The Faucet Revolution
The newcomers who were using the faucets for the first time kept exclaiming in wonder.
“Good heavens! Hot water comes out this easily!?”
“Cold water too!”
“To think such an item exists…… How is this even possible…….”
Their reactions were only natural. In the other world, this was commonplace, but this world had never conceived of drawing water in such a manner. Simply turning a valve sent water gushing forth, and it could even provide both hot and cold water on demand.
“Does this mean we won’t have to fetch water every morning anymore!?”
“And it’s even safe to drink? We won’t have to suffer over water ever again?”
This was nothing short of revolutionary. Still, a few concerns lingered.
“But isn’t something like this expensive?”
“Of course it is. It doesn’t even need firewood, gives you hot water, and lets you use cold water freely in the summer.”
An item that supplied unlimited hot and cold water, and could even be used for drinking. There was no way such a thing would be cheap. There had once been a kettle-type item used by a certain merchant that heated water, but it took over ten minutes to boil and cost two hundred gold. This was different. A single button press delivered hot or cold water in one second.
“Compared to that kettle, this item must be far more expensive.”
“A thousand gold, at least?”
“Maybe more?”
“Heavens…… If it costs that much, there’s no way I could afford it……”
A shadow of worry crossed the residents’ faces. Even though they had been earning money lately, they still couldn’t afford an item like this. However—
“Actually, I don’t think we need to worry about that.”
“What do you mean?”
“From what I heard, Lord Albert is giving this item to us territory residents for free!”
“F-Free!?”
“Really!? That kind of item, for free!?”
“Apparently so. Though the maintenance cost isn’t free.”
“Maintenance cost?”
“There’s a special mana stone inside the faucet, and it’s a consumable. They say it needs to be replaced every month.”
“Where can we buy that special mana stone?”
“I heard Lord Albert opened another shop. They say you can buy it there for fifteen gold.”
“Fifteen gold……”
It wasn’t a heavy burden. In fact, it seemed quite reasonable. For just fifteen gold a month, they could have hot and cold water whenever they wanted. Not only that—they no longer needed to haul water from afar; they could simply turn the faucet at home.
“That’s not bad at all.”
“Fifteen gold isn’t exactly a crippling amount.”
“And if you bring back the used mana stone, they only charge ten gold.”
“Goodness!”
“How can it be that cheap!”
Even a five-gold discount for returning the used stone. There was no reason to refuse. Considering the firewood they normally burned to heat water, ten gold was more than acceptable.
“Kuh, as expected, our territory is the best!”
“You’re right. In any other territory, they’d be desperate to squeeze every last coin out of us, but it’s different here.”
“Exactly.”
The introduction of the faucets left the residents deeply satisfied.
“Wow! This is amazing! I always had to wash with cold water before, but now I can wash with warm water!”
“Such luxury!”
Until now, bathing had meant little more than wiping down with a towel. The water was simply too cold. Water drawn from the aquifer remained ice-cold even in midsummer. Heating it with firewood just to bathe had been unthinkable, so they had made do with hasty wipes. But now everything had changed. A single button press brought forth hot water, allowing them to wash to their hearts’ content.
“This is…… truly an incredible discovery!!!”
The dark elves who saw the faucets were practically celebrating. The elves, who prized cleanliness, had not been in good shape. It couldn’t be helped. With the surging popularity of Flower Soap and the flood of orders, they had been working without rest to meet demand. Dark circles hung beneath their eyes, and their gazes were bloodshot. They barely slept and had no time to wash while producing Flower Soap. Their wages were low, too.
‘It’s all for Lord Albert, who saved us.’
‘For our benefactor……’
‘We’re residents of this territory now……. Let’s keep going……’
They endured on nothing but passion. Perfect unpaid overtime. In the other world, this would have warranted reporting to the labor board and forming a union to protest. What kept them going was the sense of belonging that came from thinking, ‘I am a resident of this territory.’ Without it, they would have fled long ago. They would have gone down in Legrian Territory history as the first runaway elves.
