Days passed...
And the same thing happened each day like a routine. The sun would rise over the jagged treeline of the [Cursed Forest], and the clearing would immediately burst into a flurry of activity. It was no longer the quiet, lonely place it once was. Now, it was a hub of constant noise and movement. Half of the orcs, which were now joined by the gnolls, set out to the forest to hunt monsters.
The coordination between the two different tribes was a bit shaky at first. Orcs were loud and preferred to smash things with their heavy stone weapons, while the gnolls were more sneaky and liked to use traps or hit-and-run tactics.
But under the weight of Verc’s orders, they found a middle ground. They realized that if they worked together, they could bring back much bigger prey with half the effort.
And the rest of the inhabitants who were left in the base, they stayed behind to expand the clearing.
TAK- BOOM!
Every day, the sounds of trees being felled and stones being moved echoed throughout the territory. They were pushing back the darkness of the forest bit by bit. With a whole new tribe joining them, Verc had to make much more houses now for them to settle in. The three small houses he built on the first night were nowhere near enough to house everyone.
Fortunately, just like the orcs, the gnolls had their own village as well before they decided to come under him. They were a smaller pack, but they were efficient collectors. And so—they retrieved their stored food back there.
They spent a whole day transporting dried meats, strange forest fruits, and preserved monster parts to the castle. Because of that, there was no problem with food at the moment.
Currently, they’re staying on the 3rd floor of the castle. The stone rooms were a bit cold for them, but they didn’t complain. There are only thirty-four gnolls in total, including the young and the elderly, and their leader is Kuma.
Kuma was much more soft-spoken than Groo, but he had a sharp mind for logistics. He was the one who managed the storage and made sure the resources were distributed fairly. The gnolls are known for their craftsmanship, and so, they are also in charge of crafting tools for the entire settlement.
Verc noticed early on that their stone tools were prone to breaking, especially when the orcs used them with their full strength. So, he started giving them materials he got using [Dungeon Genesis]. He would manifest raw iron, reinforced wood, and even strange, mana-conductive ores from the earth itself. He gave these to the gnolls so they could use high-quality materials as well, not just stones.
Although the tools they make are lacking compared to trained human blacksmiths... they were doing much better than Verc had initially thought with little knowledge the gnolls have.
The 3rd floor quickly became a workshop. The sound of hammering and the smell of hot metal filled the hallway, making it one of the busiest floors in the castle.
’If they gain more experience handling diffirent materials, they’ll be able to make better and more complicated tools.’
Verc thought to himself, thinking about the gnolls.
’I need to get them like some kind of instructions or tutorials abour crafting and blacksmiting, a book or some sort.’
He added, thinking about how he needs to infiltrate a human city again sooner or later.
... ... ...
Anyway, as everyone was working together to make their base better, Verc was stuck in his room.
SLASH!
He didn’t spend his time lounging or enjoying his new position as a leader. Instead, he was training endlessly. He used every bit of his energy expanding his mana pool and sharpening his swordsmanship.
He would stand in the center of his room for hours, his sword moving in a blur. He focused on the weight of the blade, the way his muscles coiled and snapped, and the way his mana flowed from his heart to the tip of the steel. He wanted his movements to be as natural as breathing.
He would only come out in the morning to greet everyone.
"Good morning, Lord Verc!"
The children, the orcs, and the gnolls would shout whenever they saw him. Verc would just give them a tired nod and a small wave, still feeling a bit awkward about the attention.
Then, he would spend some time playing with Onyx and Bong for a while.
Onyx was growing quickly, his dark fur becoming glossier every day. The little puppy would jump around Verc’s legs, yapping and trying to bite his boots.
"Calm down, you little rascal."
Verc would say, a small smile finally appearing on his face as he rubbed the puppy’s ears.
