The night Flam was ennobled, and after Emperor Reinhardt brought up the topic of proposed territories for me and Mana to receive, we were all excited about where to establish our domain.
“Isn’t Kobaldia Ruins, with the Treasure Tree, the perfect place for a tourist city?”
“But the Treasure Tree is in the center of the island. If we build the Lord’s Residence there, wouldn’t it be at the foot of the tree? Isn’t that a security risk?”
“And as an Academy City, there are positional issues, aren’t there?”
“Indeed.”
The territories we are considering are Kobaldia Ruins and Olden Island.
Kobaldia Ruins goes without saying, but Olden Island is a small island located quite close to Feel. However, it’s not along the established sea route between Glacian and Feel. It has no mines or resources whatsoever, and the monsters inhabiting it are mostly G-rank, so few people venture there. It’s mostly flat land, about 1.5 times the size of Feel, so in a way, it’s ideal for building a town.
“What do you two think, Yamato and Mana?”
“Considering tourism, I believe Kobaldia Ruins is the only option. As for the security of the mansion, I think we can build it a little distance away from the Treasure Tree, not right at its foot.”
“Even if we made it an Academy City, the transportation there would be inconvenient. I think it’s best to make Kobaldia Ruins a tourist city and Olden Island an Academy City.”
The bridge city ruins in the Libertà region have been destroyed beyond repair by the naval bombardment of Solemn’s Steam Battleships. Although we plan to dismantle them eventually, there are still residents. The reasons for their continued presence are varied, but the biggest is that neighboring bridge duchies cannot accept them. We have proposed relocation to more developed areas and have sent some people there, but others remain, wishing for the reconstruction of the bridge city. The reason for including the bridge city ruins as a candidate was partly out of consideration for these people.
However, even if the bridge city were to be rebuilt, the bridge itself would have to be dismantled first, and we don’t even know if we would build the same bridge again, so it’s doubtful that we could meet the residents’ wishes. Moreover, the bridge city ruins are located within neighboring bridge duchies, so granting them to us would mean a reduction in the territory of those duchies. We believe it would cause problems, making it natural to choose Olden Island, which is within the Amister territory, and Kobaldia Ruins, which was the imperial capital of Retisencia. One could also argue that rebuilding the bridge city is equivalent to establishing a new bridge duchy, and thus the bridge city ruins are merely being held by the bridge duchy.
Therefore, neither I nor Mana intend to receive the bridge city ruins. There are significant reasons behind our thinking.
“Well, I feel bad for the people living there now, but there’s no reason for us to take it as our territory.”
“Even if we were to rebuild, it would require dismantling first. Whether it’s a tourist city or an academy city, the bridge’s form would need to change significantly from its current state, which would likely present problems.”
“Precisely.”
I expect it would turn out as Prim and Lydia say.
“Then will Mana receive Kobaldia Ruins and Yamato receive Olden Island?”
“That’s what I’m thinking. However, we need to observe Kobaldia Ruins for a while longer, so development might not happen for several years.”
“We also need to see what’s happening with the monsters there, and most importantly, because of Saki. I think it’s okay to develop Kobaldia Ruins after Yuri graduates.”
“Ideally, I’d like to conquer the Varie Labyrinth before then.”
“If you’re saying that, then what about the Krater Labyrinth? Besides, no one is pregnant right now, so when Prim’s condition improves, shall we try it?”
For some time, we’ve only been entering labyrinths for simple investigations or material gathering. The biggest reason for this has been Mana’s pregnancy, followed by Prim and Flam giving birth last month. So, as Mana says, it might be a good idea to go conquer it once Prim has recovered… no, that’s not right. Both the Varie Labyrinth and the Krater Labyrinth are labyrinths that should be conquered early. However, the details of their depths are unknown, and we anticipate high-rank monsters to be rampant in both. Therefore, we shouldn’t hold back our forces. If we all go, then what about the children? After all, even our eldest daughter, Saki, is not yet one year old.
“I agree with the idea of going once Prim recovers, but I can’t permit you to suddenly go conquer a high-difficulty labyrinth.”
“Yes. Even after the postpartum period, rehabilitation requires several months. Until then, I cannot permit you to go conquering labyrinths as a healer.”
As expected, the healers, Mako and Yuri, were against it. It’s natural. Prim, in particular, had a very difficult labor because Tsubaki was in a breech position, and because of that, she sometimes develops a fever. So, she needs to first regain her health and then undergo rehabilitation by facing suitable monsters.
“If the healers are stopping us, then I suppose there’s nothing we can do.”
“Personally, I’d like to go right away.”
“If you push yourself too hard, it will be a disaster!”
“I know. That’s why I’ll properly rehabilitate myself and wait for permission before conquering.”
I sincerely hope you do.
