Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 152: Erasers
The first batch of natural latex that had been delivered wasn’t very large, and Owen decided to use half of it to test-produce a batch of erasers.
First, all the necessary raw materials and equipment had to be prepared.
Sulfur was especially important, as it was a crucial vulcanizing agent.
Raw rubber that has been vulcanized possesses excellent properties: high strength, high elasticity, wear resistance, and corrosion resistance.
Un-vulcanized rubber, on the other hand, softens when heated, hardens and becomes brittle when cold, is difficult to mold, wears easily, dissolves in various organic solvents, and is very prone to aging and decay.
The natural latex was poured into rectangular molds, and an acidic solution was added to coagulate it into raw rubber.
The raw rubber was then heated on a boiler to soften it, cut, and broken into small pieces—this process made it easier to mix the raw rubber evenly with other materials.
Next came the calendering process.
This required a calendering machine, and Owen had previously assigned Jita and the carpenters to jointly build a manually operated calender.
The most important parts of this hand-cranked calender were two polished rollers, which could be rotated manually by turning a crank.
The raw rubber was fed into the calender, where the rollers repeatedly pressed it, transforming it from a highly elastic state into a plastic state.
During calendering, finely ground pumice powder was added evenly, making the rubber slightly coarser and harder.
Other materials, such as vegetable oil and sulfur, were also added in sequence, and the rubber was continuously pressed to ensure thorough mixing.
Incidentally, adding iron rust (mainly iron oxide) to the rubber could color it pink, which could then be sold as a high-end product for wealthy customers.
If the rubber cooled during calendering, it was reheated on the boiler and softened before continuing.
Hand-cranking the calender was exhausting physical labor.
Even though Owen had called in several guards to take turns operating it, they were still drenched in sweat and gasping for air.
Mapel, curious, also tried it.
Before long, her cheeks flushed red from exhaustion, and her bangs stuck to her forehead with sweat.
Clearly, Owen had underestimated the difficulty of processing rubber; hand-cranking the calender was truly labor-intensive. Jita would need to build a steam-powered calender.
In the meantime, lizardmen could be used for hand-cranking, as they were much stronger than humans.
Once the raw rubber and other materials were thoroughly mixed, the plastic-state rubber was placed into molds, pressed, and left to set.
Finally, the molded rubber was removed and neatly cut with a small knife into many small rectangular blocks, each a qualified eraser.
The finished product was tested by Owen. The erasers easily erased pencil marks from paper and produced eraser shavings, preventing residue from sticking and avoiding the problem of the eraser becoming dirty during use.
Owen then distributed this batch of erasers to city hall, schools, and other places with heavy pencil use, putting them to practical use.
Erasers intended for sale to the Gemini Merchant Guild would be produced after the next batch of natural latex arrived.
The remaining half of the natural latex was used to produce rubber gloves.
Due to the limitations of current technology, the gloves were relatively thick but still offered better protection than having none. These gloves were all sent to the laboratory.
…
Castle, office.
“A letter from Duke Eddie?”
Owen frowned, feeling something was unusual.
He hadn’t even gone to settle last winter’s account with Duke Eddie, yet Eddie had approached him first—was there another scheme at play?
“Yes,”
Clive carefully placed the letter on the desk.
After a pause, he added.
“My lord marquis, I recently heard a rumor and have been hesitating on whether to tell you.”
“Oh? What rumor? Go ahead.”
“About that rumor…”
Clive looked as if he wanted to say something but was holding back, and finally steeled himself to speak.
“My lord marquis, the rumor says that you possess the bloodline of the Wells royal family, and that you are the illegitimate son of the late king.”
“Ah?”
Owen’s face showed disbelief.
“You actually believe a rumor like that, Clive?”
“At first, I didn’t either,”
Clive hurriedly explained.
“But the rumor says that you have the silver hair passed down in the Wells royal line, as well as abundant magic power—both presented as proof.”
Hearing this, Owen spread his hands, clearly uninterested in such a ridiculous rumor.
“Silver hair, though rare, isn’t exclusive to royalty. And having magic power proves nothing; even commoners can occasionally have exceptionally strong magical abilities.”
Fanny was one such exceptional case, born to completely ordinary merchant parents.
“But the Eisen family has always had grey hair. How is it that yours is silver?”
Clive asked, puzzled.
“You…”
What was he supposed to say? Should he explain it with the genetic mutation information Winston had told him about? But Clive didn’t even know what genes were—it was better not to mention it.
“Apologies, my lord marquis…”
Clive said, thinking he had angered Owen. He quickly offered a self-made explanation:
“Perhaps your hair color comes from your mother’s side. I shouldn’t have speculated too much.”
In Owen’s memory, his mother didn’t even have silver hair!
Forget it. Owen didn’t want to continue discussing this rumor and waved at Clive:
“You may leave.”
“Yes, my lord.”
After Clive departed, Owen stroked his chin, deep in thought. Who was spreading this rumor? Was it meant to trap him?
Unable to figure it out, he shook his head and picked up the letter on the desk. The wax seal indeed bore the Eddie family crest.
Why would Duke Eddie write to him? Might as well open it and see.
Owen broke the seal, unfolded the parchment, and began reading the contents.
“What?! He wants me to go to the capital for a magic power integration test with the third prince?!”
He was only halfway through the letter, and Owen was already shocked.
Hmm… perhaps the rumor Clive had heard was actually spread by Duke Eddie himself.
“What is he thinking! Trying to trap me with something like this… wait a moment!”
Owen thought carefully. Duke Eddie wasn’t stupid—if he were faking this, it would be a serious crime against the royal family.
Moreover, why was it the third prince for the magic power integration test, and not the eldest prince?
It seemed that the battle for the throne had already ended, and the third prince had won.
Owen recalled that when Kuros had visited him earlier, he mentioned that the Dongsheng Fortress had chosen to support the eldest prince.
Now that the eldest prince had lost, Duke Eddie’s actions were very likely meant to curry favor with the victorious third prince.