Chapter 193-194

Chapter 193 – The Foreign Country was also Developed!?

In a dining hall in the city of Arancia.

We were sitting at a table and eating the food that Rienna had brought.

And on the table, was the large seed that we had picked up—the seed of the World Tree

"It's quite the harvest… No, that's an understatement."

I had not expected to dig up such a thing when I started digging today.

But then again, considering we were under what used to be a World Tree, perhaps it was not too surprising.

However, I had done so much digging in Sheorl but only ever found the one seed of the World Tree.

Considering that, we must have been incredibly lucky to have found this one in Arancia.

I turned to Rienna, who was drying her wet hair, and muttered.

"It's all thanks to you, Rienna."

"…Are you being sarcastic?"

Rienna said with a red face.

Apparently, she was quite embarrassed about having slipped.

But given that she was a little wet, she looked kind of alluring.

"Th-that's not what I meant. Anyone would have slipped in your position."

"Yes, Miss Rienna. We have your luck to thank. Besides…"

Alyssa, who was sitting next to us, said this much before trailing off.

I asked her.

"Besides?"

"No, it's nothing. It seems that you found something valuable. And that is good."

"Well, it's because the people of Arancia were digging there first. I barely did any digging myself."

"That is not true. It would have taken us more than a year to dig that far. In the first place, had you people not come, we would have… Huh?"

I placed the seed of the World Tree in Alyssa's hand.

"This belongs to the people of Arancia."

"Su-surely you don't mean to give it to us?"

Alyssa shook her head and put it back into my hand.

"No, it is too much to accept. As the name suggests, it is a tree that can change the world. And with it, Sheorl will become even more glorious."

"It was buried beneath Alanberc. I only dig because it is my greatest… Um, no. As I said before, we want the people of Arancia to prosper. So you can stand against the danger from the prophecy."

And so I put the seed of the World Tree in Alyssa's hand once again.

As Alyssa looked at the seed without further resistance, Rienna opened her mouth.

"You should plant it here. While we do not have much, there are still Sun Stones left. With just one, it should grow to be of equal size as the tree in Sheorl. Have you decided where you would like to have it planted?"

"You said before that the growth of plants is accelerated when beneath the World Tree. In that case, it would be a waste to have it grow over the city streets. If we want fields, it would be best to plant it towards the back, like the plaza near the tower. It will be easier to defend there as well."

"In other words, it would be right next to the holy place."

That meant it would look like we were showing off to the people of the holy place. But at this point, planting it outside of the city walls was not an option. And so it would have to be close to the holy place out of necessity.

"Well, perhaps they will change the way that they think once they see the World Tree. Besides, they must be quite worried about our hostage, Rulat."

Numerous Mado Armors were already flying over Arancia.

We would be drawing so much attention as it is. And if a World Tree were to be added to it, then the difference in power between them and Arancia would be undeniable. As Alyssa said, they would have to bend soon.

Of course, they had abandoned the people of Arancia.

And so they would have to think about what they could do in order to make up for that.

Well, that is not my or Sheorl's business.

It was up to them to reach a compromise.

"Alright then, since we finished lunch, let's go and see this place where the World Tree seed will be planted."

I said, and they nodded and got up from their seats.

And so we left the dining hall behind us and headed towards the plaza that was in front of the tower.

…Now that I thought about it, Mappa never did show up.

"Mister Mappa must be incredibly busy then?"

Rienna must have been thinking the same thing as me, as she muttered this in wonderment.

"You two seem to really like Mister Mappa. But he is not a child, so surely you don't need to worry about him so much?"

"Oh? Did we not tell you, Alyssa?"

"Tell me what?"

"Mappa is a child."

"Huh? What? Eh? …Ahhh!"

Alyssa looked like she had just remembered something.

"Now that you mention it, that day I first met you. Mister Mappa had gone missing, and you did say that he was just a child."

"That's right. Mappa is a child."

"I see. So that's why you are worried… And it makes sense, given his actions… Well, leaving his appearance aside. So you two have already… And yet I…"

Alyssa began to tremble.

Rienna jabbed her in the shoulder lightly.

And then she turned to me with an embarrassed expression.

"Oh! Lord Heal! You've made Miss Alyssa misunderstand! Miss Alyssa. Mister Mappa is not our child. He is seven years old, and it has not even been a full year since Lord Heal and I had our fateful encounter."

"Huh? Ah, oh, is that so!? I-I jumped to conclusions then…"

Alyssa bowed her head deeply to me.

"Do-don't worry about it. I should have explained with more words. Mappa is a dwarf, and so he looks a little old to us humans."

"I see. However, to have such skill at seven years of age…these dwarves are amazing."

"There are also other dwarves in Sheorl…well, former dwarves who are slimes now. But none as good as him. Mappa is special."

