Eldric and the group chartered outside and searched and searched. At the end of the day Eldric finally chose the location after much thought. The cavern mouth leads outside to the river at the other end at the right. The mountain is just beside the mouth was not jagged but rather quite smooth. He decided that since the there would be a Knight House, they could use it to disguise the pathway leading to the cavern and only those dear or trusted by him would know of it.
It was perfect, it would enable him to have a defensive wall in front and because only a select few would come he could preserve the beautiful scenery inside the cavern. Not only that the mountain area is shaped almost like the top of a crown, and it looks like another basin, so the House would go on the mountain area and expand downward to where the lake and forest area goes. The training ground would then be built at the foot of the house.
It was an extremely big project already and Eldric's ideas and suggestions made it an even bigger job. So, Eldric and the members of House Snow embarked on a monumental endeavor to build Knight House and establish a training ground. The old trees in the forest area generously provided them with the necessary wood, their sturdy trunks offering themselves to create the foundations of their new home.
And with their skills as Tier 1 man-at-arms, they easily mined the stone, extracting it from the mountain side to lay the solid groundwork for their Knight House. The construction process disrupted their daily routine, but Eldric, ever the leader, took it upon himself to ensure the essential tasks were still carried out. He shouldered the responsibility of managing the daily chores, organizing the distribution of resources, and overseeing the progress of the construction.
Despite the demands of the building project, they remained steadfast in their commitment to survival. In the afternoons, they would set out on their hunting expeditions, their skills honed through the countless hours spent in the wilderness. They understood the importance of maintaining their proficiency in the art of hunting.
Day by day, the Knight House began to take shape, rising from the earth like a beacon of hope. Walls were erected, rooms were created, and the House began going into its finishing stages. As the week turned into a month and a half, the construction was completion. The Knight House stood tall in the midday sun. The training ground was also finished and equipped with crude wooden dummies and sparring areas.
The House and the training ground was crudely built but it was what they were able to build with what they had.
Eldric was leisurely walking through the house and although it was crude it looked comfy and cozy to him. 'I can only expand and improve in the far future' he thought to himself. There was one massive hall which looked like it would be the main hall, on both sides of the main hall several sub halls and hallways could be seen. Eldric took his time looking at every place. There were quite a few rooms, every one of which was empty as they had nothing to furnish it with, for now.
There was also a big area which looked to be the future kitchen. He could go on and on about how the building looked, it was all the same, empty and crude. Nonetheless there was a smile on his face. In the whole House there was only one room that was furnished, a room second only to the main hall with a massive round table at its center, it looked like it could accommodate 50 people. He sat at one of the chairs by the table, he could not wait anymore as he remembered the sound of the system that echoed earlier this morning. He wanted to open it there and then but refrained himself and decided he would look at their new House first.
*Ding*
Congratulations on completing the main mission.
Reward: 10 Civilians, an armor blueprint and +1 strength increase.
"Accept" Eldric said slowly. After a few seconds of nothing happening Eldric felt a surging pain in his dantian area where his core is. The pain was unbearable as he screamed. He tried to collect himself, but the pain did not allow it. He screamed in agony for around 10 minutes before the pain started to subside.
He slowly let out a breath of relief and as he was lying on the floor out of breath, he summoned the system panel once more.
[Name: Eldric Balmore]
[Household Name: House Snow]
[Power: Tier 0 Level 1 (Core damaged)]
[Household Power: Beginner Knight Household]
[Army: Five Men-at-arms (+)]
[Quests: None]
He saw there was a change in his stats, he was finally beginning his return to power. Without him even realizing it tears started to stream down his face, he subconsciously wiped them away. He was confused, it was clearly shown that he was at level 1, but the system still showed that he had a damaged core. He asked the system and the reply he was given was that Eldric had level 1 strength but due to his damaged core he was the weakest Tier 0 Level 1.
Eldric just sighed and thought to himself that it's a miracle that he could even recover his strength and that he should just be content with what he had gotten.
Seeing as that was out of the way and he finally calmed down Eldric, for the first time in half a month he opened the system properly and checked for any other changes. The only one that maybe changed was the army column, so he clicked on it and the information of the group of men appeared.
[Name: Galen]
[Age: 25]
[Household: House Snow]
[Loyalty: 100]
[Power: Tier 1 Level 3]
[Name: Solen]
[Age: 23]
[Household: House Snow]
[Loyalty: 100]
[Power: Tier 1 Level 3]
[Name: Cael]
[Age: 21]
[Household: House Snow]
[Loyalty: 100]
[Power: Tier 1 Level 2]
[Name: Evander]
[Age: 21]
[Household: House Snow]
[Loyalty: 100]
[Power: Tier 1 Level 2]
[Name: Lachlan]
[Age: 17]
[Household: House Snow]
[Loyalty: 100]
[Power: Tier 1 Level 1]
Eldric looked at the progress the group made, and he could not help but mourn for the regular knights in the kingdoms, what some knights could not achieve in 5 years the group of 5 did in about 2 months. But Eldric was quite alright with that as the people the outside world would proclaim as geniuses are his subordinates and a part of his Household. Knowing that, he was feeling proud.
So, after the sun started to set Eldric and the group once more gathered around the campfire and he told them that today is a day they should celebrate. The House was finished and from the next morning they would start working on the House in finer detail. It was also this night that the group decided to try and see what lurks further in to the forest.