Two weeks have passed as a town was finally taking shape. Vicente's tribe joined them after a meeting with Valan, and the population has increased by thirty due to this alone. Set on expansion Soralan was out scouting for other tribes to offer sanctuary, and Eve was leading a group to recruit from her old home. Once the festival ended Julius approved more workers, and production increased substantially.
The western wall has been expanded greatly to deal with the growing fields and in preparation for a new district. All the added help allowed Zack to construct the city at a faster rate. Vicente was given a controller and shown how to construct. With Vicente's help, and all the down trees from expansion production was steady.
A total of twenty members from Cerebus were hired for extra security. They had some complaints from those guarding the dungeons, but these complaints stopped after a massive resupply was delivered. Once they heard it was a temporary job for winter they even praised the deal.
With all the new residents the town went under serious restructuring. The northern district had a new arena district, and by the mountain was a thriving forest. Eve wanted a place to resemble her home, and for more species to feel welcome. The eastern district housed all the civilians, the renovated bathhouse, and the distillery.
The center district had the mansion, workshops, and storage area. The western district was dedicated to farmlands, livestock, and saving space for future projects. The southern district had the tavern, eating areas, guest houses, and aquatic housing. The market and auction were still in progress as they debated designs and the exact location it would work best.
It was noon, and along the walls patrolled twenty dolls armed with artifacts. All of them have been tested against a siege, and have proven they are capable defenders. With the new line of defenses established they were keeping the mirage down.
Stationed atop the watchtowers were dark elf archers skilled in sniping. They were trained in the cities protocols the past week, and today was the first chance for conflict. With the massive walls, and dolls' support they weren't worried.
Everyone just finished breakfast, and most of the residents stayed for the morning meeting. Aelia was addressing a group of her scout as Zack waited for his turn.
"No more leaving arrays in caves unless you create it yourself, and be sure to shroud it before leaving. Anyone who forgets this is joining the night watch. Now get going." Aelia ordered.
"We are only focusing on sowing new fields, and all harvesting is taken care of by the dolls now. I also need a small group marking the pen expansions, and new fields." Zack announced as he turned to Athlan.
"Is everything gonna be ready for tonight?" Zack asked.
"We already have the whiskey, and rum ready, but the wine will be another week. Mind if I ask when Eve is returning?" Athlan responded.
"They should be back tomorrow night. Remember we are working a short day, and once the new animals are put up everyone can get ready for the feast. That's everything, and remember Dyna is handling arrivals." Zack announced.
Everyone went to work, and the scouts set out to establish more arrays for hunting zones in remote areas. This would allow wildlife to always flourish in the surrounding areas, and give them access to a diverse diet.
When the new workers arrived after the field expansions took off. They quickly realized they went overboard, but continued to work to prepare for the cities future. With the current fields, they could feed a large kingdom for two seasons, and the majority of them would regrow back in two weeks.
At the current rate, they couldn't store it all, and food eventually would go to waste. With that in mind, they planned an event before spring revealing the city. Zack sent out a messenger to a nearby village to trade. They survived mainly off livestock due to recent years of bad crops.
"My men will be patrolling the roads to protect your guest, and thanks again for the work," Vicente said while signaling his men.
"How are the dungeons holding?" Zack asked.
"Everything seems quiet for now. No one likes to waste the extra resources fighting, and moving troops in the snow. Speaking of the guild you know it's only a matter of time right?" Vicente smirked.
"I figured she would've checked on the others by now. Why hasn't she?" Zack asked.
"She rarely visited our family in the first place, and I have her guarding our main dungeon. That excuse should buy us some time, but I need to rotate men soon though, and they might say something. Your place is making them soft so I have no choice but to switch them out." Vicente laughed hitting him on the shoulder.
"We have an arena it's not my fault they don't use it," Zack replied with a grin.
"That's because they're scared Ren will join again, and she doesn't know how to hold back. We could use her in our vanguard for sure. How about we waive our fee for two weeks for some work in spring?" Vicente asked.
"You realize the booze cost alone would sink you?" Zack smirked while waving at the kids.
"Good point. I'll be at the gate if you need me." Vicente waved as he walked off.
Zack went off to recharge the forge. His grace was coming back gradually so he could power the forge, healing was also possible, but Zack still couldn't form his spear. After giving sufficient energy to the forge Zack gave Rolen a list of items he needed for town.
