Fantasy Family Simulator (FFS)

"Blueberry fruit tea? Sweet and delicate, it's quite good," Rhett commented with a smile.

"The concentration is quite high; these are the freshest blueberries, just picked a few days ago!" Henk replied proudly as he took a step back and sat down.

Noticing the stone box in Rhett's hand, Henk curiously eyed it for a moment. Then, blinking in surprise, he pointed at the box and asked,

"Lord Rhett, is there... a magical beast pup in there?"

"You guessed right. Indeed, it's a White-Eyed Mouse pup with mid-level bloodline potential."

Rhett admitted openly and directly opened the lid, dispersing the dark elements. He then grabbed the little mouse by the scruff of its neck and tossed it toward Henk.

Caught off guard by the sudden appearance of the little mouse, Henk's eyes widened as he carefully caught it with both hands—after all, it was a precious magical beast pup, and any mishap was unacceptable.

Squeak, squeak...

The little creature, suddenly exposed to the light, became frightened and started to roll around in Henk's palm, letting out soft, panicked cries. After a few seconds, it squinted its little eyes and looked around at the unfamiliar world, twisting and turning as if everything was new and strange...

The first thing it saw was Henk's distinct appearance—his bald head and scarred face. The White-Eyed Mouse pup, out of fear of the unknown, froze, trembling and not daring to move.

"What a cute little fellow!" Henk was immediately captivated by the White-Eyed Mouse pup. He stared at it intently and gently stroked its week-old soft white fur. The warmth of its skin was palpable under his fingers.

"Squeak, squeak..." The White-Eyed Mouse pup let out a weak cry, lying listlessly in his palm.

Henk's heart stirred, realizing what was happening. He quickly left his seat, ran to a drawer by the wall, and rummaged through it until he found a small bag of wind chime grass leaves. Returning to the pup, he offered it a small green bell-shaped leaf. The pup's tiny red nose twitched, and its little eyes brightened at the enticing scent!

The White-Eyed Mouse pup quickly forgot everything else and started nibbling on the leaf.

Watching this, Rhett smiled and said,

"You're quite skilled for your first time handling a magical beast. It seems I've made the right choice in entrusting it to you!"

"Of course... wait, what?" Henk's smile froze as he realized what Rhett meant. He stammered,

"You're... you're giving it to me?"

"Of course. Is there a third person here? Besides, I already have a magical beast. If I don't entrust the pup to someone reliable, should I just release it into the wild when it grows up?" Rhett replied matter-of-factly.

"But I thought Telis didn't have a magical beast yet," Henk said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"I found him a Frost Mouse during this trip," Rhett interrupted before Henk could finish.

"But what about Woderger—"

Henk's words were cut off again as Rhett said,

"He's different from you. He hasn't fully pledged his loyalty to me; we're more like good friends. But you, you're an indispensable part of both me and this territory, a devoted alchemist. This is something you deserve. As your lord, I'm telling you—you don't need to refuse!"

The room fell into a deep silence.

Henk stood frozen for a moment, his eyes filled with emotion. After a brief pause, he took a deep breath, stood up quickly, and respectfully bowed,

"Thank you, Lord Rhett. Your generosity is like the sun's rays, warming everyone's hearts. I will take good care of this White-Eyed Mouse pup!"

"No need for formalities," Rhett replied with a smile. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he asked,

"By the way, do you ever feel lonely or bored, spending all your time alone in this room?"

Henk, still touched by Rhett's kindness, quickly replied,

"Lord Rhett, as an alchemist, patience is a required skill. As long as I'm immersed in the joy of alchemy, I never feel bored."

He glanced down at the White-Eyed Mouse pup in his hand and added,

"Besides, with this little guy around now, life will surely be more interesting..."

Rhett raised an eyebrow, nodded thoughtfully, and said,

"I remember you once mentioned you had a brother in the capital?"

"Yes, I told you that when I first joined fledgling Eagle Town," Henk replied.

