Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: The Fallen Artisan
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The Princess murmured as she toyed with the desk in her Imperial Palace office.
"I’ve ended up back here after all."
Returning to her office after so long felt strangely foreign.
The Magic Tower visible through the window felt like a building from another world.
'You must be immersed in your research by now.'
The Princess smiled, thinking of someone back at the Tower.
"I wonder if there’s anything I can do to help..."
Her gaze shifted toward the interior of the office.
"Chief of Staff."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Recommend someone most proficient in commerce with the Free Cities, someone who can move like a shadow."
The Chief of Staff tilted his head slightly.
"Your Highness, if this is regarding young Isaac’s 'Newton Trading' matter... that is a phantom company with no physical presence. I believe additional practical personnel would be unnecessary."
Isolde lightly tapped a copy of the contract.
"Since Isaac set the board, I must provide proper support. Even if the company is just a signpost for now, it will eventually need a practical staff. Select someone who can handle money matters 'well.' So that he can focus solely on his research."
***
I’m all alone now.
The dormitory corridors were so empty my footsteps echoed. All the familiar faces had returned to their hometowns.
Even Senior Giuseppe had left the capital, claiming he was going to use up his backlogged vacation days.
Absolute freedom.
I sprawled out on the grass of the Magic Tower’s central campus and stared up at the blue winter sky.
"So, what should I do now?"
Suddenly, the 'Red Ogre’s' miraculous recovery speed came to mind. Should I research that?
If I knew genetic engineering or molecular biology, I might have given it a shot.
'But I only know physics.'
Pass.
To be thinking about work during vacation—I must have gone a bit crazy for a moment.
I am not a workaholic, absolutely not.
Just then, I saw a familiar silhouette in the distance. It was Ellara, the Floor Manager.
"Where are you going, Master?"
She turned at my call and frowned.
"I told you not to call me Master... it’s awkward."
Not long ago, Ellara had successfully passed her thesis defense and earned her Master’s degree. It was thanks to her not having offended the attacking PhDs in the past.
I said to her.
"I received a gift, so I have to treat you with the utmost respect."
Ellara’s gaze dropped to my feet.
"Hmm. They look good on you. I’m glad I bought them."
"Thank you."
As soon as her thesis passed, Ellara had given me leather shoes as a gift, saying she was grateful for everything.
I was still wearing them. Ellara spoke.
"Take care of them. Those shoes were made at the 'Labor and Days' leather workshop."
"Is it a famous workshop?"
"Of course. The waiting list there is measured in years."
"Well... I suppose it would be."
"What? No reaction?"
In a pre-modern period, making one of these items by hand takes more time than one might think.
It wouldn’t just be the leather workshop; it’d be the same everywhere else.
I said to Ellara.
"But how did you manage to get such a precious item?"
"...A carriage overturned during transport, so the purchase was canceled."
"Aha."
I guess they were accident-affected goods.
That’s just how pre-modern transport technology is.
Since carriages in this world don’t have suspensions, one wrong move on a hill leads to an overturn.
I asked Ellara.
"So, where are you going now?"
"To an interview. Hans's Mercenary Group, the one you recommended."
Her face was a mix of anticipation and anxiety.
"I looked into it, and that mercenary group’s reputation has skyrocketed lately. I’m scared I might get rejected."
"Hang in there. You'll do great."
"Thanks for the support. You have a good vacation too."
Ellara waved as she exited the Magic Tower’s main gate.
I heard that those from commoner backgrounds who lacked money stayed in the capital even during vacation to find work.
In any world, climbing the social ladder is truly a grueling task.
Watching her back, I suddenly felt the urge to head outside the capital.
The rural scenery I hadn't been able to properly see last time because of the orcs flickered in my mind.
Since it was the season for winter wheat to grow, it was the perfect time for a look.
I immediately hired a coachman and headed toward the outskirts of the city. However, my expectations for a peaceful journey were shattered the moment the carriage hit the unpaved road.
Rattle, thud!
"Ugh...!"
Without fail, motion sickness arrived. It wasn't an emergency, so using magic on my own body felt awkward. I just had to endure it.
And so, I fought a desperate battle with this damn medieval carriage that lacked even a suspension.
"Should I create a suspension magic...?"
I can make it. Let’s try.
I immediately shouted to the coachman.
"Stop for a second!"
"Yessir!"
Getting out of the carriage, I crawled straight under the chassis.
Using mana, I implemented a virtual 'suspension' to absorb and disperse the impact.
Of course, I didn't make a real suspension with springs. I’m not an engineer, so I don’t know how to do that.
A moment later, the magic implementation was finished, and I boarded the carriage.
"Please start."
"Yessir!"
As I got back in, the world had changed.
Clop, clop.
The only sound was the clopping of hooves. The sound of the wheels had decreased noticeably.
Comfort without shaking. This truly is science.
The coachman shouted.
"A... Amazing. This is the first time in my life I've run on a dirt road like this."
Hehehe.
I was quite satisfied myself.
But there was a problem.
This 'fake suspension' magic works by me calculating and neutralizing every impact in real-time.
