The World’s Finest Assassin Gets Reincarnated in Another World as an Aristocrat - Volume 6 - Chapter 5

Chapter 5 | The Assassin Makes Rings

It was the third morning since the day I was so heavily injured. My body felt light, and the pain was gone.

“I’ve finally recovered.”

The wounds I’d suffered while examining the Fruit of Life had healed without so much as a lingering trace. I had my dad’s precise medical treatment to thank for that. If I’d left the rehabilitation to my accelerated self-healing from Rapid Recovery, there surely would’ve been scars.

An assassin’s appearance was very important. A good first impression is pivotal to getting near your target, and for better or worse, appearance plays a significant role in that. Horrific scars or burns would be a major handicap.

“I would have been bedridden for a year if I didn’t have Rapid Recovery.”

My injuries were so bad my body needed three days to heal. Rapid Recovery initially increased my recuperation by a hundredfold, and I had raised the proficiency of the skill to multiply the ratio by dozens more times than that. It took a lot to render me bedridden for so long.

“I’ve somehow gotten used to that new power, too…”

The small piece of the Fruit of Life’s power that penetrated my body had become part of my flesh and blood. I had put a lid over the energy, but I could feel the connection distinctly.

At present, it only worked in my favor, but I couldn’t be careless. I was carrying around a bomb and needed to find a way to live with it safely.

I used the messaging function of my communications device to see if there had been any important messages in the last three days. There was only one, and it was from Maha. Tarte had told her about my condition, and she wanted me to call her when I woke up.

I did so immediately. I doubted she would be able to answer because of how busy she was, so I was going to leave a message telling her when I would be free to talk. I was surprised, however, when she picked up instantly. She must have been hovering over the communications device, waiting for me to call.

“How are you feeling?!”

“I’m fine. I feel stronger than ever before, in fact.”

“Thank goodness, I was so worried. I considered abandoning my work and racing to you more than a few times.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“Because this is the battlefield you left me, dear brother.”

“You’re a good girl.”

Maha always did what needed to be done. There were few people who could consistently follow through on that like she did. I was also very grateful that she had subordinates she could trust to take over her work in times of emergency. I could rely on her for anything.

“You must know I don’t like being spoken to like I’m a child.”

“Sorry. I can’t seem to break the habit. Is that all you needed?”

“No. I’ve obtained the materials you wanted for the necklace and rings you’re making. As you requested, I got diamond, emerald, sapphire, alexandrite, and mithril, too.”

“I appreciate it.”

“I wanted to get AAA grade for all of them, but I was only able to manage AA for the emerald, sapphire, and alexandrite. I apologize.”

“Actually, I’d rather have AA for all of them but the diamond.”

The AAA grade was bestowed to less than 3 percent of all jewels. I gave Maha this request on short notice, so it was understandable that she couldn’t do better. Also, I knew of techniques to turn AA gems into AAA ones.

“Hey, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“I know the necklace is a present for Lady Esri, and you also told me you’re making engagement rings… But why do you need three stones for the rings? Will one have two gems? I’ve never heard of such a design.”

There was both anxiety and hope in Maha’s voice. I knew what she wanted to hear.

“No, I’m just making three rings. Diamonds project both strength and elegance through their radiance, their variety of cuts give them a great range of expression, and their nature as the hardest mineral reminds one of an ironclad will. That fits Dia’s personality perfectly. The diamond is for her.”

“That’s not how I think of diamonds. They do possess a unique shine, but they’re mostly used in manufacturing because of their hardness. They’re not valued highly on the market among other gemstones.”

“That’s why I said diamonds can express many different things depending on the cut.”

This world lacked the knowledge of how to refine diamonds. Diamonds are incredibly hard, which made them difficult to process. They weren’t particularly beautiful when raw, either.

Diamonds had been valued as lowly stones in my previous world until technology advanced to the point that cutting them became feasible. As Maha said, their primary use was in manufacturing.

I, however, knew how to shape diamonds to make them beautiful. I would create one more beautiful than any other gemstone, a worthy gift for Dia.

“I’d like to see the finished product. What about the other gemstones?”

“The emerald fits Tarte’s personality. Its jade-green color gives it a warm brilliance, and its simple presence is calming. That is who Tarte is to me.”

Emeralds weren’t just beautiful; they had a healing effect on the heart.

“That does sound like Tarte. She’s relaxing to be around… So what about the sapphire?” Maha’s voice shook. She seemed really nervous. It was time to stop messing with her.

“The sapphire is a beautiful blue gemstone that projects placidity and intelligence. Its shine engenders a shimmering and alluring charm. You’re always so serene, and smarter than anybody I know. The sapphire suits you perfectly. I wanted this to be a surprise for the next time we met, but after you asked, I felt I had to tell you.”

