"Thank you," he said, "for bringing them here. It was very kind of you, Princess."

Van Reichnott was very, very polite. His soft expression, kind eyes, simple, yet well-tailored clothing all meant to suggest that he was not a threat. Not at all.

And he wasn't. Not physically at least.

His intelligence, however, was impressive.

In a single sentence, he had thanked her, politely reminded her that Mirellia had more power over him and suggested that he was suspicious of her behaviour without any hint of an insult. Compared to Lady Leto who had been rude and confrontational from the outset this man had carefully managed to speak to her despite his worry over her and Motoyasu's presence.

Of course, he did have one very large advantage: He knew of her power and that she had ruined multiple houses in her bid to rule Melromarc.

"I do believe that I should be thanking you," she said, as they strolled through the town centered on his mansion, "I didn't give you much warning and, yet, you've agreed to accommodate them all."

The man smiled as they reached the wooden fence that separated the town from the nearby forest. "Not at all," he said waving his hand, "The gold you've provided will keep them fed for months."

"Application of wealth is more difficult than a donation," she said while sending a pulse of mana into the ground to assess the bedrock, "treat them well and we shall have no problems."

Malty changed the form of her Cane into a variant that was best for Earth Manipulation. She spun the Cane around, drew on the energy of the Cane, her mana and then slammed the gemstone on the ground.

The Lord flinched when the ground started to shake, but he braced himself quickly.

"Stone, soil and earth, I command thee, Liquify," she intoned.

Her chanting continued as the ground in front of them changed from simple, solid earth to a soupy mess that bubbled as if there was a giant fire beneath the ground. The liquefaction spread deeper, unseen by those who were not underground, and soon she had enough material.

A thought pulled the building, driven by the knowledge from her Cane, out from the ground. Architecture and Enchantment skills were akin to databases that guided her actions. It took her nearly a minute but soon a spartan three-story building with several dozen flats on each floor appeared.

It took her a long time to shape the foundation. Alter the structure so that it was enchanted to maintain a decent temperature and carefully make sure that it was structurally sound.

It was just the start.

Plants grew to infiltrate the Earthen construct, seeping into the structure like liquid, before hardening into something harder than steel. Jessica wove Enchantments into it for temperature regulation, humidity management, light, water supply through the wines and even escape routes to the basement.

But these were merely for comfort.

The most important part was the series of aggressive barriers that would kill monsters and protect humans and demi-humans.

It didn't escape her that most status magic and identification magic for the barriers struggles to differentiate between Demi-humans, humans and monsters. There was something distinctly odd about the entire level-status magic system. It was artificial and had some sort of motive behind its design. The people of this world didn't question it...but Jessica couldn't help but find it odd.

Jessica exhaled once she was done.

This construct had taken ten times more mana than razing the entire Castle had. Creation truly was always harder than destruction even with something like magic added to the mix.

"Let's take a look," she said to Van Reichnott who was staring at the building with shock, "Do tell me if there are any modifications that you can think of."

"Y-yes, Princess," he said, staring at the Cane and then back at her.

Malty walked up the stairs and frowned slightly at the brown colour that filled the entire building. It was bland. The steps were narrow and the lack of lifts was a noticeable drawback. The temperature regulation was working but she'd need to fully test it out and the rooms were smaller than she'd like.

Once they were done and had reached the roof Malty found herself annoyed at the building she had constructed.

It was pathetic.

Suitable for the demi-humans, perhaps, but not worthy of being something she had created.

"Princess," said Reichnott, after a moment of watching the sunset from their height, "Would it be possible for other buildings of this nature to be constructed?"

Jessica nodded. "Of course," she said, "You witnessed how swiftly I built it. It is a simple design. I was planning to make another two or three of these to house the demi-humans I plan on bringing back and provide a redoubt, if and when, the Waves should arrive here. Make sure to practice evacuation drills. Food, Water and some degree of protection should be possible."

The man knelt, "Your Highness," he said, "I beg of you to create such homes for my people. I will gladly increase the taxes I am due to pay."

Malty couldn't help but smile. This man truly cared for his people. To forsake his pride and his wealth for their sake. He hadn't begged for a mansion of his own even though her building, spartan as it was, was almost as tall as his mansion.

She liked men like him.

"Don't worry about that," she said, "I'll build one or two apartment buildings in your domain whenever I drop in. You should have enough homes by the time the next Wave hits or so without too much trouble."

"Thank you," he said, standing up once she nodded at him, "but there is one more concern."

A raised eyebrow had him expand.

"Lord Rabier has been...harassing my people repeatedly in the name of searching for the Shield Hero," he said, "more than once they have been taken, never to be seen again."

"The Shield Hero…" she said, tone light, but mana pressing down on the Lord, "Your people have good reason to shelter him don't they. You do as well, my mother certainly would prefer to have him in her grasp."

Reichnott caught on quickly, "He has not been spotted in my domain, Your Highness," he said firmly, "And should he be you will be the first to know."

Malty laughed at his first lie but chose not to call him out on it. This man was truly interesting. He knew that Mirellia would be too late to help. She was his only practical hope and so for that, he would choose to ignore all that he had heard about her.

His devotion to his people was something she could respect. It also made him relatively easy to control. He was someone she could predict as long as she didn't wrong the people he ruled.

Perhaps, he'd gain more territory once she was done purging the incompetent, the foolish and the defiant.

She had a couple of ideas she could use to show him why defying her was unwise. He would soon hear of House Leto but Rabier's head would do more than words could ever hope to.

It was a pity that would have to wait. Rabier was useful for now. Naofumi's capture mattered more than anyone noble, no matter how cruel or petty.

Plus, she wanted Raphtalia to grow up a bit before dealing with Rabier. The girl still had nightmares regularly. A bit of time, some experience, a bit of power and she'd be ready to face the man.

Jessica couldn't imagine a better way to secure her loyalty than with the head of her tormentor.

Sorry about the repost.

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