Chapter 55
I’m translating the chapter and converting the system notices into styled HTML blocks as required. I’m keeping the prose natural and preserving the in-universe terminology exactly where it matters.CHAPTER_TITLE: Black Sheep Wall
“So that elbow crush Peach used was no joke. Seems like Meyril got hit by girl-crush fever too.”
Keeping up with the situation through shared senses with Goblin 10, Ho-yeong clicked his tongue.
“Looks like things are mostly settled. End sense sharing! Now then, back to negotiations. Why is the bathroom so far away?”
Tip: Depending on the meeting with Eos, the mayor of Rainpa, you may also achieve the high-grade achievement Black Sheep Wall.
At Daliha’s advice, Ho-yeong froze.
“Huh? That achievement name sounds familiar. It’s from Stop Left Hook, right? The one that reveals the map.”
It was the name of a cheat code from an old strategy simulation game he’d played often, and also the title of a pop song. Its effect was to wipe away the “fog of war” spread across the map.
“Uh... didn’t they say that getting detailed explanations for achievements costs RP? I’ve got plenty of RP, so let’s splurge. What do I need to do to clear that achievement?”
He had a rough idea, but decided to make absolutely sure.
RP 10 will be consumed to provide the achievement conditions.
Black Sheep Wall can be achieved by removing the “black fog” area beyond your territory. As you know, to reduce or eliminate black fog, you must increase the territory’s “influence.”
At present, the flatlands around Rainpa are widely covered in black fog, forcing visitors to take long detours and wasting a great deal of travel time. Removing this area will require an enormous amount of influence.
Current influence: 1/100
“An enormous amount of influence, huh. When did I even get one point? I haven’t done anything yet.”
“Thanks to the efforts of Peach and Meyril.”
“Oh? So in other words, even with those little acts of goodwill, I can only fill one percent. Looks like I need one big move.”
On the way back to Eos’s office, he mulled it over hard.
If the mayor’s grim about food supplies and fewer visitors, he’ll be hugely grateful if I fix that. But if I’m going to do this, I’d rather launch a business that actually helps our territory than just run a charity.
He wanted lasting gains, not a one-time reward.
Then the most urgent issue is transportation. A transport business, huh. Come to think of it, Peach said something like that earlier.
『It’s ridiculous to fleece customers who come from so far away, on such rough roads, and then expect them to come again and again. If you delivered the goods yourself, that might be one thing.』
Taking a hint from Peach’s words, Ho-yeong smiled in triumph.
Right. That’s it. Delivery! If the road is long and dangerous and nobody’s coming to buy the goods, then we just bring the goods to them!
He made a mental note to praise his talented maid properly later.
“Sorry, I guess that bathroom break ran a little long.”
“No matter. More importantly, Count Tamer, what did you mean by what you said earlier? That since you can’t move the fields, we should bring in fertilizer and water.”
“I meant exactly what I said. First, please take a look at these.”
One after another, Ho-yeong showed him Suction Clay, Mana Soil, and mandragora horn leaves. As someone who had once sold out all the samples at a supermarket tasting booth, he handled it with practiced ease.
“These teas and cookies are going to be very popular with adventurers.”
After tasting the horn-leaf tea, Mayor Eos marveled.
“They don’t heal wounds like a healing potion does, but they restore your energy in an instant. It’s practically a stamina potion.”
Seeing him rub the scratch under his chin, Ho-yeong decided to land the finishing blow.
“Mayor, you’re bleeding from your chin.”
“I nicked myself shaving this morning... ho ho. If I leave it alone, it’ll stop on its own.”
“I’ll heal it right up.”
The wound vanished cleanly after he applied healing ointment. Eos’s eyes widened.
“Every one of these is incredible. I’d heard rumors that your territory had acquired rare materials, but I never imagined you’d invented all this yourself, Count Tamer. Still, what exactly are you asking me to do with these?”
“The Tamer territory will supply them exclusively to Rainpa. Rainpa will then handle sales of these goods. Of course, that excludes what we use directly in our own territory or offer to the kingdom.”
“Then you’re saying our city would serve as the exclusive distributor?!”
The wrinkles on the mayor’s brow seemed to smooth out at once.
“Exactly. Then merchants from all over the continent will come flocking here. Far more than before. That’ll help the city’s economy in all sorts of ways, won’t it? While they’re here, they’ll eat at the restaurants and sleep at the inns. And they’ll buy the everyday necessities they need for the trip back here, too.”
“That’s right. Merchants are not just sellers, but consumers as well. Please, grant us an exclusive sales contract.”
“Gladly.”
“Thank you, Count Tamer! With this, Rainpa will finally have a product that can compete on its own!”
