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National Enrichment Arc
Chapter 5: Rome was Born through the Sounds of a Hammer D
「Just now, I received a report from my father, the village chief of the Dark Elves. Last night, suddenly 『There was a landslide and it buried half of the village』. It seems that…… lately, the God-Protected Forest has been receiving nearly constant rainfall…… The number of missing people…… is a…lot……」(Aisha)
Aisha was reporting, but she stopped in the middle of it. After all, her hometown and family had just experienced a terrible disaster. Although she tried to endure it, it was still a considerable shock to her. I was worried about her, but I didn’t have time to console her. This is for sure an emergency situation, it would be unforgivable if the one with the highest authority couldn’t think of something. While I was thinking silently, Hal threw a complaint over to me, 「You should have consoled the subordinates who follow you.」, but before I could reply back to him, his ear was pulled by Kaede.
「Auch-auch-auch…… Wait. Kaede. It hurts.」(Hulbert)
「The King is in the middle of thinking seriously. Don’t bother him.」(Kaede)
「……」(Hulbert)
She is a good childhood friend, don’t you agree? Treasure her dearly.
Alright, I had collected my thoughts. I raised my face and immediately ordered a mobilization.
「This unit will head out and give aid to the Dark Elves’ village!」(Souma)
Hearing what I said, Hal’s eyes blinked with surprise, while his ears were still being pulled by Kaede.
「Even if you say this unit, there is less than 50 people here.」(Hulbert)
「Disaster relief is a race against time. We don’t have time to return to the capital. Luckily, this place is closer to the God-Protected Forest than the capital. First of all, this unit will be dispatched as the advance unit!」(Souma)
Afterwards, I issued various commands.
「Liecia, return to the capital and muster a relief unit. Also, ask Hakuya to send food, clothing, tents and other relief supplies towards the Elves’ village.」(Souma)
「I understand, but…… You have your “consciousness” working in the capital, right? If you have, then won’t it be faster to contact them?」(Liecia)
「I can’t do it. It’s outside the range. My ability’s range only extends up to 50 meters.」(Souma)
「Is that true!?」(Liecia)
It was the truth. Furthermore there were many other limitations. For example, the things that I can move were only “my own possessions”. Then, I can float them up to 2 meters above the ground (or floor) before I felt that “my consciousness is going to leave the object”, so I can’t access my consciousness on objects that are far away from me.
Therefore, even my telekinesis can’t mimic the “stopping bullets in mid-air and then sending them back to the enemy” move like in a movie[1]. I can’t access objects that are too far or belong to someone else, so gathering secret information using this skill was impossible. As expected, this was a skill that was only marvelous for dealing with domestic paperwork.
「Eh? But previously, wasn’t  your 『Musashi Boy-Kun』 able to adventure faraway?」(Liecia)
「Ah…… That was an exception. If the manipulated object was something resembling a doll, then in that case, the effective range could be extended into the capital’s surroundings and it can turned into a clone that I can manipulate precisely. It’s like my consciousness transferred into the doll.」(Souma)
「……Isn’t that like a ghost possession?」(Liecia)
Yes. I couldn’t deny that it felt like that.
Perhaps my power was to divide a part of my soul to possess things like a vengeful spirit. Maybe it wasn’t actually telekinesis but poltergeist like phenomenon instead?...... I couldn’t deny this. If so, then my powers『Telekinesis』 and 『Multiple Simultaneous Parallel Thinking』 shall be called《Living Poltergeist》[2] from now on. It sounded a bit chuuni-ish[3] though.
「Well, because of this, someone needs to personally go and make a request for relief.」(Souma)
「I understand. Leave it to me.」(Liecia)
「When you come back, don’t forget to bring along some guards! It wouldn’t be funny if something happened to you along the way.」(Souma)
「I think I’ll be okay, but…… I understand. You be careful, too.」(Liecia)
Liecia quickly broke into running. Although, when you think about it carefully, it was amazing that I had made a princess of a country into my gopher, but Liecia didn’t mind at all. In this case, we were already dancing to the same beat in harmony.[4]
「Aisha, how far is the God-Protected Forest from this place?」(Souma)
「A half-day with a fast horse. With the army’s average marching pace, even if we hurry, it will take about 2 days.」(Aisha)
「A day and a half…… What time did the disaster happen?」(Souma)
「I heard that it happened at the third watch[5] of the night.」(Aisha)
「It means that half a day had passed…… No matter how fast we walk, two and a half day will have passed since the disaster. It will be difficult to conduct rescue with only half a day remaining until it reaches 72-hours.」(Souma)
Then I heard Hal ask, 「What’s that? The meaning of 72-hours?」.
