Ding-dong.
[Skill level up!]
[Asrahan Heart Method: Double Circle Lv 2]
[Mana amplification rate: 220%]
[Skill-exclusive options: ① Energizer ② Latent Power Burst ③ Power-Saving Mode]
[RP required for next level up: 120]
A clear message rang suddenly in his ears.
Hearing it, Lloyd cheered inwardly.
'Perfect. The water's freezing. And the skill level went up, too.'
It was exactly what he'd hoped for deep down.
Absorbing only the warm mana with water properties through the heart method.
That would lower the water's temperature and ultimately freeze it.
He'd figured that such a new attempt would also count as training for the Asrahan Heart Method.
He'd even been looking forward to it.
And that expectation had hit the mark perfectly.
'This is way better than I thought.'
His hand submerged in the water.
He could feel the warm mana being absorbed through his fingertips.
At first, it had been tricky because he wasn't used to it, but once he got the hang of it, it was surprisingly easy.
It felt just like the thrill of mastering a bike for the first time.
'Alright, let's ramp it up.'
Zzzzzz....
The two mana circles surrounding his heart.
Their rotation sped up just a bit more.
The mana suction power from his fingertips grew stronger.
Even more heat was pulled from the water into his hand.
The water froze even faster.
'Gotta keep my hand from getting trapped in the ice.'
The water gradually turning slushy.
He slowly pulled his hand out, moving it bit by bit.
Eventually, he let just his fingertips touch the surface.
In that state, he kept drawing out the heat from the water.
He processed it through the mana circles around his heart and exhaled it through his mouth.
Thanks to that, warm breath continuously escaped his slightly parted lips.
It was the heat absorbed from the water.
'Hmm, visually, it kinda looks like a chimney.'
But visuals weren't the priority right now.
Lloyd kept operating the heart method.
And finally, he succeeded in making his first large block of ice.
"Whew."
He pulled his hand out.
He opened his eyes.
The water that had been sloshing in the mold just moments ago.
Now it was frozen solid.
'Nice. Success.'
He looked up.
He raised his gaze to the ceiling.
Operating the Asrahan Heart Method, he sensed the flow of heat in the air.
'The heat's venting out nicely.'
He could feel the heat he'd absorbed from the water and expelled gathering toward the arched ceiling and escaping through the chimney.
Smooth expulsion of internal heat.
Proof that the stone ice storage was properly built.
'Judging by the faint light outside the chimney, it's evening now.'
He'd entered here a little after lunch.
But after making just one block of ice, it was already dinnertime.
'Too slow. At this rate, by the time all the ice is done, my sixtieth birthday banquet might be set.'
Let's make it faster.
Lloyd sat in front of the next ice mold.
He took a deep breath and dipped his hand in.
A bit bolder than before.
He began operating the heart method.
Zzzzzz...!
'Oh, it's working.'
In just a few minutes, he could feel the water cooling along his arm.
'Faster.'
He ramped up the rotation speed of the mana circles.
The suction power focused at his fingertips intensified.
The water cooled even quicker. Frost formed on the surface. It turned slushy. Finally, it was reborn as a proud(?) large block of ice.
'Good. Keep going.'
Making the second block took roughly an hour.
Now he had the knack.
Confidence came with it.
He dove right into the next one.
The next block came faster.
'About 40 minutes.'
Ice-making continued.
The time kept shrinking.
The next large block: about 30 minutes.
Then 25.
Then 20.
Eventually down to 15.
'Huff, huff. Keep it up!'
Absorbing heat through his hand and expelling it through his mouth.
He felt like a human air conditioner.
Like that, he slaved away at ice-making all through the night.
And by dawn.
He finally froze the water in the last mold.
"Phew, whew!"
Was it because he'd run the heart method for so long?
When he stood up, his vision blurred for a moment.
But it was all worth it.
'The heart method skill leveled up again.'
It happened the moment he completed the last large block.
The Asrahan Heart Method skill finally reached Double Circle Lv 3.
Pushing the amplification rate to a whopping 240%.
'Anyway, now it's truly complete.'
With a satisfied face, he surveyed the stone ice storage interior.
The cozy warmth from when Aroshi had grumbled the day before was gone.
Cold air emanating from the ice blocks everywhere.
It filled the entire storage.
Just standing there made winter-like breath visible from his mouth.
'Alright, time to wrap up.'
He was a bit tired, but no time to rest yet.
He operated the Asrahan Heart Method once more.
'This time, just brute force. Heave-ho!'
Crack!
He grabbed the straw protruding around the ice mold.
He pulled slowly with force.
Crack—the large block slid out slowly.
Lloyd placed the lifted ice on a pre-laid thick bed of straw.
He immediately slathered the surface with sawdust and rice husks.
He wrapped the sides and top meticulously with more straw.
Adding insulation to prevent melting.
Like that, Lloyd extracted all the ice and wrapped them generously in straw.
He stacked them layer by layer to preserve each other's cold.
'Perfect. This should last until winter without melting.'
A broad grin spread across Lloyd's fatigue-filled face.
The moment the stone ice storage was fully complete.
Also, the moment rewards for completing it—after all the twists and turns—were finally his.
♣
"Kuiik! So cool, kuiik!"
"Kuiik! Really chilly, kuiik!"
"Kuiik! Ice tastes good, kuiik!"
"...There's a traitor here, kuiik!"
The stone ice storage was chaos.
The orcs who'd come to store large monster meat from recent hunts.
The moment they encountered the cold air inside, their eyes went wide.
Even Chieftain Akuysh was amazed.
"I didn't think it'd really be this cool, kuiik."
Admiration gleamed in the chieftain's pot-lid-sized eyes as he looked around.
Lloyd shrugged.
"So you didn't trust me much?"
