Chapter 120

It was an evening that day. Just as the <Kikyou> children were returning to the Yuritania Palace from the mining city that was under construction, Yuri called <Kikyou> captain, Meteora, to her private office.

On a small table, she set out a cup of tea and a cake, which she had brewed herself.

“I’m sorry I called you after work.”

“No! If Sister calls, I’m always happy to come!”

“I’ve prepared something sweet as an apology, please eat it.”

“Thank you! That’s a lot of stacked, delicious stuff!”

What Yuri had made this time is a so-called milk crepe cake.

There were still a lot of eggs and butter leftover from the village chief’s visit to Notoku, so Yuri decided to make this cake to consume them as well.

The only ingredients used were flour, eggs, milk, butter, sugar, and a very small amount of salt. These six ingredients were used to make the crepe batter and the custard cream in between.

Naturally, a cake made with only simple ingredients will have a rustic taste. Personally, Yuri believes that the simpler the crepe, the better it tastes.

Milk Crepe is interesting because the flavor of the cream diffuses intricately in the mouth between the layers of crepe batter. If you want to enjoy it purely, it would be preferable if the flavor of the dough and cream itself were rather simple.

The trick is to make the custard cream a little firmer to make the flavor spread more complex. On the other hand, it would be interesting to make the cream very soft and make it into a Fondant Milk Crepe.

“Ah, it’s delicious… I love the texture.”

“I know what you mean.”

The unique texture of mille crepes is something that cannot be easily experienced in other confections or dishes.

This time, Yuri made a 24-layer cake, so she’s confident that she created a cake with enough texture to enjoy.

“I hope you can look over this while you eat.”

“Yes.”

Yuri handed the document to Meteora, who was enjoying the cake.

Yuri had made some changes to the proposal that Firefly had given her, based on the knowledge she had gained from her conversation with Kanayama-Hiko.

“I see, this is an interesting idea. We haven’t built a single Japanese-style city in this world yet, so I’d like to give it a try.”

“Do you have any suggestions?”

“Well… We’re going to invite a lot of gods from other worlds, will there be any opposition from the original gods in our world?

“Oh, I’ve already gotten permission for that, so it’s fine.”

―――In fact, the Arcana have even given us their approval.

Just a couple of hours ago, Yuri had consulted with Lydina and Arcana in the Sanctuary. It’s so easy to get permission to invite many gods from『Leangard』, the in-game world of 『Atros Online』.

“It’s not a problem because it doesn’t conflict with God’s system in this world,” Lydina said… To be honest, Yuri didn’t really understand what she was saying. She permitted now, so I guess it’s okay.

Arcana praised the plan itself, not just the permission.

When Yuri visited the Shinto shrine the other day, Arcana was away on a visit to Yuri’s hometown in Japan.

Apparently, Arcana had borrowed some manga from Lydina, who was still addicted to Japanese manga, and read it. Under her influence, she went all the way to Japan to travel and enjoy camping.

She also enjoyed the “Hot Spring” during her trip and seemed to like it very much.

She said that she would welcome the construction of a hot spring in this world as well if it could be easily accessible. That’s why Arcana actively agreed to Yuri’s proposal to build a city.

“It’s not a problem, then. However, there is nothing we <Kikyou> can do about turning the planned construction site into a sacred area. If possible, I would appreciate it if you could complete it in advance with <Red Plum> before we start building.”

“Oh, that’s true, too… All right, I’ll ask Firefly right away.”

“Thank you, Sister.”

Meteora’s face broke into a smile every time she tasted a bite of the mille crepe she had cut with her fork.

The only drawback is that it takes a lot more time and effort to make than a cake that can be made by simply baking. But if Yuuri could see her face, Yuri would make it again and again.

“How long will it take to build the mining city you’re working on?”

“The city is already finished, all that is left is the tunnels… 

There’s something I’d like to discuss with you, Sister.”

“Oh, what is it?”

“Why don’t we turn that tunnel into a [Labyrinth Dungeon]?”

Meteora’s words were completely unexpected.

Yuri was puzzled at first by the suggestion.

“I think it’s interesting… But I think it’s going to be difficult. If we let demons live in the mines, the miners who originally worked in those mines will be in trouble, right?”

“But I heard that the former miners living in the city of Dakart are now very active in the Labyrinth of Ulysses.

“That’s certainly true, though…”

The miners who made their living digging in the bedrock are far more well-trained than ordinary people.

With the mines now temporarily closed, Yuri knew that almost all of the miners living in the city of Dakart were active as ‘Explorers’ in the city of Ulysses.

In particular, the former miners’ dwarves, who use their physical strength to slay their enemies with gusto, are very well received by the viewers watching the broadcast.

I’ve heard that many of the ex-miner dwarves are thinking of continuing to work as explorers instead of returning to work as miners when the mines are reopened because they are so popular with the people in the city of Ulysses.

“And there are demons that only benefit from being placed in tunnels, right?”

“… Hmm. That’s a good point.”

A typical example of such a demon is the Kobold, which is well known in RPGs.

In『Leangard』, the in-game world of『Atros Online』, there is a folklore that says that cobalt can be mined from Kobolt dwellings, and in fact, the ore is often mined from the caves where many Kobolds live.

Hypothetically, it is possible to dig cobalt out of the mine by letting Kobolt live in the mine.

I don’t know if it would actually work, but it would be interesting to try.

Incidentally, in『Leangard』, ‘spirit stones’ could be found in caves inhabited by fairy and spirits, and ‘death stones’ could be found in caves inhabited by undead demons.

