Moreover, because this shelter had small circular windows all around the sides and on the top, the lighting was excellent.
“What's going on?”
Just as Lan Qingyou was finishing a brief tour and preparing to step outside, Shang Chuan's voice echoed from beyond the door.
“Yo, Shang Chuan.”
Seeing Shang Chuan dressed in his robes, Lan Qingyou gave him a slight wave, then showed off with a hint of smugness.
“What do you think? The technology to move an entire shelter like this.”
“Uh... is this the new technology you mentioned a few days ago?”
Shang Chuan had originally come to investigate after being startled by the commotion, but he hadn't expected to find Lan Qingyou experimenting with new tech.
He naturally remembered what Lan Qingyou had said a few days prior. Now that she had brought it up, his earlier cautious mood vanished, replaced entirely by an urge to investigate.
As a merchant, his true nature was to seize new technology and develop business opportunities.
However... because he lacked Diana's authorization, he was barred from entry and could only peer inside through a transparent air wall.
“That's quite rude, Shang Chuan. This is the shelter of the Witch of Knowledge; staring in like that isn't very polite.”
Lan Qingyou spoke up as a reminder.
Since other witches addressed each other by their titles rather than their names, Lan Qingyou—who found it both convenient and formal-sounding—usually followed suit when introducing them to others.
“Oh, is that so? In that case, could you tell me a bit more about the technical aspects of this?”
Reminded of his manners, Shang Chuan immediately restrained his curiosity and looked toward the floating Lan Qingyou.
“Certainly, but I'll leave the explanation to the developer of this technology.”
The lazy Lan Qingyou pushed Diana forward.
“Hello, I am Diana, the Witch of Knowledge. Regarding this technology, it works like this...”
Diana, despite being put on the spot, didn't show any stage fright. She stepped forward and began introducing her research to Shang Chuan.
The underlying principle wasn't actually that complex—or rather, Diana glossed over the overly intricate and professional details. Consequently, it didn't take long for Shang Chuan to grasp the general secret behind it.
“So, the reason you said you didn't want to develop the central area was because the witches would be bringing their own shelters here later?”
Shang Chuan looked at Lan Qingyou with an inquiring gaze.
“Yes.”
“Uh, Clan Leader, what does that mean?”
Diana, who was standing nearby, joined the discussion she hadn't been privy to earlier.
“Oh, is Diana interested in civil engineering too?”
“I wouldn't say interested. It's mainly that I took Urban Planning as an elective back in university, so when I heard the word 'development,' I wanted to know the situation.”
“Oho! We've got a professional here. In that case...”
Shang Chuan made a joke and then proceeded to explain the development plan for the Witch's Forest to Diana.
“I see. Clan Leader, I wonder if this plan could be modified slightly?”
Diana nodded in understanding, then turned to ask Lan Qingyou.
“How would you modify it?”
Since Diana was a professional, Lan Qingyou was more than happy to listen.
Although Shang Chuan had professionals on his side as well—some of whom were likely far more skilled than Diana, who had only taken Urban Planning as an elective—there was one crucial difference.
Diana was a witch; they were not.
Therefore, the opinion of a professional urban planning witch was bound to be valuable.
“It's like this. When I was coming out of the habitat just now, I looked at the situation here. Is the water resource here very well-developed?”
“It is. North of the Abandoned Land, there's a snow-capped mountain range called the Abandoned Mountains. The streams, rivers, and marshes throughout the Abandoned Land are basically formed by the melting snow from those mountains, eventually flowing into the southern sea.”
As he spoke, Shang Chuan pulled out a map of the Abandoned Land.
This was a copy made from The Fool's original.
Although it wasn't extremely precise because it was based on The Fool's travels, it was at least clear enough to see the general layout of the Abandoned Land.
“I see. If that's the case, why not make use of this water network?”
“Just as I did earlier, once the mana density is adjusted high enough, any witch can migrate their shelter to wherever they want.”
“Given that, why not let the witches make their homes throughout the entire Abandoned Land, while the Witch's Forest serves as a city for large-scale trading and exchange?”
Diana took the map and studied it carefully.
“Tell me more.”
Slightly intrigued by the idea, Lan Qingyou simply descended. She tossed out three cushions, a tea table, juice, and fruit, then sat down on one of the cushions.
The other two followed suit and sat down.
“The area of the Witch's Forest might seem large, but keep in mind that the scale of each shelter isn't small either. If every witch were to summon their shelter here, this place wouldn't be big enough.”
“They would only need to bring a sufficient amount of this high-mana water and that Sunlight Salt.”
“Besides, many witches don't like being crowded together. Spreading out would actually be more relaxing for everyone. They can go about their own business normally and only gather when something comes up.”
Diana spread the map out on the table and pointed to the location of the Witch's Forest.
“The problem you've raised is very realistic, and I'm currently considering it. But if we do that, it would require a massive amount of time and materials to construct a Five Dragon Reincarnation Protection Magic Circle for every single witch. That's neither efficient nor practical.”
Lan Qingyou frowned and shook her head.
“That's simple,” Diana said with a confident smile.
“Currently, almost all ten thousand witches in the Supreme Council are studying magic circles, and most of them are accumulating experience in constructing them because of the Adventurers' Guild.”
“In other words, aside from a small minority, most witches should be capable of learning magic circles.”
“And apart from these ten thousand, other witches—as well as those born in the future—won't have such good conditions. So, where will they go to systematically study these magic circles?”
“The answer is also simple: establish an academy. A Witch Academy specifically dedicated to teaching subjects like magic circles and alchemy.”
“Once they've learned enough, their graduation exam will be to construct the Five Dragon Reincarnation Protection Magic Circle for their own shelter by the water. If they succeed, they graduate; if not, they return to the school to continue their studies.”
“This way, witches not only learn skills but are also diverted to various parts of the Abandoned Land.”
“Furthermore, we can recruit students from all over the world who are interested in these subjects to come and study at the Witch's Forest, injecting vitality and money into the city.”
Diana laid out everything she had thought of in one breath, then looked at Lan Qingyou.
After all, Lan Qingyou was the one in charge here; if she didn't agree, it was all for naught.
Rate on N.U.
