Amazon Apocalypse 5: Chapter 29

The next few days passed in a flurry of activity. I gathered up all the components of the System Planetary Hub and secured them, then put up a few privacy barriers. My excuse was that I wasn't done fully fixing the thing yet.

In truth though, I'd finished that long ago. The project I was working on was a very different one and part of a scheme I cooked up with some input from the System.

The work was a real opportunity to put my new Kindling Architect job to the test. This had to be convincing.

I hardly even noticed time passing until my women came to get me. I was just about finished when I saw Cyra, Sakura, and Myrina all gathered outside the wall of my privacy barrier, which was an enchantment that looked like a ring of thick fog contained within two planes of weak energy shields.

And truthfully, that was pretty much what it was. But it did an excellent job keeping out prying eyes and keeping in slightly unhinged maniacal laughter as I brought yet another masterwork into existence. Not that this thing would be in my hands for long.

"Ah, you ladies are here! Just in time for my grand unveiling... tada! What do you think?" I waved to the big, shiny pillar behind me.

"It... looks exactly the same as it did last time?" Myrina asked skeptically.

"Might be shinier. Did you clean it?" Cyra asked.

I snapped my fingers. "I'll take care of that in a minute. Anyway, was there something you ladies needed from me?"

"Are you sure you're alright, Carter? Nobody's seen you for a week. And your hair's all messed up," Sakura asked me in concern.

Myrina cupped her hands and pretended to whisper, though all of us could hear her plainly.

"Sakura already walked around the mystic realm asking anybody if some harlot snuck in here to seduce and steal our man. Nothing turned up."

"I was just asking perfectly normal questions!" Sakura snapped in reply. Her cheeks were flushed red as she spoke. She coughed to clear her throat and wipe away her embarrassment. "Anyway, we're finally done in Kanton. The city is secure, and we've installed a provisional government. The army is all set to move on to Yarris."

"Though we have good news on that front!" Cyra cheerily butted in. "Herius has successfully taken the city. His banner now proudly flies over the walls. We are still to make our way there and rally to him though. The cultivator numbers appear to be thinning, but their ships have not yet left this world. We're not sure what's going on, but the prince fears there might be some sort of reinforcement on the next continent."

"That is within my expectations. I really should speak with the prince. The cultivators aren't going to let go of this world without a final battle, and I suspect that battle will come sooner than he thinks."

I stroked my chin in thought. I really had to grow a beard. Could I even call myself a wizard of the Dragon Lodge without a nice long beard to stroke in contemplation?

I spent about a minute dirtying up the too-shiny magical pillar in front of my wizard's tower, and then we hit the road again, this time for Yarris.

Like before, I scouted ahead of my army, though while I was busy our scouts had already combed the path ahead over and proved it to be all clear.

While flying, I ran into one of Prince Herius' griffin scouts. The woman was so jumpy she actually loosed an arrow at me when I appeared behind her, but I sidestepped it effortlessly. After introducing myself, I was able to chat with the scout about what Prince Herius' teams knew. Thanks to his griffin riders, he'd already taken a cursory look at most of the planet.

The cultivators had moved their flying pagodas around a bit. However, the big pointy-roofed buildings were still in orbit over the city. As I'd already been informed, the cultivators weren't fleeing the planet yet, even though it looked like they'd soundly lost this continent to us.

The next day, we finally arrived at Yarris, where the brutal and bloody nature of the fighting for this city became clear. The nearby terrain outside the city was in ruins. All the fields were peppered with craters ranging from holes the size of wagons to small lakes. The thick blood mana in the air told me many C-Grades had lost their lives, along with a few B-Grades. And I doubted all those losses had been cultivators.

And yet, Prince Herius seemed in high spirits, despite the pyrrhic victory. Scanning some of his elite troops, I could tell why. Before, he'd been an Early B-Grade, leading an army consisting of many C-Grades. His elite troops had been high C-Grade.

Now, many of those high C-Grades were B-Grades. I counted ten in total, meaning Prince Herius commanded more B-Grades in his elite unit than the whole army marching beside me, and I was certain there were more I couldn't see.

And Prince Herius himself was no slouch either when it came to levels. He happily invited all to examine him as proof of his progress.

Prince Herius, Prince of Glacia (Level 301)

Prince Herius had risen more than fifty levels, which was similar to my own progress, but more impressive since his recent grind had taken him all the way to the middle B-Grade.

