Leo logged out from the game but still remained in his gaming capsule. The capsule itself works similar to a computer and he could take care of everything he needed without leaving it. The browser inside the capsule was far more secure compared to a normal browser, but Leo was mostly using it for peace of mind. He had no plans of going into hiding and covering his tracks was a waste of time. His only goal was to slightly delay the time it would take someone to find him in order to set up the security system at his new home.

Leo began by searching the housing market to understand his options. He had a few specific criteria for his new home, for one it had to be in a public place, preferably with 24/7 activity. If someone wanted to get to him, he at least wanted to make it difficult for them to go unnoticed. If Windblade truly wanted him dead, it wouldn’t matter where he moved to; Leo simply wanted to ensure that any trouble they might cause would at the very least become public.

There were surprisingly few options suiting his needs. He wanted to live in the middle of the city, which significantly raised the price of even the simplest of homes. Leo went through page after page of listings and picked out seven candidates.

The first six were large apartments in different high-rise buildings, any of them would be fine but Leo fixated on the seventh option; it was a three-story building close to the city center. The description said it used to be an office building but the previous owner went bankrupt. The price was $5,000,000 upfront and $2,000,000 per year afterward with the first year included in the upfront payment.

Leo began thinking about his options. If he bought the three-story building, he would be able to convert it into both an apartment and an office. Right now, Leo relies too much on Legacy and Moonlight for his in-game activity. If he created his own workshop, he would be able to use it without restrictions. Take his potion reselling business for example. Right now he’s relying on Alex and Moonlight to keep it running while he’s out leveling. The bonus experience made them settle for only 5% but once players use up their extra EXP, Moonlight will demand a higher cut.

He could probably force them to settle for 5% or choose another partner, but creating his own workshop would solve many of his problems. Had the potion operation been his only plan, then creating a workshop would indeed be pointless. Leo’s goal in the game would be easier to achieve with a dedicated network and players he can truly rely on. He trusts Alex, Snow and the others but acknowledges that certain things should be kept secret.

Take his involvement with Shadow and Windblade for example. If he told Alex, he would probably force Leo into hiding until the conflict is resolved. That’s just the kind of person Alex is. Although Leo appreciates Alex’s thoughtfulness, he’s no longer the Leo he used to be. 15 years of administrating a top tier guild have helped him understand the world better. Leo still has many things to figure out but resolving this type of conflict is no longer one of them.

Leo was slightly nervous about the social aspect of starting a workshop but decided to do it anyway. He believed that thinking of it as a business would make the process easier. The first thing he needs to do is to hire someone to take care of the social management part. Leo had come a long way when it came to his social abilities, but he still felt like having someone to rely on would be helpful. This would avoid situations where his employees remain unsatisfied for prolonged amounts of time. His standards are simply too high for any current player and he knows it.

Leo began by renting the building and quickly headed towards it after signing the contract. The listing had several pictures but he felt that seeing the layout would make it easier when deciding what goes where. The building was one hour away by car.

He walked out of the car and paid for the ride. In front of him was his new home. The building was fairly ordinary from the outside with a box-like appearance and far too many windows. Leo noted the window problem and decided to have them switched out with bullet-resistant glass with a tint.

Leo walked through the main entrance and looked around the first floor. The room was fairly large and would allow him to fit around 100 people while still having space left over. His plan, for now, was to hire 25 people and expand when needed. They would mostly be used for information gathering and various small tasks such as selling potions and running dungeons. Leo’s plans required quality over quantity and he would need to invest a lot of time in each player to make them capable of handling difficult tasks.

He planned to create a clan, which is similar to a guild but on a much smaller scale. A clan usually has anywhere from 2 to 100 players and mostly operate like a dedicated party. They can buy a residence to serve as a base, but its size and functionality is different from a guild. Creating a clan has certain gameplay advantages like special quests, a residence with special rooms and the option to create an internal codex.

