The beastkin had an old tradition.
When a beastkin rapidly grew into an adult, they had to spar with their friends as a coming-of-age ceremony.
Since Kage had never experienced such rapid growth, she didn’t have to go through this ceremony. However, she had already graduated from the children’s academy.
Perhaps that’s why…
“Are you okay?”
Suddenly, the scene of sparring with a friend flashed before her eyes.
No, to be precise…
“Ugh, yes.”
Kage had already won the sparring match.
Ivrin, who had lost to Kage as a child, nodded her head as she fell on her butt.Ivrin was the second strongest among the beastkin of her generation, excluding Kage.
At that moment…
“Take my hand, Ivrin.”
Kage smiled brightly and reached out her hand.
Ivrin hesitantly took Kage’s hand, and…
“Hyaaa!”
The scene suddenly shifted.
“Kyaaaak! Save me!”
“Plea, please spare our children…”
“R, run!”
“Fight!”
The nightmare that she had been trying to forget unfolded before her eyes.
‘No, this can’t be…’
The hellish scene in front of her eyes.
What have they done to deserve this?
“Kyaaaak!”
“Die!”
The beastkin women, who had already lost their will to fight, were being brutally beaten for fun.
In front of their daughters.
“Mom…?”
“It’s okay, daughter. Dad will save you.”
The female beastkin, who was being beaten one-sidedly, blocked her daughter’s eyes with her hands.
At the same time…
“Ssss…”
The warmth of the hand covering her eyes disappeared, and the hellish scene reappeared before her.
“Mommy!”
Her daughter, or rather, her younger self, cried as she saw her mother losing consciousness.
The burly man who was watching this scene…
“Finally, my revenge is complete. Now, all that’s left is to kill you…”
He looked down at Kage with a villainous smile.
At that moment…
“Kage, run!”
Ivrin suddenly appeared and grabbed the man’s waist, buying Kage some time.
Kage, who had regained her senses, ran away as if denying reality.
A short while later…
“Kyaaaak!”
A scream came from where Kage had been standing.
There were so many screams around that it was hard to tell whose voice it was.
However, it was most likely…
‘Ivrin… I’m sorry.’
Her best friend, who had sacrificed herself for Kage.
As Kage cried and ran away, she finally woke up from the nightmare.
The cold sweat running down her spine.
She looked around and…
“Chirp! Chirp!”
Unlike the hellish scene she had just seen, the morning sun was rising.
The surrounding scenery confirmed that it was just a dream.
‘It was just a dream.’
Kage shifted her gaze to the sensation on her chest.
‘Hmm…’
Perhaps because her body had grown, she felt a pool of sweat in her cleavage.
Apparently, she had been sweating not only on her back.
‘Ugh… I need to wash this off quickly!’
So, Kage started her morning routine as usual.
.
.
.
A week had passed since Kage’s evolution.
I glanced back at Kage, who was standing quietly behind me.
‘Damn, I’m still not used to this.’
Yes, it had been a week since Kage’s evolution, but I still wasn’t used to her adult appearance.
Moreover…
‘Why is she so quiet today?’
Usually, she would be excited, but today, she was unusually calm.
‘When she’s quiet like this, she’s really pretty.’
Even the people around her couldn’t help but glance at her.
Even Lise who was standing next to him.
‘Well, it’s more refreshing to see something new than what you’re used to.’
As I was thinking this, Lise…
“Squeak!”
…pinched my side, where I was most sensitive.
“Young Master, you’re being too obvious.”
“Huh? What?”
I pretended not to know what she was talking about.
I didn’t want her to know that I was thinking about Kage.
“But what’s wrong with Kage? Why are you so gloomy today? It doesn’t suit you.”
“Huh? What are you talking about? When have I ever been gloomy, Master?”
No, you’re gloomy right now.
“Sigh. If you keep being gloomy, I won’t buy you any snacks.”
“Hmph! Do you think I’m a child, Master? I’m the princess of the beastkin, and I won’t fall for that!”
No, you are a child.
You may look like an adult, but your mental age is that of a child.
Not to mention, you’re still a child in terms of age.
“So, you don’t want snacks?”
“Of course not!”
Kage’s ears and tail drooped, despite her words.
She was as honest as a beastkin could be.
“Sigh. You’re so honest. Here, have a snack.”
I took a snack from my Space ring and gave it to Kage.
“I’ll only accept it because you’re the Master!”
Kage reluctantly took the snack.
But…
“Swish, swish!”
She swung her tail.
‘Finally, she’s acting like herself again.’
When Kage is quiet, it feels awkward.
Lise also smiled at Kage’s usual behavior.
As we walked, watching Kage’s smile, we finally arrived at our destination.
‘Hmm. It feels like it’s been a long time since I visited.’
