I wouldn't go so far. The viscount appears to be trusted by the people, reporting the pump to him was the blacksmith's first reaction on seeing the schematic (for context: that was back in chapter 13), so Akihiro being summoned for it was pretty much inevitable and he's not forcing him to come right away or at a specific time, but leaves Akihiro room to fit his own schedule.
It's a summons, not an invitation. Ignoring it would make them outlaws. No more guild membership, no more legal work or even buying goods or services anywhere in the country unless they can keep their identities hidden. This is what it means to live in a feudal society. IRL, you couldn't even leave your home settlement without your lord's permission.
NGL, it feels like the author is just making shit up as they go along. I even a wooden mechanical pump isn't hard to construct. But the lack of soap just feels off. Especially since they don't seem to have issues with their clothing, nor hygiene.
MC should stick to crafting up some board games as entertainment is almost always in short supply in fantasy settings.
NGL, it feels like the author is just making shit up as they go along. I even a wooden mechanical pump isn't hard to construct. But the lack of soap just feels off. Especially since they don't seem to have issues with their clothing, nor hygiene.
MC should stick to crafting up some board games as entertainment is almost always in short supply in fantasy settings.
Soap existed as long as civilization itself, the thing is: almost no one used it to clean their bodies. That is because the kind that was available was very caustic and would burn your skin. It was used to clean fabrics, as you guessed. There was a "high-end" version made out of olive oil that was suitable for bathing, but as you can imagine, only the nobility could even get it, nevermind afford it. So it's unlikely that there's totally no soap there, but very plausible that there's none that he could use to clean himself.