The Printing Association

After the Knight's Order's request, I took to bed as a matter of course. I was bedridden for several days, but falling ill during this season wasn't anything unusual, so my family didn't really say anything. I just hoped the High Priest hadn't gone and unnecessarily shouldered the blame again, taking it upon himself that it was "his responsibility."

By the time I was well enough to move around, autumn had deepened considerably, and it was getting cold enough that making paper with river water was becoming difficult.

"Myne, I started printing the picture books yesterday, alongside the papermaking."

For the first time in a while, I was able to go outside, and as I walked toward the Gilberta Company, Lutz filled me in on how things had been at the Myne Workshop and with the attendants.

"Lutz, do you know roughly how many picture books we'll be able to make? How much paper did we end up with?"

"Eighty's the limit. Counting what's still in production, eighty. We can definitely get seventy-five or seventy-six out of what we have now, but if we're going to make them all at once, you'd want as many as possible, right?"

"Yeah, thanks. I know it's tough with the cold setting in, but keep at it."

According to Lutz's calculations, we'd be able to make eighty copies of the second Children's Holy Scripture. Since the priests who had learned the printing technique last time would take turns printing them, it shouldn't take many days to finish.

In that case, what I needed to think about was distribution for the picture books. I looked down at my feet and let out a slow sigh.

"...If we're going to sell books, it'd be better to create a new association, wouldn't it?"

"An association?"

"Right. A Printing Association, or a Publishing Association... You understand that the books the nobles have and the ones we're making at the Myne Workshop are completely different, right?"

"Yeah."

The books that had existed up until now were collections of individually handwritten parchment pages. They naturally possessed high artistic value, with colorful and delicate illustrations, and leather covers adorned with gold leaf and gemstones.

"The books we make don't have much artistic value. They're picture books aimed at children, after all..."

"That's not the only difference—the manufacturing process is completely different. This is something the High Priest told me, but the books that existed before weren't something that could be made in a single workshop."

"Huh?"

Until now, there were different people for writing the text, drawing the illustrations, gathering the pages and stitching them together to give the contents their form, creating the leather cover, and applying gold leaf or gemstone ornamentation to the cover... Each step was entrusted to different craftsmen in different workshops, and only then was a single book completed. Because of that, there apparently was no such thing as a "bookmaking workshop."

"When a customer who wanted a book brought the paper bundle they wanted turned into a book to the craftsman's workshop, only then would the bookmaking process begin. After the craftsman finished binding the pages together with thread, they'd take it to the leatherworker's workshop to have the cover made. Then they'd bring it to a goldsmith or gemstone workshop to have it decorated."

"That's completely different from the Myne Workshop."

Just as Lutz said, the books we produced and sold at the Myne Workshop, while simple by comparison, used printing technology, so a single workshop could churn out many identical copies at once.

Since making and selling books would become a new business, we'd need an association to oversee it in order to secure profits and technology, and maintain quality.

"First I should talk to Benno about it, though..."

"But what?"

If I were going to sell books, they'd be sold through Lutz at the Gilberta Company. That meant Benno would be the one who needed to establish a Printing Association as a new venture. I couldn't imagine Benno leaving the Printing Association to someone else, but wouldn't it be a tremendous burden?

"The main Gilberta Company, Lincan's workshop, the Plant Paper Association and its workshops, the Italian restaurant we're hoping to have ready by spring, and now a Printing Association on top of that? I'm worried he'll work himself sick."

I counted off everything I knew about Benno's responsibilities on my fingers, and realized with a start that I was involved in almost all of it. If Benno died from overwork, wouldn't I be the cause?

At the sight of me turning pale, Lutz pulled a grim face.

"He's busy because he enjoys it, so it's fine. Mark hasn't told him to stop, so it must still be manageable."

Thinking about the relationship between Benno, who was happily busy, and Mark, who supported him completely, maybe Mark was the one working the hardest of all.

"Good morning, Benno."

"Myne! What the hell did you do?!"

The moment Mark led me to the back room, Benno's thunder exploded. I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about, so I rolled my eyes and shook my head vigorously.

"Wh-what!? I haven't done anything yet!"

I'd come to discuss the Printing Association, but I hadn't done anything wrong—I'd come here specifically to consult with him, so there was no reason to be scolded.

"A commission came from an upper noble. They want your ceremonial robe made immediately. There's no way you haven't done anything!"

