Optimizing Your Isekai - Progression Fantasy w/ Slice-of-Life and Biz Building Elements

Chapter 48 Part 1 - Optimizing Your Isekai


Excerpt from The Profound and Pretty Princess' Ultimate Guide to Cultivation, Captivation, Cuteness, and Carving Your Way to the Top, English Edition (the worst-selling guide in the history of Putijama)

On Nobility in The Verdant Kingdom

In The Kingdom of Verdant Earth, there is a strong history of hereditary nobility. As far as records go back, the Kingdom – and its ruling monarchy – has used its nobles to take care of most of the day-to-day affairs, especially via the ruling Councils of most cities.

There is an important distinction between a noble with a title – who is the head of a noble house – and simply a noble. There is only one noble title per family but all people born to someone with a noble title have the status of noble.

Whether those born to nobles without a title are also granted noble status is often a bit wishy-washy; in most cases, those born to a noble and who can trace their lineage to someone with a noble title within three generations are granted noble status.

Some cities have abolished the practice, only those with a noble title being able to grant noble status to their heirs; other cities have extended noble status to anyone born to a noble. The cities that extend the status to anyone born to a noble usually have a very large number of nobles, many who move there just to secure the status.

Said cities are known to have deep coffers and deeper political problems. The competition for any open Council seats is often a political bloodbath; and sometimes a literal one. There is also the temptation to 'open' a Council seat via assassination.

While there are some cities that have abolished the use of noble titles and status entirely, the Kingdom still keeps records. Nobles have certain enhanced rights when it comes to legal proceedings and also are automatically elevated to officer positions in the military should they choose to serve.

Official noble titles are passed to the first child automatically unless the noble specifies they want to pass it down to a different heir. Things get really crazy if the named heir gets switched around as the previous heir's children might not be nobles anymore!

Generally, each family only has one noble title but if two nobles with titles marry, they may pass each title down to one heir – or rarely, pass both titles down to an heir to then pass on themselves.

The most titles bestowed upon one person was an astounding eight, all given to Mirna Spasic. She chose not to marry or have children and passed the titles to no one, her spite for others fueling her life to the very, very bitter end. She reached Tier 4 and 120 years old, amassing an extremely large fortune that she took into a rift just before it cycled, never to be seen again.

Adoption into a family to pass on a title – often due to fertility issues, same-sex couples that don't use some other means to conceive, people who simply do not want children, or those who remain single – is rather common. The official recognition of an heir is quite easy, though they must be officially adopted as the titles are technically hereditary.

New Noble Titles

Occasionally a family may be raised to nobility, almost always through the monarchy. While this avenue is only supposed to be used for 'significant meritorious service to The Kingdom', that's rarely the case.

The most common way a new noble title is created is that a powerful noble wants more than one of their children or another close relative to be given a title.

Technically, any branch family raised to full nobility must move to a different area of The Kingdom so there isn't a centralization of power among relatives. Over half of noble families raised this way get an exemption and remain in the same area, though there are strong restrictions on multiple representatives that trace their lineage to the same titled noble serving on a city Council together for three generations.

The last family that tried to get around this by having their newly raised noble relatives be adopted into other noble families, and thus officially their legal lineage changed, were destroyed by the monarchy after they tried to secede and start a new nation. There are tens of pages in The Kingdom's legal code specifically preventing anything similar.

The second most common way for nobles to gain their titles is through military service. Those who show extreme aptitude, especially on the Tier 5 battlefields or through significant contributions like intelligence gathering, are considered as potential nobility candidates.

Other ways include scientific or magical breakthroughs or cultural contributions. The leading man in The Wandering Lotus is expected to be raised to nobility when he retires.

On rare occasions, a family may be raised to nobility via the local Council, but the petitioning process is usually arduous. This is often done to allow someone of great local power and prominence to serve on the city Council; most cities have either a complete restriction on non-nobles sitting on the Council or have a cap on the number that can.