"How does his alchemy compare to yours now?"

Henk thought for a moment and then admitted,

"I must say, my brother Felix, being in the capital, probably faced more challenges and had access to more resources. When he visited and we discussed alchemy, it was clear that he had gained a deeper understanding than I had at the time. So, in the past, his alchemy was likely a bit better than mine."

"But things are different now. Thanks to the alchemy manual you gave me, I've made great strides. Now, I'm confident I'm more skilled than Felix!"

A touch of confidence appeared on Henk's face as he spoke, and he added,

"And there's also Hernan and Phylos, who joined earlier this year—one is a Level Two mage, the other a Level One mage. Though their alchemical talent isn't great, they've been progressing rapidly, thanks to the manual!"

"Good... very good." Rhett nodded approvingly,

"In that case, I plan to set a small goal for the Alchemy Tower."

"Please, go ahead, Lord Rhett."

"First, everyone should be able to successfully create Moonlight and Boiling potions. Then, work on increasing the success rate of these potions until they meet the standard."

Henk rubbed his chin thoughtfully and said,

"Except for Yunika, that shouldn't be too difficult. With the help of the manual, any mage interested in alchemy should be able to reach that goal eventually."

After speaking, Henk hesitated for a moment before his expression turned serious.

Noticing this, Rhett frowned and asked,

"Is there something else? If so, tell me quickly."

Henk nodded emphatically,

"Yes, there's something important I've noticed in the past few months—something strange!"

Rhett asked, surprised,

"What happened?"

"It's the magic plant cultivation field. Over the past few months, I've noticed that the growth rate of the earth element magic plants has been unusually rapid. They're growing as quickly as the water element plants that received the Snow Elf's blessing! These earth element plants have only been planted for four or five months, but their growth seems more like that of nearly a year. It's unbelievable..." Henk's eyes were filled with both joy and doubt.

Upon hearing this, Rhett's eyes flashed with understanding. So that's what this is about. It's my fault for not telling Henk about the Sand Spirit earlier, leading to this misunderstanding.

He shook his head, finished his cup of tea, and decisively stood up,

"Henk, come with me."

Henk's curiosity grew as he followed Rhett out of the room, sensing that his lord already knew the reason behind the strange growth.

The magic plant cultivation field was only a kilometer from the Alchemy Tower, and they arrived quickly.

Before them stretched a sea of blue and yellow, a colorful expanse of magic plants.

Rhett led the way into the field and whistled sharply.

Responding to the command it had been given earlier, Firehawk dove down from the sky, creating gusts of wind that made the plants sway and rustle.

The magic crystals that had been strapped to Firehawk's talons had already been delivered to the estate, but its wings still held something important—a high-level earth element magic plant, the Mudfruit.

Rhett patted Firehawk's head, and the creature obediently unfolded its right wing, allowing Rhett to retrieve a black bundle.

As Firehawk flew away, Rhett opened the bundle.

Under Henk's curious gaze, Rhett pulled out a two-meter-long dark yellow vine, covered in fine gray-white patterns. One end of the vine was connected to a small, light-yellow, walnut-sized fruit.

Henk's eyes widened in shock as he recognized the plant,

"This... this is a high-level earth element magic plant, a Mudfruit?!"

Rhett chuckled,

"Exactly. I found two Mudfruit plants during my trip to the White Mouse Range."

"This is fantastic!" Henk took a deep breath, calming himself as the shock in his eyes turned to excitement. He eagerly offered,

"Why wait? Let me plant them!"

Rhett handed the two Mudfruit plants to Henk, who quickly ran to the earth element section of the field. With practiced ease, he dug a hole, planted the vines, and filled the soil—completing the task efficiently. After patting down the soil, he returned to Rhett, still smiling.

Rhett then said,

"Henk, there's another secret I should share with you..."

As he spoke, a faint yellow figure gradually materialized beside Rhett—a Sand Spirit, about a meter tall, silently hovering in the air.

The magic plant field fell into a profound silence.

