After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World

The case of Alterra, Belluga, and the other allied territories was, unfortunately, very rare.

Most villages were and would remain in chaos for a while. After all, the heat wave this time was particularly harsh and a lot more people than expected had perished.

This was in stark contrast to the towns and cities—which could take food from subsidiaries, had more special building types available to them, and had plenty of ways to feed themselves.

They were also filled with a stronger population with higher physiques and tolerances, so they were naturally much more stable.

Basically, only very poor people, especially those who lived in slums—outside of the system buildings with some insulation properties—perished during the heat wave.

They also received a lot of refugees, obtaining a lot more money and taxes. After the disasters, the best course of action for refugees was always to find a town if their strength could allow it.

This was especially true among those in the so-called Central Plains area. This was an area with flat lands and great resources. It was also of sufficient distance from rivers and various lakes.

It contained the largest collection of territories in the human territory. Here, Villages were dense and had an average distance of a day travel between each other. There were even towns with edges directly touching villages.

Among these territories, located at its northern edge, was Jacoba Town. This Town was known for its industry handling Isatis, which was the main raw material to get blue dyes and ink.

The original lord found the field and thought it was beautiful, including it in his territory.

The lord was intrigued with the plant and after years and years of research and spending on manpower, they discovered that the plant could create pretty blue dyes applicable to fabric and ink.

Before blue dyes were discovered, the common colors were only black, green, brown, red, or orange and their derivates. Blue was very rare—though couldn’t compare to the ongoing rarity of the violet and purple—and it naturally earned them a bit.

It was just that the labor and handling cost too much and therefore sold for a very high price that not a lot of people could afford it.

Things spiked upwards when, shortly after, people from Bleuelle came to their area. It was another territory at the edge, specifically the northeast edge, of the central plains. It was not just its ability to make a blue color pigment, but it apparently had an effect on the precious Blu, increasing its success rates!

As for its effect to the Special Blu ink, it dyed the excessively light pigment of the Blu with the ideal blue color which they found—after many years of experimentation—could absorb and retain the most aether.

They entered a deal with the territory and, from then, the growth of Jacoba Village grew until it was just below Town-level after another decade.

They managed to keep the partnership because they studied hard and found a technique to keep it growing and to create a better raw material for Bleuelle to purchase.

Nearby villages naturally heard about this and decided to get a share of the pie. While the plant itself wasn’t unique to Jacoba—the techniques of handling it were.

Jacoba hid the knowledge for a huge price—taking two-thirds of the profits without any more work—and it naturally irked many territories.

The stories from the older generation told them that it led to a very brutal war where several villages allied themselves against Jacoba, which was helpless against their forces.

The former lord and many of his family members perished, and a new lord came to be. Soonafter this, the others immediately went to attach themselves and became a subsidiary.

The new lord and his cronies continued their deals with Bleuelle and others, though they naturally had to give up some technology to the territories that helped them win the war.

Of course, there were only a few others who received this knowledge, so for a long time, Jacoba still made a lot of money in handling the Isatis plants.

Even at this time, the current generation still enjoyed the richness of the past, though not all of them were exactly happy about it.

For example, a certain violet-haired woman stared out the window of the lord villa, looking down wistfully at the bustling town. It was particularly active after the depression of the disaster, but sadly she couldn’t bring herself to be happy about it.

She turned to look at the blueish wedding dress displayed in her bedroom. It was a special wedding dress fit for the Jacoba Town princess. However, while it was a style she used to find pretty, now she just found it tacky.

”Are you sure you wanna go through with this?” Veronica asked her friend. She had her arms crossed, looking at the other worriedly.

Cassandra pursed her lips, feeling heavy.

When they went back home, they knew it wouldn’t be a happy thing—especially in Cassandra’s case.

However, she was fully planning on presenting the products of Alterra—hoping to impress the nobles of her hometown. She wanted to show what she was capable of. She would then offer to become a liaison to Alterra, hopefully gaining some independence.

She simply wanted to create a voice for herself.

Maybe… just maybe, she’d have more control over her own life. Maybe—maybe—she’d gain more say about her own future.

But she thought too much of herself.

Veronica looked at her. ”I can, you know, find a way to message Gill—”

”No! That’d kill him!” Cassandra yelled, with an almost desperate tone. This caught Veronica off-guard, making her hurriedly apologize. Cassandra also noticed she reacted a bit strongly and shook her head, saying her own apologies.

”Not only is Jacoba a big town, it also has Bleuelle City and Makita City as its clients…” she said, voice strained. ”Not only Gill, but the entire Alterra Village could be in danger if they mess with it.”

It wasn’t that Jacoba itself was so powerful that it’d get Bleuelle or Makita City to move. However, many lords were prideful and they could just easily send instructions to subsidiaries to attack Alterra out of spite.

Not only this, her fiance was also not an insignificant person.

The Town she was getting married into was called Ester Town, which was also located at the eastern edge of the Central Plains. It was therefore nearer to Bleulle City than most towns.

It specialized in planting, raising, and handling the Ester Plant, which was a major raw material for Papyrus. Unlike Jacoba who had to share the technology with others, Ester Town held on to its techniques tightly.

The number of people rumored to have died to keep the secret was said to be able to populate a village.

Anyway, Jacoba’s wealth had been steadily decreasing for a long time due to mismanagement. They needed Ester’s wealth to continue with their current lifestyles—even if they had to sell off their daughter to get it.

Seeing her giving up on her own happiness, Veronica wanted to cry.

She hugged the other girl, who reluctantly returned the embrace. ”My heart breaks for you…” Veronica said, and Cassandra just remained silent, feeling her friend’s warmth.

It could very well be the last she’d ever receive after this wedding.