The sun woke him up on the final full day of protection. He knew that the idyllic and serene little village he was lord of wouldn't be able to stay that way for long.

But for the moment he had hope. The thoughts of what Tier 2 might be on offer spurred him on.

Ignoring everything else. He made his way to the recruitment menu. The options had been halved once again. With only twenty-five options for Tier 2s. He could almost scout them all.

It also allowed him to look at each of the people before he scouted them. Any one of them would most likely be able to destroy his village. But now he had the chance to recruit them all.

He wanted another peak recruit with great potential. But with the threat looming, he would settle for a peak Tier 2 Warrior.

He decided that looking at the most war-hardened would do him the best. There were several with extensive scars and wounds on their face.

He did rule out anyone who looked too old. He would rather have a Tier 2 - 7 Star middle-aged man over a Tier 2 - 9 Star Old man. He had tried to give skills to some of the farmers the day before. But with anyone over a certain age not being able to absorb the skill scrolls. He couldn't risk that happening with his Tier 2 Warrior.

After his round of scouting, he was left with four serious options. More than he was expecting, making him feel quite a bit better. Two of which stood out above any of the others.

[Trait: Genius,

Power: Tier 2 - 8 Star,

Potential: Tier 5 - 3 Star,

Talent: Path Of Magic]

She would be one of the youngest recruits, but a step above anyone else he had seen in the new world. He hadn't managed to find many magical skills over the past few days. Compared to how many martial skills he had stockpiled. It was risky taking someone with magical skills.

He doubted it would be a similar case to Leonard who had begun to walk down the wrong path from the beginning. The only other that came close was one of the older ones he had scouted.

[Trait: Bloodthirsty,

Power: Tier 2 - 9 Star,

Potential: Tier 3 - 5 Star,

Talent: Martial Path]

He was the only peak Tier 2 he had scouted. With that power and a talent for the martial path, he didn't think that the shadow hounds would be able to hold out for long. The only thing that worried him was the trait. While Genius seemed like a very attractive Trait. The same could not be said for bloodthirsty. While it would help him out now. He didn't know how it would affect the future.

It was a tough choice, but he had to believe in the future. Tier 5 was a realm that most of the High Lords hadn't even touched. Having someone with that level of potential in his realm would make him feel a lot better.

Selecting his recruit. He was distracted from going to meet her by an explosion of fireworks on the ethereal screen.

[Congratulations on being eligible to become a Titled Lord. Would you like to choose your Title, or have one randomly assigned.]

As much as he wanted to choose his title. He had learned that letting the system do it for you came with some extra rewards.

[Lord Of The Endless Forest]

While the title was a little on the nose, he was more than happy with it. Unfortunately, he didn't have time to inspect all the new options as a Titled Lord. He had a new Warrior to meet.

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She had looked young on the screen, but she was even younger in person. It seemed that the Trait of Genius wasn't only for show.

She gave a little half bow as Julius approached. Both Leonard and David were already chatting with her. While David seemed to be treating her normally. The same could not be said for Leonard. He was bowing low even talking to her. It seemed that he was able to sense her power already. A good sign overall.

"Greetings my lord. My name is Elenora. It is a pleasure to be at your service. I hear you are having some problems."

The others had been quick in describing the situation it seemed.

"Greetings Elenora. I welcome you to the Endless Forest. I hope that you will be able to live a great life here."

Julius tried to appear as a competent lord, but he wasn't sure how well he was pulling it off.

"We are indeed being plagued by a group of Shadow Hounds. I hope that you will be able to assist in driving them away."

She nodded before turning to the village.

"That is no problem. I hope that I will have some suitable accommodation by the time the job is complete."

With that said she turned her back and began to make her way outside of the village walls.

It wasn't too surprising that a Tier 2 Genius wouldn't be too happy about sleeping in a dorm with Tier 0 Farmers.

He would worry about that in a little while. For now he along with Leonard and David followed behind her. Eager to see her prowess in action.

They soon reached the edge of the protected zone and began to watch her wave in the air.

It would be the first time he would see true magic in this new world. He couldn't help but be a little excited. It took a few moments, but soon a series of green runic circles appeared in front of her.

They flashed by quicker than he could understand. With a slight flourish, a far larger circle appeared. Nearly blinding us with its brightness. Then a slight wave of power emanated from her, making Julius tingle a little.

It took him a few moments to understand what was going on. But he could soon see the trees beyond the barrier begin to move strangely.

The first shock came as one of the branches on the trees moved faster than he could follow to spear one of the adolescent Shadow Hounds.

It let out a mournful cry as it was taken into the air. A gruesome wound visible for all to see. The other Shadow Hounds began to react, but they couldn't do much before they too were attacked by branches.

With most of them having been asleep due to their nocturnal nature. It wasn't long before the trees had delivered fifteen bodies in front of Elenora.

With more being added every moment, he couldn't help but feel both relief and horror pass through his body.

With Elenora around he didn't have to worry about the protection going down. But the strength of Tier 2 Warriors scared him.

The fact they were still considered weak in the wider world was even more so. He had thought that Elenora would have been able to take down his village given enough time. But that had been far too generous. It wouldn't even take her a few moments to kill everyone in the village.

The carnage came to an end with close to thirty hounds laying dead in front of them. A complete massacre had occurred.

Leonard and David were quick to begin butchering the bodies. While the Tier 0 hounds would have little value. All of the Tier 1 Monsters would have a beast core inside. Something that was valuable anywhere in the world.

Elenora as a peak Tier 2 Warrior, looked down on such things and began making her way back to the Village.

Julius thought he would have a little more time to get a suitable space set up for her. As such he had to distract her for a little while.

Leading her to the tavern, where celebrations had already begun. Julius made his way to the Lord's abode. Straight into his territory management. He began building the best single-occupancy building he could find.

While it wouldn't have amazed them in his old world. The small house looked quite comfortable to live in.

He did have to bring some of the farmers from the celebrations. But the house was quickly finished.

He built a few more while he was at it, hopeful for the future powerhouses he would recruit to his village.

While a Title helped in attracting people in the world. Similar to the tavern, he doubted it would be of any help to his land.

But with a path clear to begin building up his village he couldn't help but feel hopeful.

Elenora showed a less-than-pleased expression with her accommodation. But accepted it for now. After telling her that it would require Mystic Stone and Wood for anything better. She said she would make it her mission to acquire some.

"My current cultivation method is a Rare Forest Fairy Manual. If you come across anything of higher quality please let me know."

While he doubted he would be able to find a better manual anytime soon. The fact that she would begin transcribing it in the library would be a huge boon. If he could get Leonard to learn the same path, their power in the forest would be huge. It was a shame he couldn't sell it on the market. While a few more rare manuals had popped up on the market. Their price was still far beyond anything he could reach any time soon.

Returning to the abode, he finally got around to getting the free recruits. Once again aiming for the more mature folk. Hopeful that they will show some proficiency.

It was only then that he turned his eye to the changes of the terminal now that he was a titled lord.