The Demon Lord's Bride (BL)
Chapter 338: A good day is a day where you can bask in your lover’s wealth

Chapter 338: A good day is a day where you can bask in your lover’s wealth

"Are you going to stay here?" I asked the Salamander after watching it melt rock for a while.

"Yes," Ignis replied while stomping the ground happily with its scorching hot paws. "I’m going to complete this as fast as possible!"

It was so rare to see the Salamander expressing its happiness openly through action and energetic responses. Ignis had been acting like a proudful juvenile trying to not indulge itself in what it considered a childish act, but in its own element, the Salamander forgot about all pretenses. I could easily picture Ignis happily swimming around the pool of melted rock once the place was done.

"Hmm..." recalling the volcano in its glorious state and the moment my body turned to fire, I suddenly thought about a certain impending schedule. "Perhaps I can have my lesson here later?"

"Well, since it’ll be troublesome for you to find a fire source," Ignis replied nonchalantly at first, before pausing. The bright blue eyes glanced at me as the Salamander sheepishly added. "...as long as you give me mana stones."

I stared at the Salamander with a raised brow. In response, Ignis suddenly pranced about as if it was busy resuming the work, although nothing was melting beneath those stomping paws. The flame that was enveloping the Salamander swayed unstably as it stammered. "...a-after all, even a mighty being like me needs to exert some energy for this endeavor--"

"I know, I know," I replied while holding back my laughter, before Ignis truly combusted--literally. "Don’t worry, we have a lot of money."

Truthfully, I had been putting orders for high-quality fire mana stones, buying as much as I could without upsetting the magician’s market. But just like Jade’s candy, I only gave it to Ignis little by little as a treat. Unlike Jade, who still needed to be fed mana until it reached adulthood, Ignis didn’t need it. The Salamander had reached a peak of growth, and merely regressed as a cycle to shed the burden of existence. So the mind was new, but the soul and the physique had long been perfected.

"I’m not worried!" Ignis grumbled and stomped away in a fluster.

We laughed quietly among ourselves, even Jade. But it was getting too hot in here and there was nothing more to see, so I made a temporary ledge on the side of the cavern and crossed it to the other side. "See you later, Ignis!"

Inwaved goodbye while returning the cave’s wall to its previous state. [Bye-bye!] Jade chirped loudly that it echoed throughout the chamber, and the flaming Salamander’s tails swooshed and flicked in response.

We continued the short journey to the other side of the cave, toward the entrance on the cliffside. The air grew cooler, with the mountain wind belting outside. Rather than a steaming and blackened wall, we started to see some vegetation. A sparse patch of little pale blue flowers signaled the end of the path.

"Now what?" Zia asked as we looked down the cliff. It was high alright, with no slope or stairs leading down.

"Well..." I looked up and whistled. Around two minutes later, we could hear the sound of belting wind and flapping wings.

[Vrida!] Jade chirped in delight and the wyvern screeched fondly in response. The smart girl swooped down and struck her talon next to the entrance, allowing us to reach her back easily.

"Good girl," I patted the wyvern’s cheek, and we flew away toward the forest. "Let’s see your nest now."

* * *

Vrida’s nest was on the hillside of the forest; a considerable hike if we went on foot from the cave. It was located in a high clearing overlooking the river, so anyone who would try to sneak in using the river would have to face Vrida first.

Hmm...

As I sat on the boulder at the edge of the clearing, with the river flowing calmly beneath my feet, I wondered to myself;

Have I...made it harder for the Hero and his companion to reach this place? With Ignis on the cliff, Vrida watching the river, Doun in the forest, and the twin guards manning the rest, not to mention the band of elemental birds covering the sky, this place was truly the safest a place could be without having to deploy an isolation barrier like the one belonging to D’Ara.

I did tell them to just let the Hero make their way into the forest--not helping them, just not actively preventing them. Still, the Hero at the very least would be able to feel the presence of those guardians, and his infiltration plan would have needed a major strategizing update. I didn’t think even the author girl would have expected the Salamander of Northern Volcano and a wyvern to join the Lair.

