The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I'm a "Farmer", Not a Demon King! ~ - Chapter 236

The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I’m a “Farmer”, Not a Demon King! ~

Chapter 236   A lot of people are coming

In this way, overall, things have been progressing nicely so far without any major issues.

The town has grown larger, people are coming in, interactions with elves have increased, and money is flowing in, so my savings are accumulating.

“Um, what are you making there?”

Reflecting on the situation of the town, Bell asked, pointing her finger.

At the end of her finger was a building that was still under construction but taller than the outer wall surrounding the town.

“Oh? Ah, that. That’s a watchtower. Though it’s exclusively for my use.”

The building under construction is a watchtower designed for my use. To call it a watchtower might be a bit too tall, so it might be better to simply call it a “tower.”

Several of these towers are being constructed in the town, a bit away from the wall.

“Exclusive means only Vesnar-sama can use it?”

“No, basically anyone can use it, but there are tools for my exclusive use inside. In case of emergencies, I’ll use them for interception.”

“Interception from there seems impossible. Even a mage wouldn’t reach there normally. It might be within the range of a high-level archer, but…”

While taller than the outer wall, the tower is a bit away from it. Therefore, even if someone were to climb the watchtower and attack from there, it wouldn’t reach outside the town.

“But it can be done, and that’s the most efficient way to defeat an enemy.”

However, I can launch attacks from that tower. Using sowing from a distance with a telescope, I can hit enemies.

After the training over the past six months, my rank has increased. I am now at the Ninth Rank. I haven’t quite reached the Tenth Rank yet, but well, it’s sufficient.

Details about my abilities are known only to Sofia and the others, but perhaps my father knows. I’ll confirm that later. For now, let’s focus on tower attacks.

Having reached the Ninth Rank, the effective range of my skills has significantly increased. The effective range is quite substantial, easily covering a radius of about one kilometer. It barely reaches three kilometers. That’s the range. The fact that the range for sowing seeds is in ‘kilometers’ also makes me feel a bit like a ‘farmer,’ but considering the other Tenth Ranks are probably monsters too, well, it’s just how it is.

So, from the top of the tower, I can imitate sniping by identifying enemies and sowing seeds. Then after using growth, it would seem to the enemy that they suddenly came under attack, and plants are growing from their bodies.

“Well, yeah, I know. You’re still as unconventional as ever.”

“If you’re bound by common sense, you won’t move forward.”

“I’ve figured that out just by watching you.”

Kyle is probably still at the Fifth Rank as a martial artist. He sighs at the difference between us.

However, I’ve been training every day, using my skills until I faint since I was ten. In contrast, Kyle started training his skills to the limit just over a year ago. There’s a natural difference.

Still, from a general perspective, being at the Fifth Rank at Kyle’s age is quite impressive. Even if I say that, it has no persuasive power, so I won’t say anything.

As we continued walking, we reached the base of the tower.

“This is still under construction, but it looks like we can go up…”

“Hey, hey, hey. Can we go up here?”

“There’s probably nothing stopping you from going up, but it’s interfering with construction. Better not to.”

Looking up, the tower is still under construction, but since the basic structure is complete, it probably won’t collapse if we climb up.

“Well, doesn’t the entire village feel good?”

Having walked around this far, the vagrants brought from Karakas are living in houses and able to work.

One reason they’re not aggressive is that they mainly lack combat-related jobs, but they’re also restrained by the Skills of the Covenant Master, so they’re pretty calm.

Given that it’s worked so far, if we continue like this, the village should function properly in the future.

“Now, it’s a gradual strengthening of facilities, is that the idea?”

“Yeah. However, the question is whether to prioritize defense or the enhancement of internal facilities.”

Thanks to job classes like carpenters, construction is fast, and with materials available, houses can be built in a day. Such an absurd construction period means that, even in just half a year, the town has already taken shape.

Now it’s a matter of whether to reinforce defenses against external threats, or focus on unrelated aspects of defense—such as developing commercial warehouses or improving roads. There’s a lot to consider.

“We’re selling safety, so wouldn’t it be better to prioritize defense? If the town gets attacked, that’s a real ‘problem,’ right?”

“Well, yeah. —Though I leave those matters to my partner, so it’s easy for me.”

