Chapter 6: Childhood Friend

“It’s been a while, Will.”

My childhood friend, Scarlet, came to visit with her parents.

Scarlet is the daughter of Count Cardiff, whose lands border those of the Fairchild Family.

The House Cardiff has been historically close with the Fairchild Family.

Especially now, since the current Count Cardiff was a classmate of my father’s at the Royal Academy and they’re good friends, so our families visit each other’s territories several times a year.

After a formal greeting with the whole family, the adults and children split up to spend time separately.

That’s why Scarlet and I—no, Letty and I—have become close enough to call each other by our nicknames.

Letty stands out with her strikingly vivid red hair and large blue eyes, and she’s a cheerful girl who’s good at sports.

This is the first time we’ve met since receiving our Skills, so naturally, the conversation turns to that.

“I received the Swordsmanship Skill. Will, what skill did you get?”

“Letty, I got a Production Skill.”

Letty raised a hand to her mouth, trying to hide her surprise.

“My, since you like books, I was sure you’d get a Magic Skill… but a Production Skill, that’s unusual.”

Letty hurried to continue her words, “I’ve heard Production Skills are necessary for skilled craftsmen. I’m sure you’ll be able to make wonderful things too, Will.”

It seems she’s trying to comfort me.

Letty may act like a tomboy, but she’s a kind girl.

“Thank you for worrying about me. But I’ve already made furniture and bags, and Production Skill is more useful than I thought.”

Letty looked surprised.

“Eh, you’re already making things with Production Skill? I heard it takes time to master a skill.”

She didn’t seem convinced, so I decided to give her a demonstration right in front of her.

“Then, I’ll make something now. Is there anything you want?”

“Uh, um, I’ve been thinking it would be nice to have a bag to use when I go for sword training.”

“I see, so something you can carry on your back. What color would you like?”

“I’m thinking it’s about time for something with a grown-up color, like dark brown.”

“Dark brown, got it.”

I keep some leather materials in my room.

Alright, maybe I’ll try making a body bag.

It might sound surprising, but not just body bags—even backpacks like you’d find in modern Japan don’t exist in this world.

Even in my previous world, people carried pouches on their backs since ancient times, but it’s said that backpacks were first used in Japan in 1902.

If we’re talking about something that fits close to the body and is easy to carry, a crossbody bag might be best. 

I imagine energetic Letty slinging it on when she goes to sword training.

I focus on that image and activate my Production Skill; mana gathers at my fingertips and begins to glow, with a magic circle appearing above my palm.

“So you can use magic now too, Will. I’m glad.”

A warm light envelops the leather.

When the light fades, a crossbody bag appears. 

Yes, it turned out just as I imagined.

“My, you really can make bags! And it’s a shape I’ve never seen before.”

Letty’s eyes went wide in surprise.

She picked up the crossbody bag and looked it over from every angle.

“Amazing, this bag. It seems sturdy, and the texture is nice too. Oh, and you even included our family’s crest.”

I made sure to add the Crest of House Cardiff as decoration.

“If you’d like, try it on your back.”

“All right. Oh, it fits perfectly! I don’t think it’ll get in the way even if I run.”

Wow, Letty really is energetic. 

Is she going to run off to sword training?

“I made that for you, Letty. I’d be happy if you liked it and used it.”

“I love it. Is it really okay for me to have it?”

“Yeah, of course.”

I also made a handbag, the kind you’d take to a noble’s party.

This time, I focused on appearance. 

I recalled a French brand item I saw in my previous life and based my image on that.

Letty’s usually overflowing with energy, but she can act ladylike when she wants.

I created a bag that would match a dress at a noble’s party.

“My, how fashionable and grown-up. This bag is wonderful too.”

“The Production Skill lets you create what you imagine.”

“Still, you only just started practicing, right? I think it’s amazing.”

I was glad that she understood I could use the Production Skill.

“Besides bags, I’ve also made big furniture. It’s stored in the shed in the garden—want to see?”

“Really? Then, I’d love to see it.”

Actually, because I made several large pieces like rocking chairs and mirrored chests, I ran into trouble finding storage space and ended up building a shed.

I couldn’t imagine a large building’s structure well enough to make it alone, so I asked the local carpenters to draw up blueprints, and after understanding the interior design, I made it.

Having carpenters draw up structural blueprints means learning from their years of experience and know-how, so I worried whether they’d accept even if I paid them, but they said, “It’s great that the lord’s son is making things. I’ll happily draw up the blueprints,” which was truly appreciated.

When building the shed, I had just learned Storage Magic and could store materials in a subspace, so I stored the materials and brought them with me.

Incidentally, the amount Storage Magic can store is determined by your mana.

I seem to have a lot of mana, but not enough to store something as large as a shed, so I was glad I built one.

According to Erika-sensei, only people who have truly mastered the Production Skill can use Storage Magic, so she was surprised, saying, “My, so soon?”

I consulted with Father and had it built at the far end of our garden, so it wouldn’t get in the way of other buildings.

The lands of the Fairchild Family are vast, and the mansion’s garden is large too.

Taking my childhood friend Letty, we went out into the garden and walked all the way to the shed at the back.

The shed is a single-story wooden building with large windows and a design that makes use of the wood grain, so it looks like a log house.

“That’s a pretty big shed. Did we have something like this in the garden?”

“I made it.”

Letty was astonished again, her eyes wide.

When I led her inside, she saw rows of chairs, bookshelves, vanity tables, and more.

“My, so many! I’m just amazed today.”

“Really?”　

“It’s true. I never knew the Production Skill could do so much.”

It seems my childhood friend Letty came to understand the value of the Production Skill.

Unlike in the Capital, in the West where all sorts of goods are hard to come by, it’s easier for people to appreciate craftsmanship.

When she was leaving, Letty smiled and said, “Production Skill is a wonderful skill. Looks like there’s nothing to worry about after all.”

She really was looking out for me.