Hard Work Will Never Betray Me - CH 18

The next afternoon. I had gotten a cart and had come to Mei’s house empty-handed.

“Mei, are you there?;

I hadn’t promised to play with her, but if  she not, there  I could just go home and do something else, so I called out to her without much hope.

As I waited for a while, I heard a thud down the stairs, and Mei came running out of the workshop.

“Hello, Hal!　It’s been a long time!’

It’s been a while, but  it’s just  been one day.

It’s been a long time since I’ve had any friends besides you, Hal!

For a moment, I thought it was the same with me, but then I remembered that I had Lily. It’s not that I’m unsympathetic to the fact that I’ve forgotten about her, because I think she’s more of a fiancee or girlfriend than a friend. It’s not that I’m heartless

I’m sorry about that ,  but I can’t come here every day either.

“Wouldn’t it be better if I came to you?

“　It’s not that kind of problem, but for now, I have an errand to run, and I need to tell you about it first.”

“You see . Mei, why don’t you come to my house?

“came to the Hal’s house?”

“Yes. I haven’t invited you yet, and I also need  your help with something.”

She smiled.

“i will came !　Please wait a moment.”

As soon as I said this, Mei retreated into the house. As I waited for a few tens of seconds, Mei came back with a paper bag.

“What’s that?”

It’s a snack. I’m sorry to bother you.

“Is it okay?　Sweets are expensive because they are sweet.”

Sugar is a luxury item in this world. In the Farenheit territory, plants like sugar beet are cultivated, so it is probably a little cheaper than in other territories, but even so, it is mostly used to add a little flavor to everyday dishes. Sweets that use a lot of sugar are a luxury item, and the commoners don’t have many opportunities to eat them.

“No, it’s not a sweet snack.”

“Not sweet?”

“It’s more like rice crackers. ”

I didn’t know such an oriental snack existed”, but it is a snack eaten in the land of the dwarves. You don’t see many of them around here.”

“I see. That’s exciting. I’ll take it.”

I was convinced, so Mei and I walked toward my parents’ house (the lord’s mansion!). At first, Mei  seemed to be enjoying herself, but as the buildings around us became more and more  for high society, she began to talk less and less.

“Well, are we there yet?”

“Hmm, not yet.”

“It’s a very  nice town. ……”

“Yes, it is. I’d like to live on the top floor of one of these buildings.”

The buildings around here are as high as two floors at the lowest and five or six floors at the highest. Naturally, because of the vertical height, the area per floor can be reasonably large. You could probably live in a room that is about the size of a two-bedroom apartment in Japan. And the rent would probably be 300,000 or 400,000 yen per month. ……

The unit of currency in this country is the el, and one el is worth about one yen. From what I read in the  books in my study, the average income of the common people in Heidburg is about 150,000 ells per month. The peasants living in the suburbs earn slightly less than that., but that doesn’t seem to be a problem since they are mostly self-sufficient when it comes to food. Even at 150,000 eles a month, the low cost of living makes it worth about 200,000 yen, but in any case, it would be difficult for the average person to live in this apartment. Even if a couple works together, they will starve to death if they can only afford the rent.

Well, in short, there are a lot of very rich people around here. Forgers are craftsmen who require specialized skills, so I guess they earn a certain amount of money among the common people, but I doubt they will ever reach the upper class. It was not unreasonable for Mei to feel a little uncomfortable in the high society of the city.

But you know what, Mei? You’re going to a much worse place now, …….

I was thinking about this, feeling a bit sorry and mean inside, when Mei  looked back at me, as if she had sensed something disturbing.

“What?”

I smiled at her and tried to cover it up. At the same time, I held her hand to prevent her from running away. It’s a great way to make sure you’re getting the most out of your time with us. It’s cute …….

Feeling a different kind of excitement than I did with Lily, I gripped Mei ‘s hand tightly and kept walking, never letting her go.

We walked for about ten minutes. After passing through the upstream district and the public district, we finally arrived at the main gate of the lord’s mansion.

