Chapter 273: A Shocking Request

It was a shocking, unprecedented free pass — one that made Sofia green with envy.

But very quickly, she suppressed the feeling. She understood the plight of these six ascenders clearly. Her close friend, Sophie Albert, was among them, so the gesture was well within reason when viewed through that lens.

Still, it was an immensely generous offer, one that would practically alter the trajectory of all six ascenders’ lives if they utilized it well.

The first ascender, a Somalian man in his forties, hesitantly asked for the opportunity to use the highest-level cultivation chambers free of charge, and indefinitely.

He looked at Uhtred with a trace of hesitation after making the request. To him, it felt almost too extravagant. Normally, using the high-tier cultivation chambers required a steady supply of Multiversal Tokens. They were, after all, powered by massive arrays of Essence Crystals and Essence Cores, all of which cost hefty Tokens to maintain.

The fee for using the chambers varied based on the density of essence within them. The lower-tier ones, with double the ambient essence density of Earth, could cost anywhere from one to five Multiversal Tokens per session for members of the Capitol of The Elite.

For any outside visiting party, the fee was significantly higher, ranging from ten to fifteen tokens. That price tag got even steeper the higher the tier of the cultivation chamber.

The highest-level cultivation chambers, with essence densities five to nearly eight times that of Earth’s ambient essence, could cost fifty to a hundred Multiversal Tokens per session, if not more.

The Somalian ascender was basically asking for free, unlimited access to those top-tier chambers... indefinitely.

Sofia watched as Uhtred went silent for a few seconds. In that brief window, three other ascenders quickly piped up and asked for the exact same favor, leaving only Sophie Albert and one other young man remaining.

To Sofia’s absolute surprise, Uhtred actually accepted their request. He granted four of the six ascenders a permanent free pass to use the highest-level cultivation chambers in the Capitol of The Elite, both now and in the future.

Not only was Sofia stunned, but even the four ascenders themselves looked bewildered. They stood there, staring at each other in shock, before bowing and profusely thanking Uhtred.

It was then that Sofia finally saw the stroke of genius behind Uhtred’s decision.

One had to remember that Sofia had a father who had always operated in positions of authority — a very dangerous, illegal kind of authority at that.

She had seen how her father, Mateo, managed his subordinates, and she knew how dangerous it could be to give people too much leeway without boundaries. That was why she had been so anxious to see how Uhtred would handle their requests.

At first, when he agreed, she thought he had made a naive mistake. What would happen if similar tragedies occurred in the future — which they most certainly would? Would he be forced to offer the same astronomical benefits to every victim? At that point, what value would the Capitol’s "high-level" cultivation chambers and resources even hold?

High-level resources were only valuable because they were scarce. Once that scarcity was removed, people would stop valuing them.

To Sofia, Uhtred had just set a dangerous precedent by granting such unrestricted access. However, as she observed the overwhelming gratitude of the four ascenders and the calm, calculating expression on Uhtred’s face, the true depth of his move dawned on her.

Uhtred hadn’t reached his position by being soft or wishy-washy. Most of his moves were intentionally calculated. By granting these four ascenders their request, he was setting a precedent, but not the foolish one Sofia had initially assumed.

Rather, the message he was sending to the entire planet was that he deeply valued his allies. These four would become living proof of that.

The fact that he had granted them such a grand request would spread rapidly among his ranks and far beyond the borders of the Capitol of The Elite. Everyone would know that Uhtred looked after his people, offering tangible rewards that guaranteed long-term growth.

The core detail beneath the move, however, was that this was a one-time gesture born of a specific tragedy.

Uhtred hadn’t explicitly stated that yet, but Sofia could already read his hidden motive.

Because this was a unique exception, accepting their requests made perfect sense. It would eliminate any lingering resentment among his surviving allies and massively boost the morale of the ascenders working directly under him.

And in the future, if similar situations arose and people began expecting the same benefits, Uhtred could simply clarify that the offer had been a single, non-repeatable grace extended to the victims of the initial Ancient Variant attack.

A few people might feel disgruntled, but in the end, everyone would understand that expecting such astronomical compensation for every conflict was completely unrealistic.

Seeing that Uhtred had accepted the initial requests, the fifth person — a sharp-looking young man with blonde hair — asked for the same cultivation chamber access, but added one extra condition.

On top of the cultivation chamber benefit, he asked for the opportunity to be considered first whenever a chance arose to represent the Capitol of The Elite on a public front.

Uhtred immediately frowned at the addition. Wasn’t this guy basically asking for blatant favoritism?

However, before the atmosphere could tense up, the young man quickly spoke up to clarify his intent:

"I hope I am not coming across as disrespectful, Lord Uhtred," he said, speaking clearly and calmly. "I am not asking to be placed ahead of others who are more qualified than me. All I am humbly asking is that you consider me when — and only when — my qualifications and strength match the other candidates."

His eyes were completely clear as he delivered his explanation. His speech was concise, polite, and directly to the point. He was clearly someone who had been well-educated by a prominent family before they were wiped out.

"What’s your name?" Uhtred asked, his stern expression visibly easing.

"Artlet Bartlett, Lord Uhtred," the young man replied succinctly, bowing his head slightly.

Uhtred nodded, clearly taking note of the name. "You did not only seek benefits, but you also asked for a way to prove yourself. Why, then, would I not grant a request like that?"

The young man bowed deeply, a small smile appearing on his face. "Thank you for the opportunity, Lord Uhtred. I will make sure you never have to hesitate when selecting me."

Sofia, watching from above, hummed in interest at Artlet’s bold declaration. She didn’t know the guy personally — she had only seen him around a few times — but she decided she would keep an eye on him from now on. He seemed remarkably sharp.

His extra request had clearly made the previous four ascenders feel uncomfortable. Coupled with Uhtred’s words, they looked as though they had just realized they had only asked for free resources without offering any value in return.

However, Uhtred simply dismissed their awkwardness with a wave of his hand. "There’s no need to feel embarrassed. Focus on getting stronger, and you will all have the same opportunities to step onto the main stage."

Finally, he turned his attention to Sophie Albert. Sofia leaned closer to the balcony railing, her focus entirely locked on her friend. She desperately wanted to see whether Sophie would finally open her mouth and speak.

Sophie Albert stared at Uhtred for several long, silent seconds. In fact, the silence stretched on for so long that Uhtred began to rise from his seat to give the girl time to process her thoughts and get back to him later...

But just as he began to stand up, Sophie Albert opened her mouth:

"I have but one simple request, Lord Uhtred," she croaked out, her voice raspy and dry from days of disuse. "I wish to become your disciple."