Chapter 2-2 : A Test (part 2)
「So, what happened? Does it have anything to do with the ‘crap’ you were talking about?」(Kako)
「Geh, so you had been listening from the beginning, huh?」(Sheila)
「Ahaha… I’m sorry.」(Kako)
「It’s alright. By the ‘crap’, I mean this scrap iron.」(Sheila)
Saying that, she showed me the wooden box she had been holding in her arms.
I looked inside and saw black, dirty small pieces of scrap iron.
「I normally buy iron from that shop.」(Sheila)
While saying that, she pointed at a shop on the other side of the street and then continued talking.
「They always sell me decent-quality iron, but… Not this time… They put the iron on top of this pile of scrap iron. I didn’t notice it until I got home and checked it. When I was about to return to the shop to complaint, I ran into those bastards. I soon knew that they were behind it when they laughed at me after they saw the scrap iron in this box. They must have told the clerk to sell me this crap!」(Sheila)
She looked at the scrap iron in the box she was holding with an angry face and shouted.
So those young men told the shop to deceive her? That’s terrible.
「But, why they would do that?」(Kako)
「Before I tell you that, do you know that the blacksmith apprentices in this village can sell their products at a shop?」(Sheila)
「Yeah. The clerk at the shop I visited earlier told me that. The products made by apprentices have unique engravings as marks, right?」(Kako)
「So you know about it. Then it makes telling you much easier. The bastards from earlier are my seniors. We are blacksmith apprentices who share the same master. A few days ago, Master told me that I’ve improved a lot and I might sell my products at the same shop as my seniors. Of course, those bastards weren’t happy about that since my products are much better than theirs. That’s why they thought of this dirty method!」(Sheila)
「I see… So their motive is jealousy?」(Kako)
「That must be it!」(Sheila)
「But, do you have evidence?」(Kako)
「…No. I don’t have any proof, but judging by the look on the clerk’s face when he gave me the goods, I could tell that those bastards must have threatened him and told him to sell this crap to me. I’m sure of it!」(Sheila)
「Umm… It’s not that I don’t trust you but I don’t think there’s a point in blaming them if you don’t have evidence.」(Kako)
「Yeah, I know, but… Dammit!」(Sheila)
She clenched her fist, looking so frustrated.
「By the way, why is everyone looking for iron at this time of year? You know, I wanted to buy some iron too but they didn’t have any to sell to me.」(Kako)
「Ah, it’s because we’re going to hold an exam for blacksmith apprentices in this village which is usually held once a year.」(Sheila)
「An exam?」(Kako)
「Yeah. We have to make five of the same products that our master specified.」(Sheila)
「Five same products? That’s a lot. Why do you have to make five of them? One is not enough?」(Kako)
「Crafstmen have to be able to consistently mass-produce the same exact product with the same exact quality. We can’t call ourselves a craftsman if we can’t do that.」(Sheila)
「I see. So not only do you have to make good products but they also have to be made with even quality. Isn’t that difficult?」(Kako)
「It wouldn’t be an exam if it was easy. Hahh… I can’t make good products with this crap…」(Sheila)
Sheila sighed. She looked sad as if she had lost hope.
「Umm… I don’t know much about iron, but if I’m not mistaken, there’s a method where you can turn scrap iron into high-quality iron if you refine it repeatedly.」(Kako)
「Yeah, there is. It’s a method where you remove slag and extract only the highly pure iron. You’re not a blacksmith, right? I’m surprised you know about it.」(Sheila)
「Ah, I once learned about it in chemistry class in school.」(Kako)
「Chemistry class…?」(Sheila)
Woops… I forgot there’s no chemistry class in this world…
「A-Ah, it’s nothing. Forget what I said. So, why don’t you use that method?」(Kako)
「It’s because even if I refine the entire scrap iron in this box, I will only get a small amount of pure iron. It won’t be enough to make five products for the exam.」(Sheila)
Now that she mentions it, certainly, you can only extract a small amount of pure iron from a huge pile of scrap iron with this method.
