After putting his residents to work, Aiken had more time for himself. There were still many things he wanted to check out as a Ruler of a Domain. One of them was the Private Bazaar. He was eager to see what he could purchase to further develop his land. The bazaar was located in a room adjacent to the altar. The particularity of the place was the open ceiling. There was another altar ten times as tall as the one with the golden owl statue. There were many symbols and inscriptions on the monument. Aiken saw a place on the column with a mold representing a hand.
He put his right hand on it. Many information flowed to him.
[Welcome to the Private Bazaar!]
[You can trade with the game system and other players in Balfar.]
[Zeus collects a 10% tax from the seller of a transaction.]
Ten percent?! For what? That’s just robbery. Hades’s gift said.
Aiken ignored the comment and focused on the bazaar. There were four options, Goods, Special Goods, Knowledge, and Private Auction. However, the Private Auction was currently inaccessible.
Let’s check out the goods.
Aiken followed Hades’s gift suggestion and selected the option for Goods. He saw many resources, wood, stones, food, Olympian Ore, sugar, oil, grain, salt, flour, pepper… The prices were displayed as well. Wood cost 20 Olympian coins per unit. Stone was 40 Olympian coins per unit. Food cost 10 Olympian coins. The ore was 150 Olympian coins. Sugar cost 6 coins per Kilo. Oil was 3 coins per liter. Salt was 20 coins per kilo. Flour was 2 coins per kilo, and pepper cost 5 coins per unit.
Let’s not splurge our money. What do we need the most?
Our money?
We’re in this together. If you fail, I’ll go down with you.
Aiken sighed.
Right now, we really need wood.
Agreed.
Aiken had 200 Olympian Notes. One Olympian note was equivalent to one thousand Olympian coins. He used 1 note to buy 500 wood. Two notifications came to him.
[Godslayer bought 500 wood.]
[Godslayer lost 1 Olympian Note.]
That’s good. Now let’s check out the Special Goods. Hades’s gift said.
Aiken was also curious, so he selected the option. He found blueprints and skill orbs among other things. The Buffet Hall blueprint was 1 Olympian note. The Public Baths blueprint and Public Housing blueprint cost 2 Olympian notes each. The Basic Blacksmith Forge and Barracks blueprint were 3 notes each. Aiken received more notification as he purchased the items, spending 11 Olympian notes.
[Godslayer bought 1 Buffet Hall blueprint.]
[Godslayer lost 1 Olympian Note.]
[Godslayer bought 1 Public Baths blueprint.]
[Godslayer lost 2 Olympian Notes.]
[Godslayer bought 1 Public Housing blueprint.]
[Godslayer lost 2 Olympian Notes.]
[Godslayer bought 1 Basic Blacksmith Forge blueprint.]
[Godslayer lost 3 Olympian Notes.]
[Godslayer bought 1 Barracks Blueprint.]
[Godslayer lost 3 Olympian Notes.]
Get the Ship Blueprint. Your domain is closer to the sea. It’d be a shame not to take advantage of that.
Aiken agreed with the suggestion. He purchased the Ship Blueprint. He also got a Harbor Blueprint.
[Godslayer bought 1 Ship bluerprint.]
[Godslayer lost 8 Olympian Notes.]
[Godslayer bought 1 Harbor blueprint.]
[Godslayer lost 5 Olympian Note.]
“Salt is pretty expensive. I wish I had some to sell. When I played the game before, a few players made a killing selling salt.” Aiken said.
Oh, you wanna sell salt. That’s easy.
Yeah?
Your domain is near the sea.
Of course!
Aiken closed the current window and selected the Knowledge option. He quickly found what he was looking for, Salt Extraction Process. He forked out a whooping 50 Olympian notes for the knowledge.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
[Godslayer bought Salt Extraction Process - Knowledge.]
[Godslayer lost 50 Olympian Notes.]
He then moved to the Skills Orbs.
You need to learn to ride a horse and use a sword.
I used a spear in my previous life.
And look where it has led you.
I recommend you learn Dual Wielding to be able to use two weapons at the same time. Then, you could use twin swords, a sword and dagger, or two daggers… Maybe add Archery to the mix.
Aiken made up his mind and purchased some Skill orbs
[Godslayer bought Dual Wielding - Skill Orb.]
[Godslayer lost 2 Olympian Notes.]
[Godslayer bought Swordsmanship - Skill Orb.]
[Godslayer lost 1 Olympian Note.]
[Godslayer bought Horse Riding - Skill Orb.]
[Godslayer lost 1 Olympian Note.]
[Godslayer bought Archery - Skill Orb.]
[Godslayer lost 1 Olympian Note.]
With everything he’s purchased so far, he spent 80 Olympian notes out of the 200 he had. He still has 120 notes left.