As a trade city, Rainpa was a place where specialties from every corner of the continent gathered. But paradoxically, Rainpa had no specialty of its own. If you pushed it, maybe grapes? Even then, few people came here specifically to buy them. Since grapes were cultivated throughout the Kain Kingdom, it was far more economical to buy them somewhere else, even if the quality was a bit lower.
“You’re willing to let us sell rare goods that can’t be found anywhere else in the western continent, or anywhere in the world.”
The specialties of the Tamer territory were different. They were, quite literally, items produced and manufactured only there. In the truest sense of the word, they were specialties.
“We’ve got the merchants to serve as fertilizer and the products to spread across the fields, so all that’s left is the water, meaning the customers. Like the mayor said earlier, we can expect adventurers to come in, but that alone won’t be enough.”
“Ye-es. If no customers come from the cities and territories near these western plains, it’ll be difficult. But if people are afraid of the monsters appearing, there’s only so much we can do about that...”
“No, there are two solutions. The first is delivery. The second is delivery with accompaniment.”
“Pardon? Delivery? And both the first and second sound like the same thing, so I think you may have said something wrong.”
“The first delivery means moving goods. The second means moving people.”
To the bewildered mayor, Ho-yeong began his explanation.
“First, we need a road connecting the Tamer territory and Rainpa. Then we build a logistics hub somewhere in between. That way, it’ll be easy to move goods to any region. The Tamer territory will handle the delivery. More precisely, the security force dispatched from Kihara Barony will handle it. Those guys have been traveling all around Rainpa and the western plains, so they’re perfect for delivery work.”
His calculation was that the Minokentaurus wagons could handle both speed and cargo capacity.
“The key is to keep the items people buy most often stocked at the logistics center, or rather the logistics hub. If we take care of deliveries to each region and, while we’re at it, take the next order, it’ll be even more efficient. Ah, and of course, we should be paid for it. The mayor collects delivery fees from the customers, and I collect transportation fees from the mayor.”
“That is certainly an excellent idea! And what do you mean by moving people?”
“We use the logistics hub as a station and run a regular shuttle bus, or rather a round-trip carriage service. When people come to the hub, we take them to Rainpa. When they’re heading back, we bring them to the hub instead. It’d be great if we could run all the way back and forth from Rainpa to every region, but that would mean laying much more road and finding more personnel, so for now the hub will have to do.”
Eos tilted his head.
“Is there really any need to go that far? It sounds like it would take a great deal of effort.”
“Once people get used to receiving things comfortably from home, they won’t bother making this long trip themselves. So we have to make people come here.”
He knew the trend all too well: once people got used to convenient online shopping, they stopped visiting brick-and-mortar markets.
Having worked at a logistics center, Ho-yeong knew that current intimately, but to him, a mart was always more than just a place to buy things.
“Of course, the reason common folk from all over come to Rainpa is to shop. But a market isn’t just that, is it? It’s a place to people-watch, watch a circus, and snack your way through the day.”
Whenever he went grocery shopping with his younger siblings, the place was always so noisy it left his head spinning.
Ayoung, who would twitch her nose like a bloodhound every time a new snack shop opened; Hayoung, who diligently hunted the buy-one-get-one corner; Nayeong, who threw tantrums in the toy aisle.
“Merchants can sell goods by delivery, sure, but what about acrobats or restaurant owners? If the children stop coming, how are they supposed to make a living?”
And yet now, he missed that noisy chaos so much.
“Ah, that’s right. Count Tamer, you’re absolutely correct. Let’s move forward with that logistics hub plan together.”
The moment Eos nodded, the status window chimed.
“But... what about the monsters?”
The congratulatory sound effect had barely ended before the mayor’s face clouded with worry.
“Of course, if your territory’s security personnel are handling delivery, then the escort will be reassuring. But what if some unfortunate accident happens? Whether it’s goods or people, shouldn’t the side handling transport bear the responsibility?”
Eos raised a practical concern, though he still seemed to accept Ho-yeong’s words.
Careful old man, isn’t he. And he’s trying to slyly shove all the responsibility onto our side with that roundabout wording. Though, to be fair, I was the one who suggested it first.
Ho-yeong clicked his tongue inwardly, then soothed him without showing it.
“We’ll set up a forward base around the hub. Then the monsters will be drawn there, so there’s nothing to worry about.”
“Pardon? You’re saying the monsters will come charging straight at a military facility of their own accord? How can you be so certain?”
“They’ll come. I’ve got a method.”
He had solid grounds for that confidence.
In the game, unlocking restricted areas covered in black fog and expanding territory required influence. Players could raise influence significantly by creating residences or defensive facilities in empty zones, but compared to clearing a defense stage, that method had one serious drawback.