“Partner… that would be Edward-sama, the boss from the north, right?”

Sofia nods in confirmation.

While I have the role of the combat leader and overseer, the actual operation of the town is handled by Edward and his subordinates. It costs money, but rather than me, an amateur, taking care of it, I trust them to manage it properly.

“Naah, naah, lots of people are coming!”

“Oh, Flora. Good morning!”

“Hey!”

As we chat like that, Flora suddenly appears and calls out like that. By the way, “Naah” is what she calls me. Because it’s “Vesnar,” it becomes “Naah.”

Flora, being a spirit, usually resides in me or returns to the sacred tree, but today she’s inside me.

Flora wouldn’t show up and lie without a reason, so what she’s saying is probably true.

However… people? And a lot of them?

“People? Where?”

“That way!”

I look in the direction Flora is pointing, but while there are people scattered around, it doesn’t look like there’s a large number coming towards us. This is the main street, so there shouldn’t be anything blocking the view…

“…I don’t see anyone.”

“No, over there more.”

“More? Outside the town?”

“More!”

It’s not about what’s in our line of sight, and it’s not about what’s just beyond the wall. If there are “lots of people” coming from even further away, it could be a large merchant caravan, or…

We exchange glances upon hearing Flora’s words that give us an uneasy feeling. Well, not everyone. Lilia has a very carefree expression.

Ignoring that idiot for now, we need to do something about that group… no, first, we need to confirm if that’s true.

Because it’s Flora, she wouldn’t lie, but even if it’s not a lie, I’d like to know how many “a lot” means. While thinking about this, Sofia seems to have had the same thought, as she turns her face towards Flora and throws a question at her.

“…Flora, do you have an idea of how many?”

“Mmm, lots?”

“Can you be more specific?”

“Mmm… around ten thousand?”

Flora said “lots,” so I thought there would be at least a thousand, but this is outrageous. Not just a thousand, but around ten thousand people.

“On—!?”

“Isn’t that like an army!?”

Bell and Kyle are raising their voices, and that’s only natural. I feel the same way.

“Sorry. Is it okay if I go up there?”

I don’t doubt Flora, but I still had the desire to confirm it myself, so I rushed to the tower under construction and asked one of the workers.

“What?”

“Hurry up! Tell me, can you go up or not? Answer quickly!”

“W-Well, if it’s just going up, then, well, you can do that, but… Hey, wait!?”

As soon as the worker responded, ignoring the others around me, I raced up the stairs of the tower.

Once I reached the top and gazed in the direction Flora had pointed, I strained my eyes, but I couldn’t see any human figures, though I noticed the movement of some animals.

“Can you see anything?”

“No… I can’t see anything.”

Kyle, who had followed me up, asked if I could confirm the presence of enemies, but I shook my head in response.

I don’t think I missed anything. I’m not foolish enough to overlook a moving group of thousands of people. Especially in this world, where physical abilities are enhanced based on rank.

Observing the direction Flora indicated, I noticed there was a forest nearby.

… Perhaps I couldn’t spot the enemies simply because they were at a considerable distance. Maybe the group of ten thousand people was passing through that forest. If that were the case, no matter how much I looked, I wouldn’t be able to see them.

Alternatively, they could be using concealment skills to hide their presence, but I doubted that was the case.

I thought this because Flora wouldn’t have raised concerns if they had simply passed through on the road. However, passing through the forest would indeed be suspicious, and that’s why Flora had noticed and informed me.

“How was it?”

“No, couldn’t see anything. Probably, they’re still at a distance, or maybe they entered the forest.”

“But if Flora said so, it must be true, right?”

“W-What should we do?”

“What to do? Well, first, let’s contact my old man. Fortunately, they haven’t approached close enough to be within sight yet, so there’s no need to rush.”

Even if they claimed to have passed through the forest, it didn’t mean the forest extended all the way to the city. If they intended to approach the city, they would have to reveal themselves from the forest.

Besides, if they were planning an attack, they would likely establish a base and then launch the attack. So, if their presence wasn’t visible at this point, there should still be time to prepare.

For now, I used a messenger to contact my father, but we’d have to go talk to him directly afterward… Anyway, we needed to hurry.