The dark sorcerer was dead, but Lloyd didn't directly watch it happen. Regardless of his new life, he was still Suho Kim on the inside. He certainly didn't wish to see someone die.
One time is enough experience. He suddenly recalled the last memory of his parents.
Crinkling his nose, Lloyd brushed the thoughts away and came back to reality.
"Hey, hey. Be careful, everyone. Don't take your eyes off the ground and step on a weird spot. And make sure to look for any rocks, you might trip yourselves."
"Yes, Young Master."
The isolation and hunger had weakened the soldiers. Leading them out of the dungeon took a great toll on Lloyd. It was because of the magical traps that still lingered in the cave.
A few hours later, everyone was able to get out safely. Lloyd then told Javier to go in and take the items from the laboratory. Javier did more than what he was asked of by bringing out the insulation material the dark sorcerer had stacked in the corner of the lab. However, Lloyd still had another problem to solve because the soldiers were in terrible condition.
"Whew! These guys are just seconds away from fainting. Hey, give that to me."
"Eh?! Master Lloyd?"
"What? Give them to me now."
Lloyd was referring to the wheat straws that would insulate the seokbinggo. The soldier was tottering down the range because of the straws that heavily weighed down on his back. Lloyd casually walked over and yanked them into his arms. The soldier gazed at Lloyd in utter embarrassment as the weight on his back was snatched away.
"Young Master…! I should be carrying that. I cannot let a noble like yourself take the burden…"
"Oh, really? I'm just scared that you will pass out and force me to carry you as well."
"I will not pass out."
"You know that's not true."
"You are pale as a sheet. Do you know that?"
"That's…"
"I told you already. It's fine. Your late arrival already delayed the construction way too much. If you collapse right now, we'll have to walk slower to take care of you. Am I wrong or what?" asked Lloyd.
"I'm not doing this because I like you. Don't get the wrong idea."
"Ah…I understand."
"If you do, make sure you don't fall behind. Here we go!" Lloyd shouted and slung the bundle of straws over to his back.
Without waiting for the soldier to respond, Lloyd turned and moved to the tail of the procession. He then set off, keeping pace with the slowest soldier. But of course, he didn't show this directly. Instead, he verbally harassed the soldier throughout the trip.
"Hey, why do you keep glancing at me?"
"No, I didn't, Young Master."
"Like I would believe that. I saw you clearly stealing a glance at me."
"Please forgive me."
"You think you're excused if you apologize? What are you, a civilian?"
"Of course not."
"Why are you so stiff?"
"Goodness. I'm scared that you'll tear up if I keep teasing you. Forget it. Let's just keep walking."
"Ha, walking was comparatively easier today. I think it's thanks to Master Lloyd."
"Right? It was the same for me yesterday."
"Hey, me too. I was so grateful to him."
Late at night, the soldiers gathered up at the temporary campsite. Fearing that their voices could be heard, they gossiped with one another.
"But really, do you think the young master came here to rescue us?" a soldier asked.
"Doesn't it look like that?"
"Well, I think he was also motivated to take back the insulation materials."
"Even so, he came for us, and that's what matters. I thought I was really going to die in there."
"You're right. I thought so, too."
The soldiers were deeply grateful to Lloyd for saving them. Their feelings of gratitude amplified when they heard Javier's advice.
"You should be feeling more than grateful. All of you must live indebted to Master Lloyd for the rest of your life."
"Eh? Sir Asrahan?!"
The soldiers tensed up at Javier's unexpected presence.
Javier impassively went on, "I had recommended Master Lloyd to go back to the fiefdom first, gear up, and fight the dark sorcerer. But he didn't listen to me. He was worried that you all might die before then. That's why he threw himself into the cave when it was just the two of us."
A heavy silence fell among them.
"If it weren't for his decision, you all would have starved to death or been sacrificed as an offering in the hands of the dark sorcerer. Remember that for the rest of your lives."
"Yes, Young Master."
The soldiers were deeply touched. It was Sir Asrahan who was telling the story.
A man who never exaggerated or groveled. Since he was a faithful, just, and objective man, everyone could trust his story without any doubt. I cannot believe Master Lloyd did that for us…He was once considered a hooligan and was at the center of countless gossip.
