"...what?"

　Dusker didn't know what his men were saying at first.
　I'm afraid I'm tired from making you work too much.
　Then, thinking that I've been busy for a while... and wanting to relax somewhere, I decide to face reality and bring cold fruit water to my mouth.

"I'm sorry, but tell me again. I think I missed it."

　A man who finds out that Dusker's appearance does not take his words seriously is somewhat shocked, but soon agrees that it can't be helped.
　In the first place, I don't really believe in this incident.
　The man who brought the report to me -- the adventurer who had asked the Tower of Birth to transport the goods, and the knight who had served Dusker -- had reported it together, and I was convinced at last.
　It's only natural that he suspected that he was still seeing group hallucinations.
　But they insist that it was not the case, and that what they saw was real... that a huge lake had been relocated right next to the tower of birth.
　To make such a point, the man had to report it to Dusker, though he doubted it a little -- eighty percent to be exact.
　In the first place, even if you're seeing hallucinations, or if you're lying for some reason or other, if someone sends you to the tower of birth, you'll find out if it's a lie.
　That's why I brought the report to Dusker.
　...and the consequences have led me to worry privately that I might be tired.

"Yes, I don't think Mr. Dusker would believe it, and to be honest, I couldn't believe it when I heard it, but according to the person who brought the report, a huge lake has definitely moved right next to the Tower of Birth, not to the forest of Trent."
"... metastasis, metastasis? I'd be surprised if the tower of birth had just been transferred... Why does the commotion continue like this? Well, if you say it's just a commotion of metastasis, that's right."

　Oh, my gosh.
　a drink of fruit water again
　Refreshing acidity and subtle sweetness moisten the mouth.
　To be honest, Dusker is very tired from the uproar these days.
　We're already busy, but there's been a series of transition issues.

"Well... why don't you send people to see if the lake has really spread?"
"Well, and if it's true, I might as well go and see it in person."
"He?"

　Perhaps because Dusker's words were unexpected, the man underneath uttered a voice that he thought was a little stupid.
　It doesn't taste good to see the lake when Dusker is very busy.
　It was certain that even a few hours of work would have accumulated considerably.
　His men were surprised and stupid because they knew it.

"Isn't it strange? I've heard that the tower of birth has been transferred, but I haven't seen it yet. And now I've heard that the lake has been transferred. Don't you think that as the lord of Gilm, you need to keep a close eye on it?"
"If you think about it or not, I think it's better to see it... but isn't it still difficult in view of the present situation of Mr. Dusker?"
"I think it's going to be difficult. If you want to do it, you can do it. Ray used to say, 'If you do it, you do it. Anything you don't do.' It's whether you really want to do it or not."

　Although slightly different from Ray's intentions, Dusker's point is largely correct.
　The men, hearing it, decided that they could not stop him any longer... and at the same time understood that it would be a good change of pace for Dus.

"All right. I won't go right now, but I'll still arrange for you to go see the lake and the tower of birth as soon as possible. But I can't do anything by myself, so I think I need a lot of help from others."

　I'm under Dusker, but I don't have that high a position among my men.
　That's why Dusker's men were above him, so if Dusker was going out of Gillum he had to talk to them.

"I see,"

　Dusker's happy smile makes his men regret a little, albeit for a short time, that they are going to be in trouble.
　Nevertheless, I've been busy these days.
　It was also a fact that we had better get a change before we could.

"Let alone the matter of Dusker's visit, we need to first see if the lake has really moved, and we also need to see how big it is, although you say it's a very large lake."
"Well, you must do somebody first, but... is there anyone who is free in this situation?"

　Even so, my subordinates can't answer immediately.
　No wonder Dusker, the lord of Gillum, is so busy.
　Those subordinates are naturally busy.
　In some cases, some people are busier than Dusker.
　If you were a knight, you'd still have some time to spare, but this time you'd need to send a civil servant.
　Then it's hard to find a man who can afford it. It's hard, but... Dusker now has a subordinate who knows the situation.
　His men remain silent as he gazes at them.
　I've brought the report here, but it's not that I'm not particularly busy.
　There's still a lot of work left to do when you go back to your room.
　I wanted to go out and change my mind, but if I did that here, I would definitely have to work overtime.
　I can't accept the job here to avoid it, but...

"... All right. I'll be back."

