章 146: Chapter 146: Clues of Sub-Dragon Species and Base Management Personnel
During the intense graduation assessment, outside the cave, Moritz and the instructors were discussing matters concerning the graduating class.
"Headmaster, I heard that after graduation, the students will join the Knight Guard and participate in the exploration of the underground world. Is that true?" an instructor inquired.
"Indeed," Moritz nodded slightly. "This graduation assessment is meant to prepare them for that, allowing the students to acclimate to the environment and battles of the underground world."
"The underground world is fraught with dangers. Isn't it too soon to have these students join exploration missions right after graduation?" another instructor expressed concern.
Moritz smiled slightly and said, "This actually shows Lord Sunan's expectations for this batch of students."
"Don't regard these students with the eyes of the past. Our academy is the first in the Starlight Duchy, perhaps even on the entire Starlight Continent, dedicated to training knights. Have you ever seen someone become a knight in just four years?"
Everyone shook their heads.
They hadn't even heard of such a thing.
They themselves had trained arduously for twenty to thirty years before advancing to knighthood.
Before joining Dragonheart Knight Academy as instructors, they never imagined a place could train knights in just four years.
"So, you see, the knights graduating from this academy are different from us old folks," Moritz remarked nostalgically.
"The world they will see and engage with will be vastly different from what we, and the knights in the army, have known. Naturally, the expectations for them are different."
The instructors pondered deeply.
They all recalled the magic tattoo constructs they had recently seen.
These were extraordinary armaments that would undoubtedly cause a stir in the world of knights once they were fully introduced.
These powerful armaments were prepared specifically for these students.
As the headmaster said, the path these students would walk was vastly different from theirs. Viewing them through the lens of the past was no longer suitable.
The clearing in front of the cave fell silent for a moment.
Everyone waited patiently.
In the underground world, there was no distinction between day and night; time was measured using magical hourglasses.
The ten-hour assessment period passed quickly.
As time ended, a manticore, who had been resting with its eyes closed, suddenly opened them. It took out a whistle and moved to the cave entrance, blowing sharply.
The piercing whistle echoed deep into the cave.
Soon, the sound of flapping wings and footsteps emerged from the cave.
One by one, the students, led by the red-eyed crows, exited the cave.
Almost every student bore injuries, some more severe than others.
Fortunately, there were no fatalities.
Moritz sighed in relief and immediately had the students take healing potions while the instructors tallied the scores.
While waiting, Sheehan found Ruge and Solano and, seeing they weren't seriously injured, he relaxed.
"How did it go?" Sheehan asked.
"I only got twenty-five points," Ruge said nervously. "I wonder where that will rank?"
"I got twenty-four," Solano replied, then asked, "What about you, Sheehan?"
Sheehan smiled slightly, "I got lucky at the end and took down a giant toad, scoring a ten-point crystal ball, totaling fifty-three points now."
"Fifty-three points!" Ruge exclaimed, then beamed with excitement, "You're amazing! First place is definitely yours again!"
Ruge's voice quickly drew the attention of those around them.
"Sheehan scored fifty-three points? Is that for real?"
"He's incredible! My score isn't even half of his."
"That's our top student for you!"
"Rossi and Kornel both scored in the forties. Looks like Sheehan will take first place again."
Students discussed animatedly.
Rossi and Kornel were Sheehan's usual strong rivals for top student. If even they couldn't surpass him, others stood little chance.
As expected, when the instructor announced the results, Sheehan unsurprisingly took first place.
Ruge and Solano both made it into the top fifty as well.
The three of them beamed with joy.
"Quiet!"
Moritz stepped forward, signaling for silence, then announced loudly:
"The graduation assessment is complete. From today, you officially graduate from the academy and become members of the Knight Guard."
"You now have a ten-day vacation. After that, report to Lake U City, the city on the island you just saw, to receive your equipment. Your assignments will be given there."
"Also, students who earned dragon blood fruits can collect their rewards upon returning to the academy."
After giving the necessary instructions, Moritz led the students away.
Simultaneously, the assessment results were placed on Sunan's desk.
"Sheehan, he seems like a promising candidate."
Sunan reviewed Sheehan's file, nodding approvingly.
Even without dragon blood fruits, Sheehan would likely become a knight by thirty through normal training.
His talent surpassed many noble offspring.
While commoners generally lacked the overall quality of nobles, exceptionally talented individuals occasionally emerged.
"Prepare the magic tattoo constructs. Once these students report, distribute them so they can acclimate," Sunan instructed.
Four hundred ninety-five sets of level-1 constructs and five sets of level-2 constructs were ready in storage, awaiting distribution upon the students' arrival.
"Yes, Master," Karolaina replied respectfully.
"How much longer until Xieman and Cole return?" Sunan asked next.
"Lord Xieman and Lord Cole sent word three days ago. They're currently establishing the third magical plantation. With seeds planted and the first batch of dragon blood fruits set to mature, they'll conclude their task in about two months."
Sunan nodded slightly.
The students needed time to adapt to the constructs and the underground world. Once Xieman and Cole returned, they could form exploration teams combining wizard apprentices and magic knights.
"What's the progress on the Dusky Drakelands investigation?" Sunan inquired.
Karolaina promptly answered, "The investigators found an underground entrance in a cave north of Ryan City, marked with dragon claw imprints. We can confirm the Dusky Drakelands emerged from there."
