Hanseong Marquis's Mansion
I couldn't build a fertilizer factory in the area clustered with food production buildings, so I constructed a livestock barn instead. It cost a total of 180P to upgrade it to LV.3, and I selected sirloin for floors 4 and 5.
I called in Lee Kyung-min, the only remaining executive in Nakyuan, and had him get the residents to move the meat produced in the factory.
"A fertilizer factory..."
It was an unexpected building to unlock. Farming wasn't necessary in Nakyuan. From the start, the vending machines dispensed fully harvested and processed crops, so there was no need to grow them. The residents had once requested to farm on empty lots, and I'd given it serious thought for a moment, but since I didn't know when I'd need that land, I rejected the idea. The extent of "farming" was just cherry tomatoes or leafy greens in pots at each house.
"Where to build this..."
After some deliberation, I decided the first fertilizer factory would go in 'South Zone 4'. I paid 50P and restored it immediately.
Fertilizer Factory
The building glowed with light and transformed into a two-story concrete structure. With no executives around, I had to check it out alone. The residents watched the new building with great interest.
Screeech
"Ah..."
As I opened the door and stepped into the fertilizer factory, information flooded into my mind.
"So that's what it is."
The interior of the LV.1 fertilizer factory consisted of two floors: ten vending machines on the first floor and ten on the second, for a total of twenty. All twenty machines, labeled 10/10, produced the same product.
Thud
When I pressed the button, a gray sack fell into the basket, simply marked '30KG'. I opened one, and it was filled with odorless, black soil-like substance.
"It's more like soil than fertilizer..."
From the incoming information, I knew how to use it. Mixed with regular soil, it acted as fertilizer to enrich it. Or, since it had the same texture as soil, seeds could be planted directly in it. The higher the proportion of this fertilizer, the faster plants grew and the higher the yield. But it only gave that much info—no specifics on growth speed or health. I'd have to experiment.
I went around floors 1 and 2, shipping out all the produced fertilizer. For now, I planned to fill the pots with this soil and grow some crops. It felt like it was blatantly meant for use outside the barrier, not inside. I'd stockpile a ton until spring and spread it on the union's land before full-scale farming began.
"A communal farm sounds good too."
Over half of Seoul's land was idle anyway. If this fertilizer proved effective, I could claim any plot, hire the poor with nowhere to go, and run farms. It might drastically boost the population support capacity outside the barrier.
"Feels weird doing it alone..."
Without the executives giving their enthusiastic reactions behind me whenever I built something new, it felt empty.
Next up was 'Palace'. No real sense of it. The most intuitive name, but the vaguest function.
Points in Possession: 942P
"Spends in a flash..."
It guzzled 230P in an instant. Back when we had spare points and could wait leisurely, but as the faction grew and more people depended on me, I got anxious about point income. That's why I sent out point-farming expeditions—something I never would've done before.
For now, I decided to build the palace in 'North Zone 4', four zones north of the Governor's Residence.
"Restore."
Whoooosh
Palace
"Oh, this is a bit..."
Requires 9 zones (Construction limit: 1)
"Should've warned me about this earlier..."
Building the palace required a whopping 3x3 grid of nine zones. And only one palace allowed. Restoration alone demanded 50P per zone, totaling 450P.
"Haa..."
I returned to the Governor's Residence for now. I had to build it, but 450P and nine zones felt excessive. Plenty of empty zones left, and conquering would expand the barrier anyway—but still, 450P was huge. Was it worth it? I had to build to unlock the next tech tree, probably. The executives would return tomorrow, so I'd do it then.
"Everyone's here."
"Yes."
After welcoming back the executives from their expedition that morning, I let them rest at the spa and gathered them around 5 PM. They were shocked when I showed them the fertilizer factory right away. All agreed it must produce absurdly efficient fertilizer. We had residents mix it with regular soil to observe changes over a few days.
I explained the newly unlocked palace too, and they showed great interest.
"Shall we build it then?"
"Yes!"
"I want to see!"
"Your Excellency, we're looking forward to it."
Centering on the already restored 'North Zone 4', I restored the remaining eight zones in a 3x3 grid.
Points in Possession: 542P
It hurt, but no choice.
"Have a seat."
Han Byeol placed a chair in front of me as she said it.
"Yeah, thanks."
All buildings unlocked so far took one zone, but the palace demanded nine. Expecting massive info, I placed a chair in front of the site and sat. Steadying my breath, I said,
"Palace."
Whoooosh
Like when the old Governor's Residence upgraded, the nine zones blazed with intense light. No—brighter and bigger than before.
"This is too bright."
The executives, despite seeing this many times, sensed something off. Han Seol, Han Byeol, Han Eun-ji, and Im Jui surrounded me tensely, eyes scanning everywhere. The light was so strong, all I saw was white. Then it gradually faded.
"Wow!"
"Ha!"
"No way..."
"It's so tall..."
"Pretty."
Not just the executives—all residents cheered at the palace. Even I was speechless. An enormous eight-story building filled the nine zones completely.
"Didn't expect this size... Design's Western-style."
