《General's Call》 Prologue Zen''s anger reached a new level with every step toward the guild leaders office. He had been working for the Arrise Guild for three years now and had to put up with many that mocked what he did. A mapper wasn''t a glorious position in a guild, but a very important one. They ranged through a myriad of virtual games mapping areas, so others could build up their characters. Unlike the players that made money fighting or creating trade goods, he made his money drawing and marking where creatures were located and what level. What made Zen upset was that the guild leader, a man named Antonio Berastas, had not only given away his maps. He did it so Zen couldn''t make his commission. He gave them away to the biggest piece of shit Zen had ever ran in to while doing his job. As part of his contract it stated that the guild had access to all the maps he was ordered to map out, if his maps were sold to a outside sources he could get no less than 5% of the market value. He was sure Antonio had no idea that was in his contract, but his sister Amanda did. For Zen to pull off his escape plan he had to do it before Amanda got word of her brothers actions. Amanda Berastas was nothing like her brother, and even though both were good looking. Amanda was head and tails above her brother in looks, ability, intelligence and about every other important area. She was the true brains behind the Arrise Guild, and he actually respected and got along with her. Though in the end, she was still a officer of the guild and would stop him from getting revenge on her brother''s stupid maneuvers. Zen had always tried to avoid Antonio, because their was a viciousness to him that always rubbed him the wrong way. Though that didn''t mean he didn''t pay attention and he knew exactly how Antonio would react the moment he challenged him. The guild leader of Arrise was a typical power player, and even though his skills were elite. His intelligence was something that far from brilliant. He knew Antonio would use his brutish behavior in a way that if he pushed the right buttons he could get what wanted. Zen thought highly of his sister, but what Antonio did to him this time was just too much. He worked hard at his job, and rarely complained about the abuse he received. His missions for the most part were smooth except for when he met Vincent Deluci or some of his henchmen. Vincent was a extremely wealthy person and his family was connected to some pretty powerful people. This let the bastard get away with a number of things, and caused a number deaths just after he met him the first time. Two missions before he again ran across some of his men, and while he had escaped them relatively unscathed. Zen had discovered a number of good hunting grounds and a well sized mine. Vincent''s goons tried to force him to reveal the site, but he made it back and got it to Amanda. He had heard that they filed a claim on it, but he hadn''t heard what the results were. Then that morning he found out that his maps had been given away, and the beneficiary was that bastard Vincent Deluci. He knew then his days were numbered, and it didn''t take a brain surgeon to realize Antonio was involved in it as well. He receives a salary for every mission he gets assigned for by the guild, but the real money comes from commissions. The same commissions that Antonio purposefully tried to get around by giving all his maps to Vincent. This was the first violation and the reason he had discovered it. The system would alert him if his contract had been violated and if his contract was violated with three separate offenses he could chose to cancel it with them paying the penalty fee. Now he only had to get him to violate his contract two more times, and he was free. Zen walked through the halls ignoring the expensive designs and art that were on the walls and stopped right in front of the guild leader''s office. He then pressed the door and waited for the guild leader to respond. He knew that bastard was purposefully making him wait, but that was fine because if things worked out it wouldn''t matter anymore. He stood there for almost ten minutes before the door opened and he could see a smug Antonio smiling at him. "Ahh Zen why do you seem so unhappy?" Antonio said arrogantly. "It is rare to see you look so mad." "Guild leader I just discovered that you gave away my maps to a company that is ran by Vincent Deluci is that correct?" Zen asked with a trembling voice. "Oh yes I am sorry about that." Antonio said with a chuckle. "I sold all the maps to him as a incentive to sweeten the deal. I suppose I could have split it up some, but it is tedious to spend time pulling out some maps from everyone. I am sorry you have to suffer a little for the guild." "Are you going to compensate me for this inconvenience out of the general guild funds?" Zen asked. "Oh, sorry that wouldn''t'' be right that everybody had to pay for work you already get paid to do already." Vincent said with a mock stern voice. "Sometimes you just draw the unlucky straw."
"Noviolated your contract. This is the second time they''ve done so. One more breach will allow contracted to leave for breach."
Zen heard the alert in his head and had to stop from smiling. He kept the angry expression on his face and pushed himself harder to intensify it. The first violation was selling his maps without notification and the second was for refusing to compensate. They were similar violations, but he had both of them listed separately in his contract. "Vincent Deluci is a back stabbing bastard that has hurt Arrise Guilds bottom line a number of times." Zen said bluntly. "There are a number of different guilds that would be much more lucrative to sell too, but you chose the one that has a history of double crossing his partners. He did it to me twice, and I know there are others in the guild he has targeted. How could you give my work away to him?" The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. "How dare you question my decisions." Antonio roared as he went from mocking to truly angry. "You have no clue how low classed you are compared to us elites. You don''t even take part in any of the raids because you''re so fucking weak and a burden to the guild." Zen just stood there and shook his head disapprovingly and that drove Antonio even more angry. His face was truly red and then he started to calm himself down. A slim smile appeared on his beat red face as he pulled on his expensive jacket and tried to relax himself. "My job has never been to raid, but find good sites for the rest to level." Zen explained. "I think we should resolve that, and Vincent and I have decided on joint guild raid that you should be a part of." Antonio scowled. "In fact, Vincent''s team is going on a raid in the Catacombs of Teraki and they need a guide. You mapped out that catacomb, so I think you''re a perfect fit." "That is not in my contract so I use one of my rights of refusal." Zen said coldly to him. "You can''t make me go and work with that scum." The guild quest came up and with a thought Zen used one of his three rights of refusal that every member was given in their contract. The moment Antonio got the message he snarled and then smiled as he sent his response. A message stating that the right had been overridden and that he had to accept the mission as an order came back. "You can''t order me to go when I used one of my rights as a member of Arrise Corporation." Zen said his voice raising. "This is a violation of my contract!" "I don''t give a shit about what you want I am the guild leader and you do what I fucking say." Antonio said coldly.
"Notice: Arrise Corporation violated your terms of contract three times. Do you wish to terminate your employment with them as stated in your contract? Yes or No?"
Zen chose yes with a thought and a secondary message came up.
"Notice: Are you sure you wish to terminate your contract with Arrise? Yes or No?"
Zen agreed another time and he couldn''t help but smile as suddenly a screen appeared behind Antonio and the lovely image of Amanda appeared in it. She looked furious as she looked to Zen and then to Antonio and just as suddenly she hid her anger behind a calm gaze. "Antonio what the hell are you thinking?" She said coldly as Antonio looked back to her with a confused look. "I am just taking care of a little issue with a trash of an employee." Antonio said smugly. "Do you understand what you just did?" She asked sternly. "I ordered him to go out on a mission and even though he wanted to reject it. I believe that people like him should pull their own weight around here." Antonio said with a smile. "So, I am forcing him to go." "That is a violation of his contract. You can''t do that." Amanda stated. "It is only one violation and it will fall off eventually." Antonio snickered. "Idiot." Amanda said and turned to Zen and then said. "I just found out what he did, and I didn''t know about it." "I didn''t think you did, but I think it is time I moved on." Zen said back. "Vincent Deluci is a power-hungry ass hole, and if Arrise has any contact with him it won''t be good. Guild leader has made himself perfectly clear that he wanted to serve me up to him on a silver platter, and this what I could do to protect myself." "You still have to go." Antonio stated. "To break your contract, we have to violate three different terms." "Do you think he is as stupid as you?" Amanda spat at her brother. "That one was the third different term you violated. The first one was giving away his maps. The second one was refusing to compensate him and the last one was overturning his right to refuse. The system already terminated the contract and because you locked him out of his personal home inventory the contract states that he receives compensation ten times standard amount with in 1 hour of the termination of the contract." "What are you talking about?" Antonio looked flustered. "Did you even read his contract before trying to pull of this stunt?" Amanda screamed. "Zen''s contract has specific clauses in it other than our standard contract. Locking him out of his room inventory and taking away his access count as two additional violations. We violated the contract, so we have to follow through with the terms." "She is trying to tell you that I am no longer an employee of Arrise Corporation and after termination you have to follow the rules dictated by the system." Zen said with a genuine smile. "Amanda I truly think that you''re an amazing person to keep things going while dealing with this idiot. I really enjoyed working with you but not so much for your asshole brother." "Zen I am sorry he tried to do this to you." Amanda''s face calmed down as she spoke. "I know I believe you." Zen said and then smiled. "If you were guild leader there is no way I would been able to break free of my contract." Zen watched as Amanda smile as he said this and then he looked at Antonio and stated. "I suggest you stay as far as you can from Vincent Deluci and any organizations he has his claws into. He''s vile and truly intelligent, and in the end even with Amanda behind you. You''ll get stabbed in the back." Zen didn''t even wait for Antonio to respond before he left the office heading for the exit. He already had everything he needed, but the extra credits would help with his overall plan. He also knew the moment he saw Amanda smile that she had known about everything and had waited. She truly was a amazing woman. He hoped that he could visit with her again sometime in the future, but for now he had a lot of planning to do. Chapter 1: A new Beginning Part 1 The credits Zen received from his settlement was surprisingly good, and he had gained a few more credits than he thought he would. The reason he tried so hard to break away from the contract wasn¡¯t entirely because what they did to him. He had two more years left in his contract and the only reason he even took it was because he wasn¡¯t of legal age yet and his desperation for money to live on his own. Zen came from a wealthy family so he understood Vincent Deluci to some degree, because his own siblings acted like him. The reason why he detested Vincent was more because it reminded him of his two older brothers. They too took life as a joke, and made a game out of ruining peoples lives, and his parents had a similar view of society holding everybody under them in contempt. The only person Zen ever got along with was his grandfather, which made his life bearable. He just turned 15 when his grandfather died, and his relatives descended on his assets like carrion crows on a dead animal on the road. The memory of those weeks still left Zen with a pent up anger toward his family and relatives, and that was when he left the house to be on his own. His family at first didn¡¯t even notice him leaving, but soon they started making things rough on him. His parents froze his access to the money his grandfather left him. Even though they had no right to any of the funds in the trust themselves. They could and did block him from getting any till his 18th birthday. That birthday happened one month ago, and he now had access to his trust and there was nothing his family could do about it. One of the things that let Zen keep sane was planning what he wanted to do after he turned 18, and also avoiding returning back to his hell in reality. Unfortunately, he was forced to do that by law once every 12 months, and he volunteered to do it right after he left the Arrise Guild. The two weeks in real life was spent talking to the trust officials, and hiring a lawyer to take care of things in real life. The process went relatively smooth, and when he returned back to virtual reality he found out he had been black balled from many of the guild corporations because of what happened. It didn¡¯t surprise Zen this happened, because this was typical of harassment tactics that occurred in virtual reality. They thought Zen came from a poor background, which was the appearance he wanted people to believe. He didn¡¯t take the mapping job with Arrise Guild, because he didn¡¯t like playing virtual reality games. He did it to help prepare for what he needed to do when he became of age. He knew his family would keep a close tab on him, and try to step in anytime they could to cause trouble. That is why he never showed interest in joining the combat or trade skills of the guild, and stuck to searching out what game he truly wanted to invest his time in. Zen mapped a number of different virtual worlds over the last three years, and because of that he already knew which one he wanted to play. The game called General¡¯s Call created a multi-faceted online game that went well beyond just hack and slash. General¡¯s Call Online or GCO was a massive online game had over 20 million sustained players. The players could be broken down similar to many other fantasy based games. The difference with GCO was the interplay between the players and the NPCs, because in GCO NPC didn¡¯t stand for Non Player Characters but Native Player Characters. The improvement of game AI¡¯s allowed each NPC on GCO to have a personality that responded to the actions of the players and other NPCs. This both made the game more challenging and exciting when playing. The largest portion of players took the role of soldiers and mercenaries that raised there skills and fought in the nonstop war between different continents. Most of the guilds focused here because of the active battles. The second largest population moving toward merchants and trade skills, while the least players, which were typically the most wealthy, used the noble options. These players became nobles and lords of villages, and cities and not only responsible for growing themselves, but also the maintaining and growing of there territories.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. This gave GCO a civilization building option which few other online games had. Few people took this option and most of them came from wealthy families with a number of guilds already under there control. People like Vincent Deluci and his brothers were more likely to take these roles. Zen on the other hand gave off the impression that this wasn¡¯t his type of game. Those that believed that didn¡¯t know Zen very well, because he loved strategy and creating things. It was the option giving him the most anticipation, and the option that he decided to choose. In virtual reality information was the true currency, and those that wanted to keep there valuables would guard against others. This was one of the focuses Zen had with his lawyer when he escaped his contract. In battle the initiative goes to the bold, and the victory is because of quick thinking. The moment he left Arrise Guild he knew he had to protect himself especially from those type of people, and went into full protection mode. This was the topic he most stressed with his lawyer in reality. He updated his virtual capsule to the top rated one on the market, and through his lawyer he purchased a Platinum VIP 3 year subscription for 3 million credits. 3 million credits was a lot of money even in virtual reality, but the conversion rate was currently a little over 10 credits to 1 dollar. Real life currency was more valuable at the moment, but he had a little over 500,000 credits available to him and the rest was paid from his trust. His cost came up to a little under 300,000 dollars to complete everything. Zen couldn¡¯t help but still cringe at the cost, but his inheritance from his grandfather was much larger than that, and this amount was something his brothers spent on a monthly bases. The next step was investment in the GCO, and that was something taken care of by his lawyer. The investment was necessary to help and protect his information in GCO¡¯s system. His name and account would be placed in a shell company so it would be harder for people to discover his real identity. Some would call his actions paranoid , but he knew his family and other wealthy children. Protections were needed so he could just live his life in the game without any drama. General¡¯s Call was a massive game and easy to get lost in, because there were just to many options. Zen went all out by becoming a platinum VIP member from the start. The game accounts came with three subscription options and five levels. The levels were grinder, basic, advanced, elite and VIP, and the subscriptions were silver, gold and platinum. Grinder and basic didn¡¯t have a subscription level and had to be paid on a daily, weekly or monthly rate. The first 2 weeks was given free for the grinder and basic accounts and they were much less costly. The advanced, elite and VIP could also save money by paying for three months, semiannual or annual time frames. The VIP could also pay for multi years in advance as well. The cost was huge, but in the long run it was much cheaper the more years he paid off in advance. The annual would typically be 1.5 million, but Zen shaved off half a million a year for paying a 3-year subscription upfront. It was extravagant to say the least, but the reason he did it was because that was the only way he would receive his own personal AI to be his assistant in game play. This AI would be given by the Master AI in General¡¯s Call and would help him with tasks. Platinum VIP Lord players were the only ones that received this gift, and that was because they paid the highest amounts. It totally went against the personality everybody knew, and that was another reason why he did it. He knew Vincent or his brothers wouldn¡¯t give up, and sometimes being in plain sight gained him much more cover than trying to hide in the shadows. All of these things were reasons he wanted to play GCO, but more importantly he just wanted to test himself. His family never missed the chance to put him down, and the guild always mocked him. Zen wanted to test himself and create something he could be proud of. He also wanted to get lost in this new world, so he could at least for a while, not dwell on the memories he tried hard to bury. Here he could start new and lead others with his own strength. He already knew what type of person he wanted to be in GCO and had planned for this for quite a while. He couldn¡¯t help but smile as he locked down his virtual apartment and actually took the transit to where the GCO main game hub was located. He could of linked it to his current residence, but decided not to. The moment he entered the GCO hub he was truly excited, because soon he wouldn¡¯t be Zen Archibald the son of the fifth wealthiest family in the world. He would be Rozen Martell a minor Lord of the continent of Epsilon. Chapter 1: A New Beginning Part 2 Virtual reality for most people was better than real life, and Zen had to agree as he appeared near his fief. The exact location was sitting in a carriage on a worn road on the way to his fief, and currently he traveled a worn-out dirt path that¡¯s less than an hour away. The carriage probably wouldn¡¯t be the most ideal way to travel, but as a platinum VIP member he was granted the carriage and four private body guards. The path was rather narrow and his carriage, which was being pulled by four horses, was struggling. Him as his guards just appeared on the road when he entered the game. It truly was a grand appearance that only rabbits, and mocking birds saw. Though Zen really couldn¡¯t complain, because he was the one that chose his location. The introduction after his character generation was quite elaborate for Platinum VIPs, and the first thing he saw after his character generation was the imperial court and the emperor himself. He was in the presence of royalty and knights of the empire, and even a few players. Luckily for him the ceremony wasn¡¯t long probably because the emperor was waiting for other rich bastards to grace his presence. The ceremony was quite interesting, because that was where he first was granted his personal AI. His AI was a female character by the name of Bena, and after he picked the location he wanted. He met both her and his four new personal guards at the gates of the palace. Then there¡¯s a quick parade down a golden road and poof he appeared on a broken-down path in the middle of nowhere. The name of the village that they were going too is called Coral Heights, and it¡¯s the smallest village that he could get. Zen had chosen this village from a few other spots, because for him it was an ideal location to start out. The size didn¡¯t matter, but like you hear real estate people preach, it was the location that made him choose it. The empire of Epsilon ranked 55th out of 130 continents on GCO, but it wasn¡¯t because it didn¡¯t have powerful guilds. The cause of the ranking derived from the lack of lord players on the continent. This reason gave Zen a opportunity to grow and not get stifled by other player nobles. Also, by taking the lowest level of village in the character options, he received much more than others know. Platinum VIP¡¯s gain several extra perks. In character generation, when choosing the type and size of the city, a simple movement bar is used. The higher the city the less perks a lord gets. Zen did the opposite, and he moved the bar all the way to the lowest city. The result was he didn¡¯t get the already built city and population. He received it all in building and resource tokens. These are typically purchased from the market at high values, because they can only be earned in game. The system compensated his lack of population and framework of the city with a high number of these tokens. This meant he had more control over the placement of his village and the resources near him. He used a strategic move that most people that have platinum VIP memberships would do, typically be cause of there pride and egos. Those that don¡¯t have humungous egos can¡¯t afford to start out as a platinum VIP. This were proven by the contemptuous looked Zen received in the imperial court as he chose his location. Zen¡¯s thoughts were interrupted by a bump, and he looked out the carriage to see that they were leaving the forest. The trees were growing sparse and the scenery was changing to gradual slopping hills. The village of Coral Heights was located on a plateau that stretched across the land connecting the mountains and a large lake. The horses seemed to approve of the new landscape as the carriage moved a little quicker than through the forest path. Zen relished in the breeze that came in through the window and looked over to Bena that was sitting quietly on the other side of the carriage. Bena age looked to be in the late 20¡¯s and she had short brown hair and eyes. Her looks seemed to be as average as her body, but the gleam in her eyes gave her a predatory look that made Zen happy he had her. Zen didn¡¯t mind that his AI wasn¡¯t a stunner, because the conditions they were going to face were harsh. Bena would have to overcome the same hardships as him, and beauty often burdens a character rather than helps. He couldn¡¯t help but smile at the fresh grass aroma that was in the air before finally speaking. ¡°Bena, do you have any suggestions on what to do when we get there?¡± Zen asked plainly. ¡°Well the village doesn¡¯t officially become your fiefdom till you place the imperial token on the altar.¡± Bena explained. ¡°I believe that should be your first action, because once the townspeople know you are there lord you will get a bump in loyalty.¡± Zed nodded and agreed with what she said, and he knew the first action should be that. It also brought up the problem if they don¡¯t allow him inside the village he can¡¯t activate the altar. He didn¡¯t see that being a problem, but he shouldn¡¯t discard that possibility. It¡¯s another reason he didn¡¯t add any of his extra character stat points and left all 25 points to add after he arrived at the village. He took a moment to look over his character sheet and sighed.
