"Huh? Him?" Pagan asked, apparently confused.
"I haven't forgotten about everything you've done for the commune as well. But Alpha was the first, so he gets the first rank. You will be awarded your rank right after," Lucius explained.
Though it was true that Alpha had done a lot of work toward keeping the commune safe. Pagan had single-handedly protected it from a variety of threats while Lucius was out on his mission. And if he wanted his ranks to hold any value in terms of measuring strength, then it would only make sense that Pagan's rank be higher than Alpha's.
"Ah, I understand Lighted One," Pagan replied, now satisfied.
Lucius watched on as Pagan gloated over Alpha, showing off how much bigger he was, and by means of picking him up, how much stronger he was as well.
Creature Details
[Alpha Elwood ]
[Level 1: 0/100]
[Leaf Being [Armored Variation] lvl.3- [0/300]]
Stats
[Agility: 4]
[Strength: 50]
[Stamina: 42]
~Alpha's strength and stamina stats are higher than Pagan's?~ Lucius thought as he inspected Alpha's stats page.
~Hmm, I guess it makes sense since Alpha did do an excessive amount of exercise. But it's kind of disappointing since Pagan has that 5% buff,~ Lucius thought before looking toward Hannibal.
Ever since he mentioned that Pagan and Alpha would be getting ranks, Hannibal seemed to become very uncomfortable.
Lucius could imagine what was going through Hannibal's mind. Hannibal had saved the commune before, but it was achieved at a steep price. So though it made sense that he ought to get a rank as well, he was probably conflicted over whether it would really be appropriate.
"Work hard to catch up to the others," Lucius whispered to him, to which Hannibal straightened up and nodded in response.
Creature Details
[Hannibal Elwood ]
[Level 1: 0/100]
[Leaf Being lvl.3- [0/300]]
Stats
[Agility: 4]
[Strength: 5]
[Stamina: 4]
~Hannibal wasn't really part of any of the collection squads was he? I'll have to make some of his missions more body intensive,~ Lucius decided, before calling the commune together.
"Pagan, go get Asclepius," he ordered, as the leaflings began crowding in front of the main cottage.
"As I'm sure most of you are aware. Most of you will be evolving soon," Lucius started, once the leaflings had quieted down.
"This not only means that you will become bigger, but will also mean you will all require food to survive from now on," he continued, looking down at the leafling's faces. Some of them seemed to understand and were nodding their heads, while others whispered to their comrades in confusion.
"As such, I cannot allow a single leafling without a role to play to stay within the commune. Before it wasn't an issue, but now that work is required to survive, things must change,"
"That is why I will be giving all those who don't want to play a role a chance to leave the commune. After evolution, you will not be allowed to leave. And as selfish as that may seem, you have to understand that an evolved leafling may lead others to discover the commune if they are allowed to leave," Lucius explained, before giving the leaflings time to digest what they had just heard.
Even though there were a few lazy leaflings within the commune who would rather not do anything, they couldn't very well leave the commune at this point. They had formed bonds with the others, they had felt growth, learned different things from Lucius, and were more protected than they had ever been.
Lucius's commune was like a safe haven they had never thought would arise. And if they had to work to stay under his protection and watch, they would do it.
"So I take it none of you are leaving?" Lucius confirmed after several moments of silence. "Okay then, this takes me to my second announcement."
"The commune will begin accepting others from outside. That means beings from other species," Lucius said, noting that Asclepius had just arrived with Pagan.
"For instance, Asclepius," Lucius said, before calling Asclepius to the front.
"As I'm sure all of you can tell, Asclepius is not a leafling. However he is a part of our commune, and will be treated no differently from the rest of you," Lucius said, patting Asclepius on the shoulder as he arrived at the front.
The leaflings nodded at this, understanding what Lucius meant.
"As the commune grows larger, there will need to be some sort of way to organize everyone or things won't work well. So in this regard, I have designed different ranks and departments. I will start giving out rewards based on rank, and every member of the commune will be required to join a department," Lucius called out.
"So far, there are four departments, of which you guys can choose to join three," he continued, which brought about whispers from the leaflings. Especially the watch division who had thought themselves to be the only division.
"There is the Internal Security Department formerly known as the watch division, of which Alpha is the leader, or Premier as I will be calling them. If you wish to join a division within this department and learn more about what they do, come speak to Alpha after this," Lucius announced.
"The second department, is the Research and Experimentation Department, as of now Asclepius and Hannibal are the premiers. If you want to join one of their divisions or learn more about what they do, come speak to them after," he continued.
Asclepius shuddered at the announcement, not expecting to be given any roles as they were quite sure that Lucius didn't trust them completely. And to be fair, Lucius didn't, but taking emotions aside, Asclepius was currently worth more than most of the leaflings, and as such had to be given a role worthy of that.
"The third department will be the Fabrication and Creation Department, the role of Premier is currently open, but all those who I've put into the building squad are automatically members of this. If others want to learn more, you can come to me after this, and I will explain more about this detail," he said, before turning to Pagan.
"Finally, the last department is the Warring and Special Operations Department. Frankly, it's the most dangerous department to be a part of. And joining is not an option available to any of you, but I will tell you about it anyway," he said.
"This department represents the fighting force of the commune, they will be responsible for hunts and offensive missions. The Premier of this department is Pagan, and recruitment in this department will be done by invitation," Lucius announced. Alpha visibly jerked at the announcement, apparently uncomfortable with it.
"The announcement of these departments leads me to the issue of ranks," Lucius said after giving some time for the leaflings to digest everything.