I heard a gasp. Maha didn’t respond for some time. She must have been fighting hard to contain her emotions.

“…Um, thank you. I’ll look forward to the completed ring.”

“I’ll make you one of the greatest rings this world has seen. Changing the subject, can you come out here in the next week or so? I think it’s about time I introduce you to my parents. We’re getting engaged, so that’s a must. I’ll give you your ring then.”

“I’ll find a way to make it work. How long is a round trip by carriage? Adjusting my schedule is going to be difficult.”

“I’ll come get you with an aircraft. I can get you here and back in a day, so that’s all the time you’ll need to free up.”

“In that case, I can definitely make it work. I’ll be there!”

“I’m looking forward to it. We’ll hammer down the date during our next call.”

I ended the transmission. Maha had successfully acquired all the jewels I’d asked for.

“I should get to work on the designs.” I headed to my desk.

I’d played the part of an art dealer or a designer several times to get close to assassination targets, so I had plenty of knowledge and skill when it came to designing jewelry. I was going to make accessories that brought out the unique charm of each woman in my life.

One week later, the gemstones and mithril I’d requested arrived together with my mother’s regular Natural You shipment. I quickly took them to a workshop I’d built.

“I don’t think watching me make jewelry is going to be very interesting, you two,” I said.

“I’ve been dying to watch your technique!” Dia responded.

“Yes, I’m excited as well,” Tarte agreed.

They said they wanted to observe, so I allowed it.

I started by processing the stones themselves. Some gems were beautiful left as they were, but cutting was necessary to bring out the unique brilliance of diamonds.

In my previous world, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds were considered the four precious jewels. Diamonds were worth very much here, however. Furthermore, when it came to alexandrite, sapphire, and emerald, only the AAA grades were judged to have value. The remaining majority were worth very little.

“I guess I’ll start with the sapphire,” I announced.

“That gem isn’t AAA. Are you sure it’ll work?” asked Dia.

I wasn’t surprised Dia noticed that. She was from a major noble family, and she had a keen eye when it came to gemstones. She was able to discern immediately that this gem was only AA grade.

“Yeah, it’ll work. It’ll be AAA before long,” I answered.

What made a sapphire AAA was the depth of its coloration and the lack of impurities in the interior. Most unprocessed sapphires had a blue that was too faint, and they sported visible imperfections as well. However, 3 percent of sapphires possessed a deep hue and lacked many visible flaws.

The stone Maha procured for me had a faint color and lacked elegance, and, while not many, it did have some impurities. It was about as close to a AAA sapphire as a AA-graded stone could be. I was impressed that Maha obtained it on such short notice. However, wearing it as it was in aristocratic society would get one ridiculed as a powerless noble presenting a sham in the hope of looking better than they really were.

Fortunately, a AA jewel could be made into a AAA with proper treatment.

“Precision Blaze.”

This was a fire spell I’d modified to enable pinpoint accuracy. I was using that flame to perform a heat treatment on the sapphire. Heating one to 1,600 degrees Celsius triggered a chemical reaction that caused the stone’s color to darken and eliminated interior flaws.

I worked with meticulous care. The heating wouldn’t accomplish anything if the temperature was too low, and overexposure to the flame would ruin the sapphire. Maintaining such a precise temperature was mentally exhausting, even for me. My task here also went beyond just darkening the blue; I was aiming for a specific shade that would bring out Maha’s intelligent charm.

After a little cheating with earth magic for a finishing touch, I was done.

“How does it look, Dia? Does it look AAA?” I asked.

“Yeah, that elegant blue is unmistakably the highest quality. That was amazing, Lugh. It’s like magic,” Dia praised.

“Well, I was using a spell… This result can be achieved without one, though.” To pull it off without magic, you’d need large, specialized equipment and a great deal of expertise.

“It’s also a spectacular shimmering hue. This is the first time I’ve ever seen the blue gleam so clearly,” Dia added.

I nodded. “Well spotted. Yes, this sapphire sparkles blue.”

That’s one more thing I was intent on achieving. The beauty of sapphires didn’t come from their color alone. Some contained silk inclusions that caused the blue to sparkle with glittering threads. The AAA status of a sapphire was decided not just by the depth of its shade but also by how it shimmered.

Heating sapphires normally made the silk inclusion disappear. The silk inclusions were nothing more than thin, rutile needles, and they melted under flame. That was why, even on Earth, sapphires with a deep shade of blue and no impurities without the need for heating were called “true sapphires” and sold for substantially higher prices.

Not even science could produce the shimmering blue. As such, true sapphires with rutile were extremely rare, and they were almost never put on the market. I, however, could cheat by using magic and just add the rutile after the heating treatment. That was impossible with technology alone.

