I couldn't help but sigh as I looked at the fateful location that almost cost me dearly with the destruction of a divine avatar, the location of the giant breach. Now, in its place, there was already a half-constructed city that was large enough to rival Oniphia, minus the triple siege wards.

There wasn't even one layer active. Somatons probably thought they still had time, so they wanted to construct a solid, interlocked structure rather than building a layer first before adding more. A more prudent choice from the construction perspective. From the military perspective … not so much.

Zolast accompanied me as I stood upon one of the completed towers, warded well enough to avoid the attention of any observers, the luxury furnishing suggesting that the previous resident had been my distant friend Marquis Somaton. Maybe I should send him a bottle of wine as a thank you gift for his hospitality.

However, soon I noticed Takis walking in one of the inner streets, the people parting around him in fear and respect. It looked like his reputation as a commander got even more daunting after his incredible victory, taking down three castles and the enemy army. On a surface assessment, his tactics looked simple. A mere, dishonorable ambush that allowed him to defeat a larger army.

Of course, anyone thinking that would be ignoring how Takis had to prepare tunnels targeting the escape routes of the Somaton army beforehand, meaning he was able to predict the reaction of the Somaton army the moment I left to create some chaos. A fascinating achievement, and while the others didn't have the chance to shine just as much in the quick war, their names — or the names of their disguises — were already spreading.

"They grow up so quickly," I said. "They even went and won a war without waiting for their poor old boss."

"They always do," Zolast replied, his sardonic tune matching mine. "It's tough to let them go, right?"

I shrugged. "I have to admit, they grow on you. I never enjoyed sending people I liked into danger."

"Too bad the world is too merciless for us to keep them safe forever," Zolast said, passing the orb in his hand back, and the familiar notification appeared in front of me once more.

[System Beacon Detected

Activate?]

"Are you able to detect anything?" I asked even as I put the orb into a special box that had been forged as a special order.

"Nothing, it feels completely dead to my senses, like it's just a mere rock," Zolast said. "If it wasn't for your explanation, I would have never believed it was integral to a flying castle."

I shrugged. "There had to be a reason why the construction secrets were kept secret," I said. "Too bad I don't dare to activate it."

Zolast chuckled. "At least it's not a waste. We know it makes a good fishing bait."

"I shouldn't have told you about that," I grumbled. "Damned fish, chasing me for half a day."

"Yeah, damned fish," Zolast chuckled, but I could hear the tenseness in his voice. "Do you think those are the kinds of monsters we will need to deal with during the Calamity?"

I looked at him without saying anything. I knew what he was thinking. He was afraid that, if we had to fight against a multitude of such monsters, we would lose. Unfortunately, the answer was exactly that. We would lose. Badly. "That's why we're trying to stop the Calamity in the first place."

"Can't you at least lie," Zolast grumbled.

"You're too old for lies," I answered.

"Unlike you, who's a spring chicken," he grumbled, but it still achieved the intended effect, which was to keep him from getting too somber. I knew how it could get too hard to move on sometimes at our age. The System might keep our bodies spry and dynamic, but curing the cynicism of old age was above its capabilities.

"So, what's your idea about why I could interact with it? Hero class, or Authority?" I asked.

"My guess is the former. You said that the bond is somewhat similar to the Hero Party and the connection for the Alignment, so it makes more sense."

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

I shrugged. It was a good guess, but ultimately, it was a guess. Not that it mattered much. The real issue was my refusal to activate it, not after our little discovery that all three destroyed flying castles had their orbs destroyed.

That wouldn't have changed my mind, if it wasn't for the nature of their destruction. All three orbs had been destroyed the exact same way, feeling more like an intentionally-activated failsafe than a side effect of the destruction of the castles.

Without that, we might have judged that the risk was acceptable, but there was that mysterious monster's reaction to consider. We already knew that beasts didn't like the System, but the beacon seemed to be an attraction on a whole new level.

I decided to change the subject. "Let's talk more about the conquest. What's the status of the dungeon?" I asked.

"Better than we expected. The Princess agreed to give us half of the dungeon slots in exchange for certain conditions," Zolast said.

