Chapter Summaries

The Five Great Powers attacked Dawnlight Fortress after Chopper’s cannon fire triggered a battle with the pirate alliance. With war underway, Roland learned his plan had succeeded and ordered his fleet to return to Frost Island.

• Chopper fired Magic Cannonballs at the allied army, and Barton ordered the alliance’s cannons to return fire despite Cassio’s warning.
• The alliance’s bombardment battered Dawnlight Fortress’s southern wall, and Barton sent more than two thousand troops to begin the assault.
• Roland explained to O'Neal that the Solomon and Hock Families were serving as a shield to weaken the Five Great Powers while his forces stayed intact.
• A Thunderbird Knight reported that the battle had begun, and Roland ordered his warships to return to Frost Island.

The Five Great Powers overwhelmed Dawnlight Fortress with cannon fire and powerful magic, forcing Cassio and Ariel to retreat with their remaining troops into the castle. The allied army surrounded the castle and paused its assault, leaving the defenders trapped and facing capture.

• Barton ordered the Magic Crystal Cannons to fire on the walls despite his own soldiers being among the defenders, and Cassio and Ariel intercepted only part of the bombardment.
• Barton sent nearly two hundred mages to attack the walls with four Level 12 Spells, devastating the Solomon and Hock Families' defenders.
• Cassio learned that Chopper was missing and that the Loyal Lion Brigade troops had fled, leaving him without the reinforcements he had expected.
• The battering ram broke through Dawnlight Fortress's gates, and Cassio and Ariel retreated with their remaining soldiers first to the inner fortress and then to the castle.
• Kairu called for a halt to protect his family's core castle, and Barton and the other allied leaders surrounded the castle instead of launching a final assault.

Roland returned to Frost Island after breaking through the Five Great Powers’ forces and found Dawnlight Fortress in ruins. He proposed an alliance with the pirate leaders against the growing powers in the Azure Sea Region, leaving them considering his offer while Kairu’s pleas went unheeded.

• Cassio agreed to surrender to Barton, but the leaders left the fortress after learning Roland had returned, while Cassio and Ariel realized flying knights blocked their escape.
• Roland arrived at Dawnlight Fortress with a large army and confronted Kairu and the pirate leaders, whose forces were wary of fighting him.
• Barton stopped Kairu from demanding an immediate attack and asked Roland why he had returned.
• Roland said he had come to reclaim Frost Island, then warned the pirate leaders about the Storm Pirates, Count Chels's family, and the Mandy Family.
• Roland proposed that his family and the four pirate groups form an alliance, and Barton and the other leaders appeared swayed despite Kairu’s objections.

Roland used Monk’s strength and Leslie’s negotiation to secure an alliance with the four pirate crews and obtain the captives inside Dawnlight Fortress. The crews took Kairu and the Owen Family’s remaining soldiers, while Roland’s forces took control of the fortress and the story left the new alliance wary but intact.

• Roland revealed Monk’s Level 15 strength, prompting Barton and the other pirate captains to reconsider fighting him.
• Barton’s crews seized Kairu and the Owen Family’s remaining soldiers, abandoning the Owen Family and offering to ally with Roland.
• Roland and Barton disputed who would take the prisoners inside Dawnlight Fortress, including Cassio and Ariel.
• Leslie offered Roland’s support for the pirate crews’ interests on Double Gate Island in exchange for the prisoners.
• Barton agreed to hand over the fortress captives, and his crews withdrew with Kairu and the Owen Family’s remaining soldiers.

Roland defeated the Solomon and Hock families’ attempt to seize his territory after Monk revealed his overwhelming strength. He captured the intruders, killed Gerson, and arranged for Cassio to be held for ransom, leaving the castle celebrating its victory.

• After the pirate crews withdrew, Roland arrived with troops as the Thunderbird Knights surrounded the castle again.
• Ariel attacked Roland, but Monk easily knocked him into the castle wall and revealed himself as a top-tier Sky Warrior.
• Cassio surrendered, and Roland ordered the soldiers from the Solomon and Hock families captured.
• Roland had Old Nob take Mattia away, while Monk knocked Ariel unconscious and Gerson was dragged off to be killed.
• Roland offered Cassio a chance to pay ransom, then had him locked in the dungeon as the castle celebrated.

After the battle on Frost Island, Roland’s growing power forced his enemies and potential allies to reconsider their plans. Cyril ordered the Oroko Family to watch Roland, Elizabeth prepared to visit him, and Junot stopped Chris from escalating the dispute over Mattia.

