'Uncle' Garan was irritated for some reason.
He frowned, narrowing his eyes as he stared in a particular direction. "It feels like someone is scheming against me."
Gill raised an eyebrow and looked around, puzzled. But… they haven't done anything yet?
Gill shrugged in the end and handed Garan a piece of parchment from his space. "It's here."
Garan's azure eyes stayed on the piece of parchment before extending his hand. His rough fingers traced the symbols on the surface, and his sharp eyes studying every detail as if it was already built.
It was a plan for their training ground, commissioned for a very very high price from a Class-D Architect in the town. As of this morning, it was already halfway through construction.
Gill was asking him to check before finalization, because any addition to the construction must be instructed now.
Garan studied the drawing well in case they missed anything. He did make some minor improvements, but they didn't change the structure itself too much.
The entire property was surrounded by stone walls, akin to level 2 walls from the territories.
It was divided into a few sections with varying sizes. First, there was a central courtyard for main activities, obstacles courses, and drills. This area occupied nearly half of the entire lot.
Next to these, was an archery range, a wooded area for combat training, and some amenities.
In fact, a lot of this would have costly amenities. For instance, they added verandas, gazebos, and gardens. There were a lot of new plants in this place.
His wife said that beauty improved people's spirituality. Garan believed she was correct so he invested in this as well.
More importantly, he wanted his wife to live well here when he found her. If she had a stable environment, Althea would definitely swim like a fish in the ocean in this place with new species to study.
She would also love to have her own gardens to transplant these species so she could study them more closely.
That said, he needed to prepare a greenhouse for her as well, in case the weather turned dour and her plants could get destroyed.
Seeing her sad would break his heart, so he ought to be proactive.
"After everything, ask if there's someone who can make greenhouses as well." He said, checking his budget and nodded when he confirmed he should still have enough.
Garan had used another sauce formula to make a deal with Jonathan, the lord of Ferrol Town to ensure the finances of the team.
In exchange for 95% of the shares, they also got themselves a small lot of about an acre near the edge of the territory. They also got a lump sum amount of 300 gold, along with the remaining 2% share of the future proceeds for selling the formula.
Garan looked at the plans again and nodded in satisfaction. With the help of Gill and Eagle, he didn't have to worry too much about this.
The two assisted in the design of the land dedicated to Military training to match their old headquarters and training hall, though with larger practice spaces because of their more destructive elements.
Most of the land was assigned for training. There were tracks, obstacle courses, and sparring rings. The remaining buildings, except for the amenities he built for his wife, were huddled together on three-storey buildings—the maximum height that could be built with non-aether buildings.
"When will it be completed?"
"I paid the construction company at a premium cost. And with Jonathan's help, the building is expedited. They estimated the remaining work would be completed within two days.
"The main residence is ready for occupancy now, by the way."
Garan nodded and followed Gill to the newly built edifice.
He looked at the residences, making sure they were made very well. Although he was usually a bit stingy, the facilities they added were complete.
It would have large canteens with greening, nicely sized rooms for members in supervisory positions and above, as well as comfortable dormitories for others. These would also have decent bathrooms, at least the best that they could get considering the current technology.
The entire residential area was overall the best they had seen since they traveled here. And this was actually made with their families in mind.
After all, if the life inside the fog was horrible and the territories weren't good, their families may very well live here with them. This way, the moment they were found, they could immediately provide them with better living conditions.
They also planned to hire decent men and women to enter the team, to expand their influence and power. Good living conditions were imperative to keeping talents.
All this required a continuous flow of money, but Garan and the others were lucky to have landed in Ferrol.
Ferrol Town was known for its production of Houlibeef. The sauce Garan made after a lot of study was perfect for this type of meat, the perfect combination of various plants and fruits.
When he got the Life Occupation of Chef about a month prior, he had received a D-level identification skill along with it. It was thanks to this skill that he managed to make the two formulas without poisoning anyone.
Anyway, through the partnership, not only Garan but also Ferrol Town made a lot of money. And it had only been a few days.
It could be said that in such a short time, they earned a lord of a territory as backing. This was still considering their tense relationship with Guia Village, one of Ferrol Town's many subsidiary villages.
Now that they didn't have to spend money to buy information, the group finally had a surplus. Most of the team still saved money though, in an attempt to help out their probably-dirt-poor families inside the fog.
Garan himself maintained the simple lifestyle from before, saving up money to ensure his wife's lifestyle.
Oh, also Ansel's, maybe.
He frowned and went against it. Ansel was a grown man now, he ought to handle himself well enough by now.
As such, all consideration for the little brother was scrapped, and he just double-checked the plans to make sure it was perfect not only for his team but also for his wife.