Meanwhile, a large number of Rebornians finally arrived in Neo Orcus with the express intent of helping reconstruct and rejuvenate the new territory of the Nation of Reborn.
They helped with the construction of houses, the installation of the sewer and plumbing system, as well as turning the whole road system into concrete.
Michael also planned on connecting the railroad system and the electric system sometime in the future, but the Steam Turbine back in the Kings Region was still an ongoing construction project. But, he made sure to include electrical systems and outlets in the houses to prepare for the eventual connection of lines.
Things slowed down in Neo Orcus now that there were actual professional Rebornians on the projects. It also helped that everyone had been more productive with the clear absence of Orcs shouting in the distance.
This left Michael and the Dragonborns out of something to do in the meantime.
So, the Dragonborns brought baseball into Neo Orcus.
…
A satisfying DING echoed into the forest as Zion knocked the ball right out of the park and into the forest.
A cat-folk demi-human tried to jump and catch the ball flying up towards her, but was unable to coordinate her hands with her eyes, letting the ball pass right through her hands.
Jaku, Sheina, and Umisu casually rounded out the bases, giving their brother a high five at home plate.
"Yeah!" Zion screamed. "Do you see that, lil bros?"
The little kids watching on the sidelines cheered and shouted at their idol. The children have taken quite a liking to the youngest Dragonborn because he acted like one himself.
"That chocolate's mine!" Zion declared.
"I'm sorry, sir Zion. But my mistress wants that for herself," Agnes said as she readied herself to bat in the next inning.
With the limited supply of cacao in the forests, Michael could only create a few bars of chocolate for everyone to enjoy. And since they had free time anyway, the Dragonborns—mostly Zion—suggested that they played baseball to determine which team would get the chocolates.
It was Yuna and her demi-human escorts versus the Dragonborns and the Rebornians.
Yuna already knew how to play baseball. Michael even remembered her going on a variety show to play a couple of games. With her and Agnes' talents in Physical Arts, they were able to quickly pick up the proper skills to go against the Dragonborns. It was as easy as slicing a head, Agnes even said.
There were also a couple of Neo Orcus locals who came to watch, and they too were intrigued with the game of baseball.
Unfortunately, Michael wasn't allowed to join in their game. Something about it being too unfair or something—which was kind of true. After all, he didn't even have to hit the ball if he wanted to score a home run.
He ended up enjoying the game on the sidelines, which was nice in and of itself.
"Fudge, are you there?" Michael talked to the shadow beneath his feet.
There was no answer.
Usually, the cute little slime would be the first one to compete for a chance to have the last remaining chocolate bars, but he was strangely quiet recently.
He wasn't even pestering Yuna for pets or anything.
All of this started after they met with the Orcs, which Michael found a bit suspicious.
Where the hell is that slime?
…
…
…
Meanwhile, the Orcanine Chieftain visited the holy grounds once again to give his thanks to the Goddess.
Just as the Reborn company promised, they were given a shipment of red meat and other fresh resources in exchange for the temporary truce between the two tribes.
There were still a few instances where the two tribes would encounter each other in the forest, but it would only end in little spats and wouldn't escalate into a full-blown shouting match like before.
This led the tribe to become noticeably a lot happier. The lack of competition against the other tribes meant that they could focus on their own family and build more descendants.
It would be ideal if this situation continued in the future, which was why their upcoming meeting with the owner of the Reborn company was a very important time for both tribes.
The Orcanine Chieftain wanted to communicate with the Goddess and ask her for her guidance in the meeting. After all, the Chieftain believed that it was Her who pushed the Reborn company and their tribe to meet with each other, leading to this win-win conclusion for both parties.
But unbeknownst to the Orcanine Chieftain, there was a mischievous little shadow beneath his feet who was watching everything he was doing.
"So many Kakao trees! So many chocolates!" Fudge thought to himself.
He had also infiltrated the Orcupine tribe and its Chieftain and confirmed that they too were in possession of hundreds of viable Kakao trees ready for the picking.
"Should I tell Master about this?"
Fudge was just about to return to Michael's side, when he suddenly had an idea.
"What if I help Master? What if I'm the one who helps Master get all the Kakao seeds he needs to make mountains of chocolate? Hehehe…maybe he'll give me a lot!"
A vision of him swimming in a sea of chocolate bars flashed in Fudge's mind, eating all the chocolate that could fit in his mouth and getting tons of compliments from his masters.
"I'll give you thousands of pets!" Yuna would say.
"You're the best ninja!" his Master would say.
With this idea in mind, the mischievous ninja slime moved out of the shadows and inhabited one of the trees in front of the Chieftain.
HISSS….
The Chieftain was startled as he suddenly felt the presence of something unknown in their sacred lands.
"Who's there?!" he asked carefully.
Out of the corner of his eyes, he suddenly saw something slivering across a branch. It was something thin and scaly.
He turned his head and saw a single snake, with red eyes and green scales like that of a dragon, staring back at him.
There was only one conclusion the Chieftain could come to.
"An envoy from the Goddess?!" he proclaimed.