BXBX NOVEL 154 - - Art. 154 Completion Of Work
"So?"
The one who is looking at me with his eyes slightly wide open and sighing loudly as he adjusts his residence is Duke Koenig, Commander-in-Chief of the Ramallon Army. The one who keeps looking at him with a hard expression on his face is Almond, the commander of the Third Army of the Lamarone Empire. It was the last meeting of the year for the staff, and it had been unusually stormy.
"I will say it again. The village of Dytas should be occupied.
Duke Koenig shook his head, a look of exasperation on his face.
"That\'s what I\'ve been telling you all along. It doesn\'t make sense.
I don\'t understand what you mean by "meaningless". Agartha has advanced its borders without a fight.
"No, I\'m asking if the village of Daitus has really turned. From what I have heard, the village head and other young men have only invaded Agartha and brought food to the village. Isn\'t it too early to say that they have turned? Commander Almond?"
You said you brought them here, but they are being supported by the enemy. What do you call this but treachery!
"Well, even if it was treachery, there is no need to defeat them now. First of all, the Imperial Army has no rations. Why would we organize a strike force against a village of only 150 people, most of whom are old men, women, and children? It\'s a waste of food. Then go at harvest time. Besides, the area around Mt. Banzavi will be covered with snow from now on. Heedata will not invade. And Agartha, of course."
"But! ... the enemy will be able to cross the Irbezi River and occupy Mount Banzavi. If they can hold that mountain, there is only one unobstructed road to the capital. We must not give Mount Banzavi to the enemy!
Duke Koenig lifts his chin slightly and points at Almond as Commander Almond raises his voice.
"So you are telling me that the Imperial Army will be defeated by the people of Dytas?"
Commander Almond straightens his back.
"That\'s not possible, sir.
"Then it\'s all right now. Then it\'s okay. We shouldn\'t waste time. If you send troops, leave them alone until spring.
With these words, Duke Koenig left the room at a quick pace. And as he walked down the corridor, he muttered to himself
"What a bunch of idiots! Why do they always think of useless things?
"You\'re right. Mr. Commander-in-Chief.
His second-in-command follows close behind. The duke stops and looks back.
"I don\'t think we can do anything in that one village, but just keep an eye on it.
He ordered his deputy to do so and returned to his room.
Meanwhile, in the conference room, Commander Almond put his hands on the desk and exhaled loudly, making no attempt to hide his annoyance.
"Oh, my God, what a mess..."
"Almond."
I looked in the direction of the voice and saw General Callies sitting on the edge of his chair with his eyes closed.
"General! Why don\'t you say anything!"
General Caries remained silent and motionless.
"...I have a bad feeling about that village. I have no reason to. It\'s a military instinct. My instincts tell me that that village must not be abandoned!
With these words, Almond left the conference room at a quick pace. The remaining commanders, including General Caries, could do nothing but watch and see what would happen. General Callies slowly opened his eyes.
"Don\'t waste your time...huh? You are indeed a member of the Empress Dowager\'s family. Every word you say is just like her Majesty\'s. I hope Almond doesn\'t get out of control.
General Caries sighed deeply.
The ground in Agartha was now covered with a light dusting of snow. The event of Christmas does not exist in this world. Therefore, there is no Santa Claus. However, in front of me stands Gen-san, a carpenter with a bright red nose and a big smile on his face.
"I\'m sorry, Gen-san. It\'s the end of the year and I\'m busy.
"Toshinose? There\'s nothing to ride on, is there? So, what do you want?"
Yeah, that\'s what I\'m talking about.
I tell Gen what I want to order.
"...I\'ll make you something like that right away. If I\'m not careful, even the general can make it, you know.
Gen-san looks at me quizzically, to which I reply with a smile.
"No, I want you to make me something sturdy. I want you to make me something sturdy that won\'t get crushed in a little while.
"Well, if you go to the north forest, there are plenty of Karwasan trees. Because they\'re f*cking hard! If we use them, we can make something strong.
"Well, you can have them finished by the time it gets warmer. We\'re not in a hurry, so take your time. In the meantime, when you finish one, will you show it to me?"
"Oh, I\'ll leave it to you!"
Gen-san smiles, showing his usual white teeth.
We\'re going to finish this year\'s work today. We\'re going to finish our work for the year today. Have a good New Year\'s."
Gen-san left the room with a hehehe smile and a wave of his hand.
"Well... Let\'s see what happens..."
I mumbled to myself without saying a word to anyone. And then, though it was a little early, I went back to my residence in the capital.
