"Good morning my lord I see you are entering the store in a more conventional way today." Baynard greeted Ben with a humble smile
Baynard who was standing at the door greeting customers as they entered was surprised to see Ben enter through the front door when he would normally just appear in the store.
Ben stopped to see how everything was going with the store before walking toward the hidden basement. A few customers who recognized him waved or introduced themselves to him as he passed through the store.
When he had finally made it downstairs Ben opened his Build Menu and began construction of on a [Silver and Gold Manufacturer].
[Silver and Gold Manufacturer]: Produces products made from silver and gold such as silverware, tableware, cookware, jewelry, jewelry box, lamps, eyewear, wire, along with many others. Custom design menu that allows you to design your own products.
It only took a few minutes for it to be built and he immediately opened the menu and picked out a set of decorative silverware, cups, plates, pitchers, goblets, gravy boats, seasoning shakers, serving trays, and bowls. They were all beautifully decorated pieces which would normally be used for formal occasions held by wealthy households.
The tableware set he chose was shown in the menu to be made from all silver but Ben decided to change them to use gold with inlaid silver patterns. He began production on one hundred and fifty solid gold place settings right away so they would be ready by the party.
He had been producing silver tableware and even sold it at his store but he wanted to make a new set for the party that wasn't so plain looking. This new set was fancy enough to be used at the king's table so his party guests' jaws should drop when they see them.
Most of the nobles in the city couldn't afford to make solid gold noble badges for their household and here was Ben making one hundred and fifty sets of the solid gold place setting for them to simply eat and drink from.
Everything he did for the party was designed to show these local nobles that he was a tier above them in rank, wealth, and household strength. If they were jealous of his sudden rise in ranks and his relationship with the king then Ben would show them why he was where he is now.
The party he had planned was announced as a housewarming dinner and dance but Ben's true plan was to put those jealous nobles in their place with a demonstration of wealth and strength he made by himself. He wanted them to fear even talking in hushed whispers about him in the future.
Ben made extras of any little items, pastries, or decorations he thought might be needed for the party and then went back upstairs. He arranged to pick up his employees from the store the day of the party and told them he would be away from Goldcrest city for the next few days.
While Baynard was beginning to record the sales into his records for the day Ben took the money from the day's sales and left his office to returned to the fortress.
His Zoom spell which used to suck up 500 MP was no longer such a drain on him. Now with a total of 1670 MP and -20 mana use, he could cast it without worry of running out of Mana.
Once he casually swallowed one of his new high-grade Mana recovery pills his Mana would recover back to max capacity in no time.
Back inside his Keep on the third floor, Ben was greeted to what sounded like a symphony from the lower floor. The musicians were performing on the first floor and even his uneducated ears could tell on skillfully they accompanied one another.
When he arrived downstairs he did not interrupt them and went to sneak out the front door only to find a crowd of people gathered around outside all trying to get a glimpse through the open door at the musicians inside.
His followers had never heard music like this and they were fascinated. It was the type of music that could stir the emotions of any man or women regardless of their status in society.
They curiously looked to him wanting to know what was happening but they were afraid to pry. Ben explained these musicians would travel to Goldcrest and he planned to open a place for them to perform before paying live audiences.
His people were a little taken back because they knew they could never attend such an event. Ben saw them try to hide their disappointment and began to laugh.
Ben told them he also planned to open a place in the fortress in the future and they could all freely attend. He wanted a place to host concerts and theatrical performances not only in Goldcrest but inside the fortress as well.
Over at the Wizardry School Ben found his twenty Fairies were working diligently. They had already learned the two spells he had provided for them and they were now casting them to increase the level of the spells in the training room.
Ben was impressed with how quickly they were advancing. In only a couple days they had already learned two spells and were now leveling them.
'Athena, is it normal how fast these Fairy magi are advancing? I hope they are not overworking themselves because I wanted them to learn these spells by the end of the week.'
*Ding!* [These Fairies are the embodiments of the forces of magic. They all have the power of a natural elemental phenomenon, which is normally learned after they are born, but since these Faries are created through the Wizardry School their natural phenomenon is the elements you assigned them. Each of them is a magical being who can use the fire and lightning elements you assigned them as easily as they can breathe.]
'It sounds like they must understand magic principles instinctively.'
Ben opened the Warehouse and took out the new pills he had created and asked the Fairies to take a break. He gave each of them one Magic Magnification pill, one Perspicacity Portal pill, and a large pouch each filled with Mana Infusion recovery pills.
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[Magic Magnification]: This pill can increase the host's intelligence stat. An increase in intelligence will provide more Mana while also increasing magic damage. Loses potency when reused.
[Perspicacity Portal]: This pill increases the host's wisdom stat. An increase in wisdom will provide smoother more natural use of magic. Spell cast times and expended mana will decrease for each spell. Loses potency when reused.
