Ascendance of a Bookworm - Chapter 129

Chapter 129: Black Oily Pigment (113.2)

Translator: Rebeka

“It looks like it’s already well mixed, so let’s start grinding.”

The materials can only be stirred evenly in small amounts, so I asked Lutz to start with a small amount. Everything looked smooth. If the materials were stirred, grinded them constantly with a grinding rod. Lutz’s forehead was sweating and his face flushed. He was grinding with all his might. As a blue-robbed trainee priestess, I couldn’t help. Besides, if I did, it would only hinder him, because it was physical work. And after all, this was too hard for a child, so I asked the gray-robed priests to stand by and be ready to take over Lutz’s work, but Lutz did not ask for a break and finished it on his own.

“It is enough to grind until the pigments have such gloss and stickiness.”

I immediately took out the seal made by my father, pressed it a few times on the freshly made oily pigment, and then printed it on the poorly made paper. The word Maine appeared on the paper, and everyone amazed.

“… The oily pigment was really made.”

“It can be made out of soot and oil…”

It was the first time that the gray-robed priests had seen the process, and they all stared at the oil pigment. It seemed that they had all doubted whether they could really make pigments out of soot and oil. I thought the painting workshop would have made the pigments in a similar way, but the priests wouldn’t have had a chance to see it with their own eyes. Perhaps the way pigments were made was generally not disclosed.

“Well, others should try to make some, too. Please put the pigments in the clay pot.”

I asked Fran to bring a clay pot for oil pigments and let Lutz put the pigments in.

“Lutz, wash your hands and face with this soap and take a rest.”

A gray-robed priest took over Lutz’s tools and started making pigments. Two others also brought another two sets of tools and started making together. While they were working hard, I prepared to test the freshly made oily pigment, such as dipping the tip of a wood-shaved pen into the pigment, then using this pen to write on paper or draw on a wooden board. If it was to be used as ordinary ink, the viscosity of this pigment was too high to write easily. However, if it was to be used for making prints, it was perfectly fine. If there was any problem, it was that without the roller that I used in the art class when I was Rena, the thickness of the pigments would be uneven. It’s probably hard to make beautiful prints now. I really hoped there was a roller, at least a brush.

“Maine, how’s the pigment tested?”

Lutz walked back after washing his face and hands. However, the black stains on his fingertips were not completely washed off. It seemed necessary to prepare soaps with stronger cleaning power.

“It’s a success. Now I want to make other colors in the same way…”

“Other colors? Can colors be made?”

Lutz looked surprised so I replied: “As long as there are materials, the way is the same.” Other colors could certainly be made, but I didn’t know where and how to get the materials.

“Are there any other materials besides soot?”

“As far as I know, the materials are mainly minerals. In simple terms, it is to grind stones of different colors into powder, mix the powder with oil and then grind like making the black pigment.”

Since the prehistoric era, loess and iron oxide had been used as dyes. Other famous ones include blue taken from lapis lazuli and azurite, and red taken from hematite and cinnabar. Another problem was that even if I saw the minerals in the rough state of this world, I probably wouldn’t recognize them as minerals.

“… Hey, Maine, who is responsible for grinding the stones into powder? Won’t it be me?”

Seeing Lutz’s trepidation, I shook my head. The work of grinding stones into powder couldn’t be left to Lutz, for his body couldn’t bear it.

“Is anyone responsible for this kind of work? I asked my mother about the dyes used in the dyeing workshop, but she said that once more people want dyes, the price of dyes will increase. No one wants this to happen.”

When discussing dyes with my mother, she reminded me: “When we set up a painting workshop before, we had conflicts over the materials used to make dyes. Maine, don’t cause any disputes over this, or I won’t be able to work in the workshop.” I could never do anything that would cause my mother to lose her job.

It’s okay if we collected the materials from ourselves, but I’m afraid I could not buy pigments in the name of Maine Workshop. The trouble was, I didn’t know where to get the minerals that could be used as materials. After all, my range of activities was only in the city and the forest next to it, which was of course given my physical condition.

“As long as you know the location, the easiest to get is the loess, right? Although it has to be ground into powder, the particles of the loess are already very small.”

“So, who is responsible for grinding?”

Lutz’s expression seemed to say, “I will never do it!” Now I had neither the tools nor the strength to grind the stone into powder, so I had to give up.

“You can take a look at the stone shop, maybe there will be stone fragments. However, it is too difficult to grind the stone into powder. Would you like to ask the staff of the painting workshop how to obtain the pigments?”

