Chapter 37: (Self Edited) A Different World Culture

The large library seemed to be a separate facility from the Academy.It was possible for the general public to come and go, but a certain amount of money needed to be deposited at the time of entry. To be exact, it was five gold coins. If the library was damaged or dirtied, the deposit money would be confiscated. Of course, this was done by opening the bag when leaving the building.

The parchment paper didn’t break easily, but if people got caught, trying to bring out a book, the money that worth 50000 yen would be gone. Anyway… By considering that, from the general public who weren’t interested in reading regardless of the amount, it could be said that the risk was huge.

However, since there were only parchment books that were valuable, such measures were inevitably necessary to avoid the danger of theft.

Under such circumstances, the large library seemed to be a building with few opportunities for ordinary people to enter. Deposits and crime prevention procedures were complicated, but deposits were returned and there were no other fees. I thought that it was a fairly advanced facility because even the general public could browse a huge collection of books for free.

However, only the front gate had such a deposit mechanism, and the back gate leads to the school grounds.

The books could be rented, but it was pretty tightly controlled.

The students could borrow a book on the condition that they weren’t allowed to bring it out of the Academy. Those who weren’t students, could only borrow through nobles. In that case, it was necessary to deposit a large amount of collateral.

Rook paid the deposit money, and he borrowed a book for me. I really appreciated it.

The large library was surprisingly large. There were more than 100000 books, and there was no database or computer. Therefore, no one could grasp the whole picture.

However, many of the collections were sleeping with insect repellent in the fire-proof warehouse that was built in the Witch Forest.

There were a few reasons why there were so many unmanageable collections. Most of the books weren’t produced in the Kingdom of Shaalta.

The collection there was the result of the efforts of those who tried to carry out intellectual property if the countries of Shanti were destroyed. That was how it was.

It was said that the books produced in the Kingdom of Shaalta was less than twenty percent out of 100000 books.

—

When I entered the large library, I smelled the tanned skin odor slightly. It was the odor of the skin on the cover of the books.

The large library was built like a warehouse. It was packed with bookshelves, but the reading spaces for chairs and desks was neatly prepared. This was obvious since there was a system that didn’t encourage lending.

It was normal to see the Liberal Arts students when one walked through the area. There were both men and women of Liberal Arts, but there weren’t many from the school of Knights.

The Knights weren’t stupid, but there was a culture where scholarly smartness wasn’t valued so much. It was the role of the female who enrolled in the school of Liberal Arts, but we, the Knights, had another role. It was that kind of feeling.

I came to find Piña Colada, but I didn’t know who she was as I only heard her appearance vaguely. To begin with, I didn’t make an appointment with her (nor did I know how to do it), so it was doubtful whether she was here or not.

‘Is it impossible today?’

When I was trying to give up while thinking so, I saw a strange person in the corner of second floor.

She had a hair-curly hair that stretched casually, and she was running a pen towards the parchment. Since she was facing down, it was reminiscent of Sadako somehow.

Even so, there were few students and adults who were quite busy writing.

For starters, the large library was a for reading books, and not for writing. The combination of an ink fountain and a feather pen was a kind of dangerous materials that posed the risk of ink scattering and the risk of smearing books.

The general public wasn’t allowed to carry in their belongings in the first place. In the case of students making the books dirty, they would be warned. If they did that again, there was a risk of being prohibited from entering the library, so this didn’t happen so much.

However, this girl was using a feather pen. Of course, it wasn’t a bad thing. It would be bad if there was a book right next to the paper she was writing on, but there was no book on the desk.

‘Is that her?’

I thought so, and as I wandered back, I looked at the paper for a moment. In the Shan grammar, there was a symbol of 「」. The sentence enclosed in his symbol represented the dialogue of the characters. There was such a rule, but I noticed that it was lined up. It might be a novel.

‘If you’re writing reports or academic books, you don’t use the symbol 「」.’ I might be wrong, but I thought she was that girl.

However, she seemed to be focused on writing something, so it felt hard to interrupt her.

‘Let’s wait by sitting in front of her.’

I actually did that and sat down on the chair to make as little noise as possible, closing my eyes as if I was going to doze off.

There were many things to think about. The thing that I needed to consider now was the chemical needed for papermaking.

If it were true, it would not be a good thing to use industrial waste, so to speak, like lint.

