Chapter 4: Building a Hot Spring
Ruri sorted through the pocket space rooms with Lydia. She wanted to scrounge up the costs for building her hot springs, but she wasn’t able to come up with anything worthwhile. The rooms she searched didn’t really yield much. That being the case, she would need to sell some of the items in her own space.
She had the option of selling the valuable old money from the First Dragon King’s era to Euclase, but she wasn’t really fond of that idea. She wanted to avoid anything related to the First Dragon King, Weidt—for Lydia’s sake. Lydia had said she didn’t mind if Ruri used them, but Ruri could tell from Lydia’s words that she still held Weidt dear even to this day. Her relationship didn’t seem like the type others could encroach on. It wasn’t one of furious romantic attachment, but one of trust, respect, and affection. Given that, Ruri found it unlikely that Lydia would ever forget Weidt, now or forever. Part of her even felt a little envious—considering herself and Jade. She just couldn’t bring herself to tamper with any mementos of him.
There was a wealth of items unrelated to Weidt, but she couldn’t discern what was worth money on her own. While the quickest way to solve that problem would be to bring a merchant into the pocket space, that wasn’t feasible. As such, she racked her brain over which item to sell.
Actually, there were definitely some things that clearly looked like they’d fetch a high price, but there were also items embossed with the emblems and family crests of other nations. She was worried the owner’s descendants would show up if she tried to sell any of them. Not to mention, if anyone asked her where she got her merchandise, she couldn’t very well tell them she took it from other people’s rooms.
Although she had many paintings, furnishings, and pieces of jewelry with no distinguishable owner, she’d probably need a sizable sum of money to purchase land in the center of the capital. She would have to sell off a considerable amount of these wares to afford that. Selling off one or two probably wouldn’t raise suspicions, but if a Beloved started selling valuable items in bulk, then it would naturally raise doubts as to where she got such a huge collection in the first place—and give rise to some unsavory rumors. Even with that spear she sold when she arrived in the capital, people questioned where she obtained it. She managed to smooth things over by saying it was a spirit’s mischief, but that same excuse wouldn’t work forever.
Perhaps she could sell them via Euclase? Or perhaps she could travel to other nations to sell them? She probably wouldn’t be found out that way.
Ruri folded her arms and considered her options. Lydia saw this and spoke up.
“You’re free to do as you please with what I gave you, but if it bothers you that much regardless, why not ask Chi for help?”
“Why Chi?”
“Chi is the Spirit of Earth. He can produce a wealth of gemstones. All you would have to do is sell them off.”
Chi had once unearthed a bevy of gemstones because he was bored. Those would definitely sell for a high price.
“Oh, that is an option. Ah, but...no, something about it feels like cheating,” Ruri said. It didn’t feel right; it was practically like begging Chi for money.
“Where’s the harm? Weidt did it all the time. Said he didn’t have the capital to build a nation otherwise. In fact, he had Chi create them without any semblance of the reserve you show, Ruri, so I don’t think you’ll hurt his feelings by asking either.”
“The First Dragon King did that...?”
His philosophy was to use whatever was usable. Quite the easygoing attitude, for lack of a better word. Ruri would’ve loved a chance to talk to him and see what kind of person he actually was.
“I’ll tell Chi, so why not go and give it a shot?” Lydia suggested.
“Right, okay. I’ll do just that. Thank you, Lydia.”
Ruri exited the pocket space and found the spirits assembled as if they’d been waiting for her this entire time.
Ruri asked, “Do you guys know where Chi is right now?”
“Hmm, I think in the garden!” one replied.
“He’s spinning round and round in the garden!” another added.
“‘Round and round’?”
Chi was prone to some very bizarre behavior, but Ruri had to wonder what he was doing from that description. Thinking he might’ve heard the situation from Lydia and was crafting gemstones, Ruri rushed to the garden. There, Chi was indeed spinning around in circles, but she also spotted Kotaro and Heat there as well.
“What are you three doing?” she asked.
“Oh, hey, that you, Ruri? Ol’ Fire here said he wanted some gemstones, so here I am.”
“You too, Heat-sama?” She didn’t know what use a spirit like Heat would have with gemstones. It was especially odd considering he had no interest in anything like that.
Once Chi stopped spinning, Heat gave an order to Kotaro. “All right, Wind, now dig!”
“Right,” Kotaro replied.
Ruri thought that Heat should’ve been the one digging them up since he wanted them, but she kept that to herself.
