Reincarnated as an SSS-Ranked Blacksmith Who Refuses to Forge Weapons-Chapter 206. The New Normal

Greg woke up feeling trapped, which was becoming a strange and familiar feeling.

Marina’s arm was across his chest, and she was breathing slowly and evenly. Lylia’s head rested on his prosthetic arm, and for the first time since he got it, the weight didn’t hurt.

The golden circuits in the limb pulsed with each breath she took, as if they were responding to her. Greg lay there for a moment, watching the early morning light come through the window of their shared bedroom.

He let himself feel something he had been afraid to admit.

Happiness.

It had been three days since they got back from Meridian. Three days of this new normal: waking up between two women he loved, having breakfast with the Brotherhood, and spending the evenings in comfort at home.

It was everything he had hoped for when he was reborn and chose peace over war.

So, of course, that meant that something was about to go horribly wrong. Greg had lived in both lives long enough to know when things were going too well.

Marina mumbled against his chest, "You’re thinking too loud," without opening her eyes.

"I can hear your brain freaking out from here."

"I’m not panicking," Greg said in a low voice so as not to wake Lylia.

"You’re always freaking out," Marina said, finally opening one eye to look at him. "It’s part of what makes you charming."

"Champion of Peace, a legendary blacksmith, fights off threats that could end the world, but he still worries about whether he remembered to bank the forge correctly."

Greg said, "I did bank the forge right."

"I looked twice."

"Three times," Lylia whispered from the other side, as if she were also awake. "I saw you check three times before you went to bed."

Greg weakly defended himself by saying, "Because forge fires are serious."

The sound of both women laughing softly made something warm settle in Greg’s chest. This was how he lived now. It was intricate, unconventional, and inexplicably superior to anything he could have imagined.

Mira’s voice came over from across the workshop, cheerful and awake for this time of day. "Good morning, Master-forger-darling and Mistress-warriors-beloveds!"

"I have rearranged the whole workshop by romantic resonance frequency!"

Marina raised her head to look at the spirit. "By what, you say?"

"Romantic resonance frequency," Mira said again, happily pointing to the workshop that had somehow been completely rearranged while they slept. "Things are now grouped by how much love went into making them!"

"The SSS-rank household items that are meant for loved ones are in the front. Things made out of desperation for combat are in the back."

"And the accidentally legendary items that were made while you were daydreaming about love are in a special middle section!"

Greg said, "That’s not a real way to organize things."

Mira said, "It is now!"

"It makes perfect sense!"

"This is where the Frying Pan of Eternal Flame goes because Marina is loved. And also Lylia is loved, so the Ladle of Magical Dispersion goes here."

"This is where the Headphones of Harmonic Peace go because Bork is loved by his family, which is different from being loved romantically but still important!"

Seraphine looked up from her research station in the corner, where she had been working since before dawn. She wasn’t looking at the bed situation on purpose, but her ears were a little pink.

"From a magical perspective, emotional investment in creation does change the patterns of magical resonance."

"Mira’s way of organizing things is academically sound but not very common."

"Thanks, Researcher-friend-beloved!" Mira said with a smile.

"I didn’t say you were loved," Seraphine said, but she was smiling a little.

Elwen was in her usual spot with her sketchbook on her lap. Greg saw her look at the three of them in bed and then quickly look away.

Her face was hard to read because it looked like she was happy for them and maybe even sad.

He remembered to talk to her about that later... and of course, when he learned how to talk to her without making things worse.

The sound of sizzling and the smell of cooking food from the kitchen told everyone that Felix and Donetta were making breakfast. Felix’s voice was loud and excited, even though it was early.

"Hey, Sensei! Do you want your eggs fried or scrambled?!"

"Oh! Forgot to also mention that we also got a letter from Meridian while you were sleeping!"

The steady sound of hammering from Bork’s corner showed that the dwarf was already busy with something, with his headphones on and completely focused on whatever project had caught his interest.

This was the Brotherhood’s new normal. Their found family, who all lived and worked together in a messy but organized way that worked better than any other way.

