The First Legendary Beast Master

After they finished discussing the items that were needed for the shipment to the Desert Orcs, which involved a thousand of the rings that could create water, Karl realized that two sculptors and himself were not going to be nearly enough for the Runecrafting section of the shop either.

They needed someone like Lotus on the team, who could mass produce basic item templates.

Fortunately, for this shipment, the Orcs had recommended that most of the items were made of bone and wood. The desert Orcs loved those two materials for fashion, and Karl's team had literal tonnes of Monster Bones that could be cleaned and polished for the purpose.

Once the monster was eaten, there was no need to throw out the bones. They were still a magical crafting material in their own right, a minor treasure, so both Hawk and Rae had collected them.

Hawk put them in a pile out of the way, while Rae mostly used them for decoration in her nocturnal forest.

Ghostfire burned away everything undesirable, leaving the bones a nice charred black. And the runic string for creating small amounts of water to fill a canteen took only seconds to write. It was the energy draw of doing it hundreds of times over that would be the limiting factor.

So, Karl had requested that the group come back in four days, the day before they had intended to depart, and pick up their order.

That was still cutting it rather close, so Karl prepared yet another 'employee wanted' sign, then realized he already knew someone who might be able to make a reference.

"Loros, Wendy, if you can get started on this stack of bones for water creation, I will be back as soon as I can. I'm going to try to recruit someone who can make us more wooden items." Karl explained.

"Alright, boss. See you soon." Wendy agreed, while happily carving runes into the small bones.

It might not be sculpting, but practice made perfect, and carving runes into this whole pile of small bones that Hawk had provided would be excellent practice.

Her dad would be proud of her skill gains.

As soon as he left the room, Karl headed straight for the Dryads.

He could hear someone in the back workshop, so he turned down the alley and called out to the younger crafter.

"Rain, is your mom awake? I'm hoping that you two can help me find a new employee." Karl called from two buildings away.

The younger Dryad stuck her head through the vines around the workshop and smiled. "She's still asleep, but what can I help you with?"

"I need a full-time nature magic user to make wooden item blanks for the shop. If they don't have a Trade Skill, I can teach them an apprentice Runecrafting skill as well. But they need to be powerful, as we get plenty of requests for Royal and Monarch Ranked items.

Royal Ranked wood is good for Monarch Ranked items most of the time, but if they're still a Commander or even a strong Ascended, they will be able to make the bulk items that we need." Karl explained.

"So, the requirements are basically that we have someone with the artistry to make ring blanks, and strong enough with nature magic to make the items you're shipping out in bulk, which are Commander Rank?" She clarified.

"I suppose that someone with the same qualifications and Earth Magic, who could make permanent stone and metal items, would be alright as well." Karl agreed.

"Creation type Earth Magic. Well, I do know one of those, but I'm not sure how that request would go. It's one of Jones' sister's grandkids."

Karl chuckled. "I am certain that our resident Nature Priestess would treat a young Dragon very well."

That made the dryad laugh loud enough that the neighbours stuck their heads out to see what was going on.

"I have no doubt that you are telling me the truth, but that might be precisely the problem. She has always been protective of her whelps, and seeing them take to new people might be too much for her to bear.

Her partner is a Stone Dragon, one of the non-flying sorts of earth sub-dragons. But that means their children all have exceptional earth talents, and an affinity for fire, which would make them strong crafters.

You would have to talk to Jones about that, though. I don't know if you can get to him, but I know that me trying to visit is difficult these days, with all the Totems taking up his time.

Now that he's advanced, he's got new responsibilities, and they want him to be in meetings all day while he learns their rules."

Karl nodded. "Yeah, that is a hazard of advancements. Once you have power, you get stuck with all sorts of new rules on how to use your power."

As they talked, Misty came outside with a smile.

"Overlord Karl, my daughter says that you require a full-time worker to create items for your shop's sculptors. I know exactly the right person for the job if they are willing to agree. Would you like to take a little trip with me?" The Dryad asked.

"Of course. Rain was suggesting one of Jones' relatives, but if you have someone else in mind, I can talk to both. You can never have enough artisans in a shop, as I have come to realize."
Experience tales with My Virtual Library Empire

The dryad nodded in agreement. "It's a bit of a journey to Gazdri, but with your Ghostfire Thunderbird, we should be able to cover twelve hundred kilometres in a day. We just need to follow the river northwest, then where it ends, go straight west and we will find the city. That route would be faster than following the main road."

That sounded like a great idea to Hawk. Over that much distance, there had to be all sorts of new things to see. They had been all around the City of Drodh already, and a little bit outside it for only a few trips. But this one should take them almost to the western border of Drodh.

Hawk remembered someone saying there were Orcs there. Were they going to hire an Orc Shaman to make them items? That would be different. Maybe he could watch someone get shot down while flirting with Ophelia again.