v-rustl

#1218 The North-South Lines of Love 

Well… though there are still a few discrepancies here and there, the train cars are finally finished. 

A self-sufficient, AI-driven locomotive… 
Named Ichiro, Jiro, and Saburo. 

“NO! IT’S ALPHA, BETTA, AND GAMMA!!!” 

Fine, fine. Just stop combining already. 

At first, the AI seemed like a totally unnecessary gimmick. But since the cars themselves can think, there’s no need to hire drivers, which saves a ton on personnel costs.&nb...

#1217 Light Up the Green Light of Peace 

And just like that, the trains stand complete. 

Three gleaming locomotives sit lined up before me. 

“Oh! This is marvelous!” 

Sparkling, brand-new trains, fresh off the assembly line. 
Thanks to the farm residents' help, they came together faster than I’d dared hope. 

We built three of them because, from a cargo-transport perspective, having more engines makes shuttle runs far more efficient. 

Now we can piston supplies stra...

#1216 Let’s Build a Railway 

So, I’ve decided to build a railroad. 

Well, it’s simple, really. 
When you think “revolution in transport,” this is it. 

First came the horse, shrinking the world. Then steam locomotives shrank it even more. 

With speed and horsepower leagues beyond pack animals, they drove civilization forward. 

You could say that railways are the very roads of human progress. 

“That’s why I intend to build a railroad.” 

#1215 Transportation Problem 

My little “make-something” workshop that I organized took an unexpected turn. 

Some of the pioneer students in the pottery class had their pieces picked up by the Pandemonium Trading Company.  
Before I knew it, Mr. Shax, the head of Pandemonium, had slipped into the lesson and zeroed in on anything he thinks he can sell.  

“I’ll launch this in the Demon Capital,” he announces, whisking a few cups and plates off with him.  

He’s g...

#1214 Putting It All In 

My name is Gray Silva. 

I’m just an ordinary coffee shop barista. 
Lately, though, memories of my old life keep bubbling up for some reason. 

My previous profession was a mercenary. 

I got paid to wage war.  
Hardly the kind of thing you look back on fondly, but every now and then a flash of memory surprises me. 

When those moments hit, it’s not the whole awful slog that replays in my mind, but a single spotlighted scene.  2025-06-17 20:06:57 +0000 UTC View Post

#1213 Crafting Workshop 

This year’s Orkubo’s Castle wrapped up without a hitch. 

Every year brings some new twist, and although this year’s challenge was a little different in flavor, I’m really glad it all worked out.  

Dalkish and I celebrate the event’s success, and we agree we’ll gradually hand the castle festival over to the locals in the following years. 

With that settled, winter’s chill really starts to bite. 

The farm itself is crucial, of cours...

#1212 Orkubo’s Orkubo’s Castle 

I am Orkubo the orc. 

Today, my family and I are out on a little day trip. 

Our destination is Orkubo’s Castle. 
It feels a bit strange to visit a place that literally bears my name. 

Still, this is the first time I get to experience it from the other side as a guest, not its organizer. 

That’s all thanks to my lords’s bright idea: the “Orkubo's Castle Local Delegation Project.” I have to admit, I’m a little taken aback.  2025-06-13 12:00:12 +0000 UTC View Post

#1211 Humanity Steps Up 

The battle at Orkubo’s Castle kicks off. 
The first wave meets a swift and total wipeout. 

Most fighters fall at the first obstacle, swept aside like wheat before the scythe, and the few who stagger on are methodically crushed at the second obstacle.  
It’s a one-sided slaughter. 

Honestly, watching this is no fun at all. 

I can sympathize with the local organizers’ enthusiasm trying their best, but it’s heartbreaking to see all that ef...

#1210 A Beginning Full of Hiccups

“We’re back~” 
“That we are~” 

Hm?  
Why did you two suddenly vanish, Veil and Sensei? 

Thanks to you, only Horkosfon remains at the training grounds, and we ended up endlessly munching natto together.  
I was this close to getting gout. 

“Ah, my apologies, Master. It was just a little bug extermination.” 
“Also, a bit of screen-door repair.” 

?  
Well, anyway. 
Our training’s come ...

#1209 An Incident During Training 

This is an incident happening somewhere else while the Orkubo’s Castle staff is in training… 

*** 

There are far too many who don’t deserve to live. 
Don’t you agree? 

My name is Rabos. 
I am the supreme ruler of the vast cosmos. 

By my hand, every mighty warrior on every star has fallen beneath my rule. 

Strength is glorious.  
And it’s obvious I alone have earned the right to rule. 

Strength ...

#1208 Privitizing Orkubo’s Castle? 

