"Emily is going to become a Lord. We need three people with SSS-rank Talent. I remember you all saying you had high-rank Talents. Which among you have SSS rank Talent?"
The maids glanced at one another.
Back when they first came to serve him, they had told him their Talents ranged from S to SSS, and that their classes were similarly high.
Isaac hadn’t asked for details then.
They couldn’t leave Cradle, so they couldn’t fight, and more importantly, he had hoped they would eventually choose freedom instead of serving him.
Because of that, he had told them not to share their Talents. To him, that was a personal thing.
Now, though, things were different. They had made their choice to stay and serve, and he needed to know who could stand beside Emily.
Priscilla stepped forward, followed by Celeste, the twin sisters Lyra and Kyra, and another dragon maid with purple hair and was named Phobe.
"All of us have SSS-rank Talent, Master," Priscilla said. "The remaining ones have SS-rank, and the youngest has S-rank."
Isaac raised an eyebrow.
"Five of you have SSS-rank Talents?"
"Yes," Priscilla replied. "Dragons are a race that believes strongly in superstition. That is why only the best are chosen as nannies. We believe children might ’rub off’ good fortune from us. When the World System arrived and awakening happened, our Talents reflected that."
Isaac nodded slowly.
That explained a lot.
"Then I’ll need three of you to serve Emily. You can choose among yourselves who wants to go. Just remember, you’ll need to stay outside most of the time from now on. So choose carefully."
Priscilla turned to the others. They exchanged a few quiet looks, small nods passing between them.
After a moment, Priscilla faced Isaac again.
"I believe Phobe, Lyra, and Kyra are the best choice, Master. I need to remain in Cradle to manage everything here as head maid. And Celeste is very knowledgeable about potions and herbs related to fertility, so we need her here as well."
Isaac’s lips twitched.
He noticed Celeste standing a little behind Priscilla, wearing a sly grin that said she knew exactly why Priscilla had emphasized the last part.
She knew that Isaac really did not want children, and Priscilla was doing her absolute best to push him in the opposite direction.
He ignored the teasing look and focused back on what mattered.
"Alright. Then it’s settled. Lyra, Kyra, and Phobe will become Emily’s subject."
The three chosen maids stepped forward.
"We will be in your care, my lady," Phobe said followed by the twins.
She was the tallest among them, taller than the second tallest maid by a head. Her purple hair tied back neatly. There was something calm and steady about her presence. She didn’t speak much but always seemed to know what needed to be done.
From what Isaac had seen, she was exactly the kind of person Emily would need around her.
Emily straightened, a little nervous but trying not to show it.
"Thank you. I’ll do my best to live up your expectations," she said.
Phobe inclined her head.
"I believe you will."
Emily took a breath, then added, "I’ll choose the name ’Generals’ for your positions."
Lyra blinked.
"Generals?" she repeated.
Kyra tilted her head. "That sounds... a bit too grandiose for us."
Emily smiled.
"It’s what I want you to grow into," she said. "And now I need ten more subjects."
That part was easier.
There were no restrictions on Talent rank this time, only on Talent type. They just needed people who could fill specific roles and could be trusted.
First, Isaac and Emily stepped back out of the Soulbind Pendant.
Isaac introduced the three dragon maids—now officially Generals—to the Eltari Overlords.
"Learn Eltari culture from these people," he said, turning to the maids, now dubbed as Generals. Then he looked at the Overlords. "I hope there won’t be any problem with that."
"None!" one of them said immediately.
"You can trust us. We’ll make sure they get familiar with our culture quickly," another added.
Isaac stared at them for a second.
Did these people have no backbone at all? They were Overlords. Leaders of a fortified city. And yet they were nodding along like eager assistants.
He shook his head and decided not to dwell on it.
Instead, he moved on to the next step.
He began setting up the teleportation hubs.
Since he had a clone stationed in Fortified City 50, another in the Ashfang Tribe, and his main body was in Eltari City, it was easy for him to anchor the system.
He could choose whether he wanted to summon the teleportation hubs through his main body or one of his clones, which saved time on carrying the teleportation hubs to the other locations to set them up.
He placed the hubs near the center of Eltari City and the Ashfang Tribe first, then at Fortified City 50.
Now, one could go from Fortified City 50 to Ashfang Tribe directly, or from Fortified City 50 to Eltari tribe directly.
With the hubs in place, Isaac activated one of them and stepped through. The ogre leader and the Eltari Overlords followed.
A moment later, they emerged in Fortified City 50.
The massive white tree that towered over the city filled their view. Its branches stretched across the skyline, glowing faintly, like veins of light running through a living structure.
Anant, one of the Overlords, stared up at it.
"It’s beautiful," he muttered.
Isaac nodded.
He gave them a brief tour as they walked, showing them the main districts, the training grounds, and the areas where humans and nagas lived side by side. He didn’t go into too much detail though.
Eventually, he left them in the care of one of his clones and headed off to meet the people he actually needed.
Selene was the first, and then the three principals of the top academies, along with Chairman Lucius.
Isaac didn’t waste time.
He told them he wanted subjects.
The three principals exchanged looks, then nodded.
They agreed to become Emily’s subjects without much resistance. They had already thrown their lot in with Isaac long ago. This was just another extension of that decision.
Isaac still needed six more people, so he asked Chairman Lucius to recommend trustworthy candidates. The chairman promised to bring him the people in an hour.
