BXBX NOVEL 91 Chapter 91
I open my eyes to the bright sun and crashing waterfall, as well as the constant chatter between humans, demi-humans and goblins, with the occasional howl and growl here and there. HavenFall has grown since the battle, no it needed to grow. With the addition of new NPCs, HavenFall needed to change in order to accommodate them, but if we were changing just for the new members, then HavenFall wouldn't be improving.
So, what was needed first? Houses. With more hands available, it sped up the process of creating more houses. 3 additional kilns were made next to the original one down by the river, and more clay was gathered along the river banks. However, it posed to be a dangerous job since there were roaming golems. Fortunately, there was always a team of the strongest warriors as well as scouts nearby to ensure safety.
Howard was always at the forefront of a battle, leading the charge alongside Kingston and David. Kingston and I have been in contact ever since that night, and his 'friends' have since left him. Good for him though since those people were worse than pigs and having a player who can fight effectively is a big bonus for HavenFall, so on you Kingston!
Noah has been handling the scouting alongside Celine. With Celine's special skill of communication with the wolves, Noah has been able to plan out scouting paths with both goblin scouts and wolf scouts in order to always have eyes and ears in our surroundings.
But now that we have houses, what was next? I thought it would be good to introduce education to everyone. Teaching them how to write as well as mathematics will prove useful now and in the future. I thought about this after some new human NPCs and the demi-humans looked at the "HavenFall" sign at the wall and was wondering what those words meant. Can't have my own NPCs not even know how to read HavenFall, the name of this place.
So, I took the liberty of gathering who I thought would be good at teaching and taught them the basics first. By writing out the alphabet on a clay board and firing it, I was able to produce a character cheat sheet to help the teaching process. I decided on Melody and one of the newer demi-human NPCs, Ash, to be the teachers. Melody was keen on the project and I wanted a non-human to also have an important role as to show to other demi-humans and future non-humans that they too can have a good future in HavenFall.
I also taught simple addition and subtraction using food items as an example to Melody and Ash so that they can in turn teach them to everyone else. With the power bestowed upon me, I made it mandatory to everyone to attend a class every day. Holding a class in the morning with Melody and one before dinner with Ash, allows people who have things to do ample time to attend at least one of the two classes.
Since, I was ale to create an alphabet cheat sheet, I also went ahead and made a clay calendar. Using a red mixture from berries and water, I crossed out the dates that have passed since the opening of the game until today and told everyone the date. I could see the confusion on their faces since they never had a calendar before, however I assured them it would allow keeping track of time as well as planning for future events to become easier with the help of a calendar.
During these events, I got a lot of notifications.
[ Writing Technology Completed ]
[ Calendar Technology Completed ]
[ Construction Technology Completed ]
[ Mathematics Technology Completed ]
[ You have exited the Ancient Era. You have entered the Classical Era ]
[ Ancient Era Technology which has not been completed can be viewed in the Technology Tree ]
As per the instructions given by the system, when I view the Technology Tree I was able to see the Techs which I haven't finished and once I saw it I knew why.
[ Technology Tree ]
[ Completed
Archery
The Wheel
Masonry
Pottery
Writing
Calendar
Construction
Mathematics ]
[ Partial Completed
Philosophy ]
[ Incomplete
Sailing
Animal Husbandry
Trapping
Bronze Working ]
Since HavenFall is not near the ocean or even a lake, I understood 'Sailing' was never going to be completed anytime soon. In addition, 'Bronze Working' is something I am currently trying to achieve with acquiring copper. However, 'Animal Husbandry' and 'Trapping' is going to be more difficult. I have only seen the occasional rabbit in the forest and with a bow and arrow from Robin or any of the goblin archers there was not a need to create any traps. I can only assume these will be completed once a larger animal similar to a sheep or a cow or even a horse are captured and tamed, but for now that is very unlikely.
