Chapter 182

Episode 182

“This will store magic power very effectively.”

What Jericho pulled out was an object the size of a human head. It was colorless and transparent, looking like glass.

The magic power emanating from that small object was extraordinary.

‘To be precise, it feels more like divine power than magic power, doesn’t it?’

I had become able to sense not only magic power and demonic energy, but also divine power. It wasn’t difficult to distinguish them.

“This object is also related to your family, right?”

“That’s right. It’s like a crop that our family secretly cultivates.”

“A crop, not a mineral?”

Jericho placed it on a makeshift table. When I asked if I could touch it, he readily nodded.

“It’s surprisingly light.”

“It’s a plant. This is a magic plant grown in a cool space underground in our family’s territory. It’s specialized in absorbing and emitting magic power.”

It was a structure that naturally came to mind when thinking of plants. It seemed the game developers got the idea from photosynthesis.

Jericho moved the makeshift table to the center of the facility. And he imbued the magic plant with the power of the Tulu family.

*Buzz…*

*Thud!*

*Thud! Thud!*

Something amazing happened. Transparent roots sprouted from the bottom of the object and began to grow, wrapping around the table.

*Crack!*

The roots pierced through the floor. I was surprised, but Jericho looked as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.

“This plant doesn’t just store magic power. It also absorbs nutrients and natural energy from the earth to produce mana on its own.”

“I thought it would be something like a magic stone, but this is unexpected.”

“We use magic stones too, but they’re not as efficient. And they’re expensive.”

“This seems expensive too.”

“You can’t buy this with money. It’s not for sale.”

His words “not for sale” made me worry about the quantity.

Installing district heating in this village was possible, but supplying hot water to the entire north, including Whitefield, would require a massive mana storage.

“If it’s a crop, wouldn’t you need space to cultivate it? It might be fine for now, but once construction begins, we’ll need a bigger storage. It might not be enough.”

“I didn’t say I could make it for no reason. Hmm, it’s too troublesome to explain everything, so it’s better if you see it for yourself.”

Jericho opened his subspace inventory again. This time, he opened it wide.

I was surprised when I stepped inside. The vast space was filled with those transparent plants.

And they weren’t just there; they were rooted in cultivated farmland.

“I didn’t know you could farm.”

“Hehehe. It’s a little hobby of mine. Creating the subspace was the hardest part. It needs to be cool. But after that, you just sow the seeds, and they grow on their own.”

With this scale, it seemed like we could continuously gather magic plants.

“I’m really worried. Wouldn’t it be a big problem if this plant became known to the world?”

“Ah, it wouldn’t cause that much of a stir. It has a lot of weaknesses. First of all, it’s very fragile.”

Jericho closed his subspace inventory and lightly tapped the magic plant, which had fully rooted itself. It shattered with a thud.

“That’s why we need to install protective facilities around it, and those who handle it need to be careful. The magic supply gets cut off until it takes root.”

“What are the other weaknesses?”

“It has a short lifespan. It’s best to replace it within a month.”

Now I understood what Jericho meant. It was much less durable than a magic stone, so it would be difficult for anyone other than a member of the Tulu family to use it properly.

“I’d like to do some joint research with the mages from the Magic Tower when they arrive. If we can combine the characteristics of this plant with the magic stones they make, we might be able to create something more durable.”

Jericho placed the magic plant back on the table. Once again, roots sprouted and pierced through the floor.

He looked around and, feeling it wasn’t enough, took out two more magic plants and placed them on either side.

The plants reacted to each other and merged into one.

“Later, when their lifespan is up, their bodies will shrink. That’s when we replenish them one by one to maintain the population.”

“That’s quite convenient.”

“They say this plant didn’t have that ability when it was first discovered. It’s thanks to our ancestors who improved it.”

Jericho started infusing the plant with magic power.

“There’s one more weakness. If you charge it with too much magic power, the plant will die. So you have to infuse it slowly with a small amount.”

“What about the amount it absorbs from the roots?”

“Since we’ll be constantly heating water, the consumption will be much higher than the absorption.”

“But if we connect it to a device that consumes less mana, we might be able to use it without recharging.”

“That’s right.”

At that moment, we heard Freya’s voice from outside. I left the rest to Jericho and went out.

“We’re done organizing the supplies. We had some leftovers, so we distributed them to the villagers.”

“You did something unnecessary.”

“I thought you would want me to. I felt your sincerity towards the villagers.”

This wasn’t right.

She had misunderstood something. But it would be funny to correct her, so I just laughed.

“Good work.”

Selendis approached. She glanced at Freya for a moment and then saluted me.

“I’ve moved all the pipes we brought to the construction site. The additional materials will arrive in about ten days.”

“Alright. Good work.”

What was this strange feeling…?

Could it be that these two were competing with each other?

“Tell the warriors from Whitefield to rest. We’ll stop construction for today and continue tomorrow afternoon.”

“Yes, my lord. The village head said he’s preparing dinner. Shall we go together?”

