Magical Girl? I’m not sure about this.

The lack of advancement because of demonic corruption frustrated Alex. She tried to ignore that problem by pushing it to the back of her mind but actually seeing that she was able to get a skill up by building the toy airship felt like a weight was removed from her shoulders.

Alex looked at the stores of metal on the property. “I’d like to keep making more toys but we are running out of materials for crafting. There is that palladium ore vein Merumeru found but trying to refine it here is a bad idea. We know what happened the last time we brought in tons and tons of stuff from the portal. There are a lot of people that have classes that should help with that.”

“I think that the gnomish island that we found needs food more than ore” Fufi brought up a good point. “They had some fishing started but feeding thousands has got to have put a strain on their food supply. I think when spring comes along things should start to get better but it’ll still be some time before they can have much of a harvest.”

“What can we do about that?” Alex looked around at the snowscape. “This place is just getting set up as well.”

Yvne coughed, obviously listening in and wanted attention.

“Yes?” Alex looked to the noble.

“People in the Kingdom of Jass generally only eat one small meal a day.” The noble started. “Though if the primary source of food is from the ocean, a solution would be to assign the land to a noble that has the most fitting skills and abilities for that. Is there anyone that isn’t too compromised that could claim the island?”

“How do we know if someone has claimed the land?” Alex asked.

“Other land claiming classers should be able to sense the boundaries of the domain.” Yvne explained. “It is how we found out another non-Jass county was formed adjacent to ours.”

“Wait.” Alex panicked. “If they do that will it just give the island to the king?”

“Cecil made them forswear allegiance remember.” Fufi reminded the magical girl.

“That might not stop someone from handing the island back to the king.” Yvne added. “If they think they can get away with it and get a reward worth the risk. Some of my peers might try something sneaky like that.”

Alex frowned. “That would be such a waste to save them if they just did that.”

“Did you rescue any high ranking nobility?” Yvne asked. “People ranked count or higher?”

“I’m not sure.” Alex made a face. “The first round of people were from small coastal towns. The crowd that showed up on the ice bergs were from the tribal types that were run out of the forest by the demons and captured along with people that got caught up in the clash with the ice demons and the other clans.”

“They should mostly be people in counties that border the forest then, like Yvnes.” Fufi guessed. “Are there any high ranking nobility there?”

“No,” Yvne shook her head. “My neighbors were all barons. And at this time of year anyone that is upper nobility tends to have winter estates that they stay at to socialize with other nobility at the capital. Did you get anyone from the capital?”

“Shipwright Mckay and his crew came from there.” Alex considered. “If there is anyone higher ranking than them I don’t know about it.”

“It might be best to try to avoid dealing with them.” Yvne fidgeted a bit. “Cecil is a very solid guild master. And with the support of the tribal combat classers they will probably not be able to get a hold on the people enough to do something untowards.”

“The temple might want to trade food. It was set up for a lot more people than are there right now.” Alex regretted letting the word pass through her mouth. “Actually nevermind, I would prefer not to go there again unless we absolutely have to.”

“What about the winter court?” Yvne looked to the nereid listening in. “Do they have any other plans that you know of Aqua?”

“They are fey.” Aqua smirked. “We are always considering one trick or another. But to answer your question, they don’t have anything that is involving my people that they’ve disclosed. My guess is that likely when the winter court passes things off to the summer court the ban on humans in the forest will remain at least in part. Sakura is on the same level as a Yuki ona but Ki is not. Some kind of compromise might be that combat classers are not allowed in without permission but people who have nothing to gain by defeating fey could be allowed.”

Alex eyed the property from the high spot they were at in the castle. “With the diesel tanks emptied out I’m sure that is quite a bit of weight off the island. But maybe we could get another load of ore and stage it at Bob and Martha’s farm. We could get that done in a day or two and see if the crafters on the island can take care of it later.”

Alex cleaned up the carriage, dusting dirt from the floorboards and tightening a few bolts until the whole machine satisfied her. She stocked the side compartment with neatly bundled firewood, then hitched up the trailer that would carry the load of ore. The whole setup looked almost festive, like a parade float for someone who really loved metallurgy.

Several members of Zeke and Trudy’s family agreed to help with the single‑day mining trip. They arrived in high spirits, laughing as they tugged on their plumbers’ outfits, heavy blue overalls with reinforced knees and pockets for tools. Once everyone was suited up, they portaled to the farm, boots crunching on the frosted grass.

At the chicken fort, they hopped into another portal pipe. With a metallic whump, they stepped into the frozen biome. The air hit them immediately, sharp, crystalline cold that made their breath plume like smoke. Alex deployed the carriage, throwing the card into the ice to summon it, and everyone piled inside to change into their winter clothes.

Wrapped in thick furs, Alex retrieved Edelweiss. The doll looked ready for battle after fitting her spiraling boring head into place. With the grace of a dancer, Alex climbed onto the roof of the carriage. Edelweiss whirred to life, and Alex danced lightly across the wood panels, carving a deeper tunnel into the mountain where they had first uncovered the palladium vein. Ice hissed into steam at the boring head meeting ice-encrusted rock.

