「しかし、一度で使い捨てる武器の為となると、少々身が入らんでござるな......」
「そうか? 考え方次第だと思うけど。使い捨てって言い方も、決戦兵器! とか秘密兵器! とか言い方を変えるだけでアラ不思議」
「おお! 何だかやる気が湧いてきたでござるよ!」
「だろ? それに完全に無駄になる訳じゃないからな。イベントが終わったら取引掲示板で売却する予定だし、重戦士の攻撃型とかなら喜んで使ってくれるって」
「確かに。ユーミル殿が常用するのは厳しくとも、重戦士なら問題ない者も居るでござろうしなぁ」
「ほら、喋ってばかりいないで手を動かしてくれ。どの道、大量の鉄が必要なのは変わりないんだから」
「地味ーな作業でござるな......この作業感もMMORPGの
俺達はひたすらツルハシを振るっている。
道具屋で店売りされている物で、価格は一本100G。
使用可能回数はおおよそ三十回といったところ。
採取ポイントはフィールドのあちこちにあるのだが、ヒースローの街の東にあるフィールドは山が多い。
よって、鉱物系の採取にはうってつけの場所なのである。
採取に関してはプレイヤー毎、一定時間で採取地点が復活するように設定されている。
採れるアイテムの量・レアリティに多少のランダム性はあるが、ある程度は似た様な結果に収束するようになっている。
大事なのは採取する回数だ。
実は、今の時刻は登校前の早朝だったりする。
登校前と帰宅直後に五~十分程度のログインをして採取。
それと普段プレイする時間に採取する分を含めれば、結構な量を集めることが可能だ。
鉱物はこの様な限られた入手ルートが主なせいもあって、取引掲示板では非常に品薄だ。
金策に使うには良いのだが、素材として使いたい側にとっては少し苦しい状態。
時間の経過に従って品薄状態は解消されるだろうが、現状ではこうやって自力で集める必要があるという訳だ。
「あ、終わった。そっちはどうだ?」
「もうちょっとでござるよ。今、採取ポイントの光が小さくなってきた所にて」
「じゃあ、俺は先に街に戻ってログアウトするわ」
「待って! わっち待って! 俺、寂しい!」
「何だよ......急に素に戻るなよ」
「せっかく採取時間が一致したんだから、少しだけ待ってくれよー」
トビの言う通り、こうして朝に一緒に採取をしているのは単なる偶然だ。
フレンド登録したプレイヤーがログインしてくると、今居る場所も含めてシステムから通知されるので、タイミングさえ合っていれば合流は容易なのである。
ちなみにユーミルにもリィズにも、リアルに支障の出ない範囲で出来るだけ集めてもらうようには言ってあるが......どちらも朝は弱い。
未祐は単にずぼらで寝坊しやすく、理世は日にもよるが低血圧気味だ。
無理をしてまでゲームにログインする必要もないだろう。
「お前、やたらと一人にされるのを嫌がるよな......最初から一人だと気にしない癖に」
「小さい頃、みんなと遊んでたと思ったら
「あー、俺は無いかな。遊びに飽きた未祐にどっか連行されるか、理世が心配で一番最初に帰ってたから」
「根っからの置いていく側かよぉ! と、とにかくもう終わるから少し待ってよ!」
「仕方ねえなぁ......」
トビがツルハシを振っている間、俺は近くの草むらの採取ポイントを適当に回った。
お、薬草がある。
薬草といえば、そろそろポーション作りなんかも気になってきた所である。
イベントが終わったら、ホームを構えて本格的に始めてみたいもんだ。
時間は進んで日曜日、午後九時のTB内。
その夜、俺は四人分の大量の鉄をインベントリに持って『アルトロワの村』の鍛冶場に立っていた。
「だぁぁ、高炉が欲しい! 高炉が欲しいー! それで鋳型に流し込めたら楽なのに!」
愚痴りながら足踏み式のフイゴを踏みまくる。
村にある炉はかなり原始的な構造である、高さ1メートル前後の「レン炉」と呼ばれるもの。
現在は第二工程なので、第一工程である酸化鉄の酸素の還元は既に済んでいる。
炉の温度を上げる為にフイゴを使ってひたすら送風、送風、送風......。
ちなみに素材には鉄以外にもメテオゴーレムから採れた『隕鉄』も含まれている。
これを混ぜることで、普通の鉄装備よりも完成品の質は格段に向上! というのが、セレーネさんによる弁だ。
そんな彼女は、俺と同じ様にフイゴを踏みながらも涼しい顔をしている。
「ほらほら、頑張れー。私だって木炭高炉とか水車動力のフイゴとか欲しいけど、無いものは仕方ないよ。もうちょっとだから、しっかりね」
「くそう! TBが中世風ならせめてシュトゥック炉じゃないのか! はぁ、はぁ......何でセレーネさんは息切れ一つしていないんですか!?」
「慣れてるからね。ハインド君は無駄な所に力が入り過ぎているんだよ――うん、オッケー。ここからはいよいよ、
低ランクの鍛冶の場合は炉の管理は一切必要なく、しかもある程度形が出来た武器や防具が冗談のようにボロッと炉から出現する。
それを簡単に叩いて整えて完成となる訳なのだが、それはランクの低い装備に限った話である。
