Chapter 107- Guild Location and Members.

Chapter 107: Chapter 107- Guild Location and Members.

"The forge dimension is resonating? What does that even mean?" Leo asked, frowning at the faint shimmer that still clung to the air around Elly.

She went quiet for a moment, golden eyes flickering as she processed the system message. The pause stretched just long enough to make him shift his weight.

"The Eternal Forge Dimension appears capable of linking with the guild building itself," she said at last. "Once the connection is established, the dimensional space will become an extension of the headquarters rather than a separate location."

Leo’s eyebrows rose. "Great. Let’s link it, then. As long as it doesn’t waste teleportation charges, and as long as permitted members can access the forge space too. I think it will be a great facility—especially if the passive bonuses carry over."

Elly nodded once. A soft pulse of light gathered at her fingertips and expanded into a clean hologram of a simple, unassuming building.

Inside the structure stood a single door, standing alone with no room or corridor behind it—just empty space that somehow felt deeper than ordinary air.

"This door will lead directly into the forge dimension once the connection is made," she explained, rotating the hologram so he could see every angle. "It will remain invisible to anyone without authorization. Only those you designate will even notice it exists."

Leo studied the projection for several seconds, then gave a short nod. "Alright. Now we need an actual location to build the guild hall." He turned fully toward her. "Find me somewhere fit for it."

Part of him simply wanted to see whether she could actually pull the scan off on this scale.

"Running a full area scan now, Master."

Light poured off her in a slow golden wave. It swept outward through the smithy walls, across the crowded streets of Iron Haven, and kept going—rolling over rooftops, past the outer walls, and deep into the green forest that ringed the city. The wave continued until it touched the distant horizon.

A holographic map bloomed in the air in front of him. Text flickered rapidly across its surface while terrain lines shifted like living hills. Roads redrew themselves in real time, adjusting to elevation and river paths as the data resolved.

"Thirty-seven viable sites detected," Elly reported. "Filtering now based on defensibility, available ground space, ore density, mana concentration, and risk factors."

Leo cut her off with a raised hand. "Just give me the top three."

The map cleared instantly. All but three glowing markers vanished.

"Three locations meet the primary requirements of Master," she said.

"First: within Iron Haven itself. Zero travel distance." She continued, laying out the case with clinical precision. "Stable markets, established guard presence, solid security. Downside—tight regulations and limited room for expansion. Any significant construction would require multiple permits and constant oversight."

Leo shook his head without hesitation. "Pass. Next."

"Second: the northern outpost, thirty-one kilometers out. Wide open land, cold climate, low population. Downside—poor hunting grounds and limited food access. Long-term sustainability would require regular supply caravans."

Wide, empty, safe, and poor, Leo thought. He shook his head again. "No."

"Third: Blackstone Fortress, seventeen kilometers away. Resource composition partially unknown."

"Unknown how?" Leo asked, leaning closer to the glowing marker.

"The terrain beneath it is extensive, and minerals are confirmed present. There is a mana vein nearby, and rumors of both a gold deposit and additional ore veins circulating among local scouts. However, several critical data points remain incomplete."

Leo raised an eyebrow. "Okay, so what’s the catch?"

"High-level monsters roam the area unchecked," Elly answered. "Mana vein composition: unknown. Full terrain layout: unknown. Origin of the ruins: unknown. Risk level is significantly higher than the previous two options."

Leo weighed the information in silence for several seconds. Iron Haven was a cage of rules and limited space. The northern outpost could not feed a growing guild for long. Blackstone was a ruin, true—but it carried real potential beneath the danger.

"Iron Haven’s a no-go," he said finally. "The northern outpost can’t sustain itself long-term without a reliable food source. But Blackstone... it’s a ruin, sure, but there’s real potential there."

He made the decision cleanly. "We build in Blackstone."

"Confirm Blackstone Fortress?" Elly asked, already preparing the claim protocol.

"Confirmed."

The map dissolved into motes of light that faded into the air.

[Ding~]

[Eternal Forge Headquarters established.]

[Ding~]

[Crown’s Domain established. First territory acquired.]

"Finally," Leo breathed, a quiet sigh of relief leaving him.

[Ding~]

[Quest Triggered: First Foundation.]

[Requirements:]

[Establish Headquarters. — Done.]

[Build Guild Hall.]

[Build Guild Forge.]

[Build Treasury.]

[Build Training Ground.]

[Secure Retainer plus ten members. — Retainer 1/1 (Shen, done). Members 2/10.]

[Reward: Unknown First-Guild Treasure.]

"Ohh, that’s a list." Leo scanned the glowing requirements. "One down, five to go."

He looked at Elly again. "Alright—pull up the prices for all of these."

"You don’t have enough," she said, her tone completely flat.

"Doesn’t matter. Show me anyway. I’ll figure it out."

The hologram rotated slowly. Price tags blinked into view one after another, crisp and unforgiving.

"Guild Hall: five hundred gold," Elly recited. "Guild Forge: five hundred gold. Treasury: three hundred gold. Training Ground: two hundred gold."

Leo did the math out loud, mostly to keep himself from spiraling. "Five hundred plus five hundred plus three hundred plus two hundred. That’s fifteen hundred total." He paused, checking his current balance again. "Current balance is eighteen thirty-six. After paying, I’m left with three hundred thirty-six."

He closed his eyes for a moment.

"Elly. Do you hear something crying somewhere?" ℴℴ𝘮

She scanned the surroundings with absolute seriousness. "I detect no crying, Master."

