"Wow, old guy. At least several thousand years old..."
Melody mumbled as they walked in through the doors and laid eyes on the man behind the desk. Hearing this, Vela's eyes widened before she shot a warning gaze at her. The old man behind the desk also didn't seem pleased.
But that old man wasn't too concentrated on Melody either. His senses landed on Dream. While Dream could unconsciously hide his power from even high level class 5's, doing so in front of a class 6 wasn't so easy.
At first, the old man couldn't sense anything from Dream. It seemed like Dream didn't even exist, not the slightest hint of energy or aura leaking from him at all. This caused the old man to sweep Dream with his Will, and the things he saw and felt astonished him.
When this happened though, it was Dream's turn to frown. Getting analyzed by someone's Will felt incredibly intrusive. With a thought, Dream's own Will countered the old man's. The old man felt his Will be systematically enveloped, isolated, and then ejected almost instantly. With that, Dream locked down his body with his Will.
When this happened, the old man didn't react. He turned his gaze from Dream to Melody, then to Vela.
"So this is the helper? At least he's half competent."
"Y-yes, this is Dream and his sister Melody."
Vela stuttered as the old man threw out a half insult. It wasn't that she believed him, but that she knew just how amazing Dream's skills were. If he was half competent, then everyone else could only be incompetent.
"Well, here's your list, Dream. Vela will handle the rest. As for your request, I'll consider it if you do a decent job. Now leave."
"...Yes."
After the man waved them off so simply, Vela could only nod and turn around. She beckoned Dream and Melody out, closing the door behind her.
"I-I'm sorry for that."
After they walked to another area of the building, Vela apologized to Dream. She was surprised though when she saw the small smile on his face. She expected him to be mad.
"That's alright. Who was that, exactly?"
"That was the second patriarch of our clan, Patriarch Thousand Sword."
"Thousand Sword? What, does he have a thousand swords hidden between his face wrinkles?"
Melody suddenly snapped with a snide remark. Vela didn't even correct her as she continued with a sigh.
"He's notorious for being the most overbearing and callous person in our clan. But since he's also one of the strongest, everyone can only put up with it."
"One of? Who else is that strong."
"The first patriarch. Patriarch Star."
Vela's complexion brightened a bit upon mentioning this name.
"The first patriarch is on par with if not a bit stronger than the second patriarch. Patriarch Star is also much more pleasing to speak with. I would have brought you to him, but he's currently out and about somewhere. Sometimes he likes to disappear, and he did so not long after our war started. He shouldn't be gone for long though."
"I see. Now, at what power level are these two patriarchs at?"
Dream asked curiously. He was very interested in this topic since he didn't have much knowledge about it.
"Both of them are class 6's. However, Patriarch Star has a much higher chance of becoming a class 7 than the second patriarch. As Melody guessed, the second patriarch is around 48 thousand years old, and he's basically reached the end of his potential. Patriarch Star is much younger though and has a long road to walk. Only time and luck will tell though if he can jump the gap to class 7."
"I see..."
Dream nodded slowly. It seemed that man was one of the two main pillars of the clan. As for why he was so rude just now, that must just be his natural disposition. While Dream wasn't happy with the treatment, he didn't take it to heart.
"Anyway, Melody, allow me to introduce you to your new teacher."
Vela spoke as the three approached a large pair of doors. This was in another area of the building, and Dream could sense strong enchantments behind the doors. These enchantments were spatial in nature.
Vela opened the doors. Through them, the three could see a wide open expanse that extended for several miles. This was like the totem space Melody was previously in. This room that should only be a few dozen meters large was much bigger through the use of spatial compression.
And in the center of this space was another man. Dream could feel a sharp aura from him, only, this aura was quite a bit more graceful and sheathed than the one the patriarch emitted.
"Elder Dalyor."
"Elder Vela."
Upon seeing each other, the two elders gave greetings. Elder Dalyor looked at Dream and then Melody. His face was aged but charming, not giving off any hostile feelings.
"So this is my new student?"
"Yes. This is Melody and her brother Dream. She'll be under your tutelage from now on. She'll need to learn things from the ground up, so be sure to stop by and grab some auxillary skills from the library. Teach her everything she needs to know."
"Sure."
"Then we'll leave you to it."
Saying that, Vela turned to leave, not wasting any time on idle chatter. Dream also turned, but glanced at Melody momentarily before patting her on the head.
"Learn well."
"I will."
Melody nodded. The next moment though, she felt something stream into her body. A powerful heart and soul was stationed within her spiritual self.
'Aegis?'
'My lady.'
Melody asked inwardly before receiving a response. It was Aegis who was just passed to her. She was surprised, glancing at Dream as he left with Vela. She smirked a bit as the doors closed behind him.
.........
After Dream left the room with Vela, the two walked through some more corridors. Along the way, Vela handed a sheet of parchment to Dream.