「Then, what are you gonna do now?」(Kako)
「Well… There’s nothing I can do. I don’t have money to buy more iron from another shop. Guess I have no choice but to give up on this year’s exam…」(Sheila)
Sheila slumped her shoulders and let out a deep sigh.
「I think I’ll start collecting good-quality iron little by little for next year’s exam.」(Sheila)
There’s nothing to do as long as she can’t get herself good-quality iron, so she better start collecting it from now on in advance so that the same thing doesn’t happen again next year.
「I see. You look calm. I thought you were angry.」(Kako)
「Huh? Of course, I’m angry! My blood is boiling right now. But… As you said, I don’t have evidence that those bastards did it. Besides, they have a long history of working with that shop, so I doubt that the owner of that shop would listen to me. I may look calmer now because I don’t want to waste any more energy to get mad.」(Sheila)
Saying that, Sheila looked at me and showed me a refreshing smile on her face.
Seems like I don’t have to worry about her.
「You’re right. There’s no point wasting your energy on those people. By the way, what are you going to do with this scrap iron?」(Kako)
「Hmm… I don’t know. I think I’ll just use it for practice.」(Sheila)
「Umm, if you don’t mind, would you sell it to me?」(Kako)
「Huh!? You want this crap!?」(Sheila)
Sheila looked at me with her eyes wide open. She looked very surprised.
「Yup. I want this ‘crap’.」(Kako)
「But why? What are you thinking?」(Sheila)
Sheila, who didn’t understand my intentions at all, looked so confused.
「Does it matter? So, how much will you sell it for?」(Kako)
「Uhh… Two copper coins… I think?」(Sheila)
「Two copper coins for this much scrap iron!? Isn’t that too cheap?」(Kako)
「It’s a worthless thing, you know? Considering how small the amount of pure iron you can get from it and how high the cost of firewood and other things to refine it, I don’t think it’s even worth a single copper coin.」(Sheila)
Oh, right. You have to pay for the firewood to heat the furnace, but it doesn’t matter to me since I can just use my Synthesis Skill.
「How much did it cost when you bought it from that shop?」(Kako)
「…Five silver coins.」(Sheila)
「Uwahh…」(Kako)
So, they made her pay five silver coins for trash worth less than two copper coins?
That’s horrible…
Of course, she would be very angry.
After all, five silver coins is not a small amount of money, especially for a blacksmith apprentice like her.
「Alright then, I’ll buy it for five silver coins.」(Kako)
「H, Huuh!?」(Sheila)
As expected, she looked even more surprised when I said that.
「Are you insane!? I told you this is a worthless thing. There’s no point in buying this trash for five silver coins!」(Sheila)
「Of course, there is.」(Kako)
「Huh? What’s the point, then?」(Sheila)
「If I buy this crap, I might become friends with a promising apprentice who will become a top female blacksmith in the future!」(Kako)
「Eh…?」(Sheila)
I tilted my head and smiled at her.
She looked puzzled at first, but then her face started to turn red when she realized what I meant.
「W, w-what are you talking about!?」(Sheila)
She then averted her gaze shyly with a blushing face.
Fufu, she looks so cute~
「You know what I’m talking about, right~?」(Kako)
「Are you… serious…?」(Sheila)
「Of course!」(Kako)
I nodded at her, took out five silver coins from my pocket, and put them on her palm.
「You won’t tell me to return it to you later, will you?」(Sheila)
「Of course not. It’s your money.」(Kako)
「You…」(Sheila)
「No, not ‘you’. I’ve told you my name, haven’t I?」(Kako)
「Ah, I’m sorry… Thank you, Kako.」(Sheila)
「You’re welcome, Sheila!」(Kako)
This is great!
With only five silver coins, I can get myself some materials for experiments and a cute friend!
What a bargain!
This is what you call ‘killing two birds with one stone’!
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Are you gonna give her legendary 100% pure iron that no one ever reach and she will win top place? XD