Chapter Three-Hundred Thirty

    It looks like Coda’s planning session with Rezlar went really well. As the surveying efforts under the forest wind down, Coda is more than happy to snatch up the denizens and point them at surveying and preparing the path for the road, as well as getting a better look inside the mountain Rezlar wants to build in. From what I can tell from the initial reports, the mountain itself seems pretty boring, as far as mountains go.

    There’s enough soil for trees and bushes and stuff to grow in, but it’s not especially deep. The top third or so is pretty barren, though I can’t tell if it’s because of the thick snowcap, or if the winds at that kind of altitude keeps anything from finding purchase to grow. Either way, nature is pretty stable without anything really exceptional. Deeper into the mountain, it also seems pretty lackluster.

    With it so close to what used to be a major trading hub before the disaster with Hullbreak, the mountain was pretty thoroughly prospected for ores and the like. Rezlar says the thing is basically just a solid chunk of granite, and so far, the expeditions are saying the same thing. There’s the usual cracks and such, but the cave systems are pretty cramped and damp. I don’t think there’s much risk of anything nasty hiding in there. Collapses while digging out the hold are a potential problem, but that’s what these deep surveys are for.

    To me, it looks like trying to build something in a pile of gravel, but Coda and Rezlar don’t seem too worried. Mountains are usually a lot less solid than people expect, and there are ways to help support everything even without using earth affinity people to help fuse things back into whatever shape is needed for stability. A lot like mountains, big construction projects need to be a lot less solid than most people think, too.

    Where a mechanical engineer can either overengineer something to basically never break, or just decide to let something break if the user is determined to use it so wrong, a civil project deals in forces that can’t really be stopped. If that earthquake decides to move these two pieces of land a centimeter apart, good luck trying to stop it. There’s a shocking amount of flex built into even simple civil projects, with even the seams between blocks helping provide the buffer to let things move just a little without compromising the whole structure. It still feels like a house of cards to me, but with how the masons are drooling over even the preliminary designs, I’m going to trust Coda on this one.

    Roads are a different matter, and I’m not even going to try to pretend I understand how to keep them from turning into gravel over the course of a year. The slower speed of wagons and horses probably helps, but with the temperature difference over the year, it’s probably still going to need a lot of maintenance. I wish I knew what asphalt was made of so I could try to explain it, but I honestly have no idea. I think tar is a major component, maybe?

    It’s probably less of a bother here, though. On Earth, fixing a road takes a crew and a bunch of huge machinery. Here, an earth affinity person just needs to check every so often and patch things up. There’s still going to be a big crew involved with this road, looks like. People grinding, mixing, moving, pouring, smoothing, and that’s just the concrete itself. That doesn’t even count the people clearing the way, smoothing the terrain, putting gravel or something beneath for drainage, and whatever other little details I’m forgetting that all contribute to a true and proper road.

    And with Coda’s lead, my denizens contribute as well. It’s interesting to watch through his eyes as he works with Rezlar and his civil planners. The more martial of Fourdock’s people might be spending a lot of their time with me, but a lot of the civilian populace is involved in this project. Between the road and the reinvigorated docks, Rezlar is really stepping up and showing he has the knowhow to not only keep Fourdock running, but to see it grow, too.

    I even catch glimpses of Rhonda and Freddie as they help out in their own ways. Rhonda’s herbalism expertise helps the people clearing the way know the difference between things to either use as fuel or mulch, and things that alchemists and other crafters will be interested in. I might have the lion’s share of cool plants in the area, but why waste what they find?

    Freddie is helping with processing the concrete, not only with physically helping crush and mix, but also to help encourage people and not let them get too tired. I don’t know if he can do proper healing with laying his hands, but he sure seems like he can help alleviate fatigue. He’s also not a terrible singer, and a few catchy hymns makes the work feel a lot less like drudgery than it could.

    While they work on the road, I feel a familiar set of feet cross the threshold to the manor grounds, and I’m glad to see not only Olander, but Tula as well! The crown inspector is wearing his more subdued gear, the stuff he was wearing when still undercover, which makes me suspect this is more of a casual visit than an official one. Still, Teemo makes his way to meet them at the porch.

    “Hey you two! The Boss and I were starting to wonder if you didn’t like us anymore!”

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    Olander nods at that and straightens up. “Still, we’re not here just to deliver news.”

    “Yeah?”

    “Yeah!” answers Tula, looking excited. “I heard your antkin are officially dwellers now! I want to see if they’ll teach me how the anti-lifedrinking enchantment works!”

    Teemo chuckles at her enthusiasm. “I think they’ll make you join their college if you want a trade secret like that. Still, no harm in asking.”

    Olander nods. “That’s what I told her, but it’s still an interesting enclave to visit. I hear they’re hunting in the volcanic region deep below? I want to see if they’d be willing to pay for a few recipes I know for cooking volcanic creatures. The Holds have a volcanic dungeon that’s quite the maze, so I’ve picked up a few recipes that might be useful to the antkin. Good food is a good way to stay motivated on a long delve, you know.”

    “Oh yeah? Well, if you know anything especially good, maybe you’ll be able to trade it for some magic theory lessons. You two want a shortcut, or to head down on your own?”

    Olander looks to Tula, who shrugs in return. “Well, since Tula doesn’t seem to have an opinion, I’d like to make our own way down. After all the time writing that report, I’m looking forward to stretching my legs and knocking the rust off my glaive.”

    “Then you two have fun! If you’re feeling rusty, you’ll probably have just enough time to get back up to speed before the Boss triggers the tree expansion. It’s looking like a week, maybe two, to build up enough mana to expand and upgrade more spawners.”

    Olander’s eyes sparkle at that. “I’m looking forward to it! With an expansion like that, he’ll have the eyes of the whole kingdom on him!”

    “Yeah, but he’s going to do it anyway,” jokes Teemo. “That’s why he’s dipping his toes into politics now, before he jumps in the deep end with the expansion.”

    “Then I wish him luck! Now, if you’ll excuse us, I think Tula and I should grab a quest before we get going.”

    “Yep, don’t let me keep you two. Have fun!” He waves before slipping down a shortcut to go chat with some of the antkin about the composite armor. For me, I keep an eye on Olander and Tula, and try to keep from being too intrusive. I wouldn’t want to spoil their date.