Chapter 35: The Minecart Maelstrom

Incredible power.

“Not bad, huh?”

“Thank you.”

“Put all the mined ore in here and keep mining. Let me know if you’re tired.”

“Understood.”

I equipped Miner 1 with a pre-made subspace bag on its back.

That should suffice for the remaining time.

Leaving Area 1 to Miner 1, I planned to head to Area 2.

“How am I supposed to climb all this?”

The thought of scaling to Area 3 was already exhausting.

Area 2 was manageable, as I could mine while taking breaks.

But Area 3 was too much.

The travel time alone would take over an hour.

As I pondered, something caught my eye.

“Oh, right!”

A broken minecart sat at the Mine’s entrance.

Come to think of it, Area 1 had railway tracks throughout.

Some parts were broken, but they looked fixable.

Areas 2 and 3 were similar, with silk tracks in Area 2 and wooden tracks in Area 3.

Calling them ‘railways’ might be a stretch for silk and wood, though.

“Let’s do this!”

Repairing is simple.

No, repair wasn’t enough.

A shoddy fix could break if a passing Golem hit it.

If I’m making a minecart—

[Disassembly of ‘Broken Minecart’ is complete.]

[Iron Scraps obtained.]

I’d make it properly.

[Using Production Skill.]

[Please select the shape of the item to craft.]

[Please specify the details of the minecart’s shape.]

[Please choose the material for the minecart.]

As a large minecart for transporting ore and people, it required a lot of materials.

But so what?

Miner 1 was swiftly supplying fresh ore right beside me.

[Crafting begins.]

Clang!

Ember, who followed me into the Mine, heated the ore.

Crafting a large, sturdy minecart was challenging, but I was used to it.

[Progress: 71%…]

Miner 1 took down Ore Golems approaching me, like a bodyguard.

As I hammered away—

[Crafting is complete.]

[‘Hephaestus’ Minecart’ has been obtained.]

[Hephaestus’ Minecart]

Type: Minecart

Grade: SS

Restriction: Hephaestus’ Descendant

Description: A dedicated minecart crafted for navigating Hephaestus’ Mine.

Abilities:

1. Mobility – Increases movement speed in the Mine by 50%.
   
2. Storage – Can store mined ores, fibers, and wood from the Mine.
   
3. Collision – Deals damage proportional to the minecart’s weight and speed to enemies blocking the railway, knocking them back.
   
4. Summon – Can be called to any railway-connected location in Hephaestus’ Mine.
   

“Whoa, this is awesome.”

The minecart was complete.

It settled onto the tracks as if finding its place.

“Spinner 1, Lumberjack 1, hop on!”

“Understood.”

“Understood.”

“Miner 1, I’m leaving Area 1 to you. I’ll reinforce later, so take it easy.”

“Understood.”

Their mechanical responses didn’t bother me.

I boarded with Spinner 1 and Lumberjack 1.

About to set off—

“Oh, it’s not automatic.”

A problem arose.

Unlike a car with an engine and accelerator, the minecart required someone to pump a lever up and down to generate pressure and move the wheels.

No big deal.

“Hey!”

I had faithful Spinner 1 and Lumberjack 1.

They stood on either side of the lever, pumping it, and the minecart moved forward.

At first, it felt slow.

“Whoa!”

Then it accelerated rapidly.

“Slow down a bit!”

“Understood.”

At this speed, Area 2 would be quick, but the Mine’s tracks weren’t fully intact, as I recalled.

Sure enough, damaged tracks appeared soon.

Stopping the minecart, I got off.

[Repair of ‘Railway’ is complete.]

I hammered the tracks to fix them.

This process repeated.

Repairing tracks slowed us now, but once fully fixed, I’d zip to Area 3 in no time.

Occasionally, Ore Golems blocked the tracks.

Clang!

Crash!

“Who dares block the iron minecart?”

They were sent sprawling by the minecart’s collision attack.

Some even broke apart.

Once the tracks are fully repaired and speed increases, a collision might take out a Golem entirely.

“Spinner 1, get off.”

“Understood.”

“Lumberjack 1, you okay alone? Let’s go a bit further.”

I dropped Spinner 1 at Area 2.

Lumberjack 1 worked the lever alone, reaching Area 3.

It moved a bit awkwardly, but as a non-living entity, it had no stamina limits.

