"Time truly flies." It was the 24th of June, 1415 in the Nas continent calendar. As summer approached with the heat settling in, Jared could feel the season changing. When the war began, it had been a winter filled with heavy snow, but now the seasons had flipped entirely.
Swoosh! Jared unfurled a map. It was a detailed depiction of the northern area of the Kingdom of Sinders, focused on the northeastern part of the Nas continent. Just a little while ago, his territory marked with “Z” was merely a medium-sized domain combining three small estates, with only a small part colored on the map. But now, he had conquered most of the independent territories in the northern area of the Kingdom of Sinders. It had grown five times in size compared to three months ago. This marked a significant change in Jared's influence.
To ensure stable governance, Jared unified the entire domain under a single name, leading to the creation of the Crivia "Great Domain."
[No further territory unification is possible. You have reached the maximum territory expansion as a Great Domain.]
The system proudly notified him. This meant that any future territories would no longer join the Crivia Great Domain but would be treated as new ones. During the process of integrating multiple domains into one Great Domain, the overall internal affairs metrics were recalibrated. The maximum internal affairs requirement had risen significantly, and some of the previously accumulated figures had dropped as part of the standardization process. However, the unification of the Great Domain was essential for effective governance through his vassals.
Above all, this choice allowed Jared to view the flow of the domain effortlessly through the system's domain window. If each domain existed separately, it would be a cumbersome process to check each one individually. As one often says, "Aim high with your dreams." Jared dreamed of ruling an even larger territory in the future, making the preliminary preparations all the more necessary.
[You have acquired the title “Great Lord.” Your charm increases by 100!]
[Due to the effects of the title “Great Lord,” divine blessings and favors will descend upon the entire Great Domain immediately. For the next two years, the probability of natural disasters such as droughts, floods, pests, and strong winds affecting the domain will be reduced by 90%.]
"Excellent!" He was thrilled to gain the title given to lords who established a Great Domain. The charm boost of 100 was delightful, but what pleased Jared even more was the blessing that would benefit his domain for two years. If the likelihood of disasters striking the lives of his numerous domain residents was drastically reduced, they would be able to enjoy a more prosperous life.
Just then, a voice filled with excitement called out from a distance.
"Lord! Lord Jared!"
Enthusiastically, Hayze’s voice sounded from afar, indicating that she had something to boast about rather than in a state of urgency.
"Come in!" Jared used his level 5 magic, Telekinesis, to open the door effortlessly. Hayze rushed in, panting heavily, her voice filled with excitement as she exclaimed, "Lord! It's me! Me!"
"Calm down and speak. What's the rush? I'm right here. You can take your time," he reassured her.
"I've finally been able to use my divine power! All the hard work I've put in over the past six months hasn’t been in vain!"
"What? You've awakened your divine power?"
"Yes! Following the method you taught me, I practiced steadily, and it really worked! I can't believe I can use divine power now!"
"Congratulations! This is the happiest news I've heard in a while!"
Jared rushed over and embraced Hayze tightly. He wasn’t entirely sure why, but he felt genuine joy welling up in his heart as he congratulated her.
The existence of divine power makes a tremendous difference for a healer. A healer using regular magic might recover 10 health points with a basic healing spell, but one mixing divine power could recover 20 health points with the same amount of magic. The efficiency doubled. This was just the beginning, and as the healing techniques progressed, the gap would only widen.
To raise Hayze's potential, Jared had given her an artifact he obtained from the tomb of Mahat III. It was a cursed necklace that continuously inflicted damage on the wearer through magical means. Had she worn it without any precautions, it could have easily cost her life. But Jared had added his own trick. He also provided her with another artifact that restored the same amount of health lost due to magic. This way, the damage and healing were balanced.
Divine power couldn’t simply be awakened through prayer alone. According to techniques validated in the Paradiso, constant cycles of injury and recovery had to be perceived as trials for the subconscious to awaken. He envisioned rapid growth through this method, and his plan succeeded tremendously. Normally, healers invested at least five years to awaken their divine power; Hayze, thanks to Jared’s strategy, had shortened that time by almost tenfold.
"Can you cover the mid-level healing from the Divine Three with your divine power?"
"Yes! No problem at all!"
"Great! Let’s see the effect!"
"Oh Lord! Wait…!”
Bang! Before Hayze could finish her sentence, Jared plunged a dagger into his thigh. There was no quicker way to create a wound for testing. He needed to feel the healing ability directly on his own body to judge her progress.
Initially, she had been terrified at the thought of even having a needle inserted into her abdomen, but now she seemed unfazed about the dagger test. Perhaps her experiences from being on the battlefield had numbed her to pain over time.
"You really can’t be stopped, can you? There are countless ways to test me without self-harm!"
"I don’t have the time. I want to check your achievements quickly."
"No matter how urgent it is!"