それ以降はこの様に一気に工程が煩雑化。
ゲームらしく優遇されているのは炉の温度が上がる時間の短縮と、それから一度に加工できる鉄の量くらいのものだ。
特に後者は、現実と同じように日に最大十キロ程度では作れるものに制限が掛かり過ぎてしまう。
今回の様な武器は特にそうなので、この仕様は個人的にありがたい。
向こう槌と呼ばれる大きめのハンマーの重量は現実で約3キロ......らしいのだが、ゲーム内でも実際に同じくらいの手応えを感じる。
こんな所にまで凝らなくても良いのに......結構な回数を振る必要があるから、これはしんどい。
武器は軽くする補正を掛けられるのに、こういう工具は駄目なんだもんな。
向こう槌を熱された鉄塊に向けて振り降ろす。
叩く度に、スラッグを含んだ火花が大きく飛び散る。
熱気で顔が熱い......ハンマーで圧力を加えて不純物を取り除きながら、徐々に形を作っていく。
俺が大雑把な部分の伸ばしを、セレーネさんが普通のハンマーや特殊な形状の物を使って細かな部分を整えていく。
イメージの共有は出来ている。
互いに無言で、息の合った動きで武器は完成に向かっていく。
......やがて俺が手を止め、後はセレーネさんの動きを見守るのみとなって暫く。
「出来た!」
セレーネさんが顔を上げる。
会心の出来といった表情で、指で丸を作ってみせた。
隣の作業場のプレイヤーも、興味津々といった様子でこちらを眺めている。
「おお......こうして実物――といってもゲームですけど。現実に近いVRで見ると、とても迫力がありますね」
「後は自然冷却して、研いだら完成かな。......誘ってくれてありがとうね、ハインド君。私にとっても、良い経験になったよ。そ、その......二人で一つの物を作るのって、楽しいね」
「俺も楽しかったです。ありがとうございました、セレーネさん。後は、あいつがコレを上手く扱えるかどうか......」
「私の趣味には合わないけど、これはこれでロマンの塊だよね」
「力こそパワーだ! 的な、ちょっと頭の悪い表現を使いたくなりますね」
「......確かに」
それは人の身の丈よりも更に大きく、2メートルを超える巨大な剣。
メテオゴーレムの隕鉄によって硬度も増した、文字通りの決戦兵器。
ゲームでなければ、ユーミルの腕力では持ち上げることすら到底不可能な代物。
こんな武器だが、アレンジ装備ではなく設計図が存在するタイプのものだ。
『極上のメテオグレートソード+2』――それが今回の鍛冶で得た、武器の完成品の名前である。
[However, working to get a weapon that will be thrown away after a single use, I can't seem to get worked up for it...]  (Tobi)
[Is that so? I believe it depends on the way you think about it. If we talk about single-use weapons, it could also mean a decisive battle weapon! Or a secret weapon! It sounds kind of amazing just by saying it in another way]  (Hind)
[Oh! I'm feeling more motivated now!]  (Tobi)
[Right? Besides, it's not like it'll become completely useless. I plan to sell it in the trading BBS after the event ends, attack type heavy warriors will definitely gladly use]  (Hind)
[That's true. It would be hard for Yumir-dono to use it normally, but there would be no problems for a heavy warrior to use it after all]  (Tobi)
[Come on, don't just stand there talking, move your hands. At any rate, it won't change the fact that we need a large amount of iron]  (Hind)
[This type of work is so plain...even though we could say this kind of work is also part of a MMORPG's charm]  (Tobi)
We earnestly swung our pickaxes.
