Chapter 103 - Forge

It took about an hour to not only wake up the unconscious dwarven craftsmen but also to calm them down.

"Didn't Gazel tell you that you'd be making a monster nation?" Rimuru raised a brow, watching as the dwarves occasionally stared at the fair Onis and Kijins in front of them.

Kaijin stepped forward, as if to act as the representative of all the dwarves. "My apologies, Rimuru-sama. We were informed that we would be building a monster nation, but..." His voice trailed off as he glanced at the monsters clearing the area and the ones waiting for orders.

"But?" Rimuru prompted.

"Seeing a Kijin, which were said to be born rarely from ogres, is very surprising. And yet... fair Onis, creatures we have only heard of in myths and legends, are standing before us—clearing boulders, chopping trees, and waiting for our instructions," Kaijin continued, his voice wavering as he imagined the scene.

"Don't worry yourself, dwarf. Lord Rimuru has already given us orders to follow your lead. You don't have to be afraid of us, I swear it as the chief," Benimaru reassured Kaijin.

"Oh, Benimaru," Rimuru said, "This is Kaijin. He'll be the main dwarf in charge of the construction."

Benimaru raised his hand for a handshake. Kaijin's hand shook as he reciprocated the gesture.

"Just tell us what needs to be done," Benimaru continued. "The goblins and ogres can handle basic labor, the Kijins can take on more rigorous tasks, and the Fair Onis... well, there are only about 15 of us, so you can allocate us freely. I suggest using us to clear the area of monsters and to guard the surroundings while the rest are working."

Rimuru nodded at Benimaru's words. "Benimaru, make sure to help Kaijin manage everyone. I'll try to recruit some more people—other than the dwarves—for the construction."

"Ah, Rimuru-sama!" Kaijin raised his hand as if trying to stop him. Unfortunately, Rimuru had already disappeared before his voice could finish.

With a sullen expression, Kaijin felt a hand land on his shoulder. "Don't mind him, Kaijin. Lord Rimuru has always been like that. We, and all the other races in the forest, understand how you feel and have gotten used to it," Benimaru said with a sympathetic smile. A muscular hobgoblin beside him nodded in agreement.

With a sigh, Kaijin began to focus on his work. "For now... could Sir Benimaru give me the number of everyone available for labor, as well as a place to start planning for the construction?"

"Got it. Rigurd, can you guide them to the ogre village for now? The chief's house is big enough to fit more than 20 people for a meeting in the main room."

Benimaru's words were followed by a bow from the muscular hobgoblin, Rigurd, who began leading the dwarves to their destination.

"Right this way, Kaijin-dono," Rigurd gestured, and all the dwarves followed him.

After setting their belongings inside the house, Kaijin instructed Myrd, the leader of the construction team, to go and survey the site and create a rough plan based on the blueprint given to them by their king.

Rigurd arrived at the house with some rough papers, which had been used by the ogre village. "These are the materials we currently have. The lumber is unprocessed, stacked near the south of the village, and the rocks are placed a certain distance away from it."

Kaijin nodded as he scanned the materials, his mind working quickly to assess how much of it could be used. He needed to see it for himself.

Before he could head out of the chief's house to inspect it, Benimaru arrived. "Ah, were you going somewhere?" In his hand was a list, seemingly meant to be presented to Kaijin.

Kaijin answered truthfully, "I want to see the state of the materials everyone has harvested from clearing the forest."

Benimaru smiled and stepped back, making way for him. "I'll give you the report on the labor force while we head over there."

Kaijin nodded, and along with ten other dwarves, they began walking out of the village.

Seeing this as a sign to start, Benimaru began his report. "Currently, we have more than 28,000 hobgoblins. Keep in mind, this is only a fraction of the goblin population in the forest, which numbers in the hundreds of thousands."

Kaijin halted in his tracks, shocked. He turned to Benimaru, checking to see if he was joking or lying. Benimaru couldn't help but smile at his reaction. "A large number for a weak race? Well, that's because they face few threats—strong monsters only come once in a blue moon, giving them time to repopulate."

"No, it's not that... it just blows my mind that they've all been named," Kaijin stammered, still processing the information.

"Well," Benimaru began, averting his gaze slightly as though trying to ignore the absurdity of the situation, "That's just because our Lord is that strong."

