Chapter 33
Translator: True Detective
Chapter 33. 14th Floor (1)
Coming out of the workshop, I staggered and set down the sack.
"Phew....... I brought them."
Cassia opened the sack with trembling eyes.
Inside, hoes, sickles, shovels, pickaxes, etc., emitting a red light were packed by type.
"What is all this...?"
"They are farming tools. With these, we can handle the Angler Grass and revive the land."
At my words, Imperial Princess Cassia's eyes grew round.
"All of this alone in that short time.... Were you not a Knight in the first place...?"
Even if he had crafting abilities, it was strange.
It had been about 2 hours since the man disappeared right before her eyes.
Even someone with crafting abilities in the Empire takes about 3 to 10 minutes depending on their ability to make one and move to the next crafting.
He made all these farming tools, which easily look over 100, all by himself...?
She picked up one farming tool.
It looked crude, but the sharply forged blade and the Red Oak handle that stuck to the hand.
Above all, the subtle life force emanating from the entire tool captivated her gaze.
"Please look closely at the options."
She focused and looked at the hoe.
A moment later, her mouth dropped open.
[Fertilization]
[Fruit of Abundance]
[Root Vitality]
At the unbelievable options floating before her eyes, she couldn't continue speaking.
Not only saving barren land, but multiplying the harvest yield several times.
This was closer to a magic tool than a farming tool.
"Does such a thing... truly exist?"
"It would be faster to check for yourself."
At my words, Cassia came to her senses and nodded.
"Yes. I must check it right away."
She grabbed a hoe handle and strode out of the office.
I, the servants, and the escort knights followed behind her.
The place we arrived at was a small vegetable garden behind the Imperial Palace.
It was once a fertile land responsible for the Imperial Family's dining table, but now it was encroached by Angler Grass and in a disastrous state.
The ground was dead gray and cracked open, and purple tentacles were wriggling hideously in every crevice.
"Y... Your Highness. I will try it."
One servant stepped forward with a tense expression.
He received the hoe from Cassia.
Perhaps due to the red energy transmitted from the hoe in his hand, the servant's hand trembled minutely.
He swallowed dry saliva and looked at the Imperial Princess.
Cassia nodded quietly to permit it.
The servant carefully lifted the hoe and struck the ground.
—Thud.
The moment the hoe blade dug into the gray soil.
—Fwoosh!
A red wave spread from the tip of the hoe.
Starting from where the hoe touched, the dead gray land instantly turned dark brown.
The crevices that were cracked open like a dry rice paddy filled themselves as if wounds were healing and held moist dampness.
"Wh... What is this...!"
The servant tried to step back in surprise, but the change didn't stop there.
The biggest problem, the Angler Grass.
The purple stems that greedily sucked up the land's nutrients twisted as if screaming as soon as they touched the hoe's energy.
—Rustle.
The purple stems that seemed like they would never lose vitality were instantly dyed gray.
And then, like fallen leaves with all their moisture drained, they crumbled into dust and scattered into the atmosphere.
"Oh my...."
An exclamation flowed from Cassia's mouth.
The servants and knights also couldn't close their mouths and stared blankly at the miracle that happened before their eyes.
Just one strike of a hoe, and the dead land breathed, and the plant that was like a cancer of the Empire disappeared.
Everyone's gaze landed on me.
Eyes mixed with awe and gratitude.
I brushed off my dirt-stained hands and looked at the Imperial Princess.
"This should be enough to resolve the famine without a problem, right?"
At my calm question, Cassia suddenly came to her senses.
Her purple eyes were wet.
"Not just without a problem.... This is a miracle. It is no different from a lifeline that will revive the Empire."
Unable to hide her excitement, she approached me.
"Is it really... really okay to accept all these farming tools?"
"Of course. I made them to be used."
I nodded.
As soon as my permission fell, Cassia urgently ordered the Chamberlain behind her.
"Send these farming tools to the lords of each province right now!"
"Yes? However, Your Highness... such items...."
"Distribute them to the places where food is most urgent first as the top priority! Not a single farming tool must be wasted. Make these tools reach all over the Empire!"
"I... I will obey your command!"
The servants started moving busily.
As I watched that sight, a familiar notification sound rang in my ears.
—Ding!
I pondered for a moment.
But this time, I shook my head.
The scene of purifying Angler Grass or pouring out a massive amount of items exposed too much information.
—Ding!
"......Yes?"
Seeing the message popping up before my eyes, I stood blankly.
Usually, when you clear a floor, it gives you time to go out and reorganize, doesn't it?
I swallowed a sigh and scanned the 14th Floor clear conditions that just popped up again.
No one to repair...
I needed confirmation.
"Princess, I will ask you one thing."
"Speak. What are you curious about?"
"How do you make equipment or tools here in the Empire?"
At my question, Cassia made a puzzled expression.
It was an expression asking why I'm asking something so obvious.
"Of course, those who possess crafting line abilities are making them for us."
An ominous premonition brushed past.
But I asked again, holding onto a sliver of hope.
Since it's an Empire, wouldn't there be someone who crafts manually like me somewhere?
"By any chance... are there people who craft manually, not using abilities?"
"Hmm...? Manually..."
Cassia stared into the empty air as if tracing her memory.
"There are stories in past records that there were those who made things manually... but among the people I know now, there is no one who makes something by hand. It's made quickly if they use their abilities, so there's no reason to do that, is there?"