People talked ill of him behind his back, including them.
Yet, the same man now risked his own life and put himself in harm's way to save them, some low-rank soldiers. Profoundly touched by his sacrifice, the soldiers secretly wiped their tears off in front of the bonfire. They joked to themselves that it was the smoke of the fire and laughed foolishly. A sense of profound gratitude was deeply engraved upon their heart.
Thanks to that, a new message popped in front of Lloyd.
Ding Dong.
[The rescued soldiers are deeply moved by your actions.]
[Although they are the only ones touched at the moment, the soldiers will spread your heroic story once they are back in the fiefdom. This may eventually lead to social achievement.]
Oh, this is good. Lloyd exclaimed internally.
He was grateful that he managed to save his men and acquire precious magic materials.
Moreover, he managed to safely return to the orc village after retrieving all the insulation materials he needed to build a seokbinggo.
As soon as he arrived at the village, he got to work to finish the last part of the construction. There's nothing more terrible than delaying the construction schedule! Constructing something was always a struggle with time. The longer the construction period was delayed, the higher the costs were.
"So we must move super quick. I wasn't there, so you guys got to rest for the past few days, right?"
Lloyd encouraged the soldiers who stayed behind in the village by taking off his clothes and sweating hard as he instructed everyone on the site. He added water to the mud mixed with limestone. Then, he mixed the rice husks, wheat straws, and sawdust in the right proportion. Afterward, he mixed all the ingredients with water until it thickened like porridge. This type of insulation was inspired by the urethane foam used back in South Korea on construction sites. But it was made out of natural ingredients here.
This will do. He then stuffed the natural, handmade insulation in the empty spaces between the limestone bricks and the ground, pressing down every inch to ensure it was airtight.
He did the same with the arch ceiling.
"Okay, make sure that it's airtight! Fill it as much as you can!"
"Yes!"
Lloyd shouted, and the soldiers resonated in unison. The outside of the ceiling got coated with a thick layer of insulation batter. It was topped again with another thick layer of the limestone and mud mixture, which would prevent any liquid from spilling in from above.
After that, the structure was topped with one more thick layer of soil, making it look like a mound. Once it was done, only the tip of the chimney slightly protruded out of the mound.
Lloyd then covered the chimney with rocks and densely planted wild sandburs around the area.
There should be a thick carpet of grass to keep off the sun's radiant heat.
The grass would be the first line of defense against the heat. Its roots would absorb the moisture that may seep below.
"Whew, this is the last of the sandbur."
Lloyd removed his shovel. He placed the hunk of sandbur he had plucked along with its root at the top of the mound. Flattening it with his shovel, Lloyd made sure to sprinkle some water on the grass.
That would help the roots grow into the soil and with that last act of shoveling, the seokbinggo was finished. However, there still was another job that needed to be done.
"Oink?! My savior has finished the seokbinggo. But it's not as cool here as I heard it would be, oink."
Arosh had rushed to the site, the hairs in his nostrils swaying against the wind, when he heard that the construction was done. Arosh's pecs burned in excitement as he thought about how the facility's cold atmosphere would allow them to preserve their food. When he set foot in the seokbinggo, he was surprised. The inside wasn't as cool as he expected.
"What happened? It's not very cool here, oink."
"Right? It's only a bit cooler than the outside, where the scorching sun is beating down. So it makes sense that you're confused."
"Ah, oink."
That was when it dawned on Arosh that the scorching sun was shining brightly outside right now. Forget about the ice. It was so hot that he was worried the creek would dry up.
Arosh's nostrils flared.
"But it looks like you have a plan. Am I correct? Oink?"
"You're right."
"Not yet, oink?"
"Uh-huh. A seokbinggo needs ice, but there isn't any here."
"Ice? Do you mean it will get cold if you put ice in here, oink?"
"Of course. Even if it's a seokbinggo, the facility can't cool down by itself. Similar to how an icebox wouldn't get cold without ice."
"Ice…box? Oink?"
"Yeah, it's something similar."
"I don't know what you're talking about. Anyway, where do you plan on getting the ice, oink?"
"There is no way to get them. I mean, ordinarily, there isn't one."
"Ordinarily, oink?"
"Uh-huh. We're in the middle of summer."