• Cyril learned that Roland had defeated the allied army’s threat without losses and ordered the Oroko Family to monitor him rather than provoke the four pirate crews.
• Elizabeth heard Roland’s latest victory and, encouraged by Reff, decided to visit Frost Island and learn his attitude toward the Black Knight Pirates’ affiliated forces.
• Junot reflected on the Solomon Family’s embarrassment after the battle and received Chris, who demanded action against Roland over Mattia.
• Junot refused to involve the family ancestor or let Chris pursue Roland, ordering her to remain in her room while he arranged to ransom Mattia.

Five days after the battle at Dawnlight Fortress, Roland planned to rebuild his territory and strengthen its institutions while preparing to welcome Elizabeth. He left for the harbor after finding his younger brother Mattia reduced to forced labor and ordering him to work without complaint.

• Roland learned that repairing Dawnlight Fortress would cost at least one hundred thousand gold coins and told Leslie to demand double their losses from Solomon and the Hock Family.
• Roland and Leslie discussed keeping a low profile while developing the territory, and Leslie proposed establishing three academies and a magical equipment workshop.
• Roland said Liana was advancing toward Intermediate Apothecary when he received word that Elizabeth was about to arrive.
• Mattia rushed toward Roland and begged to be freed from repairing walls and cleaning slave quarters, but Old Nob whipped him and threw him back to work.
• Roland told Mattia he had spared his life because he was family, warned him not to complain again, and continued toward the harbor with Leslie.

Elizabeth visited Roland on Frost Island, where they reconciled and agreed that the Black Knight Pirates and Roland would work as equals. In Rising Light Island’s study, Elizabeth asked Roland to help raid the weakened Mandy Family’s trade, and Roland agreed after learning its allies could not readily intervene.

• Roland confronted Elizabeth about bringing three Earth Warriors, but Leslie eased the tension and left them alone together.
• Roland comforted Elizabeth over Commander Dylan’s death, and they embraced before teasing each other about her staying on Frost Island.
• Elizabeth told Roland she had been hiding on Sea Breeze Island in the Kro Family’s territory and explained that she had come partly to assess his stance toward the Black Knight Pirates.
• Roland offered to support the Black Knight Pirates as an equal ally, and Elizabeth accepted the arrangement.
• Elizabeth asked Roland to help raid the Mandy Family’s trade through Golden Kui Island to rebuild the Black Knight Pirates’ strength.
• After Elizabeth explained that the Mandy Family’s subordinate factions were too weakened to help, Roland agreed to join the plan.

Roland sent a large force to help Elizabeth oppose the Mandy Family while the Storm Pirates and Cheles Family expanded into the Azure Sea Region before pausing under resistance. By December, the Human Alliance had canceled Plunder Month, and Roland learned that his unstable Mental Power made breaking through to Great Mage difficult, so he assigned Leslie to pursue ways to improve his chances.

• Elizabeth spent a day at Dawnlight Fortress planning against the Mandy Family with Roland, Leslie, and the military leaders, then departed.
• Roland sent the Loyal Lion Brigade, knights, mages, sailors, and five Earth Warriors to assist Elizabeth, and Reff thanked him for the support.
• The Storm Pirates and Cheles Family occupied territory and subdued factions in the Azure Sea Region, but alliances and unrest forced them to halt their expansion.
• The Human Alliance suspended the annual Plunder Month, ending Roland and the eastern Terra nobles' chance to profit from smuggling around the North Sea Fleet's blockade.
• After three months of growth, Roland reached the late stage of High Mage, but Nuwa estimated his breakthrough success rate at only 1.3 percent and recommended three ways to improve it.
• Roland recorded Nuwa's recommendations and sent them to Leslie to pursue an Advanced Meditation Method, a secret Mental Power technique, or refining potions.

After the battle at Double Gate Island left the Mandy Family weakened, Joseph struggled to protect Golden Kui Island as enemies, trade losses, and departing subordinates pushed the family toward collapse. Everton urged him to seek help from the Oroko Family, and Joseph prepared to send an envoy to demand its support.

• Joseph questioned Commander Albert about the family's continuing merchant-caravan losses, and Albert explained that the depleted forces could not protect every trade route.
• Everton revealed that the Mandy Family's income had collapsed while its expenses soared, and warned that the Storm Pirates and Cheles Family threatened Golden Kui Island.
• Albert reported that the Black Knight Pirates were hiding on Sea Breeze Island and still had elite fighters, making an attack too dangerous while the Mandy Family faced other enemies.
• Everton said the subordinate forces had refused to send troops, and Joseph angrily threatened to punish them once the family recovered.
• Everton proposed seeking assistance from the Oroko Family and using its role in the plot against the Black Knight Pirates as leverage.
• Joseph decided to send an envoy to the Oroko Family after Everton warned that a personal visit would draw too much attention.

