Chapter 207: New Residences

"Isn't this just fate, don't you think?" Drake laughed mirthfully, "Who would have guessed I'd find you here? You remember me right?" Drake asked, staring the woman down.

"I-i-i-i don't know what you're talking about sir. I've only just been assigned here and only-"

"Don't try to bullshit me, my thigh still has the burn marks from that lousy fucking tazer! I want to speak to your goddamn manager, or whoever is in charge!"

The woman threw her hands up, "Please n-no! I need to be here! I got too many strikes during the introductions and this is my last chance! You can't do this or I'll be decommissioned!" she pleaded.

"Ain't my fucking problem. You reap what you sow."

"Why are you even complaining! It was just a little shock! You'll never become someone like I thought if you complain about every little thing!" she shouted, firing back with a scowl.

"What the hell would you know about it?!"

"I know you're a worthless little weeb like I thought! How did you even survive the tutorial anyway?"

"I survived by sheer grit and resourcefulness, no thanks to you not helping me even the slightest bit!" Drake spat back.

"Ha! I'm sure you just got lucky!"

"Alright, that's it! Natto, what the hell do I have to do to make this annoying entitled sack of shit disappear?" Drake asked.

The woman behind the counter huffed and turned to Natto on Drake's shoulder, her face paling once more, as her angry confidence waned like a melting cheese wheel.

"W-why do you have a territorial construct…?" she asked nervously.

"He," Natto snickered, "Got lucky. As the one in charge of the sanctioned area you can simply dismiss her if you want, the system will replace her on its own."

"N-no he can't! He would have to own the a-anchoring crystal to be able to do that!"

"Did you not hear me harlot? That is what I just said. He, is the owner of said crystal. It seems you have bet against the wrong horse," Natto snickered, bringing her sleeve to cover her mouth.

"You're enjoying this more than I am I think," Drake scoffed.

"I may be… Standard constructs are moved around more than a military child from back in your old world so they will tend to pick up personality…. quirks and she seems to be no different. They require a firm readjustment from time to time and witnessing the memories of how she treated you... It seems only fair."

The woman turned from her expression of fear to one of confusion, "You act like you are so strong… If I remember that tutorial was sponsored by a Primordial! You couldn't have made it out without being at least-"

"What? Without being at least the same?" Drake said, interrupting her.

"N-no I was going to say extremely lucky…"

"Oh," Drake said in a lackluster tone, "Well, in a way I guess I was. But just so you know I'm also one of those Primordials so how about you show a little respect? Maybe I won't snuff you then," Drake grinned.

The woman began laughing, "Ok. Now I know you're pulling my leg! You? A Primordial? Ha! Ok guys," she laughed looking around at the rest of the constructs at the counter, "Good joke guys, this isn't really that guy from the tutorial I talked to right? You guys got me good! How did you even find out about him? Was it Jerry? It was Jerry wasn't it-"

Drake held up his status screen turning it for the woman to see, her face going through the five stages of grief in a matter of a few binks of her eyes.

The next moment Drake saw her hop the counter and hit the floor, bowing and wailing.

"Please! I beg you, don't send me back! I beg youuuuuu!!!" she cried, "I'll do anything please Drake, no. Mr. Wallen! No, sir! No! My lord, your majesty! Anything, please name it! J-just don't decommission meeeeeee!!!"

Drake looked down at the woman and cringed.

Looking around he saw the faces of the other constructs turning to ones of sympathy, some hushed whispers being passed around the large lobby.

"Wait, how did I turn into the bad guy here? Am I a bully here? I'm not right?" Drake asked beginning to feel slightly grossed out with the woman's display of pleading.

Scratching the back of his head he sighed, "Holy crap lady get up, will you? You're grossing me out so much I feel bad! Just… Just don't do it again."

The woman shot up straight with a smile, her tears completely gone in a heartbeat.

"Yes sir! Never again will I look down on a cringe-worthy low lif-"

"Hey," Drake said in a serious tone, "I allowed you to be insulting once. There won't be a second time."

Pointing at her he let out his full aura, every construct in the area dropping to the floor instantly including the woman, his eyes flashing with power.

"I won't warn you again."

Releasing his aura, the room came alive again, coughing and gasps being heard throughout as they all rose to their feet, some cursing and looking at the woman with sneers and scowls.

"Y-yes… I apologize, old habits and all that…"

"You are too lenient," Natto scoffed.

