A serious financial crisis hit the family.
Perhaps it was because of the four children, two of whom were still nursing; Zenith and Lilia’s postpartum expenses were enormous.
Rudy and I helped them do the math and found that we were already in the red, and the deficit was very large.
Paul’s salary as a village-level official was a mere pittance and couldn’t fill the gap anytime soon.
“Sigh~ if we can’t make up the difference this month, we might have to live on borrowed money next month.”
“It seems Paul and the others are planning to sell their equipment from their adventuring days to subsidize the household.”
“Rudy, do you have any good ideas?”
“I can’t think of anything for now.
Maybe I should sell my figures and dolls.”
“Can those figures of yours even fetch a price?
Besides, the two of us are too young.
Even if we tried to sell them, no one would buy.
They’d just think we stole them.”
“Then let’s have Paul and the others go out and sell the figures.”
No sooner said than done.
Rudy and I picked out a few high-quality figures, carefully packaged them, and handed them to Paul.
Paul took them, glanced at them, and then gently rubbed Rudy’s and my heads.
“Rudy, Luna, thank you for thinking about the family.
But this is a matter for us adults.
Besides, these little toys won’t sell, so you don’t need to worry.”
Paul politely declined our kindness.
He probably felt that if he relied on the children for something like this, his dignity as an adult would be completely gone.
Paul shut us down completely; no matter how much Rudy argued with him, it was useless.
“No means no.
This isn’t something children should get involved in.”
“Then what about next month’s living expenses?
Our little sisters are still growing, and Mother and Lilia need postpartum recovery.
What are we going to eat next month?”
“Hmph, don’t worry, Rudy.
As long as we sell the magic-infused items Zenith and I got during our adventuring days, we’ll be able to get through this difficulty.”
Paul looked very confident; it seemed he had already made plans.
“Forget it, Rudy.
Let’s just wait quietly.”
“Alright, since Father is so confident, Luna and I will wait for the good news.”
“Hmph, leave it to me!”
Paul thumped his chest proudly, determined to succeed.
Two days later, Paul returned from Roa, the largest city in the Fithea Territory.
He looked dejected; it seemed nothing good had happened.
“It…
it didn’t sell.
I clearly spent thirty asura gold coins to buy it back then, but they actually said it was a fake…”
It seemed he had been scammed during his adventuring days.
And according to Zenith, Paul had been scammed quite often.
If it hadn’t been for a thief named Keith helping him, Paul might have been scammed out of every penny.
Then Paul took out the magic item that had been identified as a fake.
It was a necklace.
“Dad, what is this?”
“Sigh~ I bought it at the Adventurers Guild over on the Millis Continent.
Legend has it that it’s a necklace that can bring the dead back to life, a necklace given to North God Kalman by Demon King Atouphi.
Unfortunately, the North God didn’t use this necklace, otherwise he wouldn’t have died at King Dragon Mountain, defeated by the King Dragon King.”
I picked up the necklace.
It was silver-white throughout, but the gem on the central pendant was a black stone.
It had a very demon-race style, but I couldn’t tell if it was a fake or not either.
I had heard of North God Kalman, but who was Demon King Atouphi?
I didn’t know her.
However, based on the effect Paul described, it was basically 100% certain to be a fake.
Would a magic item that could bring the dead back to life really be sold for a mere thirty asura gold coins?
No matter how you thought about it, he’d been scammed.
Rudy and I looked at each other, understanding the meaning in each other’s eyes.
We didn’t expose Paul, only smiling helplessly.
“Then Father, since it’s a fake, how much can it be sold for at a fake’s price?”
“About three asura gold coins.
The offer was just too low, so I didn’t sell it.
That bastard Philip actually couldn’t find anyone who knows their stuff either…”
The person Paul mentioned named Philip might be his friend; otherwise, he wouldn’t speak of him so disparagingly.
“I told you back then it was definitely a fake, but you and Keith just wouldn’t believe me.”
Zenith also gave Paul a good scolding.
“But Keith’s eyes never fail him; he couldn’t have lied to me.”
“I didn’t say Keith lied to you.
I’m saying that both you and Keith were scammed by the person who sold this magic item.”
Paul and Zenith continued to argue over the authenticity of the magic item, actually forgetting that next month’s living expenses were still not settled.
I pulled Rudy aside to discuss what to do.
“Sigh~ it looks like the two of us will have to find a way.
Let’s try it first.
Anyway, if we really run out of money, Paul will borrow from someone or sell other magic items.
But I heard them say those items are birthday presents for us; we should try our best not to let them sell those.”
“But Luna, do you have any good ideas?”
“I’ve had one for a while, but we can’t do it at home.
Call Sylphiette; let’s go somewhere else to do it.”
The three of us went to a sparsely populated place on the outskirts of the village.
What we were about to do might be a bit eye-catching, so we needed a remote spot.
