Striving For The Luxury Liner – Vol 9 Chapter 23

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Chapter 23 – Power Leveling and Orphanage Workmanship

Camille-san, Mauro-san, and Donatella-san’s power leveling have begun. Except for Donatella-san, the rest of them had combat experience, and they hit the monsters that were blocked by the Boarding Rejection.

Camille-san is a swordsman, and Mauro-san is a spearman, but both of them are clearly better than me. Donatella-san’s stone-throwing makes me feel relieved.

Every morning we take the Lutto to kill the monsters that have gathered around the Castle, and then we make loud noises and tie up the one we killed with rope, luring them in with the smell of its blood.

It’s a terrible thing to do when you think about it. Before we leveled up, we would just defeat the monsters that attacked us, but when we lured them in, they gathered in surprisingly large numbers.

Not only the three newcomers but also Rimu and the others are working hard to level up, so the rate at which the monsters are being defeated is extraordinary.

I know it’s impossible, but the monsters in the sea are about to be destroyed, and in the beginning, Donatella-san, who’s just throwing stones, gets exhausted and has to take a break every now and then because she can’t lift her arms even though she’s just hitting them lightly with a stone.

The three newcomers could afford to do this because their levels were increasing day by day. After the day’s power leveling was over, they continued to look around the Castle, actively discussing what to include in the contract and where to place the personnel.

“Phew, I’m running out of rubber boats, so please wait to take them down until I buy some.”

“I understand. Let’s all take a break.”

At Alessia-san’s words, everyone took a break at a place of their choice. In the meantime, I bought more rubber boats and prepared for the next catch.

“As Mauro-san said, we are collecting the Sea Serpents, but can we really handle them? It’s quite a lot, don’t you think?”

“No problem. Sea Serpents and Earth Dragons can be handled no matter how you do it.”

“I see.”

Recently, or rather, long before we defeated the Earth Dragon, we had stopped collecting sea monsters even after defeating them. As for the Sea Serpent, we had only extracted the magic stone, but the rest had been sunk into the sea.

Because there was no other target to deal with, and the amount of Sea Serpent materials kept increasing. It is also time-consuming and difficult to pull them out of the sea.

We were used to this scene and were just going through the motions, but the three newcomers were surprised and protested angrily. Mauro-san’s energy was so strong that I felt like his blood vessels were about to burst.

When I told them that we had no way to handle them, that it was pointless to just take up space, and that there was nothing I could do because I had already secured a large number of Earth Dragons, they exclaimed that they would handle them all on the Castle and secure them all. It looks like the increased lifespan will be reduced as the level increases.

Originally, I had cut off and thrown away the part that didn’t fit in a boat, but now we’re going to collect it all. They’ll sell it all for a good price, so let’s go for it.

After the three of them reached a certain level, we tried to raise their level by splitting up on the Galette, but it seemed to be hard for them not to be able to recover the Sea Serpent, so we went back to power leveling on the Lutto.

I apologize for being selfish to the three of them, but they tearfully told me that, as merchants, they couldn’t stand to see the platinum coins’ worth of material disappear before their eyes. They said that a real merchant would be spiritually driven. This makes me realize that I’m a fake merchant.

After we finished, we had a meal and discussed how to run the Castle and how to staff the orphanage.

I have heard that the orphanage will be preyed on if we gather people half-heartedly and bad behavior is mixed in. Since it is difficult to gather people when they are bound by contract, we decided to rely entirely on slaves.

There are slaves who can teach the children, but at a higher price, so they said there would be no problem.

The descent of the gods, which had been postponed due to the possibility that I would be busy, was also carried out, as I had only raised the levels so far.

I didn’t get an ear wax from the God of Gastronomy-sama this time either, but I was satisfied because I had a date with the Goddess of the Forest-sama, and she took the time to give me an ear wax. Next time, or the time after that, I will be able to get a date with the God of Gastronomy-sama and ear wax. I guess it’s just as the God of Entertainment-sama had planned, but if I have something to look forward to first, it motivates me to do it.

