Chapter 135: Permission
Edgar walked back toward the Fortress without looking behind him.
The battle had finally ended, but the smell of blood still lingered in the cold night air.
The Soul Guardians moved through the darkness without making a sound.
They carried the dead bodies from the Northern Sect toward the opposite side of the Fortress.
They made sure to keep away from the main settlement.
Edgar noticed them from the corner of his eye.
He almost turned toward them, but after taking a few steps, he stopped.
"...No, there is one more thing that I need to do."
’I’ll deal with that later.’
He changed direction and walked toward his house instead.
There were more important things to handle first.
---
Edgar pushed open the door of his house and walked inside silently.
The first thing he noticed was Hera sitting on the sofa, seemingly waiting for him.
Reeba, her maid, was sitting nearby with several pieces of cloth in her hands.
The moment Edgar entered, Reeba immediately stood up and bowed.
"My lord."
Edgar nodded and walked closer to them. "Hello, Reeba."
The maid quietly moved toward the kitchen, giving the two of them some privacy.
Hera looked at Edgar carefully.
Her eyes moved over his clothes before returning to his face. "...Are you alright?"
Edgar walked over and sat beside her while making sure he wasn’t too close.
"I’m fine."
"You don’t look fine." Hera’s voice remained quiet. "...What happened?"
Edgar glanced down at himself. There were only a few scratches on his clothes, but nothing serious.
"I wasn’t the one fighting," he replied. "Besides, there is hardly anyone in the area who can defeat me."
’...Well, technically there are, but it would be best if I can reassure her.’
Hera lowered her gaze, her hands clasped together on her knees.
"I heard the fighting," she whispered softly. "It was loud."
"...."
Edgar remained silent without affirming or denying her words.
For several seconds, the two simply sat beside each other in silence.
The warmth of the house felt strangely peaceful after everything that had happened outside.
Eventually, Edgar spoke. "I’m going to take over Soragon Bazaar tomorrow."
Hera’s fingers tightened slightly against her dress. "...I knew it would happen eventually."
Edgar looked at her, but the girl kept on staring at the floor. "The Northern Sect wouldn’t have allowed me to leave you alone forever."
Hera gave a small nod. "They would have eventually come for me again."
Her voice carried no anger, but there was clear exhaustion in it.
Edgar leaned back against the sofa. "That’s why I need you to come with me."
Hera slowly turned toward him. "Do you want me to be the face of the attack?"
Edgar immediately shook his head.
"No." He looked toward the ceiling for a moment. "I don’t want you involved in the fighting."
"Then why?"
"Because they know you." Edgar turned toward her. "They don’t know me."
He paused, letting her settle a little. "To the people of Soragon Bazaar, I’m just another powerful outsider, but they know you as the daughter of the previous ruler."
Hera remained silent, but she more or less understood what he wanted.
"If you’re there, they’ll be less afraid," Edgar continued calmly. "I want you to keep the ordinary people calm while we deal with the Northern Sect."
Hera slowly lowered her eyes. The girl slowly leaned back until her shoulder gently touched Edgar’s arm.
Then, little by little, she kept on leaning against him until her body slowly relaxed as she used him for support.
"...I don’t like this."
Edgar looked down at her. "What?"
"The bloodshed." Her voice was barely audible. "The death and screaming."
Her fingers slowly grabbed the edge of his sleeve. "I know they’re our enemies, but..."
She couldn’t finish the sentence.
Edgar remained silent for a moment as he gently placed a hand over her head.
"It’ll be the last time."
Hera looked up. "What?"
"You won’t have to see this again." Edgar’s voice was quiet but firm. "Once Soragon Bazaar is under our control, I’ll make sure things become peaceful."
Hera stared at him for several seconds. She quietly leaned against his chest again.
"...Promise?"
Edgar looked toward the dark window. "I promise."
Neither of them spoke afterward.
The warmth from Edgar’s body slowly spread through Hera.
She eventually relaxed enough that her fear was gone. Her eyelids grew heavier as she had been exhausted as well.
Edgar noticed her breathing becoming slower. "...You fell asleep."
Hera didn’t respond as she kept her eyes closed.
Edgar carefully stood up before lifting her into his arms.
The silver-haired girl barely stirred. He carried her upstairs and gently placed her onto her bed.
Edgar stared at her face, which looked innocent in sleep. He gently kissed her forehead.
After pulling the blanket over her body, Edgar quietly left the room.
---
The cold night greeted him the moment he stepped outside.
Edgar walked toward the northern side of the Fortress.
The beautifully constructed Defence ⟨Tower of Souls⟩ stood silently beneath the Eternal Night.
Several dead bodies were scattered around its base as the Soul Guardians had already brought the corpses there.
Edgar stopped several metres away as he stared at the building for a moment.
The skull head on the top remained silent like always. "...Let’s see what happens."
He opened the system interface as a familiar screen appeared before him.
---
⟨Defence Tower of Souls⟩
Level: 2
Upgrade Available.
Choose an Upgrade Path:
Soul Storage: Can increase the number of Soul Guardians from ten to twenty-five.
Soul Extraction: Higher probability of the Soul Guardians to inherit talent.
Soul Guardian Evolve: The user can add two Guardians to create a better one.
---
Edgar stared at the three choices as his expression slowly became thoughtful.
"Interesting."
Each option could potentially change the way he used the tower.
His eyes remained fixed on the final option.
Soul Guardian Evolve.
If the tower could produce Soul Guardians and then evolve them into better ones, then his army could grow much faster.
But the other two options could also be useful.
Edgar rubbed his chin. "...I need to think carefully about this."
The battle against the Northern Sect had already shown him something important.
’...Numbers mattered.’
After thinking for a while, Edgar finally chose the first option.