Re:START/If {Book 1.0}
Chapter 29: From the rice planted can grow weeds (Part 02)

After coming out of the business district, the next Odo destination is not Inkara Orphanage but several places around the artisan area whose direction is different from the city port area. The place they go to is none other than the blacksmith who is quite famous and a subscription to Luke's residence to take care of equipment and weapons.

To get there Odo had to return to the town hall, then take one of the main roads that run opposite to the business district. The place is not as popular as the district for other economies, but in terms of the quality of goods the place is quite famous in its time. Walking down the district's main street, Odo saw several signposts that indicated what buildings were along the street.

The artisan district is different from the business, the place is relatively quiet for visitors and only a few workshops still open their doors in the winter. Not much different about the appearance of the building, most of the place looks old and Odo's eyes are at a glance amazed by the classic elements in it.

Pottery craftsmen, cloth weavers, woodworkers, artisans' associations, woven craftsmen, glass craftsmen, blacksmiths, and there are many other types of artisan workshops in the place. Every time he observed the sign above the entrance of each building, Odo increasingly felt that the place was very complete. But unfortunately most of the workshops do not open the door and look unkempt, it is a sign they do not get a decent customer to meet their needs.

“What's because it's winter so they don't open?” odo's mind when he saw that. Looking back ahead, the child's footsteps grew faster and Fiola had difficulty adjusting his pace.

Arriving at the destination, the blacksmith's workshop that Odo was aiming for did not look as expected. The building looks quiet, covered with snow roof and impressed monochrome with the color of dust that covers the walls thickly. The door was opened, but there was no sign of anyone inside.

“Excuse ...” Odo knocked on the door, then stood by the frame and began to look in. Inside the room to receive customers, there are several armour, shields, and a variety of weapons on display.

Not finding any signs of people inside, Odo stepped inside and said, “Excuse me, is anyone?” There was no response, Fiola who followed the child was worried that someone would consider them a thief for playing in like that.

As if ignoring Fiola's anxiety, the black-haired boy began to watch in awe the wrought results of the place displayed on the walls and wooden boxes. Indeed, the weapons are not as good as the items in the warehouse of the Luke family residence, but the results of the forging in that place is quite impressive in the eyes of Odo.

“Weapons are supposed to be like this, metal is shiny and the classic impression is strong. Unlike the weapons in the house whose color is menor and strange shape,” muttered the boy while touching the surface of one of the hanged swords.

“What are you doing, son?”

Someone opened a crumpled, red curtain door nearby, came from the back room of the place and looked directly at Odo. His body is dwarfed, a bearded beard adorns his face and he is seen carrying a hammer in his right hand. Looking at the appearance and clothes the old man was wearing, Odo spontaneously said, “Dwarf?”

“Yes, I'm Dwarf. Is there a problem with that?” said the dwarf man, his height is not even higher than Odo.

The dwarf old man looked unfriendly and instead sangar, some traces of charcoal and dust were visible on the man's hands and face. The old man's hair was long enough to shoulder, slightly dreadful and dull brown in color. His eyes are bright brown, look shining even though his appearance looks dirty.

“Sorry, I don't mean to offend. I came here to order a sword, can I still order it?” asked Odo with a slightly surprised face got a rogue look from the blacksmith. Fiola who heard the boy's words looked confused and only knew that their purpose in coming to the place was to order weapons.

“Medium, yes .... Rarely will anyone want to order a sword in winter like this, usually only housewives or hunters who come for the care of their tools.”

The dwarf walked towards the counter table, placed his hammer on the hanger and took the paper from the column to show Odo. Seeing the man as his height increased while standing behind the table, the black-haired boy had looked up from the side and it turned out that the old man was standing on a chair.

“What are you doing, son? See this list of metal ores available now, do you still want to make a sword with these low quality materials?” said the blacksmith. Odo walked to the front of the table until his celer, then took the paper to see the list of available iron ore.

“Yeah, it's different if you bring your own materials or want to look for them in the mine. Yeah! I'm not suggesting it, anyway! Kha kha!” said the blacksmith's raspy. But when he got a sharp look from Fiola, his facial expression started to shrivel and creep slightly.

“Son, who is the girl who came with you? Why is he glaring at me like that?”

“Ah, I have not introduced myself, yes .... I'm Odo, and he's one of the servants of my house, Fiola.” The boy did not stare at the blacksmith as he said that, he enthusiastically looked at the list of ores that were on the paper in his hand.

“EH!? Luke!? Fiola!? He is Fiola the Sacred Beast who serves Master Mavis!? Then ..., you mean absolutely Odo Luke ...”