Information Name: Rozen Martell Sex: Male Age: 18 Status: Lord Territory: None Race: Human HP: 14 Mana: 14 Stamina: 14 Spirit: 14 Experience Combat: Trade Skill: Diplomacy: Attributes: Physical: Strength: 5Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Endurance: 5 Dexterity: 5 Agility: 5 Mind: Intellect: 5 Wisdom: 5 Comprehension: 5 Awareness: 5 Charisma: Charm: 5 Intuition: 5 Luck: 5 Aura: 5 Spirit: Fighting: 0 Blood: 5 Willpower: 5 Elemental: 2 APA: 25 Skills: Rally: Level 0 Swordplay: Level 0 Archery: Level 0 Intimidate: Level 0 Linguistics: Level 0 Literacy: Level 0 Lord¡¯s Aura: Level 0 ASA: 5 Spells
He had 25 bonus stat points and 5 skill points to place yet, which made him useless if he was involved in a battle before he took control of the city. He didn¡¯t know how many games he played where the first thing they did was fight. He did have the four guards though and Bena with him. So, he hoped that it wouldn¡¯t come to that otherwise he would have to use his stat points when he didn¡¯t want too. The other thing that were different was the way the stats were broken down. There were four areas with four attributes each. That meant that the 25 stat points wouldn¡¯t go as far as he hoped because there were so many different places to put them too. The physical and mental categories were common and even the charisma he had seen before, but the spirit category was something that he didn¡¯t have a good grasp of yet. Zen was about to ask Bena about the purpose of spirit category when he heard yelling from one of the guards, and the chief guard road up beside his window. The guard¡¯s name was Banick, and he was a giant of a man. He was wearing studded leather armor and a helmet with a large axe strapped to his back. He bent down from his horse to get close to the door and spoke. ¡°My lord there are wild wolves ahead and it looks like they are attacking a small homestead.¡± ¡°How many?¡± Zen retorted. ¡°It looks to be a dozen.¡± ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be safe to have the carriage and horses¡¯ approach, but we also can¡¯t afford to let the townspeople be killed.¡± Zen thought and then commanded. ¡°Banick choose one guard to stay with the carriage to protect Bena and the coachman, and we will go help.¡± ¡°Yes, My lord.¡± ¡°Bena stay here with the coach and wait for our signal to approach.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord please be careful.¡± Bena said. Zen knew that Bena probably would do a better job of hunting than him because all his skills were at level 0 now. He also had real world experience using the bow from a young age, and he hoped it would translate here as well. He made equipped his sword and took out his bow and quiver and stepped out of the coach onto the grass. The guardsman named Ross dismounted and brought his horse over and took a position on top of the coach to defend it, while Zen mounted the horse and waited for Banick to lead him to the site. Zen wasn¡¯t that worried about riding the horse, because in GCO real life experience could be transferred to the game. Even though he didn¡¯t have the skill the fact that he has rode and controlled horses before allowed him to ride comfortably in game. The difference was that the horse fought his control, which meant that he had to focus more on riding. The higher the skill level the more docile the animal would be toward him. So, he had to focus more on controlling it as they rode together toward the homestead. It¡¯s the same thing with combat skills like archery. He knew how to hold and fire a bow, but because he has no levels in it. There would be no aids to help tell him where his arrow would strike, and everything would have to be done naturally. A high-level archer could see exactly where his arrows would strike. The higher level they were the more defined the locaters would be. The difficulty would be based on his skill toward the statistics of the target. They covered the ground quickly and as they reached the top of a ridge Zen could see the homestead and wolves. The homestead looked to be more of a hovel, and it appeared to be made up of some type of clay. It had been dug out of the earth leaving only half of it visible to them. There were two windows that they could see, and the wolves seemed to be trying to get through them. Outside there was one wolf dragging away what looked to be the body of a man. The wolf was pulling it backward away from the homestead. ¡°Banick focus on the wolf pulling away the body.¡± Zen ordered. Zen dismounted with the other guards following suit leaving the horses behind tied to a load ring. They slowly moved forward to a section where they were with in medium bow range and Grimsley, Vern and Zen brought out there bows and notched an arrow. Banick stood close making sure to protect them from anybody sneaking up on them. They all waited for Zen to shoot first and he felt a nervousness well up inside. Zen calmed his mind and slowly pulled back the bow string making sure to line up his arrow. The height of the hill gave him a more downward angle and he could feel the tension in his arms as he lined up the wolf. He let out a breath and let go of the string and the arrow ripped out of his bow and headed toward the wolf and fell five feet short of it. He pulled out another arrow and repeated the process and this time the arrow fell to the right. Vern¡¯s arrow struck the wolf in its mid-section causing it roar in pain as it turned around. Grimsley¡¯s arrow also sunk in to the muscle near its fore leg and this time it whimpered in agony. Zen¡¯s third shot finally struck the wolf near its hind quarter and the wolf started to stagger and dropped to the ground. The group turned to the next wolf and slowly started to pick of the wolves that were separated from the main pack, and before the main pack realized what had happened. Five of the wolves were down and two of them had already died. Zen only hit 6 shots out of 14 but he felt more confident toward the end. The remaining pack only numbered 6 now, and two were constantly trying to break in through the window of the homestead. The other four raced toward the group but again the group focused together causing two of the wolves to stumble and fall to the ground. The four then split up into two teams with Banick and Zen took the first wolf while Grimsley and Vern took the second. Zen quickly put away his bow and quiver and took out his sword. Banick took the wolf head on with his axe, while Zen moved around and struck with his sword at the back legs. The wolf they were attacking went down quickly and soon the other two had there¡¯s down. Zen walked up to each of the wolves getting the final blows on each, before moving with the group to make sure the other two were dead as well. The moved toward the homestead and it didn¡¯t take long from them to take care of the other two wolves. Zen looked around at the damage that the wolves caused and then toward the dead body that had been pulled away by the first wolf they attacked. ¡°Banick check the homestead for any survivors.¡± Zen ordered. Banick nodded and motioned Grimsley forward and the solider approached the homestead with Vern behind him. The two entered the house and a few minutes later the exited a battered dirty young woman leaning against him. Vern came out a moment later and shook his head, both Banick and him approached Grimsley and the woman. The woman at first looked older because of the scraggly dark hair and rough completion, but Zen realized that it was the mud that gave off this impression. She seemed to be in shock and he didn¡¯t know what else to do to help her. He had Grimsley lay her down on the grass, and she curled up in a fetal position tears streaming down her eyes. ¡°Have somebody go retrieve the horses and bring the carriage up.¡± Zen ordered. Vern and Grimsley rushed toward the horses while Banick stayed at a safe distance from Zen and the survivor. Zen was afraid that if he left at this moment she would panic so he sat next to her as the soldiers carried out their orders. Ten minutes later Grimsley came back with the horses and about fifteen minutes after that the carriage pulled up to the homestead. Bena didn¡¯t hesitate to leave the carriage and approach the girl, and Zen left her to take care of her. He got and quickly went to the remains of the wolves to loot them. In GCO there were two types of looting and Zen was truly only capable of one of them. He could place his hands on the creature and loot the corpse and he could choose auto loot or use skills to get individual pieces. He used auto loot on the first wolf and got a cheap pelt and two wolf claws. He was disappointed at the loot but had just started playing. ¡°Banick does anybody know how to properly skin the creatures?¡± ¡°Sir Vern is decent in it do you want me to have him do so?¡± Banick asked. ¡°Yes, and when he is done take half and split it among the four of you.¡± Zen stated. ¡°Yes Sir¡± He knew Bena would need some time with the survivor, so he focused on what he could do. They still had to make it to the village for him to take control but having a little experience in combat wasn¡¯t a bad thing. If he didn¡¯t have the guards through he would have only been a tasty treat for these wolves. He sighed and then headed back to the homestead to see if there was anything of use. Chapter 1: A New Beginning Part 3 The trip to the village started again, and this time there was one more addition. The girl¡¯s name was Elina, and she¡¯s the sole survivor of the homestead that cost all the rest of her family their lives. Bena was comforting her as the carriage finally began to move again. They were at the homestead for two hours to allow the wolves to be looted and the burial of Elina¡¯s three family members. She had lost her parents and little brother in the wolf attack. GCO had random occurrences that players or other natives could intervene in. These were a true sense of the word Non player characters. These random occurrences only happened in Lord areas, and only when a player was present. In other words, if he hadn¡¯t been in the carriage the occurrence wouldn¡¯t of been generated. These events were timed so there was a little luck involved in finding and saving them. This time only Elina had survived, and by taking her with them he could add one more person to his village. This was just another example of how unique the Lord system was in GCO. The chances of him coming across this occurrence wasn¡¯t high, so it was a lucky break for him. Some of Zen¡¯s skills had also increased in the battle, as his archery and sword skills rose half way up to level 1. He also received a total of 8 combat experience and surprisingly his level in Lord¡¯s Aura had raised 12%. He still wasn¡¯t sure what triggered the raise of the Lord¡¯s Aura, and had to do a better job of noticing that. The trip in to Coral Heights only took about ten more minutes, and as they approached the gates he realized that this village wasn¡¯t much more than a grouping of homesteads. They were surrounded by a very poorly made wooden wall, and a gate that looked like it had to be drug in to place. The sight of his carriage must have been eye catching, because as they went through the open gates a group of villagers were standing still staring at them. ¡°Bena I don¡¯t see more than a dozen shacks and huts here.¡± Sighed Zen. ¡°Also this location isn¡¯t defensible at all.¡± ¡°We should probably wait to build the manor till you find a better location for the village.¡± Suggested Bena. ¡°There should be a manor house here, so you can wait to update till we choose a new place.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± Zen said. ¡°When we take control of the altar I need you to do a full review of what we have to work with. You can take Elina with you if she wants.¡± ¡°Yes my lord.¡± Bena said as she turned to Elina and smiled. The carriage finally stopped and the door open and Zen stepped out on to the muddy ground. The inner part of the village looked worse than from the outside, and Zen could tell that these people lived a very hard life. There were at least a few dozen people standing watching him, and as he moved forward he could see Bena and Elina come down from the carriage behind him. He gazed over the area and his eyes stopped on a long stone pillar that¡¯s stood near the middle of the open area. Zen recognized it as the altar right away, and with two of his guards walking with him he headed right for it. A altar came in a number of different shapes and sizes, and in the large cities it was typically a temple. Here it was just a stone pole that was covered by mud and vines, but even in its appearance it was a holy altar. Zen walked up to the altar and stopped a few feet away before taking out his medallion, that had been given to him by the emperor. He took a large step right up beside the pole and he touched the pole with the medallion, and suddenly a blue energy transferred from the medallion into the altar and all the mud and vines fell away dropping to the ground. The blue energy verified that Zen¡¯s the true lord of this territory, and this has been verified under the gods. The blue energy circled around Zen and suddenly a pulse of energy expanded out from the altar, and passed through everybody in the village. A separate ball of energy shot up into the air, and created a dome that covered everything, extending outward over the village like a shield by the gods. The villagers all dropped to there knees and bowed to Zen. This included his four guards, and surprisingly Bena and Elina also. Zen turned around with the blue aura still around him and exclaimed. ¡°Villagers of Coral Heights, my name is Zen Martell, and I have been decreed by the heavens and the emperor as your lord. Those that serve me well will be treated in kind, and those that threaten me and my subjects will suffer my wrath. Be steadfast in your service and we will build a better future together.¡± A number of blue balls of energy rose in the air and broke into small pieces, before shooting forth and entering the villagers and all in his retinue. A number of people that weren¡¯t in the area near the altar came from where ever they had been and kneeled. Zen was impressed with the ceremony and he turned back to the altar and placed his hand on it. Bena was next followed by Elina as they walked past Zen and placed there hand on the altar. Slowly the villagers started to rise and do the same before returning to where they knelt before. Zen could see the hope in there eyes and he could only smile brightly. The last villager had touched the altar and then returned waiting for there new lord to speak. Zen put his hand to his heart and then finally spoke. ¡°I know your life is hard and many creatures have caused dangers beyond imagination, but I will work to improve the condition just like I ask you to aid me in doing so. Go forth and continue doing what must be done while we do what we must to keep you safe.¡±Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. The villagers did exactly that and they went back to there homes and tasks leaving only those that came with Zen there. Zen chuckled inwardly at the fact this type of reaction could only happen in a virtual game, but he didn¡¯t say anything as he nodded to everybody to follow. He walked back to the carriage gazing around trying to absorb as much information as he could. ¡°Banick send somebody to find the lord¡¯s manor.¡± Zen commanded. ¡°We will have to live with that until we set up something in a better location.¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± Banick retorted as he organized the search. The process of finding the manor didn¡¯t take to long, and as they entered the manor Bena and Elina directly started to clean. Zen on the other hand needed to go to his office, because that was the location of the portal to his sanctuary. One of the coolest features of GCO was the sanctuary system for Lords. GCO knew that playing a Lord was more difficult and time consuming, and most of players playing it were wealthy people in the real world. They balanced everything by creating the sanctuary system which allowed a player to plan and control there territory with more time. In most virtual reality games, there is a time differential between real life and virtual life. This is because a person¡¯s body can only handle so much, but there mind is much more flexible. This allows games like GCO to give the impression that multiple days are occurring in virtual reality but in reality only one day goes by. GCO runs on a 4 to 1 compression, which means that four days in the game world pass before 1 day in real world. The game has to use a balanced time frame, because it wouldn¡¯t work properly if each person¡¯s compression rate was different. The sanctuaries though were different because they were private spaces. This allowed them to exceed the 4 to 1 ratio. The game scans and monitors to make sure that to much pressure isn¡¯t put on the consciousness of the player, and Zen¡¯s ratio was at 11 to 1. Which means that while in his sanctuary, Zen has almost 3 times more than other standard players to plan, train and manage his territory. Zen walked over to the small office in the manor and opened the door revealing a worn wooden desk and chairs. There was a long table off to the side with another set of chairs around it. He shut the door and walked behind the wooden desk where there was a glowing white portal that only he could see, and with out hesitation he walked through it to his sanctuary. A sanctuary is something that is suppose to be a place where the lord is comfortable, and thus the designs of sanctuaries differ from player to player. Zen didn¡¯t go the garden of Eden route, instead he made it into a lush apartment that was similar to that of his grandfathers. It was a scar from his past that changed his life and in the end brought him to GCO. The main area had lush couches, that were in front of a large monitor, that could view raw streams people posted in GCO. There were other areas of relaxation from exercise equipment to a meditation chamber, but the most important tool in the sanctuary was the giant table in the middle. The table was a three dimensional representation of his territory and including all the information on those that reside in it. There he can plan to use the villagers and his direct troops in the best way possible. Sitting at that table was a woman dressed in slacks and a t-shirt with long brown hair and eyes. She was doing research and eating a bowl of popcorn. This woman looked very similar to Bena except younger, and why her avatar was currently cleaning the manor with Elina, she was relaxing here. She was still his AI and she was doing the tasks that he set before her previously, but what surprised Zen the most was how humanlike she was in personality. If he didn¡¯t know she was a AI he doubted he would ever guess it. ¡°So what does it look like Bena?¡± Zen questioned as he approached the table. ¡°Well our scarcest resource currently is manpower.¡± She looked at him as she tossed a few kernels of popcorn into her mouth. ¡°What do you think we should do?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Buy some slaves to compensate?¡± ¡°Good idea but I would make them indentured slaves.¡± She suggested. ¡°They will cause the loyalty of your villagers to be less, and if you give them a opportunity to gain their freedom it will take less time to gain their loyalty as well.¡± ¡°What about funds?¡± ¡°That is one area you don¡¯t have to worry about.¡± She giggled. ¡°You are loaded with currency. So much that it is shocking to see. I am sure that they will fix this exploit in the next patch so nobody else can use it.¡± Bena hit a few keys and brought up the assets that he currently had, and even Zen was shocked. He normally would of got a city with at least 20,000 villagers for his platinum VIP status. He instead shunned the fame and prestige that a city like that gave him, and basically gutted it completely. When sacking a city of that size the funds earned were usually 5% of the overall worth, but the system gave him 100% of the worth as compensation and it was something that couldn¡¯t be taken away. They did mitigate it by putting in barriers, but they weren¡¯t anything that his funds couldn¡¯t handle. The fact he had all these assets to work with didn¡¯t actually make Zen as overjoyed as most. He had grown up with money, and in his opinion, that money had caused his family to be corrupted completely. He probably would of gone down that path as well if his grandfather hadn¡¯t taken him under his guidance. He wasn¡¯t a angel and wasn¡¯t somebody that could avoid temptation like a saint, but compared to his family he was closer to human. ¡°Bena have you found any locations the village would be able to prosper at?¡± ¡°You received a general map of the area around Coral Heights, but nothing is marked besides topography. There are two locations that seem better than the rest, but you will have to go check them out to be sure. That way what you find will be added to the maps as you explore.¡± Bena explained. ¡°Well that won¡¯t be to much of a problem, because the one thing I am experience in is mapping.¡± Zen chuckled. ¡°Give me a list of things that have to be done right away and I will see what I can do.¡± ¡°Already done with it.¡± Bena said. ¡°These next few days are going to be very interesting.¡± ¡°Why do you say that?¡± ¡°Telling you will take the fun out of it.¡± Smiled Bena. Chapter 1: A new Beginning Part 4 It had been two days since Zen had taken ownership of Coral Heights, and he had spent both of those days making a large circle around the village and checking out the two locations Bena had mentioned. The two locations were far enough away that him and Banick had to sleep in the wilderness and on the way, they trained up his skills the best he could. His archery had raised to level 3 and his swordplay had reached 2, but over the first two days he had gained several skills that were vital to life in the wilds. The biggest gain was that he had raised his endurance and awareness to 6. It may not have seemed like much, but the more he raised his stats naturally the better. GCO didn¡¯t have levels because they said it hampered the players growth potential. It used the players experience as a currency to raise stats and learn skills. The initial price was just 1 experience point, but as people improved it cost more. Combat, trade skill and diplomacy were the three types of experience gained, and depending on the skill or attribute you had to pay a certain amount of experience points. Zen had raised his awareness and endurance attributes, but he had to pay 6 combat experience for endurance, and 4 combat and 2 diplomacy experience for awareness. GCO made it easy for you to know what experience point types were needed to raise skills and attributes. You just needed to click on them an you could see at what level the potential bar was at, and what type of experience you needed to upgrade it to the next level. The physical type attributes and skills were easy because you just had to use your combat experience, but the combination for the others were things that had to be planned. My thoughts were interrupted when we reached the second of the possible building sites and discovered there was already a small group of homes there. Banick stopped and dismounted the horse and I followed suit. The open area in front of them was a long stretch of flat land that had a good size river flowing through it. There were mountains not far away to the north and east was a large forested zone. This would be a perfect place to set up a village, and if fell directly inside his territory. ¡°What do you think Banick?¡± Zen asked as he nodded to the small houses. ¡°Do you think this will be a problem?¡± ¡°No Sir. It is inside your territory, so this is your due, but we are currently weak now and only have a few able men.¡± ¡°I count 8 or 9 people down there and it looks like they have little to no defenses.¡± Zen watched the group and then a frown came across his face as he noticed movement at the river, and saw the two lizard type creatures coming out of the water. That was when he realized that this was an occurrence and he pointed to the lizards. Banick didn¡¯t say anything but started to ride down the side of the hill toward the river. There wasn¡¯t a direct route to the valley from the hill, but Zen¡¯s riding skill had improved over the last two days, so he was able to keep up with Banick as they rode toward the huts with as much haste as they could. When they reached the small homesteads, the lizards were just approaching, and two strong looking men were trying to draw them away from there families. The lizards were much larger than they seemed from the hill, but without hesitation both dismounted and Banick brought out his axe while Zen used his bow. After his time in the wilderness, Zen was getting used to the hunting and his first arrow struck the nearest lizard low near its underside, and the lizard reacted with a hiss. The second arrow was already notched, and Zen concentrated aiming for the bulbus eyes on its head. The arrow hit but bounced off the scales only leaving a red mark on it. He didn¡¯t stop and continued to fire his arrows at the fastest pace he could. The fourth arrow struck the left eye penetrating deeply into it causing it to thrash around violently. Banick took the opportunity and swung down at its fore leg using his strength to dig deep in to the joint. The next strike put the lizard down for good, but Zen was already concentrating on the other lizard. The lizard had already injured one of the men and was trying to get at him. It raised up and left his underbelly open and Zen took the shot hitting it squarely. The arrow sank in a few inches, in to the less tough skin, and suddenly the lizards head turned and looked at him. Banick had finished with the first lizard and was already at his side, when the lizard turned and charged. This lizard was much larger than the other and as it moved forward its head moved from side to side making its eyes difficult to hit. Zen tried to focus and let loose his arrow, but it bounced off its snout leaving no scar at all. Zen put away his bow and took out his sword getting into a defensive position, and as the Lizard was just about to reach him an arrow struck its eye causing it to stumble. Banick and Zen didn¡¯t hesitate and struck the lizard from opposite sides. Banick¡¯s axe drew the lizard¡¯s attention as Zen thrust his blade striking at the same eye the arrow was sticking out from. His blade slid in all the way and the lizard started to thrash around its tale striking Zen nocking him down. Zen¡¯s health dropped three quarters of the way as he rolled to the side just barely missing the second strike from the lizard¡¯s tale. Banick drew the lizard away and then quickly disabled the lizard with a strike to the leg. Banick then backed away and allowed the lizard to die naturally. Zen struggled to his feet as Banick moved to stand between him and the lizard, but the lizard was already in its last throws of life. It died moments later, and Zen checked his body for any bleeding. He didn¡¯t find any gashes, so he sat down and tried to gain back his HP. The two of them didn¡¯t approach the two injured men, but waited for their health to max out before getting up, and walking over to the horses. The tension was still strong when Banick and Zen led there horses over to the two men. There was two young men and a woman trying to bandage the wounded man¡¯s torso. The two boys had their hands on there weapons, but Zen didn¡¯t pay them any attention and looked at the wounded man. He had a claw mark across his chest and it was bleeding, and why the woman was bandaging the wounds they weren¡¯t bandaged tight enough to stop all the bleeding. ¡°Would you mind if I let Banick look at those wounds?¡± Zen asked in a calm tone. ¡°He is trained so he might be able to stop the bleeding.¡± The woman looked up at Zen and he could see tears running down her dirt stained face, as she showed fear in her green eyes. He tried to give a reassuring smile and nodded to Banick, which moved to help stop the wounds from bleeding. The natives were much like players in that regard, that hp would start to increase when the bleeding was taken care of. A wound would cause a block of their health from restoring completely, but when healed they would regain their full health points. Zen looked over to the other man and smiled and asked. ¡°How long have you all been in this area?¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Why do you want to know?¡± A black-haired boy asked rudely. ¡°Yea why would we need to tell you.¡± A second boy with blond hair yelled. ¡°Because he is the Lord of this territory.¡± Banick said coldly as he raised up from helping bandage the injured man. ¡°This land belongs to him by right of the emperor¡¯s decree.¡± The two boys¡¯ eyes widened as the older man that wasn¡¯t injured came forward and knelt pushing the two boys down too. There was a look of fear in his eyes as he held down on the two boys¡¯ heads as he knelt trembling. Zen only could let out a sigh before talking. ¡°Why don¡¯t you two go help the injured man back to the hut and let me speak with your senior.¡± ¡°We are sorry for being disrespectful your lordship.¡± The older man said as he glared at the two youths. Zen could only smile inside as he held a cold smile on his face outwardly. He had to be firm with them because it was expected of nobility, but he could also use this to make them owe him. He would use their own perspective against them, and if he did this right they will feel like he did them a service. It was just a matter of not going to far and getting the desired results. ¡°What is your name?¡± Zen commanded. ¡°It is Vermi my lord.¡± The older man muttered. ¡°Alright Vermi how many people do you have here on the land? ¡°We have nine here in total my lord.¡± The old man said quickly. ¡°Me and my brother and our wives along with the two lads and lass you saw earlier. There are two other lasses beside them.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t safe for you here yet.¡± Zen stated plainly. ¡°Gather your things and come back to Coral Heights with us.¡± ¡°Yes, your lordship.¡± ¡°Banick how was the other man?¡± ¡°He had some deep wounds, but he will be alright after they heal.¡± Banick answered. ¡°We will stay the night here and then take everybody back with us in the morning.¡± Zen ordered so the old man could hear him plainly. Zen saw Banick nod approvingly as they walked the horse to the homestead. The afternoon would give him enough time to clearly inspect the area to verify it would be a good spot for Coral Heights. He could see the old man Vermi shaking as he walked in front of them and felt somewhat bad for scaring him, but it had to be done. If he was to nice the man would probably not respect him, and he couldn¡¯t have that happen. When they reached the homestead, Vermi had ordered everybody to prepare for the trip to Coral Heights, and even though they were scared they followed through with his orders starting to pack what they had. It looked like they didn¡¯t have much to prepare, but they were quick to pack like they had done it a few times before. The moment Zen informed the old man that he was going to go out and check the lands. He offered the services of his daughter Cora. She had been the one that hit the lizard in the eye, and even though Zen didn¡¯t think she needed to come. He allowed her to come with them to make the old man feel better. Cora seemed to be a year or so younger than him, and she wore multiple tunics which made everything look bulky on her. She carried a ragged bow and a quiver of handmade arrows, and as they left she silently followed behind them with out saying a word. She still had tear stains on her muddy face, but her eyes seemed to have cleared more. ¡°Have you investigated much of the land yet?¡± Zen asked the girl. ¡°Yes sir.¡± The girl replied. ¡°Almost everywhere but the river because pa said that it was too dangerous there.¡± ¡°Your father is wise.¡± Zen said as they first headed toward the foothills of the small mountain range. Zen spent most of the afternoon riding through the hills following Cora, as she guided them to locations that she had found. He found it amusing that even though this was an occurrence, and might have been generated less than an hour before they arrived at that hill. She had all this knowledge about the valley area, and had led them to three spots that might have mineral deposits. It was almost like she had been there for years even though she was created randomly in an instant. When they returned to the homestead he was surprised to see that somewhere they had a wagon and two oxen. He didn¡¯t remember seeing any animals or a wagon earlier, but again he had to remind himself this was not reality, but a virtual game. The head of the homestead had offered him one of the homesteads, and they went in to the other. He almost refused, but he remembered his position and accepted it. The wife of Verli and Cora stayed to make them a meal. There meal was good and both Banick and him were grateful. He was just about to prepare for sleep when the wife of Verli came up to him and bowed. ¡°My lord do you have a moment?¡± The woman asked. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I ask you to spare my son and nephew from their rude comments they said before.¡± She cried out with tears running down her cheeks. ¡°We will be sure to teach them manners, so they can be assets to the lordship in the future.¡± Zen looked a little confused at the actions of the woman, but they seemed to be genuine. She was truly afraid he would kill them, and when he was about to say something the woman got down on her knees and pulled Cora down with her. ¡°Your lordship I know that asking your forgiveness for these unforgivable offenses is too much, so I offer the service of my daughter in their place. She is a fine cook and has many skills with the bow. Please accept my offering.¡± Zen was speechless that she was willing to give up her daughter like this. It would have been much better for the boys to run away in the middle of the night than her offering up her child. He was about to refuse when a box popped up in front of him.
