I moved my belongings from the inn to the warehouse. Cloud was with a horse master of decent reputation. At some point, I would have to either sell him or have something built in the rear of the warehouse. The fenced-off area was technically a part of my land and just large enough. Though since I had no income, I had to be more frugal with my money. The door behind me was locked tight. It too was a double door, just not as large as the entrance to the warehouse. It wasn't fear exactly that made it hard to fall asleep. It was the familiarity of my situation.
I remembered, as a child, sleeping on the wooden floor, staring into the embers of the hearth. Sometimes my thoughts were violent, other times they were empty. The gently smoldering embers were hypnotic. Perhaps it was then that the fire inside took root. It felt so far in the past, yet somehow, I found myself staring into the embers of a hearth again. Eventually, I concluded that it was the size of the room and the high ceiling. I felt small when curled up in front of the fire.
'Rid yourself of those thoughts, Myr, you're not that girl anymore.'
~
"So, can you make it?" I asked Niel. The large blacksmith stared at my drawing with confusion. It was a straightforward design for a stove. I drew a square of iron with a circular depression around half an inch thick and eight inches in diameter. The other was a simple circular grate that would fit in the divot. My idea was to create the fire and have the pot sit on said grate. The circular divot would act as the missing circle. Once the grate was in place, the fire would activate. And the grate would be thick enough to support even a heavy stew pot.
"Get a clay mold and use some wood to form out the shape." He muttered as he looked at the circular base. Then he turned to the grate, still muttering, "Could forge weld four thick rings for supports, then the grid at the top. Good old pig iron should do."
"What is this supposed to be?" His daughter, Jenna, asked.
I smiled and said, "A little side project."
"I heard you the first time. I ain't deaf. What the hells are you storing in a barrel 'at big?"
"Water and me," I said.
"A Bath? Girl, just get a copper one."
"They don't make 'em big enough. I'm willing to pay a premium. So long as it doesn't leak and can support that amount of water."
"You're talking about thick wood, a lot of bands to strengthen the seal.”
He squinted as he considered how to construct something like that.
“Three silver, not a copper less, and it will take two weeks."
"Five if you can do it in one." I countered.
"Twelve days is the least I can work with if you don't want a defective product."
"Four silver? Then,"
"Aye, girl, you got yourself a deal."
~
"Careful, Careful, Twist, dammit. " I said to the four young boys trying to fit my bed frame through the door. In retrospect, I should have had them assemble it inside the room.
"Alright, now you... No, the fat one. Go left, so the head can slip through." They went in foot first, then we had to fit the head of the bed, which was taller than the door frame was wide.
"There you go. Now put it over there." I pointed to the left side of the room.
The four brothers were the sons of the carpenter I had hired.
I dropped ten bits into each boy's hand for carrying the frame all the way from their father's shop. I wore a simple cotton shirt and pants, opting to dress less austere since where I was living wasn't exactly the best or worst part of the city. Somewhere where you could walk the streets, just not after sunset.
They left a few minutes later after adjusting the position, and I sighed. The feather mattress and pillows should be finished by the eight-day. I checked the bed off my list and went on to other items.
"Stove," I mumbled.
To the left of the nearly 100-by-25-foot room sat my bed, in the middle was the Hearth, now lit, containing the air flow circuit and ten heat absorption circles. Those took most of the day to make, since I went a bit further with their construction.
One thing I never took note of was the difference in efficiency due to how the runes were made. For example, a heat absorption circuit drawn into dirt was much less efficient than one carved into wood. Furthermore, runes carved more deeply into wood, then filled in with clay or lacquer, were even more efficient.
I did not have the resources to test different metals since they would have had to be melted down and poured into the negative space created by carving. But I was able to confirm that the more grounded the runes were in reality, the greater their effectiveness. So, I spent hours meticulously carving the runes inside the exhaust of the hearth. Then I used a large amount of forging clay to fill in the negative space. It took hours, but eventually, the task was complete.
I could create an almost 6-foot flame just from the hearth alone.
That did give me an idea, though: What if instead of clay, it was precious metals? Though the cost and metallurgy involved were beyond my abilities. Nier would have to assist me with the project. And that would involve me trusting him with my secret. Something I wasn’t willing to do without assurance. Spending months learning to handle hot metal and possibly burning myself horrifically due to error or a mistake was something I wasn’t willing to do.
