Waiting a few days in Brogdar is actually getting easier these days compared to when I first arrived. Although I currently don't sleep like I did previously in my last life, it's fairly simple to tune things out and mentally "turn off" in a way not to different from sleeping. With a few minutes of sitting still, I can tune out all the notifications and most of my vision and sit patiently waiting for Ropert to send a message my way or one of the ranbli to come down and get me.

It's nice to be able to relax and feel secure enough to do this, especially when I'm waiting and watching Bomber to judge just how used to his armor he is. But that's enough of my little storytime; after a few days of waiting, I've built up the resources to create my next piece of the dungeon town.

Construct: Water Tank.

[Notifiication] Randomly placing a new structure.

RNG might be a threat to some people, but not me. I've had enough experience that all I do is adjust my traps, personal and crafted, filling up the spots where I don't want it so that it appears where I do.

Today, that place is beside Ropert's home. His wall of our inner circle is still largely free-spaced since the Critter Pen occupies much of the wall beside Ivy and Bomber's house. It helps that he's also a plant so I figured the ease-of-access to water would be well-received.

Comparing the Water Tank to the rest of my constructions, it's a bit more difficult in design; the sole use of stone makes it set on the ground, forming a cylindrical tank around seven feet tall and three feet in diameter. Grooves cut into the side of the cylinder allow you to scale up it like a ladder, allowing you to slide open or shut a rain spout on its top. A trio of faucets with stone levers lets you bring water out with a simple pull or push. Although rainwater isn't around in the Great Plains, it's obvious that it fills up due to the Pond. I imagine few people would look a construction like this in the mouth, especially considering it looks entirely stone but has a basic and easy to utilize lever.

[Notification] Water Tank detected.

Population Limit increased by 1.

You now have unlocked Water-based Traps and Defensive structures.

View Traps; filter new.

Dungeon of Kaden > [Trap] Shallow Trench

Cost: 1 Mana

Upkeep: 1 / 0 / 0 / 0 per day

Repair/Reset Cost: N/A A simple moat is sometimes enough to deter most foes from a dungeon. No matter where you are, this basic trap can be found if the location has access to ample water. 2 feet wide, 3 feet long,

3 feet deep [Place] [Back]

Well, looks like I'll need to wait a while before I use this one. The extra mana cost would put me in too risky of a situation as far as upkeep goes. But it's nice to see it's actually so cheap just to make a flooded trench; it may not amount to much for a human, but in Kave that would be a brutally efficient defensive fortification that'd further add to our defensive bulwark. Combining the trench with the Dried Creeper Thorn, I could also level it up intensely; while it can't repair, it's also no effective at killing on its own, so setting the DCT up over it or at the inner part of it should allow any wounded attackers to fall down and drown.

Between appeasing the Amassed Creeper and the possibility of more evolved Ranbi, there aren't any species in Kave to worry about. With the codex entries I've received, it's growing more and more likely that I'll only encounter trouble if I continue making myself obvious and expanding or piss-off the local giant plant.

Knowing isekai stories, it's going to be the first rather than the latter of the two.

View Dungeon Manager; filter new options.

[Dungeon Manager] [Infrastructure] Name Summary & Effect Costs Canal The equivalent of a path except it uses water; requires a sluice gate on at least one end. Each instance built covers 10 feet.

It can only be placed outside the dungeon. 20 Favor Sluice Gate A gate connected to the dungeon's water supply. It requires a water-based structure or an emptied space like a hole to be connected to it to activate.

If used in a Dungeon Room, it augments it into a Drowning Chamber. 50 Favor

10 Stone [Dungeon Town] Name Summary & Effect Costs Simple Moat Defensive Structure. A three-foot deep trench, dug around the defensive barriers and edges of the dungeon town. Once constructed, the moat will reassign and create new layers for growing towns. 1000 Favor. Gangplank Log The most basic of bridges, gangplank logs are a log that is cut down their center and partially buried on either end of bodies of water to keep itself stable. Best for single-person or small animal crossings. 5 feet long. 10 Favor

1 Lumber [Dungeon] Name Summary & Effect Costs Drowning Chamber A specialized defensive chamber used by dungeons to stop invaders. The dungeon closes off the chamber, spending 1 Mana to reinforce the doors and flooding the room. In 5 minutes, the room completes its flooding and remains flooded until reset.

Reset will drain the water and leave any loot within.

If broken, it automatically repairs at the end of the day. 50 Favor

10 Stone

1 Unassigned Room [Back]

These new constructions are even better; rather than a trench for traps, I can save up 1000 Favor and just make a moat. Not that I'd be able to save that up very quickly. Even with my Critter Pen, it'd be at least a month of grinding to even make a dent in that cost. But it makes sense if it's a single-time purchase that it'd be so costly; compared to everything else I've unlocked that can be bought repeatedly, it grows and adjusts without any issue around my buildings.