"Mmmmmmphhh~! Ahhh..." Marina sat up and groaned as she stretched. "Okay, I wake up when hearing something interesting about a letter."

"What are these letters from Meridian about?"

They got out of bed, and Greg saw that Lylia went to help Marina straighten the blankets without either of them saying anything. Little coordinated movements that came from weeks of learning how to share space and love without getting in each other’s way.

Felix said. "It was on the kitchen table, sealed with Veldway’s own mark."

"Veldway, huh...? Guess he already missed us all." Greg giggled.

Greg, who’s already in the kitchen, grabbed the letters and broke the seal to read them out loud while Marina and Lylia leaned against him on either side.

"Greg and the Brotherhood are still working on rebuilding, but it’s not going smoothly. The Royal Knights are slowly getting better, but it takes time to get rid of years of hidden corruption."

"People still have different opinions. Some people praise the truth as important, while others curse it for making them lose faith in institutions."

"King Anthony has surprisingly been in favor of reforms, but I think he’s more interested in avoiding rebellion than actually believing in them..."

"The living weapons in my armory keep asking about you. A few of them have said they want to see the outside world."

"Once things calm down, I might take them to Ferndale to see it. And of course... if things ever calm down, that is."

"Veldway Blackcourt, your friend and ally."

"That’s good to know," Marina said dryly. "People’s opinions are split, changes are happening slowly, and everything is definitely fine and not getting ready for another crisis."

"You are a pessimist," Lylia said.

Marina said, "Heh. More like I’m a realist."

"Every time we think things are getting better, the universe throws something new at us. Recognizing patterns doesn’t mean being negative."

Greg agreed that she had a point. "I’d rather enjoy the peace while we have it than always be ready for disaster."

Felix yelled from the kitchen, "That’s the spirit!"

"Positive thinking in the face of certain doom!"

"That’s what I like about you, Sensei!"

Greg said while facepalming, "That’s not even what I fucking said."

...

Breakfast was always a mess when the whole Brotherhood was there. Felix had made enough eggs to feed a small army, which is probably because he was still getting used to cooking for the Meridian relief efforts.

Donetta helped serve, moving with calm efficiency even though Felix kept making references to video games and bad puns.

"Okay," Bork said, taking off his headphones and sitting down with them. "What’s the plan for today?"

"More household items that became famous by accident?"

"Teaching the villagers that regular cooking pots are no longer used?"

Greg moved his prosthetic arm around and watched the golden circuits pulse in response. The limb was stable but only working at 40% of its pre-Calamity battle capacity.

He raised his golden prosthetic arm and said, "I was thinking about showing this to everyone."

"Show everyone that it works and tell them what happened with the First Hammer."

"Maybe you should start making new arm guards for the Brotherhood." Seraphine said, looking up from her breakfast, "The Guardian’s Oath arm guards were destroyed in the last battle."

"Making them again would keep you safe and test your current skills."

"Or you could take a break," Lylia said softly. "Your body is still healing from everything."

"The evolution of the Mythic class, the integration of prosthetics, and the emotional trauma of the fight."

"It wouldn’t hurt to wait a few more days."

Greg said, "I’ve been resting for three days straight, and I need to get to work..." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"That’s how I deal with things."

Marina snorted. "What he means is that he’s going crazy, and if he doesn’t hammer something soon, he’s going to start rearranging the workshop using a new crazy system that makes even less sense than romantic resonance frequency."

"Hey," Mira said. "My system is perfect!"

Marina said, "Your system put the tea kettle we banned for being too dangerous next to the butter knives."

"Well, yes! The tea kettle was made with a lot of love for peace, and the butter knives were made with a little love on a lazy afternoon."

"They have the same emotional effect!"

Greg chose not to take part in that debate. He stood up instead, and his prosthetic arm moved without him knowing it.

"I’m going to walk through the village while checking in with people and see how Ferndale is doing."

"Does anyone want to come?"

"Sure, I’ll go," Marina said right away.

"Me too," Lylia said.