episode_0047

“Boss. This is the first iron made.”

As I was looking at the pouring molten metal for a while, the chief researcher brought me a lump of iron that had hardened on the outside and maintained its shape, although I could still feel the heat.

” Was this the first one made in a blast furnace?”

“That’s right. How about keeping it for the boss as a souvenir?”

I burst out laughing at the chief researcher’s words, which sounded as if I was wondering what it would be like to become a collector. However, I thought that owning the first iron produced from each blast furnace would have its own value. To be honest, I was the only one who could collect the iron that was first made in the blast furnace.

“It’s not bad. Later, you can process this into a round shape and put it in a storage box or something to keep it.”

It was clear that if I continued to increase my influence as I wanted, I would not be able to cover everything with just this one. Then, the number of blast furnaces would naturally increase, and I thought that if I collected the first pieces of iron from those blast furnaces, it would have its own historical value.

If I was able to exert as much influence as I dreamed, it was clear that it would have historical value. It could be displayed in a history museum as if it were Andrew’s footsteps.

“Hehe… … .”

“… … Boss?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

I laughed for a moment while imagining the distant future, and the chief researcher looked at me strangely. He quickly shook his head at that sight and made the skeletons move according to the process set by the researchers in advance.

The molten metal that flowed out through the passage in the floor filled the mold, and when the mold was filled to a certain extent, the skeletons replaced the mold. And molds filled with molten iron were being stacked in a previously prepared space.

Afterwards, when the iron in the mold cooled and hardened a little more, one of the skeletons took out the iron lumps from the mold and piled them up nearby.

“Work just continues like this, right?”

“You can think of it that way. The only additional work that needs to be done is disposing of the debris that comes out of the sides.”

“Really? Let’s check that too.”

It is said that there is a process of disposing of the residue, so as we spent a little more time, red residue appeared near the place where the molten iron comes out. Impurities contained in the iron ore were clumping together and coming out.

Seeing the debris being pushed out, the skeleton took out the debris with a long stick and managed it to prevent the inside from becoming clogged. Since the scraps could later be used as building materials, they were piled up in a corner.

An additional blast furnace could have been built nearby, and it could have been used to build equipment to crush iron ore and other materials or to reprocess the iron.

Anyway, seeing how the scraps were stored properly, I became convinced that even if only the skeletons were left behind, there would be no major disruption in the operation of the blast furnace. Even if there were a few problems, there were no problems since the Skeleton Mage was planned to be left here.

Because when a problem arose, the Skeleton Mage could contact me. It wasn’t a great level of contact, just a matter of letting people know that a problem had occurred, but that was enough.

“You can manage it, right? All you have to do is make the skeletons move steadily like they did so far.”

“It will be as the Lord of Death wishes!”

“… … So you’re saying it’s possible?”

“It is possible! Lord of death!”

“The master of death is… … .”

Although the end of the Skeleton Mage was cringy, I decided to skip it since it allowed the blast furnace to be operated unmanned. Unless you’re a Skeleton Mage, I have to maintain it consistently.

“Ah! Also, I have to periodically bring back iron ore from the mine you went up to earlier. We must never let the iron ore piled up over there run out. If you think there will be a shortage of iron ore, please contact me.”

“I understand! Lord of death!”

“Oh… … !”

I was hoping that all the skeleton mages that would be created later would not have this type of personality. Very earnestly.

“Huh… … . The iron keeps coming out.”

And, as I straightened my shriveled hands and feet at the Skeleton Mage’s tone, Levs next to me looked impressed.

From the moment the skeletons began constructing the blast furnace, they watched in silence as if they were not there, but broke the silence as they saw the molten iron steadily gushing out.

Well, it must be fascinating to see the skeletons moving steadily to create tall structures, and as if that wasn’t enough, they also operate the blast furnace to produce red-hot molten iron. Moreover, I don’t know if it was because red-hot molten iron was continuously flowing out like water flowing from a valley, but I couldn’t take my eyes off the bottom of the blast furnace.

“Now, molten iron will continue to come out of that blast furnace until the iron ore vein in that mine dries up. What… … . In reality, it may stop for repair or replacement after a dozen years due to deterioration.”

Although it is not certain, researchers predicted based on their own experience that it would be possible to operate without a break for about ten years. Although there is no guarantee that it will not be damaged or require repairs, it can still be used for quite a long time.

“Still, molten iron has been flowing out continuously for over a dozen years… … . That’s amazing.”

“That’s right. I didn’t mean to build this for nothing.”

Levs nodded as if he understood. He clearly understood the reason why such a facility was built right in front of the mine, rather than near the blacksmith shop.

“You are planning to operate this facility unmanned like the mine, right?”

“Yes. The skeleton mage over there… … . It’s okay to say he’s a full-fledged mage, but anyway, that skeleton will take care of this place.”

“Are there any plans to protect this facility? For example, I’m worried that there might be people who try to copy or destroy that Goro. There are some who will dislike the growing power of the royalists… … . Tsk!”

