Chapter 65.2
Chapter 65: That time when I had an in-island adventure Part 5
TL: kizen
ED: Filip/Gecko
After crawling out of the earthen Kamakura, I added some dry gra.s.s and twigs to the still-smoldering campfire to light it again in order to lightly roast some dried meat .
I don’t have any more bread because of the incident with Facil’s family yesterday but since I can’t really do anything about that which I do not have, I took the wheat I kneaded the night before, tore it into bits, then flatten those smaller pieces on the top of my palm . After that, I added some olive oil into the frying pan and cooked it to make some kind of chapati or naan with what I had . Once it was done, I put out the fire then left the camp .
「Ahー, I’m feeling so sluggish . That family’s interesting but it makes me tired trying to deal with themー」
Just as I said that I noticed a shadow on the ground so I looked up and saw Facil coming towards me .
「This is from mom to thank you for yesterday!」
Facil opened a small bag that contained lots of unknown seeds . They all look the same so they’re probably from the same plant .
「She said that those will grow into the red flowers you see around here . Those flowers are really pretty once they grow you know?」
「Tell her I said thanks . I’ll go and visit you guys next time」
If things continue like this, this cycle of repayment will never end . I’d like to be spared from getting given gifts of grat.i.tude for every little thing I do .
While I was thinking about that, I heard a voice coming from behind .
「Oh my, those are my seeds, aren’t they?」
「Whaー! Who are you?」
「Such a noisy child, isn’t she? I’m Fleur」
「Can I eat it?」
She asked that while looking at me with her round and cute eyes .
「You can’t since it’s poisonous」
Only a little bit though, and it just affects the tongue .
「Poison!? Caam! Get away! It’s dangerous!」
Fleur-san looked at me coldly after seeing that reaction .
「No, it’s fine . It’s also alright to touch it, see? That’s why you should talk to her gently, okay?」
「O-okay…… Good morning」
She started timidly but it was obvious that she was sullen about her greeting .
「Anyway, this girl’s name is Facil」
「I know that much you know? She’s always full of energy, flying all over the island . I heard your parents calling you a while ago you know?」
Scary as always, huh?
「I-I’ll go home then!」
She decided to go home to run away from Fleur .
「So? What should I do with these seeds?」
「Make a deep hole on some well-draining soil using your finger then put three seeds in it」
「Gotcha」
「Make sure to get our numbers up okay?」
After saying that, she went back . Before she left though, without her even saying anything, I dropped a 【Water Ball】 on her roots .
「Haa」
I couldn’t help but sigh . It’s still morning so why am I already tired?
While I was thinking that, I took a glance at the growing shrubbery and noticed a large, white coc.o.o.n . I thought nothing of it at first but immediately did a grand double take once I realized what that was .
I’m pretty sure I’ve only seen those in silk-making videos .
It was pretty big . It looks like those 4 liter sake PET bottles you can buy in convenience stores .
To be honest, I got gooseb.u.mps when I thought there was still larva in it so I just decided to take the entire branch it was on .
I could already see the beach at the distance so I thought about going back but I heard something that was bubbling nearby so I tried to check it out and found a swamp that was steaming .
『Oi oi oi…… Why is this island so convenient?』
I wondered why there was a hot spring so close to the coastline but thought that there must be acc.u.mulated magma below that’s heating the underground water . Un, let’s just go with that!
The tiredness I felt before was blown away in an instant upon finding the hot spring .
The first thing I did was gather all of the mud with my magic and then threw it far away . Once I had a hole that was reasonably sized, I started digging up the stones and laid them on the bottom while making it as flat as possible . After filling up the holes with the sand I got from the beach, I stripped naked and waited for the water to fill up .
It’s close to the sh.o.r.e and it’s at the south side of the island so it will take about four hours to get here from the base by carriage once we’re done connecting the roads .
I thought it would be impossible to have a facility like this since the one we had was in the mountains but now we can just build it here .
I was thinking about how to utilize this hot spring effectively as I waited but I couldn’t stand it anymore so I went in the water even though it was still half full and soaked myself in the hot water while looking at the sea .
I’m having the most luxurious experience right now, aren’t I!
I also need to make sure that we have a proper drainage for this place but with the sea this close, it might be better to directly drain it there . I wonder if I can use sand to filter the not so safe to drain byproducts from going to the sea?