Drake sighed, "I want to be where I can… I've had to make a lot of hard decisions recently, there's no reason to kill someone just for insulting me."

"A fine decision!" the woman said, suddenly becoming more amenable than ever before.

"No one asked you," Drake sighed then let out a brief chuckle, knowing she had only made a 180 in attitude after finding out he had become so strong for an F-Rank.

He still had two other buildings to place and check out so Drake waved her off just wanting to hurry things along.

"Your ass-kissing can wait until later, what exactly is the difference in this Center compared to the ones we saw in the city?" Drake asked tersely.

"Y-yes…" she nodded with a bit of hesitation, beginning to explain, "The major difference is that here you are able to access a larger number of quests and more significantly rewarded quests. As the…" she coughed, clearing her throat, "As the one in charge of this town upon each quest completion done via this center, you will receive a slight compensation in the form of Noble Points as well as Mana Coins in a bulk sum as a tax for operations. If you choose you can set up a point system as well specific to the town for personal use. You may ask your assistant for further information and she will delegate the process."

Drake nodded along liking the idea of obtaining a small amount from the center, but the fact also tied into his own plan for the future.

The woman continued, "As a noble as well you will have access to the multiverse approved buildings store, with each rank you will gain access to more specific and limited buildings."

That perked Drake's interest instantly, "Show me the store."

A blue screen popped up behind the counter where the woman was before she flipped it around for him. The selection he saw was scarce, to say the least but there was a specific building he spotted that put a smile on his face.

[Spirit Fox of Delight's Auction House]

The Spirit Fox is a clan of wealthy merchants known for their robust trade routes throughout the multiverse. They are one of the only businesses so versed in auction dealings that their clan's wealth rivals that of many Dragon Families.

Requirement: Baron Rank or Higher.

Limit: One per planet.

Drake grinned, "One of a kind huh?" his grin quickly dissipated after seeing the price tag for the building.

[Purchase Price: 50 E-Grade Mana Coins]

"Talega! Are they trying to rob me!? Or do they just know we have just that amount….?" Drake grimaced.

He began running the pros and cons of the Auction House in his head.

Drake had no problem having the only one on the planet, it would drive traffic to his town, and his plan of building a strong infrastructure in the way of a town and army was underway already. He also had no problem with fighting anyone who would try to take it from him.

But he suspected most would not, there would be more benefits to most if they came to the town with a non-aggressive mindset. Drake's town was already growing in the way of utility buildings from the quest, and he planned to expand it more as well as strengthen his citizens by leaps and bounds.

The point system that the woman had mentioned also sparked a few ideas in his head for a great way to disseminate money to everyone. In his mind, many things were falling into place quickly.

"Ok," he finally nodded, "We're ganna snag this baby before someone else does."

"Snag which?" Natto asked.

"Oh, don't worry about it."

Natto gave him a bombastic side-eye, knowing his words were something she had to worry about greatly.

"Speaking of getting things, where exactly are my Monster Cores, Drake? Drake….."

Drake had already handed the woman the cores as she exchanged them, he quickly pressed the purchase button, whistling as he willfully ignored her.

"Ok, all set then, looks like three buildings to go before we can start planning some more things," Drake smiled, then looked to the woman, "I'll be back to check out the quests and such later. Remember. No more chances."

He left the woman with an icy glare before turning and exiting the center, Natto still yelling into his ear as he walked.

"I get it! Enough already. You're going to have to wait for those stones, I spent it all," he yelled back.

"What do you mean you spent it all!? Those were mine!" she screamed.

"No. Those were mine. And you said to hold onto them."

"They were mine by extension! Do you not wish for the all and powerful knowing me, to continue on her journey of greatness?! I must reach E-Rank!"

Drake waved her off, "Please, there will be more E-Ranks. I don't think there's a shortage of them around here for some reason. Maybe they're attracted to me or something," he thought aloud, "By the way, how strong are our defenses now with you paired?"

Natto scoffed, crossing her arms, "They would be insurmountably better if I had the aforementioned cores…"

"Ok stop sulking, I promise I won't spend any more cores without asking you."

"Doubtful…" Natto sighed, "Regardless they should be able to deter any low to mid F-Rank without a problem. But E-Ranks will still be a problem."

Drake nodded, "Hmmm. that's actually impressive. That frees up a lot of manpower then. Good stuff Natto. Alright, next is… I guess let's look at the bank?"

