chapter 26: "Enjoy it, kid."
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In the southern region of the continent of Penumbralia, where Ethan resided, a red-haired, bearded man had won another battle and conquered another city. He had now seized control of all the independent clans and islands in the south, and his name had become feared throughout the entire continent. This great war genius's name was Alpshar Ogedei. His name echoed across the continent. With ruthless and cunning tactics, this man who brought misery to his enemies had become the master of the south. Alpshar was the illegitimate child of a clan leader in the south, and he later took revenge on those who looked down on him and his stepfather, rising to lead the clan. He killed anyone who opposed him. He had clawed his way to his current position by sheer force. All this grandeur was his doing. Alpshar was not the king of the country he had founded, but its owner.
Alpshar's new target was the Tamerid Empire, but before that, he had to deal with some issues and gather enough resources for this grand campaign. After all, capturing the only empire on the continent was not so easy. As the Tiamat Empire was no longer considered an empire, capturing the Tamerid Empire was of great importance.
Furthermore, another issue was the formidable Asina Kingdom. If the Asina Kingdom were to attack him while he was attacking the Tamerid Empire, he could lose everything he had gained. To prevent this, he would need to swiftly neutralize the Asina Kingdom! At least, that was his plan.
However, he would have to postpone all of this for at least a few more years because Alpshar's plans were grand and complex. Before attacking the Tamerid Empire, he needed to take steps to weaken the Asina Kingdom's power. However, he was aware that these steps would take time, and he would have to postpone his campaign for a few years.
During this time, Alpshar needed to develop strategies to further strengthen his power. He could send spies to weaken the Asina Kingdom from within and seek allies to tilt the balance of power in his favor.
But while he waited, he knew his rivals would not be idle. Therefore, he had to increase security measures and continually train his army. Additionally, he would need to keep clan leaders and other power centers in check to maintain balance in domestic politics.
As Alpshar meticulously prepared his plans, preparations for the great war that would change the fate of the continent of Penumbralia continued. In Penumbralia, it seemed as though the gods were rolling the dice to determine the future. All the cards had been dealt to the players, and they awaited their moves.
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While all this was happening, Ethan had begun his project to develop the Aurendale port. However, Aurendale city had a major flaw, which was its transportation. The access to this city passed through mountains, negatively impacting the city's logistics. While Ethan was improving the city's port, he was also brainstorming with advisor Evelyn on how to facilitate transportation.
Evelyn said, "The only thing that comes to mind is to create a different path in this mountain, but I don't know how we would do that." She had been thinking about this issue for about an hour, but no idea had come to her mind. However, when Ethan heard Evelyn's words, a light bulb went off in his head. Tunnels that saved a lot in his own world. Opening these tunnels would require appropriate equipment and careful calculations. However, Ethan could use his control over gravity and utilize the mathematical and physical knowledge he acquired in his previous world to build this tunnel.
Ethan said, "I think I have an idea."
"Yes, can I also know what it is?"
Ethan replied, "We will open a tunnel in the mountain."
When Evelyn heard what Ethan said, she looked at him in astonishment. She had eagerly asked for his idea, but froze when she heard the answer. She thought to herself, "One moment he acts like a child his age." But when she saw Ethan's serious expression, she began to speak and started to explain why this couldn't happen.
Evelyn said with a serious tone, "Sir, this is not feasible because this has never been done before. Or rather, it cannot be done. If it were that easy, everyone would do it. Besides, even if you were to open a tunnel in the mountain, it would cause the mountain to collapse and the hole to close."
Ethan said, "I understand what you're saying, but listen to my plan first," and began to explain how the tunnel would be made. He tried to explain it as simply as possible using the knowledge he gained from his previous world and emphasized that he could make this task easier by using his gravity magic.
Although Evelyn couldn't be entirely sure, she realized she had no choice but to accept it. Despite her attempts to dissuade him from this project, she couldn't succeed, and reluctantly accepted Ethan's idea. When she returned to her room in the evening and took off her clothes, she had a curvaceous body hidden behind her loose clothes, and she had been wearing loose clothes as much as possible due to the problems caused by the men who saw her body. She sat at her desk and finished her conversation with Ethan in her letter to the king. Then she gave this letter to her trusted aide, and the aide set off for the capital.
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Two weeks later, Ethan stood with about 100 people at the location where he had determined the tunnel would be dug. These people would assist Ethan in the excavation of the tunnel. Having completed the entire outline of the tunnel, Ethan had requested what he needed from the blacksmiths present. He had also asked for help from those working in construction. Of course, all this was not without compensation, and he had given a substantial amount of money to everyone involved, including those who would work in the excavation. Many young people who were unemployed and wanted to help their families immediately flocked to Ethan's mansion when they heard it was a paid job.
Although Ethan tried his best to ensure the safety of these people, he had informed them that if anyone died in an accident, he would provide a substantial compensation to their families. This further motivated them, and soon 100 people had gathered. He then sent news to the surrounding cities and villages to expand the team and promised them rewards if they joined him.
When everyone was ready, Ethan began to manipulate gravity to start digging. As they started digging the tunnel, Ethan began to use gravity to make the job easier. The other workers also did their best to help him. However, digging the tunnel would not be as easy as they had thought.
The first few days went smoothly, but as they dug deeper, they encountered unexpected difficulties. The rock formations inside the mountain were harder and more resilient than they had anticipated. Additionally, there was more soil and rock than they had estimated, indicating that the job would take longer than expected.
Every evening, Ethan and his team continued their work, tired but hopeful. Whenever faced with a challenge, Ethan used his engineering and mathematical knowledge to come up with solutions. He took necessary precautions for the safety and durability of the tunnel and motivated his team.
In the following days, they encountered natural obstacles such as water sources and natural gas inside the mountain in relation to the tunnel excavation. They needed to be more careful and meticulous in dealing with these obstacles.
However, with teamwork and Ethan's leadership, they successfully continued digging the tunnel. Each day, they witnessed the tunnel taking shape, bringing excitement to the team as it would provide easier and safer access to Aurendale.
When they hit a particularly hard substance during the excavation, which they assumed to be a rock, the team continued to strike at it but couldn't break through. Eventually, they called for Ethan. Ethan asked everyone to step back a bit and began examining the substance. It was a hard, dark red material, and Ethan realized he couldn't exert his strength on it. He started digging around the substance to understand what it was.
Upon finishing digging around the substance, Ethan realized it was a massive sword. He tried to measure the sword and realized it was approximately 10 meters long in the measurement unit of his previous world. Wondering for which creature such a thing was made, Ethan tried to grab the sword's hilt and suddenly felt intense pain. "AHHHGGG" Hearing his screams, everyone quickly stepped back in fear.
Although Ethan wanted to let go of the sword immediately, it seemed as if the massive sword was stuck to his hand. An eye opened on the sword's hilt and began to examine its surroundings and the person who woke it up. Soon after, the sword disappeared, shrinking to fit Ethan's size. The menacing red eye on the sword's hilt looked at Ethan for the last time before closing and disappearing into the sword again. During this, Ethan felt the pain in his body decrease, but it had spread to his mind. Ethan felt intense pain in his head and heard a voice inside his head.
"Enjoy it, kid."
The voice was rough and deep. If there were such a thing as the voice of a demon, Ethan was sure it would be like this. Shortly after, the sword disappeared from his hand, and Ethan fainted on the spot.