Danmachi: Valkyrie Oratoria

Chapter 3: Denatus and Ideal

A-kun: Since the feedback was pretty good within a few hours of me going to sleep, I think I'll post another chapter since I still have two chapters to post. Anyway enjoy it a pretty long chapter.

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Sigrid's PoV

I beamed with excitement as Goibniu-sama, the old god who looked like a grandfatherly figure, examined my sword. ''Where did you get this sword?'' he asked, his eyes twinkling with curiosity.

''My grandpa gave it to me... or rather, my mama wanted it to be a gift for my 10th birthday.'' I replied truthfully. I knew that gods could sense even the slightest hint of dishonesty in mortals.

Astraea-sama stood beside me, her expression calm and reassuring as always. ''Is something wrong with the sword?'' she asked Goibniu-sama directly.

''It's not wrong... But this sword is alive.'' His eyes sparkled with wonder as he examined the sword more closely. ''The craft method is a masterpiece that rivals mine or Hephaestus - maybe even surpasses it. I can only think of Brokkr and Sindri working together to create something so extraordinary.'' He mused aloud.

As he continued to speak, my excitement grew. ''It's a marvel you can use it to kill monsters and perform magic - normally such a living sword would repel all magical effects from an unbound person and be dull until the person who is bound with it holds it.''

I felt like I was in a fairy tale, hearing such incredible words about my trusty sword. It sounded too good to be true!

Goibniu-sama then looked at me intently, holding out the sword. ''Hold the sword.'' he instructed. 

I grasped the hilt tightly as he examined the blade more closely. ''Ah, I see... the blade turns sharp when you hold it...''

I frowned slightly, unsure what he meant by it. He glanced at me through my mask, and I could sense him trying to read my expression.

''That means you're bound with the sword together... But it's incomplete.'' He stated matter-of-factly.

 ''What does it need to be complete, Goibniu?'' Astraea-sama asked, her voice calm and gentle.

Goibniu-sama's gaze flicked to hers before he replied, his expression serious. ''Ah, simple enough,'' he said. ''Your child should give a drop of blood and your own blood as well, Astraea.'' He paused for a moment before continuing.

''Then the sword will truly grow alongside its owner,'' he said. ''But I'm not really into living swords... due to the fact that they'll become eventually the strongest when their owner reaches the top or remain weak if their owner is weak.'' He shook his head.

''I, no we blacksmiths prefer to create our own strongest creations.'' he added, looking around at us with a hint of pride in his eyes.

Me and Astraea-sama followed his instructions, carefully pricking our fingers to release a single drop of blood onto the sword. 

As soon as the blood touched the metal, the sword began to glow with an soft, golden light. I watched in wonder as intricate Hieroglyphs appeared on its surface, swirling and dancing across it like living patterns. 

But before I could even try to decipher their meaning and honestly, I'm still super slow at reading Hieroglyphs, they changed into something new... and then vanished altogether! It was like trying to catch fireflies in a jar - you think you've got them cornered, but suddenly they're gone!