Legend of the Arch Magus- The Expansion

by Michael John Sisa

  He told the servants to unload the crates containing the eggs and put them inside the coop.

  As the servants unloaded the cargo, Lark turned towards the tall man. “Pico, how long will it take to finish the poultry farm?”

  The tall man, probably surprised that the Young Master knew his name, opened and close his mouth. “Ah… Yes. It will take around three to four more months, Young Master.”

  Lark tapped Pico’s shoulder. “I’m going to issue another recruitment order soon. I’ll immediately send more men to work on this farm. Make it two months.”

  The voice of the Young Master was firm, clearly not taking no for an answer. Sensing this, Pico bobbed his head vigorously. “Yes!”

  Lark smiled. The servants have finished their tasks.

  “Then, Mister Pico. From now on, you will be in-charge of the entire Poultry Farm,” said Lark.

  Pico realized that the Young Master was not pertaining to simply the construction of the farm but to the management of the farm itself. “But, young sir. I’m no poultry breeder. I know nothing about this job. I’m merely a constructi—”

  “—That’s fine,” interjected Lark. He motioned for Pico and the butler to follow him inside the coop. On his hands were four thin iron plates. “I will teach you everything you need to know about this.”

  After doing his research, Lark found out that the method of taking care of the poultry in this Kingdom was primitive. It was so unproductive that Lark was stunned speechless when he first heard of it. Therefore, he decided that he would introduce the Magic Empire’s way of poultry farming. Although he was a magician in his previous life, basic knowledge such as this one was mandatorily taught in the academies, and he’d heard of it so many times that his ears have gone numb.

  The Magic Empire’s education system is indeed great. Both magicians and non-magicians are taught all of the necessary basic knowledge. Mathematics. Science. Religion. Trade. Even Farming.

  Lark hoped that one day, such education system would exist in this world. An education system that did not discriminate between magicians and non-magicians. An education system available for people of all status.

  Lark looked around inside the coop. Everything was made of wood. Near the ceiling, numerous fan-shaped wooden blades were installed. Lark planned on connecting it to a magic device later, enabling it to rotate and drive away the heat during summer. After all, the summer in this Kingdom was said to be accompanied by ridiculously fierce heat waves which kill people by the dozens – and this was also true for the animals. This was one of the reasons why during summer, the prices of poultry products were ridiculously high.

  It’ll be several months more before summer arrived. Lark deemed that would be enough time to implement his plans.

  “Ah, right. The rooster,” mumbled Lark. After receiving an order, the butler soon returned inside the coop with a rooster in his hand. The rooster kept struggling out of the old man’s hands.

  Lark placed two metal plates on the ground. Each of them had peculiar symbols engraved inside.

  “These plates are called Hatchelets. They’re magic devices capable of fertilizing an egg and accelerating their growth,” said Lark. Basically, it solves the problem of fertilization by simply using the “essence” of the hens that had been passed to the eggs.

  He could clearly see the confusion on Pico’s face. “Put the rooster over there.”

  Following the direction of the young master, Gaston placed the rooster on one of the metal plates. The moment the rooster’s feet touched the plate, the symbols engraved on it glowed for a second, and the struggling rooster froze in place.

  Lark pointed at the second plate. “Now, put eggs on that one. Pico, you do it. One egg on each circle.”

  Pico saw the strange glow from the first plate. He was now convinced that these plates were magic devices. Still, he held doubts if these things were really capable of making an egg hatch. After all, this was the first time he ever heard of such a thing.

  A total of four eggs were placed on the second plate.

  “These two plates are connected by a thin strand of magic beforehand. Using these devices as catalyst, we will absorb a small essence from the rooster and transfer it to the unfertilized eggs. And using the same essence, we will forcefully accelerate growth inside the egg, making it hatch.”

  Everyone in the room was silent. They all stared at the plates. The rooster that struggled before in the hands of Gaston was now unmoving, as though it turned into a living statue.

  “To activate this device, a little bit of mana is required,” said Lark. “But don’t worry. Even non-magicians are able to use this thing.” He patted Pico’s back. “Place a hand on the hexagram at the center of that plate. Do it.”

