I Became the Demon Lord and my Territory is an Uninhabited Island - Chapter 95: That time when guests came to the island
Library

Chapter 95: That time when guests came to the island

Chapter 95: That time when guests came to the island

PR: Filip/Gecko

Its been ten days since I handed over the beans to Nils-san. I was drying more when Fleur-san said something.

This child is still alive you know?

The germ didnt die even though its been dried huh?

How weak is it?

Hmm. Like the captain around the third day being abandoned at the beach

She still remembers that huh? Her memorys quite something.

Then its close to death I guess. We can just put it in storage right now and it will be dead by the time its being transported on a s.h.i.+p, right?

Yeah but its not guaranteed. If you buy a large amount of this sack and dump its contents on the ground, they might sprout

Thats true. Even considering how rare it is, I guess something should be done to prevent that.

Hmm. I wonder if its better if we boil them or just let several of them sprout. It will take some time until well have enough harvest to export them though. Can we get some cuttings to increase their numbers?

Cut off the base of the branch and the tip so they wont grow any further. Pluck off the leaves by the base then after two months, it would start to bud and roots will start to come out

Thats pretty quick. Hmm, what should I do?

That is if they take root though. Well, Ill let you decide. Later~

With that said, Fleur-san waved her hand and then turned back into a flower. Ill trust what she said for now and leave it as is while hoping that the germ dies.

Twenty days after that, Palma-san informed us that a merchant s.h.i.+p entered the bay. It seems like they anch.o.r.ed their s.h.i.+p and were approaching the island on a small boat.

There was a man on board waving his hand. It was Nils-san.

Some time ago when I went to the coffee shop to check on the stock, the manager gave me a letter saying,

I am heading for your island to buy some coffee beans. I will be taking three people along with me as they have asked how to roast coffee beans

This must be that then.

It has been a while

It has. Thank you for taking the time

It was nothing. Well anyway, there has been a significant development in this place, huh? Its smaller than most of the villages around here but you now have a couple of facilities here and there and the number of fields increased

We plan to keep on developing it further. We will be imposing on you again when we do

I understand. I look forward to working with you again. Now, these are my companions

My name is Alban. Nice to meet you. I am here to look over these two and to broaden my horizons

He was a middle-aged man wearing pants and a s.h.i.+rt with a casual tie. He had a straight posture and a dignified look on his face. Hes probably a butler or something.

I am Tony and I came to study how coffee is roasted

This human was dressed no differently from a commoner but something about him makes me think that he was a cook.

And Im Anita. I came here to learn how to roast coffee and make sweets

She was wearing a slightly plain s.h.i.+rt and skirt. She might have worn that outfit while taking into consideration that she might get dirty. Also, since she talked about making sweets, she might be a maid.

Im Caam. As you can see, Im a demonkin but I am more or less the person-in-charge of this island

With the introductions done, I would like you to teach these two right away. Would that be alright?

I dont mind. We can use the multi-purpose house in the area further up the road from here where were building our village. Its going to be a bit of a walk though

Multi-purpose house?

Its just as it says. We have a slightly larger room that we use for meetings, feasts, or a place to educate the children

I see

Alban-san must have been satisfied by that explanation since he didnt ask further but the others did.

Whats that enclosure?

Are you raising some kind of fish?

Was this road built this wide so carriages can pa.s.s through it?

Did you know about the rumors that a Demon Lord lives on this island and was about to build his castle?

I made sure to answer all of their questions one by one. Nils-san was also listening with interest as this is the first time he has been here since we started developing the island.

This place here is the planned castle site of the former Demon Lord we discussed earlier. Were making full use of the place since work already went into it. The guest lodging is this way. Please leave your luggage by the dining room in the meantime as I will be asking for someone to clean the rooms youll be using and dry the beddings in the sun

With that said, I showed them to a house near the church.

Understood

We are somewhat unprepared for guests so I apologize for the inconvenience. As soon as the course is over, Ill be giving a brief explanation about the houses so please ask your questions then

Im just grateful for not needing to sleep on the ground since our journey here was exhausting. Im not used to riding on a s.h.i.+p after all so I couldnt sleep well

The other two nodded when they heard that. Do they not travel a lot by boat? As for me, I dont really mind it as long as there isnt a storm or anything.

After that, I asked Oda-san to come over and give them a short course on how to brew coffee.

There isnt anything special to teach you but please look over here. These are the beans before they are s.h.i.+pped off

Oda-san took out some of the dried beans in a small pouch and then laid them on a white sheet of paper.

We roast it, sort it out into eight types and thats all of it

With that said, he took out eight differently colored beans ranging from light brown to glossy black then laid them out on the paper.

The lighter colored ones are light roast then go all the way to dark roast. The lighter the color, the more acidic it is. And as it grows darker, it becomes more bitter and richer in flavor

When I told Oda-san about the contents of the letter I received from Nils-san, he was so happy that he started roasting some beans. I wonder if hes done something like this before? We could seriously open up a cla.s.s for this.

Come to think of it, he probably wont mention blends, would he? Ive heard about mixing different types of beans roasted in varying degrees and different blending ratios after all.

If you want your head to feel refreshed then I recommend you roast the beans to this level. The brew thats suitable for most people is around this level. If the color is dark, I suggest that you add milk and sugar to it so please add what suits your preference

He explained it in a way that ordinary people can understand. Even I understood that. I was only roasting it by imitating what Ive seen after all.

You use a thin piece of metal like this with holes drilled in it thats small enough to prevent the beans from falling out to roast it but it will work with a frying pan as well. Ill show you how its done

With that said, he put the beans on the frying pan and then roasted them while frequently stirring.

Soon, youll begin to hear crackling noises and steam will start to appear as you keep roasting it. At that point, the unique smell of coffee would start to come out

He kept taking out the beans from time to time and then sorting them out together with the ones that were on top of the paper. He kept stirring the beans for over twenty minutes. Looking at the process, I feel ashamed for thinking it would be easy to roast it and make it dark when I started.

After the roasting lesson was over, they moved on to the ground lesson.

The brewing and extraction method differs depending on how fine you grind the beans. The shop doesnt filter the crushed beans for hygiene reasons but if you are concerned about them, you can put the beans in a cloth like this and run hot water through it. How about you guys try it out yourselves?

Oda-san took out roasted beans from a different pouch and ground them to his liking. It wasnt quite a fine grind but it wasnt as coa.r.s.e as the one served in the shop. After that, he put the ground coffee into a cloth filter. When hot water pa.s.sed through the filter, it expanded and bubbles came out as the cup became filled with coffee.

Here you go

Its the first time Ive seen it but there were no hesitations in your movements and it was amazing

Itll become second nature to you if you do it enough times. Go ahead and drink it before it gets cold

After saying that, he distributed the coffee to our three guests. I didnt get any if youre wondering. Its a bit mean of him even though I was working hard behind the scenes grinding beans to make soy milk for him.

This is soy milk. This island doesnt have cows so we use it as a subst.i.tute for milk. Well, this still depends on your tastes so please adjust it to suit your preference

After the lesson was over, he made them try out in practice what they just learned. They burned the beans or unevenly roasted them so he gave them advice to avoid that.

Well then, as for me, I would like to learn how to use cocoa and chocolate to make treats

Anita-san said that while looking at me.

ah, I guess Im the one in charge of sweets. I totally forgot. I wonder if we have any ingredients we can use? Ah, you do have some knowledge about this dont you?

Yes, I can make them reasonably well

With that said, I rummaged around the kitchen. There were ingredients for the chiffon cake I gave to the children before so I just added the cocoa powder to the mix. After baking it, I sliced it into square pieces then sprinkled the rest of the chocolate on top.

Its just a simple cake but I mixed the cocoa powder into the flour. Please try to rearrange recipes just like that by yourself. Something like castella would probably be a good start since they just need eggs, sugar, and flour

Its impressive how you can make something amazing like this on the fly

Im already used to making them after all

Huh. I feel like Ive heard Oda-san say something similar before.

It was a pretty busy day. Even after that, Alban-san kept asking about various things as he watched Oda-san and Tony-san roasting the beans, I taught Anita-san other recipes that could be remodeled to use chocolate or cocoa, and I even got to try making that chocolate wrapped bread dough thats sold at convenience stores and other places.

The rooms are small but its private and I think they are better than a s.h.i.+ps cabin

Were already thankful to be able to rest in private rooms. Thank you for all your considerations

No problem. I should also mention that the bath is over here

I took them to the bathroom with a small tub.

Abath?

Yes. We more or less have a public bathing area down below but we recommend that every household install one of these thinking that people sometimes feel like soaking in warm water during their own time. To use it, all you have to do is boil water in a large pot made specifically for this purpose on a stove thats slightly elevated outside. Once the water comes to a boil, you insert this wooden frame into the side, pull out the stopper while making sure you dont get scalded, and drain the water into the tub inside. If you can use magic, you can just dump the water into the pot

We were going to make a firewood heated tub or a cauldron bath but considering the availability of materials among other things, this was the lowest cost method we could come up with. We just decided to cut a small hole on the tubs wall and let water from a bath heater flow into it. Once the developed land on the island has become larger, I would also like to build a large public bathhouse. The hot spring is pretty far after all.

No no no, theres no one out there whod use magic for a simple task like that

Thats true. I did hear from Johnson-san that its not easy for humans to be able to use magic. Who is that you ask? Hes the weird human in the apartment I used to live in.

Well, its a private room so even if you dont want to get into a bath, you can wipe your body with a warm towel and you only need to draw water once. If youre having problems with boiling the water, you may use the wet towel here instead. We will load the cargo onto the merchants vessel tomorrow morning so please relax until then. As for your meals, I apologize but can you please prepare them yourselves? We will be providing you with the ingredients you require

That is more than enough. We appreciate your consideration

Well then, Ill be taking my leave

Now then, what do you think? Please let me know your opinions

The humans and the demonkin are cheerful and very hygienic, arent they? That well that pumps water by moving a stick up and down, its really convenient, isnt it? I think its wonderful how they built a roof over the well and that device to keep the garbage from going in. They even talked about how every household has its bathtub

Thats right. I also have a similar impression. The demonkin who calls himself their representative is friendly. He seems intelligent as well. The other demonkin around are friendly too and they even have a human church so its clear how much consideration went into this. I was also surprised that they have a doctor here

I agree. Apart from that, although its still being built, I believe they are making roads designed for horse-drawn carriages to pa.s.s through. Itll be durable too since theyre making cobble-paved roads the whole way. Theyre raising livestock here and they seem like theyre getting along well with their neighbors from seeing how they interact with the sahagin and harpies that came by. They also have a small but efficient salt production method and sugar made from special materials. They have honey too so they must have a lot of beehives here. Did you see the thing that was at the place where we got off the boat? The one with salt.w.a.ter dripping off some leaves? That uses sunlight to get rid of the excess moisture to minimize the amount of firewood used. They have that well too. There are some pretty clever people here, huh?

They also have a small windmill. I think youll be able to mill flour anywhere if you have those. Also, I think it would even be easy to put away if theres a storm coming

I saw that wolves were roaming around the streets. I dont know who was it that tamed them but are they usually that docile? Ive heard that theyre at least more fearsome than wild dogs but I was surprised seeing the children playing with them without fear

Alright, I have other work to do so if anyone comes to visit, please tell them that Im tired and asleep. Fortunately, it gets dark early on because of the mountain in the center of the island and there are no bars yet so its quiet at night

Understood

I changed into the darkest clothes possible and wore leather footwear that wont make a noise when I walk. After that, I carefully exited out of the window and then went to the workshop and storage area that we visited earlier in the day in order to obtain useful information.

If we can just obtain coffee seeds, they could be grown in our lords territory and we could profit from them. Its just a matter of getting it before the sun rises.

The craftsmens workshop was at the side of the church so it was not going to be difficult to get there. The moonlight was a problem but on the other hand, its just enough light to be able to identify things. Fortunately, there doesnt seem to be anyone around. Ill take this opportunity to gather information.

In the blacksmith workshop, there were stone and lumber processing areas as well as some carpenters tools. There are a lot of items here like utensils and plates that are still being made. There probably wont be any useful information here.

There was also some kind of iron thing with a rounded hollow cavity inside attached to a pole and some farming tools carefully laid out but nothing particularly valuable. I was looking for some kind of special blueprint but they didnt have a shelf to put doc.u.ments in. I thought they would have had the plans lying around for that well that draws water by moving a stick but it seems like they arent so naive. They probably got it ingrained in their heads. I wanted to take that back as a bonus but it would be suspicious if it goes missing so I should hold myself back.

The carpenters tools are here so this area must be the carpenters works.p.a.ce. Short pieces of wood were being worked on intricately and connected into a longer piece of wood. They didnt use any nails at all. I thought it was a splendid processing method however they probably cant connect long pieces of wood without doing it like this on this island.

I looked for their windmill blueprints inside a shelf where I thought they stored their doc.u.ments but I didnt find them so I just gave up and decided to look for something else. I thought that the wood chips that were scattered around my feet were large and coa.r.s.e for a saw but I deemed that it wasnt particularly important.

The next area had stone sc.r.a.p scattered around so I presumed that this is where they worked on it but I was surprised when I saw the material that was piled up. There were stones with a surface that was so cleanly cut that youd think they were just a slab of wood that they were working on. Is it really possible to get such a clean-cut? I picked up the sc.r.a.p stones and nothing was out of the norm about it. It was just regular stone.

I was really curious how they did this but the tools they had were just common well-worn stone chisels and hammers.

I should go to the building they called a multipurpose house but from what Ive seen, it only had the coffee that man brought. When that demonkin opened up the cupboard, I only saw flour and eggs. Its probably going to be risky going there as well.

I dont even know how they grow it in the first place. Does it grow like tomatoes or in the ground like potatoes? I have no idea. They would get suspicious if we come back several times so Ill just make my report. Should we get different people to come here the honest way or get someone to gather information while disguised as a castaway? Its probably faster with the latter though.

I found some wheel tracks so I decided to follow it thinking I would find the secret to how they cut the stones. I continued following the tracks while making sure to pay attention behind me. The tracks eventually led me to a quarry which left me speechless.

There was a cleanly cut low stone cliff. How in the world did they manage to cut it this clean? Its way too smooth. You would think it was just one large stone wall. A stone wall like this by itself would be worth a fortune.

While I was thinking that, I suddenly got grabbed by the neck from behind and there was something sharp held lightly against my cheek.

Caam, the man you were talking about is on the move

Fleur-san reported while I was messing around with Wulf.

As expected. I thought it was strange how they were asking about a lot of things after all. Thank you for informing me

As I said that, I stopped patting Wulf and began preparing.

No problem. Hes loitering around the industrial district right now

I see He must be searching for all sorts of things

I wore black clothes apart from the things I usually prepare. Considering the color of my skin, it would be alright even if I was naked but since bugs exist Ill continue wearing dark clothes even if its hot.

Hes really interested in the wood right now

Ah, that thing huh? The one that connects two pieces of wood to make it longer. Its convenient no matter how you put it. I knew about it but I didnt know how to actually do it so Oda-san really helped me out. The craftsmen were grateful to learn it as well. Alright, Im off

Take care~. If anything happens, call out in a low voice

Gotcha

With that said, I began with my silent operation.

Looking from a distance at the industrial district, I could see him looking through the filing cabinet. At least do it a bit more skillfully, man. I mean, its great for us but it makes me feel empty the way hes searching for things.

Give it back Give back the excitement I felt thinking I would see someone whos an incredibly trained special forces agent doing covert ops. Now hes at the stone mill area. Seems like hes looking intently at something. He picked up a stone and started stroking it in his hand for some reason. I guess it cant be helped with how cleanly cut that surface is.

Ah, hes pondering something now. I should get a bit closer.

The coffee how it grows disguised as a castaway gather information

Alright, thats no good. Theres no hope for him if hes letting his thoughts leak out. I should go and ~~threaten~~ persuade him. Looks like hes heading to the quarry. I guess Ill let him roam free a bit longer and maintain my distance.

It looked like Alban-san was surprised when he saw the state of our quarry. If Im going to act then now is the time.

I produced an Obsidian Knife in my hand, grabbed Alban-san by the neck then held the knife against his cheek

.

Good evening. Did you enjoy your stroll? Its a wonderful time to be moon bathing with how the moonlight hits the cliff, isnt it?

Yes. It truly is a splendid place. If only there wasnt a knife being held against me

Your thoughts leaked out a bit there you know? Thats no good at all. I expected you to be better than that

I will do so the next time

Its amazing how you think there will be a next time. What is your basis for that positivity?

My absence will be used as a pretext for an invasion you know?

Oh~ is that so? Thats really scary isnt it~? Then I would be willing to let it slide this one time as long as you comply with my conditions

I put the knife closer to his face and then lowered my voice mid-sentence to threaten him.