"Ah, Legate Carter, it's good to see you also returning in sharp form. And the other legions are more whole than I thought they'd be." Prince Herius looked over our forces with visible surprise.

"You thought we'd take even more casualties?" I asked, blinking with surprise.

Prince Herius wrapped a brotherly arm around my shoulders and pulled me close in a half-hug.

"Heroes are forged in bloodshed, are they not? Though I would dearly hope for every soul that enlisted with me to return unscathed, I hope more that each of them can reach their full potential. When we return to Glacia, only champions shall remain in the legion. There will be lions where once there were mice." He clenched his free hand into a fist to emphasize his point, then gave my shoulder a friendly squeeze before releasing me.

"Most of our casualties were taken in several large battles. The third legion took the brunt of an ambush. The fifth and eleventh fell to a powerful Black Beast Sect Elder. Maximus was struck with deadly poison and is even now confined to bed. In your absence, I've appointed your sister, Cyra, as acting legate of the Seventh Legion. I've placed your other sister, Myrina, in charge of the combined remnants of the Fifth and Eleventh Legion, as they had discipline problems and broke ranks upon sight of an enemy B-Grade."

"Hmm... cowardice is troubling, but I'll trust you have it well in hand. I approve all your provisional promotions. Demote them if they do not rise to the occasion. I would like to trust my kin, but let no one accuse me of favoring them overmuch." Prince Herius shrugged.

My mind went to Morin and Abesa. Pretty much any centurion in the legion would be better legates than either of them.

"I am already certain they are bringing up the average level of competency among the legates."

"Good. Now, come! Tell me of your glorious victories. I must say I'm envious that you took two cities to my one. Perhaps I should have taken another legion or two with me instead of just the first."

Prince Herius and I sat down, and I gave an informal report of my recent adventures in complete detail. Prince Herius seemed a bit more focused on the glory and individual acts of heroism than he was on the strategic big picture.

"Did Thaddeaus truly stand his ground against a B-Grade? And he's since become a B-Grade himself? Marvelous! I used to think him unworthy of his name, but I'm pleased to be mistaken. His family is very wealthy, and now that I know he has the heart of a hero, I must work harder to win him to my side."

The prince shook his head in admiration.

"I think the matter of the item I stole from the cultivators is important. The System Planetary Hub? I'm telling you of it now, just in case it comes up again. It should be in our reports that I obtained it and placed it on display in the center my personal mystic realm," I said, reminding the prince of the most important piece of information about my recent adventures.

"Carter, we are brothers now. Fret not, I will not swipe your hard-won loot. System knows I have plenty of my own after taking this city. The wealth and trinkets you win are yours to keep. I only ask you to distribute weapons and armor you find to the troops, as they have immediate need for such things."

I had a feeling Prince Herius was paying the ancient artifact I'd picked up far too little mind for what it was. But I'd made him aware of it at least, which was what I wanted. I had no intention of blindsiding him with its existence later on.

***

Things seemed to be going well, and Prince Herius and I built up more comradery than expected. While I criticized his leadership style, I couldn't deny he was effective. If he just wanted to liberate the planet, his methods would be madness.

But the actual victory was secondary to him. His goal was and always had been to build an army of heroes, and that's just what the fights he was picking were bound to do. Much of his spoils from taking the city were freely shared with the common soldiers, and by now, even the barefoot and unarmed farmboys recruited by the Third and Thirteenth Legions were armed with fine swords, boots, and other military supplies taken from slain cultivators.

The prince had even gone a step further and handed out gold and other spoils. With these, they lured out what few shopkeepers had survived and commissioned spare uniforms, cloaks, and camping supplies in vast quantities.

Like trampled ground slowly regrowing, the lands formerly known as the Mundwise Trade Union were springing back to life. A few people were even calling us heroes for liberating the lands, which Prince Herius greatly appreciated.

A short while after taking Yarris, Prince Herius suddenly remembered the teleportation array. He gathered everyone up in the city streets of Yarris and raised his voice for all to hear.

"Hear me, legionnaires one and all! We have won a great victory, and many of you have gained levels to your full satisfaction. Though I would like to have your company for the rest of the campaign, I know some of you may wish to return home and make full use of what you've gained. For that reason, I will soon open up the interplanetary teleportation array once more! Let those who wish to return home do so, I only ask that you spread word of the victories, fortunes, and many levels we've gained in the process!"

