After tasting each of the sweets and sharing their impressions, the group took a breather over tea. During the lull, Ryoma brought up a topic that had been weighing on him.
"Has there been any progress regarding the surge in firewood prices?"
"We've been making various arrangements on our end, but the results haven't been encouraging," Elise replied with a sigh. "The spike isn't actually caused by a lack of stockpiles. The problem is 'anxiety'—people remember how bad it was last year and fear they won't have enough.
"We looked into it and found that firewood prices aren't just rising in our territory; it's happening across the entire country. Anxious citizens and profit-seeking merchants have started hoarding wood early, which only fuels the public's unease. To be honest, our only option right now is to keep coordinating with various parties and releasing information to try and calm everyone down."
Hearing Elise’s concise summary, Ryoma wore a thoughtful, somewhat complicated expression. "There's something I’d like you to see," he said.
In the next instant, Ryoma's image shifted to the edge of the frame, shrinking to make room for two large diagrams that appeared before the ducal family.
"They have unusual shapes, but they look like fireplaces," Reinhardt remarked.
"Yes. During my stay in the Sea of Trees, I had Kormi read my memories from my time in Japan. Together, we looked for a way to alleviate the firewood crisis. These are the result. The diagram on the left is called a 'Rocket Stove,' and the one on the right is a 'Franklin Stove.' They are heating appliances designed to utilize heat far more efficiently than the standard brick fireplaces used here."
At the word "efficient," Reinhardt leaned forward. The other three remained still, but the sudden intensity in their eyes made it clear they were looking at exactly what they needed.
"How much more efficient are we talking about?" Reinhardt asked.
"In my world, the traditional fireplaces—the kind similar to what you use here—were said to utilize only about ten percent of the heat generated. The other ninety percent simply escaped up the chimney along with the smoke. In contrast, the Franklin Stove can utilize forty percent, and the Rocket Stove can reach an efficiency of seventy to ninety percent."
"That’s four times the output!" Reinhardt exclaimed. "And the Rocket Stove’s numbers are practically the inverse of a normal fireplace. Can there really be that much of a difference?"
"Traditional fireplaces burn wood in an open hearth," Ryoma explained. "While the fire warms the air, that same air rushes up the chimney, creating a draft that actually sucks the already-warmed air out of the room. This makes it very difficult to heat an entire room; you usually only feel the warmth if you're sitting directly in front of the flames. The great minds of my world spent years researching and refining these designs specifically to stop that heat loss."
Ryoma enlarged the diagrams one by one to explain their internal structures.
"The Rocket Stove features an insulated combustion chamber, which allows the interior to reach extremely high temperatures. This intense heat drives air into this section here—the 'Heat Riser'—creating a powerful draft that ensures a constant supply of fresh oxygen. This combination of high heat and oxygen triggers 'Secondary Combustion,' which burns the gasses that usually escape as smoke in lower-temperature fireplaces."
"So it uses the same principle that makes a room hard to heat, but instead of letting the heat escape, you're channeling it to intensify the fire," Elise noted.
"In a forge, Fire Mages and Wind Mages have to work in tandem to achieve that," Reinbach added. "To think you've accomplished the same thing using nothing but the structure of the stove..."
"Exactly. The combination of insulation, the heat riser, and secondary combustion produces incredible efficiency. The Rocket Stove utilizes every bit of heat. It's not just for warmth, either; you can cook on the top surface of the chamber."
As Ryoma spoke, Kormi added flickering lines to the diagrams—red for rising heat and blue for cold air—illustrating the flow. The presentation, blending technical diagrams with visual effects and clear explanations, was both novel and remarkably easy for the ducal family to grasp.
Once he was sure they understood, Ryoma moved on to the Franklin Stove.
"The Franklin Stove is less efficient than the Rocket Stove, but it has one major advantage: it can be built by modifying an existing conventional fireplace to achieve nearly identical effects."
"It looks like a metal box embedded in the hearth with doors on the front," Sebas observed. "The Rocket Stove seems manufacturable, but installing one would require the cost and effort of rebuilding the entire fireplace. This, however..."
"Even if it's less efficient than the Rocket model, it's still four times better than what people have now," Reinhardt mused. "That’s a massive benefit. If we can produce these cheaply by retrofitting existing hearths, the commoners could benefit immediately, and the work could be done quickly. If we hurry, we might even be able to get these into homes by this winter."
"The Franklin Stove was developed before the Rocket Stove, in a time when fireplaces in my world were just like the ones here," Ryoma said. "That’s why I thought it would be a perfect fit. I’ve already left the diagrams and a prototype in the room with the God Statue. Please take them back with you for your experts to analyze."
He paused, his expression turning serious. "But there's still the issue of the firewood prices. Efficient stoves help save wood, but that doesn't matter if people have no wood to burn in the first place. I realized that just explaining efficiency wouldn't be enough to calm people's fears."
"True," Reinhardt agreed. "People are often wary of new technology. Some might choose to suffer with their old fireplaces rather than risk something they don't understand."
"The fact that you're bringing this up means you have a plan for the fuel itself, doesn't it?" Elise asked.
Ryoma nodded, and the diagrams were replaced by a photograph. It showed what looked like a hexagonal wooden pillar with a hole through the center. The texture and patterns made it clear it hadn't been carved from a single piece of timber.
