The rest of the day went by without too many distractions. Joselin returned to cover for Bernard Lawry, Lamar went to work building something at one of the recent tables, and Rhamiel focused on producing the Mana Generator.
Hours passed, and Rhamiel felt himself hyper-focusing on the project at hand. The Core still focused on learning how this Generator worked but found himself failing with every piece. He had no basis for how the device worked or how it would produce the Mana to power the devices.
For the moment, he kept building and watching the item come into being with Mana alone. He reminisced about his lost ‘Mould Mana’ Perk, one of the powers he lost when he chose to become a Civilization Core. Admittedly, it was an ability he only used once to save Joselin when they first met. While he did not regret his choice to become a Civilization Core, Rhamiel regretted the drawbacks to this path.
That was until a sudden rush of joy ran through his system, and a prompt appeared.
For completing the Mana Generator, you have gained enough EXP to level up to Level 11. You have gained 3 Attribute points to spend towards your progression.
Structured Mindset has increased from 2 to 3. Your mind can now better process information and store it for later use. Multitasking is now easier, allowing the Core to better work through problems and projects. The Blueprint Storage Limit has increased from 20 to 40.
Mana Processing has increased from 1 to 2. The mana efficiency has increased for each processed product, the speed of production has increased, and the quality of each item has increased. All products you create with this Skill have a random chance of increasing in quality.
Rhamiel silently cheered at the levels. The two skill increases were a pleasant surprise, but he was expecting it eventually. The fact that he got it now was welcome and valuable, especially Structured Mindset’s increase; it even specifically said it helped with multitasking.
Mana processing, however, was interesting, specifically that last part. What did ‘have a random chance to increase in quality’ mean?
Moving on, for now, Rhamiel looked over his finished project.
It stood around ten feet tall and looked like a miniature obelisk, a word that must have been part of Rhamiel’s initial language download back in its first day of life. There was no basis for how he knew the name of that structure. The entire frame was a solid piece of sturdy gray material with plates of offset plates of lighter gray shades. Rhamiel looked around the device and found one piece open in the whole Demi-structure, a slot that looked big enough for a hand and arm.
Inside this slot was another smaller slot that looked like it was missing whatever was supposed to be inside it. Rhamiel looked at the slot, trying to find out what was missing; the Prompt had said that he had leveled up because he had finished the Mana Generator, so what was it missing?
It took longer than he cared to admit to confirm through the description of the Demi-structure to determine what it was missing.
Mana Generator Tier 1(Unpowered) - A unique Demi-structure that focuses on generating power using a Spirit Core’s Mana passive regeneration. Putting a Core inside the empty slot in this Demi-structure does not harm it but allows any unused mana to go through a process that amplifies every point of Mana siphoned into it, allowing 1 point of a Core’s Mana to count as 3 points.
Tier 1 of this Demistructure allows for up to 4 Core Power Cables to connect to this structure.
This Building can upgrade to the next Tier when an Upgrade point is added to the ‘Mana Generator’ Perk.
So… to power this Building, I have to get inside it?
Rhamiel considered it for a moment. Was this a good idea? This could be meant for captured Cores to get inside. It said the Core inserted would not hurt, but that did not mean it would be pleasant. But at the same time, a Core could only create this thing using something like his Mana Processing.
Rhamiel mused about it for a minute before brushing off its concerns. If it hurt, Rhamiel was sure Joselin or someone else could get him back out before the more permanent damage occurred.
Looking around, he found Joselin talking with Dad while sitting at one of the freshly made tables. Taking a closer look, he found them doing more than talking; they were working together and crafting arrows that looked like jagged pieces of rock. Rhamiel watched them work for a minute, finding the process simple but fascinating.
They took individual sticks that were prepared and straight, picked sharpened stones sized for arrowheads, and connected them to the prepared shafts. They slid in, fletching to the ends of many arrows, and then grabbed a tied-off sack at the other end of the table just out of reach. He untied it, and they carefully dipped the arrow tips in its contents, which came back covered in a loose resin.
“Ooh, what does that do?” Rhamiel asked, aiming his voice a little to their side.
They looked towards the voice, expecting to see something, but shook their heads at the realization that Rhamiel was talking.
“This is the mix for Aveyare Poison Arrows,” Dad explained. “Aveyard Poison comes from the seeds of the Aveyare Tree and are great at applying a mild distraction and poison debuff on enemies.”
“Yeah, he’s helping me learn how to level up my ArrowCraft Skill,” Joselin smiled. “It’s something all Rangers need to work on, and poisons stack their effects with the Outer Hope Weapon Perk.”