At those words, I figured out which upper noble had made the request and clapped my hands.

"Ah, the upper noble—that would be Lord Karstedt, right? The Captain of the Knight's Order. He actually kept his promise. That's great."

"Great!? We got suddenly summoned by an upper noble—I nearly had a heart attack! If anything happens, report it immediately, you idiot!"

At Benno's words, I imagined myself in his situation and turned pale in an instant. Being suddenly summoned by an upper noble for something you had no knowledge of was nothing short of terrifying.

"I-I'm sorry! I had a fever and collapsed, so it didn't even occur to me."

Besides, the High Priest, Karstedt, and Fran had all strictly warned me that anything involving the Knight's Order was absolutely confidential. I hadn't been able to tell even Lutz the details, let alone think to report it to Benno.

"Well, fine. It gave me a fright, but at least we've built a connection with an upper noble. I'll take full advantage of this opportunity. ...In any case, didn't your robe just get finished the other day? What happened to it?"

I recalled the ceremonial robe that had been utterly destroyed and let my shoulders slump.

"I was told that anything involving the Knight's Order is strictly confidential, so I can't say."

"Can't be helped, I suppose. Sometimes it's better for us not to know more than we need to. So if it's not about the robe, what brings you here this time?"

When I made an X gesture in front of my chest to refuse explaining, Benno scratched his head roughly but gave a look of grudging acceptance.

"I've started making the second edition of the Children's Holy Scripture, and I thought it would be a good idea to discuss distribution. When we made the plant paper, we created the Plant Paper Association, right? I was thinking we might need to create a Printing Association this time..."

As Benno glanced at his writing board, I explained the necessity of a Printing Association that I'd been thinking about, and he nodded several times while stroking his chin.

"A Printing Association... It'll be necessary eventually, and I'd rather not have someone else snatch away the rights, so it's probably best to set it up from the start. Myne, how many books can we currently sell right now?"

"...If I redirect the paper we're about to make into textbooks, we can sell twenty copies of what we made before."

In the end, we hadn't sold any when we bought clothes, so if we wanted to sell now, we could move twenty copies. Five had been distributed as presentation copies, five were kept in the orphanage dining hall, and the rest were still stacked at the workshop.

"Lutz, go to the workshop and bring them. Without the actual product, they won't approve the establishment of the association."

"Okay!"

Lutz took off running toward the temple.

Left behind, I was peppered with questions by Benno about what information was needed for the association's founding documents. The way Benno was scribbling out the application forms really did look hectic, and watching the furrow between his brows, I couldn't help but feel guilty about adding to his workload.

"...Wouldn't creating a Printing Association make you too busy, Benno? Are you sure you're okay?"

"That's not for you to worry about. Besides, even if we create the Printing Association, I don't think printing workshops will increase that much."

At Benno's offhand remark that for the time being, no workshops besides the Myne Workshop would likely register, I blinked in surprise.

"Eh? Why not? If printing workshops don't increase, books won't increase either."

"First of all, the customer base is small. Plant paper workshops are still few in number. The ink-making method hasn't even spread yet, so even if someone wanted to print, there'd be no ink. It's a total list of 'not available.' For a while, this will be a field you monopolize. So even if we just set up the association, I won't be all that busy."

The Plant Paper Association had involved existing vested interests, and Benno himself had been trying to establish a workshop before new competitors could enter, so it had been extremely busy and demanding. But with the Printing Association, the materials for printing weren't readily available, so it seemed like the number of workshops wouldn't grow for some time. What a twist.

"...I'm glad you won't be too busy, but I'm not happy at all that the Printing Association won't be thriving."

"Whether the Printing Association gets busy or not depends on how well the books are received."

As Benno cranked out documents with a scratch-scratch sound, he muttered. I considered the literacy rate and the purchasing demographic, then answered.

"I think the Children's Holy Scripture will sell to nobles who have small children—particularly lower and middle-ranking nobles who aren't especially wealthy. So for the time being, I'm planning to make picture books about gods and knights."

"Why's that?"

"...For nobles, memorizing the names of the gods is essential."

I'd been thinking about this while bedridden with fever. About the magical weapons the Knight's Order had used during the Trombe subjugation, and the healing ceremonies and divine blessings.

The glowing batons everyone carried were probably catalysts for channeling mana, and changing their shape wouldn't be difficult if you had enough mana. But for divine blessings, healing ceremonies, or large-scale magic of some kind, you'd need to know the names of the gods.

