NOVEL NEXT Volume 8 8
About a week had passed since the construction of the casino began.
I was currently at the [Plains] dungeon room to do an inspection.
With terrific momentum, the construction was progressing well.
The scene of the Dwarf Smiths commanding the golems to build the large casino was undoubtedly a sight to behold, but the merchants shouldn’t be discounted so easily.
Right after receiving my permission to build in the [Plains]—or more accurately, near the casino—they had been frantically working hard to finish the new inns and restaurants just in time for the casino’s opening. To help them make it in time, I had lent them some Hippogriffs.
One such Hippogriff landed. Instead of materials though, the carriage carried a multitude of laborers.
It must have felt quite uncomfortable to ride that carriage, considering it’s not made for people. Is there even any space they can sit down in there?
The Dwarf Smiths were more focused on the completion of the casino at the moment. So, even with their increased numbers, the production of carriages for human transport was still not finished.
As for the existing carriages, they were made with parts that used Rorono’s [Materialization].
[Materialization] was Rorono’s ability to produce out of nothing but magic power a material that had exactly one spell that she herself must be able to use. And the function in most parts of the carriages was anti-gravity which Rorono was also using on her [Mechanical Warmaiden].
The Hippogriffs had very little magic power though. So, instead of the Hippogriffs’ own magic power, the carriages were powered using the surrounding’s mana.
Because of that, however, the performance of the anti-gravity materials dropped drastically. Still, it was enough to transport about a hundred people.
True, it did place a bit of burden on Rorono to make the parts, but compared to the work that the Dwarf Smith had spared her from, it was nothing.
Anyway, tagging with me on my inspection was Conanna. His company, the Curtrude Company was fully committed to the realization of the casino.
"Conanna, you’re not going to try a monopoly of things? Wouldn’t that earn you a bunch of profit?"
"Hahaha, even with my company, there’s just too much work to do. We’ve got our hands full just from the casino. If we add in the inns, the shops, the restaurants, we won’t have enough manpower. A merchant is greedy, and that’s good, but one should always be able to discern what they can and what they can’t handle. Otherwise, they can never be anything more than third-rate. Aside from that, even if I did try to do a monopoly, it will just invite the jealousy and ire of the other companies. They might choose to sabotage even the operation of the casino. So, rather than be blinded by greed and risk the casino—a potential golden egg laying goose—I’d rather do my best and help it grow."
What Conanna said was correct.
Building all the facilities that would welcome and serve the guests of the casino was a huge endeavor. If he tried to monopolize things, it would undoubtedly cause a commotion, at the least, which we just couldn’t afford.
Honestly, the other companies were doing great.
Because laborers from nearby cities had mostly been recruited by others already, each company had to use their connections, recruit people from cities that were farther away, and transport them here using the Hippogriffs.
Thanks to that, they were able to obtain a wealth of talented laborers cheaply and swiftly.
It was unexpected, but because the many hired laborers that would build the facilities as well as the employees that would work in those facilities were going to work far away from home, a lot of them had already decided to immigrate to Avalon, increasing our population count by the thousands.
The casino hasn’t even been built, much less opened, and yet my DP income had skyrocketed already. It was a happy miscalculation indeed.
Also, with the increased population, the market naturally became livelier. It was abuzz with expectations and hopes for the soon to open casino, resulting in stronger, more delicious emotions.
To encourage this trend even more, I provided the companies some financial aid which would be used for hiring workers.
"Procell-sama, you really are amazing. The casino’s intended to draw in guests, but the construction of it itself is bringing in a lot of people already, stimulating the city’s economy."
"Well, you know, tourists are great, but immigrants are the ones truly necessary for the city’s growth."
I reflexively told him a lie. After all, I couldn’t tell him this was not intended and was just a happy miscalculation.
At any rate, I was truly glad I decided to ask for help from the humans. I couldn’t stress that enough. If it was just me and my monsters, the whole endeavor might have ended up a failure, or worse, a disaster. If it was just us, we might have not hired enough staff, causing the flying dragon races to be our only real feature and thus resulting in the guests being immediately bored and deciding to never come back.
"Conanna, is the recruitment for the casino staff going well?"
"Yes. I’ve hired 30 famous dealers, and about 60 second-rate dealers to act as the first group’s support. We also have about 50 staff members that can lead the 200 that will purely be the working force."
It was nothing short of amazing.
In just a week, he had gathered that much famous and talented dealers.
According to him, these dealers were well-versed in the popular features in the other casinos, meaning we could implement some of them here in our own. In addition to the theaters for viewing the flying dragon races, people were now going to enjoy all the popular things like gambling games from the casinos all over the world right here. Obviously, we were going to hold back on some others, especially the more notorious ones.
In fact, the Dwarf Smiths were already modifying their plans for the casino building so that they could incorporate the ideas from the earlier recruited dealers.
Also, with the more than 300 non-dealer employees, it was more than enough to run the casino.
"Impressive. You really are the Merchant of Avalon."
"I am honored for such praise. But if I am the Merchant of Avalon, then certainly you are world’s greatest lord."
Without any boasting, Conanna gracefully accepted the title Merchant of Avalon. It was self-confidence, not conceit.
I then looked up in the sky to see two Darkness Dragons that each carried a container flying by.
Soon enough, those dragons descended enough in a space near the casino, dropped down the containers, and then flew back up.
After that, a Dwarf Smith came along and made an announcement through a megaphone.