A noble, even one with a title, legally adopting someone will not make them a noble. The only way to make them a noble is to name them as the heir to a noble title.

A noble may grant noble status to only one spouse to prevent large polycules from all becoming nobles. Anyone granted noble status this way may not grant noble status to other future partners if the marriage ends for any reason unless they inherited the noble title.

The End of a Noble House

Quite commonly, when a noble house does something that is considered beyond the pale, by the Kingdom and/or the main city where their noble house resides, there will be strong repercussions.

Sometimes, that simply means stripping the family of their noble title and thus protections. This is most common when the inciting offense was not directed at fellow nobles or seen as treasonous. The current living heirs almost always retain their noble status but after that, it all becomes a mess.

Occasionally, the entire family, including any noble heirs, are completely stripped of noble status and titles and some part of the family, usually those most culpable in the offending activity, is sold into indentured servitude in The Monetary Might Kingdom. This is usually for significant financial crimes, such as large-scale tax evasion or extortion. Only the monarchy may use this avenue.

It has only been used five times in the last twenty years.

The most common way a noble house falls is simply utter destruction. That is often done by executing the noble title holder, their official spouses, and, unfortunately, any children that are above age eight. This can be used by cities but most often, when it isn't approved by the monarchy first, a few of the houses that sought the destruction are destroyed themselves. There have been periods when people have tried to use this mechanism to eliminate rivals and it, quite rightfully, almost always backfires.

Lastly, if someone with a noble title simply doesn't have an heir, the noble title almost always is eliminated upon their death. Sometimes, in the case of a sudden death, the title will pass onto a relative but this is rare as the temptation to eliminate family members can be high. Any noble death is supposed to be deeply investigated for this reason.

While minor noble houses fall quite regularly, there hasn't been a major noble house that has been destroyed or otherwise eliminated in the last seven years, the longest such period in recorded history.

In giant letters on the far wall, it read: "Testing Facility, Enter At Your Own Risk!"

The room looked like a high school gymnasium on science fair day, with a ceiling far above and tens of cheap tables strewn about in what seemed a haphazard way. Each had a handful of wands and a fancy poster board, though I couldn't read any of them at a distance.

Every 50 feet (15m), there was a line indicating an increase in the Tier of the spells on offer.

There were eleven people with wands, mostly in the Tier 2-4 sections. Those casting external magic had a live target, shooting off spells across the rainbow of colors, though green seemed most prominent. Almost every recipient looked far less pleased than their paired casters. The man shooting off small meteors and maniacally laughing concerned me.

My excitement rose as I entered, the anticipation like first going home with a potential new partner, but remaining calm was important.

No impulse purchases!

Gema led me over to the first table, just to the right of the entrance. I noticed it only had one wand as I bent to read the small placard.

[Receive Mana]: Allows for others to channel mana to you for <12 minutes>. Mana regeneration will cease for 3 bells after the skill duration ends. You may cast this spell again but the mana regeneration penalty will reset and stack.

'Please use this wand on yourself to enable unlimited casting while in the Testing Facility.'

Interesting but I don't love no mana regeneration. I wanted to at least try to use the self-repair enchantment on my shield tonight…

Gema handed me the wand. She said the same thing in slightly different ways six times, but it was essentially 'go on, cast it'.

My mana rushed from me into the wand and I could tell it was an incredibly expensive skill; my mana pool dropped to literally nothing for a second before I felt an odd electric sensation rising through my body.

It was like the butterflies of really liking someone early in a relationship, the buzz of having too much caffeine, and the sensation in your stomach when a rollercoaster heads into a fast drop, all rolled into one.

It wasn't necessarily good but it certainly wasn't bad. The main descriptor was intense with a side of disorienting.

I could feel a deep well of mana, even though it wasn't my own, there for me to use to my heart's content.

Tabita also took the wand, casting the spell on herself. At my look, she said, with a shrug, "Might need to cast barriers." My bodyguard pointed at someone a few tables down casting spell after spell at their target, the recipient looking rather put out at being hit with ten straight lightning bolts.