My own blessing had come about by chance because I'd chanted a god's name, and the prayers I'd struggled to memorize also contained the names of gods. To bestow a weapon with the blessing of a god of darkness, a prayer was also essential.

In other words, in noble society, to use large-scale magic, you needed to know the names of the gods.

"Nobles absolutely must memorize the names of the gods. And employees at major stores that do business with nobles need to know the names of the gods too, right? You even used the names of gods when greeting the High Priest, Benno. If we add that as a selling point—for study purposes—I think we could sell to nobles and major store merchants."

"...Since you're the one saying this, having gotten to know nobles, I don't think the perspective is bad. But as it stands, the appearance isn't appealing enough. I think you should use leather covers after all."

At Benno's suggestion, I shook my head slowly.

"No, the Myne Workshop's books will stay as they are. I think anyone who wants a leather cover should bring the book to a leatherworking workshop of their choice, as they've always done."

"And why's that?"

Benno fixed me with a sharp gaze. I raised my index finger.

"First, it's about distributing the work. If everything is ordered through the Gilberta Company, won't orders pile up in a single workshop? Considering delivery times, quality control, and competition, having one workshop monopolize all the work isn't a good thing."

"Come to think of it, you've always hated the idea of exclusive contracts."

Benno furrowed his brows and said that. From the Italian restaurant negotiations, Benno had apparently gotten the impression that I hated having exclusive arrangements.

"It's not that I hate them. I don't mind if a shop is someone's favorite. But I hate the inflexibility that comes when you know a workshop is overloaded but can't take your business elsewhere. Also, I think concentrating all the work in one place becomes a source of unnecessary disputes."

When I pursed my lips, Benno snorted.

"What's next?"

"Second, it's the customer's preferences. If you're paying good money for a book, you'd want it to be to your taste, right? In that case, having it made to the customer's liking will result in higher satisfaction. Rather than us attaching some random leather cover, wouldn't it be better to just provide the contents so there's no hassle of removing the cover? The Myne Workshop's books are only bound with thread, so they're easy to take apart and customize."

Holding up two fingers as I explained, I thought about the binding for the second edition. I'd planned to use the glue I'd made to give the spine a proper finish, but if the book was meant to be taken apart and modified, it might be better to keep it thread-bound only.

"Third, it's time. If we make the cover impressive, it takes longer to produce each book. The Myne Workshop's advantage is that many identical books can be produced in a short period, so spending time on cover-making would be a poor strategy when it comes to turning out volume. Besides, I'd rather spend that time making more types of books, wouldn't you?"

I'd rather have lots of books than one impressive one. I also hated waiting a long time for them to be completed. I understood this was purely personal preference, but it wasn't something I was willing to give up.

"Fourth, it's price. If the books aren't affordable, the already narrow and limited customer base won't expand. The most important thing right now is getting people to buy books in the first place. And even a poor noble who wants to show off could say, 'I plan to have it customized later, but my usual workshop is busy,' and still make the purchase. Plus, there are customers like me who only care about the content and have no interest in the exterior."

As I rattled off my reasons for not putting leather covers on the books, Benno tapped his temple with his fingertip, wearing a complex expression.

"I understand your passion for keeping the book's value and price as low as possible to sell them widely. It's the complete opposite of a merchant's thinking—raising value as much as possible and monopolizing the profits."

According to Benno, the normal approach was to pay attention to appearance to raise a product's value, use tantalizing scarcity to inflate that value, and then raise the price as much as possible to earn profits.

"...Is that no good?"

"No—if we were only doing business in this town, it'd be one thing, but if we want to sell widely across many towns, it's not so bad. Pushing forward with what makes these books different from the ones that existed before could work."

Benno said that and slowly exhaled. Then he fixed me with the sharp reddish-brown eyes of a merchant.

"This is just a merchant's instinct... but when it comes to books, I get the feeling it's better to let you have your way as much as possible. But since it goes against all conventional merchant wisdom, I wanted you to give me reasons I could accept."

With that, Benno approved selling the Myne Workshop's books in their thread-bound form.

"Well then, let's go with a thin-margin, high-volume approach."

"No, we'll take proper profits. And then sell them widely, you dummy."

By the time the application forms were done, Lutz had returned with books in his bag. I sold them to Benno and received three large gold coins.

