Chapter 298: Sky Garden and Water City
After the banquet concluded, Levi didn't forget to visit young Frodo. However, the infant was far too fragile at this early stage. A newborn required extraordinary care—Levi didn't dare hold him, fearing even the slightest careless touch might cause harm. He decided to postpone the meeting until the child had grown stronger, at least a few months later.
Amidst the children's reluctant pleas and disappointed faces, Levi waved goodbye, stuffing each child's hands with candy before departing. Of course, Levi wasn't personally carrying such quantities of sweets. He simply used Drogo's household supplies generously. "I have no objections whatsoever," Drogo had assured him warmly.
Time passes quickly when one is content. By morning, Levi escorted Bilbo back to Bag End, then bid farewell and departed southward. He stayed at Roadside Keep for an entire year without quite realizing how the seasons had shifted.
When autumn arrived again the following year, Bilbo unexpectedly took the initiative to visit, spending one night at Roadside Keep. The next morning, Levi and he traveled the Highway together, slowly driving a cart eastward through the changing landscape. They passed through Bree, continued through Buckland, traversed one-eighth of Mirkwood's ancient woods, and finally reached Dale.
Decades had passed since Bilbo last set foot in this region. The aged hobbit looked around with obvious nostalgia before they continued onward toward Dale itself and the Lonely Mountain beyond.
That evening in Erebor proved quite lively and warm. Thorin immediately gave Bilbo a tremendous embrace, genuine delight radiating from him. It had been over twenty years since their last meeting.
Among dwarves, the longest-lived could survive over three hundred years, similar to the Dúnedain humans of the north. For such long-lived peoples, twenty years might be considerable, yet not excessively so by their standards.
Partings inevitably followed meetings and celebrations. After spending meaningful time together, the two returned as one. Passing through Buckland again, they stopped at Drogo's home. This time, Levi carefully held young Frodo, now one year old. The child was remarkably lively, laughed beautifully with pure joy, and possessed considerable charm for one so young.
Thus, another year passed almost imperceptibly. During this period, Roadside Keep residents began to notice that their lord spent considerably more time at home. He no longer vanished suddenly on extended adventures, disappearing for months or even years at a stretch.
However, though staying home, Levi remained far from idle. Sometimes he would visit Riverford specifically, walking back and forth across the three delta lands as if surveying them with careful attention. Occasionally, certain Builders accompanied him, conversing while observing the landscape thoughtfully.
The Builder position required a significant contribution—at least one thousand points—generally making one a construction squad captain. They commanded all block and tool synthesis operations, holding considerable authority and responsibility.
In the second year, after conducting sufficient surveys, Levi established an ambitious new construction project. Using stone, he encircled the three landmasses, separated by the converging rivers, completely surrounding the central area where the flowing waters met and merged.
Around this massive circle, Riverford's expansion plan commenced in earnest. Construction squads responded enthusiastically, assisting Levi wherever directed, building whatever he envisioned.
These professionally trained builders worked with remarkable efficiency and solid aesthetic sensibility, often producing designs that impressed even Levi's exacting standards. Importantly, they never abandoned incomplete projects—once started, work was always completed without fail or compromise.
As months progressed, Riverford's overall scale gradually expanded substantially. Within mere months, its area had doubled in size and complexity. The original Riverford became designated the "West District," while new construction at the river convergence became the "North District." Both districts, centered around where the three rivers met, kept a close watch on each other.
Yet this proved merely the beginning. Once the North District was completed, construction on the East and South Districts advanced rapidly. However, resistance emerged—mainly from Roadside Keep's construction forces.
Roadside Keep's teams arrived hastily en masse, collectively confronting Riverford's builders with clear frustration. "You kept completely silent! Months passed without a word. You didn't think to invite us to such important work?"
"You had your adventure, leaving us wondering for months. How does your conscience feel about that?"
"Admit it—you don't truly consider us part of your collective!"
Riverford's squad leader hurriedly explained their reasoning. They'd feared the enormous workload would exhaust the other teams, and besides, the lord hadn't instructed them to extend invitations. Their own force was completely sufficient for the task.
