Collection 1 Chapter 16 219-229

Chapter 219: Soleil, The Flower That Blooms In The Battlefield

A golden spear appeared in William's hand that shone brightly in the night. From the handle, up to the tip of its blade, everything was golden. If William didn't know better, he would think that Soleil was simply a mythical weapon meant for showing off. But he knew, with utmost certainty, that the spear, that was slowly getting hot in his hands, was a weapon of mass destruction.

"Let's go, Mama."

"Meeeeh!"

Ella jumped off the town wall and a portal of light opened up behind William's back.

Thirteen Angorian War Ibex emerged from it and formed a protective circle around Ella and William.

"Blergh! Trollhounds," Psoglav, who had just emerged from the portal, spat in disdain. "Disgusting!"

"Don't whine, you still owe me from the cores of the Werehyenas." William snorted at his demonic "Business Partner".

"Fine." Psoglav glanced at the direction of the Titanic Trollhound that was fighting in the distance. "But, I ain't touching that thing."

William nodded his head in understanding. He knew that Psoglav wouldn't do anything that could potentially harm its own life. This was one of the rules that they had established when they made their business deal.

The Angorian War Ibexes were like little children that had found new toys to play with. They kicked, tackled, and sent the Trollhounds flying wherever they went.

Of course, they didn't just "play". They kept their formation steady because they were completely outnumbered. The only reason why they were able to overwhelm their opponents was due to the difference in ranks.

Even the few dozen Class D Trollhounds stayed away from the War Ibexes who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere and started their rampage.

At first, William planned to start a massacre, to thin the ranks of the Trollhounds. However, for some reason, something in him was preventing him from going through with his plan. This was a very weird feeling, because this was the first time that it happened to him.

It was as if he was an adult that was about to bully babies which made him feel confused.

While William was still deciding what to do, a notification suddenly appeared on his status screen.

—–

< Ding! >

< Special Quest Acquired! >

< Defeat the Titanic Green-Scaled Trollhound >

— The Trollhound Horde will disperse after its leader is defeated.

— Reward: 2,000 God Points

—–

William frowned as he looked at the battle of the Titanic Trollhound and the Fire Elemental in the distance.

From what he could see, the Titanic Trollhound had the upper hand and the Fire Elemental was on the defensive. This didn't bode well for them because the Fire Elemental was the strongest ally they had that could faceoff against the biggest threat on the battlefield.

William then shifted his attention to Philip who was now leaning on the ramparts. With a glance, he could tell that he was nearing his limit.

Soleil, that was being held in William's hand, was no longer golden in color, but was completely dark red. Like steel that had been soaked in flames, by the blacksmith, it was nearing its limit before its might could be unleashed.

'Ten more minutes,' William thought as he observed the battlefield.

Because of his presence, the Trollhounds' attack completely stopped. None of them dared to move forward because Psoglav and the Angorian Ibexes were too

strong for them to handle. Also, they felt that their strength was halved under William's presence.

What William didn't know was that his Shepherd Job Class had a deterrent effect when fighting against certain creatures that fell under the Shepherd's protection. Only Beasts with Demonic or Dark Properties, would be able to resist this "debuff" that was radiating from William's body.

This was also why the Alpha Hipogriffs, and the Centaurs, didn't want to get into a conflict with William. They could tell that they would be greatly weakened if they tried to fight against the heir of their Eternal Guardian.

(A/N: Although dogs belong to a pack, they were a Shepherd's trusted companion, which also made them vulnerable to William's Job Class.)

Trollhounds were not demonic, or dark creatures. They were beasts that were born from the fusion of alchemical troll blood and wild dogs. This new and ferocious breed gained the power of regeneration, and resistance to almost everything except fire and acid.

The Trollhounds growled at William, and his party, but made no further movements to attack. This made the defenders on the wall sigh in relief as they looked at their Guard Captain for his next order.

"Standby, but keep your crossbows loaded," Mark ordered.

Amelia had an anxious expression as she used spirit magic to help her father keep the Elemental Summon on the battlefield.

After weighing the pros and cons, William decided that he had no other choice but to show one of his trump cards to end the battle.

"Lord Philip, can you sacrifice the Fire Elemental to summon a Solar Flare?" William asked. He knew that time was crucial and every second counted.

"I can," Philip replied. "However, the Fire Elemental will immediately disappear after that."

As a Pyromancer he could, at most, use Solar Flare twice a day. However, he had already summoned a Fire Elemental and his magic was almost depleted. In order to perform William's request, he would need to order the Fire Elemental to use its ultimate move and burn itself until nothing was left.

This would send the Fire Elemental back to its Elemental Plane where it would stay for some time to regain its strength.

"Amelia, you are a Wind Spirit user, right? Can you bestow someone the power of flight?" William inquired. He was hoping that Amelia was skilled enough to use this support ability.

"Yes, but it will only last for ten minutes," Amelia answered.

"That is more than enough. Please cast your flight spell on the Fire Elemental," William ordered. "Lord Philip, command the Fire Elemental to fly as high as it can while hugging the Titanic Trollhound!"

Amelia and the Baron nodded as they used their magic power to carry out William's orders.

Soon, the angry howls of the Titanic Trollhound reverberated in the night as the Fire Elemental rose slowly in the air. It only stopped when it reached three kilometers above the ground.

"Now!" William shouted.

Philip clenched his fist as he gathered the last dregs of magic power in his body.

"Solar Flare!" Philip opened his hands to unleash one of the strongest spells he could cast with his current level of power.

A dazzling light erupted in the night sky that momentarily turned night into day. It only lasted for a brief moment because the radiance was immediately absorbed by the spear in William's hand that was burning like molten lava.

Without the Fire Elemental holding onto it, the Titanic Trollhound fell from the sky with black smoke coming out of its body. Even though the Sun Flare lasted for only a few seconds, it still dealt grievous injuries to the ferocious beast. However, due to its strong regeneration ability, it's injuries were slowly getting better as it fell down from three kilometers above the ground.

"Bloom in the battlefield!" William roared. "Fleur Du Soleil!"

William threw the Mythical Spear towards the Titanic Trollhound with deadly accuracy. The moment the spear embedded itself on the monster's chest, a powerful explosion similar to a small nuclear missile sent shockwaves on both the sky and the ground.

After the explosion ended, a beautiful flower bloomed and illuminated the night sky. Although it was not bright enough to turn the night into day, like the Solar Flare, it still could be seen for many miles around the Barony of Bradford.

The defenders on the ramparts had already been blown away by the blast, including the Trollhounds on the ground. Fortunately, Amelia managed to cast a windshield to neutralize the shockwave and kept her father from being blown away by the impact.

The father and daughter pair looked at the radiant flower in the sky in awe and admiration. Philip felt a tingle ran down his spine as he looked at the youth that had unleashed that unbelievable display of power.

If he had any misgivings about William being the Knight Commander of the Kingdom, all of them were erased by the deadly flower that illuminated the sky of his barony.

William raised his hand and a shining golden spear flew down from the sky to appear before him. It then transformed into a golden ring and returned to his right ring finger. The red-headed boy looked at the flower in the sky, before shifting his attention to the Baron of Bradford.

Philip looked back at William and nodded his head.

It was his way of thanking William and acknowledging his mistake in underestimating his abilities. He should have known better. The King wouldn't appoint someone who was not qualified to become the Commander of a Knight Order that served directly under him.

Chapter 220: He Who Dwells In The Marshes

A mile away from the hometown of Amelia, the Titanic Green-Scaled Trollhound was slowly reforming its body.

Currently, the only thing that it had regenerated was its head and neck area. Its muscle tissues pulsated like the beating of a heart as it continued to reconstruct its missing body parts. If someone were to see this scene, they would think that it would perfectly fit the setting of a horror film.

"So there you are," William said as he approached the two-meter long head while riding on Ella's back.

Behind him were over five-hundred Trolhounds that looked like little puppies that had lost their Master. These were the ones that didn't run away after the battle ended. The majority of the hounds scattered after their leader was obliterated in the skies of the barony. William didn't bar their way because it was too much of a hassle.

Instead, he used his authority as the Shepherd to make the remaining Trollhounds obey his orders. Due to the shock they had received and the fact that all of them were Class E Beasts, they didn't have the strength, nor willpower, to disobey William's orders.

"Can you talk?" William asked.

The Titanic Trollhound snorted and closed its eyes. The one who created it was a Human, so it hated Humans to the core. Although William was a Half-Elf, the Titanic Trollhound was not interested in talking to him.

William scratched his head because he could tell that this Beast was one tough cookie. If possible, he wanted to add it to his Herd because it was the strongest creature that he could tame with his current strength.

"How about we make a deal," William said with a serious expression. "You tell me what you want most in the world. If I can grant it, you will join my herd. How about it?"

The Titanic Trollhound remained indifferent to William's proposal. The red-headed boy talked to it for half an hour, but the creature didn't even bother to give him a glance. William tried to entice it with different benefits, and also told it countless reasons why it should join his herd, but the Boss of the Trollhounds was resolute in ignoring him.

Left with no choice, William turned his attention to the hundreds of Trollhounds that had survived the battle behind him.

"Who among you wants to follow me?" William asked. "I promise that those who follow me will never go hungry again. You will have food to eat everyday and have the opportunity to grow stronger. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, those who want to become part of my herd, step forward!"

At first there was no movement, but among the hundreds of trollhounds, a single Trollhound walked towards William.

This particular Trollhound was so skinny, that it was almost bonelike. Clearly, it was suffering from malnutrition and was on its last legs in life. Although Trollhounds had powerful regeneration abilities, they were creatures that still needed to eat.

