Chapter 168
Chapter 168
After washing up in the private shower room at the inn.
While Lapin went into the shower room, I opened the Subspace and thought about what kind of equipment I should make for Lapin, and with which materials.
The deliberation did not take long.
‘I still have quite a bit of Crovanium left.’
Coincidentally, there was endgame-grade equipment material inside the Subspace. I took it out into my hands. It was a metal that was light despite its large volume.
‘It definitely lived up to its expensive price.’
An ore with a deep silver sheen—Crovanium.
It was one of the rare materials said to be the most perfect in this world.
Especially the Crovanium I possessed was of extremely high purity, something that had become difficult to obtain anymore.
In terms of value…… it was worth nearly several million gold.
‘But I bought this for just one million gold.’
Even if I sold the leftover Crovanium as-is, I could recover at least twice the original cost.
Of course, I had no intention of selling it.
Anyway, after making a Buckler with it, about 300g remained. I had simply stored it away, thinking it might be useful someday.
In the end, I couldn’t find a suitable use for it and had thought about converting it all into bullets…….
‘But that feels like a waste. Besides, it’s not like I’ll be firing a gun nonstop. I don’t need that many bullets.’
Once the semester started, I planned to order various items from the Engineering Department. A custom-made gun was one of them.
It was true that I would be using a gun, but it didn’t seem necessary to turn all the Crovanium I had into bullets.
‘About 20 rounds should be…… enough.’
A typical bullet weighed around 5 to 7g, but bullets made of Crovanium weighed less than 2g. Even if I assumed using about 40g to make 20 rounds, that would still leave 260g.
‘So I thought about what I should make for Lapin with this…….’
Deciding what to make was easy.
Knee guards and combat gloves, made with a leather base embedded with Crovanium plates.
Due to her ability traits, Lapin frequently used her body. Even when she took down the Ice Rishi Bear, she said she directly struck with her hands and legs to alter the attack trajectory.
‘The kings in the snowy mountains will be even tougher…… if she attacks recklessly, Lapin might end up getting hurt instead.’
This Crovanium would protect Lapin’s hands and legs.
Making a coat would take several days, but from experience, gloves or protective gear could be made faster than that.
If things went well, it might even be possible in a single day.
‘Should I start with the combat gloves today?’
I took out the Crovanium and fur from the Subspace.
The hide of the Ice Rishi Bear was also a high-quality material, so I could expect to make equipment with quite impressive performance.
‘Cold resistance and excellent combat performance…… maybe not quite endgame-grade gloves, but I can make very good equipment.’
The amount of Crovanium going in wasn’t large, but since the materials themselves were excellent and my equipment crafting ability was fairly high, it was reasonable to expect near-endgame-level gear.
‘If I find even better leather or ore later, I can just transfer and reuse the Crovanium plates used in these gloves.’
They were Lapin’s exclusive equipment. Since I expected them to be used for a long time, the measurements had to be perfect.
“Villed.”
Just then, Lapin, freshly washed, appeared, and I suddenly held out my hand to her.
“Lapin, give me your hand.”
“?”
Lapin tilted her head as if it was out of the blue, but she still extended her hand toward me.
I took out a measuring tape from the Subspace and measured Lapin’s hand size from various angles.
‘……Seeing it like this, her hands are small.’
I recorded everything precisely—hand length, palm circumference, back-of-the-hand circumference, distance between fingers—without error.
And I also needed to make knee guards.
“Sit down and give me your legs too.”
“Okay.”
Lapin readily offered her legs.
I checked everything—the circumference of the hollow of the knee and calf, even the knee angle when seated.
‘It’s my first time making knee guards, so it might be a bit tricky.’
I wasn’t too worried. When crafting, the system would provide appropriate assistance.
While I was making preparations for equipment crafting, such as drawing up designs, the night grew deeper…….
“Koo…….”
Before I knew it, Lapin and the Spirit Beasts were all gathered together, fast asleep.
