Chapter 378: A New Hero

Before Cassian could touch the announcement, Veyra threw her arms around him and kissed him soundly.

"Wonderful! Look at the Hall, my lord!"

Her usual composure had vanished. She hurried through the entries, eager to show him everything.

"Our Epic Legionnaires can be recruited here and at the Chapterhouses. The branches can advance their old recruits too. And now, Legionnaires who pass the new trial can become Legendary Eclipse Exemplars!"

"Eclipse Exemplars?"

Cassian’s eyes lit up.

Direct Epic recruitment was already familiar. A Legendary route for the ordinary Eclipse line was something else entirely.

He opened the Hall’s attributes. There, beyond the regular recruitment entries, stood the new troop designation.

[Eclipse Exemplar — Legendary]

[Advancement requirement: Complete the corresponding trial.]

The ordinary Legionnaire line had offered exceptional value from the start, but its inheritance had also imposed a limit. Troop Souls alone could not take those troops across the boundary into Legendary. His nine Praetorians had their own elite advancement route; that did nothing to remove the ordinary line’s restriction.

Now the Hall had opened the way.

Another complete Legendary troop line—and one that promised the best return for its cost among all his armies.

A trial was hardly going to stop him.

The Chapterhouses’ Epic recruits would continue giving Nessa and the others a strong force of their own. At headquarters, his army could take the next step.

"Veyra, arrange the Legionnaires’ Legendary advancement trials. I’ll cover the training costs."

"Yes, my lord!"

She hurried off to make the arrangements. Cassian returned to the notification.

The choice worked just as it had for his earlier troop announcement. Publish, and he would receive the rewards. Keep it private, and there would be no payout.

"One hundred thousand Renown. A thousand Legend."

Renown no longer excited him as much as it once had. Even the finest goods in the Hall of Renown were only Legendary.

The Hall of Legends was different. Mythic rewards could appear there.

"That thousand Legend is worth having."

After some thought, he left the announcement pending.

"The offer doesn’t expire. I can publish when I find a Hall of Legends with a Mythic treasure worth buying."

Next came the Fountain of Life.

Cassian paid the required resources and advanced it to Level 18. When the upgrade light cleared, the pool had spread to a hundred meters across.

He tested its reach. Without a boundary between the spaces blocking it, the Fountain’s recovery effect now extended for several hundred meters.

Then he read its production figures and laughed aloud.

"Six bottles of Life Essence a day instead of four. And two hundred and forty bottles of Life Water!"

High output did not mean he could afford to neglect it. Race Ascendancy, the Thousandfold Labyrinth, and the latest expedition into the Outer Realms had each nearly exhausted the Life Water set aside for them.

Life Essence was even more valuable.

Over the past year, the steady supply he had shared with Divine Province’s core Lords had brought more than a dozen of them to Grade-A Aptitude. He himself still took a bottle in the morning and another at night, using it alongside Grain God to keep improving his attributes. The gains were smaller now, but he would hardly turn them down.

Despite that spending, his accumulated reserve stood at more than three hundred bottles.

"With production rising again, I can consider training another group of Warbound Lords."

Leaves rustled nearby.

The Ancient Tree of Life shook its branches as though joining the celebration.

Cassian turned toward it.

"Hmm?"

It might have been better off staying still.

He glanced around. Once he was certain no one was watching, he rose into the air and slipped among its thick outer branches.

Crack. Crack.

A few tender green shoots appeared in his hand.

The Tree began thrashing its branches. Whether it was hurt or frightened, he could not tell.

"Come on. Is that really necessary?"

Cassian pointed at its trunk.

"And don’t tell Sylvara. Otherwise..."

The branches froze. The trunk continued to tremble faintly.

Its Lord was terrifying.

"Don’t worry," he added reassuringly. "I only took a few. I want to see what they’re worth."

The Tree apparently had a very clear idea of its own value.

It shook harder.

Cassian left its space in an excellent mood. Then he took out the Legendary Hero Sigil he had bought before Sylvara’s arrival and never needed to use.

Rank XVIII had opened another standard Hero slot. He had left it empty because he could not quite decide how to fill it.

A Crystal Maiden Hero or a Faerie Dragon Hero would suit his current armies best. Unfortunately, even their Troop Sigils were almost impossible to obtain. A Hero Sigil was rarer still.

He had watched for one for over a year, even setting special alerts in the Worlds Market. Nothing had appeared.

"In that case..."

Cassian sighed.

"I’ll recruit someone useful now. If I ever find the Tower of Heroes, I can take Lethria or One there and advance her into a Hero."

That World Wonder could wait. His vacant slot need not.

He activated the Sigil. It flew from his hand and opened into a gate of light.

A tall, slender figure began to take shape inside it.

"Another woman. Good."

These days, the new flesh-and-blood fighters he chose to recruit were all women. It avoided certain complications within the force. That was his explanation, and he saw no reason to question it too closely.

Veyra came over to watch. Celia, who had returned from Pandora with him, joined her. Both looked curious about their new companion.

A long leg stepped through the light.

Cassian’s gaze stopped at the shoe.

"Those heels..."

He had seen plenty of beautiful women. It was the height of those heels that caught his attention first.

His gaze traveled upward: a close-fitting short skirt, a leather belt, a straight-bladed saber at her side. A full figure beneath a fur-trimmed coat. Above the collar, a small, finely shaped face framed by short silver-gray hair.

She had the air of a woman accustomed to giving orders.

"Now there’s someone used to being the boss," he murmured.

The newcomer finished receiving the Realm’s information and opened her bright eyes.

"The Realms... Lords, Heroes, troops. Attributes that can be measured like this..."

Wonder entered her voice.

"What an extraordinary world. What a powerful system. If I could understand its technology, perhaps I could finally save the Humans surviving in the wastelands."

She tilted her head and studied Cassian.

"I’m Lysette Harker. You must be my Lord. Quite handsome, too."

"I don’t make much of it myself," Cassian said modestly, "but people do keep telling me that."

Then he smiled.

"Would you like to work with me?"

Lysette wanted to learn more about this world. Her answer came without hesitation.

"I’d be glad to."

"Excellent. I’ll call you Lys."

Her lips pursed. She did not seem particularly impressed by the nickname, but she was new here and let it pass.

Pleased with her decisiveness, Cassian opened his new Hero’s attributes.