Choosing A System

"Okay… show me all of the options for magic systems, Sara." Isaac waited patiently for the options to appear.

"Right, Isaac!" She said with a happy grin, before a blue panel manifested in front of him.

[ Imagination System :

~Magic is limited only by the user's imagination.

~As long as they have the energy and the willpower, they can create any effect they desire.

•80 points ]

[ Mathic System :

~Magic is bound by a strict rule of mathematic formulas.

~Greatly restricts the flexibility of magic, but effects can be used at a much lower cost to the caster.

•50 points ]

[ Finite System :

~Choose one of the other magic systems, and apply specific limitations.

~For instance, the Imagination system may be limited by bloodline.

•Dependant on Limitations ]

[Runic System :

~There is a language of magic that permeates your world.

~Any who know the proper words can bend the fabric of reality to their whim.

~This magic comes at practically no cost to the user, but they must use their own efforts to learn each individual rune.

•75 points ]

[Custom System :

~You may self-define a system of magic if none of these options are suitable to your world.

~If the system acknowledges your design, it will be assigned a price, and placed on the list for future worlds.

~You may also earn a small income of points whenever your system is chosen by another Guide.

•??? ]

[RPG System :

~Short for Role-Playing-Game

~This is not directly a system for magic, but can greatly influence the magic system.

~After choosing this option, you may begin development of a game system for your world.

~This system will contain classes, stats, and levels, and may aid or restrict the learning of magic, according to your design.

•150 points ]

Isaac looked over the options for a moment, and did a double take when he saw the one at the bottom.

The [RPG System] was nearly twice as expensive as the next biggest choice!

I mean, he could understand that, as this system would influence far more than just magic, and could potentially even make magic easier to use as well.

Taking a look at his remaining points, Isaac grit his teeth and chose the [RPG System] option .

This was a bit of a gamble, but in the worst case scenario he could just reset his world to get the points back.

He is not very far in right now, so it's not like he will lose much work.

[Welcome to the World Guide Game Design interface. ]

[This tutorial will help guide you through the step-by-step process of integrating your very own World System into your world. ]

[Be warned, additional features may cost extra points, so balance carefully.]

The next… Isaac is not really sure how long he spent, but it felt like a day or two at least.

Anyways, during that time he was going through drop-down menus, selecting things like what classes were available, how monsters were treated, and so on.

Once he got to the [Mage] class, he ended up having to choose the magic system all over again! Though this time, the options were a bit different.

Isaac could either let the game automatically assign spells based on [Mage] levels, or choose one of the previous systems… But he had to pay half the price for the [other system] option.

Isaac ended up choosing the [Mathic System] option this time, costing him another 25 points.

At the same time, he added some basic spells to automatically be acquired with levels, to serve as a starting point for the Mage's research.

Just things like fireball, wind wall, and the like.

As for what classes were available… Isaac decided to select all of the ones that were relevant to a fantasy world.

Simply making a class available didn't have a cost value associated with it, but some required conditions to be set for gaining the class.

For instance, the [Hero] class, the lowest requirement he could set for it for free was single-handedly defeating a monster twenty levels above themselves.

Isaac didn't foresee that class being very common in the future.

Now… the only other part that actually cost him more points was the holy magic system.

Since he included Priests, Clerics, and Bards in the mix, he had to define the holy magic system.

For this, Isaac needed at least three [Adminstrators] from which the divine classes could draw their power from.

He could assign Sara and himself as one of the [Adminstrators] if he wanted, but he really didn't want to have to listen to things like prayers and divinations all the time.

So, instead Isaac bought three AI [Adminstrators] at the cheapest price.

For 25 points each, they could grant magic related to their domain to their followers, but would offer very minimal interference in the world.

Isaac decided to name the first one Rose, Adminstrator of the Domain of Wealth.

The second was Valeria , Adminstrator of the Domain of Battle.

And finally, he had Vivian, Adminstrator of the Domain of Life.

And they are all females.

Why are they all females, you ask? Now that is a silly question. He is making a heavenly host, and you think he WON'T make it full of people he find physically attractive?

I mean, really? I will fully admit that I am a pervert, and be proud of it. He thought

As for the [Adminstrators], he decided to assign them the races of [Elf], [Human], and [Fox beast-kin] respectively.

Sadly, since he bought them so cheap, they would not have personalities until he spent points to upgrade them.

Anyways, with that taken care of, Isaac was finally done with the core of the [RPG System].

And the grand total came to…. 250 points…

It's okay… this will take care of most of your future needs as well… it's an investment, Isaac, an investment. He thought to himself .

Isaac mentally reassured himself, before clicking the [buy] button.

Just like that… half of his starting points vanished all at once.

[Congratulations! You have earned two achievements. ]

[For spending over 200 points, you earned the Basic Guide achievement.

•+20 points.]

[For spending at least 250 points in a single purchase, you earned the Spendthrift achievement.

•+20 points.]

Well… at least that is a small consolation.

He spent over two hundred points, but got forty back.

So now his total is… 165.

He is really going to have to budget himself at this rate.

"So, what do you want to do for culture?" Sara asked with a smile, having waited patiently until he was done before speaking up.

"Uh… can I hold off on that for now?" he asked with another sad glance to his remaining balance.

"Sure, Isaac." Sara nodded her head in response.

"Right now, they are at what you would consider the [Stone Age], so there is still a great deal of time to see what direction their culture develops before we get involved."

That was a pretty good point.