I took out a table and a small lantern from the Subspace.
It was a small floor table meant to be used while sitting.
So as not to disturb Lapin’s sleep as much as possible, I minimized the brightness of the light and moved to a corner, just about to start working.
I opened the Animal Farm’s ‘Omni Shop’ and purchased an item.
Animal Kingdom Goddess’s Knitting Set Ver. 2 - 500P
“……It’s been a while since I last used this too.”
At first, the knitting set had cost 20 points, but before I knew it, the price had increased twenty-fivefold.
Since the daily point income had increased, the price must have been adjusted to reflect that.
‘If the price went up, the performance should be guaranteed as well.’
I opened the materialized knitting set and placed the leather I would use on the table.
Fortunately, there were no attached membranes, fat, or leftover flesh on the fur. It was perfectly clean, without blood or bacteria, which greatly reduced the time needed for processing.
I had already experienced this several times before.
With the system’s help, the tanning process for the leather was quickly completed.
Thanks to the scraper included in the ‘Goddess’s Knitting Set,’ removing residual hair was also extremely fast.
‘To think I could finish something that would’ve taken ages in reality in an instant.’
I cut the finished leather, threaded the needle, and began the crafting process in earnest.
My crafting speed was already fast, but with blueprints that included precise measurements, I could work even more skillfully.
As the work progressed, I felt a pleasant premonition.
Thus, in the deep night when everyone was asleep.
I alone began my all-nighter.
Morning broke with the dawn.
“It’s done…….”
I stood up from my seat and stepped outside the earthen house.
Then I looked at the dark brown gloves in my hands.
A smile wouldn’t leave my lips.
Intertwined with the sunrise, a dazzling radiance spread beautifully.
“……I made them myself, but they’re really beautiful.”
A soft sheen spread subtly across the leather.
At the center of the back of the gloves, a Crovanium plate I had personally hammered into shape was embedded.
Instead of the usual metallic luster, the Crovanium plate bathed in light emitted a calm, solid dark-brown glow.
As if it weren’t an ordinary metal at all…… it felt like a mineral that was alive and breathing.
The metal plate was divided into three sections, fitting together naturally each time the fingers bent.
Click-.
It was so precise that a light sound rang out.
I had deliberately roughened the palm side, so that when something was gripped, the fingers would stick to it as if glued in place.
It was also astonishingly light.
It was a perfect pair of combat gloves.
Crovanium Combat Gloves Blessed with the Goddess’s Great Blessing
The system guidance was no exaggeration—the gloves were emitting a radiance. This was a phenomenon that occurred when equipment was crafted at a high grade of master level or above.
Crafting grades started from the lowest, craftsman, then progressed through skilled craftsman, master, grandmaster, artisan, sage, and finally the highest grade, divine craftsmanship.
In practice, the highest grade that could generally be reached in this world was sage.
Items of divine craftsmanship were powerful relics left behind by legendary figures of the past.
‘I heard the Great Sage and his disciples used to make them.’
In the game, if Ren devoted himself to crafting, he could even create divine-grade equipment.
‘I haven’t learned appraisal magic, so I don’t know the exact grade…… but it should be at least grandmaster-level.’
If I was lucky, it might even be artisan-level.
‘My mana is too low right now…… but hopefully I can learn appraisal magic next semester.’
Well, anyway.
I examined the gloves from every angle with a satisfied gaze.
‘Yeah, this is why making equipment feels so good.’
Even though I was exhausted from not sleeping, the moment I saw the finished product, all the fatigue vanished.
“……Villed.”
At some point, Lapin, now awake, rubbed her eyes and came out of the earthen house.
Perfect timing. I approached her and held out the gloves.
“Here, Lapin. Your new friend.”
“……?”
Yawning, Lapin stared at the gloves for a while, then her eyes slowly widened.
“Villed…… don’t tell me you made these without sleeping?”
“I just couldn’t fall asleep.”
