It was around 8pm, the sun was starting to set and the wind was warm. Striga had arrived and the materials had all been laid out in the back area near the shed that Donis and Jimmy had previously visited. There was everything she could have needed, and then some.
"Good work guys, it looks like ye bought out half of the town!" she laughed.
"Now, some of the people staying with us are actually experienced carpenters, and some are even architects. They've offered their services for us and even came up with a design for the house they'll be staying in. It'll accommodate all of them, and make it look more like a natural wing of the house by creating the majority of the rooms underground," she continued.
"Now, no time to waste, lets get to it. First we..." said Striga as she began conducting the people around her like a well oiled machine.
The first drafts of the house were viewed and reviewed by everyone there, the possibilities kept on climbing because Donis was able to use [Terrain Augment] to quickly change the area to a much more suitable state.
The bricklayers kept saying they were jealous of Donis, for the would have to spend days changing the composition of the ground to make it suitable for their needs.
First the ground floor was going to be just a nice simple extension from the main building to not arouse any suspicion. They even connected it from behind the headquarters so that most people would have never even noticed it unless they somehow passed that way, or went on their property.
Then Donis and a few of the people who could use Earth Magic were tasked with removing a large space underground. As the less skilled people were focused on removing chunks of earth, Donis focused on reinforcing the ground by changing the terrain to have essentially stone walls. He even created pillars to support the entire ceiling of the structure as per the orders of the architects.
The base of the building was being created as fast as lightning. A project being taken hands on by about 70 people was bound to be quick, especially when these people used their specializations to truly bring it to the next level.
As the vast majority of people were busy on the construction of the building, Striga left Jimmy in charge for a while as she had to go back into town and pay off a handsome sum to remove any and all traces of their purchases from the logs of the merchants today. She didn't know who to trust, and she knew that money would be the only language that merchants trust.
Amongst the next steps, there were spaces carved out for a kitchen with its own venting holes onto the surface, and a vapour chamber was created at the top to catch the smoke and turn it into liquid so it doesn't alert anyone, just in case.
There were two large bathrooms created, one for men and one for women, an almost communal area as it would save not only space, but resources.
After the bathrooms the largest project was going to be bedrooms. They decided to house two people in the same rooms to try and save some space, but even with that, housing 68 people underground isn't going to be easy, nor space efficient. Yet it had to be done, whether or not it was efficient.
It took them hours to create 34 separate rooms that housed two people with enough space to not feel like a jail cell. They didn't want these people feeling like they were going from one cell to another, it was crucial to actually rescue these people, and not keep them suffering any longer than they have to.
After the bedrooms were done, the next thing they decided to create was a training hall with a large open space. They weren't going to be allowed to go out too often for a while, so creating this area was necessary for their physical activity needs to be met.
Striga and Jimmy didn't know how she was going to keep everyone entertained, nor did she know how long they were going to be there for, but she was going to try her absolute best to help these people.
The plan started coming along when Donis shared with her that if he was able to go to the bank, he could take out some funds and potentially get books for them, maybe even an encrypted [Pigeon Paper] that the government couldn't possibly track.
This would allow some of them to message their families and let them know they're alright, for others it would give them peace knowing they'd just have the option of talking to someone if they really wanted to. Half of staying cooped up in a place was the mental aspect of it all.
They wanted to give the people they were trying to rescue some options. Options keep spirits up, and morale high.
Eventually, at around 4 am, construction was done for the entire building. It was 125m wide, 125m long, and 3m tall. The training hall was actually 6m tall, but it was at the end of the underground building so the floor dipped down instead of the ceiling coming up. The only things needed to be done now were just the decorations and finishing touches.
They still had to smooth the edges, put a fine finish on the walls, and somehow soften the flooring inside the rooms. There were plenty of vents and holes to cycle in fresh air, and there was even a working plumbing system put in place for the residents of the newly built underground housing area.
Donis was busy grinding out [EXP] for [Terrain Augment] by altering the finishing touches. He would smooth walls, harden layers of rock, make sure the surrounding area was free from any sort of rubble falling, or hidden cracks.
It was truly tiresome. If not for his [Serene Mana], Donis would have already been unable to continue his work, but unlike the majority of the people there, he could work without resting.
5am was approaching quickly, and the whole housing had been nearly finished in just a few hours. It was truly magical seeing so many people work so closely and yet not get in the way of each other like this. It reminded Donis of ants back from his life.
The rooms bare, and the hallways lifeless, but it was going to be home for these people for foreseeable future. Donis was going to change at least some of it though.
When time allowed, Donis was going to go and visit the Erazari Bank to check out how much money his parents had sent him, and buy some sort of entertainment of the group. He'd obviously see if there's anything he can get himself, maybe some materials to start working on his crafts, or potentially even new spells he could "check out".
The future seemed bright, and exciting, especially with 68 people living right under his feet. What knowledge could be held by these people, what stories could he learn from them, and what lessons could they teach.
Donis delirious mind was chugging along as the lack of sleep was starting to really set in. A dumb smile plastered on his face as the different impossible scenarios flashed by his mind.
"When will that kid ever learn to stop taking advantage of situations?" laughed quietly Striga, placing her hand on Jimmies shoulder. The three were sitting down on some benches in one of the communal areas for the underground house.
"I don't know, but I suppose it's how he got so strong, right?" he replied back to her quietly, a distant look in his eyes.
"Yeah... what wa.. no. I'll discuss it with him later and figure out if we need to worry about him. Go get some rest, you deserve some Jimmy," sighed Striga.
"How about you get some sleep too? A captain can only do so much for her people.." said Jimmy as he looked back at her.
Striga smirked back at him, and waved him away. Her eyes focused back on Donis was still deliriously oblivious to the look she was giving him. There was fear in her eyes, but also a type of hope and uncertainty.
"Hey Donis, go get some rest, alright?" she said smacking her hands against her thighs, minutes after some quiet contemplation.
"Okay!" he beamed back, already half asleep, his eyes trying to go their separate ways.