Chapter 636 – The Visit of King Melvin

The next day. Once again, I diligently worked on fortress construction with the Golems in tow.

Upon arriving at the designated location, I picked up a medal from the wooden boxes the Golems were carrying and reconstructed one from the line, transforming it into a wall blocking the passageway. Simultaneously, I deployed a Magic Circle while embedding the medal into the wall. Pouring in magical power, I controlled the Spell Formula, converting it into a Golem with permanent functions rather than a simple temporary one.

“Open.”

At my command, the wall warped and transformed into an arch-shaped decoration that closely resembled part of the passageway. These arch-shaped decorations were created throughout the fortress both to strengthen the passageways and for camouflage purposes. The room entrances had similar decorations.

“Close.”

With another command, the arch section transformed back into a wall. No seams were visible—it completely assimilated with the surrounding building materials. It shared some similarities with the Spell Formulas used by Hider and Seeker. If there was a door to a Hidden Room, it could even be buried to appear as a wall.

Well… The operational tests seemed to be going fine.

“What… are the conditions for its operation?” Princess Stephania asked, having watched the process with curiosity.

“It can operate on commands from the command center, or it can be set to respond to the judgment of knights or soldiers on site. Basically, we register the fortress’s responsible person… and that person can issue commands, or individuals authorized by the responsible person can have temporary command authority. The Verdgar royal family holds higher command authority. We’ve implemented various measures to prevent misuse, among other anticipated issues.”

“That’s reassuring.”

Princess Stephania seemed satisfied with my response, nodding with a smile.

Since the Golems’ behaviors—like opening, closing, and repairs—were quite simple, there was naturally considerable spare capacity in the medals.

Therefore, I incorporated Contract Magic and other measures to establish the Verdgar royal family’s command authority, some exceptional rules, and safeguards against Golem misuse.

This was meant to prevent the fortress from being used for rebellious acts like someone seizing it and barricading themselves inside. While there were no immediate concerns, it was a consideration for the future. It would be problematic if demons took control of it too.

“In any case, some training to familiarize oneself with the fortress interior might be necessary.”

“Yes, I believe that training is essential,” I agreed with Princess Adriana’s words.

The Golems were grouped by section, with individual numbers assigned to each, allowing flexible commands from the command center—like completely sealing off a specific section or opening/closing a passageway—depending on the battle situation.

Whoever commanded the fortress needed to master these aspects.

To prepare for enemy incursions into the fortress interior, they should train extensively, simulating practical scenarios like quickly evacuating allies, outmaneuvering enemies, or setting up ambushes.

After finishing the work of placing Golems throughout the fortress to block window frames and passageways, I proceeded with miscellaneous tasks like laying Mithril Silver wires and speaking tubes inside the fortress.

“Testing, testing. Theo-kun, can you hear me?” Alfred’s voice came through the speaking tube from the command center where he was working.

“I can hear you. Can you see me from there?”

I waved toward the monitoring Magical Creature integrated into the wall. If the Magic Tool was functioning correctly, Alfred in the command center should be able to see me.

“I see you waving over there. This seems to be working fine too.”

Hmm. The operational tests are proceeding smoothly.

“—Ah. Contacting Theo-kun. Reports from the watchtower indicate a Dragon Palanquin bearing the royal emblem approaching from the south, escorted by a Knight Order. It seems His Majesty Melvin has arrived.”

“Understood. I’ll go greet him.”

We had received a communication via the Communication Device this morning. When asked about the fortress’s progress, I replied that the framework was complete and we were now in the stage of installing Magic Tools to enhance its completeness. He said he had some free time from his duties and would come see it. King Melvin is quite agile.

“—Oh my. To think that old, dilapidated fortress has taken such a form.”

I flew south through the sky astride the Lindwurm to meet King Melvin.

The Knight Order Commander and members of the Demon-Slaying Knight Order accompanied him as escorts. After brief greetings, I guided them to the fortress, where King Melvin leaned out the Dragon Palanquin’s window with a cheerful laugh.

On the ground, everyone was lined up to welcome King Melvin.

“The interior isn’t fully completed yet, and we’re short on bedding and such in some areas.”

“No, no. It’s quite impressive even at this stage. Moreover, from what I’ve heard from you, won’t installing the Magic Tools require manpower? I checked with the Demon-Slaying Knight Order, and they said camping gear would suffice.”

“That’s… Thank you for your consideration.”

When I replied, King Melvin grinned cheerfully.

