Chapter 30: Fun Water Gathering

Posted bytheredsargeantAugust 6, 2020Posted inFun Territory Defense

　While the rest of the group was taking a break, Espada was building a tributary which would eventually lead to the village moat and possibly even a reservoir.

　However, because the water was interfering with the excavation work, I built a temporary wall separating the river and the tributary.

　Espada dug several dozen meters every rotation, while Dee, Kamsin, and the others dug with great vigor whenever Espada was off-rotation. Till and I followed behind the digging team and reinforced the walls.

　Considering the distance between the river and the village, we all thought that it would take a long time to connect the tributary to the moat, but the work was being completed surprisingly fast.

　We were surprised at the never-ending magic of Espada, but we were also surprised at Dee’s never-ending physical strength.

”Hoo-Ha!”

　While Irv, Lowe, and Kamsin sat there in exhaustion, Dee was still digging with his shovel.

　Laughter poured out of Dee’s mouth as he worked.

”Well, he’s a spry man, even though he’s already a forty-year-old man,”

　Espada uttered that with a dumbfounded look on his face. Dee is forty? I would never have been able to tell.

　We spent half a day working on the tributary. Soon, due to the ridiculous rate of construction, the village came into sight.

　We walked quite briskly to the river, and it took about an hour to reach, so so the distance between the river and the village must be around four kilometers.

　It took us about eight hours of digging extend the tributary this distance. We had reached a point where we could see our village, so we were probably about a kilometer away.

“Let’s finish work for today, you must be exhausted.”

　Dee and Espada looked confused at my statement. On the other hand, everyone else in the group was completely out of breath, gasping in labored bursts.

“Hmm, I see you’ve found an interesting new training method, it gave me the best workout I’ve gotten in a long time. But, well, I guess I shouldn’t push myself too hard, might burn through the rest of my stamina.”

　Dee made a cheeky comment, but no one could say anything. You still have a lot of energy, Dee. No one here is fooled by your low-grade acting skills.

　I couldn’t help but curse in my mind because his stamina was too unbelievable.

　Incidentally, Espada also has a calm look on his face. It’s almost terrifying. It seems that veterans in their fields are a lot stronger than I give them credit for.

　I heard that Orto and the adventurers were not interested in the construction project, so they stocked up on iron ore and the like. But when they deposited the ores, I was so tired that I simply left them there and didn’t even bother to refine them.

　The next day, to my surprise, we were able to extend the tributary to the moat before the morning ended. We then went on to make a route for water to flow beyond the moat, into the area behind the village.

　We built a small but deep reservoir there.

　After the water rose and the moats filled, it would flow into the reservoir and serve as a convenient water source for the village.

　Latter, I’d like to circulate the water back into the river in order to prevent any water overflowing, but that is a task for another time.

　For now, I simply need to get water into the moat and reservoir as soon as possible.

　We quickly returned to the river.

　Upon arrival, I thanked everyone for their patience.

“Thanks to your tremendous contributions, we have finally finished the water-gathering project. You have worked diligently for the past day and a half. Thank you so much. Now… let’s get it open!”

　As soon as I finished my speech, I broke down the temporary wall separating the river fro the tributary.

　Water immediately began to rush into the tributary.

“Oh! Excellent!”

　I clapped and cheered as the water flowed from the river in torrents, and everyone clapped and cheered along with me.

　It’s was exciting to see the rushing water.

　Following the water, we headed for the village.

　Because the waterway had been well reinforced, the momentum of the water was uninterrupted and it never slowed on its way towards the village. In fact, the water had so much momentum that it began to worry me.

　I’ll check on the status of the moat later.

　When we returned to the village, some villagers noticed our return, lowered the bridge, and opened the gate.

“Oh, look! I can see water!”

The water had finally reached within the visible range of the village.

　The villagers came out in droves and watched in amazement as the water flowed into the moat.

“Wow! This is so cool!”

　The kids cackled and ran around the moat, chasing the water that was accumulating. I’d love to join them, but due to my position, I abstained.

“To think that we can now gather drinking water from such a convenient location,”

　Rhonda walked over and muttered that with emotion, but I shook my head at his words.

