Chapter 105: True Dragon Descends
Anse suddenly turned around. Behind him, a magic book floated, and a cat-like phantom, entirely black, was perched on it, tilting its head to look at him.
“Who are you?” he asked in surprise.
The black cat darted into the magic book with a whoosh and disappeared.
“Uh…” Anse looked at the magic book floating in front of him, not daring to touch it.
The dice spun rapidly, and after a long time, a bit of information was detected:
【Book of Castella】, it was just a name.
‘Could it be a relic from the previous owner?’
The Astrolabe Track Formation was not just a control center, but also a meditation room. It was perfectly normal for the previous owner to store things here.
Thinking of this, he became even more hesitant to move and immediately activated the Scepter of Sanctuary, returning to the Second Underground Level.
‘Could it be that black cat that controlled the Shield Guards to scout outside? Something like a spirit or a soul?’ he pondered.
“Where did you go just now?” Brat asked.
“Underground,” Anse said without elaborating.
The matter of surveillance couldn’t be revealed to others; it would bring no benefit, only suspicion.
The group continued to explore the Second Underground Level and discovered it was a prison. Most cells were empty, and the few that weren’t only contained skeletal remains, of both humanoid creatures and monsters.
Brat was a little disappointed; a half-Construct Shield Guard and six Animated Brooms didn’t seem to be fitting for such a mysterious Mage Tower.
“It’s already very good.” Anse had his sights set on the place.
“Yes, do you have a new plan?” Brat asked tentatively.
“Disasters are frequent now, and the situation is chaotic. I’m planning to establish an organization…” Anse slowly revealed his vision.
This organization would undoubtedly be centered around him, helping him grow and progress, providing various forms of support, such as intelligence, funds, and logistics, and also handling combat missions of a certain scale.
His primary goal was Legendary status. Money, power, and pleasure were also essential, but they would come later.
Brat and the others exchanged glances, excitement appearing in their eyes.
In Faerun, the strong were respected, and following the strong was instinctual. Anse’s potential was obvious to anyone.
Brat and Finn had also worried more than once that they had become a weak link in the team, offering limited help to Anse, yet they didn’t know where to go.
“I think the development method of territorial nobles is very suitable. The people are loyal to you, you provide protection, they pay taxes, farm, fish, hunt, and trade…” Brat had never felt his mind so clear.
Other organizational models had their own drawbacks.
The Harpers were united by ideals and had almost no compensation.
The Shadow Thieves Guild was tightly organized, maintained by money, and required a lot of effort and investment in the early stages.
Commercial teams and guilds were too loose. Battle squads were good, but all members had to be paid salaries. Did they go out as mercenaries when there was nothing to do?
Relatively speaking, the noble model was more suitable.
With this Spatial Paradise, far from war, recruiting people would be incredibly easy. Even professionals would want a stable place to live.
As long as the ecosystem of the Paradise was improved, farming and fishing alone could sustain thousands of people.
With logistics, management personnel and combat personnel could be supported, gradually expanding. Then, finding a few reliable managers would mean Anse wouldn’t have to worry.
First, he indeed didn’t understand business management, and second, he didn’t want to focus his energy on such trivial matters.
He was a spellcaster with extraordinary power and didn’t need to worry too much about someone seizing power.
The group discussed heatedly, their ideas multiplying.
“Why not rename this place Hollewen, improve the ecosystem first, and then establish strongholds in various places when we reach a safe location, with internal and external connectivity,” Brat suggested.
Hollewen was Anse’s surname and was more suitable than Spatial Paradise.
“No problem.” Anse patted Brat’s shoulder, his expression solemn. “Since you are willing to follow me, I hereby appoint you the first Governor of Hollewen, with full authority over territorial affairs. Giant Tail and Finn will still follow me.”
“I will do my best,” Brat said, straightening his back, his face full of smiles.
Refusing would be foolish. Compared to his original identity as a Guard Captain of Lingang Hospital, this was an immediate ascent.
To be in charge of a mysterious Otherworldly Space made his imagination run wild.
“No rush, let’s go back to eat first, and then move.”
“Let’s go, let’s go, I can’t wait!”
