Chapter 576: Solving The Problem - 1
"Fhew! Finally, back," Leo said, looking around the familiar Aurelius Hall.
He noticed that the temperature of the surroundings had dropped considerably, but since he was inside the large building, he couldn't see what it was like outside. And maybe the temperature was even regulated in here, so outside might be colder.
Leo looked around.
"Uh..."
He didn't find any familiar faces from his territory who would help the new recruits buy their basic needs.
In the end, he decided to buy everything himself.
The first thing was the Life Bracelets.
A total of 27 Life Bracelets—3 for his new beasts, 3 for the feather shop handlers, 4 for the Lizardmen, and 17 for the maids.
The feather shop manager seemed to have gone to the Academy office to register his business under Leo's territory. The women had been allowed to accompany Leo to take a look around Aurelius Hall and become familiar with the place, so they could buy the necessary things whenever needed.
As of now, these 3 women were permanent residents of Leo's territory, and it was now Leo's job to protect them. Thus, the Life Bracelets. These women would also be the first civilians to join from outside the academy.
After that, Leo went out and bought Mana-Repellent Rings for the maids and the women. He learned that these also existed to allow normal individuals to safely reside in places with high mana density.
But they were a bit more costly than the Life Bracelets—15,000 AC per ring. He bought 30 of them, with extras for the already existing 1-star elves and low-level individuals like Thalvyr's son, who would need to live on the plateau.
Balance: 32.1 -> 31.45 Million AC
"Hm?"
Leo noticed a claim section beside the balance.
>5.1 Million AC Salary - Claim?
"Oh... forgot about that."
Balance: 31.45 -> 36.55 Million AC
People literally waited for their salary every month like drug addicts waiting for their supplier, even if it was just 500 AC. And here was Leo casually forgetting 5.1 million AC.
"So tiring..."
Leo really wanted to call Slyva, Mira, and Aina to handle the task and pay the appropriate amount, but he didn't know what would happen in his or Lily's absence if some men got their eyes on this large group of girls.
Even now, it was only due to Leo and Thalvyr's domineering presence that people were trying to feign ignorance as they quietly passed.
"I wonder if Lily's training is over..." Leo muttered as he messaged her.
Leo: Training over? I am back.
Her response came a bit late. And it wasn't even text, but a voice message.
Lily: Swoosh! Woosh!
Leo was a bit taken aback. She seemed to be in the middle of attacking someone. He thought her training might still be going on, but her next words cleared things up.
Lily: Leo! You came at the right time! I am dealing with some 3rd-term students who have gotten their eyes on Sylrael and the others. Their numbers are quite high. If you can, come. You might get to enjoy dealing with these idiots. They are quite fun to play around with!
Lily sounded rather excited as Leo heard men screaming in the background.
Lily also shared her location, and she seemed to be fighting quite a distance away from the territory.
"Interesting..."
Leo was curious as to why Lily and the elves hadn't chosen the territory's superior terrain advantage to fight.
"Alright! We are going back."
They swiftly started walking towards the teleportation array as Leo turned to Lyswenna and Naelith.
"You both, it seems some fools have decided to mess with Lily, so I need to go. Have the maids and these women get a tour around the territory."
He then turned towards the three feather shop handlers and the maid. Then he looked back towards the elves.
"These people are not allowed to go around the plateau region. Only Zharrissa, Cindriss, and Arkvyr are. Make sure to have them wear the Mana-Repellent Rings."
He then turned to Thalvyr.
"You are coming with me."
With that, Leo and the group teleported to the territory and were instantly hit by a wave of cold air.
"What the..." Leo muttered after watching the scene
Beyond Howl's mound, everything in the distance was covered in a thin white sheet as snowflakes drifted slowly to the ground.
Howl seemed to be using [Thermal Pulse] to keep the territory's ground warm, allowing only the cold breeze to sweep overhead.
He also noticed that someone from the plateau seemed to be controlling the wind—or rather, the falling snowflakes themselves—making them divert away from the territory so they wouldn't melt atop the mound and leave everything wet.
Overall, it looked as if Leo's territory had a protective dome, making it look very good.
The nearby stationed Gnome was startled by the sudden influx of people.
But the moment he spotted Leo, he immediately knelt.
"L-L-Lord!!"
Have they even seen me properly to recognise me? Leo wondered as he did a quick scan of the territory using [Geo Resonance Sense] and [Spiritual Sense].
"Hmm, only Miho and four 2-star and 3-star elves for defence. Looks like something serious."
Neither Brok nor Kaelion was there to give him a ride to the place. In other words, he needed to call Agnivar.
He looked around as more and more Gnomes poured in from the surroundings and knelt as soon as they saw Leo.
They look quite lively...
Right now, they didn't seem as depressed as they had when he bought them.
Grrrrr~
Even Howl greeted Leo with a slight vibration of the ground.
"Can't summon Agnivar here. It will cause panic."
With that, he made his way to the edge of the territory alongside Thalvyr and summoned Agnivar.
But before climbing on, he asked Thalvyr, who was admiring the snowy surroundings.
"This is the climate, and it will keep getting worse. Can you handle it?"
Thalvyr nodded firmly.
"Yes, I can!"
"Good. And don't worry, I will make sure you have an adequate amount of food."
Agnivar tilted his head and eyed Leo.
"What about me?" he asked.
Leo looked at him and raised a brow.
"Didn't you proudly declare that you and Ashira would work for yourselves? I am even allowing you periodic breaks."
There was a moment of silence as Agnivar just stared at Leo.