The Great Sage Who Did not Remain in Legend - 6.2

“I do. I run a magic bookshop and sell magic. This fish sorting spell costs 3 million. Will you buy it? It uses moderate magic power, so it won’t work if your magic levels are low.”

“Wha, 3 million? Can’t afford that kind of price.”

“Well, it doesn’t save much time compared to doing it by hand, so it’s a bit of a waste. Alright then, old man, I’ll take the poisonous fish and this.”

Mergin received the pufferfish and stingray, which were unsellable.

“Mergin, save some of the stingray fins for me. We’ll drink them at my place later.”

“Sure.”

Two years ago, he first visited this town and had a clash with the old man, the head fisherman. After showing off his sorting and dismantling spells, he made stingray fins and was well liked by the old man.

— Head’s house —

“Old man, are there more poisonous fish? There weren’t many fish that were sellable in the nets earlier.”

He talked while drinking sake with dried stingray fins and tempura, simmered with liver and other appetizers.

“Poisonous fish are always like this every year, but the stingrays are increasing every year.”

“Oh, so the clams are decreasing, right?”

“Right. Even though these guys can’t be sold, they eat up all the sellable ones.”

He made a stern face while staring at the dried stingray fins in his hand.

“Stingrays are good when eaten like this.”

“Dried ones may sell well, but this simmered one won’t. Isn’t it thanks to your soy sauce that you have it? Should I not sell this?”

“No way. I didn’t make enough to sell. I’ll give you enough for you to use.”

“Ugh, what a pain.”

Stingrays take a lot of effort to process, with few edible parts and the risk of an ammonia smell if not handled quickly.

“The remaining parts can be dried and powdered to make fertilizer.”

“I remember you saying that before. Can it really sell?”

“Try growing vegetables in a field and see if you can make tastier vegetables than elsewhere. If you have no experience with fields, ask a farmer friend to help you try it.”

“Cooperate with the farmers…”

“Do it in a separate field so that it’s okay if you fail.”

“That’s right. If we don’t start something new, we won’t be able to feed the young people.”

“Is it easy to get magic stones or magic crystals at your place?”

“No problem if it’s magic stones.”

“Then I’ll give you a magic grinding mortar as a present. You need to grind the dried fish into powder to use it as fertilizer.”

“Do you have any magic grinding mortars left over?”

“No, I’ll make them. I have the materials.”

After that, Mergin spent about three days helping with the fishing and making a magic grinding mortar.

“This is the switch. Today, we’ll dry it with magic, but from now on, please dry it in the sun.”

He taught the fishermen’s wives how to make fertilizer. He crushed the dried fish scraps somewhat finely and poured them into the magic grinding mortar.

When he turned on the switch, the magic grinding mortar started to move, and the dried fish scraps came out as powder.

“This powder that comes out will become fertilizer. It will take a long time to know its effects, but I think it’s good for growing vegetables.”

“Oh, it smells like it could be eaten right now.”

The beastfolk wife might have been a cat type? I don’t think it smells delicious.

“There’s no poison, so it should be okay to eat, but there are many fish that can be eaten properly, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

The wives laughed heartily, playfully slapping each other on the back. Times may change, but some things, like these wives, never do.

In gratitude for the magic grinding mortar, Mergin received a lot of dried fish.