Chapter 12

Chapter 12

THINGS WITH THE WARRIORS were settling down, and our policy toward them was going over well. Now it was time to negotiate with the dwarves.

As things stood, the Axeholm dwarves were able to trade with Castle Getaeus, but they were unable to complete the road that linked us directly together. It seemed they had put the anti-daemon alliance on hold.

Fortunately, we had Valbo on hand dealing with the repairs to the castle walls. Valbo was the head of a prominent house of architects, House Dauron. They had command over all building and construction projects in Axeholm.

My goal was to earn his trust.

The first words out of Valbo’s mouth were, “What a disaster! Singled out by the warrior clan!”

He spoke with sympathy. While it surely would have been different if I had been deemed a daemon, he seemed nonchalant about the fact that I had been under suspicion.

“I’m sorry I caused so many problems for all of you,” I said to Valbo. “At the very least, let me compensate you by adding a little bit extra to your fee.”

“Well!” Valbo laughed. “It’d be fine and noble of me to say ‘don’t worry about it,’ but alas, I’m not so noble as all that. If you’re handing out free money, I’d be a fool to refuse.”

He seemed to be in a good mood.

Our initial contract covered the repairs to the castle wall, and the work had already been completed. Once he received the compensation I offered for his inconvenience, he took a quick step back, like he intended to head home right away.

I had other ideas. “Let’s cut right to business. I want to talk about the road.”

“Hmm? Now that you mention it, I do remember you saying something about a road before. Weren’t you going to rustle up a pack of giants to help with the construction?”

There was no sense of condescension in Valbo’s expressive, bearded face. But he did seem to think that I’d been joking before. I suppose this kind of reaction is to be expected.

“Yeah. Tasks like clearing timber would certainly go a lot faster if we had the giants helping out. They can also aid with moving piles of earth. Eventually, I plan to have them take all the gathered lumber to Axeholm.”

“Lumber? We’d be mighty grateful…”

We’d reached the point where I needed to show him the real thing if the project was to move forward. Valbo frowned slightly as I took him out the castle gates to the empty field beyond. The other dwarves followed behind us.

I turned away from Valbo and the other dwarves, took a step forward and started to cast my spell.

“Open, Gate of Magic.”

Within my inner world, my imagined self stared intently at the black door that appeared before my eyes. The Gate of Magic.

“There it is…”

According to the warrior clan, this magic gate was the Epicenter that summoned daemons into the world. Before I’d learned that, this gate had been the cornerstone of my power as Geo Margilus, reliable and firm. Now it felt like a dark omen.

No…perhaps the way things turn out will be up to me. I won’t let this be the Epicenter for a daemonic host. This Gate of Magic is mine, and mine alone.

I needed to believe it. For Reyha, who bravely faced Lade’s greatsword. For all of my friends who rushed to my side to protect me. For Mora, who showed Lade’s fearsome warriors her hospitality. I had to make this true, for all of them.

Nevertheless, I went down the familiar spiral staircase more timidly than usual, soon arriving at the seventh-level spellbook archive. When the magical power bound in book form was released, my physical self finished casting the spell.

“As a consequence of this spell, I will create three forest giants in this space under my command for a duration of one hour. Create Monster.”

“Hmm? Huh?” The dwarves stared.

The air in front of us started to ripple, distorting light and space. On the other side of the distortions, giant shadows formed. The shadows wavered and gradually coalesced into beings of shape and color, almost human in their appearance.

“Whoa,” one dwarf shouted. “Whoa!”

“G-g-giants?!”

By the time those humanoid forms had completely materialized, the dwarves stared with eyes so wide that they looked like they might fall out of their sockets.

The giants were about seven meters tall, roughly the same height as a two-story home in Japan. They had strong bodies, leather clothes and armor, and firm, bearded jawlines. The spark of intellect glimmered in their eyes.

When the three forest giants stood shoulder to shoulder, the field looked very small indeed.

Valbo tugged at the hem of my robe, punctuating the astonishment of all the dwarves. “M-Master Margilus! What have you done?!”

“What manner of magic is this?” demanded another. “Some sort of conjury?”