Even now, I couldn’t do any significant shape transformations due to the flue icing over. I was getting close, though. Just a bit more efficiency, and I wouldn’t have to worry about the runes cracking and being damaged from extreme cold. The arcane circle for shape transformation would have to be made with high-quality materials, Iron, and silver. Gold wasn’t even an option. I already had the design ready, but the moment I showed Nier or anyone with sense, they would know that I was a Magus. My need for caution warred with my need to experiment.
‘Sometimes risk is necessary for progress, you know this, Myr. Is this more of a risk than killing Surian, Gemma, or Elis? Let’s learn about them a bit more, then make a decision.’
~
The design I settled on for the stove was rather simple. Just a large, heavy wooden table painted with black lacquer to prevent burning. The three burners had their own energy source. On each disc of metal were the runes for a modified candle. Dragon’s breath was much too hot and would melt copper pots if not managed correctly. So, I modified Candle, removing some of the regulation runes. This process produced a slightly blue-yellow fire that, while still incredibly hot, didn't immediately melt the copper pots.
In the center of the right side of the room was a large wooden table for preparing food, and two barrels filled with water sat in the corners.
The icebox was large; five feet wide, three feet high, and three feet deep. The box had to have several heavy metal hinges due to its size.
Walking over, I smiled as I opened it. Ice-cold air greeted me. This was probably the easiest thing to make. Just carve a few circles to remove the heat, making the air colder than ice. It was empty, but I planned to fill it with meat. I intended to stock up for the winter, hundreds of pounds at least. I even had a second, slightly smaller box, ordered for fruit and vegetables. In the winter, while everyone starved and shivered in the cold, I would be warm, well-fed, and clean.
On the left was my bath, bed, armoire, and writing desk. I smiled as I appreciated all the work I had put in. 40 silvers in total and nearly three weeks to get it all put together.
The bath would be my final challenge.
Filling a bath this large would be incredibly taxing, so I spent nearly three days trying to find a solution. Creating a system of pipes to the well? No. Capturing rain? Too random. Hire people? No, I didn’t want anyone in my private abode.
Then one day, while walking, I brushed against some leaves, feeling my hand come away wet. I thought of grass, how in the morning it would be wet even though it didn't rain the night before. I needed to replicate that phenomenon.
So, I went another week, taking a total of 145 pages of parchment before I found a formula that worked. The problem was how I viewed air. I knew it was a combination of several gases, but for some reason, I never considered water to be one of them. It was obvious in retrospect, where would water go once it turned into steam or evaporated? Where does rain come from? There had to be a small amount of water permeating the air at all times. So, the runes essentially condensed the free-floating water vapor in the air to a single point. How lucky I was that there was a metal ring around the top of the tub. It was essentially a large barrel, around 6 feet in diameter after all.
My first test with a normal-sized barrel produced a few drops of water every second. It was quite fascinating watching water appear from seemingly nowhere. Then I moved on to my tub and drew the runes for what I was calling water condensing around the rim of the barrel. The water would collect at the center of the top of the tub, filling itself. Then I made as powerful an unfocused binding as I could to my energy furnace and watched the results.
"I am a true genius," I said, patting myself on the back. There was a thin stream of water constantly flowing into the large tub. It would probably take a full two days to fill, but I was pleased. I poured the water from the test barrel into a large stewpot to create drinking water, then broke the binding.
Satisfied with the enormous amount of work, I took a step back and admired everything: the large pot of water being heated by magic fire, three brightly glowing candles sitting atop repurposed clay dishes, and a large bath slowly filling with water.
"When I'm done, this room will be a paradise." It not only served as comfort but also as an excellent way to practice problem-solving. There were few things more intellectually satisfying than figuring out a formula to solve a problem.
~
It took three days to fill the bath. I guessed it took around five to six hundred gallons of water to fill the thing. It was a chilly night, and I grinned madly as I watched the steaming water. Unable to wait another moment, I stripped and, careful not to cause too much of a disturbance, lowered myself into the bath.
The water was only 4 feet deep, but the width of the bath was what mattered. I sat in the middle; the water was high enough to completely cover my head. My hair floated around unaffected by gravity. I could hear nothing while completely submerged. An amused part of me started counting, testing how long I could hold my breath. After 34 seconds, I shot up to my feet, sucking in air to relieve the burning in my lungs. My hair stuck to my body, its length getting close to my waist. I hung over the side of the tub as I caught my breath.
