I knocked politely on the workshop door.
"Witch. Are you decent?"
"Yes, yes. Come on in. It's open."
"Pardon the intrusion."
I opened the door and stepped inside.
It was a wide open space carved out of four rooms.
Three similar workbenches sat in a row, and large shelves lined the walls.
Bookshelves, scroll shelves, and tool racks. There were also wooden crates and barrels stacked up.
On the third workbench in the back, a sword and a staff were floating. Wait — no, those were light orbs.
The light orbs were packed into boxes, and those boxes were stacked on the second workbench.
And those light orbs... they were the ones Haiarn had made.
There was a door at the far left end of the workshop. Pretty sure the witch's bedroom was beyond that.
The table and sofa in the middle of the workshop were the same ones from the living room in the witch's house.
Oh — a black cat was grooming itself on the sofa.
It noticed me and stared with half-lidded eyes. Still a little damp, from the looks of it.
The witch was working at the first workbench near the entrance.
She was sitting low, wearing a monocle — a rare sight — and stitching something into the gauntlet floating above the workbench.
She was inserting thin, rod-like pieces, one red and one blue, one at a time.
The gauntlet... that was the Silent Saint's Gauntlet, wasn't it? Its shape hadn't changed, had it?
"Oh, oh, you had Hoss bring those, didn't you. Could you set them on that table for me?"
"Sure."
When I set them on the table, the black cat took an interest in the cucumber sandwiches on the plate.
Hmm. I didn't expect her to actually be here. What do I do?
"My my, young Wof. Do you still have business with the Con?"
Since I hadn't left the room, the witch took off her monocle and turned to face me.
"Sorry. It's just that cat..."
"Hmm hmm? What about the cat?"
"No, she's... well, she's here."
What am I even saying right now?
"Yes yes, she's here."
The witch smiled easily and looked at the black cat.
The black cat was staring at the sandwiches with half-lidded gray eyes.
She was probably wondering why there were so many cucumber fillings. That was the look on her face.
The witch, perhaps curious as well, stood up and picked up one of the sandwiches.
She glanced at it briefly and put it in her mouth.
She took quite a big bite, and crisp, satisfying chewing sounds emanated from the witch's lips.
"Meow."
The black cat let out a cry—whether startled by the sound or shocked by the witch's hearty eating.
The witch really does eat with some gusto.
"My my, the sound of eating cucumber is so satisfying!"
The witch, finishing the first one and picking up the second.
She eats at a fast pace.
"I'll pass along that you liked it to Hoss."
As for the cat—well, whatever.
I took the now-empty plate and left the workshop.
Hoss wasn't in the kitchen.
In her place... a braid parted in two swayed gently.
Anna Kreuzen was doing the dishes. I handed her the plate.
When I told her it had been delicious, she smiled softly.
Something in my chest fluttered. An older-sister type, for sure.
I returned to my room and lined up the spoils knives on the narrow desk.
"Oh, Sword Breakers."
And two of them at that... each with a completely different shape.
The first one was shaped like a kitchen knife. The second was a folding type.
"But can these actually be used...?"
They'd been snapped clean apart against Kaede's blade. Could they really work?
I more or less randomly picked one of the spoils knives.
I overlaid the first Sword Breaker on top.
I slid the blade into the gap between the brush-like edges.
The gap was open just enough — perfect for catching a blade.
"Using the principle of a lever..."
Snap... the knife broke.
It broke with absurd ease.
"........."
I set down the knife breaker. I Banished the broken knife.
I composed myself and checked the next spoils knife.
The confiscated knives numbered, let's see... eleven.
Almost every one of those goons had one. Those guys sure loved their knives.
Or maybe they always carried them for taking hostages.
Out of the eleven knives, only three were in decent condition.
I'd maintenance the ones in okay shape and keep them as spares. Maybe three, roughly.
Any that were chipped, rusted, or caked in blood and other grime got Banished.
The ones coated in poison got Banished too. That took care of five.
"This is an unusual knife."
It had a blade shaped like an arrowhead, with a round hole through the middle.
The handle was wooden, carefully oiled. It had seen use, but also been well maintained.
It felt like someone had treasured it.
