All of Nottingheim was full of admiration for Marvin. Nana listened to Marvin’s request and unhesitantly chose to accept.
Marvin’s request was also very simple. He wished to exchange valuables for food of equal value, any kind possible.
What Nottingheim lacked the least was food.
The plane’s climate was extremely good for agriculture. It had good humidity, was filled with forests and lakes, and the vast arable lands were very fertile.
Back when they were under the rule of the Shadow Prince, most of the Plane’s monsters had already been killed. This was a considerably prosperous land.
Nottinheim was rich in food. There were more than hundred thousand households in the kingdom, and almost every one had surplus food, even if one didn’t count Nottingheim kingdom’s official food treasury.
In contrast, they lacked strong metals. Iron ore was pretty sparse, so they were in need of ironware.
All the soldiers’ weapons had been used by their predecessors. They had to be maintained and used carefully.
After learning about this, Marvin had a rough plan.
He would buy food from Arborea, and even if his share of riches from the Shadow Shrine wasn’t enough, the ore from White River Valley’s northern mine could be used in exchange. Although White River Valley was mining ore, they didn’t have the production capabilities to make it all into weapons.
The Planar Teleportation Array couldn’t be used easily, but by using numerous large storage items to facilitate the process, the planar trade could benefit both sides.
Soon, Marvin and Queen Nana reached an agreement and signed a trade contract between Nottingheim and White River Valley.
Following their arrangements, the first batch of food was packed and Marvin brought all the storage items he had been able to gather, most of them coming from River Shore City. It was a major city, after all. Madeline had previously gathered many items from the Three Ring Towers’ Craftsman Tower as reserve supplies, including over thirty storage items.
Right now, Marvin had over fifty storage items with him. Bringing these back would provide enough food for White River Valley’s current inhabitants to eat for two to three years!
Thus, thanks to the trade agreement, the food issue had been completely solved and Marvin sighed in relief.
In fact, White River Valley only need some breathing room. In autumn, the farmers’ cereals could be harvested and at that time, they might not need to rely on Arborea’s support.
Despite that, in order to be safe and make sure that they would have enough surplus after trading some of the food for weapons, Marvin still finalized a long-term cooperation agreement.
Both Aragon and Nana were very grateful to Marvin for his past help, and thus the cooperation went pretty smoothly.
Marvin was quite pleased that the problem of food was resolved without issue.
After the joyous banquet, Aragon was pulled aside by many old friends to chat, while Marvin was bored due to most being too apprehensive to greet him, so he left the court.
Arborea’s air was a lot fresher than Feinan’s. At least there wasn’t a large amount of Chaos Magic Power mixed in.
He walked alone for a while when he suddenly met the fancily dressed Nana.
She was different than she had been during the afternoon negotiations in the study. She seemed a lot brighter and more lively now.
Her identity as the Queen of Nottingheim added a sort of unspeakable charm to her. Although she was still very young, she had gradually gained the character of someone in her position.
It’s just that in front of Marvin, she once again seemed like that helpless little girl he met in the depths of the palace.
“Sir Marvin, there is actually one more thing I didn’t mention yet.”
Nana looked as if she had just remembered something as she explained, “Before you left, you once told us to carefully search everywhere to guard against the remnants of the Shadow Shrine.”
“In the process, we made a new discovery.”
Marvin suddenly felt very interested.
“What did you find?”
Chapter 568: Dream Land
Chapter 568: Dream Land
Translator: Translation Nation Editor: Translation Nation
In a corner of Arborea, in front of some vast ruins.
A team of people was staring in awe, including a small team of royal guards.
Marvin and Aragon stood in front of the ruins, revealing dignified expressions.
Apart from them, Nana and the court’s first mage, Orland, were also there.
This was the new discovery that Nana mentioned at the party.
Orland began to explain, “There had been a Shadow Shrine temple here.”
“When we arrived, we were surprised to discover that it had already been destroyed. That seemed very strange to us.”
“Thus, after I heard my subordinate’s report, I investigated it and found something unexpected!” Orland said excitedly.
Speaking of it, Orland had spared no effort to help the Nottingheim royal family.
He was actually a very powerful Wizard. Despite being under the pressure of the plane and the Shrine’s suppression, he had still been able to silently reach level 18 on his own. This was a miracle in itself!
And what was even more impressive was that he stayed in the court for a long time, frequently going in and out of the imperial hall, but those Priests never discovered his true status.
The old guy’s ability to hide his strength was quite remarkable.
At the last moment, he stood up and revealed power far beyond that of a normal scholar. He held back the Shrine’s people and gained some time for Marvin.
After getting rid of the Shadow Shrine, Nottingheim underwent some restructuring. Nana held the lion’s share of the power as the queen, and the highest authority under her was the one holding the position of prime minister, Orland.
Nana and Orland were the most distinguished people in the entire plane, and it was very difficult for most to see them.
But it was different for Marvin.
