Chapter Summaries

Stuart confronted Pastor Soto and Cardinal Archbishop Raymond while the armies invaded the royal city. Hernan activated the Throne of Twilight, unleashing Dusk’s power across the battlefield, and Ryan’s Braveheart Potion rain protected his soldiers as other forces fell into chaos; the Witch Ghosts attacked the Rampaging Elephant Legion.

• Stuart demanded that Raymond join him, then battled Raymond as Soto sent the Holy Guard Legion into the royal city.
• Ryan ordered Brandt to keep the Orc Warriors from gathering and learned from Ross that Dusk’s power could turn soldiers into Twilight Kin.
• Ryan supplied Braveheart Potions, and Ross used alchemical methods to make rain that shielded Ryan’s army from Dusk’s influence.
• Hernan sent Huffman to activate the Throne of Twilight, spreading Dusk’s power through the battlefield and empowering the Orc Warriors.
• Ryan’s soldiers resisted the whispers and fought effectively, while Dusk’s power drove the nobles’ troops into chaos and turned the Witch Ghosts against the Rampaging Elephant Legion.

The battle for the Andara Kingdom’s capital raged as Farrell and Borgeld drove back the Twilight Kin, while Hernan killed Pastor Soto with Surtr’s power. Baron Huffman then stabbed Hernan with a god-killing dagger and escaped with Sir Rosalind, leaving Ryan to realize Huffman had ties to Meyers.

• Farrell entered a desperate attempt to earn a Legendary Boon, seized a Rampaging Elephant, and used it to crush Twilight Kin before leading his legion’s charge.
• Borgeld and Volibear slaughtered Warthog Orc Warriors as the kingdom’s forces gained ground, while Hernan decided to attack Pastor Soto.
• Hernan overwhelmed Pastor Soto, whose Divine Art: Holy Word Judgment failed after Surtr trapped him in a vision; Hernan killed him with a flaming greatsword.
• Ryan saw Hernan return to the palace wounded, then watched Baron Huffman stab him with a black dagger forged to kill gods.
• Sir Rosalind arrived, took Huffman away with the dagger, and left Ryan suspecting the baron had been connected to Meyers.

After Hernan’s death, Ryan’s Empire forces defeated the orcs’ remaining resistance and turned against The Church in the royal capital. As Ryan led the attack on the Holy Guard Legion, he realized Farrell had caught the Legendary Boon meant for him.

• Ross identified Hernan’s killer as a Legend, while human forces drove the orcs into retreat and slaughtered those who remained.
• Ryan discovered that his Spirituality Panel was absorbing Farrell’s Rampaging Elephant Legendary Boon as its completeness rose and Farrell grew increasingly unstable.
• Farrell demolished much of the Royal Palace, and Ryan ordered the kingdom’s nobles aside before leading the Legion of Light Judgment against The Church’s Holy Guard Legion.
• Ryan’s soldiers overcame the Holy Guard Legion’s healing by cutting off their heads, while Church leaders and Imperial knights fought across the battlefield.
• Cardinal Archbishop Raymond unleashed divine arts at the Imperial legion, and Ryan hurled his greatsword toward Farrell, who caught it as the Rampaging Elephant entry vanished from Ryan’s panel.

Ryan joined Farrell and Stuart in fighting Cardinal Archbishop Raymond as the Church’s forces lost the battle for the Andara Kingdom. After Farrell revealed his Legendary Boon and Raymond tried to retreat, Ryan used the Heroic Spirit Crown and a transformed sword to kill him.

• Ryan ordered Farrell to attack Raymond after the Rampaging Elephant Legion recognized Farrell as its new king and charged from the royal city.
• Farrell fought Raymond while Stuart shielded him and struck back with Legendary magic, but Raymond silenced Stuart’s magic and resumed attacking Farrell.
• Farrell revealed his Legendary Boon, Savage Stomp, and struck Raymond into the earth, forcing the injured Cardinal Archbishop to seek escape.
• Ryan borrowed Gonsalves’s strength through the Heroic Spirit Crown, drew a flaming, lightning-wreathed sword, and cut Raymond down as dawn arrived.

