Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 331

Adam groaned, the weight on his back making him wince. He was tired, but he didn’t want to complain.

“Hey, you sure you’re alright?”

“Ye-yes, I’m fine.”

“Don’t push yourself. This isn’t a one-day job!”

“I’m really okay!”

“Heh, must be the spirit of youth. Get going!”

Adam almost got angry when he was patted on the back, but then he laughed. He knew it wasn’t meant to be mean, just a friendly tap that was a bit too hard.

Dwarves and golems. Just a short time ago, these amazing beings were only found in old stories and legends.

Now, they were bustling about right in front of him, a mere construction worker, not some grand adventurer.

He’d heard tales of how different the country was, but Adam’s reality was simply that life had become a little easier.

Life had been hard before, always worrying about food and a place to sleep. But now, things were a little easier.

But this construction site offered sights he’d never imagined. That alone made the journey worthwhile.

“Hey, you there! What section are you in!? Gonna stand around all day!?”

“Ah, coming! I’m coming!”

His reverie had lasted too long.

Adam snapped out of his thoughts at the dwarf foreman’s bellow, tore his gaze away from the golem, and hurried back to work. The harsh winter labour was tough, but he couldn’t help it. Everything around him was so new and strange that he kept looking around, his neck stiff from turning his head so much.

The foremen didn’t chide him too much, as most of the workers were doing the same.

This was the Teresa Canyon, on the northwest edge of the Kingdom of McLaine. It was a very important place, like a crossroads. Roads came here from the Esperanza Grand Duchy, the scary Northern Demon Forest, and even the Empire in the northeast. It was also the start of the Hunter’s Road going east.

At the entrance to the kingdom through that canyon, countless people were engaged in building a fortress.

Dozens of dwarves directed the workers, while at least three or four thousand labourers toiled away, sweat beading on their brows. Huge golems, as tall as houses, moved slowly past. You could hear the heavy *thump* of their feet on the ground as they carried giant rocks and logs.

Everything worked together perfectly, like a giant, well-made clock.

“Hey, you in section 13! Pick up the pace! And section 7, you’re too fast. Are you even checking the wood properly!?”

One dwarf was different from the others. He was round and wore a shiny steel helmet, like a knight in a story. When he shouted or pointed, everyone listened. If things were too slow, they sped up. If they were too fast, they slowed down. He seemed to control everything.

It was such an astonishing sight that it wasn’t unusual for small merchant caravans entering the kingdom through the canyon to pause and stare.

“Construction in the dead of winter?”

“Looks like they’re building a fortress.”

“Here?”

“Surely they’re not planning to charge us taxes just for passing through?”

“Nah, can’t be.”

They started talking about money, but because they were worried about it, they began to complain about the king.

“Those kingdom folk are having a hard time, too.”

“Indeed. Forced labour in the middle of winter, when they should be conserving their strength.”

“He’s got a reputation as a tyrant, and it seems he’s living up to it.”

But contrary to their criticisms, most of the workers hauling wood, stone, and earth had a spark of vitality in their faces, despite the heavy sweat.

“Still, the pay’s good, makes the work worthwhile.”

“All thanks to His Majesty. Work even in the winter.”

“That’s right. And there’s quite a spectacle to watch, too.”

“True.”

“Oh, they’re doing it again! Look!”

“Wow!”

The workers carrying stones paused to chat. Their eyes were fixed on the section of the site where the fortress walls were rising.

There, figures in wide, shapeless robes—hardly suitable attire for a construction site—were bustling about.

“Earth Wall!”

The brown-robed mages, faces grim, cried out as if in pain. The ground shook hard, like a giant was stomping nearby. Then, with a loud *rumble*, a huge wall of dirt shot up into the air, reaching high above their heads. Dust and small stones rained down around them.

Before the cloud of dust could even settle, the red-robed mages began their incantations.

“Now, solidify it all!”

“Fire!”

“Fire Ring!”

Red flames burst out all over the dirt wall, crackling and hissing loudly. The heat washed over the workers, even from far away.

After the blazing fire had subsided somewhat, the blue-robed mages stepped forward.

“Alright, that’s enough. Fire and earth mages, step back! Now, cool it all down!”

“Ice!”

“Ice Fog!”

Then, a wave of cold air rushed in as the blue-robed mages chanted. White fog swirled around the burning wall, and the red glow slowly faded as the dirt turned hard and gray.

The construction of the fortress wall supports, which would normally have taken the longest time, was completed in an instant—a truly magnificent sight.

Workers whispered to each other, amazed. ‘Mages! Here? I thought they only lived in tall towers, studying magic books all day!’