About to take out the building from his inventory, Drake spotted a familiar figure walking towards him.

"Well, that free time didn't last long…"

Approaching him was Sah Ul', every day she would follow him since he came here, observing him. Today she was wearing the same leather armor but also wore a fur-like cloak this time, leaving more to the imagination.

Unfortunately, it only proved to show how desirable her figure was as it accented her curves and made Drake think about what was underneath.

Shaking his head to free himself from his thoughts, he waved to her.

"Little late today aren't you?"

Sah Ul' crossed her arms, "I don't have to babysit the Patriarch all hours of the day…." she glowered.

Drake gave a slight smirk, amazed at how well he could understand her now that he had been in the town for a week. Every passing day he seemed to be getting more and more accustomed to whatever language the Orcs spoke natively, increasing the fluency in what they were saying to the point when Sah Ul', and Rvul no longer sounded like they were struggling to speak English.

"Aw, but I thought you liked following me around?" Drake teased.

"I am fulfilling my duty to my father, nothing more. You may have won the duel, but that only ties us in the most basic sense," she scowled.

"Always the doting daughter huh? Where is Rvul lately anyway?" Drake asked.

"He is currently doing as you asked, gathering the warriors and collecting the stones they will need. He has mentioned that thanks to the Doctor you have brought, things are moving smoothly. The people she has found to fill in the, what do you call it? Administrative positions? Have helped greatly."

Drake grimaced, "Don't owe her too much. She's a psycho…"

Sah Ul' raised a brow, "She seems fairly sane to me?"

Drake chuckled nervously, "R-right…"

Turning away he cut the conversation, he had a number of things to get to today as well as prepping for something, and needed to gather several people before that.

Selecting the bank from his inventory, Drake again saw the greenish outline of the large building.

"Wow! This reminds me of those banks you see in Roman shows and movies. Those columns are huge!" Drake whistled, "Alright, Let's put you right next to the Center."

Drake placed down the building, and a moment later it was constructed from the ground up in the same manner as the center.

Waiting a few minutes for it to finish, Drake again stole some glances at Sah Ul' next to him.

"Has your weapon been replaced yet, Sarah?" Drake finally asked.

Sah Ul' nodded, pulling the weapon from her inventory.

A massive obsidian-colored cleaver rested on her shoulder, the handle curved into a sharp serrated edge around her hand, reddish stripes cascading down from handle to blade.

"The materials you provided the war smith proved of good quality. This weapon is leaps stronger than my last…." she explained trailing off slightly, "Thank you."

Drake blinked a few times, surprised to hear her say thank you for the first time.

Oh… That's not good… she's cute when she's embarrassed. Drake thought, scratching his cheek.

A swift slap came to the side of Drake's head from his shoulder.

"Ape," she scoffed.

Drake rubbed his head out of habit, "What?"

"I know what you were thinking! How long have I been around you!"

"I unno," Drake shrugged, turning to the now finished Bank, "Either way buildings finished so no time to talk!" he shouted deflecting, "You coming with Sarah?"

Sah Ul' nodded, stowing her weapon and following Drake in.

Once inside, Drake whistled once more taking in the building structure. They had passed through several columns to enter and were greeted by a large color glassed door, a gold figurehead above them.

The inside of Bank looked straight out of Harry Potter, which made Drake's skin crawl for a moment as his aura leaked out.

"Goblins…." he growled, looking around at the green men and women in suits, some wearing glasses and hats as they wrote and counted mana coins.

A tap came to the top of his head from Natto a moment later, "I understand your contention, but please relax," she said, motioning to the sides of the doors, "There are even stronger guards here than the system center. Do not be a fool and stir up trouble, it will do no one any good."

Before long a goblin walked up to them, bowing at the waist.

"Greetings, I take it you are the one in charge of this fine new town? I am Baldur, the head of this branch," Baldur addressed, seemingly unfazed by Drake's glare and aura crashing down on him.

"Yeah," Drake said tersely, trying to identify the Goblin.

[(INfn1 Level *&2]

The Goblin smiled, forcing Drake to click his tongue.

"I see that you have met the lower forms of our race, for that I apologize. We are High Mountain Goblins, we specialize in keeping currency and trust is our top priority," Baldur said, his eyes flashing, "Mr. Wallen."

"Little late for that," Drake grumbled.