“Cool, that will come in handy,” Rhamiel said happily. Out of curiosity, he focused on the Arrow that Joselin was holding and got some prompts for his efforts.
Aveyare Poison Arrow, Tier 2 Poison Arrow.
Type: Ammunition. Quantity: 1. Aspects: Woodland, Skill, War.
An arrow type originated from the Poison Swamps of Astaini by its Field Boss, Fleidni. The Aveyare Poison needs alchemical refinement before application to the arrows.
This Arrow applies [Weak Hemotoxin Poison 15] and [Distraction 20] upon every hit to opponents who can be poisoned or affected by its distraction.
Would you like to create a Blueprint of this Arrow for production? Yes or No?
Rhamiel said no to the Prompt but kept that concept in his mind. You never knew when the ability to create weapons would be helpful.
“So, how is it going, Rhamiel? Finally, finish the Mana Generator?” Joselin asked, looking at the structure.
“I did,” he chirped. “Now I was going to ask you to put me inside it when no one is looking,” Rhamiel whispered secretly. “I would hate to make my resting place easy to find,” Rhamiel told them with apparent faux seriousness.
Joselin put away her new poison arrows into a separate quiver. “Okay, uh, what?”
And Rhamiel walked them through what he had learned; it wasn’t much, so it only took him a moment.
“Unfortunately, it makes sense,” Dad grumbled. “And you’re sure you won’t be harmed in there? We are putting all our hopes on you and your powers.”
“Pretty sure; the description said Core inserted in it would not be harmed, so I hope not,” Rhamiel said cautiously. “But, uh, unless you have another Core floating around, I better get in there and try this out.”
They both looked uneasy at the idea, but Joselin nodded slowly. “If you say so, Rhamiel. Are you still on the Altar in the Architect’s Library?”
“Yes, but please, do this secretly,” Rhamiel whispered. “You never know who is listening or watching?”
It took Joselin a moment, but she caught on, “Are you talking about the System Administrator? I doubt my being secretive would stop him from watching me put you in there?”
“So? It couldn’t hurt. That guy is out to get me, and it would be better to remain hidden. What does it hurt to be cautious?” Rhamiel told her quietly.
Joselin looked at Dad, who shrugged back at her.
“Fine,” she whispered back, standing from her seat.
Rhamiel remained quiet, looking around for anything or anyone who may be watching her go and follow her to his location. Nothing jumped out, but the Core had no idea what it was watching out for, just something suspicious. But then nothing looked suspicious to its eyes; it was just its friendly citizens going about their day and working to build the settlement.
Rhamiel’s Core was in hand, and Joselin looked around, ensuring no one was watching her before she carefully reached in. She did not need to be precise; once his Core was inside, it was almost pulled into the slot, and Rhamiel felt strange for a few seconds, almost as if the Mana Generator was cycling his Mana in and out of him in a circle.
Achievement Unlocked: Core Power 1! There are several ways to advance Civilization to power and to manifest a charge that can power a light, but you elected to power it yourself; how commendable! Let’s see how far this will go! Tier One Upgrade Acquired.
Rhamiel could feel the Generator thrum to life as it drew a little of his power out of him and pulled it through its motions. Usually, when his Mana left him, it allowed a bit of his consciousness to follow it, allowing it to perform specific commands. But weirdly, the moment his Mana left him, his thread of control did as well, stripped away in the first part of the process.
It was disconcerting but not painful or even uncomfortable.
“Rhamiel?” Joselin asked quietly. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, it just feels weird,” Rhamiel said, looking at Joselin. “I think everything will be fine. Whew, that’s a relief; I thought this may hurt.”
“Yeah, me too, once you mentioned it. But, uh, what now?”
Rhamiel thought about it, “I’m not sure. We need to build the lights but make the glass for the lights first, right?”
“On that note,” Joselin said with a wince. “You were busy, and I didn’t get the chance to mention it earlier, but… they found some free limestone in the tunnels. You know, the tunnels we met in…”
It took the Core a moment to remember what she was talking about; his memory before he received his Structured Mindset Skill was foggy. But once he got it, Rhamiel cheered, “Wait! Is it that limestone?”
Nodding, Joselin walked Rhamiel to the one remaining Storage Shed where a two-foot square block of bloodstained limestone sat. Joselin looked uneasy at the thing, but the Core felt nothing but happiness at its return. “It is the piece of limestone that I dropped on that Werejackal!”
