Zarrias began his report by detailing the numerous production facilities, infrastructure changes, and energy expenditures Rathos had undergone since its founding. The most notable additions were the Teleportation Hub, the Spirit Orchid Distillery, and an assortment of service and entertainment industries. He also mentioned that the Adamantine Root had grown large enough to provide a small harvest soon, giving them a reliable source of adamantine beyond the occasional seams uncovered during Rathos's construction.

Interestingly, the illusionary array wasn't even that expansive as it merely depicted the weather outside. However, it could, for an additional upkeep cost and some enchantment work, be expanded to show whatever weather they wanted to; most of its upkeep cost stemmed from the array's sheer size. Fortunately, the clan's enchantment efficiency boon greatly helped with Rathos's energy upkeep.

Those not involved in construction kept themselves busy refining their skills, offering services, and setting up small businesses to meet the growing demand. Jessica and the other alchemists were focused on developing new potions and alternative methods for producing the Enlightenment pill. They worked alongside herbalists, who were expanding their selection of available herbs through careful cross-breeding, magical techniques, and expeditions. However, it would be a long process before any real progress was made. These expeditions and gathering parties, tasked with finding new herb sources and valuable treasures, were often accompanied by miners, refiners, and hired muscle for protection.

"Nessyra has also organized multiple expeditions to establish additional defensive locations and set up the planetary defense grid on both Lacustrine and Nautilis," Zarrias continued. "Once she received a report on the Everbright Dungeon, she dispatched one of the reserve forces to claim and protect the area as soon as possible."

Alistair nodded; setting up their defense grid was crucial. While their location was currently unknown to anyone, it was only a matter of time before one force or another discovered their new home. He preferred to be prepared in case whoever found them wasn't friendly or sought to take what was theirs. Despite being likely stronger than most individuals who could find them, effectively fighting in space was quite a few grades outside their capabilities. This made it necessary to bolster their defenses as much as possible, as an orbital bombardment would be a significant threat they couldn't yet properly defend against.

"Lady Nessyra has also tasked me with seeking your permission to retrieve the second batch of settlers and to increase our recruitment efforts," Zarrias stated.

Alistair was a bit taken aback, and a quick glance at Riseth showed she felt the same. "What do you mean by increased recruitment efforts?" Alistair asked.

"Nessyra wishes to bring more people into the clan to sustain our current rate of expansion and to ensure our projected growth. By increasing the number of new members, we can enhance the clan's power and security," Zarrias explained. "Of course, all new members would be thoroughly vetted, and she will personally oversee the process."

Alistair felt strongly that this issue warranted a discussion with the rest of the leadership, rather than Nessyra sending a messenger to just the two of them, as significant unrest could come from such an action even if they were to vett the new members thoroughly, and Riseth echoed his sentiment.

Zarrias raised his hand and gestured the Neshan sign for 'sorry about that.' "I apologize for not being clear. This matter has already been discussed with the other members of the clan leadership, and they all agreed while the two of you were exploring. Lady Nessyra believes this needs to be addressed promptly, and everyone is currently incredibly busy with their own projects and workloads."

Alistair processed this information, feeling uncertain about the decision. However, he acknowledged that everyone was indeed swamped with work, preparing for worst-case scenarios. Given Nessyra's role as Clan Executive, calling in a meeting involving the entire leadership for every matter wasn't practical, and they had agreed that delegation would be crucial. He raised his hand to signal Zarrias to pause for a moment.

"Sorry, I'll give Simon a call and ask him about this," Alistair said, while Riseth added, "I'll talk to Nessy."

Alistair contacted Simon to get his perspective, as it fell within his purview to ensure security, and bringing in new people posed significant risks.

"Yes, Nessyra reached out to all of us for our opinions," Simon said. "While I was initially reluctant, I believe it's necessary. Though it’s certainly a risk, we need more people. There are only so many tasks our Automata can handle, and I'd feel safer with more people on our side. The Mermaids were a great boon, but their numbers are limited and won't increase anytime soon."

"Is it really that bad? I didn't have much time in Rathos, so I can't really tell if we truly need more people," Alistair asked.

"Yes, it is," Simon replied. "We lack enough personnel to fight and work on all the projects we want to tackle. The wall defenses are mostly automated and manned by Automata. While the teleportation hub helped, if we're attacked by multiple strong forces, we won't be able to cover our current expansion properly. The walls will fall, and we will suffer potentially heavy losses."

He continued, "Several expeditions and expansions are on hold due to the lack of personnel. While most of the planetary defense network can be manned by Automata, as the planet's beasts grow stronger, we need rapid response forces to handle them." He chuckled, adding, "And as the AI core put it, not setting up the planetary defense grid is an unacceptable risk."

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

After thanking Simon and discussing it with Riseth over their Akashic Link, Alistair learned that Riseth had received similar information from Nessyra. They then informed Zarrias that they agreed, despite their concerns about letting the Kaiakos leave, as it posed a risk for both the ship and the system if someone discovered them during its absence.

"There is some relevant information," Zarrias added hurriedly. "Just yesterday, we were able to produce a pair of frigate-sized combat crafts to protect our system. However, neither craft is equipped with a jump drive, as building those requires much more time and specialized manufacturing than we are currently capable of."

