Chapter 156

Let’s Build a Pasture
Brother Gerald and I went to Father’s office to report everything that had happened.

“Seventeen Vaash and some Trasanpes, huh? Then we’ll need to build a hot spring for the Vaash as soon as possible.”

“We also need a pasture. If you could have a fort built near the hot spring site, I’ll make the pasture myself.”

“Father, the Vaash will be focusing on treatment for a while, so the sooner we provide them with a suitable place, the better.”

“I see. If their illness drags on due to stress, that would be a problem. I’ll speak with your grandfather and prioritize the construction of their new home.”

“And regarding the caretaker—”

“I heard from Gerald and inquired with the Adventurers’ Guild about someone named Bale. There were no red flags or issues, and he seems to be of good character. As long as there are no problems with the salary and job description, I’m inclined to hire him.”

“Father, please take a look at this.”

“Isn’t this a Skeleton Flower petal? So that experiment worked out, then?”

Father took the four types of Skeleton Flower petals one by one and examined them closely.

“The shine from reflected light isn’t quite as good as the transparent ones, but these should sell too. I’d like to try other colors next time.”

“You can, but since the next visit will be our last this year, it’ll have to wait until spring.”

“I planted the same four colors this time as well, so we can harvest more next time.”

“Got it. I’ll have Maria prepare new colors before then. You and Gerald should go report to your grandfather and discuss the Vaash pasture.”

The next day, we brought Grandfather, some earth magic users, and carpenters to inspect the candidate site near the hot spring town.

That’s because, while the earth mages had built a Vaash-only hot spring next to the knights’ quarters and the Vaash were enjoying their soak, they’d told us they wanted to move to the pasture as soon as possible—too many people around here made them uncomfortable.

“Considering the Vaash will mate, we’ll need a large area. If we also want it within 20–30 minutes by cart from the new town, this area fits best.”

The pasture would be enclosed by a fort, and since the rear faced the forest, it would resemble their old environment.
We also couldn’t build it too far away if we wanted to supply it with hot spring water. At the same time, if we built too close to the town, the Vaash wouldn’t like that.
This spot was a good balance. Being near a major road also made transporting milk easier.

Even near the forest, the fort would offer protection, and if goblins or bandits did get inside, the Vaash could likely take care of them.
If we also built a sturdy house inside for Bale, their future caretaker, things should be fine.

While the fort was under construction, Gerald and I patrolled the surrounding forest.
We only saw some goblins—no dangerous monsters or signs of a bandit hideout.

When we returned, we saw the fort was nearly complete, thanks to the full force of the earth magicians.
The carpenters were steadily constructing housing, stables, and a workshop too.

That night, we camped inside the fort.
Tomorrow, we would move on to help build the hot spring town’s fort and create the hot spring using the special fruit.

The next day, we left behind some carpenters and guards at the Vaash fort and headed to the hot spring town.
While their fort was being built, we patrolled the nearby forest.

We had decided to wait until the fort was finished before making the hot spring.

We found and defeated a goblin settlement of about 30 and later encountered and eliminated three orcs as we moved deeper into the forest.
The forest is about an hour away from the new town, but regular patrols might be a good idea.

By the third day, the new town’s fort was finished.
We took out the stone slab to check the hot spring map for a good site—one red dot was displayed near the forest, but within the fort’s boundaries.

Using the slab, we reached the location. I took out a hot spring fruit.

“Hardt, doesn’t that hot spring fruit look even bigger than the one we used for the purification spring? Did you do something again?”

“Brother Gerald, all I did was boil water using my water magic.”

What do you think about this chapter?