They were sold at the second-hand shop, each one cost 100G.
The times you can use it is roughly 30 times.
Harvesting points are placed all over the place, but in the field to the east of Heathrow town, there are a lot of mines.
Therefore, it's the ideal place to use the mining system to collect materials.
When it comes to the mining system, each mining point can be used by only 1 player and they are set to regenerate after a fixed amount of time.
Regarding the items you mine, the amount and rarity are somewhat random, but to a certain extent the results are about the same.
The important thing is the number of times you mine.
The truth is...it's currently early in the morning, right before we have to go and attend school.
Before going to school and right after returning home, we log in for about 5-10 mins to collect materials.
If we add that to the time we mine during our usual play-time, we are able to mine quite the nice amount.
Since the usual way to obtain minerals is like this, they are quite hard to come by in the trading BBS.
It would be fine to use the money we have earned, but for the materials we want to use, our current financial situation is a bit tight.
With enough time the shortage of materials will be gone, but at the present time, we have to collect them with our own efforts.
[Ah, I'm done. How is it going over there?]  (Hind)
[Just need a bit more time. Right now, the light from the mining point is starting to dim]  (Tobi)
[In that case, I'll go ahead first and return to town then log out]  (Hind)
[Wait! Wacchi wait! I'll get lonely!]  (Tobi)
[What's with that...don't just change back your way of speaking so suddenly]  (Hind)
[Since we are mining at the same time for a change, wait for me just a bit]  (Tobi)
Just as he had said, for both of us to be here mining at the same time in the morning was a complete coincidence.
Once you register a player as a friend and they log in, the system notifies you of where they are, so as long as the timing is right, it's easy enough to meet up.
For the record, Yumir and Riizu said they would mine when they could as long as it didn't interfere with their daily life but...both of them are quite weak in the morning.
Miyu just oversleeps but Rise has low blood pressure in the morning and at night.
There's no need for them to force themselves to play the game.
[You really dislike being alone huh...even though you didn't mind being alone in the beginning]  (Hind)
[When you were a kid, didn't you ever notice you were suddenly alone when you thought you were playing with everyone? That caused a bit of trauma to me...being alone in the swings...with a mother that wouldn't come and pick you up...in a park when it was turning dark...]  (Tobi)
[Ah, probably not for me. I was usually dragged somewhere after Miyu got tired of playing around and I usually was the first one to return home because I was worried about Rise]  (Hind)
[Am I the only one!? A-Anyway, I'm about to finish so wait for a bit longer!]  (Tobi)
[Guess I have no choice...]  (Hind)
While Tobi was swinging his pickaxe, I went around the harvesting points in the grassy places nearby.
Oh, there are medicinal herbs here.
Speaking of medicinal herbs, I believe it's about time I took an interest in making potions.
Once the event ends, I want to set up a home and start working on it.
Time passed and it was Sunday, 9pm, inside TB.
That night, I stood in the blacksmith's workshop in [Altrowa village]  with the large quantity of iron we four had collected in my inventory.
[Dah! I want a blast furnace! I want a blast furnace! With that, it would be easier to pour it into the template!]  (Hind)
While voicing my complaints, I stepped on the bellows.
The furnaces in the village are quite primitive, they are called [Tempering furnaces]  and are about 1 meter in height.
We were in the second step at the moment, we had already done the first step which was to reduce the oxygen in the iron oxide by deoxidation.
By using the bellows I was earnestly increasing the temperature...
By the way, other than iron, we were also using the [Meteoric iron]  we got from the Meteo Golems.
Mixing these two materials, we'll make something of far better quality than what is usually made with simple iron! Or that's what Selene-san said.
