18 - the Sixteenth Fountain

Drilling holes in rocks with a hand auger. The size of the hand auger in this case is 1 meter and 40 centimeters. The outer diameter is basically two meters, and if it is circular in shape, a rock pipe that fits the well perfectly will be completed. I have to make a lot of them anyway.

Yesterday, I took it out on the demons to make up for the lack of something subtle, and this morning I ate grilled fish. Grilled fish every day is the best. It's nothing if you think that I love grilled fish. I just keep spinning the hand auger, spinning, spinning, spinning, spinning, spinning.

**

"Yuta. You're going to work on the well today, aren't you?"

Deane came out of the well. You have something wonderful as always.

"Yeah, I'm making pipes to install in the well. When we have the numbers, we'll install them from below with the magic bag."

"I see. Oh. Did you build a fence around it?

"I made it on Sylphy's advice to keep zombies and skeletons out in the middle of the night."

"Hmm. Yuta, you're amazing."

Deene pats my head in praise. I manage not to look at the wonderful thing. I just want to say this. I endure because I'm a gentleman, not because I'm afraid of Sylphy's eyes.

"The tools are very powerful. I'm going to get the pipes together and dig a hole during the day. So I was wondering, does the spring have to be mortar-shaped?　If it's round, the rocks are hard to install."

"As long as it can hold enough water, Yuta, you can do whatever you like. I'll be looking forward to it.

"Ha ha, I'll do my best to live up to your expectations."

All I have to do is simply dig a hole in an inverted pyramid and set up the rocks. ...... As an amateur, I will only fail if I try to make something elaborate. Simple is best.

The story ends and I turn the hand auger again. Deanne is playing with Belle and Rain and talking with Sylphy.

**

Okay, I'm done making the pipe. Now we dig a hole. I know it's not my fault, but there's a lot of civil engineering work to be done. What's going to happen to my life in the other world?

Quickly insert the shovel, dig a hole, and store the soil. How much dirt and rock is in your magic bag right now?　While digging a hole, think about the contents of the bag.

With these tools, I could be very useful in excavation. I wonder what kind of work I'd be good at in town. The basic job in the other world is in the Adventurers' Guild. If I can go to the town, I can make a contract with Sylphy.

I'll do great, make a lot of money, and live happily ever after. Maybe I'll be a necromancer.　I don't know if I'm a cool ...... or not.

I dig a hole quickly with fantasies. By the time I finish digging the .................. hole, I'm the best adventurer, the richest man, and I've built a harem. It was fun.

"Are you done digging?"

"Oh, Sylphy and Dine. Yes, I'm done digging."

"Yuta. You were digging so hard, it was so beautiful."

"Yeah?　You were kind of grinning during the whole thing, weren't you?"

When I was grinning, it was probably when my imagination was at its peak due to the harem development. It shows on my face, I have to be careful. I seem to be back to my middle school days lately. If I'm not careful, I'll resume the production of my black history at my age.

"Did you see the smirk?　I was imagining how happy I would be when the fountain was finished, so maybe that's when it happened."

"Surely it will be beautiful when the fountain is finished."

Yes, it is. I'm looking forward to it.

Did you manage to fool them?　

All that's left to do is to set up the rocks, which shouldn't take too long."

One-meter-size regular hexahedrons are lined up in a doddle. I've set a guideline of 30 meters, so it's going to be a pretty big fountain.

****

"I'm done!"

After the inverted pyramid hole is filled with rocks, he calls for the spirits who were watching above.

"Good work!"

"Good job, Yuta!"

"Good job!"

"Cue."

"Ha-ha-ha, thank you. All that's left to do is to pull the pipe into the well. Do you guys want to come downstairs?

Everyone nodded, and together we climbed down to the bottom of the well. When the spring is built, will we never have to go down these stairs again?　I think the spiral staircase part will remain. Or there will be a gap and it will be displaced. Let's put the pipe down, filling in the spiral staircase.

"Deanne. Can we just leave the pipe on top of the water?"

"Yes, and if any sediment floats up, I'll sink it. Just leave it there.

"Yes, sir."

Okay. Let's put the pipe in place. I'm a little nervous about getting it to work. When I pulled it out of storage, it just clicked into place, bouncing the water off. That feels good.

I poured soil from the bag into the area where the pipe was put out, and stepped on it. If I hit it with a hammer, it would be perfect, but I'm afraid of it collapsing. If the pipe gets caught by accident, we shave that part and proceed with the installation, making minor adjustments.

****

"This is the last one. It's done."

