Chapter 9 – 10

Chapter 9 – A powerful rival appears!

"Ohh! That's great!"

I raised the new pickaxe as we stood by the shore.

And then Baris bowed.

"Thank you for your kind words, Lord Heal."

Baris and Erevan had worked together to make this pickaxe.

Baris had given him the instructions, and Erevan had done the rest.

"However, this is the limit of my knowledge… It really does not hold a candle to the quality of the original pickaxes."

"No, no. Just the fact that you were able to make iron in a place like this is amazing."

I looked at the blast furnace and other equipment.

I myself had no knowledge of smithing.

However, I could tell that what Baris had made was not at the same level as what humans used.

Goblins lived in tribes.

And so their weapons were mainly used for hunting. There were even tribes that still used stone weapons.

Only the wealthier tribes were able to make iron.

And the Berdan tribe was supposed to have been on the smaller side.

However, it seemed like they had made some iron.

Baris used this knowledge and taught me how to make iron and what facilities were necessary.

And so I made them by just stacking up some Stone Blocks.

Still, if only I had been smarter…

But then again, I had no way to know that knowledge of smithing would be useful to me one day.

You could say that this island lacked people with professional skills.

"You two did very well. I only wish that I could have helped you…"

"Surely not! We cannot allow you to be troubled by anything other than digging!"

Erevan said as he thumped his chest.

I was very grateful.

It was the most efficient for me to do the digging.

And there was only one reason that efficiency was so important to us. And that was to extend Rienna's short life.

We had to gather a lot of Turtle Stones for that.

At this point, her life had been extended for 5 years.

However, Rienna was still 15 years old…

As goblins and humans have a similar lifespan, we needed to extend it much farther.

The pickaxes that I had given to Erevan and Baris were starting to break.

Mine was still fine. But we had no more spares.

And so it was necessary to make new pickaxes.

And then there were the Cave Spiders that I had befriended 3 days ago.

With Taran in the lead, they were currently using a small patch of land to uh…dump their dirt into.

It was to make a small farm.

Aside from that, we were also gathering webs from the spiders. This was to make string.

According to Rienna, the webs were very durable, and you could use them as string without changing the thickness and length.

She was currently using them to make a fishing net.

As for fishing, I could just do that with thunder magic.

However, the goblins were intent on being able to survive without relying on my help.

They seemed to really want me to focus on mining.

And well, it was probably the right choice…

"Alright, I'm going to return to the cave then. …Those 'stones' look like they may be useful."

"Yes! Once we've made enough, we'll go down there and join you!"

"I see. I'll be waiting then."

I said. And then I returned to the cave.

As I started to walk down the stairs, Shiel appeared in front of me.

Shiel was on the smooth side and was in the shape of a boat.

"Ah, Shiel. Thank you."

And then Shiel extended a part of its body and waved it like a hand.

Don't mention it. I think…?

Shiel had likely been observing my interactions with the goblins and was copying us.

"Alright, take me there then!"

I got into the boat and held on.

And then, we slid down the slope at a tremendous speed.

It really was in a flash. Before I knew it, we had arrived at the cave where I had discovered Taran.

"Phew. Thanks. That sure was fast. …Maybe a little too scary."

I patted Shiel on the head and went inside of the cave.

So, about half was left now.

I was looking at the orange-colored stones that remained in the cavern.

These past 3 days, I've been coming down here between the normal mining work, and mining these stones.

As for these stones…

<<Sun Stones…Using them encourages the growth of living creatures.>>

Living creatures included humans, animals, and plants.

It was likely because these stones that the Cave Spiders were larger here than on the continent.

But I had no idea if growing larger would affect your lifespan.

And so I was too scared to use it on any of my friends.

However, they should be incredibly useful for growing crops.

I didn't know how much it would change, but I intended to test it out by planting apple seeds once the farm was finished.

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Okay, let's start…

Huh?

I realized that a huge, black spider had entered the cave.

It was Taran.

And Taran was carrying a total of 4 pickaxes.

As Cave Spiders had 8 legs, it was holding them with the 4 in its front.

"What is it, Taran? I still have this pickaxe, so I don't need a new one yet…"

Perhaps Erevan had asked Taran to bring them to me.

However, my pickaxe was stronger. The goblins knew that.

Could it be…

"You…you want to challenge me?"

Taran's only reply was to direct its red eyes towards me.

I wasn't sure if I was happy or intimidated…

I felt a chill go down my spine.

While it was a tamed monster, Taran…was going to challenge me with 4 pickaxes.

"Fine. I accept…"

I held my pickaxe ready.

And then…

"…Go!!"

I swung with my pickaxe over the Sun Stones.

At the same time, I could hear the echoes of pickaxes smashing the stones behind me at four times my speed.

Taran was carrying 4 pickaxes.