I couldn't help but ask, "Why use live people?" It just seemed needlessly cruel or a bit like some people's kinks being acted out but without true proper consent.

Gema smiled. "It's so much more fun, more enjoyable, more of a rush." She paused for a second, seeing the pitch absolutely failed on me. "Some skills require a live target…"

The first table had a neat row of wands, a dozen in total. Of the twelve skills there, the only one on my list was [Make Like Molasses], a slowing skill that significantly reduced movement speed, though only of the upper half of the body. How that worked on non-bipedal creatures seemed like an interesting question but I put that to the side to ask only if I really liked the skill.

Tabita took her position and I cast, the mana swirling around and through me in a heady rush. I bopped my bodyguard on the shoulder with the supplied rubber mallet rather than the warhammer or blunted sword as the skill required a physical strike to activate.

There was a small ball on the table as well so I tossed it at Tabita, angling the throw so if she missed, it wouldn't hit her.

The woman's movements were truly comical, her swipe nearly a second late. I poked at the plus sign on the skill's description on the poster board. It said the lower the Tier of the creature you cast the spell on, the greater the impact.

"Tabita, what Tier are you?" I knew it was slightly impertinent but I needed to know to assess the quality of the skill.

"Tier 4," it took her a full second to say.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

Damn, strong spell.

As if anticipating my question, Gema said, "All non-damage skills are heightened in the Testing Facility. At Tier 1, it would not stop a Tier 4 for more than <a quarter second> if at all, no, hell no, absolutely not. Only if they were comically weak. A Tier 1 rift beast, or person, possibly up to a second."

I didn't need to see it in action again so I set the wand back on the table. A small box in my AAI overlay reduced my count of available spells I could cast from twelve to eleven.

Over the next twenty minutes, I worked through a number of skills, especially focusing on what I might want to use for my melee combat. None that I tried were likely candidates for that shopping trip but I wanted my build, as I layered in new spells, to continually add so the whole was greater than the sum of the parts.

The few attack-enhancing skills I tried were okay but not inspiring. I wanted something that would change the way I fought when it was truly necessary, not just a 'nice to have'.

Still, the feeling of a [Fireball] leaving my hand, even cast from a wand, was utterly fantastic.

That was better than I could have imagined, even dreaming of it as a kid.

I started to wonder if maybe there was a mood-enhancing enchantment on the room.

I tried different types of spells, still thinking about how they might work together in my future build. The only healing spell of the bunch that I could actually absorb was rather weak, barely able to heal the small cut on my hand over a few minutes despite unlimited mana.

I see why Steve's healing is so expensive…

Near the end, we had to cast [Receive Mana] a third time. That meant I had an eleven hour countdown on my mana regeneration, which worried me a bit in case I somehow got into a fight.

Finally, I decided to try what I guessed was my most likely skill candidate: [Hasty Retreat]. I read the poster board entry one more time.

[Hasty Retreat]: Immediately move straight backwards by 'mana used/7 <feet>' up to a maximum of <43 feet>. You do not become ethereal and will strike any objects in your way. You may, for twice the mana cost, change the angle up to <15 degrees> to either the right or the left. To activate, at least one part of the caster's body must be on the ground AND the caster must be in a standing position. All movement is parallel to the ground.

I noticed it was not quite as strong as Jasna's and Gema gave me a non-answer as to whether my friend purchased it there. From reading between the lines, it seemed like either Jasna had a way better version and/or she'd added a lot of essence to her spell, making it stronger.

Tabita reduced her cultivation to peak Tier 1 speeds so I could judge how quickly I could retreat in an actual battle. We had to go to a less cluttered corner so as to not smash into a table as Gema claimed the current placement enhanced the energy flow.

That's bullshit, those people over there moved a table two minutes ago.

