Might as Well

After making sure that all the preparations were proceeding as normal, and Lucy had no more questions for him, Sam left her office with a purpose.

First, he made sure that Dan, Katie, and Clarissa were alright. Dan and Katie were in the library as always, with Dan returning to his book about fire spells, while Katie simply took up cleaning her armor and weapon.

“Everything alright, guys?” he called out to them with a smile.

Katie was the first one to answer, looking up from the vigorous polishing of her greatsword that still had bits and bobs from the goblins thanks to her vigorous handling of their enemies. Sam was really looking forward to seeing her fighting in the dungeons.

“Yup! Feelin’ great, boss!” she chirped with a manic smile on her face. “When is the next fight?”

Sam could feel the excitement in her voice.

“I need to take care of a few things, then we are heading out,” he answered the question. They only had a few days to get their group up to the standards he wanted them, so there was not much time to lay about.

“Yes!” she cheered, still sitting on the ground with her hands in the air. Her little shadow familiar laying on her head, imitated her with her paws, adding a cute little meow to the cheer.

He then turned his attention to his fiery caveman friend.

“What about you, Dan? Ready to head out?”

The muscled man grinned at him and flexed his rather impressive muscles. “You know, I am, boss! I love how my fire magic is coming along and with a little more practice, I feel that I’ll be able to get plasma working!”

“Plasma?” Katie asked, curiously tilting her head at Dan.

“Yes! The greatest of all the states of matter! Some would say that it is the only state that matters!” came the exuberant reply from Dan. “I wish to wield it, tame it and cradle it in my bare hands!” He took a moment to pause, then continued with a wicked grin. “Also, I would really like to hit people with a club made of plasma!”

Katie nodded seriously, then spoke up.

“Why not use lightning magic? Isn’t that pure plasma?”

Dan just let out a small sigh and shook his head. “In the real world, it is, but here, lightning magic is considered electricity, not plasma. Trust me, that was the first thing I tried…”

“Oh, I’m sorry…”

Sam smiled, then interrupted the two of them.

“Make sure to stock up on consumables and have your gear checked. As soon as I’m finished, we are heading out.”

The two of them nodded, then as Sam turned to leave they continued talking about the differences between lightning magic and real-world lightning. Or rather, Dan continued to lecture the avidly listening Katie.

As the door was closing behind him, he could hear Katie exclaim.

“Oh, man… why couldn’t my teachers be this interesting?”

A few minutes later, he found himself deeper in the headquarters, beyond the worker’s quarters and offices, deep enough that if any infiltrator reached this place there would be no chance of them not being detected.

And with the constant guard patrols, specifically designed to be semi-random by an algorithm that Lucy wrote for another game, there would be no chance of any infiltrator figuring out a pattern. ‘That girl takes kingdom-building games waaaay too seriously…’ he thought as he stepped up to the door and knocked.

Hearing a welcoming sound, he slowly opened the door and stepped through it.

Inside was a fully furnished workshop with a giant space for anything big to be constructed in the middle. The walls were lined with tables, laden heavily with tools and other equipment, while a few were stacked high with various metals, woods, crystals, and other materials. There was even an old-fashioned planning desk straight out of a movie architect’s office.

The workshop was pristine, and the only person inside was Liz running around like a kid in a toy shop with their parents’ credit card.

She would flit from table to table, lifting a tool, wondering at it, while opening her status screen and looking for something, then placing it back exactly at its place, then speed walking to the next table and repeating it with different equipment.

Sam didn’t know much about crystal crafting as the man who got it became notoriously silent about the abilities of the crystals after he got almost chased out of the game for it. Though many believed that instead of staying silent, it was more like the guild sat on him so that he wouldn’t attract more attention.

Ultimately, because the crystal crafting and its capabilities got revealed too early, they never got anywhere else with it, as the crafter was almost always sabotaged in some way by other guilds. Plus, he was a massive idiot. He hoped that by hiding Liz away to craft freely, he could help her build up her base, and then use whatever she crafted later for a massive advantage.

Liz stopped examining the tools and turned toward him with an excited grin on her face. “All this, for me?”

Sam nodded seriously. “Yes, we both signed a contract. We intend to keep our part. And that means making sure you’re happy.”

