Chương 11: Village Reorganization

Alicia stared at Vittorio curiously. He truly seemed caught off-guard by the massive mansion in front of him. To his credit, when Alicia gave a second good look at the home she created using a special in-game item called [Building Scroll], it was, indeed, perhaps 'a little bit overkill,' as some people would put it.

Now that she thought about it, considering she visited a lot of places in Polonia and even the neighboring kingdoms to drop [Warp Anchors], this place probably rivaled or surpassed the chateaus and manors foreign lords had. On second thought, maybe their reaction makes sense. I guess I went too far… She had an excuse, of course—the only [Building Scroll] she had left was this mansion-building item she got from an expensive premium bundle at the in-game store.

Almost every low-level item she had, she had already cleared long ago either because she used it up or because she wanted to unclutter her inventory. Still… this was a bit too much. She turned back to her two companions, placed her hands behind her back, and gave them a little, awkward smile.

"So, anyway. If you two wish to have a look, you're more than welcome to," Alicia offered.

"After all, I do need to settle in and check things inside, so we might as well tour it together while doing that."

"Of course, Your Grace!" Vittorio reacted, a little bit animated. Realizing his impropriety, he immediately recoiled and recomposed himself.

"I meant, I'd like to tour your residence as well. I wouldn't want to get lost in case I have to work inside there."

"I'm coming too…" Moshan followed, standing up and cleaning up his pants.

"Your Grace, with this, you now have the most magnificent house here in all of Vael. I can't help but want to get a closer look…"

"I see," Alicia said.

"Well, everyone's welcome in my home if need be. We're going to work together anyway, so it's not like I made this place just to be my personal house. It's going to be our administrative center, so to speak." Alicia walked toward the gate, placing her hands on the gate's magic lock. Then she stopped as she wracked her brain to come up with a name for this place.

Technically, the [Building Scroll] she used to build this house called it a 'mansion,' but now that she gave it a better look, it truly did look like a proper palace. A little debate began in her mind. Calling it a palace would be rather pretentious, though, like she was already roleplaying as the King of Vael or something. That would be crazy. But at the same time, her larper side reared its ugly head.

If she were going to take on the mantle of being a lord of a town and, most likely, maybe more than that one day, shouldn't she at least have some flair in appearances? If this place were to be Alicia's residence, and if she were to one day rule all of the Vaelrin Kingdom, it wouldn't do if her seat were anything less than a palace, right? Behind her, Vittorio interrupted her train of thought.

"Your Grace? Is there a problem—?"

"Wintervale Palace," Alicia turned to look up at him.

"Does that sound good to you?"

"Wintervale? Why pick that name?"

"It's cold here…" And it sounds really cool!

"Hmm…" Vittorio grabbed his chin, thinking briefly.

"I suppose it sounds fitting."

"Alright," Alicia smiled.

"From now on, my residence will be known as 'Wintervale Palace!'" Alicia poured her magic on the lock, and immediately, the gate opened. The trio walked in to admire the sights around them. Alicia for her part raised her chin proudly as she walked ahead of them. Wintervale Palace truly seemed like the best aristocratic home she imagined come to life. In a way, she felt like she was living in her wildest fantasies again in Worldfall Online. She glanced briefly at the areas that were supposed to be her gardens.

Maybe she should add a greenhouse here and there later. Then, she looked at the covered pavilions that dotted the walled interior of her residence. She could imagine spending time there, having tea parties with a bunch of other noblewomen like her, having a good time. For now, though, unfortunately, the harsh winter was still ongoing. This place soon would be fully covered in snow, especially since a blizzard was probably forming nearby and would strike near Orevogorsk at sundown.

It was quite frequent nowadays, happening nearly daily, so Alicia knew that there was a fifty-fifty chance that she was going to wake up tomorrow and either start shoveling snow or use magic to move snow around. Soon, Alicia eyed two massive doors that acted as the entrance to Wintervale Palace. Now that she thought about it, she could mentally feel the doors, windows, and other moving structures throughout the palace.

It was like she could pull up a mental visualization of her entire residence, and through mental commands, she could control things. Like opening the two doors in front of her as the trio walked close to it. She could hear Moshan pausing in awe behind them, while Vittorio warily eyed the doors. He seemed like he was a little bit suspicious of it.

"Don't worry about it," Alicia said, smiling a little bit to herself in amusement.

"I was the one who opened it."

"I really need to get used to your abilities, Your Grace."

"Perhaps." And so, for the next two hours, the trio toured the palace, checking rooms, chambers, hallways, and much more. While doing this, Alicia also began unloading and placing furnishings throughout the largely empty palace. Paintings, tables, chandeliers, bookshelves—everything she had in her dimensional inventory, she placed where she thought it'd fit most. Naturally, the places she decorated the most were the rooms in her personal chambers, like the master bedroom and her office.

She also prepared a few rooms that she believed would be important soon. For example, she prepared rooms that she would offer for Lyra, Helen, and Vikar because she didn't want them to disturb the privacy of Moshan's household and because she did bring them here, so their housing was Alicia's responsibility. Secondarily, she also talked a little bit more with Moshan and Vittorio about their roles.

