Michael gazed at the unconscious Dragys for a while.
'I wouldn't consider them a typical evil race like the Kitsun, but it's mostly the Will playing the Dragys and the Untamed Jungle. The Untamed Jungle will never like the Dragys and deploy more monsters at them. But why is this Lordess so adamant about burning the Untamed Jungle's heart?'
Even though Michael procured a decent amount of information, he still lacked a lot. He had many questions, but nobody could answer all of them. Michael considered killing the Awakened and Summons for a moment. Devouring their bodies with Swallow Domain would remove all traces of their existence. It wouldn't be difficult to return to the Pentagon Fort, leaving the Dragys Lordess unaware of what happened to her subordinates. But Michael didn't want to hazard it. Furthermore, the group of Dragys lying before him wasn't evil either. There might be bad Dragys somewhere, but the batch of Awakened and Summons wasn't among them.
So, instead of killing them, Michael retrieved the Needle of Lost Memories after gathering as many useful pieces of information as possible. He used the Needle on the Dragys, ensuring they would forget everything that had happened in the last few hours. They might have been unconscious for a while now, but Michael didn't want to risk anything. Michael would much rather do too much than miss something crucial.
Once done, Michael scanned the surroundings for monsters and disappeared after he noticed that no more predators were anywhere close by.
'The Dragys Lordess could be troublesome to deal with. It's a good thing she's not even close to the core region of the Untamed Jungle. But her intent is worrisome… Destroying the Untamed Jungle…'
Michael didn't like it but was unwilling to throw his people into a losing battle. There was no need to risk anything right now.
Nonetheless, he subconsciously registered the Lordess as a threat and potential enemy. Michael returned to his territory to learn that the settlements in the Untamed Jungle were full to the brim. A few days ago, the Pentagon-Fort crossed the population limit of 1.5 million.
Under normal circumstances, Michael would have moved everyone to the Sacred Desert, as Paradise Valley's settlements were bigger and still not even close to reaching their limits. However, the Forest Elves and Forest Elven Summons weren't accustomed to living outside forests. Humans could adapt easily to new situations and other environments, but that didn't mean all humans were suited to live in the desert. Therefore, Michael was forced to expand his territory in the Untamed Jungle. Michael didn't feel well since he'd just encountered a new Lord in the Untamed Jungle – though her territory was more than 100 kilometers away from Pentagon Fort. Especially since the Dragys' Awakened remembered something about more Lords.
They'd never encountered another Lord openly, but the Dragys Lordess was in contact with several Lords. For Michael to have never met any of them was…odd. He had been traveling and cleaning the Untamed Jungle for a while now. Of course, other than today, he never entered the mainlands, but that didn't explain how he'd never seen anyone with Spirit Eyes.
'Well. The Untamed Jungle is massive. Even the outskirts, the little extension of my territory, is extensive.'
He shrugged and diverted his focus on his territory. It advanced rapidly over the last few weeks, and there haven't been any major difficulties. They delivered their first batch of 100,000,000 Ordinary Summoning Scrolls.
Zira, daughter of Valkyria, came to the usual gathering spot to deliver the Summoning Scrolls, which Tiara accepted as one of Michael's representatives. Some of the scrolls were utilized to increase the population once all necessities for their lives had been prepared. That was how the Pentagon Fort reached their limit and how the Paradise Valley settlements were slowly but steadily filled.
Paradise Valley's city-sized settlements could contain one million citizens, but it would take a while before they could be filled to the brim. All Michael needed was enough food – a variety of it to ensure a healthy diet for everyone – and other necessities to provide his subjects with a pleasant and fulfilling life. Still, Paradise Valley's settlements created homes for more than three million Summons, pushing the number of Links of Loyalty connected to Michael to more than 4.5 million.
He was happy about his territory's progress, especially given the Energy Vein and the excavation of Energy Stones. Michael should be overjoyed learning about his territory's gains. At this point, he raked more money from a day's worth of mining Energy Stones than most Lords could earn in several months. The Energy Stones were utilized to pay the Forest Elven tribe to purchase exotic plants. These extraordinary racial techniques could only be given and used by the strongest Forest Elves. Fortunately, Michael had some Botanic Sorcerer among his Forest Elven Summons. Last but not least, he had Lilica, the other EmeraldLeaf group members, and a Blessed Child – Jason Kleora.
Jason Kleora was also a unique case. He was already a Higher Lifeform with a 6-Star Soultrait, but he didn't belong to the inner core of the Forest Elven Tribe. Michael learned that Jason Kleora was too bloodthirsty and that – despite owning a Nature-attributed Soultrait – he wasn't perfectly fit to the Forest Elves' techniques. Bloodthirsty wasn't really what Michael would call Jason. He fought Hiraku a few times, losing more often with time. Jason Kleora couldn't acknowledge that and joined Siegfried's training camp. After that, the Blessed Child was nothing like he utilized to be. He integrated perfectly into Michael's territory, drastically strengthening his Loyalty to Michael.
At this point, Jason Kleora was one of the most loyal subjects in Michael's territory. That was a surprise, though a welcome one.
Michael found a few more welcome surprises, including news that the Valyr stopped trying to 'convince' Michael that they deserved more Soultrait Symbols. The Valyr must have realized that Michael wasn't pleased by their attempts. That was a good thing. However, it was even better that they offered a small fortune of resources to purchase the highly compressed Energy Stones found in Paradise Valley.
Michael was fairly sure the Valyr offered so many resources only because they realized they had gone too far. It was an attempt to mend their relationship. Of course, Michael accepted their offer. He would be foolish to reject extra resources. That didn't mean he forgave them, though. Michael was still uncertain what he should do with the Valyr.
But one thing was certain: The Valyr in the Savannah Region weren't a threat to him anymore. Michael could enter the Savannah Region alone and remove the Valyr's territory from existence. That was true before he studied under the Nest Leader and even more so after he returned from the Spring of Abundant Life.
Even Hiraku and some other High Awakened of his territory should be strong enough to deal with most of the Valyr's powerhouses. There was no need to be scared of them. One wrong move and Michael would order their death. It was that simple.
However, some things weren't quite as simple.
Michael's mind, for example, was known for overthinking everything possible.
The same mind struggled to figure out what happened to Alice, Kaleb, and the others.
He would find them and ensure their safe retreat. It was just a matter of time. Michael was certain of that.
Still, he couldn't help but worry about their well-being.
"Where the hell are you guys?"