This chapter is updated by wuxiaworld.eu
Next day. Maia and I flew to the point indicated on the map using a horse-drawn carriage and found that Laila was working on the foundation in her dragon body. Or rather, Laila would continue to dig the earth in her dragon body all the way until the general framework of the construction was completed. The strongest black dragon is digging holes and piling up stones. In a sense, it was a surreal sight.
Since they are already far enough away from the city and the fort, Maia also calls out to them in her dragon body. It is a trick that I would like her to refrain from in normal places because it is quite loud.
âMaia. Iâm glad youâre here. I have something I want you to do as soon as possible. Thereâs a nice rock pile over there and I want you to break off a piece of rock big enough to hold it. We will break them up and build the masonry hereâ
Dianne seemed to have been cutting wood near Laila and came running in response to Maiaâs voice and immediately gave her instructions.
âFine. Go ahead. Weâre here to helpâ
Maia looked at me for a moment as I got out of the carriage, and then she just took off again. And from inside the carriage, Neia and Aurora, two people with useful skills for woodworking. And the surprisingly tough Sharon and Almeida. And then Goto and Boyd, ăSpeaking of architectureă ogre group and a special guest, Great Knight Chief Lister, got off.
âHmm. It may indeed be a good location. I didnât know there was a vacuum for a demon invasion in a place like thisâ
Great Knight Chief Lister looks around the location and is impressed.
âHopefully the fort will eventually be available for us to useâ
âThatâs fine. Even if Kalwin is found, it doesnât mean that the demon territory will subside anytime soonâ
âThe first step in leveling the demon territory will come after the discovery of the country. We will build labyrinths in various places and gradually increase the safe zonesâŠâŠhuu, aside from Lady Dianne, it may be difficult for me to see a peaceful Renfangas in my lifetime. The more good forts the betterâ
As I listen to the conversation between Great Knight Chief Lister and Dianne, I am reminded of the time scale of the project. Thatâs right. The exploration business weâre in is a clue to solving the tough problems of Renfangas, but itâs not the solution itself. Even if everything goes the way we want it to, we are still a long way from peace here.
âAll right, each of you get to work. Goto and Boyd are over here laying the foundation for the dormitory and Neia and Sharon are working on the planks! Aurora and Almeida, I need you to help with the loggingâ
Each of us scattered to the work that Dianne had instructed us to do. And then itâs me and Great Knight Chief Lister who are left behind. Maybe it was awkward to come and have some free time and Great Knight Chief Lister gave a small throat clearing and offered to help.
âWith this number of people, you wonât be in trouble. Iâll help you tooâ
âThank you. If possible, loggingâ
âItâs my specialtyâ
He then placed his hand on a nearby tree to feel its texture, removed his gold gauntlet and threw it to the ground.
A flash of the hand sword. âŠâŠAfter a while, there was no change and after an awkward moment, Great Knight Chief Lister coughed again. He then coughs again and pushes the trunk of the tree with his hand. It falls with a roar.
âI was surprised to find that it did not fall down under its own weight if I slashed it horizontally. I was carelessâ
âNo, I donât understand what you mean anymore when you can cut such a thick tree with a chopâ
âIt depends on the trainingâ
Maybe I could train for a thousand years and still not make it. âŠâŠAurora was standing next to us, facing the trees.
âSo you want me to cut down all the trees around here?â
âYes, you can cut down as much as you can see nowâ
âWe have to make sure the animals donât get caught in the middleâ
âThe animals around here have scattered for fear of Laila. Weâll be fineâ
âIf thatâs the caseâ
Aurora, inhales and after a momentâs pause, a blinding flash from within the sheath. Dogogagagagagagaga, an incredible sound echoed and I involuntarily stepped back. âŠâŠThe forest collapsed, dozens of meters at a time. Auroraâs slashing wave severed every tree within range, toppling them in a chain reaction. It was like a landslide.