"Exhausted? Then go rest—we'll handle the remainder," the Roadside Keep team countered firmly. "We've already asked the lord directly, and he has no objections whatsoever. Go rest now and recover your strength!"
"Well, there's no argument against that logic," Riverford's teams conceded gracefully. "Actions speak louder than words."
Both construction teams were now engaged in spirited competition. They respectively assumed the still-unbuilt East and South Districts, working with remarkable dedication. Levi, however, found himself increasingly troubled, forced into frantic overtime trying to keep pace with their escalating progress. The two teams worked with impossible speed, laboring ceaselessly through day and night, impossible to slow or convince otherwise.
His original designs were completed far earlier than anticipated. Once finished, both teams had nothing to occupy their efforts, waiting expectantly for Levi's new plans and designs. Though they voiced no complaints directly, Levi felt genuinely unsettled whenever passing by them. This silent pressure—no one demanding anything explicitly, yet his heart feeling genuinely troubled—proved peculiar and disorienting.
To escape this troubling feeling, Levi accelerated his planning considerably. With abundant manpower now available, he boldly proposed innovative designs that had previously only been imagined.
For instance, the East District's Sky Garden was built dramatically along the river itself. Waterfall-like cascades poured down in spectacular fashion, flowing across flower and tree-filled meadows with remarkable beauty. Towering structures stood riverside, their tiered levels of diminishing height featuring elegant arched colonnades throughout.
The building's lowest level transformed into an immense, brilliantly lit, cavernous space filled with plants from worldwide origins, creating a living museum of botanical diversity. Water curtains completely blocked the exterior view. Only by passing through the water could visitors access the interior to view the wonders beyond. The entire colossal garden appeared suspended by water curtains and waterfalls, creating a design simultaneously intuitive and absolutely astonishing.
The "Sky Garden" rapidly became the city's most spectacular wonder and architectural achievement. Its innovative design concept captivated all the Builders involved.
Afterward, Levi found that this anxious feeling had disappeared. Whether he had procrastinated deliberately or simply delayed new projects, that unease never returned to trouble him.
Months later, the East District, bearing the magnificent Sky Garden, was officially completed. Only one final gap remained—the South District—to declare the grand ring-shaped megacity complete and unified.
Regarding this final district, Builders proposed various ambitious ideas. With the East District's precedent demonstrating excellence, they wouldn't settle for ordinary work. Some suggested building a giant lighthouse to replace the smaller original structure. Others proposed replacing it entirely with a colossal statue of the lord himself, inspired by the legendary Twin Pillars of Kings at Oath-stones Falls in ancient times.
A choice then emerged. Following enthusiastic resident voting and a somewhat overwhelmed Levi's final decision, the result proved decisive. Build both.
Thus, a massive lighthouse was erected in the original West District beside the river, while an enormous statue stood in the South District. The two structures watched over each other from opposite sides.
The statue stood, wielding a sword, towering above all surrounding structures. From the uppermost level, one could overlook the entire shipyard and gaze toward the distant Roadside Keep far beyond. Its meaning was clear: protection.
The statue's expression proved ambiguous and complex—containing tenderness mixed with reluctance. When asked why the sculptor designed it thus, he answered that it was an expression the Lord frequently showed, though he didn't understand why such a contradiction existed there.
Small birds folded their wings and landed at the statue's base to rest peacefully. Butterflies spiraled down to Levi's shoulder during his contemplative visits, only to be startled away by his slightest movement.
Observing this brand new, magnificent city spread below him, gazing upward at his own statue with complicated emotions, Levi sighed deeply.
Another year had passed entirely.
When the new city plan was officially completed, residents gathered to celebrate and give it a proper name. "Water City," they called it.
Later, Levi formally adopted this name for official purposes. From that moment forward, "Riverford" served only as the name of Levi's personal residence within the city. The entire metropolis was formally renamed 'Water City,' and this name stuck throughout all the surrounding regions and distant lands beyond