"Ha...."
A deep sigh leaked out without me realizing.
It's exactly the same as Earth here too.
No, it looked rather more serious.
As my complexion darkened rapidly, Cassia asked back worriedly.
"...Did something go wrong?"
"This... if you call it a problem, it can be seen as a very big problem."
I looked at her with a serious expression.
"Then how do you do repairs? Do the people with crafting line abilities do it here too?"
"Correct. If we entrust it to them, they use their abilities to fix it."
Speaking up to there, Cassia dropped her jaw as if realizing something.
Her gaze headed to the sacks of farming tools I just handed over.
No matter how sturdy a tool is, it's a consumable item with durability.
They have to entrust repairs then....
"...Certainly, when we entrust repairs to our Makers, although it's a rare probability, there are cases where the tool or equipment itself breaks...."
Her face turned pale.
"I cannot leave... these precious things to luck."
Cassia brought her thumb to her mouth and bit it as if anxious.
She couldn't place the Empire's sole hope on the scale of a gamble.
But she couldn't keep using broken tools either.
Caught in a situation where she couldn't do this or that, her brow narrowed.
Looking at her lost in thought, I opened my mouth cautiously.
"Princess, I'm not certain about this problem either, but I think I can solve it?"
At my words, color returned to Cassia's face.
She approached me feeling like grabbing a straw.
"Is that true?!"
"...As I said, I'm not certain. But I think I need to meet those crafting line people first. I think I'll only know after seeing their condition firsthand."
At my answer, Cassia nodded without hesitation.
She already trusted the miracle I showed.
She seemed to believe that if it's the ability that resolved the famine, it would solve the equipment problem too.
"Understood! I will guide you right away. Let's go to the Imperial Smithy!"
As Cassia tried to take the lead, the Chamberlain waiting next to her hurriedly stepped forward.
"Your Highness! Please maintain your dignity. I will guide him."
"Ah... Right. I was too hasty."
Cassia cleared her throat awkwardly.
The Chamberlain took the lead and guided the way, and Cassia approached my side and walked alongside me.
We moved our steps toward the Imperial Smithy.
I was half expectant and half worried about what level the Empire's 'clickers' would be.
Arriving at the Imperial Smithy, I frowned as soon as I entered the entrance.
Because it was so different from the appearance of a smithy I had imagined, no, the one I knew.
My workshop was always hot with the hot heat spewing from the furnace, and it was a place where the piercing smell of iron and coal dust flew.
But the scenery of the Imperial Smithy spread before my eyes was shocking.
Desks neatly arranged like bank counters were lined up, and blacksmiths were leaning back in comfortable chairs, rubbing their sleepy eyes.
Their fingers were tapping meaninglessly towards the empty air.
Witnessing the scene of the 'click' I only heard about in words made me dumbfounded.
Are Makers on Earth like that too?
My mind went distant at the skepticism rushing in suddenly.
Then someone walked over from afar.
It was a middle-aged man, short in stature and with a belly protruding as big as Namsan (a mountain in Seoul).
What was impressive was that the middle of his head was coolly empty above his glistening face.
My physiognomy radar, hardened by my long part-time job experience, sounded a warning alarm.
Sure enough, he scanned me up and down and immediately gestured with his chin.
"Hey, you there. You're the guy who came to get materials, right?"
I looked down at my attire.
Because I mass-produced farming tools, I had taken off my armor and was wearing shabby work clothes drenched in sweat.
Moreover, the guiding Chamberlain was waiting outside, and the Imperial Princess was hidden behind my bulk and not visible.
I completely looked like an odd-job worker.
"No, I am...."
"Talking back. If you brought materials, you should quickly put them in the warehouse, why are you standing there blankly?"
He cut my words off and got annoyed.
"This is why kids these days are slacking, tsk...."
He ignored me as if looking at a bug and clicked his tongue.
Anger surged up at the typical boomer's way of speaking, but before I could step forward, a cold voice was heard from behind my back.
"Can someone who eats the Imperial salary be so careless in words and actions?!"
Cassia, who was hidden behind my back, walked forward.
Her eyes were fiercely raised.
"And this person is the Empire's benefactor and is being treated as a state guest. Apologize for that disrespect right now."
"P... Princess?!"
The man's face turned pale in an instant.
He hurriedly bent his back so much his protruding belly jiggled.
Cold sweat poured like rain from his forehead.
"I... I committed a sin worthy of death! This humble one did not see Your Highness... and not knowing he was a precious person, I just...."
"Are you saying it's okay to commit disrespect if you don't know?"
"N... No! My mouth was frivolous! Please forgive me!"
He rubbed his hands together pleadingly as if about to smash his head on the floor.
It was a typical specimen of strong to the weak and weak to the strong.
The arrogance that treated me poorly until just now was nowhere to be found, leaving only servility.
Cassia looked down at him pathetically and explained to me.
"This person is the Imperial Head Blacksmith. The only one in the Empire who possesses Epic grade crafting ability."
"Epic grade?"
I looked at him as if it was unexpected.
Well, since he's the only Epic grade, he must have lived swaggering around so arrogantly.
"Stand up. We came because there is something to show you."
At Cassia's command, the Head Blacksmith stood up hesitatingly.
He was still glancing at me and reading the room.
I grinned at him.
The Empire's only Epic technician, huh.
Actually, it was my first time seeing someone with crafting abilities after awakening, so my heart was fluttering.