The first exchange, Tabita called out 'No!' loudly to prevent my casting as it would have meant I clipped a table, my dodge of her sword swing moving me slightly too far to the right.

We tried a few more exchanges so I could figure out when I'd want to activate the spell before actually doing so.

She walked me through how to scan an area with my AAI to have it keep track of where I was in a fight in order to help prevent mishaps. Not remembering exactly where the boulder was in a battle could end in catastrophe. Even more so for enemies. The active mana drain from tracking everything around me was a bit high, but it was crucial if I got the skill.

On the first cast, I put a little too much mana into it, almost crashing into the wall, going nearly the full range. The second, Tabita was swinging at me and I put in seven mana, sending me back just a foot, which let me avoid the attack but quickly retaliate with my own. Tabita easily blocked it with a lazy swing of her sword but it was still incredibly exciting as a potential way to change up a fight for not much mana.

Even though it was well beyond my current mana means – and even if I had the mana pool to cast it, the spell was so complex, it would destroy my Tier 1 essence channels anyway – I asked to try [Fly].

The wand was in the Tier 5 section, which was apparently restricted enough that Gema had to go and get it herself, even Tabita not being able to cross the line.

"Enjoy," she said, casting the spell on me. It only lasted a little over a minute but it was still among the best experiences of either of my lives.

It will take me years but I want to have that spell. Even beyond reaching Tier 5 and the freedom that will provide, it's just too cool to not go after.

Isekonsultant Tip to Thriving #69: Sometimes you just have to go for the cool objective. Life is for living, not only winning. It doesn't need to be the most logical as long as it won't hurt your other goals. And wanting to fly can always be justified.

Gema had long ago lifted the restriction of only trying twelve spells as I was sticking to essentially all Tier 1 skills and often a single cast. That meant my mana usage was about 20% of a normal first-time guest.

So after winding down with a few of the more life enhancement-type skills, both Tabita and I casting [Enable Relaxation] on each other, I was ready to talk deal.

My wallet had expanded considerably over the prior few weeks but I knew the debit card business with Nikolaj probably needed more capital if we wanted to increase the production of machines to bring on more businesses sooner.

The two most important things to me were first, I needed to pay for Steve's final treatment to heal the damage to his eyes and second, likely buy a new shield.

My true backup shield was just a simple unenchanted one, though made with a bit of Tier 2 metal so it was durable, and I knew trying to adjust my fighting style to one without a reliable shield was not a good idea at the moment. I had trained a decent amount without a shield but had only done a few fights in easier rifts sans my protective barrier.

We left the testing area and I felt my mana pool drop to nearly empty, accompanied by a feeling of loss. Tabita put a hand on my shoulder to either steady or comfort me, I wasn't sure which.

As we arrived back in the sitting room, Gema glided across the carpet, stopping only a foot away, fixing me with those creepy eyes, the red within the black flaring all the more. "Fun, fun, fun. So many ways to improve, yes? Shall we make a deal hmmm?"

Which negotiation tactic should I use?

The entire building was clearly carefully crafted, designed specifically to lead to sales, so I walked through what each area and experience was trying to make a potential buyer feel.

The nondescript entrance was probably to set the mood, like there was something slightly illicit happening, that you were not really supposed to be involved with.

That meant more of a backroom deal vibe. Heavy negotiation, more of a relationship-type back and forth. That fit with the lack of listed prices as well.

Then, the ornate hallways and sitting room were there to impress upon customers that this was a wealthy establishment, with power and elegance. Even the whole rigamarole around how to review the skills available showed off how it was a place of power and incredible magic. With so many resources at their fingertips, they could spend the money creating enchanted paper and the like.

There were over 200 Tier 1 skills in total available for purchase. And all had a purity rating of at least 50% so the skills were well-made. Gema's was where one could attain great power, should they have the means to purchase it.

All that put together meant more of a prestige purchase, where the price was what it was because you were paying for the 'privilege of owning it'. I had never really had a great counter to that idea because I wasn't much for vanity purchases in my personal life and it just wasn't nearly as common in my business dealings.

