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The first week went past quickly. Originally used to living in chaotic and relatively inhumane conditions, the urchins were enthused and made good progress on constructing basic amenities.

Smack in the middle of the 60 meters wide cave, an elongated 20 by 30 building already had its first floor lined up. The children averaged around 10 to 12 years old, and they were thin like bamboo, so frankly they weren’t much use.

Leonardo did most of the building himself, with the others helping gather materials and learning how to weave traps or spear fish by the shore. The main intent was for him to fatten them up, teach them discipline, and have them undergo hardships so he could study their characters better.

Although they lived in the streets for the most part, some of them still had families in Valetta or the shanty town. Some missed their parents, irrespective of how tense their ties were. But, surprisingly nobody wanted out.

Whether they were afraid of the masked devil who could somehow lift 100kg rocks, or actually meant to display loyalty, it was too early to say.

Using Materia magic to cut through hard rocks as though butter, or Elemental magic to lower gravity and effectively lift rocks five times his weight, Leonardo basically didn’t need hardware. Although cranes were nifty, he could achieve the same effect after drawing a few sigils on his target.

The Kismet was a bitch, and he had to endure a few whiplashes from Karma as he stepped over the line sometimes. It was necessary to him to gradually reshape their views, however. While they were young and impressionable, it would be much easier to forge their beliefs.

Once that belief became sustainable zeal, he would be reinforced and aided by their presence. The quasi-cult could reform the belief locally, creating a magic zone autonomous of the global kismet.

He didn’t outright levitate rocks in front of them as that would be suicidal, but rather skirted around what may or may not be possible. This turned out to have a great effect, as the children stopped questioning whatever he said, no matter how nonsensical it seemed.

Other than suffering from migraines and the occasional internal fracture from karmic judgement, his wallet also endured great pains. The food they managed to obtain was rarely enough, so every day he had to acquire additional food. Leonardo expected to burn through at least a thousand tari by the end of their training.

The construction went great, though. Having been built from high quality limestone blocks, and with a half meter deep foundation on steady rock, the headquarters would probably outlast most constructs in Malta.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Since it was a dark cave, windows weren’t necessary anyway so the structural integrity was enhanced further. If he didn’t have to wait for them to gather logs, he’d have finished the third floor by now.

Alas, unwilling to make too much of a ruckus, he could only leave things at their pace and instead constructed a set of double bathhouses and toilets. He couldn’t modernize the monastery too freely, but he had no qualms about improving his quality of life if his identity was hidden.

Segregated by gender, the bathhouses were spacious and cozy, with rain-water accumulating in artificial basins and warming on the cliff above. It then flowed into an enclosed pool in the cave, before draining into the sea. Simple wooden constructs were used to regulate water-flow, and while paling in comparison to a modern shower, it was far more convenient than having to draw water from afar.

The toilets were further away from camp, much to the chagrin of the girls who had to go out at night in pure darkness.

Around the periphery of the cove, a few small quarters were already outlined to be built. The bigger ones would be awarded to the ones who contributed most, with smaller ones given to recruits to live in pairs.

So far, the area was barren, but eventually they would become cozy and safe homes — something they originally wouldn’t even dream of.

The guild house at the center would have several functions. The higher-ups would have reserved quarters there. The first floor contained the mess hall, the kitchen and a small basic workshop.

The second floor was given to Sena and her brothers to live in. Two additional rooms were reserved for the guild’s strongest.

The third floor was the quartermasters’ residence. Fino had a place to sleep there, but most of it was an enclosed area where they would keep their spoils. Whatever was stolen or hunted would be hosted there until reclaimed with points or sold. Fino had to keep track of everything, a task most fitting to a merchant’s son.

The fourth and last floor belonged to Prometheus. No one saw what was inside, nor when it was built. It contained a small meeting room, a confined area to sleep in and a wider open room where the teleportation array was moved.

The top of the tower connected to the natural roof of the cave, so Leonardo took advantage of it to build a one-way secret tunnel. It would extend sideways towards the sea. It was inaccessible from the outside since it led to a 25m high slope extending just over the sea.

While the jump was high, it was fairly safe to dive in. In the eventuality that they got boxed in, they could use it as an emergency to escape the guards.

Originally having a problem with drinking water, he inadvertently stumbled on a nearby spring and redirected it into the cave, forming a natural well next to the tower. It took a few hours of Materia magic to finesse his way through the rock, but the efforts paid off and they had an inexhaustible supply of naturally filtered fresh water.

With most essential problems taken care of, the camp looked more and more hospitable. After taking care of hygiene issues, food and water, the rest was a matter of comfort, which the kids never had in the first place.

As the buildings rose one by one, the urchins were energetic and woke in the morning with a growing sense of accomplishment accumulating with each passing day.

While it was tough even for some adults to live in such tribal conditions, it’s not like they lived in hotels before. Thus, they adapted quickly, and some even thrived in the atmosphere.

With the massive amounts of food ‘sneakily carted’ aka teleported over by Leo, the children gradually eased into a better diet. Mixing their food with medical herbs, he gradually improved their metabolism and general physique as well.