Chapter 88 - 87: The Village Center
The Hale family had spent most of the morning exploring Velaris.
After walking through the residential areas and checking the structures scattered around the territory, Iris eventually found herself standing in front of the Village Center.
She had seen the building before, but she had never really stopped to examine it. With everything that had happened since establishing Velaris, there had always been something more urgent demanding her attention.
At first glance, it looked like another important structure within the village.
That was all.
Now that she was standing before its entrance, however, Iris found herself curious.
She pushed the door open.
The moment she stepped inside, the atmosphere changed.
The interior was far more sophisticated than the exterior suggested. Several counters were arranged throughout the spacious hall, though no workers stood behind them. Instead, translucent holographic panels hovered above the surfaces, displaying information that shifted whenever Iris moved closer.
Iris blinked.
"Oh."
Behind her, Benjamin stepped inside.
"What is it?"
"I don’t know yet."
Iris walked toward the nearest counter.
The moment she approached, a holographic interface appeared before her.
[Village Center]
[Available Functions:]
[Recruitment]
[Territory Announcements]
[Mission Postings]
[Resource Purchasing]
[Resident Management]
[Communication]
[Trade Management]
Iris stared at the list.
"So this is what the Village Center does."
Benjamin leaned closer.
"That’s quite a lot."
"It is."
Iris looked through the functions one by one. She had expected the building to have some administrative purpose, but she hadn’t expected so many functions to be concentrated in one place.
Recruitment immediately caught her attention.
She selected it.
Another interface appeared.
Iris quickly scanned through the information before closing the panel.
"So we can recruit people through here."
Henry looked over her shoulder.
"That could become useful."
"It definitely will."
Iris thought about the future of Velaris.
The territory had only just been established, yet already there were things that needed to be managed. People would come. Some would stay. Others might eventually leave. Some might have skills the territory desperately needed, while others might simply be looking for somewhere safe to live.
The Village Center could apparently help with all of that.
Iris moved to the next function.
[Territory Announcements]
She selected it.
A blank interface appeared, accompanied by an option to create and distribute announcements throughout the territory.
Iris stared at it for a moment.
"So I don’t actually have to find everyone whenever I need to tell them something."
Benjamin nodded.
"That sounds convenient."
"Very."
She could already imagine how much time that would save.
If Velaris grew, personally delivering every announcement would become ridiculous. One message could reach everyone at once, without Iris having to walk from house to house or gather the residents in the village center herself.
The next function was Mission Postings.
Iris opened it.
She scanned the available options and smiled faintly.
"People can accept missions through the Village Center."
Henry nodded.
"That could be useful for gathering resources."
"Or dealing with problems outside the territory."
Iris closed the panel.
The possibilities were already becoming obvious.
Velaris wasn’t supposed to rely entirely on Iris for everything.
The Village Center allowed the residents themselves to participate in the development of the territory.
That realization made her pause.
Until now, Iris had thought of Velaris mostly in terms of structures.
Build a house.
Build a warehouse.
Build defenses.
Gather resources.
Protect everyone.
But this was different.
This wasn’t about constructing another building.
It was about creating a system that allowed the territory to function.
Iris opened Resident Management next.
The interface displayed information concerning the territory’s residents.
She studied it carefully.
Names.
Status.
Residency information.
Other details concerning the people living within Velaris.
"This is more useful than I expected."
Benjamin glanced at the screen.
"You can manage everyone from here?"
"It seems like it."
Iris leaned back slightly.
That was going to become increasingly important as the population grew. Keeping track of a handful of people was easy enough. Keeping track of an entire settlement was another matter entirely.
Then she noticed Communication.
She selected it.
The interface opened.
For a moment, Iris thought she had found another useful function.
Then she noticed the locked section.
[Communication with Allied Territories: Locked]
Iris frowned.
"Locked."
Henry looked at the display.
"Can you unlock it?"
"Not yet."
She tapped the interface again, but nothing changed.
Iris eventually closed it.
Fine.
She wasn’t going to worry about something she couldn’t use yet.
She moved on.
Trade Management.
Another useful function.
Resources could be exchanged and managed through the Village Center, giving Velaris another way to handle its growing economy.
Iris slowly looked around the hall.
The building suddenly felt much larger than it had when she first entered.
Not physically.
Functionally.
There were too many possibilities packed into one place.
