A month passed after that meeting.
At the volunteer guard training grounds, plenty of village adults joined the regular guards, practicing hard with crossbows and composite bows.
The crossbow proved a massive hit with the women.
”We can’t just keep being the ones protected all the time!” they declared, firing with fierce determination.
”Orya-!!”
”Taaah-!!”
”Shut your face! This is the end for you!!”
Spirited shouts rang across the yard as bolts flew into the targets.
”Ah, I wish I could shoot this straight into my husband’s backside!” one woman laughed, resetting her string.
”I know, right? Every time I see him lying around drinking, I just want to drive this bolt right through his big nose!” another chimed in.
”Couldn’t have said it better! Ahahahaha!”
…Please don’t, ladies.
”Still, this crossbow’s proper brilliant, innit? Perfect for blowing off daily frustration!”
”Ain’t that the truth! That crisp feeling when you pull the trigger-I can’t get enough of it!”
”We know exactly what you mean-!!”
…It seemed there was a slightly different reason the crossbow had taken off with the women.
”Hah! There!!” Flora shouted, pulling the trigger with smooth precision.
THWIP!
”My lady, a splendid shot,” her maid Sarah noted, stepping up with another bundle of bolts.
Flora had taken the lead in crossbow practice, and with her natural talent, she had already reached the level of a master marksman.
The first time Flora picked up a crossbow, her eyes gleamed so brightly that everyone else instinctively kept their distance.
Perhaps that came from her Margrave Rommel bloodline.
”…Hah!”
THWIP!!
Flora sprinted across the range, aiming and firing at targets tossed high into the air by Sarah, running through advanced drills without missing a beat.
Her ponytail streamed behind her as she moved, her focused expression so different from her usual calm self, her chest bouncing with every sudden turn. I found myself completely unable to tear my eyes away from her.
After watching practice, I headed over to visit Gardo at the carpenter’s shop.
Inside the noisy workshop, Gardo and his men moved about frantically, rushing to crank out extra crossbows and composite bows.
”Oh! Al, is that you, lad? What brings you by today?” Gardo called out over the sound of sawing. “That extra lot you ordered’s still gonna take a bit, mind!”
”Aye, I know that, so it’s fine. I actually came to ask a favour today.”
Gardo narrowed his eyes, wiping sweat off his brow. “…You ain’t cooked up some other crazy scheme, have you?”
”Come on, nothing like that, honest… only a little.”
”Oi! What was that pause for, lad?!” Gardo barked, dropping his mallet. “And you said ‘only a little,’ didn’t you?! What d’you mean, a little?!”
…There’s no need to shout so loud, mate… Now all the craftsmen are staring right at us…
”Uh… AHEM!” Gardo cleared his throat, spinning around to face his men. “You lot, stop gawping and get your hands moving, now! If we don’t hit quota, there’s no supper for any of you!!”
…Isn’t that straight-up workplace harassment?
Gardo turned back to me, huffing softly. “Right then, so what’s this favour?”
”Well, I was wondering if you could make something like this, if you’d take a look…”
I handed over a fresh blueprint.
Gardo unrolled the paper, squinting at the design. “…What’s this, then?”
”That’s called a gun.”
I had no intention of stopping at crossbows and composite bows.
It was obvious both weapons would get copied eventually, stripping away our edge before long.
Once that happened, enemy forces could overwhelm us with sheer numbers, swallowing the village whole in no time.
Strengthening our immediate defenses had been top priority, which was why I pushed for bows first, but once things settled down, we needed to research firearms.
”Right, I’ll give it a go, lad. But don’t go expectin’ miracles, eh? We’re already shorthanded and run off our feet as it is.”
With that grumble, Gardo disappeared into the back of the workshop.
When I returned to the manor, Grandma Luciola was sitting inside, which was quite a rare sight.
Ever since the meeting, Grandma Luciola had worked non-stop to produce lighting magic tools.
Thanks to her hard work, the manor stayed bright even at night, which proved to be a massive help to everyone.
”Oh, well ain’t this a surprise? What brings you here today?” I asked, stepping into the room.
”I was waitin’ on you, Al, honey,” Grandma Luciola replied, popping a dried twin-sweet peach into her mouth before taking a quick sip of tea.
The twin-sweet peach was a local fruit shaped like two peaches fused together, incredibly sweet with a rich, fruity aroma.
Lately, her way of drinking tea had swept through the village like wildfire.
By keeping a piece of dried twin-sweet peach in your mouth while taking a sip, a sweet, fragrant flavor burst across your tongue, making the tea taste ten times better. It became an instant hit, especially among the local women.
