1162 Im Here to Invade You Part 2 (1/2)

The Grand Duke of Pompeii did a lot of calculations, but he never thought that would be his downfall.

The Imperial Bank of Qin was under the Grukos royalty's control. It had a good reputation and most nobles were willing to store their money there. However, most of the Grand Duke's people were up to no good and had most of their wealth converted into either magic nuclei or gold, which were stored in their own homes.

While Emperor Chanake never sent anyone to the Grand Duke's turf to search for any evidence, but he was able to speculate that over half of the wealth in Pompeii City did not pass through the Imperial Bank.

As such, the emperor resorted to using three marquises to cut off the Grand Duke's relations with the southwestern nobles.

Saleen finished patrolling the camp outside of the city and found the soldiers reliable. There were also ample mages, so it would not be a problem to hold such a small city down.

An hour passed and the cannons that Saleen set up attacked. Thick energy beams razed the earl's residence in seconds.

The cannons were manned by demons. They were very large even compared to the demons, who were over five meters tall. The demons have been following Saleen long enough to find Myers Mainland to be amusing and gradually lost the will to return to the demon plane.

It was the goal of the demons to join the temple guard instead.

It was a pity, however, that once they joined the temple guard, they would not be able to see battles. Saleen's kingdom was still rather and safe for the most part. While they were practically stepping over their enemies this time, the demons were very happy.

The magic cannons fired a second time at little more than rubble.

The residence was completely destroyed. While it did not look as bad as the time the Magical Element Tower deployed thousands of demon spirits and everything was reduced to ash, things looked bad enough that nothing was worth restoring.

Saleen waited outside the city. The earl brought his army and left the city on his own about half a day later. Saleen was apparently playing him for a fool with emptying the city. The earl knew to leave without making any demands, bringing his people with him

\”I'll be back sooner or later!\” The earl said to his most trusted with tears in his eyes, before having his entourage move east. The southwestern army did not surround the city. They instead stood on the west side of the city. The earl left, looking composed, unfettered, and sorrowful...

However, the mages behind the earl turned to look at the city, looking reluctant. They did not miss the city; they missed the person who was about to take it—Saleen.

They all knew that Saleen had countless mages serving him and even low-level ones would get the chance to be appreciated, which meant the chance to become privileged.

It was said that Master Saleen's student had originally been a low-level mage, and he had grown to become a level nine sorcerer within just a few years of following Saleen.

The mages, however, had consciences. The earl had kept them around for years and they had no intention of betraying him. When they were done returning the favor to the earl, some of the mages would definitely flock to Saleen's camp.

Saleen's Kingdom of Metatrin had become akin to Alchemy City. At the very least, mages perceived it to be so.

It was far more difficult to join Metatrin City than to join Alchemy City. However, once a mage became a part of Metatrin City, their living conditions were far better than Alchemy City.

Most of the money that the mages made in Alchemy City were taken away one way or another. Any diligent mage working in Metatrin City would be able to save a lot.

Even if they left the city for a while, they would not worry about becoming destitute. The savings were magic nuclei.

If someone was unable to join Metatrin City, Lonestar City was a decent alternative. Lonestar City was the capital for death mages, but elemental mages had considerable status in the city.

The city lord, Earl Aini, gave periodical lectures and exchanges to the mages, making the city conducive for learning magic.

There was also the Principality of Bitterwater, which belonged to Countess Lex. The countess was Saleen's wife and the place looked decent, which perhaps was due to Saleen's support.

If the mages did not have favors to repay to the earl, they would not even want to talk ill of Saleen, let alone actually fight him. Saleen gradually built considerable influence among the mages.

Other than Metatrin City's combat capacity, it also broke Alchemy City's monopoly of magic nucleus resources. Metatrin City's mages became capable of crafting magic power furnaces, which enabled them to craft all manners of puppets.

The contraptions enabled easier access into the Oceanic Ice Block, which allowed the mages to hunt for more magic sea beasts. Magic nucleus supplies no longer bothered Saleen anymore.

A mage's training did not require magic nuclei. However, every single mage was racing against time. If they made it through the next level before their lives ended, their lifespan would be extended considerably.

As such, mages saw magic nuclei as necessities, as they enabled them to shorten their training, enabling them to put more time into studying the intricacies and secrets of magic.

Saleen gained control of magic nuclei and broke Alchemy City's pricing system on such a precious resource. It angered Alchemy City ,and given how previous negotiations between two parties yielded no results, it was only a matter of time before they clashed.

It was why Saleen said that he held no enmity against Grand Duke of Pompeii, but just that the Grand Duke was unlucky enough to be made a tool by Saleen.