“I told you earlier ...”

The blacksmith was completely wide open, he got down from the chair and walked in front of Odo. Immediately kneel respectfully, he said, “Excuse my sass! I didn't know that you're the heir to the famous Luke family ...” Odo did not stare at the blacksmith, the boy continued to look at the list of metal ores and was completely fixated on it.

A little look from behind the paper, Odo said, “It doesn't have to be like that, uncle. I didn't come to show off, I came to order a sword .... Can uncle make it?”

“Te-Of course ...” The dwarf stood up, then stared with a fearful and anxious expression making the child's mood deteriorate. Aware of this, Odo really understands that Luke's name can not be underestimated in the eyes of ordinary people.

“You don't need to be that golden, I didn't come for a formal affair .... I just want to order a sword,” said Odo.

“Ya!” replied the blacksmith with a spirit mixed with anxiety.

Odo sighed and understood that such a thing could not disappear quickly. Staring flat, he again checked the list of metal ores available on the paper in hand. Glancing flatly at the old man, he said, “What is this Damascus ore completely depleted?”

“Damascus? Yes ..., I'm sorry .... That material I have not been able to since a few years ago .... It comes from the Ungea Kingdom, since the trade route of this city was cut by another path of metal that I can not get anymore..”

Hearing that, Odo again looked at the list and muttered, “If it is still written means still hoping to be, yes.”

“Ya ..?” The blacksmith could not hear Odo's words clearly.

“Then, please use a combination of Spring Steel, Strip Steel, and regular iron metal additions. For the handle, just make it as you like as long as it is easy to hold one hand.”

“Eh? N-Couldn't do that, Mr .... If the metal is mixed like that, the results can be bad. The purity level of the material affects the quality of the sword ..”

Odo stared flatly upon hearing that. He knew this, he had read several books about forging and more or less knew the basics about it. Putting a friendly smile on the face, the boy said, “Let's just relax, the combination doesn't affect the quality. Combination please 20% Spring Steel, 70% Strip Steel, and the rest is free iron material for polishing..”.

“If the result is bad ...”

“Temple technique use paron, ‘kan? Heated on a wrought kitchen, then newly formed on paron, right?”

“Ya ..., forging technique is like that. The melting technique requires a larger workshop and many people, the place is small and behind the tools is limited...”

“Hmm, take it easy then. Even if the results are bad, I will not protest. The important thing is to make it according to my order, do not change the composition, yes.”

The blacksmith looked puzzled by such a request. As long as he became a blacksmith to continue his family's heritage workshop for decades, it was the first time he had received such a strange request. A bit of a disgruntled face, he said, “Alright, if that's your request. So what kind of sword do you want to make? One hand? Two hands?”

“One .... Ordinary one-handed sword, no excessive decoration on the sword eye and plain. For the handle, make as you like the original uncle is easy to grip and not slippery if my hands sweat.”

“Not slippery .... If using Elderberry wood is not a problem? Although the surface is smooth but not slippery if polished the right way.”

“For his sword sheath ..?” ask the blacksmith.

“It's also up .... But I want the color and the shape is not striking, just make it as simple as possible.”

The blacksmith looked puzzled, the sword Odo asked for sounded very ordinary and nothing special. For the request of the noble boy, the blacksmith felt that the taste of the black hairdresser before him was very low. A look of condescension is seen on the look on his face.

Odo saw that clearly, but did not bother about it. Breathing in fretfully, he said, “How much does it cost? I want to pay in advance ...”

“Eng, everything is worth 900 Rupl ... 300 for forging cost and 600 for material.”

“500 Rupl ...,” Odo.

“No, no, it's too low. At least 800 Rupls ...”

“500 Rupl ..”

“Eng ..., 750 Rupl.”

“500 Rupl ..”

“Master , it's no longer bid .... 700, I can't go down anymore.”

“Alright, 700 Rupl .... By the way, how long will it be?”

“Eh?” The blacksmith could not answer directly, a little looked away he said, “Because it is quiet and the material is already there, at least two to three days is also finished. Well, the order is simple so it may be faster.”

“Hmm, then I'll take it three more days.”

Odo immediately looked towards Fiola, his eyes looking as if expecting something from the Huli Jing. The black-brown woman immediately understood what Odo wanted, he took a money bag from his kimono arm to pay for the cost of making the sword.

“Thank you,” said the dwarf as he got some big silver coins from Fiola.

“Tuan ..., what exactly did you make such a sword for? Doesn't Luke's family have a lot of magic weapons? Why is it so hard to order here?” asked the blacksmith with a little curiosity. He looked straight at Odo, feeling suspicious of the boy.

