The Innkeeper

Once he finished up with Master Haraash, Lex walked out to find Vera waiting for him. Originally, he was planning on giving her a drop of Mountain Milk as her payment, but it was only now that he had received the information did he realize that it was nowhere near enough. This put him in a bit of a pickle.

Vera grinned as she saw Lex struggling to decide what to pay her with. This was something she had already foreseen, and was looking forward to enjoying.

"Before I pay you, is there anything specific you need? It might be better to help you out rather than give you random rewards."

"Nope, I'm good," she said, and then flashed a bright smile.

Lex groaned, then gave her the drop of Mountain Milk.

"This is your advance payment. Give me some time, I'll need to figure out what else I can use to pay you."

Vera happily grabbed the vial that contained the drop and said, "No worries. It'll take me a few days to absorb this anyway."

That reminded Lex that even he had not gotten around to absorbing a drop of this yet. Now might be a nice time. But he had a few things he wanted to think about first.

He used an illusion to change his appearance and teleported over to the make-shift restaurant being run by Kenta. He wanted to see how good the food was while he considered some things, so he ordered some food and grabbed a table.

He read his latest notifications once more. The resin could still be used, but it would not provide nearly as much of a boost as the first time. The fact that it would give diminishing returns was also somewhat of a concern.

That meant that he had to possibly look for other items that the system might be able to absorb. It was not so easy to come up with those since the resin itself turned out to be a Dao level ingredient. How many of those could there be in a new realm?

He had no idea. But while he thought of alternatives, he needed to find the next piece of resin anyway. The reduced effectiveness might still be worth it.

He then thought about setting up the Midnight Castle. The problem with that was that even its simplest and cheapest item used in its blueprint was extremely rare and precious, so much so that the Infinity Emporium did not even have them, and only put him on a contact list, meaning they would notify him if they got their hands on what he needed.

Many such ingredients might be available in the Midnight realm, so it might not be a bad idea for his fairy clone to set out on an adventure looking for such treasures. Whenever, eventually, it would be time for him to open the realm back up, it could leave and continue the hunt for treasures, as well as a hidden place where he could build the Midnight Castle.

It would preferably in a place, or even a realm where he had never been at all!

As much as he enjoyed just going on a random adventure, adventuring with a direction sounded much better. Moreover, if he managed to improve his relations with the Shadow Talons, who was to say that he couldn't use their help to find his treasures. Though he wondered who it was that they were fighting with. The mass information dump he got on the realm didn't mention them. But then again, it spent more time describing the area rather than the creatures, so it wasn't a complete surprise.

"Oh lawd, you're about to enjoy yourself so much!" a drama-cat suddenly said, as it put down a couple of plates in front of him. "Heaven must have broken off pieces of itself and sent it down to the land, or else there could never be such heavenly food! Behold, this sustenance is beyond compare! Prepare thy senses for a symphony of flavors that shall enrapture thy very soul!"

With a gravely reluctant expression, the drama-cat walked away from Lex, its eyes focused only on his food. It turned away with great difficulty, and after a few more steps, turned to look back, as if giving one last look to a lover, lost to the cruel machinations of fate.

Then, unable to hold back its tears, the cat quickly scurried away, lest he be seen.

Lex, of course, already knew that Kenta had hired the cats in his restaurant, and they were a hit. He paid them in food, so in a way he got himself a group he could consistently test his flavors with. They also attracted customers, and that was a very important plus point, since sometimes his food… was not the best, if put mildly.

Lex looked at his food, and saw what could only be a fantasy version of spaghetti and meatballs. It smelled great, though it could not elicit the same anticipation as the Krab meat patty. To this day, Lex felt conflicted about his decision to let him be instead of recruiting him. Best not to think about it. He seemed content with his life.

Lex took a bite, and though he did not get the explosion of flavors the burger delivered, he was surprised to see that it was actually good. The noodles were extremely fresh, and soaked in flavor, not to mention the smooth, slippery texture they had was very satisfying. The sauce and the meatballs only served to enhance that, complimenting it while still having a strong, independent presence on the plate.

It seemed like the lad had learned. He was not heir to a massive organization without reason. Still, good food was not the level Lex had hoped Kenta reached. He needed to ascend to a higher realm, so that the food could absolutely knock the sock off his customers. Based on the valuable ingredients he was using, such a thing was the only acceptable level.

Lex removed his disguise and waved a hand, surprising Kenta. But he did not come over, nor had Lex called him. Right now, he had customers to see.

Feeling somewhat good about things, Lex left after the meal. He retreated to his cultivation room to spend some time cultivating. Domination was too useful for him to ignore, so he planned on continuing to strengthen it.

Once he was done, he took a few drops of blood and set it aside. He would give those to Vera, not that they would be enough. The problem with deciding on his own how valuable her help was, he didn't know if he had paid enough or not. It created a loop of doubt where he might just keep paying her.

He also took some time to meet all the other workers, from Velma, to Luthor and Gerard. Running the Inn now that the Innkeeper was not going to be around was a massive responsibility, and so he wanted to make sure there were no issues.

"There is a group gathering outside the boundary wall towards the south," Gerard told Lex. It's not a matter for concern, they haven't done anything to show that they might be hostile, but the group is growing. In fact, signs seem to indicate that they're setting up to create a small town right outside the Inn. I don't know what their intentions are, but I brought it up to Luthor. He is worried they might be targeting any future guests coming from that direction. We'll need to keep an eye on them."

"Do you want me to go check it out?" Lex asked.

"No, not yet. Unless they do something that provokes the Inn, we've decided to just let them be. After all, they're not on Inn territory. They're free to do as they please. If they make contact, we'll be sure to cater to their needs."

"Seems like you have things handled," Lex said, and was about to head out when he noticed a look of hesitation on Gerards face.

"Is there something else you need help with?" he asked, concerned. Gerard was one of his most reliable workers. Anything that gave him pause was not something he could overlook!

"It's… there's a small matter, but it's not related to the Inn. It's a private matter. I don't know if I should waste your…"

"Nonsense!" Lex said, and suddenly summoned a couple of drinks, passing one to Gerard. "I know we don't spend much time with each other besides work, but we're basically family at this point. Go ahead, tell me what's bothering you."

"Well, you probably know, back in my early days, I was a chauffeur for the golf carts. Although I don't do that anymore, on my off days, I like to take the old wheels for a spin."

"Naturally. It's a nice hobby."

"Well, yesterday, I met someone on the racetrack near the village who was quite the driver. It was a close call, I barely beat her. But afterwards, she invited me out on a date. Usually, I politely reject such offers. But I don't know why, yesterday I just felt a strange feeling in my chest. I didn't want to reject her."

As if summoned by some holy magic, Velma suddenly appeared besides them.

"Tell me more."