She said that nonchalantly while stepping on the bellows like me.
[Come on, do your best. I would also like to have a blast furnace or bellows powered by water wheels, but we can't complain about what doesn't exist. We just need to keep it up for a bit longer, hang in there]  (Selene)
[Damn it! If TB is based in the middle-ages could they at least implement Stuckofens! Hah, Hah...why is Selene-san not even out of breath!?]  (Hind)
[Because I'm used to it. Hind-kun, you are putting a lot of unnecessary force into it...yup, alright. From now on, we are finally entering the forging process]  (Selene)
For low rank blacksmithing there's no need to manage the furnace, furthermore, by just making an approximate shape the weapons and defensive gear will come out of the furnace as if it was some sort of joke.
After that, just by striking them they'll be completed, that only applies to low rank blacksmithing.
For stuff that's more difficult, the process will turn more complex like this.
Since it's a game, the time it takes to increase the temperature is shortened, then it also tells you the amount of iron you'll need for it.
Particularly the latter one, things that might need about ten kilograms at most in real life to make have the amount necessary limited.
The weapon we are trying to make right now is like that so I'm personally grateful for it.
We were holding a hammer that was slightly bigger than a normal one, its weight would be around 3 kilograms in real life...or I believe that should be the case, inside the game it gives the feeling that it weights the same as it would in real life.
Even though they don't really have to be so elaborate with stuff like this...we'll have to swing the hammer multiple times so this is quite tiresome.
Weapons have weight corrections after all, why can't they do the same with these tools?
We brought down the hammer onto the reddened lump of iron.
Each time it was struck, sparks flew around in a magnificent way.
My face was hot because of the heat...while removing the impurities with the pressure from the hammer, it was gradually taking form.
I smoothed out the parts that looked rough, Selene-san was making the more detailed parts with a hammer that had a different shape than a normal one.
We shared the image we had in mind.
We both didn't say a thing, with coordinated movements, the weapon was being completed.
...Before long my arms stopped, all that was left was to watch over Selene-san's work.
[Done!]  (Selene)
Selene-san raised her face.
She looked as if she was happy with her work, so she made a circle with her fingers.
The players around us were also looking over here with great interest.
[Ooh...seeing it in person...though it's still inside a game. It looks pretty real even inside VR, it's quite impressive]  (Hind)
[All that's left is to let it cool naturally, it'll be done after we polish it. ...Thanks for inviting me over, Hind-kun. It was a really good experience for me. M-Making...something with just the two of us was fun]  (Selene)
[It was also fun for me. Thank you very much, Selene-san. All that's left is if she'll able to use this well or not...]  (Hind)
[This is not really what I'm into, but this also has a certain flair to it]  (Selene)
[Strength is power! Or something like that, it looks like something someone a bit stupid would use]  (Hind)
[...True]  (Selene)
The result was a giant sword over 2 meters long, longer than the height of a normal person.
Harder than the meteoric iron from the Meteo Golems, literally a decisive battle weapon.
If this wasn't a game, Yumir would definitely be unable to lift this thing.
This weapon is not something that was arranged by us but something made from a blueprint that already existed in the game.
[First-rate Meteo Golem Sword+2] ...that's the name of the finished weapon we got this time via blacksmithing.
VRMMO no Shien Shokunin ～Top Player no Shikakenin～
ＶＲＭＭＯの支援職人　～トッププレイヤーの仕掛人～
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/vrmmo-no-shien-shokunin-%ef%bd%9etop-player-no-shikakenin%ef%bd%9e/
Action Adventure Comedy Fantasy Harem Slice of Life
Adventurers Beautiful Female Lead Blacksmith Brother Complex Calm Protagonist Childhood Friends Clan Building Cooking Crafting Curious Protagonist Dense Protagonist Elemental Magic Fantasy Creatures Game Ranking System Gamers Hard-Working Protagonist Healers Level System Love Interest Falls in Love First Love Rivals Male Protagonist Misunderstandings MMORPG Ninjas Possessive Characters Priests Siblings Siblings Not Related by Blood Sword And Magic Virtual Reality Younger Love Interests Younger Sisters
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n4014ds/
二階堂風都