“You can’t, Luna.
Hunting is a serious crime!
Only Daddy can hunt.”
Sylphiette reminded us with a worried look.
Seeing me carrying a dagger, she misunderstood and thought I was going to hunt in the forest.
Honestly, this world is really like medieval Europe; even the laws are similar.
Hunting is a serious crime that carries the death penalty, the kind of treatment Hans Kapon would get.
Only two people in this village could hunt: Laws, who had an official hunter’s license, and Paul, who was a lower-tier noble.
No one else was allowed to hunt.
But monsters weren’t within the scope of hunting.
Monsters could be killed at will because they were animals that harmed the villagers and didn’t count as game.
“It’s not hunting, but it’s still a bit of a hassle.”
After reaching the destination, I first used Earth Magic to clear a patch of land, eliminating nearby flammable materials to prevent a fire.
Then I built a small furnace.
Then I took out the limestone and borax I had found at the clinic where Zenith worked.
I’m sure you all know what I’m about to do now.
One of the essential skills for a transmigrator to get rich: glassmaking.
The glass craftsmanship in this world is very primitive, so glass is also very expensive.
Our house is the only one in the whole village with glass, and it’s not even a whole pane.
It’s made of circles inlaid in wooden frames to form a window.
It looks very artistic, but it’s actually a compromise due to backward technology.
So in this world with extremely backward productivity, making glass is very profitable.
However, glassmaking requires very high temperatures, and the temperature must be uniform.
There’s also a series of processes like annealing.
Normally, this isn’t something a few children could complete.
But we aren’t ordinary children; we’re children who know magic, and Chantless Magic at that.
Moreover, we have someone like Rudeus Greyrat, who is basically a high-powered human heat gun, so glassmaking is feasible.
I used Fire Magic to heat the furnace for a while.
It was okay, fairly fire-resistant.
I also made a proper crucible and put in the crushed flux in the correct proportions.
The only thing left was the raw material problem.
But the most convenient thing in this world is undoubtedly magic.
Mana can create other substances out of thin air; it’s just too convenient.
Perhaps it’s through some kind of energy or matter conversion that it turns into other substances.
Mana can almost be called a universal element.
“Rudy, can you use Earth Magic to make some quartz?
You know, those little white specks in the sand.”
The soil in Buena Village is quite fertile, making it difficult to find large expanses of sandy ground.
However, some ordinary sand can still be found.
Whether I have Rudeus separate the quartz from it or have him create it out of thin air, either way, there’s no issue with the raw materials.
“Luna, are you making glass?
Will it work?”
Rudy finally figured out what I was trying to do.
Should I say, as expected of a modern person?
“Yeah, I’m just firing glass.
It should be fine.
Since the physical laws of this world are more or less the same, the method for firing glass should be the same too.
Anyway, use Earth Magic to make me some quartz first.”
With Rudy’s precision in magic control, it was easy for him to produce a large handful of quartz.
I put it into the clay pot according to the ratio, and then placed the clay pot into the small furnace.
“Rudy, use the highest temperature flame and concentrate it near the crucible.”
Rudy raised both hands, and with a’shua’ sound, like a gas burner igniting, a ball of purple flame carrying an immense amount of heat converged around the clay pot.
It felt like at least three thousand degrees Celsius.
I wonder what kind of energy source mana actually is in this world.
The muzzle velocity of the Intermediate Water Magic ‘Water Spear’ can actually reach nearly the muzzle velocity of a 122mm howitzer.
Moreover, where is the source of mana?
How is mana composed?
What is the human body structure like in this world?
I have no idea about any of it.
“Luna, is this enough?”
After a short while, I noticed that the quartz in the clay pot had liquefied into a viscous liquid.
“Alright, that’s enough.
Good work, Blowtorch No.
1.”
“Blowtorch No.
1?”
Ignoring Rudy, I used Earth Magic to make a stool and a large table.
Using the long-handled tongs I had prepared beforehand, I picked up the crucible, placed it on the table, and then used two thin rods to dip into the viscous glass solution and began making a model.
“Are you making those kinds of glass crafts?”
“Something like that.
It’s been a long time, so I’m a bit rusty.
Oh right, Blowtorch No.
2, keep heating the clay pot, don’t let the crucible cool down.”
“Does Blowtorch No.
2 refer to me?” Sylphiette pointed at herself.
“Yes, please heat the crucible for a bit, Sylphie.”
“Um…”
Sylphie agreed timidly, then very reluctantly approached the red-hot crucible.
“I’ll do it instead.
Sylphie can just watch from the side.”
Wow, Rudy is actually acting so gentle.
It seems he also has a thing for this little girl named Sylphie.
Zenith really didn’t misjudge him; this kid is definitely going to be a playboy in the future.
I hope you’re enjoying the fanfiction so far!