Chapter 67: Level 3 upgrades!

I had no immediate use for an Elemental Stone, nor did I really need the Advanced Material Exchange right now.

So, I moved on to upgrading the other shops.

I still had over 5,000 Points’ worth of materials left in my inventory. That should have been enough to upgrade my remaining three shops, the Construction Shop, Item Shop, and Sovereign Shop, along with the Castle Core to Level 3.

But doing all of that would bleed me dry again.

And even after upgrading the shops, I would still need Points to actually buy things from them.

So I needed to choose carefully and prioritize some upgrades over others.

With that in mind, I decided to prioritize the Castle Core.

It was simple. Prioritizing the economy was almost always the right choice.

I opened the Castle Core upgrade interface.

[Upgrade: Castle Core Level 2 → Level 3]

Unlocks: Skill [Generator Level 3]

Upgrade Cost: 1,000 Points

...

[Generator Level 3]

Generates 100 Points per day.

...

"Hmm. Yeah, sounds good!"

That was a massive improvement over the current 10 Points per day.

"System, initiate Castle Core Level 3 upgrade!"

As soon as I gave the command, the System interface appeared before me.

[Ding!]

[Purchasing Castle Core Level 3 Upgrade... Success!]

[Initializing Castle Core Upgrade Process...]

[Estimated Completion Time: 3 Days]

...

Huh???

Just like last time, as soon as the System began initializing the upgrade, a sudden wave of sleepiness washed over me.

"Wait, what?! Three days?!"

"Come on! System, why didn’t you tell me this sooner?!"

I had assumed it would take only a few hours, just like the previous Castle Core upgrade.

But apparently... this time, it was going to take a freaking three days!

I was absolutely not happy about that.

For the entire three days, I would be completely useless and helpless. I wouldn’t be able to issue quests, communicate properly, or do anything to help my citizens.

What if my castle got attacked during those three days?

What if something happened that required my immediate attention?

"AAAAA! Not like this!"

The overwhelming sleepiness continued to grow heavier and heavier.

I had to do something.

Thus, using every last bit of focus I could force myself to maintain, I hurriedly prepared some instructions for my citizens by writing it inside a quest scroll!

"To my citizens...

I know this is sudden, but I have to hibernate while preparing for an important upgrade.

I will be gone for three days.

Please stay within the castle’s territory and do not wander too far away.

If you want to, you can take the Wood Chopping Quest while I’m gone.

If anything bad happens, such as a monster attack, or especially if you spot any Dark Giant Spiders, immediately retreat inside the castle and do not come back out.

Gopuran... you’re the Bear Slayer, so you’re the captain now.

While I’m gone, you will have the highest authority. Take care of the others and..."

And just like that, I thought I was done for.

But then...

[Ding!]

[The System is now offering a new privilege: Staying Awake.]

[Would you like to remain awake during the Castle Core upgrade by paying Points?]

[Cost: 5 Points/hour]

...

"Haha... you greedy bastard System..."

I cursed as I stared at the message.

"So that’s what you’re really after, huh?!"

I had a deep suspicion that this was just another one of the System’s scammy tactics.

Five Points per hour...

Three days meant seventy-two hours.

That would be 360 Points straight into the System’s greedy little pockets.

But... well, it was still better than being forced to sleep for three days.

"Alright! Take it! Take my Points! Keep me awake!"

[Ding!]

[Special Privilege purchased successfully.]

[-5 Points]

[You will now be able to remain awake during the Castle Core upgrade.]

[Points will be deducted from your balance automatically every hour.]

[You may stop paying at any time. However, doing so will immediately put you to sleep for the remainder of the upgrade.]

And just like that, it was as if someone had injected an entire truckload of super-strong coffee directly into my system.

Boom!

The overwhelming sleepiness vanished!

My mind instantly cleared, leaving me with a strange sense of heightened awareness and clarity.

At the same time, I could feel the castle itself beginning to change.

Every brick, every stone was humming with energy.

The Castle Core deep within my territory began radiating a powerful force, growing hotter and hotter.

The process had officially begun.

*****

Now that the Castle Core upgrade was underway, I turned my attention to the other shops.

"Now, which shop should I prioritize next?"

The more I thought about it, the more I leaned toward upgrading the Construction Shop.

The reason was simple.

If I upgraded the Construction Shop to Level 3, I would be able to build some pretty amazing-sounding facilities, such as a Blacksmith Workshop, Alchemy Workshop, Training Ground, and even a Skill Library.

Upgrading the Item Shop would certainly give me access to better food and better equipment, but wouldn’t it be better if I could simply build a Blacksmith Workshop and start making my own weapons instead?

As for the Sovereign Shop...

The next skill it would unlock was [Personal System].

It sounded pretty interesting, but I had absolutely no idea what it would actually do.

Without knowing what I was getting, upgrading it right now didn’t seem like the wisest choice.

So, for the time being, the safest and most useful option was clearly the Construction Shop.

"System! Upgrade the Construction Shop!"

Shortly after...

[Ding!]

[Upgrade Completed!]

[Congratulations! Construction Shop Level 3 Unlocked!]

[New Buildings Unlocked: Blacksmith Workshop, Alchemy Workshop, Skill Library, Training Ground... ]

*****

"Hoho! These are looking good!"

Looking through the list of buildings I could now construct, I couldn’t help but feel excited.

Honestly, the one I was most excited about was the Blacksmith Workshop.

Muahahaha! No more relying on that stupid gacha system for good weapons!

Now I could simply make my own!

Of course, I still had no idea how good the weapons produced by the Blacksmith Workshop would actually be, but just having the option was already a huge step forward.

However, it was already nighttime, which wasn’t exactly the best time to start construction projects.

I turned my attention back to the goblins.

They were still busy washing themselves, scrubbing away the blood accumulated from butchering the giant bear. Judging by how exhausted they looked, they would probably be heading to bed soon.

It had been a very long day, after all.

So, for now, I decided to let them rest and relax.

There was no need to rush.

Tomorrow was going to be another busy day.