“Uncle often get annual treatment request of weapons from there, ‘kan?”

“Yes .... Treatment is often in the spring. Shieal from the residence of Marquess Luke often came while carrying weapons. But it was just ordinary treatment and not a magic weapon, nothing more .... My ability is not as great as you might think ..”

“Not really .., I used a weapon that uncle honed. Indeed it was not as sharp as a magic sword, but its resistance was quite strong even though the sword was already aged. That's why I asked to understand ...”

“Then, why not just use a magic sword .... There's a lot there, isn't it?”

Odo could not argue anymore to hear the logical words. Slightly looking away, he put on a confused face to say what. As powerful and sharp as a sword, it was indeed not comparable to magic swords that the majority had unique powers and were more than just ordinary swords.

Odo looked back at the blacksmith with a smile, then said, “Actually I will in the near future make a company here. From that, I want to cooperate with this workshop ...”

Realizing Odo changed his way of speaking, the blacksmith stared in puzzlement. “Hmm, I'm with rumors about it than traders. He said there were new people who wanted to open a business in the business district, so that's you apparently,” he said while playing his beard.

“Iya .., so this is sort of a visit to get to know each other. Maybe in the future we can work together ...”

The blacksmith stared flatly at the words coming out of Odo's mouth, the look on the face that showed respect was lost for a moment from him. Stop playing the beard with the right hand, he said, “Master .... The market is not a place to be underestimated .... What does Mister want to sell? If it is not in accordance with the trade union in this city, can-can your goods column can be held, loh.”

“Detained?” ask Odo confused.

“They don't care if it's royalty or not. If indeed it interferes with their efforts, the traders will not hesitate to do that. In addition to the condition of the city is like this, they will not hesitate to maintain income,” explained the blacksmith.

Odo stared flatly, surprised to hear that. Before he could answer, the blacksmith added, “Oh, I mean that traders in the union who have capital, not those who just open a shop or shop on the side of the road.”

Getting such input, Odo began to know that the blacksmith before him was indeed not a layman in such a matter. Smiling broadly, the boy said, “Yes! I know that, uncle! That's why I came here for an introduction first! Has such news been circulated to other traders?”

The blacksmith looks reluctant to see the look on the face of the spirit of the child. Slightly turning his face away, he said, “Ya ..., it seems. The news was spread along with the incident at the pier .. and related cases about you .... Honestly, sir doesn't love life, yes. Though something like that has happened, but now it is .... Is that sure you are with the security provided by Shieal?”

“Not really ...,” Odo relaxed reply. Staring lightly at the Dwarf, he again said, “May we be familiar in the future, uncle ...”

Before Odo left the place, he had some other conversations with the old blacksmith. They talked from important things like information about the traders to other trivial things like the old man's health condition.

In the talk Odo learned some other interesting information. A merchant union was an association that had strong connections with Guilds, it was not even strange that the organization was called a branch of a Guild. Merchant Union has the full name Lorian Merchant Union or often also called Lorian Trade Union. Cover his territory around Luke's territory to the Bascal Islands in the southeast corner of the Kingdom of Felixia. In the union, they could be said to be the main market as well as the race of traders in the Kingdom of Felixia.

Odo had heard the name of the union from the wind carried by passers-by at Luke's Mansion during the process of purchasing groceries for aid in crisis-ridden areas. On the list of debts the boy had read, the name of the union also existed as the largest provider of staple goods after the Garados Family of the eastern Kingdom.

Knowing the branch of the union also touched the market, anxiety and challenge filled Odo's mind. From that there is the possibility of him being held back from the development of his business, but there is also the possibility to get help if later the business he wants to build promises a profit.

In addition to talk about the problem of trade unions who are famous for acting to monopolize market prices, Odo also discussed privacy with the blacksmith. The Dwarf had no family, only after his son who died during the Great Sword more than twenty years ago.

Hearing that Odo was surprised by the story, when asked further it turns out the old Dwarf was more than 80 years old. For a Dwarf that age is indeed classified as not too old, when compared to humans it is still around thirty years. In addition to long-lived and dwarf bodies, another feature of the race is the difficulty they increase in number because they can only have offspring from each other.

Although they marry humans or demi-humans and have families, they will have no children. That's why Dwarves are classified as a race that is quite rare when compared to Demi-human types of half animals that can be with anyone having offspring.

During the last conversation before leaving the workshop, Odo only had time to ask the name of the old Dwarf. The name of the tanned dreadlocked old man was Kov Osel. His workshop was also taken from his surname, Osel.