Morning arrived with a lot of cries from cockerels and the scents of food cooking. It was probably very early, but I couldn't wait to get started. Rolling out of bed, I dressed myself in a long, loose tunic and a very fine cloak, it was a real struggle, though, sitting on the edge of the bed, to bring my foot up to a position where I could get a sandal on it. Should I wear my crown? For now, I just carried it in my hand.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcC0F0zKxAg
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKlrP4GAEsn
On leaving my room, a guard outside looked at me in astonishment before composing his face into a neutral expression.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmtPHFqd1bD
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZFGuJAtXzc
It suddenly occurred to me that I had no idea of my way around this castle, yet it would be very strange if I were to ask the guard. So I just followed my nose and again, was met with looks of disbelief and alarm by servants and soldiers until I found my way down and around some wide stairs to a hall big enough for a feast, though all the tables were bare.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWtshRDuKXo
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwjkEbCiczv
'Ah, sire, we weren't expecting you for many an hour yet. I'll hurry the cooks.' A female servant came over as I sat myself at the top table in what was obviously the king's large, padded chair.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡchHFyb24Uk
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkJWZOmVNIc
'Just two poached eggs please and an apple and an orange.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfOHAnxuTn9
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZP5A9tMo2
'We have apples, sire. Not the other.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoNPq3pYkmB
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoyEH6rCmHD
'Ahh right. Two apples then. And if you can press a few more to get juice out of them, I'll drink that.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvjZj0uv67O
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfvjaVIbuAP
'Yes sire.' The servant, a middle-aged woman, had worry lines across her forehead. 'So no roast pork?' She gestured towards a door that I presumed led to the kitchen, judging by the concentration of cooking scents from that direction.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiVQZCYfmNX
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6OrA37k41J
'No.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFo4A8B1sJX
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAuMJn8cDAN
'Er… forgive me, but just to avoid error, sire, no beef slices in horseradish sauce?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUe7TWCehYp
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWrwDyDs4Ik
'No.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwhyAphtLq
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJuDfvylguD
'Nor the chicken breast in garlic? The bread-and-butter pudding? The…'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmbtHAgjSXV
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE36U0oh4me
I caught the servant's eye and with a gulp she stopped speaking.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡilb9qbWlkc
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf36Q6PzG7B
'Nothing,' I said firmly, 'other than the eggs, apples and the juice.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡflJO8jwMPb
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0FZDxMs623
'Certainly sire,' the woman backed away with an anxious bow.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfz2bMVcQPC
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbLdglJTZ1
It would have been interesting to chat with someone and learn something about the world, but none of the guards and servants would dare look at me. The large dining hall was silent as though empty, even though I could count six guards and four servants.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRE9aOVyUuc
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZnBmngKUVb
Oh well. I raised my right arm and cascaded some menus. Good, steel pickaxes had been researched, my town now had the knowledge of how to produce them. So I opened up the smithy and planned for a build of 84 new pickaxes, one for every miner. That left my research queue empty and I crunched on one of the hastily delivered apples as I eyed my options, there were hundreds of possibilities, grouped into three core categories: economic, cultural and military. Currently, the food crisis was my biggest concern and my plan to solve it was via exporting ores. Assuming all my neighbours were hostile (and even if they weren't, I wouldn't want any of them to have extra iron supplies), I needed to get my ores further afield. And that meant… Navigation. A six-day research project.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ630XZbPq4I
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ96njJFpvDi
After breakfast, with the help of a servant, I changed into tunic and trousers and good boots, then sent for my trainer.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ75Iq2uTeR5
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Q0kLUkjSp
Carradock Goblinbane was missing an arm at the elbow. I didn't ask; maybe the king knew his story already. On the short walk from the castle to the barracks training ground, I briefed him. I needed strength training as rapidly as possible. I didn't voice it aloud, but I knew that I just could not risk progressing my character until I understood the issue of stats better and, in particular, whether I could push them up through training.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQdoFx5devM
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTdcPpgxW1C
'Strength it is, sire, and all-round fitness.' He looked at me longer than most people did. In fact, most people here didn't look me in the eyes at all. 'It will take a while. We must not rush. You're too big and too – excuse me – soft. You'll hurt yourself. For the first day, I just want to you walk around this ground fifty times.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9xEa87AYB4
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAX7aFFxiGh
'Fifty?' How hard could it be to walk fifty laps of a square whose sides were only about a hundred metres?439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrKNIFJCawT
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbYtL4MWv39
It was very hard. After one lap I was sweating. After the second my thighs began to ache and I found myself slowing down from my fast initial pace. After the third, I was panting and my huge body was complaining pretty much everywhere. On ten, Carradock handed me a tankard with cool water in it and I gulped it down. Then he offered me a sword hilt. It was a practice weapon, a rod of iron with no sharp edges. I reached out for it.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUJdKk8iHJz
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUK0wnaa4QK
'Are you sure?' Carradock looked sceptical.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZJuAwtDkNu
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7W4V4jJCgf
'Of course. I can do this.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHg6QbN3PnL
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBnyn4Ozckb
'No, I mean, your left hand.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuRbS29fGdY