「In a disaster such as this, there is a borderline time that when crossed, then the death risk of the people who need help would increase dramatically. This line is about three whole days after the disaster has happened, the 『72 Hours Wall』.[6]」(Souma)
「Sorry, but please explain it in simpler words.」(Hubert)
「To put it simply, if it still under 72 hours, then we could save a lot of people.」(Souma)
「I see…… Eh, then wouldn’t that mean that we shouldn’t be idling here and should quickly go towards the God-Protected Forest!? It’s two whole days travelling to there, right?」(Hulbert)
「I know that. Are there any carriages here?」(Souma)
「Originally, if we wanted to go or return to somewhere else, we will need to submit a request for transportation. But even preparing carriages for 50 people would take quite some time.」(Hulbert)
「Damn. Isn’t there any other way………!!」(Souma)
I remembered a certain thing and turned back my head.
Hal and the others, who also saw what I had seen, noticed it as well.
In front of our view was the animal who had pulled the container filled with construction material. A fusion between a rhinoceros and a komodo dragon, enlarged 10 times, the giant lizard 【Rhinosaurus】. It had a large body, but it could run continuously with a velocity resembling an early train locomotive; the creature that was the keystone of land transportation. If the road could be completed in the future, I was wondering if it was possible to produce a station wagon[7] using this Rhinosaurus.
「Hey, Hal and Kaede-chan.」(Souma)
「What?」(Hulbert)
「What nanodesu?」(Kaede)
「It will be probably cause motion sickness, but will you guys be okay?」(Souma)
「I rarely get motion sickness nodesu.」(Kaede)
「……I’ll endure it.」(Hulbert)
「I see. Then I will also endure it.」(Souma)
I then issued an order to the 50 soldiers from the Royal Army on the spot.
「Unload all the materials from the container! Fortunately, the God-Protected Forest is located close to the road, but we will need to travel on foot in the forest! The luggage should be light! Leave the unloaded materials as it is! You won’t be blamed even if it gets lost! Since I will be the one who writes the apology letter, you will only receive Marcus’ scolding! Don’t show improper behavior by sponging off of the food that were set aside for relief!」(Souma)
「「「Yes, Your Majesty!」」」(Soldiers)
The Royal Army soldiers promptly unloaded the materials from the container as per the order.
As expected, since they had only performed on constructing public engineering works lately, they worked quickly.
They moved the materials with the efficiency and cooperativeness that I have only seen from a skilled worker of a moving company. Truly, they are splendid.
「No, aren’t we soldiers?」(Hulbert)
「Stop striking an idle chat and get working, Hal nodesuyo!」(Kaede)
Kaede-chan was carrying a large amount of materials all by herself even though it would usually need several adult men to move them. It was likely that she was frivolously using her magic. It seemed that Earth type magic was a magic that manipulates gravity. They couldn’t produce soil or stone from nothing, but they could manipulate the already existing soil and stone. That’s how she could accomplish this feat. Playing a big part…… Currently the most unhelpful person in this place, without a doubt, was me. Being just your average person, I couldn’t do physical work and if I tried to help the army, then I could only become a hindrance.
Without doing anything and only watching the work in silence, Aisha came to me.
「Your Majesty……」(Aisha)
She had such a frail expression as if she could collapse at any time.
Ever since the Talent Gathering event, Aisha was always stood close by as my bodyguard and I think that I had seen various expressions from her. Her full resolute expression when she had her direct talk with me, the gallant warrior expression, the childish expression when she ate delicious food, the stray dog expression when she was made to wait for that food…… I had seen various expressions, but this was the first time I had seen her with such a fragile expression.
Seeing her, who had an incomparable fighting strength that I didn’t possess, having such a frail appearance, was hurting my chest. Aisha had always protected me as a bodyguard, but I think this time might be a scene where it’s my turn to protect her. I put my hand on her head that was just slightly lower than mine.