Before leaving, Anse divided the six Animated Brooms and sent them to the first and fourth floors, letting them clean. The first floor was the entrance, and the fourth floor was for accommodation; both were important.
Returning to the Villa, the food on the dining table had gone cold.
However, they didn’t mind. After a hasty meal, they took all their belongings and re-entered the Spatial Paradise, or Hollewen.
Nolnos and the little Compsognathus, Mao, also came in.
When needed, Anse could summon Nolnos out at any time, even if his Holy Symbol was lost.
As for Mao, while obedient, it lacked telepathic communication and was of little use.
The group went to the fourth floor, planning to clean it out first, with one room for each person. They couldn’t live there permanently yet, but they could store personal belongings or supplies.
Anse also chose a room. He had many Magical Items on him, and carrying them was inconvenient.
While others cleaned the rooms, he focused on exploring the mysteries of the Black Tower.
In addition to surveillance, the Mage Tower’s Water and Drainage System and Permission identification functions were still effective.
The Black Tower had multiple water storage rooms on each level, which could automatically absorb groundwater and rainwater, purify it, and pump it into pipes to supply the entire tower.
Permission identification relied entirely on the Paradise Seal; without it, many areas were inaccessible.
Although the Black Tower appeared to have no windows, it actually didn’t. However, as long as one possessed the Paradise Seal, parts of the walls could be made transparent from one side, overlooking the entire island.
Other than that, almost all other functions of the Black Tower were defunct; there were no alarms, no magical defenses, and no offensive capabilities.
‘I got an island for free, I can’t ask for more,’ Anse was content.
Time in the Otherworld was consistent with the outside, but there was no Sun, Moon, or stars. Nights were dimmer, but still visible.
Night deepened, and Anse returned to the Villa with Giant Tail and Finn. He needed to meditate.
The Black Tower could not be lived in for the time being, and he felt a sense of unease, worrying that he might not be able to get out one day.
Moreover, in the Otherworld, he couldn’t know the situation outside. If he came out tomorrow and found enemies all around, wouldn’t that be problematic?
—
In the middle of the night, patches of small figures appeared north of Blue Water City, with faint dog barking sounds.
They gradually gathered around Blue Water City and Antak City, staying a moderate distance away. Although there was no formation to speak of, their numbers were sufficient.
The soldiers guarding the city had never seen such a scene. Many were petrified by the pairs of glowing eyes in the darkness.
Merfolk in Claw Bay also climbed onto the docks, and their numbers were not small.
Ear-piercing alarm sounds echoed from various parts of the city walls, waking the sleeping people. Lights flickered on, and squads of warriors climbed onto the battlements, making the city suddenly noisy.
At one moment, a dragon’s roar pierced the night.
Kobolds and Merfolk heard it and moved simultaneously, carrying makeshift Siege Weapons and charging towards the city walls.
After a brief moment of panic, the human side immediately counterattacked. With the advantage of the city walls and weapons, their killing efficiency was high, and not a single enemy managed to climb the walls.
Blue Water City now had at least tens of thousands of people, gathering one-third of the elite forces of the Claw City-States. They lacked nothing and indeed had no difficulty fighting these “weak” alien races.
Tim’s Small Manor’s living room was brightly lit.
Anse, Giant Tail, Tim, and Sandre sat on the sofa, drinking tea to stay alert.
“An attack of this intensity cannot do anything to us. It should just be a probing attack. You should go back and rest,” Tim said calmly.
“Don’t let your guard down. Those Dragonborn, Wyverns, and Half-Dragons might be hiding in the dark, waiting for an opportunity,” Anse reminded him.
He had rested for half the night and was in good spirits.
“Don’t worry, we haven’t relaxed at all.” Tim gulped down his tea, his heart bitter.
He had already lost his Cliff Fortress, so how could he underestimate the enemy? Moreover, the walls of Blue Water City were far inferior to his Cliff Fortress, and the defensive advantage was not as significant.
Just then, a dragon’s cry sounded again over Blue Water City.
This time it was different from before. The sound was sonorous and powerful, with a long echo, and many people inexplicably felt a sense of dread.
“True Dragon!” Anse’s expression changed.