“Basically, we plan to block access by people without a permit. It uses a skeleton to notify that access is prohibited and allows only authorized people to access.”

Security around the blast furnace was planned to be similar to that in the mine. However, unlike the mine where access itself was difficult, a slightly more security process was planned to be added to this place, which is located on flat land.

“I will sprinkle black magic around this area. The curse of cognitive dissonance. If an unauthorized person accesses it, they will not be able to access it even if they try. Since you have a Skeleton Mage, you can’t do it extensively, but you can prevent direct access to Goro.”

It may not be true for those who know how to properly manage mana or for those who are approaching with defenses against the curse, but it was a very sure way to stop ordinary people.

It wasn’t a difficult method since all I had right now was one.

“Still, what if someone approaches the blast furnace?”

“Well, then we have to attack. If you attack with that much warning, there is no problem. Most likely, if you continue to ignore the warnings and approach, you will be attacked by skeletons. Due to the Skeleton Mage’s black magic, dozens of skeletons attack in an instant.”

“… … It’s terrible.”

Levs, who had experience dealing with warlocks who were targets of subjugation, shook his head, saying it was terrible to even think about it. It seemed like I imagined a large number of skeletons flocking in while curses and black magic flew in.

But to me, a warlock, it was nothing short of high praise. Honestly, I thought it would be a good idea to ask how I could make it more annoying.

Of course, I didn’t put it into practice because it didn’t seem like it would get a particularly good response. Instead, the story about Goro continued a little more.

“For your information, just copying it doesn’t mean it will work. If the processing of iron ore and the ratio of auxiliary materials are not right, the blast furnace cannot be used properly.”

Even now, researchers are operating according to the ratio they created through trial and error. Otherwise, the steel produced would be full of impurities and would have to be reprocessed several times.

“I see.”

Levs nodded, feeling fortunate that security was good. They seemed relieved because the chances of them being taken over by an aristocratic faction or another nation were not high.

“I have confirmed that molten iron is actually coming out of that facility, so I will leave now. See you next time.”

“Yes, of course.”

Perhaps because he was trying to check whether the iron was coming out properly, Levs waved his hand and said he would go right away.

Since he didn’t seem particularly eager to see me off, I began preparing to engrave a curse around him as a final security measure. However, Levs, who had been turning around to walk, suddenly turned around again.

“Oh, I forgot for a moment. Let’s go to Carbon in about 15 days. Lord Carbone wants to meet you.”

“Are you the lord of Carbon?”

“There is no need to worry. I just relayed to him what you said. While he gladly accepts your offer, he wants to meet you because he has something else to ask.”

I was momentarily nervous at the mention of Lord Carbonon, but then nodded with relief. When he left, saying he would instead obtain permission to build facilities on this land, he seemed to have delivered a proposal to appease Lord Carbone.

And, after telling the story about Lord Carbone, Levs left with his hidden guards as if he had nothing more to see.

After confirming that Levs had definitely left, I immediately started cursing the surrounding area. Since the curse was left based on a specific medium, the researchers who were nearby were also sent far away to prepare for an unexpected situation.

Of course, the curse I was trying to place on those around me was not just one. In addition to the curse of cognitive dissonance, which I mentioned with many people around, I also planned to cast a curse that would cause me to hallucinate.

The intention was to cast a curse of cognitive dissonance that would make Goro go backwards or to the side even when he thought he was trying to go forward, and a curse of hallucination that would make Goro look like he was in a completely different place. Even though Levs was the son of a royalist leader, it was impossible to know how a person would change, and neither his guard nor the researchers around me could be 100% trusted.

Anyway, after finalizing security by adding curses, I also started preparing to go back. Since the Skeleton Mage took care of this place, there was no reason for me to be here anymore.

“Are you ready to go back?”

“Yes, boss. I took everything I needed to take care of.”

The researchers nodded as I finished, ready to return to the village. When they looked at me as if they wanted me to go back to the village, I got on the skeleton cart and moved straight towards the village.

“See you later! Lord of death!”

I left behind the skeleton mage who was seeing me off at the top of the blast furnace and urged the skeleton cart toward the village and the skeleton horse pulling the skeleton cart. Thanks to this, a distance that would normally have taken two days only took one and a half days.

But when I returned to the village, I couldn’t rest comfortably. As Lev said, 15 days… … Considering the time spent on the move, we had to go to Carbon in 13 days. As the researchers took a break and began to focus on research and development again, I started moving toward Carbon.

“Let’s see… … . I think this is where the Skeleton Mage’s intelligence is concerned… … . If I twist this, would my intelligence become a little better? Oh, my physical abilities might become a little weaker instead.”

Of course, the time traveling to Carbone was not wasted either. Since the foundation of the Skeleton Mage had been established, the plan was to find ways to further improve it.

And when it came time to say that we had achieved some success in further developing the Skeleton Mage, we were finally able to arrive at Carbon.