Life settled back into a peaceful, boring routine for the next two weeks. The skull-marked stick remained where it was—annoying as hell—but eventually, I stopped staring at it.
More and more animals moved in. Rabbits bred, birds nested, and even a few foxes dared to sleep in my shadows. The raccoons were happy again, now that no more goblins were disturbing their sleep.
And soon, I got an achievement for it!
[Ding!]
[You now have more than 100 animals living within your territory!]
[Achievement Unlocked: Wildlife Haven!]
[+20 Points!]
Reincarnated as a Castle – Day 75
[Points Remaining: 169]
With the improved passive point generation, my balance was slowly rising again. Ten Points a day made a huge difference compared to the lonely single digit I used to get.
Thus, the next question was: should I wait to upgrade my Castle Core to the next level right away, or should I upgrade other shops first?
This time, upgrading the Castle Core to Level 3 would cost me 1,000 Points.
But the reward? 100 Points a day!
Not bad at all!
Without any citizens, it didn't seem like the Item or Furniture Shops would be much use. What good was a bed if no one slept in it? A sword if no one swung it?
So in the end, I decided to wait and aim for the next Core upgrade. It was the most efficient path to power.
Meanwhile, with the Points I had, I decided to prepare for when I finally got my first citizen. Sure, the goblin situation felt hopeless right now. They still avoided my castle like the plague. But what if one random day I suddenly had an actual human visiting me? Or another fantasy race with better intelligence?
Thus, the reasonable thing to do was to pre-buy some good equipment. Mainly things with skills and stats that I deemed might be useful.
With only the free daily refreshes, I managed to scrape together a decent starter kit. I rolled an axe with the [Lumberjack] skill, a knife with [Butchering], and a few other weapons and tools.
That aside, I then shifted my focus to another project.
I tried to figure out a way to grow fruit.
But so far? No luck.
The apples I bought from the shop didn't have seeds. The animals ate them whole, leaving nothing behind but cores that vanished when they rotted. My hypothesis was… the System wanted a monopoly on apples. After all, if I could grow my own fruit, why would I buy from the System again, right?
(Haha, yeah. Not surprised…)
It seemed the only way plants could grow was if birds or rabbits carried seeds from outside into my territory. That actually sounded plausible, and I believed that it would happen eventually.
But right now, that was out of my control.
If only I had at least one citizen!
It would be so much better!
******
But then, on Day 82, everything changed.
I thought my fate with the goblins was sealed. That they would avoid me forever, and I would forever regret my mistake.
But that evening, it was as if the gods of Azef decided to give me one last chance.
It was another stormy night.
Just like before, the sky roared in fury. Thunder split the heavens, crack after crack, each boom rattling my walls. Rain hammered down in relentless sheets, and violent winds screamed through the forest like enraged spirits tearing at the land.
And here I was, once again, quietly enjoying the chaos.
I even found myself making a stupid little bet, wondering if lightning would strike me again like it did on Day 10.
A few bolts came dangerously close.
But no direct hit this time.
That made me pause.
(Should I build a lightning rod?)
I mean, I did have Iron now. A simple iron pole wouldn't be that hard to make, right?
As I was thinking that, my external camera suddenly picked up movement.
Two small figures burst out of the forest.
Running.
I zoomed in immediately.
Goblins!
Two goblins stumbled through the mud, soaked to the bone, slipping as they ran. Their breaths were ragged, movements frantic. Every step screamed pure desperation. For a moment, I wondered what could possibly terrify goblins this badly.
Then I heard it.
"Awooooo—!"
My attention snapped back toward the forest.
The bushes exploded outward as a massive shadow leaped into the clearing.
A wolf!
No… not just a simple wolf. Because I had never seen anything like this!
This thing was enormous, easily the size of a bull! Its thick gray fur was slick with rain. Curved horns jutted from its skull, dark and menacing, giving it an almost demonic silhouette. Its glowing eyes were locked onto the fleeing goblins, filled with hunger.
Then another shadow emerged.
Then another!
And another!
Soon, an entire pack poured out of the forest, snarling and barking as they gave chase. Their howls blended with the thunder as the hunt began.
And that alone answered my earlier question.
So this forest really did have other monsters!
Compared to those things, the two goblins looked pathetically small and fragile.
I could see them clearly now.
One was slightly taller, more muscular—most likely a male. The other was smaller and thinner, with a ponytail and clear female features. Both had the same white tattoo painted across their faces.
That similarity made me think… were they family? Perhaps?
Siblings, maybe?
For now, I just assumed so.
So, I held my non-existence breath as I watched the scene unfold.
They were running straight toward me now. More accurately… that was the only direction left for them to run.
Then it happened.
The smaller goblin's foot slipped on the rain-soaked ground, and she crashed face-first into the mud!