The First Legendary Beast Master-Chapter 1021: Meeting With Niall

A few seconds passed in silence as everyone digested that new information, then Niall smiled.

"Where is my favourite spider? I would assume that since her bonded partner has reached Totem Rank, she has as well." The Inquisitor asked.

Karl nodded. "Indeed she has, though just last night. She's still sleeping off the advancement, but we thought it would be better for everyone if we left the potions and recipes on your desk instead of going to see Ahmad himself."

Niall chuckled. "He's been moved to the Imperial Palace, and that's protected better than anywhere else on the continent from portals and teleportation type skills. He's good friends with the new King, and has been for some time. But he was actually moved closer so that they could brainstorm ways to change the nation."

That had everyone's attention.

"You see, Ahmad has the idea that if we can properly mobilize all these new awakenings from the last two intakes, we can completely overhaul the nation's production facilities. Advanced technology combined with magic has already proven to be every bit as effective as the traditionally made magical items.

At least, in some ways.

Explosive rounds for artillery have proven to be highly inefficient, using more mana than just putting the mage in a helicopter and letting them bombard the battlefield. Same with magical bullets for guns.

The overall effect of that one was pretty good, but in practice, it's better to just let the mages do mage stuff. Plus, magical barriers make the bullets essentially useless anyhow. So, there's no need for both at the same time.

But what really took off was the new bulldozers. Some mage got the great idea to enchant the blade with Earth Magic, and it made clearing solid stone with heavy equipment as efficient as moving clay.

The first construction projects it was put on are months ahead of schedule."

Karl chuckled and Dana winked at the assassin before explaining.

"Here, the Demons use Earth and Fire magic to make entire cities. The Dwarves use Earth Magic to carve out whole mountains, and they can make a skyscraper in a matter of days, not months or years.

It's absolutely brilliant, as long as you don't think too deeply about the engineering behind it." She explained.

Niall nodded in understanding. "Yes, I suppose that just letting people make an entire building out of what looks like a single concrete pour with no reinforcement would be very concerning to anyone who knows more about structural engineering than Earth Magic."

Karl realized they had completely missed the important parts of their concerns.

"How are things with the Giants?" He asked.

Niall shrugged. "Not bad. They retreated after the last major battle, and they're back within their own borders.

Once they realized that the full push on the Capital had failed, and that their infiltrators had all been flushed out, they gave up on the war plans.

Of course, part of that was the death of their new leader, and the need for the Mountain Giants to elect a new Chieftain. But the war is officially over, and we're back to nothing more than tense relations with everyone else.

There have been a few more Dungeon spawns as well, and that's not helping anyone's nerves.

The stabilized Dungeons have proven to be not only the fastest way for Elites to advance, but an incredible source of loot and raw materials for the continent. Fortunately, it's all been Commander Rank and lower instances opening, so we haven't had a power race in one particular area, but the Golden Dragon Nation now has three Commander Rank Dungeons and one Awakened.

Ironically, the Awakened Rank Dungeon opened fifty metres from the walls of the Academy.

Can you imagine that? All these newbie Elites from the latest intakes training, and they've got a Dungeon right there waiting for them after their first advancement.

Even better, anyone from Commander or weaker Ranks can enter it once a week, and it's set up for a twenty-person attempt.

It's perfect for team building exercises, and the groups are large enough that multiple classes can pick groups of two or three to go and work with random teams from other specialties.

Lieutenant Rita, Karl's old advisor, has been put in charge of the schedule for the Dungeon, as those who don't get picked to go from their class work can sign up for a pickup group instead. She's excelled in the role, and the classes that she teaches on cooperative combat are a student favourite."

That was all good news to Karl, but everyone else had strange looks.

"Did you say the last two intakes?" Tessa asked.

Niall nodded. "The intake ceremony was two weeks ago. The second since we've had the new methods of awakening Elites.

This one was just as successful as the last one, with over a third of the entire population of basic school graduates gaining the Warrior Class. I don't know what we're supposed to do with such an imbalance of warriors, but there is an incredible influx of mages as well."

The Red Dragon Cleric began counting on her fingers and frowning more deeply.

"The math just doesn't add up." She muttered.

Niall shrugged. "I have heard there are strange things on this continent, and a bit of time distortion in random areas wouldn't be the strangest thing that I have ever heard of. So, you might not have experienced the whole flow of time."

Karl smirked and poked Dana. "We almost missed your eighteenth birthday. We should find out what today's exact date is and make a cake."

Niall lifted his wristwatch, then frowned at it.

"That's the weirdest thing I have ever seen." He muttered.

The watch was a quality mechanical watch in a protective leather case. But while it had displays for the day and month, they were blurry, impossible to read.

"Well, now we know how to determine if we're in an area with a time anomaly. We just need to buy a watch." Karl joked.

But for Remi, there was a more urgent concern. She had potions for the new Academy students, and they were supposed to have been delivered before the year started, as a surprise.

{Take these with you as well. They're all for the Academy.}

Niall laughed as she stacked crates of small vials, then placed them in his office.

"Hopefully, the open portal is keeping this area in sync with home, or someone will be very mad at me for slacking on my work." He sighed.

"In that case, we will see you again soon. Rae will want to visit you and her baby Rogue once she's stabilized."