When I Tried Strengthening 【Rusted Sword】, It Evolved Into An Overpowered Magic Sword
Vol. 1 - Ch. 1 - The Sacred Weapon

Our world has a beautiful and unique tradition. Every time a child turns twelve years old, there would be a special ceremony at the temple wherein the gods would bless them with a 'Sacred Weapon'. Such gifts were specifically designed to be used to fight against monsters.

Those who wielded the weapons they possessed to battle against all kinds of dangerous beasts are called 'Adventurers', and they are renowned for their bravery. Ever since I was young, I've always wanted to be one of them.

Now that I am twelve years old, I can finally take the first step towards becoming part of their esteemed class.

As I was dreaming about myself swinging a sacred weapon and going up against devious creatures, I was suddenly awakened by an incessant tapping on my shoulder. 

I could hear the slight squeaking of my bed as the person pushed against me aggressively. Then a girl's voice rang inside my ears, "Hey, Rust! If you don't get up soon, you'll be late."

I was still lying on my bed with a blanket over my head, therefore I couldn't stop the groan that slipped out of my lips as I heard her continuously shouting, "Hmm..."

I pulled down the blanket that was covering my face and gave her an annoyed look. I let out an exasperated sigh and tried to rub the sleep off my eyes. When my hazy vision finally cleared, I was greeted by an excited grinning face of a red headed girl. 

"Good morning." I told her.

"Good morning, Rust! Today is the day of our long-awaited 'Blessing Ceremony'. Let's get ready and go to the temple." I could feel her practically jumping on my bed.

I yawned and started to bury my head back into the covers when she grabbed my arms and tried to pull me out of my mattress. Sometimes I wondered, if there was ever a day since I met her where she wasn't so energetic, "...Ruby."

I let out a slight chuckle as I felt myself slowly waking up. She was staring at me expectantly and so I gave in and stretched out my legs and let my blanket drop to the side. However, I was still feeling a bit lethargic. 

For years, I've always followed her. I remember getting roped into ridiculous situations because of her, and I even learned to anticipate and decipher each and every unspoken demand from her. It was often her who led me. I guess it's  safe to say that she's always been an influential figure in my life.

Her name is Ruby Blood, and she's a childhood friend of mine.

She stared at me in amusement as I finally managed to at least raise my head off of my pillow. She was wearing a bright smile on her face, and I knew she was as excited as I was for today. Although it may not seem like it, I had been giddy since yesterday and I could hardly contain the excitement that was threatening to burst out of me. On the inside, we were practically bouncing on our toes, after all, we have both waited for this moment all our lives.

"You told me that you were looking forward to the Blessing Ceremony. You went on and on about it, but if you don't make it in time for the ceremony today then we'll both be screwed. So wake up now, Rust!"

That's right! Today was the day I will receive the "Blessing Ceremony" that I have been looking forward to. 

Today was the day we are officially considered as adults, and then we will receive a "Sacred Weapon" from the gods.

Ruby is right, I must not be late for the ceremony.

"Umm, yeah I will, sorry Ruby." I apologized to her and then sluggishly sat at the edge of my bed.

"Thank you for coming all the way here to wake me up. I certainly won't be late thanks to you. However, why are you in my room without my permission? Haven't I told you already to stop doing this?"

"I only came in because your mom told me to wake you up." Ruby had an innocent look on her face that was even slightly teasing. I could even hear her unspoken words by the expression on her face, 'Hey, I wouldn't have had to come in if you had woken up early, and your mother told me so...'

That's right, who else could I blame but my mother.

Ruby's house stood opposite to mine, and because we lived in the same neighborhood and in such close proximity, we've always played together for as long as I could remember.

In the past, she would often come over to our house to hang out, and ever since we were little, she would always barge into my room without permission.

It didn't bother me that she treated my room as an extension of her own when I was still a child, but lately I've been feeling embarrassed each time I was alone with her or if she came in unannounced. So I've been asking her to stop, because we are now grown-ups, and I needed my own privacy.

Ruby plopped down on my bed and stared at me while I tried to settle the fast beating of my heart, "You know your mom is looking forward to your Blessing Ceremony. Why in the world were you still sleeping in, anyway? Were you too excited to sleep last night?"

"No, it's not that. I mean, it's true that I am looking forward to today, but I also feel the opposite. I'm a little nervous. That's why I couldn't sleep much last night."

"Why do you feel nervous?" Ruby tilted her head and gave me a puzzled look.

"It's not like we'll know what kind of sacred weapon we're going to get. So I just kept thinking, what if I end up with an inferior sacred weapon?" 