ââŠâŠThatâŠâŠwhat. I really donât think I can do much more than helpâ
Great Knight Chief Lister was a little dazed. I knew this technique was a foul. I guess itâs a foul.
âI wonder if I can get some cement or something of good quality around hereâŠâŠâ
âIâm a little nervousâ
Boyd and Goto were talking anxiously at the site of the foundation pouring. As one would expect in an unexplored area, they were uneasy about procuring all the building materials locally in order to build a proper building. Laila, who was repeating the process of excavating and leveling the soil with her huge body, sent a vision to them.
âHo. If you want to harden the stone, there is a good magicâ
âIâm under the impression that dragons donât know much about magic useful for making thingsâ
Iâve never heard of it either.
âI just donât dare to make that kind of magic. We donât care that much about buildingsâ
âHow do you know that if you donât make them?â
âHo. Not me, but Dianne. I heard that she used to use it when she used to make hastily constructed camps. I only learned it from hearing itâ
âDid you do that, 100-man commanderâ
âŠâŠWell, Boyd and even Goto are younger than me, so they donât know about the time when crossbows were in serious operation in the war. I actually donât know much about it either. âŠâŠIf you operate a crossbow with magical support in an environment with a proper vanguard, you donât need to build a camp. Iâm not sure if thatâs what they used to make when 100-man commander Becker was a young man.
âDonât worry. Dianneâs construction plan is a big deal. Iâm just worried that weâre going to focus so much on getting it done quickly that weâre going to end up with a poor facilityâ
âWell, if the foundation is well laid, thereâs plenty of room for expansionâ
âThatâs right. Iâm worried that weâve compromised too much for a small group like us and it will be too cramped for Renfangas to useâ
âThe space is quite spacious. Iâm not sure if itâs safe for a group of commanders to sleep inâŠâŠâ
âDo you think we need more storage or something for later use?â
âHoho. Donât do so much. It is not too late to build more if you need toâ
A construction site where dragons and ogres chat and work together. I wonder if it would be called a funny picture if it were painted.
Sharon and Neia were using their respective super senses to turn the logs that Laila had apparently brought earlier into planks one after another.
Neia swings her ax to chop a log lengthwise. Sharon slides a shortsword and dismembers logs one after another. Both are amazing acrobats.
âAuroraâs is the very art of battle, but Neia and the others are virtuososâŠâŠâ
âItâs certainly hard to use these things in a fight, thoughâ
Neia stops splitting logs and smiles. Sharon spins the shortsword around, holding it in her forward or reverse hand with surprising dexterity.
âBut this kind of ăEye-readingă abilityâŠâŠcan also be applied to earth drives, so you could say that this is also a warriorâs skillâ
âDwarves seem to be born with this kind of sensation. I, for example, was trained by Berga for quite a long timeâŠâŠto feel these things and use them is the secret of that techniqueâ
So itâs not just a sense that works with trees. But it is true that Neia can also use earth drive by watching and learning and if you think about it that way, it is a sensibility that is integrated with the art of warfare, isnât it?
âIf I train myself, will I be able to control the earth drive at will?â
âEarth drive is a matter of sensitivity, but it is also a matter of experience. The expanse of the veins and the way they are struck vary widely and the only way to improve your earth drive is to shoot a lot and learnâ
Neia nodded, staring at the ax.
âDo you want to use it?â
âŠâŠWell, Sharon doesnât know that Neia can shoot? Well, Iâve only seen Neiaâs earth drive once, in that Battle against Orn.
âNo, wellâŠâŠI thought it was an interesting technique. As for that one, Iâll see if I get the chanceâ
Neia denies it with a vague laugh. Did she think she didnât need to go to the trouble of learning it again, or did she think there was no use for it? âŠâŠI hope she didnât think sheâd never have a chance to use it again or something.
âAnyway, Sharon, canât earth drives be used to build forts like this?â
I shake the subject to change the air. Sharon made a difficult face.
