I bolted towards a free horse and rode it towards Fort Erosion. My family is going to be quite angry about my sudden outburst,

though is something I have to do right now. Never have I expected Hunter to not only come back while I was away, but also do the one thing he wasn't supposed to do: adding magic to my regiment.

 

I'll personally go all the way without taking any rest after the journey to dispose of anything which contains the slightest hint of mana. I finally reached the fortress, which has a new sign near the gate reading 'Welcome to Fort Erosion, home of the Soul Stabilizers'. I ignored it for now since I have more important problems to deal with at the moment.

 

"Welcome back, captain! I hope you had a wonderful tri-"

 

I grabbed Martin's shirt and shook him furiously as I started questioning the confused four-eyes.

 

"Tell me now! Where are the teleportation crystals!"

 

"T-They are currently stored inside the chargers' armory. Y-You should ask Leona for the exact details, so please, let me go."

 

I let go of the distressed Martin and rushed to the armory, as I passed by the barracks, a cat-eared girl suddenly appeared in front of me.

 

"Hey you! The armory is off-limits-WAAH!"

 

I crashed into the stupid girl due to my momentum. This idiot stood in front of me while I was doing a full sprint and expected me to stop? I hope she has a good reason to block my path, or I'll make her feel my wrath!

 

"Ouch… Uh! Is that you, captain? I thought you were going to rest for the day before coming here! I thought you were another kid trying to get a hold of the teleportation crystals to play with."

 

"Is that why you blocked me? Nevermind that, get out of my way already, I still have to take care of those crystals."

 

"Oh, so you are curious about them, too? Then let me lead the way since I hid them really well to make sure the little ones don't get any funny ideas."

 

I calm myself down a bit while listening to her. Right, she should be Leona which means that I'll have an easier time destroying the magic items if I get her help to find the crystals.

 

"Alright, lead the way, Leona."

 

Her ears sprung up as she turned around to guide me to the armory. There, Leona took a short sword then used it as a lever to move a large crate away from a wall creaking loudly signifying how heavy it is. After moving it enough for a person to squeeze behind it, she opened a small hatch on the floor before pulling out a leather sack.

 

"Here you go, captain. This sack contains all the crystals we currently own. Be careful though, as these expensive pieces are quite fragile."

 

How convenient! I would've been troubled if they were unbreakable. Now all I have to do is find a good weapon to smash the cursed magical trash within this sack… Ah! This axe seems perfect for the job.

 

"Young cub, hold it right there!"

 

Dammit, I was too late. Hunter was somehow able to catch up to me before I got rid of the crystals. This is the second time he has forced an order on me, not to mention that he's now physically restraining me.

 

"Unhand me at once! If you go any further than this, I'll make sure my father learns about everything you've done."

 

"Easy there, young cub. I'm following the orders of the duke, so your threats are meaningless."

 

What? I refuse to believe that! What's the point of having a knight order if Magnus can just mess with it willy nilly?

 

"Did you calm down a little? Now let me explain. Slowly. While you were away, Soul Corruption incidents skyrocketed, which is why Duke Magnus decided to make use of the Soul Stabilizers for a mission the regular army couldn't deal with… Right, the duke also bestowed your knight order with that title after witnessing how the soldiers had a relatively easy time suppressing a corrupted mage."

 

"Wait, what do you mean by bestowing a title? Wasn't I the one who should've named my knight order?"

 

"... Sorry young cub, the name you suggested was rejected."

 

"Then what kind of authority do I actually have over my own troops?"

 

"..."

 

I get it now, how cunning. Magnus didn't give me this fortress and regiment for my personal use, instead, it's something to chain me down to him. My voice only matters as long as it's something aligning with Magnus's own views.

 

"Alright, I think you should go back to the mansion for now. You must be quite tired from your two-week journey."

 

I quietly followed him because there is no point in arguing here with Magnus's puppet. I took a peek at Leona who stood by the door the entire time. She looked pretty sad with her ears drooping down, almost as if she shared my bitterness.

 

As I once again reached the mansion, I immediately headed towards my room after only acknowledging Sisley's presence. Actually, I kinda expected something similar to this will happen, which is why I kept many secrets away from my parents. Now I have to do something I never wanted to do; forming a secret faction within the 'Soul Stabilizers' who are only loyal to me and would prioritize my orders over whatever Magnus says. I hate doing this because I'm talented in forming secret groups, which was the foundation of my previous life's screwup.

 

Ok let's not think about that right now. What matters is I'll need to bring the most influential individuals in the fort over to my side. Hunter is, of course, automatically disqualified due to his close relationship with Magnus. I have to get Narko and Martin on board since they are essential if I want any independence from Hunter. The chargers will just need a little effort to take full control of as I have personally instructed them with minimal influence from Hunter's side. In fact, I don't even need to convince everyone as I can just have one charger in my faction then promote them as a team leader. This will effectively give me full control over the chargers with minimal risk of being betrayed.

 

Ok, now I should have some sleep to be ready for a busy day tomorrow.

 

A new sunrise has arrived, and, after eating breakfast, it was time to do some convincing. My first target is Narko since she's easy to locate; always in the workshop for 'cannon maintenance' as she always says. I invested quite a lot of money on the building, so it was very large compared to those around it.

 

Cannons were organized in a row while they glistened with a metallic shine. Narko is quite obsessed with these things, which is proven further as she's currently sleeping on top of one in an awkward position. Normally, I'd leave her alone, but now I have something important to discuss with this dwarf. I took out an iron coin then flipped it towards the cannon. A ting sound was made which promptly made Narko wake up and get up in a panic.