Turn over the running of Orkubo's Castle to you and your people? 

Lord Dalkish continues in his usual solemn tone. 

“You must be astonished by my sudden proposal. After all, I’m effectively asking you to hand over an event you’ve painstakingly built from the ground up." 

Yeah…  
I mean, it’s not like I’ve been that emotionally invested in it.  
It’s just an excuse for one big annual blowout, really. 

“To be honest, ev...

#1207 This Year’s Orkubo’s Castle 

Winter has come again. 

As long as time flows, the seasons change and the world’s colors shift with them. 

Before I knew it, the farm had become a glittering expanse of white.  
My kids immediately plunged into the snow, building snowmen and engaging in playful snowball fights. 

“Rainbow spikeball!” 
“Choukyuuuu Haouuu Deneeedannn!” 

They were already putting their newly learned miracle balls to use on the battlefield of sn...

#1206 The Demon King’s Big Family Reunion 

I’m utterly bewildered.  

One moment we’re just messing around with a game of catch, and the next we’ve somehow shifted to conspiring to killing someone’s father. 

The Demon King declares out of nowhere that he’s going to murder the Great Demon King. 

I mean, if that finishing move actually lands, there’s no outcome other than death. 

The Demon King Flame-Slaying Dark Dragon Shot. 

It sounds like a knock-off, but it’s legiti...

#1205 The Demon King’s Miracle Ball 

I am the Great Demon King Baal. 
But everyone calls me an idiot. 

They say I deserve the nickname because I once came dangerously close to destroying the Demon Kingdom. 

Still, such a claim feels like an exaggeration.  
If I were really capable of leveling a whole kingdom on a whim, I’d have been wiped out countless times by now.  
After all, I’m far from the most foolish Demon King in history. 

…Right?  
I’m pretty sure...

#1204 Tenderness like a Vanishing Miracle Ball 

Operation: “Demon King Gets Cozy with the Kids” is officially underway. 

“Fiine, if we have toooo.” 

The very first to step up was the Demon King’s daughter, little Marine. 
She’s only seven, yet she’s already a total prodigy. 

“Okay. I’m gonna draw something cute for Daddy. Every self-respecting dad plasters his workspace with his kid’s terrible artwork, hon.” 

A kid who already knows that trope is kind of terrify...

#1203 A Family-Oriented Demon King 

It’s me again. 

I was planning to relax on the farm for the first time in ages… when something unfamiliar unfolded right before my eyes. 

“Oryaryaaaaaaargh!!! Next up, the vortex-making spear move!” 
“Yes, Master!!!” 

For some reason, Arowana and Goetia are getting along swimmingly. 

Arowana is the Mermaid King, and Goetia’s a prince of the Demon Kingdom. 

It’s wonderful for world peace that they’re so chummy, bu...

#1202 The Demon Prince and the Mermaid King 

My name is Demon Prince Goetia. 

Someday, I’ll succeed Father and wear the mantle of Demon King. 
To live up to that title, seven-year-old me is busy studying. 

But lately… I’ve got one huge worry. 
I’m scared that I might not be Demon King material after all. 

Yes, I’m the firstborn son of the current Demon King Zedan. 
By rights, the throne should come to me. 

But I refuse to rely on bloodline and birth order alon...

#1201 Love is Power  

A certain negative example, Princess Letasreit, gives little Marine a lesson. 

“Listen up! Do you know what a true princess absolutely needs?!” 
“No, hooon!” 

At least pretend to think about it for a bit. 

“It’s passion, conviction, ideals, brains, class, grace, diligence, and above all... Power!” 
“Strength is power, hooon.” 

That’s… kinda missing the point, but okay. 
Trust Letasreit to come out of lef...

#1200 The New and Old Princesses 

Demon Princess Marine. 

The second princess of the current Demon King, Zedan, born and bred in that storied royal bloodline. 

She’s around seven, yet so sharp and well‑spoken I sometimes forget I’m talking to a kid at all. 

Lately, I’ve been spotting little Marine around the farm more and more. 

Not that seeing her is strange in itself. 
The Demon King’s family drops by for weekend outings every so often, and Marine usually tags al...

#1199 Egg That’s About to Cover the Rice Any Second

Omelette rice.

You shall become Platy’s one true taste of home!!!

Why omurice? Because there isn’t a kid alive who hates the stuff!

Back in the day, there was a key phrase for kid‑approved junk food: “O-kaa‑san wa Yasume (Mom, take the day off)” built from the initials of nine classic dishes.

Omurice holds one of the nine squares.

The irony is that Platy’s long‑sought “Mom’s cooking” is coming straight from that phrase.

