I started by opening the sliding doors leading to the break rooms for the soldiers. I pulled them apart with both hands, then entered the room beyond, crossing through to the next set of sliding doors and pulling those open in turn. I repeated this process until I arrived at the long hallway surrounding the floor.
“Oooh, awesome!” It was a shame that I was the only one who could appreciate the accuracy. After all, I’d seen the real thing.
My Japanese castle was splendid in every way. It had an exquisite structural beauty that was functional, not just aesthetically pleasing. Exactly what you would expect from one of Japan’s most famous castles.
“What a fascinating castle…” Till murmured, sounding enthralled.
Arte nodded. She and Till were exploring the interior, and she seemed moved by pretty much everything she saw. “I have never seen one quite like it. It’s so entirely unique and full of things I’ve never seen before…and yet there is a lovely harmony to it.”
Khamsin and I checked each floor. He expressed surprise at the abruptness of the stairs. Okay, maybe I didn’t need to replicate the stair design, I thought.
Meanwhile, Pinin and the others ascended the stairs very carefully, almost like spies infiltrating enemy territory. Pinin was leading the charge, and a look of relief washed over him the moment he spotted me.
“Ooh! Lord Van! I was already impressed by your ability to build a castle in only a few hours, but this is remarkable!”
A nobleman behind him hummed in agreement. “At first I assumed you had simply stuck a few wood boards together.”
The nobles looked around restlessly, touching the sliding doors with great interest. It seemed that my speed had made them assume I’d built a cardboard cutout of a castle. In fairness, that wouldn’t have been a terrible plan if my goal was only to bluff Yelenetta’s army and stall for time. It made sense.
In a gentle tone, Pinin asked, “May we stay here as well?”
The pleading look he gave me was kind of gross. Since he was being so humble about it, though, I decided to respond with kindness. I smiled. “Of course! I even went out of my way to make some modifications so that this castle is nice and secure. I would love it if you all stayed the night and gave me your feedback on the experience!”
The nobles lit up with smiles. “I am grateful for your kindness!”
“It is a truly fascinating design!”
“What sort of contraptions did you install? Just for reference.”
They had clearly come to understand the structural beauty of a Japanese castle. This pleased me for reasons I couldn’t quite put into words, and I decided to let them in on the important secrets hidden in the structure. As far as I was concerned, anyone who liked Japanese castles was a good person.
“This castle was designed with security and defense in mind. The tall watchtowers will all be equipped with ballistae. I also plan to install another level of walls on the top of the castle; these will have holes in them at regular intervals, allowing soldiers to attack with machine bows or throw Molotov cocktails to the ground below. Not only that, but should any intruders manage to get into the castle itself, the stairs are narrow and steep, so those defending on the inside can attack with spears from the top of the stairs. It would be extremely difficult to climb all the way to the top. I’m also looking into setting up modified catapults on the Yelenetta side of the fortress, aimed at the road. These would be able to target a wide area. All of these defensive measures would allow us to defend against even a giant dragon, so if Yelenetta attempts to attack us, I guarantee we’ll be able to fight them off!”
I’d gotten a bit carried away in my passion, and Pinin and the others were now frozen in place, wide-eyed. Maybe they weren’t expecting a castle with such a unique and new design to be fully decked out? This seemed like a problem, so I decided to do some additional explaining.
“Ah, and of course, I plan to build a moat around the structure. I’ll also connect it to the fortress on the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range so that we can hole up inside for as long as possible. That will make it easy to acquire food whenever monsters attack. When I build walls and gates along the road, this whole thing will become an impregnable fortress.”
I struck a triumphant pose…but the nobles just gaped at me.
After a few moments, Pinin took it upon himself to speak for the group. He plastered a clumsy smile on his face. “Th-that is a wonderful idea. I imagine, however, that this will be quite a large project. When do you expect to have it all completed?”
He was probably worried about how long he and the others would be stuck there. I gave him a reassuring smile. “I think it’ll take a week or so if I really put my back into it. I apologize, but without the help of all of you fine people, I suspect it may end up taking me two weeks. Would you be willing to provide me your aid for a little while longer?”
It was important to be humble, which was why I bowed. Pinin and the others exchanged looks.
“Did he just say a week?”
“His abilities are even more absurd than I thought…”
“I have decided to swear my allegiance to Lord Van. Do not try to dissuade me.”