Moshan would remain in his role as the village's chief, and he would continue doing his job from his home, where he would be closer to the people of Orevogorsk. He would essentially act as Alicia's main intermediary with the village. On the other hand, Vittorio volunteered to leave his mercenary lifestyle and join Alicia's household as her first proper retainer in exchange for gold. Alicia then assigned him as head of security, and he would be the one managing Orevogorsk's militia force.

Considering this, Alicia, therefore, also reserved a room to serve as Vittorio's personal quarters and office in the palace. While she wasn't sure yet if she could trust a powerful mercenary draco, who seemed like he had been scheming something from the start, Vittorio was the only proper military professional she knew, so he received this important role, if only provisionally. By the end of their tour and role assignment, Wintervale Palace was somewhat ready. Of course, there was still a lot to do.

First of all, Alicia would have to have a proper retinue of servants to actually maintain and run the palace. She needed maids, cooks, guards, and a slew of other people who would keep day-to-day operations running. Luckily, Alicia knew that there were a lot of jobless people in the village. Many also didn't have a home due to the wyvern attack.

Since Alicia didn't have enough materials to build houses for them, and because she also didn't want to do everything for them—they needed to have jobs to build up their skills and become independent, and she didn't want to compete with the livelihood of the lumbermen and carpenters in the village—she thought she'd just offer positions inside the palace.

And so, leaving Moshan and Vittorio inside to do whatever, all while leaving a few flying surveillance golems to patrol the palace in case intruders came, Alicia went back to Orevogorsk. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"Good afternoon, Lady Alicia. Why is there a commotion outside?" Lyra asked when Alicia entered Moshan's home. Alicia closed the door, going inside to talk to Lyra.

"How's your sister doing? And where's Vikar?" Alicia asked, not bothering to answer her question. As a response, the succubus lowered her head and spoke softly.

"Helen barely ate earlier. She seems to have lost her appetite. She's been crying sometimes on the bed too, unable to sleep properly. I think she's…"

"Mentally troubled?"

"Yes. I wish I could help her more…" Indeed, Helen went through so much. Even Alicia could attest to how severe her injuries were, so she must have gone through the worst nightmares imaginable. Even when Helen managed to briefly present a courageous facade for her little sister during her reunion, Alicia imagined that the horrors Helen went through now caught up to her, tormenting her. I can't really do much about it, though. Alicia gritted her teeth.

To think that once, she hesitated so much to save people like Helen, all because she felt like running away rather than confronting reality; the shame of it bore down on her. Hearing from Lyra, Alicia was reminded of the scenes she had seen in Polonia, the way her fellow Vaelrin were treated so cruelly and unfairly. The scenes of them wounded and dying in the arena replayed in her mind, the images of Vaelrin shambling back to their ghetto, guarded like criminals…

Then, she saw the image of that young boy who was with them, a young boy that, unlike Helen, Alicia hadn't been able to save. Looking back, she wished she could lift a finger about it, just as she wished that she could do more to save Helen. Focus. She reminded herself. For now, your goal is to just create a peaceful, quiet place for people like me to live in.

"She told me she'll protect me from now on," Lyra suddenly said, breaking Alicia out of her thoughts.

"But I know she can't. Not yet." Alicia gave a closer look at the succubus in front of her. While she bore the same beauty and a face nearly identical to her elder sister's, unlike Helen, who had light blue skin and hair, Lyra had warmer and softer colors. Her skin was light pink, and her hair was rose pink. Only her eyes were similar, which were a cool azure like Helen's, holding a more youthful and innocent light in them.

It was said that a succubus's skin color was dependent on the emotions they were the most in tune with. Indeed, Lyra must be the livelier one of the pair. Alicia could now see fire being lit in this woman's eyes, something she imagined would be absent in the cold abyss that was Helen's eyes.

"I'm not strong. I doubt I'm as smart as my big sister either, but I know that it's my turn now to protect her," Lyra said.

"Lady Alicia, I heard earlier that you wish to rule this village. Please, in exchange for protecting us and letting my big sister stay with you for now, I want to work for you." Alicia smiled a bit.

"I actually wished to talk to you about this," Alicia said.

"You see, I just created a house for myself, and I need people to run it with me."

"Is that what the commotion's all about?"

"Yes, partially. Anyway, I already prepared rooms for you two to stay in. Since your sister needs a lot of time to recover, I suppose you can lend me your skills in the meantime as payment for your stay."

"Whatever job you have for me, I'll take it, Lady Alicia!" Lyra clasped her hands, eagerness clear in her eyes. Naturally, it intrigued Alicia enough. She wondered if Lyra could carry herself and her elder sister on her back for now, so Alicia decided to give Lyra the opportunity to do just that.

"I am about to assign a major task to the village chief," Alicia explained.

"I need him to conduct a census of the village since I need proper data to rule effectively. Naturally, it will be best if there's someone who can assist him. Do you have experience in paperwork and recordkeeping?"

