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TL: ALT
Chapter 192 – Day 23 of Management Life
It’s comforting to have a place to call home. Last night, I returned to my cave and fell asleep immediately.
Now, everyone is busy with various tasks or heading out to rescue Chel.
I washed my face in the swamp and cleaned my dusty home. I petted the Haze Turtle, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time, and went to check on the Rock Crocodile at the crocodile farm.
The Rock Crocodile seemed fine, but looked a little thin. They were quite pleased when I gave them some dried meat left over from the warehouse.
Since Jennifer wasn’t around, the warehouse was a mess, so I tidied it up. She should be out looking for insect-repellent herbs with Katan, but maybe they’ve set up base somewhere else.
While I was sunbathing on top of the Haze Turtle, which was drying its shell, a Green Tiger that lived nearby came over. When I stroked his jaw, he purred.
The monsters around here don’t show any signs of attacking me anymore.
I ate meat and vegetable soup for breakfast, cleared the dishes, and headed for the entrance. On the way, I saw several injured soldiers at the training ground, victims of the demonic land’s plants. Either Jennifer or someone else must have allowed survival training.
“Are you okay?”
I pushed his bulging eyes back in and healed his broken leg. He thanked me for that.
“The demonic land isn’t going anywhere, so you can try again and again. If it seems impossible, then run away.”
The soldiers nodded vigorously, but palm sap dripped at their feet.
“Palm sap melts when heated, so don’t rush and get hurt again. Here are some medicinal herbs.”
I handed them the herbs growing there and headed for the small stream at the entrance.
The Green Tiger followed me even though he didn’t have to. Does he think I’m his parent or something?
I straightened my posture, heightened my sensitivity to magic, and lay down on the riverbank. I could feel a large flow of magic deep underground.
“A tributary of the Earth’s veins?”
The surface water flow was minimal, but underground, there was a flow on a completely different scale. This underground flow also changed the vegetation. No matter how ferocious the plants in the botanical garden dungeon had become, they would wither without soil.
The demonic land was constantly engaged in a survival competition, so its cycles were fast. Perhaps absorbing magic was a necessary trait for the plants of the demonic land.
I plucked a bendgrass plant growing on the riverbank and dug into the ground, extracting magic stones from a mass at the base of the plant’s roots as I pondered.
Feeling eyes on me from across the river, I turned to find the two keepers staring at me with their mouths agape.
“Hey, long time no see. How’s it going?”
As I approached, splashing into the stream and kicking slime aside, the two keepers looked flustered.
“We did manage to set up a makeshift bridge, but… Oh, I see you didn’t need it, Makyo-san.”
One of the keepers had been about to bring out a simple wooden bridge from the hut, but stopped.
“Sorry. The military pushed us around and took seven people to the survival training grounds.”
“Ah, I see. If they die, clean them up properly. Of course, not dying is best.”
“Yes.”
“What were you doing, Makyo-san?”
The keepers prepared chairs for me by the bonfire and listened to my story.
“Well, all sorts of things. I defeated the boss at Cliff Garuda’s Magic Stone Mine and went to Turtle Archipelago in the Southwest Sea. It looks like the population of the demonic land might grow again. What do you think we should do?”
“Even if you ask us… I’m not quite sure.”
“Isn’t a larger population a good thing?”
The Keepers added wood to the bonfire and swatted away the insects that had gathered around it.
“Yeah, normally it would be. Tax revenue should increase, but the demonic land isn’t in a state where we can collect taxes right now. Still, we’re getting closer to understanding the Earth’s veins, and the giant magical beast’s destination is set. This really isn’t a lord’s job, is it?”
Sometimes I suddenly lose sight of my own position. In the demonic land, a noble is practically nothing.
“I can’t quite picture it, but you’ve been busy, huh?”
“That’s right. If we fail, this continent might split apart. What do you say?”
“What do you mean?”
“Wouldn’t it be better if it didn’t split?”