No sooner had she finished than the Red Widow added her piece.
"Beyond the entrance is a hilly region where we found tracks of various sub-dragon species."
Sunan's eyes lit up, "Is there a sub-dragon colony there?"
The Red Widow hesitated, then shook her head, "Probably not. The tracks vary in size and shape, belonging to different sub-dragon species. We suspect many different species once roamed there."
Sunan frowned slightly.
Different sub-dragon species have vastly different habits and environments.
For instance, the Dusky Drakelands usually live in dark, damp caves near lakes.
Dragon antelopes typically inhabit temperate plains.
Fire dragons are often found in volcanic regions.
Their preferred environments are worlds apart.
Such diverse sub-dragon species converging in one place is highly unusual.
"Search for those sub-dragons, investigate their origins, and why they gathered there."
After contemplating, Sunan issued orders, adding:
"Capture them alive if possible."
Only live sub-dragons can provide a steady supply of dragon blood.
When the Dusky Drakelands from Ryan City arrived, its blood had already coagulated, rendering it nearly useless, much to Sunan's regret.
"Yes, Master," Karolaina and the Red Widow replied in unison.
Once they left, Sunan looked at the list on his desk, a relaxed smile on his face.
With these magic knights, he suddenly had many more hands at his disposal, no longer relying solely on vampires and manticores.
Once they acclimated, they could form exploration teams with the golems, accelerating exploration efforts.
Xieman and Cole could lead two elite teams, especially as investigating the sub-dragons required substantial manpower. They'd be perfect for the task.
Closing the list, Sunan stretched and left the study, heading above ground.
Though he spent most of his time at Base 2 in Lake U City, he periodically returned to Base 1 to check on its development.
"Managing two bases alone is getting difficult; there's too much I can't oversee."
While he now had sufficient manpower, many tasks no longer required his direct involvement, but managerial duties still demanded his attention.
The Red Widow and Karolaina had some managerial aptitude, but as they weren't wizard apprentices and he didn't fully trust them, he never considered entrusting base management to them.
"Finding a third-level wizard apprentice to manage Base 1 would ease my burden, allowing me to simply review reports periodically."
Sunan pondered.
However, finding a suitable candidate wasn't easy.
Convincing a third-level wizard apprentice to manage Base 1 was possible with enough incentives.
The challenge lay in ensuring loyalty.
A soul contract?
Unlikely, as no third-level wizard apprentice would willingly sign such a contract.
An oath contract might work but wasn't foolproof.
Given Base 1's involvement with the synthesis cube's secrets, any manager must be reliable and loyal.
In short, selecting a manager for Base 1 was a critical decision, requiring utmost caution.
As he pondered, Sunan returned to Base 1.
Over two years, the student body had grown by over a dozen.
Base 1 now housed 284 students.
Nearly a third had constructed their second star ring.
Ethan and Artir were the furthest along, likely constructing their third star ring within a year, becoming Base 1's third and fourth second-level wizard apprentices after Xieman and Cole.
As he walked, students constantly stopped to greet him.
Occasionally, he spotted various strange interdimensional creatures.
The number of such creatures, summoned by Sunan, now matched the student population, primarily consisting of fairy and sprite-like beings.
These interdimensional creatures managed the base's various areas.
Thanks to them, even in Sunan's frequent absence, Base 1 ran smoothly and efficiently.
Without stopping, Sunan toured the base's key areas.
Including the two in-progress magical plantations, he now had 12 in total, numbered 1 through 12.
Plantation 1 at Base 1 was the most crucial.
With Plantations 7 through 12 established, dragon blood fruit and silver moon flower production surged, meeting the needs of the base, the knight academies, and the Blackrock Cavalry.
Thus, Sunan moved dragon blood fruits and silver moon flowers from Plantation 1, replacing them with higher-value rare plants.
With ample manpower, he could establish more plantations if dragon blood fruit and silver moon flower demand increased.
In the insect nest, plump gemstone bugs crawled slowly, their backs sparkling.
With rare metals from the Star Alliance used for breeding feed, the gemstone bug population grew rapidly.
There were now 32 bugs.
Annual gemstone production rose to over 1,100.
Valued at over 20,000 gold coins.
Though far from the profits of the Star Alliance's mines, it provided a steady income without resource depletion concerns.
And this yield would gradually increase over time, promising a bright future.
In the workshop, the arcane crystal forge hummed quietly.
All of its dozens of stalls were in use.
Sunan noticed most apprentices were crafting magical adamantite.
For apprentices with basic [Magical Item Crafting] skills, crafting magical adamantite was the most rewarding base task.
Apprentices collected adamantite and materials from the warehouse, crafting them into magical adamantite for contribution points.
Failures resulted in bearing the losses.
Notably, the funds for adamantite purchases were drawn from the Starlight Duchy's treasury by Sunan.
In the years following the war, most of the duchy's tax revenue went to rebuilding, especially in the Frost Province, often leaving finances stretched.
Only recently had there been a surplus.
Sunan didn't hesitate to draw funds from Ke Yi for crafting adamantite golems.
The dragon blood fruits supplied to the army weren't free.
Having considered it, Sunan planned to discuss separating the base's and Starlight Duchy's economies with Ke Yi soon, transitioning to an independent, mutually beneficial relationship.
Only by shifting from a vague dependency to a clear transactional relationship could the base and the duchy thrive.
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