396 No idea for the title

"Listen…."

I genuinely had no idea what should I say. Do I love her? I consider her quite enjoyable to spend time with or talk about either silly or important matter. I like the intimate moments we shared and how active she is during the intercourse. I enjoy her company overall, but do I love her?

"Don't worry about it. I don't need an answer right away."

Most likely noticing my distress, Heila was the one to distance herself from me on her own accord. Taking a few steps back, she just looked at me with a strange glint in her eye reappearing, as if my lack of decision didn't discourage her in the slightest.

Cupping her hands behind her back with her head still lowered to allow her a slightly playful look in her upturned eyes. Leaning forward, she stared at me as if waiting for any form of reaction.

"I'm sorry… for now."

That was the most I could do. I didn't have to always pose as someone who was universally good at everything. If I didn't have the answer for a specific question for once, just being honest about it and explaining the situation would mean pushing this matter for the latter time, but also giving me enough space to properly think about it.

"It's okay. Also, I think it will be better if you focus on those people rather than racking your brains about the answer to my confession."

With her lips curving upwards, Heila pointed her chin towards the opening area of the small world. Following her lead, I turned my head around only to see the first few people slowly appearing one by one, in an equal distance of three meters between each and every single one of them. In the several occasions when two people would appear at the same time - most likely because of holding their hands or outright hugging each other - the next person would simply appear twice the usual distance apart, keeping the growth of the radius of this dimension a constant three meters per person.

Just like before, if one saw the group that was waiting for me on the outskirts of the island and compared them to those who were appearing in the small world, one would never agree that those two groups were actually coming from a single gathering. 

Instead of malnourished bodies, lifeless look in the eyes and overall poor state of their constitution, those appearing at the constantly expanding borderline of the dimension were still wearing haggard clothes with the state of their bodies rather unkempt, but looking for a sight of malnourishment or harsh past would be pointless.

"I will give you the answer as soon as I will have the time to properly consider it. I'm sorry."

Before immersing myself in the countless amount of windows related to the system of the stronghold, I decided I owed Helia a proper answer, even if it was only for the sake of pushing this matter aside for now. I could be honest with myself all I wanted, but there was some obligation towards others I had to take care off in the process!

"It's okay, don't sweat about it. I just wanted to put this burden from my shoulders to yours. I hope you won't blame me for it!"

As soon as she said those words with a wide smile present on her lips, Heila actually turned around and ran towards the housing area I prepared during my last visit. Did I mention how playful she was? It seemed that at times, that wasn't exactly the best quality….

Turning my attention back to the matter at hand, I recalled the status windows that Heila's remark made me push to the corner of my sight. Just like I guessed, while the numbers varied for every person entering, by taking the general average, most of them provided about fifty energy points to the core, meaning that with the addition of the entire group I already brough, I could expect to multiply the current mana pool by at least a factor of six!

I really had no idea how the hell killing everything alive on this island was unable to compare to the profits of actually making conscious being inhabit it, and if all the dimensions worked in this way, why did golem's ancestral grounds remained empty for the most of the time? 

Unable to answer this question now, I could only push it to the back of my head, while reminding myself to keep vigilant about the potential dangers comming from managing such a huge population.

Thinking about the changes, I couldn't help but ponder over how constant the growth of the dimension radius was. With about two kilometres in diameter at first, every increase of the radius meant not only additional space for everyone, but every increase was greater than the one before! With one thousand people entering, from one and a third of kilometre in radius, this dimension would grow to almost ten kilometres in diameter!

But in the end, that was a good thing. The more space there is for everyone, the more arable land could be used, not to speak about creating cities, communities and allowing for the natural growth inside this subspace.