“That blue gemstone is so beautiful. It’s called a sapphire?” asked Tarte.

“Yeah, that’s right. But that’s no ordinary one. I’ve never seen a specimen this amazing before. Not even a princess would have one this impressive,” Dia answered.

“It looks perfect because I treated it to look exactly the way I wanted it to, setting it apart from natural examples of its kind,” I explained.

The difference between natural and processed gems was the ability to shape the latter into an ideal form. The faint blue of the jewel could be deepened to my ideal shade, and I was even able to add the silk inclusion. With the proper capabilities of a crafter, treated gemstones could surpass natural ones. This was, without a doubt, the most beautiful sapphire in this world.

“Okay, Maha’s is done. I’ll do the diamond next. This one will be a little dangerous, so keep your distance,” I warned.

I chanted a new spell. About ten centimeters of water shot from my fingertips and hung in midair. The water then started to rotate at a very high speed while carrying a fine powder.

Dia’s eyes were wide with interest. “Can you explain this spell?”

“I’ve named it Aqua Blade. It creates a high-pressure water current, then adds diamond powder and rotates it. Let’s see… Throw one of those failed guns in the corner toward me,” I instructed.

“Uh, okay,” Dia responded, and she threw a firearm at me.

That gun was made out of an iron alloy, yet I sliced through it in midair. It was surreal seeing iron cut like butter without any resistance.

“As you can see, it’s incredibly sharp,” I said.

“That’s insane,” Dia replied.

“Diamond can’t be cut with anything less. Unless you can find a harder metal, only diamond can be used to carve diamond.”

Using Aqua Blade only made sense. It was time to get to work.

The diamond in front of me was of exceptional quality, even if this gemstone was considered second-rate by this world’s standards. I sliced at it repeatedly using Aqua Blade, which could successfully cleave through even the hardest mineral in the world.

“Lord Lugh is so skilled,” I heard Tarte say to Dia.

“I can’t even see his hands. He must’ve carved the gem dozens of times already,” Dia responded.

I ran my blade across the diamond over and over while in deep concentration. Then, at last, my work was done.

The diamond cut I chose was the most famous and traditional in existence—round brilliant. It was the image anyone pictured when they thought of diamonds. The form was the culmination of centuries of effort to achieve the greatest beauty a diamond could offer. I truly believed there was no surpassing this. After hundreds of years, a more beautiful cut still hadn’t been discovered.

Bringing the round brilliant cut into this world kind of felt like cheating, but I saw no reason to hesitate when it was for Dia.

“It’s done,” I announced.

“That’s a diamond?! I don’t believe it!” Dia exclaimed.

Tarte marveled at my work. “It’s captivating.”

They were both taken by the beauty of the gemstone.

“This is the true beauty of diamonds. Ordinarily, they lack brilliance, but this is what you can achieve with the proper cut.”

Diamonds have ruled as the kings of all gemstones since the technique to cut them was discovered, and that reputation was well-earned. People of this world would undoubtedly be mesmerized by the beauty of my labor.

The value and beauty of a gemstone weren’t decided by appearance alone; rarity affected how they were seen as well. Diamonds weren’t valued in this world. Even then, the diamond I just processed had the beauty to make anyone instantly rethink their opinion on the gemstone.

“…I’m exhausted. Heating the sapphire and cutting the diamond took a lot of mental energy. I’m going to take a break before I work on the emerald,” I said. Improving the jewels had proved extremely demanding. The smallest mistake would have ruined the stones.

“It’s only a thought, but wouldn’t this diamond sell for a colossal price? It’s certainly beautiful enough. Procuring diamonds can be done for cheap because of their low value, so you’d make a huge profit,” Dia conjectured.

“I agree. This is the most beautiful gemstone I have ever seen. I know that nobles and the wealthy would want it,” added Tarte.

I gave a strained smile. “I’m sure. If we turned diamonds into a product, Natural You would rule the jewelry industry.” I could already envision it. One who controlled diamonds would control the entire industry all over the world. That was how much power diamonds had.

Dia frowned. “It sounds like you don’t want to do that. It’d be perfect for Natural You’s customer base, though.”

“From a business perspective, that’s absolutely the right choice. But you’re the only person I want to see wearing diamonds, Dia. A princess could ask me to make one, and I’d still refuse,” I declared.

Dia would be the only person in this world to benefit from the brilliance of diamonds. Someone else would eventually obtain the technology to cut them, of course, but until then, they would shine only for Dia. That was the way I wanted it.

“You have a habit of saying the most pretentious things, Lugh.”

“Do you not dislike that?”

“No, I love it.”

Dia embraced me. That alone made all my effort today worthwhile.

All right, time to get back to work. I’m going to make the finest rings I can.