Kaijin shook his head in disbelief. Benimaru cleared his throat and continued. "The ogres number just under a thousand, specifically in the nine hundreds. The Kijins are about 150, which is a lot considering their low fertility rate, even though we started with less than a hundred when we integrated over a thousand years ago. And as I mentioned before, including me, there are 15 Fair Onis. Just a warning—aside from me, all of them are at least a thousand years old. Only Lord Rimuru and Lady Velgrynd can speak to them informally. Even I make sure to be respectful, as they are my elders. But they do follow my words, so it's mostly mutual respect."

Kaijin nodded profusely. He had never imagined disrespecting someone he had only heard of in myths and legends.

They finally arrived at the materials site, and Kaijin gestured for the dwarves to follow him and begin reviewing the resources. "Sir Benimaru, could you ask the hobgoblins and ogres to help us segregate these materials?"

Benimaru raised his hand, and nearby ogres and hobgoblins, who had been bringing more materials, immediately moved toward him. "Have some hobgoblins and ogres help them carry those." At his command, the monsters nodded in unison.

As others began to help the dwarves, more monsters returned to the task of gathering and segregating the materials, while additional creatures were brought in to assist with the labor.

Kaijin, with a focused mind, began inspecting the lumber. "Hm, this is good. Ah, this one isn't durable—we can use it as firewood. As for the rocks, we may find ores and common minerals among them." He issued instructions to the others.

Turning to Benimaru, who was watching him intently, Kaijin asked, "Sir Benimaru, do we even have any type of minerals suitable for metalwork and blacksmithing?"

Benimaru smirked. "Of course, we have professional blacksmiths as well. About half of the ogres and a few thousand hobgoblins are mining right now, with Lord Rimuru's permission."

"Is it that mountain?" Kaijin asked, pointing at the nearest peak visible from their position.

"That one too is a source we usually mine from, but further out is where the others are working," Benimaru replied.

"I see. A mining spot that hasn't been touched in at least two thousand years," Kaijin said, almost feeling dizzy at the thought of what could be harvested from such an untouched source.

Benimaru nodded, confirming his words. Thanks to Rimuru's declaration that the forest was his territory, only those who willingly submitted to him were allowed to live within it. No one else was permitted to touch its natural resources. The only materials that could be taken were those from the very borders of the forest, which Rimuru might overlook.

"Benimaru-sama!" Rigurd's voice called out, gaining the attention of both Kaijin and Benimaru.

"What is it, Rigurd?"

Halting in front of Benimaru, Rigurd noticed Kaijin and turned to them. "The first batch of minerals and ores mined by the team has returned. I wanted to inform you and inspect it with Kaijin-dono."

Kaijin's eyes lit up at the news. He quickly turned to the other dwarves who were organizing the lumber and rocks. "Continue your work; I'll be back."

With that, the three of them made their way toward the eastern part of the village, where the minerals were being carried.

"To think I would see this much magical ore, aside from the large warehouses in Dwargon. And this is only the first batch?" Kaijin's tone was filled with astonishment and exasperation at the enormity of what he had gotten himself into.

Benimaru scanned the minerals. "Good, the iron, copper, lead, silver, and many others are all high quality. Have Kurobe's team start smelting them for use. Kaijin, have some of the dwarves who know how to smelt join them. While we have a considerable number of blacksmiths, we don't compare to professionals."

Kaijin, momentarily entranced by the sight of the ores, snapped back to attention. "Understood, Sir Benimaru. We can also use this as an opportunity to teach others basic blacksmithing skills to increase production for later."

Rigurd clasped his hands together. "I see. Then I'll have those willing to learn blacksmithing come later. We've managed to set up an open, basic blacksmithing area that can fit 10 to 15 blacksmiths."

Kaijin stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Since it's in an open area, we can have those willing to learn watch closely. Make sure the proper fuel for smelting is ready, along with the molds."

"Right, understood!" Rigurd nodded enthusiastically before running off to begin his work.

"He seems very reliable and diligent with his work," Kaijin murmured, watching Rigurd rush around. Considering the expansion and clearing of the area, there was a great distance between each location, and even a normal person would sweat from such exertion.

"This is our first major order from Lord Rimuru. Not just him, everyone here is eager to be useful to our Lord," Benimaru said with a smile. He then turned to the monsters who were bringing the minerals and ores.

"Have those brought to the makeshift open blacksmithing spot. Set it near, but not too close to the workplace." The ogres nodded and began carrying the larger rocks, while the hobgoblins took care of the smaller ones.

They didn't carry the materials with their bare arms. Instead, they used baskets woven from durable materials, specifically designed for this situation. Fortunately, the ogre village had many such containers, owing to their history of gathering ores.