“That’s unfair!”
The verbal attacks started, and suddenly everyone was getting in on it. I watched them fight it out, then turned to Arte. “How many do you think will stick around?”
She offered me a strained smile. “All of them, I imagine.”
My plan was to expand the scale of the fortress that protected the border and to surround the hill at the entrance to the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range with a wall. The whole thing would be enormous—the first structure of any kind that granted access to the mountain range.
I woke up the next morning full of vim, vigor, and mental images of designs. I had enjoyed a quick dip in my small but delightful cypress-like bath the night before, and then slept in my bedding made from modified monster hides. I felt super energized.
“A beautiful morning atop the castle tower!” I opened the sliding door and exited to the outside hallway. I must have been even more excited than I thought! The sun wasn’t quite up yet and the horizon was still dimly lit; when I cast my gaze upward, the sky was dark. “A beautiful daybreak from atop the castle tower!” I amended, planting my hands on my hips and puffing out my chest to take a deep breath of the fresh morning air. The frigid air made my shoulders tremble. “What a superb view!”
Behind me, I heard voices quietly begin to talk among themselves. Arte, Khamsin, and Till, all still in their sleepwear, were talking about little old me.
“What do you think he’s doing?”
“Lord Van must be making sure everything is safe.”
“Are you sure? He has that look he gets when he’s found something interesting…”
At this rate, they were going to think I’d descended into madness. I cleared my throat loudly and turned around.
“Ahem! As Khamsin said, I was making sure that no enemies or monsters were approaching. When I saw how peaceful and tranquil things were, I put those feelings into words. There’s no need for concern.”
Arte and Till smirked and nodded, while Khamsin exclaimed his astonishment, his eyes sparkling. I love how innocent he is.
After our little conversation, we all returned to our individual rooms in the tower to change clothes. We talked it over and decided to have breakfast even though it was still a bit early, then began our descent to the floor below.
“Man, maybe these stairs are a little too steep.”
“Going up and down is a bit difficult.”
“As a maid, I can’t help but think about what it would be like to carry food up here, and, well…”
“Huh? I think it’s cool.”
We moved through the castle, chatting away, and came across a pack of suited-up knights. Some of them were there to swap with lookouts, but the others were probably staying ready so that they could leap into action at a moment’s notice. Absolutely wonderful.
The knights waved to us when they spotted us passing through, so I offered them cheerful greetings in kind. “Good morning!”
“G-good morning!”
Most of them seemed bewildered by my friendliness as they stood at attention. If they were readying themselves, I was just getting in the way, so I moved off to the side of the long hall where I wouldn’t stand out.
After a bit of a walk, we reached the outer hall on the stone wall. Out in the castle’s courtyard, a Chivalric Order was performing maintenance on their weapons and armor. Lookouts also walked along the outer wall. The Chivalric Orders must have assigned themselves jobs to perform. The nobles seemed like useless geezers, but it looked like the actual members of their orders were good apples.
I kept to myself and watched everyone work. Only a limited number of people had been able to stay in the new castle the night before, so everyone else slept in the fortress over at the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range. In about a week or so, this whole thing would look much more like a fortress city, and at that point everyone could stay in new lodgings.
That was when I realized I had a problem. Wait. When the fortress city is finished, most of these folks will head back to their own territory. Only the Seatoh Village Chivalric Order and some of the adventurers would remain. And we would go back home after a while ourselves, so in the end, nobody would live here.
“Am I supposed to make a decision on this?” I whispered, gazing down from the wall at the incomplete castle wall and watchtowers.
Arte peered at me. “Is something the matter?”
“Well, this fortress city is going to be huge, right? The problem is that I don’t have anyone to live here.”
Arte blinked. “I had not considered that.”
“Wait, nobody is going to live here?” Till asked. She and Khamsin were listening nearby, and they looked just as surprised.
“About ten thousand knights could stay here,” Khamsin said.
I might have to ask for volunteers from Seatoh Village.
The other issue was transporting goods—the supply lines in the area weren’t anywhere near ready, especially compared to Seatoh Village. It’d take a week or two just to get spices all the way here. If we factored in the process of placing the orders, we were looking at a month’s wait.
“This…is a big problem,” I said. Arte and the others nodded.