Chapter 61: The First Quest — Complete!
When Kaiden had used the first Land Improvement Voucher, he hadn't noticed anything special. All he had seen at the time was that the soil simply became better once the improvement process finished.
Now, however…
Perhaps because he had reached his rank threshold and his perception had grown considerably sharper, he was able to notice the changes from the very first moment he activated the new improvement voucher.
The instant it activated, he watched the voucher transform into pure mana unlike anything he had ever witnessed before.
Since acquiring the Mage rank, he had grown accustomed to seeing mana points scattered through the air as small, dispersed particles — but this time was entirely different.
The mana was dense, pure, and astonishingly concentrated — to the point that it looked like a torrential stream surging forcefully toward its target.
That stream surged into the targeted patch of land, then dissolved into the soil.
Without hesitation, Kaiden activated Subterranean Vision and directed it straight at that spot to watch closely what was happening.
What he saw made him hold his breath.
The rich mana flooded his impoverished, barren soil, which in that moment looked like a starving beast that had finally found the feast it had long awaited — the closest description was that it devoured the pure mana ravenously.
And with every portion it absorbed… the soil changed.
Or more precisely — it improved at an astonishing rate.
Thanks to his affinity with the earth element, Kaiden could sense every change occurring within its depths.
The dry, yellow soil, devoid of any signs of life, transformed into red soil pulsing with vitality and energy.
It was like breathing life into a dead body.
He had felt a similar sensation when using the first voucher, but this time the feeling was far clearer and far more intense.
For the first time, he felt that the earth wasn't simply silent matter, but a being capable of responding and reacting when stimulated in the right way.
So he poured his full attention into the scene.
He didn't want to miss even a fraction of a second.
Dozens of thoughts flowed through his mind, one after another — he felt as though he were standing on the threshold of an exceptionally important discovery.
But unfortunately…
The improvement voucher didn't grant him enough time.
The moment the improvement process finished, the remaining pure mana vanished, and the soil returned to its usual stillness — as though nothing had ever happened.
Only then did Kaiden realize he had been holding his breath the entire time.
He released a long exhale, expelling the stale air, then stared at the improved soil with a complicated expression.
He felt as though he had been on the verge of understanding something new — but the time hadn't been enough to catch hold of that fleeting thread.
He closed his eyes and replayed everything he had witnessed, over and over, so as not to forget a single detail.
"I'll try applying the ideas that came to me once I advance my rank."
Having made his decision, he called over two seasoned farmers and handed them the regular fruit tree saplings he had — and assigned five of the new villagers to assist them, increasing the number of farming workers.
Only the Dark Oxide tree sapling remained.
But before planting it, he needed to prepare a suitable location first.
"Hmm… I think this spot will work."
He didn't wander far, choosing a patch of land close to the recently expanded farmland.
He activated Earth Manipulation, carving a sloped hole roughly ten meters deep, then widened the space at the bottom until it resembled a small underground cellar.
He then called one of the seasoned farmers to descend with him. As they made their way down, Kaiden shaped a simple earthen staircase.
When they reached the bottom, he dug a hole at the center roughly one meter deep and about fifty centimeters in diameter.
He took out the dark-looking Oxide tree sapling and handed it to the farmer.
"Bring improved soil from outside and fill the hole with it before planting the sapling."
Then he added in a serious tone:
"And watch over it carefully. If any problem appears during germination, or if you notice anything unusual, report it to me or Casper immediately. This sapling is of the utmost importance to our territory."
The farmer nodded with gravity.
"Understood, my lord!"
Then he carried the sapling with both hands with the utmost gentleness, as though holding a priceless treasure.
Kaiden hummed with satisfaction, then climbed back up to the surface.
He spoke briefly with the farmers, encouraging them to continue their work, before departing with the one remaining villager.
He still held the second natural treasure inside his storage, and after brief consideration, he settled on the location where he would place it.
Along the way, he chatted casually with the villager. Kaiden was not the type to look down on his people because of his elevated position — rather, he had found that conversing with them and natural interaction increased their loyalty points, so he genuinely enjoyed these brief exchanges.
As the saying goes, conversation makes the road shorter.
Before either of them noticed, they had reached their destination.
It was a spot located near the Lord's Hall.
Kaiden had decided to turn this area into a designated zone for natural treasures, beginning with the one he currently possessed.
He activated Earth Manipulation once more, carving a sloped hole similar to the previous one.
But this time, after shaping the staircase and descending into the new cellar, he opened an additional vent in the ceiling to let moonlight reach inside, as the treasure's description had required.
