Charles' room was practically adjacent to the kitchen. After all, this monastery that the witches used as a hiding place wasn't particularly spacious.
According to the system's data, the entire compound covered only 2,200 square meters. After allocating space for essential activities like prayer, reading, exercise, greenery, rest, cooking, and offering porridge, there wasn't much room left for the nuns to hide people.
Even the monastery's kitchen wasn't very large. The less-than-fifty-square-meter space contained only a stone stove capable of boiling large pots of barley porridge, with a stack of firewood piled behind it.
On the other side of the stove lay vegetables like turnips and potatoes that appeared somewhat wilted from prolonged storage.
The earthen walls held a few kitchen knives, ladles, several salted fish, and a massive chopping board. Beneath the kitchenware sat a jar of salt beside stacked plates - nothing more occupied the space.
The crude setup made Charles scratch his head: "There really isn't much here..."
Hattie was also a little embarrassed, after all, witches themselves had no need for food. Whether offering porridge to the poor people or feeding the people they captured, they only needed to have a bite to eat, so they didn't care about the taste.
"I could go buy some ingredients and seasonings now," she offered. "The fishermen should be returning with their catch about now - perfect timing for fresh seafood. And the general store likely remains open..."
After the armistice with the Amazons, South Harbor District's port gradually reverted to a fishing harbor. Liberl Port's strictly free-market economic strategy meant local residents received no support, surviving only through daily fishing to sustain their impoverished lives.
Though witches didn't require food, they understood local customs - essential for quietly abducting townsfolk as provisions - so Hattie knew this was prime time for purchasing fresh seafood.
Charles shook his head slightly, raising a hand to stop her. "No need. I've got a better solution."
As he spoke, under Hattie's confused gaze, he extended his finger and lightly swiped across the system screen visible only to him, reading the instructions.
The purification of Hattie had truly been fruitful—not only had he gained a witch utterly obedient to him, but he'd also earned 1,150 Purification Points.
To put it into perspective, upgrading the monastery's core building—the prayer hall—from Level 1 to Level 2 only required 1,000 Purification Points. Meanwhile, constructing ordinary Level 1 buildings—such as the kitchen, dormitory, or warehouse—cost merely 100 Purification Points each.
Thus, this windfall of over a thousand points was more than enough to significantly improve his situation.
For instance, his own attributes—despite being fifteen years old, his Strength was only 8, and his Constitution a pitiful 7. Even many children, let alone malnourished goblins, surpassed him. He had to fix that!
However, instead of spending Purification Points to directly boost his stats, he chose to unlock the Kitchen first.
The reason was simple: he'd already tested it and found that, just like in the game, directly enhancing attributes was outrageously expensive!
When attributes are below 13, increasing a single point costs 100 Purification Points. At 13 or higher, each point requires 200. Beyond 15, the cost rises to 300 per point—and even more beyond that.
The Purification Points he currently has wouldn't even cover a few upgrades!
After all, attributes are just one aspect of Strength. Even if he maxed them all beyond eighteen now, he wouldn't see an immediate boost in Strength: he still needed to acquire a class, Training Feats, and learn magic. These were the true components of combat strength—and the real Purification Points sinks!
So, he couldn't afford to waste points on enhancing attributes directly. Better to spend a hundred points first, build the Kitchen, then gradually improve his Constitution through diet and care. Maximum efficiency, minimum cost.
His body was only fifteen years old, with plenty of room left to grow. As long as he started nurturing it now, everything was still within reach!
Staring at the system window that popped up before him—"Spend 100 Purification Points to construct a Level 1 Kitchen?"—Charles didn't hesitate to click "Yes."
Then, his consciousness abruptly pulled away, as if rising high into the air, looking down upon the entire South Harbor District below.
Yet, at this moment, everything else in his vision was shrouded in darkness. Only the monastery remained bright, indistinguishable from the building interface in the game.
Clearly, according to the system's judgment, this place belonged to him. He could do whatever he wished here.
Tch, but there are still six inside, any one of them could crush me like an ant—those powerful witches. Without Hattie by my side, I wouldn't dare go anywhere…
A self-mocking laugh echoed in Charles's mind before he pushed those thoughts away, focusing on the task at hand. His fingers slide across the screen, and with each movement, a phantom image of a Kitchen constructing shifted accordingly.
This was where he chose the constructing location—exactly like in the game. He positioned the Kitchen right where he stood, overlapping perfectly with the monastery's current one, then double-tapped.
Immediately, a dialog box popped up before him:
"The selected location for the new Kitchen already contains another constructing. Identified as a standard Kitchen. Merge?"
Charles tapped "Yes" without hesitation.
The next moment, his consciousness snapped back into his body, and the scene before him returned to the interior of the Kitchen.
Then, under Hattie's stunned gaze, the entire Kitchen began glowing with a hazy white light—identical to the radiance during her Purification.
Within that glow, everything in the Kitchen transformed at blinding speed:
The crude stone stove vanished, replaced by a row of metal stoves of varying sizes.
The single kitchen knife hanging on the wall multiplied—cleavers, fillet knives, an array of kitchenware now lined up neatly by type and size.
Beneath them, containers of refined salt, oyster sauce, soy sauce, chili, hoisin, and other seasonings materialized in perfect order, ready for him to work his magic…
Charles savored Hattie's astonishment, his heart swelling with satisfaction. True, it wasn't his power but the system's—but still, he'd made an adorable witch gape in awe. That counted for something, didn't it?
Finally, the white remodel light faded.
The Kitchen was now more than twice its original size, filled with kitchenware and tableware Hattie had never seen. She stood utterly speechless.
"T-this… Master, how did you…?"
Mid-sentence, a realization struck her. She whirled around, rushing outside—only to freeze in shock.
From the exterior, the Kitchen looked unchanged. Yet inside, it had become its own separate space!
Demiplane Creation!
This was something only an 8th-level spell could achieve. Yet, the Master possessed no magic power, nor did he unleash any magic...
How did he do it?
Watching Hattie slowly walk back in shock, Charles felt equally astonished—after all, he had never seen the detailed interior of the Kitchen in the game either. But that didn't stop him from curling his lips slightly and whispering, "This… is the secret of how I can bring you happiness and a sense of security, Hattie."
Instantly, the girl's shock melted away, her smile blooming like spring itself.
She threw herself into Charles' arms, clinging to his arm, her eyes crinkling, her lips curving upward, her voice brimming with endless admiration and joy: "I get it now—the Master is omnipotent!"
Filled with deep satisfaction, Charles then turned his gaze to the stove before him, his ambition igniting: "Next, Hattie, the Master will show you what real Cooking is!"