Chapter 82 - Outing

The high autumn sky and the colorfully tinted autumn leaves.

That, too, would not last much longer.

They were all becoming fallen leaves, dropping down to form a blanket covering the ground.

It was late autumn.

'It's beautiful.'

Looking up at a landscape she had only ever looked down upon thousands of times was refreshing.

Perhaps because of that, Valdrova could not take another step.

The sensation of becoming a part of it felt so incredibly precious.

'An outing...'

Not an expedition just to slaughter demonic creatures, but an outing made purely for pleasure.

It was nothing special, yet she could not control her pounding heart.

What if she made a mistake?

She couldn't afford to make a mistake...

Repeating those thoughts and taking a deep breath, she finally moved her feet.

'What does the town Ferda built look like?'

After hundreds of years of seclusion, Valdrova was encountering a town for the first time.

It was none other than the town being built beneath Valdrova Castle.

'This is... a town?'

The houses in Valdrova's last memories had been made of stone, dirt, and wood.

But what were these things here now?

There were only tents.

People were gathered around the tents, busy working.

'They must have regressed significantly in the meantime.'

Valdrova could not hide her pity.

When she heard about it from Luri, she had definitely said it was prospering...

Had she lied so she wouldn't worry?

"Hey, who are you, pal?"

Someone approached as she stared blankly at the scene.

Valdrova turned her head in shock.

It was a man in his thirties who looked like he had rolled through his fair share of rough patches.

Valdrova found herself overwhelmed by the sight of him.

It wasn't simply because his impression was fierce.

'A human talked to me.'

It was purely a symptom of her anthropophobia.

A human other than Ferda had approached without hesitation and asked who she was.

For a moment, Valdrova felt as if time had stopped.

What should she say? Should she run away?

"What's wrong, why aren't you speaking? Are you on a vow of silence or something?"

A vow of silence?

She didn't know what that was, but Valdrova nodded for now.

At that, the man accepted it without pressing further.

"Ah, I see. So you're a knight who swore an oath to Altes. Are you a wandering knight looking to earn a knighthood at Valdrova Castle?"

Shake, shake.

"Really? Then I suppose you're a fellow from a knightly family who turned to adventuring... but it seems you've arrived too early. We're in the middle of constructing the town right now. We need to build the houses quickly, but my goodness..."

The man clicked his tongue.

Valdrova tilted her head and pointed a finger at the tents.

It was a silent question asking if those weren't houses over there.

"Huh? What are you talking about? Those are just temporary lodgings until the town is built, not houses!"

Ah, so those weren't houses.

Valdrova scratched her head awkwardly.

"You really don't know how the world works, do you? Well, it happens. Those are temporary barracks, and what we need right now is a communal barracks. A real house that can block the winter wind properly and where people can warm their hands by a warm fire. We have to build it fast so people can spend the time warmly before winter comes."

"..."

"They say they're putting out notices in the Empire to bring in lots of people, but there hasn't been a damn lick of news about anyone volunteering. Do you know why?"

Shake, shake.

"Isn't it because so many people hate the idea of being dragged off to the absolute frontlines? I'd probably feel the same way. The world inside the wall is tough enough, so what must the world outside the wall be like? They'd rather just shiver in fear and die inside the Empire. Kids these days have no ambition. No ambition at all."

"..."

"So anyway, pal. Are you pretty strong?"

Strong...

A woman whose only possession was strength.

That was why she was a dragon called the Aspect of Fire and Power.

Valdrova hesitantly nodded.

"As it happens, there are a few others like you around, see? I'm the foreman for this construction. If you're strong, wouldn't you mind giving us a hand? If you have somewhere else to go, I won't stop you, but if you want to work here in the far east, we need to build things as quickly as possible, right?"

The man offered Valdrova a labor job.

Even though she was dressed as a knight or an adventurer, he didn't hesitate since he was so desperate for manpower.

Hearing the offer, Valdrova swept her gaze around the area again.

The people living in tents.

They were wearing quilted clothes, but they still shrank back when hit by the cold wind.

'They must be very cold.'

It would be even colder sleeping inside tents like those.

'In that case, what I can do is...'

After thinking it over, Valdrova nodded.

"Typical adventurers... Wait, you'll do it?"

Nod, nod.

"Hah."

The man stared at her with wide eyes, as if looking at some sort of oddball.

The foreman had actually made the exact same offer to other adventurers several times, but this was the first time anyone had accepted.

Who would want to do this kind of hard manual labor?

"Understood. I'll let my administrator know. My name's Hanson. You can just call me Foreman... Ah, you took a vow of silence. I'll give you a token later so you can summon me with it instead whenever you need work."

Nod, nod.

