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Chapter 155: Blue

「Yeah. They keep on coming. 」
The lumber and other materials are steadily being carried to the sheds on the island and piled on a heap.

.
「The rest of the materials that can be weatherbeaten are carried near to the actual building area. 」
I listened to Gold and Silver’s report while looking around.

They still had to do a lot of prep work on the stones and timber so it doesn’t look like a lot of progress has been done, but in fact, the collapsed walls and other broken structures had already been removed and repairs have started on the fortress’s port.

The island’s wharf has also been repaired, but work is easier if there’s a point where they can directly unload heavy stuff. The plan is to repair the walls and floors that are still in good condition, so the time should be shorter compared to if we made everything from scratch. I lowered the daily wage and increased the completed work compensation. The construction workers will also benefit with profits if they work fast and faultless, so I wanted them to give their best.

「The residents are doing stone masonry work in the appointed place. 」

The island is mostly made up of mountains and white limestone cliffs, covered by soil that is mostly volcanic ash that had accumulated. There are few flat areas, so we built stone walls to prevent the earth from collapsing. We also flattened the slopes to make more plains.

Trees weren’t that abundant here, so I can’t expect we’ll get humus, but at least we got fertilizer and plenty of water. No wonder they have many vineyards around this area. Still, I want them to be self-sufficient at the very least, so let’s do our best to remodel this region.

I also want huge trees for the scenic landscape you can see from the houses.

「By the way, what are your plans for the huge amount of glass stored at House 10…? 」
「Oh, it’s for the windows. Use the ones covered in red cloth on the designated place. 」
I made sure the shed with glass can be locked for precaution.

「Unbelievable size and almost zero distortion — must’ve cost an arm and a leg, huh. 」
「Just how much capital do you have, I wonder… 」
Nah, it’s just honest elbow grease.

「Spending money is fine, but you do know how hellishly hot summers can be around here, right? 」
「That’s fine. 」
Silver is right. Buildings here have small windows with shutters. They serve more as ventilation rather than letting the sunlight in. Well, I guess part of the reason is because they can’t make huge panes of glass.

Still, the finished glass I made is amazing because of the insulation effect. Not only that, thanks to Van helping out, it’s more durable than a stone wall; it’s so good it should be illegal. The glass covered in red cloth are Van’s.

I also considered making greenhouses, but it seems like it won’t work. Ah, wait, maybe if I can leave a fireplace inside, it’ll stay warm? Well, I’m gonna think about that later. At any rate, the entire island has a warm climate, so there’s no need for a greenhouse.

「Everything’s going smooth and we’re ahead of schedule, and we got many construction workers to boot, huh. 」Nice.

「We will be designating work per section later so that there won’t be any risk of the blueprint being passed on to bandits and other people. 」Gold.
「After the turn-over, we’re gonna make sure to do the latticework and block the passageway. 」Silver.
Ah, no, you don’t have to be so strict to that extent.

「Thanks. Here, compensation. 」
As expected of guys with sneaky jobs, huh ~ with that thought, I gave them the money bag and the pouch of snacks.

Silver didn’t even glance at the money bag as usual; he hurriedly got the snack pouch from me. Today’s snack is sesame cheese straws.

「Will it be possible to double the amount of these snacks? 」
Gold awkwardly smiled.

「Why? You’re gonna get fat if you eat too much, you know? 」
I’m opposed to you eating snacks instead of a proper meal.

「I gave a piece to Auro, and he could taste it, it seems. 」
「I am not sure whether this is a good thing or not. However, the flavor is indeed deep. It would be alright for me if you lower my portion of compensation for a small amount. 」
「You can also lower mine by the same amount. 」

Oh, so it’s for the two of them. Wait, I’ve been handing snacks for both of them ever since, though? Well, I did know that Silver seemed to be monopolizing it.

「Ah if that’s the case then there’s no need for that, it’s not a big deal. 」
I slip off my shoulder bag, thrust my hand inside and got more snack pouches.

「Here, there are two more pouches so share one with the island children. 」

It’s great that everything’s going according to plan, albeit a little fast.

「What’s your plan after this? 」
「I’ll go back to Nalluahdid and stroll around for a bit. I wanna buy some fabric. 」
I want to make some summer clothes.

「I’ll go with you. 」
Silver suddenly told me he’ll tag along, so I arranged for our ferryman. Well, it’s the same old man from the village.

「I don’t have the confidence to keep my gluttony in check. 」
Oy, you’re an adult!

Seems like he’s going with me to overcome the temptation of snatching the snack pouch from the kids. Oy, Gold also has a subtle smile plastered on his face.

I strolled around Nalluahdid with Silver. I’m supposed to be helpless about it, but turns out he already mastered Nalluahdid’s crooks and crannies like the back of his hand, so he didn’t lack anything as a guide.

How excellent. It’s just that he might be easily bribed by a cookie made by a possessed person.

Dress and shoe materials, jewelry and food seems to be in trend now. Some hero somewhere fancies them, apparently, so the nearby countries and kingdoms also good-naturedly ordered them.

As a result, rare fabrics and lace are sold with sky-high prices, but normal fabrics are still quite affordable and they have a lot of choices.

「This shade of blue is quite subdued, isn’t it.」
「Vivid blues can only be produced by the dyers possessed by spirits. I believe it will be a great fortune if you have an inkling as to what bright dyes are. 」
Silver’s way of speaking turns a 180 degree when we’re in public, and he even courteously carried my stuff. What a change in attitude.

「Really? 」
「The lapis lazuli that brings out the vivid blue in paintings are worth much more than gold, and most people wearing blue in paintings are nobles. They do desire clothes with bright hues of blue, but paintings are far more valuable for them, given that blue paint uses ores which cannot be used for fabrics. Not to mention the dyers who can do such techniques are very few, so I believe it can be quite otiose to use vivid blue for cloth, if I may say so. 」

This current dull shade of blue will turn into a vivid hue when dyed by a possessed dyer, just like the color found in paintings, and it will be extremely expensive.

Moreover, these dyers are said to be under the protection of the church. Apparently, there is a color representative of each spirit, and they would stick to that particular color. In several cases, the dyer’s services would be exclusive for the fabrics that are used to make the clothes of the upper echelons of the church. Such fabric increasingly became unavailable to the public, apparently.

「Ah, no, I just saw someone selling indigo like normal. 」

Yup, it’s certain now; folks here think solidified indigo is a kind of mineral, huh. Seems like it never crossed their mind to use it as fabric dye. Hey, I’m guessing it’s solidified to become dry and hard so that it’ll be easier to transport, no?

「Will spreading indigo affect the dyers? 」
「No. If a possessed dyer used that indigo or whatnot, it will certainly benefit them. 」
Oh, so that’s how it is.

Ah, but then, it might be a pain in the neck since an organization like the church might become involved. Besides, adventurers and nobles are permitted to wear bright colors, so I guess it’s fine? Well, I guess it’s fair to assume that the official stance of not allowing commoners to buy them might also be because such fabrics are way too costly.

Regardless, assumptions can be quite scary! Or should I say, you folks should find out first what the object is for before importing them. Take potatoes, for example, the impression that potatoes are ornamental flowers is still strong.