Vermillion

[PART 2]

There was a saying, ‘A good workman does not blame his tools’—but, at least an archer could choose his arrows.

You can get used to your bow’s unique pull strength and imperfections however you couldn’t say the same for arrows. What you wanted was an arrow that would fly exactly as you pictured it, whether that was flying straight or curving with the wind.

The one in his hand was perfect in that regard. There weren’t any shortcomings in the materials used nor the manufacturing technique.

“I’m pleased that you like it. Kei-san. You are a bow specialist, no?”

“Haha, so you could tell.”

Since they were in town, Kei only wore light equipment, however he still had a longsword at his hip along with Dragonstinger in its cloth case. He carried his bow around even though he didn’t need to. The fact that he did made it seem important to him. At a glance, it was easy to tell he was an archer.

“I only thought so because of your bow. When you grabbed that arrow first, you confirmed it. Anyone interested in my main business always checks that one first.”

Out of the arrows on display Kei chose the most practical one. Of course, the other arrows were of high quality as well, but they didn’t match his preference. He was concerned that the more ornamental ones’ usability would suffer due to their surface. Naturally, an archer would be drawn to the one Kei held.

“It is misleading, but I suppose that most archers buy this kind?”

“That’s correct. Neighboring huntsmen, acquaintance mercenaries… A hunter from Tahfu, too, bought ten-odd of them previously.”

“Tahfu… Was it Mandel?”

“You know him? Yes, it was Mandel.”

“I see, so even Mandel…” Kei mumbled in admiration. His impression of Montand rose even higher.

Montand remained silent as he watched Kei inspect the arrow.

To be honest, Kei had gotten caught up in Montand’s pace, but he didn’t think it was bad.

“By the way… How much are they?” Kei smiled slightly as he asked.

“A set of ten costs sixty copper coins,” said Montand, returning the smile.

“Hoh?”

Each one cost six coppers. A high market price would be two coppers, at a low it would be five small coppers[2]. Compared to that, these were very overpriced. Of course, this level of quality was rare. Taking this into consideration, the price was reasonable.

“Although, if you buy a set of thirty then it also comes with a leather quiver. Kei-san, you ride horses, right?”

“Yeah. I’m specialize in equestrian archery.”

“Is that so? That’s perfect then,” he said as he took a large quiver from a nearby closet. “Here we are. This can fit forty of my normal sized arrows in it. If needed, it can also be fastened to a saddle. A friend of mine came up with the design and I can guarantee its sturdiness.”

“I see, I see.”

Kei took the quiver to look it over. The seams looked well made. Like Montand said, it seemed sturdy. He thought about asking the leatherworker who made this to handle Mikazuki’s hide.

“—Alright, I’ll take it. Thirty arrows, please.”

“Right away, thank you very much,” he bowed, a little surprised at Kei’s steadfastness.

“By the way, could you introduce me to the person who made this?”

“Yes, he’s an acquaintance of mine… Do you have a request for him?”

“Yeah, I have my horse’s hide. I wanted a skilled leatherworker since it’s something I’m attached to.”

“Of course. If that’s the case, there won’t be any problems. I’ll introduce you later.”

“Thanks.”

Since the deal was made, Montand started off toward the back room to retrieve the arrows, but Kei called out to him.

“Sorry. One more thing, I have a question.”

“What would that be?”

“Earlier, you said, ‘normal sized arrows,’ does that mean you have longer and slightly larger ones?”

“Longer arrows, is it?”

“Yeah. I’d like you to take a look at this.”

Kei took Dragon Stinger out from the cloth case with its bowstring detached. Without the bowstring it bent itself backwards in the shape of the letter ‘C’, so it was a little more compact. However, Montand knit his brow after Kei stretched the bowstring back on and he saw the whole picture.

“It’s a large bow, isn’t it…? I suppose the arrows aren’t long enough?”

As expected of a craftsman, he realized what Kei was trying to say from just a glance.

“It’s not exactly that the arrows aren’t long enough. This bowstring is pretty powerful, so using it normally with normal arrows isn’t a problem. But, for argument’s sake, if I wanted to use its full potential—“

“—You would need to pull the string back more,” Montand finished Kei’s line, nodding.

“May I feel the bow?”

“Sure.”

The moment that Kei handed Dragon Stinger to him, Montand’s hand shot up and he let out a surprised, “Woah.” Just like with Mandel the lightness caught him off guard.

“This is a very light bow, isn’t it… Rather, what the hell is this resistance?!” Montand’s amazement was clear in his expression when he tried to pull back the bowstring.

“I told you, it’s a strong bow.”

Montand ignored Kei’s smug face and tried his best to pull the bow back, groaning with effort, “Guh, hng, hng…”

Kei watched contently for a little, but Montand was unexpectedly determined and didn’t look like he was stopping soon. Kei became worried and decided to stop him, “You should stop before you hurt yourself…especially since you’re barehanded. You might hurt your fingers.”

