Chapter 58: A Massive Crowd All at Once!
Author’s note: Oh, the holiday’s flown by and we’re back to the hell of writing… Sigh~
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The gains Kaiden had obtained the previous day were truly enormous. Simply absorbing them and making full use of them was enough to keep him occupied throughout this entire day — but it was a happy problem and nothing more. After yesterday's battle, he understood more clearly than ever that every increase in his territory's strength, however small it might seem, could make the difference between victory and defeat in the future.
With that thought, he summoned the day's quests.
Generating daily quests…
6 territory quests generated:
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1 — Breaking the Boundary:
Details: Break the rank threshold and reach the next level in the Mage path.
Time Limit: 24 hours.
Reward: +5% Earth affinity.
2 — An Army of Nascent Champions:
Details: A total of ten Nascent Champions in service to the Lord.
Time Limit: 24 hours.
Reward: ×10 Rune-inscribed armor pieces crafted from mithril ore.
3 — All Walls Are Paper Before Me:
Details: Produce the first catapult.
Time Limit: 24 hours.
Reward: ×2 Catapults.
4 — Logistical Problems:
Details: Solve the problem of storing meat and vegetables.
Time Limit: 24 hours.
Reward: ×3 Administrative Units.
5 — Your Soldiers Need You:
Details: Fully heal all wounded soldiers.
Time Limit: 24 hours.
Reward: ×1 Special Unit.
6 — Beast Master (2):
Details: The Lord possesses three pets.
Time Limit: 24 hours.
Reward: Pet Rank-Up Card to Rare tier ×1.
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Kaiden read through the six quests calmly, then let out a sigh of relief.
"Hmm… today's quests are clear."
Fortunately, no ambiguous quests had appeared as they had yesterday — and even the Logistical Problems quest was something he already had a preliminary idea of how to handle, so he didn't expect it to give him much of a headache.
In the meantime, Chef Sidra and her assistants had finished preparing breakfast. Kaiden looked over the tables spread before him and noticed that his territory no longer suffered any real food shortage — everyone's plates were filled with generous and varied portions. Today's breakfast consisted of tomato soup, grilled eggplant, and a dish of rice topped with fried cuts of meat.
The moment his eyes landed on the food, he temporarily set the quests aside and busied himself with eating — and the moment he started, everyone followed.
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"I'm completely full."
Kaiden said, patting his stomach contentedly. He had eaten more than usual — but he would need every ounce of that energy today. Rank promotions, absorbing the rewards, and the backlog of other tasks waiting for him would not be easy.
Fortunately, none of today's quests required sending out expeditions — something that pleased him. For the time being, he had no desire to reveal more of his cards to the neighboring territories.
Before everyone dispersed to return to their duties, he called for Golan in preparation for his promotion, then directed a few words of encouragement to the remaining elite soldiers who had also come close to reaching their rank threshold.
The moment Golan heard the Lord's words, enthusiasm ignited in his chest. He had been waiting long for this moment. The helplessness he had felt in yesterday's battle — watching his comrades fall one by one while he lacked the strength to save them — had been enough to make him hate his own weakness more than ever before. To him, weakness was the original sin.
And of course, it wasn't only Golan. Kaiden had asked everyone who had reached their rank threshold to remain in place, ready to be promoted together in one ceremony.
When everyone had gathered, today's crowd too was considerable — many had reached their threshold.
There were a large number of villagers, several militia soldiers, and practitioners of various crafts such as the bone carver, the tailor, and the leatherworker. But the surprise was finding Luther among them.
Kaiden opened his status board and found he had indeed reached his rank threshold. He recalled the book he had given him previously — and his astonishment passed quickly. It seemed the alchemist had benefited from it even more than expected.
Even so, he couldn't suppress his curiosity.
"When did you reach your rank threshold, Luther?"
Luther answered with visible enthusiasm:
"My lord, I arrived at some preliminary findings during my research on the spider carcasses — and those discoveries granted me the experience I needed to reach my rank threshold."
Kaiden's smile widened the moment he heard that.
"Well done! And what findings did you arrive at? Did you manage to develop a new potion?"
Luther shook his head in denial — which disappointed Kaiden for a moment. But the words that followed from the alchemist's mouth immediately restored his enthusiasm.
