Translator Corner
Minasan Oidemasu! This is Yukkuri demasu!
A bit reinformation in case you missed the previous announcement:
I will out of town tomorrow, so I don’t know if I can release an updates ornot.
As always,
DISCLAIMER: There is no guarantee that my translation is 100%correct. Please correct me if I was wrong.
Author:
すずの木くろ (Susunokikuro)
Translator:
Yukkuri Oniisan
Editor, Proofreader:
TheDefend
Chapter 86: Natural Resource Survey
「Can you keep going at this speed?」(Lodurr)
「Yes…… I can still go…… at this speed.」(Valetta)
While intensely running on the dry ground towards themountain that could be seen in the distance, Valetta and Lodurr exchangedwords.
Both of them was running at a speed that surpassed theaverage record of 100 meters running in the world, but there was no sign thatit was particularly difficult for them.
Valetta, who didn’t usually run too much and notaccustomed to it, was running while paying attention to her pace and breathing,but Lodurr still had energy left to spare.
「By the way, when I went to the mountain last time, I find an abandonedtunnel. Perhaps, there might be ores like the ones on the photograph you hadshown me near it.」(Lodurr)
「A…… Mine?」(Valetta)
Compared to Lodurr who was talking smoothly withoutany change, Valetta replied while matching it with her breath.
「Yes, perhaps it was dug long ago…… Ah, if it’s hard for you, you don’t needto reply. It will be fine if you just listened to it.」(Lodurr)
Valetta nodded at Lodurr’s suggestion, so she quickly returnedon looking at the front and concentrate on running
Normally, there won’t be a problem of running whilenot talking, but if she talked while keeping her speed at it is, the difficultylevel will immediately increase.
It wasn’t like she didn’t have any energy to talk, butit was a difficult task for the current Valetta to talk normally like Lodurrwhile running until reaching the mountain.
Even if she could do it for the first few minutes, herbreathing might go disordered and her stamina would be depleted immediately asthe result.
「I believe that it’s an abandoned mine with an exhausted vein, but the stonethat they discarded in the surrounding had become a huge mound. I don’tremember if there is any red stone like in the photographs, but there is amerit to try to visit it once.」(Lodurr)
Even though Valetta was running carefully so herbreath won’t be disordered, she was delighted at the information that Lodurrgave.
In the middle of the discarded rock pile from thealready mined tunnels, perhaps there might be iron ore mixed in it.
If she found a place where the iron ore was dumped altogether,then even without any mining, she could easily obtain it.
「So, when I find that mine, there was a heavy rain coming down. I entered itthinking to shelter from the rain, but there is a large nest of bats inside. Thebat dung under my feet had piled up so deep, on the other hand, if I wentoutside then I will be quite drenched up from the rain…… In the end, I stood insidethe tunnel while my feet smeared with dung until the rain is over. Thatexperience is so agonizing.」(Lodurr)
Lodurr who was deeply narrating his experience, madeValetta unconsciously slipping out a smile.
Then, while continuously listening to Lodurr’sreminiscence story, they ran for one hour.
Without taking a single break on their trip, both ofthem arrived at the open field at the mountain’s foot.
This mountain was part of the mountain district locatedon Isteria northwest, or the mountain located north from Grisea Village.
There was groves of dense trees stretched out in frontof them.
Since the tree grove was overgrown with trees andgrasses, they couldn’t see what lies behind it.
「Fuu. Finally, we arrived…… Are you alright?」(Lodurr)
Lodurr worriedly asked Valetta who was putting herhand on her knees while panting for air.
「Haa, haa…… I-I’m al, right…… Let’srest, awhile……」(Valetta)
Valetta was breathing roughly as sweat dripping off fromthe tip of her nose and chin.
In the other hand, Lodurr there was sweating on hisforehead and his breath had become a bit faster, but it wasn’t as bad as Valettawho was gasping for air and sweat like a bucket.
The difference in the fundamental physical strength thatcould be compensated just by physical strength enhancement was vividly depictedin this situation.
Lodurr recommended to sit down and take a rest, soValetta sat down at that place and then wiped out the sweat with the clothtowel she brought while resting her body.
During that time, Lodurr casually entered the mountainovergrown with trees and quickly returned with one branch as big as an adult’sarm.
He cut that branch with his hatchet and at the slantedcut cross-section into a clean ellipse shaped.
From the branch cross-section, water was dripping down.
「Here, Valetta-san. If you tip this branch then water will come out. Don’tdrink too much or you could get stomach ache…… Though, we had drank it numeroustimes till now so it might be fine.」(Lodurr)
「Ah, thank you very much……」(Valetta)
Valetta received the branch from Lodurr and then tipthe cut out branch into her mouth.
And then, a lot of water immediately flowed out fromthe branch.
Its taste had a bit peculiar bitterness, but it wasn’ta problem at all for drinking it.
Valetta’s throat made gulping sounds as she drunk thewater and then she presented the branch to Lodurr.