Over the next day, his elites struggled to set up the teleportation array. I was anxious to see the thing operational myself, so after seeing a brawny-armed warrior banging on delicate magical contraptions with a mallet like a monkey with a rock, I offered the prince the services of my wizards. Even those that weren't enchanters did a much better job reassembling the elaborate long-distance array.

"Thank you, Legate Carter. Truthfully, I fear we lost a few pieces somewhere. Hopefully, your wizards can figure it out." Herius shrugged.

"You seem unconcerned about our ride home being broken..." I replied.

He laughed. "Truthfully, I debated whether I should open it up at all. No doubt we'll have many seeking an end to their service. Most of those who enlisted at F-Grade now have enough to buy a farm or homestead. But I think we've won enough victories to inspire awe, and all the legates have enough of a fortune to bring more recruits here. I want us at full strength again for when we assault the other continents. Liberating the Mundwise Trade Union from their oppressors was just the start!"

"I heard others say we thought the cultivators would flee this world once we made our presence known. We've won several battles and seem to have driven them away from this land, but they haven't left yet. I don't think we've seen the last of them."

Prince Herius nodded. "Indeed. I wish I knew what it was they wanted. If I did, we could dig in and fortify around it, drawing the enemy to our entrenched position like fish to hooks. Liberating cities is grand, but defending them against long odds would be even grander. And likely make more B-Grades."

I was starting to suspect that forgetting about the teleportation array had been strategic rather than forgetfulness. By keeping it with him, Prince Herius would allow members of our army to return only with news of our recent victories.

Regardless of the cause, I wasn't about to question good news when I had it. I entered the Sanctum mystic realm to look for the construction crew I'd accidentally brought along to a warzone.

While I explored the pocket realm, I took in the changes. All the mana samples I'd used had greatly expanded the place. Now, instead of the artificial feeling the place had before, the edge of the world was in the far distant horizon.

To a B-Grade like me, with supernaturally sharp senses, I could tell that the horizon was the actual edge of the world, rather than the effect of a planet's curvature. But I doubted an ordinary person would have the sight to make such a determination. An F-Grade would have to walk for days before finding the edge of the world. Someone living in town might never even suspect they were in a mystic realm.

And a town was exactly what it had become. I'd been behind my privacy barrier most of the time, and the few moments I'd been out of it to fetch more tools I'd been so focused I hadn't noticed the construction around me.

Most of the trees surrounding the settlement had been cut down and processed into lumber. And all the building stones I'd picked up and dropped off here while cleaning up Mundwise, Tinsburg, and Kanton had all been picked clean of useful blocks.

All those building materials had gone into a rather neat array of townhouses and quaint shops that dotted the area near the mess hall, medical facility, and barracks.

Beyond that limited walled-off space was an array of cottages outside the walls. These were of lesser make and a bit risky now that C-Grade monsters could spawn in this mystic realm, but apparently, some people thought having a private residence built was worth the price.

I wasn't quite sure how I felt about that. This was my personal mystic realm, after all. I'd promised to fill it with loot and show that off to Kyrina and Grandma Luthrin, but otherwise, I'd only shared it with the legion because it was more convenient. I didn't want people setting up a permanent shop here.

This was exactly the problem I ran into when I went to share the good news with the construction crew.

"I have good news! The teleportation array is set up, and you all can finally go home," I told the construction manager.

"We're not leaving," he flatly replied, crossing his arms as he did so.

"What do you mean you're not leaving? Before, you and all your workers were furious at me for dragging you here to this warzone."

"You know the saying, make hay while the sun is shining? Well, the sun is shining on me and the lads today! These young soldiers are willing to part with a fortune and a half for even the simplest work. A week working here is like a year working back home! Not to mention the levels. I took one step out the portal of yours and the System said I was on crusade. Ever since then, the levels have flooded in like no tomorrow. I hit C-Grade! And with enough experience pearls, maybe even B-Grade isn't out of reach..."

I sighed, pinching my temples. "Fine. Stay if you want, but the hazard pay is going away if you choose to be here. Just... don't make too much of a mess in my mystic realm."

"Aye, milord. And don't forget we're available for work anytime! Assuming you can pay our new rates, that is..." the construction crew manager rubbed his hands together in giddy excitement.


<Note>
Turns out Carter did them a favor by forgetting about the construction crew. Also, I'm kinda regretting not giving the construction crew manager a name a few chapters back. Leaving a little note to edit one in for the final draft.