Village No. 101.
The newly built village was given this simple name. No one objected—it seemed almost natural.
Even Li Mo, who had proposed the name, found it strange. But upon reflection, he realized—they simply didn't care.
Yes, *they*.
Li Mo had chosen a location nestled against the mountains, a place with decent feng shui. Among the 103,000 grimoires in his mind, several dealt with geomancy. For personal reasons, he had studied those in depth.
With that knowledge, he had unconsciously applied it when selecting the terrain.
*Seems like I picked a good spot.*
Li Mo stood atop the village's highest point—the wall.
The wall was built from compacted earth, erected overnight through magecraft. Unlike the houses inside, the wall concealed a bounded field. From the outside, one might overlook the entire village.
In the distance, about twenty young people—men and women alike—were laboring in the fields, tools in hand.
Three days had passed since he first met Hodrmodr and Dottie.
That day, after encountering them, Li Mo realized there were likely others in similar situations. Operating on the principle of *save one, save many*, he dispatched shrine maiden familiars and shadow warriors to search the surrounding areas. By the next day, they had gathered all the exiled and brought them to the village.
—These were people cast out of their villages on the "Day of Selection." Though all were young, the nature of it was no different from abandoning the elderly. In a world of scarce resources, excess population was left to die.
At first, he hadn't fully grasped the situation. But while building Village No. 101, it finally clicked.
Young people were excellent labor—but in this Lostbelt, human labor was… practically worthless. Each village's farmland was limited, requiring only a set number of workers. Labor was *surplus*.
*Why the cutoff at twenty?* Likely something Skadi had determined over her long reign. After all, even she wouldn't send children to their deaths.
Li Mo rubbed his temples.
Building a village from scratch hadn't seemed difficult at first. Back in Teyvat, in Inazuma, he'd done something similar while resolving the crisis on Yashiori Island.
But here, in the Scandinavian Lostbelt, it was grueling. This was a world of scarcity—even something as common as *dirt* required effort to procure.
After days of work, the village had finally taken shape. Even someone with near-limitless stamina like Li Mo felt exhausted.
The thought of preparing the fields, planting seeds, and accelerating growth made him want to quit. But then again—after all this effort, giving up now would be an insult to his past self.
His gaze shifted from the village to the distant horizon.
*What's this?*
There, hovering in the distance, were Valkyries.
In Norse mythology, they were the maidens who guided fallen warriors to Valhalla. Here, in this Lostbelt, they served as the "Messengers of God," appearing before humans.
Li Mo had first noticed them the night after rescuing Hodrmodr and Dottie. That evening, while constructing the village's foundation, the commotion had undoubtedly drawn Skadi's attention.
It was only natural.
But the Valkyries had done nothing since arriving. They simply *watched*, neither engaging nor interfering.
Were they friendly? Or hostile?
Li Mo hated speculation.
What he truly despised was the *uncertainty* behind it.
*Probably not enemies.*
If they were, these combat-ready Valkyries would have already descended like the Phantasmal Species, scattering across the land like snowflakes. Their inaction suggested at least neutrality, if not goodwill.
If not for the village's needs, he might have already gone to Skadi's castle to speak with her directly.
But he couldn't just abandon everything now.
Resolving to ignore the Valkyries for the time being, Li Mo stepped down from the wall.
His explorations over the past few days had yielded some answers—none of the villagers had seen anyone resembling Fujimaru Ritsuka. Mash, with her distinctive shield, would have been unmistakable.
Not just Mash and Ritsuka—there was no trace of Napoleon either.
Was his search area too small? Or had he arrived too early?
The answers likely lay with Skadi. Once things here settled, he would seek her out.
The village had its share of idle hands. After being rescued, the villagers quickly adapted to their new circumstances, diligently working the fields. Their adaptability surprised Li Mo.
—*Maybe they're obedient because they think I'm a Messenger?*
During the day, Li Mo was the most leisurely person in the village. His real work began at night—planting, using magecraft to accelerate growth. The repetitive motions didn't require his full attention.
Now, the village's idlest man had found its second idlest.
Dottie, the first woman Li Mo had encountered, was laboring in the fields alongside the men. In Village No. 101, women worked like men, and men worked like beasts. Fortunately, the enchanted tools Li Mo provided made the toil manageable.
His time in Inazuma had taught him just how backbreaking farmland reclamation could be. By comparison, this was like cheating.
"I might leave in a few days," Li Mo said abruptly.
"Messenger, have we done something wrong?" Dottie's eyes widened.
Over the past few days, the villagers had grown accustomed to working under his watch. The thought of him leaving filled her with unease.
She didn't understand where the anxiety came from.
Li Mo wouldn't change his plans based on her reaction. After estimating the remaining workload, he concluded that in a few days, his role here would be done.
Telling Dottie was just giving her time to prepare. Over the past few days, he'd noticed she had a knack for leadership. Why not Hodrmodr? Simple—Hodrmodr wasn't as sharp.
Empty-headed, better suited to be a warrior. But in this Lostbelt, human warriors were unnecessary.
After informing Dottie, Li Mo left without further explanation.
The fields, though accelerated by his magecraft, still needed time before harvest. That part was up to them.
Now, he had to prepare a way to sustain the bounded field after his departure.
He already had an idea.