"Yes! It's actually the only thing I'm good at. Back in the royal capital, I was a scribe in the royal government. I have years of experience in this, and I even participated in the last census of the kingdom decades ago. I can definitely assist the village chief, Lady Alicia."

"Wonderful. Come with me then." Alicia then took Lyra with her and teleported both of them to her office. The succubus was a little bit disoriented at first by it, but she quickly recomposed herself, allowing Alicia to give Lyra a little tour through Wintervale Palace. She showed off important places inside and showed off Lyra's room and Helen's room so that she would know where to go later when they moved in, and then Alicia gave her another room that would serve as her workspace.

Afterward, Alicia rummaged through her dimensional inventory and dropped stacks of papers and other necessary supplies for Lyra. The succubus at first could only gawk at the quality of the items on her desk, so Alicia had to reassure her that she wasn't lying and that it was all hers before Lyra managed to accept it. Once that was done, the two searched for Moshan, who was currently mindlessly gaping at the view of the nearby forest at the top floor of one of Wintervale's watchtowers.

The old man didn't seem to notice Alicia's presence, so she sneaked behind him.

"Sir Moshan, I need to have a word with you," Alicia suddenly said, and Moshan nearly jumped in fear, his face turning pale upon seeing her.

"Y-your Grace?! Of course, I'm all ears. Sorry, I didn't notice you were here." His eyes darted around in mild panic before settling on Lyra.

"Wait, why is Lyra here?"

"Hello, Sir Moshan." Lyra happily waved at Moshan with a smile. Alicia rested her back on the banister of the watchtower's balcony, smiling a bit as well.

"You see, I am about to give you a major task, and Lyra here volunteered to assist you," Alicia explained.

"She claims to have experience in bureaucratic functions as a former scribe in the royal capital. I wish to see if that's true, so you two will form a team and work together. That's why I brought her here." Moshan nodded slowly.

"I see. But what is this task you speak of, Your Grace?"

"While our inspections have been eye-opening, I still need more concrete information about the village and every individual within. I want a full census of the village. Can you do that for me?"

"Of course, Your Grace. Is there any specific data or information you're searching for?" Alicia nodded before listing the jobs she needed filled in the palace, which Lyra dutifully noted down with a notepad while Moshan nodded along. Once she was done, she made a few additions as well.

"I want you to also prioritize finding people who have much more professional backgrounds. The type of people we need so that the village can grow and function well. Like [Blacksmiths], and [Merchants]. Maybe even [Mages] and [Engineers] too."

"I see…" Moshan glanced at Lyra.

"Like you, I think there are a few refugees from the royal capital who might have useful skills around." Then he turned back to Alicia.

"We'll try our best to find these people, Your Grace."

"Good. I am expecting great things from you two. Anyway, I have to go now. I have other things to resolve as well." With that, Alicia then left Moshan and Lyra to their devices, teleporting out of Wintervale Palace, before flying high in the sky. While she was doing every other task earlier, she was already formulating the protective spells she needed to ward off any hostile creature from Orevogorsk. As such, she only took a few minutes to chant and cast multiple successive spells.

They ranged from spells that obscured the village from monsters' vision, spells that prevented them from smelling anything in the village, and spells that placed detection barriers so that Alicia would know if a high-level monster or armed people were entering or exiting the village. Of course, she also placed emergency barrier spells that would activate and block any attack from outside in case Alicia decided that the village was threatened.

All of it was invisible, something that no one in the village would notice. Naturally, Alicia also made sure that everyone in the village was marked and authorized to bypass the protective spells she placed so that they could come and go as they pleased. She was probably going to make a more formal system once Lyra's census was done, like giving out access cards that you would need to enter and exit, but that was for later. Alicia landed at the entrance of the village.

"There, this village is secure. I also have a house now, and I've assigned people in the most critical positions…what else…?" Oh, right. Food. Immediately, Alicia returned to her residence to find Vittorio. When she couldn't find him there, she began searching throughout the village. She found him at the village center, assembling and checking the militiamen who would be assigned to watch tonight. Upon seeing her, Vittorio immediately stood stiffly and dropped whatever he was doing to bow.

"Your Grace, what brings you here?" Vittorio asked.

"Since we're having food supply problems, I was thinking of going out to hunt animals for the village," Alicia explained.

"Do you know where the good hunting grounds here are?"

"I can bring you there," Vittorio answered.

"Should be easy. Just give me a few minutes to dismiss the militia and prepare."

"Sure. Go do it." Right as Vittorio turned his back, someone appeared behind Alicia. It was Vikar.

"Did I just hear hunting?" Vikar asked.

"Oh, Vikar," said Alicia, turning toward him.

"I was wondering where you had been. Yes, Vittorio is going to show me the village's hunting grounds."

"I want to come." Alicia regarded him coolly for a few seconds. He definitely looked a bit unhappy with his situation, but he at least wasn't causing problems, and taking him along wasn't really a problem. Besides, she was a bit curious to see his abilities. His fight never got to start, after all.

"Alright, then," she said.

"When Vittorio gets back, we'll go."