Chapter 270- Finding new guards

Finding new guards

Chu twisted slightly on the saddle to ease the pressure on his rump. The three-hour ride this morning across the grasslands reminded him of his status as an amateur rider. The slow clops while the horse picked a path across a stony spring brook and the bumpy gallop along the hills generated some soreness. Tonight would be a long sleepless night indeed.

"That rock outcropping opposite the treeline of the forest is my marker. The ruins should be over that hill."

Halter said while guiding the horse next to Chu. Behind them, Miki and Lucy followed as they skillfully handled their horses. Ming remained on the farm to assist Clod and Pine while Dyna and Jill had ventured into the forest. Toll helped reinforce the group in the forest who guarded the working goblins. Out there, he could at least practice his Sersen skills in secret.

"This is a far, out of the way distance, for us to send down the loading wagons for stone. I'm sure I saw little crops of stone in the grasslands close to us."

Chu said.

"Yes, I admit the distance is far indeed."

"I don't know much about gathering stones, but can't we mine for stones? I am sure underneath the few rocky outcropping must have a solid bedrock or a large piece of stone we can cut into blocks."

Chu asked the middle-aged man. Halter stroked his beard a few times before answering.

"I don't have much experience in stone mining but I can tell you it isn't easy. Sometimes when you dig under the earth, you don't find solid slabs but pieces of rocks and small boulders. Another problem is that it takes time to chip and cut stones into blocks. The size and thickness you want for a city wall is hundreds of times larger than a pasture wall."

Halter paused his horse on top of the hill while continuing.

"We do have three stonemasons who joined us in the village. Even with their guidance, we would have to split workers between carving stones and raising them on site. Remember, it takes over three generations to construct a city wall. Not to mention, the labor for such a project requires thousands of hands."

Chu nodded on listening to the experienced tradesman. No matter the era, large scale constructions could never finish within short periods. He held no intention of skimping on his wall, however. The thickness might seem overkill when facing raiding Bitzers but he knew better. Unlike the hungry, ignorant boy who arrived in fear inside the stick hovel in the slums, he had touched the carcasses of even more terrifying demons.

The wolf demon, the Kurat, and that monster, skillfully sewn, by an ancient taxidermist within the goblin ruins. Even eight feet thick walls appeared inadequate should they come knocking. If iron production had truly developed, Chu would have built a reinforced bunker inside his planned keep. A slight cough from his older companion disturbed his thoughts.

"When Dyna mentioned seeing these ruins, I decided to investigate. Barring the troubles in transporting, this discovery will cut our labor time by more than half. Not only does this ruined tower possess stones already cut to the sizes we want but the amount is enough to complete most of our wall."

Chu gazed out on the sight before him. During the brief goblin war, they had come across these ruins near the forest. Who knew the relics of the past would once again aid his designs. It didn't take them long to arrive and dismount by the sleeping stones.

Strolling amongst the ruins, Chu understood the meanings behind the carpenter's words. The majority of stones present, qualified for positions within his anticipated wall. Standing on a broken staircase overlooking the grazing horses, he stroked his chin. The resources had been found but the distance proved a problem. A viable alternative lay in building more of his transport wagons.

"Shhh! Look at that fellow."

Miki whispered while tugging slightly at his cloak. The raven-haired girl pointed to an emerging shadow from one of the rocky crevices below them. A snake, thick as a blacksmith's thigh, glided stealthily outwards and paused while raising its head. Not far away, the grazing horses chomped down on the budding flowers and lush grass while blissfully unaware.

As the entirety of the predator spilled out into the open, Chu recognized it as one of those constrictor type snakes. Ming had a run-in with one of these in the barrel-worm caves and claimed he nearly died. Jim did confirm back then, that these greenish and black spotted snakes differed from what Chu knew. Unlike on earth, these fellows killed by constricting and also by delivering a lethal dose of paralyzing poison.

While Chu placed a hand on his blade while watching the flickering tongue, a white flash thumped dead-center into the thick head. The unexpected strike generated an agonizing hissing as the failed predator thrashed and turned. As the horses raised their heads and twitched their ears, three more ivory daggers pierced into its frame. Two punctured into the white underbelly while it rolled and coiled as the last buried itself under the gaping mouth.

"Gottcha!"

Miki balled a hand into a fist as she celebrated her kill.

Halter shook his head, as he followed them down to the snake. These children might appear simple but they possessed killer instincts. One had to know that very few nobles could also boast about being accompanied by three efficient Sersens on a simple journey.

By the time they circled around the twenty or so long beast, the snake had breathed its last. Jim and Mr. Thomas had always impressed on them the rules of the hunt. Never let your quarry suffer if you could help it. Lucy delivered a slice across its neck with her sharp dagger to confirm its death.

"Heh, did you see it, Lucy. I'm definitely becoming better. By using my Occular skills, I just slowed its thrashing movements while drilling in those three daggers. My hand speed even made it look as if they arrived together..."

