Seventy-two days left until he could finally return home. Lux scratched another mark into the wall, then bent to retrieve the map spread across his floorboards. He wasn’t sure if it was even possible to have Silver City ready for dungeon construction in such a short time, but he’d give it his best shot. There were more monster cores at stake, after all!

  With a determined breath, Lux strode out of his rickety house. He needed to find the others and start putting all the new plans into action. His pace slowed as he caught sight of the whole group clustered around a campfire, as if they’d been waiting for him.

  Before he could even open his mouth, Magenta shot straight to her feet. “YOU!” Her shout made Lux jump. “What spell did you cast on Silver to get him to let you do whatever you want? He even demanded I transport you to any city you deemed necessary to visit!”

  Lux’s eyes went wide. This was all news to him. He recalled his conversation with Silver yesterday and realised that when Silver gave his trust, he did so without hesitation or restriction. Warmth bloomed in Lux’s chest, a swelling of gratitude for Silver’s faith in him.

  A small, sour voice in the back of his mind tried to remind him that he was forced to come here in the first place. Lux shoved that thought aside and focused on the fuzzy feeling instead. A huge grin split his face.

  Magenta launched herself at him. Lux barely had time to react before sharp pain exploded on his scalp. “Ah, shit, Magenta, let go of my hair!” Magenta’s moods were wild and unpredictable. One minute she wanted to strangle him, the next she was demanding he become her future husband. Lux never knew what version of her he’d get.

  Novgar lumbered over and pried Magenta’s hands from Lux’s head. A substantial chunk of hair remained in her grip as she kicked and squirmed in Novgar’s arms. “Let me go! I need to teach that human his place!” Spit flew from her mouth as she raged.

  Lux glanced nervously at the others. None of them seemed bothered by Silver’s strange request. Ruby even strolled over and handed him a steaming bowl of stew. “Just ignore her,” Ruby said, shoving the bowl into his hands.

  Lux accepted it gratefully and sat down beside Azura. As he ate, he decided to dig for information. “Azura,” he began, careful not to startle the man, “Silver mentioned yesterday that if we added Firewater and Icebreath to the fruit wine, it would sell well. What exactly are those?”

  The bowl in Azura’s hands crashed to the ground, splattering stew across his boots. He spun to face Lux, eyes blazing with excitement, and seized Lux by the arms. “Are you serious? Silver said I could make it? Truly?”

  Lux blinked at the intensity. He’d only ever seen Azura this excited when the man was bragging about his precious balls. Suddenly, Lux’s expectations for the wine shot through the roof. He nodded quickly.

  “Finally!” Azura crowed. “Twiggy, did you hear that? You need to start growing the flowers immediately!” He locked eyes with Twiggs until the smaller man sighed and gave a reluctant nod.

  Azura still hadn’t let go. Lux felt his arms creaking. “Azura,” he wheezed, “please let go before you break me in half.”

  Azura blinked, then released him with a sheepish grin. “Sorry. Got a bit excited.”

  “That’s fine,” Lux said, rubbing his arms. “But what does adding the flowers to the wine actually do?”

  Azura puffed up like a bard about to unveil a masterpiece. “Firewater is brewed from Firestorm flower petals. Mix it into wine, and you get Firewine. Anyone who drinks it gains fire powers for as long as it’s in their system. Not just Mystians, even you, Lux.”

  Lux nearly dropped his stew. Fire powers? From drinking wine? His mind spun between awe and the dazzling vision of mountains of gold coins.

  Azura barrelled on. “You can imagine how much a single bottle could sell for.”

  Coins practically danced before Lux’s eyes. No wonder Silver was confident Silver City could be ready for a dungeon before he returned to Earth. The man had handed him a gold mine.

  “There are two problems,” Azura added. “First, Firestorm seeds are incredibly rare. Second, the flowers only bloom in the heart of an intense storm.”

  Lux’s hopes deflated instantly. Of course there was a catch. Still, if Silver mentioned it, he probably had a way to get the seeds.

  Before Lux could say more, Twiggs cleared his throat. “I can help with that.” His twig-like hair rustled with excitement. “I can talk to the flowers. A little rain, a little chat, and they’ll bloom for me.” He leaned forward, eyes shining. “That makes you happy, yes?”

  Lux nearly jumped with relief. “Yes, Twiggs, that makes me extremely happy!”

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  Twiggs beamed, but Azura wasn’t about to be outdone. “I made you happy too, didn’t I? I gave you the Firewine knowledge!”

  Lux stared at the two of them, both practically begging for praise. A strange idea struck him, had they transferred their need for Silver’s approval onto him?

  Ruby, who’d been silent until now, suddenly chimed in, “I did well too. I’m building the shit pipes.”

  That was the last straw. Lux toppled backward in a dead faint.

  “Lucky Charm!” Novgar scooped him up like a ragdoll. The giant’s voice thundered with outrage. “Novgar is not happy! You all made his fragile human faint!”

  Apologies rumbled awkwardly around the group. When Lux came to, he found them staring down at him with concern. He forced himself upright, determined to move the conversation along. “Azura,” he croaked, “what about the Icebreath?”

  Azura perked up instantly. “Ah! Icebreath flowers. When added to wine, they grant the drinker ice powers. Same principle as Firestorm, but there’s once again a catch. They can only grow if pollinated by Frozen North Glacial Bees. Highly aggressive, highly venomous. Deadly to most races.”

