#379 Building a Pavilion

We’re hosting an expo.

Buuut, we have no concrete idea of what we’re supposed to do.

Point is, we’re exhibiting our products... right? 

“We’ll decide on the specifics of what we’ll be doing,” says Great Demon King Baal.

He’s butting in as someone like our sponsor, adviser, AND producer.

“We have to decide on the venue first. That’s the foundation for everything.”

The venue, huh...

“What about the Demon Capital? It’s an event meant for the demon craftsmen, after all.”

“All right, we’ll host it at the best district in the city.”

Huh?

“I’m sure there are a few unused old mansions there. We can demolish them and turn them into a vacant lot for establishing the grounds!”

“H-Huh?!”

Isn’t that too much?!

“Why do we need to demolish it, sir? Can’t we just rent the house and use it as a venue?”

“Fool. An expo’s venue must be as extravagant as the items to be exhibited. What distinguishes first-class expos from mediocre ones is the unified theme inside and out!”

What fastidiousness!

Perhaps I underestimated expos?

“The Great Demon King has a point, but...” interrupts Mr. Shax. “I suspect there will be a backlash if we demolish existing buildings. We wouldn’t want grumpy visitors coming to our expo, would we?”

“Well... What if it’s just a little...?”

“I’m sure you know well that during your own reign, the accumulation of such rash measures turned off the people and led to Lord Zedan’s coup d’etat. Please practice some self-restraint, sir.”

I can’t help but think Lord Baal was quite the foolish ruler in his time.

“However, I agree that the venue is also considered an exhibit item. That’s the kind of thing Lord Baal, master of expos who held 500 expositions during his reign, is known for.”

Is he complimenting him?

Let’s assume he is. Hooray for the Expo Master!!!

“Okay, so the expo is about building a venue from scratch. What should we do about the location?”

“There’s a lot of vacant land in the capital. It’s far from the prime location, though. Let’s just find a suitable place and size among them.”

I see...

If it’s a plot for sale, there shouldn’t be any trouble.

“U-Um...”

A group of people timidly interrupts our conversation.

It’s the orcs.

Led by their representative, Orkubo, they form a large group.

Wait, aren’t these all of our orcs on the farm?

“What’s wrong, Orkubo?”

“We heard you’re building an expo from scratch, My Lord.”

Yes.

“Well, then, I hope you’ll allow us orcs to take on the task...!”

“...”

There it is.

The orcs’ love for building.

Whenever we try to build something, they start looking hopeful. As they were involved in the construction of our farm’s buildings, they began to develop a passion for building.

“W-What should we do, Mr. Shax?”

I ask Mr. Shax, who has the most respectable opinion here.

“I don’t see why not, sir. Given that the venue itself is an exhibit, it’d be appropriate to have Sir Orkubo and his team build it.”

Orkubo high-fives with the other orcs enthusiastically.

But don’t they have Orkubo’s Castle to look after once this is over?

“Now, onto the real problem—the venue. I’ll take care of that for you,” says Mr. Shax, leaving his seat. 

We’ve decided everything that can be decided today, it seems.

“I-I’ll come with you, sir...!” says Orkubo, raising his hand. 

“If you want to build a good house, you have to start with the location! We must choose the most suitable land to build the best venue, sir!”

“W-Well...”

Mr. Shax glances at me.

I nod in silence. I don’t want to damper on the orcs’ efforts.

If we all work together, we can make something good.

And so, we decided to add Orkubo to the site selection team.

Then...

***

“We can’t decide, sir...!”

A few days later, Mr. Shax came to me with a haggard look on his face, apparently having difficulty in finding a venue.

“Sir Orkubo’s conditions are so strict, we can’t find a land that meets his standards! We’ve already scoured all the vacant lots in the capital!”

“Orkubo...!”

When I glare at him, Orkubo awkwardly looks away.

He’s usually the calmest person on the farm, but when buildings are involved, he goes wild.

“But My Lord! This must be done!”

“Yes! The vacant lots are too small and narrow to be suitable as a venue!”

“If we set up in a place like that, it’ll be too cramped! We need... We need a bigger space!”

Even the other orcs backed up Orkubo’s statement.

Their obsession with building things has gone too far.

How did they all become such construction junkies?

“Then again, it’s not like there’s a lot of vacant lots available in the capital!”

“Which isn’t surprising. I mean, it is a metropolis!”

To secure a plot of land suitable for Okubo and the other orcs, it won’t be enough to just demolish buildings.

“I’ve been saying that since the beginning,” grumbles Lord Baal, drinking beer at the side.

Let’s leave him be.

“To tell you the truth, I agree with Sir Orkubo’s policy. Knowing it’s Lord Saint’s expo, it’s bound to be unprecedented! We can’t cut corners here!” 

Even Mr. Shax is getting psyched up...

“If such a situation were to occur, it’d be a disgrace to the Pandemonium Trading Company for generations to come! Therefore, I have a proposal!”

What is it?

“Why don’t we build a venue outside the capital?”

“Meaning?”

Like, hosting it at a village or town outside?

I thought so, but apparently not.

“The Demon Capital is a large city, but if you step outside the walls, you will find a land untouched and owned by no one.”

That sounds pretty fantasy-like.

“You can use that land in whatever way you want, provided you have the Demon King’s permission. So, why don’t we host the expo there instead?” 

“The land we can use is limitless!”

The orcs were excited because this would provide them unlimited space to set up the venue as they desired.

“But wouldn’t it be a disadvantage to be away from the capital?” asks the Great Demon King, holding a mug of beer. “It’s a bottleneck in attracting customers because of the inconvenience of transportation. Even within the city, there have been cases where people have failed to prosper because of the distance.”

And in a fantasy world like this, stepping out of the city walls is a dangerous zone since monsters might attack you.

Some of the people living in the Demon Capital have never even been outside the city since they were born. They think the world outside the walls is hell.

It’s hard to imagine inviting them to visit an expo outside the city walls.

“No! The farm expo has tremendous power to repel even such bad conditions! We want to make it a priority to let you display whatever you want without limitations!” passionately says Mr. Shax.

“My Lord! We also want to set up an awesome venue outside the city!”

“Please, My Lord!”

The orcs begged, and I couldn’t say no, so I gave them permission.

***

But for me, I had my own agenda in deciding where to set up.

I didn’t want too many people to know about the farm because I didn’t want trouble often coming our way.

So, if we do hold an expo, we prefer not to have too many visitors. 

With that in mind, I thought it’d be more convenient to have the expo in a remote location.

However, I would later realize how naive this decision was.

The problem was that it took away the restrictions on those who wanted to join, and by building a venue outside of the city, there were no more space limitations.

No one had the faintest idea what consequences this entailed.