The Skill Collector

Kang, Kang, Kang. and the sound of scraping stones in a petty manner echoes over and over again in the workplace.

I gently closed the entrance door and decided to keep an eye on it until the work was done.

in a room with tools for processing stones and several large stones. There, there's one man.

Long hair back together, sleeveless clothes and half trousers.

My spine is so clear from the top of my clothes. Almost every day, a testament to craftsmen who continue to carve and forge stones.

There are several rows of stones at the wall that are just cut out squarely, but some colors are varied and close to black, and some are even cloudy gray.

Stone not yet on the wall on the right towards it. On the left was already finished - there was a line of tombstones.

"Is this it? Whoa, there was a collector. Give me something I need you to speak to."

"You can't get in the way of your work."

He places fleas on the ground, a masonry tool in his hand, and turns them loosely to loosen his shoulders.

The face and body are adhered to shredded stone powder, which is blackish overall.

I have a strange black painted face, but the face I wiped with a cloth looks calm with my eyes lowered.

"By the way, what can I do for you? Have you come to ask for someone's tombstone again?

"Yeah well. He wants me to make a tombstone of my choice before I live."

"Hmm. I take care of the collector. I'll take it as a priority."

Instead of knowing him as a tombstone carver from before, I have known him from previous generations.

The reason for this in the first place was to sell 'masonry' skills to previous generations.

For a long time I've missed the deaths of many. I don't even remember how many times I attended the funeral. If you live like that, you become more familiar with and involved in such relationships with nature.

"You're doing a great job whenever you see it."

I slipped my fingers on the finished tombstone.

The surface of the tombstone, polished without any irregularities, is smoothly finished.

There are many qualitative tombstones here, but tombs vary considerably from region to region and from person to person. The powerful seem to have a desire to build large graves in vain, and some kings have made the palace a whole grave.

Speaking of which, they say that a grave as huge as the mountain another powerful man made it build is now called a ruin and a tourist attraction.

Aside from talking about the out-of-digit rich, is there a difference in the material?

In the village and elsewhere, wooden planks. Stone, except for the poor in the big town.

Adventurers and others would also be classic in replacing the weapons they used regularly with grave markers.

In his case, he is a well-known craftsman, so the value is a little high. If I asked for it, I'd get a pretty cheap discount.

"I'm glad you brought me a job, but wouldn't a collector be able to carve it himself? If you could just sit back and be some kind of craftsman, you'd be able to make some money."

Craftsmen laugh bitterly as they scratch their cheeks about whether the powder is still there and disgusting.

He knows what I'm capable of, so I guess he's pointing that out.

"I'm not going to use my skills, but I'm not going to take the job."

Using all this skill to narrow it down to one position, it's not even my dream to be the world's greatest millionaire.

But other people's skills - I don't feel like exploring one path with my abilities. Get praise and wealth with the talents of others who are not your strength either. I didn't take that as a good idea.

Scattered, you won't understand what you're talking about using your skills, but it's your own obsession.

And until you settle with your sister, you can stay where you are.... I also like the collector's job.

"Right. The way you live is different, so it's not what others say anyway. So who wants what kind of grave marker?

"It's a request from someone who wants to be anonymous."

"Just give me a minute. That doesn't make a name for it."

"They say the name will be carved by another. Is that impossible?

"Do you want me to just shape the grave marker? No, I'm fine. It's not uncommon."

In the case of tree tomb marks, family names are given, or village chiefs are rarely in charge.

Stone requires skill, so I usually entrust everything to the craftsman. This time for a reason, I'm going to ask you to save it there.

"You might not have to carve your name on it."

"What do you mean?

"This was a silence. This is the story. Excuse me."

Surprisingly frowning, but I can't make this story into him in detail.

"What kind of request is that? I don't take it unless it's a request from a collector, but I trust you."

"I apologize for the danger of harming you if I tell you more about the situation."

This is too heavy a load for him to know.

He seems to have guessed the circumstances I can't tell you, and he won't say anything more either.

"So don't you know what the person's hobbies and favorite things are? It's been fashionable these days to carve your favorite decorations into the tomb."

"Really?

"More citizens can afford it when the country is rich. It wouldn't be strange to have someone to elaborate on a grave that will be a permanent habitat, just as you are committed to your home."

