It was an hour later the founding council considered themselves done with the initial, crucial orders of applicants. Along with Julie they ordered two more lumberyard workers that were adequate and not too old. It would be hard work to build a new town from scratch, so the older applicants were sadly pretty far down on the priority list. This also meant they would have to generally settle for lower leveled skills since many of the older people had more experience.

  However, that didn’t work out so bad, either. All three were under the age of forty, and all had at least one Level Three skill in their repertoire related to the profession they were ordered for. They all were given the same additional goods to bring, giving them three saws and nine axes. It should be enough to last those three for a while, they figured.

  Next, they ordered two builders. Among them was a man aged 50 years, but he had no less than three Level Three skills in building-related work. He was the only one they ordered with an additional applicant tied to his; his wife, also a builder. Her skills were only slightly lower, but so was her age and having someone familiar around in a brand new town would likely be good for them. Luckily, since they were two, Theo could order additional goods totaling a mass of 20kg extra, though he was certain the husband would have to carry most of the load anyway. They ordered nails by the hundreds, luckily at a very fair price per box of nails.

  Next, they needed a source of food. While Willam would quickly start work on his farm, it was far from being able to feed a group of ten villagers right now. A forager, a hunter or a fisherman would be best, preferably all three. They settled on at least two, but if there were equally good options for all, they’d also go for a third one.

  They could’ve gone the trade route and ordered a trader and wagon instead to transport food to Sigil Lake, but that would not only cost more initially, it would cost more in the long run. Besides, they had a very finite amount of coin until they could start earning some globally acknowledged currency to trade with. Somehow, hiring three people and stocking them up with tools and extra goods needed for other business was cheaper than a single trader and a solid food stash.

  While they were ordering people left and right, Theo learned some useful tidbits about the world he was in. Every person could go to a town hall or other town-central building and send their application out. There was exactly zero magic involved, which was what Theo had trouble understanding. This was simply how the world worked. Gravity? Check. Teleporting money? Check. Round things roll better than square things? Check. People being hired wirelessly, notelessly, wordlessly from somewhere far away? Also check. He was sure he could spend years studying the very concept of this, and according to his friends, many had, though gravity proved easier to explain.

  They did find three fitting people to provide food for them, so until that point, they had ordered eight people, totalling in eleven villagers. The last three all required rather lightweight tools for their jobs, so they were to bring various tools and seeds needed for the farm as well. Seeds were pretty light, and luckily pretty cheap, though quite a lot of them was required for even a small farm. Add in crop rotation, fertiliser and the like, and a farm would quickly turn pretty expensive to run. Luckily, Willam had a pretty good idea about what he was doing and managed to scrounge together a few seedpacks that complimented each other to near perfection.

  He ordered a bunch of neato seeds, specifically three fields’ worth. He planned to have two fields up and running quickly, but only one with neatos growing at first. He also ordered two fields’ worth of wheeto seeds and barberry seeds. This was supposedly a pretty basic, but high-yielding crop rotation most farms used. Each crop of the previous kind left behind nourishment, minerals and bugs the next one needed. He would start with one field of neato and another of wheeto, then get a third field up and running for the first crop rotation. Keeping three fields would be hard work for a single farmer, though, so hopefully they got more farmhands before then.

  When Wen found out he was ordering barberry seeds, she squealed in excitement. The shriek pierced straight through Theo’s auditory defenses and rattled his braincage.

  “Do you have a need for the barberry or can I have it?” she asked in a similar pitch as her scream.

  “It’s usually not used for food, so I don’t mind you having it. It’d be a trade, right?”

  “Of course! With fresh barberry I can finally start brewin’ on my own! It’s been a while, but I promise it’ll be the best grog any of you’ve ever had!

  “You didn’t brew that swill- I mean, fine drinks in the Barge?” Theo asked. He hadn’t brought it up because he didn’t want her to feel bad.

  “That filth? Nah! The mayor wouldn’t let me get the ingredients since we were such a small town without the need for finer drink!”

  “I see. So you know how to brew, then?”

  “Oh, you don’t know? I’ve got two brewin’ related skills at Level Three! It’s what I’m actually trained in!”

  Theo perked up excitedly and Wen winked victoriously at him now that he had finally realised how amazing she was.

  “It’ll take some time, so we can hold off on buyin’ any related tools an’ vats. I wonder what I can trade back,” Wen continued, but these were just mutterings to herself.

  The rest of the jobs required to keep everyone alive should be doable enough by themselves and their new villagers. Wen could cook a decent meal with decent ingredients and they could likely use the nearby forest for shelter at first. The first building to build should be the barracks, Theo figured, so more applicants could be checked out when needed. That said, he did sneak into the System to see if there were any magicians for hire, as it were.

  Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

  Applicant filters active: Skill Level Two (Earth Affinity / Water Affinity / Wind Affinity / Fire Affinity / Dark Affinity / Light Affinity)

  N/A

  Of course there were none. They were likely the first ones ordered the moment they signed up, if they even had a reason to apply to a different town! Theo’s hopes for someone to teach him regular magic had been shattered. Still, he had a way to gain the related skills himself. He simply couldn’t learn regular glyph-based spells. He’d have to research his sigils some more.