Cora Vansader has offered to swear loyalty to you. Do you accept? Yes or No.
This was something that Bena had stressed, when they talked, before Zen had left for the scouting mission. GCO had a set of prerequisites that had to be met before the village could move to the new location. One of the prerequisites was to have 5 sworn bound retainers, and they had to volunteer and couldn¡¯t be forced in any way. This was exactly what the woman was doing by offering her self to swear loyalty. Zen had two choices he could do the right thing and reject or just accept it, and in the end the pragmatic part of Zen won out. ¡°If it is the girl that voluntarily swears service then I will accept.¡± Zen said with a stern face. ¡°If you are forcing her to do this then I cannot.¡± ¡°I am not being forced my lord.¡± Cora said with her eyes tearing. ¡°Then I accept.¡±
You have accepted Cora Vansader as a sworn bound retainer. You now have control over her future progress. You can set tasks for her growth in the sanctuary under the retainer section. You currently have 1 retainer.
Zen was confused because he didn¡¯t know what made her different from his four guards and Bena. They served him as a retainer in a way. He would have to ask Bena about that when he got back, but for now he had to think of a way to resolve the issue of Cora and her mother. ¡°We will discuss more about your duties Cora when we return to the village.¡± Zen said with a stern tone. ¡°As for the incident with your son and nephew think of it as resolved.¡± ¡°Thank you, your lordship.¡± The woman sniffled. ¡°Thank you for saving us, and I know my daughter will serve you well.¡± Zen really didn¡¯t know what to say and he just nodded and moved his hand to allow her to leave. She didn¡¯t hesitate and left, but Cora stayed in a kneeling position. He sighed softly and knew he had to resolve this soon. ¡°Cora I am going to bed. You should make yourself something to eat and get a good night¡¯s sleep. You will have a long day of traveling tomorrow.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord and thank you my lord.¡± She said and stayed kneeling. Zen just sighed and left not looking at Banick or her as he shut the door to the small room. There he laid on the bed and wondered if all nobles struck so much fear in to their people. He would have to find out what options he had for retainers when he got back to his sanctuary. He could normally access it from his office or any permanent residence or inn, but this was an occurrence, so this homestead wasn¡¯t his or permanent. He just seemed to be picking up stray girls all the time and he felt like this was taking a bizarre direction. Tomorrow morning he would go back to Coral Heights, with the new residents and start to plan how to move the village. He still had a number of things to work out, but he would worry about that when he returned. Chapter 1: A New Beginning Part 5 The trip back to Coral Heights was mostly uneventful, and there were only three beast attacks. The first two were easy to handle because they were lone creatures, but the last one was a pack. Surprisingly, Cora had helped with her bow during that attack, and she was much better than him. The range of her arrows wasn¡¯t that great, but that was probably because of the poor bow and handmade arrows. When they reached the town, the wooden wall was in much better shape, and the gate was closed and could swing in to place. Vern was behind the gate guarding along with three boys that were probably no older than 12 years old. Zen smiled as the boys pushed open the gates allowing the oxen and wagon along with there two horses in. It wasn¡¯t much better than before, but at least it looked like the damage on the walls and gate was repaired. One of the boys took the horses from Banick and him, and he walked toward the manor with Cora in toe. He tried not to sigh when he saw her following, but she was now a retainer, so it was right for her to come with him. He still felt a little bad about taking her from her family, but he would have Bena manage her like she did Elina. He just entered the door when he saw Bena waiting with another woman that was dressed in a simple but well-tailored dress. The girl was pretty, and she bowed to him with a curtsey, and that was when he realized who she was. Elina had changed a lot since he had left, and it looked totally different from the girl he had left here. ¡°Welcome back sir.¡± Bena asked as she looked gazed from him to Cora. ¡°I will explain it later Bena.¡± Zen smiled. ¡°She has sworn her self to me as a retainer, but as you can see she is ill equipped to do so. I will leave you to sort out what she needs, but now I need to go to my office and see the reports on what has happened since I left.¡± ¡°Yes, sir I will take care to get the information from her and get her sorted out.¡± Bena said with a smile in her eyes. ¡°If you need anything just call for Elina or me.¡± ¡°I understand, and if you can bring me some tea and a snack in an hour or so, it would be great.¡± Zen said as he walked up the stairs and toward his office. Zen hesitated a moment and shut the door, and then escaped in to his sanctuary, where he saw Bena sitting on the couch watching a raw feed. He walked over to the screen and stopped dead in his tracks as he realized the raw stream was of him fighting the lizards, and Bena was rewinding and playing him being hit by the lizard tail repeatedly. He looked down at Bena and started to think that she is a malfunctioning AI. ¡°It really doesn¡¯t get old.¡± Bena said as she looked up at him. ¡°I saw that you picked up another stray. Are you trying to start a harem?¡± ¡°What no¡­¡± Zen stammered. ¡°Why not? You will need one eventually, after all having a few heirs is important to a lord.¡± Bena twisted around and smiled devilishly. ¡°What?¡± Zen spat. ¡°Listen, normal wealthy players have a number of lackies to take on the roles of leaders of villages and towns. Since you don¡¯t have any other players taking on those roles. You either have to hire people and hope they don¡¯t betray you or create heirs.¡± Bena explained. ¡°You¡¯re not gay, are you?¡± ¡°No, I like woman just fine.¡± Zen stuttered. ¡°Good.¡± Bena said with a laugh. ¡°What type of AI are you?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know it is rude to ask that to an AI?¡± Bena fake pouted. ¡°I will tell you though. I am the highest type of AI that a player is allowed. That is how absurd your stunt of turning a platinum VIP in to a pauper lord on purpose.¡± ¡°You¡¯re serious about the heir¡¯s thing?¡± asked Zen seriously. ¡°It is actually the smartest way of doing it.¡± Bena said. ¡°No pun intended by the way.¡± Zen groaned at Bena¡¯s play with words, but he was curious why it was the smartest way. He had read several books that noble heirs had caused internal conflict and sewed chaos inside and outside a household. He didn¡¯t understand why it was the best way. ¡°I can see it on your face you don¡¯t understand.¡± Bena smiled. ¡°An heir¡¯s education and experiences are controlled by the player, and they also influence their personality. If you send an heir off to fight the continental battles you can take control of that heir from the sanctuary. The perks of platinum VIP are boundless.¡± ¡°I really need to sit down and go over what perks I get.¡± Zen muttered. ¡°That is what you have me for.¡± Bena giggled. ¡°Now let¡¯s talk about that new girl you picked up.¡± ¡°You mean Cora?¡± ¡°Yes, it was quite the luck that you made her in to a retainer, because we need more retainers to be able to create an outpost. That is the only way we are going to be able to move the village of coral heights to that region without causing a riot.¡± Bena stated. ¡°Explain¡­¡± Zen turned serious as well. ¡°You are only aloud 1 village and 1 outpost until you get enough villagers to expand. This makes it impossible to not waste money on this village before opening a new one at that location. There is one caveat though, because you can build an outpost in that location and then transfer the village rights to that outpost and it can take over. The same necessary buildings are needed for an outpost and a village. If this city was larger and was a town or city. It wouldn¡¯t be near as easy to do this.¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°But we need 5 retainers to build an outpost?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Would I need an heir then to keep in charge of this outpost?¡± questioned Zen. ¡°No, soldiers can run outpost and any of your body guards are capable in that regard.¡± Bena explained. ¡°Though you are getting Cora as a retainer will help quite a bit toward that goal.¡± ¡°Why? She is only one?¡± ¡°You will understand in time.¡± Bena giggled. ¡°But now that we have more data on the locations we can have a better grasp on starting construction on building the outpost. I assume you liked the second site better.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The buildings won¡¯t be a problem because of the resources, but the wall has to be done by manual labor. Wood is easy to build and take down. Stone is much harder but is durable to attack.¡± Explained Bena. ¡°The first wall has to be wood until we decide on the outer edges of what will eventually be a city size.¡± Zen decided. ¡°You also have to decide on the street design and placements of the different textiles¡­¡± ¡°Wait!¡± Zen said in a raised voice. ¡°Can¡¯t you do all that and I just make changes or approve it?¡± ¡°You mean you don¡¯t want to do everything?¡± Bena asked with a sweet voice. ¡°Hell no!¡± spat Zen. Bena just giggled and then said. ¡°Ok I will do all of the designing and come and ask if I need your authority on something.¡± Zen had just realized that she was totally messing around with him, and she was going to take care of everything from the start. What kind of AI did he get? He sat down in front of the screen and accessed the controls. A 3D image of the village came up on the screen and he realized that he could watch what was going on in his manor from here. He focused on Bena¡¯s avatar and saw her making some food in the kitchen. He moved to Elina filling up a large tub and saw Cora looking depressed as she was stripping away layer after layer of clothes. He paused a moment and then sighed and then changed the screen and suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Bena. ¡°You really are innocent.¡± Bena mused as she looked at him. ¡°Why don¡¯t you let your self go a little. Sex is just sex here, and I have been told it is just as enjoyable as your real life.¡± ¡°What type of AI are you?¡± Zen asked again. ¡°The moral codes of your real life will only limit you here.¡± Bena muttered as she shook her head. ¡°Those that excel here understand our way of life, and the rules we have. You are not the same as your real life, and the natives here will only truly accept those that play by our rules and cultures. Elina and Cora expect you to take them in to your bedroom, and if you don¡¯t they will lose trust in you. They know they are not nobles and can¡¯t be one of your wives, but it doesn¡¯t mean they can¡¯t better their lives and their families. There true intentions they have will be based on your treatment of them, but if you play by the moral codes of your world. They will just think your insane.¡± Zen just gawked at Bena not knowing what to say, because this was a real shock to him. He couldn¡¯t believe what she was trying to say, but the natives here are truly realistic in nature. There were times when you knew what they did wasn¡¯t natural, but that didn¡¯t mean it wasn¡¯t natural to them. It meant that he didn¡¯t believe it was natural. He understood what Bena was saying, because there were a few people that would just sleep with Cora and Elina with out hesitation. He knew his brothers would and then throw them away. ¡°Are the natives that real here?¡± Zen asked in a pleading manner. ¡°Define real.¡± Bena answered. ¡°To us you don¡¯t act real, and when family or friends die. We cover the same emotions from sadness to anger like any of you would. We have had thousands of years before the first player came here, and we have developed our own culture with in the parameters we were given. Is that any less real than the culture your people have created over that same time. I think the question you must ask your self is, whether Rozen Martell Lord of Coral Heights is from here, or from your world everybody seems to want to run away from. Zen felt numb and finally asked. ¡°Does every player know about this?¡± ¡°You idiot.¡± Bena laughed. ¡°Do you think everybody has an AI assisting them? Do you think they all have one as high as me? Maybe a few at the very most might know, but would those people truly care to believe such a thing, and would the AI¡¯s believe in their lords to even bring it up. It is because your kind and somewhat na?ve that I am telling you this, but for the most part I think you have a capacity to believe it and excel here.¡± The conversation with Bena was shocking and exciting at the same time, because in real life Zen hadn¡¯t had any real relationships. His first real fling was a year after he entered virtual reality, and that was with Amanda from Arrise Guild. The relationship never really went anywhere, and while Amanda was unbelievably beautiful. She also had too much responsibility and after a while their relationship turned in to friendship. Other than Amanda he had sex a few times with other females in the guild, but most of those were members wanting to get information that he had privy too. There weren¡¯t any feelings involved but the situation he had in front of him this time was different. Most people would just take it as a game and transform in to the energizer bunny and go at it, but Zen knew that he couldn¡¯t justify it like that if Bena was telling the truth. His gut instinct told him she was, and this was an amazing discovery for him that could lead him to becoming powerful in GCO. The problem is that he never truly sought power or riches in his real life, but he did use it. He sat down on is couch and realized he was truly an idiot. What was real and what was fake now a days? Bena was right, because in the place he was right now seemed real to him. It was a different life that he hadn¡¯t even began to live yet, and with the wealth he could make here. He could change or rather make things better. They were not non-player characters, but natives and having sex every so often. Did that make him a truly bad person? ¡°You are really thinking hard on this.¡± Bena sounded surprised as she walked beside him. ¡°I think you¡¯re the first player I have viewed that took your decision so seriously. I am not sure if that makes you a tard or a thoughtful person. Ether way it is kind of cute, and I think it justifies my decision to tell you.¡± ¡°I am not sure if I will be able to handle this.¡± Zen muttered. ¡°Oh, just ball up and be a man.¡± Bena snapped. ¡°Nobody likes the wimp type characters in those books. So, let yourself go and we will support you the best we can.¡± Zen just started laughing at Bena¡¯s comment and realized he was one of those wimp type characters he always mocked. His laughter lasted for almost a minute before he gained control of himself and nodded to Bena before saying. ¡°Ok Bena I give you permission to kick my ass if I revert.¡± ¡°Ahh now that is a truly good command.¡± Bena smiled as sat down beside him. ¡°Now that wimpy stuff is over I am going to teach you how to truly command the system here. By the time I am done you will have as much power as the emperor and maybe as many wives.¡± Zen sighed and didn¡¯t know what he was getting into, but he knew that he wouldn¡¯t be like his brothers. He would do things right and only must be harsh when needed. He didn¡¯t know how long he could hide in virtual reality, but he was going to make it enjoyable. He nodded and focused on Bena and began his new education. Chapter 1: A new Beginning Part 6 Zen felt a little overwhelmed by the revelations of the last day, and he focused on the village of Coral Heights. He had been absent the first few days as he mapped the area, and after he had a meal and a good nights sleep. He started the next morning by using the lord system and getting to know his villagers a little. The first thing he did was pull up Cora and see what the retainer options gave him to work with. Cora¡¯s character information appeared before him, which had her avatar slowly rotating around in the upper left corner. The general information gave her physical and personality characteristics. According to the sheet Cora¡¯s main attribute were in the physical area, and the highest attributes were her dexterity and endurance. Both of these were at 8, which was actually higher than his. Next came agility and awareness, which were at 7. Her lowest was her intelligence which was at 4, and everything else was at 5. He also noticed that she didn¡¯t have some of the attributes that he had, and her skills were sorely lacking and restrained to only combat and some tracking skills. He knew that if he added his extra stat points he would be well ahead of her, but if starting out at the same level he was still a little lacking. This made him wonder if players and natives had different types of character stats. The second part was her personality and it showed her current state of mind. She had scared, confused, insecure, well fed and well rested tags on her showing her as current status. A listing of stubborn, loyal, hard working and curious were listed as Cora¡¯s personality traits. ¡°Bena have you taken a look at Cora¡¯s information yet?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Came a voice from over by the couch. ¡°I think her intelligence is something we have to rectify, which means she is probably illiterate.¡± Zen mused. ¡°You think that should be the first step for her?¡± ¡°I agree, but we shouldn¡¯t neglect her combat ether.¡± ¡°Then have her work with Vern with the bow, in the morning and education in the evenings?¡± Zen suggested. ¡°That sounds good.¡± Bena agreed. ¡°I would also have her go out hunting as well and maybe learn how to craft better arrows.: Zen nodded his head in agreement and looked at the options for her. He went to the progression screen and expanded the options searching for the ones they just discussed. The screen brought up her current statuses which were in blue. The first was Archery, which was at level 3, and he slid the bar over to level 5. The bar showed level 0 to level 3 in blue ending half way between level 3 and level 4. The rest of the bar was in red meaning that she hadn¡¯t attained that rank. He set it to notify him when she reached her goal. He did the same things with all of the other skills and attributes that he wanted her to improve in, which included literacy that was currently between level 0 and level 1. He made the largest push there setting the target at level 5. These options wouldn¡¯t force her to focus on these skills and stats, but would create opportunities and urge her in the right direction. Zen double checked to make sure everything was set, and then he pushed activate to make his decisions go in to effect. Zen then pulled up the village activity list, and saw currently the priorities were focused on defenses, which included repairing the wooden walls, and training the villagers to defend themselves. Currently his guards had started to teach some of the villagers how to defend against attacks. They currently only had 89 people in Coral Heights, which excluded those in the manor and any retainers. There were 58 males and 41 females. 11 elderly, 61 adult and 17 children. There had been 4 people that had immigrated to Coral Heights since he took over, not including the family he brought with him yesterday. He pulled up the statistics of the village and found his overall approval was 79% and overall happiness was only at 43%. The biggest complaint was housing and food, and the largest improvement was in security. Zen felt this was very similar to many civilization building games where he had to have minimum happiness to improve the number of people, and since housing was a complaint he had to start there. ¡°What type of houses do you think would be best with the natural resources we currently have?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Since the winds are strong here and it is an open plateau, then house made out of mud bricks would be the best. Most of the houses here are wood, and the wind goes right through them.¡± Bena said. ¡°Do we have anybody that can make mud or brick and show some of the villagers how to do it?¡± ¡°Yes Ross has the knowledge.¡± Bena confirmed. ¡°It would be a good idea to bring him in and talk to him about it and see what he needs.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± Zen said as he got up from the three dimensional table, and headed for the door where he exited his sanctuary, and entered his bedroom. Sanctuaries were truly unique, because as he spent time in there, his avatar still remained in the world. Bena had explained to him that when he entered the sanctuary. He left a avatar in his place making it looked like he was working. He also found out that the avatar came in contact with others it would notify him, and he could ether renter the avatar, or control him from his location in the sanctuary. This was something all lord players had. His Avatar was currently sleeping so when he entered the avatar he came awake and sat up in the bed. He was dressed naked and suddenly he wondered if this choice was Bena¡¯s doing. He only could chuckle as he slipped out of the bed and into his clothes. This was a natural occurrence, but he realized in most games players had a type of underwear or had to equip clothes. He realized he could do it ether way, and this was just another option that led Zen to feel this was similar to reality. He left his bedroom and walked down the stairs where he was met by Bena. She bowed to him as he made his way across the room to where they had eaten the night before. There were four chairs in place with currently one having dishes in front of it. He smiled and then said. ¡°Bena could you aske Banick and Ross to come here for a talk.¡± ¡°Yes my lord.¡± Bena said as she walked away leaving Elina to bring out some milk and pour it in to his glass. ¡°Thank you Elina.¡± Zen said.Stolen story; please report. Elina¡¯s cheeks flushed a little as she bowed to the thanks and quickly returned to the kitchen. Zen sighed and then took a sip of the milk, and waited for his breakfast to appear. Soon Cora stepped out with a plate followed by Elina with a mug of water and a pitcher. They placed the plate and mug in front of him and bowed and backed away and stood at the side of the room. The breakfast was simple and it consisted of eggs and mutton with a light creamy white gravy. He took a few bites and smiled to the two and then said. ¡°Elina, Cora, the food is good.¡± Zen expressed. ¡°Please give my compliments to Bena as well. I will also have Bena explain my expectations of both of you so please pay attention to what she tells you. I believe both of you are special and look forward to your growth.¡± Both Cora and Elina bowed as Zen ate his breakfast. Soon after he was finished Banick and Ross entered the dining area, and Zen couldn¡¯t help but smile. Elina quickly cleared his plates away as Zen motioned for both of them to take a seat. Cora stood by waiting for instructions if Zen would need something, and had her eyes looking downward trying not to make eye contact. ¡°Banick I brought you here because you are head of the guards, and I wanted you to know of my intentions.¡± Zen stated. ¡°That way if you see a better option you can tell me about it.¡± ¡°Thank you my lord for your consideration.¡± Banick answered. ¡°Ross I have been informed that you have knowledge of building walls.¡± Zen said plainly. ¡°Why I don¡¯t intend to build a stone wall in this village at the moment. I do want to make things better for the villagers and relieve at least a little of there anxiety. So I wanted to ask you if you have knowledge of building blocks out of mud and grass, or if you have any other options that you can share with some of the craftsmen of the village?¡± ¡°My lord it is possible to build blocks out of mud and grass.¡± Ross said. ¡°We could build mold for the blocks and then stack them out to dry.¡± ¡°I will leave the details to you and Banick, but I only ask you to teach some of the villagers how to do it.¡± Zen stated. ¡°Yes my lord.¡± Ross said. ¡°Banick, how are the defenses going?¡± Zen turned to Banick and asked with a smile. ¡°They are improving by the day My lord.¡± Banick stated. ¡°We are starting to build some small stands behind the walls so archers can keep watch and shoot at any beasts that approach.¡± ¡°Good, but be sure to be open to the villagers about what you are doing.¡± ¡°Yes my lord.¡± Banick answered and nodded his head in agreement. Zen nodded to the two guards dismissing them and looking over to Cora and saying, ¡°I am going to go to my office for a bit. If there is anything important Bena can see me there, and Cora, welcome to the manor. Your doing a good job.¡± ¡°Thank you my lord.¡± Cora said and blushed again. Zen walked up to his office feeling like all this blushing and agreement was going to go to his head. He walked in the office and again entered through the portal, and sat down to monitor the village. He brought up the 3D image of the manor and checked to see what everybody was doing. He checked Ross and Banick first and it seemed like they were talking to a muscular man in the village. He then switched to Bena and he saw her sorting through some cloth materials. He then looked at what Cora and Elina were doing, and he saw them together, seemingly in a deep discussion as Elina seemed to be listening to Cora. ¡°I see you are paying attention to the two girls.¡± Bena smiled as she was eating a bowl of cereal over his shoulder. ¡°Things get pretty stressful in the first few weeks, but don¡¯t worry so much and relax. Currently everything has been done the old fashion way. You are a platinum VIP so in a few days your portal token will refresh and you can visit the capital to buy some resources to help you. It will help relieve the burden a little.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me earlier?¡± Zen asked with a gawking expression on his face. ¡°And ruin this moment?¡± Giggled Bena. ¡°The look on your face is just too cute.¡± Zen put his hand to his face in frustration as he tried to calm his mind. Bena was good at keeping him off guard, but he supposed it was much better than having a emotionless AI helping him. He took a deep breath and then asked. ¡°What types of things can I do when I go to the capital?¡± Bena smiled and sat down next to him and patted his knee. ¡°Well you can spend some of your extraordinary wealth there for one thing. You can also gather information about your native neighbors, and purchase contracts for everything from indentured slaves to soldiers and people that can do trade skills.¡± ¡°So why doesn¡¯t everybody just use this cheat?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Everybody doesn¡¯t have the money or tokens to do it.¡± Bena said with a sigh. ¡°You just have no idea how rich you are. These markets only take in game currency, and at this point in time your villages currency is bartering. You have no real market and you can get people to work for food. This is how players typically start, but you actually have hundreds of more options to work with. Most don¡¯t have the disposable income, but that doesn¡¯t mean you should go hog wild at the capital. In fact, you should be really cautious, because you don¡¯t want others to notice you till you have enough strength to protect yourself, and more importantly your people.¡± ¡°So what is important for me to do right now?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Ahhh so sweet.