The next morning.
Dimitri opened a door, which turned out to be Noel's bedroom.
"Master? Are you still asleep? You're already more than an hour late…" Dimitri wanted to wake Noel up, but he soon stopped when he noticed there were two people on the small bed.
He was even more shocked when he saw the other person turned out to be Anna.
He thought about leaving them alone, but it seemed that he had made enough commotion for them to wake up.
"Mhmm?" Noel almost forgot about the schedule and hurried up, responding to Dimitri. "I'm sorry. I was late."
"It's already bright?" Anna yawned while rising from the bed. She was still discerning the situation with her fuzzy eyes.
Noel noticed that Dimitri had seen something he shouldn't have. After all, Anna was supposed to sleep in the room next door.
When he widened his eyes and was about to explain things to Dimitri, the latter had actually bowed his head.
"Please continue, Master. It will be troublesome if we hold the wedding when she is pregnant, but considering it's still one month away. You have less than three months, or you will have to wait for one more year. Ah, don't worry. I'll fix the bed later so that you two don't need to sleep in that small bed."
Noel's eyebrows twitched as if this was just a misunderstanding. He obviously understood what would happen if such a scenario were to occur. "Dimitri, stand there right now! We're going to have a talk."
"Since you've woken up, I'm going to let the others know. Please excuse me." Dimitri skillfully used his ability to escape, leaving Noel no chance to say another word.
"You…" Noel was completely speechless. He turned to Anna while opening his mouth, but the words actually stuck in his throat.
"So, that's your plan." Anna shook her head helplessly as if she was disappointed in Noel.
"Of course not. Even after marrying you, I don't plan to have a kid yet. You should know that your progress will be hindered that way. But because of our age, It won't be that long either. Anyway, I have to catch up to Dimitri!" Noel rushed to the outside.
Anna made a wry smile. On the one hand, she knew that giving birth to a kid would cause her to be unable to do much. On the other hand, she was kind of expecting it.
"A kid, huh…" Anna closed her eyes. As Noel said, they were already a bit too old compared to other nobles. In fact, other nobles would have married at seventeen or eighteen years old.
Meanwhile, both of them will be twenty years old this winter. "Well, it seems that we have to speed up our battle."
Anna rose from the bed while clenching her fists, becoming more determined than ever.
Surprisingly, Noel was actually right outside the room. He looked troubled and embarrassed at the same time. In fact, he might escape the room just to cover his embarrassment.
"Well, isn't this Noel? What are you doing here? Don't tell me you're embarrassed?"
"Not at all." Noel's expression turned to normal in an instant while saying, "I'm just thinking about the future, one year, two years, or even three years from now."
"Ahaha…" Anna wanted to tease him, but this time, it was different. They had talked about a lot of things yesterday, and it was the reason why they woke up late. So, she changed the topic. "Are you going to inspect the river this time?"
"Yeah. I'm going to inspect the river and the post today."
"Actually, after talking to you yesterday, I couldn't help but wonder…" Anna raised two fingers. "Do you even need the river when you can supply the water through your system? I mean, you can get the currency to exchange items by helping the people, right?
"What if you don't build the dam and cause the enemy to attack? By using those points to get water, you help the citizens, and by helping the citizens, you get the currency again. Won't it generate an endless amount of points?"
Noel shook his head. Of course, he had thought about it, so he asked, "Are you saying you are going to let the citizens suffer again and again? While it's true that I will help them, living in suffering is not something you want to experience, you know."
"No." Anna waved her hand while correcting him. "I'm not talking about living in suffering. I'm talking about the unnecessary dam… Why would you build a dam when you can do all that? Is there actually another purpose for that dam? I have thought about it, but I couldn't find the answer."
"Huh?" Noel widened his eyes in shock. "Now that I think about it…"
Noel suddenly dropped to the ground while continuously looking down as if there was a map on the floor. "If the dam has another purpose, it means the post and the mine also have one… If it's not to help the citizens and not generating the points, then…"
Noel dropped his jaw to the ground as if he couldn't believe what he had just thought.
"Anna… are you a genius?"
"What? I'm talented, but I'm not smart enough to figure it out." Anna tilted her head in confusion.
"No." Noel smirked as he hugged Anna and raised her up. "Hahaha. That's it. I can finally see another way to utilize the system!"
"W-what?!" Anna's heart skipped a beat, but looking at Noel becoming so happy warmed her heart. Still, she was a bit curious. "What are you talking about?"
"I mean, there are three other ways to utilize the dam." Noel smirked. "First of all, the dam itself might help the citizens, but it's not necessary. Then, why would I create an important asset when I have a hard time defending it?"
"A… diversion?!" Anna seemed to have got the answer.
"Yes. I can divert their attention to the dam, allowing them to attack the dam instead of the territory. That water gate is used to prevent any harm to the city."
"Ooh?!" Anna didn't see it coming. The enemies shouldn't have seen it either. "Then… the other two reasons?"
"The second reason is a weapon!"
"A dam as a weapon? No. Are you trying to protect the side of our territory by using that dam?"
"Yes. If we create a dam, we can destroy it as well. This way, the enemies who cross the shallow river will be swept away by the water in the dam. And even if they destroy the dam, it will greatly impact the western side of the territory and prevent them from coming through it.'
"I see. A dam as a weapon, huh. But I still can't see the third way."
"The third way is actually the system itself. As you said earlier, I could generate an endless amount of points, but this time, I don't plan on letting the citizens suffer." Noel grinned. "Since the dam is a weapon, it might be reconstructed a few times. By doing that, I can create a task for citizens to build the dam."
"Ah! Helping people will generate points. So, giving people wages will be similar to saving them. Of course, that only happens for the normal citizens who are living on their wages, not the wealthy. But it will still generate a large amount of points."
"I see. So, by creating a lot of projects, you can get points…" Anna asked, "What about the current progress of the city? You're building a lot of things, right?"
"Yes. However, I have to discuss it with Ardagan. I want to give them wages on a daily basis, allowing me to harvest more points, but Ardagan might make a fuss about it, so I'll find the perfect time to give them wages. With this amount of points, I can buy more items and even completely learn all the runes."
"I see. Then the post is like that as well?"
"Yes. How about creating that post as your base to hunt the demons? And creating that small post will require people as well. In addition, I want you to dig out a tunnel linking this place to that post. You should remember the mission in the Heirden's territory, right?"
"Ah. The emergency escape path that is hidden underneath the mountain."
"That's it. Not only can we use it to escape, but we can also bring soldiers to launch a sneak attack from behind. After all, the enemies can only attack us from the north or south."
"I see. That means the mine has the same function as the dam?"
"Indeed. Since the mine is more important than the vein, we can even use the Rune Array to create a small natural fortress to hinder or even eliminate the enemies. By taking advantage of the natural advantages, we can generate points and protect the territory. I'm going to Douglas to discuss this plan."
"Alright. I will go to the soldier camp then. I have to discuss our exploration that will start two days from now." Anna nodded. "Still, you are truly a genius. To think you would use the terrain advantage like this…"
"No, no. You've given me hints of what I did in my previous life. And you had given that last straw leading to this conclusion. I wouldn't be able to come up with this in one or two months without you. Thank you, Anna."
Anna smiled. "We've agreed to build this place together. I think there is no need to thank each other from now on… After all, it's only natural to help each other, right?"
"Right? In that case, I will be cooking tonight! Then…" Noel waved his hand as he rushed out, wanting to discuss his plan.
"I told him there is no need to thank each other…" Anna shook her head helplessly, knowing the gesture was meant to thank her. But she still felt happy that she could help a lot.
