Chapter 5: Crafting for the Family
As we were having breakfast as a family, as usual, the mansion became noisy.
“What is the commotion?”
“Master, I apologize for interrupting your meal. Monsters have appeared from the sea of trees.” Smith, the butler who rushed into the dining room, reported to Father. Smith is an experienced older man who manages the Fairchild family vassals.
Contact came via express rider from a town near the Great Western Forest (called the sea of trees). Monsters occasionally emerge from the sea of trees. The Fairchild Margrave family maintains a Knight Order precisely to subjugate such monsters. While a few knights often go and defeat them, this time, they seem to have appeared in a group. In that case, it is the Fairchild family Knight Order’s turn to act.
Father cut his breakfast short and left. The well-trained Knight Order prepared quickly, assembling in front of the mansion by noon that day, fully equipped. “All personnel, line up!” When Liam, the Knight Commander, gave the command, the knights snapped their heels together and straightened their backs. “Excellency, preparations are complete.”
“Good, let us go then.” My Father led the Knight Order. It is the custom of the Fairchild family that the head of the family leads the Knight Order when they sortie. Father possesses the Sword Skill. His vassals say that he is not only a capable commander but also personally strong.
The Knight Order marching out on horseback is magnificent. The Knight Order is highly popular among the territory’s inhabitants as the entity that protects them from the threat of monsters. If I had chosen Hero or Sage when I reincarnated, maybe I could have been active in the Knight Order too. But somehow, I cannot image myself fighting unrivaled against monsters. Come to think of it, God did say my soul was tired.
“How about we use leather as a new material today?” While I was in a complicated mood, Teacher Erica suggested using a new material. First, Teacher Erica showed me how to make a small leather bag. “In the case of leather goods, we also need to use thread. It becomes more difficult because we are using two types of material.”
A leather bag, huh? The image that came to mind was the brand-name handbags I saw from Italy and France in my previous life. Yup, the memory is vivid. I recalled my sister Sophia saying recently that she wanted a bag.
Sophia is the youngest, so she seems to want to act older. She sometimes says things like she is a part of the Fairchild family too. But since she is still small, I think something cute would be best. Something cute and pink, but still elegant and calm in design would be nice.
I imagined my sister Sophia happily talking at a noble party, clutching her handbag. Magic power gathered at my fingertips and began to glow, and a magic circle floated over my palm. And when the warm light enveloping the leather vanished, a beautiful bag appeared. “My, a bag this cute and beautiful is quite rare. The texture is good too.” Teacher Erica praised me.
Next, I decided to make a bookshelf. My brother, Edward, will be fifteen soon and is scheduled to enroll in the Royal Capital‘s academy. He is working hard studying every day for that. Brother Edward, who originally liked physical activity, also seemed to enjoy his sword practice. Even Liam, the Commander of the Knight Order, who is said to be one of the best knights in the Kingdom, acknowledges his talent, so Brother Edward has innate talent for the sword.
On the other hand, he can study well enough but never seemed to like it much. Despite that, I wanted to make something for my brother, who is working so hard. His room is usually well-kept, but the last time I went in, the study books couldn’t fit on the desk and were placed on the floor.
So, I decided to make a bookshelf that could store them neatly. Books are expensive in this world, similar to the Middle Ages in my original world, so not many people own enough books to need a bookshelf to organize them. Therefore, bookshelves are rare outside of noble libraries and are costly, so they are not usually kept in private rooms.
I imagined the antique bookshelf I saw in my original world. I want to make a beautiful bookshelf with neat relief carvings that will cheer up my brother who is studying so hard. When I activated the Production Skill, the bookshelf appeared exactly as I had imagined. “My, what a beautiful piece of woodcraft. What is this used for?”
“I made it hoping it would allow him to line up and organize his books. My brother seems to be studying hard lately.”
“I see, you made it for your older brother. I think that is good, as creating things with someone else in mind is essential for honing the Production Skill.” Just as I was happy that I had created it exactly as intended, I heard hurried footsteps outside the room again.
“Will, is it true you made something amazing?”
“I want to see it too!” This time, it was my brother and sister, not my parents. Do our servants read my mind? To contact the person I want to use the item whenever I make something.
“Wow, a lovely, cute bag!” My sister seems to like the handbag. “If you like, I’ll give it to you, Sophia. You seemed to want a bag recently.”
“Really? Thank you very much!”
“Is this a bookshelf?”
“Yes, I made it hoping it would be useful for you, Brother, since you’ve been studying hard lately.”
“Really? Oh, with this, I can neatly store all the books I have. The design is beautiful too. The beautiful relief carving of the plants is amazing. Yup, putting this on the desk seems like it would cheer me up. Thank you, truly.” I’m happy when my family is so pleased with the things I make.
The Production Skill practice continued. This time, I also tried making a mirror chest using wood and glass as materials. I imagined an antique type made only of wood, without using iron.
According to Teacher Erica, combining materials with different properties is difficult. I imagined my Mother using it when putting on makeup or such. Yup, I made it well.
Later, when I showed it to Mother, she said, “Oh my, that’s amazing. Can Mother really use this? Thank you. If you can make similar things, they could be gifts for other nobles.” So, I made a few identical ones.
The Teacher praised the workmanship, but then asked with a slight look of concern: “William, you truly are talented. By the way, are you not feeling tired?”
“No, I don’t particularly feel tired.” Using a lot of magic makes me hungry, but eating restores my energy, so I don’t feel tired.
“Hmm, your face isn’t pale either. Normally, one would be exhausted after making just one or two things because they run out of magic power.” Is that so? It seems I can make any number in a day without issue.
“It seems William has an enormous amount of magic power. I wonder if it’s more than the Chief Court Magician in the Royal Capital.”
Teacher Erica seemed more astonished than impressed. An enormous amount of magic power, huh? It must be thanks to God‘s blessing. I chose to be a Crafter instead of a Hero or Sage, not knowing that the nobles in this world primarily valued sword and magic.
However, my parents and the people around me warmly watch over me, and little by little, crafting has become fun. If I have a talent for the Production Skill, I hope I can repay their kindness someday.
