Abandoned in the mountains, I was adopted by a lizard ~I mastered magic and surpassed my parents, but I didn't know they were legendary ancient dragons~ - Chapter 27

Chapter 27   Bamboo Inside Construction Plan

Three days after the dungeon practical training, I was approached during the lunch break after the second period ended.

“Hadar-kun, could I have a moment?”

I turned to see the daughter of the president of Bamboo Inside Construction. Ah, Jasmine, right? Thanks to Ian mentioning her during introductions, I barely remembered her.

“What is it?”

“I have something to discuss with you. Could you come to the cafeteria with me? It’s about a project from Bamboo Inside Construction that my father wanted me to talk to you about.”

It seemed to be work-related. I wondered why she was acting as an intermediary, but the president was probably busy. Having his daughter in the same class was convenient for this kind of task.

“Sure, let’s go.”

And so, I headed to the cafeteria with Jasmine.

◇

After placing our orders and taking a seat, I got straight to the point.

“So, what’s the consultation about?”

“It’s about fully delegating the safety management tasks for the fortress construction project on the Ashgano Peninsula.”

Answering my question, Jasmine pulled out a map.

“Let me briefly explain the Ashgano Peninsula first. It’s the westernmost peninsula of the Zelgius Kingdom and the closest point to the Inferno Continent.”

She pointed to the protruding landmass on the west side of the central continent on the map as she continued.

Let’s see… Indeed, just across the sea from the Ashgano Peninsula, there’s a landmass labeled “Inferno Continent.” Judging by the scale, the distance between the two is about 50 kilometers.

Building a fortress in such a place—does that mean the Zelgius Kingdom is being targeted by a nation on the Inferno Continent?

“Is there going to be a war with the Inferno Continent?”

To understand the situation better, I asked that question. Jasmine responded with a puzzled expression.

“Huh…? There aren’t any countries on the Inferno Continent.”

…?

“Then why build a fortress?”

“It’s not that there’s no one invading. There aren’t human enemies, but… the Ashgano Peninsula often faces invasions from monsters originating from the Inferno Continent.”

So there were battles, but the opponents weren’t human.

“Why would someone as omniscient as you not know about the Inferno Continent…?”

“I’m not that familiar with modern geography…”

I’m not omniscient at all, actually. Most of the literature my mother has is ancient, so my knowledge of modern times is limited to entrance exams and healer exams. As I thought about this, Jasmine began to explain the Inferno Continent in detail.

“The Inferno Continent is known as the most dangerous island in the world, where disaster-class monsters appear in large numbers all year round. No one who has set sail for the island has ever returned. It’s also called ‘the continent humans must never go to.'”

“I see.”

“The problem is the distance between the Inferno Continent and the Ashgano Peninsula. With the proximity, some monsters from the Inferno Continent that can cross the sea or fly come to the Ashgano Peninsula. This threatens the lives of people living near the peninsula.”

“Wow…”

“Even if monsters just come from the Inferno Continent, it’s bad enough. But if disaster-class monsters start breeding on the Ashgano Peninsula, the whole kingdom could be in danger. This issue is a national concern. Therefore, the kingdom is funding the construction of the fortress, and Bamboo Inside Construction, a leading company in the industry, has taken on the project.”

Jasmine’s explanation helped me understand the background. Indeed, it would be terrible if the Zelgius Kingdom became home to such dangerous monsters. As I was thinking about this, Jasmine continued with a serious expression.

“But there’s one problem.”

“…What is it?”

“The cape frequently suffers attacks from monsters from the Inferno Continent… The safety of the construction workers cannot be ensured, so construction has been delayed.”

That’s a classic chicken-and-egg problem…

“Of course, the kingdom provides a substantial budget, so we can hire skilled adventurers or outsource the work to the knight corps, but… there simply aren’t enough people who can handle monsters from the Inferno Continent. That makes it difficult to secure personnel in that sense.”

After finishing her explanation, Jasmine took a sip of her tea. The crux of the issue was a shortage of manpower.

…Wait a minute. Didn’t Jasmine mention earlier that the request to me was for “complete” safety management? Could it be…?

“Is the president really trying to have me handle all the monsters that interfere with the construction?”

“It’s not that surprising, is it? You’re clearly the best person for the job.”

So that’s exactly what it was.

“If you take on the contract, you’d be getting a significant portion of the substantial safety management budget allocated by the kingdom all for yourself. I don’t think it’s a bad deal, do you?”

“Hmm…”

I hesitated about how to respond. No matter the request, I had intended to take it on to build my resume, but…

This seemed like an impossible task. Disaster-class monsters are likely to be so powerful that even ten of my mother wouldn’t stand a chance against them. Among the spells my mother shelved, there might be some that could defeat such monsters. However, high-level attack spells could only be cast three times a day at most.

Depending on the number of monsters attacking the Ashgano Peninsula, that would likely be a drop in the bucket. Although succeeding in defending the peninsula would be highly rewarding, that was only “if” I succeeded. From what I’ve heard, it doesn’t seem possible at all…

What could the president be thinking, asking me to take on the entire responsibility? While I was pondering this, Jasmine seemed to sense something and spoke up.

“Oh… are you worried about your school credits? My father can negotiate with the principal to count your work hours as attendance, so you don’t need to worry. The fortress construction on the Ashgano Peninsula is a major national project, so the principal won’t be able to refuse.”

That’s not the issue at all.

“Well, I appreciate that…”

My mother always emphasized, “Failing a year is a significant negative point for recruiters, so never let it happen.” So of course, that was a concern. I intended to ask later about whether failing a year would be a concern. But before that, the issue is whether I can even perform the job.

“…But what if I can’t defeat the monsters?”

“…What?”

Jasmine looked puzzled again when I asked her that question.

“Oh, sorry. I was just surprised because I never thought you’d worry about that. Maybe my explanation scared you more than intended, but both my father and I believe that you’ll be fine, Hadar.”

Never mind Jasmine, why would the president think that way? While I can somewhat understand Jasmine making that assumption based on what she’s seen in class, the president has only seen my alloy refining skills.

“And don’t worry, there’s no penalty if it doesn’t work out. If reinforcements are available, we’ll secure more personnel, and if you go there and find it’s too much, you can stop at any time. In that case, the reward will be distributed based on your contribution, so it won’t be the full budget, but you’ll still get something.”

While I was mentally questioning her reasoning, Jasmine added that reassurance. Well, if they say so…

“Alright, I’ll give it a try. Let the president know.”

I decided to accept the request.

Bamboo Inside Construction is an important client now. Rather than rejecting it outright, I thought it would be better for our future relationship to at least give it a shot. Since I can stop anytime and don’t have to worry about failing a year, there’s no real downside. And if the monsters on the peninsula turn out to be weaker than expected, the huge reward would be a nice bonus.

“But only if you can guarantee I won’t fail a year.”

“Don’t worry about that; I’ve got it covered. Also, today’s just a preliminary confirmation. There will be a formal contract discussion with my father later, so we’ll go over the details then.”

I don’t know what kind of relationship the president and the principal have, but Jasmine seemed very confident about it.

…Well, I’ll just have to do what I can.