The Vastness of Magical Destiny

Looking at the vast and dark sky, Komer felt a few more strands of loneliness in his heart. Ilot was now completely immersed in elevating his martial arts, facing two Dark Knights several levels above him. Ilot’s stubbornness finally came to the forefront, battling time and again, only to be defeated and to fight once more. This had become a spiritual pillar for Puber to strive for, and this confrontation became a kind of training that Ilot enjoyed tirelessly, much to the chagrin of the two reticent Dark Knights. Puber had gone to Bahomon to oversee the iron mine development again. Although progress was swift, the first batch of ore would not emerge from the mountain for another month or two. However, with the continuous increase in the number of miners, the development of the iron mine was expected to accelerate further.

The development of the coal mines in the Volt Mountain Range was equally exceptionally swift. Under the stimulus of profit, both the mine owners and miners appeared highly motivated. Mattdam, situated at the tail end of the Catania River where it meets the Nether Sea, finally saw the emergence of a small shipbuilding workshop. This was a compromise reached between Komer and the pirates backing Kudan after several rounds of verbal spat. Insisting on his stance, Komer finally got the pirates to agree to build a small dock for producing ordinary small and medium-sized merchant ships. Without their permission, no one dared to engage in this trade under their watch. Although it was a small scale now, it also marked the beginning of a new industry in the Caucasus.

Transporting coal from the Volt Mountain Range to Mattdam, then through waterways to Bahomon, or transporting iron ore from Bahomon to Mattdam via waterways—Mattdam, strategically located between the two and with favorable transportation conditions, was believed by Komer to soon become the premier smelting center of the Caucasus.

Everything seemed to be on track, so why was there still a trace of persistent confusion in his heart? Komer pondered this point, what exactly prevented him from living a carefree life like his peers, instead of this oppressive atmosphere? What was the significance of all this?

Shaking his head as if to rid himself of these frivolous thoughts, he now was the Lord of the entire Caucasus. He had to be responsible not only for himself but also for guiding the tens of thousands of simple and kind people towards a better life. The question was, could he really do it? Komer wasn’t very confident.

Lightly handling the letter in his hands, he read it carefully. The neat and simple swallowtail suit he wore belied the fact that he was a man past fifty. A slight smile at the corner of his mouth indicated that the letter’s content was at least pleasing.

"It seems this young friend is doing well. I never expected that in just a few months, he could have Philip so troubled. The youngster knows the game well. His tightrope walking performance between the kingdom and Philip is just right, simultaneously close to the kingdom, yet Philip hasn’t found a good reason to deal with him yet."

"Is that so? Tez, it looks like the seed you planted has begun to sprout. Let’s hope that this seedling will trigger a plethora of new shoots to overturn the two big stones."

The dazzling armor worn by the Middle-aged man seemed to have no effect on him. His gaze remained fixed on the collections shelf in the Minister of Internal Affairs’ study. There weren’t many items on the shelf—a few ancient porcelain vases, a wooden gilded plaque, and a beast head with spiraling horns obtained from hunting in the northeast, known as the Devil’s Land. It was the skull of the Hutton gazelle, a species from the Flami Wilderness. This gazelle traversed mountains as if they were flatlands, bounding and leaping as if flying, and possessing a high alertness; ordinary people wouldn’t get within a hundred meters before it sensed them. It was a benign variant of Magical Beast, and its Crystal Core served as an excellent material for crafting Perception Magic Scrolls.

The items displayed in the study naturally belonged to the master of the house. However, the Middle-aged man wondered if the master was merely feigning sophistication by placing such a trophy in his room. Although this Magical Beast was not aggressive, hunting it was incredibly challenging. With the Minister of Internal Affairs’ physique, even if he was given a Thousand Mile Horse, it would be difficult to catch such a beast.