“It seems like a lot of people would die.”
Should I check on the progress of the trading town? An inspection, I suppose.
“Alright, let’s go.”
“Um!”
I stood up and started to head to the trading town, but was stopped.
“What is it?”
“Messengers from East Kenya and the Elf Kingdom have been coming frequently…”
We’ve been sending them back to the military facilities, but they’re trying to force their way into the demonic land.”
The elf keeper looked at the stream.
“Did they enter?”
It would be troublesome if they died on their own.
“No. They get attacked by slimes in the stream. Even if they cross it, they get blown away by the Green Tiger and end up needing treatment in the hut.”
“Could I get permission to conduct a test for entering the demonic land?”
Would it be easier to set up a test and send them back than to let them break through on their own?
“Fine, but what are you going to do?”
“I have to teach them to distinguish between medicinal herbs and poisonous plants that can be used in the demonic land. They also need to learn how to escape when attacked by plants. Otherwise, they won’t be able to enter.”
“That’s fine. You can do it. Just don’t take bribes or let people in without permission. You can’t survive in this land on money alone.”
When I said that, the keepers looked at each other.
“What? Did you take it?”
“No, it just piled up…”
Apparently, the keepers stash the money they’ve been paid in jars under the floorboards of their hut.
“There’s nowhere to spend it in the demonic land, right?”
“Hmm, not yet. But trade is starting up, so the time will come. You can go wild in a distant town once in a while. You could also buy tools and building materials to repair the hut. Since there are two of you, you can take turns taking vacations.”
“”Thank you very much!””
They were originally elf slaves. Maybe they never had vacations before.
For me, this is my vacation.
“Well, then. I’m off to inspect things.”
I leave the two wealthy keepers behind and pass through the forest.
At the military facility, I see soldiers still watering the fields.
“I envy them for having fields.”
“Whoa! Margrave?”
A young soldier with a shiny face stares at me in surprise.
“Is the captain here?”
“He is! He’s probably training in the arena right now. Are you the real one?”
“If there’s an imposter, I’d like him to take my place.”
“That’s impossible. The only person who came from the demonic side of the forest with equipment like a rookie adventurer is the lord of the demonic land.”
“Someone go call the captain!”
The female soldiers nearby gave orders to the young soldier.
“Ah, I’ll go myself. I’ll just go say hello. I only need passage permission.”
As he said this, the sound of a trumpet was heard.
Puu-puu-pu-ah~.
“That’s the signal for visitors. Recently, there have been a large number of East Kenyan and Elf operatives in the area. I think everyone’s gotten careless, so it’d be helpful if you could show your face at the arena.”
The female soldier who blew the trumpet said this cheerfully. She had tattoos on her arms and scars, but she smiled brightly, perhaps because she ate well. She seemed to be favoring one leg, as if she had injured it.
“Here, take these medicinal herbs I gathered earlier from the demonic land. You should try using them.”
I handed the herbs to the female soldier who had blown the trumpet.
I spun my magical power in my dantian to suppress my aura, then leapt onto the facility’s roof.
From there, I could see the entire facility clearly. In the bowl-shaped arena, soldiers were sparring with bladeless weapons. Enemies instantly became allies, and allies suddenly turned into enemies. Good training.
I infiltrated the arena from above. Dodging staff flying in from all directions, I saw that the captain was participating in the sparring normally. I approached right in front of him and parried the captain’s staff with my bare hands, leaving him wide-eyed with surprise.
“Hello.”
“It’s been quite a while. What have you been up to?”
As he said this, a staff flew toward my temple. He clearly had no intention of stopping the training.
“Various things. It’d take too long to explain here.”
I dodged the staff and moved behind the captain, but he followed closely behind. If this were a monster from the demonic land, it might not have noticed.
“That’s the art of suppressing your aura, isn’t it? What kind of technique have you mastered?”
“Recently, I learned a technique from the Sealing Clan again. They’re skilled in body manipulation.”