"Honestly, yeah. I expected just a slightly cool basement. But this... kuiik."
"No need to be so impressed. Just manage the door well. Keep it sealed tight in summer, open for cold winds in winter."
Lloyd also shared tips on preserving the ice, and the timing for adding new ice in winter.
All core know-how for operating the storage.
Perhaps because of that.
"Indeed, kuiik."
Akuysh's pot-lid-sized palm clapped Lloyd's shoulder.
The chieftain's eyes held trust transcending species.
"With this cold, we can store meat until winter. Human Lloyd, thank you sincerely. You're not just the benefactor who saved my son—you're a true friend and warrior who solved our tribe's long-standing problem, kuiik."
"So you acknowledge me as a warrior?"
"Of course, kuiik."
"No need to carry Ural Mountains' rice-cake wild boar... no, the frost statues you guys can barely lift for leg workouts?"
"That goes without saying, kuiik."
Chieftain Akuysh nodded his massive head.
"We're friends now. We can understand and accept your frail, weak, fragile, soft, pitiful anchovy-like form that can't do leg workouts, kuiik."
"Hey, come on."
"Just kidding, kahahah, kuiik!"
Lloyd laughed in disbelief, Akuysh boomed heartily—that moment.
Ding-dong.
An unexpected message appeared before Lloyd's eyes.
[Tribe Unlocked]
[Orc Chieftain Akuysh has accepted you as a true friend.]
[The orc tribe now sees you as an equal friend.]
[You can raise favorability with orcs and earn RP.]
[100 RP awarded as tribe unlock bonus.]
[Current RP: 611]
'Huh?'
Lloyd's eyes widened.
'I can earn RP from orcs now?'
Truth be told, he'd hoped for this since rescuing Aroshi.
Maybe he could buy favor from Aroshi and get RP.
But oddly, no RP came.
No favorability messages at all.
Even after Aroshi saw him as a benefactor.
'So I figured orcs just didn't give RP.'
He'd given up inwardly.
Shelved the hope.
'But it was different. There was another reason I couldn't get RP.'
The barrier of species.
Not having built equal friendship with the tribe.
That's why no RP from orcs.
But now that restriction was lifted.
'Unexpected harvest.'
Lloyd resolved to stay friendly with this orc tribe going forward.
Of course, he wouldn't pass up the rewards he could claim now.
"Then it's time to fulfill the contract."
"Indeed. You built us the stone ice storage, so we give you our exercise equipment, kuiiik!"
"Then as per the contract, I'll hand over the stone exercise gear."
He'd made the equipment in spare moments while building the storage.
Using Bangul to spin steel poop into bars for pull-up bars.
Carving granite for weights.
Thus, super-heavy dumbbells, barbells, and more—gifts for the orc tribe.
In exchange, he got all their piled-up gold and silver treasures, of course.
But the rewards didn't end there.
"I, Aroshi, promised my benefactor Lloyd! If Lloyd becomes a warrior, I'd send 120 orc males to the territory. Aroshi is a manly warrior. Today, I, Aroshi, keep my promise, kuiiik!"
Aroshi's shout rang out.
120 muscle-bound orc warriors lined up.
Volunteers dispatched to Frontera Barony.
"Humans are frail, kuiik!"
"Want to teach exercise, kuiik!"
"We must go, kuiiik!"
Like that, 120 muscle evangelists—no, dispatched personnel—were assembled in a flash.
Lloyd looked at them and smiled warmly.
'Didn't expect to score this big.'
Friendship with orcs unlocked RP.
Swept up all the gold and silver in the village.
120 orc warriors as laborers.
Plus valuable magic materials from defeating the black mage.
The more he tallied, the warmer his heart grew.
'Great. Awesome.'
The mega-profit plan he'd envisioned since finding Aroshi in the ant cave.
Now an even grander picture than he'd drawn back then.
"Then let's head out right away."
They set off home amid the orc tribe's enthusiastic send-off.
Lloyd and Haviel, 40 engineering corps soldiers, plus 120 orc warriors.
Such a large group made the mountain crossing lively.
Yet safe from monster threats.
Most monsters slunk away at the sight of 120 orcs.
The occasional bold(?) attacker faced Haviel and the orc warriors' counterattack. They were stripped to the soul—excellent protein sources.
Like that, the group fiercely crossed the mountains.
Despite the huge, heavy gold and silver from the orc village weighing them down—no issues.
All items the orc warriors had used as exercise gear.
"Carrying this while walking is real workout, kuiik!"
"Shoulders getting pumped, kuiik!"
"Fat's burning, kuiiik!"
Too heavy for normal humans.
But orcs loved it.
Thrilled at the muscle stimulation.
Just like gym bros yelling iron is king.
They even fought over the heaviest loads.
Like that, they walked, chattered, and crossed the mountains over ten days.
Finally, a familiar sight unfolded.
Frontera Territory.
Home sweet home.
But the baron's mansion they returned to held an unexpected situation.
"Young Master Lloyd, the baron is in the drawing room now."
The administrative officer, greeting in place of the baron couple, bowed.
Lloyd asked back.
"Drawing room? Guests?"
"Yes."
"Who?"
"Well...."
"Well?"
"Mr. Shailo and Mr. Mitrov."
"Who're they?"
"Uh, the ones who lent the baron high-interest loans...."
"Ah. Loan sharks?"
He remembered.
The skinny and fat guys who'd visited the baron last time.
He'd chased them off with polite bluffing and veiled threats.
Lloyd recalled and grinned.
"Perfect timing."
Really perfect.
He'd been about to check on the loan shark debts.
'They must vibe with me somehow. Showing up exactly when needed. Thanks.'
Lloyd headed to the drawing room.
Humming unconsciously at the thought of negotiating with the loan sharks today.
(End of Chapter 41)
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