kscans

Chapter 201 - Rosewood Rhapsody 2. Revisiting the Workshop (Part 1)

The next day, after finishing his instruction on stone tool making for Faren, Yuri visited Ems's workshop with Adon. Ems seemed to be in the middle of a business discussion with a man. As Yuri waited with Adon, looking at lumber and other materials, fragmented words like "magic power" and "staff" reached his ears.

"...It seems our guest is a magician. He appears to be negotiating for a staff."

"A staff...?"

"Yes, a magician's staff. It's an auxiliary tool for casting magic."

Yuri was inwardly taken aback by Adon's words. Come to think of it... in movies and novels, wasn't it standard for magicians to carry staves? He had never even considered that a staff might be necessary for magic... If it could enhance his magic even a little, perhaps he should use one too. But considering his activities in the Salt-Sour Mountain, wouldn't a long staff just get in the way? No... he seemed to recall that the staff the magician Katra of the Lucky Footsteps had was much shorter...

"What she had was what's called a short staff. Its magic convergence is slightly inferior, but it's easy to handle, so it's favored by adventurers and the like. It seems the magician over there is negotiating for a longer staff."

Looking over, Yuri saw Ems showing several staff-like objects to the customer. Their color reminded both Yuri and Adon of something.

"Hmm... so it's processed from Rosewood heartwood, as I thought. He said that the furniture merchants bought it all up last time, so he probably made sure to secure a portion for magicians this time."

"So that heartwood can be used for that kind of thing too."

"Of course. Depending on the tree species, branches and the like are often processed directly into staves. In the case of Rosewood, the branches aren't very suitable for staves, but I've heard the magical aptitude of the heartwood is extraordinary. It has to compete with furniture makers, so it's rarely processed into staves."

"Rarely... but there are nearly ten of them right there..."

"...That Ems. He's scheming to make as many as he can while he has the chance."

Apparently, those staves could not be used as magic tools as they were. A craftsman who handled magic tools would need to do further processing, but it was common for magicians like that one to bring the raw wood to be processed themselves. Eventually, their discussion seemed to have concluded. The young man paid Ems a considerable number of gold coins, took one of the staves, and, clutching it carefully under his arm, eagerly left the workshop.

"Was that last customer a magician?"

"Yeah, thanks to you, I've managed to catch a high-paying customer. When that customer takes the Rosewood to a craftsman, it'll be good advertising for me."

"...If only it would end at just that..."

Adon stared at Ems with a look that seemed to say, "Have you forgotten the unreasonable demands a nobleman made just because you stood out last time?" Ems, on the receiving end, shifted a little uneasily, but the die had already been cast.

"Still, how did you manage to process that Rosewood into staves?"

"I wore out about seven saws doing it. But well, it was worth the effort... or so I'd like to think..."

"The problem isn't whether it was worth it, but what happens if it was too worth it."

There were less than ten staves left cut from the heartwood. In contrast, the number of magicians staying here in Laurenzen was...

"Even limiting it to those who have the funds to buy one, less than ten won't be enough. And thinking about what happens when its reputation reaches other towns..."

"...Is this... bad?"

"Honestly, I can't make that judgment. But what is certain is that the number of people fighting over the limited heartwood has increased."

With each of Adon's curt lines, Ems's face grew paler. It seemed he had belatedly understood exactly what he had done.

"Yu..."

"Let me be clear, even the Salt-Sour Mountain doesn't have an infinite supply of heartwood. There's a limit to how much Yuri-kun can provide. If you don't properly understand that and avoid making rash promises, I won't be responsible if you find yourself in a corner you can't get out of."

The workshop owner, Ems, was essentially a craftsman, not a merchant. He seemed to have gotten carried away by obtaining a rare material, but Adon's stern warning seemed to have cooled his head a bit.

"...You're right. I'll refrain from thoughtless advertising. I'll make transactions for on-hand stock only, and say the next time I'll get any is undecided... but what's the actual situation?"

The actual situation was that Yuri's Storage alone held more than ten logs' worth of heartwood. However, if he kept selling it at the current pace, it seemed it would soon become impossible to acquire.

"Ten pieces... If I get carried away and sell them all off, they'll be gone in no time."

"...In no time... you say?"

"This is just the beginning. If its reputation grows as it is now, orders will undoubtedly flood in from outside the country. When that happens, ten pieces will be gone in an instant."

"Right. ...It might be safer to stop selling it so flamboyantly and just sell a little at a time over a long period."

Taking Adon's advice, Ems fell into thought.