Chapter 150
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Prime Works
Chapter: 150
Chapter Title: Construction Guidelines (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Remember back when we built the stone ice storage for the orc village? You remember that black mage we took down together, right?”
Lloyd’s question flew at him.
Haviel nodded.
“Yes, I remember.”
“You remember how we hauled off every last bit of magical materials that black mage had stockpiled, too?”
“Yes, of course.”
“And among the stuff we got from there, there was this weird thing. This one. When you inject mana into it, it creates an illusion in midair?”
Lloyd, up on the tunnel, reached out his hand.
A round medal was visible clutched in his hand.
“So, that light-blue cube drawn underground—it was drawn using that medal?”
“Yeah. I was thinking, what if we draw blueprints like this underground for future construction jobs? To make it easier for the workers.”
“That’s an amazing feature.”
“Right? I think so too. It’s got even cooler features. Wanna jab your shovel into it anywhere and dig? Just one scoop.”
“Anywhere?”
“Yeah. Anywhere.”
“……”
Haviel stared steadily at Lloyd.
He glanced at the medal Lloyd was showing off.
He could tell.
That medal was indeed a magic item.
But the blue lines and surfaces of light etched underground.
The claim that the medal drew them was a lie from Lord Lloyd.
“……”
Should he pretend not to notice this time too?
After a moment’s hesitation, Haviel picked up his shovel.
Following Lloyd’s instructions, he jabbed and dug into one wall inside the cubic tunnel.
A massive gouge appeared on one face of the perfectly formed cube, following the lines and surfaces of light.
And then a change occurred.
Beeeep!
With a sharp beep, the color of that face turned red.
Lloyd’s grinning voice followed.
“See? If the actual construction deviates from the blueprint, it immediately lets the workers know like that.”
“So……”
“The workers can spot any errors in construction right on site.”
“It sounds like slacking off is over.”
“But we give them great benefits in return, don’t we?”
Lloyd wore a sleazy contractor’s grin.
The guideline option he’d gained from leveling up his design skill.
He’d wondered how it would work in practice.
But testing it out in the field?
It was a game-changer.
‘This basically projects a full 3D version of the blueprint right underground. And it shows construction errors in real time.’
No matter how carefully you design.
No matter how meticulously you plan every detail.
If the on-site workers botch it, the whole build is ruined.
They’d half-ass the specs or ignore minor deviations because it was a hassle—stuff like that happened quietly on sites all the time.
Because construction was ultimately done by people.
‘But now that’s prevented. Errors show up in color, plain as day.’
Plus, he could arbitrarily set the threshold for when the guideline turned red—the error tolerance.
In other words, with this option, precision construction was no longer a worry.
Especially for something like this grand sewer system, where precision was everything.
‘And the magic item excuse seems to have worked well enough.’
He’d dodged Haviel’s suspicions, thankfully.
So, that was that.
Now it was time to start the grand sewer construction in earnest.
♣
The construction got off to a smooth start.
“Alright, I trust everyone knows exactly what to do next.”
At the first excavation site, selected near the central village of the territory.
Sir Bayern’s solemn speech began there on site.
“Under Lord Lloyd Frontera’s guidance, we’ve completed all sorts of projects. We’ve built countless ondol rooms, turned the Marez Wetland into fertile farmland, and laid water pipes from that lofty lake in the Eastern Mountains all the way to the territory.”
All the projects he and the Engineering Corps had taken part in so far.
Pride glowed warmly on Sir Bayern’s face as he recounted those achievements.
“And that’s not all. Right now, we’re erecting a massive communal housing complex called apartments to Lord Lloyd’s designs, and we’ve spent the winter carving and terracing the slopes of the Eastern Mountains, stacking retaining walls, and creating fertile fields. And now! We take up our shovels to achieve a new feat that surpasses them all.”
Pride rose on the faces of the Engineering Corps members listening to the speech.
Tiny embroideries on the chests of their work clothes marked each project the crew members had completed.
They were badges of honor, proof of their seasoned experience.
