Chapter 106: The Silver Mountains Part 1

Khalid said he would explain it so simply that even a druid like me could understand, but in reality, it was nothing like that. He used various magical terms with ease, like a true wizard.

However, I could understand it in the end. It wasn't because Khalid explained it well. It was because I, as a "modern person", was smart.

Even the genius Einstein was known to be terrible at teaching, and Khalid was just like that.

Anyway, the theory of the climbing golem that Khalid explained was quite simple. But knowing how the proud wizard Khalid would react if I said it was truly "simple" I avoided using that expression.

"So, you want to use plants together with it?"

"It seems you've understood."

Yes, Khalid knew well that artificial golems would be broken down by the magical waves of the Silver Mountains. He could create powerful golems, but if the core infused with the master's magic separated from the artificial golem, it would collapse. Naturally occurring golems didn't need the help of a core and could regenerate on their own, but artificial golems would continuously disintegrate within the Silver Mountains.

What was needed to prevent the golem from being destroyed by the magical waves of the Silver Mountains was plants. Khalid's idea was simple. By planting vegetation in the golem made of rock and clay, it would prevent the golem and its core from separating.

It's quite a plausible method.

This was entirely possible if you chose the right plants and used the right skills. Plants weren't like magical artifacts, so they would be safe from the magic of the Silver Mountains and the golem would be able to survive even in the Silver Mountains.

"Using plants in a golem…"

If the plant could withstand the cold of the Silver Mountains and was tough and strong enough to bind the golem's components together…

"Hmm…"

There was a plant that fit perfectly.

The snow lotus under improvement work.

"…The snow lotus should be good enough."

"Snow lotus?"

"Yes. It's a plant with stems and roots that never freeze even in extreme cold. It's sturdy enough to use as a rope. Although it's still under improvement …"

"Then, I'll give you a golem to test its effect."

"…Are you sure you can just hand out a golem to anyone?"

"Anyone? You're my partner."

Partner. Considering we had a Black Opium trade agreement, that wasn't entirely wrong…

"…Well, anyway. Understood."

It felt a little awkward, but I answered obediently. Khalid then took off one of the necklaces he was wearing and tossed it to me. I caught the flying necklace. It had a small stone piece dangling from it; this was likely a magical artifact connected to the golem's core.

"It's the key to a golem. With it, you can control a golem."

"To what extent can it understand commands?"

In response to my question, Khalid smiled mockingly.

"I'm lending it to you, not giving it."

"I'm just curious, that's all."

"You're a funny one. It's an experimental model. It can't follow complex commands yet, so don't get any funny ideas."

"Who said I'd do such a thing?"

"You look like you might."

Was it that obvious? I responded with a vague smile and put the golem necklace around my neck.

"You don't have to give verbal commands; it will move according to your will."

Just like Khalid said, as soon as I thought "Come here" the golem slowly walked towards me. Amazing.

"When you get used to it, it will move like your own limbs, but I'm not sure you can get used to it in such a short time."

"We'll see."

I flashed a grin at Khalid and left the lab. The golem followed me sluggishly. Can't this thing move any faster?

"Anyway, I'll come back when I have results."

"Only come back if you succeed."

"Well, you never know, so you might want to think of other options too."

I waved lightly and left the mansion with the golem.

"Great! Thanks for your hard work, everyone!"

I called the Phews over as I unwrapped the bundle of sweet snacks I bought from the Solen shopping district. The Phews who were diligently tending the dimensional garden were attracted by the sweet smell of snacks such as cookies, bread, cakes, and snacks, and flocked in excitedly.

While they ate the snacks, I took a look at the plants they had been diligently growing. Had the improvements gone well? With a mix of excitement and worry, I wandered through the garden with the golem slowly trailing behind me.

For the sake of experiments and improvements, part of the dimensional garden was adjusted to resemble the environment of the Silver Mountains. Feeling the cold air, I wrapped my clothes tighter around me. Getting a cold would be a big problem.

The fully bloomed Snow Blossom trees emitted a strong and sweet fragrance. With this level of scent, animals would be attracted from afar. This was sufficient. I gathered some Snow Blossom seeds and headed to the next plot.

