บท 229: Chapter 229. Flor's and Liu Shu's Discussion on the Current Situation.
Flor was leisurely looking through documents listing the city's economy. Thanks to the housing market being completely under their control and the building costs being negligible, the profits were insane. 'Hm… this is quite crazy. If the expenses and earnings remain as high as they are right now, we might make our first <Syl> in just two or three months.'
Flor stood up and jumped down the tall desk, opening one of the drawers placed at the bottom. "Let's see… Our housing price is at 3500 <Lir> per month. The average room in our inns costs 70 <Lir> daily or 2100 <Lir> monthly. The entrance fee… Here it is, 25 <Lir>, to enter the city. Then, the residency permit is 1200 <Lir> monthly. How are children taxed? Oh, Level 0 children don't have to pay anything. However, the second they turn Level 1, they will need to start paying the permit."
Flor hummed. "This is not bad. We have not changed anything, even when we are at War. How is our spending doing? 258,900 <Lir> daily… Tsk, tsk, that's almost 8 million monthly. Thankfully, the entrance fees alone cover that cost; there are almost 12,000 people entering and leaving the city daily for commerce or other reasons."
Flor jumped on top of the table again and walked toward one of the documents. "These here explain a bit about how we should not have the money sitting around doing nothing, but I am not sure how we can use it, to be honest. Do we buy materials for Liu Shu to transform into equipment?"
Flor scratched her head. There were so many things she needed to take into account even after Liu Shu's existence took care of many of them. The World Tree's complex root system almost entirely took care of infrastructure problems and challenges. All houses had a steady stream of clean water and a perfectly functioning sewer system thanks to the trees, while the ants were perfect for carrying things around inside their domain, needing nothing more than being fed.
Then, the <Lignified Farm> Liu Shu recently created came with five granaries to store their grain and other vegetable farm items. Although the animals inside were still growing, they had around 50 of them: 40 females and 10 males. These farm animals produced enough milk, eggs, and meat to feed 120 people each! That was without taking into account Liu Shu's influence on them.
The cost of keeping them was also relatively cheap, as they fed on the grass growing in the large area reserved for them.
Flor was slightly flustered, not because they lacked things, but because they were growing so fast as a city that she couldn't adapt to the change. During her whole life, the Rose Fairy Queen led between 200 and 300 Rose Fairies who needed not much more than a place to live and food.
Now, there were thousands of people of all types of races with businesses that she understood nothing about. After moving around the table for almost five hours, Flor went to her chair and plopped down, banging her head against the table. "I want to retire."
[Would you like for your title, <Rose Fairy Monarch>, to evolve to <Flower Fairy Monarch>?]
Flor flared up. "URGH! YOU INSENSITIVE SYSTEM, CAN'T YOU SEE THAT I ALREADY HAVE TOO MUCH IN MY HEAD TO PAY ATTENTION TO THIS OTHER THING!?"
"... Sigh." Leaning back, she rubbed her temples and muttered. "Why am I getting angry at the System now?"
Flor looked at the message and sighed. "If I could pass down my Rose Fairy Queen title, I would accept this title in a heartbeat, to be honest. I can already imagine that the benefits will be insane."
As she thought of making a decision, her dear Liu Shu spoke to her. "Flor! Flor! Flor! I found a bunch of suspicious people! What should I do?"
Flor chuckled and asked with a smile. "How are you feeling, Liu Shu? Level 21 already, eh? It feels like yesterday when I found the little sapling in the middle of the forest."
Liu Shu paused and then giggled. "It's great! I feel very strong. Do you want to see my stats?"
Flor shook her head. "Don't, love. Remember this, okay? None of us will ever ask you for your stats. If someone looking like us ever does, then they are not us, or we were confused for a second. With that Jolie woman around, taking these kinds of precautions is essential."
Liu Shu hummed. "Okay~. I'll remember."
Flor nodded and then asked with a smile. "By the way, did you change your way of speaking?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
Hearing the genuine confusion, Flor blinked and laughed. "I guess it's natural, then. You sound very different, love."
Liu Shu was surprised. "I do? How do I sound different?"
Flor hummed and tried to explain. "It feels like your voice is more than one person speaking at the same time. However, instead of messy, there is a harmony in your voice that gives it an extraordinary, gentle, but imposing sound. Like the forest's trees had gained a voice and spoke at once, if I wasn't accustomed to you, just your voice might've been enough to intimidate me."
Liu Shu was confused. "I upgraded <Mind Echo>. Is it perhaps because of that?"
Flor shrugged. "As if I'd know. Don't worry, you sound awesome."
Liu Shu pondered for a second and focused on how she produced her voice for a second. "Aah~, Ah-a-a-a-a aaaaaaaaaaaah."
Flor asked, confused and amused. "What are you doing, Liu Shu?"
Liu Shu looked at Flor and then spoke. "How about now?"
Flor's entire body felt like she was submerged in warmth for a second. The voice that spread in the room was so gentle and mature that it almost felt like a mother's embrace. It was such a primordial feeling, coming from deep within, that it left the Rose Fairy Queen speechless.
Liu Shu didn't receive any answer, so she asked again. "Flor? Are you okay?"
