NOVEL WEB Chapter Ninety-One Rumors and Building
Phillip stood on the path. She couldn’t help smiling as she looked at the exterior of her house. It was done and it had only taken a couple of days. Melisa had shown up just as she and Misaki had been finalizing the design. When she saw what they were doing, she had a few questions and things to add. Nothing Phillip could really object to either since Melisa was making good points about them. So they had made some adjustments to the nursery, moved her bedroom and shifted a couple of others around, but it was largely the same plan as before. Just with a few minor changes to the layout. The biggest shift to the layout was the halls to better accommodate future growth.
Phillip wasn’t sure that would be needed. Right now more kids certainly wasn’t on her mind. Two was already going to be more than she was expecting right now and they weren’t here yet. Rather than let herself go down that mental hole again, she decided to focus on the new home. Misaki had worked hard to build it to plan so fast and was already asleep. It seemed she had tuckered herself out and Phillip wished her sweet dreams.
She looked over the exterior for a moment or two longer before slipping into the building. The front door felt solid, with heavy wood and if her touch told her anything, reinforced with both metal and enchantment. Phillip figured it was fairly solid and being dungeon built, likely as strong as most dungeon doors. It would not be easy to break down. The walls were made of stone and layered with enchantments. On the inside, she couldn’t see the stone anymore as the walls were paneled with wood, and decorated with a lovely inlay. Well mostly lovely. She wasn’t entirely sure about the mural. It was artistic, she would give Misaki that, but she didn’t think it was a good idea to have a nude portrait of herself and Misaki greet people the moment they walked in the door.
Phillip sighed and made a mental note to talk with Misaki about that. It wasn’t bad, but that wasn’t the best spot for it. Other than that, the foyer looked much the way she had imagined it. With plenty of seating. Phillip didn’t stay long, as she proceeded further into the building. There was a lot to see, and she didn’t have much else to do at the moment.
It was a dull hour for the guild and she had just completed the meeting with Moonlit Departures. It went very smoothly. The agent, a young bearkin lady, was very professional and it was not hard to reach an agreement. The guild would be moving in to set up a guild branch here in their as-yet-unnamed border town. More importantly, they would be here to provide transport services. Having a planar guild in town was huge. While expensive, gates were the fastest way to travel. Controlling them was of natural strategic import but it was also of value for moving people around quickly. More significantly for her, was the traffic having one would bring. Not everyone could afford it, but wealthier adventurers might bring their proteges here. A new dungeon was often ideal for teaching the rookies and some adventurers would come here just for the experience. Of course, once the nature of the dungeon started getting around? New sorts would also start showing up.
Those who couldn’t afford the gates would take the roads, and she already had quests out to help with the development of safe roads for caravans. That would take time, but would bring much needed traffic and wealth into the town. Goods were often moved by caravan instead of magic gates, because it was far cheaper and carts could transport far more at once. Even if they were slower, it was just so much more efficient. By far the best way to transport goods has always been by ship, and with the use of magic, ships were just that more effective. Land routes were also pretty good. Gate travel was through magic, and it was mana intensive. It also required a lot of training and practice, so mages able to prepare and charge gates were somewhat rare. Charging a gate for use was also a demanding task. Furthermore, there was a mass limit to gates. So the roads were going to be the most critical going forward.
Regardless of that fact, there wasn’t anything Phillip could do to speed that up. So here she was. Looking over Misaki’s work. Perhaps a little earlier than she might have otherwise. Stepping into the kitchen she smiled. It was perfect, exactly the way she envisioned it. Phillip moved around and checked everything out. Misaki had sized it with her new size in mind, so she had no problems with anything. It was lovely. The details were perfect, with plenty of counter space and storage. Phillip would be able to fill it with all her cooking materials. The pantry was well-sized as well. There was nothing here to complain about. Now she just had to stock her kitchen. With that in mind, she kept looking around.
Her thoughts soon drifted to Misaki who was curled up, all cute on a sleeping mat in her office at the guild. A smile graced her face. Misaki was one of the cutest girls she had ever met and there was something about her that she just couldn’t help but admire. The girl had even mentioned that she was a former boy as well. For a moment Phillip wondered what that said about her, but decided it didn’t matter. It wasn’t ideal, but Phillip was certain she had found the one. The nature of her new partner notwithstanding. She felt she would be able to live with her. From their interactions so far, they just clicked. Then an idea occurred to her, she needed to do something for Misaki. She blinked, she was going to need help too! The guild? No, too new, not enough people of the right level. A face came to her and she turned red. Before shaking her head, not her either. She was interesting, but she needed more time before talking to her. Even if she did seem to be a nice girl.
Stepping into the basement. Phillip started looking around. It looked just like she imagined. Before she could do much searching, there was a knock from that door to the dungeon. She frowned. Who would be coming up from the dungeon? Before she could take more than a step, she got her answer. It was her! Flushing, she turned away but didn’t make it far before she was hugged from behind. “Hey! I hear you and Mother bonded. I want to congratulate you two. Where is Mother anyway?”