Episode 9: How to properly choose a cane. After Lynn and Theo left the factory, they walked aiming towards the cane store located in the shopping street.
Although it was daytime and a weekday, the shopping street was crowded with plenty of people.
Lynn and Theo navigated the sea of people, making their way to the cane store in the back of the shopping street.
A plethora of signs dyed in various colors decorated the street. Some belonged to grocery stores, some to general stores, some to drugstores, and there were even some mysterious signboards which Lynn didn"t know the meaning of.
Looking around at this picturesque sight, Lynn followed after Theo. Eventually, they finally reached the cane shop, located in a corner of the shopping street.
As soon as they entered the store, the salesperson came over.
“Welcome. What are you looking for?”
“A cane for ma.s.s/weight.”
Theo bluntly answered.
“Those are over there.”
The salesperson showed them to the place and left them to decide.
At the corner for the canes for ma.s.s, there were dozens of them placed on shelfs.
However, only two types could withstand a load of over 100kg.
One was Teriuul"s Cane. The other was Dale"s Staff.
The price tag for those was 1,000 legica for the Teriuul"s Cane and 20,000 legica for Dale"s Staff.
Lynn was thinking on which one to buy.
If he were to buy Dale"s Staff, he would have to cut down on this month"s living expenses a little. For the Teriuul one, he would not have to cut down his expenses.
(Maybe I should pick Teriuul"s Cane)
As he was thinking so, Theo then reached for a cane. Not sparing a glance at Teriuul"s Cane, Theo held Dale"s Staff in his hand, confirming its comfort and feel then after a while he presented it to Lynn.
“Get this one. Its st.u.r.dy and solid, and the quality is obviously good.”
“But Teriuul"s Cane is cheaper.”
“Don"t go for the cheap stuff. In the long run, Dale"s Staff is definitely better.”
“But isn"t buying the cheap one is better for the time being?”
Lynn was uneasy.
Was it safe to spend so much money here?
He wondered if it wouldn"t be better to have as much money saved in case something came up.
Looking at him, Theo floated a smirk.
“Haha. I wondered what it was. It"s because you think that way that you"re a slave. Listen here. We are not buying goods. We are buying time.”
The next day, Lynn started his job working at the factory.
After being a.s.signed by the person in charge, he moved the heavy cargo using the cane he bought the day before.
Moving his cane, Lynn transported the cargo from one elevator to the other.
The cargo smoothly flew through the air following the line Lynn imagined in his mind and landed softly.
(I see. My work progresses better if I use a good tool.)
Held high in Lynn"s hands as he worked in the factory was Dale"s Staff.
He immediately understood the meaning of what Theo had said.
——We are not buying goods. We are buying time. ——
The more expensive cane was clearly more efficient in the work than the cheap one.
Despite this being the first time for Lynn, he was able to quickly carry the cargo the way he wanted to.
On the other hand, those who used Teriuul"s Cane, the cheap one, were not like that.
A child working next to Lynn was using a Teriuul"s Cane.
However, the movements were quite dangerous.
The cargo floated in the air, rattling and swaying, and the landing was also unstable.
Because the box containing the cargo had magic applied to it, the contents were not damaged, but the box sometimes flew in really dangerous directions.
Of course, the work of that child was not progressing much.
The people who were using Teriuul"s Cane were looking exhausted.
They always stared at the cargo and seemed to need high concentration, their arm muscles sometimes twitched, making it seems like they also were under physical stress.
Between Dale"s Staff and Teriuul"s Cane, the time it took to move each piece of cargo had a difference of between several seconds to several tens of seconds, but as the numbers acc.u.mulated and the magical power was drained, the difference grew exponentially.
Lynn hurried and achieved his quota while the child next to him was still struggling.
The time Lynn finished was around lunch time.
“Oh, you done already? ” The person in charge say as he looked at Lynn.
“Yes. 200 pieces, finished.”
“Alright. I"ll transfer your salary for the day. You can go home already.” That person told Lynn after confirming his work and filling a doc.u.ment.
“Lynn, hurry up. Let"s go to the library.”
Theo, who had already finished his work, called out. Having finished earlier, he was waiting for Lynn before going back.
(Was he waiting for me?)
Lynn hurried upon seeing him.
After leaving the factory, Lynn and Theo ran to the library.
The study room was filled with people despite it being the afternoon of a weekday. Fortunately, there were two desks and chairs available.
After they secured the desks, Theo began reading a book and writing on the extra paper he had on the desk.
Lynn was impressed, looking that appearance of him.
(I knew it, he"s a smart boy.)
Emulating Theo, Lynn also began reading and writing.
He picked magic books with the Triarian translation included, and read them until the point where he could understand them.
The child who was working next to Lynn at the factory later came to the study room.
However, at that time, the seats of the study room were filled and there was no room for more people.
Depressed, the child left the study room.
A similar development happened the next day, and the day after.
Lynn finished his work earlier than the boy next to him.
Theo, who finished his work earlier than Lynn, was waiting for him.
The two of them then would go to the study room in the library.
And later, the boy using the Teriuul"s Cane would come to the study room, but by that time, the study room was filled with people.
While Theo and Lynn used the comfortable library desks and chairs, those using the cheap cane ended up studying in the hard bed of the Rat"s Nest.
Desks and chairs were not installed in the rooms of the Rat"s Nest after all.
And, as the days pa.s.sed, the working speed of Lynn increased even further.
By the time Theo finished his work, Lynn would almost be done too, and then they both left together.
It appeared to Lynn like Theo matched his working speed. He always waited for him to finish.
Two weeks after Lynn started working in the factory, the incident occurred.
The cane of the child working next to Lynn broke in half in the middle of work.
That caused the cargo to fall down, making a loud noise.
The people close by gathered to see what had happen.
“Ugh, did you break your cane?”
“That"s because you placed too much strain on it.”
“Well, you"ve had that Teriuul"s Cane for two months now, so it was just a matter of time.”
The Teriuul"s Cane had an extra downside.
Its performance dropped after being used for one month, and in some cases, it broke after two months of use.
Those who used that Teriuul"s Cane, had to buy replacements relatively frequently.
On the other hand, Dale"s Staff didn"t show signs that it"ll ever break. Lynn was once again convinced of the value of Dale"s Staff.
(Although it"s a little high, still.)
“There"s no choice. I"m off to buy a cane. Lynn. Sorry but, can you finish moving that cargo I left half way to the end? ”
The child with the broken cane came asking Lynn. The dropped cargo remained there, untouched. If left alone, it would surely get in the way of others.
“Sure, no problem.”
Lynn felt honestly happy.
He was relieved the child"s Teriuul"s Cane ended up breaking.
He always went to the library with the desire to study in the study room, but couldn"t.
However, after replacing the cane with Dale"s Staff, that child would have his efficiency increased and will be able to use the study room.
He"ll go shopping this week, and work will inevitably get stacked up, but from next week and onwards, he should be able to secure time to properly study.
Lynn felt happy that the child"s seriousness would be rewarded.
However, Lynn"s expectations were completely betrayed. That was because, after returning from shopping, what was held in the child"s hand was another Teriuul"s Cane.
After that, the exact same development continued.
Lynn and Theo finished their work early and ran to the library.
Other apprentice wizards worked until late.
The people who bought a Teriuul"s Cane always ended up wasting their time.
For Lynn, it was strange that everyone kept buying the Teriuul"s Cane despite how inconvenient it was.
(Everyone should just buy a Dale"s Staff…)
They wasted time when their cane broke.
They also wasted valuable time on a weekend buying a replacement cane.
Working until late every day and using the holidays to buy a replacement cane… when would they have time to study, are they going to be okay preparing for the entrance exam? Lynn thought it was strange.
(Just why don"t they all buy a Dale"s Staff?)
One time, the child working next to Lynn dropped by mistake the cargo, weighting dozens of kilograms, right next to Lynn. Being almost crushed, Lynn stood there feeling a cold sweat on his back.
“Sorry. You alright? ”
“Yes. But I think that Teriuul"s Cane is dangerous. Why don"t you buy a Dale"s Staff instead? It"s very easy to use.”
The child looked at Lynn with suspicious eyes. Eyes that said “What in the world is this guy saying? ” very clearly.
In the end, most of the people continued using the Teriuul"s Cane, and very few changed from the Teriuul"s Cane to Dale"s Staff.
Lynn took advantage of the time he saved by using the Dale"s Staff, and steadily acc.u.mulated knowledge.
After work, he ran to the comfortable study room in the library and memorized the reading and writing of the magical characters and their grammar, every day, until the closing hours.
Even after returning to the Rat"s Nest, he worked hard on learning, whilst keeping it at the point where it would not interfere with the next day"s work.
Since there were no desks nor chairs, he only studied until Theo turned off the lamp.
The up-until-then mind devoid of extra knowledge of Lynn, quickly absorbed the magic words and the grammar of the magic characters after seeing them.
Like that, the months pa.s.sed quickly.
Winter eventually would arrive, and with it, the time for the entrance exams.
Next time, Episode 10: “The right way to use money.”
Goblin Slayer 1 to 5 available on Amazon!