Princess-style Dungeon Attack (2)
Thus, by the next day, my sword crafting had reached a level that satisfied my Master. Not the pinnacle of perfection where my Master resides, but a satisfactory level. Achieving the top in just one day was impossible, especially since Master, with some free time, started modifying the captured security golem, and I enthusiastically joined in. Once I reached an adequate level, he refused to teach me further, saying, "Now you must train yourself." Apparently, I was learning too quickly, which made it less interesting for him.
"... So, you spent the entire night playing around? What exactly are you planning to do with our Princess!?"
"... Damn, I went too far. But I don't regret it!!"
I woke up to Alicia's angry voice while lying exhausted on the floor of the makeshift workshop area. Surprisingly, I felt unusually good this morning. Although incredibly sleepy, I wasn't experiencing my usual low blood pressure. If I let my guard down, I might fall asleep right there.
Alicia was furious, hitting Master on the head with a frying pan. However, it didn't seem to affect him. What a hard head!!
"Ugh~~ Good morning, Alicia."
"You're awake, right? You're not sleepwalking, are you? … You woke up normally today. From now on, maybe we should use Lord Grantz's head as an alarm clock..."
"You!! Shut up!! If it fails, I'll get hurt too!!"
It's understandable that everyone is surprised, since it's rare for me to wake up so easily. Even when I wake up, I usually spend ten minutes sitting on the bed, dazed.
"For now, I've boiled some water for a bath... By the way, what is this menacing-looking golem-like thing?"
In front of Alicia stood something she had never seen before. It was probably the captured security golem, but since we started modifying it in the early hours of the morning, both my Master and I were so high-spirited that our self-control had practically collapsed, so we had no idea what modifications we made. Master was also tilting his head in confusion.
"Master, what do you think that is?"
"Something equipped with an endless track? The shoulders have bazookas. And it's got magazine-style bazookas too. Both arms are Gatling guns, and the torso is also equipped with a small bazooka. What were we trying to make? I thought I was teaching you sword forging."
"You started tinkering out of boredom, and I couldn’t focus, so I joined in. I don't remember much after that."
"Strange things do happen."
What stood there was something resembling a tank’s chassis with a humanoid armed golem mounted on it. It looked incredibly heavy and was probably capable of taking on a certain federation... though it couldn’t fly.
"What on earth were you two doing here!?"
"Well, I was aiming to level up the young lady... but it seems we've created something incomprehensible. HAHAHA."
"Master, this is so cool!!"
"Right? This imposing appearance, the armament capable of destroying anything. We might have created a new era."
"Enough of this nonsense!!"
A heavy gong sound resonated. The frying pan Alicia swung had enough force to actually hurt my Master this time.
"You're too noisy, Alicia. Do you want to make Alice angry? Whoa!! What a magnificent design this golem has!! It's brimming with power!!"
Big brother emerged from the hut, probably disturbed by the commotion. Anon was likely still asleep. I heard she has a hard time waking up, and I understand since I struggle with it too.
It seems my brother shares my sense of aesthetics. He appreciated the brilliance of this design as well.
"As expected of you, Big brother. I'm proud as your sister that you can understand this splendid design."
"HAHAHA, you can marry me if you want."
I also handed over the reworked sword. It should be better than before. At the very least, it shouldn't be inferior to swords made by other dwarves.
"Hmm, I didn't expect you to improve this much in just one night. But lack of sleep isn't good. After taking a bath and having a meal, you should rest a bit."
"I'm going to sleep. But I'll also continue exploring."
No problem. The primordial magic tool I created in the past—my Big brother and Father likely thought it was destroyed due to its dangers—still exists. With it, I can explore the dungeon even while sleeping.
"... You still have it?"
"It exists to protect my peaceful sleep."
"At least wear earplugs when you sleep."
Though the magic tool was mostly destroyed without my full understanding, apparently, using earplugs while sleeping makes it acceptable.
If Mother finds out I still have it, I'm in for a lecture. The room used to be wrecked every few days because of it, and it was the reason I received Madame's strict education. The reason I made it was simple: too many people targeted me. Despite being a princess with the Eye Mark, contracted with all spirits, I lived under constant threat since birth. I needed self-defense methods. Although they were deemed excessive and discarded.
"I'll definitely report this to the Queen... Those days... I must prevent them at all costs... I thought I destroyed everything."
"You were aware of the Treasury from the beginning, weren't you? To destroy everything, you'd need to destroy 'that' somewhere in here."
I discovered the Treasury when I was one year old. My neck felt unusually heavy, and when I fiddled with it, I found a key. I was so surprised when I suddenly understood how to use it that I cried a lot. Since then, I've kept my favorite dolls there. Even now, the dolls crafted by Alicia are stored here. Leaving them in the castle would risk them being destroyed by intruders' explosions. Some have been destroyed already.
"Well, I'm going to take a bath, so Master... the cleaning is up to you."
"Hey, you brat!! You’re running away!!"
With the place in chaos, I left the cleaning up to Master. Heh, I'm a bad apprentice.
Moreover, the furnace we used yesterday was a high-quality one. Since I promised to build one in Master's workshop next time, he'll have to overlook this. Leaving Master who hang his head and Big brother swinging the improved sword behind, I headed straight for the bath.
What do you think about this chapter?