Then, amid those hellish days, the water pipe construction began, and simple shower facilities were installed in the dark elves’ residential area.
“Kuh! It’s warm!! Whoa! My fatigue is melting away!”
“I was already annoyed by the smell coming off my body lately! Let’s wash it all off while we have the chance!”
“The soap smells nice~.”
The dark elves finally rested and eased their exhaustion. Their pent-up irritation dissolved, and they marveled at the welfare. Stress relief was guaranteed. On top of that, the elves received free mana stone replacements, which made it even better. While others paid for replacements, theirs were free. It felt like special treatment.
‘If they treat us this well……’
‘We have to work even harder.’
‘As expected of Lord Albert. He’s thinking of us……’
Watching from the rooftop of a building, Albert’s lips curled into a grin.
“The carrot and the stick are both important.”
Flower Soap was one of the territory’s major sources of income. Since only dark elves could produce it, he could not allow any of them to run away. He had to work them to the bone so they would produce nothing but Flower Soap. Albert clicked his tongue regretfully.
‘I wonder if there are any more dark elves out there. I’d love to capture and bring some in……’
Are your thoughts not a little too wicked……?
“What does it matter? I provide the dark elves with food, clothing, and shelter, and they provide labor in return. It’s a perfect equivalent exchange, isn’t it?”
A mutual win-win relationship. An equivalent exchange so flawless that even an alchemist would weep.
That is……
Lord Albert.
At that moment, the System, which had been about to continue, abruptly cut itself off and called out to him in a serious tone. The next instant, Albert also sensed something and turned his head in that direction. He felt a presence in the distance. It wasn’t clear because of the range, but—
“System.”
Activating Detection skill.
Activating Range Expansion skill.
Activating Presence Detection skill.
Activating Vision Enhancement skill.
Without needing to be told what to do, the System activated four skills at once. His senses expanded, and distant figures began to come into view.
‘People and monsters?’
They are under attack by monsters.
The monsters are Red Bears.
Perhaps because it had read the monster encyclopedia, the System could identify the monsters with certainty.
Red Bear.
A bear-type monster weighing over one ton and standing more than three meters tall. A ferocious carnivore.
Its forepaw strikes can easily tear apart an orc……
It seemed proud of its newfound knowledge and was showing off. The desire to boast about what one knew was the same for both humans and the System. It was an attention-seeker.
Calling me an attention-seeker……
I am merely providing Lord Albert with information……
‘I don’t really need that kind of information.’
Whether he knew or not made no difference. Anything below a dragon was just prey. Explaining monsters weaker than that to Albert, who could even defeat hatchlings with ease, was pointless. The outcome was already decided.
Tch……
Albert kicked off the roof and launched himself into the air. The distance was considerable.
‘There are five Red Bears in total.’
There are roughly fifty people.
One of them is holding out fairly well, but he’s reaching his limit.
In five seconds, he is scheduled to die.
‘Five seconds.’
No matter how differently time flowed for Albert compared to others, the distance was too great. He needed at least two more seconds.
‘No choice, then.’
“System.”
Understood.
Summoning Las.
The moment the System’s message ended, the shadow beneath him widened, and a skeleton holding a bow emerged from within. An undead. A skeleton. But no ordinary skeleton. The black aura flowing from its body carried rage, resentment, and hatred toward the living. The vivid red glow near its eye sockets radiated a chilling presence that seemed to bind the soul.
—Krrraaaah……
Smack!
“Shut up. Snipe. If you hit a human, I’ll boil your bones into pork bone soup, so do it right.”
—Krrraaang……
The skeleton let out a roar to express its joy at being summoned after so long, only to be struck on the back of its smooth skull. Even so, its next action was swift. As if it understood exactly what Albert wanted, it quickly drew the bowstring and released. The next instant, an arrow embedded itself in the head of the Red Bear that had been targeting a man holding a sword.