The size of the bath was not so I could get as clean as possible; it was for another vanity. I stretched out, and after a few minutes of practice, floated on the surface, staring at the ceiling. I stayed that way for an indeterminate amount of time. No thoughts, no worries, just peace
I left the bath after almost an hour. In truth, I wouldn’t have gotten out if not for my fingers and toes beginning to look like dried prunes. With soap, oil, and a washcloth, I was as clean as I could be. Perhaps that was why I received so many comments about my looks. I was properly fed, had well-kept hair, and decent skin. A massive difference from most peasant women, who only bathed infrequently. This bath would be considered a great luxury even for the wealthy.
‘How much could something like this sell for?’
Now dry with a clean shift and decent stew in my stomach, I stared at the now slightly dirty water, "How in the hells do I empty this?"
~
The eight-day was over, but unlike most people, there was no need for me to wake early to start a day of grueling labor. So, I wrapped myself in my warm blankets, determined to sleep to my heart’s content.
I heard a loud banging, not the door of the room, but the entrance to the warehouse. Immediately, my heart raced, and my eyes flew open. I slept with my gloves on, so the only thing I needed to do was grab my heavy cloak and dagger. I bound dragon’s breath on my gloves to the energy furnace. Now ready, I opened my room door and walked to the entrance of the warehouse, ready to burn whoever waited outside to cinders. Though the entrance was slightly outside my maximum range of effect, it barely caused a decrease in firepower.
I opened the heavy bolt and pulled the door open.
Two men stood outside, one bald, the other with red hair. Both were ugly and looked as if they had been through many fights, and their faces never healed properly. I almost cooked them where they stood, just by the look of them. But neither made any moves, though they did look at my body with far too much desire.
"Well, well, ain't you a pretty sight." The redhead on the left said.
"What do you want?" I asked.
'Give me a reason, worm, and I'll turn your face into a bubbling grease, regardless of who is watching.'
And there were watchers, people milled about their day. In an industrial area, there was always foot traffic.
"First o' the month. Time to pay,"
'Right, I've heard of this. 'Protection,' gangs were a problem in the city. I’ve even seen the ‘collections'. Did I want to earn the ire of whatever gang they were a part of? Why couldn’t I just be left alone to research?’
"I'm not a business; I don't need protection."
"See here, woman, this is a warehouse, registered as a business, a nice wood warehouse, shame if'n it burns down. Derek will get his due." The bald man threatened.
'Derek? No idea who that is. I spent too much time focusing on magic and not enough on the city. This shouldn’t have surprised me. I made a mistake, and I will correct it. For now, let’s play their game.'
"How much?" I asked.
"Silver each month. Two this month for you, cause you ain't seek Derek's blessin'."
Everything in my mind shouted to burn these fools alive, but I had a goal: continual research.
'Fine then, I will give them the silver, and if they don't leave, then so be it.'
"One moment, remain here."
I went back to my room, surprised the men didn't try to follow, which would have only earned them a quick death. I came back with two silver coins.
"There, your coin, we square?" The bald man examined the two coins and then pocketed both.
"Square, next month another silver, no debate." The bald man turned to leave, but the redhead stared at my body a bit too long.
"Come on, Vin, we got rounds." The bald man shouted.
'I'll probably have to kill him eventually,'
Vin walked off following the bald man. I watched from the door for some time as they headed to more businesses. An eatery, a bakery, then, finally, a tanner. Apparently, he couldn't pay, so they dragged him into the street and beat him bloody, then walked back into the store. I heard some struggling punctuated by the screaming of a woman. After a few minutes, she went silent. Ten minutes later, they came back out with hands filled with leathers.
‘They seem to be able to inflict suffering with impunity. Though their cruelty seems limited to those who don’t pay. This is probably by design.’
I watched, mildly fascinated, as passersby pointedly turned their heads away from what was happening. As if it wasn't their problem. The two men left the store and moved on, carrying out their collections.
'How much coin were they making, a month? There are dozens of businesses on this street alone. Something to consider.'
I locked my door and headed back to my bed, annoyed that my sleep was interrupted.