Roland inspected the territory’s new academies and expanded the mage-talent program while discussing plans with Leslie. He agreed to support Bishop Yulia’s Dawn Day ceremony but grew suspicious of her request and ordered Leslie to investigate.

• Roland toured the Warrior Academy with Leslie, who explained that he would enroll about twelve hundred children before selecting the strongest for focused training.
• Leslie showed Roland the Beginner Academy and Advanced Academy, and Roland ordered the 146 registered children with Inferior Mage Talent to join a new magic department.
• Bishop Yulia asked Roland to provide three hundred guards for a Dawn Day Rite of Divine Grace and to attend the ceremony himself, and Roland agreed.
• Roland questioned whether the lord’s presence was normally required at the rite and asked Leslie to investigate Yulia’s motives.

Roland inspected the struggling alchemy workshop and the Mage Regiment on Frost Island, then went looking for Commander Alice in a nearby grove. He stopped to ask why Leslie had followed him, leaving Leslie cursing at him.

• Roland met Alchemist Hard and the Beginner Alchemists Elio and Musa, examined their staffs, and learned their crafting success rates barely made the workshop profitable.
• Roland accepted that the alchemists could keep the workshop running while Leslie said better recruits might join as the territory grew stronger.
• Roland visited the Mage Regiment and heard from Ryan that it had 103 members, including fourteen Level 6 Mages.
• Ryan explained that Frost Island's cold climate limited the magic herb garden to water-element Magic Plants, and Roland told the mages to focus on strengthening themselves.
• Roland learned that Commander Alice was in a grove, then stopped to ask Leslie why she had followed him; Leslie cursed at him.

Roland acquired the Solomon Family’s Skyfall Fireflow Meditation Method in exchange for Mattia and Cassio, then began cultivating it after Nuwa confirmed it was safe. Mattia and Cassio left the fortress for the Solomon Family’s warship, while Roland turned to his new training method.

• Roland learned that O'Neal's Azure Sea Emperor Beast, Little Water, had reached around Level 6 and promised extra Growth Essence for it.
• Leslie told Roland that the Solomon Family offered an Advanced Meditation Method to redeem Mattia, Ariel, and Cassio, though Ariel had already been executed.
• Roland tasked Leslie with negotiating for the method and agreed that Mattia and Cassio could be returned in exchange.
• Leslie secured the Skyfall Fireflow Meditation Method, and Roland began converting to it after Nuwa inspected it three times.
• Envoy Taylor objected to Mattia and Cassio's treatment, but Mattia urged him to leave, and the two departed for the Solomon Family's warship.

Roland reviewed his cultivation progress and the territory’s Year 45 results, learning that his new meditation method had accelerated his path toward becoming a Great Mage. The meeting revealed rising trade and income but dwindling reserves, heavy military costs, and ongoing slave casualties at outposts, while the Bulwark Heavy Brigade continued to grow stronger.

• Nuwa calculated that Roland could reach the Great Mage breakthrough standard in one month with potions after he adopted the Skyfall Fireflow Advanced Meditation Method.
• Roland paused his cultivation to attend the year-end meeting, where Leslie reported a population of 100,460 and rising unnatural deaths among slaves, mostly from magical-beast attacks at outposts.
• Leslie reported increased trade and territory income, but warned that production supplies were depleted, food reserves were below the red line, and military spending consumed more than seventy percent of income.
• O'Neal said the army was training adult male slaves and building underground shelters at outposts to reduce casualties, and Roland ordered him to bring unnatural deaths down.
• O'Neal reported that the Bulwark Heavy Brigade had 712 members, including 110 Earth Giants, and that its human soldiers included 93 Advanced or Intermediate Warriors.

Roland reviewed his territory’s military growth, rewarded his officials, and sent Fili to represent him at the Noble Council’s gathering. On Dawn Day, he visited the Dawn Church, where Yulia invited him to discuss an important matter.

• Roland heard reports on the brigades and Mage Regiment, then told Chopper to rebuild the Loyal Lion Brigade through continued combat.
• Roland rewarded everyone at the meeting with five times their monthly salary, and Leslie insisted on receiving his bonus.
• Leslie told Roland that the Noble Council had invited him to a congress of nobles in the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands, and Roland chose Fili as his representative.
• On Dawn Day, more than ten thousand believers gathered at the Dawn Church, and Roland attended despite feeling wary of the Church’s influence.
• Yulia confronted Roland about bringing Monk as a guard, admitted she had another matter to discuss, and invited him to follow her; Roland agreed.