This time they planned to make grade five artifacts and only a few six. They didn't wanna saturate the market so quickly with the sevens. As Zack was handing over the list he was examining Rolen's special project sitting by the workbench.
It was a full-plated set of mithril armor. Down the chest, greaves and shoulders were layers of plates closely forged together. The gauntlets had similar plates with intricate engravings down the center. Rolen continued to work on his other orders like normal but would spend his nights on the armor to test his skills.
"Are you ready to try it on?" Rolen asked.
"Not sure if I want it yet. I'm already pretty durable remember." Zack replied.
"Yeah, but your clothes are always getting messed up," Rolen stated.
"Where's Thea?" Zack investigated seeing her tools sitting on the anvil nearby.
"Not sure, but she's never late," Rolen replied.
Zack talked to Rolen about his partnership with Thea for a while before leaving to search the area for Yuki. With Eve gone Yuki had more work, and he wanted to help every chance he could. Zack found Yuki in the garden with the kids.
Noticing Zack they all began racing to get his attention. For the next few hours, they were playing games throughout the cities. While playing through the estate a guard approached notifying them about arrivals. The guard left to inform Athlan, and Lydia to begin feast preparation as Yuki tried to rally the children.
Zack went to the gate with Dyna and Ren to greet their guest. There was a convoy of people walking in through the gate with dolls as escorts. Most of the guests were humans, but there was a small band of centaurs among their ranks. The centaurs were herding a large group of Elk and two large stallions closely beside them. The man leading the convoy was an older man named Quinn.
"It's good to see you again," Zack said while reaching his hand out.
"This place came out of nowhere. How long has it been here?" Quinn asked while shaking his hand.
"This is where I grew up, but it's been changed quite a bit recently. How're the kids doing?" Zack asked.
"Everyone is healthy so great. What kind of magic does this?" Quinn was puzzled by his surroundings.
"Not sure what does it exactly. If you wanna have them rest I can show you the goods." Zack replied.
Dyna led Quinn's group to put away the animals while Zack walked Quinn to a storage area. When they entered Quinn was fascinated by the variety stored around them. Most of the foods in front of Quinn are new, and he wasn't sure what he wanted to try first.
"You're welcome to anything here," Zack said with a smile.
Quinn seemed interested in the fruits the most and reached out for a banana. The only thing Quinn could grow at home lately was potatoes. Their main food source was derived from hunting with the centaurs, and livestock. Being given access to such a variety excited him, and he was eager to show his children.
"This is filled with ten barrels of everything here," Zack told Quinn while handing him a ring.
"We would've brought more, but the rest don't travel well in the snow. We will try to bring more in a few days" Quinn smiled looking at the treasure in his hands.
"You brought more than enough, and next time things are low we can trade again. I can even get an array setup making the trip easier. For now, let's go find your people so we can eat." Zack suggested as they walked out.
The animals were settled into their new enclosures, and the workers were getting ready for the feast. All the guests were gathered at the pavilion admiring their surroundings. Seeing the tables and bar area for water dwellers they were impressed with the ingenuity. They even had some new tables prepared for their centaur allies allowing them to feast with the others in comfort.
'This is impressive.' Quinn smiled seeing his people having a good time.
As the workers, and citizens arrived Lydia began cooking and serving seafood. Athlan was cutting up two boars that were roasting in preparation, and Mark was bringing in a variety of desserts with the help of some dolls. Quinn's people were salivating seeing the delicacies being set at their tables.
"Time for the real celebration," Ren announced.
Ren was hauling over two wagons transporting massive barrels. As the workers saw the large smile on Ren's face they knew it was a fresh batch. Having a good two weeks of work they were all excited to finally enjoy the fruits of their labor. Back in their village they didn't have alcohol and came to enjoy it after fieldwork. They were excited about the new flavors and wanted to convince Julius to open a brewery.
"I wanna thank everyone for their hard work. Everything here tonight is a cumulative effort of those around us. I know your working here is only temporary, but your welcome here anytime. I also hope the partnerships formed between the three communities here will continue and thrive to benefit the generations to come. Tomorrow everyone gets the day off so enjoy yourselves tonight!" Zack declared while downing his drink.