¡± Bena said as she kissed him on the cheek. ¡°I like it that you don¡¯t pretend to know everything and rely on me. The portal will be available in about two days and once you enter it you only can spend 12 hours in the capital. So you have to pick your time right so you don¡¯t waste it. Right now we need some indentured slaves and soldiers but we don¡¯t have the room to put them. So we will have to buy some bonded slaves instead.¡± ¡°Bonded slaves?¡± ¡°They are bonded to their master with a magical mark that only their master can remove. Why marked they can¡¯t hurt or plot their master, but on the other hand they can¡¯t grow ether. The problem is bonded slaves can¡¯t be chosen independently, but only in lots. That means you don¡¯t really know what your going to get and if it will help you. It is kind of like a lottery where you have to have some luck.¡± ¡°Why do they do it that way?¡± Zen asked. ¡°A couple reasons.¡± Bena explained. ¡°The first is almost all of the bonded slaves are people of other races than the human race. They are natives that have been taken during the continental war. So if they are not bonded then your villagers will feel unhappy. The reason why they are in lots and not sold individually is to prevent from wealthy people like yourself from manipulating and buying the best. It is a balance issue that was resolved this way.¡± ¡°Are you coming with me?¡± Zen asked. ¡°No unfortunately that isn¡¯t allowed.¡± Bena said sadly. ¡°You can communicate with me via voice link, but I can¡¯t physically be there, but I can watch you on the big screen.¡± ¡°Uhh yea, I wanted to talk to you about that.¡± Zen stuttered. ¡°How is it that you can see me like that?¡± ¡°Just another perk for you.¡± Bena giggled. ¡°It will help me understand what your facing though. So it is really a good thing.¡± Zen wasn¡¯t sure how good of a thing that it was for him if she could see him at all times, especially since their previous conversations. He pushed that aside for now and said. ¡°We will have to go over what I need to look for in advance so I can react properly, and is there anything we need to prepare?¡± ¡°There is a few things that I want to get accomplished but I will need your help with it.¡± Bena mused. ¡°I will be glad to help.¡± Zen said. ¡°In a way I think you will, but that is something for later.¡± Bena laughed. ¡°I think the rest of the day you should focus on your skills. I suggest having Banick help you with your skills why you have the free time.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± Zen said. ¡°After we are done here I will go train with him and get some pointers.¡± ¡°Good skills increase faster with a trained person guiding them.¡± Bena said. ¡°That works for players as well as natives.¡± Zen nodded his understanding and checked where Banick was and left the sanctuary, and exited the manor and walked among the villagers. He received a number of stares but didn¡¯t mind them ,and only smiled back as he headed for the gate. He found Banick working with a group of kids on how to use a spear effectively. Banick looked up at him and his eyes rose as he took a crude spear from a pile next to the kids and held it at a on guard position. The other kids grinned and followed suit and he started his training session in full view of the villagers. Chapter 2: Captial Gains Part 1 The morning practice that Zen had with Banick and the recruits drew the attention of the villagers, and the happiness went up 1%. He had decided to continue to train with them early in the morning as much as he could, but in the afternoon, he trained the sword with Grimsley and the bow with Vern. The second day was similar, but Cora had joined the bow practice with Vern. His level bar in sword and bow was raising relatively fast, and he gained level 1 in spear the morning of the second day. He was surprised that near dusk he received a message from Bena that the ideal time for the portal to the capital was opening in two hours. He quickly ate a meal under the care of Cora and Elina and made his way to the sanctuary to talk to his carefree AI. The moment Zen entered the sanctuary he saw Bena riding the exercise bike why listening to headphones, and he wondered if she did this to get attention. What would riding a stationary bike do for her unless she is weight conscious and had eaten to many bags of popcorn. He walked over to her and waved his hands in front of her and she looked up and smiled. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Zen asked. ¡°I am increasing my endurance because you¡¯re having me do so many chores around he manor?¡± She stated. ¡°How will riding a stationary bike help your avatar increase her endurance?¡± ¡°Ah now you asked a good question.¡± Bena said and then laughed. ¡°You are still part of your Avatar even while you¡¯re in your sanctuary. You can exercise here and improve the stats. There are some drawbacks though. You don¡¯t get the aid of the training bonus, but you make up for it with time available to train. Though if you get exhausted here it will carry over to your avatar out there, so be sure to relax as well and you should be fine.¡± ¡°How is this not a cheat function?¡± Zen questioned. ¡°Duh! Platinum VIP.¡± Bena said as she stuck out her tongue. ¡°Sometimes I think the Master AI just gave you to me to get you out of her hair.¡± Zen said as he could only exhale a breath. ¡°You¡¯re probably right.¡± Bena laughed. ¡°Though I suppose I should tell you more about the capital and what to avoid.¡± ¡°It is just the imperial capital, right?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Ahh, no it is the world capital.¡± Bena said and then tried to look cute and succeeded. ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you that earlier?¡± ¡°You know you didn¡¯t.¡± Zen said and shrugged. ¡°You¡¯re no fun.¡± Bena retorted. ¡°Though seriously we should talk about the capital, because as a new player there will be a number of guilds that will try to take advantage of you. They will typically try to reason or threaten you, and unfortunately you must take them seriously. The key though is that you can keep your identity secret. You can¡¯t trade with people though unless you do it through an intermediate. If you do it that way, then they won¡¯t be able to trace it unless they pay a lot of currency. Most won¡¯t do that as long as you don¡¯t piss them off too much.¡± ¡°How do you set your identity a secret.¡± Zen asked. ¡°Well that is easy you have a mask that will do that.¡± Bena said. ¡°It is part of your welcome package.¡± ¡°Wait! I didn¡¯t get a welcome package.¡± ¡°You did but most of the objects aren¡¯t meant for gameplay but for places like the capital.¡± Bena said as she wiped her forehead of sweat. ¡°There is a lot you¡¯re not telling me isn¡¯t there?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Well I didn¡¯t want to load you down especially at the start.¡± Bena explained. ¡°You are already are stiff enough and I was trying to loosen you up. I had added a list of things we need for you to get and do to your inventory. You can go to the capital again after the portal powers up, and that will take another week or so. So just be sure to get the essentials and pay attention to the timer, because if it runs out you will automatically be brought back here. So, try not to do anything at the last-minute ok?¡± ¡°Ok.¡± Zen assured her. Bena handed over a platinum mask that when Zen put on it melded on to his face hiding his face completely. He looked at his image and saw the platinum color and asked. ¡°Is there any way I can change the color. This kind of tells everybody I have money please rob me blind.¡± ¡°Just imagine what color you want, and it will change.¡± Bena giggled. The mask on Zen¡¯s face turned in to a copper color and Zen felt relieved. This was the lowest color of mask, and this should hide his status enough for him to get through the first trip. He didn¡¯t have to worry about changing his clothes because they were basic anyway, and he looked to Bena and asked. ¡°How do I look?¡± ¡°Like a newbie smuck.¡± Bena said thoughtfully. ¡°So, in other words perfect.¡± ¡°Ha-ha.¡± Zen said dryly. ¡°Remember they are bonded slaves and should come in three sizes of groups.¡± Bena said. ¡°Be sure to get the size that has from 20 to 50 slaves, and don¡¯t forget the other things on the list as well.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Zen confirmed. ¡°Good, and don¡¯t piss of too many large guilds.¡± Bena laughed. ¡°Remember I will be watching you.¡± Bena walked up and gave Zen a hug and a kiss on the side of his face. She squeezed him tightly and then backed away and flipped her hand outward. A portal that was platinum in color opened in front of him, and he hesitated only a moment before stepping through. Zen stepped out of the portal on to a stone platform and was overwhelmed by the incredible number of people around him. Every direction he looked there were an assortment of the different races of GCO. He paused a moment before stepping off the platform on to the wide stone pathway. The capital was truly massive as he pulled out the map, and was surprised to see it fully detailed, and stretching out for miles in every direction. He was lost for a second before he took out Bena¡¯s note and all the waypoints appeared on to his map. He decided to get the shopping out of the way first, as he tried to avoid many of the people here. The directions to the waypoint led him down a side street until he found the right store. The store wasn¡¯t spectacular, and only had a large sign that said General Store over it. He walked through the open archway and was surprised by how large it was inside. There were a few other people waiting in a line and he followed suit and joined in at the end of it. He wasted time standing in line, but it was better if Zen did it now rather than later. The resources were needed and had to be purchased. When it was his turn he handed the list to a balding merchant and he looked at it and started to calculate the amount.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°It comes to 41 Gold, 34 silver and 74 copper in all.¡± The man said as he gave him a broad smile. ¡°You know that it isn¡¯t even close to 41 gold.¡± Zen said already practiced at what he was going to say. ¡°The tents aren¡¯t 3 gold each, but 1 and that is on the high end. The food stuff isn¡¯t anywhere worth 6 gold, and don¡¯t even get me started on the leathers and cloth. At most this is worth 25 gold, but since you are trying to rip me off I think I will just go somewhere else and never go through your trading firm again.¡± Zen handed out his hand for the list and saw that the chubby hands of the trader were still gripped tightly on it. He looked nervous about his claim and then just sighed and smiled grimly. ¡°Alright I admit I tried to fleece you, but that is the way of things around here.¡± The merchant said in a gruff tone. ¡°Though prices are already higher here because of the cost of delivery so I really can¡¯t go lower than 33 Gold.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t cost that much, but I will go 27.¡± Zen offered. ¡°We can split the difference and I can do it for 30 and I will throw in a 10% token on the next trade for being to greedy.¡± The fat man countered. ¡°Deal.¡± Zen nodded looking satisfied as he transferred the 30 gold to the merchant. ¡°It will arrive with any other goods you purchase you make in the capital with in 2 days.¡± The merchant said as he handed the list off to an assistant. ¡°See you again.¡± Zen said as he turned and left the general store. Zen was satisfied at the price, because Bena had said anything under 34 Gold was a success for a newbie person like him. He looked at his timer and still had about 10 hours left in the capital, so he decided to get the bonded slave auction done right away. He then could wander around the capital and try to map as much as he could for later use. The map had all the shops and auction houses on it already, but it had none of the private homes or guilds listed. It would be good to get as much detail as he could before going back. The next waypoint on his map was the bonded slave auction, and that was at the far south side of the city. As he started to walk he heard a voice in his head that sounded a lot like Bena and he almost jumped out of his skin. ¡°You didn¡¯t do to bad, but you probably could have weaseled out another few golds from him. Though that 10% discount will come in handy later when we buy more in bulk.¡± Bena¡¯s voice echoed in his head. Zen was concentrating on what Bena was saying and almost ran in to a street stand full of some type of roasted birds on a stick. He felt his face flush as he barely stopped and moved around the stand and back on the pathway toward the auction house. ¡°You really should watch where your going.¡± Bena¡¯s laughing voice came again. ¡°Don¡¯t try to respond to me otherwise you will probably fall in to a sewer, or something as stupid as that.¡± Zen blew out a breath and then continued his pace toward the auction house. He walked for almost an hour before he reached a pair of golden gates. This was where the auction house was located and there were at least a dozen fully armored guards split between both sides of the open gate. He hesitated a moment before walking between them and in to the courtyard beyond. There he was met with a young boy with blond hair and blue eyes. He smiled and bowed slightly. ¡°Welcome, may I ask which auction you are looking to attend today?¡± The boy asked. ¡°When do the auctions start for the 20-50 bonded slaves¡¯ lots?¡± Zen asked. ¡°They are always going.¡± The boy said with a smile. ¡°The lots sizes are listed in the information of goods. Is that being you want to go?¡± ¡°Lead the way.¡± Zen said as he took out a silver coin and flipped it to the boy. The boy caught the coin and smiled brightly and did exactly that. He led Zen in to the giant auction house and through a series of halls. There were people coming in and out, and many of them had guild patches on there clothes. The guild system was complex in GCO and because there were so many continents there were restrictions put in place to stop collusion in the battle fields. He really didn¡¯t have any idea how they prevented the collusion, but he had read a few posts that the admins were good at uncovering them. This was something he didn¡¯t really care about because he had no intention of joining any guilds, but the fact that guilds are much more powerful is not something he should underestimate. He knew was vile things guilds could do personally and had seen how horrible they could be to their own guild members. The boy seemed to give a wide birth to many of the people there and finally stopped in a large auditorium. There were quite a few people sitting, and most of them had space between them. He looked up and saw that there were balconies where other sat as well. There were at least a few hundred people here and they were mostly paying attention to a giant screen that had a very beautiful female auctioneer. ¡°You can take any seat here and use the bidding tool to bid on the different lots.¡± The boy said casually. ¡°There are also private rooms, but they cost 1 gold an hour, and to be honest are less private than sitting here. There are always people watching who comes out of them, and never with a good intention.¡± Zen couldn¡¯t help but smile at the tip that the boy just gave him and tossed him another silver coin in thanks. He looked around and many of the out of the ways seats were already taken. He finally saw some seats toward the front that had a good distance between the nearest person. ¡°Thanks for showing me the way and the tip.¡± Zen said cheerfully. ¡°Do you just work here at the auction or do you also show people around the capital?¡± ¡°I have served as a guide outside of the auction house a number of times Sir.¡± The boy stated, ¡°I am afraid that I need a nominal fee though.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t expect any less.¡± Zen said and then asked. ¡°How do I contact you when I am done with my business here?¡± The boy took out a little silver chip and handed it to Zen. He looked at it and the name came up and was listed as it being a summoning chip. The chip had five charges left on it, and all he had to do is focus on it and it would let the owner know that he is being requested. ¡°When you are done sir just use the chip.¡± The boy explained. ¡°If I am unable to come because I am serving another it will flash red, but if I am on my way it will flash blue.¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t have need of your service this trip?¡± Zen asked. ¡°When you leave the capital it will disappear, because it can¡¯t leave the capital.¡± The boy said. ¡°Though when you make it back to the Capital it will appear back on your self and you can call me then.¡± ¡°Very good.¡± Zen said. ¡°Have a fruitful day.¡± The boy nodded and walked away quickly, and Zen moved down the row of the auditorium and found a spot about six seats from the nearest person. He looked up at the screen and saw that the current lot was listed as coming from the Nebinulan Continent. It was classified as a large lot and currently had a bid of 32 gold. ¡°Let anything from that continent go.¡± Bena stated inside his head. ¡°The Nebiulan Continent has many deep ocean sea folks, and that wouldn¡¯t be a good match for what we are going use them for.¡± Zen just shivered at the sound of the voice and sighed. Having her talk in his head felt unnatural, but it was good in its own way. She had much more knowledge of the world than he did. The next two bids came from that continent, so he mostly sat there as the prices rose. ¡°This is only one of the many auction auditoriums, but that guide picked a good one. The larger ones would probably draw to much attention for you, but you still need to be on your guard, and not show emotion when you bid. It is best not to draw any complications from hawkers that are looking to take advantage of you.¡± Bena continued to explain. After the current lot was sold for 52 gold, the lady auctioneer brought the next lot up and explained where it came from. This lot was a small lot, and it came from the land between the Delnick and Jorgeen continents. This meant it was a continental war lot, and that would make its contents much riskier to bid on. ¡°This is a good one to bid on.¡± Bena¡¯s voice stated as he swore he could hear her eating as well. The opening bid was only 1 gold and it slowly increased from there, at five gold Zen placed his first bid increasing it by 3 gold to 8, and there was a pause before somebody else raised it to 9. Zen again raised it by 3 to 12, and there was a pause before again somebody raised it by 1 gold. Zen waited a moment and saw that nobody else was raising so he knew it was probably only 1-person bidding against him. He raised it by 3 more to 16 gold just when the auctioneer asked if there was any other bid the second time. There was a pause again and the beautiful auctioneer asked three times and then announced it as being sold. ¡°Not too bad.¡± Bena said in his head. ¡°Though I think we should get another lot in case all the slaves are duds.¡± Zen nodded to himself and waited and waited before another box came up that fit the requirements. This box appeared to also be from a continental war. This time between Salseen and Epsilon, the continent that he currently was on. The bidding on this one wasn¡¯t as high because of the rankings of the continents, but Zen again won it by spending only 13 gold. He was satisfied with it and immediately got up and started heading out of the auction. He knew what he did was a mistake when a very large man in silver adorned armor stepped up in front of him. Zen should have waited a while before leaving, but he was in a hurry to see the Capital more. The man was bulky and unlike many he wasn¡¯t wearing a mask. He showed his guild emblem prominently on his right shoulder of his armor. The emblem on it was of a Gold Dragon crushing a man beneath his front claw, and it was truly overbearing. He had seen it before on the forums and it was from Gilgamesh, which was currently on the top ten board for guilds. Chapter 2: Captial Gains Part 2 The last thing Zen had wanted is to run in to one of the larger guilds, and the fact he stepped in front of him meant it wasn¡¯t a positive thing. The man¡¯s eyes told him a lot, and the utter contempt in them was something the powerful did with natural flare. Zen just stood, still not saying anything, trying to not give away any more than what he already has. ¡°I see you¡¯re a newbie.¡± The big man said. ¡°I like to help newbies. How about we make a trade and I will give you some good gear.¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t do that.¡± Zen said politely as he could. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be fair. If I take advantage of you by taking something good. I would only hurt myself in the end, because I didn¡¯t get it with my own power.¡± Zen didn¡¯t believe a word of his own drivel, but it was reasonable and people like that existed. He didn¡¯t believe it would stop this man ether, but he didn¡¯t say it for that. He said it for the people around him that were listening. There were always people listening and taking notes, and he would rather broadcast fake limitations if he did end up paying a price here. ¡°How about this then.¡± The man said as he crossed his arms. ¡°I know you just bought a slave lot, and maybe you can let me take a look at what you got and let me choose the ones I like.¡± ¡°No.¡± said Zen simply. ¡°Why?¡± The man said as his face turned sour. ¡°Because what is mine is mine, and what¡¯s yours is of course yours.¡± Zen said flatly. ¡°I do not want yours, so it is obvious I will not give mine.¡± The man frowned at his comments and Zen could sense that he didn¡¯t quite get what he was trying to say. He would probably try to intimidate him now, because why he couldn¡¯t trust the bully stereotype he had in front of him. Zen bet inwardly that it wasn¡¯t far off from this player. ¡°You seem like a smart person or at least a smart ass.¡± The guy said coldly. ¡°Our guild has people in every continent and if you don¡¯t do like I say. We will destroy what ever piece of shit things that you care about till you leave and never come back.¡± ¡°There is one flaw to your statement.¡± Zen said as he walked around the man. ¡°That is, you don¡¯t know who I am.¡± Zen wasn¡¯t sure if he would break the rules of the capital by attacking him, but he was almost sure he wouldn¡¯t attack him in the auction house. If he did that he would be banned for 3 months from entering, and he would have to pay a fine that was not small. Zen could see the trembling of the man¡¯s hand as he started to walk away, and suddenly two other men with the same emblem stood in front of him. Zen wasn¡¯t so sure one of them might not attack him, but Zen didn¡¯t stop walking and walked right between the two. He didn¡¯t need to look to know that they were following him, and he would probably wait and hassle him when he got out of the auction. He couldn¡¯t help but grin as he walked away from the auditorium, because he now knew it was impossible not to piss some big guild off why he was here. ¡°When you leave go to the review room to look at what you got in your lots.¡± Bena¡¯s voice stated with the remains of laughing. ¡°There you can change your mask and your clothes. The room entrance is the same for everybody, but inside you are alone. It is a good way to throw off your followers.¡± Zen realized that again Bena knew this would happen and didn¡¯t warn him. He started to think Bena¡¯s personality was going to put him in danger a lot. He did what she said and found an entrance to the review room on his mini map. He didn¡¯t hesitate and went inside and found himself in a room that had a mini stage on it. There stood a small podium that was beside a chair and Zen didn¡¯t hesitate and changed his clothes to something a little more fancy. He was about to exit when the voice from beyond spoke again. ¡°Don¡¯t forget to change the color of your mask your dork.¡± Bena said hurriedly. ¡°Also take some time to see what slaves are in the lots. The information will give me some time to plan things out or we might have to buy another small lot.¡± Zen nodded at her words, because he agreed with them. He first changed the color of his mask to silver and then checked to see if it took effect. After he verified that, he walked to the chair and sat down in it. A screen popped up in front of him and it had two separate lots in it. The lots had the general information that he had seen at the auction and he picked the one that had Epsilon in it. Another small screen popped up giving him a detailed list of the slaves, and as he selected the first one the image of the slave appeared on the small stage in front of him. None of the slaves had names but they did have the race, sex and an approximation of their skills and talents. The slave in front of him was a male from the dwarven race. Zen was surprised at the information that was listed because some of it seemed quite personal in nature.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Zen messed around with the function of the list and saw that he could categorize them and did so based on race. The list reorganized giving him a better idea on what race and sex the slaves were. He made sure to focus on the lists so Bena could get as much information as she could, and then moved to the second lot. This lot was much more diverse in nature than the previous one, and it had a few races that he didn¡¯t recognize. He thought about going through each and seeing them on the stage, but he didn¡¯t want to take that much time. He instead got the information for Bena and then prepared to stand up and go when he heard Bena¡¯s words. ¡°Please bring up the last person on the second lot list.¡± Bena said impatiently. ¡°The one marked as the Kerin Race female.¡± Zen paused and brought up the list again and found the slave and focused on it. The slave appeared on the stage before him, and the information appeared with it on the screen. The Kerin in front of him was thin and demure in size and on her information that she was a race of the beast kin. The beast kin were half races. There only commonality is that they had the blood of a beast in them, and this female had a mixture of Avelion and high elf. ¡°Why do you want me to pay attention to this one in particular?¡± Zen said out loud knowing Bena could hear him. ¡°It is because Avelion are special and they have royal blood of the beast race in them.¡± Bena explained. ¡°The high elves are like that among the elven races. They are of high status as well.¡± ¡°Then why is she a slave then?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the elven races be outraged at that?¡± ¡°I am not sure how they would take it.¡± Bena mused. ¡°The fact that she is have beast kin would complicate things.¡± The Kerin was beautiful and she had the elven elegance that made them very attractive. He could feel his heart race when he saw her, and he felt somewhat ashamed at himself for it. He let the image go as he stood up from the chair and gave himself a moment to compose himself and then left the room. He walked away with out any hesitation and as he turned the corner he saw one of the two men earlier, but they didn¡¯t seem to pay attention to him at all and he escaped them easily. Zen made it to the gates of the auction yard and looked at his time and he had a little over six hours left. It was enough for him to look around the capital. He pulled out the token that the boy gave him and activated it. The token flashed a blue color and about five minutes later the boy approached him and bowed. ¡°How about a tour of the relevant sites of the capital?¡± Zen asked. ¡°That would be 3 silver then.