The other gods are the same as always, the God of War-sama is drinking, the God of Magic-sama is in the library, and the goddesses are in the spa taking a bath. The Creator God-sama and the God of Entertainment-sama were walking around the Castle as they pleased.

Except for getting tangled up with drunk gods, I was able to spend the descent event without any problems. I’m starting to get a feel for the trends, and as long as they don’t suddenly ask me to do something reckless, I think I’ll be fine, but the hard part is that there are gods who seem to suddenly ask me to do something reckless.

After overcoming the gods’ descent event, I continued my daily power leveling and headed to the city of Cagliari as the scheduled completion date of the orphanage approached.

“Camille-san, we are about to reach the city of Cagliari. Have you gotten used to your leveled body?”

“Yes, I have. In the past, it was unthinkable that my level would exceed 200, but I am surprised that it hasn’t changed much in my daily life. I am surprised to feel the difference when I am in a fight or in a moment of crisis.”

Is it the same for Camille-san? I am the same most of the time, so I almost forget that I have improved.　

I thought it was just me, but Camille-san, Mauro-san, and Donatella-san felt the same way. 

I’ve heard that Girasole, Ines, and Felicia, who have experienced combat, can understand the difference in feeling when leveling up, and it seems to make a difference in their main profession.

“Wataru-san, is it the same for you? I grabbed a cup that was about to fall off my desk, grabbed it in a hurry, and smashed it.”

Don’t say such a dangerous thing with a pretty smile on your face. It didn’t happen to me because it took me a long time to level up, but if you level up fast in a little over three months, it will happen. I’m sure if I accidentally scare them, my life could be in danger.

“Hahaha… well. That’s it, isn’t it? It’s dangerous if you don’t get used to it, so let’s calm down and get used to the power slowly.”

“Fufu, that’s right.”

Mauro-san is also very energetic and says that his body is tense. I’ll just say that the power leveling was a success.

We arrived in the city of Cagliari and went to the Merchant’s Guild. There are a total of 12 people, with 3 Slime on our heads. Even though we’ll be separated from the three once we open the Castle, we’re still a large group.

As soon as we enter the Merchant’s Guild, the old man comes to talk to me. I barely speak to the other receptionist.

“Oh, you are very late. The orphanage is finished.”

“Is it? I came back on schedule, as you told me before.”

Was I wrong?

“There was enough material and money. There were a lot of people there, and it was finished about… 8 days ago.”

“I see. As long as it was done without any problems, it is okay.”

“I made sure it was done right. There are no defects, and it was built exactly as planned, so don’t worry. Since three buildings were built, the final cost was six platinum worth of materials. I bought the remaining 14 platinum coins at a fixed price. Is that okay?”

“Yes, it’s fine, as promised. I would like to go and check. Is that okay?”

That was surprisingly expensive; six platinum coins worth of materials is quite a lot, isn’t it? I wonder what kind of building they made.

“Oh, I’ll show you. Let’s go.”

The old man led me to the orphanage.

“The walls are surprisingly well constructed.”

“Are they? Wasn’t it you who told them to build a wall of stone, Wataru?”

The old man looks at me and says that. I ordered it, but I didn’t think it would be this strong. It’s like a fortress or a fortified atmosphere. How is it as an orphanage?

When we arrived at the front of the orphanage, we saw a thick and big iron door… I decided to make an iron door because it’s better to be sure, but I don’t think anyone would think it’s an orphanage. It really looks like a fortress. I have a feeling the children will be scared.

I ordered it out of my imagination, but imagination and reality are different. The carpenter kept telling me that we were building an orphanage, right? I wonder if this is what they meant when they repeatedly confirmed that it would be an orphanage. The professionals must have had a good idea of what the finished project would look like.

“It’s a big, mighty building, isn’t it?”

Claretta-san murmured.

“Yes, the safety of the children is paramount. With this building, I’m sure bad people would hesitate to come near them.”

“I agree. Even though it doesn’t look like an orphanage, the safety of the children comes first.”

Claretta-san agreed with me. Let’s just continue with the building as I imagined it. It was a little embarrassing to think that my plan to build an orphanage had turned into a fortress.

