Cless took her guild to an armor shop. The black leathers fit Vic without any adjustments, so it was assigned to him. They chose a sturdy steel shield for him to use with his rod. The caster weapon he acquired in the gnome Dungeon plus the brass tail protection meant that except for good head protection, Vic was the first to complete his equipment. The shield they picked had a minor enhancement and self-repair enchantment. It would slowly mend small dents and scratches as long as it wasn't too damaged. A fifteen crown 'bargain'.

Next stop was the weapons shop. Cless got a matching sets of daggers for both Venaris and herself, a longsword for beastkin Silverfang because it was too conspicuous to let him walk around unarmed. She also got bundles of arrows and boxes of sling bullets.

The day was nearing its end so they returned home after that. As the Blind Eye approached their home, the first odd thing they noticed was that the chimney of the debris pit was no longer smoking. After blinking through the gate, they returned to the ruined manor. Heimdall was waiting for them and came to greet his mistress.

"Welcome back, Cless. Some deliveries came for you, I placed them in the basement. Also, a guard came to inform that you were summoned to the town hall tomorrow at eight. You got an appointment with the mayor and the Lord's steward."

Cless was expecting it but not so soon. After all, she had a lot of money and property deeds locked in the bank with her as the trustee.

"That is fine. Heimdall, could you fetch our dinner? We are not going out today. After you do, you are dismissed for the day."

She fished for coins but Heimdall raised a hand to stop her.

"As you wish, Cless. You don't need to give me money. Gerald told me you have an open tab at the tavern, you only need to settle the balance once per week. Also, here is your copy of the gate's keys. The metalworker will come tomorrow to polish and paint the gate."

Cless took the keys, wondering why there was more than one. "Give Gerald my thanks. and good work, Heimdall."

Heimdal smiled and left. There was a spring in his step, the position of his back and chin emanated confidence.

Cless surveyed the ruined manor and decided to at least work on it for the rest of the day. She made a slab of stone and doodled on it. The foundations were L-shaped but she thought she would add another wing to the manor. Make it H-shaped. She used the books she read during her time in the church as inspiration. The ground floor would have a grand hall in the mid-section, with kitchen and pantry on one side, with a meeting room and a guild office on the other side. She would make the rear end of the H longer. This way she could enlarge the meeting room and have a back courtyard with a garden. The other wing would have a private eating area when using the great hall wasn't practical.

Two sets of stairs running up and around the hall would lead to the second-floor landing. A corridor running along both sides would lead to their bedrooms, three on each side. Another corridor, sheltered from the great hall below would link both wings above the entrance. Maybe some arrow slits here. And some small windows to look at the hall below. Maybe a balcony in the middle. Yes, the balcony would be nice. Still, there's too little space for all the rooms she wanted.

Maybe if she stretched one wing and made it thicker, she could add a waiting room on the ground level and a sitting room on the upper floor. This would give her space for a library and a walk-in closet for both her and Venaris' rooms. The closet could be shared, this way they could move between rooms without anyone knowing. Maybe she should put a turret on the corner of her room. Or better yet, a third floor. This way she could have a staircase leading up into a private study.

The rest of the third floor could be reserved for servant's rooms, close to the middle so she would make use of the slanted ceiling's space. Can't have snow piling up over the house, no sir. Some dormer windows because servants were people and deserved some lighting. A small spiral staircase leading from the third floor straight to the kitchen, too cramped for armored invaders. A game room and some common area for the servants' free time.

Cless felt like she was missing something. Bathing rooms and garderobes. Silly girl. Just because she needed to go only once every week due to a Skill didn't mean others wouldn't. She added two toilets by the side of the great hall, with a drop to the depths of the catacombs. Another one on the top floor with the drop coming between the wall of the stairs to the basement and a private toilet for the girls on the other wing, also leading down to the catacombs. Finally another one on the third floor for the servants.

To make sure the air wouldn't flow upward and spread the smell of filth on the house Cless planned to add a ventilation shaft chimney on the corner of the lot. The drop for the toilets should be made with smooth stone and high enough so any kind of critter would have a hard time climbing up. Thirty meters should be enough. This way they could use a circular brush with weights to clean the shaft beyond the range of House magic.

Another thing was the lack of fireplaces. Since she acquired the Skill to warm up rooms with the gnomes she didn't feel the need for fireplaces. There would be one in the great hall next to the guild office, another in her room, one for the meeting room below the fireplace for Venaris' room. On the other side, the stove would double as heating for the kitchen and on the upper floor smaller ones for the boys' rooms. This way she would have three large chimneys coming out of the roof and several smaller ones on the north side. If she placed the servant's rooms using the chimneys as walls.

She stopped sketching and set the stone slabs with the floor plans on the table. Dinner arrived and everyone was waiting for the Queen to start eating. Silly customs.

"I finished the plans for the house," Cless announced between bites. The menu that night was beef and vegetable stew with bread. "I'll begin construction tomorrow. Maybe three days to get everything done."