When we restored the housing district in our territory, a Hogrifon came attacking. Same story with Kihara Barony. When they started work on expanding the walls in preparation for a monster raid, a Minokentaurus showed up.
In other words, they drew a huge amount of monster aggro.
“Hmm. Since you’re an expert on monsters, I can’t argue with you there. But I still don’t quite understand why monsters gathering in one place would be reassuring.”
“If the monsters all pile up in one place, then there’s no need to worry about them appearing in other regions. And rather than sending troops out to hunt them down one by one, it’s much more efficient to hold them off from a well-built defensive position.”
“Ah, I see!”
Ho-yeong had decided to turn aggro to his advantage.
“If everything goes according to plan, the western plains won’t have to worry about being harried by monsters anymore. Other roads may be unavoidable, but at the very least, the routes around Rainpa will be secure.”
“Indeed. You are every bit as extraordinary as the rumors say. I’d been feeling utterly stuck, but thanks to you, Byeonbangbaek, I can finally see some hope. How can I ever thank you...?”
“Haha, don’t mention it. Rainpa is precious to our Tamer territory as well. Especially to the soldiers who work so hard. Our territory is so remote that even when they get leave, it’s hard for them to go far. Fortunately, Rainpa isn’t too distant, so they can go to taverns, watch plays, and the like. In that sense, it’s only right that we help.”
That wasn’t a lie. But it was certainly not born of pure goodwill either.
Current influence: 80 / 100
Oh, nice. Influence is climbing fast. But I still need twenty more? Damn. What else can I throw on the table here?
Thirsty, Ho-yeong gulped down his now-cold coffee.
“I’ll pour you a fresh cup.”
“Thank you. Right, there was also the matter of transporting coffee beans and cacao. I’ll solve that too!”
The force with which he set the cup down made Eos jump.
“What? How?”
“A moment ago, you said that although monsters on the western plains could be handled, there was nothing to be done about monsters on other roads.”
“Yes. But who says transport has to follow roads or overland routes? We can use a different path.”
“No, if not by land, then how in the world? Ours is an inland country, so waterways are blocked too... Are you planning to use magic for spatial movement? But the cost for that would be enormous. It would be the tail wagging the dog.”
“We’ll use the sky. You saw the eagle I rode in on, didn’t you? There are more than a dozen of those in our territory. Unless flying monsters show up, it should be much safer than using roads.”
It was the idea of using Hogrifons for air transport.
“Oh. If we can do that, it would certainly take a weight off my mind. But... transporting goods through the air with birds would be unprecedented. Wouldn’t we need approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? We’d also need to coordinate with the governments of Thalia and Malia...”
“That’s something the mayor will have to take care of. I’m only providing the service, and you’re the one running the business.”
He had resolved to dump all the bothersome work on Eos.
“Well, yes, that is true... Hmm. There will be a great deal to handle.”
“Why should a skilled operator like you worry about that? Just as you said, this would be the continent’s first aerial transport system. Isn’t that an achievement that will go down in history? If you drag your feet, you’ll lose all the customers looking for coffee. Our head maid can’t live without coffee, you know.”
“Understood. I’ll do my best!”
With a mix of coaxing and pressure, the mayor’s motivation shot right up.
“Don’t worry about food storage either.”
Ho-yeong pulled a jar made of Mana Soil from the bundle.
“And this jar is...?”
“Ah, this is a Refrigerated Jar. It’s a jar of hope that can store everything from potions to seasonings at the proper temperature and humidity. This, too, can only be made in the Tamer territory.”
“I see. A remarkable object. To prevent food from spoiling, the only methods were to cover it with angsyeo leaves one by one or use preservation magic, but to think it can just be placed inside a jar.”
“And it can even age properly, too. Just like the other goods, I’ll offer this at a special rate.”
“Good heavens. Count Tamer, are you a savior sent by Hariad?”
As Eos’s eyes went wide, a loud voice rang out.
One was the congratulatory chime from the status window. The other was the sound of a guard knocking at the door.
“M-Mayor! Sorry to interrupt while you’re talking, but I have a report! The black fog that was hanging thick over the fields has suddenly lifted!”
Ho-yeong smiled in triumph.
High-grade achievement Black Sheep Wall achieved! You have exerted great influence beyond your territory. By spreading “good influence,” you have given the people of the neighboring region tremendous “hope.” Hope is the greatest power for driving away black fog! You have received 200 EP and 300 RP as a reward!
Three high-grade achievements have now been attained. The second-stage enhancement has been applied to Influence Dissemination and Influence Leadership!
The completion rate for condition (B) of the important quest Black Curtain, “reveal the effects of the black fog,” has increased from 25% to 40%.
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