Lusteria's Job Hunting Activity (1)
Always passionately directing construction sites, Nella was heading somewhere. By her side walked Lusteria, who wore a determined expression instead of her usual cheerful smile. The citizens couldn't hide their surprise at the sight of the two women acting so unlike themselves, as if witnessing something bizarre. Some even whispered, wondering if a grave incident threatening the Demon Lord Castle had occurred.
Nella, who never left the construction site even after work hours, was now strolling outside during peak construction time. Under normal circumstances, one might assume she was simply moving to oversee another site. But the real issue was Lusteria accompanying her. Especially Lusteria, whose usual gentle and innocent demeanor had vanished, replaced by a serious and resolute expression. Unless the humans had invaded, there was no reason for these two to look like this, and some people broke out in cold sweats, trembling with fear.
“This place is……”
“A railway facility. The former Demon Lord Castle was vast, but the future one will be even larger. Originally, this railway was meant for carts transporting rocks and ores from the mines, but we left the tracks as they were and are testing whether mounting larger vehicles instead could transport multiple passengers. Of course, it could also carry large quantities of supplies. It's a multi-purpose transport system.”
Following Nella's guidance, Lusteria arrived at an empty lot in a still-unrestored corner of the Demon Lord Castle ruins. Railway tracks, the kind one might see in mines, had been laid there. Due to the limited space, the vehicles were designed to run in a circle, but it included both straight and curved sections, making it an optimal test site.
“I still remember the moment you dispelled Lady Hestinia's barrier in the Taego Forest. It was truly impressive. An existence beyond comprehension. That description suited you perfectly.”
“Ah, I see… Hehe……”
“The carts used in mines are called ore carts. They're designed so passengers can move them by their own power, but what I have in mind is on a much larger scale. A cart that can carry many people or large amounts of resources over long distances at once. …Calling it a cart might be inaccurate. This is……”
“A horseless carriage that runs on rails?”
The concept was so unfamiliar that even naming it posed a challenge. Nella wanted to call it something temporary and casual, but nothing came to mind. Still, what mattered wasn't the invention's name but Lusteria's contribution and its results, so Nella decided to gloss over it for now.
“…Since it can be seen as a horseless carriage, let's just call it a car for now. Given its size, moving it with only the passengers' strength would be too difficult. So I thought we could borrow your magic, Lady Lusteria.”
“Then it would be a mana car, wouldn't it? Hmm, or maybe a magic car?”
“You can name it whatever you like. First, could you make this car… um, this mana car move automatically?”
“Hmm… Moving it isn't hard… The problem would be improving mana efficiency… Since it only moves along a fixed path, a steering mechanism should be fine, but we need a way to stop it in emergencies……”
In an instant, Lusteria became completely absorbed in developing the mana car, oblivious to anyone speaking to her. She muttered to herself while examining the large cart Nella had temporarily built, pushing it with her slender hands and inspecting the wheels with great focus.
The main body of the cart that would soon become the mana car was four times larger than a standard ore cart and even had a door for easy boarding. It was so enormous it resembled a small wooden house mounted on wheels. After much thought, Lusteria spoke to Nella.
“Let's start by reducing the size. Instead of one large mana car, it would be better to have several smaller cars connected in a line, with the front car pulling the rest.”
“Ah! Then the weight would be distributed and reduced, easing the burden on the wheels and decreasing friction as well!”
“And it would take up less unnecessary space too!”
“I'll build it right away according to your instructions!”
Nella couldn't hide her excitement. Even though she had only briefly demonstrated and entrusted the task, Lusteria had quickly found a solution to a difficult problem after just a few observations. It was remarkable and worthy of respect. Instead of relying solely on magic, Lusteria had also made structural improvements to a problem Nella had struggled with for days. As a high-ranking magic user, it was natural for her to possess considerable knowledge, but beyond the amount of knowledge, Lusteria was wise.
With a joyful heart, Nella picked up a saw and hammer. To build the mana car according to Lusteria's instructions, she diligently cut wood and hammered nails. The sight of Nella swinging her tools with such vigor was truly awe-inspiring. Two swings of the hammer drove in one nail, and sawing through timber was as effortless as cutting paper with scissors.
