Granting a Name

"Village chief, you were looking for me."

Avilan was instantly at a loss, completely unable to understand how they communicated. Could it be like in the animal kingdom, where they identified one another by scent?

"Forget it. I'll give you a name. It's far too inconvenient not having one."

The moment Avilan said that, the area suddenly grew noisy, and everyone's gaze focused on him.

Even the non-combatant Ratkin watching from the side were no exception, all looking at Avilan in surprise.

"Y-you're willing to...?"

The village chief asked nervously and respectfully.

What was going on? Why were they so excited?

"Is there a problem? Don't you need one?"

As soon as Avilan finished speaking, the Ratkin who had been holding their breath in anticipation immediately erupted into cheers.

What was wrong with everyone? They looked ridiculously excited...

They were this happy over getting a name? Why not just name themselves?

Clearly, Avilan did not think naming someone was a big deal.

"You'll be called 'Mole Xiu.' Put together, that makes Mole Xiu. If you have descendants, let them inherit the name Mole, while you add 'Xiu'!" Avilan suggested half-jokingly. The name held no particular meaning; it simply rolled off the tongue, casually chosen, much like naming a pet dog.

"You actually permit my descendants to inherit this name. This lowly one is endlessly grateful!"

However, once the name was decided, Avilan saw blue light rise from Mole Xiu's body as a large amount of mana essence poured into him. At the same time, the numbers on Avilan's blue bar began to fluctuate.

Avilan enlarged the numbers on the blue bar. Sure enough, it was dropping by one point per second. But Avilan was already level one hundred, and all the equipment he wore was mage gear with mana regeneration effects, so that one point of mana was immediately restored.

Giving a name consumed mana, and that mana represented mana essence. This mana essence was entering Mole Xiu's body.

Could it promote Mole Xiu's evolution?

Avilan immediately became interested. After naming him, he quietly watched Mole Xiu's body change.

Just as Avilan had expected, he was evolving.

His height gradually increased, and his once frail, unsteady body slowly straightened.

This process lasted nearly three full minutes. The mana was no longer dropping, nor did any more mana essence flow into Mole Xiu's body. Yet the once-hunched Ratkin had become a powerful Ratman.

Just how powerful was he? He looked like a fitness coach Avilan had seen in his previous life. He had grown from around 1.3 meters to nearly two meters tall, with bulging muscles all over his body, like a walking slab of muscle. His appearance had also begun evolving toward a more human form, with distinct features. However, his huge ears resembled Mickey Mouse's, while the whiskers beside his nose had transformed into two antenna-like strands growing from the top of his head. He also had a pair of enormous buck teeth.

If not for his overly muscular build, he might have actually looked a little cute.

This evolution had consumed less than three hundred points of mana.

"Mole Xiu, attack me with all your strength." Avilan directly summoned a Magic Shield and had Mole Xiu attack it.

Mole Xiu nodded, let out an angry roar, and slammed a fist into the Magic Shield.

That heavy, powerful punch instantly shattered the level-one Magic Shield, but Avilan had tested Mole Xiu's strength.

Mole Xiu, second-tier monster. Demi-human Ratman species. Level 21.

He then cast another Magic Shield and had the Ratkin chief attack it.

Ratkin, first-tier monster. Beast-type Ratkin species. Level 5.

Seeing this data, Avilan's mouth twitched slightly.

He knew the Ratkin were weak, but he had not expected them to be this weak. Even a chief was only level five; the ordinary Ratkin were probably only level two or three.

Though they were a little weak, they would have no problem working and cleaning up garbage.

Avilan led several hundred Ratmen toward Despair Fortress. Along the way, he visited several more Ratkin tribes. By the time they returned to Despair Fortress, there were more than a thousand Ratkin in total, though only six of them were Ratmen.

Mole Xiu was the strongest among them at level twenty-one. The others were only around level seventeen or eighteen.

As for the Ratkin whom Avilan had granted names and allowed to pass them on to the next generation, their strength had also been slowly increasing over the past few days. Mana essence entered their bodies every day, though at a very slow rate.

The initial estimate was around one point of mana essence per day. To evolve into Ratmen would take at least around three hundred days.

Of course, this only applied to the direct descendants of the Ratmen named by Avilan. The other Ratkin had no such benefit at all.

When they returned to Despair Fortress, Zhou Yu and Arthur stared wide-eyed at the Ratmen before them.

Their first impression was that they were filthy and weak.

"Respected Lord Avilan, these pitiful, weak creatures...?" Zhou Yu asked, seemingly unsure how to phrase his question.

Avilan said with a smile, "Of course I brought them back to work. Zhou Yu, don't be polite. Have them help with the work, but make sure they're fed."

Hearing this, Mole Xiu became somewhat emotional and hurriedly bowed to Zhou Yu.

Zhou Yu looked at the six Ratmen and found them barely acceptable. As for the Ratkin, he avoided them as though they were plague-ridden, instinctively keeping his distance while repeatedly covering his nose with a silk handkerchief, his face full of disgust.

Arthur was overjoyed when he saw so many Ratkin joining them.

"Respected Lord Aslan, I request that all Horned Demons within the territory be gathered here to serve as Despair Fortress's guard force. Their main work area should be Despair Fortress, while the city district can be left to these Ratkin!"

After thinking for a moment, Avilan nodded. "That will do."

Upon hearing Avilan's order, Zhou Yu's face instantly turned green. Yet he did not dare object, and he also understood that Arthur's suggestion was the best decision for the moment.

As the supreme existence of Despair Fortress, Avilan had only himself and Arthur, the guild's chief steward, in the entire fortress. It truly did not suit Avilan's status.

After handing the Ratkin over to Zhou Yu, Avilan returned to Despair Fortress surrounded by a squad of Horned Demon guards.

Watching Avilan's retreating figure, fire flickered in Zhou Yu's eyes as she turned around.

"All Ratkin, listen up! You lowly creatures should count yourselves blessed for three lifetimes to have earned Lord Avilan's favor. If any of you dare offend Lord Avilan or break the rules, there will be no mercy!"

After Zhou Yu finished speaking, an enormous burst of fire-attributed mana essence erupted, frightening the Ratkin into kneeling on the ground and trembling. Even the six Ratmen were no exception.

"The first thing you will do now is bathe. From this day onward, you will bathe on time every day. If I see you filthy again tomorrow, then just wait for death!" After saying that, Zhou Yu left without looking back. She feared that if she stayed any longer, she would not be able to stop herself from vomiting.

Zhou Yu had completely inherited one of Zheng Xiuqi's minor flaws: a germaphobic obsession with cleanliness. Zhou Yu had only been forced by orders to remain here and give commands. If this had been Despair Fortress at its peak, she would definitely have cast Beacon Red Cliffs aside and burned these disgusting creatures to ashes.