Youve piqued my interest. Could you tell me more?

Blood dripped down my left arm and soaked my clothes making the hot and humid night even more uncomfortable.

We are still going to sell you coffee but we would like to get a large silver coin per sack as a nuisance fee from either your employer or your own personal funds

Thats a wonderful proposition but isnt that pretty expensive for coffee?

Is that right? But I think thats pretty cheap considering your life is on the line. Its also still considerably rare but I dont really mind giving a sc.u.mbags subordinate who was planning on taking it easy by s.n.a.t.c.hing up a money tree a painful experience you know?

I widened his wound as I slid the knife I was holding across his cheek.

Are you going to put this island in danger?

Actually, this island has a terrible epidemic going around the island and people who get sick on the s.h.i.+p can get thrown overboard you know?

How terrifying. Is it some kind of rare disease that causes cuts all over the body?

Im getting tired of talking like this. So what now?

I would appreciate it if you could release me

Itll cost you a large silver coin per bag though

Thats a tall order you know?

I see. Thats really unfortunate then

I used physical enhancement and blocked the flow of Alban-sans artery to make him faint. I picked up a fist-sized stone nearby and forced it into his mouth even if it sc.r.a.ped it against his front teeth. After that, I took off his jacket and covered his face with it, and tied the sleeves to secure it.

Just like that, I carried him over my shoulder then went to the area where there were reports of bear sightings. I cut the tendons of his arms and legs so he wont be able to move then closed the wound with healing magic. With that done, I kicked his head then waited for him to start making a fuss to make sure he was awake.

Im sure well find your bear-eaten corpse in the morning so Ill make sure the other two get to see the sc.r.a.ps of your bloodstained clothing. The other two havent shown any suspicious movements yet so Ill let them go home. If they do, Ill make sure to give you guys a wonderful reunion in this place

I left Alban-san crawling around like a caterpillar there and went back.

Ah, welcome back. Youre pretty harsh, arent ya? For someone who doesnt like killing, Im surprised we immediately went that route

well yeah. Even though I hate it, it cant be helped. I could have prevented this outcome if I negotiated better but what do you think?

Huh? Doesnt matter either way

I see Let me know if the other two start making their moves or when that guy gets attacked by the bear. Ill go to sleep. Good night

Yeah yeah. You dont have to blame yourself you know?

I guess. It was for everyones safety after all. Were also about to run out of money so I want to sell coffee any way I can

After that, I was told by Fleur-san that Alban-san got attacked by the bear. I thanked her for informing me then went back to sleep with peace of mind.

Good morning. Did you rest well?

I started talking to them while acting like I didnt know anything.

U-um

Anita-san was a bit fl.u.s.tered and looked toward Toni-san.

Alban-san was gone when we woke up this morning

Alban-san? I exchanged greetings with several people at the well on the way here but I didnt see him

Is that so? I wonder where he went?

Tony-san was starting to panic as he said that.

Please wait for a while. Ill go get someone you can rely on when it comes to searching for people

I went away and came back together with Wulf.

You can count on this guys good nose so please lend me some of Alban-sans clothes

Ah right away!

After that, Tony-san brought back some clothes so I let Wulf smell them.

Wulf, can you go and look for this scent?

Wafun!

With that bark, he started sniffing the ground. We walked towards the industrial district where he continued smelling all sorts of places then we headed into the forest instead of the quarry. What a smart dog I mean wolf. Hes able to read the situation well.

In the place where we ended up, we found some mercilessly devoured flesh and bones as well as sc.r.a.ps of cloth.

Uegh!

Tony-san who followed along held his mouth and turned away while gagging.

A bear huh? There have been reports of one roaming around here after all. I wonder if he was attacked here or did he get attacked while he was running away

The leader of the hunting group murmured as he readied his bow and started to be vigilant of our surroundings. The bear was already gone so they called out several men to go together.

Someone call Keith-san, please. We need to hunt it before anyone else gets hurt

Understood!

Tony-san, I know youre not comfortable looking but is there anything you recognize?

U-uhm Ah, I remember that ring. Its the ring Alban-san had

He pointed at the ring on the finger that was connected to what I think was a half-eaten wrist.