“Here, this is the key. Can you open it by yourself?”

“Uh, yeah, I’m fine.”

I put the big key in the keyhole of the heavy iron door and turned it. The key opened with a loud click… or clank, and when I pushed the big iron door with all my might, it opened with a squeaking sound.

I was thinking of buying slaves to fight for protection, but I think I should also buy a powerful gatekeeper. The children won’t be able to open it.

“Heh, you look like a weak man, but you’re actually powerful. I’m impressed.”

I would say I’m of medium height. It’s just that the old man is muscular. When I entered the building, I found bare ground but a large open space and a fortress… I mean, an orphanage was built in front of it.

“In front is the orphanage, on the right is the staff dormitory, and on the left is the warehouse. Which one do you want to see first?”

“I will look at the warehouse and the staff dormitory before I look at the orphanage. Is that okay with you?”

“Oh, here are the keys to the three buildings. I’ll give you the spare one, so don’t lose it.”

“Yes, thank you.”

The bundle of keys alone is quite heavy. It was a complete failure to put too much emphasis on security and ignore ease of use. I shouldn’t have said that all doors should be made of steel.

Because most doors in houses are made of metal, although sometimes glass is attached to them, right? Isn’t it unexpected to have such a heavy iron door attached to a Western castle?

I open the door to the warehouse and look inside. It is a large stone room with several wooden shelves built into it.

“Yes, there are many shelves, just as I ordered.”

“It looks like you could have a siege in this warehouse alone.”

Alessia-san, I think so too, but you look away, so please don’t mention it.

“Yes, I agree. It’s good to know that you can evacuate in case of danger.”

“Yes, although from the looks of it, the orphanage seems more sturdy.”

That’s true. I ordered the orphanage to be more sturdy anyway, didn’t I? I’m afraid to look at the orphanage if it’s on this level in the warehouse.

After checking the warehouse and the staff dormitory, it looks sturdy. If I check the orphanage, I might think it looks very sturdy.

“Well then, let’s go to the orphanage.”

I lead everyone and arrive at the door of the orphanage.

“Yes, Wataru, may I say something?”

“I know what you’re going to say, so please don’t say it.”

“Is that so? Then why is it necessary to put such a door in the orphanage? But let’s not ask.”

Mauro-san, I’ve told you everything.

“Um, Wataru-san, the children can’t go in and out, can they?”

“Yes, but they will be fine. I’ll hire someone to open and close the door. From my point of view, I think it’s right to put safety first.”

“I see. Well, if there is someone to open and close the door, it is better to be safe.”

Claretta-san nodded her head with an expression as if she had somehow forced herself to agree. I kind of want to say I’m sorry.

I push open the iron door and step inside. It’s pitch black. There’s no glass, and everything is made of solid materials, so there’s no light at all.

I use light magic to create a light and open the wooden window to let the light in.

“Hey, Wataru-san. This is a sturdy wooden window, and the window itself is small, it’s made for a fortress, isn’t it? I was there when you ordered it, but did you ask for it to be made like this?”

Alessia-san’s question reminded me of how it looked when I ordered it. I didn’t ask for it to be made this way, but it rings a bell.

“I remember when they asked me if I wanted the windows made normal or safe, so I asked them to make them safe.”

“So…”

I wish you would stop saying those words. I took a quick look around the orphanage. My impression is that it’s armed and solid. They’ve built a large room, a small room, a dining room, a classroom, and a large bathroom. There should be no problems, but it looks like a fortress.

“This is it. Let’s put in colorful furniture and carpets and decorate with flowers. If we can do something about the interior, it will be fine.”

“I understand. I’ll think about it. Wataru-san, please think about the staff.”

I was quietly informed that I was no longer needed. The ladies and Mauro-san were talking to the old man about interior design. It was a bit sad.

Funds on hand: 26 gold coins, 13 silver coins, 82 copper coins

Guild account: 0 platinum, 70 gold

Savings boat: 922 platinum coins

Pepper boat: 0 boat

Charity expenses: 87 platinum coins, 10 gold coins

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