"Be that as it may, I hope to have a blossoming partnership with you and your town. Please feel free to call on me whenever you are here Mr. Wallen, I will leave no rock unturned to provide our best service," Baldur explained, bowing once more, "Now, have you come to make a deposit?"

Drake frowned, still feeling disgust in his throat as he looked at the Goblin. His eyes turned to the massive gold statues on either side of the door briefly, each one standing stoically with huge halberts in their grips.

"I might as well," Drake finally said, sighing and letting his aura dissipate, "May I only deposit coins? Or is there a safety deposit box?" he asked.

"Why of course. We offer a very healthy 2% interest per year on all cash accounts and boast the most secure vaults in the multiverse. It would be an honor to begin housing your wealth here at our humble branch, Mr. Wallen."

Little bastard is making me feel bad for being so rude… Drake thought frowning slightly.

"Fine, I have some loose skill stones I need to place away since they are clogging up my inventory. 2% interest huh… That's pretty low isn't it?" Drake asked.

"While it may be low for some of the lower races, for a blooming person such as yourself who will live for, if I may. Quite a long time, the compound interest on all deposits will be immense. If I do say so myself," Baldur grinned.

"You have a point I suppose…" Drake nodded looking over to Sah Ul' who looked like her brain had checked out long ago since they had begun talking.

"I'll open an account then. Is there an account I can make for the town as well? I will need a shared account for the future."

"Certainly, that would not be a problem, but you will need to fill out some paperwork as well as have the parties sharing the account present as well. You have a Town Affiliated Center Card I presume?" Baldur asked.

"No, I didn't know it was necessary. I'll have to come back later then and scar the living shit out of a construct…." Drake smirked, thinking of the woman who didn't think to mention he could also get his card while he was there.

"A fine idea, Mr. Wallen, I look forward to seeing you once more. May your days be bountiful, for both you and I," Baldur grinned, revealing a luminescent glass like fang.

Drake nodded but raised a brow, feeling his shoulder becoming damp as he turned to the side seeing Natto drooling.

"What the hell?"

Natto wiped her mouth her cheeks turning rosey, "I-i I do not know what came over me… His tooth… It's a monster core… A very high ranked one, I could not help myself… hahaha…." she laughed embarassedly.

Drake used his magic to airdry his hoodie's sleeve, walking out of the Bank.

Waiting outside the Bank as well as the System Center was already a large crowd. Mikhail's party walked to the Center as they glanced and waved to Drake before going in.

"They took no time getting here," Drake scoffed.

Moving a small bit away he walked with Sah Ul' and Natto ready to place the last and final building for now, the Auction House.

But before he could he noticed something flying at him at high speed from above through his aura sense.

"Drakkkkkeeeeeeee!!!!!"

A loud voice shouted from above, that Drake had come to know well the last couple of days. What hit him from above like a falling meteor from the sky in a rainbow assortment of colors her arms tightly wound around his neck was an Avian girl.

"Hey, hey! Drake, listen listen! Guess what?" she asked rapid fire, squeezing him and Natto together until Natto merged with Drake to escape.

A moment later with a pop she exited his other side and hopped down to the floor.

"Blasted wretch! You could have killed me!" Natto spat.

Drake laughed awkwardly, "Yes, Quetz? What is it this time….?"

The girl clinging to Drake, and receiving a scathing glare from both Natto and Sah Ul' was Quetz. A girl Drake had saved from slavers who had come to his town earlier. When Drake found her she was much different.

She had been abused to the point that she was despondent, the feathers that dawned her head-like hair, forearms, and legs had turned a dark lifeless gray. Or at least what remained of them after being repeatedly plucked. Her eyes a lustless pale grey as well.

Feeling nothing but disgust for the slavers, Drake quickly remedied the situation freeing her and appropriately dealing with the slavers. Quetz wouldn't respond to anyone until Drake had finally freed her, snapping the restraints put on her. She had been through something extremely traumatizing which resulted in her current behavior.

Quetz had turned into a clingy little sister that Drake never had instantly.

Drake looked down at her not able to help smiling slightly at how she had changed from that day. Her feathers had returned and were now a bright rainbow of colors and vibrant lustrous eyes of deep violet. Drake had found out very early that her race was very unique, her feathers changed with her emotions. He had seen her change to a fire red, serine blue, much like Drake when he changed Endowments. Which only served to strengthen the attachment she had for him.

