Reborn With A Technology System In A Fantasy World
Chapter 141: Arrival (2)

Chapter 141: Arrival (2)

Jeffery nodded at Adrian’s question with a serious expression.

"We are. And I was actually wondering how we were going to manage it. Scaling that, especially for those without magic... it would be arduous, slow. Possibly dangerous depending on the terrain we can’t see from here."

"Exactly," Adrian confirmed. "Which is why I’ve decided. We won’t be climbing it."

Charles’s eyebrows shot up. Jeffery leaned forward slightly, intrigued but waiting.

Adrian continued. "I called you here because I plan on us using this night to reform the mountain. I’ve ruled out simply blasting a path as that’s too unstable and unnecessary. Instead, we’ll reshape it. Build roads, passes, perhaps even tunnels where necessary. A proper crossing."

Charles’s eyes, which had widened at ’reform the mountain’, now sparked with the fierce light of a challenge accepted.

"Reform it? Now that’s a project! But Adrian, to do it right, especially overnight... we’d need a damn near perfect blueprint. We’d need to understand the rock strata, the natural fault lines... things we can’t possibly know without surveying it first. Rushing in blind could cause collapses and create worse problems than a steep climb."

His tone wasn’t doubting Adrian’s power, but highlighting the practical constraints.

Jeffery nodded in firm agreement with his brother.

"Charles is right. Reshaping terrain on that scale... it requires precise knowledge. Without it, even with our earth magic, we risk creating an unstable monstrosity."

Adrian remained impassive. "I don’t require either of you to survey it now, or to design the solution from scratch."

He raised his hand a large, heavy roll of paper materialized.

He unfurled it across the space between their chairs. It was a detailed architectural blueprint. The scale was immense, showing a cross-section of the mountain range directly ahead.

"Study this," Adrian instructed. "See if there’s anything that needs immediate revision before we begin. There are two other earth mages besides you two in the camp. We mobilize the moment everyone has eaten."

Jeffery and Charles immediately bent over the blueprint, their eyes scanning the intricate lines, elevations, and annotations.

What they saw stole their breath. It wasn’t just a simple path carved through; it showed meticulously graded switchback roads wide enough for their vehicles, reinforced retaining walls keyed into stable bedrock layers and even notations on anticipated soil types and rock densities at various depths.

It accounted for erosion control, future maintenance access points, and even sightlines for safety.

Jeffery traced a line indicating a cut through a particularly steep ridge. "This... this accounts for the shear strength of the layer indicated here... How did you...?"

He looked up at Adrian, genuine astonishment mixed with profound respect.

If Adrian had experience in land construction, he’d be terrifyingly formidable. The level of foresight embedded in the lines was staggering.

Charles whistled in admiration.

"Goddamn, man. Is there anything you can’t do? This is... beautiful. The load distribution on this arch support here... brilliant!"

Adrian ignored the compliment. "Focus. Are there critical flaws? Errors in assumption?"

The brothers exchanged another look, pouring over the details again, faster now. Charles pointed to a junction and they began explaining some of them.

Adrian made a mental note after listening. "Noted. We’ll implement those adjustments during the shaping. Anything else urgent?"

They scanned further, shaking their heads slowly.

"No," Jeffery said, a touch of awe still in his voice. "The rest... it’s remarkably sound. More than sound. It anticipates problems I wouldn’t have considered until we were halfway through."

He carefully started folding the massive blueprint back up.

Charles reached for it eagerly, but Jeffery held it just out of reach and stood.

"Alright, sir. We’ll study it further with the others now. But..." He hesitated, voicing the other major concern.

"From what we can see, this transformation is massive. The sheer volume of rock and earth that needs displacing, compacting, reshaping... We might not be able to deal the necessary damage to the mountain’s current form quickly enough without substantially more destructive force than we possess."

Adrian met his gaze.

"Don’t worry about the scale of the earthmoving. I’ll take care of that part. Your focus will be on the precision work, forming the roads, stabilizing the structures according to the plan, integrating the adjustments we discussed."

There was not a flicker of doubt in either brother’s eyes. If Adrian said he’d handle moving mountains, he would.

Charles practically bounced on his toes. "We look forward to it! This is going to be epic!"

He finally managed to snag one end of the blueprint roll from Jeffery, who shook his head fondly but relinquished his grip slightly, letting Charles carry it like a sacred scroll as they ducked out of the tent, already debating anchor depths in low, excited tones.

Alone again, Adrian dismissed their chairs.

Sitting cross-legged on the tent floor, he closed his eyes and immediately began activating a formation, powering it up with 4-Star magic crystals.

[Knight: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★]

[Mana: 2.10%]

He knew every progress he made mattered, and while for now he may be respected, Adrian knew that won’t last forever.

One day, surely. He might be considered a threat.

"I’ll need every power I can muster."

He closed his eyes, and began drawing the concentrated mana within his Dantian.

Adrian replaced the entire set of magic crystals a total of six times before he was called to come eat.

He reminded himself on the need to seek out stronger beasts before standing up.

The sight that greeted Adrian was one of communal warmth.

In the center, where there had been only hard ground, now stood a magnificent, solid wooden table with matching chairs surrounded it, all summoned by Adrian earlier.

The table beared the weight of the feast: enormous steaming tureens of rich, meaty stew thick with vegetables; platters piled high with slices of the perfectly roasted magical beast, glistening with herbs; baskets overflowing with golden, charred flatbreads; bowls of roasted tubers; and even pitchers of fruit drinks.

People were already settling in, passing plates, filling mugs.

The fatigue of the journey was replaced by flushed cheeks and bright eyes.

Laughter rang out, Mara swatting playfully at Charles as he tried to sneak an extra piece of roast before everyone was seated; Eli telling a tall tale that had Jeffery rolling his eyes but smiling.

There were no pretensions to table manners as everyone ate with gusto.

Adrian took his place at the head of the table and he couldn’t help but smile at the existing happiness.