie-ya! Why so long! I thought my eyes would pop out waiting for you!”

“Oh, r-really? It feels like only about a month has passed.”

“Didn’t I tell you before that Mithril weapons need frequent maintenance! The harder the material, the more time it takes to fix!”

“I haven’t had much need to swing my weapons around lately, so they haven’t worn down as much. Anyway, I’m leaving them with you today, so it’s fine if it takes a little time.”

“Oh, is that so? Well, good then. Last time, I was worried you might think I was saying something strange…”

“…Hm? Did I say something strange last time?”

“Oh, it’s nothing! If you don’t remember, just forget it quickly!”

I didn’t recall having any particularly strange conversations with Areum at the workshop last time.

If anything, the current situation was much stranger.

Areum’s attitude, acting as if we hadn’t met in years despite it only being a month.

…And, during that process, her physical contact with my body.

Even back then, when I only saw her with my eyes, I thought she had a very strong presence.

As she rubbed those enormous breasts directly against my body, I could feel their volume and weight softly through the thin layers of clothing.

At the same time, I could feel the unreserved gazes of my two younger sisters fixed on Areum in this awkward situation.

“…A, a woman?”

“A Dwarf craftsman, and a woman…?”

Han Jin-ah and Han Seon-ah looked at Areum, the female blacksmith, with slightly puzzled eyes.

It made sense, as the perception in this world was that Dwarf blacksmiths were almost exclusively male.

Areum, a female Dwarf craftsman, seemed quite unfamiliar to them.

As I’d mentioned before, demi-humans like Elves or Dwarves weren’t originally inhabitants of this Earth.

They were new races who started crossing over to Earth through Warp Gates about a few hundred years ago.

Of course, by human standards, a few hundred years isn’t a short time, so it was enough for Hunters to develop a ‘typical’ perception of these races.

Unlike the Elves, who were easily corrupted by the stimulating civilization of modern society, the Dwarves integrated into society by leveraging their unique strengths after migrating.

The most representative profession among them was being Dwarf blacksmiths who forged weapons for Hunters.

While there were human artisans who created weapons through their awakened abilities, they couldn’t quite match the Dwarf-made weapons crafted with their own strength, skill, and time.

Much like how Hwayoung Sunbae’s handmade potions performed better than mass-produced ones available on the market.

Anyway, during that process, one deeply ingrained perception about Dwarf blacksmiths was that ‘all Dwarf blacksmiths are men’.

So, it was understandable that they were surprised to see Areum, a female Dwarf craftsman.

Well, to be precise, she was a Half-Dwarf, not a pureblood.

“Oh…, is this the Dwarf craftsman you were talking about, Unnie?”

“Yeah. Areum regularly maintains the weapons I use, and her skills are top-notch in other areas too.”

“I think this is my first time meeting a female Dwarf craftsman. Sungchul Unnie, you know quite interesting acquaintances.”

“But how long are you two going to hug like that, Tae, Sungchul Unnie?”

“…Areum-ah. I’m glad we met after so long, but could you let go for a moment? People are watching.”

“Oh, r-really….”

Realizing belatedly that she wasn’t the only one being watched, Areum awkwardly broke away from me.

Judging by her reaction, she really hadn’t noticed Jin-ah and Seon-ah.

Just how long had she been waiting for me? If I’d known this would happen, I should have exchanged contact information last time.

“Oh, I didn’t know Unni-ya would come with friends…. How embarrassing….”

“W-we’re not just friends?!”

“Huh?”

“W-we’re Sungchul O, no, uh, Unnie’s younger sisters! T-though not biological sisters, our relationship is closer than that of actual siblings…”

“……”

“I don’t know how close you are with our Unnie, but Sungchul Unnie is my and Seon-ah’s first… cough?!”

“Hey, hey, Han Jin-ah!”

Barely a few minutes after meeting Areum, and she’s already making verbal blunders.

I quickly covered Jin-ah’s mouth as she blurted out strange things, suddenly feeling competitive about something odd.

Before any strange misunderstandings could arise, I introduced the two to Areum first.

“This is Han Jin-ah, and next to me is Han Seon-ah. They’re younger siblings I’ve known since they were little, and they recently started working as Hunters.”

“Oh, is that so? Then I should call you Jin-ah-ssi and Seon-ah-ssi?”

“You can call us whatever you’re comfortable with. Uh…”

“Ah, I’m Soo Areum. If they’re Unni-ya’s younger siblings, then you can call Seon-ah-ssi comfortably too.”

“Understood, Soo Areum-ssi.”

Still, it was a relief that the other two, excluding my big younger sister grabbed by the hand, seemed to communicate well.

Separately, I have no idea what set Han Jin-ah off about Areum.

“Jin-ah, you too, greet her properly. Don’t get worked up over strange things all of a sudden.”

“…I’m Han Jin-ah, Soo Areum-ssi.”

“Ah, yeah. You’re Unni-ya’s younger sister?”

“Yes.”

“Please take care of me.”

“……Yes.”

Han Jin-ah cautiously shook hands with a clearly awkward expression.

For some reason, her eyes seemed to hold a subtle sense of wariness.

In contrast, Areum looked at Jin-ah with the innocent eyes of someone oblivious to the world.

“You might be a bit surprised that Areum is a woman, but her skills are definitely top-notch. In fact, the weapons she made helped me significantly when fighting S-class or A-class monsters in dungeons. At the very least, if you leave it to Areum today, you probably won’t be disappointed.”

“Since you’re Unnie’s acquaintance, I never doubted you. I was just a little surprised because you’re a woman, unlike most Dwarf craftsmen.”

“Well, even though I look like this, I learned how to make weapons properly from my father. So, what do you two need?”

“……”

“……”

The two remained silent, glancing nervously, unable to answer Areum’s obvious question.

Truthfully, even if asked now, the answers wouldn’t come out smoothly.

They wasted time arguing about whether to buy weapons or not during the time they should have been deciding.

In the end, I won the argument and managed to drag them here.

“Actually, that’s where we need to start deciding.”

“Huh? Didn’t you say they were Hunters? How have they been fighting until now?”

“Both of them are Animal-type Awakeners, so they can fight reasonably well with their bare hands. That’s what they told me they’ve been doing.”

“Ah, I see. And even for Animal-types, there’s a limit without weapons, so they came to get new ones?”

“Something like that.”

“If that’s the case… then aren’t I the expert?”

Areum nodded and smiled as if she understood my words instantly.

As I wondered what her smile meant, she immediately started gathering several weapons displayed inside the shop.

She handed me about five or six weapons she’d gathered into her arms, then immediately gathered more weapons in both hands.

“If you don’t know what to use, why not try them all! There’s a place in the backyard made for swinging weapons, so try each one here and then decide!”

…Her decisiveness is certainly refreshing, I’ll give her that.