While all of this was happening, Isaac noticed Selene standing slightly apart from the group.
She was smiling, as always, but there was something off about it. It didn’t quite reach her eyes.
She looked... sad.
When the others left, Isaac checked her status.
[Status: Isaac didn’t make her his subject, and now he is making her his wife’s subject. Thinks the distance between the two of them is increasing. She doesn’t understand why, but this is making her sad. On the verge of crying.]
Isaac scratched the back of his head.
"Hey," he said, stepping closer. "You’re starting your evolution tonight, right?"
Selene blinked, clearly surprised.
"Yes," she said. "But how did you know?"
"Kaela mentioned it," Isaac replied smoothly. "I hope you don’t feel like I’m invading your privacy by asking her about you. I just needed to make sure your evolution finishes on time. I’ll need your help with negotiations in Florathi later."
Selene studied his face for a moment, then smiled.
"It’s okay. I didn’t take any offense."
Kaela was the naga who served as Selene’s bodyguard. Isaac had named her as his source, but that part was a lie.
In reality, he kept a clone near Selene at all times.
Unlike his wives, Selene was still weak in terms of raw power. He couldn’t afford to take chances with her safety. The clone stayed hidden, always watching, always ready to step in if something went wrong.
Of course, he could never tell Selene that.
Just imagining how that would sound made him uncomfortable.
’I finally understand why Professor Catherine doesn’t let anyone know about her clones protecting people.’
’It would make everyone paranoid. No one wants to think they’re being watched every second of the day.’
After gathering his thoughts, he spoke, "Since you will be undergoing evolution tomorrow. How about we change the schedule and you teach me cooking tonight, instead of tomorrow?"
"...You still want to learn? Aren’t you busy with work?"
"I can always make time for you. So, can we change the schedule?"
Selene blushed and nodded quickly.
A little while later, Emily finished her last quest.
A screen appeared in front of Isaac.
[Emily Warren has become a True Sub-Lord.]
[Reward: 50 Gold Coins, Market Blueprint.]
[From now on, you will receive 10% Lord EXP for all Lord EXP that Emily Warren gains.]
Isaac grinned.
He waited until Emily stepped away from the Core of Eltari City, then approached her.
"Congratulations," he said.
"Thank you," she replied, smiling.
The Overlords and ogres offered their own words of congratulations, some more awkward than others. Once it was done, Isaac dismissed them, leaving just the two of them in the hall.
"So, you must have gotten the tutorial Lord quest too, right?"
Emily nodded. "The rain and the horde will come in three days."
"Don’t worry about it. We’ll upgrade your city quickly."
He took her hand and transferred all of her coins back to her.
Then he spoke in his mind.
’System, share all coins Emily has!’
[+350 Gold Coins received.]
He grinned inwardly. His system really rocked.
Emily stared at her screen, eyes wide.
Before she could say anything, Isaac raised a hand.
"That money is for you. Don’t say something like I should take it back. I still have more. I’ll send upgrade materials and ogres to help you build tomorrow. And for the tutorial dungeon, use Eltari awakeners. It’ll help you build some camaraderie with them."
Emily smiled and nodded.
"Okay."
Isaac tilted his head.
"So, did you awaken a Lord Talent?"
Her smile faded.
"I did. But..."
"Don’t worry if it’s low rank. We have enough resources to—"
"No. It’s not low rank. It’s SSS rank. It’s just... a bit problematic," she cut in.
That made him pause.
"Problematic how?"
She took out a piece of paper from her spatial ring and wrote something down. Then she handed it to him.
Isaac read it, and his eyes widened.
[Kingdom of Ghosts (SSS Rank)]
[Any citizen or subject who dies within the bounds of your city can be resurrected once. The resurrected target’s race will change to the Ghost Race.]
He looked up at her.
"As you can see, it’s problematic," Emily said with a wry smile,
"Yeah. Putting aside how other Lords might label this as ’evil’ and use it as an excuse to start a war..."
"The real problem is Grim Reapers," Emily finished. "They don’t care if I revive a few summons. But if I start resurrecting thousands of people and keep their souls from entering Hell, they’ll come to the World of the Living to find me."
Isaac rubbed his chin.
"The risk is huge. But it’s also too useful to ignore. Maybe we can negotiate with the Grim Reapers. After all, it’s only one resurrection per person. Well, we should talk to the Sword Empress about this first."
Emily nodded.
"Alright. For now, go organize a team for the tutorial dungeon and start working on infrastructure."
She nodded, but didn’t leave immediately.
Her face became bright red, and she spoke in a stammer,
"I’ll c-come home with you later. You promised to reward me tonight."
He smiled. "Of course."
Emily left the hall, red as tomato.
Isaac looked at the empty air.
"Go help her," he said.
"Understood, Great Carus," a calm voice replied.
It was the city’s upgraded AI.
Knowing the AI would help Emily the same way Ruby helped him, Isaac could rest easy.
Then, he spoke in his mind, ’System, share the AI Upgrade ticket!’
[City AI Advisor Upgrade Ticket received.]
Since it was a program and not a physical item like weapon or teleportation hubs, it could be shared.
After that, a thought came to Isaac.
’If I share Emily’s Lord Talent, will I get the Talent itself, or it’s rank?’
He didn’t hesitate to check, and spoke in his mind,
’System, share Emily’s Lord Talent!’