“I cannae tell if I drank too much or drank too little…”

I could tell the dwarves were shaken. Some dropped to the ground, others went grabbing for their pickaxes, and a few started swigging alcohol from their flasks right then and there.

But… This was different, wasn’t it? I wasn’t threatening them, like when I’d dropped the meteor before the Calbanera Knights, or when I’d turned Shaup into a pig at the Adventurers’ Guild.

“They are forest giants,” I said, trying to come off both friendly and dignified. “They are magical beings that I created, and they will listen to whatever orders I give. They can also follow your instructions.”

The dwarves could hardly ask for better tools than these.

“Wh-what are you… Are you saying we should use these things for construction?!”

“Mm-hmm. If it would help, I can make six more right now. If you can wait until tomorrow, I can prepare as many as twenty-seven.”

The Rank 7 spell Create Monster was used just as its name implied. However, there were certain conditions limiting what monsters could be created. It wasn’t possible to make undead or other magical beings—only species that possessed no special powers.

The maximum number of monsters that could be created was limited by the level of the wizard. I was currently Level 36, so I could make, for example, thirty-six Level 1 monsters or four Level 9 monsters. Forest giants were Level 12. Convenient, since I could cast one spell and make three giants without any levels going to waste.

“As a consequence of this spell, I will extend the effective time of the monsters. Infinity!”

Next, it was time for the Rank 8 spell Infinity to shine.

Create Monster was an extremely convenient spell, but it only lasted for one hour. Luckily, Infinity allowed for that time to be extended. It lived up to its name by making low-level spells permanent, but when it came to high-level spells, it only dramatically extended their duration.

This would allow the three giants I created to last for an entire day.

The expressions on the forest giants’ faces said that they already knew their mission. They were carrying laborers’ equipment, not their usual weapons. Given their size, the equipment looked like it was capable of breaking down Castle Getaeus’s walls. When casting the spell, a wizard is able to make a few modifications like this, so it really was a convenient thing to have in my arsenal.

“I made sure they had pickaxes and shovels for clear-cutting the woods and leveling the earth. But if you need anything else, please let me know. I can change their tools tomorrow. …What’s the matter?”

“Ohhh… Wh-whoooa!”

Valbo was watching the three giants kneel respectfully before us. Then the shock in his voice gradually changed to laughter.

“Bwa ha ha! Ga ha ha! You’re absolutely evil, is what you are! You’ve called up giants to help us build a road, of all things! Evil! Wicked! Utterly depraved, I say!” Valbo looked up to me, his large eyes agleam with ambition. “Coming from a long line of architects, I can safely say that neither I nor my ancestors could dare to waste such massive tools on simple, everyday construction!”

Valbo lifted his fist, as if to scold the dwarves who were still cowering around him.

“We’ll do it like none other! The best construction! The fastest speed! The highest quality! And the cheapest price! We’ll make a bloody gorgeous highway all the way from Axeholm right to your castle gates. We’ll even connect the damned thing to the Lawful Way!” He turned and shouted a rallying cry to his fellow dwarves: “Dauron!”

The answer came fast and fierce. “Dauron! Dauron! Dauron!”

“Yeaaah!”

“Count us in, boss!”

This was exactly what I’d hoped for. I’d set their architectural hearts on fire.

Just like that, the architects of House Dauron became an important partner of Castle Getaeus.

***

The dwarves of House Dauron started working feverishly the very next day. One was in charge of surveying the land from Castle Getaeus to Axeholm. Another set about calculating the necessary materials and tools, while still another started planning how to transport those materials to the worksite. Naturally, they had someone busy drawing up plans and blueprints as well.

The dwarves were far more advanced than Sedia’s humans in civil engineering and metallurgy. They had the perfect mixture of passion and patience to endure the endless process of laying out a foundation.

They gave me a list of tools they needed me to prepare, which included a crane and an elevator, both of which required pulleys and gears.

Dwarves are awesome.

From their perspective, of course, it was “magic is awesome.” Seeing the strength of the forest giants working in conjunction with Create Earth, the dwarves were ecstatic. After pricing in the unique advantages offered by my spells, they estimated the highway would cost 600,000 gold coins and would take six months to finish. After three months, it would be passable enough to use. Using purely conventional techniques, it would have taken ten times as long.

