Kazdel, Headquarters of the Military Commission.
Inside the office, Theresis stood before the window.
A member of the Imperial Guard entered silently and handed over an intelligence report.
Theresis took it, unfolded it, and his gaze lingered for a moment on the keywords "Civil Livelihood Construction Department," "Lacey," and "Kal'tsit."
No expression could be discerned on his face, but his fingers subconsciously rubbed the edge of the paper.
Lacey's moves were even faster than he had imagined.
Not only had he persuaded Theresia so quickly, but he had even convinced that intractable woman, Kal'tsit, to join as a technical consultant.
"Infrastructure..."
Theresis whispered this unfamiliar vocabulary, yet the blueprint Lacey had depicted emerged clearly in his mind.
To forge a sheath for his sword.
A complex light flashed in Theresis's eyes.
His philosophy ran contrary to his sister's; he knew deeply how fragile Theresia's path was in the face of reality, yet he could not bear to snap it with his own hands.
And Lacey's appearance seemed to offer a possibility—a possibility to stitch ideal and reality together.
This was exactly what he was willing to see.
But he was also clear that Lacey's plan had an obstacle that could not be bypassed.
The Soul Furnace.
That heart which provided almost all of Kazdel's energy had always been firmly in the grasp of the Military Commission, or rather, in his hands.
This was the foundation of his leverage over the Royal Courts and his development of armaments.
Now, Lacey's Civil Livelihood Construction Department needed a share of that pie.
Theresis set the intelligence aside without the slightest hesitation.
"Pass on my order," he said to the guard without turning his head.
"Summon all members of the Military Commission. We will hold an emergency meeting tomorrow morning."
The guard acknowledged the order and departed.
...
Meanwhile, Lacey had already left the Babel stronghold.
Ascalon followed silently behind him.
Her Highness Theresia had told her she didn't need to continue her guard duties today, but she hadn't refused.
Ascalon wanted to open her mouth several times to ask about his experiences over these years, and why he had become the Lord of Fiends the moment he returned, but the words reached her lips only to be swallowed back down.
In the end, she simply asked a muffled question.
"Where are you going?"
"To recruit people."
Lacey answered concisely. He seemed to be in a good mood, reaching out to ruffle Ascalon's red hair, as she wasn't much shorter than him.
Ascalon's body stiffened. She didn't dodge, but her cheeks felt slightly hot, and she pulled her hood down a bit lower.
The two passed through the relatively peaceful Babel-controlled zone and headed toward the true hinterland of Kazdel City.
The deeper they went, the more dilapidated and chaotic the surrounding scenery became.
Aside from the smell of rust and dust, the air was mixed with the scents of blood, alcohol, and low-quality food.
The walls were covered in graffiti from various mercenary groups, and drunk Sarkaz could be seen everywhere on street corners, alongside desperadoes drawing blades at each other over a single disagreement.
There was no order here; the only law was power.
Finally, they arrived at an underground area where a suspended platform was fixed in place by several chains.
This was the underground heart of Kazdel—the Scar Market.
At the entrance, several burly Sarkaz guards leaned lazily against the wall.
Seeing Lacey and Ascalon approaching, they initially intended to step forward and extort some toll money. But when their gazes touched the plain-looking yet ominously aura-emitting Black Crown atop Lacey's head, the banditry on their faces instantly solidified.
Huh?
Lord of Fiends?
They looked at each other, not knowing how to react for a moment.
Isn't Her Highness Theresia the Lord of Fiends?
Lacey ignored them and walked straight in.
Ascalon followed close behind, scanning the surroundings vigilantly.
As soon as they entered the Scar Market, the clamor and chaos rushed at them face-first. The sounds of hawking, cursing, and clashing metal were incessant.
Most eye-catching was a wooden board in the center of the market, with various bounty orders written in blood-red script.
"Capture the Captain of the Victoria Storm Assault Team alive. Reward: 300 Victoria Gold Notes."
"Infiltrate Lungmen of Yan, kidnap the eldest daughter of the Lin family, Lin Yuxia. Reward: One million Lungmen Dollars."
"Assassinate a Leithanien Count. Specific identity revealed after accepting the mission. Reward: 500 Nameless Identification Tags."
Every mission here was full of bloody violence, putting a clear price tag on life.
The identification tags used as currency were the identity markers left behind by Sarkaz mercenaries after death.
Using the death certificates of compatriots to purchase the chance to kill more people—this was the cruel logic of the Scar Market.
Initially, people didn't notice Lacey's arrival.
But as he walked all the way toward the depths of the market, more and more people noticed the Black Crown on his head.
The clamor died down eerily.
Countless gazes, mixed with suspicion, greed, awe, and curiosity, focused on Lacey.
"That is... the Black Crown?"
"Are you kidding? Why would Her Highness Theresia come to a place like this?"
"But that crown can't be faked... Wait, that person isn't Her Highness Theresia! Who is he?"
"I seem to have seen him somewhere... Hiss, I remember now!"
"He is Lacey the Undying! One of the Seven Heroes!"
A commotion erupted in the crowd.
For these mercenaries who licked blood from knife edges, the "Seven Sarkaz Heroes" were living legends, the highest achievement their group could attain.
And Lacey was a legend among legends.
Lacey ignored all the gazes and discussions around him; his goal was clear.
He passed through the chaotic trading zone and arrived at a relatively quiet area.
This place mostly housed the stationing points of major mercenary groups.
He stopped in front of a simple camp built from rocks.
At the entrance of the camp hung a wooden sign carved with two words: Mudrock Squad.
Several young Sarkaz were wiping their weapons and armor at the door. Seeing Lacey, they all revealed vigilant expressions.
