Chapter 84

Yesterday, I was concerned about the results of the samples I had placed inside the battery, but I decided to put that off for later.

After all, the largest project in Nelac’s town was about to begin.

As a result, as many of the townspeople as possible had gathered by the banks of the Rubicon River, near the blacksmith’s forge.

I hadn’t specifically informed everyone, but it seemed that almost everyone except for the masked knight Richmond and the minimum number of guards had come.

There were over a thousand people.

It seems the number of townspeople has increased even further... According to the latest report, there are 1,300 townspeople.

Considering the total number of townspeople, it seems that nearly 80% of them have gathered.

There are people who can’t be spared from agriculture and other essential tasks, but still, I think too many have gathered.

The housekeepers, except for Bartholomew, were the other three who were here, standing behind me.

Suddenly, Rumburg knelt on one knee in front of me and looked up, fixing his gaze on me.

“What’s the matter?”

“With all due respect, I believe that the townspeople are paying close attention to this grand event that is about to begin.”

“I was surprised too.”

“With that in mind, I humbly request a few words from you, Joshua-sama.”

“Oh, right. I’ve been feeling everyone’s gazes.”

“I appreciate your consideration. I will prepare immediately.”

Rumburg stood up smoothly and signaled, and before I knew it, a familiar podium was set up.

The townspeople, reading the atmosphere, quickly parted to clear a path from me to the podium.

Wow, a red carpet.

I didn’t feel particularly moved, but to be this much in the spotlight... I wondered if I should have just skipped it, but I climbed up to the podium.

“Ladies and gentlemen. Citizens of Cumberland. Are you all well?”

Just those words alone were met with thunderous applause and cheers, with my name being shouted from all corners.

However, the moment I raised my right hand, the crowd fell silent as if a bucket of water had been poured over them.

“I cannot help but feel grateful for your hard work every day. We have finally reached the point where we can begin building the bridge. The road to completion will be difficult, but I believe that with all of you, the citizens of Cumberland, no matter how high the mountain, we can climb it easily. We can do it. We have made the necessary preparations. All that remains is to follow through to completion.”

I paused here, slowly looked around, and took a deep breath.

“I hereby declare the start of the construction of the Rubicon Aqueduct and the Nelac Water System. With the opening of the water supply, agriculture, commerce, and all aspects of your lives will become more prosperous. Let us unite as one and move forward!”

“Long live the border country!”

“Long live Joshua-sama!”

“Long live the border lord!”

“Joshua-sama!”

Thunderous applause and cheers echoed, with some people moved to tears and others kneeling in prayer.

Everyone expressed themselves differently, but I could feel their positive and determined spirit.

Rumburg, with his familiar white silk handkerchief, had tears streaming down his face.

Ely, holding a penguin, had red eyes.

Alru was bouncing up and down with a beaming smile.

I descended from the podium and walked straight to Garam and Tore.

“I’m counting on you, Garam, Tore. I’ve also secured Paul’s cooperation, so you can rely on him too.”

“Aye, it’s exciting. It’s finally happening.”

“Leave it to us. I can’t wait. The idea of water flowing through the bridge is thrilling.”

The two of them expressed their enthusiasm, with Garam thumping his chest and Tore placing his hand on his long beard, both with the eyes of excited boys, looking forward to the construction to come.

“The water supply to each household will rely on magic stones, but we’ll wait for the experimental results.”

“Even without them, we’ll make it work.”

“Yeah. We’ll bring the water to the underground of each household. From there to the taps, we’ll rely on the power of magic tools.”

“Aye, I look forward to that too!”

I shook hands firmly with Garam and then Tore.

They immediately headed to the bridge construction site.

“I’m looking forward to the aqueduct, but we have our own work to do, right?”

Sequoia, who had been standing behind me, chuckled.

“Right. We’ll proceed with our preparations. Come, let’s check the results. Ely, please let the penguin down.”

“Understood.”

Ely placed the penguin on the ground. The penguin, upon landing, raised its flippers and waddled forward.

*It was moving. Joshua-kun’s speech was touching. However, we have our own roles to play, don’t we, Joshua-kun?*

*That’s right. Let’s head to the blacksmith’s.*

“Hurry up,” Sequoia said, pulling my hand, and we headed to the blacksmith’s.

◇◇◇

I carefully opened the battery wrapped in Arachne’s cloth and took out the samples.

Since the penguin and I can’t analyze magical things, from here on, it’s up to Sequoia.

“...”

However, in front of the samples, Sequoia’s eyes were wide open, and he was speechless.

The samples were small, about the size of a thumb, because I wanted to test a variety of types.

It must be quite a challenge to analyze them.

“Sequoia, you don’t have to push yourself. Just start with one.”

“That’s not the issue. The problem isn’t with my magic. This number is nothing.”

“Is that so? Then you were surprised by the results?”

“Aye. I thought there might be a little mana in the depleted magic stones, but this is unexpected.”

“Really?”

“It’s become a complete magic stone. In just one night. But that’s not all. If it were just that, I wouldn’t be speechless. Do you understand?”

Sequoia continued speaking rapidly.

The depleted magic stones, which had run out of mana, had been refilled and turned back into magic stones.

All the samples that could accumulate mana had been refilled.

The pebbles I picked up from the riverbank had become magic stones.

Iron had turned into blue metal.

However, not all of them had completely transformed into magical metals.

Silver hadn’t become mithril, as it still lacked the necessary amount of mana.

Lead and saltpeter also had mana infused, but they hadn’t turned into magical metals.

“Probably, the iron worked because of its high purity. Remember, Sequoia said that magical metals are pure substances even without refining.”

“Aye, that makes sense...”

Combining Nathan’s purification and the penguin’s scientific extraction, it’s not difficult to obtain high-purity substances.

*This is fascinating. I want to try it with various materials. The total amount of mana required to transform materials into magical metals varies, doesn’t it?*

*Probably. Magical metals are rare compared to regular metals. We can prepare a large amount of iron and silver. So,*

*Blue metal and mithril can be used more easily.*

This is amazing!

Innovative!

Not only can we mass-produce magic stones, but we can also mass-produce magical metals.

Some magical metals might only be producible in a laboratory.

The possibilities are endless.

The major infrastructure project has begun, and we have a steady supply of magic stones.

Nelac’s town is sure to grow from here.

My goal of retiring in three years and living a life of leisure is becoming more realistic.

This concludes Part 1.

I will post three interludes and then start Part 2!