"Like a saber. Or maybe a sword."
A single-edged blade with a pronounced curve. It had a sword guard attached.
There were no signs of use. Or perhaps the owner maintained it with meticulous care.
"It's more like an awl than a knife."
The tip was thick and sharp, like a needle.
Yeah, this isn't really a knife... whoa, looking closer, the entire circumference was blade.
"Hard to say what to call this..."
I couldn't help but laugh wryly. Oh, right.
I took the fruit knife off the knife belt hanging on the wall.
It was the kind of fruit knife you could buy anywhere.
The sheath had cracked, so I'd just replaced it with a cute one decorated with fruits and flowers.
It felt much more like a "fruit knife" now.
Drawing it from the sheath, the blade was small but had a wood-grain-like pattern on it.
"Alright."
I left the room carrying the fruit knife.
When I reached the kitchen, Anna Kreuzen was putting away freshly washed dishes.
"Excuse me."
"............"
She turned around. Though she looked a bit blank, she greeted me with a smile.
Anna Kreuzen basically always had a smile on her face, but she actually had quite a few different kinds of smiles.
"If you'd like, please use this."
I handed her the fruit knife.
Anna Kreuzen kept glancing back and forth between me and the fruit knife with a troubled smile.
Her expression clearly said, "Are you sure about this?"
"The blade is pretty sharp, so try using it to cut fruit and stuff."
"..."
When I more or less pressed it into her hands, Anna Kreuzen accepted it despite her hesitation.
She gave me a soft, slightly embarrassed smile and nodded.
Thank you. I had the feeling that's what she meant.
And so the Skia Coffin Ele arrived safely at the town.
We didn't enter the town — instead we stopped near the outer walls. There was an encampment there.
Six massive white wagons were lined up, with tents and canopies set up around them.
The Delver Knights.
The Witch was the first to disembark, met with several of the Delver Knights, and handed over that "cargo."
I was glad she was able to hand it off without incident.
We were led to one of the canopies.
For the record, the ones who made contact with the Delver Knights were me, the Witch, and Bidd.
Mineha, Hoss, Shardina, and Anna Kreuzen stayed behind.
Oh, Dagaa too. Come to think of it, the black cat was nowhere in sight.
Still, so these are the knights of the Delver Knights.
White armor with a large black stripe across the chest, and black cloaks.
They certainly looked the part of knights — not so much like delvers.
Simply strong. Every last one of them carried themselves like a powerhouse.
The order of delvers. So this was the Delver Knights.
After waiting under the tent for a short while, a gorgeous woman appeared.
Truly gorgeous.
Long hair that shimmered with intermingled gold and silver. Golden eyes that held the glow of burning flame.
Her features were noble, beautiful, and bold — the kind of beauty that naturally overwhelms you.
Those blazing golden eyes also held the keen, cutting gleam of a blade.
She wore a fur-trimmed red cloak draped over white armor sculpted in the shape of a lion.
No doubt about it. This woman was the Knight Commander of the Delver Knights.
She looked like a blazing golden rose.
Spotting the witch, she broke into a grin.
"Long time no see, witch!"
"Oh my, is that so? Peony."
"By the way, what's with that bizarre giant carriage?"
"That, that — it's Kon's personal ride, apparently."
"That man never stops building ridiculous things. Anyway..."
She looked at me. Her expression shifted to something between scrutiny and worry.
"So you're the witch's apprentice..."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Wof."
"I'm... Peony Monckshodd, Knight Commander of the Delver Knights. I've seen your face before, but this is the first time we've actually spoken."
"You recognize me?"
"From the Alverd incident."
"That one?"
So she'd been there watching that match.
"...It was a wonderful match."
"Thank you."
Something was off. Ms. Peony had taken a half-step back from me and was giving off a strangely cautious vibe.
This was our first time meeting, wasn't it?
"So, so, what's the situation here?"
"Ah, well, about that—"
"Might I be the one to explain about that?"
What appeared at the tent entrance was a girl with black hair and black cat ears.
She gave her long black tail a gentle swish and fixed me with a pair of half-lidded gray eyes.
There was no mistaking it. It was that same girl I'd run into in the bathhouse.