I rarely paid any mind to what I cooked.
Yet, after Licia praised me so much, I decided to blow her away with dinner.
It took me a little longer, but her reaction made it all worth it.
Licia: "Delicious! Why is it that the vegetables in your world are sooo good?!"
She brought a hand to her cheek, her eyes closed, while her head slightly swayed from side to side.
Even though the quality of the ingredients helped, seeing how much she appreciated it made me quietly clench my fists under the table.
I was so satisfied, I thought the gachas couldn't hurt me anymore.
However, before trying my luck, I claimed the 5 [Kingdom Points] from my level 3 and Licia's level 2.
Miwen: "I have enough points to buy you another change of clothes through my Gift, so be sure to select some, okay?"
Licia: "Mhm... That's fine, but are you sure you should use your Gift for something like this every time?"
I could see a strategy emerging that would let me synergize the [Kingdom] and [Gacha] aspects of my Gift through the [Companions Banner].
However, that didn't mean much, as the [Kingdom] didn't have a way to strengthen me directly.
Even when considering comfort, the best it could offer was a house, but the one I had was already plenty.
Despite being rented. By my parents.
In any case, I wanted to explore the Kingdom and see what I could do there. I was especially interested in expanding it to see if that would unlock something new or cause something to change.
However, that could have bad consequences, and the excuse Licia and I had about building her wardrobe was worth much more to me.
Though if there was one thing about the Kingdom I couldn't wait to check, it was Licia's [Citizen] profile.
I feared there might be some unpleasant information she wouldn't want me to know, but I needed to know if there was any difference between my profile and hers.
Still, breaching her privacy was a no-go...
Miwen: "Licia, do you mind me checking your profile as a [Citizen]? It might give me a new insight about my own Gift and..."
Licia: "Sure... But... Share with me what you see, please... I don't want to be left in the dark..."
Even though she readily agreed, I knew that pace of speaking already.
She was hesitant.
And yet, she made an extremely fair request.
Even if I found something weird in her profile, she could have a reasonable explanation for it.
Having agreed with her terms, I checked the list of current [Citizens] and focused on her name.
I confirmed she had used her level-up point to improve her speed, and that her Gift boosted her strength and mana pool, just like she'd told me before.
However, I found something quite unexpected in her profile.
Below her stats, I could see a [Loyalty] button.
After I focused on it, a sliding bar replaced her profile.
The bar had a red end on the left that slowly faded into a green end on the right.
There was also a black marker on top of the bar. In Licia's case, the marker seemed fixed between the start and the end of the green end.
I assumed green was good and red was bad, so it relieved me to see that she was around 70, maybe 75% loyal.
This hidden mechanic that my Gift just never mentioned was also quite helpful if I ever decided to invest in the [Kingdom] through the [Companions Banner] or recruiting more citizens another way, since so far, there didn't seem to be any way to increase loyalty without building trust.
While I had no metric to know exactly what this meant for our relationship, I felt that, as long as I didn't get her on red, I wouldn't need to worry about trusting my back to her.
Another interesting thing I found in her profile was the [Desires] menu, sitting further below the [Loyalty] menu.
Licia blushed the moment I read it out loud, and asked me not to peek, desperately waving her hands in front of me to hide the system screens from my view.
It was impossible to resist it when she begged me with an embarassed voice, and yet, I did it anyway.
I thought just a quick glance wouldn't mean much, until I saw "Hide" written in there.
Judging by her face, I figured the [Desire] was what she wanted the most in that moment, rather than a long-term objective or dream.
To really understand a citizen through it, I'd have to check it multiple times a day, so...
A little underwhelming, but it was useful nonetheless.
After that, I checked her skills, hoping to lift her mood a little by reminding her how great she was.
There, I discovered a game changer that enticed me to get as many [Citizens] as I could.
In her skills tab, I found a "Share" button.
I knew this button didn't exist on my profile the last time I checked it, but just to be sure, I went back to confirm, and sure enough...
The button was there.
Once I focused on the button, a list of my registered [Citizens] appeared.
After selecting her entry, Licia's skills and their levels appeared right next to mine.
I could select mine, but not hers, and, unsure of what would happen, I tried testing it with a useless skill first.
Licia: "Don't worry, I'm also curious, so... on with it!"
For some reason, she seemed more excited than I, going as far as to grab my arm.