When I returned to the mansion, there was some kind of noise in the stable. I was curious, so I went to the stable and found the usual Geneha and Ilimo there, with Harpy and Fairy around them. I approached them to see what they were doing,
"When I crossed the sea, I found a land of pitch black. In the middle of it was a mountain that breathed fire.
"Master Geneva, are you referring to the mountain on our island where the Purgatory Demon Bird used to live?"
Oh, yes. That\'s the mountain.
Near its fire-breathing entrance was the stone.
"And so...?"
"Mm. I went down to the burning land..."
Apparently, everyone is excited to hear about the saga of Jeneha. I can\'t help but let out a laugh. Then I quietly enter the house so as not to interrupt the conversation.
Rico and Soleil were in the dining room. She is about to enter her last month of pregnancy, so she basically stays at the house, but she makes sure that someone is always by her side.
"Welcome back, Linos."
"Welcome home, Mr. Linos."
They greet me with smiles. At first I was worried that Rico and Soleil might not get along well with each other, but it turns out that they are surprisingly good friends. Both of them like fashion, so they often talk about it.
Soleil gets up from her chair to greet me.
"Oh, good. Stay right where you are."
With that, I head for the kitchen. Rico stays in his chair,
"Linos, can I help you? Soleil, please help him."
He asks Soleil to do it for him.
"No, thank you. I told you I\'d make dinner tonight, didn\'t I? Soleil, I want you to stay by Rico\'s side."
"...Okay."
A little confused, Soleil sits down next to Rico. And I go to the kitchen for the first time in a long time to prepare the vegetables. While I\'m doing that, Gon comes back.
"I\'m sorry I\'m late..." he says.
"Gon, I\'m sorry, but I need you to cut the meat into thin slices. Lots of it!"
"Yes, sir."
Gon carefully slices the meat of the carcass chaloree into thin slices. As I watch, I put the tofu on the fire and make yakidofu (grilled tofu). While watching the heat, I chop a large amount of Chinese cabbage and green onions, and also cut into shiitake mushrooms.
Meanwhile, everyone returns one after another. Finally, Mei, Considine, and Ferris returned. Ferris is carrying two big pots on her shoulders.
"I\'m back!
Ferris enters the house in high spirits. Considie and May came in after him. May\'s belly is getting fuller. Her baby seems to be moving, and we are looking forward to the birth of ours.
"Master, I got the pots and pans you ordered."
"Oh, thank you, Mae. You dwarves are very good. To complete the order within a week of placing the order, I\'m impressed.
"Everyone has been working very hard on it, so it\'s a good product."
Considie explained to me. She has been visiting the dwarves from time to time to check on them, but recently she has been staying by May\'s side and taking care of her. It\'s very kind of her.
"Well then, Ferris, put the pot you\'re carrying on the table. I\'ll get out the tabletop stove I made with clay magic and put it on it. When you\'re done, build a fire and heat the pot.
"Master, what about oil?"
"You see the lumps of oil in the kash-shaloleh? You can coat the pot with that."
I boil the pasta while Ferris prepares it. Then I take the meat and go to the dining room.
"All right, everyone, today I\'m going to make my special Sukiyaki!
I throw the meat into the pot and season it with sugar and soy sauce. The meat soon smells delicious and starts to cook.
"Come on, eat the meat first. Oh, you see the harpy\'s eggs? Crack it open, stir it, toss the meat in it, and eat."
Everyone eats the meat with a curious look on their faces.
"Oh, it\'s delicious!"
"It\'s delicious!"
"It\'s delicious!"
"What is this?" "It\'s delicious!"
Apparently, it was well received. Perhaps lured by the smell, Feri came back to the restaurant.
When you\'re done eating the meat, I\'ll put the meat and vegetables in again. Wait until it\'s cooked. Ah... We need to put the pasta in too.
With that I put the meat in again, then the ingredients and season with sugar and soy sauce again. While the ingredients are cooking, I cook the meat in the other pan.
"Gong, come here and let\'s eat! You eat, too, Feri. Ferris, you\'re short. Eat mine!"
And so we enjoyed the sukiyaki. At first I thought, "What\'s pasta with sukiyaki? But when I tried it, it was surprisingly delicious. The head cook, Peris, seems to be thinking of ways to improve the sfiyaki. Matkal must have enjoyed the food since he did not say a word and just kept on eating.
Since I made it in a pot big enough to hold me, there was more left over than I had expected. I shared it with Jeneha and the harpies. They liked it very much and it was a great success for me. Next time, I would like to offer them to the sun goddess or Sandille.
And so our year ended.