[Would you like to build an expansion here? Yes | No]

He immediately went to the [Build Mode] to review.

[Expansion Module]

[Information: A small module expansion of the Inn lands. All effects, including barrier effects, will be completely duplicated.

Size: 1 meter x 1 meter per module

Duplicable: 0/100

Cost: 100 gold, 1000 Hearth Points]

He had no idea he could build it like this!

Yes!

[Built! Barrier Expansion. -100G, 1000 Hearth Points]

[Built! Barrier Expansion. -100G, 1000 Hearth Points]

[Built! Barrier Expansion. -100G, 1000 Hearth Points]

[Built! Barrier Expansion. -100G, 1000 Hearth Points]

[Built! Barrier Expansion. -100G, 1000 Hearth Points]

[Built! Barrier Expansion. -100G, 1000 Hearth Points]

[You do not have enough Hearth Points]

He managed to buy six modules with all the hearth points he had left. Ironically, it was gold he still had in excess in this case.

He didn't have the time to think too much because a second later, monsters appeared in front of them, so quickly that it almost felt like they teleported.

ROAAARR!

BANG!

BANG!!!

[-1 Defense Point]

[-1 Defense Point]

[...]

"Huff… huff…" Finn gasped, mind still whirring at how quickly things happened. When he finally saw the notifications, his knees buckled.

He never thought he'd be so happy to see defense point deduction his whole life…

ROAAAARRRR!!!

The sudden appearance of an invisible wall naturally annoyed the monsters. The few fortified level monsters pounded on to the barrier over and over, and the smaller ones continued to do so as well.

His eyes were wide as he stared, confirming that monsters really couldn't get inside. At least for now. He took a deep breath and studied the current barriers.

He could only afford six, so he had to be smart about where to place them. He had hurriedly set them up around the mouth of the cave, four outside and two just inside the mouth. He figured that if monsters were blocked at the mouth of their small cave, then few of them would bother to look at other paths.

There were quite a few of them though, all bleeding, so he had to make sure they were inside the cave to be less attractive to monsters.

The ladies gasped, tense, looking around. They gaped when they saw that the monster hadn't tried getting into their small cave anymore. However, because the mouth of the cave wasn't big to begin with, they didn't notice that there was a barrier at all.

"What's going on?"

"We…bought ourselves some time…" Finn mumbled, before looking at the men. Fortunately, while injured, none of the slashes were lethal.

[Extension Registered. Status: Detached.]

His eyes flickered, but he had no time to dwell on that right now. He looked at the [Hearth Market] and bought the two remaining potions he could get. He was afraid to buy them while running because they were in such a rush, they could drop it.

The people who needed it most were Marcus and Gideon. For Gideon though, it'll have minimal effect, but it was better than nothing.

"I can buy another potion in an hour," he said, leaving that one for Durgan.

[-1 Defense Point]

[-1 Defense Point]

[...]

Every second, there was a deduction.

He didn't really care for the deductions for now. Rather, he was looking forward to the upgrade. After a few check outs, he definitely would not lack the hearth points to recover barrier health for now, so what he really wanted was the next improvements.

Bang!

Their entrance was now completely blocked by the mass of beasts outside, so it was dark. Fortunately, he had a small lamp in his space, bought for two gold in the Hearth Market.

Since the monsters were still dense, even if their scent had been lessened by the barrier and their location, the monsters were mostly moving according to the herd mentality. Hopefully, they'd get tired or kill themselves.

[-1 Defense Point]

[-1 Defense Point]

He checked the [Room] tab and looked at his barrier, realizing that the health of this small area was combined with that in the main inn. This could be a good thing and this could be a bad thing.

Bad thing because he might be losing defense points faster than what it appeared when he was at the inn, but good because maintenance was easier and if he filled it up one time, both areas would be fixed.

Not to mention, if he needed to upgrade the barrier, which needed to use up defense points, then going against stronger monsters was indeed pretty practical.

He really wished those monsters banged their heads to death as well. Thinking of this, he placed the remaining meat from his space right at the barrier, with a bit of it protruding.

BANG! BANG!

[-1 Defense Point]

[-1 Defense Point]

The girls had no energy to mind his small movements at the mouth of the cave, vaguely feeling he was doing something, but they were too tired to speak right now.

In the meantime, they changed clothes while they treated their wounds. Blood was too attractive to the beasts, and their cave wasn't exactly indestructible yet, so it was better to lose any scent of blood. This way, the monsters wouldn't be so desperate to enter.

They considered throwing out their clothes to the monsters, and some did, but others had clothing that were also equipment so it had to go in Finn's space, to be washed in the utility room later.

For now…they wait.

The two's breathing stabilized, while Durgan still struggled with the pain. Leiah asked him to drink some water in the meantime.

While the women dealt with the injured, Finn looked around the cave. The previous night, they were too busy recovering, resting, and eating to bother with the surroundings. Not to mention, it was night and the sight was limited.

Now, even if the monsters were blocking most light, some light was still coming in. Not to mention, there seemed to be some holes above that would also let a bit of sunlight in.

Fortunately, said holes were part of the enclosed areas. Assuming the height and depth of the modules was the same as that in the main area, anyway.

After observing the cave walls, he realized that there were rocks that didn't seem to fit the rest there. They were rusty in color. His brain ran quickly, until he came across a certain memory, giving him an idea of what he could be looking at.

Iron ores?

One of his customers was a famous mining conglomerate. He would often tell of his stories from when he was a small miner, and his stories were detailed.

Iron ores weren't like how it looked as a finished product. Near the mouth, due to air, moisture, and sunlight, iron minerals would be weathered and rusty in appearance.

He gulped.

So here, they had limestones and—if he was right—iron ores as well.

These were great resources to tap into, if only it wasn't right in the Level 2 of the danger zones.

Then… he remembered another construction he had ignored:

The [Delivery Room]! And, since they were within a hundred kilometers from the main inn, then it was also within its scope of function!

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