I listen to the rough distribution of tasks in the king’s chamber.
Well, I had a general idea beforehand.
Mastema and I will hunt monsters that the soldiers can’t handle, while Sepia and the two slaves will focus solely on the restoration of the royal capital using magic.
They seemed to know that Sepia was the former principal of a magic academy, and while they didn’t inquire deeply into the details, they clearly had high expectations.
As a result, we’ve been assigned to almost all the untouched areas.
“Is this everything?”
“That’s what they said.”
“This is a lot… Wonder how many days this’ll take.”
“The schedule isn’t too tight, as far as I know.”
“Any normal mage would die of exhaustion doing this, you know?”
Sepia looks at the map detailing the areas in need of work and groans. Even after they called back people from the Magic Nation, quite some time has passed, and yet this is still the state of things.
They’re obviously short on manpower.
“We’ll support Sepia as well.”
“Master, please focus on your own tasks.”
I assign Sepia’s care to the two slaves. By the way, these two are my slaves, not Sepia’s, so the arrangement is that Noel and Arnella will be looking after Sepia.
I made sure to explain this setup to Sepia at the beginning to avoid any misunderstandings. She didn’t seem bothered by it.
Mastema and I will simply hunt monsters non-stop. We’ll also set up the boundary points after each hunt.
Originally, we protected against monster attacks by building forts and deploying soldiers, but with the reduced number of soldiers, that’s no longer feasible.
It seems they decided on barriers as a new method.
At first, Sepia was supposed to handle the barrier work, but since she might be able to finish crafting the Thorn Staff, we reassigned her.
Setting up a barrier requires effort, but it also has many benefits. The biggest advantage is that it doesn’t require people. The main downside is the cost.
Well, since both the princess and I have invested in this, the kingdom currently has plenty of funds. Once the barrier is up, we can take a breather.
“Is this the barrier’s core?”
Mastema holds a processed magic stone in her hand. It’s a blue, perfectly cut hexagonal stone, reportedly blessed directly by Cardinal Keller from the church… supposedly.
“Is it safe to touch?”
“Yes. Why?”
She asks back, holding the stone up to the sunlight. Since the barrier’s purpose is to ward off monsters, it doesn’t repel demons specifically.
“Humans are incredible. They go to the trouble of carving these into shapes.”
“Do demons not have a culture of shaping or decorative crafting?”
“Hmm…”
Mastema ponders my question.
“No, not really. While demons, myself included, do like gold and jewels… we don’t have a culture for it. Some enthusiasts dabble in it.”
“Huh. I imagined demons would just demand treasure tributes.”
“Well, true enough. That’s why we have plenty of unprocessed gold and jewels.”
As we prepare, we chat about the pointless topic of decorative crafts in Hell. Sepia and the others have already set out.
I’ll have to meet with Cardinal Keller once.
The barrier cores will be arranged in a circle around the royal capital. Splitting up into two groups should work fine.
I’m also reasonably proficient with flight magic, so I shouldn’t fall too far behind Mastema.
“If there’s no rush, let’s work together and chat. Honestly, this is boring.”
“It’s not exactly thrilling work.”
Mastema finds it dull to work alone. No choice but to team up.
After all, Mastema isn’t obliged to follow anyone… Misunderstanding that and trying to take advantage would only get you killed.
It’s not just about demons; I’ve seen humans destroy themselves this way time and time again.
Keeping someone else happy is just as worthwhile as keeping yourself happy.
It’s not about groveling. If spending a bit of effort for others can make things go smoothly, it’s not a loss.
“All right, let’s go together.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
“I’m here as well.”
“Shut up, angel. You’re not needed right now.”
Victor tries to butt in, and Mastema responds to him. Surprisingly, she doesn’t seem to dislike Victor, judging by her tone.
They seem to have a rapport close enough for playful banter.
“From the look on your face, you’re thinking something strange.”
“I agree.”
These two…
This time, I’m equipped with both the Thunder Sword and the Celestial Sword. I haven’t used the Thunder Sword since before I trained as a mage.
Thinking of what happened to the Flame Sword, I’m a bit excited.
“We’ll start from the top and work our way right.”
“Got it. So, we’re killing all the monsters?”
“Yeah. I’ve got the lunch boxes, so let’s go.”
“If we don’t need the materials, we might finish quickly.”
Ignoring the monster materials is somewhat unconventional for an adventurer. But I don’t really need to make money as an adventurer anymore…
Incidentally, I’m not getting much reward this time either.
Since part of the funding I invested is coming back to me, there’s no real point.
Arnella and Noel had already prepared lunch in the dining hall. Their domestic skills are impressive. The thought of them not being here gives me chills.
We walk to an uninhabited area, and Mastema takes off first. I follow her.
If Mastema flies at full speed, I’d be left behind, so she flies at a moderate pace as we head to our destination.
Aligning our position with the map can be tricky from the ground, but it’s easier from the air.
Chatting with Mastema, we move to the initial barrier point.
As soon as we land, monster bears and serpents attack. Mastema blasts away the bear monster, while I slice the serpent monster into pieces with the Thunder Sword.
The Thunder Sword crackles with violet electricity. It feels much sharper than before.
“All right, I’ll leave it to you.”
With that, Mastema hands the magic stone for the barrier to the Thorn Staff.
The Thorn Staff stretches out vines to take the stone, then begins to read its structure from the stone and forms the barrier.
“Good, good.”
Mastema pats the Thorn Staff. Despite often handling it roughly, she seems attached to it in her own way.
If that’s the case, she should treat it with a bit more care.
