She flipped through a few more notes, her eyes narrowing in thought.
"You should..."
She began to tell him which Gene he should add in which crop.
He nodded and made a few mental adjustments.
For now, his goal wasn’t to create crops that evolved faster; he just needed good ones that sell.
So, he avoided loading the seeds with Quality Improvement Genes.
Instead, he used normal Genes. Quality mattered more than probability of evolution at the moment.
After several minutes of replanting, he finally stood upright and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
The field stretched before him, two hundred hectares of freshly seeded soil.
He let out a slow breath and turned toward the small house nearby where Chairman Lucius was waiting.
Selene followed him back, holding her notes against her chest. "How long will it take for them to mature?"
"It should be done in an hour," Isaac said casually, heading toward the sink to wash his hands.
Selene stopped mid-step. "An hour?"
He turned to see both her and Chairman Lucius staring at him.
"Yes," he said, tilting his head. "My land’s quality and the Tier 1 Vitality Grain Seed’s quality are both high enough that the crops can mature within an hour. Normally, I slow down the maturation speed so everything grows together. Otherwise, I’d spend the whole day harvesting at random times."
"So, until now, you were slowing the maturation rate?" Selene repeated, as if confirming she’d heard correctly.
"Yes," Isaac said again, shrugging. "It keeps things simple."
He didn’t really understand what was so shocking.
With his current skills, the legendary hoe, and the Water Elemental Spirit Avery assisting, anything slower would’ve been strange.
An hour later, the results spoke for themselves.
The fields shimmered under the sunlight, grains swaying gently in the breeze.
Isaac moved methodically across the land, harvesting the golden stalks.
By the time he finished, a mountain of produce stood behind him.
He counted the results aloud, mostly for Selene’s benefit.
"Twenty-five thousand Tier 2 Vitality Grains. Forty thousand Tier 1. Forty thousand Tier 0. A hundred thousand wheat stalks. And around five thousand Life Energy droplets."
Each crop also provided a gene, one from every stalk of each type.
The rest of the crops still needed more time to mature, but the ones he had harvested would cover what they needed for now.
"We should take these to the market," Isaac said, brushing dirt off his gloves.
Selene blinked at the mountain of harvest again.
"Yes, they should be enough," she muttered. Then she shook her head and sighed. "It’s a ridiculous amount, though. Even for you."
Isaac smiled faintly and stored the harvest into multiple spatial rings, stacking them neatly into a small pile.
Chairman Lucius, who had been silent for a while, finally spoke. "I’ll be taking my leave, then."
His gaze lingered on Isaac for a moment longer than necessary, as if warning him. Then he turned and walked toward his vehicle.
When the sound of the engine faded, Isaac stretched his shoulders. "Alright. Let’s go to Fortified City 22."
Selene hesitated. "Shouldn’t we bring some guards?"
Isaac shook his head. "It’s fine. We won’t need them."
He could tell that she still was scared by the last kidnapping incident, but that was why they needed to go with just two of them.
She had to regain her confidence.
The two returned first to Fortified City 50.
From there, they made their way to the teleporter hub.
Moments later, they appeared in Fortified City 22.
A massive plaza stretched before them, filled with the constant hum of voices and movement.
Dozens of teleporters flickered across the square, each bringing in people from different parts of the continent.
The air felt heavier here, saturated with mana and activity.
Isaac looked around, curious.
There were humans, of course, but also many other races.
Some humanoid, others not even close.
A tall being with deep blue skin and gills across his neck passed by, carrying a bundle of herbs.
His eyes gleamed like molten silver.
Near one of the stalls, a creature with four arms and a crystalline shell bartered with a merchant.
And a group of short, fur-covered people with bird-like faces were eating something on sticks, chatting loudly.
"Quite the mix," Isaac murmured.
Before Selene could respond, a uniformed guard approached them. "Names and purpose of visit?"
Selene stepped forward, pulling out her identification card. "Selene Calloway. Registered trader. Here to participate in the market."
