Chapter 384: Say That Again

"He did it! Lord Morvane really created a Rare troop line!"

"I heard the rumors six months ago. I thought they were exaggerating. Do you know how hard it is to create your own troops?"

"Long live the Black Banner!"

The Channel filled with cheers. After everything their Nation had suffered, the Black Banner Lords finally had something to celebrate. They seized on it with both hands.

Then Dorian Morvane posted a second record.

[Gorgeborn Den Blueprint — View Details]

"Creating the troops was only the beginning," he said, his voice low and heavy. "I’ve already worked backward from them to produce the Building Blueprint. Urp."

He swallowed the belch and continued.

"Contact me privately if you want to buy one. I hear Eclipse Chapterhouse Blueprints are fetching thirty million Aether now. Mine are only twenty million. A very fair price."

A pause.

"For friends of the Black Banner, that is. Lords from the thirteen Crown Provinces pay double."

The cheering grew louder.

"Didn’t Cassian take months to work out his troop Building?"

"And anyone can own a Gorgeborn Den! A Chapterhouse can only be built by a female Human Lord. By rights, this should be worth more!"

"How does it feel, Crown Lords? Jealous yet?"

Their allies were quick to join in.

[Gavin Roswell: Congratulations, Lord Morvane. Fairford Province would like to reserve a hundred Blueprints.]

[Corven Talcrest: This is a proud day for the entire Homeworld. The Jade Court is honored to have such a great ally. Allow me to express the Crown’s deepest respect for the Black Banner.]

Congratulations arrived from several neutral provinces as well. Dorian’s achievement had not caused the same sensation as Cassian’s first creation, but it had still drawn the attention of the whole Realm.

Divine Nation’s leaders watched with tightening expressions.

They had grown used to arguing over which Legendary troops were worth recruiting. Most Lords lived in a very different world. Rare troops formed the backbone of armies even in older sectors, and remained useful as far up as the Sixth Realm.

Marshal Helena Grey had built her reputation on her own Rare Greywing Legion. That achievement had helped carry her to the highest military command among the Crown forces of Sector 632.

A Lord who created a Rare troop line could leave a name in history.

The Gorgeborn themselves would need time to grow into an army. That was manageable. The timing was worse. Just as Divine Nation was preparing its invasion, Dorian had given the enemy something to rally around. The resistance they faced might be more than twice as fierce now.

Darian gave a cold laugh.

"You earned that achievement by crawling at the feet of the Lord of Gluttony. Look at what you’ve turned yourself into. What exactly are you so proud of?"

"Jealous?" Nerissa Vaust sounded delighted. "Everyone knows Cassian created his troops by sacrificing Aether. You both relied on outside help. Where does that sense of superiority come from?"

Darian’s face darkened at the sneer.

"Don’t get angry," Nessa cut in. She and Darian quarreled often enough, but she had no intention of letting him face this alone. "Throwing away your dignity to become an evil god’s pet takes a special sort of person. We should admit when we’re outmatched."

Nerissa accepted the insult as praise.

"At least one of you understands. If you think you can do better, kneel before a great god as we have. Otherwise, keep quiet."

Nessa stared at the message. For a moment, she could find nothing to say.

"Well. I certainly couldn’t do that."

While the Black Banner Lords celebrated, Cassian let out a sigh.

"I was still deciding whether to publish this."

His friends turned toward him.

"But since you’re all so eager..."

Nessa’s eyes brightened.

"Cassian, are you going to—"

He accepted the announcement he had left waiting since the Hall’s upgrade.

Gold spread across every Lord’s vision.

[Homeworld Realm Announcement]

[Seventh Realm — Sector 666 — Divine Nation]

[Sovereign Cassian Vale: Formal recognition of the self-created Epic troop line, Eclipse Legionnaire.]

[Rewards Granted: Renown ×100,000 | Legend ×1,000]

The Channel stopped moving.

Open mouths stayed open. Raised hands hung in the air. For a few stunned seconds, the Homeworld seemed to have forgotten how to speak.

Cassian’s friends knew how strong his Eclipse troops were. Several had Epic Legionnaires of their own. Yet seeing the Realm itself proclaim that achievement, at the very moment Dorian was boasting about a Rare line, still left their minds ringing.

One hundred thousand Renown. One thousand Legend.

And he had been sitting on the announcement.

Lana Whitmere was the first to recover.

"My ancestor spent decades creating the Bastion Corps," she murmured. "Decades."

Alwin Valcrest rubbed his face.

"House Valcrest has more than a thousand years of history. We control only four Epic troop lines, even counting the Hawkridge Guard, which came from outside the family."

Exceptional troops in one Lord’s Domain were one thing. Supplying their Buildings on a broad scale was another. A Lord who could place Epic troop Buildings in the hands of followers had taken an essential step toward ruling a Greater Domain.

Cassian already had Chapterhouses. The question was how far he could spread them.

And these were Eclipse troops. Even the old Rare Legionnaires could contend with ordinary Epics under the right conditions. Their Epic counterparts belonged among the best of their Quality.

Alwin opened the small Valcrest family Channel.

[Alwin Valcrest: Lyra, about getting Cassian interested in you... We really should move that plan along.]

Lyra read the message. Nessa’s figure came unhelpfully to mind.

She glanced down at her own chest, then let her shoulders droop.

In the main Channel, Darian burst out laughing.

"What happened? You were all so confident a moment ago. Go on. I liked that part."

There was no answer from the Black Banner, Western Beacon, or the Jade Court.

Even the private Channel shared by Nerissa, Gavin, and their allies had fallen silent. They had meant to restore the Black Banner’s confidence before the invasion. Instead, they had practically begged Cassian to crush it in front of the entire Realm.

The reply had come so quickly that he might have been waiting with his hand raised while they pushed their faces toward it.

Now what were they supposed to say?

A full minute passed before Nerissa forced herself to speak again.

"Don’t let an announcement frighten you. A few favored Lords with Epic troops won’t change the whole war. Supplying Epic troop Buildings on a large scale could still take him years—"

"Why is it so difficult to keep a low profile?" Cassian muttered.

He posted the full Chapterhouse catalog.

[Eclipse Chapterhouse — Epic]

[Blueprint Details — Available for Inspection]

The Building record opened beneath his message. Its recruit line and existing training facilities were there for anyone to read.

Nerissa stopped speaking.

Alwin went still.

Even Darian, who had helped pay for Chapterhouses himself, pressed a hand to his chest. Cassian had answered a challenge about future supply by putting the finished product in front of the entire Homeworld.

After the earlier announcement, the record was almost easier to believe. What it meant was another matter.

"He’d already prepared everything."

"All this time, and he never bothered to make a grand announcement."

"If the Black Banner hadn’t started boasting, how long would he have kept quiet?"

"How many other things is he sitting on?"

Nessa leaned forward, delighted.

"Nerissa, does the Black Banner have any more surprises? Bring them out! Keep encouraging Cassian. Perhaps he’ll show us a Legendary troop line next!"

Nerissa’s face turned green. Somehow, she had become a convenient tool for coaxing more achievements out of her enemy.

Cassian stared at Nessa, speechless.

Only she could turn an enemy’s boasting into a reason to ask him for more.