At the peak of the day, the rhythmic sound of metalwork filled the air. The clanging of hammers against anvils came almost in unison as more than ten blacksmiths worked tirelessly, refining the minerals collected from the smelted ores.

The dwarves, fully focused on the refinement of the molded metals, carefully turned them into usable materials for the foundation of the structures planned for construction. Meanwhile, the ogres and kijins, who were also skilled in blacksmithing, were tasked with smelting every piece of ore that had been gathered.

Each group worked in its own separate area, ensuring their efforts didn't interfere with one another. Even the apprentices—goblins and ogres alike—who were supporting both departments while learning, made sure to stay out of the way, diligently tending to their tasks without causing disruption.

Kaijin stood by, watching the activity with a thoughtful expression. "The clay seems good," he murmured, then turned to the hobgoblin next to him. "Tell Rigurd to take those and have the hobgoblins start the production of bricks."

The hobgoblin nodded respectfully, then hurried off to deliver the message. Kaijin continued to observe as several woven containers were filled with clay, the earth's rich, raw material. "With this many hobgoblins working, it makes sense that another thousand were sent out to gather other materials. The steady flow of clay from the Hobs coming and going will give us enough for both bricks and pottery."

Benimaru, standing nearby, surveyed the area where several kilns were nearing completion. His eyes glinted with approval as he turned to Kaijin. "Start the creation of the bricks. With this steady supply, we can begin production immediately."

The hobgoblins had begun using the cleared area to lay out the bricks, molded from clay, to dry. In less than half an hour, hundreds of bricks were scattered across the ground, left to dry and be processed in the nearby kiln.

"While it may feel like cheating..." Kaijin murmured with a wry smile, watching the kijins carefully work on the bricks shaped by the hobgoblins. "I guess it can't be helped, considering the scale of the construction."

The process they had adopted was methodical. First, the hobgoblins would mold the clay into brick shapes, carefully placing them on the ground. More than a hundred hobgoblins worked simultaneously, quickly filling the once cleared area with neatly arranged, wet clay bricks, all awaiting their next phase of preparation.

Once the ground was covered, the kijins took over. With their precision and mastery of mystic arts, they summoned cool, soft winds to dry the bricks. The air flowed gently but steadily, ensuring the bricks dried evenly without cracking or losing their shape. The kijins' concentration was absolute, their expertise evident in the careful attention to each brick.

After several minutes of steady work, the dried bricks were collected by another group of hobgoblins, who transported them to the large kilns. There, more kijins stood ready, adjusting the temperature of the flames and focusing their mystical energy to accelerate the baking process. They carefully regulated the heat, ensuring each brick reached the perfect temperature in a matter of minutes, speeding up the process without sacrificing quality.

Once the baking was complete, which took only a few minutes at most, yet another group of hobgoblins collected the finished bricks. They were moved to a separate clearing, away from the drying area. In this new space, another set of kijins was ready to cool the bricks, using their control over temperature and air currents to gently bring the freshly baked bricks to room temperature without causing any stress or cracking.

"Cheating it may be," Benimaru placed his hand on Kaijin's shoulders. "But we are being efficient."

Kaijin could not argue with that. "I'll have Myrd start laying the foundations."

The very next day, Rimuru finally returned to the construction site. "Hey everyone, I brought some help!" he announced, holding a woman by the hand as he made his way through the bustling area.

Benimaru, Kaijin, and even Rigurd all tilted their heads in unison, their eyes narrowing as they tried to figure out who the woman was. They had never seen her before, and her presence was certainly intriguing.

As Rimuru approached, Velgrynd, sensing his return, gracefully walked over to meet him. "I thought you said you'd be going to Ramiris?" she asked, arching an eyebrow at the sight of the familiar woman. "Why do you have Kagali with you?"

Rimuru flashed a mischievous grin, clearly enjoying the surprise he was causing. "I did go to Ramiris, look," he said, gesturing behind him with a sweep of his hand. In an instant, over a hundred Dryads appeared, materializing out of thin air, their forms shimmering as they arrived in the clearing.

Velgrynd paused for a moment, her eyes scanning the newly arrived Dryads with mild disbelief.

Rimuru continued, "Ramiris said she'd be more than happy to live here, and these are her contributions to help speed things along. She's really excited about this, can't wait to get started." He grinned.

Kagali, still held by Rimuru's hand, sighed heavily, muttering under her breath, "I am starting to get a headache already... Why did I agree to this?"

A/N: So, not much to say in this one. The production of the capital city is underway. And it won't be named Tempest.