Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
28. Formless Prayer
On a round disk-shaped wooden board with a hole drilled in the center, cotton threads arranged in a radial pattern at equal intervals are alternately interwoven with thinly stretched iron threads to form a braided cord.
It has already been five days since we started our day-and-night journey along the road to the north. The scenery has changed considerably.
We exchange horses and replenish food and supplies in the villages and towns we stop at, and as the carriage moves without rest, we make various tools to assist Gilbert as he goes off to battle.
With the sunlight streaming in through the skylight and the sound of the wind blowing through the wheat fields, Mrs. Barbara spins yarn on a spool and I weave braided cords. Mr. Dolph is playing the role of coachman, and Gilbert, unusually busy today, is working on some kind of wood, switching between chisels, knives, and files one after the other.
“All right! It’s done. Ms. Flora, this is a thank you for the meals you make us every day, so please take it if you like.”
The thing that was placed in my hand was a wooden brooch with many flowers carved into it. I was amazed at how intricate and beautiful it was, and it was hard to believe it was made from a single piece of wood.
“…Amazing…! Thank you very much! Gilbert-san, you’re really skillful with your hands.”
When I thanked him, for some reason Mr. Gilbert suddenly started acting weird and went to a corner of the carriage.
“What’s up Gilbert? I thought you were being unusually quiet, but you’ve done something really cool.”
“This, you see, is actually quite good rehabilitation.”
As he says this, Gilbert looks at his own hand, clenching and unclenching it. It doesn’t look like he has an injury to his dominant arm, but he actually has a problem with his grip.
The braid I am making now will be attached to the axe to compensate for this, looking like a decorative cord with a wire threaded through it. When the axe bites deeply into the ground, it takes more grip strength to pull it out. I don’t know the details of how the braided cord will be used, but I’ll braid it tightly so that it won’t tear easily.
“I’ve been feeling really light and in great shape lately.”
Gilbert then hung from a beam through the ceiling and began doing pull-ups.
“Well of course, you eat Flora’s cooking at least three meals a day. It’s no surprise.”
“I’m in great shape, thanks to the delicious food.”
Since we are traveling, I cannot make anything elaborate, but I get excited when people are pleased with my cooking, so I’m in charge of it all the time.
“Not only is the food delicious, but it’s full of blessings.”
“Blessings ……?”
I looked up at her words. Did I do anything special while cooking?
“We have long called offering prayers and granting protection to others a blessing. You are always praying, Flora-chan.”*
“To cook ……is a prayer?”
Barbara smiled.
“You probably don’t realize it. Everyone does it. Praying to a statue of the goddess isn’t the only way to pray.”
With that, she opened the window. Across the room, a warm breeze blew in, and I could see a farmer weeding in a spreading, distant field. In the flowing landscape there was a small house, and a woman sitting on a chair under the eaves of the house, knitting.
“Whether you are a farmer or a craftsman, when you create something, it is something that you unconsciously have in your heart. You want the person who receives it to be happy, or to find it useful. There are all kinds of thoughts that go into it, right? For example, when you cook, too. You might say you put your love into it, or your heart into it, or whatever.”
Mrs. Barbara smiled softly.
“Everything we do for the sake of others is a formless prayer. We have long, since ancient times, believed in receiving blessings by doing so, and call it a selfless blessing. When these blessings dwell and come together, sometimes something a little wonderous happens.
Mrs. Barbara then smiled and turned to Gilbert.
“So is the brooch you made.”
“Eh…?”
“You made that one with Flora in mind, didn’t you?”
“Well, of course that’s true, but…”
My eyes met with Gilbert’s hesitant mumbling. Seeing his face turn redder and redder, my face also felt a little hot. I felt a mixture of joy and ticklishness, and the brooch in my hand also felt warm.
“But on top of that, I’m sure that Flora-chan is…”
Just as Barbara was about to say something, the carriage came to a halt with the neighing of the horses.
Mr. Dolph peeks out from the small window in the driver’s seat.
“We’re almost at the next town, but something seems a bit wrong.”
Looking out the open window, I could see a small, walled city ahead. But beyond that, I could see several plumes of black smoke rising from the sky.
A little further away from the black smoke, there is a thin white smoke. There may be something in the smoke, and it flickers from time to time when it catches the sunlight.
“That looks like the smoke signals often used by the……Knights”
Gilbert muttered, picked up his battle-axe, and immediately headed for the driver’s seat.
“Barbara, Flora, we’re going to pick up speed, hold on!”
Along with Mr. Dolph’s voice, the carriage rumbled off and took off.