Chapter 31: A feast

Gopuran skewered the thick cuts of steak onto sharpened sticks and settled cross-legged beside the firepit. She slowly turned the meat over the flames, making sure each side was exposed to the heat.

Meanwhile, Gopuro’s gaze remained glued to the sizzling steak. His eyes were wide, his mouth slightly open, and a thin trail of drool had already begun slipping from the corner of his lips.

Even Gopuran, disciplined as she tried to be, couldn’t fully resist the temptation. Her stomach growled audibly, loud enough to make her ears twitch, and she had to swallow hard to keep herself from snatching a bite while it was still half raw.

Still, she held firm.

She was determined to do this properly.

As the steak cooked, a mouthwatering aroma gradually filled the chamber, rich and savory, with the scent of seared meat and charred fat mingling in the warm air. The fire crackled merrily, and every few seconds, a drop of melting fat dripped into the flames with a sharp hiss, sending tiny bursts of fragrant smoke curling upward.

But after barely two minutes, all restraint crumbled.

The two goblins could wait no longer.

Gopuro moved first, and Gopuran followed right after. Each grabbed a stick and lifted the steak toward their mouths.

Their cheeks puffed out like squirrels as they blew repeatedly on the steaming meat, desperately trying to cool it down as quickly as possible.

The moment the steak was just cool enough to bite, they dug in with completely unrestrained enthusiasm.

Their teeth sank deep into the tender meat, tearing away generous chunks as they chewed.

Instantly, their faces transformed into expressions of pure bliss.

Even as the heat made them wince and blow rapidly between bites, neither of them was willing to stop.

Their eyes squeezed shut as they savored every bite. Both goblins even clutched their cheeks, muffled sounds of delight escaping their throats as their entire bodies practically vibrated with happiness.

Damn, is it really that good?

I watched them, half amused and half incredulous.

It’s probably still rare in the middle. I can still see the red.

And there’s no seasoning at all.

A proper steak needs salt, pepper, maybe a little herb rub, no?

Yet seeing their sheer joy somehow made my nonexistent mouth water.

Because as a castle, I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t even taste anything.

Huhu... The unfairness of it all...

Feeling generous, and perhaps a little jealous, I decided to reward their hard work even further.

I materialized several pieces of raw chicken, a generous pile of fresh, crusty bread, and a bucket of cool milk.

The System wouldn’t let me purchase milk without something to contain it, so I had ended up buying a wooden bucket from the Furniture Shop first.

The moment they saw the extra food, the goblins’ eyes lit up like lanterns.

They barely grilled the chicken before tearing into it, toasted the bread over the fire, and gulped down the milk until their bellies were pleasantly full.

Soon, contented sighs escaped both of them as they leaned back around the fire, thoroughly satisfied.

It was, without exaggeration, an amazing feast.

*****

Moments later...

With the goblins finally resting, sprawled contentedly near the dying fire, I turned my attention to some rough calculations about the day’s productivity.

I had spent 40 Points purchasing Powerstones as quest rewards for the pair, plus another 15 Points on food and water throughout the day.

They were only about the size of large humans, yet somehow, they ate like starving horses.

That brought my total expenditure to a whopping 55 Points.

Ouch.

But on the income side, things looked very positive.

My passive [Generator] skill had granted me another 10 Points automatically. Better yet, the two goblins had brought in a staggering 826 Units of Wood.

If I sold all of it, that would translate into 247.8 Points.

Combined with the Generator income, my total revenue for the day came to 257.8 Points.

After subtracting the 55 Points I had spent on wages and provisions, my net profit came to a tidy 202.8 Points.

Not bad.

I ended up selling 200 Units of Wood for 60 Points, giving me enough spending money to pay and feed my citizens the next day.

The rest, I decided to keep stored in my Inventory as Wood.

There was no reason to convert everything into Points just yet. I might need the material for construction later.

[Points Remaining: 455.8]

[Wood Remaining: 626]

"Not bad at all. Not bad!"

I couldn’t help feeling pleased with myself.

"And what if I have more citizens?"

My imagination immediately started running wild.

I had already begun dreaming.

A hundred... no, a thousand goblins?

I’d be swimming in Points!

I’d be filthy rich!

Therefore, the logical next step was obvious.

I needed to send Gopuro and Gopuran back to their tribe!

They could spread the word about the generous castle lord who offered endless quests, Powerstones, and delicious feasts.

More citizens meant more workers, which meant more resources and more Points. It was practically a self-sustaining cycle.

More importantly, it could help repair my reputation among the wild goblins who still viewed me with suspicion and fear after I had slain so many of their kin.

But before sending them anywhere, I wanted to run a few more experiments with my [Quest Creation] skill.

Specifically, I wanted to test its limits.

What kinds of tasks could I assign? What restrictions were there? How flexible were the rewards? Could I create quests for things other than gathering resources?

There was still a lot I didn’t understand.

This will probably take half a day.

At the same time, I needed to prepare for the arrival of more goblins.

My current accommodations were embarrassingly bare. If I wanted to attract more citizens, I needed to make this place a little more appealing. At the very least, I should provide some basic furniture.

Perhaps with these guys’ help, I could also figure out what kind of statue would impress the newcomers?

It could make the castle look far more imposing and help establish an aura of authority.

I also needed to figure out how to keep the birds on my roofs and raccoons living in my basement safe. Perhaps I could create a separate entrance for them so they wouldn’t have to pass through the main castle.

And, of course, there were the Points.

Granting citizenship cost Castle Points for each goblin, after all.

"Wait... oh, right!"

I suddenly remembered something.

I still had that in my Inventory.

The corpse of the wolf I’d killed!