Everyone gawked. Glancing aside, an architect resident stood beside me, staring.
"What do you think?"
The architect, lost in it, replied,
"Ah, Your Excellency. It's like Buckingham Palace plopped right here."
"Buckingham Palace? The British one?"
"Yes."
Never seen it, but I'd heard of it. I'd hoped for Eastern style, so a bit disappointed.
"Well... Eastern wouldn't stack this high."
Made of beautiful white stone—marble or similar—with ornate columns carved like ancient temple motifs spaced evenly.
"Shall we go in?"
"Yes."
No real info came. Had to enter to know. From outside, it was so grand and beautiful, it'd be Nakyuan's landmark.
A black wooden sign hung over the massive main gate.
"Funny. Western palace with a Chinese character signboard."
漢城侯府
The sign read 'Hanseong Marquis's Mansion' in large gold Chinese characters.
Screeech
As I stepped inside, info flooded my mind.
"Ah..."
I staggered slightly; Jeong Su-hwan caught me.
"Are you alright, sir?!"
"Yeah, fine."
The interior was luxuriously over-the-top: walls, floors, columns in white marble. Red carpet with gold thread, high-end furniture and candelabras everywhere. Sofas like fine leather lined the halls. Even elevators.
"Is that gold...?"
The ceiling was white marble gold-plated. Fit for a king. I sat on a hall sofa to sort the info.
"Do-hyun?"
Seeing Han Seol's worried eyes, I said,
"Yeah? Ah... let's look around together."
From the info, I grasped the layout roughly. Infinite water and power, extreme opulence aside, it was a normal palace. No major functions. First floor: meeting rooms, offices, bathrooms in a row. Water coolers, fridges, microwaves, printers—all conveniences.
The real draw wasn't the flashiness. It was the unlocked abilities.
Food Fief (食邑)
The moment I entered, the new 'Food Fief' ability granted 500P. From this moment, 500P every month at this time. Combined with the existing 200P monthly, that's 700P free per month. The 450P spent building it was already recouped. Worth it for this alone.
And one more ability unlocked.
Direct Territory (直轄領) Creation: 2000P
"Insanely expensive."
Even so, an enormous power. Lets create new 3x3 nine-zone barriers like Namsan, Hoeseong, Guryongju, Daemojo. Not free, of course.
Can't just plop anywhere—only where my influence reaches a certain level. No exact metric, so experimentation needed.
"Jackpot!"
One room—guest reception?—had walls fully gem-encrusted. Everyone but me was overwhelmed by the splendor, gasping nonstop.
"What do you think?"
"Amazing..."
"Let's check the next floor."
"There's a basement too."
"Really?"
Basement: two levels, basic storage. Good for documents.
Second floor: dining and kitchen. Fully equipped with cookware, fridges, freezers, ovens—far fancier than the Governor's Residence kitchen. Guests could eat here from now on.
Third: personal office with luxe bathroom attached, plus piano and music gear. Perfect guest suite for VIPs.
Floors 4-5: cross-shaped hall with four big doors each. Each led to a lavish house: five bedrooms, two baths.
"This is a room? Huge."
"Yeah..."
Each room over 20 pyeong. So eight houses on 4-5.
Sixth: typical offices.
Seventh: entire floor one house. Entrance sign: 'Crown Prince Palace'. Executives got it.
If—hypothetically—I had an heir, they'd stay here.
Eighth: also one massive house. Chaebol-level: 12 bedrooms, 5 baths, huge kitchen. Every room had TV, PC, bed, bathroom—everything. Seemed for me. Balcony with sauna and pool, bedroom fit for a king. A bit excessive. I could move the old Governor's Residence family here.
Not fussed about layout. Only the unlocked functions mattered. Leaving the palace, I told the executives,
"From today, use this as another Governor's Residence too. Close to the old one, so we can go between. Name it temporarily: my old one's South Palace, this North Palace."
"Yes, Your Excellency."
Flashy but hollow. Workshops, enhancement rooms, drone rooms, command center, server room—all prime facilities clustered in South Palace.
"Any executives who want to live here, bring family and take any room on 4-5."
"Thank you, Your Excellency!"
"Thank you!"
On the way back to now-renamed South Palace, Han Seol asked,
"Do-hyun."
"Yeah?"
"Didn't like that place?"
Han Byeol noticed my lukewarm reaction amid everyone's awe.
"Not sure. Just... the building itself isn't practical."
The abilities were great, but I'm not into flashiness, so the structure did nothing for me.
Han Seol smiled mischievously, whispering in my ear,
"Wanna sleep in the North Palace bedroom with us tonight?"
I stopped, pondered, then replied,
"Suddenly love the palace."
She giggled.
"But 'us'?"
"Yeah, me, Byeol, and Jui."
"Jui... coming?"
Han Seol glanced around, whispering again,
"Secret... but Jui suggested it first."
"..."
"She said she'd drink and come, so don't worry."
"Already worried."
Never dreamed I'd casually have such spicy talks. And Jui seemed to be veering weirdly.
"Jui better not turn into an alcoholic."