Chương 72: The First Gate

Back at the convenience store, Elias waited until he was sure the CUEV was charging properly before waving everyone away.

"All right, show's over. Get back to work." The others were still curious, but there was no point standing around and watching the vehicle charge. Jack followed Elias toward the trading post, where construction had been stalled for some time. Standing outside the half-finished trading post, Jack asked, "How much longer will it take to finish this place?"

"Under the original plan, not long," Elias said after considering it.

"We already have enough sun-dried bricks. What we're missing is the manpower to finish the work."

"In that case, let's count the remaining bricks first," Jack said.

"If there are enough to finish the trading post with some left over, we can pause brick-making and have Gordon, Vane, and Cass work on this instead." Elias didn't answer immediately. He studied the unfinished structure before asking, "We still have plenty of wooden pallets, don't we?" Jack immediately understood what he meant. So much for pretending not to notice.

"We do," Jack said.

"Why?" Elias rested a hand on the newly built wall.

"If we have enough wood, we shouldn't finish it according to the original design."

"What are you suggesting?"

"We tear it down and start over." Jack stared at him.

"Is that really necessary?"

"Yes. When we had limited materials, sun-dried bricks were our only option. We just needed something usable. But now we have the chance to build it properly." Elias gestured toward the unfinished walls.

"Hal has already explained the problems with sun-dried bricks. Once we can produce fired bricks, there's no reason to rely on them for the entire structure. We also have wood and Flexible-Frame Barrier Mesh now. With those materials, we can make the trading post stronger and give it a better layout." He then pointed toward the moat nearing completion in the distance.

"Once the moat is finished, we should place the main entrance on this side and have it lead directly into the trading post. Later, when we build the outer wall, it can extend from both sides of the entrance and connect to the trading post." Jack followed the direction he indicated. Elias had clearly been planning this for some time.

"The trading post would become the first place every visitor has to pass through," Elias continued.

"The residential area would remain behind it, and no outsider would be allowed through without permission." He looked back at the half-finished building.

"That would keep strangers away from where we live. If trouble broke out during a trade, we could contain it here instead of letting it spread into the residential area."

"Once the wall is completed along the moat, outsiders and mutant beasts will have no direct path into the settlement at all." As Elias spoke, the layout gradually came together in Jack's mind. The moat would form the outer boundary, with a single entrance leading directly into the trading post. Every visitor would have to stop there first, while the area where they actually lived remained safely behind it. The trading post would no longer be merely a place to exchange supplies.

It would become a gate separating their settlement from the outside world. Jack considered the plan for a moment before looking at Elias.

"Let's do it your way. We'll turn the trading post into our main gate. Put everything else aside and get everyone working on this until it's finished." To his surprise, Elias shook his head.

"We shouldn't start rebuilding it yet. What we need most right now is materials." You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"Materials?"

"Hal and Mort's work has to come first," Elias said, looking toward the brick kiln.

"If they can't produce fired bricks, we won't have what we need to build any of this." He raised three fingers.

"So there are three priorities. First, get the kiln working and successfully fire a batch of bricks. Second, keep making brick blanks. Half can go to Hal and Mort for firing, while the other half continues drying in the sun. Third, keep sending people out to search for supplies." Jack listened as Elias continued.

"We'll need a lot of bricks in the future. Sun-dried bricks may not be as strong as fired ones, but they still have their uses, so we can't stop making them."

"And whenever we go searching, we should bring back anything that might be useful." Elias glanced toward the CUEV charging beside the convenience store, and a rare smile appeared on his face.

"Things are different now. Every supply run used to depend on people and handcarts. We couldn't carry much, and each trip took far too long. With the CUEV, we can travel faster and bring back far more than before." Jack followed his gaze to the vehicle parked beside the convenience store. The longer he looked at it, the stranger the whole situation felt. He had only wanted to make his own life a little more comfortable. Somehow, without even realizing it, he had ended up helping build an entire settlement.

Jack couldn't help laughing.

"All right. We'll get the kiln working first and take everything else one step at a time." After settling everything with Elias, Jack returned to the convenience store. Megan and Susan were still behind the checkout counter, sorting through the medicine stored in the wall cabinets. Most of the cabinets stood open, and the items they had already checked were grouped nearby according to their uses. Even so, there was still plenty left to go through.