âItâs difficult. Weâre only moving whatâs under the ground, so any terrain thatâs changed too drastically is going to be fragileâŠâŠâ
âIs that soâŠâŠbut on the other hand, it could be used for something like a siegeâ
âI havenât given it much thought, but I certainly agreeâ
It is a modest technique, but like the shockwave, it holds a lot of potential. It is a little bad for Sharon, who is using it as her signature technique, but if not only Neia but other girls start using it, it could make them even stronger. I donât want any of my girls to fight wars willingly, but there is no better way to increase the chances of winning and surviving.
âIn the meantime, could you teach Anzeros and the other girls, Sharon?â
Iâm going to ask for the wrong thing.
âItâs quite difficult and if you use this as the basis for your standing, youâll be fighting in a completely different way than a normal swordsman, butâŠâŠâ
âWell, still. I dream of all my female slaves being safe and having my babiesâ
ââŠâŠRight. Because thatâs whatâs good for you, of courseâŠâŠBergaâs going to be angryâ
As a master, surely technique leakage is a problem? âŠâŠMaybe Iâll ask to do that one of these days.
After watching Neia and Sharon make planks for a while, Maia returned. She brought in a rock the size of a house and lowered it into the center of the camp. âŠâŠI saw her hand slip as her claws crunched the edge of the rock.
Itâs not like sheâs going to throw it off to a ridiculous place with her momentum since sheâs not already moving, but if a rock that size falls with unintentional force, sheâs going toâŠâŠ!
âJump, both of you!!â
They couldnât imagine what Maia, whom I was watching closely, had screwed up. Sharon and Neia, who were working on the project, looked confused. I quickly threw myself down to get down. Sharon realized what I was trying to do a moment too soon and jumped up, but Neia, not understanding what was going on, tried to jump with me, but failed to support my ground dive and fell down with meâŠâŠ
The vibrations caused by the massive mass hit us directly. We choke for breath and wind up in the dust that has rolled up. And
âLook out, Smithson-sanâŠâŠ!â
Neia, who had fallen down tangled up with me, looks up and shouts. The log that Neia was about to cut was about to fall on me. Neia handled it easily, but if I was crushed by it, I would be in big trouble. Horrified, I twisted around to check, but that was as far as I got and I involuntarily gritted my teethâŠâŠ
I was stunned to witness shadows flying from the left and right, blowing the logs to smithereens.
Flying pieces of wood. I avoided the rain by falling on my face and when I looked up again, I sawâŠâŠBoyd and Great Knight Chief Lister each kneeling in the opposite direction from where they were a few seconds before.
ââŠâŠWell, youâre just in timeâŠâŠarenât you hurt, 10-man captain Smithson?â
âUmm. âŠâŠThatâs pretty fast for an ogreâ
It seems that the log was caught almost simultaneously by Boydâs diving straight and Grand Knight Chief Listerâs high-speed leaping kick, shattering it with two heavy blows.
âThank you for saving my lifeâŠâŠBoydâŠâŠand Great Knight Chief Listerâ
âIâm sorry I had to do that. The young ogre was enoughâ
Great Knight Chief Lister folds his arms and looks at Boyd, strangely pleased.
âGood fightingâŠâŠno, itâs not a technique. Or should I say, a sense of smell for the moment. Anyway, youâve got good materialâ
âAh, Iâm being trained by 10-man captain Anzerosâ
âHmmâŠâŠyou could be a lot faster if you moved a little more. Can I borrow him for a minute?â
âEh, hey, Iâm still workingâŠâŠ!â
âWhatâs the big deal? If you learn this gait, all your attacks will be 30% fasterâ
Great Knight Chief Lister gleefully grabs Boyd by the back belt and pulls him off. I look away from it with a pout and then realize that Iâve been pushing downâŠâŠon Neia almost like Iâm holding her. No, Neia was sticking her hand out from underneath me as if she was holding me and trying to catch the log.
