‘Crystal mines are not bound to Awaken people, otherwise the secret of Awakening would have been discovered centuries ago by miners and Crystalsmiths.’ Lith increased the grip on Phloria’s shoulder while using a mind link.
‘I know you must be scared, but don’t forget that this kind of blunder can get us killed.’
“Our mines are no way a liability to the city, miss.” The Tyr had waited for Phloria to complete her sentence, but after a while, he had gotten bored. “Reghia has been built here exactly because of the presence of both metal and gemstones.
“This way, the city is completely self-sufficient and can withstand both the rigors of winter and sieges. On top of that, mines only form in presence of exceptionally powerful mana geysers.
“Lord Aren harnessed the world energy it produces to fuel not only all the defensive arrays of Reghia, but also all kinds of magic cast within the city. Try casting a spell. Anyone will do.”
Lith performed a small Silverwing’s Hexagram and much to his surprise, it didn’t fade the moment he stopped fueling it with magic. The mana flowing through the ground seeped into the formation, accepting it as part of the city and keeping it stable.
“This is amazing!” All three said in unison while Solus could only think it.
“It is.” Meno nodded. “That’s why houses are easy to build yet as safe as a Royal Palace. You’re free to set your own home arrays without the need for crystals to fuel them. It reduces the maintenance magical formations need to a minimum.
“Also, don’t worry about the mines, miss. They are protected 24/7 by our best arrays and ancient Emperor Beasts. By the way, we’ve arrived at our destination. This is the district you’re going to live in.” The Tyr nodded with its snout at their surroundings.
Unlike the city blocks they had seen until that point, there were a lot of empty spaces. Aside from a few houses of odd design, the rest of the buildings were made of wood and surrounded by lush gardens.
“Is this the human district or just that of the Awakened?” Tista could understand the beasts being wary of strangers, but she still considered such treatment rude.
“No, this is just the closest unoccupied space we got. You can go deeper in the city if you like your privacy, but then you’d be completely isolated.” The Tyr said.
Before Meno left, they exchanged their communication runes and then the three started to pick the spot for their temporary home.
‘This is the first time that you keep your hybrid form for so long. How does it feel?’ Solus asked while Tista and Phloria discussed whether to build one house each or just live all together.
‘It feels weird.’ Lith replied. ‘Walking on my talons instead of using shoes is uncomfortable while seeing everything through four eyes is making me dizzy. I can look at different things at the same time, but the split vision makes me sick.’
“Hey, lil bro, is it fine for you and Solus if we live all together?” Tista asked.
“Sure.” Lith nodded after asking her.
“Excellent. Then we need a tall building like those in Belius.” Phoria said while making the rocks from the ground rise until they touched the ceiling.
“This big?” Lith was flabbergasted. “There’s only three of us. What need do we have for a ten-story building?”
“Don’t worry and follow our instructions.” Phloria winked.
Thanks to her upbringing, she had seen lots of palaces in the past. It allowed her to shape one wall after another, giving the overall structure a dignified look rather than the magical-caveman vibe the homes of their neighbors had.
While Phloria took care of the structure, Tista weaved several arrays that enveloped their new building. A Hush array to not be overheard, an earth blocking array to keep the rock from being tampered by others, and the array she had developed to not be spied in her room by someone with Life Vision.
It generated constant waves of heat, mana, and vibrations that blocked all kinds of mystical senses that she was aware of.
Looking at it from the outside, Lith had to admit that such a building would have not been out of place even on Earth and that after placing a few defensive barriers, it would meet even his paranoia standards.
“Great job, Phloria. We just need to ask one of the plant folks to put a bit of green in our lawn and maybe on the roof to make it perfect. By the way, why there are no windows on lower floors?” It reminded Lith of one of those office buildings with their own parking garage.
“First, no vegetations. There’s no telling if plant folks can communicate with it or use them as surveillance devices. Second, get in and you’ll understand.” Phloria winked again, giving him a warm smile like during the old times.
‘Well, Phloria seems to have forgiven me. Let’s hope our cohabitation doesn’t make things-‘
“What the heck is this?” Lith’s train of thought derailed when he saw a huge hole right in the middle of the building.
“Officially, this is our first layer of defense. We’ll pretend to live on the upper floors and shape them accordingly. The truth, however, is that we’ll live in Solus’s tower.” Tista said.
‘They are right.’ Solus thought. ‘The rock blocks regular sight while the other arrays block mystical senses. I can use the world energy coming from below to assume my tower form.’
The process took longer than normal because even though the girls had chosen the nearest spot to the mana geyser, Solus absorbed the energy bit by bit to not arouse suspicions.
“Solus, can we tower warp home?” Lith asked.
“I think so.” She popped into her humanoid form, happy to be able to talk again.
“But gathering the energy for the jump might take a while. Aren’s array replenishes the world energy in the ground the moment it gets consumed, but it’s likely that if I drain it too much or too fast, he will notice. That’s why I formed the tower slowly.”
“On top of that, if I have to keep a low power output, our mines will barely get any energy and so will our defensive systems.”
“I don’t care about that stuff. Prioritize restoring the tower core and your own. After that, just keep enough energy for an emergency warp, just to be safe.” Lith said. “Excellent idea, girls. Now it really feels like at home.”
“No duh, little brother.” Tista hugged Solus, checking if she had enough energy to form her body properly. “I never liked cleaning, cooking, or decorating. This way I’ve got my personal chef, my comfortable bed, and my best friend. The full package.”
Lith snorted at those words. He appreciated his sister’s ingenuity but not her agenda.
“About that, I have something to ask you two.” Solus said to Phloria and Tista. “Usually, outside of the tower, the only person I can talk with is Lith. Now, however, we know how to create a mind link with Spirit Magic.
“I would like to keep it open with you as well at all times so that I can talk to you and feel like a part of the group rather than just an extra.”