Henk's face was a sight to behold—his mouth hung open in shock, eyes wide. It took several seconds for him to process what had just happened—his lord had tamed a Sand Spirit!

Aside from being a spirit, he couldn't imagine what else this creature could be.

"Is this... really a Sand Spirit?" Henk asked, despite his strong intuition.

"Indeed," Rhett replied calmly, guiding the Sand Spirit toward the newly planted Mudfruit.

"While I was in the Rem Kingdom, I happened upon this Sand Spirit and, by chance, managed to tame it."

Henk's eyes gleamed with admiration as he looked at Rhett,

"Lord Rhett, you are truly destined for greatness!"

Rhett chuckled and said,

"From now on, keep the same rules for the magic plant field—only you, I, and a select few others can enter. No one else is allowed."

"Understood!" Henk replied firmly.

"Don't worry, Lord Rhett—I'm the only one who manages this field regularly. Occasionally, Rilai and Talis visit, but no one else has access."

"Good. Keep it that way."

After discussing a few more details about the Alchemy Tower and the magic plant field, Rhett and Henk returned to the estate as the sky darkened.

Night fell, and the castle hosted a lavish dinner.

After the meal, Rhett made his way to the fifth-floor hall and sat down on a long chair near the fireplace.

Feeling the warmth from the fire, he soon heard footsteps approaching.

Svitav walked in, carrying a glass of wine, and greeted him,

"Good evening, Lord Rhett."

"Good evening, Svitav," Rhett replied, turning to look at him.

Svitav adjusted his grip on the wineglass and said,

"Lord Rhett, Young Master Rilai and Lady Clina have gone to Dam Town for a few days and haven't returned yet. Before they left, Young Master Rilai asked me to report on the construction and development of Dark Eagle City and Deep Rock Village when you returned."

Rhett sat up straight,

"That's fine, Svitav. Go ahead."

Svitav first poured Rhett a glass of wine, then stepped back and began,

"As of today, the territory's registered population is 4,500. Since you were promoted to Earl and established Dark Eagle City, there has been another surge in population growth."

"Although it's slowed down recently, people are still moving in.

"Most of the newcomers are ordinary civilians who have been settled in Deep Rock Village to farm. Some who are unwilling or unable to farm have found work in Dark Eagle City, doing manual labor or providing services. A small number, about a hundred or so, with specialized skills, have opened shops in the city."

Rhett listened intently, propping his chin on his hand. Then, a thought occurred to him, and he asked,

"I understand. But has there been any recent cases of kidnapping men and women or setting up illicit establishments?"

"At first, some tried, but after being severely punished, no one dared to break the law again," Svitav replied.

Good, I don't want chaos in my territory. Small-scale transactions are fine, but any signs of organized crime must be stamped out immediately… Rhett nodded in satisfaction,

"What about the number of extraordinary individuals in Dark Eagle City?"

"According to daily reports from the guards, the number of extraordinary individuals fluctuates between fifty and a hundred, with a slow but steady increase overall.

"Among them, 23 are permanent residents. So far, 11 of them have purchased property in Dark Eagle City, including both homes and shops."

"What about the strength of these permanent extraordinary individuals?"

"Young Master Rilai mentioned that there is one Level Three Knight, three Level Two Knights, and the rest are Level One Knights.

"But most of them are nobles, and Young Master Rilai suspects they are backed by larger forces."

That's likely. It's normal for nobles to invest in other territories and set up shops… Rhett thought, sipping his wine.

"Have there been any disputes between extraordinary individuals and civilians while I was away?"

Svitav replied,

"There were a few incidents, but no casualties. They were quickly resolved by Shirin and her patrol team."

"Well done," Rhett said approvingly.

"We can't change a person's morals, but as long as they are in Dark Eagle City, they must follow our rules and respect our strength."

"Exactly, Lord Rhett."

After discussing more details about the territory, Svitav excused himself with the wine bottle, and Rhett retired to his room for the night.