If it could mine like that, there was no way that a human with just one pickaxe could compare.

Still, to be able to use them so expertly… Taran must have been watching me carefully these past 3 days. I can do that… No, I can do it better. That's what it had likely been thinking.

However, I was still the Cave King. I couldn't lose.

"AAARRRGGGHHH!! I WON'T LOOOOOOSSE!!"

I swung my pickaxe even faster, and Taran reacted by raising its pace as well.

After this competition, we were able to finish mining the rest of the Sun Stones that day.

Not only that, but we kept digging further into the walls.

And so for the first time since I arrived on the island, I became completely exhausted.

I was still panting even after Shiel brought me back to the entrance.

"Ha…haa… What speed. Taran. You're amazing."

I praised Taran, who had returned with me.

"However, I still dug farther than you…"

But that was still incredible speed for a first time.

Not only that, but the slimes were not able to keep up when transporting the rubble, which made it difficult to walk.

If Taran continued to improve, I would eventually be…

As I shuddered at the thought, the small goblin…Rienna, approached us.

"Oh, it's you, Rienna. Uh, today's Turtle Stones…"

As I tried to look in my Inventory, Rienna interrupted me.

"Lord Heal. You must have worked so hard! Here, take this!"

"Uh, thank you."

She gave me a white cloth, and I used it to wipe my sweat.

Huh? Where had she acquired such a clean and smooth cloth?

As I looked at it in wonderment, Rienna sighed with relief.

"…Ahh. I am so happy that you like it. As I had finished making the fishing net, I decided to make a handkerchief with the spider webs."

"Ohh, that's what this is. I thought that it was surely made out of silk. That's how smooth it feels. I didn't know that you could sew as well."

"Yes! I can make all sorts of things… For instance, I could make you some bedding?"

"I see. Yes, I feel sorry for using Shiel as a bed all of the time. You wouldn't mind doing that?"

"Yes. Leave it to me!"

"Thank you, Rienna. I'm so glad that you came here."

"…Huh?"

It had just been a casual remark, but Rienna suddenly shuddered and her eyes looked red.

"So-sorry. Did I say something wrong?"

Rienna wiped away a tear and shook her head.

"No… I just had dust in my eyes! I must go and prepare dinner now!"

While she was crying, she looked very happy. And with that, she turned away from me.

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Chapter 10 – A boat arrived?!

Noon, the next day.

"Wow, it's already starting to sprout!"

Rienna said as she stood in front of the small farm that was made in a corner of the island.

The apple seed I had planted had sprouted in just 10 seconds…

This was all because of the Sun Stones.

I had mined them from the cavern where I discovered the Cave Spider. And they encouraged the growth of all kinds of living creatures.

Still, it was strange being able to see it grow like this with your own eyes…

I nodded to Rienna.

"This is what happened with just one… I think I'll try to use more."

And so I took the Sun Stones out of my Inventory and started adding them one by one.

And then, it immediately started to grow larger.

Before I knew it, it had become a tree that was taller than I was.

When I looked up, I saw bright green leaves and red apples.

The goblins must have been surprised because they raised their voices.

Erevan, the large goblin, was sweating from his forehead.

"A-amazing…"

"Yes. …I didn't expect it to grow this fast."

Baris was also sweating as he nodded.

As for me, I was too stunned to say anything.

Well, there were stones that extended your lifespan or increased your magic, so it was a little late to be so surprised…

However, we had mined all of the Sun Stones in the cavern now.

And I had not been able to mine them anywhere else.

Since I didn't know when we could get more, I couldn't waste them.

I had 678 Sun Stones left.

And I had just used 11 for this tree.

That meant I could raise up to 60 more apple trees.

The small mushrooms inside the cavern became bite-sized with a single Sun Stone.

So it seemed that the number of Sun Stones used changed depending on what you wanted to grow.

Regardless, it was quite comforting to see green after such a long time.

I never would have thought that I'd be so moved at the sight of a tree.

Here, everything you saw was black or gray.

"And they look so delicious too! Can I pick them? I want to make some baked apples."

"Of course. Take as many as you want. It's great to have sweet food."

We were just about to run out of the food supplies I had brought.

In other words, we were just about to be forced to live off of fish alone.

It would get boring if everything you ate was just salty.

"Yes! I'll pick about 20 of them for now!"

Rienna hummed to herself as she used a stick to knock the apples down.

She really seemed to be interested in food.

Alright…

"Hey, Rienna. Do you have a minute?"

Rienna turned around as she carried an armful of apples.

"Yes? What is it, Lord Heal?"

"I'm going to leave the rest of the Sun Stones to you. You can decide how to use them."

We planned to make a farm, but I didn't know anything about food, so I thought it would be better to put Rienna in charge.

"Me-me? But they are so valuable…"

"But these things should be handled by the person in charge of cooking, don't you agree? So you're the right person."