  Surprisingly, by the time they were done, they had quite a bit more coin to spend. The piles now equalled a value of 566 coins. Theo did the math; buying everything had cost a measly 154 coins. Chaste must’ve given him the wrong pouch! By far the most expensive items were the iron axes and saws. Wondering what to do about the coins, Theo was told to put them back. They were technically his and not the town’s, after all, but they were thankful for his patronage. Without a trader or a business with a ledger, there was no way for them to order anything else, except by ordering more people and adding more goods to that order.

  Now, all they had to do was… wait?

  Being on the lazy side wasn’t for either of the three council members. The moment Willam sensed a lull, he set them all to work by heading into the forest to find branches he could use to plot out his future farm. Without anything of note on their persons or brought with them, any fruit, berries or the like would also be needed as they would likely have to wait a few days before anyone arrived.

  The world was supposed to notify the people about the acceptance of their applications somehow. Theo didn’t know how that happened or what something like that would look like, but he had the System to quantify and express those sorts of things. It was more than probable that kind of thing would simply be integrated into it for him, so it didn’t really matter much.

  It took Theo more than a few minutes to remember his last foray into a forest, where he was easily struck down and mangled by a lone, deadly squirrel. The moment he remembered, his hairs stood tall all along his arm and his heart pumped just a bit faster and harder. Right now he was armed with an armful of branches and thick twigs. If a squirrel found him again, he’d be dead meat. He continued searching for more improvised tools until he couldn’t reach down and carry any more and returned to the flatlands outside the forest.

  Both Wen and Willam were there, and Theo sighed a breath of relief. He had survived! He had conquered his fears of forest nibblers and stood resolute against all their kind. No, he had not just stood strong, he had gone on with his own business like a champion. No more would he be scared of those pesky little-

  “You look awful!” Wen commented, seeing his pale, ragged face full of nervous sweat.

  Having gotten out of the woods, Theo could finally breathe again. He had only taken a few intermittent breaths to keep himself and his body alive in that green hellhole.

  “It’s nothing,” he lied as nonchalantly as he could and sauntered playfully over to them to compensate.

  Next the three hiked over to the future farming plots, laying their wooden goods down. Theo and Wen watched Willam get to work, expertly measuring the plots with nothing but his eyes and hands. Theo sometimes helped stab a branch or two into the ground at the designated positions, but that was it. Other than that, he just marvelled at the very straight plots the farmer was making without any tools to assist him. While he continued, Theo took a moment to ask for a clarification from Wen.

  “So, that friend of mine that gave me the sack of coins said that most people have a Level Three skill by the time they grow up, or turn eighteen years old, at least. That doesn’t always seem to be the case, and I would’ve expected more people to have more skills at Level Three than we saw on the list of applicants.”

  Wen leaned back and laughed, her blonde hair nearly touching the ground they were seated on. “At eighteen? That bloke must be a noble or somethin’,” she said when her laughter had died down some. “Those guys have all the time in the world to read, learn and focus on several skills all at once, I bet. They probably even have specific tutors for specific skills! Nah, that’s not how it works for most people. We aren’t afforded all that time spent doin’ a single thing.”

  “But you have a Level Three skill yourself,” Theo argued.

  “Which I got for having spent all my spare time as well as much of my workin’ hours on brewin’, and I was already twenty-two years old!”

  Theo’s mouth turned into a hole as he stared at the woman with a wide-eyed gaze. Wen, in a playful mood, smacked the man below his lowered chin, forcing him to shut his mouth with a hollow flup as his lips touched once more.

  “Really? That wasn’t at all what I expected. Also, how old are you? I thought you might be that age now.”

  “Brave, aren’t you! Lucky for you, I don’t mind. I think women that age gracefully ‘as nothing’ to be ashamed about! I’m twenty-five. I learned my second Level Three skill just before my da died and I went to take over the Barge.”

  “You made it sound like you were nearing 40 or something!” Theo laughed. He was surprised she was that much older. Maybe having more stats when you age lessened the impact of aging? How old could people become in this world? He finally didn’t have to theorise on such things himself.

  “Age? I guess that depends, but at most a few hundred years, I reckon. I suppose the more skills you get and the higher you get them at a younger age, the better off you’ll be. We all know the Vital stat keeps us young, but it’s very hard to keep up with age. ‘Sides, most of us have jobs to do to keep us away from hunting down so many skills. We need a balance, else how could we afford food? Skills don’t take that need away.”

  “I see,” Theo said out loud as he considered her words. Whether Chaste was a nobleman or not, the same would be the case for him; while nobles probably had more time on their hands to learn the more arcane skills they wanted, like magic or theology or something, they more than likely missed out on some very general skills, like brooming and cleaning. Somehow, the world balanced itself out even among the social classes.

  “Never thought I’d need to explain this to an adult,” she smiled. He laughed again, and so did she when he didn’t show signs of being hurt by her words.

  Town Notification System

  2x Farming fields have been created within Town limits.

  Note: There is no Farmhouse connected to the Farming fields. No Town bonus can be applied to the fields without a Farmhouse.

  Note: There is no Town-central building within Town limits. No Town bonus can be applied to the farm without a Town-central building.

  Congratulations! You have earned the Level One skill Town Management.

  Town Management (Level One): Don your crown, strap on your hammer of judgment or bring that big, big belt buckle you like, because you are now a leader! Gotta show it somehow. All stats +5.

  “That was easy,” Theo said.