The next day arrived quickly. It was still early in the morning, and ruby red sun rays peeked through the window, casting aside the darkness of the night.

Percy jumped up with a vibrant smile, life filling every inch of his body, and got ready for work.

After weeks of absence, Percy returned to his businesses. First, he visited the Dragon Lair shops spread across the capital, acquired the reports, including sales reports for the last few weeks and a list of custom orders, and returned to the Dragon Nest, where the sound of combat rang out.

What is going…Oh, nevermind. I’ve already forgotten about ‘that’.

Percy smiled, walked through Dragon Nest’s large entrance hall, and stepped out into the backyard. Dragon Nest’s backyard was connected to the Dragon Knight Order. Therefore, Percy wasn’t surprised to find some Dragon Knights sparring early in the morning.

“Long time no see,” Percy greeted the familiar faces. A blood-engulfed fist smashed into a young Demi’s face, hurling the Demi through the air right before the attacker could stop in his tracks.

The man turned around with a bright smile, “Percy!”

It was Erik who’d used his Ego to beat up Louis. Tarlek had acted as the referee. He rushed to Louis to check up on the Demi and sighed in relief when he saw everything was fine.

Louis shot up to his knees, his eyes drilling into Percy. The Demi studied Percy intently, his hair standing up to its end at the discovery he made.

“Something about you changed. Your presence,” Louis sniffed in the air, his furry ears twitching uncontrollably, “But also your smell. You…smell different.”

“Finally, you are a little bit more dangerous!” Erik exclaimed, which earned a scowl from Tarlek.

“I am glad you’re back,” Tarlek said, “The servants from the palace told us about your actions. Good job out there!”

Percy smiled, “How has the training been? I heard you two have been knighted.”

Erik and Tarlek had been the two Imperial prospects who’d left their service to join the Dragon Knight Order. They were the strongest members of the Dragon Knight Order, by far at that, but the brothers didn’t mind. As long as Percy would help them fulfill their goals, the brothers would follow him everywhere.

Defeating the Devil and his demonic forces was merely the beginning.

“Your father knighted us a few weeks ago, but I’m still unsure if it changes anything…other than forcing more responsibility onto us,” Erik grumbled, while Tarlek added, “We have been training the other trainees with the Weaponmaster until he left us to join the frontlines. Most members of the Order won’t be ready to join war just yet, but Erik and I made sure to beat them black and blue. To strengthen their mental fortitude and pain resistance, of course.”

“Did you prepare the list as well?” Percy asked. He had no idea how to train other Gifted Ones and decided to leave that chunk of work to the Weaponmaster and the brothers. They were powerful Egos and trained with other Imperial prospects for months. The brothers were much better instructors than Percy, who always focused on training what he considered the most important at that moment.

Percy was hard-working, and he worked out every day, but his training program was chaotic.

“The list is done, but I’m unsure if it contains everything you need. I noted the trainees’ progress, personalities, how well they can work and fight together, what weapons they can wield best, and bits and pieces about their Gifted affinities. I’ve also noted recommendations to the right. That’s just my opinion, but I observed the trainees for a while and am fairly confident about what Artifacts and Monster Cards they need.”

“I trust you,” Percy nodded and retrieved the list. A few dozen names were noted on the list, including their strengths, weaknesses, weapon proficiency, their Tier, how much they’d improved, and much more. Tarlek’s list was far more detailed than he had been hoping for.

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He nibbled on his lips as he read through the list thrice.

“The Monster Cards will be expensive to acquire, especially if I have to unseal all Augmentations, but the Artifact will be done in no time,” Percy mumbled before switching to the other lists he carried with him.

The shops netted a profit of slightly less than 2,000 gold coins in the last few weeks. That’s good, great, even if one were to ask anyone else, but it is not good enough given the situation. I will have to complete more custom orders to earn more money. Two thousand gold coins aren’t nearly enough to invest heavily in the Dragon Knight Order’s Artifacts and Monster Cards while also nurturing the Dragon Nest.