Well, I can just think about that later . After I was done soaking, I stored the image of this hot spring into my memory so I can transfer here later then started walking towards the beach . I guess I should also explore the southeastern side while I’m at it .
I kept walking till it was close to noon but there were only gra.s.slands, some shrubbery, olive trees, and a couple of hot springs here and there .
Earlier, when I was walking directly south and found that hot spring, I got excited and regained my strength thinking it was a rare find, but it completely backfired because it was not the case .
『I guess it’s true that the rarer an object is, the more you want it . Even more so since this is an uninhabited island so you’ll want it more since you’ll think it’s even more valuable . 』
While I was thinking about that as I mumbled my complaints, it was already evening . I saw something that looked like a large forest further east from where I was but since it was already late, I just pierced a stick on the sand and used that as my landmark so that I can transfer back before going home .
「I’m backー . Haa, I’m tired . Ah, here you go, some olives . I think I’ve seen it turned into oil in town so please use it . I’ll give you the instructions on how to do it later」
As I said, I handed the olives to one of the women nearby then went to my house and started writing about the island in j.a.panese .
(Italizice)
Note: The sun rises from the east .
East side:
• Has an inlet .
• Has a forest with plenty of wild animals, herbs, and wild vegetables .
• Going into the forest from our temporary base near the sea, which we plan to eventually move out from, you can find the former Demon Lord’s castle construction site .
• Going even further, there is a large lake which seems to be boiling hot since there’s no water flowing down from the mountain to cool it .
The mountains:
• There is a hot spring in the middle and Harpies residing near the summit . I hope to continue having a good relations.h.i.+p with that tribe .
Northern side:
• Since the island has an oval shape, it’s relatively quicker to reach the beach on this and the southern side .
• Has a couple of cacao trees .
• The forest on this side is quite dense so it’s necessary to cut down some trees to improve the ambiance of the place as we build the roads .
• Has plenty of goblins . 1
Southern side:
• As stated above, it’s a shorter trip from the mountain to the coastline . I found olive trees on this side so we can now produce oil .
• There was a hot spring near the coast so it would probably be a good idea to set up a public bathhouse or tourist attraction as well as some lodging facilities to accommodate the merchants we’ve been trading with .
• There were only a few gra.s.s-covered plains and forests there so after establis.h.i.+ng the roads, we can use the free s.p.a.ce to cultivate wheat and potatoes . It might be a good idea to start growing beans after that so that we can turn them into our secondary industry .
• We might also be able to start silk production because of the huge coc.o.o.n I found in one of the bushes in that area . It still needs investigation though . We could just sell the yarn in the worst-case scenario but it would still be better if we hire some weavers to turn it into cloth .
West side:
• The coffee that the harpies brought came from this side .
*Important consideration 1*: With the help of Palma-san, we can do plant cuttings of those trees closer to our base and let them grow to a more manageable height .
*Important consideration 2*: The forest is surprisingly large so it may be necessary for us to do something to improve the accessibility of the area .
Remarks:
• There are lakes in the east, southwest, and northwest parts of the island . The conditions of those lakes have not yet been confirmed .
• There are aquatic demonkin living near the island so I was thinking of also maintaining a good relations.h.i.+p with them but because the bad deeds of the previous Demon Lord left a bad impression on them, we kinda started off on the wrong foot .
• There are also honey bees that we’ve been hosting in the apiary .
-It seems like they have a queen bee but I haven’t seen her yet .
-I’ve been told that they don’t have individual consciousness so they are all called “Honey Bee” .
• I’m not sure if they’re plant-based monsters or apparitions but we also have Palma-san the coconut dryad and Fleur-san the hibiscus flower alraune .
– It seems like all the palm trees and red flowers are part of their offshoots and they are capable of parallel thinking so they can appear in whichever plant they choose .
– The alraune was able to identify each plant’s number so it’s possible that she knows every single flower under her influence . 2
– These two are useful when it comes to botanical knowledge so I need to make sure not to make them our enemy .
• There was a quarry built close to the construction site of the Demon Lord’s castle but there might be other places where we can extract stone from that we have yet to discover, so the total number of quarries on this island is still unknown .
