System Change

Chapter 432: All the Decisions

“What’s wrong?” Malorie asked with some concern in her voice. “It’s comfortable?” She looked from Derek to the chair he was just sitting in, then back at him.

Derek stared at the chair again. “It is,” he said, then slowly sat back down into the chair. When he was fully situated, he closed his eyes and sighed, then chuckled. “I never thought I would see the day that I would sit in something comfortable without having to have it made myself. I thought that this entire kingdom lacked the concept of comfort and cushions.”

“Huh...” Malorie hummed, then took a seat herself on the right side of Derek. “It is quite comfortable,” she said. “But it’s not...”

“I know,” Derek said, cutting her off mid-sentence. “It’s not quite as comfortable as some of the chairs we’ve commissioned through Geoffrey, but still... it’s a very good start.” His favorite chair, the one he made sure to carry with him almost everywhere he went, was still the best.

Soon, everyone else sat down. They all agreed that their seats were quite good, but none of them seemed to have the same reaction or happiness that Derek had when they sat. In fact, it didn’t seem like they cared much at all.

They’re all barbarians, Derek thought to himself as he saw them practically ignore the revolution that was comfort happening right before their eyes.

Shortly after they were all seated, Ester came back with the menus and passed them out. “What can I get you all to drink while you take a look at the menu?” she asked. Their orders included a variety of different drinks—coffee, tea, juice, and even water. “I’ll be right back with that,” Ester said.

“One second,” Derek said, stopping her before she was able to leave to go fetch the beverages.

“Yes?” she asked politely.

“I had a question about these chairs,” Derek said, and the woman waited for him to continue. “Why are these chairs comfortable, but all the other ones that I have sat in when dining here are so... not?” he asked.

“Well, Mr. Hunt,” she said. “This is your private suite.”

“I know,” Derek said. “It’s the tier four private suite.”

“No...” she slowly shook her head with a sly smile. “It seems you misunderstand. This is not a tier four private suite. This is your tier four private suite. Yours, and yours alone.”

“Oh,” Derek said, slightly taken aback. “So it is made specifically for me?”

“Exactly,” Ester said with a nod. “You will find another just like it at the Savannah branch of the Crown Restaurant, as that is your current place of residence. You also have a prepared suite in the Crown Hotel if you should ever need to use it.”

“I... see...” Derek said. “So these chairs...”

“Commissioned specifically for you. Mistress Swan noticed your... peculiarities when it comes to seating and had them created specifically for you. Of course, she hasn’t had the chance to see them quite yet, as they were only finished a short while ago. However, I am happy that we were able to receive them before you chose to come dine with us,” Ester explained.Geett the latest novels at wuxiahere.com

“I’ll have to give Alanah my thanks, then,” Derek said and gave Ester a smile.

“I am very happy you like them.” Ester bowed to Derek and the others. “Then, if there isn’t anything else...”

“That’s all,” Derek said.

“Very well,” Ester replied. “I will be back shortly with your drinks. Please excuse me.” The woman excused herself and soon after, she was out of the room.

Silvi was another that didn’t hold back. Derek had to stop her after she called out every item from the tier four, three, and two menus. If he didn’t, he was sure that by the time she was finished, she would have ordered one of everything, and to be honest, he couldn’t blame her. He’d actually thought about doing the same thing when he was going over the menu.

Malorie ordered for herself, but also ordered multiple things to go for Brandi. She was a mother, after all. Even if she couldn’t get her daughter to go out and eat, at least she could take her some of the goodies back.

“Is that... everything?” Ester asked with wide eyes that were mostly staring at Silvi.

“It doesn’t look like we ordered everything,” Derek said with a laugh as he pointed at the very few items from the menu that his group hadn’t ordered. He saw Malorie roll her eyes at his stupid joke out of the corner of his own. “But I think that’s all for us.”

“Great!” Ester said, then went around the table and collected the menus. “Your items will be out promptly. I do hope you enjoy.” Once again, Ester bowed and dismissed herself from the room.

“Meanie,” Silvi’s voice chimed out from her communication crystal. “I wanted to try everything.”

“I know you did,” Derek said. “But you know as well as I that the items you didn’t order are things that you have already tried, or that you could easily create yourself. There was no sense in you ordering it all. I don’t even know if you would even be able to eat it all.”

“Nothing wrong with leftovers,” Silvi replied. “Food for later.”

Derek shook his head at Silvi’s antics, then shifted the conversation to the three children. “So, the three of you,” he started. “Do you plan to become a team? Or are you just training together for now?” he asked.

Zachary, Lucas, and Clare all looked at one another, then Zac, the lightning user, finally spoke up. “We’ve been training together for a long time,” he said. “Me and my brother always planned on becoming adventurers together anyway, and we’ve had a lot of fun working with Clare since she unlocked the Great System.”

“We haven’t decided yet,” Clare chimed in. “But we’ve talked about it. I really enjoy training with the boys and they are really, really good fighters. I definitely wouldn’t mind being in a party with them.”

“First, we need to find out what Mr. Swan and Miss Alanah wants us to do. Mr. Swan will surely want to see what kind of progress we have made first. I don’t know if they will send us to the academy or keep training us,” Zac explained.

“Thomas sure does make the academy sound like fun when he comes around, though,” Luke said. “I think I would like to go if Mr. Swan and Miss Alanah let us.”

“I see,” Derek said. “I doubt it would hurt things,” he continued. “But—and I’m sure you already know this, as you all seem quite mature—you shouldn’t rush things. You need to keep growing slowly like you have been and work on your skills and... elements. That should take priority over your levels.” All three of the children nodded seriously at Derek’s words.

“Now, Clare,” Derek said. “Speaking of plans, what are yours? With you levels and such.”

“I think...” Clare looked over at Walter and Jensen before continuing. “We want to wait and train my skill levels for at least another six months before moving on to level ten and getting to choose a class. Maybe even longer, depending on how hard they become to level.”

“Yeah... Skill levels become much harder to level the higher they are. And it’s especially true when you can’t really fight and slay monsters because the experience will push you to level ten really quickly,” Derek said. “I agree that once you start feeling like you’re making absolutely no progress any longer, it will be time to think about getting a class.”

“That’s just as we’ve planned,” Walter said. “I very much look forward to seeing what kind of warrior my niece will become in the future using this strategy. I have high hopes for her. She is the future of House Searidge.”

“But I don’t wanna be the matriarch,” Clare cried out. “I just want to fight and adventure. I don’t want to have to run things. That’s what cousin Jensen is for. He can take over. I’ll be the muscle.” Clare punched the air a few times to make her point, and everyone had a good chuckle.

“We still have plenty of time to figure that out,” Walter said in between chuckles. “You’re not even level ten yet. For now, just focus on getting stronger.”

“Exactly,” Derek agreed. “Like I said, don’t rush things,” he said, then he sent Clare a message telepathically. ‘And once you become strong enough, you won’t have to take over House Searidge even if they want you to. After all, the strongest people are the ones who get to make all the decisions.