"Then… what is the point of buying culture so early? Wouldn't it always make more sense to just wait and see how things go?"

Hearing his question, Sara once again assumed her 'teacher' attitude, quickly sitting up straight.

"Well, the difference is in development speed and history. "

"For instance, in the second iteration of Andromida, when the Guide decided to pursue an advanced technology route, he selected a technology culture from the very beginning."

"This led to several people being born 'ahead of their time', which caused rapid innovation."

Isaac furrowed his brows together, thinking about it, before nodding his head.

"So, if I leave it how it is, then the world could develop in a completely random direction. One race could rise to power and enslave all the others, or they could coexist peacefully."

Sara nodded her head happily as she heard that.

"That's right! Also…" She suddenly frowned, leaning forward with her hands on the artificial ground below them, arms inadvertently pressing her chest together.

"Why didn't you let me be one of your [Adminstrator]?"

She was sporting a real pouting face, and it was at this point Isaac discovered that his new companion knew exactly how to get him to agree to whatever she wanted.

"U-uhm… well.. I thought that you wouldn't like to handle all of the annoying prayers and everything associated with it." he did his best to maintain eye contact, because looking anywhere else would be dangerous right now.

"I don't care about any of that!" She quickly said, shaking her head.

"I can't actually do anything if you don't make me an [Adminstrator], you know? I'll just be stuck up here all the time, twiddling my thumbs whenever you go down to the world."

"Huh? Is that how it is?" Isaac asked in genuine confusion. He figured she could do stuff through the system like he could.

"Yeah! If I'm just a system companion, all I can do is advise you. If you make me an [Adminstrator], then I'll be able to influence things in the world related to my domain."

"Ah… I think I get it… well, what would you like to be an [Adminstrator] of?" he asked, cautiously.

Isaac was really hoping she wasn't going to pick something like [Adminstrator] of the domain of love.

I mean, maybe I wasn't completely okay with sharing my dream girl with everyone in the world, alright?

"Hmm… How about the [Adminstrator] of the domain of Fate? That way, I could do a lot of little interactions to change the world, without making too big of a mess?" She had a beaming smile as she asked that, and Isaac just really couldn't say no.

So, before she had the time to change her mind and pick something more lewd, he opened the interface for the [RPG System] and assigned her as the fourth [Adminstrator],

Sara [Adminstrator] of the domain of Fate.

The change only cost him five points, since he was not creating a new AI, but instead simply assigning [Adminstrator] rights to one that already existed.

"Yay!" She called out, hopping to her feet and doing a quick dance when she felt the changes taking place.

"I won't make you regret that, Isaac!" She said happily, before jumping at him and wrapping him in her arms.

As for what happened next… well, I'm sure everyone can guess without me saying it, right? Let's just say she was very thankful for her new job.

***

After they had finished having there fun, Sara stretched out lazily on the ground with a content smile.

Holding her with one arm, Isaac looked around the open area.

They could still see everything below, so this was not exactly a nice home.

Maybe some people with a god complex would like it, but he didn't really care that much for it.

"Is there some way we can change the Admin Room, or would that cost points?"

Sara shook her head, still smiling happily. "The Administration Room can be changed freely, without worrying about expenses. "

"After all, this room in no way affects the power of the world below. Would you like to change it to something specific?" She let out a long purr as she felt his hand rubbing her back when she asked.

"Hmm… could we change it to look like a modern house? With enough room for all of the [Adminstrator]?"

She thought about that for a moment, and then nodded. "Alright, we can do that. How about… something like this?"

By the time she finished speaking, they were resting on a large, red bed in the center of a big room.

Looking around, the floor was soft carpet, and there was even a computer desk in the corner.

"So… if you can do all this… why did the last Guide descend to Andromida, instead of getting all of his entertainment up here?" Isaac asked, in honest confusion.

"Also, the world's name is too long... I mean who even gave it this name? Let's just call Mida for short " Isaac added.

From the looks of it, he could get everything he needed here, without needing to risk his neck on the surface.

Sara simply giggled in response, scooting over closer to him on the bed.

"Because the companion he got kept nagging him to advance his world and join the games."

"Since he didn't give her an [Adminstrator] status, he could run away to the surface without her being able to reach him. "

"From what the companion noted, he sold all of his other [Adminstrator] AIs a few years before he died, to prevent her from using them to contact him."

"Ah…" Isaac couldn't help but laugh when hearing that.

Apparently, the last Guide's companion really wanted to take part in the games, so she kept pushing him to advance.

But, being the person he was, he just wanted to live life casually. "I really hit the jackpot, then."

Isaac grinned, leaning over to kiss Sara, whose smile became even brighter at that.

***

Later, after resting a bit, Isaac learned some of the changes to the Admin Room.

Although each [Adminstrator] had their own room, they were as bland and featureless as the personalities of the [Adminstrators] themselves.

Further, there was no actual door leading out of the Admin Room.

That was because there was really nothing else to see out there.

Instead, the link to view the world had been moved to two places.

One in the living room, by watching the TV and navigating with the remote, and the other in Isaac bedroom with the computer, navigating the world and its information like he was playing a video game.

Content with the changes so far, Isaac decided to fast forward the game to the next 'era', and see how it progressed on its own.

Since eras were marked by cultural and technological advancements, as well as important decisions, he didn't have to worry that he would miss too much.

According to Sara, even a major war breaking out would be enough to count as a new 'era', so it was safe to leave it alone for a while.

Besides, He had more fun things to do