Published: January 13, 2026
The scale of the fortress guarding the border of the Yelinetta Kingdom was expanded, and the walls extended all the way to the hills at the entrance of the Wolfsburg Mountains. Since there had never been a structure that actually stepped foot inside the Wolfsburg Mountains before, it was going to be an unprecedented large fortress.
With this vision in mind, I greeted the morning with a heart full of anticipation. Even though it was small, I felt refreshed after a bath in the cypress wood-style bath, and sleeping on a futon made from processed demonic beast fur gave me a very pleasant awakening.
“Morning at the main keep!”
I opened the sliding door and the outer shutter, then dashed out onto the outer corridor. Apparently, I was more excited than I thought. The scenery looked as if the morning sun had just begun to peek out. The horizon was brightening, but above eye level, it was still dim, with a deepening blue the higher you looked.
“Dawn from the main keep!”
Correcting myself, I placed my hands on my hips, puffed out my chest, and breathed in the fresh morning air. My shoulders shivered slightly from the cool air as I spoke.
“What a magnificent view!”
As I shouted at the top of my lungs, I heard hushed voices behind me.
“…What is he doing?”
“Lord Van must be personally checking the safety of the surroundings.”
“Eh, really? Hmm… he just looks like he’s found something interesting…”
It seemed Arte, Kamushin, and Til, still in their pajamas, were talking about me. At this rate, they’d think their lord had gone mad.
Thinking this, I cleared my throat and turned around.
“Ahem… As Kamushin said, I was simply confirming that there are no enemies or demonic beasts in sight. It’s such a peaceful scene, isn’t it? That’s all I meant. Please don’t misunderstand.”
After explaining, Arte and Til nodded with wry smiles, and Kamushin’s eyes sparkled as he exclaimed, “Oh!” I really liked Kamushin’s pure and straightforward nature.
After that, we each returned to the bedrooms partitioned within the main keep, quickly changed clothes, and prepared ourselves. Then, chatting about possibly having breakfast a little early, we began moving down to the lower floors.
“Maybe the stairs were too steep.”
“Indeed, going up and down is a bit tough.”
“…As a maid, when thinking about bringing meals…”
“Eh? But it’s fun, isn’t it?”
As the four of us chatted cheerfully moving through the floors, many knights were wandering about properly dressed. Surely there were watch shifts, but it seemed they were always prepared to be called at any time. That was admirable.
Whenever a knight noticed us, they greeted us, so I bowed politely and returned the smiles.
“Good morning!”
“G-Good morning!”
When I greeted them politely, most were so surprised that they immediately stood at attention. Since it might be bothersome if they were in the middle of preparations, I decided to move along the edge of the long corridor to avoid standing out.
After quite a walk, we finally reached the outer corridor atop the stone wall. Because there was a courtyard, knights from some knight order were already there maintaining weapons and armor. Also, some were patrolling along the wall of the outer corridor.
Perhaps each knight order had their assigned roles. The noble folks were somewhat like bumbling old men, but this knight order seemed to have many competent people.
Lost in such thoughts, I observed everyone’s activities.
Last night, since the number of people who could stay in the newly built castle was limited, those who couldn’t enter the castle stayed at the fort we built in the Wolfsburg Mountains. In about a week, it should truly become a fortress city, and then everyone would be able to live and sleep within the new, beautiful buildings.
As I considered this, I noticed one problem.
“Oh, wait—when the fortress city is complete, most will return to their original territories.”
Only the Seato Village knight order and some adventurers would remain. Even they would return to Seato Village once things were reasonably established, so in the end, no one might live in this fortress city.