Published: January 13, 2026
“Eh? Lord Van, you’re not going too?”
After the military council ended and everyone had left, Arte asked this in the lord’s manor office. I smiled and nodded, holding a wooden block in my hand.
“I already told His Majesty last time. My territory is still developing, and I don’t have any knights to send to war yet. So, this time, we’ll cooperate as a relay base for the Yelinetta Kingdom’s invasion.”
“Is that so? It’s surprising that His Majesty, who values military strength so much, agreed to that.”
I showed her a map. It depicted a winding mountain road and the location of a fort on the Yelinetta Kingdom side, a little bit away.
“In return, I have to help make sure the attack is perfect. We’ve already built a few armored carriages with ballistas, so that’s fine, but the problem is building the base. Well, I’m thinking about something like a foldable container.”
“A container...?”
I muttered my thoughts as if to myself, and Arte tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
Just then, Til and Kamushin knocked and came in.
“Lord Van, the tour of everyone around Seato Village is finished.”
“Thanks. Good work.”
I praised Til and Kamushin, who had guided those attending the council. They responded with voices dripping with fatigue, “We’re tired...” Well, it’s rare to have so many important people around, so they must be nervous.
While I was thinking this with a wry smile, Kamushin spoke up.
“His Majesty the King and Lord Jarpa went to tour the Dwarf furnaces. Lord Venturi went to check out the ballistas. The others are confirming camp conditions of each knight order and procuring supplies.”
“I see, I see.”
While listening to Kamushin’s report, I manipulated the wooden block in my hand like clay. The idea was a foldable container. The walls folded inside like panels, and when all walls were folded down one by one, the box would collapse into a flat board.
Conversely, if you raised each wall panel one after another, it formed a box. The box was rectangular, with a door on one of the short walls.
It was a simple design, but as I folded and assembled the prototype several times, Arte and the others said, “This is interesting.”
“Won’t it break?”
Kamushin asked, and I pointed inside the box.
“There are grooves on the top and bottom panels. Once they click into place, it becomes quite sturdy.”
I answered, and Kamushin nodded, genuinely impressed.
“However, this would get too heavy, so naturally, you can only build a base the size of a carriage. We could remove part of the sidewalls to connect multiple containers, or separate the frame and panels and assemble them on site...”
I hummed and made another type of assembly box. This one connected a frame structure, then inserted panel boards around it.
The foldable type was simpler, but the frame-and-panel type was more flexible. It was a tough choice.
“All right, let’s actually try it.”
I said that and stood up holding the box.
“Want to try?”
“Are we building the base already?”
Everyone was surprised, but I nodded and lifted the box for them to see.
“I think it’s better to build it and judge for ourselves.”
I answered, and Arte blinked in surprise while Til and Kamushin exchanged looks.
With everyone’s help, the wooden blocks had been transported and stacked high on the highway. Around them, tents for the various knight orders’ camping sprawled across the ground.
“All right! First candidate: foldable container type!”
“Yeah!”
My shout was met with loud cheers and raised arms from Ort and the others. These were adventurers who had been hired directly by the Wang family and each knight order to guide the mountain paths, watch for demonic beasts, and scout. And now, as an extra request, they were even going to set up the base.
Of course, transport would be handled by each knight order, but still, they were doing amazing work.
Because the pay was extremely generous, everyone was very motivated.
About thirty adventurers including Ort had gathered and were making a ruckus, so even the soldiers around the tents turned to look, curious.