The ground rose and descended under his feet, throwing him off balance as the poor, shaky hut transformed.
A series of clipping and slotting noises followed as the house's size increased, becoming something much more fitting for his lord's status.
Stone replaced the wood under his palms, making him feel their cold and rough textures as the scent of fresh furniture permeated the air.
Calm returned a moment later, prompting him to shoot up with a smile reaching his eyes, too curious to observe the changes.
Despite the absence of any new room, he welcomed the now roomy living space and improved bed. The kitchen became broader, making it less cramped, too.
But what mattered most was the habitation's new stats.
Demon lord's hut LV3
HP: 1400
Materials required to level up: 200 units of stone, 300 units of wood, 10 units of iron and a population of 40 citizens. Territory must reach the Iron II rank.
He nodded, not too shocked by the exponential increase in requirement. Instead, they made sense with how common wood and stones were.
However, the iron would challenge many lords established far from mountainous regions or natural mines.
Fortunately, he grinned at the twenty-four pieces he had already bought.
'I'll invest fifty percent of my meat before the exchange rate shoots through the roof.'
Without wasting time, he listed eighteen units of food, asking for thirty-six ores.
Then, he switched to the chat tab.
[Adam: I listed some meat! I'm looking for blueprints.]
With enough stones to level up the demon den or Gate to the third level, blueprints came next on his priority list. Since everyone struggled to feed their growing population, their value must have hit rock bottom, especially for the ones requiring labor forces.
And he was right.
A flood of comments blurred in his eyes, most useless offers or questions, yet he caught two attractive messages.
[Black star: I have a textile processing facility blueprint. I'll set it at fifteen units.]
[Mimi: I have a farm blueprint. Please, trade with me. I'm surrounded by hungry men who are about to devour me!]
[Pharaoh (Isis contractor): Don't commit that mistake again. Summoning every time you have the opportunity will only make life more challenging. Secure a reliable food source while keeping your population at something you can manage.]
He squinted at the advice and the familiar nickname.
'This Pharaoh has a good head.'
[Behemoth: You'll have twelve hungry men sleeping on the cold, hard floor tomorrow if you continue with the four daily summons. As the guy above said, stop until you work on their loyalty and secure resources.]
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'Wait, what? They get four daily summons? Why do I only have two?!'
His brows creased into a frown as the injustice struck him.
'Demons are innately stronger and can all use demonic essence. That might be the reason.'
He pondered, finding a rational explication before refocusing on Mimi's blueprint.
[Adam: I'll take your farm. Set it at fifteen units.]
Truthfully, he felt awful taking advantage of her. She had the means to produce wheat but couldn't wait for the yield, leading to this unfair exchange.
[Adam: It's not much, but I have a goblin's rough wall blueprint. I hope it'll help protect you after the grace period ends. Set anything on the market. I'll give it to you.]
[Mimi: Really? Thank you so much! Can I add you to my friend list?]
DING
[Mimi requested to be your friend. You can chat in private if you accept.]
He pressed yes, discovering the feature with an amused smile.
Then, he bought Mimi's blueprint and traded the ten units of stones she had listed. Finally, he listed his last two units of meat for eight stones each and left.
He had already decided not to summon more demons from the den before he stabilised his community and upgraded it enough to avoid imps. Therefore, he stepped to the Gate and tapped on the trap protecting its pulsing core, making its upgrade requirements appear in a fiery window.
Gate LV1
HP: 150
Materials required to level up: 5 units of stone, 10 units of wood, demon lord shaky hut lv2.
Without hesitation and thrilled to see the rate changes, he upgraded it.
Gate LV2
HP: 400
Materials required to level up: 30 units of stone, 50 units of wood, demon lord shaky hut lv3.
"Upgrade again!"
He slapped the button, heart hastening in his chest as the structure changed this time.
The rough stones became more polished and thicker. A few carvings appeared along the frame next, giving it a sober yet inspiring image.
Gate LV3
HP: 900
Materials required to level up: 150 units of stone, 250 units of wood, 5 units of iron, demon lord shaky hut lv4.
Again, iron appeared in the requirements, making him realise that the further they progressed, the rarer the materials they'd need.
But it didn't matter with his plan.
Instead, he checked the rates, eyes shining with hope.
[You have an 89.97% chance for a common creature to walk out, 6% for a farmer, 4% for a specialist and 0.03% for a mythological figure.]
Only for it to shatter and his jaws to clench at the ridiculous increase.
True, the specialist and farmer percentage almost doubled. But for the coveted mythological figure?
His eyes narrowed in frustration as he realised the cruel joke.
'Don't even add it when it's so low! No one can summon it!'"
Thinking about it, he reopened his chat, returned to his hut and jumped into bed as the first stars shone on the forest.
[Adam: Did anyone summon a mythological figure from the Gate?]
[Pharaoh (Isis contractor): I did. But I cheated a little.]
Stunned to read a positive answer, his eyes trembled and narrowed into slits.
[Adam: How?]
[Pharaoh (Isis contractor): Isis gave me Setna's magic book when I became her contractor. I rigged the Gate's rates to summon him using it as a medium. Well, I don't think non-contractors can use this method. Maybe stumbling on a hero's relic is possible, though. We never know.]
A deep frown creased his brows as he closed the window.
Hestia's threat held much more weight now that he knew she could help her contractors summon heroes. After all, if Luna was already that strong as an epic demon, how strong would someone like Heracles or Achilles be?
The thought alone sent an icy shiver down his spine.
Hestia's pantheon didn't lack powerful figures. Even if he didn't know all of them, most had god's blood running through their veins.
'I'd better not attract her attention or do anything stupid.'
This thought burned into his mind, he fell asleep for the second time in this fun realm.