Chapter 40: Five Days Five days had passed since the incident with the landlord. Inside his small shop, Noah stood with a deep frown etched across his face. The expression had become increasingly common, and Alissa’s worried glances followed him whenever he moved. Those five days had fallen into a routine. Wake up, head to the shop, sell bread and iced tea, train with his employees, return home. The routine had become a sanctuary. But the sanctuary was about to crumble. Host: Noah Carter Age: 28 Shops: 1 Daily Revenue: $1,400 Current Assets: $49,000.23 Shop Points: 720 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺 Attributes: Strength: 4, Vitality: 4, Intelligence: 7, Agility: 3 Skills: Swordsmanship (Level 4), Mana Control (Level 4), Programming (Level 2), Finance (Level 1), Surviving on Ramen (Level 3), Cooking (Level 2) [Host. Today is your final day in this location. Please prepare your farewell appropriately.] There it is. The hammer is finally about to fall. In those five days, Noah had accumulated wealth beyond his wildest dreams. The princess’s daily order of four iced teas brought him a steady daily income of forty golden coins. Woodrow’s consistent purchases and Valeria’s also added another nineteen gold coins daily. Fifty-nine gold coins per day for five days meant 295 gold coins. Which was $29,500 in additional income. Combined with his idle revenue of $1,400 daily over five days, his current wealth approached $50,000. From broke to wealthy in the span of days. His skills had flourished under his constant practice. Swordsmanship at Level 4 meant he could hold his own against some competent fighters, but he was still not a novice swordsman. Mana Control at Level 4 brought him incredibly close to actual spellcasting—Elara insisted he was nearly ready for novice magic. Level 5 should be the threshold for a novice mage. But none of it mattered now. His shop points stood at 720. 280 short of the 1000 needed to lock this location. The auto-makers remained stubbornly at Level 1, their progress bars mocking his efforts. [Auto-IceTea Maker: Progress 40/60] [Auto-Baker: Progress 26/60] So close. Yet so far. Today marked the end of everything he’d built here. In a few hours, the System would relocate him to some unknown world, leaving behind the relationships that had become more precious than gold. Alissa’s worried voice finally pierced his brooding. "Sir Noah... is something wrong?" ’How do I explain this? How do I tell them I’m disappearing?’ Noah’s shoulders sagged. "My shop will disappear from this place tomorrow. Don’t come to work from now on. Today is your last day." His words were like a death sentence to the three employees in front of him. "Disappear?" Kip’s voice cracked with confusion. "What do you mean by disappear?" "I don’t know how long it’ll be before I come back." Each word felt like pulling teeth. "The shop... relocates." The colour drained from Alissa’s face. Her ears flattened against her skull as she realised that they would no longer be together. "You’re... leaving us?" Damn it. The way she said it, it’s like I’m abandoning them. Tears began forming in her amber eyes, droplets that threatened to shatter Noah’s composure. Beside her, Kip’s small body trembled with barely contained emotion. Even Grix seemed to deflate like a punctured balloon. His green skin took on a sickly pallor. "Master Noah... Grix did something wrong?" ’They think it’s their fault. Of course they do.’ "No!" Noah’s response came too quickly, shaking his head. "None of you did anything wrong. This isn’t about you—it’s about the shop itself." Alissa’s composure finally cracked. Tears spilt down her furry cheeks as she pressed small hands to her face. The sight of her crying made a lump form in Noah’s throat. ’I’ve never seen her break down. Not even when she was sick and starving.’ Kip moved closer to his sister, his own eyes glistening as he wrapped thin arms around her shoulders. Their shared grief was a mirror, reflecting each other’s pain in an endless loop of loss. "We... we’ll never see you again?" Kip whispered. Noah walked to them before kneeling to their level, forcing a small smile into his expression. "Hey, listen to me. This isn’t goodbye forever." "I want you to do something for me while I’m gone." He placed gentle hands on both their shoulders. "Alissa, take Valeria up on her offer. Become her disciple. It’ll be good for you." Her head shook frantically. "I don’t want to train without you. I want to stay here and wait—" "No waiting." Noah’s voice carried gentle firmness. "You have incredible talent. Don’t waste it pining for something uncertain." He turned to Kip, whose tears were flowing freely now. "And you—take Elara’s offer. Join the Academy. Your magical talent deserves proper development." "But what if you come back and we’re not here?" Kip’s logic was heartbreaking in its simplicity. "Then I will come and find you, where you’ll be stronger. Better. Ready for whatever comes next." Noah’s throat constricted around the words. "That’s what I want—for you to grow beyond what you think possible. Kip, you need to grow stronger for your sister, okay? The demons are closing in on the kingdom, and you need to have enough strength." His gaze shifted to Grix, whose large eyes were fixed on the ceiling. "As for you, Grix..." Noah scratched the back of his head. What do I tell him? He hasn’t shown talent in anything specific. "Grix should go with Alissa. See if you can help somewhere in Valeria’s guild. I’m sure you are an amazing alchemist." Maybe he’ll find his niche there. Maybe they all will. Grix nodded slowly, though his expression remained hollow. "Grix understands. Will... will Master Noah remember us?" Master Noah. Even now, he won’t drop the title. "Every day." The promise came without thought. "Every single day." The shop fell silent except for quiet sniffling and the distant sounds of Esta’s afternoon bustle. Four beings bound by circumstance and genuine affection, facing separation neither wanted nor could prevent.