Chapter 39: Landlord and Proxy

Chapter 39: Landlord and Proxy Morning. Xu Tao groaned as he crawled out of bed—no, out of the floor. "Ugh... When was the last time I had a hangover this bad...?" His voice scratched like rusty door hinge. His head pounded like war drums, his body was sore in strange places—his cranium and his cheeks, to be specific. What concerned him most, though, was that he didn’t remember what exactly transpired. "Urrrrgghh..." The groans weren’t just from him. The five disciples were laid out like corpses scattered after a festival gone wrong. Red faces, empty eyes, arms limp. One twitched. Another rolled over and whispered something about "the forbidden cup." Xu Tao sharpened his sense, detecting the other presences around him. In the next house over, Jehanne’s five knights were in equally dire condition, albeit bruised instead of drunk. All of them bore heavy injuries, like they’d been tossed around by a particularly violent windstorm—one shaped like a bunny. Jehanne herself was nowhere to be seen, but her presence could be felt in the second floor. She seemingly locked herself up, reason unknown to Xu Tao. He rubbed the back of his head. There was a dull pain stemming from there. And when he touched it—yep, a definite bump was confirmed. Arthur was also suspiciously still in his room. His room however, bore a different kind of atmosphere than the rest. There were signs of life—well, multiple lives—gathered in that small area. From within came faint giggling... and someone softly moaning something like, "Please, Sir Arthur, again..." Xu Tao quickly looked away. "...We’re all just going to pretend today doesn’t exist," he declared to no one. ???????????? Noon. Everyone finally got out of their Log Houses, tired and battered, and gathered for a meal. But their communal lunch was unusually quiet. The chef, Jehanne, eventually emerged from her self-imposed exile, bringing with her a large pot of her cooking—and an apology. "Really, I’m sorry for last night, Sir Tao!" she bowed deeply, hands pressed together like a penitent nun. "I didn’t expect things to go that way and... I panicked!" "Ahh, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it," Xu Tao waved dismissively. "Rather, I couldn’t even recall what happened after I entered your room... Did something happen for you to apologize?" "Sir Tao..." Half from the alcohol and half from his concussion, Xu Tao’s memories of last night were basically scrambled eggs. He vaguely remembered sitting on a bed... and the next thing he knew, he woke up face-down on the floor inside his designated Log House. ’I feel like I just missed out on a really important memory...’ he lamented internally. "I see... Right, nothing happened." Jehanne wiped the bit of tears forming near the corner of her eyes. She figured that Xu Tao’s words were said in order to let her feel less guilt, a subtle way to tell her to simply forget, and treat it like the tragedy never happened. With this idea in her head, Jehanne’s face brightened a bit. "Still, as an apology, I did my best for today’s lunch! Please, eat as much as you want." Despite the same ingredients—salted meat, root crops, and a suspiciously dry bread—the meal was somehow magical. Jehanne had reworked the dishes into stew, skewers, and even a crunchy potato hash. It was good enough to silence everyone. Even Arthur appeared at some point, hair tousled and Dark Elves clinging to his arms, or hovering around him, like they’re little ducklings that imprinted on him. "..." "..." "..." No one asked questions. But as they ate, Xu Tao frowned. There was a nagging itch in the back of his mind, a vague annoyance poking at his brain like a child tapping on glass. ’I already built the houses for everyone, didn’t I? Then why hasn’t the quest updated?’ The Lost System quest [Help the Wanderers Settle] still hadn’t triggered a completion message. "Shelter, food, and water are all taken care of..." he muttered aloud. "What’s missing?" Then it hit him. "Clothes." Most people were still in either their tattered old gear, what they wore upon arrival. The Dark Elves were still dressed in what could only be described as lingerie for barbarians. Basically just cloths over their privates. "We don’t have proper clothes. That’s probably it." A bit Later, when most of them were done with eating their meals—even Arthur and the Dark Elves who joined late—Xu Tao clapped his hands to gather attention. CLAP! "Alright, everyone, line up!" he announced. "Today’s agenda is a fashion show!" Everyone blinked at him in confusion. But he didn’t even bother explaining. From his Storage Ring, he dumped a mountain of loot: shirts, robes, tunics, pants, cloaks, armor sets, golden underpants, even a ridiculously poofy nobleman’s coat with silken, sparkling frills. "Everyone pick something to wear. One or two outfits each. Let’s upgrade our aesthetic a bit!" The outer disciples instantly flocked to the Azure Dragon Sect-style robes—sleek, elegant, and with a hidden bonus: +10% cultivation speed. Of course, it was pure coincidence that it matched the sect’s color theme of blue, white, and a hint of yellow. Jehanne’s knights picked leather and full plate armor sets. Arthur, unsurprisingly, just grabbed several plain shirts and pants. "With my Excalibur, I don’t need armor. But I’ll take fresh underwear." And to Xu Tao’s surprise, he even took the over-the-top golden underpants! He never thought anybody would bother with such a classless piece! Jehanne hovered by the robes until she spotted a black one with golden trims—subtly matching Xu Tao’s current one. She said nothing, but her smile spoke volumes. The Dark Elves... Well... They all picked shiny, form-fitting black rubber suits. "Of course they did," Xu Tao muttered. The resulting scene was... blinding. Their curves were more defined than they had any right to be, to the point where Jehanne covered her chest with her arms and looked away, looking a little insecure. TING! Right then, a popup suddenly appeared before Xu Tao’s eyes, accompanied by the sweet sound of System triumph. [ Quest Complete: Help the Wanderers Settle! Rewards Gained: Unique Title – Landlord ] [You have claimed this land as your domain. You now have access to the Management Tab. You may assign a Proxy to govern in your absence. Current proxies: 0/1] "Huh... so clothing really was the last piece." The new Management Tab opened, showing menus like Population, Resources, Construction Queue, and Security Rating. But most of all, he eyes the only one proxy slot that was available. Without hesitation, Xu Tao turned toward Jehanne. "Jehanne," he called. "Yes, Sir Tao?" She stepped forward without delay, looking hopeful. "I’m appointing you as my Proxy. From this moment on, you’ll have to handle everything regarding management whenever I’m away or out of reach. I trust you." "...!" Jehanne’s eyes sparkled—excited by having been appointed as a proxy, a vice lord. But soon, her eyes turned a little downward in shock. A transparent blue window appeared before her. She gasped, stepping back slightly. "T-This... What is this?!" "That’s the Lost System," Xu Tao said, casually as could be. "It’s what brought you and Arthur here. And it looks like you’re getting a limited version as advertised." Jehanne turned pale. "Is it dangerous?! Will it explode?!" "No. Probably not. Unless you press the red button. Don’t press the red button." Xu Tao joked lightly. "I-I see..." Of course, there’s no red button anywhere, making Jehanne sigh in relief. Xu Tao leaned over her shoulder to check her screen, just to confirm. She flinched, but let him peek. Sure enough, only two tabs were available: Character and Management. No Gacha or any of the still-untouched functions on the main menu. "Ah... so you can’t pull for banners. That’s a shame," he sighed. "Well, just give it your best within what you can manage." But even so, Jehanne’s hands trembled as she stared at the interface. She then, very quietly, said: "I’ll do my very best... just for you." She then showed the purest, sweetest smile she ever did, charming and making Xu Tao wonder if she’s secretly wearing the Bunny Suit under her black robe. New novel chapters are published on f(r)eewebn(o)vel.com