After mastering the art of precise mana control, Ryu turned his sights toward a new project.
He was going to fix the mansion's toilet situation.
Technically, there was already an outdoor latrine, but it was a miserable, stinking pit - hardly the height of hygiene.
Ryu used earth magic¹ to mold a toilet bowl from clay, then applied fire magic to bake it. It required an agonizingly delicate touch. He failed dozens of times, but eventually, he produced a single, high-quality porcelain piece.
He built a new, brick-style outhouse with earth magic and installed his prize inside.
Next, he rigged a water tank above the bowl to store water pumped from the well. He connected a pull-string to the valve, creating a functional flush mechanism. "Clack. Whoosh."
As for the waste, he designed a disposal system using captured slimes² kept in a containment area beneath the floor. Since slimes are instinctively clean creatures, they proactively digested everything sent their way. With this, the mansion's sanitary conditions were set to improve overnight.
"Mass-producing these is going to be a nightmare," Ryu realized.
Actually going through the process had taught him how fickle the firing stage was. It was too inconsistent for a proper production line. "This isn't a viable business yet," he thought, "but it's a start."
When he showed the family how to use the new facility, the reviews were glowing - especially from the women. Finally, they could sit comfortably instead of struggling in a half-crouch while gripping a handle in the dark. Between the seating and the fresh-water flush, it was a total game-changer.
They were initially taken-back by the slime-powered "disposal unit," but since the creatures were harmless, everyone eventually came around to the idea.
Ryu didn't stop at the bathroom. He moved on to the roads.
With a Mana Recovery Potion³ in one hand, he began carving out proper town-style streets using earth magic. He paved the main artery connecting the Landmark Knight Family mansion to the local town.
His father, Landmark Faza, was ecstatic.
"It looks like a royal highway starts right at our front gate! Fantastic work, Ryu," Faza said, beaming with pride.
Encouraged by the praise, Ryu made roadwork his new daily mission. He spent his days patrolling the territory's primary routes. Muddy pits that trapped wagons and deep ruts carved by years of travel were smoothed over by his magic. He laid down solid cobblestones, and almost instantly, the flow of traffic transformed.
Road maintenance became Ryu's new routine.
The local citizens watched him in awe. Some of the elderly even began to bow and pray as he passed. Seeing an eight-year-old boy laboring day after day to improve their lives... it was enough to move anyone to tears.
"Look at Young Master Ryu. Such a devoted soul!" one villager whispered.
"He's out there every single day just to make things better for us," another added.
"He isn't just a noble," an old man muttered, wiping his eyes. "He's a living miracle⁴ for the Landmark Territory!"
Ryu had his own reasons - he liked the praise, he liked being useful, and he genuinely enjoyed the work - but he hadn't expected this level of fanaticism.
Rumors of the "Miracle Child," paired with stories of the booming economy and Faza's fair leadership, began to drift beyond the borders. Travelers started trickling into the remote Landmark Territory to see if the tales were true.
The moment they crossed the line, they were stunned. The roads in this "backwater" were better than those in the capital. Seeing the vibrant, bustling town for themselves, many travelers decided then and there to settle down for good.
"The migration applications from the neighboring lands are up again," Faza noted one morning. He looked over the documents and realized the monthly total had hit double digits. "What do you think, Sebastian?"
"Well, our neighbors had good harvests too, but their taxes are much higher," Sebastian replied. "I imagine they're simply looking for a better life here."
Sebastian wasn't wrong, but neither he nor Faza realized the massive weight Ryu's reputation and the family's growing popularity carried. Because both men were fundamentally decent and saw "good leadership" as a basic duty, they couldn't imagine just how rare their behavior seemed to the rest of the world.
After months of labor, Ryu looked out over his handiwork.
"The roads are in good shape," he thought. "Maybe it's time to start making those toilets again. I could distribute them to the villagers one by one."
He knew it would be a slow, difficult grind, but it was better than doing nothing.
Ryu was becoming a one-man public works department, and he was just getting started.
Trivia:
- Ryu's inability to mass-produce toilets due to the firing difficulty.
- The specific use of slimes as a 'clean-loving' disposal method.
- The fact that Ryu is only eight years old during these massive civil engineering feats.
- The migration is being driven by higher taxes in neighboring territories, not just Ryu's work
Character Insight:
Ryu shows a blend of modern pragmatic business thinking and a childlike desire for external validation. His father, Faza, remains humble to a fault, failing to recognize that his 'standard' governance is actually revolutionary compared to his peers.
Behind the Scenes:
The 'Arahitogami' (Living God) trope is a common isekai humor element where the protagonist's common-sense modern improvements are viewed as divine intervention by the medieval-setting inhabitants.
TL Notes:
1 ↩ Earth Magic: Elemental manipulation allowing for molding clay, bricks, and paving roads.
2 ↩ Slimes: In this setting, they are harmless, clean-loving monsters used here for biological waste processing.
3 ↩ Mana Recovery Potion: A consumable item used to replenish the user's magical energy during extended casting.
4 ↩ Living Miracle: A localization of 'Arahitogami' (現人神), a god manifesting in human form.
Notes:
• Ryu - Formerly Yokohama Ryusei, a yakuza. Reincarnated as the third son of the Landmark family. Has red hair and blue eyes. Possesses memories of his previous life and the ability to see names of objects.
• Faza - The Lord of the Landmark Domain. A slender but sturdily built man with red hair and brown eyes.
• Sebastian - The family's elderly, white-haired butler who has served since the grandfather's generation. Highly knowledgeable.