Construction Mage - Chapter 23: Accumulating Materials

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Clay wasted no time and headed straight for the fourth ring to inspect his new land. The sun was high in the sky by the time he got the deed, so he spotted his acquaintances at the church’s construction site, busily laboring away. There was also a long line of people using the road that led out of Ravenhold.

As someone who had lived in the fourth ring for so long, he knew they weren’t merchants and their ilk, but instead farmers heading out to meet the obligations to their landlord. This obligation was the reason why Clay never considered renting a place within the first three rings of Ravenhold.

The real estate market was monopolized by the nobles and influential merchants, and they all made it mandatory to work the fields outside the walls if they wanted to rent their properties. They practically forced these poor commoners, many of whom were refugees forced to brave the danger of farm work outside the safety of the walls.

It was a dangerous job, even with Delvers standing guard, but a necessary one as well. Otherwise, all the people crammed into the city would starve in no time. The humans of this world counted their lucky stars that the monsters took no interest in their crops. With them culling the number of wild animals as well, the only real worry was just basic maintenance, like getting rid of weeds.

Seeing all these men toiling away in the sun affirmed Clay’s decision to build his own place in the fourth ring. Sure, the taxes were even more costly than rent, but once he was done, he would owe nothing to anyone. He could do his own thing in peace.

With his resolve reaffirmed, he turned off the road to walk along the walls toward where his land was. The area near the main road that connected the gates of the half-built fourth ring with the third ring was prime real estate. Clay couldn’t afford to be anywhere near it. Only the church and nobles had the deep pockets to afford the taxes in that zone. That was why Clay picked an area far away from all the gates, but still bordered on a commercial zone for his future guild.

It wouldn’t be the most thriving part of the commerce district, but he wanted a peaceful and quiet life, so getting away from the hustle and bustle was a plus in his books.

Briskly walking through the empty grassland, Clay soon found the approximate location of where his new home would be built. The completion of the fourth ring was so far off that the officials didn’t bother to physically mark the lot yet, so he was told he had some leeway. City officials would come later to handle it. His main concern was to stay within the size dimensions.

Taking in the empty piece of land around him, Clay took in a deep breath before plopping himself onto the soft grass. It was time to start the construction of his home.

Ever since he had thought of building his own home, numerous ideas had been explored. As much as he wanted one of those fancy houses he had passed by in his old world, he knew it wasn’t obtainable for the foreseeable future. Having slept outdoors for three months, he would even be satisfied with just four walls and a ceiling for the moment. With little experience to draw on, he could only fumble around and learn from trial and error.

First things first. Materials.

Clay closed his eyes and focused on his hands. Once he had an image set in his mind, he began chanting.

“Spirits, hear my call,

By Lestionora’s name, rise from your thrall.

Awaken from slumber, heed my plea,

Shape to my will, come forth as I decree—Earth Blast!”

The hardened piece of earth formed as usual, but the shape had some semblance of a brick. It was rectangular, albeit rough around the edges. The surfaces were uneven, making it impossible to stack without obvious gaps, but it was the best he could do.

Maybe I should use my remaining points in dexterity? But I want to save it for wisdom, too, if the golem proves useful enough.

He tried to make a better brick several times, to no avail, so he changed gears. He hadn’t expected Earth Blast to produce perfect bricks in the first place, so he proceeded with going down the checklist of his plan.

Emptying his mana reserves with Earth Blasts, a small pile of hardened earth soon formed. With a glance, he knew it was nowhere near enough to build even a small shed, so he picked up his shovel and got digging. The topsoil wasn’t going to work, so he hoped that suitable subsoil would be found.

He dug and dug until he got tired. Then he meditated before digging some more. The Meditate Skill really started to show its worth now that he was constantly using up all his mana and stamina.

Things went smoothly—or so he thought. When he had dug a few meters deep, he found that the soil remained loose. It was fertile soil that many farmers would be happy to see, but not in his case. Even after checking several spots around his plot of land, the results remained consistent.

It’d be great if I were trying to be a farmer, but things just have to be difficult, don’t they?

Clay wasn’t discouraged by the results at all. Having months to think things through meant he had run through all the scenarios already. The reason he still believed things would work out was because of his repertoire of spells.

“By Lestionora’s name, heed my call,

Let your power take shape for me.

By sacred vow and binding light,

Rise from the void and lend me your might.”

An earthen golem quickly came to life. He quickly commanded it to start working, since it could only persist for a little over a minute.

The hefty golem strode over to the pile of former Earth Blasts and clumsily picked one up. It then began molding it with both hands. It could almost be mistaken for a child playing around with clay. However, the results were much better than what most would think.

The earth elemental’s hands were both flat and strong. It pressed the misshapen pieces of hardened earth into a proper brick shape with even surfaces.

Seeing this scene, Clay grinned. It was inevitable that one would be happy seeing progress being made.

Like that, Clay spent the remainder of the day producing as many earthen bricks as he could.

While the progress was slow, his hard work earned him unexpected rewards.

[Ding—Skill: Meditate(I) has leveled up!]

[Ding—Skill: Summon Elemental(I) has leveled up!]

[Ding—Skill: Earth Blast(I) has leveled up!]

[Ding—Skill: Spell Manipulation(I) has leveled up!]

The constant use of his skills allowed him to level them up quickly! He found that he could now recover even faster when meditating. His golem lasted slightly longer, and he had greater control over the shape of his Earth Blasts.

The rapid level-ups got him thinking if he should continue like this for a month or more before setting foot into the dungeon again. It seemed like an easy way to grind up all his skills, but he would have to support himself somehow in the meantime. Either way, he would be continuing this routine until his wounds had fully healed up, so he was happy with it for now.

As dusk came, Clay stacked the bricks into a neat pile and departed for his inn. Leaving materials out here was exactly what the worksite did, so he didn’t worry too much about it. The guards were ever vigilant, and the construction materials weren’t exactly a prime target for any discerning thieves. It was just too bulky and low value to be worth their time.

Instead, Clay worried about the rain. The bricks were still made of hardened earth at the end of the day. He wasn’t sure, but he believed there was a good chance water would deform the bricks if the intensity of rainfall was high enough. 

I’ll need to buy a canopy tomorrow. That’ll eat into my funds even more. I’ve barely made enough bricks to stack up to my waist. This might take a while—or not. If it’s just a small house, it may only take a week or two at this rate.

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