Knight didn't expect Lucy to be his next-door neighbor.
But when he thought about it, it made sense. This apartment complex was the cheapest place to live near the guild, and though there were cheaper options, they were much further away.
"Knight, when did you get back?" Lucy asked, equally surprised. "Weren't you off to complete a commission this morning?"
"It's already done," Knight replied, noticing her struggling with some packages. "Need help?"
"Eh?" Lucy blinked in surprise but quickly nodded. "Yes, thank you!"
Knight sighed internally. He had only offered out of politeness, but Lucy had taken him up on it immediately. Still, he helped her move the packages and tidy up her new place. Luckily, there wasn't much to move, and her apartment was small, so it didn't take long.
"Phew... it's all done. Thanks, Knight!" Lucy said, wiping the sweat from her forehead before offering him a glass of water with a cheerful smile.
"No problem. We're neighbors now, so it's only right to help each other out." Knight took a sip of water and then noticed the silver ring on her left hand. "You got the ring?"
"Oh, yes!" Lucy showed it off proudly, stretching her hand towards him. "I was lucky! These were the last few left."
Knight's thoughts shifted to the task progress he'd been tracking.
[Task: Maintain over 80 active users for three consecutive days, with an average daily online time of 2 hours.]
[Task Reward: 1,000 rings.]
[Today's Active Users: 99.]
[Average Online Time: 7.05 hours.]
[Total Registered Users: 100.]
Knight was amazed. Seven hours of daily online activity? Do these people not have jobs? Even more surprising was the number of active users—aside from him, every single one of the other 99 ring holders had logged in, including Lucy.
With just one more day to meet the task's requirements, success was within reach.
"By the way," Knight said suddenly, pulling a golden key from his pocket. "This was the reward for the commission."
Lucy's eyes widened with excitement as she recognized it instantly. "The Sagittarius Key from the Zodiac!"
But just as Lucy reached for it, Knight quickly pulled it back. "Hold on, it's not yours yet. You still have to pay, miss."
"How much?" Lucy asked, her face lighting up with anticipation.
Knight raised an eyebrow. "10 million."
"Wha—?!" Lucy was struck speechless.
Knight wasn't sure how much a Zodiac key was worth, but with only twelve in existence, he figured it had to be valuable.
"Ten million?!" Lucy repeated, still in shock.
The last time she bought a key, a silver one at Harugeon's magic shop, it was only 30,000 J for Canis Minor. A gold key, though... that was a whole different story.
"Knight... I don't have that kind of money. Can't you lower the price a little?"
"No."
Lucy didn't give up. She got up, rushed to Knight, and hugged his arm, tears welling up in her eyes. "Please, can't you make it cheaper, Lord Knight?"
Knight's mouth twitched. She's trying to use her charm to get a discount.
"8 million."
"Cheaper!" Lucy pouted, her large eyes filled with pleading. She stretched out two fingers. "200,000!"
Knight rolled his eyes and pulled his arm free. "Why don't you just rob me?"
"I really only have 200,000 J! I'll give you everything I have. Please?"
Knight thought for a moment. He knew Lucy had run away from home and didn't expect her to have a lot of money on hand. An idea came to him. "How about this: write me an IOU."
"An IOU?" Lucy tilted her head.
"Yep. We're neighbors, so from now on, you'll make me dinner every night, and I'll cover the cost of the ingredients. Each meal will count as 3,000 J against your debt."
Lucy did some quick mental math. 8 million J divided by 3,000 J per meal... that was about 2,667 days. Over seven years!
"Deal!" Lucy agreed enthusiastically.
In her mind, it was a great arrangement. She'd have to cook for herself anyway, so cooking for two wouldn't be a big deal. Plus, with Knight paying for ingredients, she'd be saving money.
Knight handed her the key. "Write the IOU. And I haven't had dinner yet, so go buy some groceries and start cooking."
Lucy let out a small groan but smiled as she admired her new golden key. She quickly wrote the IOU, but instead of going out to buy food, she simply heated up some leftover bread.
Knight didn't complain. After eating, he stood up, holding the IOU in hand. "Remember, proper dinner tomorrow. And don't forget to get reimbursed for the ingredients."
"Yes, yes," Lucy waved him off with a grin.
As soon as Knight left, Lucy giggled to herself, admiring the Sagittarius key. "I'm so lucky! Not only did I get the key, but I'll be saving on dinner, too!"
Outside the door, Knight smirked. You better ask your dad for some money soon.
The next morning, Knight arrived at the guild early. The hall was still quiet, and Mirajane, the guild's poster girl, was already behind the counter.
"Knight, you're back?" she greeted him warmly.
"Came back last night. Morning, Mirajane." Knight sat down at the bar, ready to enjoy his leisurely day.
"Have you eaten? I'll get you some breakfast," Mirajane offered with a smile.
Knight grinned. "Sounds good."
After a short wait, Mirajane returned with a hearty breakfast. "Just as promised, the best food in the guild."
"This is great!" Knight took a bite, savoring the flavor. "Who's the cook? They're amazing!"
Mirajane giggled. "I made it myself."
Knight looked at her in surprise. How is she beautiful and such a great cook? He thought with a hint of admiration. I could get used to this.
"By the way, how did the commission go?" Mirajane asked.
Knight explained briefly about the curse and his quick resolution of it.
Mirajane sighed in relief. "I'm glad it went smoothly. But it's strange... How could there be such a powerful curse on the island?"
Knight knew the cause, but he kept quiet. No need to stir up more trouble.
Just as he was about to relax, Wakaba burst into the guild with a loud groan. "Ahh, I lost everything again! Why is it that every time I play Landlord, I get the worst cards?"
Spotting Knight, Wakaba rushed over. "Knight! You're back!"
"Morning, Wakaba."
"Please, I have an important favor to ask!" Wakaba begged, grabbing Knight's hand. "Give me more points so I can keep playing! I lost everything in a flash. What's the point of life without playing?"
Knight sighed. "...Fine, I'll look into it."
After a few moments of thought, Knight decided it was time to tweak the point system. He increased the daily login bonus and created a system where points could be exchanged for in-game currency.
"There, it's done," Knight said with a satisfied grin.
Wakaba immediately checked his account and saw the changes. "Knight, you're a genius!"
"Let's hope that keeps you playing for a while," Knight muttered, turning back to his breakfast.
Not only that, he also built the framework of the [Library] last night, and there was only one step left.
Integrate the library function into the forum.
To encourage users to upload books, he set up a reward of varying points for uploading books that have not yet been included in the library.
The rarer the book, the more points are rewarded.
That's it!
"It's done, I'll release the update of the new version now."
Knight chuckled and pressed the synchronization button.
Wakaba immediately opened the Internet.
Sure enough, he saw the difference.
[Magic Internet 0.2 version update announcement]
The first thing that appeared was not the forum, but a notice.
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