"Then before you start working... how about taking off that armor?"

"?"

Armor? This?

Valdrova pointed at her helmet.

"Yeah, that armor."

CLATTER!

Valdrova jumped in shock and vigorously shook her head.

"How are you supposed to work wearing that?"

Shake, shake!

"It can't be about saving face among fellow men, so is it that you can't show your face or something?"

Nod, nod!

"Hah, can't show your face, and took a vow of silence too. You're quite the mysterious fellow."

Hanson tried a few more times to get her to take it off before giving up.

What did her outfit matter anyway?

As long as she used her strength well, that was all that mattered.

Hanson put her to work right away.

He walked with Valdrova to where the log materials were piled up.

"You see these logs here? You have to bring all of them to that fellow sawing over there. Simple, right?"

Nod, nod.

"Alright, then go over to that end. We have to lift it together, so we're going to load them onto the cart one by one. Ready, one, two, heave... ho?"

It was strange.

He applied force and stood up, but oddly, there was no resistance.

It was an impossible situation unless this timber was made out of a clump of feathers.

Hanson looked down at his hands, wondering if something was wrong.

The log was floating in the air.

The knight standing on the other end had lifted it all by himself.

And with only one hand.

As if it were incredibly light.

The helmet stared blankly at the foreman.

Where do I put this?

"Uh, you can just put it over there... sir."

The word 'pal' slipped away completely, replaced by a sudden use of honorifics.

Valdrova simply moved and began transferring the log.

She moved while holding onto the very end of the log.

Even someone who claimed to be quite strong wouldn't be able to hold on if they only grabbed the edge of a pillar.

"Is it perhaps not heavy for you?"

Nod, nod.

As Valdrova acted like it was nothing, Hanson asked her just in case.

"Can you perhaps lift two as well?"

Valdrova nodded and effortlessly hoisted two up into the air.

Still using just one hand.

"Just how many more can you carry...?"

"?"

Valdrova tilted her head.

That, she didn't know either.

Well, she could just find out from now on, couldn't she?

In that manner, she hoisted them up one by one until she was lifting a stack of ten logs in total.

She could already single-handedly carry an amount that would require two carts.

"..."

Hanson watched the spectacle with his mouth hanging open foolishly.

Hanson wasn't the only one shocked by this display of superhuman strength.

"What the hell is that?"

"He's carrying all that by himself?"

Naturally, it drew the attention of the surrounding construction workers.

Since she was carrying ten logs at once while dressed in knight's armor, the number of people whispering among themselves grew.

'Is this not right?'

Startled by the sudden attention, Valdrova became frightened and ended up putting the logs down.

At Valdrova's action, Hanson snapped back to his senses and shouted at the crowd.

"What are you looking at, you punks! Get back to work right now!"

The laborers returned to their respective stations after his growling threat.

Hanson approached Valdrova and consoled her.

"Oh my, Sir Knight. Please do not worry. If anyone treats you like some sort of spectacle, I, Hanson, will personally smash their heads in and set them straight!"

Hanson made chopping motions with his hands while making shoosh sounds with his mouth.

Valdrova was a desperately needed A-grade talent.

After being coaxed and comforted like that, Valdrova resumed working.

Even if he hadn't gone that far, she was already planning to start again anyway.

'Because we need to build the houses quickly.'

She wanted to help them be able to sleep in warm houses before the cold of the North flowed down.

So they could sleep without any worries, at least when they rested.

For someone as simple-minded as her, that was the best she could do.

"I guess we'll call it a day here. Great work out there, Sir Knight!"

Valdrova followed the foreman's gaze and looked up at the sun.

The sun was leaning toward the west.

She tried to move to keep working, thinking there was still some time left, but Hanson stopped her.

"Ah, you can stop now. The sun's setting, isn't it? Once the sun goes down, you have to sleep and prepare for tomorrow. Isn't everyone exhausted?"

Ah, that was how it worked.

Valdrova nodded.

Hanson headed toward where the people were gathered.

He went there to return his token and collect his daily wages.

Hanson submitted for Valdrova's share as well and received the money.

Hanson grumbled as he came back with the coin pouches.

"Those damn bastards. You did the work of four people over an entire week all by yourself, yet they refused to give you fifteen portions and said they'd only pay for ten. Aren't they a bunch of filthy crooks?"

She didn't really understand.

So she just nodded for now.

"Anyway, those higher-ups are the problem. I bet that Regent guy named Ferda definitely ordered them to act this way! It seems the kid acts like a cheapskate despite his young age... Hup!"

Hanson hastily shut his mouth.

He could feel a glaring gaze staring back at him from beyond the shadow of that helmet.