Quetz smiled ear to ear hugging him more tightly, "I turned 16 today! That means we get to be together more right? Right?"

"Oh?" Drake said surprised.

He had thought she was much younger based on her personality but he was happily surprised to hear she was around as old as Charlotte, Kalik, and Landin. Making her the fourth person he would have to train up.

Before he could answer, Sah Ul' made the mistake of grabbing Quetz again, sparking her peculiar personality.

"That is enough from you girl. Do you not realize who you are embracing?" Sah Ul' growled.

Quetz's feathers instantly turned a scarlet red as she began flailing.

"Don't touch me! Get your hands off me! The only one who's allowed to touch me is Drake! I won't let you touch me anymore! Get away! Get away!!!" she screamed.

Drake quickly gripped Sah Ul's arm gently, his face showing a sorrowful expression, "It's alright Sarah. I know she's going a bit overboard but let it slide for now ok?"

Sah Ul' frowned but released the struggling girl who instantly ran to Drake once more, crying as she clung to him.

Drake looked over at Sah Ul, giving her a smile, "Thank you. She's just… Just been through a lot." he said in a soft tone, the image of Claire when he first met her flashing in his mind.

Sah Ul' could only look at him with a frown, "She will never grow to be strong if you do nothing but coddle her. Whatever she has been through she must overcome on her own, Patriarch."

Drake stroked the back of Quetz's head, his face turning grim, "I know. And she will. In time, but right now… I'll let her be a little selfish."

Pushing Quetz a small bit away from him he looked at her in the eyes, wiping her tears away, "You'll get strong all on your own. I know you will, you're a strong girl right?" he said softly.

Quetz didn't respond but nodded burying herself back into Drake's chest.

He sighed, looking down to see Natto still scowling.

"What?" he asked.

"You keep picking them up one after the other. Do you not think you should slow down," she sneered looking at him.

"Come on, Quetz is like a little sister, she's just being a little selfish like any kid would be."

"Certainly you realize Charlotte and Janey are of the same age do you not? They most certainly do not act in such a way."

Drake coughed, "T-they're just mature for their age…. Anyway!" he said raising his voice, "Let's get this last building done before we get everyone else together… Quetz can you go get Charlotte and the others for me? I'll be a few minutes."

Quetz grumbled for a few moments before her feathers turned a light green of envy as she separated from Drake, looking at Natto and Sah Ul' before she flew off in the distance.

The group watched as she took off, Drake sighing.

"I hope all children aren't like that…" 

"Moron…." Natto scoffed.

"Yeah, yeah," Drake said, rolling his eyes, "Onto the Auction House, I'll have to do the System Center Card registration with everyone else later. Now let's see…"

He selected the Spirit Fox of Delight's Auction House a familiar green outline popping up on the ground.

Spacing it a small distance away from the Bank, he confirmed his selection the process of it manifesting beginning.

Once complete the building wowed Drake, even more than the Bank had.

The establishment was certainly something right out of a fantasy movie. It was in an oriental style with large wooden pillars made from something Drake didn't recognize. They were varnished in a deep brown with golden spirals that wrapped around them, with small but detailed foxes almost dancing on them.

Its roof was made of deep green shingles and a surprising tree, that reminded Drake of a sakura tree that he had seen in animes on the top, surrounded by an intricate fence.

"It's even falling endlessly…." Drake whistled looking up at the tree as its petals gently came to the floor around the establishment only to suddenly disappear as he reached for one, "Now that is cool."

Natto wrapped on his leg, "Let us get this over with shall we?"

Drake laughed, "Someone is in a bad mood all a sudden."

"Of course! You spent all of my E-Rank Cores on this dinky building!" she shouted, raising her hands into the air.

Laughing, Drake walked up to the building, the bright red doors swinging open steadily as he approached with Natto and Sah Ul'

"Automatic doors? That's a first…" Drake mused.

Walking in they were hit with an oppressive aura, sending a chill down their spines as Drake braced himself, forcing himself to stand by sheer will. Sah Ul' fell to the floor and Natto quickly merged herself with Drake from the floor.

Struggling to look up he remembered a pressure like this before, forcing him into a cold sweat.

Mir'phyra?! Drake screamed in his head.

His eyes met the one responsible for the pressure. A woman holding a smoking pipe in one hand, an oriental dress draping over her. A sensual smile on her face as she looked back at him with golden eyes that hummed with power.

"My, my….It's about time."