• I still haven’t fully explored the coastline so I don’t know what else is there but I’ve walked the beach that goes along the southern and eastern edges and found that there’s a shoal in the bay so it’s most probably impossible to set that area as a mooring location for large s.h.i.+ps .
– If we actually do establish a lodging facility at the hot spring area in the south, it may be necessary to flatten that ridge with magic so that we can build a pier . A wharf may be more reliable when it comes to defending the place but this also requires me to consult with the others .
*Important*: A dragon might be living near the crater . If anything happens, consult the princ.i.p.al immediately or ask him for advice the next time I go back to the village .
Note: Merchant s.h.i.+ps pa.s.s by the island once every three days . I have heard that the nearest Demonkin continent takes six days to reach from here but it’s still unclear how far the nearest human continent is .
Current objectives:
• Move settlement to the former Demon Lord’s castle construction grounds .
• Once the buildings have been completed, recruit medical staff then gather religious people after that .
• Recruit emigrants, build shops, and spread currency on the island .
Hmmー, was that all of it? We still don’t have a lot of people so it’s not necessary to establish a currency but I want the development of this island to reach that point . We haven’t been here for that long so it’s good that we haven’t had to deal with any illnesses or injuries but I definitely want to secure some medical personnel for when the inevitable comes .
As for the religious people, since most of the islanders are human, I should probably go with their faith . I still need to hear everyone’s opinions about that but based on the stories I heard from G.o.d and Johnson-san from the apartments in Aegirine, it seems like they believe humans to be the greatest and the Demonkin inferior to them . If that’s the case then I should bring an open-minded religious figure then . Should I go to one of the big churches to talk with them or maybe just find a newbie priest since they would probably be more flexible than the old farts .
I wonder if I can recruit medical personnel who are just sc.r.a.ping by from clinics operating near the slums? It’s unlikely that I’ll find religious figures and doctors who are slaves after all .
Even if a religious figure ends up as a slave, they’re probably in that situation due to corruption or something, right? There may be doctors who have become slaves because they weren’t able to pay taxes due to the lack of patients but it would be better if I don’t get my hopes up .
「Ou, Caam . Food’s ready」
I was brought back to reality by the sound of the dog-eared old man’s voice .
「Okayー . I’ll be right there . Also, please knock before you enterー」
「I did . I did it several times . What were you even writing?」
「It’s a diary . Even if it’s you old man, you’re not allowed to read it」
「I don’t have that kind of hobby . Anyway, what’s that white thing?」
「Ah, probably the larva of a moth . I’m thinking of trying to boil this to see if I can get the thread」
「Yuck, we’re about to eat so stop talking about that」
As for our dinner that night, we had salted fish that was fried using olive oil .
~Idle Talk~
The women who were happy with the oil .
A: 「This is an olive? That’s what he called it right?」
B: 「Yeah」
C: 「What should we do with this? I’ve only seen it when it’s already in bottles after all」
Wild Herb Leader-san 「Oil would come out if you crush it inside of a cloth and squeeze it」
A: 「Is that really how you do it?」
Wild Herb leader-san「Yes . It can also restore the moisture if you apply that to your hair and skin」
B: 「R-really? Maybe I should try it if we have some extra」
C: 「M-me too」
Wild Herb Leader-san 「That’s right . We’ve been doing a lot of fieldwork recently so I want to put some on my hands」
A: 「That is if there’s still some left though」
Wild Herb-san 「Then let’s just apply it to the most important areas for now . For me, I’ll have to go with my hands I guessー」
B: 「I wonder if I should put some on my arms since they’ve been feeling rough and dry lately」
C: 「I’ll put it on my hair . It’s already frizzy because of the salty sea breeze」
A: 「Hmmー, maybe I’ll apply it to my face」
~A few days later~
The men group
「The women are glowing a lot more recently」
「That’s true」
Kitsune 「Well, it’s good that the women are doing things to be more beautiful . Having healthy skin is also nice」
「Well, yeah but are you the type who’s fine with any woman?」
Kitsune 「I won’t go for someone too young or too old . It would be a different story if they’re a young-looking elf who’s over 500 years old though! I’d welcome it even!」
「What the heck are you saying with a face like that? You would look cooler if you just keep your mouth shut a bit」