Chapter 17 - Lucius' Conditions

Lucius then smiled as he sat on his chair, "Let's talk about my conditions. Firstly, as you mentioned, I'll be heading a new division. That's fine. But I want full authority over the team working with me. I'll choose the people myself."

Savra, who heard it, nodded and said, "That's a reasonable request. The division will perform better if its members are people you trust and can work with effectively."

Lucius smiled as he immediately continued, "Good. My second condition ties directly to the first and it is that I want to purchase slaves to form my team."

Savra, who heard his second request, immediately frowned. "Slaves? I think that might not be the best idea. Slaves tend to be stupid so they will not be able to perform as well as you do later."

Lucius only smirked upon hearing it. "You are thinking it too narrowly. I am not asking for any low-quality slaves. I'm talking about elite slaves, the ones with exceptional skills and potential."

Lucius then continued his reasons for buying slaves: "And also, I want slaves because I want loyalty from them. They'll be bound to me, and I won't have to worry about betrayal."

Savra immediately understood what Lucius meant: "Loyalty through ownership, I can see your points. If we focus on acquiring high-quality slaves, this could work. How many are you thinking?"

Lucius immediately held up three fingers and said, "Two or maybe three slaves would be enough to enter my team."

Magnus, who had been silent, looked surprised. "That's it? Just two or three people? For an entire division?"

Lucius chuckled and immediately explained it, "Why not? A smaller team is more focused, easier to train, and far simpler to manage. Quality over quantity, Magnus. Haven't you learned that by now?"

Savra, who heard what Lucius said, was still curious about his choices: "Are you really confident a small team can handle your workload?"

Lucius' smirk widened. "Absolutely. In fact, try to take a closer look at what's left after the evolution."

Savra then immediately looked around and suddenly realized something: "The materials were far fewer than before. Even the 4-Star material I provided is gone."

Lucius nodded and explained, "Exactly. I've used them. I can only tap into a fraction of their potential right now because I'm still too weak."

Lucius then continued, "But once I grow stronger, I'll be able to use them to their fullest. A small, focused team will help me reach that level faster."

Lucius then said again that was a bit of a warning: "And as you can see, I used a lot of materials so if you increase the workload, doesn't that mean that the materials that I will be using will be increased by a lot?"

Savra, who heard it, immediately understood, "I see. You've thought this through. Fewer people mean faster training and less risk of mistakes."

Savra then also said about the division, "And also, this won't just be a beast division anymore. Given your vision, this division is better called a VIP Beast Division."

Lucius only smirked upon hearing that Savra finally realized it: "Now, you have known about what I want."

Savra only chuckled upon realizing it and said, "Very well. I will grant this request of yours and now what is your third condition?"

Lucius then smiled as he said, "The third condition is that I want a special room or house, something like a laboratory where I can conduct my work without interruptions."

Savra, who heard it, immediately understood what he meant: "I see, a laboratory where you can focus and evolve the beasts in peace. Is that all?"

Savra tilted her head slightly, her calm, calculating expression returning. "A laboratory? That makes sense. A place where you can focus and develop new techniques. Is that all?"

Lucius nodded and said, "That's all for now, as I cannot think of other conditions."

Savra smiled as she said, "Then it's settled and I will ensure that all of your requests will be well handled. Now about the slaves, do you have specific requirements for them?"

Lucius began to think about it and said, "Yes. I want slaves who are beautiful, with silver hair like mine. They must be intelligent because I'll need to teach them, and they should also have strong physiques."

Magnus was a bit surprised after hearing such specific requests. Savra, on the other hand, just nodded and said, "That's quite specific. Anything else?"

Lucius nodded and added, "Yes, and if possible, I want them to be talentless, as they don't have any beast-taming talent."

Savra was a bit surprised after hearing this: "Talentless? Why would you want slaves without talent?"

Lucius only smirked and said, "Talentles individuals are easier to control and I also have some ways for them to grow without taming beasts."

Savra then understood, "I see. To think that you also knew the ways for talentless people to grow but it seems that it is a secret."

Lucius smirked and nodded. "Yeah, it is a secret and also it only works for talentless people, so this will be useless for you."

Savra understood and said, "I see, then I don't need to know about it as long as you are loyal to our family. Then, I'll arrange for the slaves to arrive tomorrow."

Lucius then nodded as it was already settled and Savra immediately invited Lucius, "Now that is settled. For now, let's head to dinner. We'll discuss more details tomorrow."

Magnus, who had been quietly observing, finally said, "You really think of everything, don't you? This isn't how most Evolists operate."

Lucius only smirked. "That's because most Evolists are stuck in their ways, Magnus. I have no interest in following the crowd."

Magnus fell silent, unable to refute the genius before him and he could not be fierce with him as his beasts were now in his hands.

Savra then immediately looked at them and said, "Let's head to dinner. It's been a long day and I am hungry now." 

Soon the three of them went to the dining hall to have their dinner.