Ethan stood at the center of his territory, surveying the barren land that stretched unevenly in all directions. Every ridge, every fissure, every patch of loose stone was a variable in an equation he had only begun to understand.
He glanced at Rowan, who was still pale but eager. The young man had survived his first series of threats and extraction lessons, but he was still raw. Naïve. A liability if left untrained—but for now, necessary.
"Rowan," Ethan said, pulling a piece of Ashclaw Hide from his pack, "listen carefully. Our first priority is not fighting. Not hunting. Not extraction. It's building."
Rowan's eyebrows knit together. "Building? Here? There's… nothing here."
"Exactly." Ethan knelt and drew a rough circle in the dust. "This territory is like a blank slate. Everything we put down shapes how it survives. Every structure, every placement, every gap affects stability, protection, and extraction efficiency."
He paused, letting the gravity of his words settle. Rowan stayed silent. That was good. Questions could come later—answers now might create hesitation.
Ethan opened the interface. The familiar, pale glow unfolded in the air before him.
Territory Management → Construction → Blueprints
He had access to Tier 0 building blueprints, the baseline structures given to all newly awakened Lords. Not impressive, but enough to start.
Shelter (Basic): Provides minimal protection, small stability boost
Supply Cache: Stores raw materials and extracted items, improves energy distribution
Fence (Basic): Marks territory boundary, slightly improves stability
All were rudimentary, but in his hands, rudimentary could become lethal.
"Blueprints don't mean structures are static," Ethan explained. "They're starting points. They can be combined, upgraded, or modified if you have the materials. That's how value grows."
He touched the Shelter blueprint. Faint holographic lines stretched into the air, hovering in 3D above the stone. It looked fragile. Almost laughable.
But Ethan saw potential.
"Rowan," he said, "pick up the Ashclaw Hide. Cut it into strips."
Rowan obeyed immediately. The loyalty thread pulsed brighter as he moved, reinforcing the link between his actions and Ethan's territory.
Ethan extracted one of the Beast Bones, slicing the ends carefully to form corner supports. Each fragment went into a rough frame.
"Notice what I'm doing," Ethan said. "The bones add rigidity. The hide strengthens the walls. Even the ground we choose affects stability. Every element counts toward the final value of the structure."
Rowan nodded, following suit. His first attempts were clumsy, but Ethan guided him quietly, making corrections only when necessary.
Minutes passed. Then hours.
By the time the skeletal frame stood upright, the territory had begun to hum faintly again. The energy was low, but enough to signal that the system acknowledged the first steps of improvement.
Stability: Unstable → Stable (Tier 1)
Ethan allowed himself a brief nod. Small progress mattered more than flashy results.
He activated the Shelter blueprint interface again, this time layering the frame with a faint grid of light. A system prompt appeared:
Upgrade Available → Energy Required: Minor
Ethan added the energy fragment from the Skulk kill, watching the interface convert it into structural reinforcement. The grid thickened. The shelter's walls glimmered faintly, no longer fragile, but durable.
"Rowan," Ethan said, "extract doesn't just give us meat or energy. It gives us potential. Every kill adds to what we can build."
Rowan's eyes widened. "So the wolves, the… thing earlier, even the Skulk—they all contributed?"
"Yes. Every interaction feeds this land. Every kill, every harvest, every loyalty action contributes to energy we can redistribute. The smarter the kill, the more usable the output."
Rowan shivered slightly. "So… we're feeding the territory… with death?"
Ethan's gaze didn't falter. "Yes. But the alternative is extinction. You can be sentimental later. For now, efficiency."
They moved on to the Supply Cache blueprint next. Ethan scavenged stone from fractured areas and combined it with extracted bone shards. Each piece was deliberately placed to minimize energy loss, maximize structural cohesion, and ensure future expansion wouldn't destabilize the territory.
Rowan watched in awe as Ethan seamlessly layered materials with the light grids of the blueprint, fusing bones, hide, and stone into a coherent unit.
Supply Cache Completed → Storage Capacity: Low → Usable for Extraction Materials
Ethan extracted meat from the wolf remains once more, then placed portions into the cache. The territory hummed faintly. Even the act of organized storage contributed to stability.
"See," Ethan said, "it's not about fighting everything. It's about shaping value. Extraction gives us resources, blueprints give us potential, and the territory multiplies both when you act correctly."
Rowan finally spoke, voice quieter, more measured. "It… it feels alive."
Ethan allowed a small smile. "It is. And it's watching. Every structure we build, every arrangement we make, every action we take—this territory responds. If we make mistakes, it punishes us. If we optimize, it rewards us."
The red sky above shifted imperceptibly. A faint vibration ran through the ground—subtle, almost like a heartbeat.
Ethan felt it resonate through the loyalty thread linking Rowan to him.
Loyalty: 69% → 72%
Progress, slow but undeniable.
He stepped back, surveying the territory. Three small but functional structures now stood: a basic shelter, a supply cache, and reinforced perimeter markers. The boundary shimmered faintly—stable, but still susceptible to sudden threats.
Ethan exhaled. The day was far from over.
"Tomorrow," he said, "we will expand the perimeter slightly. More markers, more sentries. And we'll start preparing for the next summon. One subject per day isn't much, but every addition improves extraction efficiency. More hands, more kills, more meat, more energy, more stability."
Rowan nodded, but his expression betrayed hesitation. "It… feels like it's too much. How can one person manage all of this?"
Ethan didn't answer immediately. He didn't need to. Actions spoke louder than words.
He looked out across the jagged horizon, imagining expansion paths, defensive points, and future structures. Every ridge, every fissure, every hidden pool of energy mattered. Each would contribute to the efficiency of extraction and survival.
And then he thought about the blueprint system itself—the hidden potential within the Tier 0 structures. How they could be combined, fused, or upgraded to create something far beyond the sum of their parts.
Yes, Ethan realized, he could survive. Not because he was strong, not because the Alliance favored him.
Because he understood value.
Every kill, every meal, every structure, every loyal subject. Every scrap of energy flowing through the territory.
Everything could be optimized.
And nothing would be wasted.
The Lord Dimension didn't reward hesitation.
It didn't reward power.
It rewarded understanding.
And Ethan Vale intended to master it all—starting with a single, simple blueprint.