Academy (5)
We continued the combinations in that strange atmosphere. Whether it was because of the earlier failure or because of the apology, the two of them stayed quiet.
I knew I was at fault too, so I focused obediently on the work itself.
The same combination as before—gunpowder, Attunement Agent, and coal…
The difficulty must have been high, because it took quite a while. Still, the signs of success were showing, and that gave me energy. Even when it had failed earlier, the feeling had been good…
I felt a little regretful about the materials I'd wasted last time.
A brilliant rainbow light announcing success made me close my eyes. When I opened them again, a strange cylindrical object sat inside the pot.
The body was a dark reddish-black with almost no luster, which gave it an ominous feel. It wasn't particularly large, either—about twenty centimeters long, and not especially thick. Just the right size to fit snugly in my hand? Considering how small my hands were, it would probably look tiny by an adult man's standards.
"What is that?"
"Who knows? I don't really know either."
I at least kept quiet about the fact that I'd made it intending it to be a bomb. More than that—did this world even have the concept of bombs? Explosions existed as a concept, but bombs… I wasn't so sure.
"It's made with gunpowder and coal, so there's a risk of explosion. Please store it carefully. Especially make sure it doesn't come into contact with fire or heat."
"Understood."
Once Sister Mary put the finished product away, I let out a long sigh.
"Succeeding on the first try leaves me feeling oddly empty."
Call it intuition, maybe. Sometimes, once I laid out the materials to combine, I'd get a feeling that this ought to work. Of course, there were also times I got the feeling it would fail. Even so, I preferred to fail once just to be sure.
"Anyway, what should I try next…"
The hesitation didn't last long. Trial and error was natural in research, so there was no point being precious about it—I might as well use materials freely.
Besides, I'd bought all of this with money I'd gotten for free. Nothing to feel bad about wasting, right?
I decided to try everything that came to mind. I failed, failed again, and failed some more, but I recorded every combination method I attempted on memo paper. Records so I wouldn't make the same mistakes later.
"Organizing takes longer than the actual combining…"
I flopped face-down on the table and sighed heavily.
Worrying over what to combine and failing was less exhausting than writing everything down.
"Shall I write them for you?"
"No, I should do it myself."
Sister Mary offered to take over, but I refused. Writing it out on paper while repeating it in my head was how I needed to lock it into memory.
Even if I could look at the notes, checking them every time would be a hassle—so I had to remember.
Once I'd finished recording the failed combinations, I tried making Scrap Iron for a change of pace.
I switched to a larger pot, crushed the rocks my older sister had gotten for me into small pieces and put them in… added Yellow Attunement Agent… and poured in generous amounts according to the ratios.
I'd gotten the hang of combining by now. Even with larger quantities, I could manage it.
I double-checked the materials that had gone in, then started the combination.
With so much packed in, it took time. When the light of completion appeared, a large lump of Scrap Iron had formed inside the pot.
"Is this… iron?"
"Well, something like it."
The region was different, so the composition of the rocks should have been different too—yet the same product had come out. Maybe it hadn't been simple Scrap Iron after all? As the young master examined the mottled gray iron, he suddenly grabbed my spear.
"Young Master?"
"You made the spear from this iron?"
"Yes. I commissioned the spear itself from a craftsman, but I made the material."
"Truly remarkable."
It was a recipe I'd originally kept secret, but this time I revealed it. There was no particular reason to hide it, and he wasn't the type to go spreading rumors around.
"Unnie, want to make a sword with this?"
At a little over three kilograms, it was just enough for a single sword.
My older sister shook her head.
"What I have now is enough."
"I… see…?"
I'd asked out of consideration, too…
"Miss Julian, what makes this iron different?"
The young master showed interest in the iron I'd made. As a young master, he could surely have weapons forged from far more expensive minerals with better effects, couldn't he?
"Well, nothing particularly special. The strength is about the same as ordinary iron. Mana conductivity? I hear that's a bit better."
"What?!"
"Pardon?!"
The young master and Sister Mary both widened their eyes in shock and closed in on me.
"W-why are you reacting like that?"
"Is it true that the conductivity is high?"
"Yes. A Vulcanus believer confirmed it, so it should be reliable."
The young master examined my spear again, then suddenly poured mana into it. The mana transmitted to the blade took the form of seething flames.
"Hoh…"
He murmured in admiration and began inspecting the spear with a practiced eye. Was it really that surprising? Between the blacksmith and now him, I couldn't understand why they got so excited and delighted over this.
I still didn't fully grasp how important mana conductivity was. The blacksmith had said it reduced loss and raised efficiency, but since magic was my main focus, I'd never really felt the difference myself.
