If It Works, Then What's the Problem?
For now, I set the water issue aside.
If I didn't tackle things one step at a time, I'd never make any progress at all.
“So, about the pulley. Couldn't we just use bamboo as-is?”
“Yeah, I suppose. It's round and hollow inside, so it oughta work as a pulley. It'll need a bit of tweaking, though.”
“Right. So the rope doesn't slip off.”
With that decided, I had them cut down one especially thick bamboo stalk and one thinner one.
The thick section from the larger stalk would become the pulley itself. To keep the rope from slipping off either end, we inserted ring-shaped slices of bamboo to create raised edges.
Then we ran the thinner bamboo through the hollow center.
And just like that, the pulley was complete.
You didn't even need magic for something this simple.
“Then why're ya making it with alchemy magic?”
“Huh? Ah, well, it's easier. A-and it's good training for my magic too!”
“Haaah... at this rate, boy, you're never gonna learn how to use a saw, an axe, or a hammer.”
Ugh… b-but I can do it without those things. If it works, then what's the problem?
Pulling myself together, I moved on to the next step: building a frame and roof to hang the pulley from.
Those were made entirely from bamboo too.
We assembled a tower-like structure from bamboo poles and made a triangular roof using split bamboo.
That part I left to the dwarves.
And less than thirty minutes later, the well's pulley and roof were finished.
“Chico. Mind giving it a try?”
“Huh? Me? Sure, I guess.”
I wanted someone who used the well every day to see the difference firsthand.
“Can adding a little wheel really make that much of a difference? Heave-ho… huh!? Whaaaat!?”
“Is it lighter?”
“It is! It really is! This is amazing!”
Pulleys weren't particularly rare if you went to a large town.
But around here, wood suitable for making them was almost impossible to get, so they probably hadn't existed before.
Most people in this world spent their entire lives in the same town or village where they were born.
The concept of traveling was something mostly reserved for nobles.
Which meant that the knowledge people gained from life in their hometown was all the knowledge they had.
“That's good. Hopefully drawing water will be a little easier now.”
“It will! It will!”
While we were doing that, villagers started gathering around.
“H-Hey, Chico. Let me try too.”
“Is it really lighter?”
“I'm telling you it is, Obachan! See? It's lighter, right?”
“My goodness, you're right. This'll make things much easier.”
Perhaps drawn by the lively voices, more and more women gathered around.
“Umm, may I have a moment?”
The moment I spoke, silence fell.
The women exchanged glances, then smiled at me.
“What is it, Young Master? Go ahead.”
“Ah, thank you.”
Good.
The women seemed to have lowered their guard… well, a few still looked suspicious.
But that's fine. One step forward.
“How many households live in this village? Um, how many homes are there?”
“Oh, that? Let's see...”
“There are twenty-eight houses.”
“But four of them are empty.”
“You've got people who need homes, right? Just use those.”
Now that was useful information!
“Is there no village chief or anything like that?”
“A village chief? Ahahaha. Nothing like that. Though the oldest grandpa would usually represent us when dealing with the government official.”
So there wasn't one.
After chatting with the women a bit longer, I learned that roughly one hundred and ten people lived in the village.
The reason it was only an estimate was because everyone counted on their fingers and came up with different numbers.
The lowest estimate was one hundred and five, the highest was one hundred and fifteen, so I settled on one hundred and ten as the middle ground.
When I got back, I'd have to tell Father that there wasn't anyone serving as village chief.
“Umm, is there anything the women of the village are having trouble with? I can't do absolutely everything, but I do have alchemy magic.”
“Alchemy? That kind of alchemy? Making medicine and turning stones into... what was it called again?”
“Transmutation. Transmutation. Is it that kind of alchemy?”
“Hahaha. Well, yes, but it can do other things too. It's more like... I can make things.”
I could do plenty of things that made people ask, “Does that even count as alchemy?”
It was closer to the kind of alchemy I'd seen in manga.
The women began whispering among themselves.
Then the oldest among them hesitantly spoke up.
“U-umm, Young Master. Actually... it's our roofs.”
“The roofs? Are they damaged?”
The moment I asked, they nodded enthusiastically.
So I visited the nearest house that was having roof troubles and…
“Huh? T-the roof is made of wood. Where did this lumber come from?”
“Ah, about this roof...”
“Do you know that development of Zenas started about fifty years ago?”
The one who suddenly spoke up was the owner of the house.
An incredibly… *Incredibly* muscular man.
Trying not to wet myself a little, I nodded, and he continued.
“It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say our grandparents' generation built this place. Those grandparents moved here from Regal in the northwest. That place gets hit by floods all the time. Back then, an entire village got washed away.”
“And the survivors were encouraged to relocate here and help develop Zenas.”
“So that's what happened. I knew development started fifty years ago, but I didn't know the reason behind it. Thank you for telling me.”
When I said that, the muscle-bound man stared at me in surprise.
Huh? Did I say something strange?
“I always thought nobles were creatures that never bowed their heads to commoners... but you and your father... I guess there really are different kinds of nobles.”
Ah, so that was what surprised him.
Well, my memories from my previous life still influenced me, so I didn't really care much about the distinction between nobles and commoners.
Though Father might indeed be unusual.
Still, I thought he was simply doing what any decent human being should do.
And the fact that he could do that made him a good person.
“S-so anyway, about the roof.”
“Ah, right! The lumber.”
“This was brought from Regal when they migrated here.”
Ah, I see. So it hadn't been cut here in Zenas, it had been transported from another region.
That would make repairs difficult.
We'd have to buy lumber from another territory.
Well, we did have the money for that, but… hmm.
I wonder if bamboo could work.
What do you think about this chapter?