“Yeah,” she confirmed. “The Surveyors described where it was and the body they found there; it has to be that it.”
Do we have to use this piece?” Rhamiel begged. “This is how we met.”
“I mean,” Joselin said, staring at the red stain on the stone. “You don’t have to, but it may be a while before we get more up here. This is the fastest way to get glass going if you want glass. This is the last thing Lamar needed to start trying to make glass.”
Rhamiel’s indecision did not last long after that.
<><><><><>
“So, what do you think?” Rhamiel asked, looking at his options.
Rhamiel’s voice came out of the Communication Crystal in Joselin’s hand. She was standing in front of the cookfire, her other hand extended towards the flames. Next to her, Dad sat passively, looking at the wild boar that had been split for the evening meal. Even as they sat there, their mouths watered as spices were added to the carcass.
“I mean, any of them would be useful,” Joselin said, shrugging. She was looking at Rhamiel’s Character sheet, specifically his Perks. He was unsure which to level up with his most recent Tier 1 Upgrade.
His options were Blueprint Manipulation, Beacon of Hope, Population Growth, Blueprint Generation, Mana Generator, and Aspected Analysis.
Rhamiel could guess what they may do once upgraded, but he was still determining which would provide the best benefit.
“Beacon of Hope would be a good idea,” Joselin mused. “It gives a passive resistance to your new Citizens against all negative mental effects. Getting some upgrade to that would be a good idea.”
“But what about Population Growth or Blueprint Generation?” Rhamiel questioned. “If Population Growth allows me to upgrade my settlement, what would it do if upgraded? Generate Blueprint may give the Building a new function in addition to generating Blueprints.” Rhamiel paused and said with determination, “And I need more blueprints.”
“What about Mana Generator? You said that the ability would increase the Generator power; wouldn’t that come in handy?” Joselin pushed.
“Yeah, but hopefully, I can get more Tier 1 Upgrades soon, and I don’t need it now,” Rhamiel countered. “I don’t even have anything to power yet.”
“Yeah, but upgrading Blueprint Generation when there are better choices is pointless. What is it going to do? Give you the option of something actually useful.
“Children,” Dad said sternly. “How about we take a moment and think? We do not know how these Perks will upgrade with the points, right?”
“Yeah,” Rhamiel agreed.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
“Then firstly, Joselin, you know the first rule of builds,” Dad said, not as a question, but with assurity.
“What’s the first rule of builds?” Rhamiel questioned. “Is it interesting?”
“We can give advice, but it is their choice how to level up their build,” Joselin said contritely.
Nodding, Dad sighed, “With that said, Rhamiel, what you choose affects everybody here. But I cannot see any of these that would not be good for you, except maybe Aspected Analysis, but that still would have uses tiered up. So, what would you pick if you were to pick?”
“I- I don’t know,” Rhamiel admitted. “I would choose Blueprint Generation, Blueprint Manipulation, or Population Growth.”
“And Joselin,” Dad started. “Based on those choices, what would you suggest?”
“Oh,” she seemed unsure. “Maybe Population Growth or Blueprint Manipulation?”
“Why?” Dad questioned.
She looked at her gloved hands, flexing her fingers as she answered. “Population Growth will become useful in the long-term; it would probably be a good idea to get it upgraded earlier than later in case some of these rewards are voided for getting it later. And Blueprint Manipulation, well, with his ManaTech stuff that he is starting, inputting it into his current Blueprints could be useful.”
Nodding along, Dad said, “Okay, good reasons.”
“Now, what I would suggest is Population Growth, but Blueprint manipulation could be good,” Dad shrugged, smiling at the boar ahead of them. He was the one who slew the boar, and Rhamiel wished he could taste things, but then he might have to deal with unpleasant things like… hunger. Ew.
“Okay, I think Population Growth would be a good idea,” Rhamiel acknowledged, sighing inside his mind. He reminded himself that he would get more Tier 1 Upgrades and could do some of the others soon.
So with only a little regret, he put the Tier 1 Upgrade into the Perk’ Population Growth’.
You have installed the Tier 1 Upgrade into the ‘Population Growth Perk.’ The Perk has been improved, and the description has been altered.
Population Growth(Passive) - For every Civilization, there is a point that a hamlet becomes a village, a village becomes a town, and so on. Whenever you meet the threshold of Citizens in your settlement and achieve certain benchmarks, you can evolve your settlement into the next stage. Granting you and your Citizens bonuses and rewards.
At Tier 0, You can level up your settlement when you reach certain goals and achieve certain benchmarks, granting you and your Citizen bonuses and rewards.