They could still die if their bodies didn't receive any nutrients. Once a Trollhound died, its corpse would be eaten by its fellow hounds until not even a single bone was left. Such was the life of Trollhounds who lived in a group.

The Trollhound made a low growl laced with extreme hunger. William didn't know if what he heard was the beast's growl or the growl of its stomach. In any case, one thing was clear, it was starving and asking William if what he said earlier was true.

William

waved his hand and the Trollhound was automatically added to the members of his herd. He then tossed a huge chunk of meat that was taken from the body of the Werehyenas that were killed in the Whimsical Forest, to the Trollhound.

Seeing the piece of meat in front of it, the Trollhound hungrily devoured it to sate its hunger. Its companions started to salivate and even thought of snatching the meat from the skinny hound. Some of them had even stepped forward to do just that, but a glare from William froze them in their tracks.

"Only those that join my herd will be eligible to eat the food I provide," William grinned evilly. "How about it? Just say yes and you'll be able to eat your fill. All of your lives will be easier."

The Trollhounds were starting to waver. Their gazes shifted from the chunk of meat that their comrade was eating back to William. The red-headed boy knew that he was so close to luring the Trollhounds into becoming his subordinates, unfortunately, the Titanic Trollhound behind him chose this time to ruin his parade.

'All Humans can't be trusted!' the Titanic Trollhound said via telepathy. 'They will only use you as experimental subjects and throw you away once your usefulness is over!'

"Correction, I'm not Human," William scoffed. "I'm a Half-Elf."

'You still can't be trusted!' The Titanic Trollhound glared in anger. 'You have the same expression as those greedy sorcerers who only think about themselves!'

William turned his back on the Titanic Trollhound because it was useless to talk to it. It was filled with hate towards Humans that it was impossible to tame it even if he wanted to. Since that was the case, he would just poach its subordinates right under its nose!

The shepherd chuckled internally as he tossed more chunks of meat on the ground. He didn't believe that the hungry hounds would be able to resist the temptation that he was offering them.

Soon, a small mound of meat laid in front of the Trollhounds that made their eyes become bloodshot. Their instincts for survival were leaning towards William even though the Titanic Trollhound still had its hold over them.

"I'll be honest. I intend to turn everyone who chooses to join me into my own private force," William said as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I will ask you to fight for me when I am faced with difficulty. Some of you may die in the process, but I don't see any difference between my offer and your current situation.

"If you are planning to invade Human territories, you are bound to face strong warriors. You already saw what I am capable of doing and, sorry to say that there are humans far stronger than me."

William's words made the Trollhounds shudder. William was the strongest person they had seen so far, and he was saying that there were Humans far stronger than him. If that was the truth then wouldn't that mean that they were just courting death?

The Trollhounds glanced at each other. Soon, more of them stepped forward and joined the skinny hound in eating the mound of meat that was in front of them. They had completely submitted to William and the latter didn't even have to add them to his herd because he knew that these hounds were now loyal to him.

The Titanic Trollhound glared at the weaklings that were enticed by a few pieces of meat. Deep down, it disdained the Trollhounds that rebelled and cursed them.

'All of you will regret this day,' the Titanic Trollhound growled. 'Don't come running back to me when you see his true colors!'

William turned his head to look at the Beast that was looking at him in disdain. "Don't worry. They will not regret their decision."

Out of the hundreds of Trollhounds, only seventy decided to join William's side. Although it was far smaller than his initial estimate, he was still happy with the result.

'System, can you now modify the Ring of Conquest to perform the task I wanted?'

< The Host will need to pay 3,000 God Points for the modification of the Ring of Conquest. >

< Do you want to proceed? Y / N >

'I choose yes,' William replied.

Although his precious God Points would be consumed in the process, it was a necessary investment in order to achieve his goal.

—–

< Understood. >

< Modifying the Ring of Conquest…>

< Modification complete! >

< A new feature has been added to the Goblin Crypt! >

< Bestiary Barracks has been successfully integrated as a feature of the Ring of Conquest! >

—–

William dismounted Ella and faced the first trollhound that had taken the initiative to join his party.

"Come here," William said softly.

The skinny Trollhound walked towards him. When it was only two meters away from William, it knelt on the ground to show its servitude.

William summoned Rhongomyniad and rested it on the Trollhound's head. He didn't know if it would have any effect on beasts, but he decided to still give it a try.

"I bestow upon you a name," William announced. "From the skinny dog that couldn't even eat scraps of meat, to an Overlord that will be feared across the land. I give you the name of the World Wolf that once ate a God that ruled among many other Gods."

William raised the lance in his hand as a golden light fell upon the trollhound's body.

"Rise, Fenrir," William ordered. "Devour all my enemies until none of their bones are left!"

The King Chess Piece inside William's Sea of Consciousness glowed three times before returning to its normal state. It had recognized William's choice and shared its divinity with the skinny dog who would become part of the red-headed boy's Ten-Thousand Beast Army.

—–

< "He Who Dwells In The Marshes" has been registered >

< Name: Fenrir >

< Bestowing Title….>

< Appropriate Title Found! >

< Fenrir: Beast of Conquest >

Chapter 221: Vanguards That Would Lead Him To Victory

"I wonder what Will is doing?" Wendy muttered as she dried her hair.

She had just stepped out of the bath after finishing the afternoon training with the members of the Angorian War Sovereign. William had told her that he would accompany Amelia to her hometown in order to solve their barony's problem.

'I wish he'd brought me with him.' Wendy pouted as she put on a set of clean clothes.

Thor was currently sleeping on the top of her bed. He was more like Wendy's Guardian than William's, but the latter didn't mind it one bit. In fact, he even gave Thor permission to stay by Wendy's side if he liked it.

After fixing her hair in front of the mirror, she heard three knocks on her door.

"Wendy, are you there? It's me, Charlotte."

Wendy hurriedly opened the door and allowed her good friend, Charlotte, to enter her room.

"Sorry, were you in the middle of changing clothes?" Charlotte asked after seeing that Wendy's hair was still slightly wet. She also smelled the fragrant scent of soap on her body.

"No," Wendy replied. "I had just finished fixing my hair when you knocked, Big Sister."

Charlotte smiled and nodded her head in understanding. She had known Wendy for a long time and knew that the girl was a very honest and straightforward person.

"I came here because I want to share something with you," Charlotte said as she took out a small pouch from her pocket. "Here. This is yours."

Wendy curiously opened the pocket and a smile immediately appeared on her face. She estimated that there were over twenty candies inside the pouch, and it made her very happy.

"Thank you, Big Sister!" Wendy gave Charlotte a big hug and the latter hugged her back.

After a brief moment of intimacy, Wendy pulled away and giggled. Charlotte patted her head and smiled as well.

"Well then, I have to go." Charlotte lightly pinched Wendy's nose. "The candies are in short supply right now, so don't share them with others. I'll come back again next week when I have more."

"Thank you, Big Sister." Wendy walked Charlotte out of her room. "Whoever is supplying you these candies, please, tell them that I love the candies very much!"

Charlotte grinned and nodded her head. Both girls waved their hands to say goodbye, as they parted ways.

Wendy excitedly placed a candy in her mouth as she walked towards the bed. The sweetness that soon followed made her close her eyes in appreciation.

"This candy

is really good," Wendy muttered. "Simply the best."

She then ate another one before she sat on the bed.

"I hope you return soon, Will,' Wendy muttered softly as the thought of the red-headed boy's smiling face that would occasionally make her heart skip a beat. She really hoped that the boy she liked would return soon, so that she could spend more time with him.

—–

The sound of Goblins shrieking echoed inside the walls of the Goblin Crypt as William's Trollhound Army ate their fill.

William hadn't lied when he told them that they wouldn't go hungry anymore if they followed him. When the Bestiary was made on the First Floor of the Dungeon, the Trollhounds started to explore the dungeon to get familiar with it.

Whenever they encountered Goblins, the Trollhounds would immediately go for the kill. Fenrir watched as his subordinates feasted on the bodies of the goblins. Deep inside, he was very happy with his decision because it allowed him and his brethren to not suffer from starvation.

After receiving William's blessings, the Trollhound's body became more powerful and agile. He was now more like a wolf, than a wild dog after his transformation.

Although his subordinates were only Class E beasts, and he, Class D, none of the goblin parties were their match. Even though the Hobgoblins were stronger than them, they couldn't be killed using normal means.

Also, they numbered in the Seventies. It was literally impossible for a party of Hobgoblins to resist their rampage.

Of course, William also gave them limitations. He didn't allow them to climb up to the Fourteenth Floor where the Goblin Shaman spawned. Numerous as they were, the Goblin Shaman was not an easy cookie to crack.

After the Ring of Conquest was modified, the spawn rate of all the monsters on each of the floors increased dramatically. Each Party that had a Goblin Shaman now consisted of two Shamans, which was far more dangerous than the dungeon that Wendy, and her twin brother, Spencer, had challenged in the real world.

In order to prevent any mishaps, William ordered Fenrir and the Trollhounds to never step onto the Fourteenth Floor until all of them reached Rank D, and Fenrir Rank C.

Anything else was fair game, so the Trollhounds fought their way from the First Floor up to the Thirteenth Floor of the Dungeon Crypt. Their non-existent battle style was slowly being formed and their team cooperation had started to establish.

William tasked Fenrir to divide each team into groups of ten. After that, a captain was assigned to each group to make the commands easier. Fenrir was the commander, while the captains under him ensured that their formation wouldn't falter.

In order to give them a more challenging training, Fenrir ordered each team to challenge different floors by themselves on a rotational basis. Because of this, The Boss room up to the Thirteenth Floor became the main battleground of the Trollhounds to perfect their teamwork.