“Master has said that although the tools are no problem, they refuse to provide information about the pigments.”

“Ah, is it true?”

When discussing pigments with Lutz, the three gray-robed priests finished their work. They are adults and have the strength to complete faster than Lutz. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched more and more pigments in the clay pot.

“Anyway, the seal has been successfully tested. We can talk about other colors later. Next, we will use woodblock prints to make picture books!”

“Making pigments is too physically demanding. Let’s call it a day. I’ve lost strength in my arms.”

“Well. About papermaking, can you make more thick paper for picture books?”

“Understood. Maine, go back to your room and take some rest. You can think about making picture books in bed. Got it?”

The oily pigments business was over for now, and the next step was to make picture books. I encouraged the children who were making paper in the workshop before leaving, and then returned to Dean’s Office.

Immediately after sitting down at the desk, I took out the paper sent by Benno and rewritten the Scripture into a story suitable for children. Since it was to be a picture book, the content did not need to be too detailed, and the wording should be as simple as possible. After writing it out, I checked it from the beginning. Although it seemed fine, I decided to ask the Head Priest whether such content could be made into a picture book.

“Ah, right. Since it’s going to be a picture book, I should talk to Vilma about drawing… Rosina, can you accompany me to the orphanage? I have something to discuss with Vilma.”

When meeting Vilma who was not good at facing men, Rosina was a better companion than Fran. Rosina was sitting at the table under the guidance of Fran, learning to deal with affairs. Rosina, who was struggling with the wooden boards, smiled brightly when she heard my call. It seemed that calculations really pained her.

“Fran, Master Maine is calling me, I have to go out with her.”

Rosina quickly began to pack. Fran nodded and handed her some boards.

“Give these to Vilma. Although she doesn’t seem to be good at calculations either, but now that she is in charge of the female dormitory, she should also learn.”

After taking the unfinished accounts and the files of the female dormitory, Rosina blinked and smiled softly.

… She was indeed a lady who would never show a little bit of panic.

With Rosina carrying the ink, paper and boards, we went to the orphanage together. During this time, the children were working in the workshop, so Vilma cleaned and cooked for them. She was like a mother to this orphanage family.

“Oh, Master Maine. Rosina is here too. Please sit down.”

Vilma greeted us with a tender smile, and I smiled back. I was lucky that all my attendants were beauties. After I sat down in the Dining room, Rosina explained to Vilma why we were here today.

“As previously announced, Master Maine would like you to paint pictures for a children’s edition of the Scripture. In addition, these are the files Fran asked me to give you. He wants you to handle these matters as a female dormitory manager.”

Vilma’s face paled as she looked at the boards piled like a hill. I heard that Vilma had once advised Rosina to overcome what she was not good at if she wanted to be an attendant of the temple.

Then Rosina smiled and said: “Vilma, take it easy. This is the job of an attendant, and even if you don’t like it, practice makes perfect. As with the arts, practice and habit are the most important. Is that right, Master Maine?”

“Yes. After getting used to it, you will make fewer mistakes and get faster. Let’s overcome what we are not good at together.”

After giving the boards to Vilma, who bowed her head helplessly, I asked her and Rosina to read the story I had rewritten for the children and point out any irregularities or inappropriate deletions. Vilma suggested that I add all the words used on Carta to help children remember them better, so I racked my brain to rewrite the story again. During this period, Vilma began to draw pictures on boards about half the size of A5 as sketches for prints.

“Vilma, thank you so much. I’ll ask someone to carve these pictures out and make them into a picture book. After checking the finished product, I’ll decide whether to let you continue.”

“Okay, I’d be happy to.”

I happily returned to the Dean’s Office holding the sketched boards but found that Lutz was waiting for me angrily.

“Maine, didn’t I tell you to stay in the room and rest?”

“Huh? Didn’t you tell me to figure out how to make picture books? … Did I hear you wrong?”

It seemed that I did mishear part of what was said. Lutz gave me a good scolding for not staying in the room.

Note from the translator:

Hi all, first, I’d like to thank you all for reading my translation. It took me quite some time to finally decide to pick up this novel as I’ve got quite a tight schedule, to be honest. And your loving it is what will keep me doing this.

However, there might be some errors in names or other terms as compared to the previous translation even though I’ve tried to keep them consistent. And I’d like to thank Domino City for pointing it out in the comment. If, in future chapters, that you also notice similar issues, please do mention them in the comments and I’ll try my best to correct them ASAP.

Many thanks.