The actual contract wouldn’t be drawn up until I traveled to Axeholm and got official permission to open a new trade route, but Valbo was too enthused to wait. He told me, “No matter what the governor says, we’re going to see this project to the end!”

Even at this foundational stage, the forest giants were being put to clever use. The dwarves had them start by clearing out a space in the forest for storing and transporting materials.

The seven-meter-tall giants could swing their axes and take down an adult tree in minutes. It would take a whole team of grown men to lift a tree once it fell, but a giant could manage it easily alone. Another giant picked up the felled trees and cut off the branches to make round logs. They completely removed all the roots left in the ground using a three-meter-long pickaxe, then used a shovel of the same size to fill in the hole and level the land.

Watching all of this unfold made me think about how such environmental destruction would cause a lot of anger in modern-day Japan.

The logs and branches were carefully stored for future export and sale in Axeholm. Some of them were also set aside for building temporary housing for the workers and providing fuel for the castle.

The skills of the nearby village proved vital in machining the logs and branches to increase their value as a commercial product. It also gave them a temporary boost to their income, so it was a win-win situation for everyone involved.

“Hey, Margilus! Lord Wizard! Look at this!”

Amid all the activity, Valbo found time to put together a proposal for me.

Instead of just building a highway, he suggested expanding the area around Castle Getaeus into a proper town.

***

“And just like that,” said Valbo, “We’d have a base where anyone could come to procure a whole heap of lumber, just four or five days away from Axeholm. Mark me, what you’ve got lying around in this courtyard would vanish into a dwarven wagon in seconds.”

“This is a great idea…”

I examined the blueprints that Valbo had presented to me so confidently.

The drawings laid out a plan to clear and flatten the area around the castle, and then build rows of inns, homes, and warehouses. This would all be contained inside a new outer castle wall, and the main tower and residential quarters of the existing keep would be expanded. It would basically turn the whole of Mount Farsight into a castle city ten times the fortifications’ original size.

According to the calculations detailed on the plans, the town would be able to accommodate one thousand residents and five hundred visitors at a time. The castle would be able to house a garrison of five hundred soldiers.

“Hmm …”

“Bwa ha ha! If I couldn’t build at least this much with the support you’re giving us, then I daresay my ancestors would disown me!”

“It truly is splendid, but…how much would this cost? How long would it take to build?”

Valbo stroked his beard. “If we can keep on using those giants, then it would go much faster… Right now, the people of Axeholm aren’t in a position to work freely, so let’s call it three years. But even if the giants sped up the job, the cost wouldn’t change much. We’d still need the same amount of stone and iron…so I reckon the cost would be…let’s see here…”

Hmm? Not in a position to work freely?

As I tilted my head to contemplate that comment, Valbo held up all five fingers of his thick, strong hand.

“500,000 gold coins?” I asked.

“Hah!” Valbo laughed. “Of course not! Try five million. Which includes the highway construction.”

That was no small sum of money…we were talking something in the neighborhood of fifty billion yen. Which wasn’t to say it was a terrible deal—in Japan, you’d probably struggle to build an entire town from scratch even at that price. But I didn’t have that kind of money just sitting around. Even my Infinity Bag had limits.

Naturally, I was already trying to think of a way I could get my hands on five million gold coins.

I didn’t really care about whether I lived in a big castle. But the first step in realizing my plan was to have my own base. A place from which I could gain the trust of the people in this world. It was obviously better to build it on the most solid foundation possible.

“If only we had a quarry somewhere conveniently close by…the right stone makes all the difference.”

I perked up. “Stone?”

With a single word, the dwarf had me excited all over again. But my idea involved the kind of cheating, rule-breaking exploit that would have any game master worth his salt calling foul.

***

“As a consequence of this spell, a stone wall five meters high, fifteen meters wide, and thirty centimeters thick will be created in a location in my line of sight. Wall of Stone!”

In the field outside the castle yard, I conjured up a seamless, unbroken wall of rock. Valbo was momentarily taken aback, but he immediately started hammering me with questions.

“Great galloping gadflies, Margilus! You really did pull a stone wall out of thin air! So you’re saying we should use this for building materials? But…won’t it disappear?”

