Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 623

“Y-yes…”

The artisan finally nodded with a reluctant expression.

“I’m rather baffled that you didn’t know this until now. You know exactly why I’m here, don’t you?”

“I suspect that Meister Nasisa assigned our industry when she incorporated us into the upper workshop district.”

Mauzer frowned at Renok’s words.

“Are you saying Nasisa decided what we should do without even asking us? Well, I guess that level of unilateral decision-making is the only explanation for this situation…”

Mauzer was unconsciously complaining about Nasisa, but then he shut his mouth.

Perhaps he thought there was no need to speak ill of a colleague who was lying in a hospital bed after surviving a near-death experience.

However, Renok pondered Mauzer’s words and shook his head.

“Considering Meister Nasisa’s personality, that’s unlikely. If she really intended to assign us this task, she would have tried to get a definite answer from me right there and then.”

“W-well, but…”

“The fact that this client came even after Meister Nasisa fell into a coma means that the story about the consulting was already circulating in the workshop district.”

Renok said.

“Perhaps she chose a unique industry as an excuse to incorporate our workshop into the upper workshop district.”

It would be difficult to be promoted directly from the lower workshop district to the upper workshop district based solely on outstanding performance at the selection ceremony.

If, in the process, she had emphasized the addition of a unique industry tailored to Renok’s abilities to justify the promotion, it wouldn’t be an impossible story.

As if supporting Renok’s speculation, the artisan, who had been listening quietly, nodded.

“That’s right. Manager Solmer said at the workshop meeting that they were planning to promote a new workshop as a welfare measure for the artisans.”

“…Huh, really…”

Was it because Renok’s almost intuitive guess was so close to the truth that it felt so strange?

Ignoring Mauzer’s gaze, which kept glancing at him with a curious look, Renok replied.

“I think they intended to keep the industry as a formality and let the workshop operate freely. It seems that the communication was not properly done because Meister Nasisa fell into a coma in the process.”

Ibert, who became the manager of the upper workshop district in place of Nasisa, had not heard anything specific from her, so he simply carried out the task as it was.

He didn’t know the specific circumstances or details, so things got tangled up like this in the process.

Only then did the artisan, who understood what Renok was saying, sigh with a slightly displeased look.

“So, in the end, you guys just came here under Meister Nasisa’s protection. You’re saying you can’t take my consultation, right?”

“…”

“Well, that’s true…”

Mauzer belatedly cleared his throat and stepped in to resolve the situation.

“We haven’t heard anything about this matter either. It seems we should look into the specific circumstances after Nasisa wakes up and returns.”

“Ugh…”

The artisan frowned as if he was also dissatisfied, but in the end, he seemed to accept the situation and nodded.

“Alright. I know how meticulous Nasisa is. You guys must have been caught up in her unilateral decision-making too.”

Perhaps it was because of Nasisa’s meticulous personality that they unexpectedly found common ground.

Unlike his rough attitude at the beginning, the artisan was quite cooperative, and Mauzer also nodded.

“That’s right. Let’s talk again after Nasisa recovers her health.”

“Hoo, damn it… I thought I could fix the problem this time…”

The artisan sighed and trudged out of the workshop.

Renok watched the artisan leave, then spoke as if he had suddenly remembered something.

“I never said I wouldn’t take the job.”

“…What?”

“Ban?”

The artisan and Mauzer turned their heads in surprise almost simultaneously.

Renok looked at their expressions and slowly got up from the workbench.

“You said it was consulting on workshop management, right?”

Renok stretched languidly and nodded at the artisan with a smile.

“The internal facility relocation is almost complete, so let’s go and survey it first. Is that okay?”

* * *

“What on earth are you thinking, Ban?”

The streets of the neat upper workshop district.

The paving stones on the street were spotless, with not a single crack, and even the cement was neatly applied and organized.

It was a clean and orderly scene, completely different from the somewhat messy lower workshop district.

Mauzer, who was walking behind the artisan, grabbed Renok’s shoulder and whispered in a small voice.

“I understand that guy’s situation, but why should we do that kind of consulting?”

Although the relocation of the workshop’s internal facilities was almost complete, there were still things to do.

They needed to check the necessary equipment and the firepower of the furnaces, as well as ensure that the internal facilities and power were working and supplied smoothly.

