A Great Harvest

The winter in the North remained as long as ever. The beast tide had no significant impact on Seventon, failing to leave even a scratch on its walls.

Not only had the city been well-prepared, but the garrison had even been rotated. The beast tide was shattered more than twenty miles out before it could even approach Seventon, only to be completely rounded up by the Shamsuddin Legion, which had been lying in ambush.

This sudden turn of events left the upper echelons of Nether completely bewildered...

The original plan had been to rely on Seventon's massive walls to fight a defensive war, with various factions sending their own people to assist, eventually carving up the spoils of war.

No one expected Hussein to disregard the rules of engagement, launching a surprise attack and ignoring established protocols; he had walked off with the entire pot, broth and all, leaving everyone else fuming.

Throughout the winter, they engaged in constant verbal sparring, and Hussein and the Shamsuddin Legion became "hot topics" in Seventon, inseparable from any meeting, large or small.

For a time, Hussein became the common target of public criticism among Seventon's elite, with Concinnio joking, "It has been many years since I've seen everyone so unanimous in their opinions."

In the end, whether because Hussein could not withstand the pressure or had a sudden change of heart, he conceded a portion of the benefits.

Amidst the tug-of-war between various factions, the pie unexpectedly fell into the lap of the Lehman Trading Company.

Borne had not expected to have a share of this cake himself.

According to the Shamsuddin Legion, the Lehman Trading Company was a legion supplier; the healing potions provided had played a "crucial" role in the battle. Furthermore, since the legion hadn't paid the final balance—and had no money to pay it—they used the spoils of war to settle the debt.

Naturally, other trading companies that had extended credit or collaborated with the Shamsuddin Legion were also on the list.

This made the other merchants green with envy, but even those backing them could do nothing about Hussein, and Concinnio had given his approval.

Well, if a pie falls from the sky, there is no reason not to eat it, right?

Lehman brought over the list, and Borne gained a brand-new perspective on this legion commander who had "rocked" Seventon.

Stone Terror Beast hides: 112.

Owlbear furs: 57; bear paws: 173.

Treant heartwood: xxx

Ankheg mandibles: xxx

"The hell, he turned a legion into a slaughterhouse. He turned a perfectly good supplier into a receiver..."

Even Borne couldn't help but admire this brazen maneuver; he even felt a sense of mutual appreciation.

However, this commander still had some bottom line, as the prices were all around half the market rate; otherwise, he would have completely alienated his suppliers.

"This, and a bit of this; it's enough for our own use. Exchange everything else for aberrant blood—if there's no normal blood, that will do too."

Borne picked up the list and finalized his choices with a few quick strokes. Lehman took it back, looking at the selected items with confusion; it was completely different from what he had imagined.

"Boss, this... wouldn't it be a pity to choose these..."

"Don't be overly ambitious. Stabilize the medicinal supply first. Cooperating with the military only ensures survival; no industry is easy. If you haven't secured your base, yet you want to dabble in other sectors, you won't even know how you died when the time comes!"

Borne's tone was flat, but Lehman felt as if he had been shaken awake, cold sweat instantly breaking out on his brow.

"Of course... ambition is good, maintain that drive!" Borne patted Lehman on the shoulder. "By the way, you're in your fifth year now, right?"

"Hm? Yes, Boss. I'll be a fifth-year student after the semester starts."

"Still a novice rank?"

"Yes, still a novice..." Lehman lowered his head slightly.

Borne fell into deep thought.

Nowadays, graduating from the academy didn't just mean going to the legions. Since four or five years ago, graduates had been funneled into the garrison, government departments, and other sectors, with that proportion increasing year by year.

Of course, this was mainly because military income was shrinking. As the continent gradually stabilized and order was restored, the legions' excuse of "scavenging" to pillage no longer worked.

Nether, which had originally relied on the legions for support, now needed to provide blood to the legions in return, which caused dissatisfaction among some.

Calls to downsize the military grew louder every year, and even though Concinnio kept a lid on it, the number of students assigned to the legions decreased annually.

Concinnio also knew that maintaining such a massive legion required huge amounts of money and resources.

But he couldn't afford not to support them; without the legion's deterrent force, occupied territories would soon be lost. Moreover, they couldn't just avoid downsizing—they needed to expand.

The way this beast tide surged into Seventon showed that the current legions were not enough to guard Nether's territory.

Therefore, the formation of this beast tide was somewhat intriguing...

But that wasn't something Borne needed to worry about right now.

What he was concerned about was how to push Lehman to the intermediate rank before he graduated.

That way, he wouldn't be forcibly assigned to the legions. Once he remained in Seventon, relying on the influence of Ioulaum House, things would be much easier to manage later.

After giving a few more instructions, he sent Lehman away, picked up a quill and parchment, and began to plan.