Canals are cool, of course, but the sluice gate and the Drowning Chamber are definitely more interesting. The description of the sluice gate implies I can probably make man-made ponds or canals if I decide to dig, but the Drowning Chamber gives me a method to defend the dungeon at long last.

Sadly, using it with my current dungeon layout isn't really viable. It'd be better defensively if I had a lengthy tunnel, but I have a stairway that leads down into the hall.

It's probably a better idea to use it if I can create a "branch-off" at some point; with randomized luck, it does make it pretty difficult to utilize a trap room. At the very least, I may be able to use it as a safety barrier with the Teleportation Chamber so that I can be prepared for someone coming back through it in the worst-case scenario.

All of these rewards will have a use one way or another. Not much longer and not only Bomber but the dungeon itself will be ready for a prolonged trip to Grey Valley.

...

Bomber, remember to keep calm.

All four of us had gathered in the teleportation room now that we finally had everything in place; a proper plan, a few traps replaced with the moats, and even Bomber's completed training. The growing population limit within the dungeon town makes me excited for creating something grand, but there is a time and place for clearing far more grass and organizing a new look to the place.

While we are gone, Ropert is in charge; his size makes him able to easily wrap around even an Omega Ranbi at this point, making him better for crowd controlling and organizing over the battlefield. Ivy's strength is good as well, but I've asked and tasked her with overseeing the grass transplantation effort.

Bomber and I agreed to be gone for at most a week, with the goal to be a minimum of three days. During this time, I'm going to be trying to get either of us to level-up while hunting down leads for the civilization of Grey Valley. With my inventory system, I can easily review and keep trying to decipher the language I copied, but...

I can't make heads or tails of it.

It's regretful to admit it, but the system isn't giving me any help. Digesting worms is still increasing my progress in one way, but without a language, I can't get my quest's bonus condition. I'm starting to think we'll inevitably run into the locals before I can gather enough to learn their language. It'd definitely be a lot easier for us if our first encounter with a group had some semblance of speech available.

But Bomber is ready; the armor may not be well-made but he's learned to move almost just as smoothly as normal while wearing it. Hell, he even earned a new Ability.

Natural Armor: Rookie Trained Personal type Among armor types, the most primitive is often the most rare. But in the most primitive, natural armor is also some of the easiest to replace.

Comfortable in low-tier Natural Armor sets; reduce weight of worn armor by 2%.

The mention of Rookie makes me hopeful it'll scale into stronger or additional abilities, but it's also good that the weight is reduced. Even if we upgrade out of using bone for armor, that ability will at least apply to any armor he wears. Two percent will make a difference, especially if he gets more bonuses on his way to sturdier defenses.

As for me, I've done something even better: I created a new set of crystals for my staff. It's starting to get a bit crowded on the crystal-holding end, but the weight is mostly manageable even still. Part of me figured it might be possible to apply the crystals to create an even bigger one, but the system doesn't allow me to input any higher than my maximum MP's doubled value. Creating crystals as MP back-ups already makes me plenty strong, so it makes sense that the system refuses to let me combine them to create something better.

Now, putting all this aside, it's time. For good measure, we're taking a two-front effort; I'm going to hold onto Bomber and give unlisted commands.

Teleport group. Team teleport?

Nothing.

Master, are you-

I turn and shake my bushy branches at Ropert, imitating the closest thing to holding up a hand to keep him quiet. I really don't want to have him questioning my efforts right now. Trying out unlisted commands is the best way I've been able to find hidden features... so it makes sense to at least try them. Ivy doesn't seem to doubt me, though. She's pouting still that she's not going, but I can't take her even if I want to.

Put bluntly, she's bigger than Bomber. Not fat, just a few inches taller and the difference in height and muscle makes her almost heavier than him.

I can descend the cliffside and carry Bomber, but I can't carry both. Her strangling isn't going to cut it against the creatures I've seen in Grey Valley, either.

Get ready Bomber. Deep breaths.

The ranbli looks at me and tilts his head, breathing no differently than before. He may trust me but I guess he's ready to deal with whatever might come our way.

Teleport.

My vision flares pitch white again and the world shifts...

I appear atop the same clearing arrived on after using my first teleport, Bomber's ears firmly in my grasp. Unfortunately, the male ranbli collapses on the ground instantly after arrival. Worrying as it is, I know it's fine; while I may be calm and in control, he's inexperienced with even the concept of what just happened. It took almost a minute before Bomber finally calms down and pushes himself upright, looking around in complete awe at the view while I approach the cliffside and send my staff to the inventory to prepare for sliding down the two of us.

I think we'll start by finding us food; worms and grass should do the trick. Then we'll break ground with the first experiment on the list.

Trying to capture or tame one of the gemfawn.