“Was the establishment of the border completed without any issues?”
“Yes, Sister. We successfully agreed to use the forest managed by the Forest Country (Lebresta) as the boundary. We’ve set the current edge of the forest as the provisional border, with a 10km buffer zone from there. On the Afrasia United Kingdom side, we are constructing a protective fence using metal wire and a patrol line for security automatons.”
＜Fragalia Zero＞ answered Eve’s question. At the same time, it projected a map and footage from the local construction machinery into the air.
“We confirmed with the Forest Country (Lebresta) that there are basically no animals or monsters that travel between the forest and the wilderness, so we are sealing the border with metal wire. This metal wire can detect strong pressure or damage. We plan to quickly dispatch security automatons to any location where an alarm is triggered, and we have deployed flying drones and large, rail-mobile automatons.”
“Hoh. I see, railways have superior mobility, don’t they?”
Normally, railway-mobile weapons are not very welcome. Due to the nature of their limited movement paths, they are vulnerable to enemy ambushes and long-range attacks.
However, while wheeled vehicles have high mobility, they inevitably generate friction with the ground, resulting in poor power efficiency, and are prone to breakdowns and damage depending on the ground conditions.
In that respect, railways minimize power loss and are limited to movement on prepared routes, making unexpected breakdowns and damage less likely.
For border security where the patrol route is fixed and sabotage from neighboring countries is unlikely, there are no issues with operating large, rail-mobile automatons.
“It makes sense when I hear the reasoning, but from the outside, it looks like a romantic weapon…”
Armored trains, which are easy targets from aircraft, are often depicted as very fragile weapons, despite their high firepower.
After all, they can only move on the same route. Moreover, they are stranded if the rails are destroyed.
“We are treating it as a means of transportation to the site, and in the worst case, we can release the mounted weapons and have them move on their own. We have determined that it is practical enough if we consider it a fixed gun emplacement and allocate it to providing supporting fire from the rear.”
“To supplement, the railway itself is installed about 1km inside the country from the border’s metal wire. We believe it is unlikely to become a direct target of attack.”
“So it’s based on the premise that there will be no border disputes. If you guys have determined it’s useful, then there’s no problem. …Even so, the amount of resources we can produce without being fazed by running this much railway… I’m deeply moved…”
Eve muttered as she looked at the displayed resource consumption.
Since the world transfer, ＜The Tree＞ had constantly been plagued by resource shortages. Especially the iron resources, which were needed in large quantities, and the energy resources that were the source of its activities.
The large-scale increase in production of these resources is now proceeding smoothly.
Iron ore lodes are being discovered one after another in various locations, and the development of oil fields is also progressing smoothly.
The operation of the deuterium production plant is also on track, and the stock of rare elements continues to increase along with mining.
“Hmm, resource production doesn’t seem to be a concern for the time being… which means…”
Eve pulled the Tech Tree, which ＜Ringo＞ had thoughtfully displayed, closer to her.
“We’ve got a handle on the mining of natural elements. If this is the case, we should be able to produce most of the molecular structures that can be synthesized on the ground, right?”
“Yes, Ma’am. I believe it is about time to raise the Tech Tree by one level.”
It has become possible to effortlessly gather the molecular structures available on the planet.
The next step is the artificial synthesis of useful molecular structures.
“For the time being, should we go with Zero-G Alloy…?”
“Yes, Ma’am. With our current orbital deployment capabilities, we should be able to operate a small-scale general-purpose plant. Considering the danger level of Threat Creatures, it will be a cloaked facility. We will inevitably have to sacrifice scale.”
Eve tapped on the Tech Tree, which had been leveled up by one stage.
In plants built on planets, gravity imposes constraints on various manufacturing activities.
In particular, the constant pull of gravity has a significant impact on the production of delicate materials such as alloys.
For example, if you try to mix materials with different specific gravities, they will separate due to gravity.
By doing this in a zero-gravity environment, they can be evenly dispersed.
Of course, launching equipment such as smelting furnaces into orbit requires considerable cost.
There is also the troublesome process of transporting raw materials into orbit and returning the produced materials to the ground.
Overall, it would be an ultra-high-cost material.
“Hmm. If we’re just using it for core components, I guess it’s doable…?”
When preparing such plants, it is better to put them together in the same location, considering the efficiency of energy and material transport.
However, if a large-scale plant is floated in geostationary orbit, it will inevitably be visible from the ground.
In addition, the consumption of energy associated with production activities generates a large amount of electromagnetic waves.
This could provoke attacks by dangerous Threat Creatures, such as the sniper plants.
Of course, electromagnetic wave shielding equipment can also be built, but this would increase the size of the facility.
“It’s pretty bad that we have to be more careful in orbit.”
“Yes, Ma’am. I recognize that this is an issue that should be resolved as soon as possible, but this is just…”
＜Ringo＞ replied to Eve’s grumbling with a dejected look.
To develop outer space, it is necessary to secure a safe space. However, at least one species of creature has been found that can launch a fatal attack on orbit. Therefore, it cannot be used carelessly.
“Well, that’s fine. Let’s proceed with it gradually. Is Olive in charge? Yes, she’ll be fine.”
Eve gave the OK to launch the orbital equipment and turned back to ＜Fragalia Zero＞.
“Sorry, I got sidetracked. Is there anything else to report?”
“That is all I had prepared to report.”
“Oh, is that so? Thank you. Hmm… is there anything else you’re personally curious about?”
At Eve’s question, the fox-eared girl in front of her tilted her head.
＜Fragalia Zero＞ uses a high-performance AI chassis to which multiple Brain Units are assigned.
Even so, it does not have the processing power to analyze everything and make accurate predictions.
Therefore, it basically acts according to the plans presented by ＜Ringo＞.
But because of this, it sometimes does things for the reason that ＜Ringo＞ is correct, even though it doesn’t understand why.
And such awareness could accumulate into small dissatisfactions and stresses.
To alleviate this as much as possible, she periodically vents her feelings to Eve in the form of a report.
“Not particularly at the moment. ＜Ringo＞ has disclosed all the background reasons for the action instructions, and Akane-onesama and Ichigo-onesama share their interpretations of any unclear points.”
Eve nodded at ＜Fragalia Zero＞’s answer. It seems that the sisters are doing a good job of following up.
A system is being put in place so that things run smoothly even without Eve, who is imperfect and slow to think, making decisions.
The current situation, in which the AIs can complement each other, has been a great help to Eve, who had been struggling with various directions, as it has reduced her mental burden considerably.
Well, if it really starts to slip out of Eve’s hands, that in itself will become a source of worry.
“I see. That’s very good. I trust you too, Fragalia Zero.”
And so.
Once the report meeting is over, it’s time for a social gathering.
Today, the Tier I Brain Units are planning to have a barbecue on the artificial beach.
The initial Five Sisters are probably working hard to set things up.
“Let’s go. If I remember correctly, you like sweets from the Forest Country (Lebresta). We don’t have many sweets today, but we have plenty of meat. In this body, I can’t relax unless I eat meat… I think you probably have the same desire. Let’s enjoy ourselves.”
And so, Eve continues to run around appeasing the AIs today as well.
The sound of Zero-G Alloy is nice, isn’t it?
We are so used to living in a gravitational environment that we don’t feel any discomfort, but separation by specific gravity is an interesting phenomenon.
★I’ve posted the cover of Volume 3 in the recent notes, so please check it out if you like!