Later That Morning,

29th Mazem, 1092.

The morning sun showered a daeben and direwolf in its warming glow. The daeben sat on the banks of a newly-formed river, looking towards something far off. He placed a newly painted portrait into his inventory and then gazed at the scenery before him.

"Wow." Kashi swallowed hard as he stared at what had once been the Burning Desert. The expanse had been swallowed up by an equally large river whose origins he guessed were from the Forever Sea. If this was true, then the river now served as a natural border between Rosendun and Merriheim.

The river itself seemed calm enough, but there was no telling just how fast the undercurrents actually were. It would be dangerous folly to attempt to swim past even if one had the stamina for the entire breadth. As he observed the silent river, Kira sat down next to him, having cooled herself in the shallow ends of the river.

Kashi patted her head then called up his second-in-command.

After a short pause, Leila answered. "Hey, Kashi! What you been up to? I received a notification saying our guild has increased influence in Southern Merriheim. Also, something about a new river splitting up both countries ?"

Kashi thought about the best way to summarize the last couple of days. "We saved a bunch of people."

"Isn't that always the case? It's the details I want."

"Maybe later. ” Kashi felt too lazy to go into detail. “ Right now, we have a lot of work to do. Time and speed are of the essence."

Leila picked up on the urgency in his voice and switched to an equally business tone. "What do you have in mind?"

Kashi looked to the impossibly large tower which stood at the other end of the river. He couldn't be precisely sure, but judging by the fact he could not see the base of the tower, the opposite bank was at least beyond the horizon.

Kashi examined the bank he stood on.

Given how long it had taken him to reach Meilfour on foot before the rhinos, Kashi estimated the burning desert to have been around sixty kilometers. But that didn't add up. The river ahead of him should be twenty kilometers at the most, and that was being generous. This revealed a somewhat troubling fact.

The Burning Desert had not just been an expanse of scorching land. The suns had affected all travelers with some sort of illusion - a genjustu if you will. Now , whether this was an effect of the divine beasts or the Chaos Brotherhood, Kashi wa s not sure. But either way, he had been under the influence of an illusion so convincing, the game never even prompted it. That alone was cause for concern.

Kashi planned to deal with that soon, but that wasn't his course of action for today. "We need to build a bridge connecting Merriheim and Rosendun. Use the tower..." He paused to think. The term tower was good and all, but he was looking for a connection between two different countries. Tower wasn't quite the right term. "Use Suvron's Gate as the starting point."

"How long is this bridge going to be?" Leila asked.

"Give me a second." Kashi held his breath as he activated almost all his skills at once. His MP drained at a rapid pace, but he paid no heed. His eyesight sharpened and zoomed-in till he could clearly see the cracks on Suvron's Gate. He quickly measured the height of the building he could see, then shut his eyes, gasping as he clutched his chest.

The daeben's breathing evened out as he did some calculations in his head. "The bridge will be about twenty-four kilometers give or take a kilometer."

Leila gasped. "Twenty!? Do you realize how large that is?"

Kashi chuckled. "Yes, I do. Which is how I know I cannot do it on my own."

She knew by now not to question his logic. "How do you propose we go about building this bridge?"

"Oh, building it is easy," Kashi replied. "What I want to accomplish is much more complex than the bridge itself."

"And what, pray tell is that?"

"I'll tell you in person."

"And when will that be? There's a whole river between both countries."

"Yeah, but I'll be there in a few minutes."

"How exactly?"

Kashi took out a painting from his inventory. It was of Fera's statue in Ranad's square. He held Kira with his left hand as he chanted, "Teleport!"

The duo was encased in bright light, which forced their eyes shut. When they opened it, they stood in Fera's square.

Kashi released the painting, which burned to dust as it floated away.

The duo drew a lot of curious glances from the players present. No one had seen a successful teleport in this game yet, which made Kashi and Kira highly suspect. Before they could question the visitors, an old man barreled past, excitement in his eyes and voice as he stopped and bowed before the daeben.

"Kashi-dono!" Elecurb cried. "It is an honor to welcome you back to our humble town. Your absence has been sorely missed."

Kashi laughed lightly as he helped the older man to his feet. "No, no elder. It is I who am honored to return." He admired the village, which was now more of a mini-city. "I see you have made strong progress with the town."

"Yes, sir," Elecurb agreed. "Though we could not have done it without the assistance of Ms. Lightwood. She has been a revelation."

