Chapter 139: Casting
During my early morning walk, I searched for Kadal in the orchard, but I haven’t seen him for the past few days.
Today is another day of forging. I need to finish Tina’s hammer before the Spirits gather.
Tina wants a hammer—not a silly toy hammer, but a real one. I wonder why, but it’s her wish, so I can’t complain. At least, I hope I can make it look cute… can I?
I won’t be banging away at this one. Instead, I’ll carve a shape out of wood and create a mold using a mixture of clay and sand. The design is simply a cylindrical head with a handle—but I thought that was a bit plain, so I made it look like a squirrel is hugging the top.
The model for the squirrel is En’s Spirit. Alright, it’s cute! …I think. Even if it is a blunt weapon.
I place the carved wooden hammer in the center of a square wooden mold, pack it with sand, and firmly compact it from the outside. Then I flip it over, fit another wooden frame on top to secure the pouring gate, and add more sand, compacting it again.
As I compact the sand, something that looks like liquid starts to seep out. If I’m not imagining things, it must be a Spirit. Can that really happen just from compacting sand?
For now, it’s lunchtime. Today’s bento includes rice with pickled plum, a thick omelet, sausages, half of a cutlet, and some bright green rapeseed flowers with a hint of yellow. For dessert, I’ve got a Rabbit Apple waiting.
Eating lunch outdoors is delightful. Not long ago, I was in a constant camping state, eating meals outside, but a bento is something special.
I lie back in the grass, gazing up at the sky. The gloomy winter sky has transformed into a clear blue with not a cloud in sight.
Rishu seems to be planning to nap today too. He circles around me, checking for a comfortable spot before curling up.
I’ve heard that sleeping right after eating can lead to esophagitis, which isn’t good, but I can’t resist the urge to nap in this lovely weather after a hearty meal. I’ll just have to rely on the Healing Spirit for that.
Once I wake up, I’ll remove the mold and finally pour in the molten iron. As the orange iron flows into the pouring gate, Spirits are born and scatter in all directions, quickly transforming into tiny sparks.
At first, I was startled, thinking the molten iron had splashed, but it turns out there are beautiful little sparkles around me, reminiscent of sparklers.
After that, I’ll forge Dinoss’s flame great sword, Ash’s sword of green, water, and wind, Retze’s earth and green sword with a subtle touch, Chris’s light sword, and Dean’s flame great sword. For the three who don’t use much ore, I’ll include a dismantling knife.
By the way, Dean wants something similar to Dinoss’s! When he’s in full King Wolf fan mode, I can’t help but look at him like he’s lost his mind.
Chris might even start getting excited alongside Dean, while Retze just shakes his head in disbelief. Apparently, in their generation, it’s rare not to admire the King Wolf.
Maybe it’s because he’s used to it, but Dinoss is ignored. The legendary man apparently becomes even more impressive at the Adventurer’s Guild. Sounds like a hassle.
Well, that wraps things up for now.
I usually eat dinner before taking a bath, but for the past few days, I’ve been bathing first. After my bath, I drink a glass of milk before starting to prepare dinner.
Today’s menu includes sake-steamed clams, tempura, rice, and miso soup. Watching the spring scenery made me crave tempura made from wild vegetables.
I’ll use taranome, udo, koshiabura, kogomi, and fuki no tou. For seafood, I’ll have squid, sweet shrimp, and clam.
To prevent the shrimp from curling up, I’ll make cuts and dry them well, especially the tails. I’ll peel the squid and cut it into appropriate sizes, wrapping it in shiso leaves. I’ll clean the clams and pat them dry. The opened fillets of the sweetfish look beautiful too.
With the preparations done, I want to eat them fresh, so I’ll stand in the kitchen while I eat.
First, I dig into the sake-steamed clams. The clams this season are plump and full of flavor, just before they lay their eggs. It’s a bit rude, but I can’t resist pinching the shells with my fingers and popping them into my mouth along with the broth and scattered mitsuba.
Udo has a unique refreshing taste, while the fuki no tou is slightly bitter. The sweet shrimp can be enjoyed crispy and plump, or you can savor the half-cooked sweetness.
Even though some ingredients are out of season, everything is delicious. I’m too happy.
After the meal, I watch Rishu eat meat while checking the necessary items on the blueprints by the fireplace. I plan to leave most of the work to the craftsmen, but I need to make the glass for the windows myself. Before that, I should head to the Island and borrow a temporary residence from the Kingin duo.
I should also ask the islanders for help. Since it’s an inconvenient island, cash income must be precious, and it wouldn’t be fair if only outside craftsmen were making money.
I plan to deliver the swords tomorrow, but I have a feeling there are some items that will get me scolded. Well, it was originally a request for Spirit Swords, so it should be fine, right? Yeah, probably.