Roland followed Bishop Yulia into the church, where she trapped him with a Level 15 Light Protection array and used a charm spell to frame him. With Nuwa's help, he resisted the spell and exposed Yulia's scheme, leaving them in a hostile standoff.

• Roland refused to enter the hall alone until Yulia revealed that its Level 15 Light Protection array had been set up specifically for him.
• Yulia activated the array to separate Roland from Monk, then used a mental charm spell to make Roland appear overcome by lust.
• Nuwa identified the charm spell and took control of most of Roland's Mental Power, allowing him to resist its influence while pretending to remain affected.
• Yulia brought out Recording Crystals and pretended Roland had forced her to take a Forbidden Law Potion as he approached her.
• Roland stopped acting and mocked Yulia for her failed attempt to frame him, shocking her before she threatened him with the Church of Dawn's methods.

Roland exposed Bishop Yulia’s attempt to charm him and used the recording to force her to submit before the Light Protection barrier failed. He left with the recording and Yulia’s clothes, while she was left to face the consequences of his blackmail.

• Roland revealed a recording of Yulia using a Dark Element mental charm spell and threatening him, leaving her desperate to protect herself and Cecilia.
• Yulia offered to satisfy any condition in exchange for the recording, and Roland ordered her to kneel and remove her clothes.
• Roland used the recording and Cecilia’s Saintess selection as leverage, and Yulia submitted to his demands.
• As the Light Protection barrier began to fail, Roland took Yulia’s recording crystal and undergarments with his Spatial Ring.
• Yulia hurriedly put on her golden priest’s robe, and the Light Protection barrier shattered.

Roland humiliated Bishop Yulia during a private encounter, then forced her to perform the Rite of Divine Grace before thousands of citizens. Back at the castle, Alice confronted Roland and learned what had happened, leaving her amused and eager for details.

• Monk and the territory’s leaders rushed in after Yulia’s Light Protection barrier broke, and Roland assured them he was unharmed.
• Roland forced the embarrassed Yulia to lead the Rite of Divine Grace without changing clothes, and she gave a brief prayer that healed minor injuries among the believers.
• Overwhelmed by the crowd’s attention, Yulia abruptly ended the ritual and fled into the church, bringing the ceremony to a perfunctory close.
• Roland returned to his laboratory, where Alice confronted him about his encounter with Yulia and playfully questioned whether he was jealous-proof.
• Roland explained that he had made Yulia perform the ritual without anything beneath her robe, and Alice laughed at the reason for the prayer’s brevity.

After becoming a Great Mage, Roland received noble offers from several kingdoms and duchies seeking influence in the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands. He chose to negotiate with the Terra Kingdom despite its poor terms, but insisted that he would not travel to its royal capital to accept his title.

• Roland reached the Great Mage level and gained the ability to brew level-ten Magic Potions as the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands began to stabilize.
• Leslie told Roland that envoys from the Terra Kingdom and Autran Kingdom had arrived to recruit him and grant him a noble title.
• Roland weighed the advantages of remaining with the Terra Kingdom, including the North Sea Fleet's protection, trade ties, and support for Leslie's bid to lead the Oroko Family.
• Envoys from several other states offered Roland better terms than the Terra Kingdom, but Roland decided that joining the Terra Kingdom remained the best choice.
• Roland told Leslie to arrange a meeting with the Terra Kingdom's envoy and make clear that he would accept the title without traveling to the royal capital.

Roland accepted Terra Kingdom’s enfeoffment as a landed viscount after negotiating with envoy Eric Jones, who offered to seek him a basic private salt sales license. Roland then proposed trading help to secure a fief for Eric in exchange for Governor Garvin Jones opening a smuggling route to the Beastkin Empire, arguing that the chance to recruit Earth Giants made the risk worthwhile.

• Roland welcomed Viscount Eric Jones and asked him to introduce Roland to his father, Governor Javen, hoping to reopen a smuggling route with the Beastkin Empire.
• Roland complained about his territory’s hardships and sought better terms, but Eric refused his requests for more tax relief, lower import taxes, or strategic equipment.
• Eric offered to seek a basic private salt sales license if Roland joined Terra Kingdom, and Roland accepted the kingdom’s enfeoffment on the condition that the ceremony be held in his territory.
• After Eric left, Roland asked Leslie whether helping Eric obtain a fief could persuade Garvin Jones to enable smuggling; Leslie warned that Garvin’s loyalty to King Phillips made the plan difficult.
• Roland promised to help Eric obtain a viscounty within ten years and argued that a short-lived smuggling route was worth the cost because it could help them recruit Earth Giants while the opportunity lasted.
• Leslie agreed that time and strength mattered most in the Azure Sea Region, then stormed out after Roland teased him about not being a noble.