Chapter 562: Exterior Inspection
A fortress clinging to the cliffside. The beautifully crafted mosaic floor, which seems to have been poorly assembled, is half-submerged in the sea, appearing and disappearing with the waves. The turquoise sea is stunning.
Alright, time to conceal it!
“Thank you. While you’re at it, could you please use Concealment, Atmosphere Spirit, Light Spirit, and Sea Spirit, so that it can’t be seen unless someone gets close?”
It’s definitely too flashy.
This should be visible from Thermist’s Island, right? Or is it safe as long as it can’t be seen from the town within the island? Was there a dock on this side? Anyway, concealment is a must!
People coming here? No problem, it’s always been like this. It’s been here all along. No one has approached recently, so they just didn’t notice.
…
I’ll leave the reasoning to Soleil. Once accepted by the local spirits, maybe there’s a convenient excuse about being able to see the castle too, probably.
As I approached the assembled fortress, I noticed it was a bit worn. Over the long years, some stones must have been washed away by the waves. Plus, since it’s an ancient structure, it doesn’t seem to have been designed with comfort in mind.
I guess I’ll have to check how it’s holding up and make repairs to make living here easier starting tomorrow. The arches submerged in the sea are lined up, opening their mouths—could this be a dock? Ships from the Era of the Boulder must have been small. It seems ships got larger during the Era of the Wind.
Hmm. Inside the inner sea, further into the bay, and right in front of it is Thermist’s Island. The waves hardly reach here, so maybe I should build a quay over there. A cliff dug out to the same height as the ship’s edge, allowing easy boarding and disembarking without needing a rope ladder.
A design that facilitates loading and unloading is good for trade, but how does it fare for defense? Kiel would probably hate it. But since it’s concealed, it should be safe, right?
The ship’s edge changes height based on the weight of the cargo, doesn’t it? Thinking about Japan, all I can picture is footage of cranes lifting containers. They have something like wooden cranes here too, but I wonder if I should set one up?
I should ask the stonemasons building the castle on the island. They’ve been using it to lift stones. Well, it might just be a pulley system where they’re manually winding the rope.
The three-fingered dragon—on the left side, the space between the fingers has the fortress returning, while the right side has turned into a sandy beach for some reason. Is it the result of finely crushed rocks that somehow returned? The rock wall shows no signs of crumbling anymore, and it’s nice to have what feels like a private beach.
The backs of the hands on the west and north sides are also cliffs. They rise steeply from the sea, but the upper parts continue as gentle hills. The lack of curves is probably because this area has collapsed several times. The Stone Spirits on this side also show no signs of crumbling, so that’s good.
I confirmed the exterior and entered the fortress through the arch that looks like a dock. It really does seem like a dock, and it has a nice vibe, so I’ll go with that.
I climbed the narrow stairs. Wow, these stairs are cramped—ah, yes, there are holes above for dropping hot water or shooting arrows. The narrow and steep stairs are probably intentional to make it easier to fend off enemies. Not suitable for unloading cargo.
Oh, could it have been a military ship?
I wandered around inside, imagining various scenarios. Thick stone walls, small windows that seem to dislike the sun. Are all of these arrow slits?
I gazed at the small space divided by stone, looking out at the sea. Beyond the sea lies Thermist. When I asked the monk managing the Spirit Library about the situation, he confirmed that the town on Thermist is indeed struggling with both water and food.
According to Soleil, there are merchants visiting this peninsula for lace trading, and instead of gold, they’re currently exchanging for food. I should bring some food later and try to buy lace.
The floor and walls, still dark and wet, occasionally dripped seawater from the ceiling. The fortress has stone floors instead of wooden ones? I thought, only to realize that the rooms were carved out of the cliffside, with the sea side being mostly stone walls. The floor has holes in parts, so I’ll need to repair that.
…The fortress on the island had a wooden floor that had fallen, so I made a new floor with boards, but what should I do in this case? Fill it with stone?
“Excuse me, could you move over here for a moment?” I knocked on the wall and asked the Stone Spirit for help. The stones were filled in.
As I checked while filling the floor, what do we have here? A reception area and a room for the receptionist to rest, a cargo handler’s room, a storage area for goods, and a dining hall. Plus, a restroom and a bath.
For now, it has a very exclusive impression, so I’ll make the windows a bit larger and remodel it to have a brighter feel. Not that it matters since it’s concealed. If what appears after the concealment is this rough fortress, it might be too intimidating.
Oh, would it make Hauleon happy if I let him take a look before remodeling? He seems to like ruins.
But that might come at the cost of my own cheeks. If I keep it concealed—no, I’ve already introduced Soleil to Hauleon. There’s something I can’t hide.
Whether to show Hauleon or not, that is the question. Which is better, to face the arrows of a cruel fate—just as I was about to dive into a Hamlet-like dilemma, I discovered a path that clearly diverged from the previous atmosphere.
More like a cave than a path. I climbed up and down, feeling closer to the sea level. Is this leading to where the White Goddess’s true form resides?