  Lux rubbed his temples, finally thinking clearly again. “So all we need is someone who isn’t affected by the bees’ venom.”

  Twiggs shot his hand into the air. “I know a race! People from Green Aroura. Bees can’t hurt them!” His chest puffed out with pride.

  “Twiggs,” Lux said solemnly, “you are my absolute favourite person alive right now.”

  A terrible grinding noise made him flinch. Novgar’s teeth were gnashing, muscles bulging, veins throbbing. Not good.

  Lux threw himself against the giant’s arm. “So is Novgar! Novgar is my favourite person always!”

  Novgar froze. Then his face split into a beaming smile. “Lucky Charm! You are Novgar’s favourite person too! Novgar promised Silver to be helpful. So what does Lucky Charm need Novgar to do?”

  Lux exhaled in relief. It seemed Silver had spoken to all of them before leaving. Time to put that to use.

  He unfurled his map. “We can’t move the farm just yet, but I want to start clearing land for construction. Temporary residences here, dungeon access here. Novgar, go with Violet, Azura, and Twiggs today to start clearing.”

  “Novgar will help!” the big man boomed.

  “Ruby, keep working on the pipes. Magenta…” Lux hesitated. The raven-haired woman was glaring at him like a predator sizing up prey. He swallowed and pushed through. “Could you find a blueprint for a winery in town?”

  Her grin spread, dark and unsettling. Lux backed off immediately. “We’ll… discuss that more tomorrow.”

  Finished with his meal, Lux decided to find Trella. Now that he had decided to move the farm, he needed to stop the farmhouse construction before it wasted more effort

  He found the man at the site of a nearly finished house. Lux’s chest tightened, the craftsmanship was beautiful. “Trella, I need you to stop construction. There’s been a change in Silver City’s plans.”

  Trella’s men froze. “What’s going on? You still need us, right?”

  Lux quickly reassured them. “Yes, I still need all of you.” He unrolled the map again, showing them the new design.

  Lux answered their questions as best he could, and, just as Silver predicted, Trella filled in the missing pieces with ease, already seeing how to turn the map into reality.

  “Do you really have a way to make the population explode so much that we’ll need multiple temporary residences?” Trella asked, sceptical.

  Lux nodded firmly. After seeing the dungeon in Helidale, he had no doubt Silver City would draw people in droves. If anything, he worried his plans wouldn’t be enough to contain them all.

  Trella exhaled through his nose. “Alright, it’s your coin. I’ll arrange delivery of the road materials. We can lay the sewers at the same time. I’d also like to start purchasing supplies for the temporary residences, but those will take longer to arrive. Do you have the apartment plans so I can order the right materials?”

  He held out his hand expectantly.

  Lux froze. He was so used to Trella and his team building simple houses without a blueprint, he forgot that something large would need a plan to follow. Embarrassment flushed his cheeks. “I… don’t actually have those yet.”

  Trella arched a brow but didn’t scold. He began tapping his chin in thought. “Lux, if you’re going to commission this many buildings, it might be wiser to hire an architect. Otherwise, if we keep piecing together random blueprints, the layout will be a mess.”

  Lux mulled it over. Trella was right, a dedicated architect would be better than fumbling with mismatched plans. “Do you know anyone good?”

  Trella shook his head reluctantly. “Not well enough to call on.”

  Before the conversation could stall, one of the workers stepped forward, a woman with salt-and-pepper hair and a warm, confident smile. “What about Constance? She’s only an apprentice, but she’s better than most full architects.”

  Trella let out a long sigh. “She’d be perfect… but the problem is her master. He’d never allow her to work here alone. And trust me, none of us want that man within a hundred miles of Silver City.”

  “That’s a shame. She really is brilliant,” the woman added softly.

  Lux’s interest sharpened. He wasn’t about to let the idea drop. “Constance, was it? If she’s that good, I’ll make it work. Masters like money as much as anyone. I’ll negotiate.”

  Trella’s frown deepened. “Lux, you don’t understand. Her master…”

  “I’ll take Novgar with me,” Lux interrupted. “If things go bad, he’ll make sure I get out in one piece.”

  Trella went rigid. His hands trembled. “Lux… I told you before. You must address him by his full title.”

  Lux waved the warning away. “No, it’s too weird. We’re friends, I’m not calling him something formal every time I need his help.”

  Trella’s face drained of all colour. “You call yourself… his friend?”

  Lux tilted his head. Trella’s terror gave him a sudden thought. “Wait. This isn’t the first time you’ve acted like this when I mention Novgar. Is he… famous?”

  Trella stared at him, incredulous. Lux smirked. “That’s a yes. So, if I show off Novgar’s face while negotiating, that might actually help convince Constance’s master?”

  Trella’s mouth fell open, but before he could speak, the older woman cut in. “If Novgar of the Bluehill Boulder Tribe truly went with you, then yes. Constance’s master would be more inclined to listen.”

  Lux clapped his hands together. “Perfect. Settled, then. I’ll take Novgar to fetch the architect.” He turned to Trella with a grin. “Trella, before we go, can you explain to Novgar and I how best to negotiate? You’re more of an expert at this than us.”

  Trella was still gaping, but Lux was already walking away, eager to find his green giant of a friend. It would be better for Trella to explain to both of them at once.