“Let’s see it. Hah!”
I pressed my index and middle fingers against the tip of the straight striking staff and exhaled, channeling magic through my fingers.
Snap!
The training staff split vertically, scattering the magical power I had been rotating from my dantian.
Having sensed my presence, the soldiers fighting nearby leapt back toward the spectator seats, weapons drawn, and looked over here.
“Watch closely! This is the Lord of the demonic land!”
“Hello.”
I raised my hand in greeting.
“That’s all for today’s training. Adjust your equipment. Dismissed!”
The captain gave his orders and sat down in the front row of the spectator seats.
“Makyo-kun is amazing. You seem to keep evolving.”
“I have to, or I won’t survive in the demonic land.”
“Can you tell me a little about what happened?”
“The continent seems like it might split apart…”
I told him about the civil war in Cliff Garuda and the Turtle Archipelago in the Mist Sea that had occurred in recent days. I also shared our plans moving forward.
“So, what about the Midgard refugees traveling through time?”
“I think they’ll be forced to make a choice when the giant magical beast’s time magic is lifted. They’ll either have to live in this era and be transported along with the dungeon or draw another time magic circle and travel through time again.”
Since the dungeon is on top of the “Sealed Bone,” I hope Midgard’s dungeon is the same. However, I don’t know what those living inside want.
“We’re preparing food supplies. We’ve gathered quite a lot. Still, even the southern demonic sea has become a demonic land…”
“Have you been there, too, Captain?”
“Yeah, back in my youth. You know how those ghost ship rumors keep resurfacing? Who’d have thought people actually lived there?”
“They’re descendants of Beast Disease patients. With their monster-like bodies, they probably can’t live in other regions.”
“Got it. I’ll send word. Still, that demonic land seems to have quite a few residents with monster-like bodies, huh?”
“That’s true. Hey, wait… Doesn’t that one look like a fairy-tale demon king?”
“Hmm… I’ll refrain from answering that, but I strongly request that you choose a human as your successor.”
The captain said this with a laugh.
“I’ll do my best.”
After finishing the report for the captain, I left the military facility.
The captain made sure to pack me a lunch and said they had harvested a lot of vegetables.
The road to the trading town was mostly straight. The only monsters I encountered were cute, kitten-sized ones, and I didn’t see any bandits or robbers.
I sensed someone’s presence in the forest near the trading town. From a distance, it looked like a female soldier was teaching a town girl how to hunt.
“Huh, I feel like I’ve seen that before.”
An arrow shot by the town girl hit a fat rabbit. A small green tiger was aiming for it, so I scolded the tiger by stretching my face sideways as far as I could. The tiger retreated deep into the forest.
“Oh? Did I miss and let the rabbit get away?”
The town girl slung her bow over her shoulder and came looking for me.
“No, it’s stuck right in there. Look.”
“Oh, really! Thank you. Huh?”
“Ah, I knew it…”
The town girl was one of the prostitutes who had taken care of me before I came to this demonic land.
“What are you doing here?”
“What am I doing? I heard rumors that you became a lord, so I came to see for myself. I guess the rumors were false.”
“Forget whether it’s true or not. Look, if you don’t bleed it out, it’ll stink.”
“Oh, right. Teacher! There you are! Also, Lazy Taro came with me, so could you keep him in town for a while?”
Even the older prostitute was worrying about me. Ever since I first met them, the prostitutes have called me Lazy Taro.
The female soldier saw my face, cried out, “Ah!” and dashed off into town.
“Did they mistake you for a bandit? You’re dressed so shabbily again.”
The older sister spoke like a mother.
“I haven’t washed this armor lately. If you’re going into the forest, too, Sister, you might want to get some better gear.”
“I don’t use it for work. Fine, I’ll leave all the hunting to you. Lazy Taro, you should do some work, too.”
“Aye.”
“I think I do quite a bit of work, but I guess people who aren’t familiar with the demonic land can’t see it.”