“That’s right. Today, we build new history. Following Lord Lloyd Frontera’s blueprint, for the future of the territory, staking our honor—we shout it out once more today: Safety first!”
“Safety first! Woo!”
With a resounding cheer, construction began.
The Engineering Corps soldiers formed the core.
Countless refugees and territory folk had volunteered to help Lloyd.
A small group of experienced Engineering Corps members led the site, while the bulk of refugees and locals provided the manpower.
And Lloyd’s new design option, the construction guidelines, enabled efficient, precise work.
“Podong! Po-dong-!”
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
Every time Podong wiggled its massive rear, the ground thudded deeply.
And so a pit 4 meters wide and long, 5 meters deep, took shape.
Murmurs rippled through the Engineering Corps and workers watching.
“Hey, what’s that underground? Looks like a blue glow.”
An elderly refugee muttered.
The Engineering Corps soldier beside him grinned.
“Oh, that? It’s the guidelines Lord Lloyd etched underground.”
“Gui… de… lines?”
“Yeah.”
“What are those?”
“They say the lines show exactly where to dig and where not to.”
“Really possible?”
“Well, they’re visible to our eyes, so yeah. I don’t get the principle myself, but anyway—they say just follow those marks precisely when digging and building.”
“Heh, amazing stuff.”
The Engineering Corps soldiers who’d been briefed on the guidelines before work.
The workers marveling after hearing explanations from the soldiers.
As all eyes gathered, the construction guidelines shone more clearly.
But the sight was a bit different from what everyone expected.
It wasn’t just rough lines and surfaces sketched underground, or a simple outline of the digging area.
Lines marking the excavation boundaries.
Inside them, positions and extents for stacking bricks.
Below, layouts, depths, and thicknesses for foundations.
It was like the entire 3D blueprint had been traced in blue lines and surfaces, embedded underground as a vivid holographic projection.
“That’s way more detailed than I thought?”
The workers stuck out their tongues at the unexpectedly intricate detail.
And so everyone threw themselves into the work.
They neatly finished the vertical shaft Podong had dug.
The central village of the territory.
A massive sewer well where the villagers would dump their waste and sewage.
‘Sure, it’d be better if it were a modern system where every home dumps straight into sewers.’
But the tech wasn’t there.
Not enough money, time, or manpower.
A wry smile tugged at Lloyd’s lips as he watched the work progress.
Honestly, if he was going to build a sewer system, he wanted it modern, like Korea’s—water from the sink straight down the drain, toilet flushes clean and easy. Everyone handling sewage without hassle or worry.
‘But that’s impossible here.’
A modern system required plumbing connected to every home.
But the current situation?
Winter’s brutal cold was coming, freezing the Prohn and Majena Rivers. Frozen rivers piling with waste would spark massive epidemics.
He had to finish the grand sewers before then.
No time to pipe every single home. A tight system like that would take years minimum.
That’s why.
‘We’ll just build large sewer wells per village and district.’
Waste and sewage from homes.
Bring it out and dump it in the wells.
Let it flow through pipes connected to the wells.
That was the core of Lloyd’s grand sewer system.
‘Less effort and time, too.’
For now, maximize cost-efficiency.
With that motto in mind, Lloyd led and oversaw the work.
Dig the vertical shafts for the sewer wells.
Lay foundations at the shaft bottoms.
Line with granite bricks and cement to prevent seepage.
Connect sewer pipes for outflow.
Dig a long, even path at 5 meters depth.
Thick layers of sand and gravel at the base.
Flat granite slabs on top.
To block leachate from polluted sewage.
Cement over the slabs, interlock granite bricks.
The sewer pipe’s bottom cross-section was inverted egg-shaped.
Narrowing downward to speed flow and smooth passage.
Width and height precisely 2 meters.
One side had a separate 60cm walkway for people.
Completed sewer sections were lined with granite bricks, waterproofed, then backfilled.
Manholes at intervals, too.
Spiral stairwells for safe access to repair clogs or infiltration.
It resembled Vienna’s “Cholera Canal” sewers.
