“Are you okay master? It looks like you drank a lot.”
“I feel sick after drinking so much, but I’m not drunk.”
“And you said you were only joining her for a drink too! Doesn’t that woman know when to stop!?”
Durandal is shaking with anger.
I ended up staying with Sasha until she was satisfied. The cheats I got from Mirabel prevent me from getting drunk, but drinking that much makes me feel full and sick.
I felt like throwing up, but held it back and made it back to my room.
And after not saying a word the whole time, Durandal started talking like a dam bursting the moment we got back. Good job containing yourself.
Durandal’s words are directed straight at Sasha.
“Don’t get so mad. I was the one who sought her for advice.”
“But!”
“I’m glad you’re mad for my sake, but it’s okay. Thanks, Durandal.”
“Yes…”
I smile, because Durandal really hasn’t changed in the five years since I found her stabbed in the depths of some ruins and pulled her out.
She woke up soon after thanks to my magic energy, and I’ve had her with me for longer than I’ve been in the hero’s party.
“It’s too early to go to sleep.”
“Yes, it should be just after noon. There is quite a bit of time until the sun sets.”
I’m thinking about going to bed because I’m feeling a little sick, but I would ruin my sleep schedule.
Come to think of it, I was drinking in the morning… And Sasha went right back to the first floor to drink some more.
She really does drink too much.
It’s too early to go to bed, and I don’t want to change my sleep schedule. And since I’m not hurt or sick, I’ll be fine if I give it some time.
Let’s take it easy.
I grab a chair, and put Durandal on it. Then I sit on the other side of the table.
We talked a bit this morning, but it’s important to make time to talk.
Durandal talks, unlike other weapons. She has feelings and intelligence, and her knowledge has saved me a few times too.
She’s friendly now, but I really don’t want to upset her and make an enemy out of her. I don’t even have another weapon.
Should I carry one just in case? No, Durandal would sulk.
Also, Durandal is top of the line as a weapon, so any other sword would pale in comparison.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Yes! I will answer anything! What I like, and even my three sizes.”
Three sizes? I’m not even going to ask what that means. It would be too boorish.
Is it like the size of the handle and blade? I don’t care about that.
About my question. I’ve had Durandal with me for five years, but there’s something I’ve never quite found the right timing to ask.
But if we’re going to stay together, I think I should.
“I don’t know what you mean by three sizes, but… Durandal, you are a woman, right?”
It’s a bit hard to ask, because it comes so late.
I don’t know if swords even have genders, but Durandal does have a mind of her own. It wouldn’t be that crazy for Durandal to have a gender.
Maybe I shouldn’t have asked, because Durandal starts shaking on the chair.
This is what happens when she’s mad.
“Sorry, Durandal! That was a rude thing to ask.”
“It sure was! Were you not my master, I would beat you to a pulp!”
Durandal is shaking again.
“Look! Look at this pristine silver body! What sword has a body as beautiful as this!?”
Actually, you’re in the scabbard, so I can’t see the blade.
She… Durandal, continues to protest.
“This flawless design created by a skilled craftsman! Every jewel makes me more pronounced!
And above all else, this beautiful angelic voice? Master, what gentleman would ask something with all these features if she is a woman!?”
“I’m really sorry! I should have been more thoughtful.”
I’m a failure as a gentleman. Asking her gender was stirring up a hornet’s nest.
Let’s change the subject. I feel like Durandal is just going to keep yelling at me if we continue.
“Durandal, there’s another thing I want to ask…”
“Yes? If you still have something to say, my priority is to answer your question! Aren’t I a good sword!?”
“Thanks Durandal. It’s not that big of a deal, but why do you call me master?”
“I see! Well then! There is no particular reason, it’s just that my former master told me he wanted me to call him that, and I never stopped!”
“Former master?”
“Yes. Unlike you, he was a little on the plump side! His hands sweated a lot, and I remember that stickiness not feeling good.”
I’m surprised to hear she has a former master. But it does make sense. It’s hard to imagine she was made and immediately placed in those ruins.
It would be one thing if it was some low quality sword, but Durandal is a top of the line magic sword. Of course someone else wielded her.
…Is my hand sweat okay?
“Sorry, but I’m curious about that former master. Can you tell me more?”
“No problem, but it might be long.”
“Okay.”
Durandal starts talking with a happy tone, and that former master doesn’t sound like a bad person.
“His personality wasn’t bad, but I thought he would be more popular if he changed his body a little! He was always going on about not being popular, so I would tell him to put some effort into it!”
“I-I see.”
“It was like that with food! He kept eating meat, and no vegetables. That influenced his body odor and his health too! But he kept saying he didn’t like vegetables.”
“It’s important to have a nice balance.”
“I wish he could have learned from your example. And he was slovenly with women too! Especially the way he grinned when he saw a woman’s chest. With me right next to him, no less!
That’s no way for a gentleman to act!”
“I see…”
It feels like all of Durandal’s grievances about her former master are pouring out.
There are times when she shakes like she does when she’s angry, and it feels like she grumbles for about an hour.
“Can I ask you his name?”
“Ah! I guess I haven’t said it!”
It didn’t come up once in the middle of all that complaining, she just keeps referring to him as her former master.
Calling him master really stuck with her.
“His name was Takeshi!”
“Takeshi?”
That’s not a name I’ve heard in this world, but it was very familiar to me in my old world.
I ask for his full name, and Durandal tries to remember it.
“I remember! It was Takeshi Goda. He was made fun of for his name, so he didn’t really like it. But I guess it really was a strange name!”
No wonder. It was the name of the leader of a group of kids in an anime that was popular nationwide.
And it’s without a doubt a Japanese name,
So Durandal’s former master was also Japanese…
“Can you tell me more about this Takeshi… Hn?”
I hear footsteps approaching my room. They seem light. Is it a girl?
Durandal, who was talking so much, is now quiet. She never speaks in front of anyone else.
The footsteps stop, and I hear a knock on the door. Whoever it is, they have business with me.
“Coming.”
I grab Durandal just in case. I have to always be on the lookout for demon attacks.
I slowly open the door, and…
“I am making a visit!”
She says with her hands on her hips and a laugh.
This is another member of the hero’s party, Dal the thief.