Liz frowned at hearing that. “Really? That’s it?”

He shrugged. “What did you expect? I mean, I would love it if we became friends, but that doesn’t happen at the drop of a hat. For now, this is a relationship based on money. Maybe it’ll change later, maybe it won’t…”

She thought about it for a second, then nodded with a small smile. “Alright, that makes sense. Thank you.”

Liz then touched her wrist and several drones flew out of her jacket, eagerly looking around and buzzing with excitement.

Then she walked up to the open space and began filling it with crates that were no doubt full of her creations. ‘Probably her bike,’ Sam thought as Liz retrieved a longer crate while the drones buzzed around emitting cryptic chirps and chimes.

Finally, after she was finished, and the workshop was filled with boxes, she turned towards him, touched her wrist again and a visible blue screen appeared in front of her, with a small keyboard positioned comfortably in front of her.

She beamed and then gestured at him.

“You said that you wanted an elevator?” Sam nodded, and she motioned him to a chair. “Then tell me the specifics and I can begin…”

Sam looked at her and sighed. “I was joking Liz. While an elevator would be nice, I need you to get together with our in-house architect and basically upgrade Heavenly Forest to make it as high-tech as possible.”

“Oh…” she let out a despondent sigh, then immediately perked up. Humorously, the drone followed her mood and also perked up in concert with her. Sam could understand why she was a popular streamer… “But you still want weapons, right?”

Her only answer was a bloodthirsty grin on Sam’s face.

After finishing with Liz and leaving her with a list of equipment to craft, Sam headed for the tavern Clarissa was set up in.

Knowing that the woman was somewhat angry with him, he felt that he would need to explain himself to her before they proceeded. And if it didn’t work, then he would still have time to look for another competent healer.

The tavern as most taverns in Ironwood was full of people, though this one was mostly filled with players in colorful clothing and armor. It showed that people have begun crafting and customizing their own armor. Naturally, soon the NPC shops would follow along because the devs knew if the NPC shops didn’t keep up with player trends, then they would become obsolete in short order.

He dodged around the people boasting about their conquest or clamoring for the ladies’ attention because no matter the dimensions, time, or game, being a girl gamer came with its own troubles. It took Sam a few minutes to cut through the crowd before ascending the stairs to the room Clarissa had rented.

Following his knock, he was granted entrance and found Clarissa sitting at a small round table with a simple meal on it, which apparently she was currently finishing. She placed her utensils down on the table and dabbed her mouth with the napkin elegantly and then simply looked at Sam.

Sam stared back, a little uncomfortable. “Er, hi?”

“Hello,” she answered with a nod.

There was a terse silence for a few moments, then she began to speak.

“Would you mind explaining what that whole thing was about? I understand that you expect that there is something big coming, and you wanted to see where we stand, but it could’ve been handled much better. Maybe telling us that you are testing us?!” she finished the small tirade with an angry frown.

Sam raised his hand in a placating manner. “Peace. I realize that I made a mistake, but I was a little excited…” he explained. And he meant it too. If Sam wanted to have a proper team, then he shouldn’t use mind games to ascertain their reliability. “So, I apologize for it.”

He finished with a small bow of his head.

Clarissa huffed in exasperation. “Did you say the same thing to the others?”

“They don’t care…” he answered with a wry smile. “Katie is batshit insane about fights, as you have seen, and Dan is a little better. As long as there is a fight, they’re happy.”

Clarissa scrutinized him for a moment and then, to his surprise, slammed her face into the table, rattling the dirty dishes still on it.

“I’m surrounded by bloodthirsty thrill seekers…” she groaned pitifully into the table.

Sam could only stand there and watch her helplessly.

Leaving the despondent healer to her devices, he took a little break and checked out his notification screens. The battle wasn’t big or noteworthy, but it was still a battle, so Sam expected a little improvement in his status.

Taking a seat in one of the empty chairs that were left alone in one of the corners of the tavern, he opened up his screen and began reading.

[Mana Manipulation is now Level 17!]

[Mana Resonance is now Level 1!]

[Mana Tempered Body is now Level 18!]

[Phasing Strike is now Level 4!]

[Extended Mana Strike is now Level 8!]