It began to sink in just how much they had missed while flying all over Rathos' surrounding area. Despite their short time on the planet, their crew of shipwrights had already completed the construction of two moderately sized vessels. He knew they had also created some shuttles for in-system travel, but this was far beyond expectations.

"Are there plans to retrofit the ships to fit jump drives later?" Riseth inquired.

Zarrias shook his head. "No, they will be able to dock on the Kaiakos and jump with it, given their relatively small size for frigates. The shipwright crew prioritized creating combat-capable crafts without jump drives while training their new apprentices."

Riseth nodded. "Alright, is there anything else we need to know?"

"No Ma'am, this covers the most important points. However, if you wish to review anything, all information is documented and saved on the network," Zarrias replied.

Riseth frowned slightly at being called "Ma'am" but chose not to correct him.

"If you'll excuse me, Mr. and Mrs. Ryser, I have other duties that require my attention," Zarrias said before taking his leave.

Once Zarrias had left, Alistair suggested in a teasing voice, "It would be an honor if you could accompany me to the bedroom, ma'am. It's been a busy few weeks."

"Oh, don't you start!" Riseth said, pointing an accusatory finger at Alistair, though her voice had a playful tone.

Alistair touched his chest and feigned hurt. "So only Zarrias gets to call you ma'am?" he asked, pretending to be disappointed.

Riseth shook her head, flashed him a smile, and leaned in. She pulled him closer by his collar and planted a kiss on his lips.

"If you would accompany me, good sir," Riseth said in a sultry voice before leading him toward their bedroom.

As they reached the door, they paused in surprise. The room was practically bursting at the seams with magic to the point that even Riseth could visually see the magic without the conceptual awareness skill. "Oh right, the gathering array has been running for a few weeks since we last were here," Alistair commented.

Riseth gave him a cheeky smile. "Guess we gotta work that off," she said, opening the door and pulling him inside.

They were woken up in the early afternoon by Nessyra, who informed them that she would be leaving with the Kaiakos in a few hours and had left Zarrias and Braxik in charge of her duties during her absence. Later, they noticed the food they had left untouched was still hot. Deciding to store it for later, they felt invigorated from their long sleep and dual cultivation in the incredibly dense magical area, which had significantly boosted their stats and netted them a lot of rare essences. Both were in a good mood despite the heavy rainstorm outside, with the sounds of thunder and occasional flashes of lightning in the distance. This wasn't an uncommon occurrence on Lacustrine, and they had learned just yesterday that the lightning was harvested for energy. At the same time, the rain helped fill their dams, boosting Rathos' power generation and storage. This made the frequent rain beneficial for their growing colony.

During their exploration, the rain often hindered their ability to thoroughly investigate the designated areas. As a result, they used the time to train their skills and spar against each other, rather than waiting idly for the rain to stop. Now that they were back in Rathos and had completed most of their current tasks, it was time to use the token to contact Mitania and her husband and take them up on their offer to train them. Both had powerful concepts and, despite knowing their current grade was a limiting factor, felt they could achieve much more with proper training and guidance. Although this would mean missing out on some records, they agreed they had muddled through long enough.

They placed the token, featuring the imagery of an intricate tree enveloped by large, feathery wings, on the table. As they channeled mana into it, they immediately felt an intense reaction: the token eagerly siphoned their magic with an insatiable hunger, like a slumbering beast awakening and ravenously consuming everything in its path. Despite nearly five minutes of continuous mana flow, the token showed no signs of activation.

Alistair picked up the token and examined its remarkably intricate arcane structure. It extended beyond the surface into an almost spiritual plane, stretching the limits of his Conceptual Awareness skill. He realized that extended inspection could significantly enhance both his conceptual awareness and enchantment skills. However, he refocused and was determined to find out if this was a test or if the token required something more specific to activate. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that all the veins of the arcane pattern led to a large core hovering at the center of the odd spiritual plane. This core seemed disconnected from most of the veins, appearing slightly out of place.

After sharing his discovery with Riseth, she furrowed her brow in thought.

"Do you think it is broken?" she asked.

Alistair continued channeling mana into the token while contemplating her question. "I don’t think so. It might be designed this way or perhaps it's a test. But I’m not sure how to manipulate anything within that plane."

Riseth focused intensely, stretching her perceptual manipulation skill to the limit as she examined the token. "I see it now. I think we need to move that core back into place," she said. My specialty is manipulation, and movement is an integral part of your core concept. Together, we might be able to reposition it."

Her insight sparked a revelation in Alistair. He realized that the aspects of their concepts he had previously overlooked could be crucial here. Although he hadn't considered force and movement as particularly relevant for enchantments before, applying them to manipulate the token's intricate, almost organic veins and core seemed essential for this higher-tier enchantment.

Both strained their senses to their limits. Alistair used a variation of his telekinesis, combined with his force and movement concepts, while Riseth expertly wielded her manipulation magic to direct the microscopic core and its veins into place. It took nearly two and a half hours of precise adjustments and a few breaks to finally nudge the core even slightly. But once they got it into the correct position, the vein's resistance lessened, and they connected, channeling magic into the core. As it grew brighter from their combined magic, the rest of the token responded, slowly coming to life in sync with their efforts.

Alistair heard a series of chimes before he could check them. Then, an elegant and surprised male voice filled the room. "Well, I'll be damned."