NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6: New Town, New Beginning
[Status Screen]
Name: Lukas Margrave
Status: Healthy
Talent: Divine Chef (SSS)
Mana Heart: Active (F)
Primary Job: Knight
Secondary Job: None
Unique Skills:
Divine Farm (FFF → F)
Recovery (D)
Skills:
Rest (A), Velvet Tongue (E+), Charm (FF), Mana Breathing (F)
"Nice. Now stats."
[Stats]
Strength: 4 (+3)
Speed: 3
Endurance: 7
Durability: 5 (+3)
Vitality: 6 (+12)
Dexterity: 3
Perception: 5 (+10)
Mana: 10
"People train for months and years to get an increase of stats while all I have to do is eat the food I make… feels unfair but I'm not complaining hehe." he said to himself and chuckled as he moved to check how ranking up his skills effected them.
[Divine Farm - F Rank]
Mana Density: F
Crops Per Plot: 8 Plants/1 Tree
Total Plots: 5
Empty Plots: 4
Inventory: 46 Potatoes (FFF), 394 Chillies (FFF)
'This might be dumb but… is there a way I can rear animals in the farm? Answer me system.'
[The ability to switch from farming land to free land will be available once Divine Farm reaches E Rank. To rear animals, you will have to transfer a live animal inside. The ability to use dead animals will be unlocked at higher ranks. To get the animals to reproduce, you will need to have atleast one male and one female. Asexual reproductive creatures exempted.]
"Cool. Now show me information on Mana breathing."
[Mana Breathing (F)]
Passively circulate mana through your body by breathing, strengthening the body over time. Increases mana, mental and physical regeneration by 30%.
Once Lukas saw the new changes, he walked back into his hut and took out a small box from his trunk as he glanced at his sister.
'She'll probably need another hour. The buff lasts for six hours so she has more than enough time. Even if she fails, she'll have extra attempts.'
Inside the box, were a bunch of bronze coins and twelve silver coins. Seeing this, he let out a soft sigh and recalled the currency system being used in the Murent Kingdom, the kingdom he currently resided in.
'Twenty bronze make one silver coin and two hundred silver make one gold coin. Bronze is used for small purchases while silver is used for things like clothes, furniture and rent. As for gold… I probably won't be able to earn it on my own for quite some time. Maybe I might get lucky.' he thought.
He didn't consider the gold he would be getting for the farm as it belonged to his mother and was passed down to him as inheritance.
Outside the hut, he sat down on the log and began to count.
"Eighty bronze coins and twelve silver. To think that we only managed to save this much in the past two years…."
It was disheartening but he didn't let it keep him down.
"With my talent, there shouldn't be much to worry about." he muttered, consoling himself that he had a bright future.
*****
Two days later in the afternoon, Lukas and Nina lay on a pile of hay in a bullock cart. It had no roof, so they had to face the bright sun directly.
Lukas turned to look at his sister and noticed two streaks on her cheeks. She had cried a lot while she bid farewell to the villagers but Lukas didn't feel much. He could recall and see their kindness through his memories but he couldn't experience it.
He felt no connection to any of the villagers so he had watched silently.
"Do you…. wish to go back to the village?" he asked hesitantly as he couldn't bear seeing her like this. Personally, he wished for a better future but seeing his sister alive even though she might not be the same inside, made him feel conflicted. He couldn't decide on what to prioritise.
"No… I like them. But I want to go with you. A new future sounds good." she said as she closed her eyes.
Lukas said nothing and he too closed his eyes.
After a few hours, the driver turned around and woke them up.
"We're here, now get off. Don't forget my fare." he said as he sucked on a thin leaf roll before exhaling the smoke.
Lukas nodded and gave that man a silver coin while Nina picked up the large trunk that they had bought and began walking. Lukas chuckled as he saw the man's expression turn to that of fear as he followed his sister.
"Let me carry it." he offered, but she simply kept walking. Only after a few seconds, did she stop and turn to look at him.
"It's night… where should we sleep?"
Hearing her question, Lukas realised the obvious.
'Right… she's never left the village so she doesn't know a thing about inns.'
Taking this chance, he grabbed the trunk's handle and took it away from her as he pointed at an inn that was a hundred meters from their location.
"See that? Inns are places that provide rooms for a day. We don't own a house anymore so we'll have to find a place to rent. Renting a house is cheaper than going to an inn but we'll have to make do with an inn tonight."
Nina listened to his explanation and nodded before heading over with a slight bounce on her steps.
'She's excited…' he thought as he followed behind her, smiling to himself.
When the person behind the counter stated the price for a night's stay, Nina immediately glared at Lukas.
"What? We don't have a choice… it's fine." he said as he placed two silver coins on the counter before leaving with a key.
The room was spacious with a large bed, two soft pillows and a nice woollen blanket. Attached to the room, was a small bathroom. There was no shower but he could request for hot water, which was free.
"You should take a bath first. I'll go tell them to send a bucket of hot water."
Nina immediately shot him a glare, "No. Two Silver coins is already too much. That's one month's worth of bread!"
"Hot water is free."