 

"It's morning already? Hi, captain! What could possibly bring you here today? Would you like to check on the cannons since you haven't been here for a while?"

 

It feels weird that she's a dwarf who speaks normally without an accent. It's probably because she grew up away from other dwarves.

 

"No, not today. Instead, I would like to have a private conversation with you, if you don't mind, that is."

 

Narko gave me a curious look with no signs of rejection, so I started with a 'bait'.

 

"You see, while I was away, I met with a dwarf blacksmith who gave me a unique weapon which you might be interested in."

 

I took out my pistol and made sure she had a clear view of it, then I immediately hid it back just as her eyebrows were raised up.

 

"Ah, hey! Hand it over so that I can inspect it!"

 

Nice, she took the bait.

 

"I would love to let you examine it as much as you want. However, the dwarf who gave it to me wanted to keep it a secret from others. Fortunately, since you are also a dwarf, I can make an exception if you promise to keep it a secret from others and become my companion for all future projects. Naturally, as a companion, we will listen to each other's opinions without outside interference."

 

Stay subtle while listing my conditions. If she still hesitates with the pistol, I still have the improved cannon blueprints as an extra incentive. Her eyes closed as she fell in deep thought. Although young, Narko isn't stupid and definitely understands the consequences of such a deal.

 

"Jeez, I feel like I'm getting sucked into some sort of trap… Ah, fine! I have to get my hands on the mini cannon you obtained."

 

And with that, I've got my first real follower for my group. I hand over the pistol with a bullet before giving a brief explanation on how it works. After making sure she won't shoot herself accidentally, I exit the workshop to find my next target, Martin. He's usually in his personal office reading financial papers and generally being a nerd.

 

I stand in front of his door as I take a deep breath. Martin will be the toughest nut to crack due to his background as a former noble's son. My only advantage is that he's still a 15-year-old boy with much less life experience than me, which is why I think I have a good shot convincing him.

 

I opened the door and exchanged greetings with Martin who sat in front of a wooden table with a stack of papers on top of it. Let's get to the point quickly so as to not take much of his time.

 

"Martin, remember how Hunter superseded my command that you were supposed to lead the regiment while I was away? I think it's complete nonsense, don't you think so, too?"

 

Martin had a troubled look on his face and adjusted his glasses as he thought of a response.

 

"Captain, you should already know that I have no say in this at all. Furthermore, Hunter has way more experience than me in this matter, so it was only natural that he took over as the leader while you were away. Don't get me wrong though, as I did feel frustrated when he completely brushed me to the side without even acknowledging me."

 

He's trying to stay neutral. Giving me a positive response while also giving the other side some credit to cover his bases. Let's be a bit more personal.

 

"Yeah, I'd be frustrated too. Especially since everyone thinks manaphobes like us are inferior beings who don't deserve a voice of their own. To tell you the truth, I formed the Soul Stabilizers to prove that this is entirely false. It's a shame that our opinions are still being suppressed here! Even the name wasn't chosen by me!"

 

"... Captain, I know what you are getting at. Unfortunately, such a dream is just that, a dream. It's a fact that those with high Soul Depth are way more successful than the ones unlucky enough to get low scores. I appreciate your attempt to change this view, but you should just give up and be grateful to have this current life."

 

He's starting to get sentimental while being too hesitant. Seems like being kicked out from his family has made a large impact on his thought process. I feel a bit bitter for doing this, but I'll take advantage of it.

 

"Thank you for your advice. Nevertheless, I am quite disappointed by you, whom I think of as my right-hand man. Manaphobes aren't limited by our own talent, we are, instead, being actively suppressed so our potential never blossoms. You should have never been kicked out from your noble family due to a single number. If they gave you a chance, you would have definitely made it big with your skills in accounting."

 

"You… Captain, please don't joke about this. I…"

 

He's starting to break down. Now's the time to attack.

 

"Martin, look at me. Do you actually believe we can keep our lives like this forever? Just like your disownment, it is only a matter of time before we are considered useless then be thrown away like trash. We are being taken advantage of, which is why we have to make a backup plan. We should not idle around, and instead must build the foundation of a new force capable of standing toe-to-toe against the irrational contempt for manaphobia."

 

I paused to make sure Martin is keeping up with me. He seemed to have reached some sort of conclusion as he let out a heavy sigh before readjusting his glasses.

 

"Ok, if you are going this far to convince me, then I want to confess something to you. I actually planned to run away after collecting some money for myself."

 

"What!?"

 

"I know, right? I am trusting you with this secret to show that you can trust me. What I am saying is that, if you truly plan for something on such a scale, then I am in on it."

 

I didn't expect him to say something like that. I mean, I did suspect he had some sort of scheme hidden due to his greed but telling it straight to my face is rather shocking. Saying that, this is the best-case scenario. Now I have a surely loyal follower with a good head between his shoulders, now it's time for the Chargers.

 

"One more thing, captain. If you want to bring others to support you, forget about sentinels as they are constantly watched over by Hunter. Snipers are also risky, so I recommend just sticking to the chargers for now. All you have to do is get Leona on board and you practically have control over them."

 

"And why Leona?"

 

I don't remember her being special in any way other than being the most talkative one.

 

"To put it simply, she is so cute that everyone follows her."

 

Oh, I mean I guess that's true. Whatever, I can easily tempt her with fish or something then make her the team leader.

 

Convincing Leona was easier than expected. The muscle head agreed to joining me as an apology for yesterday's incident and didn't make a big deal out of it. Now that the backbone of my secret group has been built, I'll slowly build up until I effectively have total control over the Soul Stabilizers.