Chapter 66 - 65: Building Velaris
{velaris}
The laughter lingered for several more seconds.
Caleb leaned back in his chair with a satisfied grin, looking far too pleased with himself. "So," he declared, folding his arms behind his head, "we officially own expensive paperwork."
A chorus of chuckles answered him.
Benjamin shook his head, the corners of his mouth tugging upward despite himself. "When you put it that way, it sounds like we wasted an entire day."
"We absolutely did," Caleb replied without missing a beat. "An entire day and one thousand gold."
"On paperwork."
"Very expensive paperwork."
Even Henry let out a quiet laugh. The sound was brief, but genuine. Gradually, the amusement faded, leaving behind a comfortable silence.
Beyond the table, the late afternoon breeze drifted through the trees surrounding the camp, carrying with it the gentle rustling of leaves. Somewhere nearby, Snow barked happily before chasing after something only he could see.
Henry’s gaze shifted away from the blueprint sketches scattered across the table and toward the open land stretching beyond the camp.
The empty space that, until now, had existed only in their imaginations.
He folded his arms. "The blueprint is finished." His calm voice immediately drew everyone’s attention. "Now we decide where the first stone goes."
The words settled over the group.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then, almost instinctively, they all rose from their seats.
The collection of sketches, calculations, and notes on their tablets remained where they were, no longer the focus of the discussion.
The real work was about to begin.
They walked only a short distance from the camp before stopping near the center of the open clearing. The newly completed defensive wall surrounded the territory in the distance, enclosing a vast stretch of untouched land.
Grass swayed gently beneath the evening breeze.
Clusters of mature trees stood undisturbed across the landscape, while scattered boulders rested where nature had placed them long before humanity ever arrived in Eldilon.
It was peaceful. Empty... and waiting.
Iris raised her hand, and with a thought, opened the Territory Construction interface.
A familiar translucent window appeared before her eyes. Invisible to everyone else.
Henry glanced toward her. "What does the map look like?"
Iris studied the floating display. "The entire territory is outlined," she answered. "The walls are marked as completed, and the empty land inside is divided into a construction grid."
Benjamin nodded thoughtfully. "Good. That should make positioning much easier."
Henry slowly turned, surveying the clearing with the practiced eye of an architect. "The Village Center becomes the heart of everything."
He pointed toward a broad section of open ground not far from their current position. "If we build it there, every major road can branch outward naturally."
His hand swept across the surrounding landscape. "We also leave plenty of space around it."
Caleb tilted his head. "For what?"
Henry looked at him as though the answer were obvious. "Future us."
Caleb blinked. "...Future us?"
"The Village Center is Level One," Henry explained. "If it grows when upgraded, and I’d be very surprised if it doesn’t, we’ll regret placing other buildings too close."
Benjamin immediately nodded. "He’s right."
He studied the surrounding terrain for a moment before adding, "The same principle should apply to every permanent structure. Leave expansion space now, and we won’t have to demolish buildings later."
Iris smiled faintly. It was exactly how Henry had always approached projects back on Aurelion.
He never designed for today. He designed for decades from now.
She looked back at the floating interface only she could see.
The highlighted construction area rested exactly where Henry had indicated. Perfectly centered. Leaving generous room in every direction. Her fingers hovered over the selection.
[Village Center (Level 1)]
She selected it and then a second confirmation window immediately appeared.
[Construct Village Center (Level 1)?
YES | NO. ]
Iris drew one quiet breath. Then she pressed YES.
The confirmation window vanished. For a single heartbeat...
Nothing happened.
The clearing remained exactly as it had been moments before.
The evening breeze drifted lazily through the grass. Leaves rustled softly overhead, and somewhere behind them Snow barked at a passing butterfly, completely oblivious to the anticipation hanging over everyone else.
Caleb glanced around. " Did it work?"
Nobody answered.
Then... A deep vibration rolled through the earth. It wasn’t violent. It wasn’t enough to throw anyone off balance. It felt more like the land itself had awakened.
Everyone instinctively looked down as the ground beneath the selected construction site began to hum.
The vibration spread outward in a perfect circle before stopping exactly at the invisible boundary Iris had chosen.