âNe, NeiaâŠâŠare you okay?â
Sharon, who had been pouting for a few seconds at Great Knight Chief Lister and Boydâs trick while landing nearby, also rushed over.
âAndy-samaâŠâŠIâm sorryâ
Maia, who had returned to her human body, also came running apologetically.
âIt, Itâs okay, Iâm fineâŠâŠâ
Maia and Sharon were right to point this out. The soil, which had just been leveled by Laila, was still soft and we, who had fallen in, were in a state that could best be described as brown.
âW, We got dirtyâŠâŠâ
âWell, it was better than getting hurtâ
Neia stands up, a little embarrassed because it was from a hug-like state. I try to dust myself off somehow too, but I canâtâŠâŠhelp it.
âI think a dip in the water would be quickerâ
âM, Maybe. Please go aheadâ
We knew there was a river nearby, so I gave in. But it was an awkward parallel.
âAndy! Are you all right?â
Dianne, Aurora, and others came running up to us from afar, noticing something was wrong and they all looked at us with subtle expressions on their faces at how dirty we were.
âIf you like, I can do your laundry while you bathe?â
âI, Iâll take care of that! Princess Aurora can work many times faster than I or Dianne canâŠâŠâ
âAlmeida-san, would you mind not being so boorish?â
âNo, I can at least do the washing myselfâŠâŠ
I had no choice but to head for the river and Neia ended up following along.
Neia walks next to me and spreads her cloak a little wider. The flash sword at her waist glowed.
ââŠâŠSomething like that, soâŠâŠcould you give me a moment of your time?â
Itâs rare that the flash sword asserts itself.
I take off my clothes in the river and start to wash them. The only thing Neia got dirty in her clothes was her cape and hat, but the large amount of mud in her hair was terrible to look at.
âNeia. âŠâŠIâll wash your hair, you get in the riverâ
âUmm, Iâm a littleâŠâŠembarrassed about that sort of thingâ
âIâm just going to wash. And I just want to see your titsâ
âThatâs fine, Iâve seen it a few times alreadyâŠâŠbesidesâ
âNeia, you donât have anyone else in particular to show it to, do you?â
âWh, What are you talking aboutâŠâŠâ
âAnyway, I wonât allow you to have such a messed up hairâ
I strip Neia of her clothes and drag her into the river. She didnât resist too hard, so I wondered if she trusted me or if she had given up.
âAh, Iâm just going to wash you, okay?â
It is still the end of winter. The freeze has thawed and the river is flowingâŠâŠbut it is indeed cold and I canât stay in it for so many minutes. âŠâŠThe flash sword shines assertively once more when I pick up that hair. Neia sighed and muttered a small spell, holding her chest in her hand. Itâs a voice barrier.
âWhat is it, Flash Sword?â
ââŠâŠThought you might like to talk to the next hero once in a whileâ
âShall I take it off?â
âWhat are you sulking about? âŠâŠItâs been a long time, Andy Smithson. The heroâs vessel
I nodded appropriately at the sword as it spoke to me in a friendly manner.
âThank you for the opportunity to flirt with Neiaâ
âWhat do you want with me, Flash Sword!â
âDonât be so crabby about the joke, Neiaâ
âŠâŠThese two, or rather one and one, have a strange relationship, something like that.
ââŠâŠAnd I thought you might misunderstand if I didnât explain a little about what happened yesterdayâ
âItâs about Kalwinâ
Neuaâs expression becomes intense.
âMisunderstandingâŠâŠ?â
When I asked back, the flash sword shook with light as it nodded.
âNeia was merely explaining. âŠâŠI didnât disagree with your opinion. I didnât support the kingdom and stop thinkingâ
âFlash sword, thatâs itâ
âItâs justâŠâŠthat more than once Iâve done something I canât take back. So I just got upsetâ
Neia sounds like she is about to cry.
ââŠâŠThere was a person who said the same thing as that girl called Naris. Onceâ
Liked it? Take a second to support Novels on Patreon!