The spell testing area was a bit strange to me as I was definitely expecting something more refined. I felt a small pit of sadness the second I left so I figured there genuinely was an enchantment to improve people's mood at the very least so customers would want that feeling of casting the skills again.

That was where they tried to set the hook. Where the customer became a bit too enamored and had fun, like whatever skill they tried was going to be an improvement to not just their capabilities – fighting kit or otherwise – but also their life.

I decided that 'hit them in the mouth with the truth' was probably the best angle. Being ultra practical would cut through the carefully crafted attempt to create demand. Instead of leaning into their vibe, I'd just smash through the veneer that this was anything more than a transaction.

My fake sigh turned into a real yawn as it had been an extremely long day. Gema's eyebrow lifted, her face still extremely close to mine as I said, "Let's talk prices and terms but cut to the chase? I am not here to make an impulse purchase. The skills seem great but I'd also like to take some time to think about it."

Gema's smile got slightly manic. "Prices are, of course… negotiable. Which of our wonderful, incredible, amazing skills did you have in mind?"

"I could tell you ten other skills and then circle in on the one I want but, it's been a long day. Wrapping this up quickly is my aim so I won't bullshit you. [Hasty Retreat] is the only skill I'd even consider today. But like I said, I am in no rush."

"Oh that will not do, no, no, no," she shook her head violently. "I see you were not informed. Hmm. Tabita, care to explain?"

The dour woman, leaning on the wall in a relaxed posture, stepped forward. "Gema's is only open occasionally. You don't have a permanent pass; might not ever get back in. Shit or get off the pot." She said the last sentence with a wry smile.

Gema tittered before fixing me back with her stare. "Crude, foul, gross but apt analogy. Our sales are not an open offer. If you do not see the value, what use are you as a customer?" Her pointed teeth looked ready to tear into my flesh, her wide smile an attempt to show her mirth while also likely intimidate.

It didn't work.

In my past as a consultant, I had been screamed at, pleaded with, threatened in any number of ways, offered prostitutes and drugs, had things thrown at me, and many other tactics to try to entice me to someone's way of thinking.

A little intimidation wasn't going to get me to buy something, especially something that might bankrupt me.

"Thanks for informing me, that helps with my decision. But I still didn't hear a price." Both Gema and Tabita looked slightly shocked. I pressed my advantage. "I'm totally serious. It's useful information but until I know what the price might be, all of this talk is moot. I get your skills are high quality but the difference doesn't seem that large. Once we get a price on the table, we can do some banter and negotiate. It's just not going to happen until I hear a number."

While I hadn't looked up [Hasty Retreat] beforehand, I knew top-quality Tier 1 skills could go for upwards of 200 gold, though those were usually strong attack spells. Movement skills, even if potentially life-saving, just didn't have the same appeal apparently, but my guess was a decent one would go for near 100 gold at a minimum.

I could probably swing as much as 125 gold but it would likely mean borrowing from the team and delaying my shield purchase. And also I wanted to start paying down my debts to Tiesa and Jasna, even if they said they didn't care much.

Plus, Inga had warned me about Gema's odd terms on her debt and that was a bigger concern.

The strange woman stepped back, putting her hand to her chin, clearly thinking. "Tell me something interesting about you first, something I don't know."

It was subtle but I felt a spell settle over me. It didn't feel like a compulsion, more some kind of enhanced detection skill or something similar.

Maybe to check for lies in some way?

"First, tell me what you just cast," I said, getting ready to just shut it all down and leave. It was heading in a bad direction despite the spell feeling benign.

Gema laughed, this time a deep belly laugh, and her creepy persona seemed to fade for a second. "You are a perceptive one. It shall help me… assess your truthfulness."

I thought about what I could say that would be of interest but also wasn't an actual secret that could cause any trouble. "I may be the only person on Putijama who has truly spoken with a sentient dungeon."