Flora was actually the one who brought the idea to the village, while Margrave Rommel had included the peaches-normally impossible to find in these parts-in his relief supplies.
Once the village women tasted how good the peaches were, they demanded a steady supply, pressuring Flora to beg the Margrave for saplings so they could plant them across the newly cleared eastern plains as top priority.
”Say, Al… what’re you plannin’ to do from here on out?” Grandma Luciola asked softly.
”From here on? What d’you mean?”
”To tell it to you straight, I got my hands plum full just makin’ these here lightin’ tools. Lately, I ain’t been able to brew up a single potion.”
…Right. Without potions, the villagers would be in right trouble… I was so wrapped up in the lighting tools that I didn’t even catch on…
”Course, if you’re happy with how things stand, Al, I reckon I could take on an apprentice to handle the potion-makin’ and keep the wheels turnin’. I could still crank out a few lightin’ tools on the side. But if that ain’t the case-if you’re lookin’ further down the road, fixin’ to try new things-then I just can’t manage it all by my lonesome no more. I done hit my limit, honey…”
…She was right. I’d been leaning on Grandma Luciola for way too much heavy lifting. She was already working her fingers to the bone, and I couldn’t push her any further…
So what should I do now? I had to figure out another way…
Seeing me lost in thought, Grandma Luciola offered a gentle smile. “Now, there is one way to fix this whole mess.”
”Eh? Really?!”
Caught completely off guard, I snapped my head up, staring right at her.
”Would you mind if I called some of my kinfolk from back home over to this here village? I reckon they’d be more’n willing to help you out with all them wild requests of yours. They’re a mighty curious bunch, after all.”
”Wh-?! Your home country?! You mean you weren’t born in this village, Grandma Luciola?!”
”Fohfohfoh! Bless your heart, no. I was born in the [Forest of the Ancient Spirits], way up past the Melkiala Mountains-further north even than Margrave Rommel’s lands.”
With a soft chuckle, Grandma Luciola lifted off her hat-something she had never done in front of a single soul.
”Whaaaaaat?! An-An elf?!”
There, hidden beneath the hat she wore every single day, were long, pointed ears.
”Ahuh, that’s right. Back when I was a young sprout, I hankered to see the wide world, so I upped and left the forest. I wandered all over creation… well, a whole mess of things happened, but I ended up puttin’ down roots right here. Truth be told, I aimed to live out the rest of my days real quiet in this little ol’ town…”
”Grandma Luciola…”
”But then you young’uns with all your clever ideas started whippin’ up one fascinating trick after another! Every single day’s been a pure joy since I hitched my wagon to yours. We elves, see, we get to thinkin’ we know every little thing under the sun on account of livin’ so long. So when someone shows us brand-new, unknown craftwork, it gets our old hearts thumpin’ again. If I send word to the folk back in the forest about all this, they won’t be able to sit still-they’ll come runnin’ over here faster than a jackrabbit, I’d wager.”
”Is it really alright for me to ask that of you? You’ve been hiding your ears all this time so folk wouldn’t find out you’re an elf, right? Everyone’s gonna know your secret now… Are you sure about this, Grandma? I can still pretend I never saw those ears, y’know!”
”Heheh, you’re a good-hearted lad, Al. Don’t you worry your head none. I always figured the cat’d get out of the bag sooner or later once another elf came blowin’ through town anyway. Besides, makin’ brand-new things is a sight more fun than hiding away in the dark. Fohfohfoh…”
”Th-Then could I ask you to do it?! Please call your folk over, Grandma Luciola! I proper need their help!! Truth is, I still got heaps of things I want to build…”
Grandma Luciola’s eyes went wider than I’d ever seen them.
”Well, I’ll be damned! You mean to tell me you got even more wild ideas packed inside that head of yours?! And ‘heaps,’ you say?! Heheh, I’d best fetch my kinfolk post-haste, ’cause if I hog all the fun myself, they’ll be sore at me ’til the end of days! This town’s fixin’ to get real lively now, fohfohfoh…”
Grandma Luciola twitched her long ears, laughing warmly with a brighter smile than ever before.
Trivia:
- Grandma Luciola’s decision to reveal her elven heritage represents a dramatic shift from her lifelong goal of quiet obscurity to embracing a vibrant, collaborative future alongside Alfred.
- The women’s aggressive enthusiasm for crossbow practice stems from suppressed domestic frustration, transforming a defensive weapon into an outlet for personal catharsis.
- Alfred’s push for gunpowder technology reveals a calculated long-term strategy, acknowledging that crossbows are only a temporary advantage before inevitable replication by rivals.