Chapter 634: Eldoria

"If we’d stayed on the plains, we might have run into other natural disasters. All the animals outside are gone, so something big must have happened. Besides, if we hadn’t gone to Frelia, we never would have found Annie or met Ethan Dawson, and everything that followed wouldn’t have happened either. All in all, I think our trip to Frelia was very meaningful," Officer Graham said.

"I know. I’m just getting a little sentimental. Coming back to the plains... I feel this sense of loss I can’t quite describe."

Quincy sighed. Then, as if remembering something, he continued, "Do you all remember the people we ran into back in Crystell City? Oh, right, I remember there were mines near there. Do you think they chose Eldoria as their destination because they want to mine?"

Officer Graham shook his head. "I think they were copper and iron mines. My memory isn’t what it used to be, so I can’t recall clearly."

"With so many talented and brilliant people on the team, they must have had their reasons for choosing Eldoria as the site for the new base."

"I remember Liam Sterling saying that other bases are also planning to move to the plains. Eldoria’s area is only about a thousand square kilometers, right? Is that enough to house so many people?"

Evelyn Ford burst out laughing. "Let’s do the math. You don’t actually think a thousand square kilometers is small, do you? That’s *kilometers*, not meters. A thousand square kilometers is enough to house tens of millions of people."

Everyone couldn’t help but laugh. "And here I was, thinking an oasis would be tiny."

"Don’t worry, everyone. No matter how large the population gets, Khoros can handle it. But I do have a question for all of you. Once the new base is established in Eldoria, do you want to live inside it or outside? After the base is built, they’ll surely designate production and residential zones. To support so many people, they’ll have to assign jobs. We don’t need to look for work, but without an official job, the base authorities won’t openly assign us any housing."

After Evelyn finished, she glanced at the others. She didn’t particularly care where she lived, but with such a large group and the huge secret of her pocket dimension, communal housing would be a major hassle.

Besides, we still don’t know how they’ll build the base in Eldoria. Out on the plains, they probably won’t build any high-rises taller than five stories. And even though they say the bases are going to merge, there’s no official plan for *how* yet. It’s all up in the air.

’It might be best to just fire some red bricks and build single-story houses,’ Evelyn thought. ’For one, they’re more stable than tall buildings and less likely to collapse. For another, construction would be quick, and everyone—men, women, old, and young—could help. Building the base to look like a collection of farmhouses would be much more livable.’

But just as Officer Graham had said, the base had plenty of talented people. It wasn’t up to them to worry about how the houses would be built.

Quincy frowned. "I’d rather live outside. Our log cabins are so comfortable, spacious, and secluded. But they’re also too conspicuous and would definitely attract trouble. If we live inside the base, there are too many of us. We’d never fit in a small apartment."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Aside from Evelyn and Ronan, no one could stay in the pocket dimension for extended periods. Besides, they couldn’t just stay inside working all the time; they needed to come out and live. The outside world was the *real* world. Once things finally settled down, Evelyn even wanted to let the animals out of the dimension for a run. As vast as it was, the dimension was still finite. The outside world had the sun, the moon, blue skies and white clouds, and violent storms. It was full of unknown dangers, but it was also vibrant and alive.

"Here’s what I’m thinking," said Taylor Vance. "If they can give us a small courtyard house, we’ll live in the base. If they can only offer us small apartments, then we’ll move outside into the log cabins."

"As long as we’re not separated, it doesn’t matter where we live."

"Miles Vaughn is right," someone added. "This big family of ours has to stick together."

That night, before they went to sleep, Evelyn asked Ronan about a few things. After all, he spent a lot of time with Liam Sterling and knew the contents of the telegrams they exchanged. He was bound to know some inside information.

"Have Rhys Chase and his people made it to Eldoria yet?"

Ronan nodded. "They got to Eldoria three days ago. The telegram Rhys Chase sent back said two waves of people from The First Base have also arrived. Both sides are already negotiating how to divide up the territory. If the leadership doesn’t want to hand over authority, the bases will merge in name only. In reality, each will govern its own affairs, just divided into different sectors. Like Sector One, Sector Two, and so on."

Evelyn understood.

"Was Eldoria the territory Rhys Chase’s people claimed?"

"Yes. Liam said they even set up a perimeter to claim the territory."

Evelyn couldn’t help but laugh. "Rhys Chase is pretty sly, sending people ahead by plane to claim territory. If the bases do merge, he’d be the best person to be the overall commander."

Ronan shook his head. "He couldn’t handle it. It’s not that he isn’t capable, it’s his health. If he wants to live, and live for a long time, his best bet is to give up all his duties and start focusing on his health and exercising. Of course, my blood could save him, but you said you didn’t want me to be someone’s personal blood bank, so I refused."

Hearing Ronan deliver that line with such a straight face, Evelyn nearly burst out laughing.

"But you saved him when he collapsed before."

Ronan rubbed his nose. "That time doesn’t count. It was an exception. I could actually cure him completely in one go."

Evelyn narrowed her eyes. "How?"

"A full blood transfusion. Replace his blood with mine. I looked it up—the most you can safely draw from a person at one time is 400 milliliters. That’s why I only gave him 400 last time. Any more than that and I might start to feel unwell."

Evelyn blinked. "Do genetically engineered humans have the same amount of blood as regular humans?"

Ronan chuckled. "Of course it’s the same. If I had more blood than a normal person, wouldn’t my body just explode? I probably could give 1,000 milliliters, actually. But I think it’s best to be cautious about it. I should follow the science and not do anything reckless."

Evelyn laughed so hard her stomach hurt.

"Does he know that?"

Ronan shook his head. "Just from giving him 400 milliliters, Rhys Chase was so moved he cried. He looked like he wanted to get on his knees and kowtow. If I gave him 1,000, I’m afraid he wouldn’t be able to handle it."

"If you were to do a full transfusion, how much of your blood would that take?"

Ronan raised an eyebrow. "Probably several pounds’ worth."

Evelyn was taken aback. "No way! Could a person even survive losing several pounds of blood? I won’t allow it."

Ronan’s eyes glinted with amusement. "That’s why I’m treating him in installments. Half a bowl of blood a year is just enough to keep him hanging on."

Evelyn’s heart ached for him. "Will you be okay? What would happen to Rhys Chase if he didn’t have your blood to sustain him?"

"He’d live to be sixty or seventy, but he would age rapidly. He’s more afraid of getting old than he is of dying."

"It would be a real shame if that face of his got old," Evelyn said, clicking her tongue.

"Is he handsome?"

Evelyn was honest. "Yes, he is."

The look on Ronan’s face gradually turned dangerous.