TN: Please read my translations only on my website nyx-translation.com since I never give my permission to any site to host my translations. And if you like my translations, please support this site on Ko-fi and Patreon to read several chapters ahead!
Sponsored chapter by Patreon. Enjoy~
TL: ALT
Chapter 126 – Day 18 of the Strategy Life
I woke up to the sound of Chel’s loud voice.
“Today’s bread turned out great!”
Apparently, she went out early in the morning to catch some swamp bird eggs.
Breakfast will be bread and eggs. Maybe she’ll add milk sometime.
But first, we have to find a monster that produces milk.
“We have a lot of work to do.”
“What do you want to do today?”
Chel asked as she made pickled ham sandwiches. The paste-like Sansho pepper was so delicious that it made my mouth water.
“I have to report several things to the captain today.”
“That’s right. Should I go, too?”
“No, I’ll just talk. We still have food, right? We have pickles from the Meiju Kingdom. Chel, please show Ka-Ryu around. Tell her everything she needs to know.”
“I will. Should I take her to the temple ruins or something?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Clink.
A sound that doesn’t occur in nature rang out. When I turned around, I saw a battered Ka-Ryu standing there. Dirt was falling from her body, and if she were flesh and blood, she would be covered in wounds. It seemed that she had already been baptized by the demonic land.
“I ventured a little further into the forest. If I weren’t a golem, I would have died.”
“I see. Don’t push yourself. Chel will show you around later.”
With that, I poured my magic into the iron cube on Ka-Ryu’s chest.
“Got it.”
Jennifer and Lipa came up the slope from the swamp. Maybe they had done their morning training.
“Good morning. I was thinking of going with Lipa to check on the damage caused by the giant magical beast. Is that okay?”
“Sure. I’ll count on you.”
“The swamp is covered with sleeping flowers and can’t be used right now.”
Lipa reported. His fringe was wet, and he had a stick in his nose, so he must have been injured.
Hel and Sylvia were on guard last night, so they were still asleep.
I got ready and took a sandwich from Chel.
“I’m off. Don’t push yourself too hard. I’ll be back by noon.”
“See you later.”
“See you later.”
Chel and the others said goodbye to me, and I went to the entrance.
Branches and leaves were flying around in this forest, too, but there wasn’t much damage. Several magic circles drawn on the hill had been activated. There were traces of blood, so the monsters that exploded must have died instantly.
After redrawing the magic circles and descending the hill, the usual Green Tiger approached me. Although it had already healed, there were several cuts on its body. It must have been attacked by razor grass or bendgrass. It’s common in the demonic land.
I gave it the dried meat I brought as a snack, and it ate it voraciously.
“A guard tiger instead of a guard dog. Make sure you guard the entrance to the demon land properly.”
Whether it heard me or not, it finished eating the dried meat and climbed a tree to disappear somewhere. What a mercenary creature. Perhaps its lack of emotions makes it well-suited for the demonic land.
I walked through the forest maze and crossed a small stream.
The two elves still lived in their mud hut, their muscles bulging. They were sunburned, and if you hadn’t looked at their ears, you might not have recognized them as elves.
“Hey. You’ve become quite muscular.”
“Ah! The Margrave!”
“There was a terrible storm and a tornado. Are you all right?”
The two who had been skinning the monster stopped what they were doing and approached me.
“We’re fine. That was the effect of the giant magical beast that comes every three months. Was there any impact here?”
“Not much. The water in the stream suddenly dropped, and the slime solidified for a moment.”
“The water flow might have changed. Well, at least you’re able to eat.”
“Yes, we’ve gotten better at hunting monsters, but the vegetables aren’t growing well in the fields. We’ve managed to get water, although we have to deal with the slime…”
“This forest, too? It’s been a series of failures with the fields in the demonic land. We’ve started eating wild herbs there.
“Don’t they smell bad?”
“They smell bad and look terrible. But they don’t taste bad. Maybe it’s the amount of salt.”
After chatting about such things, I walked through the forest to the training facility.
The two elves are starting to look like forest hunters. There seems to be more and more fur in the hut. It won’t be long before we can use it as a trading hut.
The forest paths are also progressing, making it easier to walk.
“The outside of the demonic land is also progressing.”
In the training facility field, clover is growing and forming a green carpet.
Since there were no soldiers around, I went to the front gate and asked the gatekeeper to connect me with the captain.
“Margrave! Please, this way…”
The gatekeeper let me through, recognizing me as the Margrave.
“You know me well.”
“I saw you training at the Colosseum the other day!”
Come to think of it, Sasha told me to destroy the armor.
