As the sky gradually darkened, Qin Muye returned to his territory with six sprites. He glanced at the farmland outside the Mage Tower, but he didn't pay much attention. Construction was complete, but for it to function, seeds were needed; otherwise, food couldn't magically appear out of thin air.
Today's harvest wasn't extensive—15 units of ore, 7 units of wood, and a pleasant surprise of 21 units of food. Most notably, he found 1 unit of gem.
Considering the circumstances, the harvest was quite rich.
As for monster hunting? He hadn't engaged in it at all.
Using his temporary basic scouting skill, Qin Muye had observed that every wild monster outclassed his sprites in terms of attributes.
The weakest among them might be the Skeleton Soldier, with 2 attack and 1 defense. However, even with such stats, sprites were still not a match. Firstly, their 0 attack couldn't penetrate defense unless they found a wild monster with 0 defense, which Qin Muye hadn't come across.
More critically, the Skeleton Soldier possessed three skills, rivaling the luxurious skills of sprites, all geared towards combat. This made Qin Muye somewhat troubled.
From what he could see now, sprites were genuinely weak, except for being a bit smarter. They relied mostly on luck.
He had considered arming the sprites with stones or sticks, but the innate differences in their attributes couldn't be compensated for. Firstly, physical strength and stamina were insufficient for handling heavy weapons for an extended period. Secondly, even if they threw stones from a distance, it wouldn't be effective, lacking any real damage.
The monsters in this world were not ordinary creatures but fantastical beings, like the wolf he almost sent away before. That creature was at least the size of a young calf.
Back in the territory, Qin Muye distributed food to all the sprites and told them to find their own food when hungry.
Each sprite consumed around 3 units of bread a day, totaling 30 units. Water was less of a concern.
Having accompanied Qin Muye outside today, the sprites hadn't eaten yet, but they were now famished. Fortunately, he had brought back 21 units of food, which would sustain them for another couple of days; otherwise, they would have run out of food tomorrow.
Next, he checked the sprite with only 1 point of health left. The sprite was lying on the first floor of the Mage Tower, still resting. Its health hadn't recovered, looking frail, but it hadn't died yet.
On the other hand, the sprite that had lost only 1 point of health had already recuperated after eating bread and drinking water.
At this moment, Qin Muye seemed to understand something.
Even though The Lord's Era violated some common sense, the fact remained that this world was real.
Seated on the third floor of the Mage Tower amidst its ruins, Qin Muye gazed at the moonlit sky. A flash of insight crossed his mind.
He understood. He had been balanced, not just him but even the sprites.
Considering the four skills of the sprites, if placed on a high-attribute unit, especially a magical one, they would be overpowered. The Garden of Luck skill added 1 point to the hidden attribute Luck, necessary for all unit types. The Magical Constitution skill added 1 point to Defense, providing protection against damage. The Magical Wisdom skill added 10 points to Magic Points, a trait unseen in any other 1st-tier unit he encountered. Finally, the Loyal Taming skill kept the morale perpetually high, a feature normally only found in the Undead unit, the Skeleton Soldier.
But the sprites were balanced with only 5 points of health and 0 attack and defense.
"No, this isn't right. If it were only this, it wouldn't be balanced to such an extent. There must be untapped potential in the sprites that I haven't discovered yet."
Sprites couldn't even compare to Skeleton Soldiers. This couldn't be true; there must be something more. Qin Muye started to ponder.
"Perhaps the decline in morale means rebellion for this unit."
Thinking of this, Qin Muye felt a chill down his spine. This was too harsh. If a Lord treated their units poorly, they might end up being killed by their own units without this ability to restrain them.
"I wonder if anyone else has discovered another way to play The Lord's Era like me."
"Never mind. Regardless of others, let's first gather magic power and become a mage."
At this point, he had no time to worry about others. He needed to secure his own safety first.
(End of Chapter 4)