A True King
“It should be more Grimoire Points, right? Even though they’re not exactly missions, I think I've already achieved multiple feats that show I can sustain Stonefall Village.” Ryan nodded. “Well, plus the other missions.”
“Ah, ah, you already have… 41,200 Points today, and you still want more? What kind of point hoarder are you? Shouldn’t you be asking me how to use them instead?” Grimoire said with an audible tsk. “In fact, there's a reason behind the first two missions I gave you. It’s currently the 14th Day and Sixth Month of the Helian Calendar. There are still at least six more months left before an unexpected danger could occur here, which might lead to your failure.”
“Eh? Failure… what’s that? Is that something you can eat?” Ryan scratched his ear.
“You’re being arrogant.”
“And you’re being very pessimistic, Builder,” Ryan said and smiled calmly. “While I understand your concern, we’re in a good place right now.”
“It’s just… the higher you rise, the harder you fall…” the Grimoire said somewhat sulkily. “I’ve witnessed countless kingdoms and empires fall for the past thousands of years, you know?”
Ryan stared at the floating book in front of him and felt a little surprised.
‘I didn’t expect that a magical grimoire would have such emotions, but then again, Builder is a unique existence. With his longstanding history of the world, of course, he would have seen other kingdoms crumbling down. I wonder if it’s his own doing or the failures of others that he merely saw. Either way, it’s gotten him really glum.’
“Well… it doesn’t matter.” The Grimoire said, sounding very tired. “You were asking about the points? I can—”
“Hey, do you know the population of this world?”
“What’s with that kind of question?”
Ryan smiled at the Builder. At that moment, the sun’s rays seemed to fall on him, making his golden hair and blue eyes dazzle along with his smile.
“Well, it doesn’t matter. I just wanted to let you know that you don’t have to worry about those things with me… and you wanna know why? I’ll be that one in a billion you would have never even dreamed of witnessing. I’ll build a kingdom that will last as long— no, even longer than me, and you’ll get to see it for as long as you live. Later on, you’ll look back at it and think—that’s my greatest project there. It’ll be amazing and outstanding.”
The Grimoire didn’t exactly have eyes to see in the normal sense, but it felt the confidence in Ryan’s voice and listened to each drop of the word that left his mouth almost hungrily.
“You… you’re like a true king in this way.” The Grimoire whispered to itself in awe.
“What was that? Can you repeat that, Builder?” Ryan asked.
“Nothing! Hmph! You have such a big oafish head is what I’m telling you. You won’t get to see the other Grimoire Points as they’re time-based unless you can show me a storage of food that will last all winter,” The Grimoire said. “But as for the rewards for acquiring those gems… ugh, I suppose that is worth 2500 Grimoire Points.”
— — — — — — —
Fourteenth Day
Six Month of Helian Calendar
Total Grimoire Points: 43,700
Total Wealth: 98 Gold, 17 silver, 64 copper
Active Missions:
<Unending Quest: Subordinates>
Rewards: ???
<Unending Quest: Where You Go, The People Speak!>
Rewards: ???
<One-Time Quest: Let Them Eat!>
Rewards: 500 Grimoire Points
<One Time Quest: Beyond Bare Necessities>
Rewards: 500 Grimoire Points
— — — — — — —
“Haha, thanks, Builder. It’s honestly a great thing working with you. My life has changed for the better with you here by my side.” Ryan said once he checked everything.
“Are you trying to butter me up? There is no need for such things, you know?” the Grimoire huffed. “If you plan to do something, then achieve it. As a grimoire, I will record your deeds, so make sure that they’re outstanding.”
“Of course, of course. It’ll be the most riveting tale you’ll ever witness.” Ryan chuckled. “Now for today, we shall meet with Tom and the village Blacksmith and Carpenter for the wine press. I’ll have to find a way to store the gems too. Wait, Chrysus. Where is he…?”
Ryan stepped out of the manor and saw the tiny golden dragon curled up outside. Chrysus slept like a cute cat, but he was surrounded by a lot of Kobolds in defensive stances.
Some of them were awake, and the others were asleep.
‘It seems like they really do have shifts and everything. They're so organized, it's a tiny bit scary.’ Ryan thought as he looked around and tried to search for the uniquely black-scaled Kobold.
It was hard to distinguish or look for him.
‘I can probably use my five original Kobolds to keep an eye on the guy. Kur? Yeah, maybe I’m a tad anxious, and I do hope it’s for nothing. But from what I remember, it might be possible for a Kobold to become a Dragon. They’re somewhat far in bloodline, but whether it’s ambition and such…’
“What’s the matter, Master Ryan?” the Grimoire asked.
“The next evolution for my Kobolds. How much would it cost? It was 40 Points before right?”
“The next evolution is at 120 Grimoire Points.”
“Okay, that’ll be 600 Points in total then,” Ryan muttered to himself. “Wait, why don’t I just use Instill Loyalty on the Kur for 10 Points and just be done with it? That’ll solve my issue.”
“You’re being a bit of a cheapskate right now with 43,700 Points. I thought you’d be extravagant.”
“If it can be solved in a simple way, then I won’t trouble myself with a complicated method, Builder,” Ryan explained. “Now, we only need to see the guy. Even from a long distance. I’m sure you can sense him, right? The extra cost doesn’t matter.”
“I can. Give me a moment…” the Grimoire let out a ray of light that was akin to a scanner, and it dispersed around the general area. “This Kur is located…”
“Master Ryan! Master Ryan!” Tom’s voice suddenly interrupted them. There was a great urgency in his voice as he scrambled up to meet them. “We have an emergency!”