In the northern region of the , beyond the forest area in which we had started the process of afforestation since the time the land was once barren, one could see a plain stretching out laden with nature and grass which had grown there over the time.
In the grassy plains that undulated here and there --- caused by the earthquakes we had induced years ago --- were the half-human half-horse demonkin, the Centaurs, keeping their pace along with the mythical beasts.
"Hey! Let's go in that direction!"
"Understood!"
So spoke one Centaur to another who was there alongside the mythical beasts grazing on the grasses.
There was the goat mythical beast Heiðrún, from whom we were able to get goat milk.
In Norse mythology, it was said that mead ran from the teat of a Heiðrún that could fill the crocks. Although the Heiðrún of this world didn't give out mead, we could get high-quality milk any time of the day.
From the sheep mythical beast Aries, wearing golden fur, we could harvest golden wool.
The horned demon beast Unicorn was a bit difficult to handle since they would only let a virgin girl take care of them, but their horns bore the power to detoxify and purify the impure.
The deer mythical beast Elk replaced their horns once a year which could be used to make something akin to an energy tonic. Their horns were also an excellent fertilizer when ground into fine powder and sprinkled on the land which would improve the quality of soil to grow better quality vegetation or crops.
The Centaurs would gallop the vast expanse of the land along with such mythical beasts and when hungry, they turned to the grassy plains, their feeding ground, or they would occasionally nip on the buds of the vegetation in the forest, and then return to their place to call it a day.
They were treating the mythical beasts as one of their own.
Also, Centaurs didn't have just mythical beasts in their settlement, they were also raising ordinary livestock, using them to plow their fields with a rack.
"Hello, how are you guys doing?"
"We have come to see your situation!"
Teto and I came to the settlement of the Centaurs, which was currently under construction, with the wand and greeted Cain-san, the representative of the Centaurs.
"If it isn't Majou-sama and Teto-sama, thank you for your concern! Well as you can see, we are just building our settlement here!"
Multiple Centaurs were carrying carts loaded with construction materials here and there as they devoted themselves to building some residences that could accommodate their size.
Because they were quadrupedal, which made it hard for them to climb the stairs, all the houses were practically one story and one size bigger than normal.
If you asked me, the short one here, those houses looked like they were made for giants.
Well, the residents of each race were different in their own way just like this, which displayed their uniqueness. I had kind of come to find them interesting.
"If Majou-sama and Teto-sama aren't in a hurry, we would be glad to provide a place for you to rest, and you can give the cheese and milk liquor we made from Heiðrún's milk a try."
"Now we can't say no to that, eh? The cheese of Heiðrún is really delicious."
"Teto likes milk liquor!"
Teto and I were more fond of food than anything else, so we accepted Cain-san's proposal.
Milk liquor was just a bit alcoholic so it was safe for kids to drink as well.
Teto and I enjoyed the rich cheese and slightly sweet milk wine reminiscent of a probiotic drink and made satisfied sighs right after.
"Have the Centaurs encountered any problem?"
"You can talk about anything!"
Lately, we had been going around, visiting the settlement of each race to see if they had encountered any problems and to see if they were living well. Today, it was the Centaur settlement's turn.
"Oh, if anything, we are delighted to finally have a peaceful home. We can engage in farming, animal husbandry, and hunt in the monster region without worries."
Now that they had a place they could call their home, approximately half of the Centaur warriors hunted in the monster-infested region periodically.
North of the was the Mubad Empire, with whom we have no connections, and while the forest has spread outside of the barrier, it wasn't as vast since there were monster nests there. So they had been going to the southern region to hunt some monsters there.
The southern region had become a gathering spot for all the races who were interested in hunting, making it the place with the least racial disparity in this land.
The settlement of the Centaurs was located in the plains close to the northern region, but with the grace in the form of their strong legs, they could travel from here to the south in a jiffy.
"I believe you may already know this but the monsters there are more dangerous, so be careful while hunting."
"Just run away if you think it's dangerous!"
A wry smile appeared on Cain-san's face before it was replaced with a hesitant expression. After having what seemed to be a mental tug-of-war, he exhaled deeply and started speaking.
"------This place is just too good. We don't have a chance to fully utilize our strength here."
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
Cain-san put on a dry smile before sharing his worries with us.
"We Centaurs are confident in our swift legs that allow us to travel quickly to any location that humans can't go to. However, we have Griffons and Pegasuses here who can take humans with them and soar into the skies to engage in trade, along with the combination of the and , items can be delivered to all places in a blink of an eye."
'So we don't have any chance to use our legs,' said Cain-san as he lightly tapped the ground with his leg.
Certainly, the flight capabilities of the Griffon and Pegasus mythical beasts made them a far swifter mode of transportation, and with , travel would instead be over in seconds. But-------
"The settlements of each race are still in the budding stage, that's why are being used to assist them. However, I am going to limit their usage to only emergencies when all such matters are sorted out."
"Is that so?"
"And flying mythical beasts can't carry dozens of people at once. also has a capacity limit!"
Griffons and Pegasuses can carry around 2~3 people at most. Also, the we used didn't even have a carrying capacity of 50 kg, only mine and Teto's magic bags were an exception.
So merchants usually give priority to the fragile items or few, but precious articles and carry them in their .
"Also, the demonic races might have strong connections with me, but they hardly have any interactions between themselves. So I will say your race's ability to transport a lot of stuff will become essential to deliver items between settlements."
As of now, the Angel-kin handled the task of delivering letters, but eventually, it would be integrated into the Centaurs' responsibilities as well.
After all, they had the remarkable ability to carry a lot at once.
"I am not saying it will happen at once, but after things settle down a bit more, it might be worth considering connections with each settlement for transporting people and goods."
After I said all that, Cain-san fell silent for a moment to digest the meaning of my words.
"Majou-sama, Teto-sama. We were thoughtless. Please, forgive us."
"There's nothing to apologize for, really. We haven't even established proper channels between settlements yet, so there's no need to rush."
"Your cheese and milk liquor is really delicious! Teto wants another serving!"
As I comforted Cain-san who looked crestfallen at his own remarks, Teto held out her empty plate and asked for more cheese and milk liquor with a beaming face.
I smiled wryly at Teto's timing, but speaking of the cheese they made, which was delicious and different in flavor compared to the cheese made from Gauren's milk, and the milk liquor that couldn't be found anywhere else, these two were almost their specialties.
I would say that as the people in this land increased, they would eventually wish to trade their specialties with other settlements and the day would come when the Centaurs' strong legs would come in handy.
Until then, I hoped they hone their agriculture and dairy-making skills more and pass their days worry-free, for there would come a day when they would have a place to shine as well.