Hearing my answer, Lapin’s eyebrows bent into an eight (八) shape. She looked worried.
“No, don’t misunderstand. I just made them because I wanted to.”
“…….”
Lapin looked into my eyes. Then she took the gloves I offered.
“……Villed, thank you. This time, I’ll really treasure them.”
“Yeah.”
I thought she would put the gloves on right away…… but instead, she hugged them tightly to her chest.
“……What are you doing?”
“They’re precious, so I’m holding them.”
“No, gloves are meant to be worn on your hands, not hugged.”
“Mm. But I’m scared they’ll wear out, so I can’t use them.”
“…….”
I fell silent for a moment.
Was this like not wearing shoes because you were afraid they’d wear down?
I understood cherishing things, but if you didn’t use them for their intended purpose, wasn’t that meaningless?
Scratching my head, I spoke.
“Lapin, these don’t burn easily, and the material’s excellent, so they won’t wear down much. Even if something gets torn off, I can repair them to be like new, so don’t worry about that at all—just use them freely.”
“Ah.”
Only then did Lapin nod as if she finally understood, and she carefully slipped the gloves onto her hands.
“How is it? Too big or too small?”
When I asked, Lapin clenched and unclenched the gloved hand several times.
Then she turned her head toward me.
“……They fit perfectly. And they’re soft and warm.”
“You like them?”
“Yeah, I love them.”
She must have really liked the gloves, because she didn’t take them off.
Watching her like that, something suddenly came to mind.
Strike while the iron is hot.
Even if we were traveling, it would be better to start today.
“Lapin. You’ve got something to do starting today.”
“What is it?”
“Follow me.”
This campsite was wide enough to be good for exercise. It was probably about twice the size of a typical school field.
“If you can’t catch me, then today I won’t make your daily rations.”
“!”
Lapin flinched.
“Hugging spirit beasts is also banned for the whole day.”
“!!”
Lapin’s face remained expressionless as usual, but she trembled as if deeply shocked.
“Using abilities is forbidden. Try to catch me with pure physical strength.”
I immediately started running. But Lapin still just stood there.
……It seemed I needed even more restrictions to get this gentle girl moving.
“If the distance between you and me exceeds 100 meters, it’s game over. No food, no spirit beasts—everything for today is over.”
“!!!”
Lapin’s eyes shook as if she’d been struck by lightning.
In the end, Lapin started running toward me, almost forcibly.
“Villed, that’s unfair.”
“If you talk while running, it’ll be harder to breathe.”
“Haa……!”
Without even knowing why, Lapin chased after me, looking aggrieved.
“Good work.”
I poured water over Lapin’s head.
“So out of breath…….”
Receiving the water, Lapin gulped it down.
“Yeah, you don’t usually run much, so of course you’re out of breath. From now on, you’re running for 30 minutes every morning.”
“It’s hard…….”
“Even if it’s hard, you have to do it. In the end, it’s all for you.”
Once she got used to running for 30 minutes, I planned to make her exercise while wearing a weighted vest.
I needed to raise Lapin’s cardiopulmonary endurance before vacation ended.
“……Still, exercising with you, Villed, feels kind of fun.”
I turned to look at Lapin’s face.
Maybe it was the angle. It looked as if she were smiling slightly with her eyes.
“Rate says it’s fun too.”
Hearing that, the corners of my mouth slowly lifted.
“……That’s good, then.”
After that, we finished a simple meal, and I went into the earthen house.
There was still one more thing I needed to make.
Seemingly curious, Lapin approached my side with spirit beasts clinging all over her body.
“Villed, are you making something again?”
“Yeah. There’s still one more thing I need to make.”
Lapin’s eyes sparkled.
“I’ll help too.”
“No, there’s not really any need for that.”
“Then I’ll watch.”
“Well, do whatever you want.”
I focused on working on the protective gear, and for a while, Lapin quietly stayed by my side.