Then he would go to the barn to check on Bong. The horse seemed to enjoy the new clearing, having more space to move around and fresh grass that Verc had manifested near the stables. He would pat Bong’s neck, feeling the steady heartbeat of the animal, before heading back inside.
... ... ...
Then, at night, when the hunting team comes back from their expedition—that was when the real work began.
Verc would always greet and thank them personally. He would stand by the castle gates as the weary hunters returned, their bodies covered in the grime of the forest but their eyes bright with pride.
"Thank you for your hard work, Groo, Kuma."
He made sure to praise their work.
Every day, a mountain of monster corpses was offered to him. It was a gruesome sight to anyone else, but to Verc, it was the lifeblood of his power.
And while they need to store some of them for food—which Kuma and the other gnolls would quickly process—Verc would at least always get more than half a year worth of energy after consuming the blood of the rest of the monster corpses.
Verc could feel his stats rising, his body becoming denser and his senses becoming sharper as he drank blood everyday. The sheer amount of blood he was taking in was staggering.
Also, after some days, he noticed that he stopped getting new skills all and all.
He had expected to gain a long list of abilities from the diverse monsters they brought back, but it seemed there was a limit. It looks like he wouldn’t be able to acquire skills from weak monsters from now on.
’I guess my level is too high for these weak mosnters now.’
Verc thought to himself while looking at a dead body of a harpy.
Though, consuming their blood still raises his stats and recovers his health and energy. It wasn’t a total loss. Every drop of blood made him a little bit faster, a little bit stronger, and gave him more mana to work with.
Verc thought it was a shame, but he really didn’t mind this. He wasn’t the type to collect skills just for the sake of having them. He knew that having too many options could actually make a person weaker in a real fight because they wouldn’t know which one to choose.
"Quality over quantity."
He mumbled to himself.
From now on, he decided to just focus on making his current skills stronger instead of getting new ones. More doesn’t necessarily mean better, after all.
And his priority-- he wants to master [Dungeon Genesis] and his swordsmanship until they were perfect.
*****
... ... ...
... ... ...
Anyway, days passed of this routine happening again and again. The cycle of hunting, building, and training became the heartbeat of the settlement.
A couple of weeks passed since Verc summoned his castle. The clearing was now massive, stretching far out into the woods.
It didn’t look like a temporary camp anymore; it looked like a proper town in the making. The dirt roads were well-trodden, and the smell of cooking fires was a constant presence in the air.
And finally, after drinking the blood of countless monsters from the [Cursed Forest]...
The village for the orcs and gnolls was finally done!
Verc stood on the balcony of his room, looking down at the finished project. He felt a deep sense of accomplishment. It had taken a lot of energy and many sleepless nights of focusing his [Dungeon Genesis] skill, but the results were worth it.
The village was divided into two distinct sections, reflecting the nature of the people living there.
The houses of the orcs were mostly made of stones. They were large, blocky structures with thick walls and heavy roofs. Verc had designed them for their sturdy exterior, knowing that the orcs tended to be a bit rough with their surroundings. These houses looked like mini-fortresses, capable of withstanding an attack or just the heavy footsteps of an angry orc.
Meanwhile, the houses for the gnolls were made from the trees of the forest. They were located on the other side of the clearing, closer to the shadows of the woods. While they’re not as sturdy as the stone houses, they’re more comfortable.
The gnolls had requested wooden structures because they liked the feeling of being surrounded by the scent of the forest. Verc had used his skill to reinforce the wood, making it resistant to rot and fire, but he kept the natural aesthetic that the gnolls wanted.
The two tribes were no longer living in the castle hallways. They had their own hearths, their own beds, and their own space.
"It actually looks like a real village now."
Verc said to himself, leaning against the cold stone railing.
He had built a sanctuary in the middle of a cursed land. He had turned a group of monsters into a community.
Verc didn’t know what the future held, or what other dangers were lurking in the deeper parts of the [Cursed Forest], but he knew one thing for sure.
He wasn’t alone anymore.