That being said, when I looked again at the finished product, there were quite a few objects in the form in which flowers and animals were carved in addition to the common form, the tomb marker.

Even more amazing are the tombstones themselves in the form of animals, pots, chairs, etc.

"It's a furniture maker's grave, and you're a grocery store."

"I see, it's distinctive inside. You won't get lost searching for a grave."

"Well, that's why it's taking longer than ever to carve one."

It would take several times, if poor, tens of times longer than a conventional square plank-shaped object with just rounded top.

This could be the case, because just looking at the headstone will reveal your lifetime.

Assuming you get something decorated, is it a hobby or favorite thing......

"You liked reading and painting"

"That's a luxurious hobby. I wonder if he's wealthy."

Books circulate in large cities, but are chased into daily life when it comes to small villages, so prevalence is low to the extent that village chiefs, hidden scholars, or reading lovers have a few books.

In the first place, there are villages where letters cannot be read except by merchants and village chiefs.

When it comes to painting, the picture material is not cheap either, so few people write with hobbies unless they are also painters.

"I'll write a drawing that references that, so three days, no, two days from now, okay? Can you come check it out?

"You're still working fast. Okay, I'll see you at this hour.... Uh, and... I need another favor."

The details are again next time, so I handed over the souvenirs and left the workshop behind.

I have one plan to finish, but I have an important project to start this afternoon, so I need to hurry to the next scene.

"Lately, in the middle of the night, perverts have appeared all over the city and become a problem. She wandered around naked, wearing a jacket, and when she found a young woman, she said it was a trick to show off her front."

I was asked if there was an interesting story in the alley, so I touched on the subject of the pervert that Sumire had been anxiously consulting, but the woman in front of me is frowning and staring at me.

"Why did you tell me that story..."

My voice is shaking slightly as I seem to be pushing my anger to death.

The railing of the chair held by the woman in front of her with all her strength makes a squeaky noise but there is nothing around her.

Wearing a pitch-black dress and a cheek wand dressed unnaturally like an air chair was the queen visiting the land of piles.

"Nothing else, but I was wondering if you could understand the killer's feelings"

"I didn't like it and spend it naked. Shit!

Were you frightened by the power of the yelling queen, the surface of the black clothes slightly crept.

"Isn't Groy scared"

"Whoa, I'm sorry, Groy. You don't have to worry about it. Look, I'm not angry, I'm not angry. You smile, right?"

My cheeks are cramped because I'm forced to smile, but my clothes movement has healed.

She wears a black dress, but it has a thin black slime affixed to the original dress to keep it in shape.

It is a bitter measure against the Queen who always only looks naked under the influence of her only-skilled 'transparency'.

"Huh. The collector takes care of a lot of things, but a little more courtesy to the queen, or something..."

He puts his hand on his forehead and shakes his head left and right, sighing with a tired look.

Every time we make fun of each other, it's up to us to make fun of each other, but let's keep it that way. Making me seriously angry even involves the prince, so I get into some trouble.

"So what can I do for you?

"It was. You will be aware that there are disturbing moves in the neighbouring countries. Apparently, the invasion will begin in earnest. There was a declaration of war that if this promise could not be accepted, the war would be unavoidable."

"Is it that dictatorship? You're finally moving."

The King, who was incompetent, at the behest of a certain person... don't you even need to cloud your words? He invested in the military under the influence of his sister, who pulls threads behind him, and began to threaten the neighborhood.

This is not just a threat. It is almost certain that we will start a war of aggression soon.

According to information from Maekil and Sleeping Princess, food is well stockpiled, and mercenaries and reputable adventurers are gathered in one dictatorship after another.

"There's also a rear shield in Pile Country here. I don't know if we can start by invading another country and boosting our power, but the trend in this country is often unexpected. How did you get your armament ready when you said it was a country not even rich in flattery? I don't know where that funding comes from."

He's pretending to be worried, but his sharp eyes are shooting at me.

I had darkly told him that I knew all those eyes.

If you become the queen of a single country, you will be able to carry out the same or more intelligence activities as this one. No wonder I'm sensing the presence of my sister.

"Maybe there's someone behind you who can pull the thread."

