Chapter 47 One-Night Lake⁈
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Um, Morita-kun, can you explain this?”
Maya looked confused at the scene in front of her.
She asked Morita Kazuo, who should have arrived first.
”There’s nothing to explain. You can see it yourself.”
”See what? To me, it looks like a lake. But the info said there should be a big grassland in front of the fort. Was that wrong?”
”No, it’s not wrong. When we got here, it was grassland for sure. Just the other day, we fought the Demonkin army there. They are strong, but we thought we could win with more soldiers. Then this happened.”
Morita said that when they woke up in the morning, the grassland had turned into a lake.
”No way. It’s not like a one-night castle.”
”That’s exactly it. Not a one-night castle, but a one-night lake.”
Kudo gave a weak laugh.
”Sigh. Anyway, have you done anything about it?”
Maya ignored Kudo’s joke and asked Morita.
”Oh, yeah. For now, I told the soldiers to check how big this lake is. The report won’t come until after noon at the earliest. So rest until then.”
Morita said that and led Maya and the others to private rooms in the fort.
The soldiers use a big room called the nap space.
They sleep there in shifts, all together on the floor.
But officers get their own rooms.
The fort does not have much space.
Most rooms are for two or three people.
Still, Maya and the others, as heroes, get special treatment.
They get private rooms first.
”We can share one room for two. You don’t have extra, right?”
Morita had planned to give rooms to Maya and Miyako separately.
But Maya said no.
In the room they got, Maya and Miyako lay down on the bed together.
”In this situation, the battle won’t change soon. Rest well. I’ll call you when the report comes.”
Morita said that and left.
* * *
After noon, Morita contacted them.
He wanted to talk about the situation.
Miyako went with Maya to the command room.
”So, what’s going on?”
As soon as they entered the room, Maya asked.
”Look at this first.”
Morita showed two maps.
One map showed the grassland in front of Aran Fort.
The other map had most parts painted blue.
”From the soldiers’ reports, the lake looks like this.”
Morita said that and put the two maps on top of each other.
The blue parts matched the grassland in front of Aran Fort.
The lake started five or six km from the fort.
It stretched about three km front to back.
And about twenty km side to side.
It was more like a big river or a moat than a lake.
Also, from the ends of the lake on both sides, water paths about fifty meters wide had formed.
They went around the grassland like a wall.
So it fit better to call it a moat.
”Let me ask again. It wasn’t here yesterday, right?”
”Yes, I can say that for sure. I was there until yesterday.”
”I see. So it must be magic or a skill that did this.”
”We have to cross somehow. Some soldiers are stuck there from yesterday’s fight. They couldn’t retreat.”
Morita said that with regret.
For a while, silence filled the room.
Miyako broke the silence.
”I checked. The map is mostly right. There are camps here and here. And something like a fort here.”
Miyako said that and marked the map.
”I only saw a few people who look like Demonkin. So those stuck soldiers are probably caught or dead.”
”How do you know that?”
Kudo snapped at Miyako.
”Hawk Eye. Anything else?”
Maya ignored Kudo and asked Miyako.
Hawk Eye is a skill from Dark Familiar Summoning magic.
It lets you share sight and hearing with a summoned creature.
Most times, people share with birds, so it’s called that.
This time, Miyako summoned a bat.
She checked the land from the sky.
Maya knew that, so she just asked for the results.
”No good. It got shot down. They are watching closely.”
”What does that mean?”
Kudo asked, confused.
Tsukamoto Joujirou and Kimura Gou started yelling too.
Maya thought it was noisy but explained the magic simply.
”Seriously?”
”Magic can do that?”
”Magic is crazy.”
The boys said things like that, sounding amazed.
”Then can’t magic fix this?”
Morita said, like he just thought of it.
The other officers looked at Miyako, agreeing.
”Um, Miyako, what do you think?”
Maya had thought the same.
In truth, you can’t beat someone who uses magic like this with normal ways.
So maybe magic is the only answer, Maya thought.
”The answer is yes and no.”
”What do you mean?”
Morita pressed Miyako.
”Eek!”
Miyako stepped back, scared.
”Calm down.”
Maya stepped between Miyako and Morita.
”Miyako, give more details.”
”Okay. If we just need to block the lake, we can drop a Meteor and fill it.”
”Then do it now!”
Kudo yelled.
”Is that okay?”
Miyako looked at Kudo with disdain.
”Of course! In yesterday’s fight, the enemy lost a lot of will to fight. Now is the chance to attack!”
