Erhard

Erhard (エルハルト), usually simply called the Weapon Shop Owner or Old man or Uncle, is a blacksmith and a weapon shop owner in the castle town of Melromarc.

He is the only shop owner in Melromarc to carry shields while others didn't carry it for religious reasons.

Personality
Erhard is openly a cheerful and nice person, he would go out of his way to get angry for someone else's sake. He can generally tell most of the time when someone is lying to him or not.

He doesn't believe in Melromarcs' religious views (the Church of the Three Heroes) about treating the Shield Hero as a devil and discriminating against demi-humans.

Appearance
He has a shaved head, beard and darker skin with a well-built body.

Abilities
(Information to be added later).

Background
When Ehard was an adventurer in the past, he would earn a living by hunting monsters and traveling around. One day, after he encounters a Blacksmith who was inspired and fascinated by the weapons he made, Erhard dropped the adventurer’s life to train under him along with another student.

Many years later, he settled in Melromarc and put up shop in Castle Town.

Volume 1
The Weapon Shop Owner was first introduced as the blacksmith of a famous Weapon Shop in Castle Town. He was fond of Naofumi's haggling and usually lowers the price or throw in equipment for free.

He was extremely angry at Naofumi after he heard the rumors. When he encountered Naofumi again, he planned on punching him, but quickly realized that he was innocent and gave him a bag that included a cape and old clothing after noticing he was wearing nothing but his undergarments.

The Weapon Shop Owner would always give Naofumi a fair deal whenever he visited his store. One day Naofumi brought a female slave to his store to buy some equipment he was concerned for both the girl and Naofumi but didn't press the issue further and helped him find a suitable knife for the girl and threw in some clothing. He questions whether Naofumi was rotten to the core because of what the kingdom has done to him.

When Naofumi visited again who was looking for a new weapon for Raphtalia after her old one broke. The Weapon Shop Owner recommended for her an iron sword this time and even threw in some beat-up breastplate. After hearing Raphtalia stomach rumble, he explained to Naofumi that demi-humans grew up differently to humans. While Naofumi went out to buy Raphtalia food, the Weapon Shop Owner taught Raphtalia the basics and fundamentals of how to use a sword properly.

After learning that Naofumi’s shield could absorb materials and change into different forms, he gave Naofumi a rusty sword for free to use with Naofumi's sharpening shield.

Relationships
Legendary Heroes  Naofumi didn't think much about Erhard in the beginning. But Erhard has grown to be his most trusted ally. Naofumi was also moved by Erhard’s trust and support for him. Naofumi gives most of the project to Erhard and prefers him over another expert. Erhard refrained himself from telling Naofumi about the nation's religious views on the Shield Hero, as he feared such knowledge would hurt Naofumi's feelings and sometimes because he was cut off from the topic by Naofumi himself. Naofumi was also openly told about the weapon duplication technique and other heroes’ utilization of it. Erhard also advises Naofumi to visit other shops to get a much better weapon, but Naofumi denies it.
 * Naofumi Iwatani:

Vassal Wielders 

Erhard was worried about Raphtalia at first but found her to be in good hands. Erhard was more surprised by her feminine charms. He also noticed Raphtalia's growth and her feelings for Naofumi are unnoticed by the latter and feel pity for her. He treats her as a friend and was her first swords master.
 * Raphtalia: