"The weather has cleared up, so I think I’ll head over to the blacksmith master's workshop."
"Huh? You mean Grandpa’s place?"
Kururu’s response was unexpected.
"Your grandfather?" Adriana asked.
"Yeah, that’s right."
As it turned out, the village blacksmith was indeed the sisters' grandfather—the father of their mother, Baise. He had apparently traveled to the royal capital to train in his youth.
"I see, so he's your grandfather..."
"Then let’s go together!"
Accompanied by the two sisters, Adriana made her way to the blacksmith's forge.
"Grandpaaa!"
Kururu shouted at the top of her lungs while they were still a good distance away, prompting the master to poke his head out from the workshop.
"Oh, Kururu, Maruru. And... the young lady from yesterday, is it?"
"Hello. I'm currently staying at the Village Chief’s house."
"We’re friends now!" Maruru added.
"Oho, is that so?" The master nodded at the gentle Maruru. It was clear he doted on his granddaughters. "So, what brings you here today?"
"Well, I wanted to consult with you about some tableware."
"Tableware? What about it?"
"Actually..."
Adriana went on to explain that the current forks were particularly difficult to use.
"Hmm. So, in the place where you lived, they used forks of a different shape?"
The master noted that during his apprenticeship in the royal capital, the forks there were shaped exactly like the ones used in the village.
Father must have been the one to spread them later, I’m sure, Adriana thought. Remembering her father, Shuuki, brought a brief wave of loneliness, but she was quickly pulled back by a cheerful voice.
"Ado, what is it you want Grandpa to do?"
"Oh, well... Um, Master... actually, I don't think I know your name yet."
Since she had expected their encounter yesterday to be a one-time thing, she hadn't bothered to ask.
"Grandpa’s name is Phaitos!" Kururu announced energetically, her high spirits rubbing off on Adriana.
"Um, Mr. Phaitos. Forks with this design are currently used in the royal capital and other large cities. I thought it might be a good idea to introduce them to this village as well."
Using a fallen branch, Adriana drew a sketch of a three-pronged fork in the dirt.
"Ho? So this is what’s in fashion now?"
"No, it’s not just a fashion; they’re spreading because they’re much more practical."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. It might be faster if I just show you a real one... Would you mind if I used a bit of your bronze?"
"I don't mind, but..."
Adriana picked up a small scrap of bronze lying in the corner of the workshop.
"『Forming』."
"Oho?"
"Whoa! Ado, that’s amazing!"
"It's incredible, Ado. You can do things like that too?"
Phaitos wasn't quite as shocked, having seen her work the day before, but Maruru and Kururu stared wide-eyed at their first glimpse of Craft Magic.
"...This is a standard fork."
Holding the newly fashioned, slightly small, three-pronged fork, Adriana handed it to Phaitos.
"Hmm. The cross-section of the prongs is square."
Phaitos was quick to notice one of the key features.
"Exactly. That makes it harder for whatever you’ve pierced to rotate or slip off."
Additionally, the increased surface area provided better grip.
"This is excellent. But the material is the problem..."
In this country, silver was the preferred metal for tableware. Copper tarnished far too easily and, worse, could produce verdigris, which ruined the appearance. Silver tarnished as well, but much less frequently.
However, silver was expensive. Just like 64 light silver, the village blacksmith kept very little of it on hand—only a few dozen grams used for repairing jewelry. Plating was an option, but it would wear away quickly with daily use, making it unsuitable for practical items like cutlery.
"I suppose I’ll have to make do with iron," Adriana mused.
The fork she had used at the Village Chief's house had also been made of iron.
"But I’d really rather not use iron if I can help it," Phaitos admitted.
"I know what you mean..."
The forks they had used for generations were iron, which was unavoidable, but if they were going to create something new, Adriana wanted a material that was resistant to rust. Iron rusted even faster than copper. Furthermore, while the black tarnish on copper didn't penetrate the metal, the red rust on iron ate through to the core, eventually causing the object to crumble. It required constant daily maintenance.
"If only I had some nickel and chromium... Maybe I should go look for some."
Shuuki had known of the existence of stainless steel and had even used it occasionally. Consequently, Adriana possessed knowledge of it as well. However, in this world, metals like nickel and chromium were completely unknown and not part of any general trade. Even Shuuki hadn't known exactly what kind of ores they came from.
However...
"Hey, Kururu, Maruru. Are there any places around here where you can find green stones?"
Adriana knew that minerals containing chromium or nickel sometimes appeared green.
"Hmm, you can find tons of those at the southern coast," Kururu replied.
"Want to go pick some up?" Maruru asked.
"Yes, let's go!...Master—I mean, Mr. Phaitos, I'll be back later!"
With a suddenness that Phaitos could only attribute to a young girl's whim, Adriana dashed out of the workshop.
"Look, right here."
"Whoa..."
They had reached a bay where the waves had deposited piles of smooth stones. It was a gravel beach rather than a sandy one, and green stones were scattered everywhere.
"They call it the 'Green Coast'!"
It was a shore that lived up to its name. The pier where the village boats were moored sat at the northern end of the beach.
"Alright, let's investigate."
Since Shuuki hadn't been an expert in mineralogy, Adriana wasn't either. However, by using the Craft Magic 『Analyze』, she could detect substances she was already familiar with.
"『Analyze』."
She immediately began her scan. The spell detected silicon, oxygen, aluminum, and sodium—and among them, she found trace amounts of chromium.
"Yes! I hit the jackpot!"
Overjoyed, Adriana set to work extracting the metal.
"『Extraction』."
Grains of silver-colored sand rolled into her palm. The stone she held faded from green to white.
"Wow, that's amazing! Is that Ado's magic?"
"I didn't know you could do that too."
Both sisters were astonished. However, the amount of chromium extracted was only about 0.1 grams. Ideally, Adriana wanted it by the kilogram.
"Ten thousand times more for a single kilo, huh..."
It was a daunting task. Furthermore, she discovered that some of the green stones were colored by copper rather than the elements she sought.
She worked tirelessly until the sun began to set. In the end, she managed to gather about 5 grams of chromium and 2 grams of nickel. She also picked up 1 gram of manganese, 2 grams of molybdenum, and 1 gram of vanadium.
As a pleasant bonus, she had also managed to extract 0.3 grams of gold and 0.5 grams of silver.
In the worst-case scenario, I could always use these for plating, Adriana thought.
As she walked back to the village with Maruru and Kururu, she turned over ideas in her mind on how best to utilize the rare metals she had acquired.