「Eh, Your Majesty?」(Aisha)
「Leave it to me.」(Souma)
I pulled her closer and put her forehead on my shoulder.
「Although my power is far weaker than Aisha, I am in a fortunate position that can move a lot of people. That’s why you should leave it to me. As long as they could still be saved, I will save them.」(Souma)
「Your Majesty…… Your Majes- huaaaaaa!」(Aisha)
Aisha buried her head on my shoulder and burst into tears.
I gently patted her head.
Until the preparations were completed, I continued to comfort the sobbing Aisha.
◇　◇　◇
The God Protected Forest was located in the woodlands in the southern part of this country.
Hardly Non-Spoiler Map
The name originated from the legend that the forest was protected by the divine beast 『Kamui』, who took the form of a large antelope. Although in recent years, there was no one who had seen it, it was said that there were many signs of its existence. It was said that the fact that the forest didn’t get ransacked by locusts, parched by drought, or frozen by cold waves and was always lushly green and filled with trees was all thanks to its divine protection. A divine beast whose existence was only known from its divine protection…… Does it really exists?
The ones who “self-proclaimed” themselves as the guardians of the divine beast『Kamui』’s forest were those of the dark elves’ tribe.
The forest had an area that might be as vast as the sea of trees below Fuji.[8]The so-called『Forest』 was the self-governing territory of the Dark Elves. Originally it was exclusive to their own race, and people from other races were prohibited from entering the forest (Aisha also came to have her direct talk with me about the intrusion from humans). This time, about 50 people (the succeeding units would be in the hundreds) would enter the forest for relief. However, this was a special case where the dark elves’ chief’s daughter Aisha appealed for it.
It was troublesome. However, these was the customs of the dark elves’ tribe.
They live in the forest, closely guard their autonomy, and detest outsider intervention. Actually, despite the fact that they were devastated by a landslide, they wouldn’t send any appeal for relief to the capital. Maybe, if Aisha didn’t contact us, we wouldn’t even know that a disaster had occurred there. “It was our problem so we would solve it ourselves”: as the consequence of this, the number of people who lost their lives could rise even higher.
「…… what a foolish way of thinking.」(Souma)
「If someone has never seen the outside world, their way of thinking could become inflexible. I came in contact with Your Majesty and Your Majesty accepted my opinion, and there is a sign of change as of late, however……」(Aisha)
While traveling to the God-Protected Forest, Aisha said it with a sad tone:
「This is not the time to just be living idly in the forest! Don’t they understand that the Demon Lord’s Army could head to the south at any time?! Do they seriously believe that the divine beast-sama would save them if they keep cooping themselves up in the forest? Even when the divine beast-sama only grants its divine protection on the forest and not the guardian beast for the dark elves!」(Aisha)
「A, ah yeah……」(Souma)
「That’s why, dark elves should learn how vast the world is!」(Aisha)
Aisha showed her zeal. It felt that it had been some time since I had seen her gallant figure.
「Furthermore, if they are stuck in the forest, then wouldn’t they be unable to eat the delicious food that Your Majesty had come up with?」(Aisha)
「Don’t ruin the mood!」(Souma)
I amended my words, as expected, Aisha was a disappointing elf.
…… Well, this was much better than if she was always on edge.
◇　◇　◇
「Ooo, Your Majesty! Welcome to our humble abode.」(Elf)
When we arrived at the elves’ village, we were greeted by a handsome dark elf that looked like someone in his twenties.
His looks and features reminded me of Aisha a bit, so maybe he was her brother. His height was about 190 cm. Although the ornaments on his head and arm showed that he was in a high position, the high quality robe that he wore was dirtied by soil. He seemed to be a little tired.
Aisha then gave her respects to the young elf.
「Father, I have brought His Majesty with me.」(Aisha)
「Good work. To be able to acquire the friendship of the King, this might be the Divine Beast’s guidance.」(Aisha’s Father)
「Father!?」(Souma)
Looking at me who had become surprised, a smile broke out on the tired face of the young elf.