Although the new set-up was good. It wouldn't change the fact that they were still Rank E Beasts. The Boss Room alone was quite difficult for ten Trollhounds to beat because of the difference in ranks.

Still, they endured and challenged it over and over again. Although it was a painful experience, they were near immortal inside the Goblin Crype because of their powerful regeneration ability. None of the Goblins had the power to use Fire and Acid spells, so dying was not an issue.

Fenrir joined his subordinates in battles against the Hobgoblin Leader. He was tired of being weak and helpless. That was why he fought with everything he had in order to not disappoint his new Master, who had given him quite the blessing.

William heard the System's report and was very satisfied with the results. The red-headed boy was confident that, given time, the Trollhound Army would be one of the Vanguards that would lead him to victory.

All he needed to do now was nurture them all until they became an unstoppable force that would help him conquer his foes in the battles that would happen in the future.

Chapter 222: The Siscon Brothers

William was currently sleeping outside the Baron's residence. The reason? He was increasing the level of his recently obtained Prestige Class while he rested.

—–

< Gained Exp: 20 >

—–

William laid perfectly still on the bench as he slept peacefully.

Dia and Ragnar were sleeping on William's stomach, while Ella laid on the ground beside him. After dealing with the Titanic Trollhound, William made it swore an oath not to attack any towns within the Hellan Kingdom.

As the "Guardian of the Herd" any oath made to him by beasts belonging to the herd would automatically fall under David's jurisdiction.

After taking his trollhound army inside his Ring of Conquest, the red-headed boy finally returned to Amelia's hometown to rest.

He was up all night and was thoroughly exhausted from the events that had transpired a few hours ago.

—–

< Gained Exp: 20 >

—–

The Sun Knight Job Class was the Prestige Class he had received after acquiring Soleil from the King. After checking its description, William found out that the only way to increase the level of this Job Class was to absorb the sunlight during the daytime.

Even if he killed monsters, it would be of no use. This was why William always chose to equip the Job Class during the day in order to maximize its effects.

—-

< Prestige Class: Sun Knight >

— Praise the Sun!

— The Sun Knights were the proud knights that fought to protect the weak and deliver justice to evildoers. They were devout followers of the Sun God, Helios, and grew strong under sunlight.

— It was even said that, when the sun was at its zenith, the Sun Knights were nearly invincible.

— Increase stats by 50% when exposed to sunlight.

— Receives +20 Enhancement to all stats when exposed to sunlight.

— Increase Resistant to Light and Fire Spells by 50%

— Increase Damage of Light and Fire Spells by 200% when exposed to sunlight.

— Can use Solar Flare once a day (can be used during the night as well).

— Passive skill "Smile of the Sun" is always active during daytime.

— Passive skill "Aura of the Sun" is always active during daytime.

—–

While the red-headed boy was sleeping, Amelia and her family were discussing the outcome of the battle.

Earlier, before he went to sleep, William made a report to the Baron that the Titanic Green-Scaled Trollhound had left his barony and would no longer return.

Philip was very happy with the news and profusely thanked William for his hard work. He even intended to give him a proper reward for freeing him from the biggest headache that his barony had encountered for some years.

William politely declined the additional rewards and told Philip that he was only doing this in order to recruit Amelia in[into] his Knight Order.

"How old is he again?" Amelia's mother, Sofia, asked.

"The Commander is only fourteen-years old," Amelia replied.

"He's fourteen, and you're seventeen…," Sofia thought out loud. "I don't think there would be a problem if we betrothed you to him, right?"

"Mother!" Amelia's face became beet red as she held onto her mother's hand. "The Commander is already betrothed to someone. Don't make things difficult for both of us."

"I completely forgot about that Griffith girl," Sofia grinned. "But, it's fine. From what I've heard, the two of them are not keen on getting together. Isn't that why the two of them are to have a duel in three years? This is a good time to

form a connection with his family."

"No means no!"

"Silly girl. I only want the best for you."

Philip calmly sipped his tea from the side and allowed her wife to chat with their daughter. They had been married for a very long time and he knew that Sofia was only teasing Amelia because she had missed her terribly.

What he didn't know was that Sofia was half-serious with her proposal. If she and James met, the two would certainly get along and even conspire to make William and Amelia have a "shotgun wedding".

Fortunately, Lont and Bradford were on opposite ends of the kingdom and it would be difficult for either party to travel between the territories without using the teleportation gates.

"According to the rumors, your Commander is a shepherd, correct?" Philip inquired.

"Yes," Amelia answered. "At least, that is what is written in the records."

The Louise Family may only be a barony, but they were the most informed among the nobles in the Eastern Faction. Their information network was wide-spread because they maintained good relationships and formed strong connections with all of their neighbors.

Philip placed his teacup on the table as he looked at Amelia with a serious expression. "From what I saw last night, he is no "ordinary" Shepherd. He seems to be a Beast Tamer as well because he was able to summon multiple beasts at the same time."

"T-That, I'm not sure," Amelia lowered her head. "This was the first time I've seen Commander William fight."

"Do you really plan to join his Knight Order?" Philip raised an eyebrow.

"I promised to join if he was able to solve the problem of our barony." Amelia nodded. "Father, I don't want to go back on my word."

Philip and Sofia remained silent and simply looked at their daughter's determined expression. Truth be told, they didn't want her to do anything that would put her life in danger. Being part of a Knight Order may seem good on paper, but in reality, it was a very dangerous profession.

Since they were the King's Private Army, they would be asked to take on covert missions that always affected national security. These missions would definitely involve danger, so the couple was not too keen about accepting Amelia's decision.

Philip and Sofia were blessed with four children, and Amelia was the only daughter of their household. The two of them, and their sons, treated her like their treasure and would fight anyone who dared to hurt her.

They would not give that person face, even if he was the Commander of a Knight Order.

"Father, Mother, please, trust me," Amelia pleaded. "I believe that the Commander will not sacrifice, or abandon, us when things get rough."

Philip massaged his temple, while Sofia sighed. They could tell that they would not be able to dissuade Amelia from her decision, so there was nothing else to do but accept it.

As if waiting for that moment, three identical boys walked into the room in a hurry.

"We've heard from Uncle Mark that Amelia is here!"

"Where is she, old man?!"

"Don't you dare hide our sister from us!"

Philip's lips twitched as he did his best to stop himself from throwing fireballs at his triplets who were certified siscons.

Plenty of nobles had visited their barony to ask for Amelia's hand, but all of them were sent away by the three overprotective brothers. They even said that they wouldn't recognize anyone as Amelia's future husband unless he could beat all three of them at the same time.

"Big Brother, Asher, Andrew, Aaron!" Amelia greeted them happily as she stood up to hug them one by one.

"Little Sister, why didn't you tell us that you were coming back?" Asher asked. "Those blasted Trollhonds ruined everything and the merchants stopped visiting our barony. I was not able to buy a present for you."

"Little Sister, did you miss me? I'm sure you did. After all, I am the one that loves you the most in this family," Andrew interjected.

"Little Sister, are there any guys bothering you in the academy?" Aaron inquired with a tone laced with killing intent. "Just tell us and we will immediately go there to kil– I mean, talk to him about the meaning of life."

"That's right! Why did I forget about that?!"

"Sister, are there any scum that you want us to kill? Just say the word and it shall be done."

"It's a good thing I bought a new sword from the traveling merchant. He guaranteed its sharpness and I've been dying to find something to test it out on."

Amelia's smile widened because she could tell how much her Big Brothers loved her. They always pampered her and would always beat up the boys who bullied her when she was young.

All of them had brown hair and eyes like their father. Only Amelia inherited her mother's green hair and eyes.

Philip, who was quietly listening to this scene suddenly had an idea. A mischievous smirk appeared on his face as he made a gesture for the three boys to look at him.

"Actually, there is a boy outside the residence that is planning to recruit your sister into his Knight Order," Philip explained. "Your sister made a promise that if he was able to resolve our current situation, she would gladly be part of his personal Knight Squad."

"What?! A bastard dares to put my beloved little sister in danger?!"

"What?! A bastard dares to make his move on my adorable little sister?!"

"What?! A bastard dares to think impure thoughts of my cute, innocent, and kind sister?!"

""Unforgivable!""

The three boys spoke in unison and charged out of the residence. All of them wanted to find that bastard that had tricked their sister into joining his private army and tear him to shreds!

Chapter 223: Until The Bitter End

William sensed killing intent headed in his direction and immediately woke up. He lifted Ragnar by the scruff on his neck and gently placed him on the ground while he held Dia firmly with his other hand.

Ella raised her head and looked in the three-o'clock direction.

There, three very infuriated young men, who looked exactly like each other, stormed towards him.

William frowned because he didn't recognize the three of them. What confused him more was that the three were seriously releasing killing intent and it made him wonder if he had somehow offended them.

"Are you the brat that is lusting over my beautiful little sister?!"

"Are you the brat that is planning to train my little sister to become your plaything?!"

"Are you the brat that is thinking of doing THIS and THAT with my little sister?!

"No. No, and no," William answered. "Are you talking about Amelia?"

The three boys ignored his reply and glared at William hatefully.

"What?! You're not lusting over my beautiful little sister?!"

"What?! You're not planning to train my little sister to become your plaything?!'"

"What?! You're not thinking of doing THIS and THAT with my little sister?!"

""Unforgivable!"" the three boys replied in unison. ""Are you saying my little sister is not good enough for you? DIE!""

The three boys summoned their weapons and simultaneously attacked William. The latter activated his movement technique to dodge their attacks by a hair's breadth. He also summoned his staff to parry their blows from time to time.

