Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 203: Procure Materials Early
After parting ways with Axel and Ijidol, I went back to the compounding room once more. After checking the pot belonging to each team, I began making a work schedule for the royal magic pharmacists. I would have them take their breaks according to this schedule.
“Julius-sensei, is there anything I can help you with?”
“I'm all right, Lord Giovanni. Actually, I'm making a work schedule for everyone, so could I ask you to make sure they follow it as closely as possible?”
“Of course. I'll make sure it's enforced strictly.”
His eyes were completely serious! I hadn't told him to go that far. Lord Giovanni probably wanted to make the people who refused to take breaks actually rest just as much as I did. Yes. That had to be it.
“I'd also like to order the materials we'll need to improve the icehouse. Who should I speak to about that?”
“I can be your point of contact. I may not look it, but I am the head of the Royal Magic Pharmacists' Corps. I'll take responsibility for dealing with anything involving the facilities we use.”
Lord Giovanni said that without the slightest hesitation. How dependable. It would have been even better if he could tone down the way his eyes shone as though he were looking at a god.
“In that case, I'd like you to gather the materials on this list.”
I handed him the materials list I had prepared. Lord Giovanni nodded along as he read through it. As expected of the head of the Royal Magic Pharmacists' Corps, he seemed to know his materials very well.
“We'll need to hurry with the timber. Once winter begins in earnest, it'll become difficult to obtain. It isn't a kind of wood that's used very often in construction, so I don't know whether there will be any on the market… At any rate, I'll arrange it immediately.”
“Thank you.”
So highly insulating timber wasn't commonly used. Did it have poor durability? This time I only planned to sandwich it between two walls, so I didn't think durability would be a major problem, but I would have to keep an eye on it.
I also ordered iron plates for drawing the magic circles, magic ink, and magic stones.
That took care of the preparations for improving the icehouse. Now all I had to do was wait for the materials to arrive.
All right, then. I would eat lunch and head to magic training in the afternoon. Ijidol should be waiting for me.
When magic training was over, we gathered in the common room as usual. In only a short time, Ijidol had become considerably better at magic. More than anything, his control had improved. He was probably doing what I had taught him and secretly practising Light magic every night.
While we were drinking tea, a servant brought me a letter. It was from Princess Daniela. I opened it immediately. It said that the icehouse would be fine as long as it was completed during the current social season. It also said that, if the icehouse performed as planned, they would like me to build several more at a later date.
“So you're going to make a lot of icehouses? I suppose they could be used to store food,” Axel said.
“Just like you said, Axel, they probably want them for food storage. Maybe they're planning to build them in territories along the border in preparation for war. If that's the case, would I have to go there myself? I don't like the sound of that.”
“That sounds like it'd be a lot of work. If that happened, would we have to go with you as your escorts?” Ijidol asked.
“Maybe.”
Could something like that really happen? If it did, it would put a considerable burden on the two of them. Before it came to that, maybe I should foist the icehouse blueprints off on the Magic Tool Guild in the royal capital.
But then there was the freezing magic circle. Was it really all right to release an original magic circle I had made myself into the world? I had to find something I could use in the library instead. That meant shutting myself up in the royal library again. Huh? Somehow my list of things to do was getting longer.
“Julius, aren't you staying overnight today?”
“Of course I'm not. The magic medicine seems to be progressing without any problems. There's no reason for me to stay here.”
“I see. The sleepover was kind of fun.”
“We don't get opportunities like that very often.”
Axel and Ijidol both looked a little disappointed. Maybe being away from their parents' supervision had given them a sense of freedom. Perhaps they'd discovered how wonderful freedom could be.
“Won't Knight Order training eventually make you camp outside?”
“Ugh. That sounds entirely possible.”
I said it in a slightly teasing tone, and Axel pulled an unhappy face. Apparently, if he was going to have a sleepover, he wanted a nice soft bed. Ijidol and I laughed together.
I said goodbye to the royal magic pharmacists in the compounding room and left the castle. Everyone looked disappointed, but since there weren't any problems, it seemed they had no excuse to keep me there.
When I returned to the townhouse for the first time in a day, Brother Alex was already back.
“Julius, good work today.”
“I'm back.”
I had tea brought in and told him what had happened at the royal castle. He would hear about it from the servants as well, but it was still better for him to hear it from me. I made sure to tell him in detail about Axel and Ijidol in particular. I strongly insisted that we needed to thank the two of them properly.
“The social season is about to get into full swing. Everyone seems worried about the cold going around. Even so, they apparently think it won't turn into anything serious because we have magic medicine.”
“That may be true, but I don't think it's a good idea to rely too heavily on magic medicine. We don't know how quickly the cold will spread. If it becomes a major epidemic, we might run out of medicine.”
Brother Alex gave a big nod at my opinion. Apparently he had been worried about the same thing. Perhaps he wanted the number of social gatherings reduced, or even wanted them cancelled entirely.
“That's true, but there are a lot of nobles who look forward to the social season. It'll probably be impossible to stop that momentum. In that case, the only thing we can do is try to prevent it, but I don't know whether everyone will thoroughly wash their hands and gargle.”
Nobles wore gloves and makeup, after all. They might not like being told to wash their hands frequently.
“How are things at the Academy?”
“Maybe recommending hand-washing and gargling helped. The cold isn't spreading as much as it was.”
“Social gatherings bring a lot of people together too.”
“And people spend a lot of time facing one another while they talk. It could spread all at once.”
Brother Alex looked gloomy. Because I was a magic pharmacist and knew about these things, he seemed to have learned a great deal about them as well. It looked as though I had given him an extra burden to carry.
I felt bad about that. Had Princess Daniela ended up carrying the same burden because of me? I had a feeling I should apologise to her later.