127. People Need Goal To Strive For, Isn’t It?

“This! Feidar! My apologies, Craft-dono. I may have coddled him a bit too much.”

“Well, I’m not too worried about it.”

It’s just a child talking. No need to stress, no need to stress…

Besides, what he’s saying isn’t entirely wrong.

But that’s exactly why I don’t want to create more fools like myself.

At that moment, the door clicked open, and a maid stood there. Kyle and the Holy Knight guarding him entered the room.

Feidar froze again.

Kyle slightly furrowed his brow as he noticed the three of us standing.

“What’s going on?”

“Oh, just saying hello. It’s nothing.”

“I see.”

Genelis immediately knelt before Kyle.

“Nice to meet you, Pioneer-sama. I am Genelis Ing. I’ve come as invited.”

“Thank you for traveling such a long way. I am Kyle Golden Dawn von Elixir, the one entrusted with ruling this land. I’ve been granted the title of Pioneer Count by His Majesty.”

“For someone so young, you are indeed impressive.”

When Genelis tapped Feidar’s leg, the young man, who had been standing rigid with tension, hastily knelt.

No matter how bold he acts, he still gets nervous in front of a high-ranking noble.

“I-I-It’s an honor to meet you! I’m Genelis’ grandson, Feidar Ing! Please, please, remember me!”

“Yes, I look forward to working with you. Please, take a seat.”

Kyle graciously guided them to the sofa.

Perhaps due to his age or frequent meetings with important people, Genelis seemed calm, but Feidar was so nervous that his right hand and foot moved together.

After a bit of tea and small talk, Kyle broached the main topic.

“Genelis, I have a question for you. Is it possible to perform an emblem aptitude test for everyone participating in the coming-of-age ceremony?”

“What?”

Both Genelis and Feidar’s eyes widened.

Well, that’s understandable.

“That is…”

“Of course, we will provide ample compensation.”

“It’s not a matter of money…”

“I understand there might be a reason why it’s difficult to do so. Could you tell us what that is? If it’s something we can solve, we’re willing to help.”

Genelis sighed.

“A solution… I doubt it.”

“In that case, we’ll proceed with the usual coming-of-age ceremony. I just don’t want more people to struggle like Craft-niisma.”

“That’s a noble sentiment.”

After contemplating deeply, Genelis straightened his posture.

“This isn’t something I want widely known, but the issue is with magical power.”

“Magical power?”

“Yes. The magic used to determine emblem aptitude consumes an enormous amount of magical energy. Even I can only test two people a day. This territory is teeming with people, and the number coming of age is not just ten or twenty, right?”

Genelis shook his head in distress, while Kyle widened his eyes and smiled at me.

“Then there’s no problem.”

“What?”

“Nii-sama. Please.”

“Alright.”

I grinned back and started placing mana potions on the table.

“W-What!? Could it be!?”

“No way!”

Both Genelis and Feidar were stunned.

“Still not enough? Then here’s more!”

I lined up all the mana potions I had, filling the table.

Since they require rare materials and magic stones, I don’t usually make or carry so many, but due to recent excessive orders, I’ve been working myself to the bone in alchemy.

So, I allocated a part of the production guild’s budget to have a large supply of mana potions prepared in advance, and have been taking them regularly. But thanks to Jabil-sensei’s arrival and the help of the orphans, I recently managed to save enough to have this much stock left.

“Unbelievable. But, continuous potion intake leads to addiction—or wait.”

After getting permission from Kyle, Genelis picked up one of the potions.

“[Appraisal]… Unbelievable. Are all of these of legendary quality!?”

I’m impressed that Genelis can appraise potion quality, even though it’s outside his usual expertise. He must be quite skilled.

The information gained from [Appraisal] magic varies depending on who uses it.

For example, if I appraise metal, I can discern details related to alchemy, while Leafan would gather information relevant to smithing.

“Yes. So there’s no risk of addiction. Would you consider doing it under these conditions?”

“With something like this provided, there’s no reason to refuse. Besides, I’ve always wanted to expand emblem aptitude testing.”

“Thank you!”

“Good news, Kyle.”

“Yes! Let’s work hard to prepare before the coming-of-age ceremony.”

“Absolutely!”

From now on, every adult in Golden Dawn will have their emblem aptitude tested. Hopefully, we’ll discover many talented individuals.

…At the time, I didn’t realize the full implications. The reality of mass-producing emblem-bearers.

My thoughts were interrupted as Kyle continued.

“We’ll handle the coming-of-age ceremony and festival preparations, but we have a new request for the production guild.”

“A request?”

“Yes. We’d like you to construct a bridge over the massive river flowing north of Golden Dawn.”

“So, the survey of the opposite shore is complete?”

“Yes. With the help of the Adventurers’ Guild, we’ve investigated the political situation across the river and found a region dotted with small nations.”

Small nations.

Of course, I’ve heard of them. I’ve even spoken with someone who lived there.

The region is said to be a collection of small countries with various cultures, where people are still skirmishing with each other.

“If we build a bridge there, won’t it provoke a war?”

“Well, it turns out there are no nations along the river.”

“Really? I’d have thought settlements and countries would be near water.”

“Yes. But the small nations are concentrated much further north. Recently, they’ve had frequent large battles and monster attacks, so people and resources are gathering in the most powerful nation among them.”

“A strong nation?”

“Yes. It’s said that if you travel far enough north, you’ll reach the sea, and there’s a maritime nation where nearly everyone learns the sword.”

“That’s impressive!”

When we think of nations, we usually think of the Maugarian Kingdom, the Dubatten Empire, or the Zebius United Kingdom.

Geographically, the small nations are sandwiched between these three countries.

To the west is Zebius, to the east is Dubatten, and with Kyle’s pioneering, Maugarian now expands to the south.

Though the small nations could serve as a crucial hub, their location in dangerous frontier lands and their unstable political situation have left them mostly isolated.

Initially, Kyle’s ultimate goal as a Frontier Count was to develop the road leading to the Golden Dawn.

Now, as Pioneer Count, his mission from the kingdom includes establishing trade with the small nations, and if possible, military agreements.

King Van prioritizes the extermination of monsters that threaten humanity, believing that all humans, including demi-humans and beastmen, must unite.

But a massive river, completely unexpected, blocked the way, making it impossible for trade caravans or even a single wagon to pass.

Furthermore, dangerous aquatic creatures and monsters lurked in the river.

A skilled adventurer could cross by boat, but only a small number of people could manage that. This made establishing any real contact impossible.

This is why we must undertake the seemingly impossible task of building a massive bridge.

Kyle pulled out a map.

It was a hand-drawn map, incomplete for a lord’s use, but it must be the fruit of hard work by adventurers who risked their lives during the survey.

Kyle pointed to a small country far north of Golden Dawn, near the sea.

“We’ve secured permission from the strongest nation in the small nation group to build the bridge! We must complete this difficult task!”

Cold sweat ran down my forehead. I knew how challenging this would be.

I swallowed hard, then smirked.

“Leave it to me.”

Kyle smiled brightly.