Although the three were good fighters, their attack patterns were too straightforward and easy to read. Even so, William had to admit that their teamwork was quite formidable. If not for his mastery over his movement technique, he might have experienced difficulties in dealing with three opponents at the same time.

'Are they attacking me because I said "No" to their earlier accusations?' William pondered as he parried a heavy blow that sent him skidding a few meters away.

"I lied earlier," the Half-Elf said to the three boys. "In fact, I think Amelia is very beautiful. I would love to try doing THIS and THAT with her!"

The three boys paused in their attacks which made William breathe a sigh of relief.

"Now you reveal your true colors."

"Now you reveal that you are indeed a lecherous bastard."

"Now you reveal that you want to do THIS and THAT with our little sister."

""Unforgivable!""

The triplets attacked William once again, but this time, their attacks were more frenzied than before.

William's lips twitched as he parried and dodged their relentless assault. There was only one thing on his mind and that was to "Fcking beat the sh*t" out of these siscon bastards.

'System…'

< I know… Monk job class, right? >

'Yes, please.'

Soon, yells filled with pain and b*tthurt resounded throughout the residence. The male servants who heard these screams subconsciously placed their hands behind their back to protect their bums from being stabbed.

Amelia, Philip, and Sofia rushed outside of the house when they heard the screams, only to find an enraged William beating the crap out of the triplets who dared to disturb his sleep.

"You siscons! Do you want me to do THIS and THAT with your sister or not?!" William roared. "Make up

your goddamn minds!"

He then stabbed his staff forward to hit the three boys' "chrysanthemums" with deadly accuracy. The boys howled in pain like pigs being slaughtered and begged William for forgiveness.

Amelia, who heard William's words, almost did a double take because she didn't fully understand what he meant with his words.

William was about to keep hitting the older boys when he noticed Amelia, and her parents, approaching his location.

He promptly hid the staff behind his back, while giving a swift kick to the older boy's bum, that was closest to his feet.

"Lord Philip, I found these three suspicious individuals in your residence and decided to apprehend them for questioning," William said in a righteous voice.

He then urged the system to change his job class back to the Sun Knight before the three people reached his location.

William's body seemed to glisten under the sunlight, as a peaceful smile–that belonged to a priest without sin–appeared on his face. He looked so holy, so amiable, that even Philip felt like he was looking at a different person.

"Um, Commander, these three are my older brothers," Amelia commented as she walked in front of the three groaning men under William's feet.

"I see." William nodded sagely. "I apologize for hurting them. I was not aware that they were your brothers, I'm sorry."

William's aura was so divine that Amelia, Philip, and Sofia felt that they were sinners in front of him.

William's passive skill "Aura of the Sun", and "Smile of the Sun", was a combo passive skill that made Sun Knights get along with anyone. When these two skills were active, the Sun Knight's charisma would reach a very high level that even a crying baby would stop crying when they saw William's smiling face.

"N-No. It was their fault for assaulting the Commander," Amelia replied. "I promise that I will talk to them later, so, can you please forgive them?"

"What is there to not forgive? This was all a misunderstanding. I don't particularly mind." William chuckled before stepping on the hand that was about to grab his foot from below.

Aaron was about to shout, but Amelia's glare made him stop in his tracks. The pitiful older brother could only bite his lip in frustration as he endured the pain he was currently experiencing.

"Commander, why don't we go inside the house?" Sofia proposed. "We have many special delicacies prepared for you."

William was reluctant to go because of the experience points that he could gain from sunbathing. Even so, he still decided to nod his head and smile like a good boy before he followed Sofia towards the residence.

—–

The Titanic Green-Scaled Trollhound looked back at the Barony of Bradford one last time before giving a low growl. The hundreds of Trollhounds that followed behind it followed its orders obediently.

They were now headed towards the North, where the tribes lived. Since it was "technically" not part of the Hellan Kingdom, the Titanic Trollhound decided to go there to seek new prey. It intended to recover its strength first and raise its ranks before finding William to find trouble with him.

Just like the red-headed boy, the Titanic Trollhound was a beast that held grudges. It hated Humans to the core and would find no greater pleasure than to feast on their flesh. The giant beast still regretted the fact that it was not able to kill all of those who had experimented on him and held him in captivity.

At the last minute, half of them were able to escape while he broke free from the seals that they had placed on his body.

'I will find all of you bastards and make you pay for what you did to me,' the Titanic Trollhound vowed in his heart. 'After that, I will deal with you next, William Von Ainsworth…'

The hundreds of Trollhounds left the borders of Bradford and the Humans that saw them along the way almost panicked when they met them along their journey towards the other towns and cities.

Merchant caravans and commoners, who were traveling the roads that they passed, collapsed in fear when the horde of monsters appeared before them.

Although the Trollhounds were salivating at the sight of helpless prey, they couldn't attack any of them because of the powerful restriction that had been placed on their bodies.

Using the power of the God of Contracts, William made sure that they would not be able to break their word. If they did, they would combust into flames, leaving only ashes behind. The ordinary Trollhounds may not be able to survive this oath, but the Titanic Trollhound was different.

With its rank, and near-immortality, William's contract didn't scare it one bit. The only reason why it was honoring its oath was due to a nagging fear that was coming from its very being. For some reason, it felt afraid.

Afraid that if it broke its word, it would suffer a fate worse than death.

The Titanic Trollhound didn't want to take its chances and break the oath. He still wanted to take revenge on those that had experimented on, and tortured, it everyday to "test" its regeneration ability. It refused to die until its revenge was fulfilled.

This was the sole meaning of its existence and it was determined to carry it out until the bitter end.

Chapter 224: Underground Base [Part 1]

Somewhere in an underground facility in the Southern Continent…

"How are the preparations coming along?" A man seated on a throne made from blackstone asked.

"My Lord, the Anaesha and the Zelan Dynasties are making preparations for war," a man wearing a black robe reported. "The soonest they will make their move is in three months, the longest is five. Our members are laying the groundwork of the siege even as we speak."

The man seated on the throne nodded his head. "Are the altars constructed?"

"My Lord, half of the altars are already built," the black-robed man answered. "We estimate that they will be finished by the time the war officially starts."

"Too slow, make sure to finish them in two months."

"As you wish, My Lord."

The man seated on the throne rested the side of his face on the palm of his hand. "How about the Crown Prince, any news from him?"

The man wearing the black robe raised his head to look directly at his Master. "He said that he is now looking for the whereabouts of the key. I think that the Crown Prince is being serious this time around."

The man sitting on the throne snorted, "Tell him that if he is too slow, we will find someone else to take his place. We have no need for useless individuals."

"I will pass your message to him, My Lord."

"Go, and make sure that all my orders are carried out."

"Yes, My Lord."

——

William frowned as he moved towards the Mountains within the territory of Bradford. The Miasma seeping into the land had lessened after the Trollhounds had left the territory, but they were only responsible for spreading the miasma.

The source was still active and William was planning to see if he could do something about it.

A meter and a half tall Trollhound, with dark-silver fur, guided William and Ella towards a secret passageway that led to the inner depths of the Mountain.

"Commander, where are we?" Amelia asked.

She was currently riding with William on Ella's back as they traveled the underground passageway.

"We are in a secret base that was abandoned by sorcerers," William replied without looking back at her. "This is the place where the Trollhounds were born."

Originally, William didn't plan to bring Amelia along. However, since this was the barony of her parents, he decided to let her accompany him on his investigation.

Amelia's face became grim when she realized that an unknown organization had managed to infiltrate their territory and even build an underground base without her father's knowledge. As a daughter of the barony, she was very concerned about the long-term repercussions of having this place under her father's nose.

Fenrir gave a low growl signaling that they had reached their destination. After being knighted by William, the Trollhound's body grew larger and its

rank rose as well.

Currently, Fenrir was at the peak of Rank D. William estimated that his new ally would break through to Rank C within the month, after ingesting the High-Grade Beast Core that he had given Fenrir a few hours ago.

Its body was no longer skinny like a dog suffering from malnutrition. Instead, its body became lean and strong and oozed with untapped potential.

William extended his senses as he scanned his surroundings. From what he could tell, the place was abandoned, but he didn't let his guard down.

The Half-Elf nodded at Fenrir and the latter went ahead to see if there was anything suspicious inside the base. Ten minutes later, it returned and gave its report.

'There's no one here, Master,' Fenrir reported via telepathy.

'Good.' William nodded. 'Take me to the pool of miasma you and your brethren were tossed into to suffer.'

Fenrir hesitated a bit, but in the end, it obeyed William's order. It had very sad and painful memories from this place and it wished that it could destroy the place completely, but William didn't want that.

His Master wanted to understand who these people were and Fenrir didn't want to get in William's way.

After walking for a few minutes, they finally arrived at a chamber where a cloud of miasma was rising through an open hatch. Clearly, whoever built this place made sure that the chamber was properly ventilated to avoid miasma poisoning.

"This is…!" Amelia's eyes widened in shock. "A misma pool!"

William dismounted from Ella's back and carefully walked towards the pool in order to observe it properly. Fenrir had already told him about the miasma pool, but it was bigger than he had expected. It was at least a hundred meters long and fifty meters wide.

It was the size of two Olympic swimming pools joined together.

The water seemed to be boiling due to the thousands of bubbles and steam that were rising from its surface.

The fur on Fenrir's body was standing up on end as if it was remembering something very scary. If not for William's presence, it might have already bolted out of the chamber and run back towards the exit.

The memories it had of the secret base, and the organization that ran it, were still fresh in its mind.

'System, do you have any suggestions?'