“I see. I hope you learned something useful…”
“Yes. I realized how strong humans can become and how inadequate I am.”
Saying that, the gatekeeper ran out of the hall and returned with Sasha and the captain.
“Margrave…!”
I stopped Sasha from approaching and faced the captain.
The captain remained silent, waiting for me to speak.
“The landing of the giant magical beast was successful. As expected, it passed through the dungeon to reach Midgard, and it would take three and a half years, so we decided to postpone it this time. However, we have made contact with the Keeper of Time, who lives on the back of the magical beast. It may take some time, but I believe it is possible to negotiate with them as a demonic land.”
I tried to remain calm and explained the situation as the Margrave of the demonic land.
The captain put his hand on his chest and bowed to me.
“Congratulations on the successful operation!”
“May I explain the details?”
“Please come this way. Sasha, send the secretary to the reception room. I would like to call the entire royal family if possible.”
The captain led me to the reception room.
As soon as the captain entered the reception room, he sat down heavily on the sofa and took a deep breath.
“I am so relieved! I was so worried.”
“I’m sorry. That giant magical beast took a while to show up.”
“No, I’m just glad you’re safe.”
A female soldier who was a secretary arrived, and I explained the current situation in order.
I talked about the damage caused by the giant magical beast, how we boarded it, our encounter with Lute and his role, the giant magical beast’s head, and the dungeon.
“Then there was an iron cube, right? It’s a square box that serves as the core of a golem.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right!”
“We put the spirit from the Keeper of Time’s tomb into it and brought it back. It seems to be a woman named Ka-Ryu. She’s currently helping with the excavations in the demonic land and telling us about the situation 1,000 years ago.”
“I see, I see… Oh, just write it down even if you don’t understand it. It’ll come in handy later.”
The secretary soldier’s hand had stopped, so the captain gave instructions.
“As for the future, a magic circle for transport to Midgard has been set up at the back of the cave where we currently live, so I plan to send food and other supplies. Time passes differently in Midgard, so I think it would be best to send everything at once when the giant magical beast arrives three months later, as it will be the same time there.”
“Understood. The royal family will cooperate fully. I have been entrusted with the matter of the demonic land, so leave it to me.”
“Now, regarding the current situation in Midgard, it seems that the number of people has decreased significantly. I also heard that there are 5,000 people in cryogenic preservation.”
“I see. The number of technicians must have decreased as well.”
“Of course, I only met Lute, so I cannot say for sure at this point. However, I have heard that there have been civil wars, epidemics, and famines in Midgard.”
“It may take a long time to provide support, but let’s keep in touch.”
“Yes. In addition, we’re considering building a path into the demonic land to transport food supplies.”
“That would be helpful. But…”
“I’m thinking of setting up a training camp near the entrance to the demon land where soldiers can stay…”
As I discovered in the capital, the demonic land is incredibly unpopular.
“Recruiting soldiers, huh? They’ll be an elite unit, so I was thinking of contacting my brother to select them.”
The captain’s brother is the commander of the army and is responsible for defending the royal capital.
“Should I continue?”
“Of course, we should have asked you first, so go ahead. Anything else?”
“Normalizing relations with the elf kingdom?”
“Hmm, well…”
The captain looked more serious than usual today. Just recently, the elves had invaded the neighboring territory of East Kenya during their civil war.
“I want to bring the persecuted dwarf engineer to the demonic land. If we complete the golem, the Keeper of Time, Ka-Ryu, will gain more senses and we may be able to obtain detailed information about Yggdrasil.”
“No, it’s not like we’re doing nothing. We demand compensation, send ambassadors, and trade, albeit on a small scale. But we don’t have any bargaining chips, so it’s not going anywhere.”
So we can’t compete with the elves in technology or goods.
“There were traces of a builder inspired by the deer in the country of Satra left on the coast of the demonic land, and it seems that they were the ones who dealt with time magic. There are also magic circles left behind, which could be useful if the elves have lost that knowledge.”
“Builders who use time magic…!”
I borrowed paper and pens from the secretary and drew the deer emblem that had been carved into the concrete on the east coast.
“Perhaps this could be useful.”
“Also, please inquire about the Milder Highways. We may be able to uncover a road that connects the demonic land and the Elven Kingdom.”
“Understood. I will investigate thoroughly and report back.”
There are probably more suitable people than me to negotiate with the Elven Kingdom.
“The exchange condition is dwarven engineers, right?”
“Yes. Tell them that the Margrave of the demonic land asked if the dwarves could make a perfect golem.”