"That’s my wallet. It’s crying."

Leo could have sworn Elly gave him a faintly judgmental look before glancing away with something that almost resembled an eye-roll. The flash of human-like behavior still caught him off guard every time it appeared.

He forced himself to focus. "Let’s look at the buildings."

He opened his eyes and studied the hologram of the guild structure more carefully. "Now that headquarters is set—can we finally link it to the forge dimension?"

Elly nodded and began the process. Light traced across the projection in precise lines.

Moments later a soft chime rang out.

[Ding!]

[Eternal Forge Dimension has been linked with the Eternal Forge Guild building.]

[Host and other permitted entities can now enter the Eternal Forge Dimension directly from the guild hall.]

[The passive boost of the Eternal Forge Dimension will be available for the guild forge hall.]

A door materialized on the wall in the hologram—set into a plain stretch of stone with nothing but empty space behind it. The emptiness somehow felt intentional, as if the door opened into a place that did not exist on any ordinary map.

That’s actually kind of insane, Leo thought, staring at it.

"As I have said before," Elly confirmed, "the door leads directly to the Eternal Forge. It remains invisible except to those with permission to see it."

As he studied the building layout further, four distinct color zones came into focus across the structure.

"Public Zone. Professional Zone. Restricted Zone. Core Zone," Elly explained, highlighting each section in turn.

Beneath the main building the design extended downward into a sprawling network of underground compartments and tunnels. Some tunnels angled toward confirmed ore deposits and possible gold veins. Others had been designed purely as escape routes in case of siege.

"Full room catalog ready," Elly said. A clean list scrolled steadily downward in front of him.

"Alchemy Room—three hundred fifty gold. Resonance-ready."

"Inscription Hall—three hundred gold. Resonance-ready."

"Formation Hall—three hundred fifty gold. Resonance-ready."

"Enchantment Room—three hundred gold. Resonance-ready."

"Smelter—three hundred fifty gold. Resonance-ready."

"Library—one hundred fifty gold. Resonance-ready."

"Command Hall—two hundred fifty gold. Resonance-ready."

"Teleport Room—four hundred gold. Resonance-ready."

"Vault—two hundred gold. Resonance-ready."

"Merchant Hall—two hundred fifty gold. Resonance-ready."

"Herbal Garden—one hundred fifty gold. Resonance-ready."

"Infirmary—two hundred gold. Resonance-ready."

Leo rubbed a hand down his face halfway through the list, letting out a slow breath. Every single name on that list cost more than what remained in his purse.

"Hidden sealed rooms may be claimed free of charge once discovered and opened," Elly added.

Leo stared at the endless glowing list. "That’s... a lot of rooms."

"We’ll unlock them as the guild grows," he said finally. "For now, none of it’s within reach."

"Fine. Let’s start inviting people, then."

He reached out to Shen first, firing off an invite along with a short message: "Join now and become the first player to join us."

[Ding~]

[Shen has accepted. Title granted: First Knight.]

The instant Shen joined, a wave of resonance rippled through the guild’s foundation—subtle but unmistakable, like a deep chord struck in the stone itself.

[Ding~]

[Retainer Resonance: Unlocked.]

[Ding~]

[Seal Warden’s Precision +30%. All crafting, talisman, and array success rates raised guild-wide. Effect further amplified within the Inscription Hall.]

"Alright. Rook’s turn."

"Invitation sent, Master," Elly confirmed.

[Ding~]

[Sword Master has joined.]

"Elona next," Leo said. "Keep it short—she doesn’t need much convincing."

"Sent."

A reply landed only seconds later. Just one word.

"Yes."

[Ding~]

[Rich Young CEO has joined.]

Leo finally stepped out of the room and went looking for Hugh. The older smith was still at the anvil, hammer rising and falling in steady rhythm.

"You done yet, old man?"

"Yeah, yeah. Go on, send it over," Hugh grunted, not even looking up from the glowing metal.

Leo sent the invite. Hugh accepted without so much as a flicker of expression, the hammer never breaking its rhythm.

It was only then that Leo remembered founding the guild had automatically opened a group chat.

Elona, Rook, and Shen were already deep in it, scrolling through the new stat bonuses and guild functions. Shen especially seemed to be dissecting every detail of his new abilities, already planning several fights ahead.

The chat was flooding fast, Elona leading the charge.

"How did you even build a guild like this? Ours is a guild in name only—real-world contracts, sure, but nothing close to a system like this."

Shen chimed in right after. "Yeah, this is genuinely insane. No wonder the media is making a fuss about this guild."

Leo clapped his hands together once. "Elly—make our rich young CEO a vice leader of the guild."

Then he typed into the chat: "Rook, Elona—bring in people you actually trust. Emphasis on trust. We’re keeping this tight for now.’

Just as he hit send, a knock came at the smithy door.

Both Leo and Hugh turned toward the sound.

It was the same noblewoman Hugh had been forging for earlier—back now to collect her finished sword. The moment she stepped inside, Hugh dropped his head and threw himself back into hammering, conveniently too busy to deal with her directly. She turned to Leo instead, holding out a familiar blade.

"Master Leo. Would you mind taking a look at this?"

He took the sword and ran his fingers slowly along the flat of the blade. A thin crack traced down the fuller. He recognized the work instantly—he had forged this rare-grade sword himself some time ago.

"Alright," he said, looking up at her. "What’s going on with it?"

"How did the damage occur?" Leo asked carefully. "Is the reason behind this still the same as before?"