Chapter 779: An Idea

Chapter 779: An Idea

Cyrandel casually read the reason Valandor had provided.

Retrieving my women who had been turned into slaves inside the Human Empire.

That was all. There was no mention of what methods he intended to use, who exactly these women were, or where they were.

Valandor was clever. Had he mentioned he was entering the territory of a top freshman from all three Empires, the staff responsible for approving such requests might have rejected his application at a single glance.

"Call him," Cyrandel said, gently setting the paper down.

Venyra quickly departed to relay the message.

Several floors down, in a branch building, a male elf with sharp features and long, silky white hair sat restlessly on a bench outside the counter where he had submitted his form.

His restlessness showed in the way he kept shaking his left leg as he lost himself in thought.

He watched as another person—whose form had been submitted much later than his own—walked out happily after getting their application approved.

He returned to the counter, his tall and lean, 6’8" stature easily casting a shadow over the female receptionist.

Surprisingly, the counter’s height and size accommodated him perfectly. Since elves were naturally taller regardless of gender, their buildings were designed accordingly.

"Request application 21. Has it still not been approved?" he asked.

The receptionist checked the records quickly and shook her head.

"It’s still pending. Please wait a little longer."

Valandor grumbled internally and sat down, irritated.

He was already furious about everything that had happened that morning and the previous day, and now this.

Apparently, his family—Yuvi’s—had scolded and ridiculed him for trying to retrieve someone who had already been turned into a slave and had most probably been defiled.

He couldn’t control his anger at that last word and burst out, declaring that he wouldn’t believe it unless he saw things with his own eyes.

Then there was the Evergreen family. The moment he confronted them, their new, sly vixen of a leader immediately tried to persuade him to let the matter go, claiming things were out of control and he should forget the past and focus on the future.

He wanted to confront them to understand exactly what had happened, but since he couldn’t handle the full force of the Evergreen Tribe alone, he could only grit his teeth and retreat.

"Damn it! I shouldn’t have left for that worthless trip!" Valandor stomped his foot in frustration.

He had received news of a high-grade treasure before their world was destroyed, something that would have strengthened him tremendously. However, when he arrived at the location, he found nothing. And by the time he returned, his women had already been sent away through the Departure Ritual.

He had lost on all fronts and had since focused solely on strengthening himself after arriving in the new world so such things could never happen again.

Just as he was losing all hope—especially after realising how vast the world had become—he spotted Sylrael fighting on the broadcast screen that relayed live footage across the Empire. He felt a deep sense of crisis upon realising that she was a slave.

However, after observing the battles and interactions between the people, a flame of hope ignited within him.

He quickly looked up the rules of the competition and realised that slaves personally captured by the students were supposed to accompany them as help. This meant that, considering Sylrael’s strength, there were probably only three possible candidates who could have turned her into a slave.

But then he noticed how they interacted.

"It’s either that top ranker or that pink-haired girl..."

He also looked up the Academy’s territory system and other accessible information, which helped him figure out the most effective way to reach her. In simple terms, he just needed to go to Aurelius Beast Academy, find the territories those two students belonged to, and buy Sylrael back.

He was ready to bleed out any amount possible if getting them back was possible. He had already prepared the funds from his century-long savings.

"What happened to Lys and Nae?" His worry grew, and he began pinching the skin on his cheek, peeling it away.

"Tsk!" He swiped his hand over the wound, healing it quickly, then returned to the counter to ask about his application.

At that moment, the receptionist suddenly received a message, and her eyes widened.

"M-Mister Valandor!"

Valandor immediately turned toward her, his expression brightening.

"Is it approved?!"

"N-No, but Her Majesty, Empress Aeloria, has summoned you."

"It’s not?" Valandor felt a headache coming on as soon as he heard ’no’.

"Huh... What?" He finally registered the rest of her words, his eyes widening in disbelief as cold sweat covered his body.

Crap! Did they realise I’m trying to confront the human prodigies?

---

Leo’s Territory...

At that moment, Leo floated above his territory, changing its layout with simple hand gestures.

For now, he left the top of the plateau—the core area—untouched and focused on the inner and outer regions.

"Hmm... Even though the population is very small right now, I need to plan things with the future in mind while also maintaining secrecy."

With a thought, he raised three concentric circles of earthen walls around the central plateau.

Each wall was 10 metres tall, dividing the territory into three equally wide rings. With each ring elevated above the last, it looked, from afar, like step farming—albeit on a large scale.

The innermost ring, surrounding the plateau, was the inner region, where Leo planned to accommodate those who were close to him, such as Veronica, Virat, the elves, and the Lizardmen. It would also hold some important treasures that felt overwhelming on the plateau.

The second ring was the outer region, meant for people like the three blue-haired girls, the 17 maids, the three women from the Feature Shop, the Gnomes, and Brok. One half of the ring was for accommodation, and the other half was for agriculture and farming staple crops.

The third ring was special. It was the commercial region, where all the shops and facilities for entertaining visitors would be established.

To do this, Leo carefully relocated the teleportation array, ensuring its integrity remained intact—moving it right beside the commercial region.

He also moved the restaurant, hot spring, small stalls, and shops into the commercial region—arranging them in a presentable formation, much like a city block—and moved the necessary housing structures into their respective rings.

People swallowed in fear as they watched large houses and buildings roll through the ground as if someone were picking up a pebble and placing it elsewhere.

They were currently raised high above the ground on an earthen platform controlled by Lily’s wind.

Even if they had seen Leo perform on television, firsthand experience always beat it.

Even James felt his heart quicken at the amount of mana being used, and at how Leo did it as if it were second nature.

He had changed a lot in just 6 months...

However—above, Leo soon noticed something. With such a vast area surrounding the plateau, everything felt empty.

"We’re lacking so much manpower and population," Leo said, shaking his head helplessly.

He really didn’t want too many students in his territory. After all, once the 20-year period ended, most would return to their hometowns across the Empire. Even during those 20 years, they would frequently demand holidays to visit their families.

All this would be a waste of effort spent cultivating false loyalty and a sense of belonging.

Unlike many other student leaders who left their territories in the Academy’s hands, Leo had no such plans.

He would rather roam the land and gather a select group of individuals who were wholly dedicated to his territory. Even if someone was an ordinary commoner, as long as they were completely devoted and did a simple job like being a receptionist, they would be better than a powerful individual who could leave at any moment.

"Wait..." Leo suddenly had an idea.