Cuffe still seems to be misunderstood, but the truth was that it was best to use wood as fiber. But in order to make a tree into paper, it needed to be made into pulp once.

I thought that it would be easy if it broke down and it boiled down, but this didn’t become indescribable. It didn’t change shape even if it was boiled. The only possible thing to do was to crushed it flatly like crushing it with teeth.

Then, I realized that I needed an alkaline solution. I didn’t know exactly what kind of chemical to use for papermaking, but it would be good if to have as strong alkaline as possible. As far as I knew, sodium hydroxide would be the first option.

However, no matter how I considered it, although there were many basic chemicals that could be procured in Japan, it was difficult to manufacture here.

If mineral and sulfuric acid-like chemicals were mixed together, which couldn’t be procured in nature, it might be possible to produce, but this will require a long time of research. I didn’t have that much time. Besides, sodium hydroxide was required in large quantities, so it was meaningless to spend a lot of money and only gathered a little.

First off, things such as sodium hydroxide should be able to be produced through the electrolysis of salt water.

When the salt water was electrolyzed, chlorine and hydrogen came out and sodium hydroxide was formed. However, since the chlorine generated from the electrode reacted with sodium hydroxide in water, the chlorine reacted with the hydroxide ions in water and hypochlorous acid occurred, resulting in poor purity.

In order to prevent it, there should be a partition to prevent mixing between the electrodes, and if I wanted to do it at lower costs, I had to devise the electrodes. Mercury was stored at the bottom of the salt water, graphite electrodes were placed on top, and electrolysis is done at the top and bottom. Mercury was  more alloyed with sodium, so if I took it out and submerged it under the water, the sodium becomes sodium hydroxide and dissolved in water. The mercury would go back to its original, and the hydrogen that has lost its place should be exhaled in the air.

Mercury was produced only by heating the cinnabar. There was no custom to keep it, but it was distributed in small quantities as a rare product. If I disregarded its toxicity, I could get good quality sodium hydroxide.

There were water mills in this world, so if I built a generator, I would be able to do that. Actually, I thought about doing it, but the generator was the bottleneck. A generator could be made in principle with wire and magnets, but I didn’t have magnets.

The magnet itself was a large or small magnetic structure of iron, and it existed in nature. Compass needles were made of natural magnetite.

However, if the magnetic force was so high, it couldn’t be used for the generator. It was difficult to obtain a metal with a strong magnetic force.

Magnets could be made by aligning the charges in the metal. There was nothing that couldn’t be made.

To align the charge, the temperature of the material should be increased above the Curie temperature. It was sufficient to align by raging its atoms and multiplied it by a strong magnetic force. The Curie temperature should not have been as much as 1,000 degrees if it was iron, so it wasn’t so difficult to secure the temperature.

When a ferromagnetic material above the Curie temperature was exposed to a magnetic field, the N and S poles were aligned to create a certain direction. A magnet is something that cold and hardened as it was, and the direction was fixed.

So, to put it extremely, the magnet could be made if the direction of the geomagnetic field was measured with the compass. As the iron rod was put in the furnace, the direction of the iron rod was heated together with the geomagnet, and it got cool slowly as it was. However, because the geomagnetic field was weak, it could be used for the compass with such a magnet, but it couldn’t be used for the generator.

When it came to making powerful magnets, one needed magnets to make them.

However, magnets weren’t the only permanent magnets in particular. It became an electromagnet if electricity flew onto the coil.

But for that, electricity was necessary… and there was no end.

—

When I opened my eyes, Piña Colada was looking at me. I wondered if she had finished her writing.

When our eyes met, she hurriedly put the stationery in her bag, and tried to get out of her seat.

“Wa-wait, wait, wait a sec.” (Yuri)

I stopped her in a hurry.

I could have leaned over, grabbed her wrist and pulled her back, but it was a problem if it was too loud, so I stopped her with my voice.

“Wh-wha-what is it? Are you angry?” (Piña)

‘Haa? Why do I have to be angry with a girl I met for the first time?’

“I’m not angry. I need to talk to you for a second.” (Yuri)

“N-no, I-I don’t want it.” (Piña)

‘She seems to be scared of me. What? This girl, do you have male phobia or something? I don’t think I’ve ever been thought to be intimidating.’

‘At this rate, I will become a suspicious Onii-san. I become like a pervert. That’s bad.’

