And so, only I remained behind. Without a moment’s delay, I too began moving to prepare. Exiting the throne room, I walked through the corridors of Viayisia Castle and stepped outside. My first destination was the workshop built into the castle’s side. There, a massive forge supplied all the metalwork for the entire castle.
The workshop’s exterior resembled a tower, though it was only one story tall. Its high ceiling featured countless horizontal windows. It was designed to allow indoor temperature adjustments according to the work process.
Within the workshop, the people I had trained were fully displaying their talents. One of them spotted me and happily ran over, immediately greeting me. “Oh, professor! Things are going great today too! Please watch!”
While searching for my objective, I spoke with the brown-haired Jewelculus. “You’ve made quite a lot again.”
Numerous metal items lined the surrounding workbenches. Moreover, their quality made it immediately clear that the Jewelculus’s skill far surpassed anyone else’s in the workshop.
“Every single one is a masterpiece made without cutting corners! Thanks to the Blessed Iron Smithing technique you taught me, all these metal items will last a long time!”
“Yes, I suppose so. You were a very quick learner. You have a natural talent for craftsmanship.”
Unlike me, the Jewelculi were multitalented. Honestly, seeing them master things in days that took me years to learn made me feel a little torn as their teacher. But it had paid off— Now, the weapons and armor of the Kingdom of Viaysia were among the finest quality on the continent.
“Thank you, professor! Lately, thanks to our work finally being recognized, we’re getting so many orders for leylines from all over that it’s becoming a problem. It’s a happy problem, I suppose.”
I distinctly remembered instructing them a few months ago to review flood control measures and the leyline systems in each town. It seemed the impact of that had reached quite far. If I left it to them, the foundation of life in this Kingdom of Viaysia should be secure.
“Is that so? Um, could I also take a look at items besides the leylines and metal goods? We have come to need weapons.”
“Weapons? Um, the custom-made ones for you, professor, are over there, I believe.”
The brown-haired Jewelculus dashed around the workshop, gathering equipment. First, a pair of rough wooden gauntlets landed on the workbench.
“Gauntlets? Is this armor carved from the Yggdrasil in the garden?” I asked. It was a special weapon crafted using the Blessed Iron Smithing skill, yet it contained not a single trace of iron. It was a weapon made solely for the Thief of Wood’s Essence.
“This is the one you commissioned a long time ago, isn’t it? Did you think I’d forgotten about it? Come on, how could I forget? It’s your fault for not coming to pick it up!”
I laughed awkwardly. Lately, my memory had been failing me. Work-related things were fine, but when it came to personal matters, I just couldn’t seem to manage.
“Thank you. This time the enemy is someone with high-level Swordsmanship. With this, I can feel at ease.”
Facing Kanami the Founder, there was no way I could feel at ease no matter what, but I put on a brave front for the Jewelculus who’d prepared my armor. The one in front of me handed me the gauntlets with a delighted smile, her eyes sparkling. Even without words, I understood what she wanted. Reluctantly, I put them on, moved to the open space in the workshop, and did some light warm-up exercises.
“Right, excuse me for a moment.”
I practiced the basic form General Volhz had taught me long ago. Just as I’d been taught a thousand years ago, I went through them one by one, methodically—swinging my arms down with force, rotating my hips, cutting the air with my feet, thrusting both hands forward from the waist.
“Amazing! You’re too fast to see! You really are strong, professor!” The Jewelculus clapped her hands in praise.
It was indeed better than I had expected. Still, even so... “No, no, that’s too much.”
“No, it’s true!”
I was too weak. A professor being strong? Unheard of. Even if I could defeat everyone in this castle using Martial Arts, if I competed among the Essence Thieves, I’d lose every single time. It was doubtful it would work against even the weakened Kanami the Founder now. Even if my Martial Arts stats surpassed his, there was a chance he could overtake me during the fight.
“Oh, I’ve also prepared wooden rings and bracelets that match your magic, professor. But please test the magic in the garden. It might catch fire here.”
“Yes, thank you for everything. I’ll head to the garden.”
“All right, see you later!”
While I was reviewing my martial arts forms, she must have gathered all the equipment for the Thief of Wood’s Essence from the workshop. Taking it all, I left the forge, and walking along the corridor, I began putting on the gear.
After slipping a plain wooden ring onto my finger, I pulled the specialized leather gloves on over it. I threaded the bracers and gauntlets onto my arms, then fastened the chest guard beneath my clothes. Along the way, I passed numerous subordinates at work.
The castle of Viaysia housed people of all kinds. Not only did age and race vary, but it was filled with people like Jewelculi and even slaves. Such a situation would be unthinkable in the castles of other nations.
Those passing by greeted me. “Good morning, Your Excellency, Lord Ide.”
Some were long-serving pillars who had worked at the castle for years. And unlike in my memories from the past, the voices addressing me were filled with goodwill.
“Lord Ide, it’s another fine day today, isn’t it? Days like this make our work progress smoothly.”
“Lord Ide, I’ll have the girls bring you the report on the recent expedition later. Please take a look.”
“Ah, speaking of which, there was something I wished to discuss with you another day. The reform proposal from some time ago is now complete, and I would like your opinion, Lord Ide...”
Responding to those voices as chancellor, I continued walking until I reached the castle’s inner courtyard. It was a garden at least ten times larger than the throne room.
The garden had no ceiling. Beneath the open sky, numerous plants grew and thrived. Not only were there colorful flower beds, but there were rows of many different kinds of trees as well. The trunks and leaves of these trees served as walls and ceilings, creating a sort of maze.
The maze was three-dimensional. Bridges were built by connecting planks between trees, and there were wooden staircases leading to the tops of the trees. In the center of this maze was an open space covered in lawn. This place served as both a garden and a training ground.
I made my way to the special training area, stopped, and looked around at the figures there.
The courtyard was filled with many people: subjects, researchers, foreign guests. Some tended to the trees and flower beds while others trained on the lawn. Despite it being a training ground, some had brought tables out and were sitting around chatting and laughing. And then, in the corner of a flowerbed, were people holding apparatuses for magical experiments.
One of the Jewelculi near the flowerbed noticed my arrival and called out to me. “Ah, professor! The test on Plant No. 111 is complete! Look at this!”
Their voice alerted the others to my presence as well. The murmurs began announcing that the professor was here. Feeling a slight resentment at that title, I returned their greetings with a forced smile.
“Yes. Good morning, everyone.”
Immediately, one Jewelculus ran over with a delighted expression and reported the results of their work.
“Professor! We’ve gotten one step closer to the ideal tree again! With seeds this cold-resistant, we can definitely help the people suffering in the far north! And above all, the fruit size is incomparable! This will fill our bellies!” The Jewelculus pointed to the fruit-bearing tree growing in the corner of the garden.
Within the garden flowerbeds lay an area that could be called a field, where improved grains were growing. In other words, this place also served as an experimental field. Most of the seeds had been improved using my power as the Thief of Wood’s Essence.
“Impressive. Entrusting you with their care was definitely the right choice. But while that tree that fills your belly is important, are the other plants okay?”
“Of course! They’re growing just fine over there too!”