Chapter 12 - Love Land.

  alwaysunqualified

  I ended up utilizing the loan feature to assist in developing Love Land, and the minimum amount I was able to secure was...

  [Here is a small loan of 1 million dolrs… I mean points]

  When I saw that I would owe two hundred and fifty thousand points after just one year, I felt like I was staring at my student loans all over again. Especially when a daunting two-hundred-and-fifty-five page document popped up on the screen. This time around, however, I read every single word before signing, even though half of it seemed to consist of sex jokes or rants about findom - something I'm sure was entirely made up.

  My pn was simple: use what I needed and then strategically apply all my love points towards paying down the debt as much as possible right before the end of the year, accepting a 25% hit in the process.

  If I fail to pay at least 10% of my debt each year, it seems a lien could be pced against my system, and if the dey persists, a debt collector will intervene. In hindsight, I should have exercised patience, but my resolve weakened when Sakura began urging Miki to take her out, aiming to catch up with Angelica. With Sakura nearing adulthood, I wanted to minimize unnecessary risks for her.

  I'm currently in Love Land, which is no longer an empty canvas. I've established a training area and a monster ranch, both at level 1. Upgrading each facility costs roughly ten times the previous level's amount, though this expense decreases slightly if I possess more cards meeting the upgrade requirements. I noticed a 2% reduction in the cost for upgrading the training field since my st assessment.

  Having just completed the monster ranch, I decided to test it before determining whether to upgrade it or expand other structures. Upgrading would enable the appearance of higher-tier monsters and introduce a gym for their development.

  I've also explored the training grounds, which at level 1, consisted merely of a yard with a training dummy. Love Land grants the unique feature of unlimited card usage without depleting their avaibility, making the dummy an ideal target for practice. For the time being, I've positioned all constructions adjacent to each other. Upgrading to the second level of the training ground would introduce a golem capable of unching attacks.

  Currently, it's just me, my sisters, and Alice, who is in a food-induced coma—that's everyone who can come here. We have a little over an hour left for the year.

  We're standing beside the ranch, a rge, fenced-off area with lush grass extending as far as the eye can see, adjacent to the training field. The ranch is alive with a few monsters frolicking around; a new one spawns every day until the count reaches 50. Currently, there are only three.

  Should the monsters prove to be sufficiently strong, my next project will be constructing an arena. This facility would enhance experience and skill gains, and I could connect the ranch to it, funneling monsters into matches. This option became avaible after constructing the monster ranch. My discovery that I could link facilities was discovered upon enhancing my Observe stat to level four, which now occasionally provides useful insights. "Well, some of the time," I remark, gncing over at Sakura.

  [Name: Sakura Ekker Level: 27 Affection: 500Has been thinking about how nice it will be once you get Izzy's card, so she has more things to hold over her. ]

  “Wow, look at this pce. There was nothing here st time, now all this.” Sakura gazes intently at the lush, newly-formed grassnds stretching out before her.

  [Name: Angelica Ekker Level: 47 Affection: 500Enjoys sniffing your used pants before washing them. ]

  “The ability of a Goddess chosen is miraculous. Hearing stories and seeing them are two separate things.” Angelica seemed more captivated by the endless expanse of white space. I had only brought them in for a brief moment when their Affection reached 500, as a preliminary test.

  Sakura dashes to the fence and leaps onto it for a better view of the monsters. "Look! There's a giant furry one with a horn, a slimy one, and one that looks like a green human," she excims, her eyes gleaming with fascination as she observes the monsters roaming the grassy field.

  The monsters that appear here are more familiar to me than the random mishmashes that materialize outside.

  "That one looks a lot like a goblin," Sakura comments, pointing it out. In this world, goblins are merely another race, typically residing in small vilges within the nearby forest and even venturing into town for trade.

  Goblins aren't the only race living in the forest; creatures like Harpies, Ogres, Nymphs, and likely many others I haven't yet encountered in the city also dwell there. It seems that maintaining small numbers significantly reduces the likelihood of attracting monster attention.

  “It is from my world, don't worry they don't have a Divine Spark.” I believe; however, I cannot be completely certain.

  In this world, a Divine Spark distinguishes the races. It's akin to a soul, with the notable exception that even trees and rocks might possess one. It's considered immoral to destroy anything endowed with this spark unless in self-defense.

  “Okay first test,” I announce as I initiate a date.

  ‘Start date, use 1 date point.’ This time, no wheel materializes.

  “Date starto!”

  [A date in a nd filled with love.][Target: Angelica and Sakura]

  This time, I only needed one point to get both my sisters. ‘How does this all work? It must have something to do with Affection. But what would have happened if I used more points? Would they have just been wasted? Considering a lot of the unlockable buildings seem like pces to take a date, that should be a purpose of this pce.’ I dismiss the thought, deciding it's a matter for another time, not when I'm on the clock.

  Gncing back, I spot Yuno levitating, her hand firmly covering Sakura's mouth, only to release it as I notice.

  “I was just going to ask him to talk about it with us, Yuno,” Sakura protests, directing her frustration more towards me, aware that Yuno is indifferent.

  “It’s nothing, just need more information to draw any conclusions on how this system works.” I respond, as I chuckle at her irritated expression.

  “Maybe you should go to the temple. Even at tier zero, as chosen, the Goddess of Love should still answer your prayers,” Angelica suggests.

  “I'm not that desperate,” I retort, quickly dismissing the idea.

  “You really seem to dislike her,” she observes, letting out a nervous ugh.

  “You will too, if you meet her,” I expin, sure of my sentiment.

  “What do you think about the Goddess of Love, Yuno?” Angelica inquires, knowing Yuno's simir circumstances.