"My lord — no, I didn't discover a new potion recipe… but I did discover that spider blood serves as a powerful catalyst for certain types of potions. It strengthens the plants used in their preparation, raising the potion's quality. It didn't fully elevate them to the Medium tier, but it came very close. So far I've found that the Stamina Potion and Health Recovery Potion ingredients respond well to this catalyst."
A look of satisfaction settled on Kaiden's face, and he patted Luther on the shoulder, saying:
"Well done, Luther. After your promotion, I want you to begin immediately producing the new version of the Health Recovery Potions."
This discovery was enormously significant.
In yesterday's battle, seven soldiers had sustained serious wounds. And although the regular Health Recovery Potions had saved their lives and prevented their injuries from worsening, they hadn't been able to fully heal those wounds.
Now… things might be different.
And it might even help him complete one of today's most difficult quests.
There was still the new residents' summon and many other matters ahead — so Kaiden wasted no more time and began the promotion ceremony immediately, starting with Golan.
Just as it had with Laura, Golan underwent sweeping changes to his appearance.
Kaiden opened his status board with curiosity to see what type of Battle Aura he had awakened.
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Name: Golan
Rank: Nascent Champion (Spear-Bearer)
Level: 10
Experience: 0 / 1,200
Loyalty: 95%
Battle Aura Type: Lightning (Blue)
Aura Properties: Shock, Acceleration
Description: A reliable spear-bearer. During the rank-breaking process, he awakened the Knight's Seed and acquired a Lightning-type Battle Aura, making him a superhuman individual capable of confronting even Rare-tier monsters.
Class Skills:
- Aura Sense (Common, Passive)
- Shock (Rare, Passive)
- Lightning Steps (Rare, Active)
- Spear Acceleration (Rare, Active)
Future Path: Seasoned Champion
Upgrade Requirements:
- Reach rank maximum (Level 25)
- Spend 40 Origin Points to complete the upgrade process
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"Oh! A Lightning-type Battle Aura? That's remarkable! Congratulations, Golan."
Kaiden's congratulations came from the depths of his heart. Golan had been one of his finest and most loyal soldiers — the one he relied on more than anyone. Seeing his bright future made Kaiden genuinely happy.
"Thank you, my lord."
Golan replied with evident emotion.
Kaiden patted him on the shoulder before continuing the promotion ceremony.
Next was… the alchemist Luther.
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"Finally finished."
Kaiden murmured, letting out a quiet breath after completing the last of his people's promotions.
And now…
It was time to summon the new residents.
Kaiden rubbed his hands together eagerly — after upgrading the Lord's Crown, he was now able to summon fifty people at once.
He brought Casper with him to a wide open courtyard, then selected confirm on the summon.
In the next instant, a brilliant white flash erupted and covered a large expanse of ground, before gradually fading to reveal a dense crowd of residents standing before him.
One of the settings built into this world's system caused residents to recognize the territory's Lord the moment they appeared, and everyone began with a fixed base loyalty value.
So the moment the summon was complete, everyone knelt on one knee before him and offered their salute with respect.
"Long live the Lord!"
And though their voices weren't perfectly synchronized, the sight of this large crowd saluting as one filled Kaiden's heart with pride.
He smiled and said:
"Rise, everyone… and welcome to my territory."
Then he turned toward Casper — who understood the look immediately.
Casper nodded, stepped forward, then clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention.
"Everyone — to make it easier for the Lord to distribute you accordingly, please follow my instructions briefly."
After seeing everyone nod in understanding, he continued:
"Villagers… over here."
He pointed to an empty space on the side, and dozens of people moved there immediately.
He nodded with satisfaction, then continued:
"Militia soldiers… over here."
"Elite soldiers… over here."
Casper looked at the remaining group, then murmured with puzzlement:
"So… everyone remaining is a Nascent Champion… wait, no — something isn't right."
At first, he had expected to turn around and congratulate the Lord on receiving two Nascent Champions at once.
But one of the two was wearing a strange robe and holding a small wooden staff. He wore no armor and carried no weapon — and he looked nothing at all like a fighter.
In short…
He looked nothing like a Nascent Champion.
Even with Casper's sharp mind, he couldn't conceal his confusion.
And at that very moment, a shy voice said:
"Um… my lord, I am not a Nascent Champion…"
At the same instant, a system notification appeared before Kaiden.
[System Alert: Congratulations! You have obtained a Special Unit during the summon process: Nascent Mage with Fire Element Affinity.]
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— End of Chapter Fifty-Eight —
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