kscans

Chapter 110 - Various Stories of Paper ~The Paper Situation in Another World~ - 1. At the General Store

"...A stationery store?"

Seeing Adon’s perplexed reply, Yuri realized that the word was apparently not understood in this world.

"Um… it’s a store that handles paper, writing implements, and things like that all together…"

Upon hearing Yuri’s explanation, Adon thought for a moment with a thoughtful expression. After a while, he looked up and said that while there were no stores that specialized only in such things, there were stores that carried them.

"I should have an order to place soon, so I’ll have someone guide you then."

After this exchange, Yuri found himself in a carriage with Adon’s butler, Helman. Incidentally, Dona and Old Man Audel had declined to join, on the grounds that looking at writing implements was not interesting. For a record-keeping enthusiast like Yuri, this was a very disappointing reaction, but considering the low circulation of books and paper, it was perhaps an unavoidable one.

"Do you really go out yourself for daily necessities, Helman-san?"

To Yuri, who looked as if he wanted to say that such tasks were the duty of a lower-ranking servant or a maid, the butler, Helman, replied with earnest gravity.

"Because there is no one else who can properly appraise these kinds of items."

There were others who could judge the quality of food and clothing. They could probably manage liquor and charcoal as well. However, when it came to appraising ink and paper, the task was too heavy for the other servants. For this reason, the butler himself went out to place the orders.

"We will first go to a store that deals in general goods. They also handle pens and ink, so I believe we can meet Yuri-sama’s expectations."

"Ah, yes. Thank you very much."

Being spoken to so politely by an elder was rather unsettling, Yuri thought, as he inquired about the day’s schedule. First, they would go to the general store to order pens, ink, charcoal, tea, and so on, and then they would visit a bookstore. In this country, paper was not very widespread, and the circulation was apparently so small that bookstores handled it as a side business. While they were discussing various things, the carriage arrived at the general store, and Yuri entered with Helman.

(Hmm… so writing implements in this world are goose quills, huh…)

In the world he came from, he had a vague recollection of hearing that the fountain pen, or its prototype, had been invented in the first century AD. But in this world, goose feather quills still seemed to be the mainstream writing implement. Brushes must exist, but they were treated as art supplies and not used for writing. Also, from a quick glance, there were no metal pen nibs. If a large general goods merchant like this did not carry pen nibs, it might mean that not just fountain pens but even dip pens were not widespread. No wonder Adon was so interested in the pencil.

As for that pencil, or rather, the charcoal pencil, the clay or potter’s earth that Adon had arranged for had arrived, so he had completed all the checks. Some of it was more like fine sand than clay, but other than that, it did not seem to make much difference which one he used. It seemed that how fine the clay was was more important than the type or origin of the soil. He had already conveyed this point to Adon. Incidentally, he had also informed Adon about the possibility of respiratory problems from the work of micronizing the charcoal and clay, and the need to wear a mask to avoid it. A prototype should be completed as early as this winter.

He thought that if the commercially produced pencils were comfortable to use, he might buy some for himself… While thinking such thoughts and looking at various products, it seemed that Helman had finished his business, so Yuri decided to leave the store.