"Your practicing paid off, Miki. But could you control your throw? I don't want to lose these daggers, you know."

Lucy replied while turning over the large snake. Besides two daggers stuck deep into the bone of the snake, the other two actually pierced and exited the animal. If not for her keen eyesight, Lucy might never have found them as they ended up buried handle deep into the soil.

"Sorry, sorry. I'll have Tapper design and carve out a few for us to use. You can then keep these at home. What about the snake? The Trading Post will pay good coin for it. Or we can trade it directly for some gifts for the village children."

Miki apologized. Lucy had shared half of these ivory daggers since she became a Sersen. These hidden, hiltless daggers were also crafted from the tusks of the first variant red boar they killed in the forest. Lucy kept them in pristine condition as one of the first gifts Chu ever crafted for her.

Chu for his part switched his gaze from the prize to the matted grass highlighting the sliding trail of the snake. Frowning, he walked over to a stone boulder and sat in thought. After a few minutes, he called Halter over.

"Transport doesn't need to cost us much. Instead of building over a dozen wagons, I have a better idea."

He walked over to a small hedge and then used his dagger to cut a few pieces of hardened stems. Returning, he placed them on the flat boulder.

"There is something called a railway. It's basically made up of two lengths of iron riveted on wooden planks. Wagons with wooden rollers are built to run on it. We can maybe change the iron rails to wood since we have them in abundance. As for the details on how to lay them down and work out the problems, I will leave it to you and your team when the problems arise. I suggest siting one of the trellis cranes here and build a short example to experiment with the loads."

Tapping his chin with a finger he continued,

"Trade with the goblins must remain a secret for as long as we can keep it. Have Worths survey a path along the forest edge from the farm to the ruins here. In the future, it can help us with our trade because I hope to expand our dealings with them. We can then use the existing lines for future transport of goods."

"The principle seems sound, Boss. I will chat with Old Hodge, and see how it works. As long as the wagons can handle the heavy loads, we will use it."

"Great, I leave it to you then. Clod had stocked extra grains in the warehouse, I'll hold a meeting with the Goblin Elder. Hopefully, they can extend their time in the forest. If Jim also finds that the Sustainer tree grows from seeds or branches, we can strike a deal with them to grow large fields deep within the forest. I hope we can become the largest trader of sweet syrup in the Empire."

***

The next day, Jill asked Chu to accompany her into the forest. In the evening, he set out with her, along with Miki and Ming. Dyna led the way with the hulking figure of Amarok trotting at the front with his large head raised up high.

"Any reason why we are making this trip?"

Chu asked. In only a few months, he would have to depart to Frost City. He spent most of his free time honing his Sersen skills while at night he meditated to increase his starfield.

"It's better you see for yourself."

Jill answered with a wry smile.

They trekked deeper into the forest while following the wolf. Soon they exited into a little rocky clearing. A small hill, of lichen and grass, topped a natural cave. Chu noticed not the natural formation but the rumbling wolf pack surrounding them. Ignoring the sulking wolves, Amarok waltzed to the cave entrance and stood proudly at the side.

"Why are we standing in the middle of a wolf pack?"

Ming asked.

Jill cleared her throat, before answering.

"Since you guys planned to leave in summer, I figured one of the best ways to boost the security on the farm would be to use wolves. If we could find a few wolf cubs, we could raise them as additional guards. I don't plan on feeding them expensive potions and pellets, just little cheap versions to bulk them up a little."

Chu nodded while the woman continued.

"It would have been difficult for me to find some in the forest but not anymore. It seems this spring, the wolf population has increased. Nearly in every cave or burrow we scouted, you can hear the whimpers of wolf cubs. I had hoped to rear five but because of the situation, I wanted to ask if we could increase the number."

Jill brushed her hair behind her neck. As if to prove her statement, a female wolf exited the cave with four pups stumbling behind.

Chu shook his head since Jill did not have to drag him along for the trip. This was something she could have figured out by herself. What did pique his interest was the increase in births. A larger wolf population roaming the nearby forest could threaten his plans.

"No problem then. Depending on the situation, we can see how we can ween a litter of twenty pups across the forest. With Dyna leaving in the summer, however, you will have to be careful of..."

An interruption cut his words.

"Oye, what is this? How come this little cub seems to look mighty similar to Amarok?"

Chu blinked while following Ming's finger. True enough, the little pup possessed a striking resemblance to the large wolf. It even seemed to have a small reddish ring of fur around its neck. Various thoughts clicked in his mind as he suddenly remembered what Dyna kept saying in winter.

Ming, however, took the words out of his mouth. The elder teen moseyed up to the large wolf and strung an arm around the creature's thick neck as if the pair were bosom buddies.

"Heh, heh, so you guys were busy during the last part of winter aye? You sly dog."

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