The Fourteenth Floor is the floor where goblins, led by Sol, are establishing their base.
When Sol evolved to the point where he could speak, I even taught him farming techniques.
Kousuke, currently accompanied by Kouhi, had come to see the state of the Fourteenth Floor.
“Wow, haven’t the fields expanded quite a bit?”
Centered around the base where the goblins’ homes, the foundation of their lives, were located, the fields had expanded more than when I had seen them before.
The crops they were cultivating were primarily root vegetables.
“Yes. Perhaps because we are obtaining crops in addition to the meat from summons, we are able to live stably.”
Initially, I thought that starting farming would reduce the amount of meat obtained from summons, but that was not the case.
Rather, by being able to consume both meat and root vegetables, the goblins, who had a gaunt image, appeared to have gained a little weight.
However, from Kousuke’s perspective, it was only a slight change compared to before, but according to Sol, it was a big one.
Although it was hard to relate when Sol, whose appearance had completely approached that of a human, said it.
“Are you properly dealing with issues like continuous cropping?”
Since the crops being grown were root vegetables, mainly potatoes, continuous cropping would cause problems.
This was the same even for the land within the tower.
This had been thoroughly confirmed when the production department of Crown began producing crops on the Fifth Floor.
Kousuke had conveyed this to the goblins.
“Yes. Since we don’t have many companions yet, we are dealing with it by creating fallow land.”
The one who answered was the person in charge of farming, who had recently evolved into a boy.
The goblins had a pyramidal command structure with Sol at the apex.
“Fallow land, huh? Won’t that eventually become insufficient?”
“I was concerned about that as well, but it seems their physiology has changed from being highly prolific due to changes in their diet.”
“Oh, really?”
Kousuke was surprised by this unforeseen phenomenon.
“We are still confirming it, but I believe it is almost certain. Previously, they would have four or five offspring per birth, but now one or two is normal.”
“Isn’t it simply because their lives have stabilized?”
The boy nodded in response to Kousuke’s question.
“Yes. That’s also a possibility. However, they were highly prolific when they were stably obtaining only meat, so our current view is that their diet is likely also a contributing factor.”
“I see.”
Kousuke nodded, inwardly impressed by the convincing reason.
Before their evolution, the goblins showed almost no intelligence, but he could feel that they had gained enough intelligence to think things through properly by the time they evolved into boys.
Of course, there were individual differences in the level of intelligence gained, but it was certain that it would increase significantly for Sol and others.
***
After discussing crops, we moved on to discuss combat.
I had given them a full set of iron equipment at Sol’s request, but they hadn’t asked for any more since the initial request.
Kousuke, who had been curious, wanted to confirm this.
“What about the weapons you use in battle? I haven’t given you any more since the last time, have I?”
Even if they were maintaining them properly, it had been nearly ten years since they were given.
It wouldn’t be strange if they had reached their limit by now.
Another boy stepped forward and answered this.
“Actually, we have started producing ironware at our base, so we are using equipment from there.”
“…Huh?!”
Kousuke, who had not expected this at all, let out a surprised cry.
He involuntarily glanced at Kouhi, who had accompanied him.
“There’s no way we taught them that, me or Mitsuki.”
Possessing iron weapons meant an increase in danger.
Naturally, the goblins, who were their familiars, would not attack Kousuke.
However, it also meant that other members might become hesitant to approach them carelessly.
That was why I had taught them farming, but not blacksmithing.
At Kouhi’s words, the boy shook his head.
“We did not learn the manufacturing method from your companions, Kousuke-sama.”
“Eh? Then how?”
Kousuke tilted his head, wondering how they had started iron production.
“Just as we gained the knowledge of language when we evolved, we also gained the knowledge regarding iron refinement.”
It turned out that the boy himself had gained the knowledge regarding iron refinement.
At this point, Sol interjected.
“Originally, I should have spoken to you, Kousuke-sama, but it’s only recently that we started, and you don’t come here often…”
Sol said apologetically, his words trailing off, and Kousuke nodded with understanding.
Sol and the goblins were not given the authority to use the teleportation gate freely.
If they wanted to start something new, they would have to wait for Kousuke to arrive, and who knew when that would be.
In fact, they had possessed the knowledge immediately after evolving, but they had neglected it because they didn’t understand what iron was.
Through a brief conversation, they learned it was the same material as the weapons bestowed by Kousuke, and after consulting with Sol, they began iron production.
Sol also wanted to consult with Kousuke beforehand, but due to the possibility of failure and the uncertainty of when Kousuke would arrive, he had started it unilaterally.
“Hmm. I see.”
Kousuke nodded outwardly with a calm expression.
However, he had not expected the goblins to start iron production on their own.
He learned that there was a mine containing iron on the Fourteenth Floor, and they were obtaining iron from there.
The problem was whether the goblins, who had independently acquired iron weapons, would be alright.
Judging from Sol’s expression, he seemed to be aware of this problem.
His expression showed determination.
Kousuke stared at Sol’s face and made a decision.
“If that’s the case, you should try to develop it yourselves.”
As soon as Kousuke said this, Sol’s expression clearly relaxed.
The goblins’ iron refinement was still in its early stages, so most of the weapons were primitive.
Nevertheless, iron was iron, and it was said to fulfill its role as an iron weapon.
“Our current goal is to make them last as long as possible.”
The boy in charge of production said with a smile.
***
After hearing the unexpected report from the goblins, Kousuke returned to the Management Layer with Sol.
Sol, who had been told to come to the Management Layer, had a look of resolve on his face.
Perhaps he sensed Kouhi’s mood.
“You don’t need to be so nervous. Kouhi, don’t make that face either. I gave my permission.”
“That may be so, but the fact that this is a post-report is a problem.”
This was a matter related to weapons.
It would be too late if a major incident occurred.
However, Kousuke smiled and replied to Kouhi.
“Well, that’s certainly a problem, but I prioritized the fact that they started thinking and doing things on their own.”
For Kousuke, he was interested in the goblins starting to think for themselves and developing something akin to a culture.
He did not want to nip that bud if possible.
Besides, there was Sol’s expression.
“Sol, you considered the worst-case scenario and gave them permission, didn’t you?”
“Yes. In the worst case, I was prepared for the possibility of incurring Kousuke-sama’s wrath and being wiped out.”
“Yeah. As long as Sol has that resolve, I’ve decided it’s alright.”
Kousuke decided to have the goblins manage their own village from this point on.
That was why he had brought Sol to the Management Layer.
“I will entrust the goblin village to Sol. It will be treated the same as the other villages.”
He had brought Sol here to grant him the authority to freely enter and exit the Management Layer.
“So that’s what it is.”
Kouhi nodded with understanding.
Conversely, Sol looked surprised.
Seeing this, Kousuke smiled at Sol and said,
“You don’t need to overthink it. If there are any problems, you can come here.”
“Y-yes!”
Sol replied happily to Kousuke’s words.
“Is that alright?”
After Sol left, Kouhi asked.
“If problems arise, we can just close off the floor. Besides, what could happen even if the goblins obtained good weapons?”
“It wouldn’t be a problem even if they had weapons made by humans.”
Kouhi replied to Kousuke’s question.
It was a decision born from the conviction that they could completely suppress any major problems if they arose.
Furthermore, he was curious to see what would happen when monsters built something resembling a civilization.
From this day forward, the goblin village on the Fourteenth Floor would undergo a major shift in direction.
The goblin village has begun to develop civilization lol (probably).
Since language was also given to them arbitrarily, I decided to allow them to handle ironware as well, for convenience’s sake.
The author also doesn’t know what will happen to the goblin village in the future (Oops).
