CH 156

Chapter 156 – Setting Up an Exploration Base and Collaborating with Isla

Now that we had arrived at our destination, I decided to set up a base for our stay here. After all, a base on stilts is the best way to ensure security and reliability. Even if the enemy attacked, if the base was at a height where the enemy’s attack could not reach, there was no need to be afraid of the enemy’s attack. There are not many things safer than this.

In that sense, it is also safe to be in an underground base where the enemy can’t recognize you in the first place. An underground base is inevitably oppressive and confining… So that’s why I prefer stilts rather than underground bases. It has a sense of openness.

I’m in the process of collecting debris from the area with my pickaxe and reusing it to build pillars.

“Kosuke, didn’t you say you were going to build a farm?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure you want a base on stilts?”

“Everything is fine.”

I said to Isla, who tilted her head slightly, and proceeded with the work. Once the pillars are in place, it is time for the foundation. It can be called a platform in the original sense.

“It’s huge.”

“Yeah, there’s not only me, Isla, the Harpies, and Grande, but also Ms. Zamir, Shumel, and the others, right? If we’re going to make accommodations for everyone, it has to be spacious. Besides, the bigger the space, the more open it feels.”

It was a large platform, 80 meters by 80 meters. In terms of area, it was a little smaller than a soccer field. However, it’s big enough for us to have our own living space.

First of all, there is a dining hall in the center where we can all eat together. On the west side of the dining hall, there is a large house for me, Isla, the Harpies, and Grande to stay in, and on the east side, there is one house for each of Ms. Zamir and Shumel and the others to stay. The houses have beds to sleep on, writing desks, chairs, and a little storage space.

The dining room in the center of the house has not only a large table and chairs but also a space with cushions, a thick carpet to lie down on, and a rattan couch with a low table. It’s not a cafeteria, but a living and dining room.

“The rest is water and a bath.”

“The water will be on the east and west sides, and the bath on the north side.”

“And the south side will be a field?”

“Hmm.”

I’m used to this kind of work, so I can make it quickly and easily. The stone I had collected was not enough, so I used the brick blocks I had brought from Erichburg. I also built three toilets, one on each of the east and west sides. The toilets are flushable using an infinite water source and can be stored in the tanks under the platform. I plan to store the tanks in my inventory and dispose of them periodically. If I can get the whole tank into the inventory, I can dismantle it as is!

Then, I placed a farm block on the south side, surrounded it with brick blocks, planted some seeds, and the base was complete. The main crops to plant are tomatoes and lettuce, which are relatively popular vegetables. Grande eats a lot of hamburgers, so she consumes a lot of them… Well, tomatoes have a lot of uses, and lettuce can be used for almost anything if you want to make a salad, so it’s fine. I’ll plant some other vegetables as well.

The rest of the team, except for Isla and I, are investigating the ruins. They are trying to find out if there are any underground facilities, if there is anything useful, or if there is an entrance to the underground.

“We still have some time before everyone comes back, so let’s do some development.”

“Developments?”

Isla, sitting on the couch in the dining room, tilted her head slightly.

“I’d like to create a means of high-speed transportation that doesn’t rely on Grande. I would like to make something that can travel over rough terrain that is difficult for a horse-drawn carriage.”

“That sounds like fun. Do you have any ideas?”

“I do have some thoughts…”

Then I took out a notebook from my inventory and showed her a sketch of a two-wheeled vehicle. I’m not much of an artist, so it’s just a simple sketch.

“This is the kind of vehicle that was used in my world. When you twist this handle in your hand, the individual engines generate power to move these wheels.”

“Hmm… I think we can make one by substituting a golem for the engine. But this one has a lot of parts, so it will be hard to manufacture and maintain.”

“That’s the thing, isn’t it? This vehicle was basically developed after the mass production of bullets for bolt action rifles became possible. In this world, I’m probably the only one who can make the parts, so even if I did, it would be difficult to use it normally in this world, just like other weapons and stuff in my world.”

“Hmm. But the idea is interesting. Usually, a vehicle is a carriage or a horse. The rest are riding animals that can be ridden like a horse. This vehicle that Kosuke is talking about doesn’t rely on an animal but is powered so that it can move on its own. This is very reasonable.”

“If you have animals towing the vehicle, you’ll also have to load food and water for the animals that will be towing the vehicle.”

Isla nodded greatly at my words.