"I am sure she has," Kashi affirmed. "I would be pleased if you would escort me to her office. I have matters of import to discuss, and I believe you should play a major part in it."

Elecurb's eyes shone. "Yes, sir! It would be my honor."

Kashi, Kira, and the mayor made their way into the guild, leaving many confused adventurers behind. Even more so when he entered the headquarters of the Hopeful Maggots without a single question thrown in their direction.

Kashi made to open the door to Leila's office, but it swung open on its own. Leila regarded him with amusement. "You sure know how to make an entrance. Thought you prioritized a low cover?"

"Was an emergency," Kashi replied as he entered the room. A smile crossed his face as he checked out the office. The books that lined the massive bookshelves were terribly organized, betraying the fact they had been hurriedly replaced, much like the unruly sheaves on her desk. As always, the wood elf had been engrossed in her work before he disturbed her.

"I gathered that when you suddenly popped up in the square," Leila replied. "What was so urgent you had to come down in person?"

Kashi raised a brow. "You almost sound displeased?" He asked as he took a seat.

"No, no," Leila shook her head. "You caught me off guard is all." She sat opposite Kashi and motioned for Elecurb to join them. She relaxed in her seat, but her eyes were as sharp as ever. "If I'd known you were coming, I could have made the place a little less unsightly."

Kashi shook his head. "Don't worry about it." He took out some blank parchments from his inventory and placed them on the table. "I have something I need to show you."

"What is it?"

Kashi took out a pencil, then paused to think for a moment. An image formed in his head, and he guided the pencil rapidly across the parchment. "Crafting a monumental object is not like crafting a statue. The more craftsmen participate, the faster it will be built."

Leila marveled at the speed and accuracy of the daeben's hands. He was drawing perfectly straight lines and calculating angles without the use of any instrument. Sure, the system was assisting him - confirmed by the abnormal speed - but there was a limit to how much help he could get. "Yes, I do understand that. No worries, we recruited some craftsmen into our ranks. Outstanding ones too."

Kashi nodded. "That'll help, but it's not enough. In this world, anything not done manually depends heavily on our imaginations."

Leila rubbed her temple as understanding dawned. "In this case, too many artists with different ideas for what the bridge should look like would hinder its creation."

Kashi nodded. "The building process could fail, or even worse, the structure collapses soon after completion, probably with people traveling on it."

"...The backlash would be severe."

"I know, which is why I decided to do this."

"Do what?"

Kashi raised his pencil and handed the finished work to Leila.

A smile spread across her face as she examined the work. It was a concept art of what the bridge would look like. "Brilliant. If all the craftsmen have similar images in mind, then there should be little-to-no margin of error."

Kashi nodded as he took out another parchment. He set to work, drawing with immense speed and concentration. When he was done with that one, he took out another and started again. He continued for close to an hour, then sighed as he finished the last work.

He organized them carefully and examined the contents. A prompt informed him of having finished a 'blueprint.' Kashi handed the entire bundle to Leila, who, in turn, brightened when she looked through them.

If the first was concept art, then these were the exact blueprints of what the bridge should be like, including measurements. With both sets of works to go with, no craftsman working on the bridge would have a vague idea of what the final product should look like.

Leila set the blueprints down, then returned her attention to the daeben. "How do you propose we handle this? We can have craftsmen there without anyone knowing to start the process."

Kashi shook his head. "No, in this matter, secrecy is the last thing we want."

Leila raised a brow, surprised by his words. "You don't want secrecy. You? Please explain."

Kashi chuckled as he stood up and went to the window. "I have two major reasons for this. The first is the cost of the mats (gamers usually call materials mats). Building a bridge that size is no small task. I don't yet know the exact amount of mats required, but I would wager so much it would put a significant dent in the guild's account."

Leila nodded. That made logical sense. They didn't have as many gatherers, so they would be forced to purchase mats if they wanted to keep it secret, and that would cost a ton. "And the second?"

Kashi rested against the windowpane as his gaze pierced hers. "I have plans for Merriheim. But I need help for those plans to come to fruition. Merriheim, much like southern Rosendun, is not a place frequented by players. I need a way to attract both Summoned and Residents to it without letting them know what I intend."

"And this bridge is your answer?"

"Yes, it is," Kashi replied. "But it is not enough just to build it. The process is as important as the result."

Leila sat up straight, her interest well-piqued. "I assume you already have a plan?"

Kashi nodded. He directed his gaze to Elecurb. "For this, I will require your assistance, elder."