"Is conductivity really that important?"
Sister Mary answered my question.
"Yes, it is."
More than that—why did Sister Mary know about this? Was it something significant?
The explanation was simple. If two fighters of similar Knight Class strength clashed, what factors would decide victory or defeat?
Assuming swordsmanship, stamina, mana reserves, and control were all roughly equal—what difference would tip the scales?
"In other words, the difference in equipment."
Using a weapon with good conductivity meant that even when channeling the same amount of mana, consumption decreased. And if consumption decreased? That freed up mana to use elsewhere.
And if that surplus accumulated? Naturally, it put you at an advantage in battle.
"Especially since fights between Knight Class warriors can practically be called battles of mana, it becomes all the more critical."
For that reason, the church's Holy Knights were issued standard equipment forged from ores with high mana conductivity. When Sister Mary finished her explanation, the young master took over.
"Sturdy armor? Useless before mana. A sturdy sword? Without mana coating it, it loses to a sword wreathed in mana."
Mana was that important—so high conductivity was equally important.
"Then are treasured swords and the like useless?"
"Treasured swords usually have high mana conductivity."
And they were sturdy on top of that… which was why they were called treasured swords, I supposed.
I looked at the sword at the young master's hip.
"Isn't the sword you use a better one?"
It was just a hunch, but that was the feeling I got. I'd actually seen him use it, too… I remembered it as an object whose presence was far from ordinary.
"Th-that's…"
"Honestly, even if you made a weapon out of it, the mottling doesn't look all that impressive."
For all the talk about this Scrap Iron's mana conductivity, the mottling was pretty awkward. It seemed to be an alloy of mixed components, and there was no way to remove it.
"Even so, it's fine."
For some reason, the young master coveted the Scrap Iron.
"At that weight, I'd have to charge about twenty gold, wouldn't I?"
I said it with a playful smile, and the young master immediately reached into his coat pocket to pull out money.
Ah—right, he was a noble. The twenty gold I'd mentioned was pocket change to him.
"The money was a joke."
I grabbed the Scrap Iron and tossed it lightly to him.
"Unnie said she doesn't need it, and neither Sister Mary nor I have any particular use for it, so someone who needs it should have it."
Giving it to someone who actually wanted to use it sat better with me than selling it.
"Th-thank you."
"Are you planning to forge it here?"
"No. If possible, I should entrust it to a proper craftsman."
"Do as you like."
I looked at him with indifference. Well, the materials were cheap, so I didn't feel any loss. I'd just think of it as a gift.
I checked the remaining materials and tried combining all of them. I even used the expensive ingots without hesitation—and every single combination failed. After blowing through the expensive ingots and the rest of the materials alike, the sun had set and it was time for bed.
Mm! It felt like a thoroughly fulfilling day.
At last, I heard the news that the Academy group was leaving the city.
"They said a week—why have they been staying more than ten days…"
They'd originally said a week, but the Academy had stayed in the city well past that without leaving.
"Haha. It seems the lord has been entertaining them quite thoroughly."
Apparently that really was the reason. With so many children of high-ranking figures among the Academy envoys… the Viscount who owned this territory had gone all out trying to make an impression…
And thanks to that, the envoys' schedule had been thrown off, or so I heard.
"I really wish they'd just leave already."
That prince, of all people…
"Haha. You seem quite frustrated."
"I'm bored."
I'd been busy for a few days with research. Now? I had to save money… and it was hard to source materials around here, so I'd paused for the moment.
"There's a theatrical performance today—would you like to go out and see it?"
"A play…?"
"Yes. The streets have been quite lively over it."
Even calling it a play, it wasn't as though a proper troupe had come from elsewhere.
"A play put on by the villagers, then…"
Harvest season wasn't far off, so it seemed to be a simple festival for everyone to cut loose and have fun beforehand.
Our village had done things like that sometimes, too.
"Hmm… the problem is the Academy…"
"They're leaving tomorrow, so they'll be busy. And I doubt they'd take any interest in a commoners' play."
That was true enough, wasn't it? Nobles would watch a proper theatrical troupe—not some crude commoners' production.
"What about you, Unnie, and Mary?"
"I'm not going."
My older sister didn't seem interested.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
Well, she'd probably just swing her sword alone… In the past she would have come along fretting over me, but with the young master at my side, her worry seemed to have eased.
"The two of you should go ahead."
Hm? Sister Mary was declining too? I'd assumed she would insist on coming along no matter what.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Even I need time to rest now and then."
That was fair… I had caused her quite a lot of trouble.
"Then I'll be back this evening, so get some proper rest."
"Yes, I will. Enjoy yourselves."
I decided to go out with the young master.