This also means that if Yuri purposely places fairies, spirits, and undead beasts in the mines, there is a possibility that she will be able to dig up spirit stones and death stones from the mines.

In particular, spirit stone is a material that has many uses in alchemy and the making of magical tools, so if we can secure a stable production site, the rewards will be great.

―――It is more than worth a try.

“… Not bad, I guess.”

“Actually, I have a document I’d like to show Sister.”

“Hmm. What’s this?”

“Sister, have you ever heard of ‘magic silver’?”

“I know what it looks like, at least. Though, I haven’t seen it yet.”

The ‘magic silver’ is a ‘silver that does not deteriorate’ that Sofia, now Yuri’s second concubine, developed when she was living in the Principality.

It looks and feels the same as regular silver, but unlike regular silver, whose surface darkens over time, magic silver’s shine never fades.

This blackness itself is relatively easy to remove by polishing, though. However, many high-class trinkets are made by processing and shaping silver into complicated shapes, and it is often difficult to maintain them by polishing them.

Therefore, magic silver is a metal that is in high demand, especially as a material for crafted items.

Magic silver is generally recognized as an alloy made from silver, but its manufacturing method is kept strictly secret by the Theodore Trading Company, which deals with ornaments made from magical silver.

Of course, this ‘Theodore Trading Company’ is a trading company run by Sofia.

Originally, it was based in the Principality. Now that Sofia has become Yuri’s concubine, they have moved their headquarters to Yuritania.

“… Where did you get it from?:

“Rupia of <Rindou> asked Sofia-san about the manufacturing method. She gave her this document instead of an answer. I’m borrowing it now.”

“Okay…?”

I wondered where all the talk about it being a closely guarded secret had gone.

I looked over the document and found that “How to Make Magic Silver” is written on it.

The process is surprisingly simple: prepare a space filled with highly concentrated magic power, and seal the silver ore that has not yet been refined in it for a long time.

It seems that by doing so if you let the magic power permeate the silver ore, you can complete the ‘magic silver’.

After that, the bullion ingot of ‘magic silver’ will be completed by refining it in the same way as regular silver.

The time required to manufacture them is about six months to a year.

The higher the concentration of magic power in space, the shorter the time.

In addition, while maintaining a high concentration, it is better to give a certain amount of fluctuation to the concentration of magic power in space. In other words, it is better to intentionally generate changes in the concentration of magic power, so that the magic power can penetrate the entire silver in a shorter time and a more stable manner.

“There are wards that increase the concentration of magic within a certain range, right?”

“Yes, there are…”

That’s the case of the [Demon Barrier] developed by the children of <Red Plum>.

It has the effect of filling the wards with a high concentration of magic and increasing the natural recovery rate of the magic power of those within the area. This is one of the more difficult wards to use, as it affects both friend and foe.

“There are also demons that release a lot of magic power into their surroundings when they are defeated, right?”

“Yes, there is…”

These include fairy and spirit, as well as magical creatures and undead demons.

When the first two are defeated, they release a large amount of ‘Yang Magic Power’ into their surroundings, while the latter two release a large amount of ‘Yin Magic Power’ into their surroundings when defeated.

If you have a skill called [Collective Magic], which <Sorcerer> class has, you can absorb a portion of the magic released when you defeat these demons and recover your magic power.

If you are a

, you can recover a lot of magic power by absorbing ‘Yang Magic’, and if you are a <Necromancer>, you can recover a lot of magic power by absorbing ‘Yin Magic’.

“I’ve heard that the amount of silver produced has been on the decline in recent years, but I’m sure it will recover with the help of Kanayama-Hiko and Kanayama-Hime.”

“Yes, I am certain of that.”

“If you soak unrefined silver in a high concentration of magic power, it becomes ‘Magic Silver’. If that’s the case―――if you fill the entire mine where a large amount of unrefined silver with highly concentrated magic power, you can obtain ‘Magic Silver Ore’ without the hassle of processing, can’t you?”

“Hmmm…”

Indeed, that seemed to be a very real possibility.

It is said that the price of ‘magic silver’, which is often traded in the form of bullion ingots, is about three times higher than that of ordinary silver.

So, taking into account the fact that Yuri can use [Transfer Magic] at will, it would be more profitable for the country to get it in the form of ‘magic silver’ from the beginning. And if want, we can take it to another country and trade it for regular silver.

“………”

In addition, magical creature demons rarely drop ‘magic stones’ when they are defeated.

In the Yuri Empire, where every household has a standard set of magic tools, the demand for magic stones is particularly high because they are used as ‘Batteries’ to operate magic tools.

And undead demons rarely drop ‘various gems’ when defeated.

This is because undead demons usually drop very low-value items such as bones and rotten meat. In『Atros Online』, undead demons were given the characteristic of [Rarely Dropping Gems] so that their drop items would not be less attractive than those of other demons.

Kobolds, fairies, spirits, magical creatures, and undead.

If these monsters were placed in the tunnels and turned into a [Labyrinth Dungeon], the Yuri Empire might be able to obtain all the cobalt and demon silver, spirit stones and death stones, and magic stones and gems in one place.

―――It’s no longer a matter of killing two birds with one stone anymore.

“Sister, what do you think?”

“… I give up. All right, I’ll do as you say.”

With such a large number of advantages, Yuri had no choice but to agree.

And so, the mining city that was currently under construction changed its course to the construction into [Mining Labyrinth City].