If I converted Stone to Wood, I would literally be losing 50% of my Point value right there. And considering that 1 Iron was originally equivalent to roughly 90 Wood in terms of Point value, using this exchange would mean taking a massive loss!
In the end, it turned out to be yet another disappointment.
Honestly, what was even the point of this feature?
But then, later on, as my initial frustration faded and I was finally able to think more carefully, I realized my oversight.
Of course the Material Exchange would be more expensive than buying resources directly with Points!
At first glance, it felt like the System was outright ripping me off. But in certain urgent situations, this feature could actually prove useful.
For instance, if I ever found myself in desperate need of a single Iron ingot to buy or craft something critical — an iron wall reinforcement, for example — then the Material Exchange would allow me to overpay and get the job done immediately, instead of waiting weeks for resources to slowly accumulate through the generator.
And beyond that, a high Point cost didn't necessarily mean a resource was bad value.
In fact, it could be a good thing.
If the area around me ever turned out to be rich in Iron — say, with nearby veins or abandoned mines that I could somehow exploit cheaply — then Iron would become abundant and cheap for me. In that case, I could exchange the surplus for other, scarcer materials at a favorable rate.
(Not that I had any idea how I could actually mine things right now, since I couldn't even move, but I was just thinking about the long-term future.)
The reverse was also true.
If Iron could only be obtained through the System and nowhere else in the wild, then its intrinsic value would be far higher than I had initially assumed. In that light, the steep price actually made perfect sense.
After all, pricing was always about supply and demand.
And more importantly, wasn't the ability to turn one material into something completely different already absurdly convenient?
And so, with these points in mind, suddenly the Material Exchange feature I had just unlocked no longer felt completely useless. But still, it wasn't something I had any practical use for at the moment.
(Oh, right! I almost forgot!)
I suddenly remembered. There was one more thing unlocked when I upgraded the System Shop!
The Sovereign Shop!
I couldn't help but wonder… what exactly was that supposed to be?
****
I opened the Sovereign Shop and scanned the list. Turns out, this shop was entirely dedicated to managing my future citizens.
Through this shop, I could obtain some really, really nice things called Sovereign Skills!
Right now, my Sovereign Shop was only Level 1, but it already presented me with five incredibly promising skill options:
[Eye of the Overlord]
Type: Passive
Description: A passive skill that allows you to observe the basic status of any citizen under your rule. You can also see the general info of any creature or item inside your territory.
Cost: 20 Points
[Lord's Blessing — Level 1]
Type: Active
Description: Spend Points to enhance a citizen's attributes or even upgrade their skills.
Cost: 20 Points
[Rule Maker]
Type: Active — Toggle
Description: Spend Points to create rules. Citizens will be rewarded if they follow them or punished if they break them.
Cost: 150 Points
[Quest Creation]
Type: Active
Description: Grants the ability to assign basic quests to your citizens.
Cost: 20 Points
[Tax Collection — Level 1]
Type: Passive
Description: Each citizen will generate Points for you daily. Upgrading this skill increases the amount of Points generated.
Cost: 200 Points
(More skills will be available once you upgrade the Sovereign Shop: Vassal's Eyes; Devolution)
***
Yeah… isn't this amazing?
If I had these skills, I would be able to not only see my citizens' detailed stats but also actively influence their growth and even issue quests to guide them!
I could already see the endless possibilities unfolding in my mind.
Like… give my citizens a quest to kill monsters outside my territory, earn Points from the loot, upgrade my shops faster, use those Points to level up my citizens further, then give them even more challenging quests! It was like I was suddenly playing a full-blown kingdom management video game now!
Sure, I wasn't the best when it came to RTS, grand strategy, or deep kingdom management games. I was more of a hack-and-slash, waifu-collector gacha kind of guy. But regardless, this still sounded incredibly fun and full of potential.
Still, one big question remained… how the heck was I supposed to get actual citizens in the first place?
I had already tried to grant citizenship to animals. But the birds, deer, and raccoons simply weren't intelligent enough. Because of that, I couldn't grant them citizenship and ended up losing Points for nothing.
(Then…)
(Do I have to wait for an actual human adventurer to wander into my castle?)
(Hmmm….)
Just then, another idea flashed brightly into my mind.
(Wait…)
(WAIT A MINUTE!)
(GOBLINS!)
From what I had seen so far, goblins were quite stupid creatures. The fact that they fell for the simplest bait imaginable was more than enough proof. However, they were still intelligent enough to make basic clothing, use weapons, and even communicate in their own crude language…
(Surely… that has to be enough to meet the skill's requirements, right?)
(Well, there's no harm in trying!)
***
And so, I eagerly waited for the next goblin to appear, ready to test whether I could finally grant citizenship or not.
A few days later, another goblin appeared. This time, there was only one. But it was a perfect opportunity.
(Finally! It's time to get my first citizen!)
Shortly after, I was already focusing intently on that little guy, who was happily sinking his teeth into the fat piece of steak I'd used to lure him deeper into my territory.
"Alright, System. Grant this dude citizenship!"
[Ding!]
[Would you like to use Citizenship Granting on Level 7 Forest Goblin?]
[Cost: 6 Points]
(What?!)
I was confused at first.
Previously, granting citizenship to animals had only cost 1 point. But this time, it cost six?!
(Well… that is understandable, I guess?)
I suppose that was because the goblin's level was much higher than the previous animals.
Luckily, I had enough points.
Points remaining: 20
So, I gave my approval.
"System, just do it!"
And the system complied.
[Attempting to grant citizenship to Level 7 Forest Goblin…]
As the skill activated, the goblin froze in place, then glitched slightly for a few seconds, similar to how the animals had reacted when I tried before.
(Come on…)
(Come on!)
I was super nervous. Anxiety shoot to my roof.
For some reason, this reminded me of those monster-catching games, where you throw a ball and then pray to every god you know that the capture succeeds!
(Surely… I wouldn't need to beat this goblin half to death before granting it citizenship, right?)
5 seconds later, the notification came.
[Citizenship Granting Failed!]
[Reason: The target lifeform is intelligent enough. But affinity is too low, it will not voluntarily submit to you!]
[Hint: Citizenship Granting requires recognition of the Sovereign.]
(AAAAAAAAAAAAA FUUUUUUUUUCKKKKKK!)
(COME ON, SYSTEM! WHAT DO YOU EVEN MEAN?!)
(AFFINITY?! WHAT IS THIS? A SIM DATING GAME?!)
Points remaining: 14