At Tier 1, You also gain System Rewards when you achieve certain thresholds of Population counts. First at ten Citizens, then twenty, then fifty, and so on.
You are currently a Level 0 settlement: Isolated Dwelling. You currently have 39 Citizens.
This Perk applies its rewards retroactively, granting you its rewards now. Would you like to see the Ten Citizen reward now? Yes or No?
“Yes,” Rhamiel said out loud.
In front of Joselin, above the same hand as the one she held, her Communication Crystal, an item, appeared, created in golden light. Over the course of a few seconds, a sack made of dark cloth appeared and fell onto the Crystal. The sudden weight made Joselin struggle with the surprise, but it was something she could handle. Opening up the bag’s drawstring, Joselin furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as she withdrew the item.
It was a Trio of small ovals with a small bar at the bottom, each made of a different metal. Connected to the top of the pieces were loops where small chains of the same metal hung. They were small, all three easily fitting into the palm of her hand.
Using Aspected Analysis, Rhamiel shared the information with Joselin and Dad.
Gold Cartouche Amulet. Tier 3 Amulet.
Type: Magic Necklace. Aspects: Love, Magic, Craft.
An Amulet made of Familial Gold and baptized in the waters of a Temple of Love. Cartouches have symbolic meaning in the Dead Country of Ghare; the name of the wearer is kept safe on the surface of this item.
Once worn, the wearer’s name becomes etched into the blank space in the center. Once your name is engraved, You gain Drain Resistance 3, Divination Defense 5, and Magic Amplification 2. The wearer also gains 3 Luck.
“Wow, that’s pretty good,” Dad remarked. “A bit niched, but pretty good. Not all creatures have drain effects, and divination is usually harmless,” he added with a shrug. “But that plus three to luck,” he trailed off. “Now that is rare.”
“How rare?” Rhamiel asked.
“Rare enough that this would be worth a lot of money, thousands of Gold Coins, if not tens of thousands. Especially Luck,” he commented, looking at the Cartouche in Joselin’s hand. “I wonder why you got this instead of something more specifically for you?” Dad asked with a shrug.
“I don’t know,” Rhamiel admitted. “It just says I get System Rewards for reaching certain thresholds. This was the reward for having ten Citizens.”
“Hmmm,” Dad said, “what about the others?”
Rhamiel looked at them, used Aspected Analysis, and said, “They are roughly the same; the silver one is a little weaker, and the bronze one is weaker still. But they all give that Luck bonus.”
Nodding, Dad shrugged. “Do you know about the next one?”
Rhamiel looked at the Prompt again and found that it had changed.
This Perk applies its rewards retroactively, granting you its rewards now. You have already received the randomized System Rewards for the 10 Citizen Threshold. Would you like to see the Twenty Citizen reward now? Yes or No?
“Yes,” Rhamiel intoned.
In a burst of light, another item formed. This reward fell from Joselin’s hands and landed on the floor with a light thunk. Ignoring the dirt marks, the item looked made of a shining, polished gray metal. Joselin set down the Communication Crystal and the bag with the two remaining Cartouches off to the side to pick it up, and though it was bigger than her hand, it was fitted to be held by a humanoid hand.
Looking at it, Rhamial thought it was several pieces of dull and polished silver smelted together into a solid whole. But the more he looked at it in Joselin’s hand, the more it came together into a whole. An arcane symbol that Rhamiel did not recognize sat on their rings, each smaller than the other and holding the whole thing together. At what appeared to be the top of the item, a small ring sat, and a braided cord of an ethereal material glowed with pale thread.
Analyzing the item, Rhamiel was impressed and annoyed at the same time.
Lyar Holy Symbol of Order. Tier 4 Divine Catalyst.
Type: Outer Divinity Seal. Aspect: Order.
An Ancient form of the Holy Symbol of Order, once commissioned by the House of Lyar for their Loyal High Knights. Now, all of them are gone, slain by agents of Madness, and these symbols can never be wrought again.
This Outer Divinity Seal creates a channel to the power of all the Outer Gods but grants a bonus to using the Spells of Order.
“Of course,” Rhamiel groaned.
He shared the Prompt with Joselin and Dad, the latter letting out a whistle. “A divine Catalyst, and a Tier 4 one, too. This is interesting,” Dad said, taking the item from Joselin and looking it over. “I’ve heard of the House of Lyer; they were the reason people stopped fighting against the Cult of Madness. They just got out of their way.”
