――We decided to build a changing room.
Was swimming always such a long and difficult road?
For the sake of swimming, we had to make swimsuits meant for swimming, and then we even had to build a changing room just to wear them…….
If I think about it more, this all started with making a lake for swimming in the first place, so just how high was the hurdle, really…….
Putting that aside, the changing room.
At this point, I did think that maybe everyone could just hide their bodies with towels or something while changing, but that was probably not realistic.
…Well, in my previous life, there were towels made specifically for changing clothes. The kind that made you look a bit like a teru teru bozu. I thought it might work if people hid themselves with those while quietly changing…….
But no, that would not do. A large group of adults wrapping those towels around themselves and changing outdoors would be far too surreal. I would not want to wear one either. I am already fourteen, so there is no way I can wrap myself in that thing.
That is why I decided to build a proper changing room in the 4-1 area.
――Or rather, we built one.
「Good work!」
「Yes. Thank you for your hard work」
「One week until completion, huh. Thanks to Alec, it finished surprisingly fast!」
「No, no, I only helped a little」
Normally, I would have built it myself and proudly numbered it something like Woodworking Series Number Forty-Eight: Changing Room, but a changing room is a bit much. Building a proper structure alone would be pushing it.
So, I decided to ask a professional.
I asked Fleur-san, the village’s architect and master carpenter――Fleur-san, the beautiful architect and beautiful master carpenter, to take on the job.
Fleur-san, the beautiful architect and beautiful master carpenter, is a female elf, but unlike most, she wears pants instead of a skirt. She has a towel wrapped around her head and a small magic bag hanging from her waist, giving her a very carpenter-like appearance.
…And yet, even dressed like that, she is still clearly beautiful. Elves as a race are truly frightening.
「As expected of you, Fleur-san. It is exactly how I imagined it」
「Really? I see, I am glad to hear that」
I told Fleur-san about the image of changing rooms I had seen in my previous life, and she built it based on that.
The location is near the entrance of the 4-1 area. Right after you enter the area.
The changing room has two entrances, one for men and one for women.
I even made and put up simple signs, a blue human figure for men and a red human figure wearing a skirt for women.
It is not a very large building, but about ten people should be able to change at the same time.
Both the exterior and the interior turned out pretty convincing.
「Alright, here is today’s pay」
「Thank you very much」
Fleur-san, who had been casually stuffing the carpentry tools into her magic bag, handed me the money as if she just remembered.
I accepted it gratefully and put it into my own magic bag.
Today marks the seventh day I have received wages from Fleur-san.
She built this changing room in just one week, and I also helped her for that entire week.
It was a changing room I had requested, and I wanted to see the actual construction site, so I came to observe from the very first day of work, but――
『Alec, want to help too? You have woodworking, right? Want to do it?』
She said that, and I helped a little.
She taught me various basics of construction, and I was happily grateful for the good experience when—
『Alright, here is today’s pay. Let’s do our best again tomorrow!』
She said something like that, and before I knew it, I ended up helping for an entire week.
I just went with the flow. I ended up helping without much thought, but I did my best anyway.
I could not do anything amazing, but I worked hard cutting wood, sanding it, and applying varnish, doing whatever I could.
It was fun in its own way, and I learned about construction, so I think it was a good experience.
The plan to build a villa in the 2-1 forest area, which I had been putting off for a long time, might finally move forward because of this.
…That said, much of Fleur-san’s construction style is very unconventional, so it would be hard to use it as a direct reference.
Fleur-san does not use nails to join wood together. That does not mean she uses techniques like carving shapes into the wood to interlock them either. She uses a method where she fixes the materials with skill arts from the Building skill.
At that point, copying it is simply impossible.
Also, she does not build scaffolding or anything like that. She just floats in the air using skill arts. I have no idea how I am supposed to take that as a reference.
On top of that, maybe because of her skills, even though her body is slender, she casually lifts and carries large pieces of lumber with ease…….
There were many things I could learn from watching her, but that one week also made it clear that trying to imitate Fleur-san’s way of building would be extremely reckless.
「By the way, Fleur-san, I think I mentioned before that I want to build a house in 2-1……」
「Ah, yeah. You did mention that. Building one? Is this a request?」
「Ah, no, it is not exactly a request, but I might come by to ask for advice」
「Sure, sure. Come visit anytime」
「Thank you very much」
I visit Fleur-san’s shop, Fleur Construction, from time to time.
They also sell lumber there, so I buy all of my woodworking materials from this shop.
「Ah, by the way, I got some really good wood! It looks perfect for making dolls」
「Oh, really? Then please let me buy it. About how big is it?」
「Hmm. I think you could easily make a World Tree-sama or a Sage-san. Maybe you could make a Sword Saint-san too?」
「I see……」
That is, in a way, a very easy size description to understand……. It seems to be large enough to make a life-sized father doll.
That said, I have no intention of making a doll of Father…….
「I have not decided what I will make yet, but I will buy it for now」
「Okay. Want me to carry it to your house?」
「Ah, it is fine. I will stop by again later」
「Got it. I will be waiting!」
「Yes. Thank you」
Fleur-san is always smiling and full of energy. Talking with her makes me feel energized too.
Even on days when I am a bit tired or feeling down, if I stop by her shop, she chats with me cheerfully and fills me up with energy for the next day.
…Well, it is not that kind of shop, and that is not why I go there or anything.
next chapter: First Penguin 2
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