In other words, even at this very moment, I was calculating the amount of impact according to the angle of the road surface.
It wasn't a one-off spell, so the calculations were intense.
...I could manage for about five minutes somehow, but after that, it would be impossible.
I’m glad I didn't use this when I first came up to the capital. If I had, I would have been in big trouble when we met the orcs.
"Mr. Coachman, I’m sorry, but please turn the carriage around."
"Eh? You said you wanted to see the winter wheat. It’s really beautiful beyond this hill..."
"It’s because I’ve found work to do. I’ll pay you properly, so please turn around."
"Well, if you say so..."
I need to get back quickly and make a real suspension, not a fake one like this.
Returning to the lab, I immediately set to work on the design.
"This is harder than I thought..."
However, this magic tool was difficult to produce, unlike the 'Excel' days.
It wasn't that I didn't know the principle. The principle itself was harder for Excel. After all, it was a primitive computer...
The issue was the materials.
There was nothing suitable that could withstand the weight of a carriage and endure the countless shocks of an irregular road surface.
"Springs are best for this..."
Creating those was nearly impossible with the technology of this era.
Spring steel itself was a product of highly advanced modern metallurgy.
"It seems... I’ll have to collaborate with real grease monkeys."
And I needed the best technicians in the Empire.
After asking around, I searched for the most outstanding metal workshops in the capital.
But the answer was the same everywhere.
"Sorry, customer. If you order now, you’ll have to wait at least half a year."
All the successful workshops were fully booked with reservations from noble families and large merchant guilds.
...Should I reveal my identity and sell the Princess's name? I could make them unable to even utter a word.
'No. Let’s look a little more.'
Since it was something I was doing for fun throughout the vacation, there was no need to rush.
At the last workshop I visited, I heard a slightly different story. The receptionist said.
"You must absolutely never say that I told you this..."
He wrote down an address on a piece of old parchment and gave it to me.
"I heard their skill is decent... but they’re from a commoner background and have seriously offended some nobles, so they’re on the verge of closing down."
"That’s perfect."
Whether it's a white cow or a black cow, as long as it does the job well, it’s fine.
I took the address and headed toward a secluded alley in the workshop district.
I stared at a shabby building whose sign had rotted away.
I wondered if it was even open for business. Naturally, there was no sign of life.
"...Maybe they just open late."
I took a spot in front of the workshop and waited while munching on a chicken skewer I bought at the market.
It was then.
Crash!
With a rough sound from inside the workshop, a young technician came running out.
He cursed toward the workshop door.
"I can't do this anymore, it's too filthy! This damn place without a single job! I'm leaving, I'm out of here!"
A sturdy old man who came out behind him shouted.
"Fine, get lost! Don't let me catch you, or I'll break your shins with a hammer!"
It seemed they had a lot built up against each other.
Munch, munch. Gulp.
The chicken skewer went down smooth at the sight of such a rare scene.
There’s nothing more fun than watching a fight.
For the record, watching a fire is just okay. Once I could light fires with magic, my interest cooled.
The young technician, who was gradually moving away, suddenly stopped.
With his back turned to his master, he spoke.
"Just you watch, old man! I'm leaving this miserable place and I'm definitely going to succeed!"
Yeah, yeah.
Starting from the bottom. This is totally hip-hop.
"Yeah, you brat! Go and live well!"
The artisan threw a heavy pouch at the technician's back.
Jingle.
"It’s your severance pay."
Thud.
The pouch hit the young technician’s back and fell to the ground.
The technician, hit by the money pouch, muttered.
"Crazy old man..."
Rustle, rustle.
The technician picked up the money pouch from the ground.
The old man added indifferently.
"It’s winter... so watch out for colds."
"...!"
The technician's hands trembled slightly. A moment later, he shouted in a tearful voice.
"I’ve been... damnably indebted to you, Master!"
The technician bowed deeply in greeting and disappeared around the far corner of the alley.
'...What was that?'
I felt like I’d witnessed something far too intimate.
Maybe that’s why I hadn't been able to properly eat my chicken skewer for a while.
Still, I have to do what I have to do.
Ahem.
I cleared my throat awkwardly and approached the old man.
As soon as the old man saw me, he said in disgust.
"What, did the landlord send you? I told you I'd pay soon! Just believe me!"
"..."
"Shit... no matter how important money is, let’s not torment people at a time like this!"
The old man was wiping away tears.
"It’s not that... would you like to work on a project with me?"
The artisan’s wet eyes turned toward me.
"Work... you say?"
He glanced at my shoes and snorted.
"Young master. I’m sorry, but I don’t make things that noble lords want."
"I'm not a noble, I'm an orphan."
"..."
The old man froze in his tracks.
I held out the blueprints for the 'suspension' in front of him.
The old man took my blueprints without a word.
***
"It’s genius!"
The old man continued.
"It’s not just for merchant carriages... the Imperial Army will be lining up!"
"Is that so?"
"Of course! I can see it. This is something that will change history."
The old man asked me with wild eyes.
"So, how do we make this?"
"Now, that’s what the two of us need to figure out."
"...What?"