Chapter 7

Hippolyas returned and placed his front legs on the stern of the boat. Because Hippolyas is heavy, the boat itself tilted.

"Hippolyas, you shouldn't put your weight on the boat."

"Understood."

Hippolyas obediently moved a little away.

"Hippolyas, are you done eating?"

"It's fine."

Saying this, Hippolyas placed a large fish on the stern. The fish was larger than an average adult male and was jumping around dramatically.

"Hippolyas, can Theodore eat it?"

"It's fine. Hippolyas is full. Theodore, eat it."

"Thank you. I can't finish it alone, so let's all eat it together."

"Kyu."

Hippolyas chirped happily. As we divided the fish among us, the monster scholar Kelly arrived.

"Kelly, is this fish a new species?"

"No, I know this fish. It's delicious when eaten raw."

"Raw?"

"Yes, raw. But be careful of parasites. You can avoid them since they are visible."

Kelly seems to be knowledgeable not only about monsters but also about fish. As Kelly said, eating it raw was very delicious.

The leftover parts were stored in a magic bag. Since we don't have an abundance of food, this was a great help.

Since Hippolyas joined us, the voyage has proceeded smoothly. From morning to evening, even with breaks, Hippolyas has been pushing the boat. After meals, he brings fish.

Even after we passed through the calm sea and the wind started blowing, Hippolyas continued to push the boat.

Every day, I have the job of watching Hippolyas push the boat. Hippolyas regularly asks to be petted, so I pet him.

Thanks to this, we arrived earlier than planned. Incidentally, Kelly spent most of the day at the stern observing Hippolyas.

Twenty-five days after leaving Cagliari, the loud voice of the lookout echoed across the ship.

"Land ho!"

Everyone ran to the bow of the ship. After a while, the continent became visible to us.

Trees were abundant, and birds could be seen flying. In the distance, snow-capped mountains with high elevations were visible.

"It seems to be a rather large continent."

"Yes, the mountains are high."

Small islands often have low mountains.

After a few more hours, we approached the new continent. We haven't landed yet; we are looking for a suitable place to set up a base.

We need a river for drinking water. Ideally, the seabed should be deep and the boat should be able to approach easily.

Victor and the geologist discussed and searched for a place to set up the base. Two hours later, they finally decided on a location.

It's a bit upstream from a very large river. The river is deep and has a gentle current, and it was almost mistaken for a strait.

Once the location was decided, everyone landed. Perhaps a few people should have stayed on the ship, but everyone was eager to be on land.

To get everyone ashore, we had to make multiple trips in a small boat, which took a considerable amount of time.

Victor and I were allowed to land first, so we conducted a light reconnaissance of the area.

"Where do you want to set up the base?"

"A little away from the river, around that hill."

"Being too close to the river is scary because of the risk of flooding."

If we are to create fields, they will be further inland. If the development goes well, this place might become a port town.

If that happens, we will need space near the river for unloading goods and building warehouses.

"Thinking about what will happen if things go well might be premature."

"No, it's important to think about the future."

We need to consider how to set up the base with the future in mind.

"First, we need housing for everyone."

"One house per person?"

"That would be too much work and require too many materials."

"In that case, it would be better to build five larger houses and have four people live in each."

"Agreed."

While we were discussing this,

"Kyu-kyu."

Hippolyas, who was standing right next to me as usual, chirped.

Hippolyas, now on land, still looked like a hippopotamus. He looked more like a baby hippopotamus than an adult one. Despite this, his body length from head to tail was about ten meters.

His limbs were short, and his head was large. The main differences from a hippopotamus were his thick, long tail and the horn on his head.

"Does he maintain his body temperature with fat?"

While saying this, the monster scholar Kelly was thoroughly examining Hippolyas. Hippolyas didn't seem to mind Kelly at all.

"Kyu-kyu."

"What's wrong, Hippolyas?"

"Where is Hippolyas' house?"

"Do you want a house, Hippolyas?"

"Yes."

Hippolyas was the key to the successful voyage. If he wants a house, we should build one for him.

"Victor, can we build a house for Hippolyas?"

"Of course. Without Hippolyas, we might have all perished."

It was decided that we would build six houses.