I answered, and then Rienna began to talk to Alyssa about how amazing Mappa was, and all of the things he had done.

…Had Rienna always been this cheerful? Oh…what's that?

As we walked down the streets, I noticed that a certain Mado Armor was standing with folded arms and its legs spread apart behind the buildings.

When we headed in that direction, it was one of the Alanberc plazas.

Quite a crowd had gathered there.

"What is it? Do you know about this, Alyssa?"

"Now that I think about it, a representative of this district had asked for a permit for some construction work in this plaza. Apparently, the people of Sheorl were going to make something."

"Huh. What could it be? If it was construction work, then it wasn't a Mado Armor… Woah. That's…"

The large Golems, including Number 1 were there, as well as the slimes.

And there was someone in the center. It was Mappa.

"Mappa!"

I couldn't help but feel quite relieved when I saw him.

And so I rushed straight to Mappa.

When he noticed me, he gestured for me to come, as if I was right on time.

"I thought you were working on making more Mado Armors? Woah, this…"

A giant fountain was in the center of the plaza. But there was no water running yet.

"W-water, in a place like this? But all of the wells in this district have dried up."

Alyssa said in surprise. But Mappa pointed her in a certain direction.

There was Fule and Taran with pickaxes.

"Those two dug to a water source."

Mappa seemed to say with a nod of his head.

The Golems and Slimes must have made the fountain plates that hold the water.

And there were different parts of the plaza where the stone pavement was new, which probably meant that they had laid out pipes underground.

Just then, Fule held a lever near the fountain and then shouted.

"Alright, I'm going to let the water in now! Go!"

Fule pulled the level, and then I could hear the faint sounds of running water.

The sounds started to grow louder, and then water began to rush out of the center pillar in the fountain.

The plaza was filled with the sounds of cheering.

It seemed like they were rejoicing because they no longer had to go to the neighboring district in order to get water.

"First the Mado Armors and now this. You really are amazing, Mappa."

I said, but Mappa waved his finger as if to say that I hadn't seen anything yet.

And then he pointed at something.

"What is that…?"

Facing the plaza, there was a large building that was brighter in color than the others. The Alanberc buildings were all grey in color, but this one was a bright beige.

Alyssa tilted her head.

"That was where the old well and an abandoned storage house was."

But Mappa headed towards the building, as if to say it would be faster if we saw it in person.

0

0

0

Chapter 194 – As Expected!?

Among the gray buildings of Alanberc, there was one bright beige building.

It was facing the plaza. I looked up at it and muttered.

The building had three stories. And it was wider than it was tall. I could see decorative pillars and carvings of flowers and plants on the walls. And the entrance was decorated with sea shells and instruments from ships.

The overall atmosphere reminded me of Sheorl.

"Mappa. What happened here?"

I asked, but Mappa gestured for us to go inside, as it would be easier than explaining it.

We entered the building and stepped into a large hall with benches, chairs and tables where you could relax. The place was crowded with many of the Arancian people.

At a glance, it seemed like a dining hall, but there was a different space towards the back. It was the same as the one in Sheorl. A bathing area.

Some had already finished bathing and were drying their hair with a cloth.

"Oh, so you made a bathing area in Arancia as well."

Mappa nodded, and then I heard a voice coming from behind me.

"We made it so that some of the underground water comes here, and not just to the fountain. Because the water was quite hot."

It was Fule, who held a pickaxe.

Alyssa sounded impressed as she said,

"I am very grateful. Before all of this happened, we Arancians loved to bathe. However, we were unable to secure enough water, and did not have the skill."

Fule answered.

"I'm glad that you like it! We're going to make more of them in other areas. In any case, you should all go in! Besides, Lord Heal and the Princess…smell kind of sweet."

Earlier, Rienna and I had fallen into some sweet liquid that was stored underground. And while we had wiped ourselves with towels and washed with magic water, it still remained on our clothes.

"Yes, it would be good to wash our bodies and clothes. Alright, let's go inside as well."

I started to head to the changing room in the back. It should be separated for men and women.

However, Fule grabbed my hand.

"Lord Heal. It's this way."

"Huh?"

Fule walked along the wall to the right. There was a small door up ahead.

She opened the door and we came out into a decently large room.

There was also a door that led outside, and there were tables and chairs here.

Fule said,

"This is a resting place for visitors from Sheorl. Because there is no other place for us to sleep if we have to stay the night."

"I see. Yes, we've been coming here more often."

There were more occasions now when Mappa and his apprentices stayed here for the entire day.

Fule pointed to the back of the room.

"There is a bathing room in the back. And there are rooms on the second floor. I think we should use it to test things out."

"I see… But…"

As I looked concerned, Fule grinned.