「Oh King, I believe that this is the first time that I have met you. I am the chief of the dark elves and Aisha’s father, Boden Utgard[9]. Thank you for always taking care of my daughter.」(Boden)
「Ah, umm… You look young.」(Souma)
「A pure blooded elf body’s would stop maturing after reaching a certain age. Our lifespans are also three times longer than that of a human, so even if I look like this, I’ve already lived for 80 years.」(Boden)
I see. The outline was similar with the elf – dark elves in the stories. Elves had long lifespans, didn’t get old, and could be said to be extremely handsome and beautiful. However, Marcus the adviser, who was a half-elf, was just a normal looking middle aged man. Maybe the lifespan and growth is different in the case of a half-elf?
Leaving that aside, I whispered to Aisha.
「(This is quite a warm welcome, but isn’t it said that the forest is exclusively for dark elves only?)」(Souma)
「(Father is the head of the open culture faction and understands the merits of interacting with outsiders. It was father who was the one who agreed for me to go and petition Your Majesty.)」(Aisha)
「(I see. So, Aisha’s tendency to not to be concerned too much with rules and such is because of this person’s influence.)」(Souma)
I exchanged a handshake with Boden.
「I am Elfrieden’s King Representative Souma Kazuya. We arrived to help with disaster relief according to the request from Aisha-dono.」(Souma)
「We really appreciate it. Even so, since you are the king, you don’t need use polite language with me.」(Boden)
「……I understand. Is talking like this good for you?」(Souma)
「Yes. Even so, I never imagined that the King himself will be coming personally.」(Boden)
「I was just inspecting by chance. For the time being, I brought along the nearby 50 soldiers from the Royal Army as the advance rescue party. The second unit will be arriving several days later carrying relief goods.」(Souma)
「Thank you very much. Normally, I would warmly welcome the Royal Visit and show you the village, however since the situation had become like this, I ask you for your forgiveness.」(Boden)
「I understand…… It’s a tragic state of affairs.」(Souma)
The dark elves’ settlements were surrounded by 『Exorcist Trees』 that were densely planted in a circle. The forest was dotted with such settlements where the dark elves lived. If we judge the God-Protected Forest as a country, then this village could be thought of as the capital, compared to other villages in the forest, the size was greater, like the Tokyo Dome[10]. Off course the number of dark elves who lived in it was much higher than the other villages.
In this village, it was as if one third of the village’s eastern side had been gouged off with soil and sand. It seems that the slightly elevated slope on the eastern side had collapsed. Maybe because of the constant rain, a large amount of soil had been exposed by the great amount of flowing water. This might cause soil to considerably loosen. Currently the weather was clear, so it helped us a bit. If there was rain, then I fear there could be another landslide while we were conducting the rescue.
「Can you give me the damage report?」(Souma)
「The number of casualties has almost reached 100 people. The number of missing persons is at least more than 40 people.」(Boden)
「Then, we need to start rescuing them as soon as possible. However, since there is a risk of a secondary disaster, it is better to evacuate the women and children to a safe place. Then, have someone to watch over the ruptured mountain. If the mountain starts to move for even a bit or produces a strange sound, report to us. It won’t be a laughing joke if there is another landslide while we are in the middle of rescuing the victims.」(Souma)
「At once, Your Majesty. Is there anything else that we can do to help?」(Boden)
「Prepare a list of missing persons. Once we have confirmed their safety, we will cross them out one by one.」(Souma)
「As you wish, Your Majesty.」(Boden)
Bringing my discussion with Boden to an end, I then gave an instruction for the Royal Army.
「Aisha.」(Souma)
「Yes, Your Majesty!」(Aisha)
「Evacuate the women and children to a place unlikely to undergo landslides. Consult the place with Boden-san. You must act as a guard to send them to safety.」(Souma)
「Yes, as you wish, Your Majesty.」(Aisha)
「Alright. Attention Royal Army! Now we will begin to search for missing persons. You guys are really skilled in digging holes in the dirt, right? Listen with your ears carefully for the sound of people asking for help and then cautiously rescue them.」(Souma)
「「「Yes, Your Majesty!」」」(Soldiers)
「However, don’t do the impossible. If it collapses again, then even if you are in the middle of rescuing, you must quickly evacuate. I won’t forgive you if even a single one of you becomes a victim. Do you understand!」(Souma)
「「「Yes, Your Majesty!」」」(Soldiers)
I nodded at the Royal Army’s reply, then I handed out the command:
「I hereby proclaim the start of the rescue operation!」(Souma)
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