"Do I really have that much medicine?" Jack asked from the entrance.

"You're still not done? Need any help?" Megan heard him and came out from behind the counter, carrying a long, narrow package. The excitement on her face was hard to miss.

"Guess what I found." Jack studied the package.

"Painkillers?"

"No."

"Antibiotics?"

"No." Megan held it up in front of him.

"A local anesthetic." Jack stared at her.

"Anesthetic?"

"Lidocaine for dental procedures." Megan looked at the package again.

"Unfortunately, there's only one." Jack didn't respond. He studied the anesthetic for a few seconds before asking, "Why was this in my convenience store?" Megan gave him an annoyed look.

"You're asking me? I was about to ask you the same thing. This is a prescription drug. Even if it's only lidocaine for dental use, it still shouldn't have been sitting in a convenience store." Jack was about to argue when he remembered something.

"I know where it came from." He glanced toward Susan, who was still working at the wall cabinets, then moved closer to Megan and lowered his voice.

"Remember the dental clinic back in town?" Megan thought for a moment.

"The one with the drunk dentist?"

"That's the one. He gave it to me."

"Why would he give you an anesthetic?"

"One night, he came in drunk and tried to buy alcohol. When it was time to pay, he realized he didn't have enough money. He emptied his pockets onto the counter, and this was mixed in with the cash." Jack lowered his voice even further.

"I tried to give it back. Do you know what he said?"

"What?"

"He told me to keep it and use it to cover the rest of the bill." Megan stared at him for a moment.

"I always knew that drunk dentist was unreliable, but I never thought he could be that irresponsible."

"Exactly."

"Still, I suppose he accidentally did something useful for once." Megan looked down at the anesthetic and sighed.

"Too bad there's only one." Jack quietly reminded her, "You're forgetting what LOSS can do." Megan looked back at him. Then it clicked.

"You mean…" Jack smiled and nodded. Her disappointment disappeared at once.

"Then we need to keep this somewhere safe." Megan returned behind the checkout counter, found an empty box, and carefully placed the anesthetic inside. Susan noticed.

"Shouldn't that go with the other medicine?"

"Let's keep this one separate for now," Megan said at her normal volume.

"It requires special handling. I'll explain how to store and use it later." Susan accepted the explanation and continued sorting. When Megan returned, Jack lowered his voice again.

"LOSS never finished telling me about the CUEV's other features."

"There's more?"

"Apparently. Dale and the others were still here, so I told LOSS to wait. I'm going upstairs to hear the rest." Megan glanced toward Susan.

"Go ahead. We can handle things here." Jack went upstairs, entered his room, and sat on the edge of the bed.

"LOSS, continue with the CUEV." The response came almost immediately.

"The front of the vehicle is equipped with a compact cooling module capable of continuously directing cool air toward both seats." Jack's eyes lit up, but the system wasn't finished.

"The onboard system can automatically record traveled routes and provide navigation when returning to a previously visited destination."

"Different CUEVs can also establish direct short-range communication links without relying on network infrastructure. Maximum communication range: one thousand kilometers." Jack didn't know what to say. One thousand kilometers? That was supposed to be short-range communication? The system continued. The CUEV also had a standard towing connection at the rear and came with a foldable tent designed to cover both seats.

Once deployed, the tent could draw cool air directly from the vehicle's cooling module, turning the CUEV into a temporary mobile shelter. There was also a self-cleaning exterior coating and a backup signal transmitter. By the time the system finished, Jack felt as if he had won the lottery. The cooling module alone had already been a pleasant surprise. Route memory and direct communication made the CUEV even more valuable, while the towing connection and foldable tent gave it uses he hadn't even considered.

This vehicle was far more capable than he had imagined. Unable to sit still any longer, Jack hurried downstairs and quietly told Megan what the system had revealed. Megan could hardly believe how many features had been built into such a small vehicle. Jack soon returned to the charging CUEV and began checking everything for himself. He examined the front cooling vents, both seats, and the storage racks along the sides before moving around to the rear.

The towing connection was there, tucked beneath the back of the vehicle just as the system had described. But the longer Jack looked over the CUEV, the more his excitement began to fade. Something didn't add up.