“Right?”
“Right. How’s it going? Is everyone doing okay?”
“Everyone’s given up on the poorly paying shops and come over here. When a new town is being built, they figure a new brothel is needed, too. But all we got were female soldiers. Instead of teaching them makeup, I taught them how to hunt. How about you?”
“I’m barely managing what’s right in front of me.”
“You’ve put on a little muscle, haven’t you?”
The older sister casually reached through the gaps in my armor to feel my muscles.
“Ohohoho. This feels rather nice.”
While we made small talk, we reached the trading town.
Stalls lined the square, and several simple wooden huts stood nearby, offering enough shelter from the rain and wind. The ruined fort was being renovated and was now serving as barracks and a supply depot. They were also gradually laying the foundations for new buildings.
“Hey, everyone! Found Lazy Taro!”
As soon as we entered town, she called out to the other prostitutes.
The prostitutes who came over were all familiar faces wearing aprons. They seemed to be helping out at the stalls or doing light construction work.
“Huh? Does everyone not have their main job?”
For some reason, all the prostitutes I knew had abandoned their work and gathered around.
“Well, we can’t exactly work during the day!”
“The brothel isn’t built yet, so we just entertain adventurers at night occasionally.”
“We’re so bored that we’re gathering berries to make moonshine.”
“I heard you’d become important, Taro-chan. Is that not the case? Did you at least raise your adventurer rank a bit?”
It turns out the prostitutes never really expected anything from me anyway.
“I haven’t been to the Adventurer’s Guild lately, so I don’t know my rank. Look at this armor. It’s falling apart!”
“Oh dear, let me see it. I’ll sew up the loose threads for you.”
Before I knew it, they had stripped off my armor.
“Huh? Haven’t you gotten more muscular?”
“I guess coming east makes you a bit more rugged, huh!”
“Let me see. Just a bit…”
The prostitutes started touching my body all over. It was nothing new, so I just let them. Then, I saw Sasha clad in iron armor striding purposefully toward us from the fort.
“Makyo-san, what are you making them do?!”
Sasha confronted me in a loud voice.
“Oh, just some physical contact with an old acquaintance.”
“Do you understand?! This is Makyo-san, the lord of the demonic land! He’s more important than Jennifer-san, who visited the other day. Do you realize that?”
“””What?!”””
At Sasha’s words, the prostitutes pulled their hands away from my body.
“What’s up today?”
Sasha, wearing subtle makeup, asked. Apparently, she had learned how to apply makeup from the prostitutes.
“I just came for a little inspection.”
“If you’d told us beforehand, we would’ve come to greet you.”
“The army takes time. I left the monster countermeasures to Jennifer. How’s that going?”
“We’ve found many monsters caught in traps, and we’re using them for food.”
“Is there anything else you need?”
“We have enough materials, but workers just won’t come. The various merchant guilds are helping us, but it’s still difficult.”
“It’s far from the capital.”
“I think attracting an Adventurers’ Guild would be good. What do you think?”
“Please do. Also, they say they want a brewery and a brothel.”
“Understood.”
Sasha nodded while glaring at the prostitutes.
“But what about owners for the brewery and brothel? It’ll take time to find them!”
“That’s where Taro-chan comes in.”
A prostitute who was one of the town girls answered Sasha and me.
“It’s fine. We won’t complain if it’s Taro-chan.”
“Someone who knows how to handle prostitutes better than a random merchant is better.”
Hearing that, I couldn’t refuse. I could trust these people to determine the job’s suitability.
“The brothel is fine, but at a brewery, won’t people just drink and cause trouble?”
I pointed at the prostitutes.
“If you think of them as merchandise, it’ll be fine.”
“It doesn’t need to be anything fancy. Just make fruit wine. We’ll order the rest.”
Having a tavern below the brothel is just convenient for all sorts of things.”
It seems they wanted a tavern more than a brewery.