Elecurb immediately nodded. "Just name it, and I will see to it."

"I would like to send a notice to all the citizens of Rosendun asking for their assistance in building the bridge. Consider it a grand quest if you will. They will be rewarded with gold and unique weapons crafted by our guild."

"I can arrange that," Elecurb confirmed. "But it will take a while."

Leila frowned. "But the cost? That's far more expensive than if we bought the materials ourselves."

Light sparked in the daeben's eyes as he laughed. "Naturally, this would cost more than three times whatever it would be to buy the materials ourselves, but I promise you we will make back all we spend within a month."

Leila sighed as she accepted his words. So far, he had not led her astray. Why doubt him now. "Let's say this plan of yours is possible, we are currently investing in far too many projects already. If we need the capital, we'll have to ask the crown for support. Do you want to bring them in on this?"

Kashi nodded. "Definitely. We might be competing for influence, but we're on the same side in the end. We need each other."

"I see. Alright, what's your plan? Specifics."

Kashi turned, so his shoulders rested on the windowpane. He looked down at the adventurers rushing about on their various quests. "I will go to the local blacksmith to get his opinion on what and how much mats we need for the construct. When I find out, The elders will send notices to every city and town, informing them that we need the materials to be gathered at the Suvron's Gate. We'll also tell them the purpose: Providing a pathway between the two countries."

"Hmm," Lunette pondered on the daeben's words. "The gold will gather them, but curiosity will make them stay. Is that it?"

Kashi's brow rose in pleasant surprise. "You're sharp."

"I might be sharp, but you're dangerous. You are far too skilled at manipulation."

Kashi shrugged as he pushed off the wall. "See it more as persuasion. Sounds less evil, don't you think?" He said as he walked to the door.

"I take it you're heading to the Smith?" Leila said as she picked the blueprints from the table. "You'll be needing these."

Kashi shook his head with embarrassment as he accepted the documents. "Thanks, I might have forgotten those." He placed them in his inventory, thanked Leila and Elecurb, then exited the building accompanied by Kira.

As soon as he left the building, Leila contacted Riven for an emergency call with the crown, while Elecurb returned to his office, where he began readying dispatches.

Kashi was pleased to note there was no longer just one blacksmith shop in the bustling town. Many residents, summoned and guilds, had set up shops, providing for healthy competition and good quality products at reasonable prices.

Kashi weaved his way through the crowds, ignoring the many curious stares he, and especially Kira drew. It was not every day one saw a tame direwolf, and certainly not one that large - not that Kira had been in any way tamed.

He grinned when he finally reached the store he had been searching for - the oldest of its kind in Ranad. Kashi entered and was pleased to see it had been renovated. The forge had been moved to the basement to prevent the customers from being inconvenienced. New weapons and armor were displayed on the walls and in display cases. The room was filled with this soothing pine scent that relaxed the daeben.

Kashi walked to the counter and rang the bell.

"Comin'" called a familiar voice from a door behind the counter that led to the forge. Seconds later, the door swung open, and Iason walked out. "Sorry, was dealing with a de-" His eyes pupils widened when they laid eyes on his customer. "Holy, Mera! It's you!"

Kashi braced himself as Iason grabbed him from beyond the counter and gave him the tightest bear hug in history. "Was wondering if you'd forgotten bout little ol' me!" Iason laughed. He placed the daeben down as he turned to Kira, who accidentally yelped in fright.

Iason was over the counter and lifting the poor direwolf before she could consider an escape route. "Look how much you've grown! Hey, boss, what you feeding her!?"

Kashi laughed at the scene. It was fun seeing Kira so out of her depth. "Oh, you know, the usual. Beef, Chicken, the occasional Hydra..." He let his voice trail off as Iason spun around, eyes wide.

"You defeated a hydra!? When!? How!?"

Kashi chuckled as he patted his friend's arm. "That is a story for another day. Come on, we've got work to attend to." He took out the blueprints and spread them across the table.

Iason released Kira, then examined the blueprints. With each parchment, a new crease was added to his forehead. "This is quite the project you're attempting."

"I know," Kashi agreed. "What I need to know is what materials we require to construct the bridge and how much time it'll take."

Iason considered the scale of the project. "This could take years if done manually. But if you pray to Gerber, the god of construction, he can handle it. The time taken would depend on the number of craftsmen who pray to him. Fortunately, Gerber was saved centuries ago, so you do not have to worry about finding his crypt."