As expected, its ability is fraudulent.
Teleport, of all things.
Only arrows can be teleported, but that alone is more than threatening enough.
‘Exactly.’
Las. Obtained from an SS-Rank Gate, it was a variant of the Skeleton King. Its specialty was the bow, and defeating it had been extremely troublesome. Teleport. Las could teleport the arrows it fired. An attack that transcended space. Distance meant nothing to Las. If it shot, it hit. Perfect accuracy. No matter what obstacles stood in the way, as long as the location was within its line of sight, it could move the arrow there.
How many hunters had died or been forced to retire because of this creature? Of course, in the end he had captured it and made it his subordinate.
‘Though that came with a rather troublesome contract…… I’ll think about that later.’
Las has bought us time.
The Red Bears are in disarray.
The time bought was sufficient. Albert kicked off the ground once more.
“Kugh! Damn it!”
The man fighting the Red Bears—Grating—swung his sword desperately, barely managing to block their attacks. Every time he parried a blow, his hands went numb. If he relaxed his strength even slightly, he felt as though he would drop his sword.
‘Even when blocking, I have to use all my strength.’
—Krrroooar!!
A tremendous strike from the Red Bear, powerful enough to shatter a tree in an instant, came flying toward him. Grating raised his sword to block. The moment the attack struck the blade, an overwhelming shockwave made his insides feel as if they were being turned inside out. A metallic taste of blood filled his mouth, but he forced it down. He could not show weakness.
‘I’m the only one here who can fight. I…… have to hold on……’
Along with the sense of justice that demanded he save the people, despair washed over him.
‘Even if I hold on, can we really survive?’
There were five A-Rank monsters called Red Bears. Victory was impossible. The fact that he had lasted this long was itself a miracle.
‘If I didn’t have this sword.’
And the driving force that allowed him to endure was the very sword he now held. The item he had brought with him when he left that place. Blocking the Red Bears’ attacks and holding on was possible only because of this sword. Without it, he would have died in a single blow. But even that had its limits. The sword was on the verge of breaking. It had reached its limit.
“I……”
—Krrroooar!!
It was the Red Bear’s attack. His instincts told him clearly: he could not block that strike with this sword.
‘I’m…… going to die here……. In the end, without achieving anything……’
Having sensed his death, Grating tightly shut his eyes in preparation for the coming pain. Yet something felt wrong. Even after closing his eyes and waiting, no impact came.
‘Why?’
As the question arose, Grating slowly opened his eyes—and at the same time, he saw it. The Red Bear stood frozen in place like a golem whose core had been destroyed.
“An…… arrow……?”
An arrow was embedded in its head. A perfect headshot, dead center.
“Where did……?”
Just as the question formed, another Red Bear nearby charged straight at him.
“Kugh! Damn it!!”
Grating instinctively raised his sword to block, but he knew it was futile.
‘Please…… someone! I don’t care if I die! Please…… save them!!’
The next instant, as if his desperate prayer had reached the heavens, a man appeared before him, descending from the sky. His appearance was strikingly handsome—enough to make onlookers gasp. Black hair and intense black eyes.
“You are……”
“Red Bear……”
The man paid Grating no mind. He merely looked at the Red Bear before him and clicked his tongue.
‘Why the tongue click? In this situation?’
“Red Bear hides fetch a high price among nobles, and their gallbladders sell for a fortune as the ultimate aphrodisiac. Winter is coming, and I was thinking of getting Elena a new coat. A fur coat would be perfect.”
The moment greed gleamed in the man’s eyes, the charging Red Bear flinched as a chilling aura swept across its thick fur and hide. Then the man—Albert—smiled with naked greed and shouted.
“Hand over your hides and gallbladders, you stupid bears!!!”
Is that why you rushed over……?
(－‸ლ)
It seemed he was worried about damaging the expensive hides.