[Mana Infusion]: This is a high-grade mana recovery pill. It can replenish large amounts of mana in a short amount of time.
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He had them swallow the Magic Magnification and Perspicacity Portal pills which were essentially a one time use pill. If they were to eat more the effects would be minimal to nonexistent.
After they used these two pills their magic talents should become supercharged.
Ben then explained if they were to use the Mana Infusion pills while training they would recover their Mana at greater speeds. They were also the perfect weapon for a mage in a battle. They could continue to pump out spell after spell while using these high-grade recovery pills.
Before he left the Wizardry School Ben let the Fairies know they would be leaving the fortress with him possibly tomorrow night. They still had a few days to arrive before the party but Ben wanted to set out early in case they ran into problems on the journey there.
'I'm a little leary leaving the fortress with every one of the military units. If worse comes to worst I can always cast Zoom back here and purchase new recruits to man the walls until the trained soldiers return.'
Ben went to the Armorsmith while he was thinking of ways to deal with any sudden attacks while he and his troops were in Goldcrest.
He dismissed his worries and opened the Armorsmith custom menu and began to design armor for the Fairy magi. This was a real world and wasn't limited by a video game's rules which forced a mage to wear robes and prevented them from using armor and weapons.
Ben now had an excess of the Magnesium Mythril Alloy which was used to create the full body armor and parts for the carriages so he decided to use it to make his magi armor.
Athena transferred the measurements of the twenty Fairies to the Armorsmith to be used to make their custom fit armor.
He at first thought about how sexy it would be to make them the all skimpy fantasy armor that showed off a lot of skin but quickly shot down the idea. Yes, they would look incredible walking around in it, but they would be wide open to attacks if they had to wear it in battle. Ben wanted these gorgeous Fairies to make the nobles of Goldcrest green with envy and this was why he wanted to showcase their assets at first.
With the help of the Armorsmith custom menu, Ben made a lightweight Magnesium Mythril Alloy chainmail along with a short breastplate that would cover the shoulders and upper torso. The breastplate was designed to look like tradition armor and not the 'boob' armor which was often used by Hollywood and video games.
The inside of the mage's breastplate was lined with a half inch of rubber protection which was covered in layers of silk and cloth. Any blows to the armor would be minimalized by the rubber lining.
For the magi lower body he designed black leather armor pants with thin strips of flat Mythril sewn between the layers and a pair of black knee-high leather armor boots.
'This should be good enough for now. I can see how they perform in this design and if it doesn't slow them down I can always redesign their armor to have more protection.'
Over on the training grounds General Justinus had the mounted knights finally mounted. They were practicing riding in formations after having reviewed the riding in formation lessons.
General Victor was currently at the target range and the Elven archers were shooting at distant targets in synchronization. Each of the generals was informed they and their troops would more than likely be traveling to Goldcrest tomorrow night. Ben made sure to have everyone pack all of their gear because they would be staying outdoors for the next few days.
Ben left the two generals to continue drilling the troops and walked over to the closest tower. He had taken care of everything needed for the party and decided to practice his spells up on the fortress walls again.
Whenever someone looked toward the south throughout the night they could see flashes of lightning and fire on top of the southern wall. There was a faint outline of a man illuminated by the continuous casting of spells.
Ben remained on the wall for the rest of the day and even though the night casting spells. As the sun was rising he opened his notifications to review is gains.
[Notice] [Spell: Firebolt has increased! Adept Level: 7!]
[Notice] [Spell: Lightning Bolt has increased! Adept Level: 1!]
[Notice] [Spell: Enhance Form has increased! Adept Level: 3!]
[Notice] [Spell: Ensnare has increased! Apprentice Level: 6!]
'I'm beginning to improve my spells but there is still a long way to go. There are still a few Apprentice Level: 1 spells that I need to be leveled up. At least, for now, my Firebolt and lightning bolt spells will do some damage.'
Ben left the wall and walked down the street toward the Barracks. He went upstairs and began handing out the armor he had designed for the Fairies yesterday. He also gave then the black military duffle bags for them to carry their armor and clothes.
He had them all put on the red chainmail tunic, black breastplate, black armored leather pants, and black leather boots. Ben had them walk around and jump up and down to test the weight of the armor. From what he could tell from their movements the armor was more bulky than heavy.
This armor had been made of all lightweight metals. The breastplate and chain-mail only weighed just over two pounds combined. The average winter jacket would weigh about the same as the armor they were wearing so even if they had to run around it wouldn't put any extra strain on them.
'All of my troops have custom made armor now. When the Goldcrest nobles see over three hundred troops in black and red metal armor and twenty black and red armored magi they will learn it isn't wise to make moves against me.'
Ben had a wicked smile as he thought about how the nobles would be dumbfounded by his performance.