Moving on to the rest of the new additions to HavenFall is our Barracks and Armory. We constructed 4 new buildings next to the first goblin house. 2 more goblin houses for future goblin residents from the 'Goblin Hut' as well as a Barracks and Armory. The Barracks hold our weaponry on top of built-in wooden shelves and benches. These include the various goblin knives and clubs, the stone spears, maces, bows and arrows. While the Armory holds the stone chest plates, shields and the new wooden helmets, arm guards and leg guards.
Gobi has also started to train the goblins even harder ever since he saw his friends die tragically against the golem. I remember the day after, he came to me with a determined face and told me.
"Ian. I have failed. I know goblins are weak, but I saw it. We could fight against that golem, but we failed. Next time, next time will be different. The ones that are still alive feel the same as me. We will train harder than anyone else. All new goblins will go through the strictest training as well. The next time we fight against those monsters, we will give them hell for our brothers."
The fire in his eyes and heart was blazing. I could see his attitude towards the goblins change, and he was morphing more into a leader. The goblins would train day in and day out with a new recruit collapsing every day but after a goodnight's sleep I see them back at it working towards a goal.
The small area in front of the 'Goblin Hut' got transformed into a training ground. With wooden training dummies, stone weights and wooden spears/swords. It wasn't just the goblins training in that area. Demi-humans and humans come there to spar and work up a sweat while participating in Gobi's training. A specialized training for the scutum shields can also be seen every day with both a goblin team and a human team. As well as a team of archers with Robin teaching and guiding both demi-humans, humans and goblin archers.
On the other side of HavenFall is Lucina's farm. Taking care of the farm has been Lucina's job and with some help from new NPCs she has been expanding it slowly. Adding new crops and taking care of the old, and from what she can see it will only take another week or two for the first harvest. We built a small house for her to keep all the vegetables and fruits she has collected, as well as a place for her to store any seeds she might find.
Both Owen and Frank have been running around everywhere. From fighting golems to scouting to helping with construction to gardening, they have been helping everywhere. Their continuous efforts motivated everyone to strive to achiever better results, boosting morale and happiness.
Old man Hus and his apprentice Lime had recruiting a few more hands to create more weapons and armor for everyone. The construction of scutum has peaked to the point that there were multiple spare shields in case they broke. As well as additional weapons and armor placed in the Barracks or Armory. Sometimes I would see old man Hus create something obscure only to break it to pieces with a grumpy look. I guess he is trying to create something new, but since he won't tell me, I won't find out until he completes it.
I look at the status menu to observe any changes in my NPCs and found that everyone that participated in fights or training had increased their stats.
For example, Gobi's stats have improved a lot since the battle with the golem.
Name: Gobi
Race: Gobin
Health Points (HP): 20/20
Mana Points (MP): 0/0
Strength: 11
Vitality: 10
Intelligence: 5
Dexterity: 9
Agility: 10
Luck: 1
Skill: Leadership (Passive)
Leadership (Passive) - 10% increase in allied stats when under the leadership of this person
Gobi even acquired a skill for his efforts. The other NPCs such as Howard and David have increased their stats greatly from the continuous battles, the only problem is me. My stats are still the same, but I guess that's just one way to play this game. Rather than increase my own strength, I will create a strong unified army.
Every day in the game, I was following Howard around fighting golems but instead of fighting alongside him, I was assisting with quick commands. Calling out new plans in the heat of the moment and providing changes to tactics as if I was playing a real time strategy game. Helping out with the decision-making for my troops provided a different method of fighting, and it helped elevate our fighting potential. I guess I am more of a commander or general rather than a warrior.
I look at my own status to see progress in the 'Faith' as well as to check on the 'Happiness' stat.
Name: Ian
Race: Human
Faith: 516/10,000 ( Reach 10,000 to pick a Religion )
Happiness: 10 ( Happy )
Health Points (HP): 10/10
Mana Points (MP): 0/0
Strength: 5
Vitality: 5
Intelligence: 5
Dexterity: 5
Agility: 5
Luck: 11
More people means more 'Faith' and since there are no conflicts then the 'Happiness' is constantly positive. Smiling to myself, I pick up my gear and proceed to the river, where I know Howard and the others are waiting. Today was the day I planned to assault the copper mines and take back what should have been mine.