It's bending the truth… But right now, Gabby is technically only a dungeon core. I don't really know how Gabby spoke with the rest of the team, if she did at all, but I know she lied to them. So no one else spoke genuinely with Gabby while she was still a dungeon.

To my surprise, instead of asking a follow-up, Gema nodded and sent a price. [275 gold or items of equivalent value].

It was way too high but I still needed to know how a non-rift-dropped skill would affect my essence channels. My plan was to be honest – especially if the skill cast over the room really did detect lies – but still press for what I wanted. "Likely past my budget but can we run the test to see the impact on my channels? That might change my decision."

Gema's feral smile returned. She shuffled instead of glided to the blood-locked cabinet and pulled out a long rod that looked more like a cattle prod than a sensitive piece of equipment.

I hope she's not as crazy as Ratmir. Though his tests rarely actually hurt.

I received a custom prompt, with special formatting, in my AAI: [Gema, the Master of Gema's Grand Gems, is requesting to test your essence channel viability for [Hasty Retreat; Gema's Grand Gems' Version 7]. Only you can see the result. Do you acquiesce? Yes/No?].

I selected yes and before I could ask a question, the two prongs were stabbed directly into my gut, right through my clothes.

The pain was incredible, as if I were having little ants crawling through every single channel, vein, and artery of my spirit and body, hammering in barbed pitons every few millimeters with a little twist once each was set for good measure. If I hadn't experienced [Transform Self] earlier in the day, it would have been a contender for most pain in either life.

And then the testing actually started.

A surge of spiritual electricity – it seemed like white affinity essence – leapt from the small spikes that had just been placed, going from one to the next in succession. While the pain was quite a bit less, it was deeply uncomfortable, like when someone pokes your bellybutton but hundreds of times more intense.

And then it was over.

[Analysis complete: Unique essence channels detected. Impact of [Hasty Retreat; Gema's Grand Gems' Version 7] to current essence channels is null. Current essence channels completely unobstructed.]

I guess that answers if [Poison Resistance] counts against my five spells from my Innate Capability but not much else. The reading of no impact to my essence channels doesn't really tell me if higher purity rating is better for me.

As the prod was pulled from my shirt, Gema took out a wand and cast something, pointing at my stomach. As I was still disoriented, I tried to resist, thinking it might be some kind of attack or compulsion.

I clearly still don't trust her.

Instead, the two holes in Pavel's shirt mended.

Wrung out, I decided I just needed to leave and consider more. Even if this was the best purity rating for the skill I could find, a purchase, even at 40% the quoted price, just didn't make sense in that moment.

"Thank you for everything but I think it's just not right for me, at least not right now," I said, wanting to be polite and make my way out.

"200," Gema said calmly.

"I appreciate you being willing to negotiate but it's just not the right time. I have more pressing concerns than this skill." I got up, still wobbly from the testing.

"150," Gema said, a bit of a manic glint in her eye. Before I could respond in the negative, she said, "Name your price."

"I guess I'd do 50 gold but above that, I just can't get the math to work out," I responded. It wasn't the smartest thing since my single objective should have been to leave but I never really could contain my desire for a bargain.

"86 gold and you owe me two favors. The money must be paid half now and half in two weeks. There, a deal is struck."

Tabita's eyes widened as I felt magic try to settle over me. I fought against it and Gema, who was now smiling in what I thought was a genuine way, seemed more and more elated by the second.

Her voice was now an octave deeper, the spookiness all but gone. "Yes, yes, this is the right way, so right. It is a good deal, a steal. You, should snatch it, grab it…"

I started walking towards the door and the woman was suddenly in front of me, barring my path, teeth bared in what I couldn't tell was a snarl or a smile.

Tabita slowly drew her sword from the sheath and pushed away from the wall, at the ready if Gema tried anything.

Instead, the strange woman lightly pressed a hand to my chest to hold me back. "Let's talk."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.


Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter