Another World Metal Factory

Chapter 36

“Welcome!”

“Welcome!”

The ones who greeted the party with such friendly greetings were Porta and Kerta.

The next morning, the factory crew woke up and visited the nearby Orc Village at Kapuntar’s invitation from the day before.

The Orc Village was circular, surrounded by hut-like tents made of wood and cloth.

Overall, the round, cone-shaped tents were arranged in a circle, and fields stretched out around them.

The circular plaza, the houses surrounding it, and the fields surrounding those houses formed a concentric pattern. And a small river flowed along one side of the village.

For some reason, the Factory Manager liked that tranquil scenery.

They slowly walked through the fields towards the huts.

“It’s a truly traditional Orc Village. I think it’s true what they say, that Orcs like circles and humans like squares.”

Tehez began jotting things down in her notebook as she observed the village.

“It’s nature-friendly. And not noisy either.”

“Orcs traditionally don’t like artificial things, right? Those houses are also made of cloth, wood, and leather, using fibers extracted from trees. They’re probably easy to dismantle, being the traditional houses of nomadic Orcs. Although this village seems to be a settlement.”

Tehez explained in response to the Factory Manager’s words.

“Orcs still maintain their old traditions. Most elves have assimilated with humans and live like them, but that’s often not the case with Orcs. Yet, humans still think of elves as the nature-friendly race.”

Channing, sandwiched between Porta and Kerta, spoke, and the two rubbed their faces against his.

“Channing is smart.”

“Smart.”

“Hahaha… Um… It’s a bit stuffy… Could you maybe…”

Channing tried to speak, but the two weren’t even listening.

The Factory Manager left Channing to his fate and examined the tents. They were made by covering a wooden frame with thick cloth made of plant fibers.

The shape, rising straight up to a point, reminded the Factory Manager of the Native American tents he had seen in old Western movies.

He could also see a few houses that looked like Mongolian tents. The cloth covering them was white with red, blue, and other colored patterns, the same type of cloth that Kapuntar, Porta, and Kerta were wearing.

The Factory Manager realized that the patterns were created by adding colored threads while weaving the cloth.

“We’re here!”

“We’re here!”

“Hey, you’ve arrived. Welcome.”

While the Factory Manager was examining the tents, Porta and Kerta shouted, and Kapuntar emerged from inside a tent, warmly welcoming the factory crew.

“Thank you for inviting us.”

“Guests of the inn are our guests as well. We’ve received a lot of help from the innkeeper, Shellen. Now then, let me show you around the village.”

Kapuntar said, leading the way, and the Factory Manager followed beside him with a grin.

“You didn’t bring your daughter today, it seems.”

“Daughter…? Ah, you must be talking about Illia. She’s not my daughter. She said she went to the village with Marsha to play.”

“Ah, I see. My apologies. There’s not much to see in the village, but please enjoy your visit.”

The Factory Manager shook his head with a smile.

“No, it’s a wonderful village. It must take a lot of effort to maintain it this well.”

“Haha, thank you for the compliment. Indeed, it does. We mine coal, grow crops, and sell them to the human villages through the innkeeper, Shellen, to earn money. We use that money to buy various goods, so we’re engaged in trade, but there are limitations.”

At Kapuntar’s words, the Factory Manager looked at Tehez, and she stepped forward and began to speak.

“There are many people who discriminate against Orcs. Because their appearance is so different from humans, there are many who are reluctant to trade or interact with them. On top of that, there are harmful rumors that they eat people and are aggressive, which have become accepted as facts.”

“It’s probably because of the past wars. Orcs are a race that traditionally considers it their duty to fight fearlessly in war. After the long-ago war, humans saw Orcs’ performance in various battles and became afraid, which I can understand to some extent.”

Kapuntar’s expression as he said this seemed a little lonely to the Factory Manager.

He couldn’t understand what it felt like to be discriminated against for no reason, but he knew it wouldn’t feel good.

The Factory Manager casually took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and looked at the village scenery.

In the fields next to the village, Orcs were farming with smiles on their faces, and on the other side, young Orcs were running around, laughing boisterously.

The Factory Manager felt a sense of nostalgia for that seemingly peaceful scene.

He subtly reached out and stroked an ear of grain growing by the side of the road. It was still green, but the ear was bearing small grains.

The Factory Manager carefully examined the grain and opened his mouth.

“Is this wheat?”

“Ah, yes. We grow wheat, pumpkins, beans, corn, and so on. We also grow some vegetables. We pay taxes to the Lord and use the rest to make a living. It’s not abundant, but it’s a time of peace, so we’re not starving.”

While listening to Kapuntar’s story, the Factory Manager looked at the tools the Orcs were using. He saw them tilling the land with farming tools made of wood and stone.

Some knives were made of metal, but most of the farming tools were stone. However, they were stone tools that seemed to have been crafted with considerable effort.

“You’re all very skilled. Stone tools made by grinding…”

“It’s because metal is not easy to obtain. We know iron tools are good, but they’re not easy to get.”

Kapuntar called over one of the Orcs who was working, and the Orc brought over the tool he was using and handed it to him.

It was a pickaxe with a stone blade fixed vertically to a long wooden handle. The stone was well-ground and shaped, neatly trimmed.

“Wow, this is a wonderful stone tool. It’s beautiful, polished so meticulously.”

“Haha, thank you, sir. I made it myself.”

The Orc who brought the pickaxe responded with a bright smile to the Factory Manager’s compliment.

The Factory Manager could tell that it was indeed made with great skill. Because it was stone, it was made thick for durability, but the blade part was also properly sharpened, and the left and right balance was well-maintained.

He was truly impressed by the completeness of the stone tool, which must have been made by breaking and grinding stone without proper tools.

“Stone tools… I’ve heard stories about places that still use tools made of stone, but I didn’t expect to see them here.”

“We have a few at our house too. For things like pickaxes, making them out of stone is actually quite good. The pickaxe my father made wasn’t as neat as this one, though. It was just roughly made from broken stones. This is a truly wonderful pickaxe.”

Tehez and Channing also expressed their admiration for the pickaxe, and the Orc who owned it burst into laughter even louder. Any race enjoys being praised.

“Did you grind all of this to make it?”

“Ah, first, you tap it with another stone, tap, tap, tap, to break the stone. You keep breaking it like that to shape it.”

As the Orc explained, Tehez started writing in her notebook.

“And then you grind it down?”

“Yes, you place it on a flat stone and grind it well while applying water. You have to grind it while paying attention to the center of gravity and such.”

“Aha!”

“And finally, you fix it firmly to a wooden handle, and it’s complete.”

The Orc’s explanation was typical stone tool crafting.

Seeing the Orcs still adhering to the way Neolithic humans made polished stone tools, the Factory Manager felt a sense of awe.

They were probably still using stone tools because metal was hard to come by, but even so, it was remarkable that they were crafting stone tools with such precision.

After the Orc took back his pickaxe and went back to work, Kapuntar looked at the Factory Manager and said,

“Now then, let’s go to my house.”

“Yes, alright.”

The Factory Manager replied to Kapuntar’s words and started walking again.

******

The Factory Manager and his party were led to Kapuntar’s house.

As they entered the large, circular tent, a neatly arranged house caught the Factory Manager’s eye. In the center of the house, surrounded by stones, was a fireplace, and an iron pot hung over it.

There was no bed, but a wooden mat was laid out on the floor, and on one side, what appeared to be a blanket was neatly folded.

Invited inside, the Factory Manager and his party sat down on cushions under the guidance of a female Orc who appeared to be Kapuntar’s wife.

“This is my wife, Palamar.”

“Welcome.”

The female Orc, called Palamar, greeted them warmly, and the Factory Manager bowed his head in return.

“Hey! Bring that over here quickly!”

“Honestly! A drinking party in broad daylight?”

At Kapuntar’s words, Palamar sighed and placed a jar in front of them.

“You treated me to good drinks yesterday, so I’ll return the favor today.”

“Oh, that’s very kind of you.”

Channing sighed as he watched the Factory Manager brighten up and sit closer at Kapuntar’s words.

“Channing, come with us!”

“Come on!”

Porta and Kerta pulled Channing by both hands. Unable to resist their strength, Channing was half-dragged out of the tent, and Tehez followed after watching for a moment.

“Let’s leave the youngsters and have a drink.”

Kapuntar said, handing over a clay cup, and the Factory Manager accepted it. It was a bit crude to call it pottery, but it was still a cup hardened by fire.

“This is a wonderful cup.”

The Factory Manager praised it as he examined the cup. It was about the size of a soup bowl, with diagonal lines drawn on the outside.

“My wife made it. Now, how about a drink!”

Kapuntar said, scooping up a full ladle of the liquor from the jar. It was a cloudy, milky liquor with a slightly yellowish tint.

As the liquor, which smelled like Makgeolli, filled the cup, the Factory Manager examined it more closely.

“It smells good.”

“It’s made from corn. Here, have a drink.”

Kapuntar filled his own cup and held it out, and the Factory Manager also slightly extended his cup. And they both brought their cups to their mouths at the same time.

The slightly sweet and spicy liquor, like Makgeolli, also had a pleasant aroma.

Emptying his cup, the Factory Manager let out a cheerful exclamation.

“Wow! This is good!”

“Glad you like it! Here, have another!”

Kapuntar chuckled and scooped up more liquor with the ladle, and the Factory Manager accepted it again.

Watching the two drinkers, Kapuntar’s wife, Palamar, clicked her tongue and placed something in front of them.

“Don’t just drink on an empty stomach. Have this with it.”

On the wooden plate Palamar brought over were dried fruits and jerky.

“Thanks.”

“Thank you for the food.”

Kapuntar and the Factory Manager raised their cups again, and Palamar sighed once more and headed towards the fireplace in the middle of the tent. She kneaded dough made of something and placed it on a wide stone plate.

“Are you baking bread?”

The Factory Manager asked, watching Palamar’s actions, and Kapuntar nodded.

“Yes, it’s made from a dough of corn flour and wheat flour. It’s a little different from the bread humans eat, but it’s our staple food.”

“Ah, I see.”

The Factory Manager chewed on a piece of jerky and tilted his cup, and Kapuntar popped a dried fruit into his mouth.

Meanwhile, Palamar brought over a piece of baked bread and handed it to the Factory Manager.

“Here, sir, have a taste.”

“Ah, thank you.”

The Factory Manager took the hot, thin bread that Palamar handed him and tore a piece off with his mouth.

The bread, with a slightly salty taste, was a bit tough and didn’t have much flavor, but it tasted like something he wouldn’t get tired of eating.

Chewing on the palm-sized bread, the Factory Manager washed down the dryness with liquor.