Severin, plagued by boredom, was slouching in a chair and scrolled through an assortment of potential distractions the System with its integrated store had to offer. On a quick glance, the situation appeared exactly as it did the previous day. Except on this day, his mood was even worse; and it would only further decline from there.

Now that the two guards had somewhat settled in, and Samuel and his charges had returned after spending the last few days in some dungeon, it was busy enough on the mountaintop that Severin felt that he shouldn’t really be in this position.

But apparently all these people had something better to do than keep him entertained, leaving him to his own devices and providing no opportunities for him to butt in.

Even the old hag, at some point, had reappeared and was once again busy with her fruitless research.

Severin wasn’t actually that keen on her company, but of course that didn’t stop him from complaining.

Only Magda, who, with an expression even worse than his own, kept running back and forth between her hideout and his store, managed to bring a little smile onto his face whenever he saw her.

Last time he broached the subject, Emily had claimed that eating was all the entertainment she ever needed. But now that it concerned himself, as well as another [Employee] who probably didn’t share the girl’s opinions regarding fun pastime activities, it was about time for Severin to be on the lookout for some suitable distraction.

Luckily, the list of these potential time killers was seemingly endless.

Every time he scrolled through this list, something new caught his eyes.

But his mood didn’t improve.

Be it the library or even just the pool table, for the time being, the prices were simply too prohibitive.

So he just kept scrolling. Again and again. Like a madman.

Until he stopped and his mood finally reached the absolute low point.

Just that this time, he couldn’t even complain.

A certain item-or rather building-reminded him of a problem he had shied away from addressing for a very long time. Well. Originally, he hadn’t even realized that there was a problem to begin with. But later on, when he finally did, he decided to simply block it out in the hope that the matter would just somehow resolve itself.

And in all fairness, at the time, it wasn’t even that unlikely that it would.

But that was then, and now he was in a position that he could no longer ignore the issue and simply hope for the best; the chances the problem would just solve itself became slimmer and slimmer with each level up of his [Cook] class that didn’t result in the reward he wanted. Or rather, needed.

Also, he would have to make a decision soon and convenient excuses such as ‘too busy’ or ‘no time’ also were no longer valid.

As for the problem he had just been reminded of, it actually concerned his plan regarding the establishment of the inn.

A plan he had clung to during all this time. Something he had saved a fortune for. Something that made him shy away from any other non-essential investment.

And now this plan was in danger.

To Severin, this inn he almost seemed obsessed with wasn’t just a collection of rooms to sleep in and maybe some community room.

There also was the food. Because of that, he had immediately upgraded the size of the originally provided kitchen that came with the class and placed in a slightly awkward location. All just so that later on it could be more easily be integrated into said inn.

But there was another thing that was just as important as a warm bed and hot food; no, maybe even more so-at least in Severin’s mind.

The more he thought about it, the more helpless he felt.

He was an [Alchemist], so the System provided him with all the alchemical ingredients he needed.

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He also was a [Cook], and therefore, the System also provided him with the appropriate cooking ingredients.

But.

Once he would fulfill his ambition of building an inn, he may well be an innkeeper, but not an actual [Innkeeper].

There was no guarantee whatsoever that the System would actively support him in this endeavor and provide him with anything. In fact, it was rather unlikely that it would. Otherwise, that would mean he could just purchase any class he desired inside the store.

Severin kept racking his brain on the matter. To no avail. Well, there certainly were ways to handle the situation, but none that Severin felt were acceptable.

In the end, he decided to contact his newest [Employee], though only reluctantly. Not because he didn’t trust the dwarf, but because he feared what the other might have to say. Or more specifically, because he knew that were wasn’t anything the dwarf could say.

Still. Severin swallowed his frustration and started reaching for the straws.

<>

<> The reply came immediately.

<>

<>

Ringald was Markus’ father, the reigning [King] of Malcos; even Severin knew as much. But this small tidbit still didn’t really help him.

<>

<>

Right. Why was he even asking? Even if Bandur, contrary to all expectations, turned out to be proficient in the ways of manufacturing drinking alcohol, he would still need to purchase the according production facilities. And the ingredients.

In that case, he might as well just purchase the finished product, either by relying on Markus’ connections and goodwill, or via Magda and the Society.

Severin didn’t like the idea.

Not only because of the involved hassle and the costs but also because no matter how high quality the stuff would be, it would still be ordinary. Ordinary in the sense that it wouldn’t provide any additional benefits.

Like the food of some master chef in the capital that might be superior to Severin’s salads or pizza in a culinary sense, but on the other hand wouldn’t be buff-food.

That being said, not everything he sold would need to have some special properties to it; in fact, providing a strength buff to a bunch of drunk adventurers spoiling for a fight would be rather idiotic even.

<> Severin was cranky, and he knew it.

It also didn’t help that this small exchange had been about as useful as he had guessed it would be.

Judging by his boss’ tone, the dwarf realized something wasn’t right, but after a moment of thought, decided not to dig deeper. Instead, he said, <>

‘Shit. I could probably go for some cheap-ass motel style housing for now and upgrade it later on. But before I built some shit like this, I'd rather do without altogether!

It’s just… even if those people are used to sleeping on the ground in some cheap tents, I can’t just let them go on like this, can I? Especially not after my dealings with the Society.’

But just the thought of having to settle with some, in his opinion, pathetic half-measure, displeased him immensely.

‘In that case, I might as well try something else entirely and look into establishing that portal station instead. Even just a single portal to start things off should go a long way. In some sense, it would even take care of the housing issue. They could simply spend the night in the city the portal connects to and then return the next morning. Of course, I would have to charge for each passage.’

Though not entirely convinced, the more he thought about it, the more he liked this idea. It certainly beat having to compromise on the quality of his services. Also, once a connection to the outside world was established, the import of other goods, should he ever opt to do so after all, would also be much easier. And cheaper.