This snapped the Rose Fairy Queen out of her daze. She rushed to answer. "Oh, yeah, yeah. I am here. How did you change your voice?"
Liu Shu asked, curious. "How does it sound now?"
Flor opened and closed her mouth. She blew a raspberry and laughed. "I don't know. Great? If you speak with this voice to Cinderielle or the other two, they might melt on the spot. I recommend not doing it unless you want to tease them, hahaha."
Liu Shu laughed faintly, making Flor feel an actual chill at how good her laugh sounded. "Before, I was speaking with my entire being. So, you were listening to multiple voices because, as you explained, the entire city and all those trees under my influence were adding faint tones to my voice. The one you are hearing now is my pure voice, without any other being added."
"No wonder it sounds so good…" Flor cleared her throat, trying not to fangirl or something over Liu Shu's current voice. She changed the tone, but not before saying. "First, change to that collective voice."
Liu Shu hummed, her tone clearly amused. "Okay, I'll do so… How is it now, better?"
Flor nodded twice. "Much better. This voice is more melodic and profound, and at least I don't have my little heart jumping around. Anyway, Liu Shu, you said that there were suspicious people?"
"Oh, right!" Liu Shu explained. "In one of the new inns in the north of the city, there is a group of five people, all of them are at Level 24. They were speaking about trying to kidnap one of you, and their auras feel… hmmm, not nice!"
Flor smiled faintly. "Okay, we'll look into it. However, dear, spotting these types of people is not new. Although these are a bit too high-leveled, I must admit."
Liu Shu asked. "Really? Why didn't you tell me if you found any of them?"
Flor leaned back on her chair and commented. "Well, my cute little tree was either Leveling Up, building things, creating armors, or doing who knows what else."
Liu Shu laughed mischievously. "Hehehe."
Flor couldn't help but find her cute, even with her current ethereal voice. She added. "By the way, we've discovered what type of creatures are below the <Lir Mine> that you are standing on."
"Hm?" Liu Shu asked. "Do you mean the <Terragore> things?"
"Oh? You knew?"
"I do! Is there a problem with them?"
Flor told her what Wert shared with them.
After hearing what she said, the World Tree added. "Well, it is the truth that they can be very dangerous. However, very rarely do they come out from dark places. Just place a few torches down there, and they are as good as caged in."
Flor hummed. "Say, Liu Shu, Wert plans to turn their threat into a profitable deal. They are not intelligent creatures. On the contrary, they are quite stupid. Knowing that Wert thinks the chance of them gaining intelligence like us and gaining qualifications to become citizens is basically zero. From what I heard, their pelt, bones, claws, and teeth are extremely sharp and valuable to create weapons, clothes, and armor. What do you think about this matter?"
Liu Shu looked at Flor for a few seconds, her gaze full of interest. "What do you think?"
Flor blinked. "Me?" She pondered and said. "Why not? They would be something like a monster farm, right?"
Liu Shu asked, her tone full of interest. "So, as you gain intelligence, do you feel that exploiting creatures with lower intelligence than yours doesn't matter?"
Flor paused, and Liu Shu added. "I mean, I am in favor of the idea. The strong will eat the weak, and intelligence is one of, if not the most predominant characteristic separating us from wild creatures that look similar to us. Like I and the surrounding trees. However, I find it quite interesting that even when you only recently gained intelligence, your behavior doesn't differ much from Humans and other intelligent races."
Flor frowned and tapped the armrest, thinking deeply about her words. She admitted. "You are right. But Liu Shu, I thought like this about the <Thornstrides> even before meeting you. I thought similarly about the <River Beavers> and the <Fire Ants> back then. So, I think that it is not something that comes just from superior intelligence. I feel that it is the nature of the world."
Liu Shu's voice echoed with a smiling tone. "That's right. That's how everything is."
Flor blinked. "Huh?" She raised her eyebrow. "Were you testing something?"
Liu Shu giggled. "I was testing if you were as hypocritical as some humans are. They justify their actions as the right thing to do through complicated self-created moral conduct when, in reality, it is nothing but."
Flor clicked her tongue. "Anyway, keep an eye on that bunch, and if they slip a word about who they work for, tell me, and I'll inform Wert. Oh, and since they think that you are not paying attention, keep a low profile and act as if you have yet to wake up. I don't know who they got the information from, so try to communicate with the least amount of people you can."
"Okay~. By the way, how is the war going?"
Flor pointed at a stack of papers. "Like that. Eila is starting to reinforce the borders, and conflicts are escalating. They are probably testing how far we can go. Our allies are doing just fine. Oh, I almost forgot, news that Lord Stormrider returned to his mansion and started a large-scale attack on nearby powers has spread around."
Liu Shu was baffled. "Huh? Why would he do that?"
Flor shrugged. "It is probably due to you. He went to visit Verena, and after doing so, he started a war. I think he is trying to consolidate his power over the area he is located in before we arrive to have more leverage on us when discussing things…" Flor coughed. "Or, well, Ignatia thinks that way."
Liu Shu chuckled. "Ah, Ignatia said so. I was going to be very impressed that you could think that far ahead!"
Flor clicked her tongue. "I am still learning, okay?"
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