ttznovel Chapter 214: Don’t let us down
Chapter 214: Don’t let us down
Naturally, the creating of a colossal library in the heart of Goldenveil drew a great deal of attention.
Ethan quickly hired a manager who had worked with books in the past and the man, in turn, recruited four acquaintances to assist with administration, along with a few others dedicated to cleaning and maintenance.
Before long, the establishment was ready to open its doors.
At first, only one or two people approached, crossing the threshold with curiosity. But as word spread through the streets, the flow of visitors swelled rapidly.
Any man or woman who could read and write their own name was welcome, and it didn’t take long for more than two hundred people to show interest in the countless books on the shelves.
Such a scene, naturally, left Ethan deeply satisfied.
In the future, he planned to introduce many other forms of entertainment in Goldenveil, especially an arena modeled after a colosseum.
But until he reached that stage, the library would serve its purpose well enough, offering entertainment through its many fantasy books and, more importantly, standing as a rich source of knowledge for his people.
Finally, Ethan left the library and headed straight for the barracks.
Doran and Aerick were already waiting for him, alongside another hundred and fifty guards, all led by Adam, Veronica’s brother.
Ethan nodded to the two guard leaders before walking over to Adam, noting with some satisfaction that the young man had already reached level thirty-three.
"I see you haven’t been neglecting your training. Very good."
Ethan’s lips curved into a subtle smile as his eyes assessed Adam from head to toe.
"I can’t let myself be outdone by my little sister, my lord! I’ve already mastered the first three forms of the Golden Dragon Emperor’s fencing, and I’m ready to start learning the fourth!" Adam declared, his chest puffed out with pride.
"Your sister is being trained directly by Alice, so you’ll have to work hard to keep up with her." Ethan replied, pulling an item from his spatial ring.
It was the Rank A sword he had won from opening forty-four premium gacha tickets.
A beautiful, elegant blade, without a doubt. Its silver edge caught the sunlight in a razor-sharp glint, while the black hilt gleamed like polished obsidian.
"M-my lord?" Adam froze at the sight of that sword, his eyes widening in disbelief.
"What? Do you really think you can lead the soldiers of Goldenveil with a weapon like that?" Ethan teased, snatching the Rank D sword from Adam’s waist and pressing the Rank A blade against the young man’s chest.
Adam couldn’t find his voice. He took a step back, the sharp blade trembling slightly in his grip.
A single glance was enough for him to recognize that its quality was not inferior to the weapons Aerick and Doran carried at their sides.
It was an artifact that could be sold for thousands of gold coins, enough to finance a lifetime of luxury for an ordinary peasant.
Ethan just smiled, squeezing the young man’s shoulders firmly.
Adam, on his own, as a Rank A talent, was already worth far more than that sword. But his sister?
Even a thousand blades like that would be insufficient to pay for the true value of a Rank A talent mage like her.
"Get your men ready. Cain will be coming out any moment now, and then it’ll be your turn. Don’t let us down and lead them well."
Hearing that, Adam simply nodded, still trembling as he sheathed the new sword at his waist.
He could barely handle the envious glances his friends were casting his way.
Leaving Adam in charge of organizing the soldiers, Ethan motioned for Aerick and Doran to follow him toward the Hell Soldiers’ gate.
"How is the magic core consumption?" Ethan asked.
Since it had been a few days since he’d last inspected the reserves that kept the barracks’ arrays active, he didn’t know how consumption was going.
"Honestly, my lord, compared to what we had in the Fallen Sun Empire, it’s quite efficient. But it’s still painful," Doran replied, his hands clasped behind his back.
Upon hearing that, Ethan merely nodded, feeling the same tightness in his own chest.
Ever since they had activated the Hell Soldier’s portal, Goldenveil’s mana cores had been draining at a violent pace.
Fortunately, the reserves would still last until summer, but even so, it hurt a great deal to watch so many magic cores slip away.
He needed to find a way, as quickly as possible, to establish a foothold in that magical vein and begin mining mana cores.
"Are you going to enter the Hell Soldier’s gate as well, my lord? It might be good for your skills," Aerick asked from his side.
He and Doran didn’t urgently need something like that, since neither lacked experience, but Ethan was still young and would certainly benefit immensely from such a gate.
"Yes," Ethan nodded honestly.
"But only after two more waves of soldiers have gone through. The next one, after Adam, will consist of two hundred soldiers, and after that I’ll go in with a higher temporal distortion multiplier."
He planned to test a two-hundred-fold temporal multiplier, just to find out what the final cost would be and how long he could endure inside.
Upon hearing that, the two men simply nodded in confirmation, holding their positions as they watched the gate tremble gently.
Cain was about to step through.
Ethan’s lips curved in anticipation, and he took a step back, making way.
In the next instant, the gate tore open into a pulsing black portal, the air around it rippling with a dense mana.
From within, one hundred and fifty guards marched out in rigid formation, their boots striking the stone in perfect unison.
The moment they came out,, both Aerick and Doran let out a heavy sigh, their experienced eyes immediately taking in the men’s gazes and bearing.
That was the posture and stare of veteran soldiers, a look possessed by only a handful of men in all of Goldenveil.