The First Floor and the Secretary Rotation System

Each of Novas Aetir's seven floors had its own dining hall.

They specialized in Chinese, Japanese, French, and Turkish cuisine, as well as snacks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, and creative dishes.

Of course, as the supreme ruler, Higashino Makoto naturally had his own specially supplied private kitchen, staffed primarily by a Level 70 summon whose main class was Chef, ready to serve at any moment.

However, Higashino Makoto did not choose the private kitchen. Instead, he planned to visit one restaurant each day and sample every restaurant before deciding anything.

He had actually considered using one of the twenty-four NPC slots to create someone with classes such as Chef or Maid.

But after giving it some thought, he decided against it.

The main advantage of the Chef class was that its food could grant buffs. There probably was not much difference in taste, right?

Besides, several NPCs had been set as the Doppelganger race and had copied some life-skill players, which was much more cost-effective.

He had to thank his previous profession. As a member of a game company, he could easily obtain player information; otherwise, finding suitable life-skill players to copy within such a short time would have been quite troublesome.

Unfortunately, three days had still been too short. Higashino Makoto had only set up rough outlines for many things, while the details had been planned by rented AI. He was only responsible for copying the answers.

Speaking of AI, Higashino Makoto had originally thought it would cross over with him, but apparently it had not?

He felt somewhat regretful.

His memory had never been particularly good, so having AI assistance would have been quite nice.

Something was not quite right. As its ruler, Higashino Makoto actually did not know much about the Novas Aetir he ruled.

"For now, there's no need to teleport. Let's walk."

In order to learn more about Novas Aetir, Higashino Makoto planned to start from the first floor and stroll toward the restaurant on the seventh floor.

The first floor was called "Platinum Triumph" and was responsible for outer reception and aerial defense.

It was a vast white-stone plaza above a sea of clouds, filled with anti-air magic ballistae and anti-gravity traps.

At the center of the plaza stood the "Gate of Scales," which allowed entry only to those who had been "weighed."

Its primary functions included asserting sovereignty, serving as the first aerial line of defense, receiving foreign envoys, and more.

The guardian monsters of this floor were mainly flying griffins.

The griffins were not solitary creatures, but a griffin pride with a strict military hierarchy.

Their leader was the Silver-Maned Griffin King, above Level 90 and obtained through spending money. It could command thunderbirds and angels within the clouds to assist in defense.

Their usual tactics involved tearing invaders apart with high-speed dives and wind magic. They excelled at group combat and airspace blockades.

As highly mobile monsters sensitive to magical detection, every griffin would detonate upon death, turning its feathers into a rain of steel that inflicted massive damage.

With guardian monsters capable of flight, paired with a large number of spells that removed an enemy's "Flight," gravity magic, and magic ballistae, 99.9 percent of enemies would die on the spot before even setting foot on Novas Aetir.

As the face of Novas Aetir, this floor was the one Higashino Makoto had invested the most thought and money into, aside from the seventh floor.

Before he had walked very far, the enormous Silver-Maned Griffin King descended before Higashino Makoto amid a violent gale.

If Higashino Makoto had not possessed the resistances of a high-level player, an ordinary person might have been blown away by the wind.

The massive griffin opened its mouth, and a deafening male voice, almost like a roar, emerged from within.

"Welcome, great Supreme One, to the first floor! Your loyal servant greets you!"

Although he had not suffered any damage, he still habitually dug at his ears.

Looking at the enormous cat sprawled before him, along with the many monsters that had descended with it, Higashino Makoto waved helplessly.

"Very good. You detected my presence the instant I appeared. If there were enemies, I imagine they would be unable to escape your claws and fangs either."

"Excellent. I am very satisfied. I have felt your loyalty."

Putting aside everything else, he would say the nice words first.

According to their settings, no matter how he treated them, their loyalty would not be affected.

Still, as a leader, it cost him nothing to offer a few compliments. It might even improve the guild's cohesion somewhat.

He stepped forward, patted the griffin's soft fur, and continued.

"However, you bear the vital responsibility of Novas Aetir's first line of defense. Go patrol first. I have faith in you."

"Do not worry about me for now. I trust in Novas Aetir's security. If anything comes up, I will seek you out myself."

Higashino Makoto waved, then headed toward the center of the plaza.

"Yes! We shall certainly not fail the great Supreme One's trust!"

"We will never allow a single enemy the chance to set foot upon great Novas Aetir!"

As it spoke, the Griffin King rose to its feet and spread its wings.

Nearly five meters tall, with an enormous wingspan close to twenty meters, it exuded an immense sense of oppression.

It made Higashino Makoto feel that his money had not been wasted!

"Then I shall take my leave. Should you require anything, simply command any griffin, and it will be able to contact me immediately."

"Any command at all! Even if I must stake my life, I will see it fulfilled for you!"

With that, the many monsters took off from where they stood and resumed their patrol.

"Himejima Akeno—let me go—the great Supreme Being has descended to the First Floor. As a guardian, I have a duty to go pay my respects!"

On the First Floor, within the Guardians' Palace, a woman with pure white wings at her waist and a halo above her head spread her wings and flew toward where Higashino Makoto was.

However, one of her bare white feet was being held by another curvaceous girl with a black ponytail, leaving her to flap helplessly in place.

"Jibril, stop being childish. Are you planning to break the agreement between us guardians?"

"Other than the 'secretary,' no guardian is allowed to leave their own floor without an important situation or an order from the Supreme Being, much less take the initiative to seek out Lord Amon Nicholas."

"We have a 'secretary rotation system.' Every guardian gets to have the Supreme Being to herself for one month while on duty. In exchange, no one is allowed to disturb the secretary's private time with the Supreme Being for the rest of the time."

"Whoever breaks the rules must compensate the other party with her next term as secretary."

After saying that, Himejima Akeno released Jibril and stared straight at her.

Only after Jibril guiltily turned her head away did she continue.

"You'd better think carefully about the consequences. When Gokusai Kaibi takes away your month of divine favor, Little Tina and I won't be taking your side."

Hearing that, Jibril imagined every guardian receiving divine favor while she alone was left out. She seemed to lose all strength and collapsed onto the table.

Two exaggerated streams of tears fell from her eyes, nearly soaking the documents on the table.

"Waaah—okay, I get it—"

Himejima Akeno shook her head helplessly.

"Stop fooling around. Construction on the First Floor is still far from complete."

"The Supreme Being entrusted us with the duty of guarding and building this place, so we must do our very best!"

"Yes—"

"Oh, right, Akeno, Tina."

"What is it?"

"If Lord Amon wants to *P when you're serving as secretary, remember to call me. Don't look for anyone else."

"Have you no shame!"