I sighed, thinking it would still take a while before we could make books affordable, but at the same time, I let out a breath of relief as my purse grew fatter. With this, I could stock up on more food for both the orphanage and my own room before the snow started falling.

"Myne, we're going to the Merchant's Guild."

"Coming!"

Lutz took the books, and Benno picked me up as usual—since I was a slow walker—and headed to the Merchant's Guild.

Farm carts laden with harvested crops passed back and forth. With winter preparations underway in the town, farmers coming to sell their produce had increased, and with so many people buying in bulk, the smell of beef tallow for candle-making wafted from all over town and stunk up the place.

"Benno, do you think candles with less smell would sell well to nobles?"

I'd heard that wealthy nobles used beeswax candles, but for nobles who wanted to save money, they might sell. Recalling the herb-infused candles we'd made at the orphanage, I asked Benno.

Benno raised his eyebrows as if to say, "What now?"

"Candles with less smell, you say?"

"Yeah, you know—the ones where you do the salting out and mix in herbs? I haven't used them myself, so I'm not sure, but even the candles themselves smell less than normal ones, right?"

"Lutz! You didn't report this!"

Benno barked. Lutz blinked and tilted his head.

"Huh? ...I mentioned it when reporting on the orphanage's winter preparations. But I was focused on the glue-making that was happening at the same time, so I don't think you were listening."

"Ah... that could be."

For Benno, candle-making was apparently less interesting and attention-grabbing than glue-making. There was glue here too, but since he usually bought what he needed when he needed it, and this wasn't a workshop essential to product creation, he wouldn't go out of his way to make it himself.

"The reason the candles around us aren't salt-separated is because we're poor. So I was wondering if the candles the wealthy buy are salt-separated. Are the candles you use light yellow, Benno? Or white?"

"Light yellow. They're half beef tallow, half beeswax..."

"So the candles the wealthy buy aren't salt-separated either."

Benno had said he handles anything that can be paid for with money. If he didn't know about salt-separated candles, I could assume they didn't exist in this town.

"Since we buy them instead of making them ourselves, it might be better to sell the manufacturing method to a candle workshop or association."

"Then when spring comes, I'll go to a candle workshop, sell the information, and get them to help with wax paper production."

Chatting about such things, we passed through the second floor of the Merchant's Guild, where foot traffic was heavy, and climbed up to the third.

While Benno was discussing the registration for establishing the new Printing Association, Frieda came out from the back when she spotted me. Swaying her cherry-colored twin tails and giving a soft smile, Frieda seemed to have grown taller since the beginning of summer, and she gave off a much more mature impression.

"My goodness! Myne, how do you do."

"Frieda, it's been a while. How are Cattleya sales?"

The last time I'd seen Frieda was at the Cattleya tasting event. The event had been a huge success—I'd heard that both the name and taste of Cattleya, as well as the names of its creators, Ilze and Frieda, had all been promoted—since then, we hadn't met.

"Sales are absolutely booming. The nobles are quite pleased with them, too. I've even been hearing requests asking whether there aren't other sweets. Myne, don't you have anything? I'll buy it at a fair price!"

While Frieda smiled sweetly and solicited recipes, I glanced toward Benno. He gave me a wide-eyed glare, and I understood it was a no-go. If we'd still been short on money, I probably would have sold them off without hesitation. Having some financial breathing room was important.

"Benno would probably get mad, and my finances are comfortable right now, so maybe next time."

"Oh, how disappointing."

Either Frieda already knew Benno wouldn't give permission, or she wasn't that disappointed—she placed a hand on her cheek with a composed expression.

"...I heard you entered the temple and was worried, but you seem well. Is the consuming fever under control now? Have you found a noble willing to contract with you?"

"Thanks for worrying. The consuming fever is fine for now. As for contracting with a noble, I still have no plans. I want to stay with my family."

"Oh really? Surely you've had many offers?"

Frieda tilted her head curiously. I tilted mine the same way. I'd never received a single offer from a noble.

"There haven't been any offers, and I have no intention of contracting anyway. Besides, come spring, I'm going to have a little brother or sister. I'm going to be a big sister—I can't very well be contracting with nobles, can I?"

If I contracted now, I wouldn't even be able to see the face of the baby that was coming. That was a situation I absolutely refused.

"My, how wonderful—please give my congratulations to your mother. And when you have free time, do come visit. Ilze is waiting for you too."

