Volume 9 - CH 10

Chapter 10 – Return to Dark Elves’ Island and to Southern City

The reason why the Dark Elves decided to emigrate. This is because they are no longer able to have children. It is said that the Dark Elves have always had difficulty having children, and the last child born to them is now 82 years old.

They said that everyone tried very hard, but it didn’t go well, and they thought that eventually, this village would have to make a decision to either perish or leave the forest.

I had heard that it’s not good for the blood to get thicker, but would it make it impossible for them to have children? If we take them away, the other villagers won’t be able to have children either, right? If that were the case, there would be no reason for the Goddess of the Forest-sama to put a mark on them, right?

The current number of villagers is 36… If the decision is made to migrate, it will be a bit difficult to use the Ranger, but if I summon three Adds and have them ride with Girasole, it should be no problem.

It took us three more days to get that much out of them, showing them the ship, telling them Felicia’s story, feeding them delicious food, and we worked pretty hard.

We managed to get them to agree to migrate. The wood in this village seemed to be of good quality, and they decided to dismantle the house and load it onto the Hideaway. The trees seem to be quite strong, as even the earth dragons have a hard time knocking them down.

It took five days to dismantle and load the tree house. It was surprisingly fast since the structure was so simple. In between, we also did an evacuation drill on foot. We just practiced getting to the Hideaway quickly.

………………

It took us six days to get to the coast without any problems. Until we got here, we just walked, killed earth dragons, rode the Ranger, and stayed at the Hideaway (some of the men stayed on the Ranger because of the large number of people).

Once there was an ancient dragon, but… I couldn’t tell the difference, except that it was larger and more austere in color, and I finally realized it was an ancient dragon when it used earth magic.

It would have been dangerous if the magic was used on the Ranger and it overturned, so Girasole ran around it on the Add and attacked it while looking away and defeated it. What can I say? It seems less romantic.

It’s nice to be safe, but I feel like ancient dragons are a final boss class. Sure, compared to earth dragons, it’s by far the toughest and smartest, and it attacks with a lot of thought, but when its defense is nearly invincible, it doesn’t stand a chance no matter how hard it tries. …Boarding Rejection is a real cheat. The ancient dragon also used earth magic against it.

The ancient dragon also showed a much greater variety of attacks than the earth dragon, such as using earth magic and concentrating on one person, but it seems incapable of responding when it is attacked from three directions without regard to its defenses.

The ancient dragon was wise enough to decide to retreat as soon as the battle began. Although it was unable to escape because it was surrounded by Girasole, it seemed to be looking for an opportunity to escape, trying various strategies until the moment it was defeated. Well, I think it’s a bad idea to attack something you don’t know.

The Dark Elves seemed to find the sight of an earth dragon being so easily defeated unusual, and they were a bit frightened. I just moved the Ranger.

I repatriated a number of earth dragons, and I was able to escape the Earth Dragon Forest just in time without having to buy an extra rubber boat.

I chose the Stronghold as the ship to go to the Dark Elves’ island. Luxury liners don’t take people from other villages. Somehow I decided against it. If the Dark Elves’ island becomes nice, it might be fun to invite them on the luxury liner and make a lot of noise. I’ll think about it.

Anyway, we’ll go out to sea and set the autopilot on the Dark Elves’ Island. Then we can just relax and enjoy the Stronghold.

The Dark Elves are amazed and enjoy the scenery, facilities, and food they have never seen before. I’m glad to hear that the ship is being well received. Perhaps I should invite the Dark Elves from the island next time.

The ladies and Rimu and the others were in good spirits as if they hadn’t had an adventure in a long time. I guess they are the kind of people who get their strength from adventures. I’m the kind of person who just gets tired.

………………

We change from the Stronghold to the Seeker and land on the Dark Elves’ island. The Dark Elves gather on the deck, curious about their new home. I called the village chief, who had come to meet us.

“Hello, Village Chief-san. I brought all the Dark Elves with me, is everything okay?”

