--Yuba.
Alabasta's western trading hub had once been an oasis. Its current disaster conditions were far worse than Erumalu's.
Shura, one of the Titled Knights, was scratching his head inside a tent at their temporary base.
"...Damn it. Food and energy aren't a problem, but..."
Inside the tent, a large fan hummed as it spun. Rapid air circulation was their only means of cooling.
Faced with such harsh conditions, he had initially wanted to enlist Titans' help to quickly build a relatively stable base using prefabricated metal buildings.
As for the heat... air conditioners did exist.
But the answer from their end had been-unfeasible in the short term.
Metal surfaces absorbed heat too quickly, forcing the air conditioners to run under heavy loads for extended periods. Power consumption wasn't an issue.
But with the extreme differences between day and night, plus sandstorms almost every week, the equipment's stability and reliability were practically impossible to guarantee. Breakdowns would become routine.
In short, energy wasn't the problem. Materials and structural design were the major obstacles in this environment.
Actually making it work wasn't something they could resolve in a month or two.
And so large fans, simple, rugged, and reliable, had become their cooling tools.
But if they paired those fans' cooling performance with the prefabricated metal buildings used for rapid construction during previous relief operations...
They would suffer horribly in the desert.
"Reporting, Lord Shura! Aside from a small number retained for special situations, all our mounts have been stationed in Tamarisk."
A travel-worn knight entered from outside the tent, bringing a wave of heat with him.
"Understood. Go get some rest."
As commander of the Sky Knight Order, Shura led their air force. They were also the first relief unit to arrive in Yuba.
Although the knights' Power Armor allowed