Chapter 89

In such a small box, who would have imagined that a great experiment of the century is being repeated?

Staring intently at the battery, I crouch next to the penguin, who is holding the flipper up. I peer into the battery just like him, but I can’t understand anything.

Sequoia can see the flow of magic, so he can meticulously observe the magic being absorbed into the ore.

I think for a moment that I should practice magic... but I quickly change my mind.

Didn’t the expert just say I’m completely hopeless? Haha.

It’s fine. I have my own strengths.

The fox-eared expert, Sequoia, is checking each of the ores lined up on the table and writing something on a piece of paper.

Oh, is that the paper Nathan and Charlotte worked hard to make? It has a slightly brownish hue.

“What is it?”

“What are you doing?”

“This is to investigate how much magic each stone contains.”

“Hmm. Are you measuring the magic content per unit volume by making the volume the same?”

“Yes. You think the same way, don’t you? Sojiro measured the volume by putting the stones in a cup of water because their weights were different.”

“Conditions must be the same for comparison.”

“That’s scientific. Interesting. The approach to constructing magic is different.”

“Constructing magic probably involves drawing geometric shapes and conducting practical experiments to channel magic, but the thinking process has something in common with science.”

“Indeed. The principles are different, but the process of unraveling them is the same.”

The ores lined up on the table are irregular in shape but have been adjusted to the same volume.

They look about 1 cm³ each, like small sugar cubes. I think it would be easier to measure the volume if they were a bit larger, but it can’t be helped given the amount of refined magic metal.

Sequoia, having finished our conversation, returns to the task of picking up each small ore and taking notes.

“Still, it’s tough without being able to see the magic content. I’m really grateful for Sequoia’s measurements.”

‘That’s right. But, by observing the coal with the least magic content, we understood the mechanism.’

“Hmm. Oh, what? Can you understand my language now?”

I was speaking in the Principality language, not Japanese.

But, the penguin joined the conversation naturally, so I didn’t feel any strangeness.

‘Can you speak in Japanese? I’m still learning. I can understand a little, though.’

‘I can understand broken Japanese. That’s impressive learning ability...’

It seems he still doesn’t understand everything. So, he must be guessing what I’m trying to say based on my behavior.

‘Did you have Sequoia observe when the coal turned into a combustion stone?’

‘Yes. As a result, we found that the coal can still absorb magic even after turning into a combustion stone, which means it’s not saturated.’

‘I see. In that case, would there be a difference in quality?’

‘Probably. I’ve been working with Sequoia to set a unit for magic, but the fact that I can’t see it is a big issue. Relying entirely on Sequoia is quite inefficient.’

‘That’s true. But, if we prepare combustion stones at the moment of transformation and ones that have absorbed magic to saturation, and burn them, we might be able to see the difference.’

‘It’s difficult at the experimental level. Please look at the notes here. In conclusion, I suspect that either glass sand or quartz is suitable for quality testing when using this battery.’

There was no significant difference with the small combustion stones produced in the battery.

We might need to prepare larger combustion stones or try with different materials, as the penguin suggested.

‘We have plenty of glass sand, don’t we?’

‘True. But, with Mr. Tohru and Mr. Garam away, there’s no one who can turn glass sand into glass.’

‘Ah. I’m planning to go to the cliff where glass sand can be mined. I’ll also check if there’s any quartz.’

‘Thank you. But, as you understand, mass production is difficult. Even if we succeed in the lab, it won’t help if we can’t implement it in the real world. Your wish won’t come true, right?’

‘What should we do? Maybe we should focus on that first. With combustion stones and magic stones, we can live just like in the Principality.’

‘How about working on both in parallel? Prioritize mass production. But, for mass production, we need skilled workers.’

The penguin flaps its flippers.

Indeed, it’s hard to do delicate work with flippers. It’s tough not having fingers.

Sequoia, who had been listening to our conversation with his ears twitching, finally couldn’t hold it in and turned to us.

“I can’t stand it. What do you intend to do for mass production?”

“I’m not sure if it’s the same as what the penguin is thinking, but I see two approaches.”

“Hmm. Go on.”

Sequoia leans in, his tail and fox ears standing up, clearly eager to hear more.

“One is to simply solve the problem of insufficient power. In other words, enhance the power generation facilities. But there’s a big issue.”

“Can’t you just make more water wheels?”

“With water wheels, we can only generate as much power as the batteries we have here. The power generation is fundamentally insufficient. Steam, wind... or fire.”

“Are you going to make them? I’m excited!”

It’s not as simple as just making them. It’s not that easy.

Fire power is probably technically difficult.

Even if the penguin miraculously knows the details of the power generation facilities, it’s unrealistic to create equipment that can withstand enormous pressure.

Using magic metals like orichalcum might be possible, but we can’t mass-produce magic metals...

‘Wind power is the best. The next best is steam. Fire power should be abandoned.’

‘I see. Wind power might work well on the cliff on the other side, where strong winds blow.’

‘I wonder. If you’re going there, I’d like you to observe it.’

‘Sure. Personally, I think steam is better, but the fuel is a problem.’

‘Using magic stones and combustion stones created by water wheels to run a steam engine, considering the law of conservation of energy, the electricity generated would not exceed the amount used.’

‘That’s the issue. If we use electricity to create fuel, it would ultimately be a reduced reproduction.’

Mass production of windmills and water wheels... or maybe even building a dam.

The penguin and I, scratching our heads, but Sequoia, with sparkling eyes, speaks excitedly.

“That sounds interesting! Everything starts with the first step. If I can be there from the beginning, it will be exciting.”

“Yeah, that’s true. We’re trying to do something that hasn’t been done before. We should approach it with the mindset that it’s natural for things not to go smoothly.”

“So, what’s the other one?”

One more. You’ve already heard it, Sequoia.