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It was already May, so they seemed to be planting various summer vegetables. I walked a bit further and found a field with sprouts that looked familiar…

Huh? Hmmm? …Huh? Seriously? Ah… I see, that’s how it is… No, yeah. What I found was rice. Rice in a field, not a paddy field, but in a regular field – upland rice.

The rice circulating in this country, even though it was a short-grain variety, had a somewhat weird taste, and this was probably the reason. Upland rice, unlike paddy rice, tended to suffer from insufficient water during its growth stage, making the seed part that is used for consumption harder and less palatable.

It’s kind of strange to have solved a long-standing question in such an unexpected way, huh…? But I’m not exactly thrilled.

But upland rice, huh… Well, managing paddy fields is a real hassle, after all…

After making the discovery about upland rice, it was already around noon, so I decided to head back to town. I thought about grabbing something to eat from a stall; cooking seemed like too much trouble.

I wondered if there was anything delicious available. While browsing the stalls, someone called out to me.

“Oh, it’s Ren?”
“Huh? Nell?”

Meeting in a place like this was unusual, and it had only been a day since we last met.

“What’s up? Are you taking the day off from work today?”
“Ah, well… That’s more like what I was going to say, or how should I put it…”
“Huh?”

What does she mean?

“Well, can you come with me for a moment? There’s something I want to talk about… Um, it’s about the room in that inn over there, the one we’re renting…”

She pointed to the inn where we had stayed when we first came to this town. But what does she want to talk about? Hmm… Could it be related to buying the magic sword? I’m not sure about selling it, though…

“Um, it’s not lunchtime yet. Would you like to eat something first?”
“Oh, sorry! I wasn’t considerate… But if that’s the case, can I treat you to something? Let’s go over there!”

I was led along as if being dragged, and we ended up at the high-class restaurant where we had lunch on the day we arrived in town. Could this be… some form of hospitality?

We eventually discussed what she wanted to talk about while having a meal. As expected, it was about buying the magic sword.

Apparently, Rad really wanted the magic sword I had loaned out. He thought that since I already had several of the same sword, he might be able to persuade me to part with one if he gathered enough money and begged for it.

From then on, they took on special quests to exterminate Goblins and earned a substantial amount of money. The party members agreed that having a stronger weapon for Rad would improve their overall combat capabilities, so they worked hard together.

Recovering almost all of the equipment that had been stolen by Goblins was also significant. It allowed them to bounce back from their quest failure without a significant financial burden. They managed to gather 2,000 gold coins, combining Rad’s personal savings with a portion of the party’s shared assets.

However, simply bowing and begging wouldn’t guarantee that I would sell the sword to them, and building up trust and credibility would also take time.

So, what they came up with was to use a Contract Sorcery¹ to make a formal contract.

To briefly explain, in broad terms, “magic” referred to using only one’s own magic power for casting spells, while “sorcery” encompassed a wide range of practices that involved using a catalyst.

However, the distinction here was quite fuzzy. For instance, ritual magic that required a catalyst or high-level spells was sometimes referred to as “sorcery,” and disposable magic scrolls were not typically called “sorcery.” It’s a bit nebulous in that sense.

Among these, “Contract Sorcery” involved imbuing a blank magic scroll with specially processed magic power and inscribing it according to predefined formats. This allowed the effects written in the contract to be enforced on the contract participants. Naturally, these scrolls used for contract sorcery were quite expensive. They must have worked really hard to save up for it.

In the case of violating a contract made with contract sorcery, the person in breach may temporarily lose their voice, become immobile, or be prevented from taking actions contrary to the terms. Even attempting to go against the contract may cause excruciating pain throughout the body, and in the worst-case scenario, it could lead to death.

“…In other words, you’re saying you will use the contract sorcery to swear that you won’t disclose my information?”
“Yes. I understand that building trust gradually is the best approach, but time is of the essence… If you’d like, we can even include a clause stating that we won’t become hostile toward you.”

Ah, well, including that clause might be a good idea to ensure we don’t end up accidentally hostile to each other without realizing it. Yeah, I did receive help from Rad yesterday, and well, maybe it’s okay to sell it.

“Understood, that sounds fine. I will let go of it.”
“Are you sure?! Really?! Thank you so much!!”

With that, we headed to the inn where Nell and her party were staying to finalize the contract. Rad, who had been feeling down in his room, became ecstatic when he heard that I was willing to sell the sword. He rushed off to find the other members of his party. His emotions are quite intense!

The contract we agreed upon had the following terms:

1. You shall not disclose my (Ren’s) information, directly or indirectly.
2. Unless unavoidable circumstances arise, such as being deceived or unknowingly becoming hostile, you shall not become hostile toward me (Ren).
3. All members of Rad’s party shall strictly adhere to the above terms.

With all members of Rad’s party and me signing and sealing the contract with blood, it was officially established. And this contract scroll will be in my possession from now on.

“Ohh…! Finally, this sword is in my hands…! With this, I can become a Swordmaster…! Thank you…! Thank you so much…!”
“We’ll never forget this favor! If you ever face any trouble or need an extra hand, please don’t hesitate to ask. I’m sure we can be of help!”

Hmm, they’re expressing their gratitude so intensely that it’s making me feel a bit uncomfortable… Just to clarify, not only Rad and Nell but also the other members of their party were incredibly thankful. Some were shaking my hand vigorously while others had tears in their eyes. In the midst of it all, Rad was literally crying.

After things calmed down a bit, Rad mentioned that his savings had taken a huge hit due to the purchase of the magic sword. He was determined to go Goblin hunting tomorrow to replenish the funds, and he’d need to make up for the withdrawal from the party’s assets as well. So, it looked like he’d be quite busy in the near future.

…By the way, it turned out Rad’s party was actually a harem party. All the members were in romantic relationships with him. Their party funds were also savings to account for their future… Someone should just tear his thing off.

And once again, they asked me to name the sword, which put me in quite a bind. Asking me to name things, huh? Don’t regret it later…!

So I gave it the name “Evercut.”

Just to clarify, it’s not a kitchen knife, it’s a magic sword. I did consider names like “Solid Slash,” but I was concerned about copyright issues, you know?²　

“Evercut, huh… It has a unique ring to it, but it’s not bad at all.”

…Seriously?!

1. The word for used here is 魔術 instead of 魔法. Normally they are both translated as ‘magic’ but since it’s specifically differentiating them, I’m going to use Sorcery instead.
2. Evercut is a Japanese kitchen knife brand. Solid Slash is a magic sword from a fantasy franchise called Record of Lodoss War. Ren slightly altered both terms in a way that’s indistinguishable in translation.