"Interesting, what are the conditions?"

"Nothing we're not already considering. We have a mutual defense pact with her dukedom, promising to defend each other against external threats," Zolast said.

"Limits?" I asked.

Zolast smirked. "That's the fun part, no limits," he said. "She's obligated to help us against anything, including other churches. And, we're obligated to help them against anyone, including the Ralum kingdom."

"Daring," I said. "Too bad she doesn't know we are already committed to fight against Ralum more than her."

Zolast shrugged. "As you say. Information asymmetry is the most valuable tool, both for warfare and for diplomacy."

"True enough," I said. "How about the construction?"

"That's another condition of hers; that I lead the construction. Luckily, the Marquis had been very generous when it came to the foundations, and I was near enough to intervene to prevent them from sabotaging once the army was defeated. A couple more days, and we'll have the dungeon open."

"Very bad for our poor benefactor. All that effort, ruined because one of his castles had been sabotaged by its prisoners."

Zolast chuckled. "You're a terrible enemy to have."

"What a terrible accusation against an old man trying to retire," I said with a chuckle. "By the way, do we have any news about the mysterious prisoner? He's still alive and fighting. That's an impressive performance."

"We have no idea, and not for a lack of trying. Even the Princess was unable to find anything, and she has quite a bit of spies in the border due to her engagement with Kyrll. But one thing is for certain: Somaton is panicking more than we expected. Too much for it to be about the sudden destruction of a castle."

I frowned. "That's … troubling to hear. I don't like it when things get high profile —" I started, only to get a derisive laugh from Zolast. I opened my mouth to argue, then remembered everything I had done since my arrival to this new world.

From my escape indirectly triggering an incursion from a corrupted god, to deciding to hire a few female blacksmith, only to put ourselves in the middle of an unrelated religious war. Then, there were my casinos unintentionally creating a mana-backed currency, and lastly my guild destroying the plots of multiple kingdoms on the side.

Calling those moves low-profile would have been a stretch.

Just a slight one.

"Alright, laugh it up. It's probably another thing that's going to blow up more than we expect," I said. That was an annoying part of making plans without having the full picture. We always ended up disturbing something hidden.

"Probably. Either way, having an ally outside of our direct vicinity would be helpful," Zolast said.

"That's true, but we don't know anything about him. And, I want to stick around a while, at least until the new dungeon is in operation and we receive a few more levels. It's the perfect time to hit against us."

"I think you're exaggerating," Zolast answered. "Even with the flying castles, it'll take them at least ten days to arrive. Even more if they want to bring their forces from the sea. And, you're assuming they are willing to make the commitment. Somaton is already distracted by your surprise recruit. And, Ralum couldn't take the risk of weakening itself with Somaton forces gathering at their border, no matter the reason."

"Really? They would sit back and relax after all the trouble they went through to isolate and sabotage the princess?" I said, feeling weirded out. That was a stupid decision. They had already made an enemy of her, and of us. And, now that the large dungeon is about to start operating, it was their greatest chance for them to attack."

"Strategically, that's true, but you're underestimating just how fragmented the political structure of the kingdoms really is," Zolast explained. "They have already wasted a lot of their political capital in the process for no return. They don't have infinite assets to invest, especially since the princess possesses a large dungeon that would improve the condition of her forces significantly. Her value as an ally just skyrocketed…"

"Along with the cost of fighting against her," I completed. "Fascinating. So, you're saying that I traveled all the way back just to drop the orb?"

Zolast shrugged. "It looks that way—" he started, then one of his message stones alerted him. He lifted it, only to frown deeply. "You and your unlucky mouth," Zolast started. "It looks like you're needed around," he said.

"Really?" I asked. "What's the occasion?"

"They have just spotted an army of corrupted beasts at the mountains, and they are charging toward the city."

"They must really hate the princess," I said with a chuckle. "Still, let's gather the younglings and see how a true elite squad fares against an army of beasts."

"That would reveal too much about our forces," Zolast warned.

"True, but it's better than trying to stem an army of mindless beasts without the wall, and the city is vulnerable without its wards," I said, then smirked. "And, I'm sure we can handle it without revealing all of our secrets."