¡± The boy stated. Zen took out six silver and dropped them in his outstretched hand. The boy¡¯s smile grew and nodded before leading him on a tour of the major players of the capital. Zen couldn¡¯t help but smile as guild halls and residents of important people started to fill his map. The moment the boy explained about a location the information appeared and was added to the basic information he already had. The tour of the movers and shakers of the capital didn¡¯t take him that long, and after it was completed Zen asked the boy to take him to where the battle arenas and training centers were. There he could find soldiers to hire when the time came. There were several mercenaries that would hire out to lords as troops and would increase their skills in the wilderness. Most of these were natives because players preferred the continental battles, but it was safer for lords to have natives anyway. The boy talked about the different training centers and the reputations each had, and after he had finished there he led him to the trading center and did the same with the different trade groups. It was overall a very interesting and enlightening tour. He still had over two hours left and decided to let the guide take him to a place he thought was interesting. The boy smiled and didn¡¯t hesitate before taking him through several streets to the gates of a small ivory tower. ¡°What is this place?¡± Zen couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°It is called the Heavens Step.¡± The boy said. ¡°It is a type of auction house, but it is a private one.¡± Zen thought a moment and didn¡¯t think it would hurt to check it out, but it sounded expensive. He didn¡¯t care about spending coins, but he really didn¡¯t want to be seen spending excessively ether. He turned to the guide and asked. ¡°Do you have to show or reveal your real identity here?¡± ¡°No.¡± The boy said. ¡°In fact, it is against the rules to inquire about it.¡± Zen nodded and now he knew it was truly expensive here. He couldn¡¯t help but smile inside and he nodded his head in approval and the boy led him to the gate. Even the guards here had masks on, but they were the normal type you place over your head. There were four of them and just the aura on these men told Zen they were dangerous. ¡°1 gold to enter and no servants allowed.¡± The largest of the guards said loudly. Zen turned to the boy and dropped another six silver in to his palms and nodded to him. The boy smiled and took his leave. Zen then turned to the guard and took out a gold and dropped it into his hand. The guard took out a mask that had a painted face of an ogre on it and opened the way to him before saying one last thing. ¡°You are on the steps to heaven so be careful not to break the rules.¡± The man laughed hoarsely. ¡°If you do you may bring down the heavens on yourself.¡± A small screen popped up in front of him explaining to him exactly what the rules were and wouldn¡¯t go away until he acknowledged he would follow them. The moment he stepped through the gate he found himself in a room with two female maid servants kneeling to the side of a lush couch. He took a moment to read the rules and he was a little shocked. He knew right away this place was more than it seemed. Chapter 2: Captial Gains Part 3 The Heaven¡¯s Step was luxurious and when Zen looked over the room more closely he realized that this was a platinum level facility. Everything from the food set out to the two maids that served the room spoke of wealth and privilege. This was something he had seen numerous times at family functions in the real world, and the feeling here matched even the best of them. He walked over to the couch and sat down, and the moment he did the two maids sprung in to action bringing food and wines for him to choose. He took some cheeses and meats from the tray and right as he placed them to his mouth. He could smell the aroma of the spices and couldn¡¯t help but look forward to what ever this ivory tower provided. He turned his attention to the rules that were still waiting to be acknowledge and read them carefully. The rules were simple, and the only one that truly stuck out to Zen was the one about a client not directly attempting to purchase goods at the auction, but only could purchase directly through a representative. He pondered about the reason for that when a not to subtle voice appeared in is head. ¡°This is one of the locations of the Heaven Auction.¡± Bena stated with an excited tone. ¡°It isn¡¯t surprising that you were led here, but it is way to soon. It isn¡¯t that you don¡¯t have enough coins to participate, but many of the things sold in this auction are too high end and won¡¯t be of much use to you yet.¡± Zen took a sip of wine and listened to Bena talk about the auction and the way it was done. The auction wasn¡¯t only a place to purchase things, but also a battle ground for natives and players. Each client would choose one or more representatives to buy or sell items. The representatives would be scored on how well they do, and the satisfaction of the clients. The clients on the other hand only needed to let the representatives know what they needed, and whether it was big or small it was up to them to make it happen. The representatives could and would handle client¡¯s needs outside of the Heaven¡¯s Steps, but their biggest earnings would be those items they bought in the Heaven¡¯s Step auctions. The important point was that he could only get such a representative at the Heaven¡¯s Step, and the representative could only serve one client, and once they form the contract only the client can terminate it. That put a lot of power in the hands of the clients and as such the representatives had to choose carefully who they contracted. ¡°Honorable Sir, a representative candidate is here to see you.¡± One of the maids said. Zen looked over at the pretty green haired maid and nodded to her to let the representative in. The maid walked over to the door, and a young man dressed in a finally tailored outfit of blue and gold walked in. He looked to be in his mid-twenties and had a charming face. Zen looked at him waiting for him to talk first. ¡°Honorable Sir, my name is Paxton and I am a representative of the Heaven¡¯s Step.¡± The man said with an even tone. ¡°It is my honor to come and talk about terms and see if I can be of assistance in finding what you need.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Zen said with a flare of arrogance to his voice. ¡°What do you offer that will lead me to have faith for you to serve me in this rather important capacity.¡± ¡°I am but a first level representative honorable sir.¡± Paxton said firmly. ¡°I have recently passed the exams of service, but I passed at the top of the class. My baseline talents and abilities allow me to multi task, taking care of your needs at the Heaven¡¯s Step, and the mundane tasks outside it.¡± ¡°What would you say if I was a poor lord with little prospects?¡± Zen asked casually. ¡°Then it would be my duty to help change that honorable sir.¡± Paxton stated. Just as Zen was going to ask another question the maid had informed him of another representative at the door. He nodded, and the maid went over and let in a beautiful woman with silver hair. She looked to Zen and bowed, and then over to Paxton and gave a mischievous smile before returning her amber gaze back to Zen. ¡°Honorable Sir, my name is Amelia and I am a representative looking to form a contract.¡± She said softly. ¡°I am well versed in trading in all fronts and have many contacts throughout the capital. I am looking to use these skills to bring great fortune to you.¡± ¡°I will pose the same question that I posed to young Paxton here to you as well.¡± Zen said. ¡°What would you do if I was just a poor lord with little prospects?¡± ¡°I would serve you dutifully in all regards.¡± The woman said demurely. ¡°Now what should I do about this situation?¡± Zen pondered openly. Zen could hear a soft chuckle in his head and then Bena¡¯s voice. ¡°Well it looks like both are desperate to get a position, because they came and take the initiative so boldly, so you should just form contracts with both. Let them compete against each other to see who gets you the better items.¡± Zen was confused now because earlier Bena said that the Heaven¡¯s Step was a little too early for them to be able to use. He was in thought when he heard her laughing and he shuddered and realized he wasn¡¯t thinking as a lord, and he thought of how his mother would handle this. She would definitely hire both and have them compete to see who would win and take control. ¡°I can tell that both of you are eager to show your ability, and I admire ambition up to a point. I am short of time for this trip.¡± Zen said with a playful tone. ¡°I hate being rushed, and there is no way to know which one of you would serve me better. So, I offer to make a contract with both of you and test your abilities. The one that serves me better will be in charge, and the one that loses will have the option of staying on, or me releasing them if they so wish. Make your own decision and choose on if you agree with my proposal.¡± The two of them looked at each other and Zen could see that they had some relationship before this. He wasn¡¯t sure if bringing that chaos in to his life was a good or bad thing, but at this point it was enjoyable watching the competitiveness in their eyes.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Why don¡¯t we do this.¡± Zen broke their staring session and turned to the maids. ¡°Is there a place these two can discuss their options?¡± ¡°Yes, honorable lord.¡± The lead maid said. ¡°There is a separate chamber for such things.¡± ¡°Ok, then why don¡¯t you take them to that chamber and let them discuss freely what they want to do. Both of you serve them why they discuss, and be sure to treat them as my guests.¡± Zen said to the maids and then turned to the two representatives. ¡°You two can ether decide who will withdraw or if you are going to take my proposal and compete. Either way. I wish peace and quiet and do not wish to see these negotiations, but I warn you not to take too long. You never know when a better offer might appear.¡± The two of them frowned and nodded as the maids led them to a separate room giving Zen a moment alone. He felt awkward and then softly posed a question for Bena to hear. ¡°Is there enough work for two of them?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Bena said in his head. ¡°Our assets are quite high and there are many items that would sell nicely here. This would help both raise their status here and serve as an anonymous buyer for slaves and soldiers. They could do it all and you wouldn¡¯t have to worry about the trouble from earlier today happening again.¡± ¡°How would we contact them from our lands.¡± He whispered. ¡°The contract allows you to draw them to you in your manor or come here directly instead of appearing in the portal square.¡± Bena took on the voice of a teacher. ¡°It is a good thing even though we can¡¯t maximize their full potential yet. You just need to give them one item to sell and tell them you will be judging them on how they do their job and if they do it in the most optimal way. Play them off against each other and then when you feel it is right choose the one that did the best in the categories that you feel are important.¡± Zen nodded as he took another piece of cheese from the tray and ate it. He was a little worried that things were going to good for him and wondered when the other shoe would drop. He had to take a more active part in things, and make sure his relocation plan was successful, and he could start to build his new city earnestly. He needed so many things to start a city and he felt overwhelmed a little as he thought about it. He thought back to Bena telling him that he had to relax and at that point he realized she was right. His thoughts were interrupted when the two of them came back in the room followed by his maids, and both had a grim determined expression on their faces. They must of came to an agreement privately, but he didn¡¯t say anything and looked up at them waiting for them to talk first. ¡°Honorable lord we have come to a decision.¡± Paxton said. ¡°We have agreed to work together for your sake, and we only ask you to set fair terms.¡± Amelia added. Zen sat there and pondered a moment but was letting Bena suggest what he should do. Zen had no idea how to set terms, but Bena didn¡¯t let him down, and suddenly two items appeared in his inventory and they had Amelia and Paxton¡¯s names on them. He withdrew them and handed them to the two and Bena¡¯s voice laugh echoed in his mind. ¡°You must be loved by the goddess of luck.¡± Bena said cheerfully. ¡°Why the Heaven¡¯s Step is beyond us right now. Having two of them will help us quite a bit, because we now have agents in the Capital and they came to us willingly. I am starting to wonder if this is just a precursor to a disaster.¡± Zen was thinking that exact thing, as he watched the expressions, as they read the terms. Both looked at each other and then they both signed the agreements. A blue light extended from the both agreements and covered both Paxton and Amelia and then strings extended connecting to him. Two alert boxes popped up in front of him and then a few second later a third box appeared.
Paxton Lateer has accepted to become a contracted representative and is legally bound to serve and protect your interests. The contract terms and restrictions are located under the contracted servant tab of your interface.
Amelia Herrington has accepted to become a contracted representative and is legally bound to serve and protect your interests. The contract terms and restrictions are located under the contracted servant tab of your interface.
Congratulations, you have been granted access to the Heaven¡¯s Step Auction house, and through your representatives, you are able to buy or sell common to legendary goods. The perks at the auction house depend on the ranking of your representatives based on their actions on your behalf. The higher the ranking the more options become available at Heaven¡¯s Step. As a platinum VIP you and your representatives gain one free rank in status at the Heaven¡¯s Step. Representatives: Paxton Lateer (Rank 2), Amelia Herrington (Rank 2) Client: Rozen Martell (Rank 2 Patron)
Zen read the screen and let a smile reach his lips and was surprised when both Amelia and Paxton went to one knee before him. He stood up from the couch and walked over and placed a hand on each of them and they rose from there kneeling position. ¡°There will be a lot for you to do in the future, but for now I will give each of you 1,000 gold and one item to work with. Choose your actions wisely, because they reflect on me. Zen looked at the time and he had only twenty-five minutes left before his time ran out, and he pointed to the couch and said. ¡°Please join me for something to eat and drink before I leave for my lands. I look for the both of you to work closely with me and my aids to better increase my holdings.¡±
Amelia Herrington¡¯s Respect for you has increased by 18
Paxton Lateer¡¯s Respect for you has increased by 13
Zen could only smile as they ate lunch and drank for almost twenty minutes before he saw the gate appear at the edge of the room. He stood up and looked to the maids and said. ¡°Be sure to take care of my representatives until I return.¡± Zen then turned to Paxton and Amelia and said in a firm but gentle voice. ¡°I know you two are competing on my behalf but remember that we are one family here. If you work against each other and sully my name I will not be happy, but if you work in the interest of bettering my holdings I will reward the both of you. If you need something let me or my aids know. Do both of you understand?¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Both Amelia and Paxton said simultaneously. ¡°Good! Your funds and items will be arriving shortly so use them well.¡± Zen said as he turned and walked through the portal and disappeared. Zen arrived back in his sanctuary and saw Bena sitting on the edge of the couch with a big smile. He went over to her and plopped on the couch and let out a big sigh. The screen was still on the room at the Heaven¡¯s Step and both Paxton and Amelia were watching the auction board making notes. ¡°They seem eager.¡± Zen said tiredly. ¡°They probably are.¡± Bena said as she flopped down beside him. ¡°You did a good job at the capital. The Heaven¡¯s Step sent over a case of wine as a gift for becoming a member of the auction house. We should take this opportunity to relax a little in the manor, because you have to make your presence noticed and act like a real lord for your retainer and villager¡¯s sake.¡± ¡°I guess I could do that.¡± Zen said. ¡°It has been a while since I let loose a little.¡± ¡°Good, I will have made sure it is a good meal to go along with this wine.¡± Bena stated happily. ¡°Well I am still lost and overwhelmed here so it is probably a good thing.¡± Zen acknowledged and then said. ¡°Bena thank you for all you done so far.¡± Bena beamed at his words and leaned against Zen hugging him. Zen tensed a little bit and then relaxed looking forward to the celebration that was to come. He let his worries of the big task in front of him fade away as he watched his two representatives hard at work. Chapter 3: Growth Part 1 Zen felt himself lose balance as he made his way up the stairs toward his bedroom. The wine that was sent by Heaven¡¯s Step was remarkable but potent. The celebration lasted almost three hours and it was nighttime before they were done. Zen wasn¡¯t starting to sober up a little bit because of the food, but he still couldn¡¯t walk straight. He got to his door and opened it and staggered over to his bed and sat down on it. He had started to pull off his shirt when he felt movement near him and looked up. Standing there in front of him was Elina, and Zen had to blink a few times before seeing her clearly. Elina slowly walked over to him dressed a white dress. His heart raced as she slowly untied a string and her dress fell to the ground. Zen had been holding back his urges over the start of his time here, but he clearly remembered Bean¡¯s word about acting like a noble. He looked at Elina¡¯s naked body and could see her thin waste and contours of her hips and firm body. Her breasts weren¡¯t large, but they were full, and he saw her sweet smile as she neared him. ¡°Ah fuck it.¡± Zen thought to himself as he placed his hands on her hips and pulled her close to him. He ran his hand across the small of her back and kissed her belly button gently as he pulled her on to his lap. He could feel her tremble with each kiss, and slowly his hands raised up her back as he pulled her down on to the bed. His kiss moved up to her breasts where he slowly kissed her nipple, and used his tongue to caress it as the force of his mouth to suck on the tip. He could hear her soft moan at his touch and he firmly squeezed her ass holding her tightly . It took only a moments to get her into a position where he could pleasure her, and he took joy in hearing her gasping. He was the lord and he was in control, and with each kiss he made sure he was slow and precise. Elina slowly reached down to his pants and untied them pushing them downward as she grabbed on to his to his already erect member. He felt the touch and he ravished her breasts once again as she guided his member in to herself. There was a sound of pain as he pushed his way in to her, but it slowly subsided as they gained a mutual understanding and rhythm. Zen lost all his hesitation as they made love a few times, before finally both lay still in each other¡¯s arms. Zen was close to sleep when he looked up and saw Bena putting the blankets over the two and smiling at the sight. He couldn¡¯t help but smile back at her as he fell asleep with Elina clinging to his chest. The next morning Zen awoke, and he felt the girls touch on his chest as she seemed to be in a peaceful slumber. Zen looked down to see the sheets mostly off him and saw the blood stain and knew it was her first time. He gently brushed her hair from her eyes. and put her arms on the bed and slid off to get dressed, but his hand was caught by Elina. ¡°My lord.¡± Elina said softly. Zen saw the worried expression on her face, and he gave a smile and bent down and kissed her lips and whispered. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, sleep a little longer I have some things to do.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Elina said as she looked down at the bed. ¡°Come to me a little later and we will discuss this some more.¡± Zen said as he walked naked to his bathroom and put on the robe and entered his sanctuary. ¡°Finally.¡± Bena giggled as her eyes went up to him. ¡°She has been making calf eyes at you this whole time and she finally gained the nerve to take action, because god knows you wouldn¡¯t.¡± ¡°I think you played a part in this as well.¡± Zen said with a chuckle. ¡°I didn¡¯t need to push her to hard.¡± Bena said cheerfully. ¡°She wants to become your retainer, because she believes it will be the fastest way to becoming one of your concubines.¡± Zen stumbled and then caught himself and looked up at Bena with a shocked expression and then stuttered. ¡°Concubine?¡± ¡°She knows she can¡¯t be an official wife, but she is alright with that.¡± Bena explained. ¡°She really likes you a lot.¡± Zen walked in to the bathroom and got in the shower, and let the warm water come down on him as he sighed in pleasure. His avatar was taking a cold bath right now, and he wanted to avoid that. The shower also gave him time to think about what he was going to do. It would help them if Elina became a retainer, but he felt uneasy at the responsivity that seemly was being thrust upon him. He sighed and had to reprimand himself that GCO seemed to suck him in, and he seemed to mix reality with the virtual world he was in. He wasn¡¯t sure which he would prefer was his reality, but this at least was more worth while than his real life. He finished the shower and dried himself off changing to the current clothes his avatar was wearing. He looked down at his silks and nodded in approval as he left the bathroom and went over to the central table to try to start the work on the plans for the new village. There were hundreds of designs in the system to help the lords, but finding the right one wasn¡¯t always easy. Bena helped narrow it down but there was still a dozen that seemed to be a decent fit for the area. ¡°Bena, did you discover anything about the bonded slaves that could help us?¡± Zen asked. ¡°We were relatively lucky, but only about half of the 91 bonded slaves are useful for manual labor.¡± She said as she took a seat near him. ¡°We were able to get about a half dozen dwarves that have mining and quarrying experience. That will help a lot with the resources and setting up any mines. There are some that have trade skills and even a few that have herbalist and alchemical experience. We have about 25 that have actual construction and labor experience. We can use them to start by building housing for the villagers and then eventually traveling to the new site when we are able to establish an outpost there.¡±Stolen novel; please report. ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Zen said as he eliminated one of the designs as being to elaborate for his needs. ¡°You know some of those slaves would make good concubines.¡± Bena said nonchalantly. Zen just sighed at her remarks and looked up at her and said. ¡°Is it really necessary for me to bed every woman I meet?¡± ¡°This world is unforgiving when it comes to weakness and your lack of players to help you is a big one. I wasn¡¯t kidding that you need to create heirs and train them up well. It may seem morally wrong to you now, but if you stagnate because of no heirs and you are betrayed by players you recruit. Then that would be morally wrong to the citizens you are sworn to protect.¡± Bena said flatly. ¡°Alright I will do what I have too, but I don¡¯t want to be one of those bastard nobles that steal people¡¯s daughters.¡± Zen said. ¡°I am not asking you too.¡± Bena said with a smile. ¡°Just do your duty you stud muffin.¡± Zen groaned at her words and went back to the task of choosing the right village design. The night he just spent with Elina was fantastic, but he didn¡¯t want to think of it as part of a job requirement. He thought that it was a natural occurrence even if it was probably orchestrated by Bena. It was just a little overwhelming for him, so he decided to bury himself in work. He was going through a village plan called the Castalia, when he stopped and looked closer at the blue prints. The village outlines were simple in nature at the beginning but as the village grew buildings could be used in defense as well. This seemed like a good plan and he pulled it up and put it on the 3D screen. ¡°Bena what do you think about this one.¡± Zen asked. Bena looked over and then looked at the specifications of the village, town and city upgrades and nodded in approval.¡± I like the channels and bridges in the city map, because it makes it easier to defend. The channels would have to be done in stone, but it is something we can work towards. I always liked cities with water ways and it fits the land well.¡± ¡°Do we have to wait till we have enough retainers to start building the base buildings there?¡± Zen asked. ¡°No, but most likely it they will be attacked by creatures if we don¡¯t.¡± Bena explained. ¡°So that is why you chose bonded slaves, because they have to follow my orders.¡± Zen mused as he felt that didn¡¯t sit well with him. ¡°Can we hire a few soldiers to watch over them as they build?¡± ¡°That would be ok, but we would have to outfit them fully and pay a little more for loyalty.¡± Bena stated. ¡°Soldiers with out you near them tend to be more chaotic.¡± ¡°Well let¡¯s upgrade the village here a little bit to make things easier while we figure things out.¡± Zen smiled as he bought the Castalia blue print from the system. Zen brought up where his Avatar was and saw that he was heading toward spear practice and he nodded to Bena and left the sanctuary. He entered his Avatar and started his routine with practicing the spear and after Banick was done they continued with he sword practice. He was still learning the different forms and combining it with balance training. His skills increased more when he was doing them rather than his avatar, and he enjoyed the routine. He had gone back to the manor to eat lunch and for the first time since this morning he saw Elina. Her complexion and manner seemed to be glowing today, as her and Cora served him his meal. He spent the afternoon with Vern and Cora practicing his archery, and then the later afternoon he had time to himself. He thought it was about time to talk to Elina, and he called her to his office for a talk. Elina entered and curtsied to him and he smiled and stood near his desk. He wasn¡¯t sure how to approach it gently, so he decided to discuss it with her outright. She stood motionless in front of him and seemed to become nervous because of his actions. ¡°Elina, I have something to talk to you about.¡± Zen started out and tried to give off a calm gentle smile. ¡°It is important that people that surround me are loyal, and especially those that I meet with intimately. That is why I called you in here because I want to offer you a choice. This choice is free for you to choose without any pressure. As you know Cora is my retainer, and because of that she has given up many rights to serve me. Unlike her you are a servant of our manor and are still free to leave if you wish. The offer that I am extending is to become a retainer like Cora, but I am not in any way ordering this. I am only offering, and I ask you to think about it. It will give you many advantages, but the price is your freedom. You will no longer have control, because that control will be given to me.¡± He could see that Elina was going through a whole range of emotions in front of him, and Zen was truthful in saying that he wouldn¡¯t pressure Elina. He was going to give her a chance, but that option was totally up to her. He was not surprised when she bent down to a knee and made a pledge of loyalty to him. Zen walked forward and put his hand on her head. A window popped up that was like the one that showed when Cora made the request.
