We decided not to make Mizuno a grave.
If we make one, then we’re treating him as dead.
Mizuno Eitaro’s alive.
He arrived at the other island safely.
That’s what we think.
◇
Day 41. August 28, Wednesday.
We started moving again toward our distant goal of crossing the ocean.
「 This fish trap is amazing. Even I could catch fish with this, over 」
Yoshi Okada’s in charge of retrieving the fishes we caught.
Scooping the fish up to the jar is an easy task.
「 Hokage, are we sure we don’t need to make more rabbit traps? 」
「 Overhunting will lead to their extinction. And I’d like to ask the monkey army to do agriculture instead 」
「 Got it 」
Mana asked the monkey army to do farm work.
Wheat and Rice, and also the swimming ducks in the paddy.
If there’s nothing else that needs doing, then we can start a new product.
It’s difficult to increase the number of crops because of the size of the cultivated land though.
The tomatoes in the lake at the hideout are tended by human hands.
I’m happy to report that the tomatoes have germinated.
No flowers bloomed yet, and there’s still a long way to go, but I can feel growth.
「 Sofia, you okay? 」
「 No problems 」
For the next few days, Sofia will be doing some simple tasks inside the hideout.
Sweeping the floor, folding laundry, washing dishes, etc.
Sofia’s day came. Her menstruation day I meant.
「 Shinomiya-sama, you came at the right time 」
Meiko speaks to me when I returned to check on Sofia.
「 I think this is complete. Can I ask you to put this on as a trial? 」
Meiko said and she gave me some footwear.
It’s not an amended pair of slippers but something made from scratch from this world.
She’s been trying her hand at shoemaking for a while now.
If a Joumon person sees the footwear she makes, they’d surely be unable to stand up in surprise.
After all, the shoes she’s making aren’t traditional sandals.
She’s making modern sneakers.
It transcended Joumon, Yayoi, and even the Edo period.
That’s why the work was exceedingly hard.
She’s created a lot of failed work so far.
Not strong enough, soles shaped weirdly that it’s hard to walk, and all other things…
「 It looks like a perfectly normal shoe from Japan 」
「 Except for the sole, which is flimsy because of the material 」
「 At best, it’s breathable 」
「 Ahaha, smooth talk. It’s not very durable 」
I immediately tried the shoes Meiko made.
The first one was horrible because of the size, but now it fits perfectly.
Not even a custom-made one would fit as well as this.
「 As usual, it’s the slip-on style 」
「 String takes a lot of time to make you know 」
All the shoes Meiko created are slip-on sneakers.
Therefore, we still want a shoehorn when wearing them.
Naturally, Meiko also made shoehorns.
「 The size and feel are already in the level of market goods 」
We managed to clear them off so far.
The problem is what’s ahead.
「 What’s left is for feeling the product 」
Whether it’s usable or not.
She has failed so many times in this part so far.
Like the soles peel off, or it’s hard to walk because of the difference in height on each one, etc.
「 This one feels nice at the moment 」
A quick run around the hideout shows no problems.
Sofia, Eri, and Hinako applaud as they work inside the hideout.
「 I’ll try it outside, meaning, the hard road 」
「 Be careful not to sprain yourself 」
「 Got it 」
I grabbed the slippers and ran outside the hideout.
「 The efficiency is at it’s best 」
The sensation on my soles is far different form of a pair of slippers.
The sole is thick and it doesn’t even hurt if you step on a stone.
I can run around at full speed.
「 The soles don’t tear off either 」
The endurance is looking good.
Obstacles aren’t peeling off the soles.
Seems like she managed to solve it with her handicraft technique.
「 I’m back. 」
I returned after thirty minutes of running around.
「 Welcome back, how was it? 」
Meiko asks with a worried look.
I show my grin as I reply.
「 It’s as you can see, I didn’t have to change to my slippers 」
「 You mean? 」
「 It’s complete! 」
「 Yay!!!!!!!!!!! 」
Meiko’s jumping around happily.
She’s too happy that tears are coming out of her eyes.
「 Are the shoes complete? That’s amazing! Meiko!! 」
「 Meiko-san’s handicraft skills are impressive! 」
「 Onee-chan! Amazing! You’re amazing!! 」
The girls in the hideout clapped and congratulated Meiko.
Meiko kept saying “Thank you,” wiping her tears bashfully.
「 Now I’ve mastered the art of making footwear. I’ll teach Hinako and Sofia the method later, then we’ll work together to make shoes for all of us in the future 」
「 Yes! Indeed! 」
Currently, Meiko’s in charge of handicrafts.
Meiko’s the one challenging the advanced technology and then Hinako and Sofia mass produces it.
It’s looking good.
「 Shinomiya-sama, I would like to ask for something 」
「 What is it? 」
「 I think of making two pairs of shoes for everyone 」
「 Yeah, since using slippers everywhere is painful. What about it? 」
「 So, we’re lacking in rubber 」
「 Got it. We’ll procure more rubber then. Do we also need sulfur?
「 Indeed, please do 」
「 Okay 」
It’s easy to procure rubber.
All we have to do is carve a rubber tree, collect sap called latex, and we’re done.
That latex will solidify and turn to rubber.
However, the rubber in this state is called raw rubber, and it has low durability.
That’s where we add sulfur.
When you add in sulfur, the raw rubber turns into elastic rubber.
It’s an elastic rubber, and that’s why it’s ordinary rubber.
「 Shoes are directly related to work efficiency so I’m going right now 」
「 I’ll help out too. It’s just in time, I reached a resting stage 」
Eri raised her hand.
Yeah, she just finished with her cooking prep work.
It’s another day of delicious smell.
「 Please do 」
We saluted to Meiko and left the hideout.