“The water from the river is not yet suitable for drinking, it needs to be filtered and boiled before it is safe for consumption. So I’ll have to build a facility for that.”

“Huh…”

　I smile back at a bewildered Rhonda. I then ordered Dee and the others to prepare some iron ore.

“This way!”

　Lowe, uncharacteristically motivated, brought in a large amount of iron ore. He’s even looking at me with a highly anticipatory look in his eyes.

”….Are you curious about what I’m going to make?”

“Yes, sir! What kind of equipment are you going to build?”

　I’m surprised. Apparently Lowe loves to build things. Come to think of it, he looked like he was having a lot of fun during the construction of the tributary.

“Then let’s do it together. First of all, we have to build a water wheel that will lift the water.”

“Yes!”

　A very excited Lowe happily brings in the materials and I shape them. Dee and Irv worked as assistants.

　Soon, a waterwheel was set up on one side of the moat, with tubs positioned at regular intervals on the wheel. They will carry water out of the moat as the waterwheel turns.

　When the water reaches the top of the wall, the tubs would tilt as they descended, pouring water into a channel that would run from the top of the wall into the village. Inside it would flow into a basin made of branches, leaves, sand, earth, stones and cloth.

　It would filter the water, then deposit the clean water into a metal tank. The surface and back of the tank are coated with copper to prevent the water from causing rust, in order to ensure that the water stays clean while in storage.

　Once stored, water is poured out of a faucet installed under the tank and sent to the boiler.

　Unfortunately, I had to light the boiler by myself. I was the only one able to create a suitable flame.

　Till told me that there were fire magic crystals that would automate the process, so I am seriously considering the purchase of a few of them too make my life easier.

　Putting aside automation, this system should ensure that the village has ample clean drinking water.

　As I was showing Rhonda how to use the equipment, Kamsin came running in.

“The moat is now completed, it is now completely filled with water.”

　The water filled the moat only three hours after the temporary wall was broken. It finished before Dinnertime.

　I hurriedly climbed up the barrier.

“Oh, truly incredible.”

　I couldn’t help but sigh in admiration. The sight of the water-filled moat was just too amazing.

　Though, if the water continues to flow this rapidly, it might cause issues.

“If the water rises due to rain or something, won’t it flood?”

　When I asked that, Espada, who was waiting diagonally behind me, widened his eyes slightly.

”A good observation. As for solving the issue… normally, people widen the tributary banks while keeping an eye on the water level, or they build embarkments. In short, we need to be attentive when it comes to these dead-end type of tributaries.”

　Espada praised me.

“The water not having a place to go is our real problem. We need to either redirect excess water back into the river or we need to make an artificial lake.

　As I told him that, Espada raised an eyebrow and snorted.

”Originally, I had planned to make the tributary reconnect with the river, but the idea of building a lake might be an unexpectedly good one. When the water stops flowing from the river due to a lack of rain, a reservoir would be very useful.”

“We do need to install anti-flood measures… let’s do it.”

　Thus, it was decided to build a lake about two hundred meters from the back of the village.

　It was a project which had to be completed quickly, lest the rain come and flood the moat before it could be completed.

　The lake was completed in three days. (T.N. Note: Wow… three days huh?)

It doesn’t have to be any specific shape, It just needs to store as much water as possible.

“Understood!”

“Make it into the shape of a slope so that we can direct which way the water flows!” (T.N. Note: I had no idea what Van was trying to say here so I put in my best guess. I will put the raw MTL below in case someone else can better interpret the text.)

“Alright!”

　I give them a plan, and Dee and the others give it shape. By the way, Espada is working on the general excavation of the lake and the building of the banks.

　After that, I think I’ll install a sluice gate that can be closed manually at the entrance of the tributary, in case the even the lake is not enough to contain the water.

　As for any other precautions, I will think about them if a need comes up.

　For now, I’m just happy that we now have a full moat and a reliable source of clean water.

(T.N. Note: Here is the text mentioned earlier: 

“It’s a slope, so I’m going to change the height of the slope so that when the water is full, the water flows that way.”)