kscans

Chapter 227 - # The Spring Grand Market ~A Ladies First First Day~ 3. Tableware (Part 1)

Dona and the others had been looking around the small goods shops, with Yuri maintaining his stance as a mere escort, but eventually they came to a section where tableware was displayed. It seemed that at the Spring Grand Market, shops selling similar items were grouped together in the same area. On the one hand, you couldn't secure a good spot by applying early, but on the other, the ability to attract customers was high, so it seemed no one complained.

"Tableware, huh..."

"Dona, you want some tableware?"

Isn't that unusual for a girl? Yuri thought, but Dona's reply took him by surprise.

"Not for me, for you, Yuri-kun. Isn't it about time you got some decent tableware?"

"For me?"

The tableware Yuri used at home was made with Earth Magic. It was a bit heavy and rustic, but now that he was used to it, he didn't feel any particular inconvenience. But... that's not how Dona saw it.

"Stone tableware isn't bad, but it's heavy and hard to handle, and most of all, it lacks elegance, don't you think?"

That was her reasoning. She was fully intending to visit Yuri's house again in the future, and to partake in his delicious meals. Incidentally, in the background, Eto was muttering, "Stone tableware..." but Yuri didn't notice.

"I don't really need tableware..."

He was about to say, "I can make whatever I want with alchemy or Wood Deformation," but then it struck Yuri. It was true that he could make tableware with Wood Deformation now, but wouldn't it be suspicious to produce turned cups and plates like that without a lathe? Come to think of it, he had never come out about his Wood Magic...

Yuri didn't realize the point of whether Wood Deformation fell into the category of Wood Magic or not, but he did realize that it was not something he should let slip carelessly. In that case, it would be safer to buy some tableware here.

Based on his own calculations, Yuri decided to go along with Dona's suggestion, but...

"But you know, I have no idea what makes tableware good or bad."

In his previous life, he had been hospitalized for a long time, and hospital tableware was all about being sturdy, simple, and easy to handle and sterilize. In the pediatric ward, there had been some tableware with character designs, but he probably wouldn't find anything like that here. What about the tableware at his home in his past life? His memory was hazy now, but he thought it was nothing fancy, just standard, inoffensive items.

As a result, Yuri couldn't really tell much about the color or design of tableware. Perhaps it would be better to have Dona choose according to her tastes.

"Oh, in that case, how about that? I've been eyeing it for a while now♪"

What Dona pointed to was... a set of white porcelain tableware.

In this country, porcelain was not produced, and they relied entirely on imports, so porcelain was generally expensive. As expected, Dona froze when the shopkeeper, with a wry smile, told her the price.

(...If I had the raw materials, I might be able to do something with Earth Magic and alchemy... but to begin with, it's doubtful whether I can even get raw materials like kaolin in this country...)

Firing porcelain required a higher firing temperature than pottery, but he could probably manage that by using Fire Magic. However, the raw materials were another matter. Yuri had no intention, for now, of wandering around Salt-Sour Mountain in search of porcelain raw materials.

If obtaining porcelain was difficult for financial and technical reasons, then the alternative was pottery. But wouldn't pottery be about the same weight as the things he made with Earth Magic?