“Hello, Wataru-san. Yes, of course, you are welcome. Everyone is happy to have more friends, and they are working hard to get ready. However, we didn’t finish the house in time, so it looks like they’ll have to live in tents for a while. Well, some of us are moving to the hot spring village, so I don’t think it will take that long.”

“I see, I brought some wood from my former village, so maybe we can build a house a little faster.”

“Oh, that would be very helpful.”

I introduce the chief of the village in the Earth Dragon Forest to the chief of the Dark Elf Island. The others disembark, and I lead them to the village on the hill.

“Since it’s not appropriate for the two of you to talk here, why don’t you go to the village?”

The chiefs of the two villages talk excitedly about their roots and hardships. Is it a good way to comfort each other about their hardships from the first meeting?

“Yes, indeed. Well, let me show you around.”

They go to the village on the hill and are sorted into empty houses and tents. I summoned the Hideaway and unloaded the villagers’ luggage and wood. Felicia helps Cecilia-san.

We finished our work after taking out all the wood, luggage, and food.

“Village Chief-san, by the way, how are the hot springs coming along?”

“Ah, the vice chief is very eager to do it. As soon as he came back, he left with his staff, you know. The women of the village have high expectations, so I think the progress will be fast. I am sorry, but the mine will come after that.”

“I see. If you took it easy, you would probably leave without a place to stay. That puts a lot of pressure on you, doesn’t it? The mine can wait until later, so please take your time.”

The women in the village were also eager for the hot springs, and if we didn’t do it right, the rest would be scary. I should probably give them shampoo, conditioner, and body soap as well.

“Thank you very much. My wife talks about the hot springs a lot, too, so it’s a lot of work.”

Cecilia-san was about to leave as well. The one under the most pressure is probably the village chief.　

“Hahaha, we need the vice chief to do his best. Oh, Village Chief-san, we will be moving to the Southern City soon. Can I leave the rest to you?”

“Of course, but are you in a hurry?”

“Yes, I have some things to do, so I thought I would act quickly.”

We also need to build the orphanage and collect materials and workers for the construction. We also need to gather personnel for the orphanage. And the opening of the luxury liner? I need people for that as well. I should also gather people in the Southern City.

“I see; then I can’t keep you here. Please come again.”

“Yes. I’m sorry to leave it up to you, but I’ll just bring them here. We will have a banquet when things settle down.”

I decline for a send-off of the village chief and the others and return to the Seeker, and set the autopilot for the Southern City. We have a lot of work to do, so let’s get it all done before we arrive in the Southern City.

………………

We switched to the Lutto and entered the Southern City, heading for the Merchant’s Guild.

“Hello, Camille-san.”

“Ara, hello, Wataru-san. Is everything ready yet?”

“No, it looks like it will take a while. I am here today to discuss business, and I wanted to ask Camille-san to make arrangements for me.”

“I see. I will show you to the back room. Also, I have collected the payment for the pepper, so I will give it to you.”

“Thank you very much.”

I was led to the back room and waited for Camille-san while drinking tea.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Wataru-san. Here are the 900 platinum coins for the pepper.”

I wondered if it was so easy to get such a large amount of platinum coins if the pepper could be sold wholesale in such large quantities. It’s a fool’s errand, but it makes me feel foolish because I’m afraid of being noticed. However, if I got carried away, I would be stuck before I could get the luxury liner. Maybe now is as good a time as any. Getting carried away won’t do me any good.

“Thank you very much.”

“So, Wataru-san, what do you want me to arrange?”

“Let’s see… I want to build a large orphanage in Cagliari, in the Kingdom of Brescia, but the Kingdom of Brescia is short of materials and workers due to the war. So I am thinking of using the Mage’s ship to transport a large amount of materials and workers. Therefore, I would like to ask you to arrange for the materials and workers to be brought to Brescia.”

“It may be difficult to get the workers. The city of Cagliari is under the direct control of the royal family and is the headquarters of the Navy, so I don’t think they would like to have a large number of workers from another country come to do the construction.”

…I see. We’re certainly not doing anything suspicious. But I’m still worried about the Kingdom of Brescia. The Mage is involved… and all I can do is wait until things settle down, right?