No, it had indeed been a long time.
In fact, since we made a contract with the temple, this was the first time we were meeting in person.
“Bang! Bang!”
The sound of a hammer rang out steadily.
I looked at the building in front of me.
The sign of the blacksmith shop, where magic and machinery intersected, was quite clean for a blacksmith shop.
‘No wonder it looks good. The owner must be wealthy.’
As I opened the door, I thought…
“We’re not accepting customers right now.”
Gazeel, the blacksmith I had contracted with during my external lecture, was shooing away customers with an indifferent voice.
I smiled at his words.
“Not accepting customers? I’m here.”
“Hmm? Oh, it’s you, kid.”
Gazeel smiled at me, and at that moment…
“Kaine! It’s been a while!”
Lucy, the professor of magic engineering, greeted me with open arms, her sleeves fluttering.
‘Why is she here?’
Normally, she would be at the academy during the break, but here she was.
Did I show too much of my surprise?
“This kid kept insisting on observing my work, so I brought her here.”
Gazeel answered for me, with a look of disbelief on his face.
‘Hmm. What…?’
Usually, professors would be at the academy during the break, as there would be students who needed extra lessons.
I was still confused when…
“There were no students in this magic engineering class who needed extra lessons!”
Lucy puffed out her chest, proud of her student.
To me, it seemed like she was just making excuses to come here, but that wasn’t important.
“How did you know that Gazeel was here, Professor? I didn’t tell anyone.”
“Hmm. I’m not just any professor. Gazeel told me himself!”
Lucy seemed quite proud of herself.
“Of course, I only told her because she kept pestering me.”
Gazeel added.
‘That’s right.’
Gazeel usually didn’t allow anyone near him when he was working, as it would distract him.
‘But Professor Lucy must be quite capable.’
She looked like a child, but it was a fact that she was a professor at the Royal Academy.
She was living up to her name, as she was recognized by Gazeel, the legendary blacksmith.
‘Well, the kid’s whining must have played a part too.’
I understood this in my heart and moved on to the main topic.
“Then, let’s have a private conversation.”
“Yes, I was planning to visit you anyway. Good timing, Lucy. You don’t have anything to do, right?”
“Yes!”
Lucy answered energetically.
“Let these two look around the shop.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Yes, Master!”
After that, Gazeel and I went into the guest room.
.
.
.
Inside the room, Gazeel served us some tea and said…
“So, you came to see the results, right?”
“Yes, of course. It’s been a while.”
“Hmm. It’s better to show you than to tell you.”
Gazeel smiled and took out a gun from his Space ring.
I smiled and asked…
“Is that it?”
Gazeel nodded in satisfaction.
“Yes, it’s not as good as the magic gun you gave me, but I’ve managed to mass-produce it.”
“How much of its power can it achieve compared to my magic gun?”
Gazeel stroked his chin and thought for a moment.
“This much.”
He spread out his five fingers.
‘Half. Not bad.’
My magic gun was a rare item, even in ancient times.
Even if it could only achieve half of its power, that was still impressive.
‘That’s good enough.’
Even if it was only half as powerful, it would still be a great help in the war against the cult.
“How many have you made so far?”
“Hmm. I haven’t checked the exact number yet, but it should be around 100.”
“Huh?”
Already 100? I had expected 50 at most.
It had been a while since I gave him the gun, but it wasn’t that long ago.
‘How did you make 100 so quickly?’
Gazeel seemed to find my surprise amusing, as a mischievous smile appeared on his lips.
“Hahaha! I’ve never seen you so surprised before. When we made the contract, you were so calm and composed.”
“Well, I never expected you to mass-produce 100 so quickly.”
“Hmm. I couldn’t have done it alone.”
Gazeel shrugged at my honest answer. Then he said…
“Your professor helped me. She’s quite talented.”
“Huh? Is the professor that good?”
It was true that she was talented enough to become a professor at such a young age.
But Gazeel’s praise meant that she was even more talented than I had thought.
“Well, to put it simply, she’s a genius. Her talent might even surpass yours. She just lacks experience.”
“Hmm…”
I gained some unexpected information.
In the original story, Gazeel was known as the greatest blacksmith on the continent, while Lucy was just a magic engineering professor.
‘I was too focused on the setting.’
I had been too fixated on the setting and didn’t pay enough attention to the characters.
I should have realized how talented she was when she became a professor at such a young age.
‘Well, it’s good that I found out now.’
At that moment, Gazeel became serious and said…
“So, let’s get to the real reason you came here. You didn’t just come to see this, did you?”
“Yes, your experience shows.”
“Of course, with my years of experience, I knew you’d come for something else.”
Gazeel smiled triumphantly, and I took out the item he had been waiting for from my Space ring.
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