I began persuading Jered Papa to make Reversi as well.
This was a promise I absolutely had to secure. If I could get Jered Papa to help, then I could finally escape from the infinite Reversi hell.
…Just to be clear, this isn’t about ‘dragging Jered Papa into hell with me’. This is purely about ‘having him rescue me from hell’. Please, don’t get that part twisted.
「Jered Papa-san, you’d definitely be able to make them faster and better than me, right?」
「Well, yeah, I guess I could.」
「And that’s exactly the kind of thing that falls under your job, isn’t it?」
「The heck it is. My job’s makin’ weapons.」
Oops. I might’ve just bruised the blacksmith’s pride.
…Come to think of it, how good is Jered Papa really? I’ve heard Father always brings his sword here whenever it needs proper maintenance, so he must be decent at least.
Actually, that means this shop is ‘Sword Saint Approved’. Maybe they should hang up a banner. Both Father and Jered Papa would probably hate that, though.
「Well, sure, equipment is important. But right now, it’s not full plate armor the village needs…it’s Reversi.」
「You don’t know that for sure.」
Oh come on, of course I do. I’ve never seen an elf walking around in heavy armor. Elves are all about poking from a safe distance, aren’t they?
「The thing is… I’m already at my limit. No matter how I try, I can’t keep up with the demand anymore.」
「Hmmm…」
「Look, I’ll be the one who’s cheap, low-quality, and slow to deliver. You can be the one who’s a little more expensive, high-quality, and fast. That way, we can split the market.」
Not that we ‘need’ to split it, really… It’s not like I’m planning to make a living off Reversi.
Sure, I’ve been accepting a small fee from the villagers, but it’s all at the friends-and-family discount. And almost the entire amount just gets handed over to my parents anyway.
「It’s not like you’d have to keep making them forever. Nobody needs ten Reversi sets in their house. Just until the villagers all have one.」
「…Tch. Fine. I’ll do it.」
「Really!? Thank you so much!」
Yes! With the two of us working together, I’ll be freed from this infinite Reversi hell sooner or later.
Well… more likely, even with both of us, Reversi hell is going to keep dragging on for a while.
But that’s fine. Let’s fall into hell together, Jered Papa.
……Yeah. No matter how you look at it, I just dragged Jered Papa down with me. I really feel bad for him…
Honestly, I’m already starting to hate Reversi, and I’m pretty sure Jered Papa will end up hating it too. Sorry about that…
「Well, I owe you, kid」
「Owe me…?」
「It’s about Jered. …How should I put it, thanks for being his friend」
Huh, Jered Papa sounds a little dere.
「No, that’s really nothing you need to thank me for――」
「Maybe so, but still. …That kid’s like me, not good with words. You helped him, didn’t you?」
「Well, yeah…」
Come to think of it, he ‘was’ a bit troublesome.
「Took him a long time, but I’m glad I pushed him」
「Huh? Pushed him for what?」
「Of course, I knew about you guys. There was a chance he could get friends his own age. So I told him, ‘Try talking to them’… When was it? Maybe when he was three?」
「Three…? I remember Jered-kun talking to me when I was five though…?」
「He’s slow with words…」
Way too slow… Two whole years… And his first line to me was 『You’re always playing with girls!』.
「He’s like that, but I’m counting on you」
「No, it’s me who should be asking. Ah, and also, about Reversi, please take care of that too」
「Yeah, can’t be helped. I’ll do it」
「Well then, here’s a sample, just in case」
I took a full Reversi set out of my magic bag and placed it on the counter.
「Huh? I don’t need it. Jered already got one from you, didn’t he」
「Really? I thought it’d be good to have a sample as a reference」
「Don’t bother. There’s still plenty of people waiting for theirs, right? Give it to them」
「I see… Alright」
I reached to take the Reversi back from the counter, but Jered Papa kept staring at it.
「Something wrong?」
「Compared to the one Jered got… you’ve gotten better, kid. Not bad for such a short time」
「Ah, really? Wow, it feels good to be praised by a pro. Thank you」
The Reversi I brought as a sample was made yesterday. Looks like I’ve managed to improve my craft in a short time.
……Well, I did make a lot of them. Of course I’d get better at it.
I wonder how many Reversi sets I’ve made so far… and how many more I’ll have to make… Zero still won’t tell me anything…
「By the way, I’ve been making Reversi every single day… is that really okay?」
「What do you mean?」
「Well, you know… we’re elves who love the forest, right? Is it really fine for elves to cut down trees just to make tools and toys?」
Honestly, I’ve been worried about this for a while. I’ve already turned a fair amount of lumber into Reversi sets, but is that really acceptable?
I’ll definitely keep making more, and I’ve got the Woodworking skill. I’ll end up using wood for other things too. Is that okay? Will anyone get mad at me?
…In the end, I asked Jered Papa, who seems like the type to burn through wood in large amounts. Kind of cowardly of me. I just want him to say, “It’s fine”.
「Hah. You sure worry about weird stuff. Well, it’s not like you’re wasting it, so isn’t it fine? Besides, I hear we’ve got reforestation going on too, right?」
「Oh, is that so? That makes me feel a bit better.」
Reforestation, huh. As expected of elves who live with the forest.
「Still, I don’t think it’s bad to keep that in mind. We mostly just use what we’re given, so I get feeling a little guilty about it.」
Jered Papa casually grouped me in with the craftsmen. Well, I guess I can’t deny it…
「Alright then, I’ll be heading back. I’ll let the people waiting for Reversi know, and once that spreads, I think you’ll start getting orders too. I’ll be counting on you for a while, Jered Papa-san.」
「Yeah. …Though it kinda bugs me, like I’m getting job referrals from a kid.」
Well, he really is getting work passed on to him by a seven-year-old…
Anyway, this should be enough to get Reversi into every household in the village.
…But still, I should’ve made shogi.
Right now, the village is in the middle of a massive Reversi boom. I can’t release shogi anytime soon.
It probably wouldn’t catch on, and worse, it might even get treated like some cheap knockoff of Reversi. With that in mind, shogi has to stay sealed away for now.
Ahh… when will the day come when I can finally move my rook…?
next chapter: Club Laudette ~~Laudette~~
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