Freya suggested, and I politely declined.

I felt like I would make a big mistake if I chose the wrong option.

“You two go ahead and eat. Jericho will be upset if we leave him behind. We’ll join you after he’s done recharging his mana.”

“Then I’ll wait too.”

“Me too.”

Ugh, this was nerve-wracking.

It was understandable for Freya, but Selendis, known for her seriousness, was acting differently. But it wasn’t like they were on bad terms.

I suddenly thought of the Lady.

If she were here to show her authority, the two of them would quiet down.

Did they read my mind?

Freya asked, “What kind of person is Lady Lucia? I was curious when I first heard about the Inspection Unit. It’s not an easy job for a woman. It would be even more difficult if she hasn’t trained in martial arts.”

“She’s the most beautiful person in the world. She’s infinitely benevolent, and her thoughts are unfathomable. It feels like words are too limited to describe her.”

“Is she that amazing?”

This time, the question was directed at Selendis, not me. She nodded.

“She’s perfect in every way. I wonder how she’s doing.”

“She’s probably doing well. No news is good news.”

At that moment, the children who were having a snowball fight came running over. They were the ones who had built snowmen with Jericho before.

“It seems like it’ll take a while for the recharging to finish. Shall we play with the kids?”

“Wait a minute. The warriors of Whitefield are watching. Wouldn’t it be better to keep our distance?”

“Well, I’m from a commoner background too.”

I rolled snowballs with the children. Selendis joined us. She carved a sword and shield out of wood for the snowman.

There was so much snow that we quickly made a snowball.

I used magic power to harden the snowball and secured a smaller snowball on top of it.

“Can we put these on?”

“Of course.”

The children placed the wooden equipment on the snowman. It became a much bigger and cooler snowman than before.

Fifteen days later.

The pipe connections were all complete, and we were able to supply hot water to each household.

The heating device was completed quickly, but the completion of the project was delayed because we had to wait for the additional materials.

I was actually glad.

Thanks to the trial and error, we had gained valuable experience.

‘If this had happened during the main construction, we would have lost a lot of money on labor costs and additional expenses.’

Even though I had become the richest person in the Empire, I had no intention of making unnecessary expenditures.

It would be easy for me to spend money lavishly,

But it would affect the people below me.

Selendis, Jericho, Hassale, and a few close aides like Balzac wouldn’t be affected, but the people under them would become complacent.

I didn’t want that.

‘To manage a large organization, not only the abilities of the leaders are important, but also the abilities of the members who support them.’

As I had told the Lady, I had no intention of running a charity.

The Aslan Village project had accidentally become like a charity, but what I had intended was to gain experience through failure.

“Inspector, I’ve circulated cold water through the entire pipeline, and there are no leaks. It seems like we can start heating the water.”

“What about the pressure test?”

“I applied pressure as you instructed. There were no broken parts.”

To be precise, it was only half complete.

The concept of ‘district heating’ was to use hot water as a boiler. In other words, we had to install pipes in every house, but we hadn’t reached that point yet.

That was something that would require the dwarves’ expertise.

If I gave them the brilliant idea of a ‘heated floor mat,’ they would figure it out.

For now, we just needed to confirm whether the water boiled in the giant hot water supply facility could circulate through the village’s pipes.

“Then let’s go.”

We moved to the heating facility. The northern warriors were guarding it tightly.

Selendis and Freya were waiting for me inside.

Freya, the only northerner among us, looked excited.

“It’s finally complete. It feels like a new chapter in the history of the north, my lord.”

“We can talk about that after we succeed.”

“We will definitely succeed.”

Selendis also offered words of encouragement.

Jericho was holding a long lever and looking at me, waiting for my signal.

“Activate the heater.”

“Yes, sir!”

*Clank!*

Jericho pulled the lever down. Mana started flowing into the giant heater connected to the magic plant.

Boiling water with magic was quick and easy. It was on a completely different level compared to boiling water in a pot over a wood fire.

We heard the sound of steam erupting, and the water supply began as pressure built up.

Jericho pulled down another lever next to it.

“I’ve also activated the circulation device. It seems we’ve cleared one hurdle since it didn’t explode.”

“Was the village head’s house at the end of the pipeline?”

“That’s right.”

“Let’s go there.”

The village head was a bit surprised when we all barged in, but he also looked expectant. He knew the device was being activated today.

“Can you prepare something to collect the water?”

“I’ve already prepared it, Baron.”

We saw a temporarily installed water pipe. There were two of them, one for cold water and the other for hot water.

When we turned on the cold water tap, water flowed out smoothly. The hot water tap wasn’t working yet.

We waited for a while.

Time passed, but there was no sound. I started to think we might have failed.

“Huh? Wait a minute. Don’t you hear something?”

“A sound?”

I placed my hand on the main pipe. I could feel a distinct vibration.

At that moment.

*Splash!*

Water started pouring into the large basin. It was steaming hot water.