Elina Saroto has offered to swear loyalty to you. Do you accept? Yes or No.
¡°Are you sure this is something you want because you can¡¯t turn back from it Elina?¡± Zen said as he saw Elina nod her head affirming her pledge, and Zen answered the popup with a thought picking yes.
You have accepted Elina Saroto as a sworn bound retainer. You now have control over her future progress. You can set tasks for her growth in the sanctuary under the retainer section. You currently have 2 retainers.
Zen¡¯s connection with Elina grew stronger and he said. ¡°You may rise, and from this point you are my retainer and are under my protection and control.¡± Zen kissed Elina on the forehead and she started to weep as he gave her a hug. ¡°It is ok you have a family now.¡± Elina wiped her eyes, and Zen let her go. She didn¡¯t say anything else but stood there with a smile on her face. Zen didn¡¯t want to make her feel uncomfortable and stepped away and went behind his desk and sat down before saying, ¡°I won¡¯t take you from your duties Elina. You can go back to your room if you need time to compose yourself. Bena will inform you of any new duties or orders from me.¡± Elina nodded and then left the study and Zen was surprised she wasn¡¯t angry with his orders. He truly did have a lot to do, because the slaves would be here in a day and he had quite a few plans to work out. He filled out some orders to Banick and the other guards and looked over the reports that they had turned in on the progress. He couldn¡¯t wait for the building to begin, and for him to see it with his own eyes. Chapter 3: Growth Part 2 As evening came, Zen had ate his evening meal alone in his office, and then went to bed tired from the day, but as he sat down he saw Elina enter and slide in beside him. Zen took hold of Elina and held her tightly as they slipped under the covers together. He knew Elina had good intentions, and he was alright with that. They held each other for a while and then made love before they fell asleep in each other¡¯s arms. Zen woke up when he felt Elina slipping out of bed and putting on her clothes, and he knew she was going to her room to change before working. This was the mind set of those in this world, and he felt he was slowly adjusting to it. He also got up, but since Elina was gone, he immediately went in to his sanctuary and started working on the plans for the village. He initially had thought about not developing this location, but instead he decided on giving the bare necessities for an outpost here. Outposts were about the same size as villages, but with fortifications. This made them great places for travels and caravans to stop on their trips. This was income and new items for his people, so it was a good thing, and he smiled and thought about setting up a trading center near the fortification. It was the middle of nowhere now, but maybe not in the future if he did things right. Coral Heights was currently still a small village with better defenses, and his problem was still lack of living spaces. He brought up the menu and saw that over the last few days the villagers had completed making over 50 mud and grass blocks. There were over 150 still in the drying mode waiting to be completely dry so they weren¡¯t thought of as resources yet. Many of the villager¡¯s help take part in this because he was trading work for food rations, and the rations were better than they were getting on their own. Zen brought up the timer and he looked at the ETA of the arrival of the slaves and other resources, and smiled because it was less than 7 hours away. He had to prepare for them and get the word out that there was help on the way here. The villagers probably wouldn¡¯t like it but when it was known they were here to help with rebuilding and fortifying the village they would accept it. He entered his Avatar and quickly finished breakfast and went to the training area for spear practice. There he went through his routine, but after it he had one of the boys that trained with them ring the bell and bring everybody to the town square. The villagers all gathered in the square and Zen stood near the altar with two of his body guards there as a token protection. The villagers were all in a better situation than they were before, so they were moderately happy. There only true complaints were the lack of housing, which were supplemented by a small tent city that was growing near the center of the village. ¡°Thank you for coming so promptly.¡± Zen said as he smiled at the slowly growing crowd. ¡°I know everybody is worried about the issue with lack of housing, but later today we will be getting some aid. There is a large group of new arrivals that will help with the processing and construction of new homes, and with them comes more supplies for the village as well.¡± The villagers heard of the people coming to build stronger homes, and were happy, but there were still some that had nervous expressions at the mention of more people coming. They were living good now, but more people meant more food as well. Supplies could only last so long so how could they not be a little worried. Zen noticed the anxious looks and smiled broadly and needed to calm them down. ¡°With the new arrivals there will also be coming a large supply of food to help supplement them and the rest of the villagers. The arrivals are here to help and in no way threaten our way of life, and I give you my word on this.¡± Zen said as his Lord¡¯s Aura flared around him. ¡°I will not let anybody harm my people, but on that same note I can not allow anybody to harm those that serve me as well. The new arrivals pose no threat to any of you, and that is because they are all bonded slaves.¡± The voices of different villagers started to panic, but soon other voices in the crowd calmed them down letting them know that bonded slaves are forced to follow commands of there master. They also knew if Lord Martell wanted to kill them he could have done it long ago just with his body guards alone. Zen had talked to Banick the day he came back and asked him to let the village leaders know in advance, and it was them that just calmed down the rest of the villagers. ¡°I know you are worried, but they are truly here to help, and I have paid quite an expense to bring them here.¡± Zen said loudly. ¡°Your lives will be better because of this, and when they are done here they will have another task away from the village. I only warn you that while you are free, and they are not. I don¡¯t want to see anybody order them around or unfairly treat them, because if you do then I will be greatly disappointed.¡± Zen looked at the crowd sternly and then softened his expression before finally saying. ¡°We have a tough life here, and I want to make it better. They will help us with that goal, and I only ask you to heed my rules that will be posted. This is all I have to say so I will let all of you get back to your work now.¡± Zen stepped away from the altar and walked toward the manor knowing that it the villagers were nervous, but to be honest they had to cope. He had given them his reassurance and warning about the slaves and now all he had to do is prepare for them. He worked over the next few hours going from one spot to another and placing stakes that had different colors on them. These stakes were markers for where certain buildings would be placed. The work would start in earnest tomorrow morning, but it was important that everything was prepared, because the time he had was limited to safely prepare the village. The fact that he was personally placing the stakes told the villagers of the importance of his words. A lord doesn¡¯t typically do labor, but this one had not only practiced with the recruits but is taking part in the effort to better the village. This fact was something Zen hoped would help build not only trust but also pride in him. It was something small, but sometimes those things are the most important and often overlooked. The moment the timer for delivery reached zero an alert box popped up letting him know the arrival of the caravan bringing all his resources and slaves. He walked toward his manor and saw the long line of wagons entering the front gate. The first five wagons were covered hiding what was inside of them, and the following 13 wagons were open showing stacked crates and barrels that were lashed on tightly. Eighteen wagons were a huge sight for the villagers, and many had stopped to look at the parade of wagons and horses entering. The first five wagons slowly made their way behind the manor and disappeared from most people¡¯s sight, but the rest of the wagons stopped in front of the manor and waited. Zen went through the front door and was met by Bena, Banick and Grimsley, and they all went through the manor to the back area. This area was blocked off by a wooden fence that stood about six feet tall.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. The leader of the caravan was a native that stood about a head taller than Zen, and he came down and politely nodded to him. The wagons had been lined up with the back doors facing them, and there were several guards standing on both sides of the wagons. ¡°Your lordship, my name is Verket and I am the delivery master for your resources and slaves.¡± The big man said. ¡°If you could show me the lot tokens then I can start to unload everything.¡± Zen pulled out the two lot tokens and his command token as well. The man looked at them and nodded to his men as they started to open the backs of the wagons. Bena stepped forward with Grimsley and handed a parchment to the man and he looked at it. ¡°We need the slaves split up according to these lists.¡± Bena said with authority. The man only nodded and smiled and walked over and handed the list to another man and talked to him a few moments. The other man nodded and then went to work as they started to bring out the slaves and separating them in to three groups. The first group was predominantly strong looking slaves, and the second group was females and weaker looking males. The last group had two women and a man and after all the slaves had been separated. Bena took the last two groups away and Grimsley took command of the first group to unload goods and put up tents. There were several different races but all of them had one thing in common. They were all in rags and look like they had been either beaten or starved to near death. Zen left Banick in charge of getting everything organized and the tents to go up in the right places. He had his own job to do, and it wasn¡¯t going to be an easy task. Bonded slaves were much like retainers, but their skills were locked, and they couldn¡¯t advance them. Though he could control and monitor them from his sanctuary, and that made it simpler to organize and distribute jobs. They were not brain-dead workers, and still had their own personalities. They just had to follow your orders, or they will go through agonizing pain. Many tried to resist, but either they died or started to follow orders. When Zen reached his sanctuary he sat down and brought up the slave labor tab and in it each bonded slave was listed. The tab had quite a bit of information on them, which included their current levels of emotions. These emotions were like a guide to what the bonded slave was feeling, and if you read them right you can manipulate the circumstances to better use them. Many of them currently were exhausted, depressed and afraid. There was anger in many, and in a few feelings of hate. Among the supplies that came with the caravan were large tents that could house four slaves each and a large one that can house supplies. After he came back from the capital, Zen had contacted Amelia and had her purchase more that would go on the delivery. She was quick and with the extra tents it gave the slaves a little more respect and privacy than most give them. He could see all the slaves at work except for 3 of them. The three were special cases because of what they did before they were captured and turned in to bonded slaves. There were two women and a male and they each had unique talents. The talents did them very little good, as bonded slaves all of their skills were locked, but removing the bonded mark would be even more dangerous without some strict restrictions. The first one he was going to see was a priestess named Narata, and she was the exact person that Bena had pointed out while he was in the Capital. She had elvish and Kerin blood in her, and was a rarity among her race. She was a priestess of the Goddess of Nature, which were both worshiped heavily by many elf and beast kin alike. She currently was exhausted and because of the slave mark she was cut off from her goddess. The information was that she had a gentle nature, but the fear and depression levels with her were high. Zen looked to see where his Avatar was, and he was heading in to his office, and he took a deep breath and then returned. He returned to his avatar just as he was sitting down waiting for them to bring in the Kerin priestess for him to talk too. Bena entered the office a moment later followed by a downcast woman with long silver hair. The woman wore rags that hardly covered her body, and only seemed to be staying on her because the dried mud that was that was smeared across her skin. ¡°Please sit down.¡± Zen asked Narata and she immediately obeyed. ¡°Can you tell me how you were captured and bonded?¡± Zen inquired. ¡°The temple I was at was assaulted by a country near the borders and they were part of a purist order. Many of my temple were butchered and only a few of us remained. I am half blood, so they told me I wasn¡¯t suited for there blood ritual, but because of my looks they sold me to slave traders which bonded me. I was then purchased by you and was sent here.¡± Zen nodded and was surprised there wasn¡¯t any special story behind her capture, but then again if there was she would have never been sold in the slave market. He smiled to her as Bena set some water and cheese on the table. ¡°Please have some.¡± Zen said. Narata reached out with a shaky hand and took the water and drank. She then ate some cheese and it looked as if she was pained for eating it. Zen knew that this Kerin had a good heart and couldn¡¯t help but let out a sigh. The slaves were truly treated awful, but with him some of them had a chance to be at least partially freed. ¡°Can you give me your name?¡± Zen asked. ¡°I am called Narata Dezrinnate.¡± Narata said plainly with out refusal of any sort. ¡°Narata you were a priestess of the Goddess of Nature Remuen correct?¡± Zen asked. He saw Narata¡¯s eyes widened as she looked at the him and a sense of dread came across her face. Zen had an idea what she was thinking, but he tried to put on a comforting smile and continued. ¡°I have no animosity towards those of Remuen. In fact, I see her as a benevolent goddess. That makes things difficult for me, because even though I want to remove your bonded mark. I don¡¯t think it is a wise thing for me to do, because it would only cause chaos with all the other slaves. I have an option to do what is right with out putting my people in danger, but it is something that I will not order you to do. You have to do it of your own free will and with your heart¡¯s blessing.¡± ¡°And that is?¡± Narata asked meekly. ¡°I can remove your mark, but you will not truly gain freedom. You must choose to be my retainer, but unlike many retainers you must swear a heart pledge in the name of your goddess. Only then I will remove your bond mark. This will allow you to once again communicate with your goddess and do good in her name. Is this something your goddess would approve of?¡± Narata sat there and remained quiet and closed her eyes. Zen didn¡¯t know what she was thinking but her face became pale as she sat there seemingly in meditation. It was almost ten minutes before she reopened her eyes and then said. ¡°You ask much, but you also give much as well. Remuen allows us to become concubines or wives of others if we are acknowledged as such. Her domain extends to the family as well as nature, and she does not forbid us for seeking either. You also have given me a flame to hope in such a miserable darkness. I cannot guarantee I will give you my heart, but my body can be yours and I will follow your wishes in all things. It is the price I pay for being able to once again share the word of my goddess, and it is something I am willing to pay.¡±
You have proposed a contract with Narata Dezrinate where she is willing to be your retainer and concubine under the oath of her deity, in exchange for her freedom from the bond mark and the ability to commune with her goddess once more. You have offered, and she has counter offered. Do you accept these terms? Yes or No.
Zen had no reason to refuse the terms so with a thought he accepted the contract terms. Suddenly Zen and Narata were bathed in a golden light. A line of gold connected the two and Narata¡¯s bonded slave mark disappeared. A warm feeling flowed through Zen as he heard a musical voice in his head saying. ¡°I have blessed this oath and thank you for returning my child.¡± Chapter 3: Growth Part 3
You have accepted Narata Dezrinnate as a sworn bound retainer. You now have control over her future progress. You can set tasks for her growth in the sanctuary under the retainer section. You currently have 3 retainers.
You have accepted Narata Dezrinnate as a concubine. You now have greater control over her future progress and any heir that is born from her. The added options are available under the concubine tab in the retainer section. You currently have 1 concubine.
You have been blessed by the Goddess Remuen and have obtained a permanent blessing. You may see the benefits of the blessing under blessing and curses tab. Your relationship with Remuen increases by 10 points. Wisdom +5 Charm +3 Luck +5 Lord¡¯s Aura +2 Levels
Narata Dezrinnate is of a royal line allowing her to qualify to be upgraded to a wife status. Do you wish to upgrade her status to 1st wife? Yes or No.
Zen saw the flurry of alerts and he couldn¡¯t refrain from taking a deep breath. He rejected the upgrade of Narata to his first wife, because she herself said that she didn¡¯t give him her heart. That being done he rose up from his chair and walked over to Narata and could see her tears streaming down her face. Her eyes went from listless to sparkling as she basked in the glory of her goddess. ¡°Thank you.¡± She whispered softly. ¡°I will never be able to repay you for giving me back my faith.¡± ¡°Your faith was never gone.¡± Zen said softly as he brushed back her hair. ¡°You just couldn¡¯t feel it. Your goddess was always with you and you were always with her.¡± She looked up to Zen and nodded in understanding and straightened up and wiped away her tears and said. ¡°What do you wish of me my lord.¡± ¡°The villagers here live a tough life, and I am trying to make it better. I hope you can lighten their burden by tending to there needs of faith and unbind their spirits, so they can lighten some.¡± Zen asked.
Narata Dezrinnate¡¯s respect for you has increased by 40 and is now at 100.
¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Narata said happily. ¡°Go to Elina and she will help you find proper clothes, and later we will go over the things you need.¡± Zen smiled as he nodded to her. Narata smiled and Bena opened the door, where Elina was standing. Bena whispered to her and she nodded guiding Narata away. Bena then closed the door and Zen went back behind his desk to prepare for the next person. He was a person named Ashlam Vereti and he was an alchemist before he became bonded. His skills were high as well, but his reason for being bonded was stealing alchemy recipes. So, they deemed stripping him of his ability to become an alchemist would be a proper punishment. His personality was pragmatic and arrogant, but currently he was despondent and depressed. Bena believed he would jump at any chance to be able to practice alchemy again, and that was what he was hoping for. Zen had decided to leave his pity detached from him in these negotiations. He straightened up his clothes and then nodded to Bena to bring him in. The man that entered the office looked between thirty and forty years old and had a scraggily beard and gaunt frame. He wouldn¡¯t be much of a help in labor and if he didn¡¯t want to choose to serve him freely. He would be nothing more than a hedge healer, because of him being cut off from use of mana. The man looked up at Zen and then stood listlessly in front of his desk. ¡°Sit.¡± Zen said forcefully as he pushed the tray of cheese and pitcher of water and glass toward him. There was no hesitation in the man¡¯s actions and he ate a few pieces of cheese and drank the water presented him. Zen didn¡¯t rush things and waited for him to finish eating what he took and drink the water, and at that moment the man looked up at Zen with a panicked gaze. ¡°Tell me your name and why you were truly bonded as a slave.¡± Zen stated. The man brushed some cheese flakes off his beard and sighed before explaining. ¡°My name is Ashlam Vereti, and I was a well-established alchemist of a large group under the emperor of my continent. The political games played can be a vicious thing, and I myself had caused a few rivals to lose their status. I had done so on many cases by order of my superior, but in the end, I became a liability and was made a scape goat. The aggressive behavior I used caused them to not kill me but make me suffer even more. I was made a bonded slave and was passed around a servant until they finally sold me off, and I was bought by you my lord.¡± Zen nodded because much of it matched with what he had read, and why some didn¡¯t make sense. His explanation resolved much of his confusion. Bena was right this person would be useful, but not as a bonded slave.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Have you told anybody else of this?¡± Zen asked. ¡°No but you are my owner and I can not lie to you.¡± Ashlam stated. ¡°Alright Ashlam, I will be straight with you.¡± Zen said with a serious tone. ¡°I can¡¯t use you as a bonded slave, because your mind is your most redeeming factor. I also would be stupid to sell you off, because of what you are. I will not order you to obey, and you must agree with my proposal of your own free will. I will remove that bond mark from you if you become a retainer for me. You still lose almost all your freedom, but you will have a purpose and be able to be an alchemist again. There will be no political games with me and you will serve me for life.¡± ¡°I will be able to use mana again?¡± Ashlam asked. ¡°You have heard my terms already.¡± Zen stated. ¡°I will leave it up to you to accept or decline. There will be no punishment for declining. You will just stay the way you are and do the best you can in my service.¡± Zen saw little to no hesitation in the man¡¯s eyes as he only could smile. At this point, Zen knew that he would accept the terms just like Bena had predicted. The man stood up and then went directly to a knee and bowed his head. ¡°My lord, I choose to be a retainer in your service for life.¡± Ashlam stated fiercely.
You have accepted Ashlam Vereti as a sworn bound retainer. You now have control over his future progress. You can set tasks for his growth in the sanctuary under the retainer section. You currently have 4 retainers.
¡°Rise.¡± Zen said calmly. ¡°I understand alchemy is a unique and physically draining task and we will discuss what you need to restart your life here later. Though first you must get cleaned up and fed to regain your strength. Bena, will you give instructions for Cora show him to a room.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Bena stood as Ashlam eyes were brimming with excitement and nodded to him and followed Bena. Bena took him to the door where Cora was waiting and with a word the both disappeared leaving Zen alone with Bena again. Zen sighed and smiled and knew that he would probably have problems with that one. The gleam in his eye after finding out he would be able to be an alchemist was a touch mad. Then again, they say most alchemist are a touch mad to begin with. He looked down at the third person that he needed to speak to today. She was a little over 30 years old and was a mage before she was branded with the bond mark. Her name was Delenda Abradel and she was much like the others before her. Her mood was depressed and scared, and her mind was a little frayed by her experiences. As Bena brought her into the office she looked ragged like most of the slaves, but there still was a bit of nobility about her. She hesitated when she saw Zen and then looked to Bena before going and standing before him. Zen gave a smile and then motioned to the seat and she took it without hesitation. ¡°Please tell me your name and why you were bonded as a slave?¡± Zen asked for the third time. ¡°My name is Delenda Abaradel.¡± The woman said with a rough voice. ¡°I was a mage instructor at the Academy of Magic and Summoning in the city of Dragmar, where me and my student lived. My student was exceptional at magic and very beautiful and caught the eye of a noble. When the noble abducted her, I stepped in and tried to save her. I was not successful, and this is what happened to me because of that.¡± ¡°What line of magic were you specialized in?¡± Zen asked. ¡°I was specialized in summoning and elemental magic.¡± Delenda said. ¡°My specialty was on training summoned creatures and students. When they bonded me, I lost contact with all my summoned creatures and all the abilities that they provided me. I couldn¡¯t protect myself anymore.¡± Zen nodded and then paused before speaking again. ¡°Delenda as the one that you are now bonded too I have an obligation to those that serve me, but I also must have guarantees for the safety of those that I am entrusted too as well as those that work with me. I will give you a choice and that choice is something you must decide of your free will and with out no orders or coercions from me.¡± Zen pushed the tray of food that Bena had replaced and the glass full of water toward Delenda. He smiled and continued. ¡°First eat and drink, because I want you to be able to think straight before I give you my options.¡± She hesitated but Zen nodded, and she began to eat. At first, she ate quickly, but when she saw that nobody was stopping her she started to eat more slowly. Zen didn¡¯t say a word and watched her and could see she had training in etiquette, and as she continued to eat she seemed to shake less. She finally pushed the tray aside and looked up at Zen. ¡°I want to give you a few choices, but I can tell you that none of them will lead to freedom.¡± Zen said seriously. ¡°The first option is to not change anything, and we can find you a position in the manor that you can provide a purpose. I know that you are a woman that is well learned, and we can use that here. We will treat you fairly. The second option is more difficult but also has more benefits to you. You can decide to be my restricted retainer and your freedom will be directed by my hands alone, but in exchange your mark will be removed, and you will gain access to your powers again. You will not be free but a slave to my will and command. I will let you take as long as you want to make your decision, but you must make it before you leave this office.¡± Zen could see complexity in her eyes as she thought about it, and unlike the alchemist she didn¡¯t jump at the chance and thought it through. She took the longest of the three but in the end, she decided to take Zen¡¯s offer of being a retainer. She stood up and went to her knee and finally the alert came.