Ryan captured the Wall of Dawn and held its people hostage, demanding that the Church pay a ransom while a young believer named Warren raced to deliver the message. After helping Adams prepare to receive the nobles and leading the army to the kingdom’s northern border, Ryan turned back, and the Church learned of his demand.

• Ryan captured the Wall of Dawn and executed clergy and believers, then sent Warren out to demand a ransom for the city's people.
• Warren struggled to reach the Church within three days, losing a wild boar and an old horse before continuing on foot through the wilderness.
• Ryan returned to the ruined royal city, ordered Orc corpses cleared, and gave Adams royal treasures to fund repairs to the palace.
• Ryan arranged for the army to reclaim the kingdom's northern defenses, but stopped when the Mountain-Bearing Warthog's mountain came into view.
• Ryan led the army back to support Adams's rule and an alliance with the Empire, while the Church received his ransom demand.

The Pope agreed to pay Ryan to spare Dawn Believers in the Andara Kingdom, while ordering an assassination attempt against him after he left. Ryan secured Dawn City and its surrounding lands, then rewarded his soldiers with money as his army entered the royal capital.

• The Pope imprisoned Legion Commander Eiffel, accepted Archbishop Adriana’s argument for saving Dawn Believers, and ordered her to negotiate with Ryan while Black Swan prepared to kill him.
• Ryan demanded one million Gold Coins, one hundred drops of holy water, Dawn City and its surrounding land, and fifty thousand Gold Coins for food; The Church agreed and transferred the city to him.
• Ryan gave Borgeld’s Berserk War Bear Legion five thousand houses and two lakes, and Brandt’s Stag Legion seven thousand houses and farmland in Dawn City.
• Ryan distributed Gold Coins and Silver Coins to his soldiers, including shares for the fallen, and said the Andara Kingdom would have to repay the military wages he had paid on its behalf.
• Ryan entered the royal capital with Lord Horla, Fidel, and other nobles, asking them to deliver the fallen soldiers’ shares to their families.

Ryan negotiated with Imperial merchant guilds and navigated the Andara Kingdom’s shifting noble politics as Adams’s coronation revealed Count Merses’s growing influence. The chapter ended with the King awarding Ryan and the Empire’s Legion of Light Judgment six hundred thousand Gold Coins, which Ryan said he would spend on supplies in the kingdom.

• Ryan offered the merchant guilds land in Dawn City and help with trade routes, while warning that they still had to satisfy the kingdom’s nobles and account for the Sera Kingdom’s hostility toward the Empire.
• Ryan discussed Count Merses’s rising influence with the great nobles and suggested that Count Scott could gain support by acting against the Orc threat in the North.
• Grand Duke Leta told Ryan that Adams would not allow Lottie, the previous King’s second Queen, to return to the Royal Palace, and Ryan realized Count Merses was cutting off his influence over the King.
• Adams accepted the loyalty of Grand Duke Leta, Count Merses, and the kingdom’s other nobles, while Ryan represented the Empire and announced its promised mages and two thousand soldiers.
• At the banquet, Adams granted Ryan and the Empire’s Legion of Light Judgment wealth worth six hundred thousand Gold Coins, and Ryan said he would use it to buy supplies in the kingdom.

Ryan returned from the Andara Kingdom to the Frozen Earth Territory with vast wealth, while the kingdom struggled to recover from war and its nobles’ defection. King Adams declared the Sera Kingdom an eternal enemy after twenty-three nobles joined it, setting the stage for renewed conflict.

• Ryan warned King Adams that the Andara Kingdom faced pressure from the Sera Kingdom and that the McReynolds Family would remain its hereditary foe.
• Ryan left Queen Leta in Dawn City with protection and responsibility for overseeing his wealth, then led the Legion of Light Judgment back toward the Empire with its spoils and supplies.
• Ryan met Count Fragoso in the Sera Kingdom, discussed their shared Northwind Avenue profits, and continued on to Zero Crossing City.
• Ryan disbanded the Legion of Light Judgment at Zero Crossing City, returned toward the Frozen Earth Territory, and planned a road linking it to the city.
• Ryan learned that twenty-three Andara nobles had defected to the Sera Kingdom, and suspected that The Church had influenced some of them.
• Count Merses urged King Adams to delay war until the kingdom rebuilt its army, but King Adams declared the Sera Kingdom Andara’s eternal enemy and offered noble titles for killing its nobles.

