'What's with this damned system…'
Lowering the axe down on his shoulder, Theo stared off seemingly into the abyss, his eyes locked on the fresh notification.
'Land claim?'
He closed his eyes and sighed out while shaking his head.
"You won't be kind enough to just go ahead and explain what the hell this land claim is all about, do you, system?" he asked out into the air, ready to roll his eyes and just put this notification aside, opting to focus on the task of gathering more wood.
'Even though I have more than enough of it now,' he thought, 'I still want to get the achievement related to it!'
[Land Claim: By claiming land, you can forcefully unlock subroutine for the system.]
Theo's axe, which he was readying himself to swing down against the tree, nearly fell out of his hand.
'Another subroutine?'
This was more than just interesting.
This was, quite literally, a jackpot!
'From how I can abuse the areas where my survival and blocky subroutines intersect, I can tell that the more subroutines I have, the merrier… But is it really alright for me to go for it?'
Theo reaffirmed his grasp over his axe, only to then drop its blade down to the ground and use the butt of its handle as a rest for his arms.
"What are the benefits of the manor subroutine, then, system?"
As weird as it felt to say it out loud, Theo made sure to replicate the manner in which he called out before, hoping this was the secret to communicating with his system—a perk that could, quite possibly, be the most valuable out of all the abilities he had.
Yet, not even using the same phrasing as before appeared to do the trick, leaving Theo waiting for, as it turned out, absolutely nothing.
"You really don't want to make things easy for me, huh?" Theo muttered with a hint of hostility, only to then roll his eyes and pick up his axe before getting back to work.
'The downside of accepting this subroutine is quite obvious. If I lay claim to this land, there will be monsters coming to challenge me for it. And right now, getting another boss monster to worry about is the last thing I want!'
Gritting his teeth in silent frustration, Theo swung his axe down with all his strength. The stone blade ate into the side of the tree's trunk, reaching deep enough for the young man to then struggle a bit to dislodge it back.
"On the other hand, though…"
Theo turned his head and looked toward an even deeper part of the forest.
"If I don't claim it, another monster is going to come to take over the place anyway, leaving me right back in the same spot I was before dealing with the Oilrat, won't it?"
For a moment, Theo struggled to decide between working on the tree and just making the bet and taking the opportunity his system offered.
In the end, however, he swung his axe back to his shoulder and sighed out before slightly nodding his head.
"Just give me this land already…"
Theo's voice was full of resignation. Yet, when his vision suddenly cluttered with a slew of new notifications, he couldn't help but feel a tinge of excitement.
Excitement that only grew as he went ahead and started reading through the system messages.
[Outer Forest - Claimed!]
[Outer Forest - Unclaimed Zone > Outer Forest - Claimed by Theodore Evilbane]
[Manor subroutine unlocked!]
[Manor subroutine: Level 1]
[You can now construct: Wooden Manor, Stone Manor, Brick Manor.]
[You can now construct: Tier 1 Wooden Manor Substructures, Tier 2 Stone Manor Substructures, Tier 3 Brick Manor Substructures.]
[Warning! Types of manors can be stacked up!]
[Warning! The manor subroutine's level is strictly related to the Manor's quality and development!]
[Warning! You can only purchase substructure blueprints for the tiers within your manor's level!]
"Phew…" Shaking his head to get rid of the visual leftovers from all the notifications, Theo sighed out, straining his willpower not to let the excitement get the better of him.
Yet, whether he was excited or calm, his next step was quite the obvious one.
"I wish to construct a wooden manor!"
Tightening his hand over the handle of his axe, Theo could do nothing but wait while holding his impatience back.
[Processing…]
[Processing…]
[Processing…]
[Detected no suitable zone for manor construction.]
[Requirements:
- Water access (2/5)
- Good quality soil (4/5)
- Proximity of resource veins (3/5)
- Open space (0/5)]
[Highlighted potential suitable zone: Please visit the highlighted areas to learn more about them!]
"Well… Isn't that just precious…" Theo grinned.
What the system considered a failure was no less than one hell of a boon for Theo! Because right now, he could see faint glow hanging low above the forest's floor and splitting up into several different directions that led out deeper into the zone he just claimed!
'So… Now not only can I find resource veins and water, but also areas where the soil is good?'
Theo shook his head, taken aback by just how many hidden treasures he managed to discover merely by exploring what he gained by defeating the Oilrat, as opposed to getting those perks and benefits directly after his victory.
"Well then, there's no point waiting around, is there?" he then muttered before stepping ahead and following the path outlined by the system.
The first potential building zone was… a dud.
It was the closest one to the edge of the forest, already making it as much of a benefit as it was a handicap in case someone else would end up sentenced to execution by exile, but also lacking both in terms of water access and resource veins.
The second zone was quite a bit further away, forcing Theo to move away from where the rest of the path directed him to… Only to prove to be another dud, although for much different reasons.
"So this is what the system means about the soil…" Theo muttered under his breath as he stood at the edge of a stinky swamp ruled over by cloud-sized hordes of insects.
[Building Zone: Sickly Swamp]
[Water access: Check]
[Good quality soil: Fail]
[Proximity of resource veins: 2]
[Open Space: Fail]
Not even the two resource veins hidden somewhere nearby were good enough of a reason for Theo to think about building his manor here. Not with all those insects… and definitely not in a place that had "sickly" in its name!
'I don't have any sort of medicine, so getting some sort of serious sickness would be a game-over for me,' he thought, hastily retreating out of the area while making sure to mark the path he took.
'Even if I won't build here, there are two resource veins nearby. Once I'm ready for another expedition, I will have to be sure to check this whole area out!'
Still, Theo didn't dare to give up. The fact that he had already spent nearly an hour traversing through the thick parts of the forest made him too committed to the cause to even think about taking a break, not to mention giving up.
And before much longer, his efforts were finally rewarded.
[Building Zone: Ancient Stonage]
[Water Access: Check]
[Good Quality Soil: Check]
[Proximity of Resource Veins: 1]
[Open Space: Fail]
The whole area appeared slightly like some ancient ruins of some sort of a religious monument, with huge boulders arranged in a shape of a rough circle. Just a bit outside of said circle, there was a small stream of water cascading down some smaller boulders stacked up the side of a hill with pretty much every inch of the open space covered in thick bushes and huge, healthy trees.
The only part of the system assessment of the place Theo couldn't spot outright was the resource vein, but…
'Judging by how this subroutine works thus far, it's likely going to give me some hints for it once I'm ready to exploit it.'
Shaking his head, Theo took a breath… And got to work.
'First, I need to clear out all those trees. Then, if it still won't be enough, I'm going to mine those boulders out of the way. And then…'
Theo shrugged his shoulders as he lowered his axe and approached the nearest of the trees he mentally marked for removal.
'Then, I will see what I need to do next!'