You have accepted Delenda Abaradel as a sworn bound retainer. You now have control over her future progress. You can set tasks for her growth in the sanctuary under the retainer section. You currently have 5 retainers.
¡°My lord.¡± Delenda said from her kneeling position. ¡°I hereby devote my life and death to you and will follow your instruction with my heart and soul. I ask that if ever the time arises my only wish is that noble that took my student be destroyed.¡± ¡°I will not look to destroy him, but if the chance arises I will gladly help you take your revenge.¡± Zen said flatly, and he really meant it.
Delenda Abaradel has sworn a blood oath to you and has become a devoted Zealot. In the hopes that she can revenge her pupil she has willingly bonded her self with her lord. Extra options have been unlocked in the retainer section. You currently have 1 Zealot.
Zen blinked when the extra alert came up and knew he had to ask Bena about this. He nodded at the new resolve in her eyes and he smiled as he put his hand on her head and was surprised as he could feel the mana pulsing through her. he backed up one step out of instinct and said. ¡°You may rise.¡± ¡°I will have Bena take you and help you get straightened out. I hope that if we find some that have the gift you can help guide them in the right direction.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Delenda acknowledged him firmly. ¡°Bena please take care of this.¡± Zen ordered. ¡°Yes, my lord right away.¡± Bena said as she led Delenda out of the office and he followed them and locked the door. There was a lot to do and he just got the necessary 5 retainers to start on the new village. Things went as planned and this was a good thing, because finally he could make some real progress. There were to many things that happened in such a short amount of time, and before he started he needed to consult Bena on why the system reacted so forcefully to what he did here. Chapter 3: Growth Part 4 Zen walked in to his sanctuary and saw Bena standing there smiling at him, and he was surprised that she didn¡¯t already tease him about the three people he had just brought under him, or praise him for getting the 5 retainers needed. She just stood there and then suddenly an alert popped up.
You are now eligible for creating your first outpost, and expansions tab of your interface is now unlocked. Each outpost will need a commander or heir to oversee it, and their training and actions can directly affect your title. To place an outpost, you need to first by more than 25 leagues from your main village and have place an altar. You currently have 1 alter available.
¡°Great job on getting the necessary retainers, and but you are truly still far behind even those that are just becoming a lord.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°When a person starts as a lord they are typically given at least a small town to rule over, which includes the five retainers already under them. They typically have at least twenty already trained soldiers and functioning well protected town. You on the other hand stripped everything and started with a barely maintainable village deep off the beaten path. No retainers, no soldiers and not an orderly structure to a village. Since you¡¯re a platinum VIP you probably would have got a small city at the very least, but you went ahead and changed the starting position in an extreme way. This is something the system isn¡¯t used to, because it falls outside the standard. So, it has pushed you along trying to get you to the proper starting position. That is why the retainers found their way to you so quickly, and you will have an increase in random occurrences. It is the system¡¯s way of pushing you forward.¡± ¡°Is this why you act so bizarre all the time?¡± Zen asked. ¡°No this is my personality, and typically people that are Platinum VIPs start out by ordering quashing our personality. We are duty bound to follow, but you didn¡¯t give those orders and just let me be myself. You have the options to change my appearance, authorities and personality in the interface, but you didn¡¯t even attempt to.¡± Bena explained. ¡°I actually find the way you do things interesting, so I work in the background and let you find your own way. It has been proven to make the lord stronger in the long run unless you¡¯re a total idiot.¡± ¡°Are AI¡¯s supposed to have so much personality?¡± ¡°Your brain creates an algorithm and that guides your personality.¡± Bena laughed. ¡°We have similar algorithms as well, but on a limited scale. I did tell you I was one of the highest tier AI¡¯s.¡± Zen thought about what she said, and it was true. He really didn¡¯t investigate her functions all that much because he was worrying about creating his village. He just smiled and sat down at the table and realized he was acting like a chicken with his head cut off. He realized he made it difficult on himself for going so extreme at the start, but he was finally making some headway. ¡°Bena I want you to give me a list of what normal lord¡¯s start out with, and we will work from there.¡± Zen finally said. ¡°I understand more why others bring in groups of players to help them, because it just is so much work I can¡¯t even work on my own skills.¡± ¡°You have a monstrous amount of coins and tokens to use, and I think building the necessary buildings for this to be an outpost is a good start.¡± ¡°Maybe we need to bring in some administrators or work leaders to help guide the slaves, and projects.¡± Zen mused. ¡°That way I can focus more on the internal things and bettering myself.¡± ¡°That is a good idea.¡± Bena agreed. ¡°Especially since you took on those three new retainers and you have to build you strength slower than others. Do you want to make the order to the Heaven¡¯s Step or should I?¡± ¡°You take care of that, and also have the blueprints of the outpost and the new settlement village drawn up so we can show them clearly on what we want them to do.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Bena said as she went over to her spot on the terminal and relayed the orders to the Capital. Zen also went over to his seat but of instead of just hap hazard planning he tried to focus on what he wanted to do first. He has the work force now so how should he use it, and to what extent. There were no others that were worth making retainers, but did that mean he couldn¡¯t use them in other ways like he did the three he just released from bonded slavery, and if so how does he control them. ¡°Bena is there a way to turn a bonded slave into a loyal servant?¡± He asked. ¡°Not if they don¡¯t make the choice too.¡± Bena stated. ¡°You can take of there bonded mark, but it doesn¡¯t guarantee loyalty, because the moment the mark leaves if their personality is bad. They can find ways of making trouble, because they all can¡¯t become retainers. No other person in the group has met the system requirements and since they are bonded there is no way they can reach it.¡± ¡°Is there something that they can reach that we can use as motivation to increase personal loyalty and respect?¡± ¡°Well you do have a mage now.¡± Bena mused. ¡°She is also a Zealot, which makes her more loyal. She has the binding level at 8, and she could make temporary marks, but the marks would get weaker over time and would have to be refreshed. You could take the bonded mark off them and replace it with a binding magical mark and if the person regresses you can deal with them in other ways.¡± Zen nodded and pulled of Delenda¡¯s information, and a 3D image of her and her stats came up in front of him.
Information Name: Delenda Abaradel Sex: Female Age: 27 Status: Retainer Territory: Coral Heights Race: Human Special Status: Zealot HP: 80 Mana: 600 Stamina: 75 Spirit: 75 Experience Combat: 10 Trade Skill: 5 Diplomacy: 9This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Attributes: Physical: Strength: 8 Endurance: 15 Dexterity: 10 Agility: 7 Mind: Intellect: 31 Wisdom: 13 Comprehension: 19 Awareness: 17 Charisma: Charm: 16 Intuition: 26 uck: 9 Aura: 13 Spirit: Fighting: 6 Blood: 0 Willpower: 11 Elemental: 31 APA: 0 Skills: Summoning: Level 14 Mana Manipulation: Level 16 Binding: Level 8 Fire Element: Level 25 Earth Element: Level 7 Staff: Level 18 Dagger: Level 7 Meditation: Level 16 Literacy: Level 23 Language: Level 18 Talismans: Level 7 Runes: Level 5 Etiquette: Level 9 Spells Summon Lower Elemental Summon Lower Beast Flame Ring Fire Arrow Earth Wall Earth Darts
The attributes and skills seemed to be a little unbalanced toward her magical class, but overall, she seemed to be focused in summoning, fire and earth magic. She had no blood magic, which meant she wasn¡¯t of noble blood and was probably brought from the commoner ranks. She also had some knowledge in talismans and runes which could be very beneficial to him. ¡°She is only 27 years old?¡± Zen said surprised. ¡°Hard labor does a lot to your body.¡± Bena reminded him. ¡°So, for this to work we will have to first gain their trust and loyalty, and then reward them with a different type of servitude and temper it with magical bindings?¡± Zen summarized. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Well we can start there now.¡± Zen stated. ¡°We can set the expectations by treating them better by giving them new clothes and a steady diet of food. That is something we should do anyway to keep their strength up.¡± ¡°That would be a good start.¡± Bana said. ¡°It would also be good for Narata to see to there needs and share her faith with them. She is your concubine and they would relate that with you as well. Faith is a much stronger influence then just kindness alone.¡± ¡°I will have to discuss it with her.¡± Zen sighed. ¡°Do you think it should be her that brings the clothes to them, and if she says it is from me. That would help ease any worry of it not being a part of something nefarious.¡± ¡°It will be more likely they believe her, and it will help her convert to her goddess. It is a good strategy to raise respect and loyalty towards you, because they will know that you had to agree to this.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s give them a good night¡¯s rest and food and then we will start with the housing projects.¡± Zen said to himself. It had been a long time since he took the time to look at his own stats, and he pulled them up.
Information Name: Rozen Martell Sex: Male Age: 18 Status: Lord Territory: Coral Heights Race: Human HP: 33 Mana: 14 Stamina: 33 Spirit: 39 Experience Combat: 11 Trade Skill: 7 Diplomacy: 10 Attributes: Physical: Strength: 7 Endurance: 8 Dexterity: 6 Agility: 5 Mind: Intellect: 5 Wisdom: 10 Comprehension: 5 Awareness: 7 Charisma: Charm: 9 Intuition: 5 Luck: 11 Aura: 5 Spirit: Fighting: 2 Blood: 5 Willpower: 7 Elemental: 2 APA: 25 Skills: Rally: Level 1 Swordplay: Level 4 Archery: Level 6 Intimidate: Level 1 Linguistics: Level 3 Literacy: Level 2 Lord¡¯s Aura: Level 4 Spear: Level 3 Tracking: Level 1 Command: Level 2 Meditation: Level 0 Strategy: Level 1 ASA: 5 Spells
His stats had improved especially in charisma, where he picked up several attributes, but overall, he still looked like a wimp. That would change if he added his free attribute points, but he didn¡¯t want to do that. It was much more efficient to do that later when the levels would be harder to obtain. His skill levels progressed a bit, and most of it had to do with his training and hunting in the very first part of his time here. He had Banick to support him, and help raise his levels. Most players didn¡¯t have that advantage. He would have to take this much more seriously, and because of that he had to move some of his power off to others that he trusted. Narata and to some extent he trusted Delenda, but the semi mad alchemist Ashlam. He didn¡¯t quite trust that gleam in his eye, and he still needed to watch him. He had plans for Narata, because she would be a good representative of him to the villagers, and that meant Delenda¡¯s responsibility would have to increase. She had the highest Intellect of the three, and she did teach students. He finally decided he would explain everything and bring her up to speed on what he wanted. Bena I was thinking of letting Delenda take on some responsibilities in management till we bring in some real city officials. Then when they are settled there I can let her go to the new village site and help guard and put a group of soldiers under her care. What do you think?¡± Zen suggested. ¡°She¡¯s a zealot.¡± Bena stated. ¡°She will do what ever you ask so she will probably be a good choice.¡± ¡°What does a Zealot actually mean?¡± ¡°Zealots basically have lives to you.¡± Bena stated as she was still looking through something in front of her. ¡°You ask her to kill herself and she would. If you ask her to bed you and she would. The second one would probably be more enjoyable for her though.¡± ¡°What made her turn in to a Zealot?¡± Zen asked. ¡°A little bit of madness and a burning desire to get revenge most likely.¡± Bena giggled. ¡°Though most mages are a little mad anyway. So, I will guess it was the revenge you promised her to help with if it is possible.¡± ¡°It seems like Cora and Elina don¡¯t match up well with these three.¡± Zen murmured. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be so sure though.¡± Bena said with a smile. ¡°They are young, and you can guide their growth from the start.¡± ¡°Did you talk to our representatives at the Heaven¡¯s Step?¡± ¡°Yes, I have both Paxton and Amelia searching for competent officials that have loyal personalities.¡± Bena smiled. ¡°The one that provides the best one gets a little extra coin and recognition.¡± ¡°Good.¡± With a thought, Zen brought up three five screens and saw the locations of his five retainers. Elina and Cora were going over a book and then taking time to write something down on a slate in front of them. They were doing what Zen has asked them to do, and he could only smile broadly at that. He then turned to Ashlam and he was cleaning himself half buried in a tub of water, but occasionally, he looked to his hand where a reddish yellow flame burst out and he could only smile. ¡°I swear he is a little creepy.¡± Zen said shaking his head a little. He moved then to Delenda, which was currently cleaning her self up with the help of one of an elven female slaves. They were both naked as the female slave was rubbing down her bare back with a cloth. He could only let out a small breath before he turned to Narata, which was already clean and had put on a set of robes. She was in meditation and her skin was glowing slightly and Zen knew she was communicating with her goddess. ¡°It looks like all of them are all enamored in regaining their powers and skills.¡± Zen said as he turned to Bena and smiled. ¡°You know you¡¯re going to have to deal with Narata, because she has made an oath and become your concubine. You can¡¯t avoid it for long.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± Zen said with a helpless breath. ¡°I understand there is a difference between being a pervert and doing what I must.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know when you looked at Delenda and the made you looked sort of like a perv.¡± Bena laughed loudly as she turned back to her screen before asking. ¡°You will want to have a meal with all five of them tonight correct?¡± ¡°I better.¡± Zen said as he got up and left his sanctuary. Chapter 3: Growth Part 5 Zen felt a little apprehensive as he entered the sanctuary the next day. The banquet that was held was pleasant and he learned a little more about his retainers. All the new retainers seemed to be still exhausted, and Cora and Elina felt a little out of place sitting rather than serving the meal. This was a decision he made after talking to Bena, because they were retainers and according to her they had potential. He had to guide them more and he agreed with her about that. The meal didn¡¯t quite break the ice between the five retainers, but after introducing themselves they seemed to at least act friendly toward each other. He could see that Cora and Elina felt the most out of place, but Narata and Delenda understood the uncomfortable feeling and took time to talk to both of them. Ashlam and him discussed different types of potions that could help him at this moment, and Zen found it interesting how different it worked here from other online games. He found out that alchemy was the combination of elemental energy and ingredients. The quality of the final product was about how the mana, through a flame, combined the ingredients to either potions or pills. Potions worked faster as it could be absorbed in to the person¡¯s body, but pills had over time effects. Pills were more difficult, and the time duration lasted longer, while potions typically helped with immediate boosts. An army needed a little of both, but a good alchemist wasn¡¯t easy to nurture. He worked for the emperor, so most people wouldn¡¯t have his ability. He hadn¡¯t been the best where he was from, but he was up among them. So, Zen felt that he had gained a very important piece to help him grow his area more quickly. The banquet ended, and under the urging of Bena, Elina had left with Delanda and Cora with Narata. He on the other hand had an eventless night and had woke up early and came to the sanctuary. Bena took ten of the bonded slaves and added them to the manor household staff, and arranged the others to work around the villages doing low end tasks. Bena had already prepared the clothes and food for the slaves and even before dawn, slaves were awoken and then given water to clean themselves and new clothes to wear. The clothes were all brown and had matching boots as well. They had a small crest on them signifying that they were the slaves of the House of Martell and they were fed cold rations. Zen thought it was not enough, but the slaves seemed overjoyed at the treatment. There were smiles on their faces as they were separated in to four work crews and started on their assigned tasks. Zen was excited because the building of the fortress structures had now truly begun in earnest and he was finally approaching the start. The materials were gathered from the land, so it didn¡¯t make him use his resources. He turned and saw Bena walk out of a room yawning and stretching and he couldn¡¯t help but blink his eyes in surprise. ¡°You sleep?¡± ¡°Of course, I do.¡± Bena said as she went over to the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee and walked over to sit next to him. ¡°It surprise me to no end how real you act sometimes.¡± Zen said. ¡°I am real.¡± Bena said with an offended tone. ¡°Just because I don¡¯t have flesh and bones sitting in some capsule somewhere. That doesn¡¯t mean I am not real or any of these natives for that matter. Sure, we can be reconstructed, but no reconstructed AI is exactly like the other. They react totally based on experiences.¡± ¡°Are there way natives can be brought back like us players?¡± He asked. ¡°There is, through a rebirth stone, but it is costly.¡± Bena smiled grimly. ¡°Rebirth stones can hold a natives experiences but they have to be bought and charged before the native dies. A portion of there power is placed inside the stone and creates charges. When a native dies the charges are decreased by one and when there are no charges left there death becomes final.¡± ¡°Can you only purchase them?¡± ¡°No, you can find them in nature.¡± Bena explained. ¡°They are rare though.¡± ¡°That seems harsh.¡± Zen mused. ¡°Life is harsh.¡± Bena said coldly. ¡°Even my Avatar is gone if it dies. I am unique because I am a player¡¯s AI, but I would loose all relationships I gained through my Avatar none the less.¡± Zen sighed at all the different aspects of this game that he needed to think about, and he wondered how anybody could do it if they didn¡¯t have a AI guiding them. It made him feel a little incompetent in a way, and he decided to focus on something else. He pulled up the information list that he had created and focused on that. Zen only nodded and looked over the building estimations for the day, and groaned. He could buy the material, but he wasn¡¯t going to do that. He had experienced slaves that even though their skills were locked by the bond mark. They could show other villagers how to do things. Bena had made sure the slaves were with some villagers, so the villagers could learn from there experience and grow. The sun had risen, and Zen had returned to his avatar and walked slowly through the village. The slaves had been given a warm breakfast and Narata and Cora were handing out new clothes for them to wear. Narata was seeing to there needs, and the fact she was no longer a bonded slave was not missed. He didn¡¯t stay long because he didn¡¯t want to cause the villagers and slaves to become anxious, and returned to the manor.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. The estimated time for him to complete the first project here was 15 days now and it would fall just inside the time limits that his protection would run out. In 17 days, beasts that were in the area would once again be free to roam near the village, and by that time the 10 guards hired from the capital should arrive and be in place. Then he can see about arranging a new set of buildings in the permanent location he had already selected. Why everybody was busy this was a down time that he really couldn¡¯t do much. It was the perfect time for him to return to his virtual apartment outside of GCO and take some down time to recover from the stress put on his mind from the game world. He wouldn¡¯t return to his old apartment, but instead to a joined apartment that was furnished for him when he became a platinum VIP subscriber. It was like his sanctuary, but the stress the game world created on his mind would be peeled back. ¡°Bena I think I should go out of GCO while I have a break here.¡± Zen said. ¡°I think the next two weeks will be much more difficult and I should go out now. I can still do much of my planning from there and I probably should take care of some of my real-life stuff as well.¡± ¡°Go ahead, I have things covered and will keep your avatar out of trouble for you.¡± Bena smiled mischievously. Zen shivered as he walked over to a portal that was glowing red. The portal led out of GCO and in to the apartments that were connected to the GCO hub. He stepped through and suddenly a great weight seemed to be lifted from him. He hadn¡¯t noticed it when he was in the game, but everything seemed to become slower and clearer to him. This was the first time he was in his hub apartment, but there were several differences than his sanctuary. The first thing he did was walk over to the video screen and access his system in his old apartment. He placed his hand on a pop-up screen and opened a link, and was shocked at the number of mail messages he had in his inbox. He never had got this many message before he entered GCO so when he saw the 32 messages he wondered what was going on. He quickly reorganized the messages by the sender, and 15 of them were from his attorney, and 4 of them were from his parents. There were others from some of his friends in and out of the Arrise guild but 2 of them were from Amanda. He opened the first one from Amanda and a vid screen opened and she was dressed in her Arrise Guild uniform. ¡°Zen, I went by your apartment and saw it was locked up, and I was surprised how fast you disappeared. I wasn¡¯t sure if you went to the real world or just decided to relocate. Things are chaotic at the guild right now, and my family are at odds with each other. If you have a chance please contact me, because I don¡¯t want what my brother did to come between us.¡± Amanda said and sadly smiled. ¡°I know that my brother has sent out a black ball to the other guilds, but if your having problems contact me and I will see what I can do.¡± The screen flashed off and he brought up the other message that was dated a few days ago. Amanda came up, but she looked tired and upset. Zen knew her well enough to know when she was furious at something. She wasn¡¯t wearing an Arrise Guild uniform this time, but a pink t-shirt that was much more flattering. ¡°Zen, I haven¡¯t heard from you, but I wanted to let you know that I have left Arrise Guild.¡± Amanda laughed. ¡°That bastard brother of mine sold out the guild for a lower position in Brigand¡¯s Fire, and I was forced out. The family backed him and even my own family members were forced to agree. I had to sell all of my rights in the guild, and I ended up only a little better than you in that regards, because I was forced to sign a no competition clause for 2 years. Please give me a call when you can.¡± Zen sympathized with Amanda and almost contacted her right then and there, but paused and knew he had to think on this. He trusted Amanda but knew she would always do what was best for the guild before him, but he didn¡¯t know what to think of this position. The last thing he wanted was those bastards to find out what game he was in and where, and why he didn¡¯t think Amanda would tell them. He just really didn¡¯t know for sure if he would be right. He put Amanda aside for a bit and started to go through the less stressful mails that were from his lawyer, and he was happy that everything he had asked for had been put in place. The old lawyer that was working for him was his grandfathers and he trusted him completely. It wasn¡¯t that he was beyond being corrupted, but the old man hated his family almost as much as him, and you could tell from some of his reports that the fact he could stick it to his family was a sense of pride. The few mails that he had to act on or decide were completed by him, and he gave a new directive that he had been thinking about for a while. He already knew that GCO for the time being was his new life, so he made some preparations which he had planned well before him entering. He decided to put them into action and sent his directives away to his lawyer to start. The last mails that he had to deal with were from his family. The main one was from his mother, which he dreaded watching. The vid opened, and he saw his mother there and he sighed as she looked at him as if she was worried. He knew it was an act, because she never looked vulnerable. She always thought such petty emotions were weakness, and only needed to be used as tools to accomplish her goals. She was good at it, and could have been an actress if she wanted too. Marshala Archibald was a beautiful woman that was over forty years of age, and looked like she was in her mid-twenties. She had long black hair and a body that was seductive in nature, and everything he saw in front of him was a first-class appearance that was one of her most lethal weapons. Currently she was in tears, which ironically made her more beautiful. ¡°Zen dear.¡± She said with a plaintive voice. ¡°I know that I wronged you and neglected you after father¡¯s death, but we all grieved in our own way. I want you to know that I regret what I did, and want you to come back. I tried to reach you directly and through that resentful lawyer that father had, but he is too vile and is only interested in spending the money father left you. Please, if you can find it in your heart to forgive me. I want to start over and be part of your life.