Chapter 66: Chapter 66: Bowcrafts (1)
They spent many days within that area to cut down the unknown red tree. Its body formed from many individual trunks so Siderius didn’t need to cut it down completely, he only needed the parts to make the bow.
Siderius didn’t forget to meditate each and every day, both lowering his psychosis and elevating his soul.
[PSYCHOSIS -1]
[PSYCHOSIS -1]
[PSYCHOSIS -1]
[PSYCHOSIS -1]
[PSYCHOSIS LEVEL: 40/125]
Unfortunately for Siderius, the Nine Rings had lost its effectiveness once more and now needed at least five hours to reduce a single Psychosis point.
The required time to digest the owl had become longer than Siderius’ anticipated and it could only grow longer from now on. He couldn’t decide whether it was because of the technique itself or was it because of the fact that Fluff was a familiar.
Either way, he had no intention of switching psychosis techniques. Nine Rings might be slower than his previous Alchemical Palace but he had not experienced any significant psycho episode. It was a testament to its usefulness.
Siderius had also completely dissolved the Aether Sphere. The Light and Dark Aether had become a part of his soul and he could feel it becoming stronger.
Dark Aether had strengthened the effect of Vertigo and Parave. The actual changes may need further experimentation but they were more powerful for sure.
Dark Aether had also sped up Alchemical Process by a lot. This in turn also shortened the time he needed to activate Sigils.
As for Light Aether, its effect was much less noticeable. Somewhere in the web of fate, Siderius’ path had become easier. He didn’t know how or why but he should be much luckier than before.
Siderius also taught Ashe how to chop a tree while dealing with the red tree. Her strength needed improvement but she got the technique down. With further practice and body conditioning, she would be a fine woodcutter.
Siderius cut out five planks from the tree trunk and returned to the original hideout with Ashe.
Before making the bow, Siderius took a little bit of the red tree to test its element.
A simple salt seal and a piece of wood were enough.
The tree did not hold any amount of Fire element, despite its fiery color. The piece of wood hardened itself while letting out a puff of white smoke. A combination of Earth and Air elements.
It was the perfect material to make a basic bow.
"I’m going to name you Brickspire." Siderius put its information inside the system.
It had a dark red color mixed with brown, which reminded him of a brick so Siderius picked that name.
[NEW PLANT SPECIES REGISTER]
[BRICKSPIRE HAS BEEN ADDED TO LIBRARY]
[Alchemical Name: Lateripiceus Aequorix]
With that done, Siderius began to make his bow. He only needed one piece of wood plank. The other four were for Ashe to practice.
"You will be making your own bow as well. So stay focused."
"Yes, Master!"
"The first thing we need to do is shape the bow."
Siderius began by removing the bark of the wood trunk. Then he carved out a slender piece of wood plank, one that was still too big to be used as any bow. This was called a stave, a vertical wood plank.
Siderius only needed a straight frame for now and not an exact bow shape yet.
This could be achieved easily with the handsaw that Kraus had bought. The handsaw was small and could be used with only one hand while the other free hand could hold the wood in place.
Siderius had already cut out a flat tree trunk and used it as the temporary crafting table. He placed the piece of Brickspire on the flat surface and sawed it down.
Brickspire wood was already straight so working with it was easy. Siderius cut the top and bottom first then axed the sides of the plank. He’s trying to acquire a vertical rectangular stave.
The final product was less than desirable. The stave had a lot of rough edges and uneven surface. It had a long rectangular shape but it needed more work.
That was where the carpenter’s knife and chisel came in. The carpenter’s knife was extra thick compared to the hunger’s and assassin’s knife. It was made to withstand the repetition of woodworking.
On the back of the knife was a textured, rough surface that could be used to shave down intricate parts on a wood surface. This was called a file, a type of tool used only for shaving wood.
The chisel had a rectangular tip. It was used to carve out wood in a much more aggressive manner. Suitable for rougher jobs when the carpenter’s knife might be too delicate.
First, Siderius used the chisel to carve down the rough edges and uneven surface. This was heavy work and it took him quite a bit to finish.
"Do it slowly but with determination. You don’t want to crack the woods or divert the carve path. For thicker parts, use the saw instead." Siderius spilled some knowledge about woodworking.
Ashe watched carefully on the side and nodded along.
Once the stave had a somewhat uniform look. Siderius moved on to shaving it down with the carpenter’s knife. Its surface was still rough and the file on the back of the blade could easily shave it down.
There were also small bumps that the chisel couldn’t remove that the knife could deal with quite well.
"Look at the grain patterns. See how they are all straight and parallel to each other? That is when you know you are dealing with a great piece of wood."
The finished stave had quite a length but was much shorter than the longbow that Ashe had seen before. Usually a bow could take up to three quarters of a man’s height.
Siderius designed this bow for himself so it should be longer. He saw the doubt in Ashe’s eyes so he clarified it.
"We’re not making a longbow. The longbow has a straight body when it isn’t stringed. What we’re making is a recurved bow. The bow bends outward in its relaxed state. When we string it, we bend it backward, forcing it to store more energy than a straight bow.
With this craftsmanship, we can have a smaller bow but with the same power as a straight bow. That is the difference between a longbow and a recurved bow." Siderius said.