"Hehe. Unfortunately for you, men and women are separated here as well. Really, Lord Heal. What kind of thoughts were in your head?"

I felt a little embarrassed as Fule laughed.

"I-I didn't mean anything by it… Anyway, I'm going in then."

"Take your time! And you two princesses as well! I'm going to bathe too!"

With Fule's voice at my back, I went to the changing room.

It was properly separated for men and women, and it was wide enough for three people to lie down.

I quickly got out of my clothes and entered the bathing area, which had no door.

It was not particularly big. The bathtub could fit around two or three people, and the washing area was also around the same size.

There was a pipe in the wall where water would come out if you turned it.

As the pipes reminded me of snakes, they were called snake mouths back in Sheorl. The low ones just had normal running water, while the high ones had a sieve-like attachment that made the water come out like rain.

But I didn't have to use them. I just needed to create enough water magic to wash my body and then dry myself with wind magic.

Still, since I was here, I might as well test them.

And I was quite tired, so it might be nice to soak in the tub a little.

"I'll wash my body first."

I sat down on the small bathing stool and turned on the water from the upper pipe in the wall.

Like this, I washed my hair and then my body.

"It really is just warm."

It made me miss the Sheorl hot springs.

However, this water wasn't bad either. It was clear and felt very smooth. And I thought that I could smell a faint sweet scent as well.

"Well, the water can be heated easily with fire magic…alright then."

Once I was finished washing up, I dunked my hand into the hot water.

As it was lukewarm, I wanted to heat it with fire magic.

After some time, steam began to rise and it became the ideal temperature, and so I submerged myself in the water.

"Phew… That feels good…"

Unlike the water in Sheorl, this water felt smooth.

I closed my eyes and started to hum without thinking. I was in danger of dozing off if I stayed inside too long. That was how comfortable it was.

Shiel was also floating comfortably in the water and seemed to be enjoying it.

I didn't really think about it, since we always bathed together, but I wondered if she minded… After all, she was a woman inside.

The thought made me a little embarrassed. And I found myself closing my legs.

Just then, I heard footsteps coming from the changing room.

"Hmm…?"

I opened my eyes and saw the silhouettes of three people.

Perhaps it was Mappa and his apprentices.

They had been working hard, so they would also be sweaty.

"I heated up the water, and it feels great. You should come in before it gets cold."

Maybe they didn't hear me, as the figures approached without answering.

Well, Mappa didn't talk. And it was possible that the others were influenced by him… But…

"Hey, hey. You have to wash yourselves first. The water will get dirty… Huh?"

The three figures that emerged from the mist were a lot more slender than expected.

Rienna stood in the middle with her long, wet hair. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes moist as she looked hungrily in my direction.

Fule was to the right and had untied her twin tales. The long blonde hair and somewhat sad expression was very different from the usual Fule, who was always so cheerful. Her cheeks were also flushed.

As were Alyssa's, as she stood awkwardly to the left. She had an almost dazed expression as she looked at me.

I had seen that expression before. I see.

However, I had to avert my eyes, as they weren't wearing clothes.

That delayed my reaction.

In that split second that I looked away, the three entered the tub, and their hands and feet traced lines along my body.

Rienna clutched my hand tightly while Fule whispered into my ear. Alyssa was the bold one as her hands went around my ankles.

I quickly stood up and tried to leave the bathing room.

However, perhaps my mind wasn't completely my own, and my body did not seem to have any strength left. Even moreso, because my hands and feet were being held.

Rienna and the other two drew closer to me now. Our bodies were in close contact. I would go mad if it continued.

I tried to use healing magic, but it did nothing. And I was unable to raise my voice in protest.

That sweet smell I had sensed earlier… Could it be that the World Tree sap we found underground was mixed with the water?

That was why I and they were…

This could be quite the disaster for the Arancian people below as well.

However, it seemed as if they were fine… No, I still had to be sure of the situation!

This feeling seemed to rouse me up, and I regained my voice.

"All-all of you, calm down! This is the work of the World Tree sap!"

But Rienna and the others did not loosen their grip.

This was no time to feel embarrassed. I would have to call for help.

"Someone! Help us! Ah…"

A sensed the presence of someone with familiar magic energy.

"Taran! You came! This water is… Taran?"

I saw the ominous red eyes glow through the steam.

Taran's face was not the one I was used to seeing.

Taran looked more like a wild beast that was targeting its prey.

And that prey was me.

Without saying anything, Taran unleashed her webs.

My body was bound up and pulled towards her, and then I was placed on top of her furry back.

And then Taran jumped out of the window in the building, and leapt from roof to roof through the city of Alanberc.

Eventually, she rushed up the tower in the center of the city. Perhaps due to my hatred of heights, I have no memory of what happened after that.