< Answering the host's question, there are three ways that we can deal with the current situation. First, we can upgrade the functions of the Ring of Conquest to allow dungeon modifications of the Goblin Crypt. However, it would require 10,000 God Points. Currently, the host's balance is only 1,000 God Points. >

William patiently waited because it knew that the system was still not finished with its explanation.

< The second option is to use the power of Soleil to completely dry out the pool. However, I don't recommend this. The excess vapor would rise up to the air and scatter across the land. When this happens, the Barony of Bradford will be contaminated, killing all living things within it. >

William nodded in understanding. He agreed with the system's explanation and waited for their last option.

< The last option is to absorb the miasma by using the "Black Rose Seal" on the host's body. By doing so, the miasma will be completely eradicated, but it may cause side-effects to the host's body. >

'Side effects? What are the side effects?' William crossed his arms over his chest. Although he wanted to help Amelia and her father, he didn't want to sacrifice his body and health to that extent. He had already finished his end of the bargain and Amelia had officially joined his order. Doing more might only make things difficult for him.

< Give me a moment while I gather information and analyze the possible side-effects that the host might suffer. >

While the system was doing its calculations, William walked towards what seemed to be lockers at the corner of the chamber.

He tried to open one of them, but they were locked, and seemed to require a key.

William smirked while taking out the Lockpicking kit from his storage ring. While he and Ezio traveled the land, he had leveled up his Thief Skills by doing some shady business like infiltrating a corrupted official's house, stealing from them, and gathering important documents.

After a minute of tinkering, William managed to open one of the drawers and what he found inside made his expression turn grim.

Chapter 225: Underground Base [Part 2]

"Modified Human Troll Army Project," William muttered as he read the document in his hand. "A humanoid hybrid that has superior regeneration ability with only one weakness… acid strong enough to melt adamantium."

Amelia who was standing beside him sucked in a cold breath because she couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Y-You mean this facility was made to turn humans into trolls?!" Amelia couldn't contain her outburst. "And they built it here in our barony… this means that they were planning to use our citizens for their experiments!"

Amelia glared hatefully at the pool of miasma in the distance while gnashing her teeth. If not for the fact that something had gone terribly wrong with the organization's plan, their barony might have suffered a calamity of untold proportions!

William didn't reply to her and read the rest of the document. This time, he read silently. He didn't want Amelia to be blinded by rage and destroy the whole facility out of anger. He needed to gather more information about this hidden organization that he was hearing about for the first time.

After reading the scroll, the red-headed boy picked up a small book that seemed to be a diary. Just as he expected, the daily logs of the sorcerer who managed this facility were recorded. Fenrir had told him these things beforehand, so William had a general understanding of what had happened to the base.

—-

— Day 18 of the month of the Empress

We bought a few human slaves from the capital of the Hellan Kingdom and brought them here to be experimental subjects. They were made to drink the latest potions we had concocted to help modify their bodies from the inside. The modification will finish in three days, I can't wait to see the results!

— Day 22 of the month of the Empress

The bodies of the human slaves have turned green, but aside from that, nothing seems to be different. They were still rational and there were no signs of their intelligence degrading. Will wait two more days before we proceed to Phase Two.

— Day 24 of the month of the Empress

One of the female slaves died after her body encountered some side effects from the potion. Such a useless b*tch. She wasn't even worth the coin that was used to purchase her from the slave trader.

Although there was a small mishap, the remaining slaves were still good to go. All of them were forced to the pool to undergo the Second Phase of the experiment.

— Day 25 of the month of the Empress

All the experimental subjects died before they completed their transformation. I guess the miasma was too much for them to resist. No problem, we will just modify the potion in order to give them a tougher skin.

— Day 12 of the month of the Magician.

Failure! All of them are failures! I refuse to believe that my research is wrong. Perhaps we are using the wrong approach? I better ask the organization to give me some beasts to experiment on first.

— Day 20 of the month of the Magician.

Wild Dog and Troll blood are unexpectedly compatible with each other. This is a good start. Also, test subject 288 is showing great potential. Among the Trollhounds that were created, its transformation has surpassed my expectations.

— Day 8 of the month of the Hierophant

Success! We created a new breed of monster! Hahahaha! A truly wonderful creation! With this, the organization will be able to give me additional funds for my research.

— Day 12 of the month of the Hierophant

Something is wrong, Experimental subject 288 suddenly broke through to the Centennial Rank. The chains binding it were not enough to contain

it. I need to do something fast before things get out of hand.

—–

The journal ended that day and William couldn't find any more diaries in the other locked drawers inside the chamber. All he saw were the formulas that were used to make the "body modification potions" that were used on Humans and beasts alike.

'Fenrir said that the Titanic Green-Scaled Trollhound rebelled a few weeks ago and managed to kill more than half of the researchers in the facility,' William thought. 'The sorcerer was only able to save his life because he used a teleportation scroll.'

William clicked his tongue after connecting the dots together. He felt regret that the Titanic Trollhound wasn't able to kill the mastermind behind its suffering.

'So that sorcerer is still at large,' William narrowed his eyes as he gazed at the pool of miasma. 'This is troublesome.'

The Half-Elf was feeling slightly anxious because if the sorcerer resumed his experiments elsewhere, a new Titanic Trollhound might be born. Also, there was a possibility that the sorcerer had managed to gather enough data to make the "Human Troll Project" a reality.

If this was true then only a handful of individuals would be able to stop an army of mutated Trolls if they decided to wreak havoc inside the Hellan Kingdom.

While William was deep in thought, the system finished its calculations and notified him right away.

< There are three possible side-effects that might occur to the host after the Black Rose Seal absorbs the pool of miasma. >

< The first one is that the power of the seal would be strengthened and the hosts inability to use magic would be extended for four more years. >

William grimaced when he heard the first side-effect. This was something that he didn't want to have happen to him. He was thankful that he lost his magic power a few years ago because it made him realize his shortcomings. It also allowed him to train and build his foundation. However, having an extension to his magic-less state was something that he wanted to avoid at all cost.

< The second one is that the host will unlock a new Prestige Class called Dread Lord. This is an extremely rare Job Class that is a level higher than most prestige classes, however, the chance of acquiring it is only .0000000001%. If the host fails to acquire this Job, the host's body will explode due to the inability to contain the miasma. >

< The third side-effect is that the host's body will undergo a transformation and turn into a Centennial Monster Slime made from Miasma. The chances of this happening is 40% >

William sighed. None of the options were appealing to him. Although the Dread Lord Job Class was enticing, the percentage was just too low for him to take a gamble.

'System, are there any other options?' William asked. 'I don't want to leave this miasma pool here. The Sorcerer might come back and, if he does, he will come fully prepared with reinforcements.'

< Sorry, Host. I can't think of other means aside from using God Points which we currently do not have. >

'Is there no other way?' William wondered. 'I swear I saw something about miasma somewhere…'

It was at that moment when William remembered the notice he received not long ago from the God Shop. He immediately asked the system to retrieve the mail that they had received from the Alchemy God.

The system hadn't brought it up at first because William had told the system to ignore it, as it was highly unlikely that they would ever come across those ingredients while in the Academy.

The System lit up his status screen with the letter from the God Shop about the Alchemy God's request for ingredients.

——

< God Shop Mail >

"Attention to the Devout Followers of the Gods from the Ten Thousand Temple. Great rewards are waiting for each and everyone of you!

The God of Alchemists has issued a commission that is open to everyone.

He is currently looking for extremely rare and potent ingredients that he will use for his experiments. If any of you are able to acquire the items on our list, please, send a message to me, Mercurius, the Manager of the God Shop, directly.

I will assist you in transporting the materials to the Alchemy God free of charge! However, anyone who sends me troll messages will immediately be banned from using the God Shop for a hundred years.

Here is the list of materials that the Alchemist God is looking for and the rewards associated with them.

—-

Spring of Life – 100,000 God Points

Baphomet's Horn – 50,000 God Points

A liter of Empyrean's Blood – 20,000 God Points

Ink of Krakens – 10,000 God Points

—–

The list was long, but William's and the System's attention locked in on the last entry on the list.

Liquified Miasma – 1 God Points per Liter.

William gulped and sent his thoughts to his "dependable partner".

'System…'

< Five million liters. >

'… I still haven't asked a question.'

< Host, there's no need for the long winded approach. >

< Should I contact the God Shop Manager, Mercurius? >

< Yes / No >

William scratched his head and gave his answer. He didn't know whether he should laugh or cry because the System had taken the initiative to calculate how many liters of liquified miasma were present in the pool. Not only that, it was only a moment away from getting in touch with the manager of the God Shop.

Moments later, Mercurius, replied to his message and told William how the transaction would be made.

The Half-Elf rubbed his hands together in anticipation. He was looking forward to how many God Points he was going to earn after this one time transaction with the God of Alchemists.

'5 Million God Points.' William wanted to laugh out loud. He greedily checked the weapons in the God Shop while waiting for the exchange to finish. He had already asked Ella to take Amelia outside the chamber with the excuse that he would personally deal with the miasma that was threatening the peace of the land she was born in.

William was feeling good about this unexpected turn of events. What he didn't know was that his happiness would be short-lived.

Chapter 226: Yin Yang Cauldron

"Um, can you repeat that?"

< We got 50,000 God Points from the God of Alchemists after exchanging the entire pool of Miasma. >

William blinked once then twice before he tilted his head in confusion.

"50,000 God Points?" William asked. "System, I think you're missing a couple of zeros there."

< Well, I have two pieces of news for you, Host. What do you want to hear first? The good news or the bad news? >

William didn't answer the System right away. Instead, he crossed his arms over his chest and took some deep breaths. When he was finally calm again, he asked the question that was on his mind.

"What is the bad news?"

