Unsurprisingly a couple of days after my conversation with Ian I got full approval to build the first section of sewers for the city. I knew he'd gone and told his grandfather what I'd said, maybe even giving a demonstration. That was fine as this bit would only really connect Shorin's house and a few other spots before taking the waste away, but it would serve as an artery that could then be expanded upon when the powers that be realized how good it worked.

That of course led to other problems, like those I was dealing with now. Even if the section I was building was small, much smaller than a full system, and simple, it still required materials. There was a mixture of people paying for the endeavor, self included. That alone wasn't too bad, as labor was cheap, but it still had to be organized.

Luckily brick-making was already starting to rise in the city, the technology having been spread by Chien and myself awhile ago. It was still small, but there were a few groups of men who'd taken it up, they weren't proper businesses yet, but one day might be. I stood back watching Chien, letting him explain to the gathered workers exactly what we wanted.

The bricks we were using were shaped a bit, one side wider than the other, rather than the standard rectangle, in order to aid the formation of the arches. I could have brought in cement for this, but that would only have complicated things further, this first part would be as simple as it could be. Later iterations could be more complex.

When he was finished he returned to my side. I'd chosen well with the lad, and he'd done well so far. He managed to take my explanations and get others working, something I didn't have the time for and didn't really want to do.

“You know this is going to take like, years, right?” he asked as we walked away from the worksite, a river bed not far outside the city wall.

“That's fine, with the amount of materials we need unless we conscripted hundreds of people it always was going to. I also noticed the spellcasters in their group, so once they really get going I think it'll proceed well.”

“You use the strangest terms. Spellcaster, like the power is what's important,” he said with a shake of his head.

“It is to me, we need to have more organized words and discussions about the power of magic too, and if everyone is going to use their own words for it, I will as well. Making it clear that I'm not talking about actual fire or lightning is important.”

“Whatever, anyway, what's next for us?” he asked.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“What do you mean?” I inquired.

“You're always up to something new. I wanna know what's next, like that stuff you told Ian you'd think about, what's that?”

That was something I'd been contemplating for awhile now, effective armor. While for some of us it wouldn't make sense, for others it would be a life-saver. The question wasn't how to make effective armor, the question was how to make it without using a massive amount of metal. That one had kept pinging around in my head for days.

There were only so many ways to protect in my previous world, and only so many in this one. Weight, flexibility, durability, and repair ability all came into the equations, and provided their limits. This meant that I was mostly limited to things like cloth, or metal, or perhaps hardened leather, though I knew that the last might well have big issues during the rainy season.

“There are a few ways we could build something to protect him, but my concern is where we'd get the stuff to do it,” I answered.

“I mean, you just make most stuff, can't you just make it?” he asked.

“I could... but there would be problems.” That answer was true enough, in that displaying a new metal would bring massive issues.

“What sort of stuff would you need?” he asked.

Having someone to bounce ideas off of was always a blessing, so I began to list things out. “Light if possible, easy to make, and durable.”

“What about pottery?” he asked, making me smile.

Cremics had been used in some armors on Earth, primarily for ballistic armor. Perhaps there was some form that might work, but I didn't have it.

“What we have now in those is too fragile, it would break, or be very heavy. Good for protecting buildings maybe, like bricks, but not a person.”

“Leather, like really thick?” he put forward.

“I'm sure people have thought of it, and to a point it could work, but what about when it rains?” If our climate was European perhaps we could use wax to fix it, make it harder, but we were tropical, it would be a mess.

“Hmm, not like he's a snail or something and can grow his own.” That made me stop for a moment and think.

A snail wouldn't work, no, too small and curved, but shell? There were a lot of kinds of shell, and it was hard, and light, and we lived right by the bleeding ocean, so there was always plenty. The small pretty shells used as money were only one type, but others, considered less useful were everywhere. Heck, I had already gathered a goodly few in my experiments with making my own lime, so I knew how available it was.

“Chien, you're brilliant,” I remarked.

“Oh, yeah I know, but what about?”

“Let's go to the shore.”

“Wait, what about?” he repeated as I began walking.

The young man trailed after, continuing to question about a number of my ideas, but I mostly lost myself in going through my memories. We'd need to find the right kind of shell, and then shaping, yeah this could work. I just needed to figure out the connections, and those shouldn't be too bad.

Before I knew it I was at the shore, looking over several pieces of thick shell. These came from a local species of abalone. They made a portion of the city's shellfish, and were well liked. They were also huge, with parts of their shell more than big enough for me to get a few small plates out of.

“Yeah, these will do nicely,” I commented.

“Little small huh?” Chien observed. “I mean, Ian's a big enough guy, not sure how you're planning to fit him into one.”

“Not one, many.” I put one of the shells in the water, since I didn't fancy breathing in seashell dust, and began to cut it with my magic.

It didn't take long, the sort of physical manipulation used here was among my favorite spells, and slicing the shell into a few bits, around an inch and a half, by three inches. I didn't have any specific memories of how lamellar had been connected, but a few quick drawings and I had a layout I thought would work. A quick drilling spell, much like I used on woodwork and I had a few plates to play with.

Chien stood back. “You know, I always see your results Justin, but watching you come up with crazy ideas as you go is wild. Do you actually think this will work?”

“Yes, yes I do.”