“All right, then. A brothel and tavern run by the demonic lord of the land. I’ll grant permission, but I won’t be around. Everyone, work hard and be serious.”
“Yay!”
The prostitutes who looked after me were happy, so that’s fine.
“Why are you so nice to other women besides me, Makyo-san!?”
Sasha was fuming.
“Because these ladies do everything themselves. All they want is my name. Beyond that, they’re people who live by their own wits. You plan to build the tavern and brothel yourselves, right?”
“Of course! Why would anyone be stupid enough to hand over something they’re using to someone else, making it harder to use?”
One of the prostitutes answered my question.
“Wow, you really did become a lord! What a rise!”
“This might get us resentful later, so maybe we should call in the brothel girls from the countryside. Everyone thinks it’s a lie…”
“I’m still skeptical, though. I’ll believe you’re the brothel owner.”
The prostitutes nodded vigorously. Apparently, I wasn’t recognized as the lord of this demonic land.
“Well, then. Let’s get to work.”
I cut timber and stone and dug and reinforced the building’s foundation. I hunted monsters in the surrounding forest and set traps. I did light training with the female soldiers and wrote a letter to the Adventurers’ Guild.
◇ ◇ ◇
In the military dungeon of the demonic land’s desert, Jennifer and the other women stared at Chel in stunned silence.
“Well, sorry about this, everyone. I look like this…”
Chel’s right side had turned completely black. Two pairs of wings had sprouted from her back, and her right arm and leg were covered in magic stones, making her look like a golem.
“It resembles the form of an angel from fairy tales…”
“It…it resembles the god worshipped by the ‘Holy Knights’ I saw in books.”
Jennifer and Sylvia took deep breaths to steady themselves before speaking.
“Huh, really? I think it’s closer to what demonic books call ‘demons.’”
“In any case, you became like this because you used magic to try to defeat the master, right?”
In response to Hel’s question, Chel replied, “Yeah, that’s right.”
“It seems that when she tried to exceed her own limits, she also exceeded the limits of being human.”
“Following the agreement, Makyo is being kept as far away as possible.”
The agreement meant that if any of them underwent an unwanted transformation or experienced something they didn’t want their lord, Makyo, to know about, all the women would handle it together. For Chel, both had happened simultaneously.
“We’ve sent Katan to gather herbs for the magic-absorbing potion, but that alone won’t be enough. What about Lipa?”
Hel, the eldest, began taking charge. No one present objected.
“He’s waiting upstairs. We brought the director of the Genetics Research Institute, but apparently, there are no recorded cases in the dungeon. She’s going to comb through the literature, though…”
Jennifer answered.
“Finding the Earth’s veins is important, but I don’t think we can resolve it immediately. Let’s deal with Chel first. Kahiman and Lipa, go ask the Cliff Garuda sorcerer family if they’ve seen similar cases.”
“Wh-what about us?”
Sylvia asked. She couldn’t just stand by.
“Sylvia and I will head to the Meiju Kingdom. Ideally, we’d like to seek counsel from the past Demon Lords. Ka-Ryu and Saketsu, I’m sorry, but could you please stay with Chel?”
“Of course. The military workers who are still in this dungeon will also help.”
“Absolutely. Even if limbs are severed, we’re prepared to reattach them immediately.”
Ka-Ryu and Saketsu both nodded firmly in response.
“Then, let’s go. If we take too long, Makyo will notice. Chel, do you have any final hints or insights?”
“I defeated a huge bear lord covered in wounds. Right before I defeated it, magic surged in, and I saw memories of it agonizing over love and sacrifice for its kind.”
“Love and sacrifice? That’s a staple of religion, isn’t it?”
“What do you think Makyo would say?”
“He wouldn’t agonize over it.”
He’d probably just say, ‘Are you stupid?’ and leave it at that.”
“Chel’s kindness backfired on her. I’m off.”
“Take care. I’m counting on you.”
Chel said this to the backs of the three women.
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