A second later, brilliant blue-white lines burst into existence.
They raced across the ground with astonishing speed, intersecting and branching into countless geometric patterns until the entire construction area resembled an enormous architectural blueprint carved from light.
Benjamin inhaled sharply. " That’s..."
He never finished the sentence.
The lines rose. Not physically. The light itself climbed into the air, sketching the complete outline of a building in three dimensions.
Walls. Columns. Archways. Every measurement. Every angle.
The entire Village Center existed before them as nothing more than a framework of shimmering light.
Then the construction began. Stone rose from the earth. Not violently. Massive blocks lifted smoothly into the air as though gravity had quietly forgotten them. They drifted toward the glowing framework before settling perfectly into place with soft, resonant clicks.
One after another. Not a single piece missed its place. Then came the timber.
Great wooden beams emerged from streams of light, weaving themselves through the growing structure before locking seamlessly against the stone.
There were no workers. No scaffolding. No hammering. No shouted instructions. No wasted movement.
It was as though an invisible master builder already knew where every single piece belonged.
The only sounds were the soft hum filling the clearing and the quiet clicks as each component settled into its proper place.
Nobody spoke.
Even Caleb stood frozen.
Veronica stared with wide, unblinking eyes.
Henry never once looked away from the rising structure.
For someone who had spent decades designing buildings, everything unfolding before him defied reason. No measurements to verify. No mistakes to correct. No delays. Every connection fit. Every angle aligned. Every piece arrived exactly when it was needed.
It wasn’t merely construction.
It was impossible.
Benjamin unconsciously stepped closer, his eyes darting across the glowing framework as he tried to follow the sequence of assembly. "...Incredible..." His voice was barely audible.
Before anyone could respond, his expression changed. " Wait." He pointed toward a towering oak standing near the edge of the construction site. "Iris...."
Everyone turned to look at what he was pointing at.
The ancient tree trembled once. Instead of being pushed aside or uprooted, its trunk began dissolving. Tiny emerald particles peeled away from the bark like countless glowing fireflies. Branches followed. Then the leaves. Then the roots hidden beneath the soil.
Within seconds...
The entire tree vanished. Not even a stump remained.
The stream of emerald light flowed silently toward the rising Village Center before disappearing into it.
At that exact moment, a notification appeared before Iris.
[Wood +214]
Her eyes widened.
"...What?"
Nearby shrubs dissolved next.
Then several large boulders quietly broke apart into countless silver-gray particles before flowing toward the construction site. Another notification appeared.
[Stone +186]
Then another. And another.
Wood and Stone.
The numbers quietly accumulated.
Everything occupying the construction footprint was being converted into usable resources. Nothing was being discarded. Nothing was wasted.
Henry stared at the empty patch of ground where the ancient oak had stood only moments ago. "...The tree..."
Benjamin slowly shifted his gaze toward the now-empty ground. "The rocks too..."
Veronica looked around the construction area in disbelief. "It didn’t destroy them..."
"It... changed them," Iris murmured, her eyes lingering on the notifications only she could see.
Nobody spoke for several seconds. The discovery settled over them one realization at a time.
The construction continued uninterrupted.
More stone rose into place. More timber locked together. Piece by piece, the glowing framework disappeared beneath the completed structure.
Finally...
The last section settled into place. The blueprint of light surrounding the building slowly faded.
The humming ceased. The trembling earth became still once more. Silence settled across the clearing.
Where untouched land had stood only minutes earlier...
The first building of Velaris now stood proudly before them. For several long moments, nobody moved.
Henry simply stared at it.
Benjamin’s eyes wandered across every visible line almost instinctively, searching for flaws he would never find.
Veronica smiled softly.
Caleb opened his mouth and closed it again. For perhaps the first time that day...
He couldn’t think of anything to say.
Iris looked at the completed Village Center, warmth slowly spreading through her chest.
The gentle breeze stirred through the newly completed square, carrying the faint scent of fresh timber and stone. For the first time since arriving in Eldilon, the empty territory no longer felt like borrowed land. It finally felt like the beginning of home.
Only a few hours ago...
Velaris had been little more than an empty territory surrounded by walls.
Now...
It finally had a heart.
*~*
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