"What kettle? That one, huh?" Seraphine vaguely pointed at the wrapped bundle.
"It feels good. It's warm and at ease, like everything will be fine."
"If the whole village stops working, everything will NOT going to be okay!" Greg put the kettle down on the workbench, but he quickly wished he hadn't because the aura got stronger. He could see it now, silver waves of pure peace spreading out like ripples on a pond.
Lylia came to the door and moved in that same dreamy way. "Greg, why are you yelling? You don't need to be upset. Everything is going alllllll.... fineeeeee...."
"Not everything is great!"
"Half of the village is sitting in the street and doing nothing!"
"Isn't that sweeeeeeeet?" Lylia sat next to Seraphine.
"Finally, they're getting some sleep. Everyone is always busy. This is good for them."
Greg looked at the two women, who were usually capable and driven, but now they were just peaceful puddles of happiness. He stared at the kettle, which still gave off a strong sense of calm. Then he turned to Marina, who had followed him and was now sitting on the floor, humming the same song as Seraphine.
Greg said to the empty air, "I can't believe I'm saying this, but there is such a thing as too much peace."
He took the kettle, wrapped it in three more layers of cloth, and put it in a metal box. The aura got a little weaker, but it was still there. He needed something more powerful. He looked at the old stone storage cellar under his workshop, and he noticed the walls were two feet thick.
Greg had the kettle locked up in the cellar's deepest part, wrapped in cloth, sealed in a metal box, and buried under every heavy tool he could find ten minutes later. The aura finally got to a level that was easy to handle.
The village was slowly getting back to normal by the time he came out. People were blinking and wondering why they had been sitting in the street.
Thomas stood up and brushed dirt off his pants, looking ashamed. The chickens went back to being their usual messy selves.
Seraphine was the first to fully heal, and her analytical look came back when she realized what had happened. "Did I just say we should take a permanent vacation?"
Greg said, "You did. The tea kettle worked a little too well to bring peace."
"A little?" Lylia stood up and shook her head to clear it. "Greg, that thing could stop wars by making people too calm to fight."
"That's the most peaceful and dangerous thing you've ever made."
"I know," Greg said with a sigh. "I put it in my basement."
"Nobody touches it until I learn how to suppress the aura properly."
Marina stretched out like she had just woken up from a long nap. "That was strange. It felt like all my problems went away. It was pleasing, in a way."
Greg said, "It was too nice. That's the issue."
"Peace shouldn't mean putting everything on hold. It should mean being able to live without fear, not being so calm that you stop living altogether."
Seraphine took out her notebook, but her hand was shaking a little. "This is an important discovery."
"The line between peace that helps and stagnation that hurts is very thin. Your kettle went way over that line."
"Yeah, I saw," Greg said as he sat down hard on his workbench.
"I've been so focused on making things that are peaceful that I forgot that peace is only useful if people can still live."
"What's the point of a world where everyone is so calm that they forget to eat, work, or do anything?"
"It's a balance thing," Lylia said with a frown.
"Like everything else. People die when there is too much conflict."
"Too much peace makes them stop moving."
Marina said, "The world needs some chaos. Not the worst kind, but the kind that happens every day."
"The kind that gets people out of bed in the morning and makes them do things. Difficulties, goals, and even small problems. What's the point without them?"
Greg thought about how his life had been full of war, conflict, and death. Then he thought about the village for an hour, which was peaceful and calm and nothing else. Neither of the two extremes was right.
"I think I get it now," he said slowly. "I've been trying to make everything I make conflict-free."
"But that might not be the answer. Maybe the answer is to give people the tools they need to deal with conflict in a peaceful way instead of getting rid of it completely."
"That's very wise of you to say that, kinda rare to be honest," Seraphine said. "Also, please don't ever make another kettle again."
"The world isn't ready for that much peace."
"Agreed," Lylia said with conviction. "Though I wouldn't mind if you could tone down the aura and make a normal version."
"I want a version that makes good tea without turning people into zombies of peace."
Greg said, "I'll work on it. After I make sure that thing stays locked up. We should probably put up a sign to warn people."
[Quest Update: Take Care of Your Growing Legend]
[New Understanding Achieved: Balance is Key]
[Title Changed: Guardian of Peaceful Balance]
[The gods like how you've changed as a person]
[They are still laughing about the tea thing, though.]
Greg glared at the message from the system. "Glad someone thinks this is funny."
But he was still smiling, no matter what. Today he learned something crucial. Peace didn't mean getting rid of all conflict or making everyone so calm that they couldn't do anything. It was about giving people the skills they needed to deal with problems without using violence.
His farming tools were too strong. His pots and pans could fight dragons. His holy hoe was designed to eliminate negative influences. They weren't about getting rid of conflict. They were about doing it differently.
"Hey, you know what?" Greg told the three women who had stayed with him while he accidentally tranquilized the village.
"I think I finally get what I'm supposed to be doing here."
"Making kitchen tools that are famous?" Marina suggested.
Lylia said, "Accidentally making peaceful chaos."
"Changing the way people think about defensive magic with everyday items," Seraphine said.
Greg said, "All of the above. But doing it in a balanced way."
"No more tea kettles that last forever. From now on, I make things that help people live better lives without making them stop living at all."
"That's very philosophical," Seraphine said as she wrote it down.
"Yeah, well, almost putting a whole village to sleep will do that to you." Greg got up and stretched.
"Now, who wants to help me figure out what to say to the village chief about his wife's kettle?"
All three women quickly came up with excuses to leave, leaving Greg alone with his thoughts and his too-powerful creation locked up in the cellar. He thought about how some lessons were harder to learn than others. But at least this one didn't cause much damage to property, and no one died. That day was a success for him.