“Indeed. And working so hard, too.”

“It’s all thanks to those folks over there.”

One of the workers pointed to a group of mages wearing brown robes emblazoned with a peculiar doll-like symbol.

At their gestures, dozens of giant golems moved in all directions, carrying materials and building the fortress.

The sight of dozens of mages raising a massive wall in an instant was certainly impressive, but the golems controlled by a mere dozen or so mages, though less flashy, were performing the most essential tasks all over the site.

The golems were taking on all the dangerous jobs that usually resulted in the most injuries and fatalities on such construction sites.

Then, a strong-looking man, not young but not old either, with a serious face, walked up. He just said one word, ‘Arise!’

A low, deep sound like *Oooooooo* filled the air. The ground cracked and groaned, *Creeeaaak*. And then, with heavy *Thud. Thump.*, huge golems rose up from the bare earth, one after another, like giant statues waking up.

“Woooow.”

“Amazing!”

“One person can do that…?”

“Could that be the Arch…mage?”

“Ah! I heard the rumours.”

“The kingdom’s greatest archmage, they say?”

Just then, a girl with bright blue hair came running, her eyes still sleepy. ‘I’m late! I’m so sorry!’ she called out. Even before she finished speaking, the ground started to shake again. *Rumble*. And then, smaller but quicker golems burst from the earth, *Thud. Thump. Thud. Thump.*, digging and moving right away.

“…What?”

“…Did I see that right?”

“Must be the Golem Master’s reserves. What could a little girl do?”

Had she heard that, she would have been furious, but the sight was simply too surreal.

The smaller golems, moving far more naturally than the existing ones, dug in where needed, assisting the workers and the other golems.

Clayton shook his head, smiling. ‘She controls golems much better than I can, even now.’

The other mage said, ‘Well, we are good at different things. I can only control a few golems like that.’

Clayton chuckled. ‘No, it’s more than that. She’s just much more talented.’

A man who had reached the highest level of magic at the young age of fifty—quite young among people with special magical powers—was praising his young disciple.

But for Clayton, it was entirely justified.

His young disciple possessed a talent that went beyond simply reaching the highest level of magic before the age of twenty. That seemingly simple scene was not the result of a simple process.

Moving golems as if they were truly human was a humanly difficult task, regardless of magical skill. Even for him, an archmage, one or two golems were his limit.

When he controlled a large number of golems, he would give them simple magical instructions and simply add magical power. He had always thought it natural that when controlling dozens of golems, the limit was to make them move according to simple commands.

But this young disciple was moving as many as twenty golems as if they were truly human.

Even with the ability to perfectly sense everything on the surrounding ground by awakening a superior earth attribute, it was hard to believe.

‘It’s like doing twenty things at once.’

Her concentration and control were truly admirable.

Clayton thought, ‘Where did these children come from? They are truly amazing.’

He knew Victoria was making her golems look weaker than they really were, on purpose. She was trying to hide how powerful she really is. But even when she held back, her talent was clear. And her brother, Victor, also had incredible abilities. Born as slaves, and now both of them so powerful… it was almost unbelievable. ‘Could they be… from some very special family, maybe even with magic blood?’ Clayton wondered, smiling at his own wild idea.

Even as he thought about Victoria’s talent, Clayton became serious. He closed his eyes, but he wasn’t sleeping. He was using his magic to listen to everything around them, like the ‘sound of the wind’ told him secrets. He was watching out for Victoria, making sure no one noticed just how special she was.

“But what does the fact that those folks came out have to do with the other mages working hard?”

“They’re competing, can’t you tell?”

“Ah. To see who’s better?”

“Exactly.”

“…It’s a bit strange, though.”

The workers thought the mages were just showing off, but Clayton knew better. He had taught all the mages in the kingdom: ‘To get better at magic, you have to push yourself hard. Practice until you can’t do anymore, then practice some more.’

Because of this teaching, the golem mages were becoming very powerful, very quickly. At first, they complained about working so hard on the fortress. But they got so much better at magic that soon, they wanted to work even harder! Mages from other magic schools also came to the construction site to learn from them. Now, almost all the young, talented mages in the kingdom were here, building the fortress. Only the old mages who didn’t want to change stayed behind in their towers.

‘This fortress might be finished faster than we planned,’ Clayton thought, smiling. He was happy to see how well his mages were doing.

But in the country next to McLaine, they saw all of this as something dangerous. While the fortress was being built quickly in the north… a serious message arrived at the King’s castle in McLaine. It was a formal protest, sent by the Emperor himself, from the Empire.