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡes0PxBhO1u
I had grasped the sword and raised it in my left hand. I tried it then with my right, shook my head, and shifted it back. 'This is better.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyPG3XIJpOg
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5czYlAcp3
Back on Earth, I was left-handed. Had the king been right-handed? Was this a sign to everyone I wasn't their old ruler?439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1w366ZoCwt
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxJr6MjY0Bg
'Carry it as often as you can. It will make your sword arm stronger.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz0idRYhnju
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2xCAGwIKuv
'Now?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrkzOY9dF1m
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVyVFztW3oy
Carradock nodded, perhaps with a hint of a smile on his narrow, fox-like face.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsLu1KA1u1v
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAKHN2HWJ0X
Then off I went again, with a new source of pain slowly moving up from my left wrist, my arm and along my left shoulder. At twenty I took another breather. One side of the barracks square was a two-story, grey stone building. The other three were enclosed by a low, wooden fence. And at the fence were gathered a dozen people, looking in at me. On their faces were expressions of dislike but also astonishment.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiCdGWM9lTD
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgI3nSHZjkn
All this walking had been good for my thinking. 'You,' I pointed to a woman with dressed in a tunic whose design matched that of the other castle servants. 'Get me the ambassador, Figus.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡptDs1B8UPH
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlW1xjR7Edt
'Yes, sire.' She curtsied, but I could tell from her body language she didn't like the duty.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbymVCn6saR
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqdLoC256Pi
'And the rest of you, get along with your business.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNmPBzmkJBK
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr23I3tAIAn
No one spoke, but they all immediately hurried away.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7rRoqu8DNS
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUb3pzn1vk2
It was another two laps before my ambassador came to the square around which I was walking. No doubt I was red-faced and quite a sight, but that didn't excuse the smirk on his face. Figus was quite the rock star. Unlike everyone else here, his hair was not a natural colour, rather it was bleached somehow and stood up in clusters of spikes. With a grace in his walk and a cynical smile in his bright blue eyes, I could see his Charisma of 15 was definitely in play. What was mine again, 3? I suddenly felt very conscious of my frown lines and a posture that was sagging at every point, including my face.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWhI1bIxHwd
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMBPh0wHb4
The ambassador drew up close, took in a breath and then bowed. 'Sire?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqnvEx8S8Yw
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUODzsZhTbr
This was a welcome excuse for a break, though I was aware that Carradok was watching and probably disapproved.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHGDvrTlZ8s
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ibwlPyBEX
'We need to trade ore for food, what's the best way to go about it?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlP6RsTwjlf
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeSp4LV4HLV
Figus looked up with some surprise on his face. 'You are seeking my advice?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM6jUWdB3s6
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1wf88GS1ST
'Uh huh,' I was still catching my breath or I'd have pointed out that he was our ambassador after all.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx3hTnVd3iL
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiyRmN8p4uK
'Well, as you know, we are at war with Southway and Trolland, our nearest neighbours. So they are out. That also blocks the inland routes. By sea, we could trade with Cantreth, the Kingdom of Lost Souls and Rockguard…' he paused in thought. I paused in tiredness.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSG44bEdbfM
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡForLdIqckY
'Your majesty has no scruples dealing with a Necromancer?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1mw9vmcySV
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXdJJsiyLWT
'Not at all, some of my best friends are Necromancers.' I was thinking of Storm Wars of course, but the look of consternation on the face of Figus made me feel like laughing.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnBXN3yqgVD
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj9rGygM9Dj
To be fair to him, the ambassador recovered his poise quickly, 'in that case, I think the best deal we could make would be with the Kingdom of Lost Souls.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5DiHI03ZYN
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWMRGhMxeTw
'Right so, off you go and make that arrangement.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡESroCrHGIr
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxp1jBQd88E
'Now sire?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3e4nyrMFWG
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWfqOfwX7FD
I nodded.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1OABSRqbjH
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBXueMek2EA
He hesitated. 'How much ore and of what kind and quality will we be offering?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡULj52qI5lk
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdGJrsgLknH
I didn't have to call down the menu for the mines, we were currently producing 2 ingots of standard iron ore per day. Assuming that would rise with the new pickaxes… 'Fifteen standard iron ingots a week.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2cGQvIemVX
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡquduPlgsPV
Figus nodded and then with a temerity that was unusual in the people around me caught my eye. 'One more question, sire, if I may?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi6rc0qk59n
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIDtnEqnwb2
'Yes?'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtI7cp1Y3hG
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4zf86pH5xt
'We don't have a trading vessel, but we would get much better terms if this exchange happened in our ship.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe0oZBFEHOI
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡduOY7aUbn6
'I'll make that a priority.'439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm8pj7badFL
439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDoHvSt0pjN
'Right so, I'll be off then.' There was a jauntiness to the man's step as he left me to my circuits. Had he deliberately just parrodied my turn of phrase? If so, I rather admired him for it.439Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOhVkrdfUFB
然後按「加至主畫面」