And so the central village’s sewer well.
The sewer line from it.
That first section took a full 20 days.
But the work didn’t end there.
‘Of course not. This is just the start. One village’s waste collection. The real deal is the main sewer ahead.’
From each village and apartment complex.
Waste gathering at their sewer wells and lines.
Now construction began on the main sewer to carry it all out of the territory.
An “extra large (XL)” version of the prior “Cholera Canal.”
Bibung was mobilized specially for this.
“Bee-bibung! Bibung-!”
Thud thud!
Bibung, down from the mountains after ages, was thrilled.
It sneaked a peek at Bangul on Lloyd’s distant shoulder.
With the tender thrill of first love.
Cheeks flushing red, heart pounding.
Unleashing 3,000 tons of pure power, it slammed its forepaw.
“Bibung!”
Kwaaang! Kwakwang!
Like a massive excavator, the ground gouged out in seconds.
A pit 20 meters deep and wide stretched long.
As before, Engineering Corps and workers jumped in.
20m wide, 3m walkway, 8m high—mega main sewer dredged.
The main sewer headed north.
Day by day, steadily.
Spring rains stopped.
Sprouts emerged.
Frogs croaked vigorously.
Roses burst into first bloom.
After 3 months, the main sewer crossed the territory’s north border.
“Alright, careful from here on. You all remember—during the monster domino incident, which way did that mastodon herd get swept toward when they hit our territory?”
“North!”
The Engineering Corps soldiers answered Lloyd’s question.
Everyone vividly recalled sweeping the mastodon herd downriver north.
“Yeah. Good you remember. As you know, mastodons are tough. Being swept by the river wouldn’t kill them. Obviously most survived being carried this far and made this their new habitat. Meaning we’re now constructing in mastodon territory.”
Lloyd’s warnings to everyone continued.
“So be careful, all of you. Sure, with Bibung here, mastodons won’t approach easily, but you never know. Even on breaks, don’t stray far from site. If you must go farther, always go in groups of ten or more. Got it?”
“Yes, understood!”
After the reminders, work resumed immediately.
But something odd happened.
Despite all the careful warnings, ten days after crossing north—no mastodon in sight.
‘Whew, awkward. Was the speech overkill?’
Lloyd chuckled.
Maybe the mastodons fled farther than thought and settled.
Or Bibung’s presence scared them off entirely.
‘If so, great for us.’
Better no tangle with dangerous monsters.
Especially during noisy construction like now.
But just as Lloyd relaxed.
“Bee-bibung? Bibung!”
Bibung, digging on site, bellowed loudly.
The cry’s meaning was a bit off.
It was yelling, ‘Here! Something came out!’
‘Hm? Something emerged?’
What?
Snapping from thought, Lloyd headed to site.
He looked where Bibung pointed.
The actively excavating ground.
Beneath the dirt pile.
A familiar silhouette peeked out.
“Mastodon?”
A corpse.
Dead mastodon buried about 7 meters deep.
But it wasn’t badly decayed.
Not long dead.
‘What? Buried 7 meters deep?’
Landslide burial?
No, impossible.
‘It’s flatland here.’
Or other mastodons neatly buried their dead kin?
‘No, that’s not it.’
Mastodons were simple monsters.
No intelligence for burial rites.
But something stranger emerged.
“Bibung? Bee-bibung?”
Tilting its head, Bibung pawed carefully beside the found mastodon corpse.
Another mastodon body appeared.
Not the end.
“What……”
Every spot Bibung dug revealed mastodon corpses. Ten? Twenty? Over a hundred.
“Bibung! Bee-bibung?”
“Yeah, I see it. They’re lined up neatly like someone carefully buried them. What the hell is……”
What?
It didn’t make sense.
He racked his brain through *Iron-Blooded Knight*.
No mention of neatly buried mastodon corpses.
The closest was Haviel’s blasting episode at Namaran’s wall……
Then.
Pssshhh!
From the unearthed mastodon corpses underground.
From the pile of bodies, suddenly—a eerie, ominous sound began to rise.