Ryan arranged expensive materials for Mage Towers, learned that assassins had entered Frozen Earth Territory, and considered how to strengthen its defenses. Meanwhile, peace officer Parker pursued a path toward becoming a Knight Retainer, then joined his squad in confronting a suspicious man who wanted to bring his family to the territory.

• Ryan agreed to buy materials worth hundreds of thousands of Gold Coins for the Mage Towers, while Ross presented a gold-powered logging machine design.
• Ross brought Ryan dried corpses found outside the territory, and Ryan suspected The Church had sent assassins after him.
• Parker learned from Captain Amy how peace officers could advance into Ryan's guards and eventually become Knight Retainers.
• Parker and Amy saw General Mikaela ride through the streets, then learned Ryan was recruiting a three-hundred-man team to travel through the kingdom and the Empire.
• During a night patrol, Parker helped corner Wright, who admitted he had been trying to find Fox so they could bring their families to Frozen Earth Territory.

Ryan sent the Northern Merchant Guild from Frozen Earth Territory to the Sera and Andara Kingdoms, where it traded goods and reached Dawn City. There, a bard told Queen Leta that Ryan had rescued the people of the Otherworld and discovered the Sweet Fruit for his mother.

• Ryan gathered fruit, dried fruit, fish, vegetables, and other specialties, then sent the Northern Merchant Guild toward the kingdoms with Knight Colin in charge.
• Parker traveled with the guild, saw Two-legged Wyvern riders guarding Northwind Avenue, and crossed the Sera Kingdom and Andara Kingdom under Frozen Earth Territory's banner.
• Colin let Wright and the other former kingdom residents leave the convoy to search for their families, while the guild continued safely through the kingdoms and sold goods to nobles.
• At Dawn City, Colin presented Queen Leta with Sweet Fruit, and a bard described its six-hundred-year growth and how Ryan had found it while seeking a gift for his mother.
• The bard told Queen Leta and the gathered nobles that Ryan had saved the people of the Otherworld from the snow disaster and brought the Sweet Fruit's long wait to an end.

Ryan’s bards turned Frozen Earth Territory’s history and goods into coveted stories across Andara Kingdom, while his expanding trade and rewards strengthened his plans for the territory. He prepared to visit Count Winter and eventually seek the Frost Dragon for rare materials and a trade agreement.

• Ryan explained to Beard that the Aixnier stone slab was precious because of the story and faith its carvings carried.
• In Dawn City, a bard recounted the origins of Snow Pity and Snow Dragon's Roar, then gave the sword to the last man standing in a tavern fight.
• The bard left Dawn City, while Frozen Earth Territory’s fruit and other goods sold out and its true bards became popular across Andara Kingdom.
• Ryan received over a hundred thousand Gold Coins and Soul Potions, shared some potions with Mage Luna, and discussed visiting the Frost Dragon for materials and trade.
• Ryan set out to visit Count Winter with Brandt, the Knight Retainers, and the Armored Bears, hoping his Stag Legion would soon become an Extraordinary Legion.

Ryan negotiated a trade and safe passage through Frost Dragon Arryris's territory in exchange for Obsidian and other goods, then returned to the Otherworld to find a monster had devoured much of a Magic Crystal Mine. The chapter left Ryan preparing to harvest his gold and investigate the monster's renewed attack.

• Ryan learned about Arryris from Count Winter and secured the Winter Family's emblem before persuading Count Winter to join his Northern Trade Guild.
• Ryan reached Arryris's valley, offered Obsidian, and negotiated an ongoing trade and safe passage through the dragon's territory.
• Arryris gave Ryan a Dragon Scale and agreed to meet again in one month, while Ross warned that the dragon might become hostile if it discovered Ryan's Dragon Heart.
• Ryan returned to Frozen Earth Territory and hurried to Thundercloud County to harvest his gold and prepare food for Arryris.
• At the Otherworldly Plane, Ryan learned that a monster had swallowed over half a Magic Crystal Mine and killed more than six hundred slaves.

