Ascendance of a Bookworm

Making washi paper. The opportunity to make washi paper has finally arrived.

And it’s not me who’s going to make it, but Lutz. As part of his job search.

Right now, I feel like I could probably do a one or one-and-a-half rotation jump in figure skating’s horizontal rotation jump.

Don’t say it’s easy for anyone! It’s really hard with my body!

“Heheh. Hmph!”

“Mine, it’s great that you’re in a good mood, but… don’t get too excited. You’ll get a fever again, you know?”

“I can’t help getting excited! Because we’re making paper, right? We actually can make it? If we can make paper, then we can make books. Yahoo!”

Knowing that the book is just within reach, how could I not be excited?

With a spring in my step as I headed home, Lutz sighed and held his head.

“...Mine, it’s good that you want to make it, but how exactly are we going to make it? I don’t know anything about it. Don’t we need some tools? Will it really be okay?”

Lutz’s overly calm question, mixed with a sigh, suddenly burst my bubble and pulled me back to reality.

…That’s right. We have to make the tools from scratch—we don’t have anything!

I know the steps to make washi. I can remember the names of the tools somehow. But how to make the tools for washi-making—I read that in some books about fading crafts and their tools, but I don’t clearly remember.

If we don’t have the tools, we can’t make anything.

…Ugh, first we have to make the tools. Starting right away with paper-making might be impossible. Ahhhh, my knowledge is still pretty useless as always.

“…Hey, Mine. You suddenly got quiet, but now that we’re here, you’re not going to say we can’t do it, right?”

Lutz looked at me with a really worried face, and I hurriedly shook my head.

“I wouldn’t say that. I know how to make paper. I’ve wanted it for so long. But I couldn’t do it because I don’t have the strength to cut trees, I can’t use fire yet, and I can’t crush the fibers. I can’t ask anyone to make paper just for my selfishness…”

“You should have said something when I said I’d help…”

Lutz pouted a little in frustration.

I appreciate the sentiment, but making paper is really hard labor. It’s not the same as helping dig soil or cut wood during gathering.

“Listen, all I can do is teach Lutz how to make it. Unlike before when I could help with things I could manage, this time Lutz will be doing almost everything from start to finish alone. Are you still up for it?”

“Of course. You think, I make. That’s the deal, right?”

Lutz nodded immediately, but I needed to confirm. I worried he might just be caught up in the moment.

“So, Lutz, we have to start by making the tools—can you handle that?”

“…You’re going to do it too, right?”

“Of course. I’ll do as much as I can.”

Saying that, I pondered deeply.

Even to make the tools, we need to figure out what’s necessary. While doing that, I’ll try looking around the house for substitutes.

Mom might scold me again, but since we have nothing else, we have to find substitutes as much as possible.

“I’ll write down the tools we need and look for things that might be used instead. If I can’t find anything, then we’ll have to make them… Lutz, I want you to look for wood suitable for paper-making.”

“There’s plenty of wood if we go to the forest, right?”

“That’s true, but I don’t know which wood is suitable for paper-making.”

I know that kozo, mitsumata, and ganpi are suitable woods for washi, but I don’t know which trees in this world fit that.

“Well, the woods good for paper have long, strong fibers. The fibers have to be sticky to easily intertwine with each other. Also, we need to get lots of fibers… But how do you tell if a wood has long and strong fibers?”

Also, I read that first-year kozo wood is suitable, but from the second year on, the fibers harden and knots appear, making it harder to use.

But I can’t tell whether a tree is first-year or second-year just by looking.