And out o...

#1198 Mom’s Cooking Tastes Bitter 

It’s me again. 
What follows is the little epilogue to the whole “Land Development Site, Adventurer‑Invasion Fiasco.” 

The gate‑crashing adventurers figured our development site and the pioneers living in it were a total pushover. They got stomped into the dirt so hard their pride snapped like twigs. 

Word on the street is every last one of them was an egomaniac, the type who loves picking fights with adventurers ranked lower than they are. 
Hon...

#1197 A Bat’s Secret Maneuver 

I’m Murshela, an S‑Rank adventurer. 

Then again, I only got promoted a little while ago, so I’m still the new kid on the block. 

Oh, and for the record, I’m a woman. 

My promotion was the very definition of “out of the blue.” 
One day, the guild master suddenly took an interest in me, rushed the paperwork, and before I’d even processed what was happening, I was already S-rank. 

Nobody in history has ever rocketed up the ranks t...

#1196 The Next Generation Wolf’s Strength 

Corey breezed right past the first wave of invisible monsters. 

His wolf-therian nose is razor‑sharp.  
He sniffed out every enemy scent, used the whiff of their attacks to time his dashes, and zipped clean through the danger zone. 

We watched his run on Typhon’s huge magic screen and went absolutely wild, total annihilation hype! 

“As expected of Corey! Invisible monsters mean nothing to him!” 
“That’s our leader for you!!!” ...

#1195 (Next Gen.) Wolf vs. Bat 

I just saw something outrageous. 
This is awful. 

Typhon built a “serious‑mode” dungeon whose sole purpose is to boot out intruders. 
It’s like one of those impossible Mar*o Maker stages a kid threw together so nobody can ever clear it. 

“Aww, but I’m being plenty generous! You get hit with instant‑death effects and still don’t die!” 

That had me wondering, too. 

Inside Typhon’s dungeon, monster strikes and so‑c...

#1194 First Blood is Naivety 

Kak-ka-ka! I’m one stellar adventurer! 
I mean, who else can brag about camping out at B‑Rank for six straight years? 

Today, I’m sightseeing-slash-challenging this brand‑new dungeon that just popped up! 

Word is it spawned out of nowhere in a country that’s still wet behind the ears! 

They say this place is full of washed-out dropouts who couldn’t cut it as adventurers! 
Totally useless in the field, they had no choice but to chang...

#1193 Bombarding Elites 

That day… 
Something was buzzing in my gut. 

“Did something go down at the settlement?” 

I was busy tossing pots in the kiln when the urge hit. I jumped on Sakamoto, took to the sky, and several minutes later, we were there. 

And yeah, the view below looked serious. 

“This atmosphere… what happened?! Ultimate move, Saint Descent!” 
“Ah! Lord Saint!” 

I did a six‑spin landing and spotted the usual pioneer ...

#1192 Flexible and Adaptable 

After all the twists and turns, the spirit fiasco finally wrapped up. 

Kaito, having realized just how huge a mess he caused, swore he’d never use chantless magic again. 
He even went as far as forming a magic oath with the spirits that inflicts divine punishment if he breaks his promise. 

Since this vow is bound to the Spirit King, the enforcement is dead serious. 

The Spirit King, having finished his business, returned to the Spirit Realm. B...

#1191 The Spirit King’s Descent 

It’s still Monsmuf, your resident magic researcher, speaking. 

And right now… I might be staring down a truly insane situation. 

The Spirit King. 

I’m standing in front of something that ties directly into the very foundation of this world! 

Spirits handle the spiritual energy that drives all kinds of natural phenomena: fire, water, wind, earth. They keep things circulating and provide energy for it all. 
If spirits ever vanishe...

#1190 The Anointed One of Magic 

My name’s Monsmuf. 

Some people call me “Monsieur Monsmuf” out of respect. Sometimes they don’t, though. It depends on their mood. 
You might be wondering why they’d bother with all the honorifics. Well, that’s because I’m something of a big shot in the field of magical research, boasting a solid fifty-year track record. 

My specialty is alchemy magic. 
It’s only natural, seeing as I’m a member of the demon race. 

I’ve poure...

#1189 A Wise Man Changes His Mind, A Fool Never 

“No way… My original chantless magic actually lost…?!” 

Kaito stands there in shock, like he’s just taken a direct hit to the brain and his soul has flown off somewhere else. 

“But it’s not over yet! If I use this defeat as motivation, shorten the process even more, and get the activation time under a single second…!” 
“Stop wasting your energy.” 

The Demon King tries to calm down Kaito, who’s still fired up. 

“No m...