“Any chance this can be used in the Eldritch Cathedral?” Rhamiel asked.
“Probably,” Dad shrugged. “Hard to know until it gets built.”
Grumbling, Rhamiel moved past that to look ahead, “Do we have anyone who can use this in the meantime?”
“Unfortunately not; the closest person may be Graham Tully, but holy fists don’t cast spells; they imbue their fists with holy magic,” Dad said with a sigh. “Joselin, can you hide the Holy Symbol for a while?”
“Yeah, not a problem,” she said, returning the item and putting it into her belt pouch.
For completing the large project “Basic Wall’, you have gained enough EXP to level up to Level 12. You have gained 3 Attribute points to spend towards your progression.
Looking at his Drones, Rhamiel cheered into the Communication Crystal. “The Walls are done, yay!”
“Does that mean we are safe?” Joselin asked.
“No,” Dad sighed. “It means we’re safer. Constant vigilance, Joselin, we can’t become complacent, or we will be killed sooner rather than later or in our old age.”
“Buzz kill,” Joselin grumped, then turned her frown into a smile. “But yay, now we can begin the real town building, right, Rhamiel?!”
“Oh yeah!” he cheered. “By any chance, have you found any basalt?”
“Not yet,” Dad smiled. “Don’t worry. According to our stone workers, we have two of them, and basalt is considered a common stone. They seem sure they’ll find it soon, but be patient.”
“Oh, but they found an iron vein down there! And some copper too!” Joselin announced happily.
“Down where?” Rhamiel asked excitedly. This material component was something he would need for the higher-tiered buildings; it was a component for the Architect’s Library.
“In the tunnels where I found you,” Joselin told him. “Hutch requested that you start gathering building resources. Lots of Wood, any stone that can be cut into bricks or ground into gravel, really anything. With your Drones working on that while they work on building the houses would-”
“Why can’t my Drones just build it all?” Rhamiel asked. “It would probably be faster than all of them.”
“Rhamiel,” Dad said. “They need a way to get levels too. Not everyone is a fighter, and we don’t have farms, shops, or anything else for some of these people to do yet, so for now, they are on build teams.”
“Besides, the next goal is to level up your settlement so you can get more Drones and the other benefits,” Joselin said, turning to Dad.
“Wait, what other benefits?” Rhamiel said accusingly.
“Did I not tell you? Crap, I’m sorry,” Joselin looked sheepish. “Once you advance to a Hamlet, you gain a few new boons. One of them is something we need, the Core Beacon.”
When Rhamiel remained quiet, Joselin continued, “Sorry, I only found the menu while you were focusing on the Core Generator. The part of the guides I’m reading wasn’t there before,” she explained.
“The Moderator,” Rhamiel cursed. He had no evidence of this accusation, but it was either that Joselin was incompetent. Rhamiel backed that thought up and added, for himself alone, or she is still learning and honestly just missed it. But no, he blamed the Moderator.
She shrugged, “I don’t know, but I do know that that Blueprint can be created with just your Mana alone AND will help us get new visitors. According to what I read, it will send our location to the world. That sounds bad, but it only sends it to the enlightened races, not monsters or Cores.”
That only partially relieved the Core, but he would get more people here. They needed people to continue to level up his settlement; he wondered if the population amount needed would decrease. But that would help once he got to Civilization Tier One; until then…
“But we still need eleven more people to advance to Tier One,” Rhamiel pointed out. “Other than the buildings and road I need to build.”
“Yeah,” Joselin pondered. “That’s the real problem here.”
“Could we just send a few people out to look for people?” Rhamiel asked.
“It would be a death sentence,” Joselin said with certainty. “Mom was lucky that they weren’t all killed on their journey here.”
“So, what? We wait?” Rhamiel questioned.
“No, we work,” Joselin assured him. “Don’t worry, Mom has a plan for the people thing.”
“What plan?”
<><><><><>
Mom sighed as soon as Joselin told her to tell the Core. “You know, I believe I told you not to tell Rhami about this yet, Sweetie,” she scolded her daughter. “I’m working on it, but it will take another day or two.”
“What? What’s going on?” Rhamiel demanded.
“Oh, I was going to use a spell to send a message to some family,” Mom said. “I don’t know if it will work or if he is still alive, but I want to try. If he is alive, I would try and get them here.”
“How many?” Rhamiel questioned. “A few?”
“Yeah, two plus their kids and whoever may be around them,” Mom said. “I can try and hurry this along, but it will be another day or two until I can cast my Global Message Spell.”