Maya stepped in to calm Kudo down.
”Calm down! Don’t say things without hearing why Miyako says no. So, Miyako, why not?”
”Well, of course, but if you fill the lake, where does the water go? The law of conservation of mass works here too.”
Miyako said the pushed-out water would flood Aaren Plain and Aran town.
Even a quick calculation showed enough water to drown the town.
”And think about the shock from the Meteor hitting.”
Miyako said you need to evacuate ten km away first, or get caught in it.
”Can’t you just suck out the water?”
”We don’t know the depth, so we don’t know how much water. And where do you take all that water? Like I said, conservation of mass is absolute.”
Miyako answered Kudo’s yell calmly.
”Um, what about freezing it?”
Tsukamoto said in a calm voice.
”That might work, but I can’t do it alone.”
”Who else uses magic? If Saya comes, maybe?”
Maya asked.
Miyako shook her head weakly.
”Saya’s attribute is light, not good for freezing. Kotono-san would be better.”
”Kotono-chan. Even if we call now, it takes a week to get here. And we don’t want to leave the Royal Capital empty. What do we do?”
After that, many ideas came up and got shot down.
The most real one was to build a bridge over one of the water paths.
Miyako could make a bridge with magic over fifty meters alone.
The problem is the enemy might not let them.
Fifty meters is very close.
From the other side, the enemy can shoot arrows or magic easily.
Using magic for a bridge while arrows and magic fly is very hard.
Even if they do it, the bridge can only be thirty meters wide at most.
It limits how many soldiers can cross at once.
With such a small bridge, they can’t send enough to break through the enemy.
The enemy would pick them off one by one.
It would just waste soldiers.
”Hey, do we really need to cross the lake?”
Nozaki Sumire, who had been quiet, said that.
”Because of the lake, we can’t go over, but they can’t come here either, right? So is there a problem with staying like this?”
Sumire was right.
Aaren Plain was kind of abandoned land anyway.
Without the Empire Army’s plans, they could ignore it.
The lake even makes it harder for Demonkin to attack here.
They should be happy about that.
But for Empire General Tuuran, he planned to take Aaren Plain if possible in this invasion.
So they must cross to the other side.
That’s why, using the Empire’s name, they pushed Morita to attack.
Morita couldn’t say no, so things got stuck.
”We need more info first, right?”
Maya said that to stop the meeting from turning into arguments.
”I’ll go scout. Miyako, cover me.”
Maya stood up and left the command room with Miyako.
A Little Earlier
This happened before Maya and the others reached the fort.
”Ugh, things got messy.”
Kanata mumbled, looking at the grassland ahead.
This place is called Aaren Plain.
It has good water and rich soil, perfect for farming.
Humans want this fertile land.
There are human towns on the east side.
Small villages dot the area up to the border.
But west of the main town, there’s an unspoken truce.
Humans and Demonkin agreed not to fight there.
Still, villages exist in this no-fight zone.
If they get attacked, no one can complain.
Angula, a Demonkin leader, used this to invade human lands.
Humans couldn’t just ignore it.
It was a threat, so they sent an army to fight.
They also hoped to grab this rich land if possible.
Both sides had their plans.
Demonkin and human armies faced off in Aaren Plain.
They clashed in small battles, day after day.
Neither side gave up.
Time dragged on, and both armies grew tired.
Then General Tuuran, the human leader, noticed a change.
The balance was breaking.
He didn’t know why, but Demonkin General Angula had left.
This messed up their army’s command.
Seeing a chance, Tuuran asked his country for more troops.
He said if they didn’t act now, they’d lose Aaren Plain forever.
His country pressured Alfheim’s Royal Palace.
After loud debates, Alfheim decided to send their summoned Heroes to the fight.
But that choice came a bit late.
By the time Hero Morita reached the fort, Angula was gone.
Two-thirds of Aaren Plain was now Kanata’s land.
He had found a new Dungeon there and claimed it.
* * *
”So, what now? You’re not just going to stare at them forever, right?”
”But you’re not giving up this place either, are you?”
El spoke from above Kanata’s head.
Sakura said it from his right side.
”Even if we attack, the front-line soldiers are losing spirit. If Angula’s gone, we don’t know how they’ll react.”
Sheila frowned as she spoke.
”Still, the ones fighting out there don’t really matter to us, do they?”
To Kanata, the humans and Demonkin fighting in Aaren Plain were strangers.