　In the end, if someone else goes there, considering that you have to explain the situation from scratch, you should be honest and accept it.
　Now it has been decided that I will work overtime, but there are many advantages to working overtime.
　First of all, compensation naturally increases.
　It's also a big advantage to be able to eat higher-ranked food than you normally eat in restaurants around the city, even though you don't drink.
　Some of Dusker's men have a lot of work to do themselves in search of the meal.
　That's how good Dusker's cook was.
　However, Dusker doesn't usually act that big.
　Because everyone is busy right now, the way to improve the efficiency of work is delicious food.
　He bowed to Dusker and left his office to check the lake, hoping that he could eat delicious food.
　Seeing off his back, Dusker takes the fruit water back to his mouth.

(Lake...or lake? If it's a lake, is there any fish? Depending on how big the lake is, if things go well, it could put a dent in Guillum's food situation.)

　The current food situation in Gilm is by no means bad.
　Even if the number of people living in Guillem increases due to the extension work, it does not mean that there is a shortage of food and many people are satisfied with the taste.
　However, it is also true that there are still few seafood.
　Although not many Gilmese are so particular about fish, Gilm is a place where adventurers gather from various places.
　Moreover, construction work is now underway, and more people are gathering from various places in search of work.
　Many of them have nearby places such as the sea, rivers, lakes, and marshes, and for them, fish is a natural ingredient in their daily diet.
　However, in guillem, fish are more expensive than meat, depending on the location, and they come in as preserved food like salted food.
　Food conditions are far from good for those who eat fresh fish every day.
　In that sense, the lake could have had a positive effect on the food situation in Gilm.
　. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .`Well, I'll get the papers done for now,'

　Escaping from reality does not reduce the number of documents.
　On the contrary, the amount of documentation increases as you escape from reality.
　Knowing this, Dusker resumed his work to reduce the amount of paperwork.





"This is... again..."

　A civil servant who came to the lake in a carriage was dumbfounded at the sight spreading before him.
　The lake was clearly visible from the time we were travelling in a carriage, but the direct impact of coming to the front of the lake was even greater.

"Is this kind of thing really spreading?"
"That's true. Otherwise, why is there a lake here?"

　It was Ray who spoke to the civil servant.
　Next to Ray is Seto with the lizard children on his back.

"Ray,"
"You were under Mr. Dusker, I suppose. Was his name... Amonai?"
"Yes, sir,"

　Amonai had met Ray several times before as a subordinate of Dusker.
　Therefore, there is no doubt that the name is remembered, and a simple nod is used as a substitute for greeting.

"And what do you think?"
"No matter what you say, I can only be surprised. ... When I first heard about this, I thought it was a hallucination or something. Or I was right that I wanted to think so."
"I don't think so. You can't believe it so easily if you don't see it directly with your own eyes.
"Grull".

　Say Ray's words in agreement with Seto.
　...the children of Lizardman, who descended from the back of Seto, were playing by moving to the edge of the lake.
　The lake suddenly appears on the meadow, and it is perfectly designed to be sandy on the edge of the surf.
　It's not the sea, but it's also quite possible to play on the edge of the waves.
　The problem is that we don't know what creatures and monsters are in the lake because very little has been done about it yet.
　From what Ray saw from above on his set, he was able to confirm that he looked like an animal he had never seen before.
　In the first place, this lake itself is very large.
　It was impossible for Ray and Sett to look everything up just a little bit.
　It is not yet known exactly how deep the lake is.
　That being the case, I don't think it's dangerous to play by the lake... but at the same time, I thought that if there were any dangerous creatures, they might be in a deep place rather than in a shallow place like this.
　What's more, this lake is quite wide.
　That's how many thousands of common pools there would fit.
　With that size, Ray predicted that there would be no dangerous creatures near the shore.
　...however, it's just Ray's common sense, and we can't tell until we look into it.

(And I doubt if this lake came from a world where the elephants live.)

　Ray asked Gaga, and it was said that there was no such lake in the Gran Dragonian Empire.
　Given that the Gran Dragonian Empire itself is a great power, which is as large as the Kingdom of Milliana, it is not surprising that there may be a lake somewhere that Zozo or Gaga doesn't know.
　At the very least, Zozo and Gaga insisted they didn't know.
　With such a large lake, it's safe to know which one.

"From the look of it, there seems to be no danger in a shallow place for the time being. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .."
"I suppose. And there are some little creatures that actually have strong venom. If possible, I hope they don't."

　jellyfish, lizards, spiders, shellfish
　Some of them are small but deadly poisonous creatures.
　But this is a lake, so you don't have to worry about jellyfish.
　. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"Anyway, it would be better to do a full-scale investigation of this lake as soon as possible. If it goes well, it will be a great benefit to Gilm."

　At the civil service's words, Ray nodded as he watched Lizardman's children playing on the edge of the waves.