Chapter 100
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 100
A dense jungle and wetlands lay stagnant, choked with half-rotting water.
In this primordial land that had denied human footsteps for countless ages, a spark of flame suddenly flickered to life.
Of course, this wasn't the first time fire had touched this soil. Occasionally, lightning falling from the heavens would strike a tree, bringing a fleeting heat to the earth.
However, the fire born this time was not something that could be quelled by the thick humidity, the damp wood, or the stagnant puddles. Fueled by a massive amount of mana, the inferno grew boundlessly, spreading in every direction.
"Man, look at that burn."
The fire magic, unleashed with the full power of a high noble of the Sun Bloodline, was more than enough to subjugate primitive nature.
With a violent sizzle, the puddles evaporated instantly, their mist rising into the air, while the soaked trees and water weeds were reduced to piles of ash.
Naturally, the countless creatures that called the wetlands home were caught in the blaze. From tiny insects to lizards, frogs, otters, fish, and various birds—innumerable lives were extinguished in an instant. Massive clouds of steam, ash, and smoke billowed upward, accompanied by the acrid, heavy scent of burning.
Had people from a highly developed, civilized society witnessed this, they would have screamed at the horrific destruction of nature.
[Hssssss—!]
Just then, with a sharp hiss, a giant swamp viper about five meters long lunged through the flames toward Solif.
Driven by the instinctive, lightning-fast reflexes of a reptile, the creature succeeded in snapping its jaws onto his arm in an instant. Unfortunately for the snake, its venomous fangs couldn't even pierce his skin.
"Ugh, you filthy brat."
Solif swung his arm with a casual flick, and the giant snake’s body was crushed against the ground with a dull thud.
Under normal circumstances, he would never have been bested by such a low-ranking magical beast. But now that he had awakened the Guardian Bloodline, an opponent needed at least the power of a high noble to deal him an effective blow. Without that, they couldn't leave a single scratch on him, even if he stood completely defenseless.
After incinerating a few more magical beasts that lunged through the flames, Solif shouted toward the sky.
"It's done! Blow it away!"
At his cry, the massive plumes of steam soaring into the sky suddenly began to shift toward the south, as if gripped by the hand of an invisible giant.
The one responsible was Meisa, who was flying through the sky while clinging to Bije’s legs. Working in perfect harmony with the wind-wielding Golden Eagle, she created a wind barrier and sent the byproducts of Solif’s flames over the earthen wall erected to the south.
To finish the job, Turan, who was waiting beyond the wall, used the power of the Carmine Bloodline to breathe frost into the incoming steam. The water liquefied instantly and poured down into the river.
Afterward, Turan crossed the wall using flight magic and reached out over the ash-covered land, drawing out even the water that had seeped deep into the soil.
"Solif, the vessel."
"Here."
As Solif created a vessel of light dozens of meters in diameter, Turan manipulated the rising water and gathered it inside. Finally, the three of them combined their strength to use telekinetic magic, pouring the water from the vessel into the river beyond the wall. The cleanup was complete.
"Alright, this section is finished!"
"Shall we call it a day? We've used a lot of mana, and the sun is starting to set."
"Ugh, working hard makes me hungry. Don't you agree?"
When Solif asked while rubbing his stomach, Bije snorted and pulled a piece of jerky from the pouch on her chest to eat.
Meisa flew lightly up into the sky and back down before speaking.
"I checked. No leaks."
"Good. Then let's go back and rest. Bije, if you would."
Climbing onto the swing pulled by Bije and soaring into the sky, Turan looked down at the land spread out below.
In the middle of the dense jungle, a hollowed-out section stood out like a gaping hole. This was the result of the group’s diligent reclamation of the wetlands over the past three weeks.
First, they installed a levee next to the southern river that supplied the water, blocking its path. Then, they raised the surrounding earth to create a square, isolated space for the next section of reclamation. Within that space, they used massive firepower to burn the entire ecosystem to ruins, extracted the remaining water to create dry land, and leveled it.
Ordinary mages would find it difficult to create such a massive environmental change, and even if they managed it once, they would be completely exhausted. However, these three, possessing transcendent mana, could perform this task repeatedly. The attacks from magical beasts that occurred during the process weren't even a threat.
Thanks to their efforts, the reclaimed land already spanned over a dozen kilometers in every direction.
"How much of it have we reclaimed by now?"
"Well, I haven't measured it exactly, but I'd say at least a tenth."
"At this rate, we really might finish in a few months."
"I wonder if Elder Yoznil will faint when he comes back and sees this."
"Are we calling him 'Elder Yoznil' even when it's just us?"
"Ah, damn it. It's become a habit."
The three of them chatted leisurely as they flew north across the unreclaimed marshland.
As the wetlands ended and the reclaimed plains began to unfold, Turan narrowed his eyes and, with a single gesture, sent several bolts of lightning crashing into the ground.