"Quickly, make me feel it."
"My Lord, you know… that sounds a bit strange, right?"
"Just make me feel the healing."
Jared smiled and extended his thigh. Hayze immediately used her mid-level healing spell.
Divine Three, mid-level healing. The term "divine" refers to the classification among healers, and the number denotes the level akin to a sorcerer's rank or class. Currently, Hayze had reached the rank of a 3-class healer.
It was a remarkable growth. Although Jared had paved the shortcut, Hayze had grown beyond the efficiency of that shortcut due to her own determination and hard work.
"Perfect!"
Seeing the recovery speed of the mid-level healing and the state of his wound, Jared gave a thumbs-up. It was sincere praise, not mere flattery. Truly, the healing using divine power had exceptional effects.
"My Lord! Are you finally going to let me participate in the battles? You promised!"
"I did."
"Don’t look away! Now I will be the exclusive healer for your domain’s army. Please allow me!"
"A promise is a promise; I will definitely do it. But remember, you are not a combatant. You won't be on the front lines."
"I understand. I just want my strength to be meaningfully used, especially for you, my Lord.”
Jared felt proud at Hayze’s determined expression. In the swift six months that had passed, the growth of the promising candidates had been astonishing. Not only Hayze but also Mia, Lena, Isabel, Aki, Julian, Chloe, and Rakis.
The promising candidates tied to Jared were continuously growing and improving.
"I really need to take some time to check everyone's stats closely. I’ve been so focused on the war."
Thinking of the past six months spent on the battlefield, Jared exhaled a heavy breath. The greatest war had yet to begin, however.
Just then, a message popped up.
[Magic Engineering Production – The creation of the large visual device is complete.]
This notice announced the completion of the device being constructed in the spacious basement of the lord's castle. Thanks to Jared continually producing visual devices, his production level had significantly increased, allowing him to create something akin to a beam projector through magic engineering.
"Finally, the time has come to stir up the Umbra scandal in the Kingdom of Sinders!"
A smile crept onto Jared’s face. The moment to unveil the hidden misdeeds of the Second Prince and the Third Prince, which he had been gathering evidence for all this time, had arrived.
He reissued the command for the entire army to prepare for action once more. All necessary conditions were in place for intervening in the Kingdom of Sinders' civil war, ensuring the past six months of persistent efforts wouldn’t be in vain. There was just one final hurdle remaining–the mountain of the Second Prince, Prathaline.
“Damn that Jared!”
Bang! Prathaline slammed his fist on the table, shattering it. He couldn't contain his anger upon hearing the news of the sudden incident in the royal capital.
“What happened, Your Highness?”
Beside Prathaline stood Count Capri, who had been his confidant since the early stages of the civil war. After gaining significant victory over Prince Jess in the previous night's battle, Prathaline was confident that the end of the long civil war was near.
The First Prince, Ian, was dead; the Third Prince, Jess, was on the verge of downfall due to defeat; and the Fourth Prince, Iziel, was uninterested in the royal succession, leaving him convinced that preparations for succession were complete.
But that assumption was wrong. Recent news revealed that video footage of Prathaline and Jess engaging in forbidden rituals was being publicly aired throughout the royal capital.
“Damn video device….” Prathaline gritted his teeth in frustration. If it were just eyewitness testimony, he could easily dismiss it as falsehoods and slander, but the existence of undeniable video evidence deeply troubled him.
What startled Prathaline even more was that the person behind releasing this video was none other than Iziel, the innocent-looking prince who had shown no interest in the throne at all. unbeknownst to him, Iziel had secretly filmed the footage and deliberately concealed the truth without ever asking Prathaline about his affiliation with the Umbra Sect.
“Iziel, you treacherous scoundrel!”
Prathaline's fury poured out wildly, lacking a specific target. Surrounded by Jess's army and seeing the end of the lengthy civil war approaching was anything but a pleasant situation.
Now, even at this moment, footage showing him dedicating himself to the Umbra Sect and receiving power from the dark sorcerer was likely being aired for everyone to see.
“Just when we were so close…”
Prathaline’s tightly clenched fist trembled with rage. The same Umbra Sect that had empowered him to poison his father, King Deckard IX, and make his brother Ian's illness grave enough to lead to his downfall had now become the source of his potential undoing.
Success was so close. Upon ascending to the throne, he had intended to wield the power of the Umbra Sect and implement a centralized autocratic rule as a fully realized King. That dream now hung by a thread.
He had been perfectly played into Iziel’s and Jared's trap. Jared, who had never declared support for anyone or shown interest, had been plotting against his life from long ago.
“Right now! Withdraw the troops and immediately kill Iziel!”
Prathaline shouted, realizing he had no other choice but to seize this strategic gambit. He could not allow everything he had built to be taken away by Jared and Iziel.
Chapter 65