Location: Liria – Day 85 in Atheria
The sound of the wind had changed.
It no longer carried silence. Now, it brought footsteps. Soft. Hesitant. Curious.
The first craftsman arrived at sunrise.
Not a noble.
Not a merchant.
Just a tired elf with soot-stained hands, pushing a wooden cart of enchanted pottery.
"I heard there's a place where money's not needed," he said, voice low, "but respect is."
Jiwoo offered him water, then a chair.
"You've heard right," he said simply. "You're welcome to rest. Trade, if you'd like. But mostly, breathe."
The elf bowed, then cried silently behind his straw hat.
---
Others Followed
A blind bard arrived next—guided by a wind fox.
He played songs in exchange for tea and quiet companionship.
Then came a young golem crafter, seeking soil untouched by mana corruption.
A week later, two sisters with elemental tattoos arrived, barefoot and sun-burnt. They brought rare seeds from dying forests.
All of them said the same thing:
> "We don't want war.
We just want a place that doesn't ask us to be something else."
Liria offered them not gold…
…but space.
---
Liria's Peace Protocol
Inside Jiwoo's system console, new options unlocked:
> [Liria Peace System – Now Active]
[Guest Management Settings: Open Entry, Quiet Vetting]
[Magical Scanning Radius: 50 km]
[Hidden Protection Barrier: Operational (Soft Mode)]
The protective field around the valley grew—gently repelling aggressive intentions without alerting travelers.
It didn't hurt.
It simply made anyone with dark thoughts forget the road to Liria even existed.
Peace, by design.
---
A Meeting by the Tree
Under the blooming lantern tree, Jiwoo met with the original eight companions.
Baek was the first to speak.
"So… do we keep letting people in?"
"Slowly," Jiwoo said. "If they seek peace—not profit, not control—then yes."
Mirae added, "What about work? Housing? Roads?"
"Funded," Jiwoo answered.
> [Daily Expense Today: 91 million gold]
[Current Treasury: 999 centillion minus 0.00000002%]
Everyone chuckled.
"Alright," Jihae said. "Then let's start designing."
---
A Town Without Owners
There were no districts.
No assigned homes.
Instead, Liria grew like a garden.
Each new arrival was gently guided by Sena or Yoori to land that suited them—earth that matched their mana, comfort, and personality.
One man built his home in a circle of glowing mushrooms.
Another carved a spiraling tower from a tree stump—inviting birds to nest in every window.
The girl from earlier—the orphan—now spent her days painting glowing tiles along the valley's central paths. She never spoke. But she smiled more often.
---
The Spirits Come
On Day 88, the wind shimmered.
Jiwoo looked up from his notes and saw them—shapes like glowing deer, silver birds, and foxes made of cloudlight—watching from the hilltops.
Spirits.
Nature's ancient watchers.
Drawn by what Jiwoo had always wished for as a child:
> A place without fear.
A life without running.
A world that didn't demand a crown, a sword, or a side.
He walked slowly to the nearest one—a deer made of river mist and moonlight.
It stared at him.
Then bowed.
---
The Pact of Harmony
The system spoke.
> [Aetheric Pact Request: Local Spirits]
[Terms: Shared Peace | Magical Synergy | Nature Preservation]
[Cost: 1 trillion gold coin seed donation – Auto Approved]
Jiwoo accepted.
A surge of warmth passed through the valley. Flowers bloomed without planting. The stream sparkled with natural mana. Even the stone walkways became smoother.
And new residents noticed.
But no one felt overwhelmed.
Liria wasn't changing.
It was awakening.
---
At Night – By the Floating Lake
That evening, Jiwoo sat alone at the crystal lake Solace had shaped three days ago.
He opened his system console.
> [Population: 34]
[Peace Index: 99.8%]
[External Monitoring Level: 6.3%]
[Nearby Nations: Curious, Not Threatened]
The peace was holding.
But so was the attention.
The world was beginning to notice.
---
Eunsol Joins Him
She sat beside him, holding a plate of steaming dumplings.
"I think you've done it," she said.
Jiwoo chuckled. "Not yet."
"You built a city without taxes. A kingdom without a flag. A village where the system is invisible, but always helping."
She leaned against him.
"You made peace a structure."
He looked at her.
And smiled.
"Peace is the strongest foundation I have."
---
Ending Note
As the stars came out, a warm breeze moved through Liria. The spirits hummed softly, residents lit lanterns, and music drifted from a bard's home near the ridge.
And at the very center, under a tree glowing with lantern petals, Jiwoo whispered:
"We're just getting started."
> [System Notice: Kingdom Tier – Upgraded to Level 2: Known Sanctuary]
[World Curiosity: 9.1%]
[Foreign Envoys: None Yet | Threats: 0 | Intrigue Level: Low]
[Balance Holding Steady | Wealth: Immeasurable | Peace: True]
---