"Everyone, the additional materials have arrived! Please fall in line!"
Upon hearing that, carriages rushed toward the container.
While waiting for that to finish, the Dwarf Smith undid the many latches of the container and then opened it. Among the items inside were lumber, stone materials, and steel materials.
The lumber was from the [Forest] room. Meanwhile, the blocks and steel materials were gathered from the [Mine] room and were then processed by the Dwarf Smiths present there for easier use.
No matter how much manpower there might be, a building still wouldn’t be built without enough materials.
Some merchant companies did manage to purchase materials from nearby cities, but it would take time before those were delivered. For the others, there just weren’t enough to meet the sudden rise in demand.
And so, I decided to support them via providing Avalon’s resources.
While that one Dwarf Smith distributed most of the container’s contents, another was accepting requests from the laborers to modify the shape of the iron to make such things like nails.
Meanwhile, another one diligently turned cement into concrete. The laborers did not know of concrete before, but after being shown it, it was instantly popular and was now being actively incorporated in the construction process especially due to the time it saved.
"Procell-sama, to provide so much resources for free, my, you truly are generous. Just how bottomless are your pockets, I sometimes wonder."
"Well, this is for the building of the casino, so this is a one-time only exemption."
As to be expected, doing so much was, well, doing too much. There was a real risk of making the humans feel like they didn’t have to earn their keep.
In this instance though, to make sure the casino and all the related facilities were built in two weeks’ time, I had little option but to do so.
"Procell-sama, once the casino is finally open, will you be sharing to the general public those materials? Those nails, for example, it’s astounding how they’re all of the same size and quality. The steel materials too are of so high quality. And then, there’s the concrete... to be honest, I think it’s a very revolutionary invention."
Conanna said so, smiling with his whole face.
Anyone who had seen the materials here would surely recognize that they were all high-quality items.
"How shrewd you are. I’ll think about it. I do intend to make the recipe of the concrete public. It won’t be hard from there, but I’ll leave it up to you all how you use the recipe."
"We are so blessed to live here in Avalon where money-bearing trees grow one after the other. There’s never a dull moment around you, Procell-sama."
Laughing a little, Conanna remarked so.
Just like that, the materials that were delivered by the Darkness Dragons had all been distributed.
That wasn’t an issue though. Avalon’s resources were limitless, especially those that were from the [Forest] and [Mine] dungeon room which only needed a set amount of time to replenish.
In fact, the next delivery was already scheduled.
Once again, I was reminded how good of an affinity city building and dungeon making had.
That all being said, we were supporting the merchants not only through those materials.
Ahh, speaking of.
Almost as if on cue, Mythological Foxes that were driving golem-drawn carriages came from the direction of the city.
"Everyone, the provisions are here! Get your delicious meal and refreshing cold drinks! Keep doing your best!"
""Woooooo!""
In the carriage, there was a great number of sandwiches made with white bread, salty sausages, and tomatoes. The luxurious white bread was made using high-quality wheat grown in the lands blessed by the elves. Just by sandwiching salty sausages and tomatoes between the bread, it was already plenty delicious.
Additionally, we were also offering a cask full of cold apple juice.
It was made with just the regular apples, but even so, it was potent enough to get rid of the laborers’ fatigue. These regular apples were the first special product Avalon had and was still supporting Avalon even now.
The laborers lined up and received—with a lovestruck look on their faces—their sandwich and juice from the Mythological Foxes.
I had instructed the Mythological Foxes to give out provisions three times a day. In the morning and at noon, they were to serve sandwiches and apple juice. In the evening though, the apple juice was to be replaced by ale.
Just by offering a delicious meal and a fatigue-remedying cold beverage, the work efficiency had completely changed.
"The Mythological Foxes sure are popular, aren’t they?"
"Why are acting so surprised, Procell-sama? Didn’t you make them distribute these provisions because they’re the idols of Avalon? There really is nothing better to motivate a man than a beautiful woman. Impressive as always, Procell-sama."
Most of the Mythological Foxes were working in Avalon-owned shops.
Because they were well-mannered, beautiful, stylish, and perhaps above all, were close in proximity to the citizens of Avalon, each of the Mythological Foxes had garnered many fans. One smile from them was enough to make their fans’ worries vanish.
According to Kuina back then, the Mythological Foxes were being courted by the humans, but they only found it troubling and was not at all interested. Kuina quoted:
"Humans are a definite no. They’re weak and don’t have any tail. It goes without saying, the guy has to have a fluffy tail... Ah, but that doesn’t matter at all if it’s Procell-sama. Kyaa! Kuina-sama, ow, ow!"
Still, looking at the humans and the Mythological Foxes interacting with one another, I thought it wouldn’t be that surprising for a romantic relationship to emerge.
"Everything seems to be in order, so I’ll be heading back."
"I’ll look around for a little bit more. This is a good opportunity to ascertain each company’s capabilities. Procell-sama, I swear to you, we’re going to make this casino succeed."
"But of course."
I had invested quite a significant amount of DP in this project already, there was no way I was going to let it fail. Not that DP was the only parameter I was concerned with. It was important, but Avalon’s growth was important too. So, if this casino improved at least one of those, I would have considered it a total success.
But enough of that for now.
I had received a message from Rorono that said she had just finished her prototype weapon for Tiro.
In perfect timing, Tiro would be back from her level grind with Kuina soon.
I absolutely want to see Tiro test out her new weapon.