The villagers formed a tidy chain, hauling out the loosened rocks and loading them into the trailer. Hours passed in a rhythm of work, chatter, and the occasional celebratory whoop when someone found a particularly shiny chunk. By midafternoon, the trailer was filled to the brim with ore.

Satisfied, everyone climbed back into the clockwork carriage. The furs came off, the plumbers’ outfits went back on, and the group prepared to return home, tired, dusty, and pleased with themselves. Alex returned the carriage to the card form and everyone hopped back into the portal pipe to get away from the deathly cold in favor of an uncomfortable cold and the company of chickens.

“Cluck!” A chicken called out from the battlements of the stone wall.

“We are going to stash some ore here for a while.” Alex answered the chicken. “I don’t think Bob and Martha would mind.”

“Ba-gock!” Another chicken protested from another covered roosting place.

The villagers gave Alex a look.

“Right.” The magical girl found a flat spot in the less-deep-than-last-time snow.

The carriage appeared, trailer trailing behind it and settled into the shallow snow. The rock-laden trailer sank a little deeper than the rest of the wheels. With some dancing, elbow grease and dolls they unloaded the trailer into the snow of the inner yard where it was just open space, a dormant year-old apple tree and portal pipes.

“Should we go check on Bob and Martha?” Alex eyed the pipe gate that hopefully wasn’t too iced up to open.

The plumber-outfit-wearing helpers decided to head back. They didn’t want to risk being transformed into ice fairies. Alex bade them farewell and they climbed back into the pipe for the floating island.

Fufi commented about the weather. “Looks like spring is well on its way. When Ki comes back it should be safe again.”

Alex nodded. “Let's go to the grotto and check on them.”

Putting the card in her pocket, the black-haired girl and pink-feathered flamingo headed down past the farmhouse and into the canyon that had the grotto temple of Luna set up. The stream largely froze over, but there was a trickle of water underneath.

“Hello?” Alex stepped into the place of worship. “Is anyone home?”

“Dear,” Martha opened a door to the back of the open area. “I think someone is here.”

Bob followed and stepped forward, glancing at the statue of Luna. “Alex, we found your notes, how has life been fighting the demons?”

“It has been a bit of a mixed bag.” Alex made a face. “Things have been rough but there are ups and downs.”

She proceeded to explain how she once again got partially transformed and the odd series of events that led to some kind of angel setting out to exterminate all the demons on the planet and how she saved another magical girl who had been transformed into a succubus.

The elderly couple looked a bit overwhelmed by how things had escalated so quickly.

“Sounds like you’ve gotten your hands full.” Martha tried to sound as soothing as possible. “Being slowly transformed into a demon sounds like a terrible fate.”

“If we can get Professor Copperpot’s plague spreading.” Alex paused for dramatic effect. “Then there'll be a whole lot more pigs. I think it would be a fitting fate for creatures that use such methods to have them used against them.”

“Sounds like a good goal.” Bob nodded. “But the demons have had almost a century to entrench themselves. I wouldn’t predict that everything would go smoothly.”

“The first problem we have to solve is spreading it.” Alex explained. “Professor Copperpot wants to try to get insects that spread it introduced in as many places as possible. But that means we have to have a way to transport them to all the continents that have humans living on them.”

“If the shipwrights on the island finish making the big flying cloud would that work?” Fufi brought up a good point.

Alex considered this. “It might. But that ship isn’t designed to be some kind of carrier.”

“What’s a carrier?” Bob looked baffled.

“It is like a ship that transports other ships.” Alex waved a hand. “We could probably carry some of those plague ships because they are toy sized but it is really designed to sail fast. Does that make sense?”

Bob shook his head, so did Martha.

“Back in my world they made some airships that were like that.” Alex made a few more confusing gestures. “Either there has to be some kind of docking mechanism or a hangar. A lot of those kinds of ships took smaller ships on the underside. But a ship that can land in the water can’t really do that. It would have to be big and be able to stay in the air.”

“Sounds like a big project.” Bob nodded. “You got those shipwrights? Can you try to make a toy and have them scale it up like with the flying cloud?”

“That’s the problem.” Alex complained. “We need resources to do anything. Yeah there are thousands of people that we saved but right now their biggest need is food and shelter. I wouldn’t feel right pressing a project like that on someone who can’t even get three meals a day.”

“Can they hold out until spring?” Bob scratched his gray beard. “I’m sure when the nymphs wake up again we can get some food production up and going.”

“I think they had less than a dozen ships going.” Alex considered. “Not sure how much fish someone with a fisherman class can bring in a day. Would it be enough to feed thousands of people?”

Bob shrugged. “Not quite sure. You’d think most of the people would be in the food business if they want to keep everyone fed.”

“Yeah, Unless they got hundreds of people fishing they are not going to have enough.” Alex figured skills might make this assumption moot but wasn’t sure. They could also fish from the docks or find other sealife.

They chatted a bit more and came up with some tentative plans to try to get some trade for their farm goods when spring came in around a month. After eating a meal together it was time to leave the grotto and head back.

However, a woman with white hair, a white kimono and platinum pupils stood outside the grotto, apparently waiting for someone.

Alex gulped.