I had already learned through my experiments at the Sorcerers’ Guild that sorcerers could create pillars of stone and ice using mana alone. But every single one of them lost its cohesion and returned to its original form in a short amount of time.

“Don’t worry,” I told Valbo. “Even though this wall was created out of magic, it won’t disappear. It will stay like this forever.”

“Really?!”

Valbo ran up to the stone wall and started pawing all over it. Dwarves had a strong tendency toward skepticism, but they could toss aside old beliefs rather quickly in the face of firm evidence.

“Wow, this here is good stuff! It’s a bit harder than I’d like, but there are no faults or variations in the stone at all! That does reduce the visual appeal a smidge, but it’s plenty durable, and we’ll be able to cut down on the machining time. Can you make as many of these stone walls as you want?!”

“I mean, there are limits…”

“Well, that makes sense…” Valbo stroked his beard. “If it’s just a small volume, then it won’t really affect the construction time that much…”

“Just nine times a day,” I said. “I can also make iron walls that are essentially the same, nine additional times a day.”

Valbo was agog. “Nine times?! And iron, too?!”

Wall of Stone and Wall of Iron were Rank 5 and Rank 6 spells respectively, so that meant a maximum of nine casts of each.

So…that meant if I used the spell consecutively, then I could build huge stacked-up masses of stone and iron. On peaceful days like this when I didn’t anticipate any battles, I was essentially a one-man mass-production machine.

I could even go straight to wherever the materials were needed to cast, so it would also reduce transportation costs and time. No, not reduce…more like practically eliminate.

Valbo grinned. “So I guess wizards are good for more than just breaking things.”

However, I imagined my little maneuver was conjuring up materials that we would otherwise have needed to procure from actual Sedian laborers. I doubted this project would cause any issues, but if I used magic as the solution to too many problems, it might have a negative effect on the local economy. I needed to be careful.

I suggested a few revisions to the plan. “First of all, the buildings in the town can be made of wood. We also don’t need to remodel the castle keep anytime soon.”

“I suppose we could always wait until there are more residents before we realize my master plan…”

Valbo and I discussed the details for a while before we came to a conclusion.

“We need one year. The cost will be three million gold coins.”

We settled on a plan that didn’t require me to be there all day, every day magicking up materials. I needed plenty of time to travel around as issues came up.

The budget would leave my pockets pretty much empty. Thankfully, I wouldn’t need to pay it all as one lump sum in advance, and if money got tight, I could always sell a few of my magic items.

The priority was construction of the highway, but the expansion work could still start within a few months.

“This isn’t final,” I cautioned Valbo. “I’ll still need to discuss the fine points of the contract with Ild when he returns.”

“What? Aren’t you the laird of the castle? Your word is law!”

“I’m not that kind of lord. I don’t rule by decree.”

It was only natural not to make a decision this massive all on my own.

***

Valbo rubbed his hands together fiendishly. “Eh heh heh. I’m dying to get started…”

He’d gone beyond euphoria into an entirely new and vaguely creepy level of enthusiasm. But I pulled his feet back to the ground for just a little while longer. “Sorry to keep interrupting, but I actually had something else to ask you about.”

This next concern was one near and dear to my heart. Specifically, I wanted to set up a proper bathhouse.

Valbo snapped right out of it. “I thought you were a human. You like baths?”

The humans of this world almost never soaked in a hot bath. They only bathed in cold water or wiped down their bodies with hot, damp cloths. I’d seen two public bathhouses in Relis, but they were generally reserved for the ill and the elderly.

On the other hand, dwarves worked and lived underground, and they tended to get very dirty. They also tended to come in contact with hot springs on a regular basis, so taking baths was an important habit in their culture. It was perfect.

“Of course,” I said. “Baths are important.”

“Yes! That’s exactly right!” Before I knew it, Valbo and I were vigorously shaking hands. “In that case, I’ll make sure there are one or two bathhouses worked into the plans. No additional charge! We just so happen to have plenty of lumber and stone for it. Can we use coal as the heat source?”

“Yes, by all means.”

Surprisingly, the dwarves were already using basic coal-fueled boilers. In addition, it seemed that they were also using “heavy fire-water” that bubbled out of the ground for light and fuel.

It was only a matter of time before they invented guns and steam engines…