Arriving at Area 3, which I hadn’t fully explored—

“Let’s go together from here.”

“Understood.”

Axe in hand, I started logging with Lumberjack 1.

[Level increased.]

While conquering the Mine with my assistants, I learned something new.

“Huh? I was resting.”

While resting in Area 3, my level went up.

The implication was simple.

Experience points from my assistants defeating Golems counted as mine.

In other words, I could sit still, gather materials, and level up.

“Auto-gathering and auto-hunting, huh?”

It couldn’t get better.

This made me eager to defeat Area 3’s boss monster.

With the Mine’s time limit at 8 hours, doubling it would mean 16 hours.

If I left the Mine to my assistants and crafted outside?

I’d level up just by crafting.

Even now, my three assistants hunting Golems earned me triple the usual experience.

[The Mine’s time limit has ended.]

Watching my assistants, repairing tracks, and exploring Area 3 made 8 hours fly by.

My assistants and I left, unloading ores, silk, and wood from their bags.

But—

“Wow, so many materials?”

I was stunned by the sheer volume, several times my usual haul.

Normally, I’d disassemble materials right after leaving, rest, craft, list items at the Auction House, and re-enter.

Now, the material volume was so large, disassembling would take ages.

I had nowhere to store them.

My inventory had limits.

What to do?

Ring.

A call came through.

It was the real estate agent.

Had he already cleared the place?

Even with generous moving expenses, it hadn’t been long.

• Hello, sir. I’m working hard to persuade them, and thankfully, the 4th-floor residents, except 401, agreed to move out today.

“Today?”

• Yes, sir. Except for 401, your unit. I offered a bit more moving expenses, and they agreed to leave immediately.

The moving costs were higher than expected, but it was fine.

Selling one decent item earned me tens of billions.

Moving costs were nothing.

• I offered moving company support, so they’re leaving soon. Probably by sundown. Should I arrange cleaners?

“Oh, cleaning. Please do.”

• Got it. I’ll handle the rest quickly, so leave it to me!

“Thank you.”

Such great news.

The agent was working hard for his commission, but he seemed reliable.

After some disassembly, I ordered delivery food and fell asleep.

When I woke, the 4th-floor residents were gone.

Creak.

I cautiously opened the door.

Nervous about encountering someone.

I only peeked out for deliveries.

“No one’s there, right?”

No presence felt.

The agent confirmed the move-outs and cleaning.

Reassured, I stepped into the hallway.

Hoo.

My phobia crept up.

My breathing quickened, but I could handle this.

I’d once gone out at dawn to take out the trash.

Heart pounding, I rang the bell of 402, right in front.

Ding dong.

Ding dong.

Ready to flee if someone appeared.

Thankfully, no presence.

Sighing in relief, I entered the agent’s passcode.

Beep-beep-beep.

402’s door opened.

My breathing sped up.

I wanted to run.

I feared someone would pop out, nausea rising.

Still, I closed my eyes and stepped inside.

Opening them cautiously—

“Wow!”

An empty room.

Identical to my cozy studio, like a copy-paste.

Cleaned spotless.

“Unit 1s! Assemble!”

Miner 1, Spinner 1, and Lumberjack 1 rushed from the balcony.

Facing their bewildered looks at 402, I spread my arms proudly.

“This is your room now!”

“Our room?”

“Yes! Rest here before entering the Mine. Tell me if you need anything.”

I felt bad keeping them on the balcony.

Perfect timing.

I expected their usual “Understood,” but they glanced at each other, bowed politely, and replied differently.

“Thank you, Master.”

“Thank you, I’ll work harder.”

“I’ll follow Master’s will.”

Each responded uniquely.

Working separately in the Mine seemed to give them slight personality differences.

Feeling proud, I left the room.

They say starting is the hardest.

Checking the second room, my hesitation was gone.

Beep-beep-beep.

I’d already decided its purpose.

Rumble.

“Gotta have a storage room.”

This would be my warehouse.

I dumped all my mined ores and the assistants’ materials.

The volume was more than expected.

Having a new room was amazing.

“Since it’s bigger, should I make this a workshop too?”

The materials from the Mine were too much for me alone.

Perfect.

This would be Warehouse and Workshop 2.

Back in my room, 401, I picked up my hammer.