---Viktor's POV---
Although 50 players had left, the influx of 200 new ones completely made up for the gap. The town showed no signs of being sparsely populated. Players and townsfolk alike bustled about in an orderly fashion, busy mining and transporting resources. The clanging and banging sounds filled the place nonstop.
I quickly found the person I was looking for among the crowd.
Hawkes was standing with some players, wielding a shovel and spitting words in anger as his face turned as red as his beard. "Ridiculous! Binding lightning within a tiny iron loop is utterly impossible! Even if you could, do you think you could withstand the wrath of the God of Thunder?"
ProGamer_Daddy, standing with arms crossed and shaking his legs nonchalantly, shot back, "A decrepit deity who's been dead for centuries, do you really think they'll spring up from their grave to strike me down? I've already told you, conducting electricity and using lightning wood are scientific phenomena. It has nothing to do with divine punishment! You're supposed to be some master craftsman. Could you try broadening your horizons a little?"
Hawkes, pounding a nearby iron ore with a sound as loud as a drum, replied, "In any case, such magic devices are extremely dangerous and utterly useless. They hold no research value whatsoever."
"Hey! I've already told you, it's not a magic device, it's an electrical device!"
"There's no difference, they're both impractical tools!"
"We can't make them now because our resources are poor, but that doesn't mean we never will!"
"Leave it! I'm not approving this, period!"
"Damn—" Just as ProGamer_Daddy was about to retort, he caught sight of me approaching. His eyes lit up like he'd found a savior.
"Lord Viktor!"
I nodded slightly to the two of them as a greeting, glancing at the papyrus Hawkes was holding.
Papyrus was one of the notable goods NeverShowOff and his group brought back from Nary Town. It was cheap and abundant, quickly replacing parchment as the most popular medium for players to use for recording notes, announcements, and applications. However, the drawback of papyrus was its fragility, it couldn't withstand rough handling like crumpling or folding.
"What's this?" I asked curiously.
"It's like this, I want to apply for a batch of iron ore for my weapons factory, about…" ProGamer_Daddy boldly put his hands on his hips and began listing Hawkes' faults. "I only asked for 30 tons of iron ore. That's already a bare minimum! Once it's all smelted into refined iron, it'll shrink significantly anyway! And why can't we try making electrical devices? Sure, we don't have steady supplies of copper or tin yet, but if we search more, we'll find them eventually! Do you know how much mining efficiency an electric drill would improve?"
He went on a long rant in one breath.
Hawkes stood there stone-faced, as immovable as a rock in a latrine, not even flinching. This only made ProGamer_Daddy more exasperated.
I didn't know why, but I found it all quite amusing.
In short, ProGamer_Daddy, seeing iron ore available, wanted to upgrade his factory and came to apply to Hawkes, who managed the town's iron resources. Hawkes, as usual, asked him what the iron was for. ProGamer_Daddy initially said it was for making iron tools but then casually mentioned wanting industrial machine tools.
Intrigued, Hawkes asked further, and ProGamer_Daddy answered. But the moment the topic shifted to electricity, Hawkes immediately snatched back the application he had already signed and refused to approve it.
After venting his frustration, ProGamer_Daddy glared at Hawkes, who responded stiffly, "Utterly preposterous!"
ProGamer_Daddy's eyes widened.
Resting my chin on my hand, I nodded in agreement. "Indeed, discussing electrical devices now is premature."
ProGamer_Daddy's eyes widened even further. "No way, you too?!"
I continued, "Electrical devices are important, but can you build a generator now? With the bits and pieces of copper ore you've collected, I doubt you could even produce wires to connect to Honeyvale."
At this, ProGamer_Daddy deflated completely. "That's just the current situation…"
Even Hawkes, who thought he had the upper hand, was momentarily stunned and couldn't help but ask, "Lord von Vinesse…"
I raised my hand to stop him from continuing. Retrieving paper and a pen from my storage space, I suspended ink mid-air and began writing swiftly. Half a minute later, I handed the half-dried parchment to ProGamer_Daddy. It was a spell and formation designed to store and channel magical lightning.
"We can't solve the wiring issue for now, but you can try using this spell and formation, it might substitute for a battery."
ProGamer_Daddy accepted it, confused, but grew increasingly excited as he read.
I added, "When resources are limited, we can try solving problems from the source."
"I get it! Magic is the answer to everything!"
Clutching the parchment, he couldn't wait to rush back and start experimenting. But he hadn't forgotten his original request.
"What about my three tons of iron ore…?"
"Approved."
"Yes! Haha, I win again!"
Before running off, I stopped him one last time. "Aside from the iron ore, is there anything else urgent that needs resolving?"
ProGamer_Daddy tilted his head thoughtfully. "Not really. This amount of ore will keep me busy researching for a while."
Before they could clash again, Hawkes had already promised to craft a specialized smelting furnace for refining iron based on his specifications.
That issue was resolved.
"It'd be great if we had pre-made molds for components, though. Otherwise, working with the ore is still slow."
Molds for making items like iron nails or iron plates, for example... ProGamer_Daddy mentioned it casually, but as I lowered my head in contemplation, he had already run off cheerfully.
"I'm off to study circuits, I mean magic formations! See you later!"
Finally, after holding it in for so long, Hawkes spoke hesitantly, "Do you truly believe… electrical devices are a good thing?"
"Didn't you join The Watchers because you wanted to learn to harness the power of steam?"
I flipped through ProGamer_Daddy's application.
No doubt about it, the guy's ideas were wildly bold, even if a bit dangerous during experiments. But in terms of accelerating technological progress and reaping rewards, they were invaluable.
Professional minds for the win!