< the Miasma Pool is not made from pure Miasma. According to the God of Alchemist, the pool only consisted of 50,000 liters of liquified miasma and the rest was spring water. After the water mixed with the miasma, it got contaminated. Basically, what we saw was only a diluted pool of miasma. >

"Diluted?" William couldn't believe what the system had told him. However, after he pondered for a while, he realized that the God of Alchemists had no reason to lie to them. Since he was the expert in the field, if he said that the miasma pool was diluted then it was indeed diluted.

'Oh well, 50,000 God Points is still good,' William sighed. Although fifty thousand and five million were miles apart, he was still able to accept the outcome since he got it for free.

"Then, what is the good news?"

< The good news is that we are the first ones to deliver one of the items on the Alchemist's list. In return for our fast response to his commission, he sent us a freebie. >

A meter-wide golden cauldron appeared in front of William. The cauldron had a unique design on it that reminded him of those antiques that were being sold in second hand stores that he had visited in the past. It hovered in the air as if waiting for the boy to touch it.

After confirming with the system that there was nothing wrong with the cauldron, William finally reached out his hand to touch it. The moment the cauldron was safely in his hands, a series of text messages appeared on his status page.

—–

< Ding! >

< Would you like to acquire the Alchemist Job Class? >

< Yes / No >

—–

'I knew it,' William thought as he appraised the cauldron in his hands. The cauldron's outer layer was plated in gold and embedded with runic letters. It felt warm to the touch as if it had just been recently placed over a fire.

At the very base of the cauldron, the symbols of the Yin and Yang could be seen. Naturally, this Yin and Yang represented the identity of the cauldron which appeared on William's status page after he used his appraisal skill.

——

< Yin Yang Cauldron (Replica) >

— Mythical Rank Artifact

— This cauldron is a recreation of the very first cauldron that the Alchemist God used when crafting

his pills.

— Increase the chance of success of pill making by 50%

— Has a 10% chance of creating random pills with every use. Warning! The effects of these pills are completely random. Use at your own risk!

— Maximum pills that can be made inside the cauldron is 100.

— Can enlarge itself up to three-meters wide.

— Special Function: The Cauldron can safely store any kind of material or ingredient no matter how dangerous or volatile it is. No fire, poison, or acid is strong enough to melt this cauldron. The God of Alchemist treated this cauldron as his personal storage artifact whenever he visited the different planes to collect the ingredients he needed for his alchemy.

— This Mythical Artifact is now soul bound to William Von Ainsworth.

—–

Seeing the gift from the Alchemist God, William remembered the cultivation novels that he had read when he was still on Earth. The alchemists were able to craft expensive pills that allowed cultivators to raise their ranks and break through their bottlenecks.

There were many cultivators in the World of Hestia and most of them resided in sects like the Misty Sect. Usually, each sect had their own Grandmaster Alchemist that catered to the needs of the entire sect. These alchemists were given VIP treatment and were often regarded as treasures of their respective factions.

William chose Yes and acquired the Alchemist Job Class.

—–

< Alchemist >

— A mixture of sugar, spice, and everything nice, unless they blow up in your face and kill you. That is the Alchemist Job Class.

— Increase the chances of success of pill making by 10%

— Acquired Alchemical Recipes (Basic)

— Host has learned skill: Unstable Concoction

< Unstable Concoction >

— During pill making, the alchemist can forcefully make the pill creation unstable, turning it into a deadly weapon of mass destruction.

— Effect of the concoction may differ depending on the ingredients and materials used.

—–

William opened the page for the "Alchemical Recipes (Basic)" and read its contents.

< Brick >

— Can be used to build houses or used as projectiles to hit your enemies.

— Can be used as a weapon for close combat.

Mix soil and water into a thick mud. Add some sand, then mix in the straw, grass or pine needles. Bake it on medium fire for ten minutes.

According to legend, there was once a cultivator who was able to dominate the world using a brick. This legendary brick was called the "Sixty-Nine Brick".

This brick is able to ignore all kinds of defenses. One hit on the head will knock out your opponent for one minute with 100% success rate. It can also be used repeatedly which makes this brick a feared weapon by one and all.

Chance of crafting ordinary brick: 99%

Chance of crafting the Sixty-Nine Brick: .0000000000000001%

—–

William's lips twitched as he read the recipe of the brick. He didn't believe that such a ridiculous and over-powered brick could exist in reality.

'I thought I would be crafting pills.' William scratched his head as he looked at the other recipes in his status page. 'Why is this "Alchemical Recipe Book" all about bricks, plates, cups, spoons, forks, and kitchen knives? Just what kind of stupid alchemist crafts these things?!'

William ignored the list of recipes and jumped to the last page of the book. It was there where he found the notes that were left by the author and found something interesting.

—-

"Alchemy is all about creating new things. If you already know the recipe for how to turn stone into gold, the value of gold will be lost, and life will be boring. Every alchemist should learn to be creative!

A flower by the roadside, a strand of hair, and even a handful of dirt could become something else if you are willing to give alchemy a try!

P.S

It would be best if you get life insurance just in case something goes wrong with your experiments. You'll never know when you'll kick the bucket!

— Fool Metal Alchemist, Edward Elfreak

—–

William sighed and stored the Yin Yang Cauldron inside his Ring of Conquest. Although his gains from this small expedition were completely unexpected, he was still happy that the main problem that plagued the Barony was solved.

He returned to the Baron's residence and shared with Philip everything he had discovered. Philip was shocked after hearing William's story. After bidding his daughter goodbye, he immediately set out with his men to investigate the headquarters left by the unknown organization.

William and Amelia, on the other hand, traveled back to the Academy to report the completion of their commission.

Although he was still thinking about the secret organization, William was forced to push his thoughts about them aside for now. There were still some things that he needed to do, as a Commander of the Knight Order, and that was to ensure that all of his subordinates were properly equipped before the war officially started.

Chapter 227: Oathkeeper's Key

In the town of Lont…

A black raven landed on the ledge of Celine's window, carrying a parcel on its leg.

Oliver, who was sitting on top of his perch, narrowed his eyes before waving his talon. The raven didn't move as the parcel on its legs flew towards the Parrot Monkey.

When it was only half a meter away from his perch, the parcel glowed and a message appeared in the air in front of Oliver.

—–

"The Saleh, Nasir, Rhys, and Eroan Clans are gathering their young prodigies to their ancestral domains.

Also, certain influential factions in the Central Continent are making their move. Like the Old Elven Families, they are also preparing for a big event. The only problem is that no one, aside from their Patriarch's and a few elders, know what is about to happen.

I consulted with the Patriarch of the Rayleigh Family and he made a divination. According to him, he couldn't see what was going to happen in the future. However, he knew where it would happen, and that was none other than the Southern Continent.

Tell my granddaughter to be careful. The current balance of power in the Silvermoon Continent is quite volatile and not even the Aenarion Family is safe. For now, I've decided to keep a low profile and not mess with these muddled waters.

Oliver, keep my granddaughter safe and remember the vow that you made to me. I will hold you accountable if anything happens to Ceilne.

May the Goddesses of the Twin Moons bestow their blessings upon the two of you."

—–

Oliver glanced at the raven and nodded his head. The raven nodded back and flew away. It had completed its mission, so it was now time to return to its master.

The Parrot Monkey sighed as he sat on his perch. Soon, the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs reached his ears.

"Was that a letter from Grandfather?" Celine asked.

"Yes, Mistress," Oliver replied. "It has begun."

Celine nodded her head and went out of the house to visit James. The two of them, and the veterans of Lont, needed to make preparations for the calamity that was about to befall the Southern Continent.

———-

"Father," Lionel said with a serious expression. "I was reading the ancient scrolls during my history lessons and came upon something interesting.It said that the First King of the Hellan Kingdom always wore a necklace with a Key attached to it.

"I'm very curious, what do you think that key is used for? Aside from the records saying that the First King treated it like a treasure, no other information about it can be found anywhere."

Noah lowered the book in his hand as he glanced at his oldest son. "Oh? I never thought you were someone that liked history. Two years ago, you said that you didn't want to read about anything related to the history of our kingdom because it was already in the past. Why are you suddenly getting curious now?"

Lionel smiled as he faced his father's stare head on, "As the Crown Prince of the Hellan Kingdom, it would be embarrassing if someone were to ask me about how our Kingdom was founded. If I am not able to answer this question then wouldn't I become a disgrace?"

"True." Noah nodded his head in agreement. "Very well, I will tell you what I know. The key that you are referring to is called the 'Oathkeeper Key'. I also don't know much about the key, but from what my father told me,

the First King had a secret domain where he hid all of his precious treasures.

"Naturally, no one knows where this domain is. He didn't share this knowledge with anyone, not even to his own son. The only legacy he left him was the Hellan Kingdom and the Oathkeeper Key. You could even say that the Kings that followed him, did everything in their power to search for this elusive domain. However, all of their efforts were in vain."

Lionel listened seriously and nodded from time to time. The secret organization said that they would support and enthrone him as the Emperor of the Southern Continent if he could give them the Oathkeeper Key.

After hearing about the Key's importance, Lionel was having second thoughts. If he could find the key as well as the domain, perhaps he would be able to get his hands on extremely rare resources that would boost the Military Might of the Hellan Kingdom.

If that were to happen, he could command the Kingdom's Armies to conquer the entirety of the continent and declare himself as the new Emperor.

However, the agent of the organization that was keeping in touch with him left him some words that made him anxious.

"You are not the only candidate that our organization is supporting. If the key is not in our hands within two months, our deal is over."

Lionel had always thought that he was the only candidate that the organization was grooming to become the Emperor of the Southern Continent. Although he wasn't a narcissist like William, he was someone who thought highly of himself. For him, he was the best, and the only one who had the right to stand above others.