Kotaro proceeded to dig with his front legs like a puppy in the park, unearthing scores of glittering gemstones. Spotting the one that glittered the most, Heat picked it up and smirked in satisfaction.
“Heat-sama, what do you plan to do with those gemstones?”
“I’m about to go on a date. A gift is necessary for a beautiful woman.”
“Ah, right...” It seemed Heat was enjoying life in the Nation of the Dragon King. Not even a few days had passed and he’d already found himself a girl to date. Ruri wanted to ask whatever happened to Euclase.
After getting what he came for, Heat happily sauntered off.
“Ruri, you need some too, right? Lydia filled me in. I made a bigger batch, so you can take whatever you like. If it’s not enough, just let me know.”
“Thank you, Chi,” Ruri said before graciously picking up the gems.
Knowing that she would need Euclase and their vast knowledge of things of this nature, Ruri brought the gemstones over to them in order to find out their worth. Euclase’s eyes lit up when they saw the gemstones of various shapes and sizes. Then Euclase checked their quality like a pro appraiser.
Once Euclase told her that she had enough to buy a plot of land in the center of the capital, they started separating out the bigger stones. By Euclase’s account, what they pulled aside would be more than enough if sold. That left the smaller gemstones—relatively small, at least. They were still big enough to make into jewelry or accessories.
As she thought of the possibilities, Agate and the other elders abruptly entered the room. It seemed they’d overheard their conversation because they came asking if they could have the remaining gems. Since she had no real plans to use them, Ruri gave them to the elders, much to their great delight.
When she asked whether they would make them into jewelry for someone, all of them cryptically grinned at her. They smiled and said it would be a surprise for later, but it was clear they were up to something.
While Ruri was curious as to what they’d use the stones for, she decided she shouldn’t delve any deeper than she already had. However, it seemed Euclase had a hunch as to what they had in store.
◆ ◆ ◆ ◆
Gemstones in hand, Ruri set out for the city with Ewan and several other soldiers. Jade hadn’t felt comfortable sending Ewan on his own to protect Ruri, so he’d sent soldiers as well. He did this because while Ruri usually disguised herself before going into town, she’d decided not to hide her rare platinum blond hair and entourage of spirits—essentially showing people she was a Beloved. It was a good way to stir up a commotion, but that seemed to be the point behind Ruri’s actions. It would be good publicity if people knew that a Beloved was out and about with a specific purpose in mind. Essentially, she was planning to let word of a Beloved-built hot spring spread before its grand opening in order to attract potential patrons.
“What’s the first stop?” Ewan asked.
“First up is a realtor!” Ruri replied, absolutely brimming with excitement. Since she had a limited knowledge of businesses in the capital, she asked Ewan and her soldier accompaniment to help her. They led her to a realtor that managed many of the properties in the capital.
“Well, this is a delight. Greetings and welcome. It is an honor to have the great Lady Beloved at our humble establishment. What kind of property might you be looking for?”
The real estate agent had looked confused and shocked that a Beloved had entered the shop, but as soon as he realized he was among an honored guest, he smoothed out his expression. Professionalism was this business’s middle name; it made sense why Ewan and the others had recommended it.
“I’d like a large plot of land, somewhere in the middle of the capital, with as much traffic as possible.”
“Are you seeking a secondary residence?”
“No, I’m trying to build a hot spring.”
“A hot spring, you say, milady?” the real estate agent repeated, bewildered. His bafflement was understandable since the Nation of the Dragon King had no hot spring source. He would have never suspected that Ruri planned on building the spring from the ground up—source and all.
“Yes, a hot spring. I want to build a public bathhouse similar to the springs in the Nation of the Beast King, so that everyone can enjoy it. Not only that, but I was hoping to include some recreational facilities as well,” Ruri explained. She basically wanted to build a hot spring amusement park.
After hearing her request, the agent went into the back, brought out a stack of papers with properties, and began looking for appropriate locations.
“Let’s see. This is a tad tiny. This is further from the center of the capital. And this one is...” The agent trailed off. After some scrounging, he returned with a few papers from the stack. “These are three properties I can show you. Shall we go and see them now?”
“Yes, if you’d be so kind.”
With that, they went off to the first property. It was located in the heart of the capital and had the best flow of traffic. It was a perfect plot to build on. There was only one issue; there was barely any space to be had. She could probably build an average-sized bathhouse, but nothing like the grandiose facility Ruri had in mind. The second site was pretty far from the center of the capital, but it was wide enough to comfortably build the amusement park Ruri envisioned. The issue here? There was little traffic. The third site was closer to the capital than the second and had a healthy traffic flow, but it was even smaller than the first site.