"Convenient," Kashi muttered. The programmers probably realized it would be asking too much to tell players to craft buildings manually. They had chosen an easy cop-out. Not that he minded.

"I assume we still need to provide the materials ourselves."

Iason nodded. "Definitely. The gods don't create something out of nothing. That honor is reserved solely for Ferulic and Aethir."

"Do you have an estimate?"

Iason scratched his chin. "I do, but something's been bothering me.

"What is it?" Kashi asked.

"This bridge. Does it need to be this wide? You can fit a dozen houses across it."

A wicked glint appeared in the daeben's eyes. "Yes, it does. You'll see why soon enough."

"You're not gonna tell?"

"And spoil the surprise? Where's the fun in that?"

"Fine," Iason conceded as he once again studied the blueprints. "We're talking rapid waters, so wood's out, and steel is far too expensive for a project of this magnitude. We should go with quarry stones. Rosendun might not have the best mines, but we still have enough quarry stones for a project like this. We won't need to import that."

"How much quarry stones we talking?"

"Two million give or take half a million."

Kashi swallowed hard. The reward would have to be much to entice miners to dig for that long. The good thing was, quarry stone was a Tier 1 Beginner mining resource. Any beginner could get in on it. "Anything else?"

"Fifty thousand iron ores. We'll refine them to steel to serve as reinforcements for the stones. And ten thousand marble-stones for the finish. That, we'll have to import. Then we'll need some of..." He called out some miscellaneous materials that would be easy to acquire.

Kashi listened aptly. "After gathering these materials, how long do you suppose it would take if say, 10 master craftsmen and about twenty regular craftsmen pray to Gerber."

"I'd say about two to three weeks."

Kashi sighed. It seemed he would be doing another marathon in the virtual world. "Place an order for those marble stones in the guild's name. Leila will handle expenses."

Iason sighed. "You really overwork that poor lass."

"I wouldn't do it if I didn't think she could handle it," Kashi said as he placed the blueprints in his inventory.

"So, you do know you stress her out."

"Of course I do. I'm not blind," Kashi said with a short laugh as he grabbed Iason's forearm.

"Leaving already?"

"Such is my fate. I cannot rest for too long," Kashi said. "Till we meet again, friend."

"I'll be waiting, boss."

Kashi bid farewell then exited the building satisfied with the information gained. He swiftly returned to Leila's office and was pleased to see she had been waiting for him.

"We completed the deal," Leila announced as soon as he entered. "Pari - no, the king is especially excited to see how this plan of yours aids Rosendun."

Kashi stared slack-jawed. "T-That was fast," he stammered as he tried to regain his composure. "You already secured a loan?"

"Yes," she replied. Her tone implied this was matter-of-fact. There was simply no doubt she could have brokered the deal in that short time-frame. "The crown promised to aid us monetarily in our endeavors."

"In return?"

"We return half of the investment shortly and make it public they are assisting in this project."

"Awesome!' Kashi exclaimed, unable to contain himself. She must have told them she would make it public if they reduced the price the guild had repay. The funny thing was, she knew Kashi always intended to make it public knowledge. She was quite adept at negotiations. "I have the list of mats needed." He handed a parchment to Leila.

The wood elf read through, grimacing at the materials needed. "Acquiring these won't be easy."

"No, not exactly," Kashi said. "There's a system I had in mind for the mines in Merriheim, but I guess I can do a prototype test run with this bridge. Let's use a pay-as-you-bring system."

"Huh?"

"Well, we pay for any materials delivered to Suvron's gate. The more, delivered, the higher the pay. We track the number of deliveries, and when it reaches a certain extent, we give a top-grade weapon as a reward. The higher they go, the rarer and more exotic the weapon or armor or whatever gained. What do you think?"

"It's a solid system," Leila agreed. "It would weed out the unserious ones, but also be tempting enough to entice the mildly curious to assist. I like it."

"Good," Kashi said. "Let's go with that." He took out the blueprints and handed them to her. "I'll be leaving this in your hands. I have preparations of my own to make in Merriheim."

"And here I thought I could go on a vacation," Leila teased.

Kashi chuckled. "I swear, once this is finished, I won't pester you for a few months."

She sighed. "I'll take you up on that."

Kashi took out a painting from his inventory, then placed his left hand on Kira. "See you sometime."

"You too."

Kashi invoked the teleportation spell, and Leila was left to the peace and quiet of her office.