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🕑 Added 2025-03-29 05:40:14 +0000 UTCEP.13 [The Voluptuous Blacksmith Woman Mina]
The afternoon after successfully concluding the bazaar,
Eugene and Jeanne d'Arc, dressed in casual clothes, headed somewhere together.
"Jeanne d'Arc Obrien?"
Upon hearing Jeanne d'Arc's other name, Eugene's eyes widened in surprise.
"Yeah, that's what I'm called among the mercenaries. There's no reason to start from the bottom when doing mercenary work under the Orléans name. I've also added three years to my age, so I'm operating as 25 years old. I couldn't bring myself to go any higher than Charlotte's age."
Jeanne d'Arc was wearing battle gear similar to the leather combat outfit she had on when she reunited with Eugene.
This is because she's acting as Mercenary Captain Jeanne d'Arc rather than Lady Jeanne d'Arc of Orléans.
While it's impossible to completely avoid benefiting from being born with a noble young lady's title, Jeanne d'Arc wanted to escape from that shadow as much as she could.
Because she felt inferior to her family members with their historically exceptional talents,
She believed that the only way to create her own identity among them was through clear independence.
So she registered her mercenary group not as Jeanne d'Arc de Sel Orléans, but as Jeanne d'Arc Obrien.
Accordingly, the funds used came not from family coffers but from her own savings accumulated over 10 years.
"Hmm, that's a bit burdensome then? I mean, tearing apart the armor. I'll just buy it with my own money."
"No need. I owe you a debt from yesterday, so I absolutely must repay it to feel satisfied."
The two are heading to the mercenary district on the outskirts of Pangea, one of the four great cities of the Elysium Empire, to purchase armor for Eugene.
Jeanne, who received Eugene's help at yesterday's bazaar,
Insisted on settling that bill by getting him fitted for armor,
And Eugene accepted.
But since she's paying with her personal funds rather than family money,
Eugene, who had heard a lot of information about knightly orders and mercenaries during his pilgrim's journey,
Immediately waved his hands to invalidate this deal, even if just out of burden.
However, Jeanne blocked him with a resolute expression.
"It's much better than getting caught up with a fraudulent blacksmith and delaying your joining. Especially since your greatswordsman armor needs to be specially remade with extra care, it's not something to be done carelessly."
The armor and combat gear at the Orléans main house
Are mostly either too expensive or indicative of status.
Also, since Eugene's physique exceeds standard specifications,
Jeanne, who has already taken care of mercenaries, felt the need to have it custom-made.
"Oh my, Red Fox Mercenary Captain! Welcome!"
Later, Eugene and Jeanne made their way to a blacksmith shop located near the entrance of the mercenary district in the mercenary residential area.
There, the chief blacksmith woman greeted Jeanne with a broad smile.
Red Fox is the name of Jeanne's mercenary group.
'Wow... It really feels like we've entered the mercenary district. The visual impression of the people is completely different.'
The moment he saw the chief blacksmith woman,
Eugene couldn't help but be impressed.
Although the areas are different, this mercenary residential district and the Grand Duke's territory are clearly in the same city.
However, the aura exuded by the people of the mercenary district
Was on a completely different level from that of the Grand Duke's surroundings or general residential areas.
'She's not wearing any underwear?'
The most noticeable external feature is the level of exposure.
As observed in the street scenery before entering the blacksmith shop, there are people with bare upper bodies everywhere.
Moreover, the commoner dresses of the women also reveal quite a bit of their breasts.
Men mostly do it for show and intimidation,
While for women, excluding those with mercenary or adventurer professions,
Most are prostitutes or similar service industry workers.
The blacksmith who greeted Eugene and Jeanne also boasted a similar level of exposure.
In the case of blacksmiths used by nobles or wealthy merchants,
To maintain their dignity,
They wear special material work clothes made with alchemy even in that hot place when on site.
But the blacksmiths in the mercenary district don't care about dignity.
They just wear clothes that are comfortable to work in.
The chief blacksmith woman before them is wearing only shabby work clothes over her naked body.
'Ah... This is romance... This is why I didn't consider the academy.'
Smirk...!
Looking at her appearance, Eugene showed a faint smile.
The romance of fantasy mercenaries in his past life memories,
It definitely had a dark feel to it.
That's why Eugene wasn't very keen on walking the path of the sword through the academy.
That's also part of why he accepted Jeanne's proposal.
Although the chief blacksmith before him is clearly a woman,
Eugene felt through the strong macho scent emanating from her
That his choice was certainly not wrong.
"It's been a while, Mina. The items you made last time are being used very well. The quality is really good."
"Hahaha! I made them with all my effort!"
Bow! Bow! Bow!
The blacksmith shop named Black Hair Blacksmith,
Is the one Jeanne has been mainly dealing with since creating her mercenary group.
From the blacksmith's perspective, unless dealing with a very large mercenary group,
They can actually make juicier profits when dealing with a new mercenary group that's just getting equipped.
Therefore, from this chief blacksmith's viewpoint,
The best big spender client at this point is undoubtedly Jeanne of the Red Fox Mercenary Group.
According to this dynamic, Mina, the chief blacksmith of Black Hair Blacksmith,
Kept bowing her head so low that even her crown was visible, trying to win the heart of her best customer.
"Coming from a lowly background, I at least need to excel in skills! And I'm proud these days to meet someone like Captain Jeanne d'Arc who recognizes those skills!"
"What are you saying, that kind of perception should disappear now. There are so many positions that need talented people, how long will we keep limiting based on background?"
"Haha! Captain Jeanne d'Arc, you really speak so refreshingly!"
Mina comes from an underground city that's treated even more lowly than slum villages of vagrants.
The ways to escape from there are to have outstanding talent to succeed as a mercenary, be a top-class criminal,
Or have certain technical skills.