As his number-one henchman, although his role was management, his strength couldn't be too poor.

As for how to improve his rank, it naturally came down to magical experiments and mastering higher-level magic to push the advancement of his rank. Otherwise, relying solely on meditation to increase mana would take seven or eight years.

The current magic system wasn't as complete as it would be later, and spell experimentation still carried certain risks. Besides, Lehman's role didn't require him to master high-damage spells.

Hypnosis, illusions, and the like were quite suitable for him. As it happened, the Psychic school had a series of advancement formulas, and higher psychic strength could also prevent prying.

Of course, the most critical thing was that this was something he was familiar with!

So, Borne had long since mastered 4th-circle magic and advanced to a mid-tier spellcaster, though he had kept it quiet.

After all, becoming an Arcanist before even entering the academy and advancing to a mid-tier spellcaster in less than six months might have been commonplace during the late Nether era.

But now...

Even with the "genius" label hanging over his head, he still feared some brain-damaged individual might try to make a move on him.

This wasn't Borne suffering from paranoia; some spellcasters became incredibly neurotic after long-term exposure to exotic magical energies.

Late winter.

The new semester had begun. Even though the weather remained frigid and the snow was still thick, nothing could dampen the enthusiasm of the new students.

The lower-year students all wore the same uniforms, but the freshmen were like blank slates, filled with curiosity about everything in the academy.

As a mid-term transfer student, Borne had hoped to see what a freshman initiation ceremony in another world looked like, but it turned out to be almost exactly the same.

A tour of the academy grounds, a speech from the Dean, and after a big bowl of "chicken soup for the soul," the freshmen below were all as pumped as if they'd been injected with adrenaline.

Compared to Borne's lack of interest, Lehman watched with great enthusiasm; as a student about to graduate, he seemed to see his former self in them.

"Let's go, let's go..."

Borne pulled Lehman away with a look of disdain.

"Uh... alright." Lehman said, sounding a bit helpless. "What about the welcome party tonight? I wonder what new tricks the Arcane Society will come up with this year."

Giles Academy didn't have a student council, only an Arcane Society, but the nature of the two was the same. Their authority and functions were even greater, to the point that they even possessed their own Enforcement Squad!

The president of the Arcane Society was usually the top graduate of the previous class; after all, without formidable strength, how could those below be expected to submit?

"If you want to go, then go. I'm not going."

People went there to establish dominance and recruit underlings; why should he go? To make things difficult for them?

With that, he turned and walked away.

Crunch, crunch...

The two walked one after another along a small path in the academy, the accumulated snow nearly covering their ankles.

"...Wait!"

After walking for a short distance, Lehman vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

Wanting to avoid attention, they had specifically chosen this path. Although it was secluded, it wasn't completely deserted—just relatively quiet.

Yet, whether people were coming toward them or walking in the same direction, they would subconsciously avoid the two.

Only then did Lehman realize what was happening. He paused, looking at Borne, who was walking ahead, in shock.

The freshmen might not recognize Borne, but among the older students—whether lower or upper-year—there were very few who didn't know him.

Ever since Borne had directly seized the title of first-year chief during the last competition, he had pressured the upperclassmen to the point where they didn't "dare" to step down and challenge him, shocking everyone present.

Of course, after the match, some upperclassmen had stepped forward to offer excuses.

There were quite a few among the fourth and fifth years who had mastered Arcane arts, and the Arcane Society president had even mastered two or more. They claimed they didn't want to compete because they didn't want to bully the younger students.

At the same time, they indicated that as the freshman chief, Borne had mastered Arcane arts and was qualified to join the Arcane Society early, and so on...

As for whether Borne was aware of what happened afterward, Lehman didn't know, and even if he did, he likely wouldn't have cared given his temperament.

Although Borne didn't mind, others certainly didn't think the same way. Every day, there were plenty of people looking for him, and the children of noble families were constantly trying new ways to approach him.

Borne found it tiresome; otherwise, he wouldn't have moved to the Coastal Cliff Cave.

But from this morning until now, not a single person had come over to strike up a conversation, nor had they even glanced twice, as if Borne were just some random passerby.

This was clearly not normal...

"When did you do it? There wasn't even a trace of spellcasting..."

Borne, who had been admiring the scenery along the way, seemed to notice Lehman's gaze and turned back with a smile.

"You've gotten lax lately. It took you this long to notice."

"Yes, yes, the boss is right..."

He scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed as he spoke.

"What happened to your hand?"

"Oh... it's a small matter. I got hurt by accident during a practice duel. It'll be better in a couple of days."

"Hmm?"

Borne raised an eyebrow and then smiled. "You've worked hard. Thank you."

Lehman was a bit confused and just as he was about to ask, he saw Borne turn and continue walking forward.