Next was the Silver Snow Plant. I carefully picked one of the heavy fruits and split it in half. Inside the Silver Snow Plant, dense fluff-like snowflakes were packed tightly. As I pulled out a bit and touched it, it crumbled finely and scattered lightly. How far would the fluff spread if it burst? I adjusted the wind in the dimensional garden and threw one of the Silver Snow Plant fruits towards an empty bush.

-….Poof!

The sound wasn't quite an explosion; it was just a small noise as the Silver Snow Plant fruit split open. In the snowstorm-whipped Silver Mountains, this amount of noise would be easily concealed.

As soon as the Silver Snow Plant fruit split, something like white smoke began to rise. On closer inspection, it wasn't smoke but very thin fibers. The light fibers expanded and floated endlessly, quickly spreading densely within a five-meter radius.

"That's more effective than I thought."

I spat out the fibers that had entered my mouth and adjusted the wind to disperse the fiber mist. It would be good to take plenty of this with me.

Next was the Snow Field Pea. The improved Snow Field Pea that was densely planted throughout the field had longer and plumper pods than the original. This must have increased the number of peas inside the pod. I picked one and peeled it open. Five, no, six peas popped out. The peas were slightly smaller than before but so hard that they couldn't be crushed by hand.

"Well, let's check its performance…"

I used [Breath of the Forest] on the Snow Field Pea. When the skill was used on the Snow Field Pea that had already grown to its limit, the gas inside the pod exploded, and that launched the peas forward.

-Dududududu!!

-Dadadadada!!

The peas shot out like bullets, pierced through the grass, and embedded themselves in the tree. Speed, check. Strength, check. The most important Snow Field Pea improvement experiment was a complete success. Now, I need to ask the Phews to secure as many seeds as possible before climbing the mountain.

Lastly, I headed to the snowfield where the Snow Lotus was growing. The Snow Lotus wasn't originally intended to be used this way, but it turned out to be perfect for the golem…

"Alright, stand still here."

I left the slowly trailing golem behind and entered the snowfield, where I plucked a stem of the Snow Lotus. It was so tough and hard that even cutting it with my dagger was a real challenge. Though I managed to cut the stem, I couldn't pull out the roots embedded beneath the rock. I returned to the golem with just a single stem, wedged the stem into a crevice between its rocky parts, and used [Breath of the Forest]. The stem sprouted new roots that began to burrow into the rock and clay.

I had to carefully control the growth of the Snow Lotus. The roots needed to penetrate the rock but not so deeply as to cause cracks. The stem also started to spread in all directions, growing new roots and wrapping around the golem's entire body.

-Crackle, creak…

"Just a little longer; hang in there."

As the Snow Lotus grew, it enveloped and burrowed into the golem's body and limbs. Strange noises emerged as the connections between the rocky parts tightened. Although I knew the golem felt no pain or fear, I tried to reassure it.

Once the Snow Lotus had fully grown around the golem, I tried moving it. Starting with simple walking, then swinging its arms, lying down, and even performing delicate actions like lifting something. It seemed that the tight wrapping slightly slowed its movements, but thankfully the golem moved more easily than I expected.

"Good, very good."

I clapped my hands as if cheering it on. The Snow Lotus connected the golem better than I thought, so even if a situation came up where the golem couldn't move on its own, I thought that if I did well, I could control the golem by moving the Snow Lotus itself. Creating a golem was not an easy task, so it would be nice if I could recover even a little bit of it in case of an emergency.

"I think this is enough."

I moved the golem until its movements became a bit smoother, then trimmed the Snow Lotus stem further to reinforce it in various places and gathered the seeds.

When I went to the center of the garden, the Phews who had already devoured all the snacks were happily running around and rolling at the feet of the golem and me. Some of them, without any fear, even climbed onto the golem. They seemed startled when they first saw the golem, but perhaps their wariness had diminished since it was now wrapped in the Snow Lotus they had grown themselves.

"Good job, everyone. Let's keep it up like this."

I handed them the Black Opium seeds that Khalid had returned to me and designated the field where they should be cultivated. The Black Opium they would grow would be of much better quality than what I had cultivated myself. With the next harvest, the yield would increase, so I needed to research what I could do with the Black Opium.

"Alright, let's get going."

It was time to return the golem to Khalid and start planning the climb in earnest. I heard that there were native Sherpas living at the foot of the Silver Mountains. It would be nice if we could hire them, but since no one will step forward in an unstable situation like this, we could still at least get some information.