The guard scanned it with a small device, nodded, and handed it back. "And him?"
"Isaac Hargraves," she said smoothly. "He’s my business partner."
The guard checked the card again, then gestured toward the open road. "Welcome to Fortified City 22. Enjoy your stay."
As they walked away, Selene turned to Isaac, showing him her ID.
"Everyone who wants to participate in the market here needs one of these. It’s how they track taxes and ensure fair trading. We also pay monthly fees, and because of that, this city’s the richest of the four human cities."
Isaac nodded, glancing again at the crowded streets.
The diversity of races still drew his attention.
Selene noticed. Her expression softened slightly, and she smiled. "You look like a kid seeing a carnival for the first time."
He coughed and nodded. "I’ve just... never seen this many races in one place."
He had seen a lot of races during his trial, and Emily’s, but back then he had been too busy to properly take a look.
"Then let me give you a quick rundown," she said, walking beside him. "See those tall ones with white hair and glowing eyes? They’re Thaein. They come from Fortified City 21. They are mostly scholars and artisans. They value manners above all, so don’t interrupt them mid-sentence."
Isaac nodded. "Got it."
"Those with blue skin and fins—like the one earlier—are Corthin. They’re amphibious, and have huge lakes their cities. You’ll find them selling aquatic resources. Don’t touch their tails or fins; it’s considered an insult."
"Noted."
"The ones with feather-like hair and light bones are Eltari. From Fortified City 24. They’re merchants by nature and talk a lot. They are also money grubbers and will bargain a lot."
Isaac glanced ahead and spotted one of them laughing animatedly with a human trader.
"Then you have the Ferin. They look like humans but have markings on their necks and wrists that glow when they use mana. They’re warriors, and most of them hate being underestimated. Don’t ask their age or strength. It’s taboo."
"And the last group?"
Selene’s eyes flicked toward a distant stall where tall, pale-skinned figures were browsing metal goods.
Their eyes had no pupils, just faint silver light.
"Those are Nulvan. They’re quiet, and very proud. Their culture values silence as respect."
Isaac nodded again, taking it all in.
"So... don’t talk too much, don’t interrupt, and don’t touch fins or markings."
"Pretty much." She smiled faintly.
They continued walking as the path opened up into a massive market square.
The air was thick with the scent of spices, metal, and earth.
Vendors shouted prices, magical beasts growled softly in cages, and crystals pulsed with faint light atop display tables.
Most trades were done in Copper Coins.
"This is incredible," Isaac said, scanning the rows of stalls and buildings.
Selene pointed ahead. "The teleporter we used is right outside the market entrance. Convenient, right?"
He nodded, still looking around.
The sea of people—humans, Thaein, Corthin, Eltari, Ferin, Nulvan, and others—moved like a living tide through the streets.
Every few steps, he saw something new: a forge powered by elemental fire, an alchemist’s stall brewing glowing potions, a beast handler shouting commands.
Selene’s voice pulled him back. "The leader of Fortified City 22 will probably hear about you soon. When that happens, she’ll likely come to meet you personally, or call you to her base."
Isaac nodded.
They turned down a wide street lined with stone buildings and suspended lanterns.
Despite the crowd, there was a sense of order.
People moved with practiced rhythm, and magical runes glowed faintly beneath the pavement, maintaining a soft hum of energy.
Vehicles weren’t allowed here, and the quiet rhythm of footsteps filled the air instead of engines.
It felt strangely peaceful.
Isaac was looking around when he suddenly heard a familiar voice behind him.
"Isaac?"
He turned, surprised.
A woman with red hair and striking green eyes was walking toward him.
Her features were sharp yet gentle, and a pair of slender, deer-like antlers branched gracefully from her head, a clear mark of the Florathi race.
The faint shimmer of mana in her hair confirmed it.
"Althea? Long time no see."
The woman smiled warmly.
