Chapter 15: 15 The Third Day's Reward

Chapter 15. Reward of the Third Day

Ronin didn't expect that after being busy all day, he would return to sleep in the bedroom from last night.

As midnight passed twelve o'clock, familiar text appeared in his vision.

【Sign-in successful, attribute point +1】

Combined with the 【King of Slaughter】 achievement he completed during the day, Ronin now had 11 attribute points. Without exception, he allocated them all to his knight rank.

His knight rank progress was now 33/100. Compared to last night, his physical ability had significantly improved.

"The third day's login reward can be claimed."

Ronin looked at the seven-day login interface:

【Day 3: Reward: a space ring with 10 cubic meters of storage space】

This time it wasn't a character card, nor attribute points or energy spirits, but an item.

As the reward was claimed, a flash of light appeared before Ronin's eyes, followed by a ring floating in the air, woven with green and blue hues.

"Very exquisite!"

Ronin took the ring in his hand to examine it.

It was made of an unknown material, lightweight yet extremely cool, like holding an ice cube in summer.

How to use it?

Ronin examined it repeatedly but couldn't find a way. He recalled common plots from novels: "Could it be that I need to bind it with blood?"

However, as he stared, a line of text appeared beside the ring:

【Inject battle aura or mental energy to bind】

"So it's not blood-binding..."

Ronin put down the sword in his hand.

He was still only a primary knight; his battle aura hadn't broken through the aura seed yet, so he couldn't release battle aura.

Therefore, to bind the space ring, he could only do it by injecting mental energy.

But there was no mage nearby, and he hadn't encountered any knowledge related to magic. How to use magic, how to use mental energy—he had no idea.

"Treating a dead horse as a live one—let's try myself."

Ronin put the ring on the ring finger of his right hand, then closed his eyes, focusing intently on the ring.

At first, no strange phenomenon appeared, but gradually he felt as if a tentacle extended from his mind, passing through his body to reach his finger.

"Is this mental energy?"

This sensation was quite marvelous. Ronin entered an introspective state, able to see clearly inside his body, much clearer than when sensing the battle aura seed.

"Found it, the ring!"

Ronin's perception included the ring's form. With a thought, his mental energy seemed to find a gap and directly entered the ring on his finger.

Instantly, a black, mysterious magic circle appeared on the ring, emitting light that connected Ronin to the ring.

"Swoosh~"

Like the sound of an aircraft swiftly passing through the air, the space Ronin perceived suddenly opened up.

"This must be the world inside the ring, a ten cubic meter storage space."

The gray space was fairly spacious, currently empty without anything.

Ronin opened his eyes and found that the exquisite, small ring on his finger had disappeared. Only when he used mental energy to observe, he discovered the ring had fused with his finger, hidden between the skin and the finger bone—quite magical.

Next, he began trying to store items into the space ring.

He quickly mastered the method: simply touch an external item to the position of the ring, then let mental energy emanate through the ring to touch the item, and it could be stored inside the space ring.

Repeatedly storing and retrieving items consumed some mental energy, especially for larger objects, which consumed more.

"Though it consumes some energy, having this thing makes things much more convenient."

Ronin didn't know the value of a space ring, but if he really tried to sell it, it would definitely be priceless—no market price.

If he wanted to become rich overnight, selling the ring would suffice.

But who would think of selling such a thing? Moreover, selling it would bring trouble.

After playing with it for a while, Ronin glanced again at the seven-day login interface, eagerly anticipating the next four items.

He closed the interface, excitedly pillow his head with his hand and lay on the bed.

"This return trip has been hugely profitable!"

He was very glad he chose to return to Ushan City instead of going to Horseherd City to buy slaves.

"30 guards, 100 gold coins, plus so many supplies..."

Ronin's current assets were quite substantial.

If he didn’t invest in other areas, these supplies and money would be enough for him to live carefree for several years.

The only regret was that Forest Hill Town had too few people. According to Rulans, it was less than a thousand.

This made Ronin feel he wasn't like a town lord, but more like a mountain king.

"To grow bigger and stronger, it seems like for a long time in the future, I'll have to consider population matters."

It was already the third day since crossing into this world. While getting familiar with this world, Ronin also gradually gained a clearer understanding of his future.

Originally, he wanted to rely on his cheat system to develop quietly in a remote mountain area. But after learning that Forest Hill Town wasn't a peaceful place, he knew that hiding all the time wouldn't work.

As a baron, a noble class, some things he wanted to avoid, but enemies' spears were already pointed at him. This was similar to the principle that higher positions entail greater responsibilities.

So he needed to enhance his own strength while forming his own team.

The cheat system gave him shortcuts and direction.

"Make money, develop, expand population..."

Ronin's mind flashed with information about Forest Hill Town: in the northern forest area of the town, there lived a tribe of savages.

"Rulans said Forest Hill Town has less than a thousand people. Such a small population could resist the savage tribe, so it means the savage tribe isn't terrifying. Perhaps I can consider absorbing the savage tribe first."

Buying slaves costs money, recruiting workers costs money too. But conquering the savage tribe, he could gain some population without spending money.

The only thing to consider was the losses from conquest. Minimizing his own losses would yield greater benefits.

"Improving the guards' combat ability is key."

Ronin thought of Knight Garman Stote, whom he briefly communicated with in the afternoon. If he had such a knight squad, conquering the savage tribe would be surefire?

"When can I form such a knight squad~"

A standard knight squad requires Ronin to have at least 12 primary knights, 36 squire knights, 10 archers, 60 infantry—118 people total, plus at least 48 horses.

He was quite far from this goal.

"Being a lord is much more complicated than being a student."

Ronin yawned. After running around and acting, busy all day, he felt somewhat tired and fell deeply asleep.

The next day, the manservant Zhahar once again waited early outside the door. After a simple breakfast, Ronin brought Maken and Zhahar to the gates of Ushan Castle.

At that moment, the thirty selected guards were already standing outside Ushan Castle, awaiting Ronin's arrival.

In the distance, many civilians could be seen watching—likely their families—but castle guards prevented them from approaching.

Aside from the personnel, eleven wagons and two fine horses were lined up in a row, displaying impressive grandeur.

Ronin looked at the guards ready to depart and scanned the supplies on the wagons, revealing a pleased smile.

Compared to yesterday, his assets had nearly doubled.

"Zhahar, arrange for a few men to redistribute the supplies on the wagons, ensuring each carries roughly the same weight."

"Yes, master."

Ronin approached the second warhorse newly gifted to him, patted its head, and the black horse blinked cooperatively without any resistance.

"We wish Baron a safe arrival at Forest Hill Town!" The farewell was still offered by the two stewards, both old and new.

"Thank you for your blessings."

Ronin laughed heartily, glanced at the fully prepared team, and with spirited vigor shouted, "Depart!"

At the outskirts of Ushan Fortress, taking advantage of the elevated terrain, the idle Count Wiggin gazed upon Ronin's procession and spat disdainfully.

"That fellow is finally gone; hopefully, he never returns!"

Thanks to Master "Heaven is Dead" for the votes~

(End of Chapter)