Indeed. Starting with Elliot, the Magic Knight, the Demon-Slaying Knight Order had personnel skilled in magical matters who could handle Magic Tool installation… But judging by his earlier laughter, I got the impression King Melvin was also eager to see the fortress soon.

“We also have surplus preserved food procured from the Glacial Forest, so this is part of our training too. Arrangements for transporting supplies to the fortress are already underway,” Elliot reported. I see.

As the fortress drew near, we descended. The Dragon Palanquin slowly touched down, and Simon and the others welcomed King Melvin’s arrival.

“Your Majesty.”

“Yes. It’s good to see you looking well, Simon.”

King Melvin smiled at Simon, who was bowing in a subject’s greeting.

“As I wrote in the letter. Simon, I want you to cooperate with Theodore and the Demon-Slaying Knight Order, dedicating your efforts to this fortress’s defense during the war with the demons. And of course, after the war with the demons ends too. I want you to protect the safety of this fortress and those traveling the highway.”

After all, it was Simon’s skill that had long guarded the place known as the highway’s treacherous point.

According to King Melvin, Simon had repeatedly protected travelers and merchants on the highway from monsters and worked with adventurers on joint operations to take down large monsters.

Thus, he was trusted by both knights and adventurers. A capable commander who worked his way up through the ranks. A veteran knight, brave and calm, with knowledge of the terrain. There was no reason not to appoint him.

“That’s… overly generous words. I pledge my life to fulfill this duty.”

Simon seemed deeply moved by King Melvin’s words. After finishing his greetings to the king, he also exchanged greetings with Elliot.

“Lord Elliot, I’ve long heard of you. Though I, Simon, am of limited talent, I wish to assist Lord Theodore, Lord Elliot, and the Demon-Slaying Knight Order to the best of my ability.”

“How courteous of you. Such high praise makes me feel the weight of responsibility. Please take care of me.”

Elliot and Simon shook hands. Simon then shook hands with me again.

With the introductions complete, I finally guided King Melvin and the others inside the fortress.

“Open the gate!”

At my call, the thick gate in the western outer wall opened by itself. The outer gate had also been Golemized.

We entered through the gate into the fortress grounds. Passing through the thick door of the main building, we proceeded inside the fortress.

King Melvin made an impressed sound as the walls transformed into passageways at his command.

“Hmm… This is truly marvelous.”

“By manipulating intersections in the passageways, it’s possible to make intruders go in circles or set up ambushes. Right now… we’re heading directly to the command center.”

While guiding them through the fortress interior, I first took King Melvin to the command center.

The command center was the fortress’s core—the most heavily defended location. Monitors displaying various areas and speaking tubes were installed in the walls.

And in one corner of the room, five or six larger Magic Stones were lined up.

“This scene reminds me of the Sirius’s bridge.”

“Yes. Though it’s not fully completed yet, from the command center, you can grasp the situation inside and outside the fortress and transmit commands to various locations. Those Magic Stones—by charging them with magical power, it transmits that power through the Mithril Silver wires to the Golems embedded throughout. Since the Golems only perform simple actions, they probably won’t consume much magical power unless there’s an emergency.”

After explaining, I looked at the sections displayed on the monitors and issued commands to the Golems through the speaking tubes.

“West wing first floor. Seal passageways from sections 2 to 4.”

As I spoke, the open passageways closed. The Earth Magic model was placed on the command center desk… but this too had already been modified into a Golem. Linked to the command, the model’s passageways blocked up. It was for confirming the status of passageways and windows.

“Oh! This is fascinating.”

King Melvin laughed delightedly.

“West wing first floor. Release sections 2 to 4.”

When I canceled the command, the sealed passageways opened. Naturally, the model moved in sync.

“That’s how it works. I think some training is necessary to make full use of the fortress. To fully implement the Mechanisms throughout the fortress, we need time to install Magic Tools and Magical Creatures.”

“Hmm… This… might feel like commanding the fortress itself.”

King Melvin’s observation was spot-on. Someone trained as a commander would be well-suited to operating the entire fortress. You could think of it as having subordinates who can instantly block doors and passageways stationed everywhere.

“Any issues so far?”

He asked.

“The Magic Tool installation and such will be done soon. After that, we just need to check for malfunctions and conduct training… If there’s any remaining problem, it might be the timing for placing the Miasma Orb in the Sealing Tower. If we do it too early, the enemy will adapt, so I think it’s best to time it carefully.”

“Indeed. We should likely time it just before the Spirit King’s Seal weakens.”

Well, the fortress has taken shape now. All that’s left is to implement various features, conduct training, and improve its completeness.