"A bit more until I transcend into a proper god," looking at the system’s screen, I said to myself, "and from what I’ve learnt so far, only by increasing my followers and influence can my God rank increase, which is an issue because beyond the boundaries of my authority, the cursed lands stretch on for kilometres on end. And this disturbs any plans of outside trade or communication," I murmured, already deep in thought about how I could increase my rank without risking the safety of my followers.
Before long, I turned my attention back to the mortal plane as I noticed the trio approaching the altar with Elder August. ’This altar is a bit demeaning; a minor god is still a god if you don’t think about it too much,’ I mumbled, internally dissatisfied at the crude representation of my presence. In a moment, the trio began offering prayers of gratitude for their relatively safe expedition, while August offered his daily prayers.
"August", my voice resonating from the altar, "I have a new plan for this village"
August remained in his prostrate position as he responded. "And what would that be, oh great one?"
"Patience first. Freya, go summon those two boys, the twins, with the A-rank talents, " as Freya rushed out of the tent, it was visible she was shaken up from the level of force I displayed earlier, noting the slight tremble in her body as she left. After a short while, Freya walked back towards the altar, with Frank and Francis 2 steps behind her. In a moment, they reached the altar and fell prostrate. Seeing them, I picked up where I left off: "As I said, I have a plan for this village. Due to the new addition to its population, it needs to be restructured and rebuilt. That’s why I called you, Frank. With your A-rank architectural skills, you are in charge of designing new house models, a new training hall since there are bound to be some viable unawakened within the new intake, and, last but not least... A temple. Upon completing them, you are to come to me with these designs and present them to me; you may leave to begin your task," having addressed him, I permitted him to leave before proceeding to address Francis.
"Francis, unlike the last time, it is a much bigger task now. Hence, I’m giving you the authority to select able-bodied individuals from within the populace to assist you in this new task. Upon approval of your brother’s designs, you are to go on to provide an estimate of the thing you need. Although I doubt that would be necessary, seeing as how the domain doesn’t lack wood or stone, you are to proceed with construction as soon as possible, after I give the go-ahead. I believe I have made myself clear; now you may go"
Over the next few months, the village underwent some massive changes.
A day after I spoke to the bunch, Frank returned with multiple sketches of potential residences, ranging from simple huts to longhouses to timber-framed homes and even stone houses. I preferred the timber houses, for a few reasons. One, because within my domain, the growth of all flora is accelerated beyond normal; although not instantaneous growth, it still means we won’t have a lack of wood. The other being that, according to Frank, such houses could have two stories, which is a good thing, as it would mean more space and rooms for the families within them. "The training hall and temple followed a similar longhouse design, though with their own variations. With upright walls and a simple wooden-beam roof design. To be honest, it bore some resemblance to a modern-day barnhouse
And of course, during the construction period, I got a bold idea: "System, can I purchase runes and water-type mana crystals from the God store? If I can, get me about 50 cleaning runes and 70 water stones, and send them into the shop of that smith," I commanded the system. The thought of potentially introducing a concept from my previous human life to this new one was thrilling; although it won’t be the same, I could imitate it with a less modern and more magical twist.
[#Purchasing... 200,000FP successfully deducted.
Transporting... 150DE successfully deducted#]
System notifications indicating that it had indeed been successful appeared in front of me in succession. "Perfect", turning my attention back to the mortal plane, specifically, our resident gentle giant, Igris, his face was now a look of knowing confusion; he knew how the materials got into his smithy, but not why nor what he was to use them for.
"Igris," my voice resonated in his head ", I’ll be quick. Seeing as everyone else is busy, I currently have a task for you too." With a pause to ensure he was paying attention, I proceeded to tell him the details.
After a while of explanation and description, "Now that you understand, I’ll leave you to it", I said before my voice receded.
3 days later, Igris arrived at the altar, pulling a wooden cubicle behind him, about the size of a boutique changing room, and within it was a chest-sized cube with an opening at the top and centre and a faint glowing rune at the bottom. And on the wall to the side of the cubicle lay a water mana stone, capable of spraying water once activated with the runic trigger. Upon seeing the construct, I nodded in approval within my realm, but of course, Igris couldn’t tell until my approval was voiced, and I tasked him to make more for each home, which took him an average of 3 months.
With that... Vastyi’s first lavatory system was created.
At the same time, Francis, the builder twin, along with the 43 individuals he had selected, got to work on the designs. This took some time, but within 4, almost 5, months, they finished all ~35 residences, the training hall, and my temple.
The training hall was the second-largest wooden structure in the village. With a tall timber frame and a peaked roof, thick beams were bound together with wooden pegs and strong, tough plant fibres from ironbark trees. The multiple windows allowed wind and light to pass freely through the hall. Inside lay a sand-packed floor. And thick posts stood spaced around the interior, used for striking drills and strength training.
And the temple. It was built with far greater care than the other structures. Its long wooden body rested on a raised stone foundation, with broad steps leading up to a pair of heavy wooden doors carved with simple divine motifs. The roof curved slightly upward at the ends, giving the structure a solemn and imposing presence despite being made entirely of timber. Inside, the hall was quiet and spacious. At the far end stood the altar, elevated on a short platform and positioned directly beneath a narrow opening in the roof that allowed a beam of sunlight to fall upon it during the day.