‘It’s absolutely not good if my image deteriorates. It would be better to come back at a later date if that’s the case. All right, let’s give up today.’

It was when I thought so.

“Hey, what are you doing to this girl?” (??)

I was tightly grabbed by the shoulder. Looking back, a girl with a frowning face stood. The girl wore the Liberal Arts school uniform

“…I’m not doing anything. I need to talk to her about something.” (Yuri)

‘Why do I feel guilty? I didn’t really do anything…’

‘I didn’t call out from here, I didn’t look at her, and I didn’t dive under my desk and look into my underwear. I was just thinking with my eyes closed.’

“What do you want with Piña?” (??)

‘As I expected, that girl is Piña.’

“Excuse me, who are you?” (Yuri)

“Don’t reply with a question. What do you want with Piña?” (??)

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know who you are, so I can’t tell you.” (Yuri)

‘The Witches of this country are greedy for money. The talk  of making money is not the one that you may talk to the student of the liberal and liberal arts academy so easily.’

That was what I thought. If I talked to them, it was like inviting them to bite me.

“You…” (??)

She was still staring at me.

‘As I can see from the way she grabbed my shoulder, this woman is tall. She’s much older than me, and she’s about Piña’s age, so maybe she feels sassy.’

“Komimi…” (Piña)

“Piña, do you know him?” (Komimi)

“That boy is Yuri-kun.” (Piña)

“…Oh my?” (Komimi)

When she heard my name and looked at my face again, the expression of the woman who was called Komimi disappeared.

‘What is with this girl… And how does Piña know my name?’

“Well, if you want to ask something, why don’t we change the place? Here is not a good place.” (Yuri)

‘I don’t speak loudly, but the act of talking in the library is very uncomfortable.’

“Well, that’s fine.” (Piña)

“…Sure.” (Komimi)

Somehow they agreed.

—

We left the large library from the main entrance.

“Do you know a coffee shop with a private room somewhere?” (Yuri)

When I asked that, as I expected of Komimi who was older than me, she knew the place.

“I’m certain that there is a room fee though.” (Komimi)

“I don’t mind. I’ll pay for it.” (Yuri)

“As expected, he is the next head of the Hou Household. He’s rich.” (Komimi)

“It’s the money I made by doing my own business. It’s not my family’s money.” (Yuri)

When I said that, Komimi stared at me.

‘Why is she staring at me? …This person is scary.’

When I entered the coffee shop and designated a private room, the room fee was twenty Ruga. It wasn’t that expensive.

The finest restaurant I entered when Syamu enrolled the Academy was one of the seasonal restaurants. It cost me a thousand Ruga only for the room fee. I thought it was funny to compare, but this place was cheap.

When we were guided to the interior, the private room was a room with only one square table surrounded by chairs. It was a room with a calm furnishing. There was a large window, and a small garden could be seen through it. It gave a sense of spaciousness.

I saw on a chair and…

“Please, order whatever you like. It’s my treat.” (Yuri)

I said it as soft as possible.

However, the fierce attitude of Komimi didn’t change.

“What the heck are you going to do?” (Komimi)

‘…‘What the heck’… what do you mean by that? It makes me want to say damn. Why are you so wary of me from the beginning? You’re like a cowardly turtle or a hedgehog.’

‘Why this girl, Komimi, followed me here? I just want to talk to Piña only’

“Well, let’s talk about it later, alright?” (Yuri)

“…Yes. But, I’ll pay for it myself.” (Piña)

“No, no. Just don’t.’

“No, I’m going to ask you a favor from here, so please don’t hesitate.” (Yuri)

“???” (Piña)

Somehow, she looked doubtful.

‘Why would that be a reaction? I can’t guess what’s in her mind.’

‘This feels like a two-sided battle. Why are we fighting?’

Then, a waitress came.

“I’d like to have herbal tea please.” (Komimi)

Komimi said so.

“…Milk tea, cake, pudding and cookies please.” (Piña)

“Piña.” (Komimi)

A sharp voice like reprimand flew.

“It’s okay, milk tea, cake, pudding, cookies for her, please.” (Yuri)

When I repeated the order, the waitress confirmed it..

“Then, I’d like to have warm barley tea and sliced cheese, please.” (Yuri)

“Understood.” (Waitress)

The waitress closed the door and left.