And now I got worried that the Hero might change the plan and no longer try to infiltrate the Lair.

"What’s he gonna do, though?" Zia commented after I told her my worries during a nice afternoon tea season in the garden. Only in the Lair could we be cozy enough to have a picnic outside during the winter. "Unless he’s stupid enough to go to the Lord Castle."

"Hmm...true,"

"Also, he’s supposed to be a human hero or whatever. If he can’t even infiltrate a loosely guarded estate and avoid the guardian beasts, he should go back and train again."

Zia made a scoffing sound before drinking her tea while watching the workers build the pond right below the platform where we were. Apparently, construction workers had no concept of afternoon rest, since it would mean they had to stop working later. They would rather rest after finishing the day’s work.

Anyway, watching construction work had never been on my to-do list before. It was dangerous, with dust flying around, and we couldn’t really see any changes in half an hour or so--you know, without that tile lapse thingy. Or at least, that was how it was back on Earth.

In a world of magic, the construction was built upon spells and magia formation. Of course, normal construction still used the usual hand labor, since people with fine control of magic were too proud to use their ability for mundane stuff.

But pride could be bought at the right price.

A group of magic construction workers cost twenty times more than the usual fare. They were also used to a higher standard of on-site living, so instead of in a temporary shed or tents, the client needed to provide a permanent building. Of course, the same could be said for the meals. Not having tea time break aside, their three meals should be at least on par with meals provided by a decent inn--which meant a good chunk of money would be needed just to feed them.

And that was outside the price of the materials needed. Building something with magic meant the materials themselves should work as a mana conductor. To draw a magic formation, of course, special ingredients would be needed. And thus, the money needed to use magic construction was not just ten times or twenty times, it would be at least fifty times more expensive. This seemingly regular piece of garden accessory would cost what people would need to build a regular mansion.

But did we care? No, we didn’t.

So long as it wasn’t taxpayer money, who cares? We enjoyed watching the workers dig up the ground with earth magic, and the alchemist turned the materials into foundations. The longest process would probably be the magic formation drawing, because they had to carve a lot; preservation magic, temperature control, substance filtering, air infusion--among many more I couldn’t recognize. They used our carving pens--those were already in the market--which sped up the process quite a lot, but still took a considerable amount of time.

Lesta would come after they were done to check on the formations, making sure there was nothing dangerous or faulty there, and only then they could do the rest, from finishing, decorating, and finally filling the pond with water. The water itself came from the river, flowing there with a complex system that I could not decipher nor explain unless I took a thorough magic civil engineering class first.

But the expense Natha eked out for this pond would seem like a regular shopping expense compared to the aquarium he said he would be making in the Lord Castle. Just the material for building the tanks itself would cost as much as Vrida.

But you know what the cute thing was?

Natha looked happy when he saw the expense ledger. His smile told me that he thought it would be money well spent, and all I could do was...well, enjoy it. Enjoy the expense that my betrothed spent happily for me, since that was the way to pay him back; made the expense worth it.

[Master, when will fish come here?] Jade asked me that question at least twice a day, or every time the little bird caught sight of the under construction pond.

"After they finish the pond, Jade. The fish are still on their way here," I patted the impatient green head. "It’s a long journey from the realm of nature, no? Unlike us, the fish can’t fly through the air."

And each time, Jade would be dejected by my answer. [Oh...]

"Let’s make some sharks in the tub later, okay?"

[Okay!]

Fish could not travel through the sky indeed, but you know what could? Letters. Because Angwi came just when we finished our lunch picnic in the grass field the next day.

No, not with the letters, but with the news that there was a letter for me. It was conveyed through the big communication device on the top floor, the one in the same room as the portal.

From the message that Angwo wrote, there were two letters waiting for me. One was from Sarteriel, and another one was from Natha’s bank.

"Why would the bank send you a letter?" Zia asked in confusion.

I was confused too, at first, because I had forgotten about it. But when I read that I also had a letter from Sarteriel, it came quickly.

"Izzi!" I gasped and stood up. "Let’s go, it might be a letter from his family!"