"... right. More than ten people have already lost touch with him who had him sneak into the country. I'm pretty sure he's a cutter inside."

Maekil was going to stay in that country and gather information, but it seemed like me and Sleep Princess were right to stop.

This is not just my sister, but I have also experienced excellent distribution. According to Kymrose, who was an enemy executive, there are still many rare and only-skilled owners.

"I borrowed five thousand brilliant soldiers from the land of piles, and they are on security, but I must not have a bad feeling. Just in case, about 10% of the people are allowed to move here."

Have you already transferred 10% of people, albeit in a small country?

If you're an ally and you're engaged to a prince, that's the only way, but you've done it all out of your mind.

Perhaps only the wealthy are moving. The impact of the spread of luxury goods has probably been felt.

"All I can say is thank you to the prince for accepting it with pleasure. That's my beloved man."

The queen with the face of a maiden in love is twisting her whole body with her hands on her cheeks.

It's fresh because I've seen all the intimidating faces and attitudes, but scarier in a different way than when I'm yelling.

When the first man the queen has ever fallen in love with without any experience in love becomes that prince, don't snort in love either.

He has no problems with standing behavior or appearance, besides his ability to perceive beforehand what he wants them to do. Wouldn't it be an ideal male portrait in a way, albeit thanks to his' psycholeptic 'skills?

"In case the war starts, we are prepared to defend ourselves, but we plan to let all of our people flee to the land of piles. I'm getting a receptive attitude."

Do you mean to accept all of the immigrants? It is not just for humanitarian reasons, it is also that there is so much room in the country.

It seems to have done its job to steer the finances of this country to moisture. It is significant that his recruitment and mining problems, the owner of luck, have been cleaned up.

... There was a lot going on in the mine, and Lipre and Cuyoli didn't keep their mouths shut for a while though. That would be trivial compared to inter-State problems.

"I'm planning to go check on that country in the near future. I'll let you know as soon as the information comes in."

"A collector wouldn't have to worry... but be careful."

"I'll pay close attention. I will withdraw immediately if I feel in danger."

I am gravely aware of the danger of jumping into my sister's nostalgia.

But the importance of getting the other person's information was engraved in my mind when I lost my left arm.

A must to win. I want to know as much as I can about my sister's power.

"Do you want me to take this snitch? These are the people who are ready to give up their lives. I don't care if you abandon me when I have to."

Cold eyes.

Some may accuse the Queen of being ruthless, but there can be no one at the top of the country who cannot even make a decision to slash and throw away.

"Just how you feel is enough. Because it's easier for one person to move."

When it comes to covert behavior, it's easier for one person to move something. There are many people I can count on, but I want you to assume that they will be the right people to gather latent information...

There are a few people who can come up with the right talent for rough things.

Cuyoli stands out for good or bad and doesn't even try to avoid traps.

Champions don't have the idea of hiding themselves in the first place. If there is a trap, I go in and crush it myself.

Then the means will be limited.

"If you have to, you can take the people and dump the country... I'm sorry about your ancestors. People can start over as long as they have life. Although, I'm not willing to throw it away easily. It is also the Queen's duty to protect the property of the people, the places where they live, and the memories of the people."

In this day and age, many people chase and migrate from their homeland under the influence of war and demons.

I have seen many times the thoughtless expression of people leaving the land where they were born and raised in tears.

"It won't be the worst development.... No, you can't."

That was not a word addressed to the queen, but to herself.

The next day, I'll take a trip to where the headstone is supposed to stand. Few points coincide with past memories.

The small private house standing on the hill decays in walls and ceilings, and even the foundations are buried in the earth.

Not a single flower has been planted in the flowerbed that was in the garden. There are no growers, so just wait for them to wither even when planted.

"After all, this is the only place to build a grave, isn't it?"

Our site spent time with my sister.

My figure remains young, but when I come to this place, it makes me reconfirm the years that have passed.

The next time I see my sister, it will be a lifetime goodbye.

"If you curse people, you say two holes. Don't worry, I'll dig the grave instead of your sister."

I'll dig two holes on this spot and keep the lid on.

It's going to be me or my sister that ends my life too long... or I don't know if it's going to be two. Taking that into account, I have not engraved my name on the tomb marker.

so that which will sleep beneath it.