"Ah, my apologies. I suppose it was a bit rude to badmouth a noble in front of a knight, wasn't it? Please understand. It's just a middle-aged man who hasn't achieved anything complaining."

"..."

"If I had my way, I'd empty out all my personal funds for you, but please let it go with this for now. Instead, I'll serve as a connection for you so it can be a great help to you later on, adventurer. How does that sound?"

If she had been even slightly attuned to the adventuring business, she would have known how utterly useless that sounded.

However, Valdrova currently had no clue what this man was talking about.

Because of that, she just tried nodding for now.

"Haha! As expected, your magnanimity is on another level! Here, take this."

Hanson held out a heavy pouch to Valdrova.

The clinking sound inside the pouch was familiar to her ears.

'It sounds similar to the gold coins piled up in the vault.'

It was similar to the sound made when she lightly tapped the piles with her claws.

Valdrova accepted the pouch.

"Come to think of it, Sir Knight, this is your first time here, so do you have a place to stay? If you don't, I could prepare a wooden cot for you..."

It was fun experiencing what it was like to be human, but she couldn't stay here.

Valdrova nodded and unconsciously pointed her finger toward the lonely mountain.

Then, realizing her mistake, she pointed toward the opposite side of the lonely mountain.

"Are you leaving here forever?"

Hanson asked with a troubled expression.

When Valdrova shook her head, the color returned to his face.

"Ah, so you're just planning to stay somewhere else. Understood. Whenever you feel like helping with the construction, come by anytime. You have no idea how reassuring it is to have someone like you around, Sir Knight!"

Since Valdrova couldn't give a verbal answer, she just nodded repeatedly.

She needed to get out of there quickly.

With that thought in mind, she turned to leave.

"Sir Knight?"

"?"

"I thought you were heading home? Where are you going?"

Valdrova's feet were heading toward the lonely mountain.

Oops.

I'm not supposed to go that way.

Looking awkward, Valdrova redirected her steps and walked in the direction she had previously pointed.

Hanson burst into laughter at the sight.

"Get back safely! And make sure you don't run into any monsters!"

With that farewell, she distanced herself from the town.

Once the town was out of sight, Valdrova took a large detour and headed toward her lair.

The time it took her to return was instantaneous—a mere three seconds.

Pushing open the massive iron doors and returning to her nest, Valdrova immediately lay down.

She stared up at the pitch-black ceiling while still wearing the armor.

'What was that?'

It had been a fascinating day.

The day had literally flown by like an arrow.

It hadn't been exhausting, but she couldn't even tell what had really happened.

She had simply repeated her movements, and the people had marveled at her.

'Was I... helpful?'

It left her bewildered that that alone was enough.

Valdrova untied the pouch she had placed on her chest.

Ten bronze coins per laborer.

Ten people's worth meant one hundred coins in total.

She stacked them up neatly and stared down at them quietly.

Money given to her by humans.

'Money they gave me to say thank you.'

They had been thankful to her.

'He told me he'd see me again tomorrow.'

Their faces were vividly drawn in Valdrova's mind.

Not trembling in fear, but smiling brightly.

'Humans want me.'

She had no idea how to express these overwhelming emotions.

She simply wanted to share this joy that felt like it would burst her heart.

"Luri..."

The first person who came to mind was the girl who knew her well.

The kind-hearted child who had served her for so long.

"...is someone I shouldn't tell."

Valdrova reflexively covered her mouth.

She was loyal, but when she got angry, she was scarier than anyone else.

She would undoubtedly nag her about a dragon's dignity or whatever.

Since it would only lead to them both suffering emotionally, she would keep it a secret.

She needed someone else to share this with besides Luri.

"Then... Ferda?"

A gentle man.

She had always needed a topic to talk with him about.

And this was an excellent topic among topics.

Her heart tickled.

She found herself grinning for no reason, and her body moved on its own as if she didn't know what to do with herself.

She wanted Ferda to scratch this itch in her heart.

'Actually, no.'

Valdrova hugged the pouch of bronze coins tightly.

She wanted to tell Ferda, but not right now.

This town was being built by Ferda's will.

She wanted to gather these coins one by one and give them to Ferda as a surprise gift.

So that one day, when this town prospered, she could say that she was the one who raised its pillars.

That she had helped build it with her own hands.

That destruction wasn't the only thing she was capable of.

She wanted to see the expression he would make.

She wanted to hear what kind of praise he would give her.

So she decided to keep it safely hidden.

Still, it felt like a waste to just keep these feelings locked in her heart, so the words unconsciously slipped out of her mouth.

"Ferda..."

Valdrova whispered his name affectionately.

"I... I was helpful to you, Ferda."

That was the first step Valdrova took.

It was the beginning of a small change.