“Yes. But if you don’t rely on animals for power, you can carry a lot more cargo. This is very convenient for both trade and military purposes.”

“Let’s put the cost issue aside for the moment. I mean, if it’s powered by something other than an animal, it would have to be a golem, and if that’s the case, the cost of moving it would have to be magic power.”

“Hmm, that’s true. When it comes to magic power, there are magic stones that can be obtained from monsters, magic crystal stones that are processed from magic stones, and magic crystals that are manufactured in the rear base. All of these are not that difficult to procure nowadays.”

The magic stones and crystal stones are supplied by the adventurers and soldiers of the Liberation Army who defeat monsters every day, and the magic crystals are being manufactured in the rear base. It’s a promotional method of materializing the inexhaustible flow of magical power.

“So, let’s think about the specifications. What level of performance do you want?”

“Hmm. First, the ability to run on rough terrain.”

“That’s right. That’s the original purpose. Secondly, it must be faster than a horse-drawn carriage.”

“How many people can it carry?”

“I’d say a minimum of two and a maximum of six.”

“What’s the load capacity?”

“We’re aiming for the same capacity as a two-horse carriage.”

“That means we’ll have to make it as wide and as long as a two-horse carriage.”

“That’s right. If it’s too wide, we won’t be able to use it on the existing roads.”

This is how Isla and I discussed our ideas and decided on the specifications.

・It has the ability to run over rough terrain.

・It will be powered by magic.

・The number of people allowed to use it is between two and six.

・The load capacity and size should be the same as a two-horse carriage.

“That’s about it?”

“Yeah. Okay, let’s start with the ability to drive over rough terrain.”

“Why don’t carriages have the ability to go over rough terrain? Let’s think about that.”

“Hmm. On uneven terrain, the wheels can get buried accidentally or step on a large stone or something, and the axle will break, or the wheels will detach.”

“In other words, the vulnerability of the undercarriage is the problem. To solve this problem, we can use… unbreakable material?”

“Steel? It will be very heavy. If it gets too heavy, it will be buried in the ground and won’t be able to move properly. What did they do in Kosuke’s world?”

“Oh, you’d have to make the wheels thicker, cover them with a soft and elastic material, make the axle metal, and then build a mechanism into the axle to minimize friction… In this direction, you’d run into the same problem as the motorcycle I showed you in the sketch.”

“Yes, it will. That’s why I think we need to change the way we think.”

“Hmm, change the idea of… not touching the ground in the first place?”

“What do you mean? A flying vehicle?”

“No, it doesn’t have to fly that far. As long as it doesn’t come into contact with the ground, say 20cm or 30cm, it won’t be affected by the ground, right? Maybe you could float a big board the size of a carriage and use wind magic or something to propel it forward. It’s like a ship running on land, so to speak.”

What I have in my mind is a hovercraft. It would be able to run on the plains, in the wilderness, in swamps, and on rivers. It may not be suitable for driving on uneven terrain, but what about a world with magic?

“There is a magic called levitation. It is a magic that only makes things float, and it is not very useful. You can levitate things, but it doesn’t mean you can move them. It’s only useful for moving heavy things.”

“That’s a good magic. After that, we can add some wind magic to it to give it some propulsion.”

“It’s hard to maintain balance with this magic. Anything that floats will easily tip, and there is no effect to bring it back automatically.”

“Hmm, can you adjust the height or something?”

“It can be adjusted with the amount of magic power. Moving up and down is rather easy.”

“If so, why don’t we put the levitation tool and the golem’s eye on the square of the board and use the golem core to control the square so that it maintains a certain distance from the ground? If it is too far from the ground, reduce the magic power supplied to the tool, and if it is too close, increase the magic power. If we do that, we can maintain some balance.”

If the levitation magic can’t detect and compensate for inclination, I think I can manage it by using the golem to control it. The problem is the brakes, but it might be necessary to jet the wind in the opposite direction of travel and force the vehicle to the ground… Well, it’s a vehicle for driving on rough terrain in the first place, so it might not need such strict brakes.

“Hmm… I can’t say for sure until we try.”

“Let’s make an experimental machine first. A small one.”

“Hmm, experimentation is important.”

That’s why Isla and I decided to experiment with a wooden board the size of a seat cushion. It would be difficult for just the two of us to develop it, but I think it’s good to try things out.

Eventually, we would like to make something like an air bike. Air bikes and air boards are a man’s dream, aren’t they?