Arthur blinked at his reflection as he stopd in front of a large dressing mirror while inspecting his new attire.
Just as promised, his new teammates gave him their cuts from their share of the quest rewards to get Arthur a nice new dress to replace his old bloodied clothes.
"Well... How do I look?"
Arthur asked as his cheeks flushed a little.
The people present with Arthur were the girls in his team—Rachel and Emilia, who had taken it upon themselves to get him a nice new pair of clothes.
"W-what do think Rachel?" Emilia asked while trying to hide her already blushing face.
"He's adorable..." She replied with sparkles in her eyes.
"H-how can a kid look so stunning?" Asked one of the shopkeeper at the cloth shop.
"I agree with you." Another one replied.
Arthur on the other hand just shrugged off the attention he got as he turned to look at himself again.
He wore an open black jacket on top of a plain white shirt, black trousers and boots to match.
Although the attire looked ordinary, but seeing it on Arthur gave off that adorable vibe than others.
"We'll take it!" Rachel ordered, dropping the payment on the counter. "Any objections?" She asked Arthur.
"None at all" he answered.
"Excellent." She replied, clasping her hands together.
• • •
The trio walked down the street and we're on their way back to the guild, but the attention they received kept them from thinking straight.
"Maybe I should consider wearing a mask." Arthur murmured.
"Nah this attention is nothing. You'll get used to it in a while." Emilia cheered.
'I'll get used to it huh...' Arthur thought.
*Clang!!!.... *Clang!!!... *Clang....
The sound of metal striking metal caught Arthur's ears. The source was from a nearby blacksmith's shop a little ways away from their position.
"Hey you guys should go on ahead without me" Arthur said, sprinting towards the smithy. "I'll catch up!"
"O-k?" The both replied in unison.
•••
"All this time, I've just been borrowing swords from the guild,..." Arthur whispered as he stepped into the blacksmith's workshop. The heat washed over him immediately, thick and dry. Sparks flew with every strike of the hammer, while the scent of burning coal filled his lungs.
"... It's about time I got my own sword."
"Welcome!" the smith called out, too focused on his work to attend to Arthur.
.
For a 'man', the blacksmith was on the short side of the equation. He was a broad-shouldered man with auburn hair. A peculiar traitof a certain race a little common to Arthur.
'A dwarf.' He exclaimed.
He knew they existed, he just hadn't seen one before. So far, since his reincarnation, he had only met humans and an elf. But now he could proudly add a dwarf to his checklist.
Still busy hammering a glowing red blade on the anvil, he asked. "What can I do for you, lad?"
"I'd like to buy a short sword." Arthur answered while browsing through the display rack to see the numerous weapons present in the shop.
"Got any preferences?" The man asked.
Instead of replying, Arthur shjit him his own question. "How about that one?" He pointed to a sword that stood at a corner, barely even noticeable at first glance.
The blacksmith finally looked up. His eyes narrowed. "Ahhh, that lil' guy... I just made it a couple of days ago."
"Is that so?..." Arthur picked it up and unsheathed the sword to reveal an obsidian black blade hidden underneath. Both it's size and weight were perfect for Arthur. At least until he heard the price.
"3 bronze coins?!" Arthur exclaimed. He contemplated the pros and cons of spending that large amount of money. Especially when it was borrowed to him by his party.
The smith eyed him up and down, then chuckled. "Aye, I remember now, you're the kid who downed an Ash Wolf alone, right?."
Arthur winced slightly but nodded. "That's me."
"Figured. Everyone's been talking about you. You've got the air of someone who's pretty experienced. Alright then, for you, I'll make it 2 bronze. Nothing less."
"Deal" Arthur answered with an out stretche d hand, handing over the coins to the dwarf who ogled them with greed after receiving it.
"Oh ho?... T'was nice doing business with with ya lad, come again" he said, his eyes still fixed as Arthur walked out of the shop with his new weapon in hand.
"Um..." Arthur pondered as he just realized that he only had enough coins to stay at the inn for a night.
"It'll have to do until I get more money." He added, strapping the sword to his side, with a strap that the blacksmith had given him along with the sword purchase for an extra 3 coppers.
Khali
"Well that's thats that, now that I have a good sword, I think it's time to hunt some kobolds."