第１８７２堀：南砦の感想 (Part1)
Chapter 1872: Impressions of the Southern Fortress
Side: Deryu
Seraria, Labyris, Shera, and I were here merely as assistants to observe Aslin and Firia at work, so we kept our mouths shut and let Agil guide us. However...
"Seeing it in person really is different, isn't it?"
"I agree. I’d heard it was spacious, but..."
"It’s so surprising."
Seraria and the others were wide-eyed as they looked around. Well, that’s only natural. Even without exaggerating, it has about as much space as a district in the Weed dungeon.
"Deryu, you’ve seen this place before, right?"
"I didn't have the leisure to wander around, but I had to coordinate with Tori at the Southern Fortress, so I’ve been here a few times."
"So, this is your first time taking a proper look?"
"Indeed. Well, when tens of thousands of people live in one place, even if they are soldiers, they would surely suffer mental strain without an environment like this."
They are essentially confined to a narrow space. If the scenery never changes and there are no parks or places to blow off steam, they would eventually break.
"I understand what you're saying, but it’s so luxurious."
"True. Well, Yuki seems to have plans for it later on."
"It seems like it could be repurposed as-is, after all."
"Indeed. Once the settlement of the southern regions of the various countries is complete, the plan is to use it as a Weed town to provide support."
Exactly. It would be a waste to keep such a massive fortress strictly as a military facility. Yuki has judged it as such and is already considering its future reuse. Since it was secured as a base for Weed in the first place, it isn't wrong to suggest that once safety is guaranteed, the people of Weed should move in.
As we—the ones accompanying Aslin and Firia—discussed our impressions of the base, we arrived at the research sector, where the laboratories are clustered. Or, more accurately, the research building.
"Oh! It’s so clean inside!"
"It feels like a hospital, with all the white, doesn't it?"
As the two said, while not entirely stark white, the interior certainly brings a hospital to mind.
"That’s because it’s a research area. Any stray dirt or contamination could lead to a major incident, so they use colors that make it easy to spot. White, blue, green. Red stands out quite well against them."
"‘Stands out,’ you say? Well, I suppose it is easy to see."
I share Seraria’s sentiment about that phrasing, but I understand the logic. If blood were to stain a white wall, it would be noticed immediately. I’ve heard that hospitals are designed with that very principle in mind.
"Now, regarding the floor layout: the New Continent Southern Geographical Research Institute has a breakroom on the first floor, information processing—that is, the administrative offices—on the second, and the third floor is the command center where we monitor the field and maintain contact."
"Oh? This building—or rather, all the buildings—seem to have five floors. What’s above?"
"The departments aren't that specialized yet. In the future, we’ll likely have a dedicated cartography department, but for now, the information processing team handles everything."
"I see."
Everywhere we go, there’s a shortage of hands. Well, since the infrastructure is already here, I suppose it doesn't matter if they grow into it. I just wish they would grow faster... though things like that are never simple.
"Right, let’s skip the second floor and head to the third-floor command center, which will be your workplace. Your personal offices are on the second, but you’ll mostly be working in the command center, watching the monitors."
Indeed, the heart of this southern survey will undoubtedly be the command center with its monitors. We boarded the elevator and headed to the third floor.
"The basic layout is the same for every floor except the first. There are four large rooms and twelve small rooms surrounding them. We’re using one of the large rooms as the monitor and command center."
"Are the other rooms empty?"
"Yes. If we had other priorities, we could set up additional monitors to keep watch, but as I said, we don't have the personnel right now. There’s no point in expanding."
It’s true; having multiple monitoring stations would allow for more versatility. The command center in Weed is divided up in a similar fashion.
"And here we are."
As Agil opened the door to the large room, we saw...
"Oh!"
"Wow... there’s so much being displayed."
Just as they said, a massive monitor at the back was filled with various feeds, showing the status of operations and the progress of the survey in the southern part of the new continent. While it might be impressive to some, it’s a familiar sight to us.
In the upper right, the entire operational area was displayed, with feeds below it checking for anomalies. There were markers indicating the status of deployed units. Red meant trouble. Everything was green, meaning operations were proceeding without issue. The center was divided into multiple feeds showing various active locations.
And, what caught my attention was...
"Come to think of it, Supervisor, who is in charge of managing this place and acting as commander?"
"That’s right. We need to offer our greetings for the handover."
It is rare to arrive at a place like this and not have the person in charge come to greet you. A major operation like this, managing units via monitors, usually requires such a commander.
Just then, a woman stood up and approached us.
"Aslin-sama, Firia-sama, I have been expecting you. My name is Fuyuka, under the command of Kirika-sama. I am currently the deputy manager and supervisor of this New Continent Southern Geographical Survey Unit."
"Deputy?"
"What does that mean?"
It’s a rather strange situation. It implies the actual commander or manager isn't here. Understanding our confusion, Agil spoke up.
"Ah, it’s not that Fuyuka is doing a bad job. The supreme commander of this New Continent Southern Geographical Survey is Yuki."
" " "Ah." " "
We all nodded in understanding.
"Of course, Tori has command authority right after him, but she’s more focused on the fortress's defense and monitoring the survey range. She handles the dispatch management, but she isn't the one leading the survey itself."
That’s right. Tori is the commander of the fortress and is in a position to direct the survey units, but she wouldn't know the specifics of how or where to survey.
"As Agil-sama explained, I am merely tasked with maintaining the status quo, managing the deployed units, and reporting the gathered information to Hivia-sama and the others through Yuki-sama and Tori-sama."