When he heard about it, Marvin became very interested in their new discovery. They didn’t say much more after describing the place briefly, and at his request, they led Marvin out of the capital to head toward the ruins of the Shadow Shrine on the northwestern border.
…
According to Orland, there were many strange things about these ruins. The most glaring oddity was a special underground area they found below the ruins.
Thus, he had others proceed with the excavation, and thanks to the soldiers’ efforts, they were able to find a tunnel!
The tunnel led even deeper into the darkness. Orland probed it several times, but after proceeding for a bit, he felt a power that far surpassed his own and thus didn’t try dare to go any further.
He sealed the tunnel and waited for Marvin to return to Arborea before coming together to explore it once again.
Marvin walked down the tunnel and felt a mysterious aura from the depths of the tunnel.
This discovery was indeed unusual.
The construction of the passage itself was very strange. It wasn’t made with ordinary materials.
And looking at it from an architectural point of view, the entrance to the passage must have been a secret room.
As they proceeded through the darkness, a light wind sometimes came through, showing that the passage had an exit.
Marvin took the lead, followed by Aragon. Orland and a few guards also followed behind. As for Nana, she remained outside at Marvin’s recommendation.
Just as Orland had said, the passage had quite a few doors. His Perception also let him sense that there was an aura of Divine Power.
‘Could it be remnants of Glynos’ power in this plane?’
Some doubts remained in Marvin’s heart.
He increased his pace.
They soon reached the end of the passage.
That aura was becoming richer and ri
cher. Orland stopped with a bitter smile on his face.
“This is where I stopped last time.” The old Wizard shook his head as he regretted, “I can’t withstand this power.”
Marvin understood.
This was a typical case of Divine Power repelling someone.
Because the Divine Power in the passage was too dense, it formed something akin to a Divine Law boundary. Orland, as a level 18 Great Wizard, wasn’t even a Half-Legend. He wasn’t like Aragon, who had already advanced to Legend and could resist the Divine Law’s suppression.
“I’ll check it out on my own,” Marvin said after thinking for a bit.
Aragon showed a bit of surprise since he was also feeling curious about the depths of the path, but since Marvin made this kind of decision, he wouldn’t raise any objections.
Such a dense Divine Power most likely meant that there was huge danger ahead, and Aragon was still a newly advanced Legend.
“Sir Marvin, be careful.”
Aragon and Orland stayed to guard that part of the passage.
Marvin nodded before proceeding on his own.
He increased his speed, turning into a blur in the passage.
A light appeared in the distance.
‘Divine Light…’
‘This Divine Power… It’s really familiar…’
Marvin was silently contemplating that power when suddenly, he shivered!
‘Fuck!’
‘No wonder this feels familiar!’
‘It’s not the Shadow Prince!’
‘It’s… him!’
Marvin stood still in the passage filled with Divine Power as he suddenly made a realization.
At first, he had thought that it would be Glynos, which was further supported by the aura feeling so familiar.
But this Divine Power didn’t seem to have a Shadow attribute, which made Marvin feel that something was wrong.
As he got closer, it occurred to him that it seemed so familiar because he had recently fought against this Divine Power!
This was the aura of the Dream God!
Marvin couldn’t help but clench his teeth, with killing intent flashing in his eyes.
The Dream God’s Divine Servant, Ambella.
That time, if not for Lance appearing in his memories, if not for Lorie coming from the distant Rocky Mountain and giving him a portion of her Fate Power, he would have suffered and perhaps died under the Dream God’s plot!
Marvin had already recorded this enmity.
He would definitely get his revenge!
It was just a matter of time.
…
‘Unexpected, so unexpected.’
‘Why would there be an entrance to [Dream Land] in one of the Shadow Prince’s Secondary Planes? Moreover, it seems like the Dream God isn’t aware of it.’
‘It must have been done secretly by Glynos.’
Marvin leaned against the passage’s walls, coldly looking toward the other side of the halo.
It seemed to be on a tall mountain, and from that point of view, he could see a huge area of that plane!
If Marvin took a step in, he would enter Dream Land.
Although Dream Land was not the Dream God’s God Realm, it was still one of the most important Secondary Planes controlled by the Dream God!
‘Found your nest,’ Marvin thought to himself cheerfully.
He was already putting together a plan. Since he so fortuitously found a back door to Dream Land, how could he forgive himself if he didn’t give the Dream God a gift?
Chapter 569: Vassals
Chapter 569: Vassals
Translator: Translation Nation Editor: Translation Nation
Marvin observed the passage for a bit before silently leaving.
Because it was such an unexpected discovery, he hadn’t made proper preparations.
This was a very secret entrance, and in all likelihood, the Dream God hadn’t noticed that Glynos had left such a secret passage to Dream Land.
When the right moment came, Marvin could exploit it and strike a big blow against the Dream God.
But not now.
Ambella had just died. Even if the Dream God didn’t get any information from her, he would surely be more alert toward Marvin now that his number one Divine Servant vanished without a trace.
It was just that with the matter of the Universe Magic Pool, he couldn’t afford to dispatch more followers to handle Marvin.