"One uses water, the other uses electricity. It's all the same."
Hawkes mumbled softly, barely audible, "But… it's not the same... Harnessing steam is just borrowing the power of fire, leveraging one force against another. But electricity, using it means truly taking the power of the God of Thunder for oneself!"
"Not at all." I closed the application form and smiled faintly as I spoke to Hawkes. "Since you've joined us and abandoned your original beliefs, why not forget about divine punishments altogether and reframe how you approach your forging career? Actually, you're just one small opportunity away from a breakthrough."
Hawkes' expression froze in astonishment. "Could this be Master Serkan's forging secret?"
"No, it's just that believing in divine punishment is utterly embarrassing for a member of the Watchers."
Hawkes' face immediately cracked in disbelief.
"Remember, don't embarrass us," I said, already walking away and waving a hand without turning back, leaving him standing in bewilderment.
---
After inspecting the iron ore vein, my next stop was the two busiest commercial streets near the church. On my shoulder, Luminaris was restless and chattering nonstop.
"What do you mean by saying believing in gods is embarrassing? The wrath of the gods isn't something a lowly undead like you can withstand! Oh, great God of Light, when do you plan to unleash your divine punishment?"
I walked along, jotting down sketches and notes on paper, recording the town's flaws and potential risks, and replied casually, "Perhaps by using sunlight to burn this evil undead?"
"Even without sunlight, thunder could reduce you to dust!"
"Got it. Engraving magical artifacts with thunder arrays is common enough; you don't need to worry."
"Who-who's worried about you!" Luminaris puffed up immediately, his glowing threads trembling, and flew off toward the church in a huff.
I merely glanced up. No wonder the players enjoyed teasing him. Unfazed, I continued with my planned inspection of Honeyvale Town.
Some players who were naturally sociable greeted me warmly.
"Hey, Lord Viktor! Check out my new wind blade skill, it chops wood like a pro!"
"Care for some food? I've got the ultimate mushroom soup!"
I politely declined each offer. Since players had minimal demands for rest, most opted to stay in player apartments where closing the box was enough for sleep. Thus, the town didn't have many buildings and could be seen in its entirety at a glance. However, thanks to life-focused players, shops had begun to pop up along the streets.
There was a woodworking shop run by crafting players, a flower house with transplanted wildflowers from the forest, and even a sculpture shop, which was essentially just a group of players gathering to play with clay.
To be honest, I struggled to understand the profitability of such ventures.
While the piranhas by the river made fetching water a challenge without some skill, water wasn't scarce enough to justify opening a shop solely for playing with mud.
Oh well, as long as they enjoyed themselves.
I continued walking toward my ultimate destination: the largest square building on the street and the only tavern in town. If other shops averaged the size of one grid, this building took up four. Made entirely of wood, it combined various types, standing out from its surroundings in both quality and craftsmanship. Judging by the stacked wood and the partially completed black ironwood sign outside, the tavern was still under construction.
But players weren't picky. They simply opened the tavern for business, unfinished as it was.
Since it wasn't mealtime, the tavern was empty when I entered.
Three or four players sat on high stools behind the counter, animatedly discussing something.
"Yes, that's it! Only by making it this way can the final product become irresistibly addictive!"
Addictive?
After confirming their sanity values were above average and the system was functioning normally, I hesitated before speaking, "What exactly are you doing…?"
MemeKnight and GameLord420 looked up from the crowd and exclaimed in unison, delighted, "Lord Viktor!"
MemeKnight glanced at my stomach, hidden under my black wizard robe.
"Are you here to eat, too?"
"Eat?" Now it was my turn to be confused. "Isn't this a tavern?"
GameLord420 came over and stood next to MemeKnight, explaining, "Brewing takes eight or nine months. Until the wine's ready, of course, we need to run some side businesses."
MemeKnight rubbed his nose without a hint of embarrassment. "Ahem, we're doing snacks now, fried potatoes, sausages, sweet fruit ice cream, all super popular. Want to try some?"
"Uh, about the ice cream…" I started to ask.
"Remember when we made gunpowder and had leftover saltpeter? A player figured out how to use it to make ice."
MemeKnight sighed with regret.
"Too bad autumn's almost here. Ice cream sales will definitely drop, and the profit window will close."
If you're so concerned about ice cream sales, why not open an ice cream shop instead of a tavern?
"No need. I don't eat. I came to ask you something else."
I had issued 50 exploration slots, but not all veteran players had chosen to go out. The two before me were prime examples.
They were well-known life players and had a deep understanding of Honeyvale Town's development.
"What do you think the town is lacking? Any ideas for improvement?"
The two exchanged puzzled looks. MemeKnight hesitated. "Well, uh…shouldn't you ask what we have right now?"
After some thought, he said, "Expanding our territory should be the priority. We lack minerals, copper, tin, lead, silver, gold, coal… Once the territory is larger, everything else might resolve itself. Who knows, we might even strike oil."
"Oh, and we need more people!"
Without enough new players and NPCs to delegate tasks to, it felt like starting a business in real life. There was no time to enjoy the fantastical game world.
MemeKnight counted his experiences over the past few days on his fingers.
Initially, he and his girlfriend had planned a carefree journey to explore the world and collect achievements. But fearing they'd run out of funds, he invested his earnings from discovering potatoes and building a blacksmith shop into buying land and opening a store, hoping to capitalize on the limited number of beta testers and dominate the commercial market.
The store succeeded and turned a hefty profit.
But with too few players and NPCs to entrust with managing the tavern, they couldn't delegate the work and had to oversee the business themselves.
Their dream of traveling the world was cut short by the tavern's skyrocketing revenue.
A truly heart-wrenching tale for anyone to hear…
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