"Magical beasts?"
"Yeah. There are more than before. The ones fleeing to the north."
As Turan’s group slowly began reclaiming from the south of the wetlands, some magical beasts that felt threatened would flee toward the open fields in the north. Although this place was incredibly rural, there were still a few villages and towns, so it was necessary to clear them out in advance to avoid unforeseen accidents.
*
After hunting and cleaning up magical beasts several times while flying north, Turan’s group arrived at Coloa City, the only city in the Coloa region.
The city had a population of about fifteen hundred, and the only mages present were three knights. It was roughly on par with Murei City, where Turan had stayed when he first entered the world. This was because Coloa was the frontier of frontiers, not just within Lavitas, but by the standards of human society as a whole.
"The gods have arrived!"
"O masters of the world!"
"Ohhh!"
Upon seeing Turan’s group, the commoners, without exception, prostrated themselves, pressing their heads against the ground. It was a sight Turan had seen many times, yet he still couldn't get used to it. He clicked his tongue inwardly as he passed them and headed inside.
In this place, high nobles like them weren't just treated like lords—they were worshipped as actual gods. Most of the commoners were illiterate and ignorant, having learned theology only through hearsay. Their logic was simple: if these were noble lords they had never seen in their lives, they might as well be gods.
As they approached the manor in the center of the city, Turan’s group was greeted by a crowd of commoners who looked particularly wretched. Some were missing arms, legs, fingers, or toes, while others were wrapped in bandages from head to toe due to horrific skin diseases.
They all prostrated themselves toward Turan’s group and cried out.
"O great and mighty gods! Please look upon these pitiful souls with mercy!"
"We came after hearing the rumors!"
"Please save my daughter! I will give you everything I own!"
Solif looked fed up, but Turan and Meisa walked toward them without a change in expression.
"Everyone, line up in an orderly fashion. Healing shall be granted to all."
Despite never having been trained to line up, the commoners immediately formed a queue at the god’s command. A few people frowned, thinking they had been cut in line, but no one dared to get angry or shout. How could they commit such a profanity in the presence of a god?
At the front of the line, Turan handed the Recovery Potion Artifact to Meisa. As she injected mana, the liquid inside sloshed.
"Where does it hurt?"
"I-It's this hand. I was bitten by a venomous snake, and it rotted away..."
"It will hurt, but bear with it."
The end of the wrist the man held out was blunt, as if it had been severed by something—likely a measure taken to prevent the rot from spreading further. Meisa used the artifact dagger Turan had lent her to flick away the end of the stump and then applied the recovery potion to the cut surface.
The man, who was desperately stifling his screams, widened his eyes in shock as a fair hand, completely different from his sun-scorched skin, grew back.
"My hand... it's back! Thank you, Goddess! Thank you so much!"
Of course, as seen when treating Visen’s victims in the past, such measures wouldn't have been necessary if they had just given him a sip. However, there were far more people in need of treatment now than back then. They didn't have enough mana to spare to give everyone a drink of the recovery potion.
Afterward, with the help of Turan and Solif, Meisa used the recovery potion to heal everything from amputations to skin diseases, fevers, and all sorts of other ailments one by one.
Turan, who was quietly watching from behind, stopped one patient and spoke.
"What brings you here?"
"I-I was bitten by a poisonous insect, and my whole body has been shivering..."
"You must have heard the rumors that those who seek false healing when they are not ill shall receive a terrible punishment."
At Turan’s words, the middle-aged man turned pale, looked at him, and prostrated himself.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I just wanted to receive a blessing...!"
"Begone."
Using the senses of his Holy Relic, Turan could detect the faint amount of mana within the commoners—essentially the level of power required to sustain life. Through this, he could easily judge their state of health. He couldn't tell exactly what was wrong or where, but he could tell if they were lying.
Once he filtered out the malingerers, a few whispering patients slunk away, but there were still many left. By the time the consultations finally ended, the sun had already set.
"O Goddess more beautiful than the Earth Mother herself, I shall serve only you forever. Since you saved my daughter, I will give you my entire fortune..."
"I understand, so go home. I do not take payment."
At Solif’s intervention, the young man who had been weeping while hugging his young daughter bowed his head several times before finally disappearing.
Exhaling a light sigh, Solif looked around and spoke.
"They say there are no people in this neighborhood, so why are there so many sick humans? It never ends, no matter how many we fix every day."
"If you add up all the people living within a few days' walking distance, there are still tens of thousands. The rumor that you can be cured if you come here must have spread far and wide."
In the mainland of Lavitas, nobles would periodically hold events where they traveled to various cities and villages to treat commoners. However, the Coloa region was so remote that nobles with the power to do so never visited. In fact, such acts surely played a large part in why the commoners here worshipped Turan’s group as gods. Healing power was, after all, the representative authority of the Lavitas nobility.