I see The scent from his clothes also led us here so is it alright to a.s.sume that this corpse is Alban-san?

yes

What should we do with the corpse? Will you be bringing it back with you even if its just a portion of it?

yes. Lets go with that

Can anyone please call Adrea-san?

Yes

After saying that, Keith arrived and when he saw the corpse, his expression became slightly distorted then he immediately went into the forest. When Adrea-san arrived, she said a prayer, wrapped the arm with the ring with a cloth, put it in a box then gave it to Tony.

There was an unfortunate incident but we have an order of a hundred bags of coffee, sugar, and honey so would it be alright if we load them on your s.h.i.+p?

Yes. Thats right, It was unfortunate but theres nothing we can do about it. I apologize but Tony-san and Anita-san, were going to depart soon so please prepare your and Alban-sans luggage. We will go ahead and load the cargo onto the s.h.i.+p

Understood

After Nils-san said that, we loaded the flat-bottomed boat with the help of the aquatic demonkin. It took a couple of trips but once we had loaded everything, Nils-san whispered to me.

Caam-san, did you do it?

Do what?

Kill Alban-san

Ah, it wasnt me. It was the bear

I didnt think you would easily let others in on the secrets of coffee and other goods that youre selling in your shop but still

Nils-san this was just an accident. An accident. This death It was caused by a piece of s.h.i.+t underling who made a blunder while snooping around the island in the middle of the night. It was not me who killed him. I had nothing to do with it. If we continue this conversation, I might just have to reconsider our relations.h.i.+p, Nils-san. I dont really want to spend more time looking for a new merchant if I can help it. I was thinking of getting along better with you as well. Hmm, what to do

I interrupted Nils-san mid-sentence and warned him not to threaten me in a really cold and calm manner that I havent shown him before.

Thats true. This was an unfortunate accident where he was attacked by a bear while out for a walk in the middle of the night. My apologies

Nils-sans expression was a bit stiff but he spoke like normal.

Its fine. Everyone has misunderstandings. Anyway, I wont ask who their employer is and Im not interested at this moment. I think well get more idiots for a while but if someone comes to you asking you to bring them to the island, please dont worry about it and just bring them over. As long as they dont do anything stupid, theyre going to be fine

I returned to my normal state and Nils-san breathed a small sigh of relief.

Thats right. Thanks to you, pirates dont approach this area anymore so the journey is relatively safe until the third day. The sailors here are quite excellent, arent they?

Yes. We have formed a good relations.h.i.+p with the neighboring sahagin and mermaids so they have helped us ensure the safety of the nearby waters together with our dependable sailors. They are pretty good as long as they dont drink on the job

There are quite a lot of benefits of being friends with demonkin, arent there?

Yeah. I think if we can get a harpy to accompany us next time, we can have them do surveillance from the sky so we dont have to stand watch during the day. Maybe we can get them to come along full time as a job

Well, I dont think there would be a lot of humans wholl approve of that though

Its still hard to overcome the large wall of discrimination huh? If its a port town with trade, we can get along relatively well. The church seems to be a pain though from what Ive heard

Thats true. That type of education narrows ones views. Even I used to think that the demonkin were terrifying because of that

Tsk. I wouldnt want to go anywhere else apart from that port town if thats the case

Cant blame you. Its still not possible right now

We had that conversation as we watched the cargo being loaded into the s.h.i.+p.

what do you think?

I think it was a bear. It might have just been set up to look like it was done by a bear though

By that representative?

He didnt act suspiciously and was very cooperative throughout so I think its unlikely

Thats true. He seems like a nice demonkin after all. Theres still a question though who did this?

That demonkin with a bow, Keith, he looked at the corpse and turned away in disgust so I dont think he did it either. The sahagin and the others who were loading cargo dont seem to come to land that often as well. It doesnt seem to be the work of a demonkin. Was it really just a bear?

There were no odd external injuries right?

I didnt see any wounds other than claw marks

well, we still have to make a report so lets just aggregate every piece of information that we have

Alright

Im not trying to change the subject but this soap, it smells really nice. I wonder where you can buy it? I havent seen it around at the port town after all

Did you take it?

Yeah. The soap looked brand new so I took it since I thought it was specifically for the guests. If possible, I would like to keep it after weve done our report

Anita-san seemed like a pretty candid woman.

AN: These two humans might not appear again in future chapters.