He didn’t care about them.
He even thought it’d be fine if they fought each other, as long as they didn’t bother him.
”Come on, big brother, just go out there and boom! Take them out!”
Lena said something bold.
”Don’t be silly. Wait, maybe that’s not a bad idea?”
Kanata was about to laugh off Lena’s words but then got an idea.
”Lena, if you don’t think about the consequences, how much water can you make?”
Kanata asked.
Lena tilted her head, thinking.
”Hmm. If you carry me to bed after I use magic, maybe this much?”
Lena showed a huge amount.
It was like the size of a giant lake in Japan.
Of course, Kanata had boosted Lena’s power.
She’d need to use all her magic energy for this.
Normally, she couldn’t do it.
”Okay, that might work. Now we need earth magic.”
Kanata’s plan was wild.
He wanted to dig a huge hole in front of the enemy.
Then fill it with water to make a big moat, or rather, a lake.
Using magic, they could do it fast.
The enemy couldn’t stop them.
Once it’s done, the enemy couldn’t cross easily.
A slow boat crossing the lake would be an easy target for Demonkin fireballs.
This plan would stop humans from invading Demon lands.
They’d have to go far around the Northern Region.
For Kanata, this would buy time.
He needed to go to Alfheim for Shizuka’s wish.
Or finish expanding his Dungeon.
This crazy plan would work well to stall the humans.
”Well, it sure would work.”
El said, amazed but impressed.
”Master, you think differently.”
Princess Sakura praised Kanata fully.
”To buy time for the Dungeon, this size makes sense.”
Sheila shared her quick calculations.
”The problem is earth magic. For something this big…”
”Anyone know someone who can help?”
Kanata looked around.
Everyone shook their heads.
But one person looked away.
”Sheila, do you know someone?”
Kanata pressed her.
Sheila’s eyes wandered.
Then she gave up and spoke.
”I’m not sure if she’s good enough, but Amisa-sama.”
Sheila said the Grayladd family was known for earth magic.
Amisa, a direct heir, had strong earth magic skills.
Also, Saria could use rare amplifying magic.
If Saria boosted Amisa’s magic, they could dig a huge area.
”With Master’s support, it could match your plan.”
Sheila showed calculations.
They could make a moat close to Kanata’s idea.
The issue was Amisa’s position.
Kanata had saved her and others, but they still had conflicts with Annamira’s group.
If this plan worked, they’d have to reward Amisa’s team.
Sheila didn’t like that idea.
”Don’t make that face. I’m thinking of you too.”
Kanata said to Sheila.
He put a hand on her head and patted her.
”Master, that’s harassment.”
But that’s how he treated her.
Kanata later called Sheila out and teased her a lot.
・
・
・
”Maya-chan, are you really going?”
Miyako sounded worried.
”Yeah. I scouted for a whole day. Now I need to see it up close.”
Maya used one of her Gift skills, Shadow Search.
Yesterday, she gathered info on the enemy side.
She learned Aaren Plain had villages in the middle.
Beyond that, near a forest, was a fort.
The forest was deep, with more beyond it.
She couldn’t scout deep into the forest.
But for now, checking the fort was enough.
There had been small fights before.
Now, there were no signs of fighting.
Something was up, and Maya’s gut told her to investigate soon.
Sayaka would return from the Northern Region in about five days.
She’d learn more from Almea and reach Aran Fortress.
If Sayaka were here, they could try ways to cross the lake.
They were preparing for that, but there was a worry.
Even for Demonkin, making a huge lake overnight was a big deal.
They must have pushed hard.
What if they had energy left?
If they used that power while soldiers crossed, many would die.
To avoid that, they needed to know the Demonkin’s strength.
Just watching from outside wasn’t enough.
They had to sneak into the fort.
”Don’t worry, Miyako. It’s a forest over there. There are plenty of shadows to hide in. Plus, you’ll keep your familiars flying, right?”
Maya said, and Miyako nodded.
One of Maya’s Gift skills, Shadow Dive, let her move between shadows instantly.
It only worked for shadows she could see.
But if she could see them, distance or walls didn’t matter.
Even if Maya got caught and put in a cell, she could escape.
As long as she saw a shadow outside the bars, it was easy.
She couldn’t cross straight from the fort to the other side.
But with Miyako’s hawk familiar casting shadows, Maya could use Shadow Dive.
She could hop from shadow to shadow to reach the enemy fort.
It just needed the familiar to not get shot down.