He couldn't tolerate being used as a stepping stone by others, and the organization's veiled threat made him anxious. Because of this, he decided to put more effort in finding the key.

'I still have two months,' Lionel thought. 'After I get the key from my father, I will conduct a search to find the First King's Hidden Domain. If what I find inside is greater than the benefits of being an Emperor then I will cut ties with the organization.'

Lionel was an ambitious person. He didn't want to be treated like a "subordinate". The only reason he was trying to keep a good relationship with this secret group was because he felt that his current position was being threatened by his Younger Brother, Rufus.

The Crown Prince only had Grade C Talent in Magic, but he compensated this shortcoming by training hard as a swordsman. Right now, he was in the middle stages of the Gold Rank and the King had recognized his efforts and gave him the title of "Crown Prince".

Even so, that didn't stop Lionel's anxiousness. He knew that his father was a cunning man. Although the title of Crown Prince was currently on his head, the King of the Hellan Kingdom could easily take it away.

Noah was not only cunning, but ruthless as well. It just didn't show on the surface because the Kingdom had been experiencing an era of peace and prosperity before the Beast Tide and Dungeon Outbreaks happened.

While Lionel was thinking of these things, Noah closed the book in his hand and summoned a small ornate box from his storage ring. He then passed it along to Lionel and asked him to open it.

The Crown Prince obeyed his father and opened the small box. What lay inside was a key made from an unknown material. This was the first time he had seen such a material.

"That is the Oathkeeper Key," Noah said. "It is a key that is passed down to the reigning King of the Kingdom. Naturally, that key will be passed to your hands after I step down from my position. Until then, I will keep it safe until your coronation."

Lionel had a complicated look on his face as he looked at the key in his hands. He never thought that the key he was looking for could be obtained so easily. Now, there were only two questions going through his head.

Should he give the key to the organization?

Should he keep it a secret from them while he looked for the Hidden Domain that was somewhere within the Kingdom?

'Two months. I still have two months.' Lionel calmly returned the key to the ornate box and passed it back to his father. 'Since I already know where the key is. I will start looking for the domain.'

Lionel knew that the organization needed the key desperately if they were willing to trade the entire Southern Continent for it.

Suddenly a realization passed through his body like a lightning bolt. The Crown Prince didn't know if his hunch was true, but if it was then that meant that the organization already knew the location of the Hidden Domain.

Lionel didn't want to think of such a possibility because that would put him into a corner. If that was really the reality then he would have no choice but to relinquish the key to the organization.

He just hoped that when he did give them the key, the organization would honor their promise and make him the Emperor of the Southern Continent.

'Sidonie, you will be mine' Lionel thought as he pushed back the bitterness in his heart with the face of his beloved princess.

He was fine even if the treasure within the Hidden Domain was plundered. As long as the most beautiful young lady in the continent, the Third Princess of the Kingdom of Freesia, Sidonie, became his woman then he could accept the outcome.

Since he had already confirmed the location of the key, it was now time to put his plan into motion. He would force the organization to bring the Third Princess to the Hellan Kingdom as a guarantee that they would honor their promise.

Chapter 228: Thousand Beast Domain [Part 1]

Spencer rolled on the ground and was about to get back up when Drake fell on his body, pinning him down.

"Get off me!" Spencer roared as he pushed aside his comrade at arms.

Drake lay on the ground panting and didn't get up right away. Spencer, on the other hand, picked up his spear that had fallen several meters away from him and charged at Ella.

He activated his Aura and Spear intent to increase his speed and get close to his opponent. Unfortunately, Ella didn't wait for him. Instead, she used her Rush Attack and met Spencer head-on.

Spencer was a step too late and was unable to use his weapon to strike. Ella's horns impaled the boy's chest and pierced through his heart. Spencer screamed in pain before turning into particles of light.

Ella then fired three consecutive "Benevolent Shots" at Drake who was still lying on the ground. Soon, he, too, turned into particles of light and disappeared from the Coliseum.

"It's really hard to fight the Commander's Goat," one of the First Years winced after seeing Spencer's gruesome death.

"Even two of our strongest fighters can't beat her in a two on one battle," an eighteen-year-old member of the Angorian War Sovereign commented. "Class C Beasts are really on another level."

"Can we not fight her?"

"We have no choice. It's the Commander's orders."

"Stop whining and let's go. There are six of us, I'm sure we can do something."

"That's right! We can overwhelm her with numbers. So what if she's a Class C Beast? We can still beat her if we work together!"

"I agree!"

"Let's go and beat the Commander's Goat!"

""Let's go!""

William was currently seated in one of the spectator seats in the Coliseum with his arms crossed over his chest. Today was Monday, and it was time for their Martial Training Class. Grent personally asked William if he could borrow Ella so she could have a battle against the students.

After asking for Ella's opinion, William accepted Grent's request and his Mama went to the Coliseum to fight against the First Years. The Head-Instructor of the First Years of the Martial Class Division hoped that the young teens would be able to test their abilities against a Class C Beast.

The outcome was a one-sided massacre.

Although Ella loved children, she didn't show the First Year's any mercy. She intended to make them realize how dangerous it was to face off against a Beast that was as strong as her. She killed all of them in order to prevent them from dying in the future due to ignorance and negligence.

Everyone fought Ella, with the exception of William. The fight was not a one-on-one battle, but a fight using a party of six people each round. At most, all of the students' battle prowess were in the Silver Ranks, which was roughly equivalent to Class D Beasts.

The officers, namely, Priscilla, Kenneth, Conrad, Spencer, Drake, and Dave were just a step away from the Gold Rank, which was roughly equivalent to a Class C Beast (Low).

Even so, they still didn't win against Ella who had gained a lot of fighting experience through life and death battles.

For her, the children were just as strong as a Hobgoblin Leader.

When the entirety of the First Years had died under Ella's horns and hooves, Grent declared that their lesson for the day was over.

All of the students stared at the Angorian War Ibex with

newfound admiration and respect. They even bowed to her at the end of the class as a "thank you" for giving them a painful experience.

Ella gave them a brief nod before changing back to her "Fluffy Goat" form and returning to William's side.

"Good job, Mama," William said as he brushed Ella's back.

"Meeeh," Ella replied happily because she felt that she had done a good job in teaching the children about the dangers of fighting against strong beasts. She hoped that this would be a painful lesson that would save their lives in the future.

William and Ella headed straight to their dormitory room to check up on Dia, Thor, and Ragnar. The three little Guardians were currently undergoing their second growth phase and had gone into hibernation.

According to the system, this growth process could take a few weeks to a few months before the three guardians woke up from their sleep. Right now, the safest place William could leave them was the Head Prefect's room. This room was protected by a special enchantment that forbade others to enter unless they were people whom William had given exclusive permission.

Ella laid down beside the kids and looked at them with gentle eyes. She hoped that when the three of them woke up, they would be stronger and would be of greater help to William.

William looked at the sleeping guardians and frowned.

'System, is there a place where we can hide the three of them while they are undergoing their transformation? I don't feel safe leaving them inside my room while I'm away.'

< Before I answer that question, host, can you first answer a question of mine? >

'Go ahead,' William said as he laid down on the bed. 'As long as it's not Math, I can answer it easily.'

The system became silent for a moment before asking William the question it had been meaning to ask.

< Host, what do you intend to do with the God Points we received from the God of Alchemists? Is there something that you plan to buy in the God Shop? >

'Actually, I also wanted to discuss this topic with you,' William replied. 'I browsed the God Shop yesterday and found some interesting weapons to buy. However, I can't decide what to get. Last time, you gave me a good recommendation with Rhongomyniad. If possible, I'd like to ask for another recommendation from you.'

< Understood. Actually, I was hoping that the host still hadn't made up his mind on what to do with the God Points. After calculating the host's possible future arrangements, I concluded that it would be best to not invest in any kind of weapon right now.

< The reasoning is simple. The host already has a few mythical grade artifacts that can be used to increase your offensive, defensive, and creative prowess. >

William nodded his head in agreement. Soleil and the Yin Yang Cauldron had indeed given him two Job Classes that he could tinker with for the time being. The Sun Knight required William to bathe in the sunlight to gain experience points. The Alchemist required William to craft items to gain mastery and gain skill points.

With these Two Job Classes in hand, adding a few more would only eat up more of William's precious time that he could use for other things.

'What do you suggest I do with the God Points?'

< Invest in Domain Creation. >

'Domain Creation?'

Instead of answering William's inquiry, the system opened up the God Shop and showed William the Domains that were being sold on the miscellaneous tab.

—–

500 Square Meter Domain = 10,000 God Points

1.5 Square Mile Domain = 20,000 God Points

3 Square Mile Domain = 30,000 God Points

5 Square Mile Domain = 40,000 God Points

7 Square Mile Domain = 50,000 God Points

——

< Host, Domains are miniature worlds that can support life. The Alchemist God has several Domains where he plants the rare herbs that he uses for his alchemy. This allows him to craft rare pills without worrying about a shortage of ingredients.

< Several other Gods also have domains of their own to grow various products which they use to sell in the God Shop. Host, did you know? You can also buy rare beasts in the God Shop once you upgrade your Main Job Class, which is the Shepherd Class. >

'What?!' William gasped. 'You mean there are other features in the God Shop that are not available to me?'

< Yes. Right now, the host can only access the Weapon, Armor, Accessories, and the Miscellaneous Shop. After you upgrade your main Job Class, you will be able to access the other shops like the Beast Shop, Humanoid Shop, Construct Shop, and gain access to the Auction House. >

'They also sell live Beasts? And Humanoids?' William frowned. 'I can understand why they sell Beasts, but Humanoids as well? Isn't that the same as selling slaves?'