‘Now.’

“Uhm. You are Komimi-san, right? What is your relationship with Piña-san?” (Yuri)

‘First of all, I want to hear this.’

“…I’m Piña’s roommate.” (Komimi)

‘Aah. Yes, I see. It’s like Lily-san is a roommate of Syamu.’

“So, are you acting as her manager? I mean, managing books for example.” (Yuri)

‘When I think about it, it is a matter of course if she accompanies Piña for that reason.’

“…Yes, I am.” (Komimi)

‘I see. I can understand in a glance that Piña is an introverted girl who doesn’t know how to deal with people. In light of the circumstances I heard from Lily, it would be normal to think that the system wouldn’t work without being managed by a person like Komimi.’

‘The moment a novel becomes a book, there would be 400 people fighting to read it. Therefore somebody has to manage like who is borrowing the book, where it is at the present time, and who will you lend it to next. There is no way Piña can do it, so this would be the work of Komimi.’

“No, I’m glad. I would like to discuss a bit about the book.” (Yuri)

‘In that case, it’s necessary to discuss this together with Komimi. This is rather saving a lot of my time.’

However, when they heard me, Piña became frightened and Komimi had a stiff expression.

‘Their attitude has hardened, and I feel like we’re back to the beginning.’

“What is it? If you have something to say, say it clearly.” (Komimi)

‘…Uh-uhmm. Why is this happening?’

Piña seemed to be scared, and Komimi seemed to be threatening me.

‘Are these guys reacting like this to the general public? Does Piña has a male phobia?’

‘No, before that, isn’t our understanding fundamentally different?’

“There seems to be a mistake, but I don’t come here to be angry.” (Yuri)

“???” (Piña)

“You too, Piña-san. It looks like you’re afraid whether I’m angry or not, but to be honest, I don’t have any idea why I should be angry at all.” (Yuri)

‘When this happens, it’s better to be honest and speak openly since that is the shortcut to correct the misunderstanding.’

“Re-really…?” (Piña)

“Yes. I don’t know too much about it, so I was just wondering if the two of you were planning to kill me in secret.” (Yuri)

‘That is a joke.’

“Hehehe.” (Piña)

Then, a high-pitched strange laughter was heard. Piña was laughing.

Hehehe. It was a bit of a creepy laugh for me, too.

“Well, what do you want?” (Komimi)

‘Somehow Komimi become less wary.’

‘No, I’m worried about the laughing voice just now though. Will it be fine if she doesn’t reproach me like that? Well, if the person in question has no problem with it, I guess it’s fine…’

“Let’s talk about it after the tea arrives. More than that, if you don’t mind, could you tell me why you thought I was going to get angry?” (Yuri)

“That is…” (Komimi)

Komimi opened her mouth. She didn’t seem to want to say it.

“…Yur-… kun… is the character.” (Piña)

Piña said something.

‘I can’t hear you.’

“Piña.” (Komimi)

She was reprimanded by Komimi who seemed to understand clearly.

“…It’s fine. That’s because Yuri-kun is the character?” (Komimi) Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ NʘvᴇlFirᴇ.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

“…Eh?” (Yuri)

‘Did I hear wrongly?’

“I’m a character?” (Yuri)

“…Y-yes.” (Piña)

“Whaa…??? Why is that so?” (Yuri)

‘I really don’t get it.’

“It’s because you are popular.” (Piña)

‘Hmmm… What do you mean?’

“What do you mean by popular?” (Yuri)

“Uhihi.” (Piña)

“No, no. It’s not Piña.” (Komimi)

“Did you read it?” (Piña)

‘Read?’

“What is it?” (Yuri)

“I was writing it earlier.” (Piña)

Piña held out about ten sheets of loose paper to me.

“Piña, that is…” (Komimi)

Komimi was surprised, and she was frowning.

‘What kind of development is this? Am I a character? I can’t keep up with them.’

“Komimi, Yuri-kun is the main character, you know? He has the right to know. There’s no way I can hide it.” (Piña)

‘I think it’s probably the manuscripts that are in front of me, but can I really read them? Isn’t this material prohibited from men?’

“…Will you read it?” (Piña)

“Uhmm…” (Yuri)

‘However, it is content to be published from now on. If you have a chance to read it, it’s definitely better to read it.’

Hence, I decided to read.