Isaac gave a short nod to Vale and turned away.
He didn’t explain further, and Vale didn’t ask.
Some things didn’t need words.
When Isaac went back inside, the quiet murmur of discussion came back to his ears.
Papers covered the large table. Diagrams of formation structures, lists of potential Super Guild ranks, outlines of training routes, and flowcharts of economic plans all piled together in organized chaos.
Isaac sat down, rolled up his sleeves, and went back to work. The others followed his lead without much talk.
Night eventually settled in, but no one seemed to notice.
At one point, Isaac looked up and noticed Alice standing by the door with Emily and Celia.
"You should all go rest," he said, pushing the pendant on the table toward her. "Take this with you."
Alice frowned. "And you?"
"I’ll stay here for now," Isaac replied. "We still have a lot to finish before morning."
She hesitated, fingers brushing the Soulbind Pendant.
He moved to her in another room, and said, "You haven’t entered the Cradle yet. You should see the land that belonged to your ancestors before you do. It’s not something you should miss. Celia will guide you."
Alice stared at him for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Alright."
"I’ll be fine," Isaac said with a faint smile. "Go."
While Alice entered the Soulbind pendant, Isaac stared at Emily. She nodded and said, "I’ll make sure everything stays peaceful."
"Thanks."
All three of his wives entered the Soulbind pendant.
Isaac turned his attention back to the papers.
Despite having some of the greatest minds in the city gathered around him, the work felt endless.
Frameworks had to be built from scratch, policies rewritten, resource channels redirected.
He was learning quickly—faster than most would believe—but there was still too much to handle at once.
Lucian spoke after a while, breaking the silence. "Not to rush things, but what about the currency? We’ll need a proper amount of Gold Coins if we’re going to buy the Fortified City."
Isaac didn’t answer right away. He leaned back, thinking.
The principal of the Sanctum of Masters looked around the table. "If we pool together the vaults of our universities and combine them with what the governor left behind, we might have enough to—"
"I’ll handle the money," Isaac said, cutting him off gently. He didn’t lift his eyes from the document he was reviewing. "I already have the required amount of Gold Coins. We’ll go in the morning and activate Fortified City 50."
The old principal blinked, surprised by the confidence in his tone. "Are you certain?"
Isaac nodded. "I’m sure."
He could’ve asked them for financial help, but as the one taking leadership, he believed it was his responsibility.
Depending on others for that kind of foundation didn’t sit right with him.
Thankfully, he had a solution.
Between the gold-generating treasure he’d drawn from the Gacha and his system’s ability to double any earned money, he could just barely cover the cost.
’I’ll need to meet with Emily later,’ Isaac thought, eyes narrowing slightly. ’If I double what we already have, we’ll have enough to buy the Fortified City 50.’
He made a small note in the margin of the paper and continued reading.
The conversation drifted toward future plans, how to structure the Super Guild, how to maintain trade stability, and what to do about the outer districts.
But Isaac’s mind wandered briefly to another thought.
Fortified City 89.
A few minutes ago, he had come across an interesting news thanks to Professor Catherine.
She told him something about [Conqueror Candidates].
These individuals had the ability to "conquer" a city simply by touching its Core for a certain duration.
Normally, a Lord could only seize another Lord’s city by killing the current Lord.
But Conqueror Candidates broke that rule.
With their ability, they could claim empty or even occupied cities without bloodshed.
That alone made them incredibly valuable.
’And apparently that’s just one of their abilities,’ Isaac thought.
Professor Catherine had mentioned, half-smiling, that he’d find out the rest when he officially became Lord.
She’d wanted to keep the surprise for later, saying it would be "more fun" that way.
Even so, what he already knew was enough to reshape his plans.
With her, with a Conqueror Candidate, taking over Fortified City 89 would be possible for him along with Fortified City 50.
The meeting stretched into the late night.
The clock on the wall ticked softly, marking the slow crawl of hours.
The pile of documents never seemed to shrink, but the group worked with quiet determination.
By the time Isaac finally stood to take a short break, his shoulders ached and his mind buzzed with numbers and plans.
He left the table and went to his room.
The moment he opened the door, he noticed the faint shimmer of the Soulbind Pendant on the bed.
Alice, Emily, and Celia were resting inside the Cradle’s world now. The pendant had been left behind, glowing faintly in the dim light.
He wasn’t worried about it. Someone else was already protecting the pendant.
Isaac looked around the room once before speaking softly into the air. "Professor Catherine, please take this."
A faint ripple of energy stirred in the space beside him.
He didn’t need to see her to know she heard him.
He reached into the pendant and pulled out the Life Pod he had.
The metallic surface gleamed faintly as he placed on the floor.
"If you use this instead of the life pods you have in the city, your evolution should finish within a day," he said quietly.
There was a brief pause.
Then a voice, calm and teasing, echoed faintly from nowhere. "You’re helping me again, Isaac? How generous."
Isaac chuckled. "Don’t take too long evolving. I’ll need your help soon."
"Of course," her voice replied. "And good work today."
"You too."
The sound faded, leaving the room silent again.
Isaac stood there for a few seconds before turning away.
He picked up his notes from the desk and stepped back out into the hall.
When he returned to the living room, the others were still awake.
Lucian was sorting reports, while the headmaster of Aeternum had dozed off briefly against his chair.
Even in sleep, the man’s hand still rested on a stack of papers.
Isaac sat down and quietly picked up where they had left off.
The work carried on into the deep hours of the night.
Occasionally, one of them would suggest a new structure for the guild’s internal ranking system or propose ways to integrate the city’s independent groups.
Isaac would listen, ask questions, make corrections, and keep writing.
His handwriting filled page after page until the stack beside him grew thick.
Every so often, someone would look his way and shake their head, impressed at how focused he stayed despite the exhaustion setting in.
At one point, Lucian looked up and muttered, "You’re not human."
Isaac gave a faint grin. "I am. 25% at least."
The small joke lightened the room for a moment, and even the headmaster chuckled, waking up from his sleep.
Outside, the wind brushed gently against the windows.
Somewhere in the distance, the faint sound of the construction site could be heard. Tyr and his team working through the night to finish the naga housing project.
Isaac leaned back slightly, staring at the ceiling.
’I wonder what is happening to the governor.’
Then, he shifted his gaze and looked at Selene who was helping with the task.
Their gaze met momentarily.
’Sorry about missing the cooking classes again.’ He mouthed.
She smiled and replied, ’It’s fine.’