  “She needs correction,” Yuno states simply.

  The three of us just blink. ‘I will never know what is going on in her head,’ I thought, looking at her uncaring face.

  She needs correction!I'm going to punch her in the face.You shouldn't threation a goddess.‘I'm not changing my mind. Also, why does option one have angry and crying emojis?’ I reviewed my options, hoping to avoid a future inundated with emoji spam.

  “I'm going to punch her in the face.” I spoke, surety in my voice.

  “Brother, careful what you say about a Goddess. Especially here in your dominion.” Angelica expressed her concerns to me with a hint of worry.

  A dominion, as they refer to it, occurs when one fully manifests their gift in the physical world, or in my case, travels within it. This milestone usually is reached after tier 20, bestowing upon the individual the title of an avatar for the goddess from whom they received their gift. It's believed that the manifestation of a dominion allows a fragment of that goddess to descend. The term "gift" differs in meaning from "blessing," and I'm not entirely certain about the precise distinction between the two.

  Aware of my older sisters' discomfort with the notion of defaming a goddess, I decided to change the subject. "So who wants to fight what?" I inquired.

  "Oh, I want the slime!" Sakura excimed with enthusiasm, leaping down from the fence and charging toward it. She dashed across the field like a bullet, drawing her sword and shield as she approached. Her initial strike aimed to bisect the core, but it narrowly evaded the blow by shifting it aside.

  The slime attempted a counterattack but became unable when Sakura's swift low kick dislodged its core, causing its body to colpse into a puddle. She then finished it off by cleaving the core on the ground with her sword. Immediately after the slime was defeated, I received a notification.

  [Sakura can not gain exp at this time. Caching for ter.]

  ‘Wait, you can do that? Does this work for regur monsters too?’ I wonder this as I gaze at the screen.

  After conveying the message to Sakura, her excitement was palpable.

  “I can finally look like a respectable eldest sister in the future,” Sakura decred with pride, puffing her chest out.

  “Work hard so you can protect us in the future,” Angelica said, affectionately tousling Sakura's hair, her expression warm.

  “Right!” Sakura affirmed with determination.

  “My turn,” Angelica spoke decisively, turning toward her intended target. In a fsh, she imprisoned the goblin within her barrier, stacking one barrier upon another at lightning speed. The barriers rapidly closed in on the creature, trapping it inside an ever-shrinking space. As the barriers tightened around its body, the goblin's desperate attempts to struggle were futile against Angelica's relentless onsught; its skull caved in under the immense pressure, causing a macabre explosion of blood and brain matter that spttered against the inner surface of the barriers. The goblin was left trapped within this horrific, self-contained prison as it died in anguish.

  “Brother, Brother are you okay?” Sakura asks, her voice filled with concern.

  I have hunted before and even skinned and butchered animals, but seeing something human-like struggle while being crushed and squashed alive hit me differently. It took all my willpower not to throw up. Looking around at the others, it seemed I was the only one affected that way.

  After gathering myself enough to speak, I said,“Let's just move on.” Seeing their continued concern, I reassured, “I'm okay, don’t worry.”

  [Angelica has defeated a goblin, gaining 250 exp.]

  I'm unsure of the significance of that amount. My Observe still doesn't reveal experience points.

  “How did that feel?” I asked Angelica, hoping she could provide me with some insights for comparison.

  “About the same as a monster outside with this much magic.” she commented, gazing down, which I avoided.

  Before I had the chance to ask Yuno to deal with the rabbit, it was already over, and I received a notification identical to the first. Yuno dispatched it neatly, leaving no outward signs of harm.

  ‘Is it wrong that I feel bad for the monsters? Why the hell did the goddess feel the need to give them all the inside parts?’ I understand it's for us to utilize those parts post-battle, but surely there was a way for them to simply drop items, akin to a video game.

  Observing the time, I noted that the entire exercise had consumed barely ten minutes. "We still have over an hour left, plenty of time to also test the training area," I mentioned, I was aware that my sisters hadn't fully grasped the concept of minutes despite my expnations.

  As we approached the solitary training dummy in the yard, it was Angelica who initiated this time, mimicking the barrier maneuver used on the goblin and earning 1 experience point.

  “I did not feel anything,” She reported.

  I observed as Angelica practiced defending against Sakura's strikes, noticing she earned about +1 experience point every few seconds.

  However, when I managed to break her shield with Miki’s poison, Angelica received +3 experience points, whereas when Yuno accomplished the same, the gain was only +1.

  I wished to delve deeper into experimentation, but time constraints limited us. My aim was to maximize the benefits by using the facilities at the year's end, when they were at their highest level.

  [Date end]

  Upon my departure, the date concluded, and I reappeared precisely at the time and location from where we had left, unnoticed by my mothers who were staring at us the entire time.

  [Achievement unlocked - Out of this world - Have a date not in this world. Date spot roll +5.]

  ‘Wait, that just brings up a whole host of other questions.’

  [Liev Ekker - Level 13 Goddess points: 1,265Love points: 888,456Debt 1,000,000Stat points: 0

  Luck: 11 Charm: 2 Social: 1 Observe: 4

  Skills - Date a lottery 3/10, A date to remember [o]

  Achievements - 21Achievements_Alice - 1

  Cards: 1_Yuno - 1844, 2_Sakura - 500, 3_Angelica - 500, 4_Alice 500, 5_Cire - 224, 6_Selen - 247, 7_Miki - 371, 8_Amelia - 373, 9_Anna - 219 10_Emma - 219 11_Sk?gul - 500, 12_Ellie - 128, 13_Lucy - 113]