  As instructed, Pico placed his hand on the symbol at the center of the second plate. It took several seconds before Pico felt something being sucked out of his body. It was a tiny amount, but it was continuously being sucked out.

  Feeling uncomfortable, Pico was about to pull out his hand when Lark said, “Don’t remove your hands. Wait for the eggs to hatch.”

  Under the gaze of the Young Master and the servants, Pico did not remove his hands. Even now, he could still feel something being sucked out of his body. A bead of sweat started forming on his forehead. He wanted to say that hatching the eggs using such method was absurd, and that such thing was not possible, but in the end, he chose to shut his mouth.

  The symbols on the second plate glowed and vanished after a full second.

  “Alright. That’s enough,” said the young master. “Remove your hand.”

  Pico released his hand and sighed in relief. He realized that sweat had formed on his face, and his breathing had quickened somewhat.

  Lark grinned at him. “Tiring isn’t it? As a non-magician, you’ll get used to that feeling eventually.” He pointed at the second plate. “Look.”

  The moment Pico looked at the second plate, his eyes widened in surprise. The four eggs placed on it started forming cracks. Moments after, newly born chicks started coming out of the shell, their bodies wet and slimy.

  “Wha—” a voice of surprise leaked out of Pico’s mouth.

  Lark bent down and grabbed one of the newly born chicks. He looked at the frozen rooster standing on the first plate. “The essence from the rooster will recover with rest. At most, I want you to hatch around fifty eggs per day. Rotate with the other workers so your mana won’t get depleted.”

  Pico was still stunned of what he saw. When he realized that the young master was staring at him, he finally broke out of his trance.

  “Ah, yes. Understood, young master!”

  Lark chuckled. “No need to be so stiff.” He patted Pico on the back. “You’ll get used to this method soon.”

  Pico stared at the newly born chick held by the young master. For some reason, he felt a sense of accomplishment after realizing that it was him who made those chicks hatch.

  Lark led the group towards the outside, particularly towards the place where the carts were. He took out a sapling.

  “You call this a Loi plant, right?” The plant Lark was holding was around two inches in length, with small yellow leaves growing out of the stem.

  Pico had seen them before. “Yes.”

  “I want you to plant these saplings over there.” Lark pointed at the empty area surrounding the coop. “A palm apart should do”

  Pico paused, unsure if he should speak of what was on his mind. Eventually, he swallowed the lump in his throat and said, “Forgive me for this, Young Master. But I don’t think we should plant those things.”

  “They attract bugs and several insects, right?” Lark smiled mischievously.

  “Yes, those pests—”

  “—Are food for the chickens in this farm,” completed Lark. “I’m asking you to plant these insect-attracting plants for this very reason. Think about it. Those insects would surely become pests in normal farms. But what about here? With thousands of chickens freely roa
ming about, they’ll be nothing but convenient food lying around.”

  The insects attracted to these plants were generally harmless to humans. Therefore, there were practically no risks but only benefits if they planted these things.

  Moreover, the fruits of these plants were the main ingredient in creating Umami Salt. A popular spice in the Magic Empire coveted by all restaurants. The very reason why the insects were attracted to Loi plants was due to the taste of Umami Salt within them.

  Lark did not bother explaining the second reason why they should plant the saplings. He deemed that overtime, they would realize these things.

  “I want you to build a small fence to protect the Loi sapling from the chickens,” said Lark. “A very small one will do. It’ll take several months before these plants produced fruits. By that time, gather those fruits and bring them to me. Is that clear?”

  “Understood, Young Master.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  The residents of Blackstone Town curiously looked at the soldiers marching in formation. They all wore leather armors, their spears disassembled into two parts so that it’ll be easy to carry during the march. Following behind the soldiers were five carts filled with wood and hemp ropes, with the last cart carrying a day’s worth of rations.

  “Hey, did you hear? It seems they’ll be entering the eastern part of the Endless Forest to subjugate some monsters!”

  “Yeah, I heard it from my brother! The young master said they’ll be facing Goblins!”