"This is 'Ogalite.' It's a recycled fuel made by compressing and heating sawdust produced during milling. In Japan, it was once a staple fuel for fireplaces and bath heaters. It's a substitute for firewood, but processing it this way offers several advantages. For instance, while you can throw wood shavings or twigs into a fire, they burn out almost instantly. If they're molded into a shape like this, they’re much easier to manage."
"Certainly," Sebas agreed. "Powder and twigs are useless if you need to maintain a fire for any length of time. Unless one is camping and has no other choice, most people will always choose firewood. Ogalite seems like a perfect alternative."
"Thank you. Another benefit of Ogalite is that it requires no binding agents; the heat melts a component called lignin already present in the wood, which acts as a natural glue. Essentially, it can be made from any type of wood. As long as we avoid toxic species, we can turn almost any scrap into fuel. The quality might vary, but even 'cheap and inferior' fuel is better than no fuel at all. Personally, I would use the thin branches and roots cleared during the maintenance of the Sea of Trees. We can save the thick trunks for traditional firewood and turn everything else into Ogalite. If people know a substitute is available, won't that alleviate their anxiety?"
Reinhardt looked impressed by the proposal, but he didn't nod immediately. After a few moments of silent deliberation, he spoke.
"It would certainly help. I can finally see a bit of light at the end of the tunnel. However, the anxiety won't truly vanish unless people believe we can produce enough Ogalite to meet the demand. Production volume is the real hurdle. You have the thinned wood from your experiment ground, Ryoma-kun, but even if you used all of it, it might only cover the demand for Gimul. If we want to push this in other cities, we have to figure out the materials, the labor, and how to pay for it all. Have you thought about the logistics?"
Ryoma answered without hesitation. "For production, I'd like to use 'Payment in Kind' and a business model based on the 'Waste Paper Exchange' that used to exist in Japan. To start with the payment... just to confirm, it's still common here to pay for labor with goods rather than coins, right? In my old world, that was eventually phased out, but I believe it's still viable here."
"It is," Elise assured him. "While the cities mostly use coins, bartering and payment in kind are still common in agricultural areas. There's no problem with paying workers in the Ogalite they help produce. So, you're planning to secure labor, reduce costs, and provide fuel all at the same time?"
"Exactly. While we’d need permanent staff for supervision, the actual work can be divided into simple tasks that anyone—including children or the elderly—can do. If people can experience firsthand that they can get fuel just by working, their fear of a shortage will evaporate. As for the materials, I was thinking we could have people gather small branches and exchange them for Ogalite. The children in the slums once told me that even the youngest of them head out before winter to gather wood to stay warm."
Reinbach nodded approvingly. "Felling trees is dangerous and can damage the forest if done poorly, but anyone can pick up fallen branches. It's safe, and it’s actually good for the environment. If we define the gathering areas and provide guards, it would be a very safe way to involve the public."
"It could be done in rural areas too," Ryoma added. "In fact, there’s likely an abundance of fallen wood there."
"If we set up processing plants in the cities," Ryoma continued, "we could have people in the villages gather branches during the winter when farming is slow. The wagons delivering Ogalite to the villages could then return to the city loaded with gathered wood. It creates a smooth cycle of procurement, manufacturing, and supply. I haven't worked out the exact exchange ratios yet—those would depend on the local situation—but this is the general plan Kormi and I came up with."
"That's right!" Kormi added, puffing out his chest with pride. He looked like a child waiting to be praised for a job well done, and the adults couldn't help but smile.
"This is far from 'unrefined,'" Reinhardt said warmly. "Just being given this technology is a massive help. It’s our job to work out the finer details of how to implement it. To be honest, I only asked those questions out of habit—I’m used to drilling Elia on policy to prepare her for her duties as a noble. I apologize if it felt like I was putting you on the spot."
"Please, I didn't mind at all," Ryoma said with a smile.
"You came up with a full operational policy so naturally," Elise noted. "I was ready to step in if you looked troubled, but you clearly didn't need any help."
"I know we're all relieved," Reinbach said, glancing at his son, "but aren't you letting your guard down a bit much?"
Reinhardt looked properly chastened by his father and wife, and Ryoma suppressed a chuckle. To an outsider, it might have looked odd to see a Duke in such a position, but for this family, it was a common and heartwarming sight. Ryoma felt a swell of gratitude that they felt comfortable enough to show him this side of themselves.
"Very well," Reinhardt said, regaining his composure. "We'll verify the technology on our end and begin planning. Now, regarding your reward for providing these designs..."
"Regarding that," Ryoma interrupted, "would it be alright if I made a specific request this time?"
The adults froze in surprise.
"It's rare for you to ask for something specific, Ryoma-kun," Elise said. "We're more than happy to oblige, but what brought this on?"
"Is there something you can't get on your own?" Reinbach asked.
"I realized that we both tend to struggle whenever the topic of rewards comes up," Ryoma said, "so I made sure to think it through. And as Reinbach-sama guessed, it is indeed something I could never achieve as an individual. To put it bluntly: I want to use the authority of the Jamil family and the patent royalties from these three technologies to establish a 'foundation.'"