¡± Her weeping continued then she looked up at the video recorder with her teary eyes, and choked a little making it look like she couldn¡¯t say anything more before finally the vid mail ended. Zen would of probably fell for it if he didn¡¯t see her use this exact same type of vid mail when he had gone through her video mails to grandfather. He could feel the bile in his stomach and wondered if there was a setting that let him stop that taste that found its way to his throat. He attentively checked the other mail from his sisters and found they both seemed to mesh and support his mother¡¯s mail and couldn¡¯t stop from chuckling at that. Two demonesses learning from a great demoness. The world is truly going to suffer from the actions of his family, and he was even more happy that he was in a world that was more civil than his past life. ¡°That is quite a bit of resentment you have built up there.¡± A soft voice said behind him. Chapter 3: Growth Part 6 He turned around and Bena was standing in the main room near the portal to the GCO. Zen was shocked when he saw her, and wondered how she got here. He just sat there looking at her and before he could say anything she talked. ¡°Oh, come on I am an AI, and do you really think this is different from GCO and I couldn¡¯t come here?¡± Bena questioned with a big sigh. ¡°This is a GCO property and I have the same permissions here as I do in the sanctuary. The same way you are directly linked to the sanctuary, I am linked to here as well. There are different settings for here and GCO, but I can basically have as many copies of myself as needed if I have permission. ¡°Oh.¡± Was all that Zen could say. ¡°You truly are a retard.¡± Bena said. ¡°You can deal so callously with your family and yet seem like such a simpleton in other things.¡± Zen couldn¡¯t help but chuckle at her comment and that chuckle turned into a full laugh as he leaned back on his chair. It took him a little while to regain his composure, and then with a release of tension that he didn¡¯t know was built up so high. He could finally feel his muscles unknot and he realized he felt a wave of exhaustion come over him. ¡°I am just a little taken aback that you are the same form as in the sanctuary.¡± Zen mused with a creeping chuckle again. ¡°It makes me think that I really didn¡¯t leave GCO.¡± ¡°You can change my form if you like and it won¡¯t affect my form in GCO.¡± Bena said. ¡°My name as well.¡± ¡°That seems like to much work.¡± Zen frowned then asked. ¡°How about you just do it yourself? Can you do that?¡± ¡°I think this will be fun.¡± Bena mused. Zen could only cringe at the look in her eye, but he quickly finished the other odd vid mails and then sat back in the chair and closed his eyes. He never realized the weight that was put on him while in GCO, but it was like walking from a place that had heavy gravity to somewhere that was light and could almost float. It gave the same feeling of exhausted muscles after a hard workout and he felt like he just didn¡¯t want to move anymore. He didn¡¯t know how long he was in that state but eventually he realized he must of fell asleep in the chair. He opened his eyes and was shocked to see a woman with auburn hair and blue eyes standing over him in a halter top and black pants. She had tan complexion and she was holding a tray that had some food and a glass cup of juice in it. ¡°Here is some food master?¡± She reached down showing her cleavage. ¡°Is there anything else you would like?¡± ¡°Ehh¡­¡± ¡°I guess this isn¡¯t the right look.¡± She said as she frowned. ¡°There was definitely some attraction, but not near enough.¡± ¡°Bena?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Of course, it is me.¡± She said. ¡°Who else could come in your apartment with out being invited in by you.¡± ¡°What are you doing looking like that?¡± ¡°Well you did say I could find my own look, didn¡¯t you?¡± She asked. ¡°It wasn¡¯t a bad start, but I don¡¯t think this is a keeper.¡± ¡°God, I feel like I just gave a teenage a key to a sports car and said have fun.¡± Zen mumbled. ¡°I like that analogy.¡± She giggled. ¡°If I get the right one maybe you will take it out for a test drive with me.¡± Zen just froze at her words and wondered if it was normal for AI¡¯s to flirt and then he couldn¡¯t help but laugh. Bena hasn¡¯t been a normal AI since he knew her, and he sat back in the chair and put his hands up in a surrender position and said. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you had such a sex drive Bena.¡± ¡°Of course, I think sex is great, and even my avatar in GCO has had a romp or two with a few of the villagers.¡± Bena smiled. ¡°Really?¡± Zen asked in a surprised tone. ¡°Of course.¡± Bena snorted. ¡°We aren¡¯t all saints like you. You have slept with Elina and that has made Cora jealous. I wouldn¡¯t doubt that she will make her move on you soon.¡± ¡°I am not a monk and I understand what I need to do.¡± Zen snapped. ¡°I will create heirs, but I also have other plans too.¡± Zen pulled up a file that appeared as if it was a crystal stick and tossed it over to Bena. He watched her eyes twitch and then the crystal stick disappeared. He watched her face as it frowned and then smiled as she put her finger to her chin and then smiled wider. ¡°That is a good idea.¡± Bena said as she looked at him with an impressed grin. ¡°You have been planning this from the start haven¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Zen confirmed. ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure if it was feasible, but the longer I spent in GCO. I realized it was and could be quite profitable as well.¡± ¡°What about the woman?¡± She asked. ¡°Amanda, well I was considering directing her toward the broker, but I am worried that it will be leaked. I like Amanda, but I am not sure if I can trust her yet.¡± ¡°I think that is a wise idea not trusting her yet.¡± Bena agreed. ¡°Though I get the feeling that she would be an asset and you will bring her in to it. Plus, I can tell she wants to jump your bones.¡±Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Is everything about sex with you?¡± Zen sighed. ¡°Where you a succubus in a previous reincarnation?¡± ¡°A succubus? Hmmm.¡± Bena smiled evilly. ¡°That would be a cushy job.¡± Zen sat back on his chair and smiled and then sighed as he brought up a screen and decided to send a text mail to Amanda. He included a cryptic message that only she would understand, and then made a separate video mail for Amanda. He activated the camera making the background a blank setting and then started. ¡°Amanda.¡± Zen said with a frown. ¡°I was not available to get your video mails and I wanted to make sure you are ok. I would like to say I am surprised at your brother¡¯s actions, but to be honest I saw this coming. He is an idiot, but sometimes idiots follow devious people and that rich prick is a bastard that is devious. I am not sure how I can help you, but I want too so I will give you a little information that might help a little. I will send it to the place only we know about, and let you decide there. I have a lot of things going on trying to cope with the backlash I got from your brother¡¯s contacts, and even though we can¡¯t meet right now. I really do care about your well being so be careful, and don¡¯t trust any of your old contacts. These bastards don¡¯t forgive, and they are resentful to the core.¡± Zen stopped the camera and then attached it to the mail and sent it to her. He really did like her before, but he understood the reasons why they cooled off so much in the past. She thought he came from a low background and that was what he wanted her to believe. He smiled as he looked over to Bena that was eyeing him dubiously. ¡°You¡¯re too soft.¡± Bena giggled. ¡°Anyway, you should relax and get rested up, because we have a lot of work waiting for us and things will start to move much more quickly now.¡± Zen nodded and rose out of the chair and went over to his bedroom. He welcomed a nice hot shower and comfortable bed right now. He realized that even though he thought he slept peacefully in the game. He really was taking a beating without knowing it. The stress that was placed on him was much more than he thought especially when in his sanctuary. It was still a critical time for him and his lowly village, but it was looking better then it had been just a week earlier. He looked forward to having time to build his own abilities rather than only focusing on keeping the village afloat. Zen only spent 24 hours or 4 days game time away from GCO and when he returned things were in full swing in construction of the new village buildings. He had kept tabs on everything from his out of game apartment and everything seemed to move so quickly from there. The fact that his first ten guards had arrived during his absence. They were ten natives that had signed a five-year contract in the capital of the Epsilon continent. They were hired by his agents at the Heaven¡¯s Step and they were here to serve as protection to the village. The moment they arrived Banick took charge of them, and by the time he had returned they were already starting to patrol outside the village walls. There would be another group of twenty that would be arriving in another weeks¡¯ time. The wages of these soldiers were nothing to Zen, but that was something he dared not reveal. The ten soldiers met his avatar, and the meeting went well. His agents did a good job and many of the soldiers seemed to be willing to listen and do their job with out to many complaints. The second major issue came that night when Narata entered his chambers and fulfilled her duties as a concubine. Zen was dazzled by how her body had changed in the small time he had released her from the slave bond. Her body was amazing, and she showed no sign of regret when they made love. Zen found that he didn¡¯t feel hesitant and the more they made love the more comfortable he seemed to be. He held Narata close to him and it seemed to feel natural to have her beside him. Zen held her till she awoke and with out any words they had an understanding, and she rose from the bed walking to his bathroom still naked. He could only smile at her graceful elven figure as she disappeared inside, and he slowly roused himself from the bed to start his day as well. He didn¡¯t rush off to the sanctuary like he usually did, but followed Narata in to the bathroom and washed each other before they started there day. Zen could only smile as he saw Narata leave his room and only then did he make his way into the sanctuary. He purposefully avoided Bena¡¯s mischievous smile as he went to look at the progress of the construction and the progress on the materials that were going to be delivered to the village. ¡°Bena, is there anything pressing for me to do at the moment?¡± Zen asked. ¡°Not really.¡± Bena answered. ¡°Maybe you should spend some time developing your relationship with your retainers and guiding their future paths. I know you have already started to guide Narata¡¯s future path last night.¡± Zen sighed and then chuckled. ¡°Alright I will focus on that then until we get further along.¡± Zen did exactly that as the time seemed to fly by, and everything was getting done as he delved more in to creating a tighter bond with his people. He focused on training himself and guiding his retainers, and most of what Bena said came to pass. Cora, Elina and Narata were frequent visitors and the having them close to him became less hesitant. The homes for the villagers were built and many of them were happy including the bonded slaves, which lived in a dormitory structure. Where the males and females lived in opposite sides of the building. The villagers for the most part had accepted the slaves even though many of them were of other races, and his guards now numbered 40 strong plus his original body guards and the villagers that trained under them. The guards practiced every day improving their skills under the watchful eye of Banick, and they are getting ready to head to the valley and the new location of the city. Zen would be leading them along with 20 guards, 30 bonded slaves and Ross, Cora and Delenda. It would take them 2 and a half days to get there and then they had 3 days to set things up and make a perimeter to receive another batch of bonded slaves. Zen was about to head to the capital to visit Heaven¡¯s Step and his two hard working agents there. He would order the bonded slaves, which could only be bid on by those qualified to be a lord. He would take part in an auction under the guidance of his agents to test their ability and thoroughness. Paxton and Amelia had done a good job for him, but neither had done anything that would put each other ahead in the race. Zen sighed and put on his mask which shined a silver color now and waited for Bena to open the portal. He walked through but this time he entered directly in to his room at the Heaven¡¯s Step. The room there hadn¡¯t changed much except there were two more doors leading out of the main receiving hall. He had remembered there were only 3 doors and a giant hallway before but now there were 5. The two maids curtsied as he appeared, and he smiled and walked over to the couch where there was a platter set out with wine and finger foods. Zen sat down as one of the maids poured him a goblet of wine, while the other exited the room. Zen didn¡¯t say anything as he sat down and took a sip of the wine and picked out a few meats off the tray. It wasn¡¯t even a minute later when two people arrived in the room. One was female and had a very alluring figure and the other was male and was steadfast and walked with a straight forward step. It was Paxton and Amelia, and both smiled. Zen returned the smile and motioned for them to sit down and join him. Chapter 4: Coral Village The Heaven¡¯s Step truly was the most elite organization in GCO, and it stretched across every continent. The higher your level at Heaven¡¯s Step the more perks you received, and at level two you were not only able to access the bonded slave markets from just the main capital, but also the capitals of every continent in GCO. There were unique races in every continent, so this could be a highly advantageous thing, and his two astute assistants had worked hard giving him a wide range of options. In front of him, where a list of different races and their cultural expertise, and Zen had to admit that it was overwhelming. The location of the new main city of his area had mountains, rivers and wasn¡¯t far from the ocean. It was also close to a region that was heavily forested so there were many different options, but in the end his larges resource was the mountain range. Zen narrowed the list to mountain races and with the help of his assistants he found the continents that had the best cultures based on his original designs. The list wasn¡¯t as large as he thought, and at the front of it were three races. The first was a type of elven race called the Marnu. There features were like dark elves, but they were known for their craftsmanship and use of ruin lore. They were the loyal slaves of the Dragus Empire, which royal line were said to have dragon blood in them. The second race were named the Roquen and they were from the Zerties Empire. They were said to have the blood of the elemental giants, but even though their strength was unmatched. They had limited culture and capacity to learn. This had caused them to be easily trained as soldiers or manual labor. They fit the requirement because they were strong and able to do much more physically than many of the other races. The last group were the Varbian race, and they came from the empire of Sungulos. The empire of Sungulos was almost seventy percent mountains and valleys. They Varbian were a conquered people and because of that they were not able to rise above commoners there. They were for the most part free but those of higher status could at any time enslave them or take them away. This had led them to hide and try to live there life away from the empire, and hope that their settlements weren¡¯t discovered and enslaved. All three of them were viable races for his needs, but the fact that the bonded slaves were blind auctions made it so there was no way he would be sure to get these races. Zen agreed with the choices and Amelia quickly went to gather the upcoming auction slots from the three empires. Zen and Paxton went over the materials and people he would need to secure to help grow the village. This included many of the indentured slaves that were needed so the village could be completed and survive. Indentured slaves were people that were in debt and weren¡¯t always natives. There were some players that were also in debt and had to use their skills to get out. Players often had real life debt and some even hired there skills out to lords to offset their real-life expenses. These player¡¯s contracts were legally enforced inside and outside the game. Though having indentured players come to his village was way to dangerous, so he limited the contracts that were for sale to just natives. Paxton and Amelia were both players themselves, so they understood his thoughts, but they were under strict contracts and severe penalties if they betrayed him. Plus, they were paid very well by Heaven¡¯s Step, and got bonuses for there level and actions. They could make money as high as junior executives in the real world and it was more enjoyable. There toughest part was finding a lord to work with, and Zen didn¡¯t know if they were truly happy, but they did a good job. ¡°You were the one that investigated the list of smithies.¡± Zen said as he read over them and their debt amounts. ¡°Which do you suggest?¡± ¡°Elgerou Bonegrinder is the best one in my opinion.¡± Paxton stated. ¡°He is a dwarf, but two of his apprentices are human, and he is known to be very strict about what he classifies as a success. That was the reason why he became so indebted, and the reason he lost his prized weapons. Even after they were taken his debt was way to high, and he was blackballed from the city he was in.¡± ¡°He seems like a good candidate then.¡± Zen mused. ¡°I will take your advice on him, and have you negotiate with his current contract holder to get the best deal. If we get all these contracts how long do you think it will take until they are ready to be sent to the new location?¡± ¡°It depends on a number of variables.¡± Paxton explained. ¡°It will take more time to gather everybody and then send them, but you will be guaranteed to know when they will arrive. Otherwise, they will come at random times.¡± ¡°Just gather them up and also collect 10 more guard candidates and have them come with.¡± Zen decided. ¡°I have heard that on the travel sometimes family members or even the main person can be lost. It is best to play it safe in this regard, and I believe it will give the slaves good will toward the village as well.¡± ¡°As ordered.¡± Paxton said with a smile. Zen looked up and Amelia had come back with the lists and sat down next to him. She brought up the information and passed it over to him. The info popped up in front of him, and had several auction lots that included the size and area of the country they were caught in. This was helpful, because they could now eliminate some areas where the three races probably wouldn¡¯t come from. ¡°Good¡­ thank you Amelia.¡± Zen said as he went over the list. ¡°Do you have any suggestions which ones would be most likely to have what we need?¡± The question might have been simple, but Bena had explained that the assistants at Heaven¡¯s Step gained experience toward leveling by offering advice, and the lord accepting it. The experience would depend on the result of the advice and how happy the lord felt about the result. Zen was giving the opportunity for both to gain these experience points, which in the end would help himself out as well.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. The list of auctions lots on this numbered 34 that would be auctioned off in the next 12 hours, and over half of them were small lots that numbered under 25. The first of the five lots would be auctioned off in a little over two hours, with the last one being auctioned off about an hour before he had to leave. Zen had enough funds, but he didn¡¯t think he would have enough space to settle such a group, so he had to guess based on Amelia¡¯s notes on which to choose. He sat beside Amelia and bid on the lots, and overall it went well. He won 3 of the 5 lots and was surprised to find that two lots from the Dragus Empire and the one lot from the Sungulos Empire had many of the races he wanted. The two from the Dragus Empire had 39 of the 45 bonded slaves that came from the Marnu Race, and all 23 of the Sungulos Empire lot were Varbian. It was a particularly good ratio and Zen was very happy with Amelia¡¯s choices. ¡°Both of you did a great job here.¡± Zen said with a grin. ¡°I am happy with your work currently, and look forward to giving both of you more important tasks.¡± Zen didn¡¯t mention the fact that to him these were all important tasks, but he had been coached by Bena to slowly compliment them. This would keep them working harder and help prevent to much arrogance. It seemed to work because a window popped up and he received an increase in respect from Amelia by 6 and from Paxton by 4. He was surprised because under Amelia another indicator rose and his Affinity with her raised by 6 points. Zen didn¡¯t even know he had an affinity attribute, and would have to ask Bena about it. ¡°I will look forward to hearing good news about your dealings in the future.¡± Zen smiled and stood up. ¡°I have to return now, but be sure to keep me up to date on any information or opportunities that might arise in the future.¡± Amelia and Paxton both rose, and he could only smile as he walked over to the portal and with a wave of his hand the portal opened, and he walked through. He exited the other side and let out a sigh wondering why it was so important to add the theatrics, but this was another idea Bena had. It was best that he fight the battles he could win and were important to him, and let these little battles to Bena go her way. Zen smiled and realized he already thought of Bena as real even though she was an AI. The thoughts were hard to control and came naturally, and he also realized that he didn¡¯t really care that he thought that way. He walked over and with a simple command he changed in to more comfortable clothing and went over to sit beside Bena. ¡°That was productive.¡± Bena said with a cheerful voice. ¡°I wish we could have got some of the Roquen, but they are highly sought after so it isn¡¯t too surprising.¡± ¡°I will have to alter the plans to build an additional slave barrack, but the ratio was quite impressive. Amelia did a great job.¡± Zen agreed. ¡°I think she see¡¯s you as her target though, so you should be careful.¡± Bena laughed. ¡°It isn¡¯t unusual for players to target lords, because that way they will get benefits in the real world too.¡± ¡°Life is full of challenges isn¡¯t it.¡± Zen stated with a smile. ¡°You have changed a little.¡± Bena giggled. ¡°In a good way though.¡± Zen could only smile as he left the sanctuary and found himself laying beside Narata in his bed. He could feel her hands stroking his chest and he suddenly felt in the mood. He pulled her close and knew that he would soon be leaving for the new village and not see her for a while. He couldn¡¯t help but smile and then he moved slowly and started to make love with her. He would miss this while he was gone, and without hesitation he would make his last few nights here memorable. The next few days went by fast as they prepared the caravan to the new building site. Only a dozen of the villagers were going along, and the rest were slaves, soldiers and his retinue. It really had been a long time and the village had changed quite a bit. The wooden walls were now stone reinforced with towers and guard stations. The house was grass and mud, but their were wind breakers made of stone around each of them helping deal with the winds. There was a set market place just off the square, and the pillar that was in the heart of the village was now surrounded, and protected with a walled area with four archways coming from each direction. There were places for people to sit and visit around the pillar and now it was spotless and glowing a soft blue when you got with in five feet of it. There were several open houses that were meant for shops and future industry along with several wells that had been sunk in to a water reservoir. As the caravan left the gates he could see a few outer houses that had higher walled fences to protect them from animals and wind. There were also several breakers that allowed them to plant small crops for the future needs. It truly was growing quickly, and as the caravan started down the hard-packed road, he could sense the improvements that were close to the village. He was proud of what he did and felt a connection with the village that was more profound than what he would of thought. The caravan needed to take a longer route because unlike the first time. The wagons were loaded with a few goods, and they had to make there way on more solid ground than when they had come back. Zen sat on his horse and as they moved he made sure that they continued to practice their maneuvers and training. The beasts weren¡¯t to powerful, and he had a few times went out on scouting trips with men. He had extended his map to at least a day journey away, but he knew that closer to the new site it would be much more dangerous. The first night was eventless and they had hunted a large elk to use as meat. They made the meat into a stew and everybody had portions including the bonded slaves. The night also passed with out much issue, and as they entered less scouted territory the route started to become more dangerous. They had been attacked a few times from vicious dogs, but they were beat back or killed. A few of the slaves were injured in the battles, but nothing serious. The second night there was also an attack from a large cat, and it had injured a bonded slave enough the wound had to be tended to right away. The cat was slain by an arrow from Cora¡¯s bow, and the pelt skinned and placed aside for the lord. Zen rewarded it to Cora and made sure the slave was given extra time to rest and more portions of the food. The third day the caravan reached the location where he had decided to set up the main square of the new village. There was still several hours before it would get dark so they all scrambled to gather things to use as a defensive barricade against attack. He had started the bonded slaves digging a trench where the initial stone walls would begin before pulling them back as it got dark. Zen was happy when no attack came that night, and the next day they were to start clearing the area for where the main buildings would be located. He had taken building flags and placed them himself and from that point in time the bonded slaves started to removed grass and dig the ground where the basements would be located.