Percy had yet to see the progress report of the apprentices studying in the Dragon Nest, but he was certain most members met his expectations. He was most interested in Bert’s growth. However, the lack of funds was a problem.

Close to 2,000 gold coins was an enormous fortune. There was no doubt about that. But if Percy wished to Monster Cards rivaling the prowess of his Cards, he would have to invest a lot. They did not need to have the same potential as the Glacial Roc or the Gnoll Warlord, but the Monster Cards of the Dragon Knight Order would have to be on their level…and that would cost a fortune.

2,000 gold coins…If I invest half into the Dragon Knights and a third of the remainder into materials to create customized Artifacts, rare Artifacts for sale, and rare Monster Cards for sale, I should earn a small fortune again. That leaves 600ish gold coins to invest into the Dragon Nest…their Monster Cards, and the Artifacts they need to improve their work’s quality and efficiency.

Percy caught falling into a downward spiral of bleak thoughts and slapped his cheeks firmly. Louis flinched, whereas the brothers looked at him surprised.

Get your act together! Two thousand gold coins are a fortune. They may not be enough to upgrade your Monster Cards or increase your Tier, but it is still A LOT. I can equip an entire army with high-quality armor and weapons using 2,000 gold coins. Peak Elite Artifacts are easy to create. It costs a few dozen gold coins, but the profit I can earn from selling them is enormous!

Percy was a bit embarrassed about his outburst. He was glad nobody saw his dark thoughts, or they would have called him insane.

“I will prepare a list of materials and Monster Cards I’d like to purchase soon. Don’t tell the others about it, but I will create suitable Monster Carsd and Artifacts for them,” Percy said before glancing at the brothers as he recalled something, “Are your Artifacts still–...”

“They’re perfect. I never expected to wield something like the Bloodriver Axes. They’re perfect!”

“The Levianit Blade is very strong. I didn’t think you would find something that could endure the strain of my Ego.”

That was good to hear.

He chatted with the brothers a little longer, whereas Louis studied him intently. Yet, Percy couldn’t tell if Louis eyed him vigilantly or if he was glaring at him.

One way or another, it felt like a searing hot needle pierced his heart over and over again as the Demi looked at him, but it wasn’t like Percy couldn’t understand the youngster. He might have accepted Louis and allowed him to join the Dragon Knight Order, but it was a fact that the young Demi wasn’t fully accepted anywhere.

Maybe Louis would have loved to be part of the Beastlands and fight alongside the Beastmen, or maybe he wished to be human without beast blood running through his veins. At the end of the day, Percy doesn’t know what Louis wants other than to protect his sister. However, it was apparent that Louis didn’t like how well Percy had been accepted by everyone.

The Beastmen honored him, the Beast King respected him, and all humans seemed to love Percy. It wasn’t fair.

Louis wanted to be loved as well.

More Dragon Knight trainees woke up an hour after dawn. They emerged from the barracks and saw Percy. Their eyes widened in surprise, and they rushed over, only for Percy to ruffle through Louis’s hair and turn around.

“I can tell that you’re in a bad mood. If something bothers you, we can talk. There is a lot of work to do before I’m done for the day, but you can join me if you’re not busy,” Percy offered. He knew talking while working wouldn’t be the same as putting aside enough time to focus solely on talking about their feelings – mostly Louis talking about how he felt – but that was all Percy could offer right now.

“Can I?” Louis asked, still vigilant, “Your Excellency.”

“Of course, you can. And there is no need for formalities when we’re among friends,” Percy smiled and looked at the brothers, who nodded in agreement.

“Can you…” Louis hesitated, tip-toeing around the topic. He cleared his throat, gathered the courage needed, and said what he had been curious about for weeks, “Can you…only if you do not mind, tell me about the Beastlands?”

So that’s it?

Percy smiled, “Naturally. I would have told you all about the Beastlands even if you’d never asked.”

The hesitation in Louis’ eyes dispersed, a thin smile forming on his lips.

“How was it?”