This and That After Returning

Even though we were sticky with saliva, we returned to the surface, then used Base Teleport to return to the capital in one go. Everyone who had gone to Hell split up in the plaza and decided to grow plants in their own flowerpots. The judging would reveal who managed to grow what.

I decided to get to work in my room as well. Cal had begun dozing face-down in the center of the plaza, which was becoming a prime viewing spot, so there was nothing I needed to worry about. I could grow my plant however I pleased.

"...Then, shall I begin? First, select a plant. The beech tree is... Good, good, it's properly listed among the candidates."

When I selected the beech tree from the event menu, a red-brown flowerpot and a single acorn appeared in front of me with a comical pop. This must be a beech acorn. Inside the flowerpot was a hemp sack containing gardening soil, so I suppose I was meant to add items to it.

Before putting the contents of the hemp sack into the flowerpot, I spread out the stones I had picked up at the riverbank where I first came ashore. I know very little about gardening and had no idea why people did this, but I remembered arranging stones along the bottom like this. I had done it as a child, so it was probably better to do it.

On top of that, I added Death Miasma Ash, dragon dung, and the soil that had been provided from the beginning, then mixed everything until it was uniform. After mixing it for several minutes, the three ingredients blended together and the mottled color settled down. Yes, this should do.

I dug a hole in the center of the soil with my finger and placed the beech acorn inside before gently covering it with dirt. As the finishing touch, I took out the 'Resentful Searing Hellblood' I had acquired only moments ago. I poured a generous amount over it without skimping. Then, accompanied by a sizzling sound as if meat were being grilled, red smoke with an indescribably acrid odor filled my room.

"Cough, cough! The smell is awful, but... it seems to have succeeded."

Despite choking on the terrible smell, I grinned smugly when I saw the flowerpot with a pair of tiny leaves poking out. The two leaves were gray, with bright red veins running through them. The fertilizer and water had clearly affected it.

The stem supporting those leaves was still thin and white, but several black streaks ran through it. I was looking forward to seeing how it would change. After taking a screenshot of its current state and saving it, I placed the flowerpot by the window so it could bask in Tinbrika Continent's scant sunlight.

"Well, that takes care of the event preparations. All I have to do now is tend to it every day until the harvest. Then I'll go meet up with Iris as planned."

I sent Iris a message, and she replied immediately. We agreed to meet in an open area inside the palace. This space had been created by clearing away the rubble from the collapsed sections of the palace. We had designated the open area located almost in the center of the palace as our meeting place. She arrived a dozen or so seconds after I did.

"Sorry to keep you waiting!"

"I haven't been waiting. So, do you think you can make what we discussed on the way back?"

"Of course! I'll assemble it right away."

With that, Iris took various pieces of stonework from her inventory, apparently parts of something. The raw material was the sturdy, heavy Miasma-black Stone also used for the Golem. It was an excellent building material that could be found in practically unlimited quantities on Tinbrika Continent, and it was also being used for the castle walls that were nearly complete.

As we joined the pieces with cement, their shape gradually became clearer. It was a magnificent circular fountain with a large pedestal in the center, decorated with Greek-style carvings. That's right—we were trying to create a blood fountain like the one in Hell inside the palace.

Apparently, Iris had long wanted to build a courtyard in the palace. This was the largest open space and lay almost at the palace's center, so it had been her first choice. She had also hoped to install a fountain here.

However, building a fountain required a water source and a pump to draw up the water. Making a pump would have been too difficult, so the project had been put on hold until we found a suitable substitute item. Then we discovered the 'Great Heart Harboring Resentment.'

This heart, which continued to pour out blood without end, was quite literally a pump. Using it would solve both the water-source problem and the pump problem. Thus, we decided to move up our plans for building the fountain.

"So I just put the heart on the pedestal?"

"For now, yes."

"For now?"

"Yes. We plan to install a stone statue worthy of this heart. It isn't finished yet, but please look forward to it!"

Ah, I see. Fountains certainly do conjure up images of statues, whether the Merlion or the Manneken Pis. I suppose the pedestal was meant to support the statue they would make later.

I had no idea what sort of design a stone statue worthy of the heart would have, but Iris had an impressive track record that made me certain she would create a splendid statue. Since I was completely out of my depth when it came to making things, I probably shouldn't meddle.

"Then shall we put the heart on the pedestal?"

I took out the 'Great Heart Harboring Resentment' and placed it on the pedestal. It began beating powerfully—thump, thump—and started pumping fresh blood. The fountain was fairly large, so filling it would probably take some time.

Still, I thought it would provide more than enough blood for watering my plant. The other members had said they didn't intend to use this blood, so they would be making trips to Hell for a while to secure the liquids they planned to use. I intended to prioritize renovating the capital, but I would accompany them if they asked me to help.

"Even so, having a fountain of bright-red blood in the palace courtyard makes quite an impression. The plants we grow around it will have to be unusual, or they'll be overwhelmed by the fountain's presence."

"Heehee. That sounds interesting. However, we have to consider the overall balance as well. So it isn't enough for something to be unusual, you know?"