“Wataru-san, the shortage of materials in the Kingdom of Brescia has been rumored in the Southern City as well. But it is very difficult to transport large amounts of heavy materials, and only neighboring countries can afford it, so even the Kingdom of Brescia seems to be having a hard time. If it is possible to borrow Mage-sama’s help, we might be able to transport a large amount of materials, and in return, we might be able to borrow human resources. Even if we can’t borrow the workers, we can still sell the materials at twice the price.”

I didn’t realize that. We can sell them for at least double the price, and we may be able to make the Kingdom of Brescia, which is short of materials, owe us a favor. They would be happy if we could send the materials to the naval headquarters. I should fill two ferries and go there.

However, it would be embarrassing for both of us to blatantly call the Mage, even though I’ve told her that I’m the Mage.

“Then let’s go in that direction, please. Since the orphanage is being built at the request of the Mage, I can ask for the two huge ships that appeared in Lucca. They can carry a lot of material, but how long will it take?”

“The orphanage is made of stone, right?”

“Yes, we intend to build a large, sturdy orphanage.”

“How much can the ship hold?”

If you ask me how much, there’s no problem with overloading because the ship won’t capsize. In Japan, that would be a crime.

“Well, I don’t know, so could you collect materials for 20 platinum coins?”

“Twenty platinum coins? Materials are not that expensive, so that would be quite a lot. Do you want me to collect high-end materials?”

Hmm, we don’t need high-end materials. The more, the better. Huh? Is it better to secure high-end items so that we can sell our favors to the higher-ups?

“Would collecting high-quality materials be a better way to curry favor with the higher-ups?”

“I think there is a demand for high-quality materials, but I think that in the city of Cagliari, common materials that are easy to use would be more appreciated.”

Is that so? I think it would not be surprising if they used high-end materials since it is the naval headquarters of the Kingdom of Brescia, but I wonder if it is because common materials are less likely to be resented by the people around them or something like that.

“Then please use common materials. If we can’t carry enough, we’ll go back and forth, so that’s not a problem. Twenty platinum coins worth of materials will be enough to build a large orphanage and collect materials to sell, right?”

“As long as the orphanage is not like a castle, I think it will be enough.”

An orphanage like a castle. It seems safe in a way, but I am sure people will complain about it.

“I understand. Then please do it. When the materials are collected to some extent, I will go to pick them up. It is a huge ship, so it can only dock at a place far from the port. Can you bring them to us by ship?”

“It will cost you. Is that okay?”

“Yes, but I want 20 platinum coins worth of materials, so please charge me separately.”

After discussing the details, it seemed that it would take about a month to collect 20 platinum coins worth of materials. In the meantime, I decided to ask her to buy the remaining pepper as well. After I sell 45 rubber boats of pepper tomorrow morning, I will have no pepper left. Should I go back to the southern continent to buy more pepper?

…That depends on the price of the new luxury liner. If I have enough money left over, I will just do it in my spare time. Let’s start looking for a new luxury liner tonight.

I’ll talk to Camille-san about personnel. When we open the luxury liner, we will basically run the front with Saporabi and have slaves work in the cook shop and spa because the slaves will have better skills. The other issue is ticket sales.

When the bigwigs come in, they’re going to be selfish anyway, and I want to have someone who can handle that. When I told Camille-san about this, she said she had an idea, so I asked her to bring it to me.

She said it might be difficult to get him to come because he would have to sign a contract, but I would expect Camille-san to be able to handle it. We had a quick chat and went back to the Lutto. Anyway, after I close the deal tomorrow, I’ll have a month off.

I can either buy a luxury liner and enjoy it, or I can find the Dark Elves to migrate to the island… If I take the Dark Elves in a row, the Dark Elves on the island will have a hard time. Should I just relax and enjoy the luxury liner?

Funds on hand: 34 gold coins, 68 silver coins, 51 copper coins.

Guild account: 0 platinum, 70 gold

Savings ship: 1089 platinum coins

Pepper ship: 45 ships

Charity expenses: 95 platinum coins, 70 gold coins