「Ah…… I feel more refreshed. Do Lodurr-san also want to have a drink?」(Valetta)
「Hm…… No, I’m fine. Also, if I received it, Kazura-san might be angry.」(Lodurr)
「Eh? …… A……u……」(Valetta)
When she noticed that she was about to hand over thebranch that had entered her mouth, Valetta looked down with blushed face atLodurr’s words.
Seeing Valetta behaving like this, Lodurr raised alaugh and once again entered the mountain.
Then five minutes passed.
Valetta, who had completely regained her stamina, stoodup and brushed off leaves or sand that stuck to her clothes when Lodurr cameback from the mountain.
The sack behind his back had become a bit bulged, so itseems he had taken something from the mountain.
「Lodurr-san, I’m already alright. Let’s search for the ores.」(Valetta)
「I understand. Then for now, let’s go to the riverbed.」(Lodurr)
Lodurr nodded at Valetta’s words and took out thehatchet from his back and walked once more into the trees.
At times Lodurr would swing the hatchet to cut obstructingivy so it won’t be a hindrance and Valetta followed several steps behind him.
「What have you picked not long ago? It seems that there’s something insideyour bag.」(Valetta)
「I picked a polishpowder branch. Recently the sliding door in the house hadbecome bad, so my wife asked for it.」(Lodurr)
The polishpowder branch that Lodurr was speaking aboutwas a branch from a tree that was smoothly covered with a white powder on itssurface.
If this powder was spread over the threshold of asliding door that had become bad from years of use, its slide will immediatelybecome better.
It was far more effective than using wax, so bringingthis branch home was very handy.
As long as the branch was stick into the ground thenit will continue to produce powder for awhile, so everyone in the village coulduse it.
「Ah, I also want to use some. The barn door’s slide had become badrecently……」(Valetta)
「Then, I’ll give several branches when we returned to the village. Since Itook a lot, I plan to split them with everyone in the village.」(Lodurr)
While having such conversation, they walked for about20 minutes.
Using their high physical strength, both of them considerablyforceful in pushing through the mountain, they moved in almost straight lineuntil they arrived at their destination, the dry riverbed.
Because during the heavy rain of the rainy season had washedthe soil away with a flash flood, the dry riverbed surface was mostly bedrock.
On the cliffs that ran on boththe riverbed’s side, there were places where various sized rocks had piled up asif it had been sweep to gather them up.
「Waa, what a beautiful place!」(Valetta)
At the beautiful scenery that unfolded before her veryeyes, Valetta’s eyes brightened as she raised words of admiration.
At the rocky ground that covered most of the riverbed,there was one deep river flowing from the mountain beyond this point betweenthe rocky cliffs that stood at both sides.
The sound of flowing water and the songs of birds andthe murmurs of the trees that echoed from the forest, orchestrated an ambiance thatwas truly refreshing.
「Isn’t it? When I came to hunt in this mountain, I will make a campfire andpass the night in this place. There are many potholes around this place justthe right sized where you could bath into, occasionally you can even catch afish inside that pothole. This is my favorite place.」(Lodurr)
Valetta walked towards the direction Lodurr pointingat and there was a hole that was waist deep close to the river.
The hole was about 3 meters in diameter and the riverwater slowly flowed into the hole.
Perhaps because the water constantly being replaced, thewater was so clear that she could see until the bottom of the hole.
The rock surface of the hole was really smooth, so evenif someone’s skin touching it when entering the hole, they wouldn’t get injured.
By the way, a pothole is a hole opened on the rock becauseof water current over a long period of time.
「It’s nice that the water is clear…… Ah, it’s quite cold.」(Valetta)
Valetta squatted down beside the hole and placed herhand in the water.
The snow-melted water that came from the mountain feltcold to the touch, so it felt good on the hot skin from walking through the mountain.
Due to the river source located near the summit, thewater temperature was lower than the water at the river that flowed near Griseavillage.
「So, I often saw the stones in the photographs around this area. Look,there.」(Lodurr)
Valetta lifted her face when Lodurr spoke up and followedhis line of sight.
「Ah, you’re right. There are a red stone.」(Valetta)
Amongst the jumbled pile of rocks beside the cliff, therewas a red discolored hematite, that could be considered as an iron ore, mixedin it.
Valetta stood up and then dashed atop the rocks towardsthat rock piles.
While being careful not to slip, she dashed atop therocky surface and arrived at the big rock piles.
Valetta squatted down at that place, took out the bookfrom her sack and then opened the bookmarked page.
She compared the color of the ore in front of her withthe color photograph in the book.
From the surface appearance and the color, it appearsthat it was unmistakably hematite.[1]
「How is it? Is that stone the correct one?」(Lodurr)
「Yes, there is no doubt that this stone is iron ore. There are also a lot ofit.」(Valetta)
Amongst the large amount of stones, not only hematitebut magnetite[2] couldalso be seen mixed in it.
Just by a glance, she could see that there was quitean amount, so if these stones were properly sorted then it is possible toobtain a large amount of iron ore.
「Lodurr-san, is this river the same river that flowed near the village?」(Valetta)
「Yes, it’s the same river. Though midway it split into and merge withseveral other rivers.」(Lodurr)
At Lodurrs explanation, Valetta nodded happily.