Behind Turan’s group as they walked back, chatting casually, those who had been treated embraced each other in joy while bowing deeply toward the manor, reflecting on the grace they had received.
*
At the manor located in the center of the city.
Turan’s group, entering through the main gate with dignity, was met by one of the knights who was originally the ruler of this city.
"You have worked hard again today, O Great Ones!"
"Where are the others?"
"They are patrolling the perimeter as instructed. If a strong magical beast appears, we will report it immediately!"
"Well done."
In truth, the presence of Turan’s group was nothing short of a natural disaster for the knights who originally ruled this city. Being stationed in such a backwater meant enduring a poor lifestyle, but the advantage was being able to act like a big shot without having to answer to anyone. Now, they suddenly had masters they had to grovel to.
Furthermore, since these nobles had brought instructions from the main house to cooperate and trade at fair market prices if they needed resources or labor for reclamation, the knights couldn't just treat them as mere guests. They didn't know why such nobles had come to work in this backwater, but it meant they had some kind of connection to the main house.
If they refused an order Turan gave—like the one to watch for magical beasts coming up from the south—and he later let it slip to the main house that "the knights weren't doing their jobs," there would be nothing they could do.
"Then, I have business to attend to, so..."
"Carry on."
Afterward, Turan’s group washed up and changed clothes in the best rooms of the manor, which the knights had originally used, and then gathered at the dining table. A woman who looked like a plain country matron brought out grilled ribs made from swamp boar and apples, and a steamed dish with fish and crab meat.
"Oh, this is delicious. This neighborhood might not have much else, but the variety of food is impressive."
"The wetlands have a greater variety of creatures than other regions. Remember how freaked out you were when we had frog the other day?"
"That's because I'd never eaten it before! And it wasn't just me, okay? You're the only one who isn't from this region but can shove stuff like that into your mouth so casually!"
While Turan and Solif chatted, Meisa was carefully chewing and swallowing the food in front of her, bite by bite. The way she savored her meal with her eyes closed felt almost solemn.
After a while, having finished a meal roughly the size of what a normal person would eat, she wiped her mouth and spoke.
"I'm done. That was a good meal, Ryute."
"Since the Goddess says so, this humble woman is simply overjoyed."
At Meisa’s praise, the middle-aged woman called Ryute smiled warmly and cleared the dishes.
This was the real reason Turan’s group was spreading rumors and gathering the sick for treatment while the reclamation project was underway. One of the treatments for Meisa’s chronic eating disorder was to boost her self-esteem by helping others in this way. Thanks to healing hundreds of people from the first day until now, Meisa was now able to eat quite easily.
Of course, she still wasn't meeting the normal food intake for a high noble, but at least she no longer needed to be injected with food while unconscious.
"But I'm not sure if this is just a temporary effect. When you healed those burning people back then, you recovered, but it reset not long after."
"Well, I have to get into the habit of eating like this. I can't spend my whole life just helping others."
"Would that be so bad?"
When Turan and Solif looked at her as if to ask what she meant, Meisa continued.
"No, I just thought it wouldn't be so bad to keep living in the countryside like this, reclaiming land and helping people."
Meisa added with a somewhat shy expression that she felt a great sense of fulfillment from giving someone a new life, rather than just being desperate to eat. Was it because of such a nature that she could gain self-esteem by healing people?
While Turan, who had been feeling a surge of superiority and pride from the commoners' praise, secretly turned his gaze to the food to avoid letting his shallow true feelings be discovered, Solif let out a deep sigh and shook his head.
"Phew, I could never live like this forever. How can you live your whole life in a place like this with no proper bars, gambling dens, theaters, or libraries? I'm only putting up with it because it's just a few months of work."
As he said, Coloa City had almost no room for what one might call a cultural life. It was only natural, as it was essentially a city the size of a large village. This was also one of the major reasons why nobles didn't flock here to reclaim the land despite the presence of mines. Ordering innocent nobles to go to such a place and reclaim wetlands was something that would invite resentment, even from the head of a great family.
If it had been the theater-obsessed Asiz, he would probably be writhing in agony. Because of this, the knights of Coloa often whispered that Turan’s group must be nobles exiled for some great crime.
"Don't you feel any empathy or anything when you see how happy people are?"
"It's not that I don't feel it, but I don't want to live in a place like this forever just to see that. I'm someone who left home because I wanted to travel the world, remember? If I see the same scenery and do the same thing for months on end, I'll die of boredom."
Letting the two's bickering go in one ear and out the other, Turan looked up at the large moon hanging in the sky.
Certainly, it was more peaceful to spend each day like this than to struggle against scheming gods and the secrets of the world. He wasn't sure yet if living like this forever would be enjoyable, but at least for now, he wanted to savor this time.