kscans

Chapter 228 - # The Spring Grand Market ~A Ladies First First Day~ 4. Tableware (Part 2)

"It's completely different, isn't it? The weight is one thing, but most of all, the appearance."

"Hmm..."

It was true. The tableware he made himself with Earth Magic was, to put it nicely, sturdy and practical, and to put it bluntly, had an unfriendly design. Yuri had no problem admitting that. However, he wanted them to think about it. Would a man living alone, eating by himself, go out of his way to use elaborately designed tableware? If you asked a hundred single men, the vast majority would probably answer "no." It wouldn't be surprising to get answers like eating straight from the pot, and Yuri himself did that at home, sometimes.

But, Yuri reconsidered. In the end, what Dona was concerned about was the tableware for when she visited Yuri's home. In that case, wasn't it a good idea to set some aside specifically for guests, separate from his everyday things? If so...

"Then you pick it out, Dona. I don't really know what's good."

The only eccentrics likely to visit his village were Dona, Old Man Audel, and Otta. The old man was Dona's grandfather, and Otta seemed to have a soft spot for Dona, so if he let Dona choose, there shouldn't be a problem. ...If by some chance she chose something with a pink floral pattern, he would just use his everyday dishes himself...

"Me? ...Hmm..."

"Oh, and please think about the budget, okay?"

"I know that. ...Hmm..."

In the end, Dona chose a set of small pottery plates and cups. Fortunately, it was not a girlish design like Yuri had secretly feared, but something with a calm and tasteful feel. The price was also within a budget-friendly range. Dona seemed interested in wooden tableware as well, but because magical beasts roamed the forests, woodwork was generally expensive in this country. While individual odds and ends might be affordable, a set was expensive.

However... in Yuri's case, he was in an environment where wood was relatively easy to obtain. At the very least, it was definitely cheaper to make it himself than to buy it in a shop. The reason Yuri didn't use wooden tableware was simply because he didn't have the processing tools. However, he had bought a set of tools last year, and he had even built a lathe for turning wood on a whim. So he had tried to make a prototype wooden bowl, but as it was a task he was not used to, he couldn't make anything decent right away, and it had been left as it was since then. Now that a new need for guest tableware had arisen, should he try his hand at the lathe again? Or would it be better to bring the wood and have Ems process it for him? No... before that...

"Hey Dona. This kind of wooden tableware, do people not make it with magic or anything?"

"Huh?"

Faced with a look as if he were something strange, Yuri was also a little flustered.

"...Um, you know... like deforming the wood with Wood Magic... like you do with Earth Magic..."

Yuri actually used the Wood Magic spells Wood Deformation and Wood Strengthening all the time. So such skills definitely existed. However, judging from his experience making a chair with Wood Deformation, it had the drawback of making the wood grain disappear. Looking at the wooden products in front of him, they clearly had a wood grain. This meant that this tableware was made by hand, at least not with Wood Deformation.

He had tried to subtly ask Dona about the situation, but...

"Hey Yuri-kun? Normally, people can't do that, you know? Normally."

He was admonished in an exasperated tone. Was it his imagination, or was the old shopkeeper also looking at him with pity, and were Fray and Eto both averting their eyes? ...It seemed that processing with Wood Deformation was not common. However... the fact that Dona had particularly emphasized "normally" might have been because she had sensed that Yuri had done something. He felt it was regrettable to be thought of as having done something wrong, but Yuri had a feeling that for the sake of all concerned, it would be better to just let this matter slide.