When removed his hand from the huge altar, a golden sphere of light appeared beside him. Aiken saw all the items he bought. He put everything in his storage ring except for the Skills Orbs. One after the other, he put an orb against his forehead until they vanished into his skull.
[Godslayer, you have learned Dual Wielding.]
[Godslayer, you have learned Swordsmanship.]
[Godslayer, you have learned Horse Riding.]
[Godslayer, you have learned Archery.]
Aiken exited the building to go check on his workers. Ludo and the others were building the fence. He suggested to Aiken to have a main gate on the northern side and put small gates east, west, and south. Aiken gave him the green light. Branor and his team were on the west side, cutting wood with their newly created lumberjack axes. There were still many axes unused. Aiken also told them to build a shed to store the wood. He spent the entire afternoon supervising both teams and helping from time to time. Seeing their lord at work boosted their morale, and they redoubled their effort.
At sunset, Ajax The Great came back on his horse. Aiken saw a few rabbits by his side and a dead boar tied to his mount. There was also a horse behind him.
“I see you aren’t coming empty-handed. How did it go?” Aiken said with a smile.
“There were a few wild beasts and some bandits. I disposed of them. I took the horse from one of them. You don’t have a mount yet, so I thought this one could do for now. At least, you will easily move around your territory.”
Aiken checked the horse’s stats.
[Common Brown Horse]
[Speed: 15 mph]
[Jump Strength: 2 feet ]
[Stamina: 35]
[Temperament: Gentle]
Aiken wasn’t impressed at all. He had seen countless horses with better stats than this one. However, he couldn’t be picky right now.
“Thank you, sir Ajax. What about the rabbits and the boar?”
“I thought we could all have a feast to celebrate the new residents of your domain.”
“We shall do so. Let’s get the others.” Aiken said as he walked toward his new horse.
Compared to Ajax’s mount, the brown horse seemed frail. Aiken took the reins and easily got on the horse. His horse riding skill allowed him to control the animal with ease.
“I almost forgot my lord. I found three people wandering around the borders. They aren’t bandits. I offered them to join us and become residents of your land. They accepted. They are waiting for you to welcome them.”
“That’s great news! Take me to them.”
Both men rode together to meet the newcomers. They were three men. Aiken greeted them and invited them to stay. They were all farmers. Aiken didn’t mind. He can always use the manpower. He received a notification.
[Arcadia Hamlet’s Population: +3]
On their way back, they stopped to get the two groups still working. Hearing from their lord they would be having a feast, they happily cheered and followed him to the castle. Ajax gave the residents the prey he killed. They skinned the rabbitts and boar, set up a fire, and began roasting the meat.
They all sat around the fire and chatted. The three newcomers were farmers chased from their land by bandits. They told everyone their story. From how bandits kept asking them to pay a fee for protection to them not being able to pay any more as the price kept going up. With no way to defend themselves, they had to leave their land to protect their lives. The other residents empathized with their story. They all felt lucky and grateful to have found Aiken. They were excited to start anew in Arcadia Hamlet. Aiken could feel the sincerity behind their words.
When the food was ready, Aiken was served a big piece of boar meat and a rabbit leg. The residents insisted on him having the first bite as the lord.
“Thank you, my friends. And welcome again to Arcadia Hamlet. Let’s all work hard to make this land prosper. Now let’s eat!”
The residents cheered and started to dig in. They spent a couple of hours eating and chatting before everyone got tired. Aiken gave them one room in his castle for the time being. It was a bit small for 13 people, but they didn’t complain. It was still better than sleeping in the wild. Aiken gave Ajax another room. He wanted to make his status very clear to the rest of them. Before going to bed, he went to the altar and touched the golden owl statue. He wanted to check his Domain.
[Domain: Arcadia Hamlet]
[Ruler: Godslayer]
[Population: 15/300]
[Daily Immigration: 15 people]
[Domain Area: 5000 acres]
[Resident’s Satisfaction Index: 65]
[Army: N/A]
[Domain’s Treasury: 120 Olympian Notes]
[Godmother Athena Blessings:]
[+50% in Daily Immigration]
[+40% in Crops Production]
[+25% chance of attracting Special Ones]
Aiken also checked his own stats.
Name: Godslayer
Title: Ruler of a Domain
Domain: Arcadia Hamlet
Level 8
Experience: 10,500/14,500
Pangean Recruit: Rank 1
Achievement points: 550
Agility: 14
Constitution: 11
Intelligence: 55
Strength: 12
[Characteristic Points: 8]
Skills: Dual Wielding, Horse Riding, Archery, Swordsmanship
Equipment: None
Mount: Common Brown Horse
Hero Summoned: 1
Money: 120 Olympian notes