"Hello, I'm looking for Mudrock," Lacey said, his tone peaceful.
One of the youths, who looked the oldest, stood up. He sized Lacey up and asked in a deep voice, "Who are you? What business do you have with our captain?"
"I am an old friend of hers."
"Old friend?" The youth clearly didn't believe him. There was no such thing as 'old friends' in the Scar Market.
However, in the next moment, they saw the Black Crown on the stranger's head. They immediately started stammering, not knowing what to say.
Just then, a muffled voice that was indistinguishable as male or female came from inside the camp.
"Let him in."
The youth hesitated for a moment but ultimately stepped aside to clear the path.
Lacey walked into the camp.
The camp wasn't large, but it was kept very tidy.
Some half-repaired parts were piled in a corner, while herbs were drying on the other side.
A dozen or so Sarkaz members were attending to their own duties—some meditating, some maintaining equipment. Although the atmosphere was heavy, it revealed a family-like cohesion.
A tall Sarkaz wearing heavy armor, face obscured, was sitting on a large rock. She held a clay tablet in her hand, seemingly molding something using Originium Arts.
Hearing footsteps, she stopped her hands and raised her head.
"...Lacey?" Her voice came out through the helmet, somewhat uncertain.
"It's me, Mudrock." Lacey smiled. "Long time no see."
Mudrock stood up. In her armor, she was half a head taller than Lacey, appearing extremely imposing.
She walked silently to Lacey, and then, she made a move that shocked everyone around them.
She took off her helmet.
What was revealed was a delicate and slightly childish face.
She looked to be no more than a girl of about twenty, forming a massive contrast with her heavy equipment and the title of "Captain of Mudrock Squad."
The surrounding Mudrock Squad members, to a man, all widened their eyes, staring at their captain.
From their expressions, it was clear they also hadn't known their captain was a young girl all along.
"It really is you, Lacey!" Mudrock looked at Lacey and said joyfully, "You're back."
"Yeah, I'm back."
The dialogue between the two was simple, yet it revealed a familiarity that outsiders couldn't comprehend.
Before Lacey became one of the Seven Heroes, he and Mudrock had been members of the same mercenary squad. They had struggled together on the battlefields of Terra for quite a few years and were comrades who could truly trust each other with their backs.
"The thing on your head..." Mudrock's gaze fell on the Black Crown.
"It's a long story." Lacey waved his hand.
"I came to find you this time because I want to ask for a favor."
"Is there a mission?" Mudrock put her helmet back on, her voice returning to its usual steadiness.
"What mission? One from the Pain Orders?"
"No, much more important than that." Lacey shook his head. "I want to invite you... to do construction."
"Construction?" Mudrock's helmet tilted slightly, as if she didn't understand the meaning of the word.
"Yes. Building roads, building houses, reclaiming farmland." Lacey was concise.
The surrounding Mudrock Squad members all revealed bizarre expressions. They looked at each other, suspecting they had heard wrong.
Asking these mercenaries who killed without blinking to become craftsmen?
What kind of joke was this?
"We are warriors, not craftsmen," Mudrock voiced the thoughts of her team members.
"I know." Lacey looked at her, his eyes serious.
"But I know you even better, Mudrock. You are a natural-born child of earth and stone."
"Using your Originium Arts to smash enemies' heads is a waste. It is far more suitable for building a home for our compatriots."
"I am preparing to establish a new department called the Kazdel Civil Livelihood Construction Department, specifically responsible for rebuilding our homeland."
"I need a core engineering team, and you are the most suitable candidate I can think of."
Mudrock fell silent.
She glanced at the team members behind her. Most of them wore faces of exhaustion, their bodies bearing injuries both new and old.
They followed her, moving from one battlefield to another, all for an ethereal place to settle down.
"What about the remuneration?" she asked. As a captain, this was something she had to consider for her members.
"It won't be less than what you get for accepting the highest-grade Pain Orders." Lacey gave an extremely tempting promise.
"Moreover, it is stable, continuous remuneration."
"Food, medicine, clean living quarters, and... a home that belongs to you, built with your own hands."
He paused, then emphasized his tone: "Mudrock, I am not assigning you a task. I am giving you a choice."
"A choice where you no longer have to tie your head to your belt, where you no longer have to exchange the identification tags of compatriots for your next meal."
"A choice... to live with dignity."
The entire camp was dead silent.
All members of Mudrock Squad stopped the work in their hands, looking at their captain.
Their eyes revealed something that had been suppressed for too long—something called "yearning."
Mudrock was silent for a long time, so long that Lacey thought she would refuse.
She slowly extended her hand, offering the clay tablet in her palm that had been pinched into shape to Lacey.
It was a model of a small, crooked house.
"My friends said..." Mudrock's voice came through the helmet, carrying an imperceptible tremor.
"They also want to have a home."
The "friends" she spoke of were the clay and rock creations she made with her Originium Arts.
Lacey took the small clay house and smiled.
"Good."
He nodded heavily. "Then from today on, you are the Kazdel First Construction Corps."
"When do we start?" Mudrock asked crisply.
"Now."
Lacey said, "Come with me. Meet your future colleague."
"Her temper might not be very good, and you might not understand what she says, but as a person... she shouldn't be bad."
He thought of Kal'tsit's frosty face and the string of academic terms that might pop out of her mouth, and couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.
________________________________________
Get rewarded for helping with our community goals!
🎯 Reward for all: +1 bonus chapter at 50 Powerstones.
🚀 Tier Reward: Help us reach 20 members for +5 chapters on all stories!
👻 Join the crew by searching Ms. Medusa on (P). You know the spot! 😉