Ryan found the divinely empowered giant wild boar that had bitten into Magic Crystal Mines and hired it by promising a blessing every thirty sunsets. As the Church of Light’s wonder neared completion, Ryan prepared to use its ceremony to display his authority while considering how to extend his influence beyond the Northlands.

• Ryan led more than six hundred soldiers to the Northlands and found the giant wild boar in a cave.
• The giant wild boar evaded the soldiers and fought Ryan, but Ryan sensed that it consumed Spirituality and offered it a blessing every thirty sunsets in exchange for joining him.
• Shaya Meyers asked Ryan to sell her the giant wild boar, then reminded him that the wonder was nearly complete and asked how much tax he would contribute to the light.
• Ryan decided to praise the light with devotion and considered using the ceremony to demonstrate his wealth and standing among the nobles.
• Ryan resolved to accelerate the Northern Trade Guild’s plans, then received an invitation to the Church of Light’s ceremony.
• At the end of March, the nobles arrived at the grand manor, where golden sunflowers surrounded a Gothic cathedral.

At the Wonder Estate, Ryan learned that the Empire’s new Church of Light was tied to the war in Thousand Lakes Province and the growing power of the Legendaries. Meanwhile, Borgeld and Brock brought the Frozen Earth Territory’s caravan to the Imperial Capital, where Borgeld became a Gladiator Arena champion and Brock forged a Legendary weapon embryo.

• Ryan discussed the Empire’s setbacks in Thousand Lakes Province with Viscount Hogg, Count Soron, and Count Winter, who said the Emperor was sending reinforcements and spreading the faith of light.
• Stuart the Light Shepherd told Ryan that the Empire’s Churches of Light supported Legendaries, leaving Ryan concerned about how many Legendaries the Empire had.
• Borgeld, Bard, and Brock traveled to the Imperial Capital to find a shop for Ryan and premises for the Northern Territory Merchant Guild, while Borgeld repeatedly caused trouble and Brock’s followers watched him work.
• Borgeld entered the Gladiator Arena and won a series of fights, earning the title of its queen as Brock hammered in a nearby shop.
• Brock revealed a black Knight’s Greatsword with dragon-scale patterns, and a blacksmith identified it as a Legendary Embryo.

Ryan investigated the Orcs appearing in the Andara Kingdom, then discovered Werewolves and Black Goat Orcs near the Frozen Earth Territory. After an attack on a watchtower, he strengthened local defenses and sought information about Werewolves, knowing his territory would have to face the danger largely on its own.

• Ryan learned that Rhino Orcs had appeared in the Andara Kingdom, traveled there, and confirmed that the incursion was limited in scale.
• Ryan returned to the Frozen Earth Territory after learning Orc tracks had appeared nearby, and ordered the Armored War Bear Legion to remain there while he expanded patrols and defenses.
• Ryan’s scouts reported Werewolves hunting Black Goat Orcs, and Ryan suspected conflict among the Orcs.
• More than thirty Black Goat Orcs and twelve Werewolves attacked a watchtower, killed three soldiers, and retreated when the signal flare brought Armored Bear Warriors.
• Ryan recognized that the Werewolves understood human tactics, ordered knights to patrol outside the territory, and planned to write to Count William for information about them.

As Orcs appeared across the Empire’s northern border, Ryan helped secure support and organize Northwind Province’s defenses while preparing Frozen Earth Territory for a possible invasion. The chapter ended with a Werewolf ambushing a patrol north of Rhino Horn Mountain.

• Ryan persuaded Northwind Province’s nobles to build Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress and raise three thousand soldiers to garrison Zero Crossing City.
• After Orcs appeared across the Empire’s northern border, the Empire and The Church withdrew from Thousand Lakes Province and the Empire sent Northwind Province supplies and slave soldiers.
• Ryan led the three thousand soldiers to Zero Crossing City and resolved to defend Frozen Earth Territory rather than flee through the Planar Gate.
• Ryan ordered defensive lines built north of Frozen Earth Territory and vowed to remain in his land.
• A Werewolf killed a soldier from a patrol near a Rift, then attacked the remaining three while they searched for it.

Ryan faced scattered Werewolf attacks along Frozen Earth Territory’s northern border and began using the Northern Kingdom’s Braveheart Guild to draw adventurers to the Northlands. The chapter ended with Ryan expecting the bounty to bring wealth and capable fighters to Zero Crossing City.