The last part is especially important to Leo. A codex is like a wiki where a player or group of players can add information in an organized way. Every guild and clan have their own codex with varying degrees of access for their members.

Leo inspected the electrical layout and found it to be adequate for his needs. The building had proper internet access but Leo wanted to add a few extra security measures to it. The security system for the building was inadequate and Leo would need to invest in a full upgrade.

He proceeded to the second floor and thought about how to use it. Leo decided on splitting it in two and have one part dedicated to the workshop and the other be a gym. The gym part was mostly for himself. Players can benefit from having a trained body due to certain techniques in real life directly applying in the game. This is, however, not a requirement. People who have trained in martial arts have an advantage in-game, but that’s only because they are more familiar with how the combat works. A player does not have to be physically fit or a trained fighter to be high ranked in the game. It’s similar to how using an advanced flight simulator will make it easier to learn how to fly a plane, but it’s not enough to actually complete a full flight.

The third floor would become his living quarters and Leo did not need to change much regarding the layout. He organized the information in his head and create a mental priority list. The most important thing right now is to have his gaming capsule transferred over, security set up and the workshop built.

Leo began by contacting several firms dealing with building-related matters and had them complete the minimum required work immediately. He didn’t want to use too much time away from the game and most of the building work can be completed while he’s in the game. He then ordered 25 gaming capsules and had them installed on the first floor. The workshop employees would spend most of their time in the game so having electricians, architects, builders, etc. walk around all day wouldn’t be troublesome. The capsule has its own power source capable of supporting up to a week without additional power.

Leo contacted a hiring firm and had them put out a job listing. The job listings were mostly similar to each other with a few specialized positions mixed in. Leo set very specific criteria for the management job as he needed someone capable of making up for his shortcomings.

He spent the next three days creating the framework for the workshop and securing the building. Leo did not sleep or go back to the game and spent all his time focused on his tasks. The game wasn’t a sprint but a marathon. Taking a few days off wouldn’t impact him significantly, in fact, it would actually benefit him. Prices for items and equipment drop when the playerbase levels up, making it cheaper for him to upgrade his own gear.

With the hiring process completed and the minimum required equipment set up, Leo could finally afford to take some time to think. He needed to create a roadmap for the future and organize himself.

Leo began by mapping out the obvious details first. He first needed to level up and upgrade his gear. This would mostly be completed by itself and he didn’t need to worry too much about it. The second thing he needed to do was complete his questline. This was again something slightly outside of his control and he would have to adapt to the situations as it happens.

Leo needed to figure out how his creation skill works. He had only scratched the surface of the skill and wanted to take some time to truly understand it. The market should now be filled with low-quality equipment for him to experiment with.

He also needed to start hunting achievements and titles. Both achievements and titles give permanent bonuses to a player. Leo wanted to take some time to scout the forums and figure out how many of them had been made public. He also wanted to get his workshop ready to hunt first and fastest clears of dungeons.

Leo sat down in a chair and began thinking about his past life. He had almost no knowledge about why he was fired or why he was murdered. It was highly unlikely that the two events were unrelated, but he couldn’t automatically ignore the possibility that they were. It’s important to understand that correlation is not the same as causation.

He could sum up the events into three parts, his death, firing, and the Saint Trials. The probability that they were all unrelated is very low but not impossible. Leo could think of several companies that would want him gone from Elecur but none that would murder him after his dismissal from the company. It could have been really bad timing but it’s unlikely.

Information about the Saint Trials was also something he didn’t know. As far as he knew, nothing about the trial or its rewards were made public. Leo had nothing to go on. He decided that the best course of action would be to have Shadow investigate Elecur in this world and hopefully find something he can use. His past world and this one seemed to be mostly similar so it stands to reason that he should be able to use that to his advantage.

Leo had nothing left to do right now and decided to go back to the game. He had already arranged most of the initial details with Mike, the newly hired manager for his workshop, Umbra. Mike was tasked with organizing the other members and Leo would meet them in-game in a few hours.