The last pipe is installed and the soil is poured to complete the work. Belle jumps into my chest and praises me. Lane rubs the tip of his nose against me. He's probably just praising me for a job well done.

We exit the inverted pyramid-shaped fountain and look at the well from above. Even though we built it in a short period of time, it is still a very moving experience.

"Yuta did a great job. I'll do my best, too!"

Should I ...... shove ...... sis?　I looked at Sylphy in doubt, and she looked away with a twitch. Maybe Deanne is a bit of a natural.

"Here we go!

Floating softly, Dine opens her arms and stretches out her chest. ...... Thanks for dinner. I can hear Sylphy's voice saying, "That's why men are like this," but it's a man's instinct, so it can't be helped.

"Dine, the Great Spirit of Water, says to the King of the Water Spirits. Bless this land with the blessing of a thousand years of water. ......"

Dine, who is usually so laid-back. When she starts to recite some sort of prayer, she puts on a dignified air and seems almost goddess-like.

"Yes!"

The next moment, she suddenly reverted back to her original Dine, and with a faint voice, she thrust her hands into the well. What the hell happened?

"That idiot. You were trying to be cool, but you couldn't think of the right words and gave up halfway through."

"Huh?　Hey, Sylphy. What do you mean?"

I heard a strange sound coming from the well, and a pillar of water shot up with a bang. What is this? This is supposed to be an important scene, but I can't concentrate because my mind is all over the place.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Jeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

"Cueeeeeeeeeeee!"

Belle and Rain are having a blast. The fountain I built fills with water. Just as it was about to overflow, the water stopped growing.

The dry, red earth glistened with clear, clean water, despite the force with which it had been shot out.

"Amazing!"

I am uncharacteristically moved. I look at the spring for a while, my heart trembling with a sense of accomplishment.

"......Well, Sylphy. I want to ask you something. What do you mean you couldn't come up with the rest of the story?　It's not like you botched an important celebration or something, right?"

"Ah, there's nothing to say to the king of spirits to make a little fountain in the first place. You are a great spirit and can do such a thing at your own discretion. Besides, the thousand-year blessing is just something you said just because it sounds cool.

Sylphy puts her hand on her forehead as if she has a headache. My heart hurts. I didn't know I was being moved like a goddess.

"Well, then, was that over-the-top incantation just a stage direction and all you had to do was shout "ee-yoi" and make gestures?"

"No. A phenomenon of that magnitude can be done with the tip of a finger. It's all unnecessary. You said you'd do your best, so you were just trying to be cool. But you gave up halfway through."　

I look at Deanne, who is fawning over the compliments of Belle and Rain.

"Hey Sylphy. If you could, could you give her a good scolding?　　　

"I don't like to do anything unnecessary."

I see. I guess a scolding won't help.

"Yuta, I saw you. "You were great, weren't you, Sis?"

He comes up to me smiling and proud. I feel like lecturing him, but I don't want to exhaust my nerves with unnecessary things. It's true that he was great, so I'll do my best to praise him on that one point. I'm the one who's going to be saved by having the fountain made. .......

"Yes, it was very good. "Yes, it was very good. You're a great genie."

I know, right?

I'm in a good mood. He is talking to Belle and Rain, who are flying around and having a good time, about what it is like to be a genie. I want them to stop, because I'm worried about their future.

The process has been problematic, but there is a sparkling fountain in front of us. That's pretty impressive, even with the help of pioneering tools. I approach the fountain and sip the water with my hand; it is cool and sparkling.

"Dine. Is this water safe to drink?"

"I'm fine. It's very clean and tasty water. It has the seal of the Great Spirit of Water.

I'm a little nervous, but I'll try it. I sip the water slowly. It doesn't taste funny. You gulp down the remaining water in your hand. It seems to taste good.

"Yuta. It's good, isn't it?

"Uh-huh. It's delicious."

Sorry. I honestly have no idea what water tastes like. But there's enough water in front of me to drown me. It's heaven compared to when I was afraid of dying of thirst.

"Yuta. Can I play in the water?"

"Cue?"　

Oh-huh. Where did you two learn such an advanced technique of tilting your heads and looking up at each other?

"Deanne. The girls want to play in the fountain, is that a problem?"

"It's not a problem because spirits don't pollute the water. Belle and Rain, you can play with them if you don't mind.

I nodded my head and they jumped into the fountain with great joy. Belle, aside from Rain, is a wind spirit, but she also likes to play in the water.

Seeing Belle and Rain soaring through the air and diving into the water, I felt that we would be all right from here on.