She stepped forward and placed her right hand over her chest while bowing her head slightly, a gesture of respect in Florathi culture.
"May your roots stay strong and your leaves never wither," she said, completing the traditional greeting.
Isaac nodded politely. "And may your spirit stay unbroken."
He remembered enough of their customs from the time they’d worked together during his trial.
Standing beside Althea was another woman, clearly a Florathi as well, though her antlers were shorter and her expression far sharper.
She wore light armor made from living vines and wood, a natural blend that moved with her like a second skin.
Her eyes remained alert as she scanned the surroundings.
Isaac gestured toward his companion.
"This is Selene Calloway. Selene, meet Althea, the third princess of the Florathi Kingdom."
Selene’s eyes widened for half a second before she quickly composed herself and smiled. "It’s an honor, Your Highness."
Althea chuckled softly. "No need for formalities. I owe your friend quite a bit, so I’d rather keep things simple."
Isaac raised a brow. "Owe me? I just helped you a little during the trial."
"A little?" Althea said, teasing. "If you hadn’t interfered, that trial would’ve ended a lot sooner for me. A shame I failed, but that was completely on me."
Selene looked between them with curiosity but didn’t interrupt.
"So, what are you doing here?" Althea asked, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "I was actually coming to meet you."
Isaac tilted his head. "Meet me?"
"Yes," she said, smiling brightly. "You helped me during my trial, and I wanted to repay that debt. The Seventh Queen thought the same. We heard you recently became a Lord, so we came to your city."
Isaac blinked, caught off guard by how casually she said it. "You heard I became a Lord?"
"Yes. News spreads fast." Her smile remained calm, but her tone hinted at something more.
He smiled back politely, but his mind was already spinning.
They already know I became a Lord?
That doesn’t make sense.
The Florathi Kingdom is far from any human city. Even if their spies sent the news, it should take days to reach them.
How are they here already, when I became a Lord just today?
He masked his confusion behind a calm expression, but Althea could guess what he was thinking.
"I can see what you’re thinking. Let’s sit somewhere private. I’ll explain everything there."
Isaac nodded slowly. "Alright. There’s a Calloway shop nearby. We were heading there anyway."
Selene guided them. Together, the three of them made their way through the market streets.
The air was thick with sounds of trade,
Merchants calling out prices, customers haggling, the faint chime of enchanted items activating and deactivating.
Even in this sea of movement, the presence of a Florathi princess drew glances.
Her antlers caught the sunlight as she walked, and a faint, natural fragrance seemed to follow her, like the scent of rain on leaves.
They reached the Calloway shop a few minutes later.
Compared to the towering stalls of other races, it was modest in size but elegant.
The wooden beams were polished to a deep brown, and golden runes shimmered faintly across the entrance, marking it as human-owned.
Inside, the air was cooler.
A few customers browsed the shelves, but the place wasn’t busy.
Most of the traffic outside went toward the stalls owned by Corthin or Eltari traders, whose products were considered higher quality and more exotic.
Selene gave a small sigh as she looked around.
"Not as lively as the one in Fortified City 50," she murmured.
Isaac agreed silently.
The Calloway name carried weight among humans, but here, surrounded by other races with better goods and more refined techniques, the shop felt... small.
Althea didn’t seem to mind.
She gestured toward a quiet corner near the window. "Let’s sit there."
They settled around a wooden table.
The guard accompanying Althea stood a few steps away, scanning the room carefully.
Isaac leaned back in his chair, watching Althea.
"So, how did you know I became a Lord?"
Althea folded her hands in front of her and smiled. "That’s the part you’ll find strange. We didn’t hear it through any human channels. The World Tree told us."
Isaac’s brow furrowed. "The World Tree?"
"Yes, the Seventh Queen is the priestess of the World Tree that our Florathi race worships. When you became a Lord, she received a vision.
"Some of us believed the World Tree wanted us to congratulate you. I’m just a news bringer. The officials would arrive to congratulate you later."