For a moment, Ruby was quiet and she wore a pensive look on her face, "Well, I guess you're right about that. After all, the sacred weapon is a weapon meant to protect us from demons and monsters, and it won't be of much use if we were to have low graded ones. Since we can only participate in the ritual once, it would be a real shame if we were given an inferior sacred weapon."

It's true, we can only participate in the 'Blessing Ceremony' to receive the 'Sacred Weapon' once. Regardless of the result, we do not get any do overs.

Moreover, who you will become in the future is largely dependent upon the weapon you received during the ceremony. Since the sacred weapon is a special weapon for fighting demons and monsters, a strong weapon would give one better and bigger opportunities since it will be more useful for our society. One would automatically have more advantages in life if one was to be blessed with a high graded weapon. Basically, the way you'll live your life in the future will be determined by the sacred ceremony.

It's not even an exaggeration to say that this day will shape our future and ultimately our  lives.

Perhaps, what makes the ceremony more daunting is the fact that one can't use any other weapon except one's own. 

There was no way I could get a good night's sleep with such an important ceremony coming up. As exciting as it was, it's also a lot of pressure to think that you will never surpass the abilities of your weapon. The situation is akin to the saying; 'a fish can only grow up to the size of its tank'. It scared me to think that I will be bound to a small tank for the rest of my life.

I glanced at Ruby's calm face and noticed that there was not a single trace of a cloud in her eyes. Therefore, I was sure that she slept well last night. I'm not even surprised; she's always had nerves of steel. As a matter of fact, she even had enough energy to wake up her childhood friend who overslept.

As I brushed my bed hair back to place, I could see Ruby smiling mischievously from the corner of my eyes. 

She suddenly turned to me and said, "Rust you've always been timid, you know. Because of that, the boys in the village are always mean to you. I think it would be nice if the ritual could fix that personality of yours even by a little bit."

"Uh, what do you mean?"

"It's only natural for you to be nervous about the 'Blessing Ceremony'. I mean, I feel the same way too... Because we are..."

I stared at Ruby in confusion as her words became more incoherent. 

She took a pregnant pause and gave me a gentle smile. 

It seemed like she had something important to tell me and so I patiently waited for her to open her mouth to continue, "You promised me that we'd both become adventurers together. However, if you get some inferior sacred weapon because of your personality, then that dream of ours wouldn't come true."

I nodded my head in her direction, "I know, you're right."

A long time ago, Ruby and I made a promise that we will become 'adventurers' together. That has been our dream for as long as I could remember. We've always wanted to be like the cool heroes we've often heard and read about in adventure stories, and we both wanted to embark on that journey with each other. 

Ruby clapped her hands and faced me, "Let us pray that the gods will give us good weapons, Rust."

"Alright."

I hope that both of us can get good weapons. If we don't, then it would be really awkward if only one of us gets a high ranked weapon, and the other gets a low ranked one. Although I've always tried to keep my spirits up, that fear always tugged at my heart. I was scared of a future where one of us gets left behind and it seems as though I am not the only one who is concerned about that. Despite her strong exterior, perhaps Ruby also had the same concerns as me.

The atmosphere around us suddenly grew sullen and we both remained silent. Jitters were obviously catching up to us and weighing our limbs down. For a while, we seemed to be in an almost catatonic state, until Ruby lightly jabbed me with her elbow and broke our respective reveries, "Well, if Rust gets an inferior sacred weapon and I'm the only one with a good one, then I'll just leave you behind and become a 'Master Class' adventurer first..."

I rolled my eyes at her and gave her a look of aghast. I know she was only joking to lighten our moods, but it was not funny. Not funny at all!

Please don't say that.

Deep down inside, I know I would not want Ruby succeeding as an adventurer before me just because I have an inferior sacred weapon. I've thought about it a million times, and I've decided that if I'm blessed with a mediocre D-rank or an E-rank divine weapon, I'm still not going to give up on my dream. Even though it makes it difficult for me to become an adventurer, and even if Ruby leaves me behind, and regardless of what hardships lie ahead, I will always be  determined to become an adventurer. 

No matter how long it takes, I'll make it...　

I  believe that once you have a dream, it is not something you can easily let go of, especially if it's something you truly wanted. 

Ruby stood up and stretched her limbs, "Come on now, let's get ready and then head to the temple. I think everyone's already there waiting for us!"　

"Yeah, you're right." I've been thinking of changing my clothes since a while ago, but I couldn't because Ruby wouldn't leave the room, "I'm going to change now, so can you wait outside?"

I sincerely told Ruby what was on my mind, but it seemed like she had no plans to take me seriously. Instead, she flashed me a smirk and shrugged playfully, "I'm worried you'll fall asleep again, so I'll just stay here and keep an eye on you."

I shook my head vehemently at her suggestion and pushed her out of the door, "No, I won't let you. So get out of here!"

-To be continued.