His own city still needed its City Hall to reach Level 5 before it could advance into Tier 2. As for the requirement of absorbing four Tier 1 Cities, he had done it already.
The upgrade to Tier 2 City would provide tremendous benefits, yet the system had already begun giving him clues about Tier 3. Whatever advantages such a city possessed, they had to be extraordinary if even Florathi hadn't reached that stage yet. Isaac found himself looking forward to discovering the remaining pieces of information.
Isaac looked at the fragment of information for a few more seconds before putting it away. A Tier 3 City was still a distant goal, but simply knowing it existed was enough to motivate him.
'I'll have to check whether I can share this reward. If sharing it gives me the same piece of information instead of another one, then it won't really count,' Isaac thought to himself.
He had a feeling sharing it would work, though there was no way to know for certain without trying.
He soon shifted his attention to the next reward. The Imperial System Gacha Ticket appeared in his mind, its surface glowing with a faint silver and gold light. Unlike ordinary Gacha Tickets, this one granted access to a special version of the World System Shop that greatly increased the chances of obtaining Legendary and Imperial-rank rewards.
Isaac was about to activate the ticket when a thought suddenly crossed his mind. He had recently gained equipment-sharing ability after his System upgraded, allowing him to duplicate equipment owned by his wives.
If whatever came out of the Imperial Gacha was considered equipment, then there was a chance he could share that as well.
A small smile appeared on his face as he extended his hand to the side.
"Take this," he said casually, offering the ticket without even looking.
There was no response.
"I know you are here, sis," he added.
"How did you know I was here?" Catherine asked with a faint pout in her voice as she appeared beside him and accepted the ticket.
Instead of activating it immediately, she continued staring at him with a smile, and asked again. "How did you know?"
"Who knows." Isaac smiled back.
The corner of Catherine's eyelids twitched faintly. She still hadn't told him how she could reposition her clones so freely, even after he had confirmed it wasn't because of an item. Since she insisted on keeping that secret, Isaac had decided to keep this one to himself as well.
The explanation was actually quite simple. After becoming a Conqueror, his aura control had improved significantly, allowing him to strengthen all of his detection skills much more effectively. At the same time, he used Mana Manipulation to create an invisible sphere of mana around himself while preventing any mana from leaking out.
As a result, Catherine couldn't tell he was actively using any skills to search for her. Moreover, because Catherine's mana reserves had increased rapidly in a few days, she leaked the slightest trace of mana whenever she moved nearby.
Isaac knew that advantage wouldn't last forever. Once Catherine became more accustomed to controlling her expanded mana pool, she would eventually be able to suppress those tiny traces completely. Until then, however, he intended to enjoy having at least one secret that worked against her.
After studying him for another moment, Catherine simply nodded. "Okay, you don't have to tell me you don't want to."
Isaac blinked in surprise. He had expected her to smile mischievously or promise to get even later, but she did neither. Instead, she seemed unusually calm.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yes," Catherine replied with a gentle smile.
"You can always tell me if something's bothering you," Isaac added.
"I know."
Isaac watched her quietly before nodding. She didn't seem upset or troubled, only quieter than usual, as though she was still processing something, likely the events of the Conqueror Trial. Since she wasn't ready to talk about it yet, he chose not to push the matter any further.
The two of them left the Mirror Dimension together and headed toward the City Core. Unlike Isaac, who could access the World System almost anywhere, everyone else needed to use the City Core to enter the World System Shop. Once they arrived, Catherine activated the Imperial Gacha Ticket.
Golden light gathered in front of her before forming a small portal in the air. After a few seconds, the portal collapsed into itself, leaving behind a palm-sized stone engraved with intricate runes. Catherine caught it with one hand before handing it to Isaac with a smile.
"Here. Check it," she said.
Isaac accepted the stone and immediately examined it.
[Five-Essence Ore Mine (Imperial) Stone.]
[Effect: Use this stone to create a mine containing Five-Essence Ore at an empty location.]
Isaac stared at the description for a brief moment before a grin slowly spread across his face. This was the first mine his territory had ever obtained, and it wasn't just any mine. It was an Imperial-rank resource node that could continuously produce incredibly valuable ore.
Under normal circumstances, a newly established Lord wouldn't have the ability to refine or make proper use of Imperial-rank materials. Such resources required exceptional craftsmen and advanced technology that simply didn't exist in most territories. Fortunately, Isaac possessed both Ezekiel, the Ancient Dwarf King, and Sage Sea, making this limitation almost meaningless.
Keeping his expression calm, Isaac gave a silent command.
'System, share the Mine Stone!'
[Five-Essence Ore Mine (Imperial) Stone gained.]
Another identical Mine Stone appeared inside his storage. Isaac felt a surge of excitement, but he deliberately kept his expression neutral. The experiment had succeeded exactly as he had hoped, proving that Mine Stones were treated as equipment by the System.
Catherine watched him for a second before smiling mysteriously.
"I see. So, you really can duplicate the equipment instantly. I thought this new ability would require time or some special resource, but it looks like you can do it without any difficulty," she said.