After selecting [Faster Tree Climbing], a pop-up appeared, asking if I was sure about sharing this skill with Licia.
Hearing me read it out loud, she quickly nodded her head.
Miwen: "Can you check your skills real quick?"
Licia: "Sure!"
Her eyes darted around incredibly fast.
Licia: "Oh, hey! There it is!"
Miwen: "Let me guess, you got a new skill?"
Licia: "Yes! It allows me to... well... climb trees faster."
Even though I couldn't see her system's menus, I could tell she blinked once at the skill title, and twice at the skill description.
Her voice also grew increasingly monotone as she read it.
Miwen: "I see, well, be careful, alright? With great power comes great responsibility."
Licia: "...?"
Even though it was such an easy reference, she tilted her head, and it stung, and I decided we'd spend some quality time watching movies whenever we had the time.
Miwen: "...Strange. I didn't lose a level. Did it just duplicate?"
Licia: "Seems like it. Can you do it again?"
Miwen: "Let me check."
Unfortunately, I couldn't select [Faster Tree Climbing] to share with her.
However, my Gift didn't tell me whether that was because this mechanic was a one-time thing, or because we had the same skill level, or something else entirely.
I could still select the other skills, though.
Licia: "Now try the reverse! Share one of mine!"
She looked like a kid getting a new toy, her curiosity quickly overtaking her disappointment over [Faster Tree Climbing].
I wasn't much different, though.
All of Licia's skills were pretty good, to the point that [Faster Tree Climbing] looked like a stain on her record.
However, the ones that interested me the most were [Mana Control] and [Swordsmanship].
Most successful adventurers had one of the two, or both, and everyone vouched for them as cornerstones for most builds.
Since I had no [Available Skills] to unlock, this was a golden chance.
Just like [Faster Tree Climbing], both skills only cost 1 [Kingdom Point] to share.
Even though she was happy to share with me, when I told her which skills I had gotten from her, Licia pouted and turned her face away, letting go of my arms.
Licia: "I never said you could take two."
She crossed her arms, staring at me from the corner of her eyes.
Miwen: "Uh... My bad? I could give you one of mine if you want?"
That should make us even-
Licia: "No fair."
Somehow, she pouted harder.
Miwen: "Hm? Why not?"
Licia: "The first one was a test, so it doesn't count."
She raised her index finger, pointing it to the sky like a teacher giving a lecture.
Licia: "Also... [Faster Tree Climbing]? Even if I was fighting an ent, I don't think this would be useful at all."
Then, she revealed her true feelings.
It was the first time she made a selfish request of me, so oddly enough, I felt a little happy about it.
Besides, I had planned to spend all 5 [Kingdom Points] on her anyway.
Miwen: "Fine, you win. What do you want then?"
Licia: "Hehehe~"
She looked like a villain, excitedly rubbing her hands.
A very cute villain, though.
Licia: "You're so kind, aren't you? Let's see...."
She sat on the sofa, carefully analyzing her options.
Licia: "I want... [Movement Speed Up] and [Enhanced Drop Chance]."
She seemed to be having a blast.
Miwen: "Why the [Enhanced Drop Chance]? I thought for sure you'd take [Physical Prowess]."
Licia: " [Physical Prowess] costs mana. Right now, I'd rather use what I have available on [Ice Magic]."
After what happened today, that felt like a smart idea.
She was pretty comfortable with her [Ice Magic], after all.
Licia: "Also, [Enhanced Drop Chance] will give us a big advantage."
That one surprised me.
I was sure I was the only one who thought about that.
Miwen: "It's the area of effect, right?"
Licia: "E-x-a-c-t-l-y."
Seeing how we were on the same wavelength made her brim with a smile.
Licia: "If we both boost the same area, the effects will increase, and drops will be even more common."
I thought about this the moment I confirmed [Faster Tree Climbing] hadn't disappeared from my own skill list.
Even though it'd probably still take a while for us to make enough to live, doing this should help us get there faster.
If she hadn't asked for this skill, I'd have given her sooner rather than later anyway.
Still, the most interesting thing for me was discovering that [Gacha Kingdom Building] was hiding plenty of useful things from me.
With how [Kingdom Points] went from the most useless currency to the biggest asset, it really felt like I'd have to explore every nook and cranny to understand this Gift.