Chapter 239: On Its Way
"Dear heavens, My Lord, is this really me?!"
A voice rang out as James’s slightly grubby face appeared in the mirror’s reflection.
Even bronze mirrors were considered a luxury in the Eldorian Empire. Producing one required repeated polishing until it could reflect a passable image, making them far too expensive for commoners to afford.
Most ordinary people never owned mirrors and could only catch vague glimpses of themselves in still water. The effect, of course, couldn’t compare to the shock of seeing oneself clearly in a glass mirror.
"Who else would it be? Look, there’s a booger hanging off your lip. You gonna wipe that or what?" Simon said.
"Where?!" James grabbed the mirror and inspected himself more closely.
He picked at his nose and began making faces at the mirror, widening his eyes, raising his brows, totally immersed in amusement.
Behind him, the students had already grown impatient and began calling out. "Let me see! I want a look too!"
Overwhelmed by their demands, James reluctantly handed the mirror to the next group. The classroom instantly erupted. Students jostled for position, taking turns in front of the mirror, exclaiming things like. "Damn, I’m handsome!", "You look awful!", "Ugh, I forgot to wash my face!"
Watching the commotion, Simon allowed himself a smug smile. It was clear that this mirror would become the next sensational product in the empire, following in the footsteps of soap, wine, and perfume.
James sighed in awe and said. "My Lord, I truly admire you. How do you even come up with these ideas?"
Simon chuckled lightly. This was nothing. Just the beginning. In the future, world-shaking inventions would keep coming, one after another.
As each student took their turn experiencing the mirror’s charm, Simon turned to James and said. "The remaining glass is yours to work with."
James nodded and rallied the students. The group quickly divided into trios and began manufacturing more mirrors using the materials on hand.
Simon stayed in the lab while they worked. Once twenty mirrors were produced, he had the surface of the tin-mercury alloy coated with a layer of black lacquer, a natural varnish made from lacquer tree sap.
This layer protected the reflective surface from damage. The mirrors were then framed in carved wood, giving them elegant, luxurious appearances.
After all, products needed good packaging to sell well.
Once the chemical lab work was done, Simon brought the mirrors to the carpentry division for framing. The entire process took three more days to complete.
At last, twenty beautifully crafted glass mirrors were born.
When the finished mirrors were delivered to the castle, Ysabeau and Joan instantly fell in love.
"Ahem, you two have been staring at that mirror for half an hour. Haven’t you had enough?" Simon teased.
Among the mirrors was one that Simon had specially commissioned, a full-length mirror two meters tall and fifty centimetres wide, placed in his bedchamber.
After returning from the textile workshop, Ysabeau and Joan caught sight of it and were instantly mesmerised. After finding out what it was, they refused to leave the room, completely absorbed in admiring their reflections.
"My Lord, please give us a mirror too! It’s incredible. After seeing ourselves in this glass mirror, how could we ever go back to bronze ones?" Ysabeau said, clinging to Simon’s arm and begging with childlike insistence.
Meanwhile, Joan was still smiling foolishly into the mirror, utterly oblivious to the world around her.
Feeling the softness of Ysabeau’s body pressing against him, Simon’s eyes curved into a crescent-moon smile, but he maintained a serious expression and said. "That’s easy. You can just share mine. These mirrors are expensive, and I’m basically broke."
Ysabeau was utterly hooked, like a bee drawn to honey. What woman didn’t love looking pretty, especially lively young maids like Ysabeau and Joan?
Ysabeau clung even tighter, her bold and fiery nature on full display.
Simon’s grin grew more mischievous. Teasing his two lovely maids was one of the rare indulgences in his hectic life. He took the opportunity to pull Ysabeau into his arms.
Caught off guard, she squealed in surprise. Her cheeks flushed bright red. "My Lord, you’re terrible!" She pouted, playfully pushing him away.
Joan finally turned her head and asked innocently. "What’s going on, Ysabeau?"
But when she saw how Simon was holding Ysabeau, her face turned red as well. Still, she seemed far more used to Simon’s antics than before.
Ysabeau continued pleading. "My Lord, please just give us one mirror!"
Seeing the two girls look at him with such hopeful eyes, Simon playfully squeezed Ysabeau’s plump rear and chuckled, "Fine, consider that payment."
Ysabeau let out another startled yelp, blushing like a schoolgirl.
As Simon walked past Joan, he gave her the same treatment, earning himself a dramatic eye roll in return. Laughing heartily, he left the room, saying. "Your mirrors are already on the way to your rooms."
"Ah!" Ysabeau stomped her foot. Once again, she’d been outwitted and teased by Simon.
Still savouring the soft feel of his fingertips, Simon left the castle and headed straight to the Chamber of Commerce. Now that the mirrors were finished, it was time to use them to ease his silver shortage.
He had high hopes for the glass mirror’s market potential. After all, the system had once recorded a fascinating story.
When French Queen Marie de Médicis got married, the King of Venice gifted her a tiny glass mirror as a wedding present. Its value? 150,000 francs.
At the time, only Venice could manufacture glass mirrors. Their production facility was located on the isolated island of Murano.
In fact, France had even kidnapped several Venetian mirror craftsmen in a covert effort to steal the secret.
The French franc at the time had a gold content of 0.3 grams per coin, so 150,000 francs represented an astronomical fortune.
For that reason, Simon intended to position his mirrors as high-end luxury goods, the Rolex, Chanel, or LV of the Eldorian Empire.
Every mirror’s backing was also engraved with: Made in Brambleford, a subtle move to begin cultivating the Brambleford brand.
Arriving at the Chamber of Commerce, Simon hadn’t even stepped fully inside when Percival dashed up to him like the wind.
"My Lord, the mirror?! Where is it?" He asked eagerly.
Whenever Simon showed up at the Chamber of Commerce, it almost always meant a new product was about to launch.
With a signal from Simon, a servant brought forward a mirror covered in fabric.
When the cloth was removed, Percival gasped and took a step back in shock.
He thought there was a person inside, but on closer inspection, he realised it was... himself?
His jaw dropped as he leaned in close, staring at the reflection.
"My Lord... We’re about to strike it rich again!" He muttered in awe.