"This is that list. Everything on it is different tasks that have been approved by the patriarch for you to do. Things like building ships, weapons, constructing buildings, even going out to help our armies by either fighting or acting as support. As for things like enhancing our defenses or improving our ships, that will unfortunately be off limits as it would require you to learn our enchanting techniques. The patriarch doesn't exactly trust you."
"Sure."
Dream nodded with a slight smile as he took the paper. There were a variety of things listed on it, but other than a glance, Dream didn't spare it any thought.
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"I'll do all of it. Except fighting."
"Hm?"
Vela turned to him surprised.
"All of it?"
"Yes. I told you before. I'll turn this clan into a war machine. Ships, gear, buildings, defenses. I'll build and enhance all of it. The only things I need are materials unless you expect me to go and retrieve my own."
"N-no. We'll supply you with materials."
"Alright. Then I plan on starting with weapons first. I want you to go to every class 5 in your clan and have them place a custom order. I want to know their weapon type, its design, and the attributes of the person who uses the weapon. I'll personally build every weapon according to the person's desired characteristics, as I did with yours."
"R-really? Every class 5?"
Vela was yet again stunned. She wasn't even mad that Dream was giving her a job to do.
If Dream would custom make every weapon as he did with her's, then the combat power of the clan's highest echelons would skyrocket. Just with this, the war would become much easier to win. If Dream really did do what he said and revamp the clan's infrastructure, then who knew how powerful they would be?
She didn't even doubt his ability. She had personally seen him build her weapon and hand her a masterpiece. The weapon could become one with her body and soul, allowing her to easily exercise her utmost ability in combat. This was a far cry from weapons that were half assed by other blacksmiths and enchanters. None of the weapons Vela ever wielded could match the versatility of the one Dream built. The one he gave her could even be wielded by a class 6 like the patriarch.
Thinking of Dream really holding true to his promise, Vela got excited.
"Alright! I'll go get everything for you. As for materials, I'll have them delivered to your residence."
"Sure. Oh, but I won't be starting right away."
"No?"
Vela tilted her head. Dream scratched his cheek.
"I have a bit of studying to do before I start. I'm going to be working on attacking the class 5 realm soon. I have a class 5 soul with me that I need to analyze, so I'll spend a while doing that before diving into this project for your clan."
"Class 5..."
Vela went silent in pondering. Then, as if she made a decision, she spoke.
"We have knowledge on the class 5 advancement. After all, we have raised many class 5's ourselves. Becoming familiar with the process before advancement can greatly increase the chances of one utilizing their fullest potential. If you want, I can bring you to our repository so you can look through our texts and tomes."
"Oh? That would indeed be very helpful. But I assume such a repository isn't so easily accessible. Can you really get me in there?"
Dream's eyebrow raised as he asked. Such a repository of knowledge would hold extremely valuable knowledge that had been utilized for thousands of years to raise the clan. Dream hadn't been at this clan for even a week yet, and Vela wanted to grant him access.
Vela let out a light breath.
"I can. In fact, let's go right now. Come."
With resolute steps, Vela led Dream down some more corridors. After going underground, the two came upon a pair of massive doors. The doors radiated intense power that made others want to bow their heads. Obviously, the enchantments on these doors were created by an extremely powerful person.
And in front of these doors sat a single person. This person had a wisened old appearance, looking even older than Patriarch Thousand Sword who had wrinkles everywhere.
"Oh? If it isn't Vela. What brings you and your friend here?"
This old man spoke with a raspy voice. Vela bowed with respect.
"Guardian. I've come to show Dream here some of the tomes for class 5 advancements."
"Hm. He isn't one of our clan. Not an Asura, shaped like a human, but not a human."
"His sister is an Asura who's now learning under Elder Dalyor. He's going to be helping out the clan, especially during this war."
Vela spoke as the Guardian looked over Dream. Unlike the patriarch, he didn't send his Will into Dream's body, instead only brushing over his mortal shell. Like this he could tell that Dream wasn't a human or asura, but with Dream not releasing anything like an aura, he couldn't pick up on anything else. He could only faintly see that Dream still had a class 4 soul.
"So you wish to help your friend with his advancement. But has he yet given the clan anything?"
After surmising the situation, the Guardian looked back at Vela. Hearing him, Vela thought for a second before bringing out her halberd.
"He built this for me. A weapon worthy of a class 6. And he plans on building many more like it. Here."
Vela handed the halberd to the Guardian. The Guardian took it and sent his power into it. Feeling the incredibly smooth transfer of power through the entire weapon, he was surprised. The enchantments were unfathomably intricate, and he could barely detect the myriad of functions behind this weapon.
Meanwhile, Dream stood to the side. He watched as the Guardian fondled the weapon like a treasure. Eventually, he reluctantly handed the weapon back to Vela.
"Truly an amazing piece of work."
"Indeed. Guardian, he's worthy of our trust and support. Besides, the knowledge about class 5 advancements isn't a core secret. This can't be considered much, only a show of sincerity.