“Hmm...” Ruri hummed after looking at all three properties. It seemed that things weren’t going to go exactly how she planned after all. She would have to decide whether to prioritize space or traffic.
The most important point was that cramped wasn’t going to cut it. This world was oppressively devoid of many forms of amusement, so Ruri’s desire to construct an amusement park outweighed the spring itself. The plot would need to be a decent size in order to construct a facility like that.
This requirement made it a toss-up between the second and third properties. In terms of space, the second won, but there was already a lavish manor on the plot and she’d have to demolish it in order to build her springs. It would be a waste of a perfectly fine building. On the other hand, while the third was a little tinier than she’d hoped for, it was an empty lot more conducive to new construction.
“Okay, I’ve made up my mind! I’ll go with the third,” Ruri said decidedly.
“Thank you very much. In that case, I shall get the contract paperwork for you.”
After Ruri signed the papers, it was time to actually pay. However, this property was what you’d expect out of land in the heart of the capital. It was as expensive as it was expansive.
Ruri presented the agent with a pouch stuffed with gemstones. She laid aside enough to pay with, but she still had plenty of the stones Chi gave her. She planned to do some shopping with the rest afterward.
“Is this enough? If you need currency instead, I can always go and get them exchanged.”
The agent peeked into the pouch and his eyes widened. “If I might be so brazen to ask, wherever did you find such large gemstones?”
Ruri debated on how to reply, but she ultimately decided to give him a vague answer. If she simply told the agent that she had Chi make them for her, it might encourage people to kidnap Chi in the future. Not that Chi would be easy to kidnap, but she was afraid of him willfully allowing it because it was “interesting.”
Ruri smiled sweetly and said, “A blessing of the spirits.” Her answer seemed to satisfy the agent, more or less. “Is it not enough?”
“No, with the added value of their origin, this is more than enough, I assure you. No need to have them exchanged. This will be sufficient payment.”
And just like that, Ruri successfully acquired her land. However, this was only the groundwork. Things had only just begun.
Ruri’s next stop was a builder’s office. She could certainly create a building via magic, but she planned on constructing a big building. To craft material with magic required an abundance of imagination. It was spirit magic—telling a spirit your vision of a material item and invoking their magic. Ruri could manage to build a small shed, but she didn’t have the imagination needed to craft something big and wide. In order to make something more detailed, she decided it would be more reliable to draft out blueprints and get professionals to do the building for her.
As far as the type of contractors, she figured the end result would be more satisfactory if she hired people who had experience with hot springs. After she made that clear to Ewan, he led her to an office run by the Nation of the Beast King.
Once she explained that she wanted to build a hot spring, the contractor trembled in delight. “I can’t believe it! A hot spring in this nation?! This is like a dream come true. Aah, when I came here, I was taken aback by the fact that not only do they not have hot springs, but they didn’t bathe at all. I built a bath in my own house since there was no natural spring to be had, but I was sad no one appreciated the value of soaking your body in hot water. Indeed, indeed, if I can bathe in a spring without returning to my homeland, I will dedicate all I can toward your cause, Lady Beloved. If you would inform me first when it is completed, I will also assist you with spreading the good word.”
He had probably been starved for a hot spring this entire time. His mouth was running full blast and showed no signs of stopping. Then again, if he loved hot springs this much, then he would most likely do a thorough job of designing the building.
The manager started right away, drafting Ruri’s design per her specifications and excitingly discussing what the facility should have.
“It has to have an outdoor bedrock bath,” Ruri added. “Also, I was thinking about planting some trees and having an open-air bath where you sit in nature...”
“That is superb. In that case, we could have a bathtub made out of trees situated here.”
Ruri burned with an unparalleled passion for constructing a hot spring, and the designer pined for hot springs to bathe in. Ideas that greatly reflected their own tastes came out of both of them one after another.
Standing in the back, Ewan and the soldiers watched on in confusion, but Ruri was overcome with a sense of accomplishment.
“Well then, it will take about a week’s time to take these requests and make a proper blueprint out of them. I will be sure to create something that will satisfy you, indeed.”
“Thank you. I look forward to it.”
They had such a rousing planning session that it had already gotten dark. Promising that she would be back in a week, Ruri and her party decided to go back to the castle for the day.
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