"But while I can cook, cultivation is…"

"As for that…"

I turned to look at Baris.

Baris seemed to guess what I wanted.

"Princess. While it is not much, I do have some knowledge of farming. We can raise the crops together."

Rienna heard this and nodded.

"If Baris will help me…I think I can do it. Yes, I will not disappoint you, Lord Heal!"

"Aye, thank you."

I wished she wouldn't think about it too hard. But that being said, I did have high expectations. And I knew that she wouldn't let me down.

Still, we only had fruit seeds.

It really limited what we could grow. So it would be best to acquire other seeds from outside quickly…

Well, we would just have to do what we could now.

"Alright, I'm going to go digging again."

With the goblins wishing me luck, I once again headed to the cave.

In the far depths, Taran was already swinging the pickaxes, this time with the help of the children spiders.

Shiel and the other slimes carried the materials to me.

"Yes, yes. You're all helping."

I said, even though there was no way that they would understand. And then I struck the walls with my own pickaxe.

As always, the rocks fell away.

However, this time I saw a white rock inside.

"Hmm? What's this?"

<<Dragon Sphere Stone…Allows you to revive the dead.>>

What a ridiculously powerful stone.

First, it was a stone that extends your life, and now one that revives people.

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Now, it was as if we had a second layer of insurance.

If someone happened to die, we would still be okay.

"A new stone, huh… Yes, I must keep digging!"

And so I started to swing the pickaxe again.

However, no matter how much I continued to dig, I was not able to get another Dragon Sphere Stone.

They must have been very rare.

But then again, being able to revive without limit would mean you had nothing to fear…

Perhaps I should just leave it by the entrance so it could be used in emergencies.

And so I took the Dragon Sphere Stone out of my Inventory.

If I left it in there, it was likely that no one would be able to take it out or use it if I died.

As I was thinking this, I heard a voice echo from far away.

"Chief! Chief! Chief!"

It was Erevan's voice.

He must be shouting near the entrance.

Had something happened?

"I'm coming!!"

I shouted back loudly as I climbed up the stairs.

On the way, Shiel gave me a ride, so I didn't get too tired.

When I arrived at the entrance, I saw that Erevan looked pale as he stood there.

"Erevan. What happened?"

"Chi-chief! The ship with our comrades is here! Please come!"

"Aye!"

I put the Dragon Sphere Stone down by the entrance and headed to the rocky shore.

And then, I saw that Rienna and Baris were waving towards a sailing ship that was offshore.

As for the ship, they were waving what was probably the flag of their tribe. It was a black flag with an axe painted on it.

So, they had noticed us as well.

"I see. So your friends are alive."

Rienna turned to look at me.

"Yes! I thought they were all dead. This is such a relief…"

She said with tear-filled eyes.

Baris and Erevan were also crying tears of joy.

"Ah, I'm so happy…my child was also on that ship."

Erevan said as he waved his hand.

His child. He must want to reunite as soon as possible.

"Erevan. It will be dangerous for that ship to stop so close to hear. You should use my boat to go to them."

"Yes! But, are you sure?"

"I won't be using it anyway. So there is no problem. Also…"

I took out some sapphires and precious stones from my Inventory and handed them to Erevan.

"Chief. What is this?"

"A farewell gift. Take it. If you have this, the Berdan tribe will be able to make a new start, no matter which continent you are on."

"What? Wh-what are you talking about, Chief?"

"What am I… Your friends have come in a ship. Of course, you wouldn't want to stay around such a remote place like this?"

Upon hearing this, the goblins looked at me with surprise.

Erevan opened his mouth.

"Wouldn't want to stay? Surely not. We have already offered ourselves to you, Chief. If I am to go, it is only so that I can make them swear their loyalty to you as well."

"Yes! We are now your servants, Lord Heal!"

"We have already decided to serve you."

Rienna said. Baris agreed with a nod.

"Wa-wait a minute. I'm grateful for that, but if you took this with you, you could buy land and weapons. You don't have to live in a place like this…"

"Then, will you come with us, Lord Heal?"

Now that I thought about it, that's what I had been hoping for in the beginning.

Escape this island by ship. It was now possible.

However, now, I could no longer imagine living in any place else.

Mining here had become my reason for living.

"No, I…"

"Then we do not want to leave either."

Rienna declared. And Erevan and Baris nodded.

If I were in their place, I would have left and lived in luxury.

But they wanted to stay. Stay with me.

I couldn't help but cry tears of joy then.

My parents and brothers had always hated me, and I was always alone.

And yet, here were people who wanted to stay with me…

"You guys… Thank you."

I said. And Erevan shook his head.

"It is nothing. Well then, I will go and meet them by boat and tell them where to anchor the ship."

"Yes. That's right. Ah…"

Just as I was about to answer, a giant wave struck the ship, and it was capsized.