"Hm, I suppose you're right. However, I have one condition."
The guardian raised a finger before looking at Dream.
"You plan on making more of these weapons?"
"Of course. Custom made according to each person's specifications. If you happened to be interested, I can do you a favor and expedite your order."
Dream smiled at the guardian as he spoke. Seeing this smile, the guardian could only rub his nose.
"I see. Well, then I'd like to place an order for a spear. Here are my requirements. As for the strength behind the enchantments, they'll need to be a bit more powerful than the halberd you made for Vela. As for materials, use this."
The guardian handed Dream a sheet of parchment and a big chunk of ore. Dream rapidly read the parchment and understood what the guardian wanted.
The guardian wanted a spear that had an 8 foot long shaft and one foot long spear tip. The material he handed Dream would be enough to forge the entire spear with a bit left over.
The spear was supposed to be elastic and enchanted to accommodate the ice element. The ore the guardian gave matched the ice element he desired. It radiated a frigid cold. Only, when Dream filled it with his Will, he was surprised to see that the ore wasn't actually material. It was comprised of mana atoms, not unlike mana crystals or terra cores.
Dream slowly nodded before putting the items in his inventory.
"You'll have it tomorrow."
"Oh? Then I look forward to it."
Hearing Dream, the guardian smiled before waving his hand. Suddenly, the two large doors behind him rumbled as they split apart, revealing the repository.
"Take as much time as you need."
"...Thank you, Guardian."
Vela nodded stiffly as she led Dream into the repository. When the doors closed behind them, she sighed.
"To think our guardians could be so easily bribed."
"Simply an exchange of services."
"A rather inequivalent one, if you ask me."
"It gets me what I need without much hassle. Better than going through that old bag known as your patriarch. Now, where is the knowledge I want..."
Looking around, Dream could see hundreds of shelves filled to the brim with books of all sizes. In the middle of the place, there was an orb. Dream didn't think much before walking up to the orb.
"That's the search mechanism for this repository. You can find and retrieve the tomes you want through that orb."
"Rather convenient."
Dream nodded before putting his hand on the orb. The next moment, his mind was filled with pieces of data. This data came from his rapid analysis of how the orb worked as well as the enchantments.
'So this is the core of the enchantment throughout this repository. It's like they're asking me to just steal everything.'
With a small smirk, Dream infused his Will. Ultra-thin strands of mana poked at the enchantments in certain places, creating backdoors and infiltrating the entire enchantment. In mere seconds, he gained control of the repository, and tons of data streamed into his mind. It was a list of every tome and book along with an overview of their contents.
'Skills, cultivating techniques, third eye manuals, designs for ships and weapons, building blueprints. They got everything here. Including advancement knowledge.'
Dream's eyes lit up when he finally found what he wanted. Manipulating the orb, 23 books flew over to him. These covered everything this clan knew about not only the class 5 advancement, but class 6 advancement and the changes in the soul through each class.
To the side, Vela was surprised when she saw these books. She was even more surprised when she read their titles. Some of the books were restricted, even to those who could enter the repository. Dream should only have the bare minimum access that would get his class 5 knowledge.
"Uh, Dream?"
"I'm just curious, don't mind me."
Saying that, all the books fell into Dream's hands. He then sent his Will into each of them, Sophia almost instantly cataloging all of their contents.
An image was quickly formed in Dream's mind. This was the class 5 soul.
[The class 5 soul. A soul comprised of several flat layers stacked on top of each other known as Soul Seas. Each Soul Sea is built upon the most powerful aspects of a person's existence, such as their skills, intelligence, mana, and more. A low amount of Soul Seas would be between 1 and 3. A decently talented person could form anywhere between 4 and 6 seas. The most talented form between 7 and 9. Forming 10 Soul Seas represents the pinnacle of power evolution possible at the class 5 realm, and it is a legendary occurrence within a clan such as this one.]
"Interesting..."
As Sophia read the contents, Dream pondered with a curious face. Back on the other world, Dream had once gotten a glimpse of the soul of the artificial class 5 demon. It matched this description, a soul comprised of several layers.
But there was obviously much more to it than that. Dream had first thought that the class 4 advancement was simple, but then he went through a process of enlightenment. Now, this next advancement would involve reforming the very soul, pushing it to be a higher existence. It was far more complex than even the enlightenment.
Unfortunately, what he found within the clan's texts didn't go into any significant detail. It seemed that when one advanced to class 5, the System had a large hand in the process. It effectively formed the outline for advancement, leaving the person in question to simply fill in that outline as much as possible. Dream knew that even with the knowledge of the legacy space, he was fated to carry out the entire process by his own power. This was what it meant to be under the Wanderer system, a system that inhibited the influence of the true System.
Because of that, other than a general outline, the books didn't give him much to go off of. He really would need the legacy space. On top of that, he would need to study the soul that was still in his pocket. Like this, he would gain greater insights, preparing him for when he finally reentered the legacy space.