For women, besides being beautiful enough to become a merchant's concubine,
It's common to be sold as high-grade breeding slaves.
Sophia was lucky enough to learn blacksmithing skills and had talent, so she drifted into this huge city of Pangea.
"But the man behind Captain Jeanne d'Arc is..."
At that moment, Mina cautiously asked with a look that mixed curiosity and wariness.
When Jeanne d'Arc came to Black Hair Blacksmith, she usually came alone or
Always brought a designated mercenary subordinate if accompanying someone.
Since a large man she's never seen before, not that subordinate, has come along,
Chief Blacksmith Mina is showing a cautious reaction to figure out what kind of person this man before her is.
To put it nicely it's romantic, but bluntly speaking, being a mercenary is a profession that lives by the sword.
Adventurers only deal with monsters, but mercenaries kill people too.
So people who make money by being involved with them tend to reflexively look out for themselves.
In other words, Sophia is being cautious because someone outside the information she knows in this field has appeared.
"Let me introduce him. He's a new recruit in our Red Fox Mercenary Group. His name is Eugene, he's a younger brother from my hometown, and I brought him here because he doesn't have proper armor."
Jeanne d'Arc, having experienced such dynamics of the mercenary district for about a year and a half,
Created a false story to introduce Eugene so that Sophia could trust him sufficiently.
"Oh, I see! I thought he must be extraordinary since Captain Jeanne d'Arc personally brought him, but he's your hometown brother!"
Indeed, there's nothing like school ties, regional ties, and blood ties.
Having gained sufficient understanding, Mina's wariness melted away as she joked around.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Eugene."
Thud!
"Oh dear... My hands are covered in soot from working just now..."
"It's fine."
"Th-Then nice to meet you too, Mr. Eugene. I'm Mina."
Grip...!
Eugene extended his hand first to introduce himself,
And Mina, who had just come out from working, hesitated.
However, seeing Eugene Schneider's unconcerned attitude,
Mina became shy and finally shook his hand.
"She looks innocent, doesn't she?"
Mina went inside the blacksmith shop for a moment to properly set up for the armor-related conversation.
Looking at Mina, Jeanne spoke softly to Eugene behind her.
"She does look that way, but why?"
Despite her appearance that went beyond masculine to macho, the shy demeanor shown during the handshake,
Even to Eugene Schneider, Mina, the chief blacksmith of Black Hair Blacksmith, looked innocent.
But because it was a somewhat abrupt question from Jeanne, Eugene showed a puzzled reaction.
"Once the mercenary group is more established and we secure a definite capital line, I'm thinking of creating a mercenary village where our group's people can live. Then we'll need a village blacksmith, and Mina seems the most suitable."
Jeanne's dream is not to become the best mercenary or the best swordsman.
She wants to create a tight-knit community under her command.
That's why, rather than regularly taking on freelance mercenaries, she's raising mercenaries internally,
And adopting a method to increase their sense of belonging through this.
However, it's difficult to go through such a process in the technical field, so she had been deeply contemplating.
Meanwhile, after dealing with Sophia for a year and six months, deep trust has built up, and it seems she's come to know her character quite well.
"Oh... A mercenary village."
Learning of Jeanne's audacious goal like this,
Eugene made an expression as if wondering, 'Can that really happen?'
Not just being bound by money,
But a community formed with centripetal force from a truly familial heart,
It's amazing that Jeanne created a mercenary group as she declared in her childhood,
But he thinks it's an area that can't be achieved by drive alone.
"A greatswordsman???"
As the three people started consulting inside the set-up blacksmith shop,
Mina was surprised to hear about Eugene Schneider's class.
"He said his physique and tendencies were like that, so he chose to be a greatswordsman. I don't think it's quite right, but it's his choice so there's nothing I can do. Still, we have to do our best, and since it's not an easy class, that's why I brought him directly to Sophia."
Jeanne leaned back in her wooden chair with an indifferent feeling
And roundaboutly explained the process of Eugene choosing the greatswordsman class.
Her expression showed that it was quite challenging.
"You've chosen a class that's not easy to equip..."
Fidget, fidget, fidget...
Chief Blacksmith Mina also seemed to agree with that expression
As she pondered deeply while stroking her chin.
"Is it that bad?"
"Did you choose without knowing?"
"Hmm... well..."
For Eugene, the reactions of the two women were unexpected.
Greatswordsmen are certainly rare, but there are quite a few mercenaries and adventurers who handle heavy weapons.
So he thought there wouldn't be anything particularly difficult about it,
But reality seems different.
Among the people Eugene met on the pilgrim's path, there were no blacksmiths after all.
"In the past, there wasn't much difference. But as mercenaries' skills improved, the details of equipment became important. So blacksmiths also need to be familiar with the specifics of each class to some extent. But greatswordsman... it's literally a very rare class."
Mina explained the situation to Eugene in detail.
Strong types are usually short and stocky.
They mostly use maces, clubs, and axes.
Greatswords are suitable for tall builds with broad shoulders and a large frame.
Even with such a build, people don't necessarily choose to be greatswordsmen.
"There's what Mina said, but more than anything, the perception..."
"That's right, because of the image of the dragon-slaying demon race greatswordsman..."
The reason people don't choose it even if they have the physique or ability,
Is because there's a strong perception that it's a class symbolizing the demon race.
'Hmm... That's why I chose it though...'
Listening to Jeanne and Sophia's tiki-taka level muttering,
Eugene Schneider felt awkward.
Indeed, people's perceptions vary greatly.
However, after some time had passed,
'What are these two women doing now...?'
The one whose pupils were shaking beyond awkwardness
Became Jeanne d'Arc de Sel Orléans, the second daughter of the Orléans Grand Duke family.