"It might rain in a few days," Venaris commented. "Here in the low lands winter is less severe but Spring rains are very common."

"Yes. That is why I want to start right after I return from the audience with the Lord."

They finished eating and went to sleep. Cless woke up the in the middle of the night and went to work. She used the stone brought from the tunnels to expand and reinforce the foundations. her house would have a footprint of more than five hundred square meters, twenty meters wide by twenty-four deep. The stairs were enlarged to allow big items to be carried downstairs. The stairs leading to the catacombs changed place and she sunk the basement a few meters, making a slab of solid rock three meters thick between the basement and the ground level.

She shaped the rooms, nine small ones, three larger in the middle and two huge rooms in the back. The basement itself had another three meters in height. Every corridor was at least two meters wide, enough room to walk without feeling cramped. The spaces for the doors had a meter and half of width. In a pinch this basement could double as a shelter. She left the space for the sanitary chutes already open. There was a lot of excess stone from the excavation, she made hardened stone bricks and left them in the rooms for later use.

Basement:

Key:

Arrows always point from the top to the bottom of the stairs.

Light gray: stairs leading up.

Dark Gray: Stairs to the catacombs.

Black: Support pillar / wall.

Magenta: Water / waste disposal chutes.

She was walking through the corridors checking the integrity of the walls and support pillars with Kate and Shad when Venaris came down to call her.

"Cless? What do you think you are doing, you have to get ready for the audience with the Lord!" The gnome's voice reverberated on the smooth stone walls. There were several Light spells on every room and along the corridors. "Cless, this place is amazing! You could let two hundred gnomes live in here! Anyway, hurry up. You have to clean yourself, get dressed and go or you'll be late!"

"Oh, is it morning already?"

"Yes, you airhead! Hurry up!"

Cless ran up and changed into a blue lady dress and high heel boots. She was wearing the hellshadow cougar corset woven with stretchy worm fiber underneath the dress, enhancing her figure. She threw a white cloak with an embroidered silver lace rim to cover her skin.

"How do I look?" She asked the gnome girl.

"You are amazing. Gorgeous. We will work on the landscaping while you are out. Off you go and good meeting!"

"Make me invisible. I am going through the church to save time."

Venaris laughed. "Don't kill any priests. You have one minute before it wears off. -- Improved Invisibility!"

Cless Blinked to the graveyard from the back of her lot and crossed the church in a hurry before Blinking again into the street. She set at a normal pace and the spell wore off. It startled some of the people on the streets but she didn't do anything, just kept going on her fast pace.

If her lot was in the northern part of the town, the Dungeon would be on the west and the Lord's residence on top of a hill on the south. She moved fast through the streets, using Blink here and there to cross crowded spots. The only thing stopping her from running through the roofs and jumping to her destination was the amount of attention that would draw. She wanted to work with the guard, not against it.

Cless reached the gates to the Lord's estate almost in time. She was late but only five to ten minutes. Two town guards were posted inside the gates.

"Good morning, guardsmen. I have an appointment with the Lord. Guild master Cless of the Blind Eye guild."

The guard looked at her from head to toe and grunted. "You are late."

"I know, I couldn't find a carriage. Can you let me in? I have no weapons on me."

"I know. I can see if you have weapons or not," The grumpy guard said as he opened the gate. "Go inside. Don't run, jump or use magic."

"Ok. Thank you."

Cless crossed the driveway and reached the front door of the Lord's mansion. She took note of the terrain's elevation and the size of the building. Hers was going to be bigger and given how proud this Lord seemed to be, that might be a problem. She used [Tremorsense] and found nobody inside. The flooring might be wood then. Perhaps she could offer her services for free? Build the Lord a larger tower or expand his house? She was not going back on her plans.

A man dressed as a butler came. "Greetings, guild master. We've been expecting you," He said with a polite tone but some irritation when he said 'expecting'. "Please this way."

Cless followed the man, taking care to not look to the sides too much but taking in the style and decoration of the Lord's manor. She was taken to a room on the first floor, at the end of a long L-shaped corridor. Maybe his house is bigger. Definitely bigger.

The butler stopped and she took a spot by his side but slightly behind. He knocked on the door and said in a loud voice, "Guild master Cless."

"Come in!" A strong baritone rang from inside. The butler opened the door and waved a hand, indicating for her to go ahead. Cless entered. Inside she saw a strong, tall man with a military officer uniform standing in front of a desk. At his left side a man in armor, probably a knight commander, another man in a formal suit, probably someone from the administration. On his right side, she saw a woman she knew was from the Association, guild master Gilean that gave her a wave of his hand and the angry priest.

"Guild master, I thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to meet us here. It was brought to my attention that you captured several smugglers and other criminals in my city. I must thank you. However, it seems that the mastermind of this scheme is still out there. Do you know who is this mastermind?"

Something was smelling, and it wasn't the mix of the colognes these men were using to mask their scents. And against her Skill-enhanced sense of smell, it wasn't working for that purpose either.