Now that they had just arrived in the upper workshop district and settled in, they needed to open their business as quickly as possible so that other customers could recognize their workshop.

In the midst of all this, he was going to take on another artisan’s request, and even do consulting on workshop management. It was a decision that Mauzer couldn’t understand at all.

However, Renok shook his head calmly even after hearing Mauzer’s words.

“There is a reason. At least, it’s not something we should not even try.”

“…If what you said is true, Nasisa only registered the industry differently to fit the justification. Knowing that, you’re still going to go along with the industry Nasisa set?”

“If it benefits me, wouldn’t it be better to do so?”

Renok asked back and glanced around.

“The gazes I feel even from this street are quite intense. Rather than being wary of outsiders, they know that we are the newly arrived workshop artisans.”

“…”

As he said, every time Renok passed by, the gazes intensified, and the workshop window curtains could be seen slightly closing.

It was hard to notice if you weren’t paying attention, but the atmosphere was definitely changing subtly around the group.

Renok neatly cut off the gazes of those people and spoke again.

“According to Meister Ibert, there’s a high possibility that the artisans here don’t have a good opinion of us. In fact, that artisan also thinks of us as half-parachuters [someone who gets a position without deserving it], doesn’t he?”

“That’s…”

“Originally, Meister Nasisa would have directly protected us and resolved these objections, but due to the assassination attempt, Meister Nasisa is not here, and only her decisions remain.”

Renok said, looking up at the artisan’s workshop in the distance.

“In other words, in order to work properly in this upper workshop district, we also need to seek self-sufficiency.”

“…Is that what you meant by consulting on workshop management?”

“There’s no reason to only do business with the residents of the mechanical city.”

Renok smiled.

“If possible, wouldn’t it be good to make the artisans in the same workshop district our customers as well?”

If Renok could achieve results in this matter, he could build a good relationship with the artisans who run the same workshops while doing business with them.

The artisans who stay in this upper workshop district are mostly artisans who have proven their skills and talents, so they would also have a lot of information they have heard from various places.

Renok had already recognized that there was a way to uncover the secrets of the mechanical city even here.

“Huh, I still don’t understand…”

Mauzer said, sighing and raising his gaze.

“Why did Nasisa register the industry as workshop management, of all things…”

“When I look back at the advice Meister Nasisa gave me when she first visited my workshop, most of it was related to internal facility organization and management.”

Renok explained, recalling his memories.

“Perhaps it’s because Meister Nasisa herself had a great interest in managing workshops.”

At that moment, the artisan, who had been walking tirelessly in front of them, stopped abruptly.

“We’re here.”

The artisan threw the words and glanced back.

However, Renok and Mauzer closed their mouths instead after seeing the exterior of the workshop in front of them.

Chiiik!!

Poo-ooo!!

A large workshop, almost the size of a large one.

From the dozens of pipes rising from its roof, acrid smoke was pouring out, and alarms were constantly ringing.

Customers were constantly going in and out of the workshop, and employees selling goods were mixed in, shouting and loudly negotiating.

“Let’s go inside and talk.”

The artisan said and immediately led the two into the workshop.

Clang, clang, clang!!

The workshop was filled with heat and constantly rising steam from pouring water.

The shouts of the artisans hammering on the workbenches intersected, and sometimes hazy smoke obscured their vision.

The shapes of equipment being forged, maintained, and extracted from a total of five furnaces.

While Mauzer couldn’t easily take his eyes off the scene, Renok walked unhesitatingly to the artisan’s lounge located at the innermost part of the workshop.

“Come to think of it, we haven’t introduced ourselves yet. I’m Cybird.”

“…Cybird?”

While Mauzer frowned slightly at the name, Renok also gave his name.

“I’m Lyman.”

“That friend of yours called you Ban earlier?”

“It’s a nickname friends use.”

There was some confusion because he started as Ban when he started as an artisan, and then his name was changed to Lyman by Executor Isabella.

However, Renok did not show any of those thoughts and answered calmly.

Cybird, who didn’t seem to have asked out of much interest, immediately turned the topic to the main point.

“Then let’s talk about what I want to consult about right away. As you can see, my workshop is quite successful in the vicinity of the district.”

Cybird, who casually boasted that his business was doing well, then frowned.