“Getting back to the topic, is it decided that Fraydlancia Baronetcy will be Olden Island and Lapis Lazuli Heavenly Baronetcy will be Kobaldia Ruins?”
“We’ll decide after actually seeing the sites, but let’s go with that.”
“There will likely be monsters living there, so we’ll need to deal with that as well.”
Returning to the subject, let’s go and scout the candidate locations tomorrow. As Mina said, there’s a non-zero chance that monsters have settled there, and especially at the Treasure Tree in Kobaldia Ruins, anything is possible.
“But speaking of Kobaldia, Olden Island isn’t that far from Prada or Zack, but with the Brill Mountain Range, we can’t travel there by land, can we?”
“That’s probably why it’s been neglected until now.”
As Mako mentioned, Olden Island is only a little over a kilometer from the opposite shore. However, the reason it hasn’t seen any development is not just because of the tough monsters and lack of resources; the biggest reason is the terrible transportation access. The coastal areas of Amister are lined with the Brill Mountain Range, mountains reaching about 1,000 meters in elevation, and the coastline is all cliffs. With the opening of Prada Port, we can now launch ships, but until then, air travel was the only option. Moreover, there was no compelling reason to go there, so the island has been neglected for years by Amister, Valentia, and Alegria alike. I certainly wouldn’t have considered it as a territory if Prada Port hadn’t been opened. I even considered using an Engraving Divine Artifact to change the terrain.
“This also applies to Mylight, but how about we dig a tunnel?”
“No, that’s a possibility, but just digging a tunnel… Ah, are you suggesting we also build a bridge?”
“If you want to improve transportation, is there any other way?”
“Well, that’s true.”
For a moment, I didn’t understand what Mako was implying, but a tunnel is indeed a possibility. However, there are also problems.
Oh, a trivial note, but I looked it up in the dictionary for my Engraving Tool later, and in Japanese, a tunnel is called a ‘zui-do’ (隧道).
“A tunnel?”
“Ah, it’s a passage built through mountains or underground. You could say it’s an artificial cave.”
“It’s not necessarily straight, but it has the advantage of allowing us to avoid climbing mountains or building bridges. However, it needs to be properly reinforced, or there’s a risk of collapse.”
Everyone except me and Mako had question marks floating above their heads. But thinking back, the Helios Orb didn’t have tunnels either. In labyrinths, there are floors where you walk through passages underground, so perhaps imagining that is the quickest way to get them to understand.
“So, we dig a cave through the mountain and connect it to the other side. If that’s possible, it would greatly benefit not only Olden Island but also Feel. However, given the problem of monsters, isn’t it difficult to actually build one?”
“That’s the biggest drawback.”
As Mana says, that’s the biggest concern. Even if we dig a tunnel, it needs to be properly reinforced to prevent collapse, and we need to take measures to prevent monsters from entering. There’s also the possibility of it becoming a monster’s nest, and the thought of monsters that can dig through the ground suddenly appearing from within the tunnel is unbearable. In that case, changing the terrain might be a better option.
“Changing the terrain, huh?”
“Changing the terrain would also affect the surrounding ecosystem, wouldn’t it?”
“It would. Especially in Mylight, where Anormal Species and Catastrophe Species are increasing, they could potentially flood into the neighboring Count Turlmarina’s territory and the Grand Principality of Lichtenfels. While they are becoming easier to defeat, we can’t be sure how much damage they could cause.”
We have Ancient Class individuals who can defeat monsters up to around M-I rank on their own, but there are still fewer than fifty of them. Moreover, Mylight is now seeing an increase in monsters of M-I rank and above, and the low probability of encountering them simultaneously makes things troublesome. Therefore, changing the terrain of Mylight is currently a bad move.
“I understand why Mylight is not an option, but what about the Brill Mountain Range?”
“We don’t know the ecosystem of the Brill Mountain Range, so it’s better not to rush into anything. Also, if we do it, the impact should be minimized.”
I don’t want to cause environmental destruction, but if it must be done, I want to keep it to a minimum. Alternatively, we could enchant the tunnel with magic to prevent monsters from entering. However, in any case, we first need to decide whether to make Olden Island our territory.
“So, tomorrow I’ll go see Olden Island, and if it looks good, I’ll check the terrain of the Brill Mountain Range as well.”
If we build a tunnel, we’ll have to monitor both entrances to prevent monsters from entering, and take measures to stop monsters that can dig from advancing into the tunnel. None of this can be done overnight, and depending on the terrain, collapsing the mountain might be faster and cause less environmental damage. Of course, whether it can actually be done, and how long it would take, is another matter. However, if Olden Island becomes the Fraydlancia Baronetcy, we want to secure land access if possible. Therefore, we need to thoroughly inspect the Brill Mountain Range and confirm if it’s feasible. After that, we’ll report to Emperor Reinhardt and make a tentative decision. Development will likely not begin for several months due to monster subjugation.