“Oooh, how does that work? I did not know Essense Magic could be used to do that kind of thing,” Rhamiel asked excitedly.
“Well,” Mom said, adjusting her glasses as she went into the explanation. “Well, Essence Magic is simple in how we order the difficulty of our spells. Basic Essence Magic uses elemental forces to create special effects. Journeyman Essence Magic uses Compound Essences. Intermediate Essence Magic uses Advanced Natural Essences. Advanced level uses Extraplanar Compound essences. And lastly, Master Essences magic involves using Aspects drawn from the Outer Gods.”
Rhamiel acknowledged it.
“I will attempt Advanced Essence Magic, using compound extraplanar magicks of Dimension and Knowledge to pass along our location to him. Unfortunately,” Mom said with a sigh. “I can’t just use this spell willy-nilly. Since I can’t use Advanced Essence Magic effectively yet, I have to spend the time to use my Ritual Spellcraft Skill to help me cast it.” Mom explained.
“Oh, that’s pretty awesome,” Rhamiel said. “What does Ritual Spellcraft do?”
Mom opened her mouth, considered explaining it to the Core, and then shook her head. “Here, just read this,” she said, sending a prompt to Rhamiel.
Ritual Spellcraft Skill. Spells are simple, allowing users to take spells and impose their will upon the world. This Skill helps spellcasters bridge their current skill level in their type of spellcasting with the next, helping increase the speed of their spellcasting level through using Rituals to cast higher-level spells.
Using Ritual Spellcraft allows you to use higher level spells through Ritual Circles, Ritual Implements, Special chants or incantations, higher mana costs, and even a significantly higher casting time. Until the highest level of this Skill, there is a chance of failure due to lack of understanding or magical imprinting.
“Oh, that’s useful,” Rhamiel commented. “I hope it works.”
Mom shrugged, “I hope so too, Rhami,” she said enthusiastically. “I’m just busy; this takes time to set up and cast, especially since, as I said, I need a Ritual to cast it.”
“Is there anything we can do to help?” Joselin asked.
“No, no, no, I’ll be fine; I just need time,” Mom smiled. “It will work; I’ll probably cast it tomorrow or the day after. But enough about me, what are you two going to do?” She asked, changing her attitude to cheerful. “I heard you just finished the wall, yay! That’s great!”
“I know, right?” Rhamiel agreed happily. “Now I can finally do other things.”
“Well, we were going to focus on gathering resources,” Joselin said pointedly. “We had a discussion earlier, remember?”
Rhamiel paused, then groaned, “Yeah, but you are all slow! You need sleep and to eat or drink and do other gross, fleshy things. Bleh!”
“Sorry,” Mom said with a small laugh. “but I think they need experience too.”
“Awww,” Rhamiel sighed, paused, then brightened. “Oh, well, time to work!”
“On what?” Joselin questioned him.
Rhamiel explained. “Well, you said I can’t work on houses so that I will work on the road! Joselin, can you have one of the Surveyors take me underground? Do we have a miner that I can borrow to show me what to do and not to do?”
“Uh, I think you’ll need…” Joselin looked at Mom.
“Karrow,” Mom suggested.
“Yeah, he’s likely the one you’ll need.” Joselin nodded, then realized what she was doing and frowned. “Building the road is a bit of a gray area, right? It’s still building, but not a building.”
“Yup,” Rhamiel chirped happily.
“Well, wait a minute,” Mom urged. “Do you have a plan for the city?”
“What?” Rhamiel asked, confused.
“Do you know where you are going to put all your buildings? It might be a good idea to have one before building a road. Otherwise, your potentially beautiful city will be in chaos.” Mom warned.
“That's okay for now,” Rhamiel said, then explained his most recent revelation. “Anything I build for now is just to progress as a civilization. I will probably tear down some of my stuff, like the Core Generator I am in now, and put them elsewhere later.”
Joselin sighed, “Probably not the best idea, Rhamiel. The Core Generator is one thing; you can build it yourself with just Mana, but we can’t reuse random wood pieces that get broken in deconstruction.”
“We can’t?” Rhamiel asked. “Awww. Fine, I’ll talk to Hutch about road and Building placement.”
“Good, now, in the meantime… Karrow?” Mom asked.
“Karrow,” Joselin confirmed, turning away from Mom. “It is too bad, I was hoping to keep you guys separate for a little while.”
“Why?”
Joselin explained. “He’s hard to understand; dwarves raised him, and their accent stuck. I have a feeling helping you understand him will be interesting.”