"Mr. Vincere, you have an 11 o'clock meeting with the guild master of the Firebrand guild about the potion test trials and possible bulk purchase of the Adaptable-trademarked-potion the guild hasn't released to the public."

My brown-haired, slightly scaled personal assistant is following me while I'm exploring and touring all the land Free Chains bought for me using my money without my permission. It's a lot of land, so she's been following and talking to me for around an hour.

I don't have plans for the land, as it wasn't even my decision to buy it, but apparently, every credit spent is crucial to turn this place into a 'guild city.'

I need to upsize and get a few dozen raid teams and the following support staff if that's the case cause godsdamn, I won't let this be a colossal waste of money.

"Who are the Firebrand guild, and who scheduled this meeting."

"They are a local guild situated in the capital. They were created a few months before the GFG. They are massive up-and-comers to the point where both Mr. Free Chains and Sir Greenback have deemed it worthwhile to have you meet with the guild leader personally. They also have some rare types of fire to trade for this collaboration, something I was informed you are interested in."

"Why is Charlie called Sir, but Free Chains and I are Mr.? Also, GFG?"

"Sir Greenback has requested that I refer, or reference, him as a Sir. If you have a preferred title, I can refer to you as such. That also applies to Mr. Chains. And GFG is the acronym for the guild. The Guild of Flash Gordon."

"I see."

"I have it noted that they would provide lunch after the meeting."

"Then what?"

"At 3 pm, you have a few scheduled interactions. You told me to remind you to 'show you off.'"

"Yeah, My foster sister is interested in meeting you. I was going to give her your number, but that sets the precedent that you're supposed to be at her beck and call when you're my PA, not anyone else. Also, you haven't met Rain or my masters. I have a small list of people who should have a direct line of communication with me, and most live in the capital. You might as well meet them face to face."

"Understood."

"This is our first meeting. When did you meet Free Chains and Charlie? You said you had at least one interaction with them."

"Both Mr. Chains and Sir. Greenback spoke to me a few moments after the 'silent' interview we had. We established wages, and I signed a few magic documents. Typical hiring processes. I also would like to take this time to thank you for hiring me for such an important job."

This woman is strange.

[Is this the first time my master has had someone truly subservient to them? Their attitude is apt for being an assistant.]

If I'm unfamiliar with subserviency. Wouldn't that say something about you, Duchess, my tamed beast?"

[Thisss one would like to reflect your veiled claim about thisss one's inadequacy. You are the master, thisss one's demeanor is ultimately the reflection of the skills of the master.]

You'd riot if I treated you like a servant. I don't treat any of my tamed beasts as a servant.

[Indeed. Indeed. Regardless, thisss one is aware that you don't wish a servant from thisss one, but something much grander. For that, we share similar expectations.]

Are you done with the bloodline thing holding you back?

[...Thisss one request to return to the mansion. Thisss one still has much work to accomplish. Fortunately, since thisss one is no longer burdened with muted secrecy, thisss one can directly request resources from other alliance members during those astral meetings.]

I had Charlie set up a project fund. Please don't exceed the limit I gave you.

[The monetary funds given to thisss one for thisss one's purpose were arbitrarily decided. If thisss one requires more, thisss one will not hold back.]

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

"What other events do I have planned today?"

"You told me to slot in time for you to 'eat books', 'grow crystal', and 'siphon blood'.

"I did indeed say those things. So are you driving me around, or do I still have a driver."

"I believe your old driver has been allocated to Ms. Caddel, your sister."

"I know who my foster sister is. No need to elaborate. She was complaining about losing face as a representative of humanity because she had to take public transportation or taxi around. Shouldn't the institute provide transportation? I need to find out why they didn't. Pen that in. Remind me later to ask about that later."

"Alright, Mr. Vincere."

~~~

The meeting didn't mean much to me. I played the part of a guild master and met with some passionate guy with red hair and burn scars all over his arms and face.

We allowed him and his guild employees to try the potion, and they were satisfied with the results. The initial batch was a gift to start a guild relationship. They gave two different types of fire in metal containers that I fed to Prometheus when nobody was looking.

Swallow D -> C

The User can swallow [Fire], storing it in their stomach.

Types of [Fire] stored: 10/15] ⬆️

Regurgitate D -> C

The User can spit up [Fire] from their stomach.

[Fire] stored: [Continual], [Life], [Spirit], [Earth], [Solid], [Lightning], [Radiant], [Mana], [Living] (NEW), [Cold] (NEW).] ⬆️

Since Prometheus' skills ranked up, all his "[Fire]s" grew in rank as well.

Living fire is fire from an elemental. Flash Gordon couldn't donate this fire because the elemental was still alive when it was swallowed. The fire has some interesting qualities... It's very 'malleable.'

Prometheus can control his [Living] fire like it's a third limb.

The other fire type he got gave him indigestion, or whatever the ooze version of indigestion is. He consumed a magic fire that freezes things. It's the contrarian of the fire world and practically spits in the face of physics.

Well, he's the only one among my tamed beasts who can freeze things, although it gives him discomfort when he regurgitates it... Acid reflux or something.

I'm focusing on Khan's evolution requirements and it's not looking good. If the Firebrand guild had easy access to A-rank elementals, elementals that Khan can 'consume,' then we would've gotten closer as guilds. Even though Khan can eat a lot, I don't think he can eat fire. (That's Prometheus' territory).

The fractures I'm getting from the FIB won't complete his evo. requirements either, so I'm at a loss.

[Evolution to Raging Tempest A

Consume rank A or higher elementals alive (0/5).

Defeat a shark-type creature, at least B rank or higher (0/300).

Baptize in lightning... again (Not completed).

Rank [Man Eater] to A rank (E/A).

Amid significant manufactured chaos and destruction, terrorizing the environment, violently consume yourself until one body remains (0/299).]

I have two options. I can either find the elementals and shark-type creatures out in the real world or delve into the unmarked, unknown fractures I stole from the FIB when I busted out.

However, I don't want to go into a fracture if my exit isn't guaranteed. The last thing I need is to get stuck in ANOTHER fracture, and miss meeting the elves.

I still have that crystal/stone thing that could let me forcefully break out of fractures If I need to, but I might be barred from bringing it with me. Who's to say that the fracture I pick to delve into won't strip me again.

My masters didn't say much about my new PA and neither did Rain or Val. It was more of a formality, a formality that I didn't, or shouldn't have adhered to apparently.

Something something demeaning. Something something weird.

Who cares?

I gifted my regeneration to Flash Gordon to heavily speed up his [Crystallization] skill to print more elemental crystals. This is to train and rank up his skill rather than a means to make money since the crystals are very low in rank.

And importantly, I collected all the books I had bought for myself but hadn't consumed.

[Scholar D -> C

Training one's mind takes more dedication than just meditation. The average person in their one hundred years of life would read less than ten books a year. Don't think this is the end of your journey. One million books are still but a drop in the bucket that is the well of knowledge.

Books needed to reach the next level: 10,000,000.

Memorization and information recollection are 100% better (NEW).

Mind: +150 ⬆️]

I expected a jump, but not that much, but at least the Mind bonus increased by more than I expected. It used to be 75, and I figured it would simply increase to 100, so that's neat.

...but still, it's not like I did this for a measly 75 stat points. Yes, that's 15 levels for the average person (8.3 for me), it's more of an added bonus for having so much information at my fingertips.

Five months... While I have some people looking into a solution to Khan's conundrum, what else can I do to prepare?

Hmm... Not all my resistances are at their bottleneck, so I might as well get beat up for a while.