“Huh?　Where is your home?”

Mei looked around and tilted her head, as if she was wondering why there were no more houses around. I pointed to the main gate and said to her, “Welcome to  my home.”

Welcome to my home.

“Huh?”

I greeted the gatekeeper and asked him to open the gate , which slowly opened with a squeaky …… sound.

It was the first time in my life, including my previous life, that I had invited a friend to my house, and although it was half-heartedly, it seemed to have been a success.

✳︎

“‘It’s a big  castle!”

Mei is excited to see my parents’ house, which is more like a mansion than a castle.

My family’s house in Farenheit is not a high-rise castle like Cinderella Castle or Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany, as you might imagine when you hear the word “castle”. It is more like a wide castle like the Chambord or Villandry castles in France. A palace might be closer to the image.

When I was still living in Japan, I was interested in castles both in the East and the West, and I did some research on castles in various countries. My current house looks just like the castle I thought was beautiful at that time, so as a person who lives here, I am very excited every day.

However, perhaps because I’m a Japanese who lives in a rabbit hutch, I don’t really like the idea of having too much space. It would be a  pain just to go to the next building, and if it rained, it would be worse. I wish the buildings were at least closer together.

“Ha, ha, ha, Hal, you’re lie  the prince  !”

“It’s not the prince. The prince is in the imperial capital.”

So you’re an nobility ?”

Yes. My real name is Eberhard Karlheinz von Flensburg Fahrenheit. I’m the eldest son of the Count of Farenheit.”

“Haha!”‘

When I told her my real name, she dropped to her knees and fell down. She even stretched her arms out politely, like something out of a cartoon. I’ve never seen anyone actually do this before. I guess it’s a good thing that the ground is grass and there’s no dirt on my clothes.

“Well, Mei?　”

“Haha!

It seems that  she got the wrong  ideaa bout nobility. Perhaps her strange way of speaking came from the same place. I’m slightly curious about what happened in Mei  past.

“Face up.

“Haha!

She raises her head while in the “banzai” position. It’s kind of funny.

…… “Well, would it help if you did it normally?”

“Normally, is it?

“Yes. We’re friends, right?　Then it doesn’t matter what we are.”

…… “Indeed, we are friends!”

“The smile returned to May’s face.”

I’m sure you’ll agree that she’s much prettier when she’s smiling.

“Now, there’s a reason why I called you here.”

” reason ?

Well, you don’t need a reason to invite a friend to your house, so technically, this is the right time to invite her.

“I don’t know. What is it?’

May, with a puzzled look on her face, asked cutely.

‘I want to remodel the cart.”

“Do you even have a cart?”

“Yes. Come with me.”

I took her to the backyard where I kept the cart.

The reason I called Mei  today was because I wanted to modify the cart. The cart I got yesterday was indeed sturdy and well made, but the resistance to turning the wheels was a bit too much for the technology of this world. The axle was coated with some kind of fur and grease, but compared to modern Japanese wheels, it was still difficult to move.

That’s why I wanted to do the best part of reincarnating in another world: cheat on modern knowledge. What I wanted to make was a ball bearing. This mechanism, also known as a ball bearing, consists of a metal ball sandwiched between two metal rings that can be closed together to reduce frictional resistance during rotation and allow for rotation with less force. Surprisingly, it has a long history on earth, and I think it’s not impossible to do it with the technology of this world. I’m sure this will improve the performance of the cart’s wheels.

However, even though I have the knowledge, I don’t have any metal working skills. This is where Mei, who made her debut as a forger a few days ago, comes in.

“I want you to make something  thst I tell you.”

I understand!　It sounds interesting!

If she didn’t want to do it, I was going to quit, but she seemed to be enjoying her first time hearing about crafts. Maybe this will work out.

I immediately explained the structure of the ball bearing using diagrams. Mei ‘s eyes were shining as she listened intently to my explanation.

At that time, I had no idea that this would be the moment that would lead to the birth of a great inventor.