“Things are going well, so I have a few apprentices, and I have a separate business outside the workshop. The problem is that the internal environment of the workshop is getting worse and worse these days.”

At Cybird’s words, Mauzer and Renok looked at each other at the same time.

“It doesn’t look that good even now.”

“…”

The sight of the workshop where acrid smoke and heat were rising at the same time, tormenting people.

The faces of the people who were desperately negotiating while sweating profusely didn’t look very pleasant.

However, Cybird shook his head at Renok’s words.

“It’s not just that. The temperature inside the workshop is constantly rising little by little. This is a critical problem that an artisan should never overlook.”

Since they handle heat-sensitive metals and equipment, maintaining the temperature inside the workshop at an appropriate level is a very important issue.

Installing vents inside and outside the furnace, and making the inside of the workshop well-ventilated, are also extensions of that.

“I’ve installed additional vents on the roof of the workshop and even tried to lower the furnace’s firepower, but it hasn’t been resolved at all.”

“…Was that why there were so many pipes on the roof of the workshop?”

“I asked my colleagues for advice, but they just told me to drink less, what nonsense.”

“…”

“Meister Nasisa recommended you for the consulting industry, so I came to your workshop hoping you could solve it.”

“Hmm…”

Cybird, leaving Renok to ponder, spoke in a strong tone.

“If you solve this problem, I’ll give your workshop a few lucrative requests, and I’ll personally introduce you to other artisans.”

“…”

“I’ll do my best to help you settle in the upper workshop district. I promise you on the name of an artisan.”

Cybird, who seemed a little impatient at the lack of response, spoke again.

It seemed like a really important issue for him.

“That’s not a big problem…”

Renok said, then got up from his chair and pointed to the door.

“I’d like to take a look around the inside of the workshop first. Is that okay?”

* * *

After that, Renok, guided by Cybird, checked various parts of the workshop, including the workbenches, vents, roof, and warehouse.

Cybird seemed to be strict with his apprentices, and the artisans who were working hard whenever he appeared were also seen to be very tense.

There were also customers who occasionally greeted him, but he only nodded with a nonchalant look.

After taking a tour of the workshop, Cybird immediately turned his gaze and asked Renok.

“So, do you see anything?”

“…”

Renok, who had been lost in thought, said.

“There are five furnaces.”

“That’s right.”

One on each of the four sides of the huge workshop wall. And on the north-facing wall, two furnaces were installed in a row.

There were more than two artisans working busily in front of each furnace.

Renok and Mauzer had also worked together without any problems with one furnace, hadn’t they?

That was proof of how large Cybird’s workshop was.

“Even in large workshops, they usually don’t have more than three furnaces.”

“Is that the problem?”

Cybird said with a slightly disappointed look.

“That can’t be it. It’s been two years since I increased the number of furnaces to five, and at least until a month ago, the temperature control was working smoothly.”

Since the furnace was the largest facility that emitted heat in the workshop, Cybird had also checked the furnace first.

He had lowered the temperature of the furnace, checked the vents, and even called a furnace facility management company to disassemble it right in front of him.

“I even stopped one of the furnaces for three days. But the temperature didn’t go down.”

Cybird sighed deeply.

“If you haven’t found the problem, that’s it. I made you come a long way. Now, let’s…”

“Before increasing the number of furnaces to five.”

Renok interrupted him and asked.

“Before that, did the temperature in the workshop ever drop or anything like that?”

“…”

As if he had heard a completely unexpected question, Cybird’s eyes seemed to widen for a moment.

“Y-yes, that’s right. To be precise, the heat of the furnace itself had weakened, so I somewhat forced myself to make another furnace. How did you know that…?”

“That’s it. I think I understand now.”

“Y-you think you know the problem?”

Renok nodded at Cybird, who hurriedly asked again.

“The temperature inside the workshop is not rising and falling because of the number of furnaces. It’s a matter of when the furnaces were made.”

“What does that even…”

“The furnace is the cause, but the fundamental trigger for this situation is unlikely to be the furnace.”

Renok said, glancing sideways.

“Someone who knows as much about this workshop’s facilities as the artisan has secretly tampered with it.”

Cybird’s expression stiffened at Renok’s gesture, pointing to Cybird’s apprentices who were working busily in front of the five furnaces.

“The culprit is among us.”