Konbini Ossan Volume 4 Chapter 23 — Factory Construction Begins
The day after meeting with Marceline, I headed straight to the land granted for my factory.
After surveying the entire area, it was exactly as expected — completely unmaintained and overgrown.
Still, there were no squatters or signs of anyone living here, which in itself was fortunate.
Before anything else, the land had to be leveled. That wasn’t something I could do alone, so I planned to hire some kids from the orphanage and a few adventurer acquaintances.
But before bringing anyone in, the area needed to be secured.
Which meant the first order of business was building a defensive wall.
Time to get to work.
Using the massive stock of metal I’d stored through my «Iron Blood» skill, I began producing steel frames already shaped and ready for assembly.
I didn’t know much about structural engineering, so I had to be careful not to create weak points.
Still, since I wasn’t building a skyscraper, brute-forcing the beams together and reinforcing them with additional metal would do.
Encircling the entire plot with steel took three days. It was quite a bit of work, but still far easier than manually welding everything together.
The skill let me assemble steel beams instantly, after all.
Next came the wall material.
This land had plenty of dry, loose soil — perfect for what I had in mind. With the right skill, I could turn it into a kind of pseudo-concrete.
I started collecting the dirt, using metal drums I’d created with «Iron Blood».
Each one was filled three-quarters with soil, leaving some space for other ingredients.
The job was exhausting. For the first two days I worked alone, but the amount I needed was enormous.
I eventually called in help from the shop — staff and a few familiar faces.
After ten days of hauling dirt, today’s helpers were Arisa-san, Shirley-san, and Maria-san.
I’d also pulled a few employees from the store, so things over there were probably a mess right now.
I hadn’t meant to gather all three of them at once, but when I mentioned that today might finally wrap up the soil work, they all insisted on coming.
“Good work, old man!”
Arisa was the first to call out. Shirley and Maria followed, smiling as they approached.
“You’ve gathered so much dirt… what exactly are you making?”
“You’ll see soon enough.”
To answer Shirley’s question, I approached one of the drums. The soil inside filled it about three-quarters of the way. There was still room to add a little more.
“Could it be that you’re going to process the soil using one of your mysterious skills, Otsugi-sama?”
“Yes, exactly right.”
Maria’s guess hit the mark.
Peering into the drum, I activated one of my skills.
Its name was «Adhesive Fluid».
The moment it triggered, a thick stream of sticky liquid poured from my mouth. Like a human fountain, I kept spewing the viscous substance until the drum was full.
Once it reached the brim, I stopped the skill — the flow ceased immediately.
Next, I quickly created a metal rod with «Iron Blood» and began stirring. As I mixed the adhesive with the soil, the once clear liquid turned cloudy, thick, and heavy.
Before long, it had become a yellowish sludge that looked remarkably like wet concrete.
“Alright.”
“‘Alright’? That’s gross, old man! I told you before — that’s seriously nasty! Stop doing that!”
Apparently my casual sense of accomplishment had struck Arisa’s nerve again.
“Um, Otsugi-sama… what exactly was that just now?”
“The skill «Adhesive Fluid». Don’t worry — it’s not saliva.”
“I–I see…”
Maria looked uneasy. Understandably so. The image of something pouring from my mouth probably wasn’t pleasant.
But the truth was, adhesive fluid could only be produced from mucous membranes. It was either that or through the nose, and I’d rather not imagine that.
Efficiency had its price.
“I see. So it’s the same kind of adhesive that comes from an Arachne-type monster.
…
True, if you mix that with the fine soil from this area, it would harden into a very sturdy wall once dry.”
“Oh? You understand perfectly.”
Shirley, it seemed, was more intrigued by its practical use than grossed out by its appearance — a relief for me.
“Well, I’m still just as creeped out as Arisa and Maria,” she added dryly. “But as a former guild receptionist, I have to admit — it’s fascinating.”
…Guess I didn’t escape judgment after all.
For reference, my adhesive fluid has the same strength as that produced by monsters even stronger than the Arachne-type she mentioned.
The result would be a wall of unbelievable toughness — something like reinforced concrete.
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E/N:
Imagine that scene, Ossan spewing "not saliva" like a fountain… 🤮 🤮 🤮 I should not have imagined that! Sorry, gotta go! Stay tuned!
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