Once finished, he brushed off his hands lightly, then chose to build the Purification Pool.
When the flash faded, a pool appeared at the center of the cellar, its diameter roughly two meters.
He couldn't tell its depth. What filled it wasn't water, but a thick, viscous black liquid, perfectly still, with not the faintest ripple appearing on its surface.
Hmm… it resembles an oil pool to some extent.
Even so, Kaiden felt no fear.
After all, the system's descriptions had never once been wrong since his arrival in this world.
So he didn't regard the black pool with suspicion, but with anticipation and excitement.
Unfortunately, even before building it, he had already decided he wouldn't enter it himself first. He had read the pool's description, and the process most likely involved pain — and he still had his rank advancement process ahead, which also involved pain. So he had no desire to drain himself today.
In any case, the pool was now built, and it recharged itself every three days, so there was no harm — the opportunity would come around again. As for who would enter the Purification Pool first, he had already sent for the person he had chosen. While he was thinking about this, he heard a rough voice from behind him.
"My lord, I've arrived, awaiting your instructions."
Kaiden turned and greeted the massive warrior with a smile.
"Welcome, Josh. Relax — I haven't called you for a mission."
At that moment, commotion approached from above. Casper appeared, with several villagers trailing behind him — two carrying an empty wooden barrel, and behind them four more, each holding two buckets of water. Kaiden heard Casper's steady voice guiding them.
"Go down slowly, and watch your footing so the water doesn't spill."
"Yes, set the barrel here, and now pour the water in."
Once finished, Casper turned to Kaiden and bowed respectfully.
"All the preparations you ordered are ready, my lord."
"Excellent work as always, Casper, well done!"
He praised his steward, who carried out tasks with such precision, and thanked the villagers as well, dismissing them to return to their original duties. He then turned back to Josh, who wore an expression of confusion.
Kaiden smiled and explained:
"Josh, you made significant contributions in yesterday's battle, so I've decided to reward you as your Lord. Do you see the black pool before you? It's a natural treasure that purifies the body and toughens the skin — but you'll need to endure pain during the process."
When Josh heard he was being rewarded, he knelt on one knee immediately.
"I did nothing special, my lord. Thank you for your blessing!"
Kaiden waved his hand.
"Enough of the empty talk now. Take off your clothes and get into the pool."
Josh looked around and found three pairs of eyes watching him closely, feeling intense embarrassment. He stammered, trying to explain in a weak voice.
"Um… my lord… this… umm…"
Kaiden rolled his eyes wryly. He hadn't expected that massive warrior to possess the heart of a shy young girl. They were all men — what was there to be embarrassed about? Even so, he had no intention of embarrassing his soldier further, so he gestured for Casper and the nearby villager to turn around, and turned around himself as well.
"When you're finished and in the pool, let us know."
"Of course, my lord!"
Vitality returned to Josh's voice, clearly relieved now. He stripped off his armor and clothing entirely and dove into the pool without hesitation. The Lord had said it was something good, so it had to be something good.
"Alright, my lord, I'm in the pool."
"So, how do you feel? Any pain or anything?"
Kaiden asked the moment he turned back around and found that only the warrior's head was visible, the rest of his body hidden beneath the dark liquid.
"Um… I don't feel any pain, my lord… but I feel a slight itchiness, like there are worms crawling under my skin… also my Battle Aura is a little unstable. That's all."
Kaiden nodded. In summary, everything seemed fine.
"Alright, when you feel the process is finished, get out. And if the pain becomes unbearable, get out too — that's fine. We'll be waiting for you up top."
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Up above, while they were still waiting for Josh to surface, Kaiden gave his instructions to the villager. His job would be to guard the natural treasure. It was also something of an experiment — Kaiden wanted to see whether the villager would acquire a class related to guarding or something similar.
Their wait didn't last long. In under ten minutes, Josh emerged after putting his clothes and armor back on. He didn't look much different from before — only slightly more radiant.
A wide smile spread across his face, and before Kaiden had a chance to ask, he had already spoken with enthusiasm.
"Thank you, my lord! Just as you said, my skin has already become considerably tougher. Now ordinary weapons would probably do nothing more than scratch it, and I feel comfortable across my entire body. I've become far more flexible than before."
Kaiden nodded, then asked him a few additional questions.
During their conversation, a notification appeared before Kaiden.
[Quest "All Walls Are Paper Before Me!" Completed! Reward dispatched: Catapult Siege Equipment ×2]
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— End of Chapter Sixty-One —
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