He had to exercise restraint for a while, and during that time, Marvin could prepare.
When the Dream God decided that he could kill Marvin, Marvin would give him a big gift!
In Marvin’s mind, a plan no less crazy than the firing of Judgement Day at Glynos’ God Realm was taking shape.
…
Afterwards, Marvin didn’t tell the secret of this place to anyone, including Aragon and the rest.
He only told Orland that he should seal this place properly with a group of trustworthy guards. If any changes occurred, Orland should inform him about them.
Because Marvin’s tone was very serious as he told them that this place was a “very dangerous” location, no one dared to be careless and they complied with Marvin’s arrangements.
With Arborea secured as White River Valley’s backup, Marvin felt like he had regained a lot of breathing room.
Although Nottingheim wasn’t completely in Marvin’s control, Nana, Aragon, and the others had a very good relationship with Marvin. In the upcoming period of war and chaos, Arborea would definitely show its worth.
But Marvin would have to consider how to keep the Secondary Plane intact.
The Gods were currently attacking the Universe Magic Pool, so in all likelihood, no one would pay attention to this particular plane.
But originally, when Dark Phoenix used Plane Traction, it had caused a lot of commotion. It should have shaken the God Realms. And although the plane’s coordinates hadn’t been exposed, if the powerful Gods wanted to look for it, they would surely be able to find it, especially considering that it had been connected to Feinan.
And if they found it, even if they couldn’t recover it, they could still destroy the world.
Marvin had to consider the long term.
The ideal solution would be to bring it to the White River Valley Sanctuary. The Sanctuary created by the fusion of the Wish Scroll and the Earth Crystal wasn’t totally part of Feinan anymore. It had a very unique nature and could be said to be separated from Feinan. But it was also still closely related to Feinan.
It was very inclusive, and it would be possible to pull the entire Arborea plane in.
But the power of at least twenty Major Wish spells would be needed!
That was because Arborea’s surface area was too great, about four times that of the current White River Valley. Only a Wish Pillar was left in the Sanctuary, and the power was already barely enough to maintain the Sanctuary. Marvin needed to find much more Wish power if he wanted to go with this route.
He would have to find a solution of some sort.
For the time being, he could only hope that the Gods wouldn’t find Arborea.
Despite this, Marvin still decided to properly nurture the strength of Arborea’s natives.
When Aragon expressed the wish to stay in Arborea for the time being to catch up with his sister, Marvin decided to offer some others the chance to visit Feinan.
He told the natives of Arborea that there would be three spots available for powerhouses that wished to leave with him. If they were willing to pledge eternal loyalty to him, they could follow Marvin and leave this plane for the Prime Material Plane, just as Aragon had.
After all, only Marvin had the key to freely enter and exit the Ashes Plains. Apart from him, even if the others could activate the Planar Teleportation Array, they wouldn’t be able to reach Feinan smoothly.
As for the matter of the pledge of loyalty, Marvin had decided on it after careful consideration.
Even if he trusted Nana and Aragon, he couldn’t be
totally unguarded against those that he didn’t know.
He had no plans to nurture future enemies.
To the people of Arborea, Marvin was powerful, but he was also an outsider. They respected him, but they might not be favorable toward him forever.
He could satisfy the wishes of the plane’s powerhouses and allow them to make breakthroughs, eventually attaining the power of the Legend realm as Aragon, but the premise was that this power had to be under his control.
Marvin wouldn’t treat them like servants. Instead, he would use a much less harsh [Vassal System].
Admittedly, those under a Vassal Contract would have to prioritize their master’s will, but in most cases, they had their own free will.
Marvin did this to nurture some fighting power for White River Valley and Arborea while also averting the possibility of being bitten in the back.
Within a day from when this news was spread by the royal family, ten level 18 powerhouses came to the royal city in hopes of getting the chance to travel to Feinan.
Even Marvin didn’t expect to see so many of Arborea’s most powerful arrive so quickly. They had mostly existed in the shadows of the Shadow Shrine, always living in seclusion.
Now that there was hope for a breakthrough, they jumped at the chance.
And they didn’t really mind becoming Marvin’s vassals.
Marvin had left a profound impression on everyone in Arborea when he beheaded the Shadow Prince’s Idol. Becoming part of such a mighty figure’s entourage was something that most people could accept.
Marvin’s contract made a lot of sense in their eyes.
The problem was actually on Marvin’s side.
Due to the Planar Teleportation Array being too expensive, he could take at most three of them with him.
Ultimately, he chose two men and a woman from among these ten people.
Those three were quite young, all under 30.
People still in their youth had the most potential.
What Marvin found interesting was that the three of them were all nobles from the royal city. The two men practiced the Storm Swordsman path like Aragon while the woman was a rarely seen Astrologer.
He was impressed when he found out that this Astrologer named Rachel had surprisingly gotten so far by studying on her own.
Night Ranger - Full Series - 735 Chapters Page 326