"Aha, oink."
That was when it dawned on Arosh that the scorching sun was shining brightly outside right now. Forget about the ice. It was so hot that he was worried the creek would dry up.
Arosh's nostrils flared.
"But it looks like you have a plan. Am I correct? Oink?"
Lloyd grinned.
"Since I can't get ice the normal way, I'll make them myself and pack them here," Lloyd announced.
"Make ice? How, oink?"
"How else? I should do it very well."
They were in the middle of summer. They obviously had no place to acquire ice. They weren't in the place to reach out to a sorcerer who uses ice magic, either. So there was only one option left: To make ice himself.
I have the Asrahan Core Technique, after all. Lloyd believed that he could make ice if he used the technique properly. Once the plan was made in his head, he got to work right away.
First, he fed a red sunflower seed to Ppodong. Once the hamster grew gigantic, Lloyd asked, "Hey, Ppodong?"
"Ppodong?"
"Do you know the creek over there in the mountain range?"
"Ppodong!"
"Yeah, that's the place. Would you kindly go and fetch water from there?"
"Ppo-do-dong?"
"As much as your cheeks can hold on both sides. Can you do it?"
"Ppo-do-dong! Ppodong!"
"Oh, why don't you take Bangul with you on your way? Bangul, eat this sunflower seed. Here you go."
"Bangul!"
Boom! Bangul grew gigantic after eating the red sunflower seed. Ppodong rode the transformed Bangul on his back.
"Bangul, fetch a huge bucket of water for me. But don't make them into steel poops. Tense up your buttocks when you want to, and hold it in a little. Okay?"
"Bangul!"
The two giants waddled as they ran off. Sometime later, they came back, with each holding a huge volume of water in their cheeks and belly.
"Good job! Will you spit it in here?"
"Ppodung? Blergh!"
"Bangul! Blergh!"
The two summons vomited water on the rock mold. The mold, which Lloyd had made prior, became filled up with water.
This is like a gigantic version of the ice cube mold that you put in freezers.
Lloyd created them using the granite that was left over from building the seokbinggo. He meticulously chiseled the rough edges every time he had the chance to. The final output reminded him of the ice mold that was commonly seen in South Korean homes, only this one was larger. The ice molds, which were divided into sections, were transferred into the seokbinggo by the soldiers and Lloyd himself. Afterward, Lloyd sent everyone out. He closed the door, and he was the only one left in there.
Let's get started.
Lloyd moved to the corner of the seokbinggo. He brought the pile of wheat straws and stuffed them into the lapping water.
Then, he fixed the straws at the bottom and to the sides of the mold by tightly pressing them. This preparation would allow him to conveniently remove the ice safely without damaging it if the water froze later on. So, Lloyd meticulously carpeted the straws around the inside of the ice mold. After that, everything was set. He got to make the ice right away.
He sat cross-legged in front of the ice mold. After rolling up his sleeves, he put his arms into the water. He calmed his heart to concentrate and then activated the Asrahan Core Technique.
Ziiing…
The two quiet mana circles began to rotate like a car engine. Two circles began to rotate around the center, their absorption power revving up. The power expanded as it traveled across Lloyd's veins and muscles. Past his shoulders, it went down to the arms and fingertips. The mana near the fingertips began to activate. Lloyd, however, was attempting a different variation.
I don't need to absorb all the mana, just the warm ones.
He absorbed it slowly. At first, it didn't go as well as he had hoped as the rotation of the mana circles destabilized at times because he wasn't familiar with this application method. However, Lloyd didn't give up.
Slowly and carefully, with more focus, he strove to single out only the warm mana floating around the water.
He engrossed himself in the process for a very long period of time.
One hour…Two hours…Then three hours passed by…Just then, the water began to change.
Fwish…Fwish… The heat, or the warm mana, started to grow faint. The water began to grow cooler and the thin layers of ice started to form. At the same moment, a message popped into his head. Ding Dong.
[You have developed a new application for the Asrahan Core Technique.]
[Your skill level of the Asrahan Core Technique has increased because of your notable effort.]
Ice making—the last procedure in the seokbinggo construction. Lloyd's research and effort helped him level up in the technique.
Translator: https://bettertranslation9.wordpress.com