With Undine and Sylph’s encouragements, we’ve decided to build a wall around the Sanctuary.
Maria, Titan, and I were working together to build an 8m tall, 1m wide wall with a moat on the outside.
gogogogogogoooooーー!!
The ground rose, taking the form of a wall, and the soil changed to stone. Since the wall will encompass the surrounding of the Sanctuary by a wide margin, its range was many times more than the tri-nation collaborative town and Wedgefort.
「Can’t Gnome lend a hand with this?」 「Fufu, Gnome is occupied with alcohol.」
Undine who was watching us make the bulwark informed us where Gnome was. But Undine likewise wants to drink alcohol, so she wouldn’t tell Gnome anything.
It’s not like it’s a competition with the tri-nation’s town construction, but I ended up competing a bit.
「Okay! Let’s finish this in 10 days!」 「Yes, I’ll do my best!」 「Roger, Master.」
Three people(?) began building a wall with the same image in mind.
Our escorts were Sophia and Akane, while Kaede mounted Tsubaki and were going around suppressing the monsters in the surroundings. Since there weren’t many monsters that come out of monster nests, nor did monsters which like miasma especially draw near the Sanctuary, Kaede[1] ran around the vast savage lands with Tsubaki and went hunting for meat for the people of the Sanctuary.
「Yahooooo!!」
Holding onto Tsubaki’s back with her 8 spider legs so she wouldn’t be thrown off, Kaede manipulated numerous threads to cut up monsters and secure the defeated ones. Even now, they’re running around my vicinity looking like they’re having fun. Yup, it does look like fun.
The tri-nation collaborative town was progressing at an unbelievable pace. It was like the countries’ earnestness was visible.
Afterwards, we completed the bulwark, constructed houses in the Sanctuary, established water and sewer systems, cultivated farmland, put in waterways and preparing several reservoirs. I was working just like a workhorse.
During that time, civil officials from each country visited several times for trade. Naturally, Undine and the Great Spirits barred the escorting soldiers entry to the Sanctuary, allowing only the government officials with the role of negotiator through. Undine, the Sanctuary’s contact, and Melty-san, the Elf in charge of the orchard and forest’s medicinal plants, were present for the purchase of medicinal plants and the Spirit Tree materials. We received payment of an equivalent value in money, food, and building materials.
I didn’t involve myself with that as much as possible. Talking with the higher ups of the countries was already stressful enough.
◇ ◇
「Boss, we got information on the savage lands.」
「……and?」
In a dark cellar, the boss of 『Moonlight Owl』, Forbach, received a report from a subordinate. Having grasped that Valkyra Kingdom, Lomaria Kingdom, Yggurle Kingdom were acting suspiciously in the savage lands, Forbach dispatched subordinates to those countries, with the exception of Yggurle Kingdom, and collected information.
「It would seem the three countries are constructing a new fortress city west of Wedgefort. They’ve already gotten a mass of construction materials, Earth mages, craftsmen, and knights that suppress the surrounding monsters.」 「West of Wedgefort? What would that fortress city signify? Maybe not so for one country, but for three countries to unite…………… I could not comprehend what that means.」 「That area is dotted with many small monster nests, so it shouldn’t be worth the cost for any country and it has been untouched for many years.」
Forbach feels something is out of place with the involvement of Yggurle Kingdom, his homeland. As to why, he can’t believe that Yggurle Kingdom who truly thinks that Elves are superior beings is joining hands with Valkyra Kingdom and Lomaria Kingdom, nations which uphold racial harmony, to carry out one venture.
「Ah Boss, that reminds me, it seems that there are rumors of a paradise on the western end of the continent going around in the towns and villages of Lomaria and Valkyra near the savage lands. It’s apparently a paradise protected by a barrier that criminals can’t enter. Also poor people like street children and the racially discriminated seem to risk their lives and head west.」
「…………a barrier, huh.」
To Forbach, when barriers are mentioned, he recalls the large-scale barrier covering his homeland. The barrier of his homeland that would never let him pass through ever again.
「Shango, gather information on that “paradise”. That barrier might be related to Yggurle Kingdom. They might not be connected, but get people to the Light God Faith and Samandour too.」 「Yggurle Kingdom might be complicated, but I will try to gather information through merchants somehow. As for the church officials, they will do anything for money.」
Saying so, the male subordinate left the cellar to issue orders.
The newly built Wedgefort does not have any dark guild bases at present. For some reason, its management is strict, the inspection of entries and exits of the town are also rigorous, and they thoroughly crack down on criminals. It’s probably precisely because it’s a new town that this is possible. Margrave Volton, who governs Volton town which is a place dark guilds have difficulty moving in, has entrusted the town to someone. The base shutdown within Valkyra Kingdom might have some connection.
「I’ll definitely make them pay for the bases.」
Forbach speculated that the main constituent for the three nations’ joint venture was Valkyra Kingdom. The shutdown of their bases likely also had some sort of connection to what was in the west.
It was Forbach’s mistaken reasoning, but as a result, the dark guilds in the continent took notice of the savage lands.