"Hmm, I'll be busy for a while. There's just so much to do."

Since I started going to the temple, I'd been busy. Except for the days I collapsed and rested, there wasn't a single day where I just lazed around at home—there was simply too much to do.

"Does being busy have something to do with establishing the new association?"

"That's right. It's the thing I want to do most."

Right now I was cutting thick paper and making master copies, but I also wanted to try stencil printing and experiment with movable type. The paper needed improvement too, and so did the ink. My head was full of thoughts about books—busy, but fun.

"What Myne wants to do most... books?"

"Yep! I made a book. I'm going to make lots more and sell them. You should buy one too, Frieda."

At my words, Frieda smiled wryly and shook her head gently.

"I can't make any promises without seeing the actual product."

"Well, yeah, I suppose."

I took a copy of the Children's Holy Scripture from the bundle Lutz was carrying and held it out to Frieda. I wanted to know what Frieda, who was raised as a young lady and had a sharp merchant's eye, thought of it.

"Here, the real thing. What do you think?"

Thinking the same thing I was, Benno had stopped his paperwork and shifted his gaze to Frieda.

"...It is indeed a book. But it's only the contents?"

As Frieda leafed through the pages, she asked. For people accustomed to books in this world, a paper cover apparently didn't count as a proper cover.

"For now, this flowery paper is the cover. You get the leather cover made separately by a workshop of your choice. If you don't have a preferred workshop, the Gilberta Company can introduce you to one."

"It's nice that it can be made by a workshop other than one the Gilberta Company recommends," Frieda said, glancing at Benno.

"Myne, how much is this book?"

At Frieda's question, I looked toward Benno. I had no idea how much profit he intended to mark up.

"One small gold coin and eight large silver coins. Buying it?"

"Yes, I'll take it."

Frieda decided on the spot, settled accounts with Benno, and purchased the Children's Holy Scripture. The fact that Frieda could buy it immediately was impressive, but Benno, who earned three large silver coins of profit on a single book, was equally impressive. Maybe I should have raised the price a bit more to secure better margins.

As I despaired at my inability to think like a proper merchant, Frieda closed the picture book with a snap and gave me a small smile.

"Myne, for the next picture book, I'd like one that goes into detail about each season's deity. I find it so difficult to remember the Five Gods' attendants."

This Children's Holy Scripture covered the Supreme God and the Five Gods associated with the seasons. The Five Gods' attendants hadn't appeared in it.

By stating her own desires, Frieda was showing me what kind of knowledge the children of wealthy families and nobles wanted. Having this kind of feedback made the next picture book much easier to plan.

"Thanks, Frieda. Next I'll try making a book about the attendants."

I pulled out my writing board and made a note. Watching me, Frieda's eyes widened slightly. She peered at the writing board and fixed her gaze on the iron stylus.

"Myne, what is that? Does Benno hold the rights to that as well?"

"...She really is an astute young lady."

Benno let out a sigh tinged with admiration, while Frieda let out a sigh of disappointment.

"It's so frustrating that I couldn't get to Myne first. No matter how sharp my instincts are, they're completely useless."

After that, while Frieda and I chatted idly, Benno finished his paperwork. Since completing the registration would take some time, our business at the Guild was done.

"See you later, Frieda."

I waved to Frieda and walked on my own until we reached the stairs.

However, the second floor was crowded, and to keep from being jostled around, Benno picked me up and carried me. Just as he was about to push through quickly, a loud voice rang out from the crowd on the second floor.

"Wait! Please wait! Young lady of the Gilberta Company!"

At the voice, I exchanged a look with Benno.

"...Collinna really does have quite the enthusiastic fan."

"Idiot. I'm the one carrying you, so they can only be calling you. Stop living in denial."

But I really didn't want to respond when someone was shouting like that in such a crowded place, calling for the young lady of the Gilberta Company, when that wasn't even me.

"For now, let's get outside where all these staring eyes can't see us. If it's really important, they'll follow."

I hurried Benno along, and we quickly left the Merchant's Guild. Sure enough, the owner of the loud voice followed after us.

In the central square right outside the Guild building, Benno stopped and set me down.

When I turned around, a teenage boy with bright orange curly hair tied back in a single ponytail came running out of the Guild building.

"Young lady of the Gilberta Company! Please become my patron!"

Kneeling before the fountain in the central square, he shouted those words. It was Johann, from the smithing workshop.