Gives a try

Chapter 42: Gives a try

After Zhao Hai led the four people into the room, they approached the head of the bed, near the screen. Zhao Hai touched the screen with his hand, and it lit up, displaying various icons on the screen.

Merine and the others were somewhat surprised as they looked at the screen. These things were ordinary to Zhao Hai, but for Merine and the others, they were still mysterious.

Zhao Hai immediately selected the icon for the camera, and a hologram of the castle appeared on the screen. Zhao Hai noticed that there was a missing green dot in the castle, particularly in the main fort where the green dot couldn't be seen.

Zhao Hai selected another position in the courtyard of the fort, and two green dots there were also moving. The scene on the screen changed to show the courtyard of the fort.

Although the computer could only display the area within 100 meters of Zhao Hai when he entered the Space and made a selection, this range was not insignificant. When Zhao Hai entered the Space, he was in the living room of the main fort, and the courtyard he saw on the screen was not too far away.

The courtyard displayed on the screen wasn't very big, only a part of the fort's courtyard. From the screen, it was clear that there were snake-shaped Magic Beasts and human-shaped Undead Creatures in the courtyard.

Merine and the others had been paying attention to the situation on the screen. Seeing this, they couldn't help but be surprised and gathered around to carefully observe the scene on the screen.

After a while, Merine asked uncertainly, "Is this the courtyard of the fort?"

Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Yes, this is our fort's courtyard. Those two moving dots are the Magic Beasts currently in the courtyard. It seems that these Magic Beasts haven't left, so we can't go out for now."

Merine looked excited as she said, "This is a good thing. With this, Young Master, you will be safe. There's no need to fear enemies attacking you."

Zhao Hai forced a smile. He realized that Merine prioritized his safety above everything else. No matter what the situation, her first concern was always his safety.

Zhao Hai selected the screen again, and it returned to the three-dimensional hologram chart. He pointed to the green dots on the hologram and said, "On this chart, the green dots represent the Magic Beasts. The density of Magic Beasts on this chart is much lower than yesterday. It seems that these Magic Beasts have retreated. We can't leave temporarily."

He then selected a position in the living room, and the scene on the screen immediately switched back to the living room. The present condition of the living room was in complete disarray, with almost everything destroyed.

Seeing the state of the living room, Blockhead couldn't help but curse softly. Zhao Hai gently tapped his finger on the screen, and soon all the rooms in the main fort were shown, and they were all in the same condition. Everything in the rooms had been destroyed by Magic Beasts or Undead Creatures.

Merine and the others had unpleasant expressions on their faces. When they first arrived at the castle, there was nothing in it. Now, all the daily necessities they brought had been destroyed. The castle that they had gradually made their own had now become a complete mess.

After looking at the surroundings within a 100-meter radius, Zhao Hai withdrew the screen back to the hologram and turned to Merine, saying, "Grandma Merine, the current situation outside is that we have to stay in the Space for a few days. During this time, please assign each person a task and teach them to read Braille."

Merine nodded and said, "Rest assured, Young Master. I know what to do."

Zhao Hai nodded and continued, "I will organize the warehouse later. I noticed that we also brought many seeds commonly used in the continent. I want to try planting them in the Space."

Merine was puzzled and shook her head, saying, "Young Master, there's no need to plant those seeds. They are just ordinary seeds, and their crop yields are not as high as corn or the magic vegetables. They are quite ordinary and not worth it. We didn't buy those pampered seeds because we knew that only Iron Mountain can grow things here in the Black Wasteland. So we don't need to use the land in the Space for planting."

Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Let's take a look at the seeds we have. It's a waste to leave them unused, so we might as well give them a try."

Merine shook her head and said, "Young Master, I don't agree with you planting those seeds in the Space. You don't know that the Space has its own characteristics. Every time you bring something unique from outside into the Space, it levels up. Originally, the Space had only ten mu of land, but when you brought the Black Soil from Iron Mountain and the lake water, the Space leveled up. With each level up, the land area increased by two mu. So if you want to experiment with these seeds, see if the Space can level up again, it would be best."

Upon hearing Zhao Hai's explanation, Merine understood. She said, "So that's how it is. Then, you can try planting the Magic Radishes tomorrow. If the Space can level up, that would be great."

Zhao Hai nodded and then turned to Merine, saying, "Grandma Merine, tomorrow morning, please have them clean up the trash in the Space and gather it in one place. When we have time in the Space, we can bring it over and process it."

Merine agreed and said, "Very well, Young Master. Don't worry, I will take care of it."

Zhao Hai looked at the decorations in the room and said, "Grandma Merine, I think we should tidy up the things in the room. We'll set up two beds here, and you can rest in the room and avoid going out."

Merine shook her head and said, "Young Master, we should rest outside. We need to keep an eye on these slaves to prevent them from damaging the crops in the Space."

Seeing that Merine insisted on not staying inside, Zhao Hai didn't say anything further. He knew that it was impossible for Merine to change her mind on this matter. Therefore, Zhao Hai said, "Alright, I'll go out later and bring out a few beds from the warehouse. Or maybe we can separate a room for you and Merine on the side for more convenience."

Merine didn't object to this suggestion. She also felt that it wouldn't be appropriate to sleep inside, even though this Space was quite close. Although it was closer to Space here, one shouldn't forget that there were more than 100 slaves here. Sleeping and waking up under the gaze of over 100 people, only a few individuals would feel comfortable with that.

Zhao Hai took out some wooden planks and separated two small rooms next to the thatched hut. Each room had three beds—one for Merine, Meg, and Chrysanthemum, and the other for Blockhead, Stonehead, and Secure.

The current conditions were simple, so they could only do this for now. Zhao Hai had Chrysanthemum and Secure share the room with Merine and Blockhead to show the slaves the difference between them. Although Chrysanthemum and Secure had become Buda Family servants and commoners, they would still work together with the slaves. This would make the slaves feel that even though they had become commoners, nothing had really changed for them. It would help them adjust.

In order to make the slaves see the differences between Chrysanthemum, Secure, and themselves, Zhao Hai made sure to create some distinctions during meals and sleeping arrangements. This way, the slaves would have something to strive for, which was a management strategy.

Although Zhao Hai had been a bookworm in the past and didn't have much experience in management, one couldn't deny that books had their value. Even in light novels, one could find useful information. Everything that Zhao Hai knew, apart from a few things learned in school, mostly came from these novels. The difference between hypertext fiction and traditional novels was that anyone from any profession could write a hypertext fiction. Some people specialized in writing novels, and such books often had a certain quality worth reading. Zhao Hai enjoyed this type of book, as he could learn many useful things from them.

But now, in this different world, everything felt more real to Zhao Hai. It was like he had been reading magic novels all his life, and now he was living in a world that was even more real than those novels. Zhao Hai knew that if he died here, he would truly be dead. This was not a game or a dream; it was real life.

Everyone learns things and gradually applies them in their lives. Zhao Hai was no exception. Although he didn't know whether what he had learned was correct, he had to try and experiment. Only then could he grow and mature in the right direction.