Maya hugged Miyako and gave her a quick kiss.
Then she dived toward the lake’s other side.
Notes:
• Morita – Kazuo’s Family Name.
• May – Blonde, soft-eyed shrine girl. ch14–15. Gentle and pleading (“Please… just let us go…”), timid but loyal, relies on Mina’s strength. Came with Mina to save Sara, but was disarmed and bound by Kanata as his captive maid.
• Maya – Cheerful brown-haired girl, naturally charming and social, Kanata’s classmate and morning conversation neighbor.
• Kazuo – Silver-haired, confident class rep, natural leader and strategist, takes charge of classmates in the summoned hero scenario.
• Kudo – A classmate and a Swordsman gift holder, slices through enemies with precision in training battles.
• Miyako – Quiet library girl with golden hair, intelligent and book-savvy, occasional silent companion to Kanata.
• Gou – A Ranger who coordinates attacks, balancing aggression and caution in training.
• Joujirou – A classmate and a wielder of Guardian’s Shield, anchors the training line with unyielding defense
• Kimura – Gou’s Family Name. The Ranger.
• Tsukamoto – Joujirou’s Family Name. The Defense of class who wield Guardian’s Shield.
• Aaren Plain – Grassland east of Florence, flanked by Mercuria (south), Alefgard (north), and Alfheim (west). Trade artery for food, steel, and elven goods; lifeline in peace, choke point in blockade. Reminder: Florence’s survival hinges on this crossroads.
• Saya – Orphanage sister of Maya and Miyako, later adopted into the wealthy Kitahara family for a political marriage. Holds rare Gift Princess Knight (Valkyrie): versatile fighter-leader with light magic, stronger than Morita’s Commander. Quiet in Class A but bound by childhood oath to protect Maya and Miyako. Torn between duty as Kitahara heir and hidden first love for Kanata.
• Kotono – A classmate, and a wielder of Mage.
• Nozaki – Sumire’s Family Name. A Healer.
• Sumire – A healer preparing to mend classmates, supporting the team during training.
• Tuuran – A commander stationed at Aran Fortress on Alfheim’s northern frontier, facing constant pressure from the Empire and Demonkin. His urgent request for reinforcements forced Almea to send Heroes despite her reluctance, triggering the chain of events that pulled Maya back from Altena negotiations. Reminder: the fortress general whose plea reshaped Alfheim’s plans.
• Angula – The leader of the enemy squad that raided Kanata’s dungeon about a month after he met Alusia. His three-hundred-strong force sent a smaller unit that was defeated by Kanata’s traps and fifty elite warriors, after which Kanata mocked their leader’s name and sent a warning to him.
• Sheila – Adopted daughter of the Akart family, is captured by Kanata and knows her family won’t ransom her. Given the choices of ransom, slavery, or a 300-meter dungeon escape through ogres, she joins the attempt and sacrifices herself as bait. The escape fails, and in the end Sheila survives with Annamira and Rena by accepting slavery under Kanata.
• Shizuka – Classmate, wielder of Sniper, nicknamed “Shizu-tan.” Neglected, raised herself after father’s death and mother’s abandonment. Nearly assaulted in another world, broke her stoicism with first real plea for help. Saved by Kanata, now torn between distrust and fragile hope. Reminder: hardened loner, only cracks under extreme pressure.
• Amisa – Fallen Demon noble of Grayladd, joined Angula’s Aaren Plain campaign with maid Saria , captured with Rena, Annamira, Sheila; spared by Kanata, now loyal aide with maid Saria, calls him “Master/Big Brother.” Reminder: ex-heiress turned submissive servant.
• Saria – Former maid of Grayladd house, captured with Amisa in Aaren Plain campaign. Unlike her mistress, quickly submitted to Kanata after capture, now serves as his devoted aide and handler for Amisa. Reminder: loyal maid, pragmatic in survival.
• Sayaka – Athletic blonde with sharp presence, expert in multiple martial arts, Kanata’s lunch-time sparring partner and admired distant figure.
• Almea – First Princess of Alfheim, poised and graceful, leads and guides summoned heroes, embodies calm authority and divine favor.
• Aran Fortress – A heavily fortified base raised by the Empire in Aran town, land claimed by Alfheim but surrendered under pressure. Officially built to fight Demonkin spilling from the Aaren Plain, it also secures a permanent Imperial foothold on Alfheim’s border. Local towns rely on the Empire’s protection, making resistance nearly impossible.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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