Lusteria was delighted that everything she explained was completed in an instant. Even though she had only given brief instructions, Nella grasped the structure and ensured stability with just a few tool strikes, completing the work. Despite Lusteria's somewhat lacking explanations, Nella produced a perfect mana car. How much effort must it have taken to reach such a level? Among the orcs skilled in construction and craftsmanship, it was expected that the captain of the engineering corps could create anything excellently, but beyond her position or rank, her proficient tool handling and delicate design made her seem like the blacksmith god Kosthar incarnate.
While Lusteria carefully engraved magic circles one by one onto the first car Nella had built, Nella continued crafting the second, third, and fourth cars that would follow behind. The sounds of tools striking and magic being cast continued for a long time, only finishing as the sun began to set.
At dusk, when the sun painted the sky red as it sank, the two women smiled with satisfaction as they gazed at the completed mana car. Their eyes met, filled with mutual respect and a sense of accomplishment from their proud achievement. Lusteria and Nella high-fived, praising each other's hard work.
“Now we should call it a mana train instead.”
“Hehehe. I'm going to name it ‘Sugar Powder Chocolate Cake No. 1’!”
“Heh. That's an incredibly cute name.”
“It's my favorite cake!”
With her arms crossed triumphantly, Lusteria looked at the mana train. Her violet eyes sparkled, emitting a glow from her mana, and in response, the mana train—Sugar Powder Chocolate Cake No. 1—began to tremble with a loud noise. Mana flowed into the numerous magic circles engraved on it, and with a powerful hum, the wheels started to turn slowly.
Clack! Clack! Clack!
The mana train gradually picked up speed as it began moving, soon surpassing the pace of a galloping horse and racing fiercely around the oval track.
Lusteria and Nella's collaboration seemed to have succeeded, and both began to beam with joy.
“With this, we could reach anywhere in the Demon Lord Castle area instantly as long as we lay tracks! And it could transport anything we load onto it!”
“Let's make lots and lots of these from now on! We'll lay railways all over the Demon Lord Castle!”
“My, my, you've made something interesting, haven't you?”
A familiar woman interrupted the two delighted figures. When they turned in surprise, they saw a woman exuding seductive charm. She wore an antique black profile hat adorned with giant raven feathers. Her massive breasts swayed above the deep neckline of her black off-shoulder dress. Both women knew whose enormous bosom that was.
“L-Lady Hestinia!?”
“A mana-powered transport train, is it? Hmm……”
Hestinia fanned herself lightly with her black fan decorated with the down of a young snow mountain swan as she examined their creation. Then she began to wear an expression of deep regret, and the two women felt a growing unease at the negative emotion in her face.
As expected, their ominous premonition proved correct.
“Our research institute already has prototypes of mana-powered cars. For transport and passengers alike. Both regular cars and trains. And they don't need rails. Running on rails makes too much noise, and whether it's the wheels or the tracks, they'll wear out eventually, making maintenance difficult. So we made cars that float about fifty mentols above the ground.”
Nella felt deep disappointment at the realization that all their efforts had been in vain. If she had known this earlier, she wouldn't have even attempted it. Then she suddenly thought of Lusteria and looked at her. Lusteria looked utterly dejected, as if she were dying. Her cheeks were puffed out and her brows furrowed, as if she were angry. Her face was flushed, and her eyes were brimming with tears, on the verge of spilling over.
“…I-I see…… 9th rank… can't surpass… 10th rank… can it……”
“No! That's not true! You did an excellent job, Lady Lusteria!”
“Uuu… Sob…! Hwaaaah…!!”
“There, there, stop crying! It's still very impressive! Would you like some chocolate?”
In the end, Lusteria burst into tears, sobbing loudly. Flustered by her appearance, Hestinia began comforting her as if soothing a child. Nella belatedly realized that her own disappointment was nothing compared to the sense of loss Lusteria was feeling.
Lusteria's tears only stopped after Hestinia invited both her and Nella to her residence and treated them to a delicious dinner. Honestly, if it hadn't been for the fresh cream cake and apple pie topped with plenty of sweet berries, Lusteria's tears would have flowed much longer. Watching it all, Nella resolved to present Lusteria with a satisfying answer tomorrow, no matter what.