Chương 998

CH998

"Brrr," Thera let out as soon as they passed through the gate to the next city beyond once morning came, a thick layer of snow covering it speaking of just how far north it was compared to the more temperate locations they usually spent their time.

"Okay, this is something I would have liked some real warning about. We could have at least packed appropriately."

"I told you the guild needs to put more effort into getting us all of the relevant info when they want us for something," Ben said, materializing a thick jacket for her and a lighter one for himself to fend off the chill.

"This would have been worth knowing ahead of time."

Still, there was nothing to do about it then and it wasn't like it was a problem he hadn't been able to immediately sort out so with that done they went off, trudging through the snow to find the city's guild and ending up in a building far emptier than the others, with the time in that land still being early and with the streets still needing to be cleared making for enough of a sign for others to stay in, leaving it as only the two of them and a single employee by the time they got inside, with a yeti waiting in attendance for them to go to as they pulled out their cards.

"Good morning," Thera said, keeping friendly despite the chill that was seeping into even that building.

"I believe we're expected. We've been sent here to fulfill a construction quest and were told we'd get further details when we arrived. Is there any chance your guildmaster is in?"

"That would be me," the yeti nodded, surprising them both to see the man working at the front and leaving him to answer that reaction.

"The rest of the staff has been given a chance to come in later while we wait for the roads to get cleared, and it doesn't matter if I'm filling out my paperwork in the front or the back. Still, great to have you both, just hope you'll be able to help. Come on then, I'll give you the details of the job." He walked the two over to a nearby table, taking a seat while wearing a subtle look that conveyed his doubts that they'd contribute much to whatever needed to be done, even if he kept that opinion to himself.

"To make it short, our city has currently taken in roughly a thousand jötunn refugees, about ten villages of them that have always been nearish, but until recently largely kept to themselves. We need them housed."

"Sounds easy enough," Thera nodded, not seeing the problem so far as the guild master went on.

"It won't be. You two know much about them?"

"Somewhat," Ben answered.

"I've met a few. Is there some cultural issue?"

"Bah, that would be easier to handle. No, if you've met some, then you should know about the passive magic they deal with."

"What exactly is the issue with that?" Thera asked, eyes narrowing.

"The issue is that it's an ice magic, and that's everyone's problem. We may be pretty far north but we shouldn't be getting anywhere near the snow we have been in the month since they've moved here, their presence is reshaping the environment in a way that's hard for everyone else who lived here originally to deal with."

"Do they not have braces to suppress their magic?" Ben asked, seeing it as the simplest solution and something he could make himself for each of them with just a bit of time, but it seemed things wouldn't be that simple.

"We got people out here to make them for any who didn't have them after they moved here, but that's only worthwhile if they bother wearing them. Which they do at least, when they go out and about, that is. But only then. It's clear that enough of them take them off when they go back to the temporary set up we've got them living in right now so when night comes and they're all tucked away we get a huge temperature drop that everyone has to deal with and cold weather that lasts through to the next day.

People have spoken to them about the problem, myself included, but not enough commit to handling it so if we can't trust them to change, we at least need homes for them that can trap their magic enough that it won't be the rest of our problem."

"So it's a matter of making homes for them to help contain their magics then, huh?" Ben muttered, going over solutions in his head.

"Interesting, but possible. In that case, can we see where they're currently living so we know what we're working with?" This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Ah, currently they're spread all over the city in what available space we had, but that's just not cutting it. We need proper housing for them, not just something that will make do. We've got a plot of land for you to build on too. Once someone else arrives to man the guild, I can show you the way."

Once a new worker arrived to tend to the guild, the guildmaster led them out, taking them through the streets to the edge of the city where some land had been cleared to build on, only waiting for the two of them to arrive as they looked around, Ben thinking over the plot of land and what he'd need to do.

If he was building to specifically house a thousand new people then that wasn't a small amount of work, but the bigger concern was their passive ice magic and how that would affect things if he didn't succeed in managing it first. As things were, while they were spread across the city they were already altering the environment by being there, what would happen if they were concentrated to one location if enough of them still didn't properly suppress their magic?

I guess the current micro-climate would just get even more compressed and horrific for anyone living in this particular area around them but there's no telling if they'll have any other effects on the wider city still too unless we actually test it out and see what happens. Doesn't matter though; I can solve this. Really, it just meant applying a solution he'd figured out ages ago yet had never seen much real value in until that point.

He needed to apply the enchantment of a resistance amulet to the buildings themselves. Something he'd done once back home, just to see if he could, he had never seen the value of continuing it after the effect had been verified. It may have worked, but it was a challenge most enchanters would want to avoid, not for the technical aspect behind it but for the sheer level of work it meant, which unlike any cloak built to block a passive effect, would be far less convenient to stop partway through for any breaks.

Compared to just making someone a brace, what was the point? At least, that's what he'd wondered at the time after his testing had been finished, but he could see the draw now. Unlike any passive dark magics which could hold serious consequences if not properly managed, any physical magic that held a passive effect was easy enough for the holder to simply accept, not worrying about it to the same extent so long as they weren't directly harming anyone.

Sure, it sounded like plenty were properly wearing their braces at all times but if enough were taking them off to sleep, it was because they didn't properly understand the negative effect it was having on the rest of the city around them when they themselves had lived with it without issues.

There was always the option of getting their gods to directly talk to them about it as well to make it clear but given the relationship between the divine and mortals of the world, that was an extreme enough option that he didn't want to have to go to that quite yet if he didn't have to. We'll save that for if things keep being an issue. For now, let's get started.

He created the model for the homes he wanted in his head before connecting to Thera, getting her to prepare the land itself by digging out a basement and extracting what metal she could from the environment to build the house frames, materializing the rest that she needed as small, apartment-like complexes went up, enough to house a few families comfortably and continued being made to house those thousand residents, along with extras for if any others moved in as well, while Ben got to work, placing the enchantment he'd need down and building upon the original design.

After all, as good as it may have been at the time, all things considered, there was plenty of more room for him to develop it. When he'd first laid that enchantment down, his skills had been unawakened and his knowledge was undeveloped compared to where he was currently at. He hadn't learned the ring system, nor created his own personal system; he hadn't discovered the mana modifiers that could alter a spell's effects, and he hadn't learned the enchanting modifier to increase the power of his enchantments.

It felt more like something he'd done in his infancy compared to where he was currently at, and he made sure to bring the spell up to his new level, needing one final thing to make it work. In each frame, Ben materialized a small rainbow mana crystal to power the entire thing, keeping the enchantment from being something the residents would need to manage and allowed the spell to activate, showing it worked and allowing them to move on with the rest, the construction being simple from there.

The frames were built upon, adding stone and materializing insulation where it was needed to try and make a comfortable environment before being finished with tiles and a faux wood, materialized like so much else to create a warmer, more comfortable environment. Which only leaves the little details left. Cabinets, furniture, the works.

With all of it being brought forth with mana, Ben needing to take from Thera's pool despite how much his own had grown for how much he was trying to make in such a short span of time as the finished rooms were filled with everything one would need for day-to-day life and comfort until finally, all of it was done and ready for their new inhabitants. Meaning that we'll just have to do a quick confirmation that everything works.