[Mana Body Enhancement is now Level 44!]

[Mana Influenced Body is now Level 7!]

He noted with satisfaction that his mana skills continued to grow steadily.

[Clean III is now Level 5!]

[Wind Blade II is now Level 10!]

[You learned the spell Wind Blade III!]

[Wind Blade III: Level 0/10 (0%) (Active) A spell that allows you to launch a blade of wind. The cutting power and speed of the blade are increased. You have greater control over its movement after creation. Allows you to slightly control its path after launching the wind blade.]

[Wind Flurry is now Level 7!]

[Wind Bullet II is now Level 7!]

[Wind Movement is now Level 15!]

[Wind Edge II is now Level 6!]

[Wind Affinity is now Level 29!]

As always, there was nothing surprising about the wind-natured skills. Sam felt that they were great skills, but he knew he would either invest much more time into his Wind Affinity for it not to become obsolete or try to make his plan a reality.

[Active Meditation is now Level 33!]

[Spirit Link is now Level 28!]

[Shadow Footwork is now Level 45!]

[Shadow Cover is now Level 5!]

Sadly, Shadow Burst was still elusive, as always. ‘I really need to figure it out… Maybe I’ll have time after the Fracture…’

[Advanced Sword Mastery is now Level 8!]

[Basic Armor Mastery is now Level 8!]

[Mana Breathing is now Level 5!]

[Advanced Breathing Technique is now Level 5!]

[Calm Heart is now Level 37!]

[Flow is now Level 30!]

[Multitasking is now Level 66!]

Giving it another once over, Sam nodded, then closed the screens, pleased with what he had read. He stood up and, with purposeful strides, left the tavern toward his next destination.

He didn’t really want to waste time requesting an audience, so when he arrived at the Silvercrest manor, he just told the guards to call out the old butler.

While waiting, he was ushered into the guard station and given a seat in one of the utilitarian chairs.

Thankfully, he didn’t have to wait long as soon after he got almost comfortable on the chair, the elderly butler strode into the room, with the door held open by one of the guards then simply closing it behind him.

Sam stood up and gave a small bow. The butler returned the greeting with a deeper bow.

“Master Samuel, how may I help you today?” he asked with an inquisitive look on his usually placid face.

“I have to come to deliver the news the lord has been waiting for,” he stated simply, though a little vaguely, fearful of who could be listening. Not because he didn’t want people to know there was an attack coming, but because he feared that the other nobles, confident in their own security forces, would use this militarization of the Silvercrest family to cause them trouble. He didn’t need a spat between noble families right now.

“Truly?” the butler straightened his already straight back and his eyes stared intensely at Sam. ‘It seems the lord had shared the information with the man…’ Sam mused before answering.

“Yes, sir. I felt a pulse of mana from far away. It was strong enough that it could be felt here. I believe that soon another will follow, and then…”

“Yes, then it will happen,” finished the butler for him.

“Correct.”

The butler considered him for a moment, then bowed much deeper.

“Many thanks, Master Samuel. I’ll communicate the issue to the lord. Is there anything I can help you with today?”

Sam shook his head. “No, thank you.”

The butler smiled at him and after a short goodbye, Sam was once again standing in front of the manor, while the guards stood as if they were made of stone in front of the gates.

He took off his helmet and put it on his stand. Standing up, Sam stretched a little and then headed for his bathroom.

After delivering the proper message to his ally, he sent a message to his team to make sure they were preparing, and he also went and did a little shopping and took a peek at the Auction House. It seemed their actions of buying up materials and resources for the company didn’t go unnoticed as there was a small increase in prices...to the consternation of the people in the Auction House. He had to listen to several people whine about the decrease in their profit margin.

For now, he would take a little rest, then confirm which area would be the best for the next few in-game days to farm before the Fracture happened.

He needed to increase his level slightly, as well as to make sure that the team could act as a cohesive unit.

Truthfully, he would have liked to hunt down a main tank as well as a rogue for the party, but he simply didn’t have the time to get someone. Or rather, he didn’t have the time to get those who he wanted to travel to Ironwood in the given timeframe.

‘If I’m a reincarnator then my team is going to be the very best!’ he declared to himself, then refocused on his lunch.

He would need all the energy in the coming days…