She walked toward another counter, curious about whether the different functions were connected in some way.
Several holographic displays appeared as she approached. Some showed information she had already seen, while others displayed details concerning resources, residents, and territory activities.
Iris moved between them, watching the panels rearrange themselves according to what she selected.
It was strangely efficient.
There were no workers standing around waiting for instructions. No administrator sat behind a desk with stacks of documents. Everything was handled through the System.
Yet it didn’t feel lifeless.
It felt organized.
"Do you realize what this means?" she asked.
Benjamin looked at her.
"What?"
"This building isn’t just for announcements."
She gestured toward the holographic interfaces.
"It’s basically the administrative center of the entire territory."
Henry nodded.
"That would explain why it’s called the Village Center."
Iris smiled.
"Exactly."
She had been so focused on getting Velaris established that she hadn’t stopped to consider how she would actually manage it once people began arriving.
Now she knew.
The Village Center was designed for that.
Recruitment.
Residents.
Missions.
Resources.
Trade.
Communication.
Announcements.
It connected everything.
Iris walked farther into the building.
The others followed.
They passed several counters and holographic displays, exploring the interior without knowing exactly what they were looking for.
Then Iris noticed something strange.
There was another passage farther ahead.
Unlike the rest of the building, there was no visible function attached to it.
No holographic panel.
No sign.
Nothing.
It simply existed.
Iris slowed.
"What’s that?"
Benjamin followed her gaze.
"I don’t know."
Iris approached.
The passage looked ordinary at first. There was nothing about it that suggested it was different from the rest of the building.
That made it even stranger.
She reached the entrance and took another step.
Her body stopped.
Iris stumbled backward as if she had walked directly into a solid wall.
"What the hell?"
Benjamin immediately stepped forward.
"Iris?"
"I’m fine."
She stared ahead.
There was nothing there.
No door.
No wall.
Nothing that should have stopped her.
She reached out cautiously.
Her hand passed through empty air.
Iris frowned.
She tried to step forward again.
The invisible barrier stopped her.
A translucent notification appeared before her eyes.
[Restricted Area]
[Access is limited to the Lord of the Territory.]
Iris stared at the message.
Benjamin looked around in confusion.
"What’s wrong?"
"I can’t pass."
He stepped forward.
The moment he tried to follow her, the same invisible barrier stopped him.
A notification appeared in front of him.
[Access Denied.]
[Only the Lord of the Territory may enter this area.]
Benjamin blinked.
"So..."
Iris looked at him.
"Only I can enter."
Henry approached and tried as well.
The result was the same.
He couldn’t pass.
Iris looked toward the passage again.
A restricted area inside the Village Center.
She had never seen it mentioned in the ordinary functions.
That meant it wasn’t meant for everyone.
Something inside had been deliberately hidden behind a System restriction.
Iris narrowed her eyes.
"Can you see anything?"
Benjamin looked through the passage.
"No."
"Nothing?"
"Nothing at all."
Iris stepped closer to the barrier again.
There was no visible door. No guard. No lock. Yet the System had created an invisible boundary that separated this section from the rest of the Village Center.
Her curiosity grew.
"What if I authorize you?"
Benjamin raised an eyebrow.
"You can do that?"
"I don’t know."
Iris opened the available interfaces and searched through the functions she had already discovered.
Nothing.
There was no obvious option.
She closed the panels.
"Apparently not from here."
Henry folded his arms.
"Maybe you have to enter first."
Iris looked at the restricted passage.
That was possible.
The Village Center clearly had functions available to ordinary residents, but perhaps the Lord had access to something completely different.
She turned back toward the others.
"Wait here."
Benjamin raised an eyebrow.
"You’re actually going in?"
Iris smiled.
"Now I’m definitely going in."
She turned toward the invisible barrier.
This time, she stepped forward.
There was no resistance.
The barrier allowed her through.
Iris glanced back once.
The others remained on the other side.
She couldn’t help smiling.
The Village Center had already given her more than she expected.
But apparently, the functions available to ordinary residents were only one layer of what the building could offer.
There was another side.
One reserved for the Lord.
And Iris had just discovered it.
She turned toward the unknown passage.
Whatever waited beyond it, she had a feeling it would change the way she understood Velaris.
She took another step forward.
For the first time since establishing the territory, Iris realized something.
She hadn’t even begun to uncover everything Velaris could do.