• Mikaela found only bloodstains and corpses after the Werewolves attacked, while Ryan considered expanding Frozen Earth Territory and ordered Ross to meet him when he returned.
• Patrol soldiers encountered Armored Bear Warriors, and Werewolves ambushed the bears before retreating after losing five of their number.
• Ryan reviewed reports of small Orc attacks and suspected they were not part of a coordinated military campaign.
• Ryan’s Braveheart Guild opened in Zero Crossing City, offering one Gold Coin for each Orc killed and registering nine hundred and thirty adventurers.
• Ryan explained to the viscountess that the bounty would attract nobles and warriors to Zero Crossing City, bringing him wealth as the world’s movement of people increased.

Ryan advanced to the peak of Golden Knight and developed plans to strengthen Frozen Earth Territory, including repairing Rhino Horn Mountain and expanding the Northern Warhorse trade. He recruited Lynn Hatton into the Braveheart Guild’s cause, and its first adventurers returned from the Northlands with proof of their orc hunt and earned rewards.

• Ryan unleashed his Dragon Heart power while sparring with Brandt, reached the peak of Golden Knight, and ordered Rhino Horn Mountain repaired before asking Grand Mage Macken to arrange magical defenses.
• Ryan and Grand Mage Macken discussed selling Northern Warhorses, agreeing that nobles could buy them if their offspring were returned for breeding, at a price of at least three hundred Gold Coins.
• Ryan summoned Lynn Hatton, learned what Baron Hatton thought of the Braveheart Guild, and asked Lynn to become a braveheart.
• A masked knight using the name Ash brought fifteen Werewolves’ heads to the Braveheart Guild in Zero Crossing City and received fifteen Gold Coins, while Lynn’s staged appearance helped publicize the reward.
• Twenty-six laborers became the first adventurers to set out from Zero Crossing City to hunt orcs, and Ryan told the Berserker Bear Legion to leave some orcs alive and supply the group with weapons.
• The twenty-six adventurers returned with twenty-six orc corpses, received one Gold Coin each, and were told to bring back only the heads next time.

Ryan won Bilki’s people’s loyalty through a series of brutal battles and discovered that truly claiming a world allowed him to open another Planar Gate. After returning to the Frozen Earth Territory, he learned more about the Werewolves’ history and suspected their bloodline power carried a weakness.

• Ryan challenged Bilki’s warriors and defeated Fisk and ten blessed fighters, though three warriors died; the priests then blessed five warriors and five Armored Bears, and Ryan killed the bears while winning the remaining people’s loyalty.
• Angor and Bilki’s people pledged loyalty to Ryan, who ordered the dead buried and requested a thousand warriors for his cause.
• Ryan realized Bilki’s allegiance had let him fully claim the world and open a fourth Planar Gate, though he postponed exploring it until he had settled matters in his territory.
• Ryan returned to the Frozen Earth Territory and learned that Brock and the others were coming back, while a merchant association and Count William’s reply arrived.
• Count William described how the Werewolves became one of the six royal clans among the orcs, and Ryan suspected their bloodline power came with a weakness that Vampires might also share.

Ryan and his companions entered a new planar world after Grand Mage Macken completed the initial construction of his Mage Tower. They found evidence of brutal death and fought off a pack of wolves, leaving Ryan wary of what else the world held.

• Brock and Borgeld returned from the South with people seeking to learn forging, and Brock gave Ryan the Amber Sword to pass on to his father.
• Grand Mage Macken built and activated the initial form of his Mage Tower, using the Heart of Life's Rhythm as its magic well; Mage Luna studied his methods for constructing her own tower.
• Grand Mage Macken joined Ryan's group as they passed through the Planar Gate into a snowy world with no active Magic Factors in the void.
• Ryan's scouts found twelve people nailed to stakes and apparently eaten alive, prompting him to send soldiers out in groups to explore.
• Ryan and his hundred soldiers encountered more than a hundred frenzied wolves, which they fought off after Volibear killed their leader.
• The surviving wolves fled toward a forest, and Ryan concluded that the world was more cruel than he had expected.