< Host, you have to understand that not all the Gods are as good as the ones that support you. If there is light, there will also be darkness. The Auction House is also a place where the followers of the Gods can auction the items that they found in their own worlds.

< It is a way to gain God Points which then can be used to purchase other items in the God Shop. >

< In time, the host will also be able to auction off your own items in the God Shop, but for now, our priority is to have our own Domain. I propose that the host use 30,000 God Points to buy the 3 Square Mile Domain from the God Shop. By doing so, you can house a number of Beasts, such as the Trollhounds that are currently staying inside your Goblin Crypt. >

Chapter 229: Thousand Beast Domain [Part 2]

William didn't think twice and immediately purchased the 3 Square Mile Domain that was worth 30,000 God Points.

His current problem was having a suitable place he could send the Beasts, that he was planning to add to his private army, to when he didn't need their help. Right now, Fenrir and the other Trollhounds were staying inside the Goblin Crypt.

It was the "makeshift solution" that the system had made as a temporary housing area for them. The system built a "Barracks" inside the dungeon where the trollhounds could stay, which enabled them to explore the Dungeon anytime that they wanted.

The main reason William and the System had housed them inside the Dungeon was because The Goblin Crypt supplied the Trollhounds with an unlimited source of food, namely the goblins inside the dungeon. The additional good news was that they could gain combat experience while doing so.

It also helped them develop their team battle tactics which would greatly increase their battle prowess.

After the Domain was purchased, the system integrated it inside the Ring of Conquest, by paying additional 5,000 God Points. It also connected the domain to the dungeon which would give them additional benefits once William's seal had been undone.

William stood inside the domain and scanned its surroundings. There was nothing inside it aside from the sky and dry land.

< Host we will now customize the domain, but we will need God Points in order to purchase the things we need. The prices will be shown on your status page and you can arrange it in any way that you wish. >

William nodded his head and accessed the "Domain Settings" where various landmarks like trees, mountains, valleys, plains, marshlands, rivers, lakes, oceans, could be found.

'Hmp. The days I spent playing Simp City were not in vain.' William grinned as he started to modify the lifeless Domain he had just bought.

'10 ordinary trees only cost 1 God Point, not bad,' William thought as he looked at the ordinary trees that were available in the shop. Then his eyes widened when he saw several other trees that he had only heard of in this lifetime.

—–

< Dragon Blood Tree – 100 God Points each. >

— A breed of tree that produces a red sap that could be used for making healing potions.

< Monkey Puzzle Tree – 100 God Points each. >

— A breed of tree that spawns one Cercopes Monkey per day

— Maximum number of Cercopes Monkeys spawned per tree is 30

< Quiver Tree – 100 God Points each. >

— A breed of tree that automatically creates 10 – 20 arrows per week.

— Additionally once a month it will create a batch of 10 elemental arrows.

< Candelabra Tree – 1000 God Points each. >

— A breed of tree that spawns two random "Rainbow Birds" a day.

— Maximum number of Rainbow Birds spawned per tree is 50.

— if a Rainbow Bird dies, a new egg will appear on the tree and hatch 24 hours later.

—–

There were thousands of trees in the tree catalogue and William couldn't possibly read them all. In the end, William bought one Dragon Blood Tree, one Monkey Puzzle Tree, one Quiver Tree, one Candelabra Tree and a Hyperion Tree, which was recommended by the system.

—–

< Hyperion Tree – 1,000 God Points each >

— One of the tallest trees in the world

— A breed of tree that spawns one Blood Eagle

— Maximum number of Blood Eagles per tree is 1.

< Blood Eagle >

— Birds of Prey

— Threat Level: D (Mid)

— Blood Eagles are Class D Beasts that will continue to grow stronger as they devour the blood and flesh of their enemies.

— It has a wingspan of 3 meters and is capable of traveling 400 MPH in short bursts, making it one of the fastest birds of prey in the world.

— It's final form is the Blood Tempest which is a Millennial Beast.

—–

William spent 1,420 God Points on the trees which left him a balance of 14,580 God Points.

'So expensive.' William scratched his head as he arranged the trees

within the domain. He placed the Hyperion Tree at the center of the domain, while he scattered the other expensive trees in the Four Cardinal locations.

William added a lake and four rivers which cost him 700 God points. Soon, the Half-Elf became too engrossed in designing his domain and bought a couple of things for Aesthetic purposes.

His added purchases cost him 2,000 God Points, but his domain became more lively because of it. The weather control was worth 1,000 God Points. This function allowed William to control the temperature and season of his Domain depending on his whim.

The other 1,000 God Points was used to buy hills, boulders, shrubs, flower fields, and a Wide Villa that would serve as his "Vacation House".

William was planning to add a few more things in the Domain when the System stepped in and reminded him that they had limited funds, so he couldn't use it for luxury items.

'10,980 God Points left.' William sighed because his "Simp City" Project was put on hold for the time being.

"I need to buy grass that will grow in the plains for the herd to consume," William muttered as he thought of Aslan, Chronos, and the rest of the goats that were currently in Lont. He wanted to give them the best, so William decided to buy the most expensive grass he could find in the Domain Shop.

< High Grade Spirit Grass – 5,000 God Points per Hectare. >

— A spirit grass that nourishes the body of anyone that consumes it and helps expel impurities.

— Can be used to craft certain types of pills and medicines.

— Continuous consumption of this grass will help strengthen the body overtime.

— After it is eaten, it will take 5 days for it to regrow again.

—–

'So expensive!' William scratched his head, but still ultimately bought a hectare worth of High-Grade Spirit Grass.

He then evenly scattered it along the Four Cardinal Directions in order to prevent the Herd Animals from fighting against each other. William vowed that he would buy more Spirit Grass once he earned more God Points through his quests.

William summoned the trollhounds to his Domain and allowed them to explore the surroundings. He forbade them from making trouble with the Cercopes Monkey and the Rainbow Birds.

William ordered the Blood Eagle not to attack anyone inside the Domain. He promised that he would take it out to hunt from time to time and the latter happily agreed.

Every Beast inside William's domain was automatically added to his King's Legion. Although they were not creatures of the herd, they were inhabitants of his Domain. Since William was the owner, that made him the Master of all the beasts that resided within it.

< God Points: 5,980 >

"System, let's stop for now," William said. "I'm tired."

William had spent hours arranging his Domain and he was now feeling very hungry. Designing the domain was fun, but very expensive as well. For now, he decided to stop and save what remaining God Points he had for future purposes. He was about to leave the domain when the System stopped him.

< Host, you are forgetting something important. >

"I am?" William scratched his head. "Should I have added a small mountain? Or perhaps a small valley? What did I forget exactly?"

< Host, you forgot to give your Domain a name. >

"Ah!" William clapped his hands in realization. "How could I completely forget such an important thing. Very well, from now on, this domain will be called 'Thousand Beast Domain'."

—–

< Ding! >

< Thousand Beast Domain has been successfully registered! >

< New Title Acquired! >

< Title: Domain Master >

< Domain Master >

"I am the Master of my Fate, the Captain of my Soul."

— Receives +10 Enhancement to all stats.

— Increase production rate of everything inside the domain by 20%

—–

William has received several titles. However, he could only equip three of them at a time. The system had told him that he could equip three additional titles after he had upgraded his Main Job Class to the next level, which made William look forward to the future.

The current Titles he had equipped were…

< Giant Slayer >

< Wolf Slayer >

< Domain Master >

—–

< Giant Slayer >

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall!"

— Increase attack against Giant Race by 30%

— Increase attack against monsters that are over 5 meters tall by 30%

— Strength +5

—–

< Wolf Slayer >

"Time to save Little Red Riding Hood!"

— Increase attack against Wolf Type Monsters by 50%

— Strength +3

—–

After making sure that everything was in order, William left the Thousand Beast Domain and returned to the real world.

Ironically, as soon as he appeared inside his room, he heard someone knocking on his door.

"Who is it?" William asked.

"It is me, Kenneth," Kenneth answered.

William hurriedly opened the door and saw his Ex-Roommate Kenneth with a worried look on his face. At first, Kenneth stayed with William inside the Prefect Room, but after the latter became the Commander of the Angorian War Sovereign, Kenneth returned to their old dormitory room to give William some privacy.

Although William didn't mind if Kenneth stayed with him, the delicate looking boy insisted that they separate their living quarters.

"I came to find you an hour ago, but no one was answering when I knocked," Kenneth said. "Do you want to have dinner together?"

"Okay, can you wait five minutes? There is something I need to do first," William stated.

"Sure."

"Thank you."

William closed the door and teleported the three sleeping guardians to his Villa inside the Thousand Beast Domain. He had already prepared a room for the three of them to rest while he waited for them to wake up from their hibernation.

The Half-Elf was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief after the three kids were safely tucked into their beds. Ella decided to stay with them instead of following William to the dining room. She had already eaten. She had tested the Spirit Grass that William had planted to make sure that it was safe for consumption and she was very satisfied with it.

Five minutes later, William and Kenneth headed to the Dining Hall together. The latter looked at William suspiciously, but didn't say anything else. His mission was to observe the boy and not interfere with his private life.

Whatever secrets William had, Kenneth had no intention of prying into them. Deep inside, he was feeling guilty, so he did his job half heartedly. The thought of William getting hurt because of his mission was something he didn't want to have happen.

This was why he didn't report everything about William and kept some of his secrets to himself. He hoped that when they parted ways, William would still treat him as a friend, instead of a traitor who spied on him behind his back.

Chapter 16 - 219-229

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