If this river and the river near the village wasconnected then it is possible to easily transport the ores obtained in thisplace to the village by using a raft.
Not only the timber material for the raft could easilybe obtained from the surrounding mountain, after the raft descended the river andarrived at the village it could be used as firewood, so there would be nowaste.
Though the fault was that it took time to reach thisplace, since this place was located very deep in the mountain, there shouldn’tbe any interference from other people.
In addition, there was no need to do any mining forthe present, so it was surely a perfect ideal location.
The charcoal used for iron smelting, could be obtainedby establishing charcoal making hut either in this place or the village.
Since there was a lot of wood that could be gatheredfrom the village’s surrounding, there was no need to worry about the fuel.
Charcoal making knowledge and methods to build ironsmelting furnace was recorded in details in the technical book and regionalhistory that Kazura had brought.
Since they were fully borrowing the knowledge of theprevious pioneer, there shouldn’t be any major failure when performing theoperations.
「Do you also want to see the abandoned tunnel?」(Lodurr)
「Yes, since I have gone this far, let’s try to see it. I want to know whereand how many ores it have.」(Valetta)
Valetta put the book into the bag before standing upand looking at the surrounding riverbed.
Then, she happened to notice the red and black stripedpattern on the surface of the cliff.
「What’s wrong?」(Lodurr)
Seeing Valetta stopped moving when she saw the cliff’ssurface, Lodurr tilted his head and asked her.
Valetta hurriedly opened the bag and took out the bookbefore flipping through the pages.
Finally, she found the color photo she wanted and lookedonce more at the cliff that she saw before.
「…… Banded…… Iron Formation……」(Valetta)
While muttering those words, she followed the cliffsurface into the direction of the river upstream.
The striped pattern that could be looked at the cliffsurface, continued on and on without interruption.
Valetta turned to look at the other cliff and she alsofound the same striped pattern drawn at the surface.
「Eh……. then, this whole……」(Valetta)
Valetta muttered dumbfounded and looked at the photographof the same pattern on the riverside cliff in the page.
What Valetta had witnessed was the cross section of a geologicalstratum of iron ore veins that was called banded iron formation (BIF).
There is no mistake, this place had a large iron orevein.
✦✧✦✧✦
Afterward, Valetta and Lodurr once again climbing themountain and arrived at the abandoned tunnel that Lodurr had discovered before.
This tunnel was located at the upstream from the riverbed.
It was dug in a place about 30 minutes following the riverupstream and about 100 meters away from the river itself.
The tunnel entrance was covered with dense vegetationthat the inside was dark and felt ominous.
The entrance was reinforced with wooden support,however, it looks like it had been abandoned for quite a long time, that mostof the support already tattered and rotting.
It has an eerie circumstances that ghosts might evenappear.
「This is the tunnel. Just like when I came before, as soon as we enter,there will be bat dung, so it’s better if we don’t go inside.」(Lodurr)
「It’s so dark that anything couldn’t be seen.」(Valetta)
Valetta tried to look at the inside from the tunnel’sentrance, but the inside was so dark that she couldn’t see anything.
She thought that she might find some ore vein insidethe tunnel, but if she went too far then she might get injured, so for today,it might better to not enter and leave it for now.
「The discarded rocks don’t change at all. It’s quite an amount, though.」(Lodurr)
Valetta turned to look at the direction where Lodurrwas looking and saw a large mound of rocks.
The soil that had been carried by wind and water was pluggingthe gaps between the rocks, where grasses and ivies grow.
It might need a bit work, but if the grass and ivy atthe surface were cleared then it’s possible to retrieve the stones.
Valetta walked towards the rock mound and observed therock that could be seen at the surface.
「Ah, it’s limonite[3].But not much.」(Valetta)
Amongst the rocks there was a small amount darkishyellow iron ore called limonite.
Since it was mixed up on the discarded rocks, then ifshe searched the tunnel she might found a vein.
Valetta once again returned to the tunnel entrance, sheput her hand on the tunnel and tried to look at the walls inside.
However, she couldn’t see any ore vein on the wallnear the entrance, it was just a normal rock surface.
She squatted down and then using a fallen twig nearby,she tried to clear the ground surface a bit.
Then some dark brownish thing scattered when she movedthe twig, it might be the bat dung.
「……Ah.」(Valetta)
「When we return to the village, let’s make leather boots. It wasn’t thatdeep around the entrance, but if you go inside a bit then the dung will becomegreater. Spare me from entering the cave just by wearing these straw sandals.」(Lodurr)
Valetta looked fixatedly at the ground that she hadbrushed off, but she nodded at Lodurr’s words and quickly stood up.
Since it wasn’t like she must search the tunnel rightnow, she could continue on another day.
From the gap of the ground that Valetta had brushedwith the twig, there was a slightly white thing peeked out.
☾☽☾☽☾☽☾☽☾☽☾☽☾☽☾☽☾☽☾☽
White thing in batguano?
That’s it for now.
[1]Fe2O3
[2]Fe3O4
[3]FeO(OH)·nH2O