"Hmm... Is that so?"

Iris gently scolded me for my foolish remark. I knew nothing about gardening, so she was probably right. I was reminded once again that I had very little aesthetic sense when it came to situations like this.

Unfortunately, I would have to leave the decisions about what to plant in the courtyard and where to plant it to Iris and the other companions with better taste. In exchange, I wanted to go collect any plants they needed. I should be able to help a little in that regard.

"What are you going to do now, Iris?"

"Until it's time to log out, I'll work on the statue with help from the Scars. What about you, Izam?"

"I haven't thought about it at all. What should I do?"

The truth was that our expedition to Hell had gone so smoothly that it was still a little too early to log out, but the time remaining was too short to set out exploring another location. What should I do?

"Why not take a walk around the capital? You might discover something new... Though I suppose I'm saying something that sounds very much like an NPC, aren't I?"

"No, I'll take your suggestion."

During the capital's renovation, I had only visited damaged sections of the castle walls and houses that had collapsed into rubble. It might be nice to walk through a residential district and interact with the residents once in a while. Following Iris's suggestion, I headed outside the palace.

When I went out into the city and greeted the residents, they all replied in a friendly manner. They looked up to me as their king, but that was precisely why their attitudes would surely change if I became a tyrant who imposed burdens on them. I intended to keep making an effort to remain a good leader... so long as it didn't affect my real life.

As I wandered around, I heard a commotion somewhere. Curious, I walked toward the noise and found Jigorou fighting barehanded against several warriors from among the Scars and Dark Elves.

"Guh!?"

"Get up already! The enemy ain't gonna wait for you!"

"Haaah!"

"Hah-ha! That's a good kick, but it's still too soft! Kick like you're trying to smash me to pieces!"

At first, I thought they were having a brawl, but apparently Jigorou was teaching them martial arts. The residents who were his students were being beaten black and blue, yet they continued to face him bravely. If it were me, I would have tucked my tail between my legs and run long ago.

While I stood there in horror, Jigorou noticed me, grinned, and began beckoning me over. Hey, don't drag me into this. And you residents, don't clear a path! Don't look at me with such expectant eyes! This is clearly turning into my fight too! Could it be that they secretly hate me?

"Hey, brother! How about a little spar?"

"...Barehanded is impossible. At least let me use my scythe."

"Sure, I don't mind."

With Jigorou standing ready to fight, I resigned myself to the situation and drew my staff and great scythe. The residents gasped. Ah, now that I thought about it, they had hardly ever seen me in my four-armed form. Anyone who had assumed I was merely a black skeleton would naturally be shocked to discover that I had four arms.

Jigorou, meanwhile, took out a pair of gauntlets and put them on. He could easily dodge my great scythe, but he was drawing a weapon out of courtesy. I couldn't afford to put on a pathetic fight.

"What are the rules?"

"No magic, no Martial Skills. Anything else goes, yeah?"

"All right. It's been a while since I've had you train me like this... Let me test myself against you, brother!"

I took flight and closed the distance until I was within range of my great scythe in an instant, swinging it as if to reap his head. Jigorou avoided it by leaning back just slightly. He had seen through me completely, but I had expected that. There was no way such an obvious attack would land.

Knowing he would dodge, I remained unfazed and thrust with the staff in my right hand. I aimed for his solar plexus, but Jigorou turned sideways and dodged it. If that had connected, it would have meant he had let it hit on purpose. So this too was within my expectations.

"Hmph!"

At that moment, I extended my tail toward Jigorou's legs. To ensure I didn't injure him even by accident, I kept the barb at its tip retracted and swung the tail to reap his shins. But Jigorou stepped on the tail and pinned it down, grinning as if he had known about it all along. Tch, even my hidden trump card had failed.

"You knew... Gweh!?"

Jigorou had been grinning fearlessly, but his expression changed to shock. It was my second trump card, 【Floating Skull】. I had sent it out during my initial charge instead of keeping it hidden beneath my robe, and it had moved between the feet of the surrounding residents before biting Jigorou on the neck from behind.

【Floating Skull】 could be used in battle, but it could hardly be called powerful, so I usually treated it as an extra life. I assumed Jigorou had forgotten about it, and I took advantage of that. If I wanted to get the better of one of my longest-standing companions, I had to go this far.

The residents were shocked that I had managed to land a blow on Jigorou. Genjuro had once said that although Jigorou appeared overly eager to attack, that style was possible only because he possessed the skill to see through enemy attacks. No one could have expected me to land a hit.

"Even if I had used magic, I probably wouldn't have been able to deal much damage... But as a surprise attack, that was pretty good, right?"

"Hah-ha! That's more like it, brother!"

From then until it was time to log out, Jigorou and I repeated our mock battles. I had already used my hidden trump card, so I never managed to land another hit, but I think I had honed my way of fighting so I wouldn't be easily defeated even if an enemy closed in.

I was exhausted beyond belief. Needless to say, I slept soundly after logging out that day. As expected, front-line combat really isn't suited to me.