“Okay, I’ll pass it on as best I can.”
After I finished my report, the secretary was completely exhausted.
“That’s quite an achievement, even at this point.”
The captain said, taking a sip of cold tea. I hadn’t even noticed that the tea had been served. I had talked too much.
“We still have a long way to go. The demonic land is still largely unexplored.”
“You have a lot to do, Makyo-kun. Are you really just an adventurer?”
“Shall I show you my adventurer card again?”
“No, I’ve seen it several times. Oh, right. I know you’re busy, but can I ask you something else? There are some elite soldiers who are going to the elf kingdom. It would be easier for us to negotiate if we had someone as talented as you with us, so I thought you might be able to help us.”
It was well past noon. I was starving.
“Is it okay to eat while we talk?”
“Sure, anything is fine. Just give me something to fill my stomach.”
Sasha was waiting near the door, apparently waiting for the report to be finished.
Sasha led me into the training facility arena.
There were hairy big men, thin men with fox eyes who were good at footwork, tall swordswomen, shield bearers with well-proportioned muscles, robed magicians, and adventurers dressed as herbalists.
They all looked at the armor placed in the center of the arena.
“Is that someone’s important armor?”
I asked Sasha as I ate my sandwich.
“The elf ambassador asked if there was anyone in this country who could break that armor…”
“Huh, maybe it’s some kind of test.”
Looking closer, I saw a thin magic circle drawn on the inside of the armor. It was probably a defense spell. I figured all they had to do was break it, but everyone brought hammers, maces, and staffs with large magic stones embedded in them.
“They’re pretty straightforward.”
“Can the Margrave break it?”
“I can, but shall I explain how?”
“Yes, please.”
“After I finish eating.”
I ate my sandwich on the stands, watching the elite soldiers. They were probably all top-notch in their field, but they lacked keen observation skills.
“Okay, I’m done eating.”
I walked to the center of the arena, lifted the armor so everyone could see it, and showed them the magic circle.
“See? There’s a magic circle drawn on it, even though it’s thin. This is more like a magic tool than an iron armor. So if you destroy the magic circle…”
I surrounded the magic circle on the armor with a magic cube and pulled out a piece of iron.
“Now, you can destroy the armor as you wish. What you see on the surface isn’t always the whole truth.”
When I handed it to the hairy big man, he crushed the armor with both hands. He seems to have a lot of strength.
“I didn’t think it would be so easy to crush…”
“Just watch, judge, and execute. Of all the people here, you, the shielder, can buy the most time, right?”
“Y-yes!”
His muscles glisten with pride, but his defensive magic is fragile, reminding me of Jennifer from the past.
“Tanker in the demonic land weaves her defensive magic into a honeycomb pattern. It’s harder to break that way. It’s not like it gets stronger the more magic you put into it, and you’ll use up all your magic in one go, right? You might want to practice manipulating your magic before you go into battle.”
“I understand. Thank you.”
The shield bearer listened to me obediently.
“Margrave, can you see through this?”
The fox-eyed man had created several clones of himself and was holding knives.
“Ah, an illusion? It’s rare, but the fact that only the real one is clean is its weakness.”
“Hehehe, you can see through it at a glance…”
“That’s too confident. It’s not a very powerful spell. It’s meaningless if you don’t use it at the right moment.”
I patted him on the shoulder and told him to do his best.
“How about this?”
The hairy big man split the arena ring slightly with a large iron axe.
“If you ask me, I don’t really have an opinion. Just so you know, there are magicians here, so you don’t have to use your muscles. You can split it by wrapping it in magic.”
I split it the same way the big man did.
“If the result is the same, it’s better to do it quickly with less force. The monsters in demonic land won’t wait for you. Besides, if you use too much power, your muscles will get sore. Healer-chan, give him some healing medicine.”
I turned to the healer.
“How did you know I was a healer?”
“You may not realize it, but you have a strong smell. If you’re going into the forest, you should get rid of that smell. It’s not a smell that’s found in nature. That’s all I can tell you. Good luck in the elf kingdom!”
Sasha said goodbye to me, and I returned to the demonic land.
It was already evening. The report was limited to the giant magical beast.
When I returned, Ka-Ryu was roasting herself over a bonfire.
“I wanted a firmer body…”
It seemed that she wanted to roast herself to make her body firmer.
“Let’s think of another way.”
Perhaps the knights of 1,000 years ago were no different from modern people.
If you like my translations, please support me on Ko-Fi and subscribe my Patreon to read several chapters ahead!
After all that Makyo did, we end the chapter with the craziness of Ka lol
LikeLike