“Damn… What a bow!” Frustratedly, he said, “Oww…” as he shook his right hand. In the end, he was only able to pull it back to his elbow. ”I must say, this is an amazing bow. For my work, I know how to use bows to an extent… However, this is the first time I’ve dealt with such a bow. I’m sorry if this is rude, but Kei-san, do you use this in actual combat?” he asked, looking a little doubtful.

Kei smiled boldly and suddenly drew Dragon Stinger back to his ear.

“W-wow, that easily…!” His eyes widened.

Kei became even more smug after Montand’s refreshing surprised reaction.

“Oh my… Well, now I understand the situation! I have a few different larger arrows, please wait just a moment.”

Montand didn’t wait for Kei to answer as he whisked off toward the back room, looking a little excited. They could hear him rummaging through shelves and drawers, and after a short time, he came out with a large bundle of arrows and a sparkling expression.

“I’m sorry for the wait! The truth is I’m researching various new types of arrows. I brought some of the prototypes too.”

“Oh, isn’t that something?”

“Firstly, here is a larger arrow. I originally made it for a longbow, but it might be good for yours.”

Kei took the arrow from him. It had blue dyed feathers and was moderately longer than what he had been using. He nocked the arrow to test it and was able to draw the bow back to his ear. The strain on his arms made his body creak. Holding it ready was difficult even for Kei, he wouldn’t have much time to aim. But, in exchange it seemed like it would have incredible power.

“This one is good too. Although if I were to be picky, I would prefer a narrower arrowhead. For me, the piercing strength is more important than the impact force.”

“A narrower one… Perhaps, something like this?”

“Ah, yeah, the arrowhead on that one looks good.”

“Great, I have more. If time isn’t a problem, I could change it out for you?”

“Perfect, then please do… By the way, how much is the exchange fee?”

“It’s on the house.” Montand bowed courteously.

They looked at each other and smiled. Both of them were in high spirits.

“Alright, I’ll buy these ones too. How many do you have?”

“Including that one, there are twelve.”

“Sold. I’ll take them all.”

“Thank you very much.”

“So… Do you have others? I can’t imagine this is all you’ve got.”

“Of course not. Please, take a look at this one.”

Montand handed Kei an arrow that had red feathers and was not quite as long as the previous one. The focus of this one was its thickness. This arrow’s diameter was larger than a normal one. The arrowhead was cone shaped and had many holes in it, reminding Kei of a needle.

“This… Is it hollow on the inside?”

“Yes. This one is meant for big game. The holes in the arrowhead are connected through the shaft to the holes in the back.”

“I see… Even left in the target it’ll make it bleed!”

“Precisely. I suppose it goes without saying. However, since it’s hollow its weight is comparatively low. The wind can push it around easier and with a normal bow it lacks power… But, if it’s that bow then maybe…”

“Interesting. How many of these do you have?”

“Three, since it’s only a prototype.”

“Sold. I’ll take all three.”

“Thank you very much. Now then, please look at this…”

Kei went along with Montand’s flow energetically saying, ‘Sold!’ or ‘Cool!’ as he took out arrow after arrow. The two of them got more and more into it, heating up the prototype sale.

“Sorry, this is another bad habit of his…” Kiska put her hand on her cheek and sighed, having finished reading the letter long ago.

“A-ah…” Aileen smiled stiffly and vaguely nodded next to her.

The first long arrow and the hemorrhage arrow were one thing, but the prototypes after that only seemed like a waste of money. For example, the arrow he was showing now played a melody of whistles as it flew, but it clearly had no practical use.

He really shouldn’t be wasting so much money… Aileen wanted to warn him, thinking ahead, but the silver he would use to pay came from him fighting bandits. It wasn’t her place to tell him how to use the money. Actually, he rarely ever buys things on impulse…

Kei was hardly ever this into buying anything.

Maybe the stress is getting to him…? Aileen couldn’t say anything to him now.

“Mama-, I’m hungry,” a child’s voice came from behind Aileen.

A ten year old, cute little girl came out from the door behind Aileen.

“Oh, Lily. You’re home already?”

“Yep! I got out earlier than usual today,” Lily happily nodded to Kiska.

“Uhh….?” Aileen bent her head to the side slightly.

“Ah. This is my daughter, Lily. Go on, say hello to the customer,” she urged Lily on.

“Nice to meet you, my name is Lily. I’m ten years old,” she said as if it were rehearsed, and quickly bowed.

Aileen, who loved kids, smiled at her cute bow. She crouched down to Lily’s level and gently said, “Hello. I’m Aileen, it’s nice to meet you, too.”

Lily smiled bashfully.

“And now I’d like to show you this arrow!”

“What is this!? It looks like a complex mechanism…”

“Fufufu, I have confidence in this one. It’s meant to suppress many people with just one arrow!”

“What!? How in the world does it—“

Paying no heed to the others, Kei and Montand got quite lively.

“Once he gets like that, there’s no stopping him… Lily, how about a snack? If you’d like, Aileen, would you join me for tea in the back?”

“Sure, I’d be happy to…” Aileen gave a strained smile and nodded.

—In the end, the excitement of those two carried on until the sun set and it became dark out.