  “Are you an idiot? We’ve been living here for decades. There’re no Goblins in the Endless Forest!”

  Numerous murmurs and speculations filled the air as the soldiers marched. Due to the training drilled into them, the soldiers did not break formation and walked forth in steady, uniform gaits. They also had their doubts about this mission, but as this was an order from the Young Master, they had no choice but to obey despite the uncertainties.

  Lark was riding the first carriage. Through the bowfront, he could see the soldiers marching in front. He was sure that they were nervous of the upcoming battle. After all, they knew nothing but the basic movements of the spear. All this time, aside from the stamina and discipline training, all they did was thrust and pull the spear.

  Objectively speaking, it was still too early for the soldiers to face the Goblins living in the Kalrane Mine. But right now, the treasury was constantly being wringed dry by all the developments being made left and right in the town. Lark needed to secure the Kalrane Mine soon and obtain a steady source of income.

  The small personal army of Lark entered the Endless Forest. Back when Lark was making a map of the town and its immediate regions, this was the only part he was unable to fully map. The name ‘Endless Forest’ truly befitted this place – even from the sky, the end of the forest was not within sight.

  Lark was actually surprised that even though such a massive forest was adjacent to the town, the town itself was peaceful enough. Based on what he’d heard from Gaston, Blackstone Town was a lot more peaceful than the major cities near the Capital. In those places, monster attacks were so frequent that soldiers fight with them on a daily basis.

  The trees inside the Endless Forest were far larger than normal. Their leaves created canopies that blocked the sunlight. Occasional rays would seep through the gaps, which gave enough light for the army to traverse the root-blanketed ground.

  We’ll be near the Kalrane Mine soon.

  “Halt.” Upon Lark’s order, the entire army stopped in its tracks. “Captain Qarat.”

  A man with dark-brown skin stepped forward. “Sir?”

  “Send two of your most nimble men to scout the area. The Goblin’s den is nearby. Tell them to report immediately if they spot some Goblins in the forest.” Lark leisurely sat inside his carriage. He used Magic Perception before to scan the immediate surroundings. He knew that the area was safe right now. There were some wild boars around, but they would not pose a threat to this small army.

  “Understood!” Qarat saluted.

  “You’ve briefed the soldiers on what they’re going to fight against, right?” Lark saw Qarat’s restless eyes after that. Indeed, these guys still have a long way to go to even be called proper soldiers.

  “Yes… about that,” slowly said Qarat. “There were some doubts about it. All of the soldiers are locals and they’ve never once seen a Goblin before. They’re having doubts since monsters do not really come out of the Endless Forest.”

  This was one of the greatest mysteries for Lark as of the moment. There was no way that a forest large enough to be called ‘endless’ would not contain any monster. But since his hands were tied with administering the town and his daily mana training, he had no time to spare to investigate this.

  If my hunch is correct, there must be a King residing within the Endless Forest. A creature strong enough to keep all the monsters at bay. That’s probably the reason why no monsters are attacking the town.

  “This will also be part of the training,” said Lark. Looking around, although the soldiers were standing straight in attention, they failed to hide the uneasiness within their faces. “There’s nothing more perfect than facing Goblins.”

  An hour passed. The scouts sent out returned with news. Their faces were pallid.

  “Captain! Just like the Young Master said, there’s a hidden cavern north of this place! Around twenty minutes of march away!”

  “And we’ve… we’ve seen them! Goblins! We’ve seen two of them when we peeked inside the cavern!”

  Since the voices of the scouts were loud and frantic, coupled with the silent forest, the surrounding soldiers heard it. Numerous gasping sounds escaped the soldiers’ lips, some nervously looked around, probably afraid of Goblins suddenly attacking them from the shadows.

  Captain Qarat creased his brows. “Good work. Await further orders.”

  The scouts saluted. “Yes, sir!”

  After the scouts left, Qarat approached the Young Master. Contrary to his expectations, the Young Master was rather calm. It was probably because from the start, the Young Master really believed that there really were monsters in this part of the forest.

  Qarat felt a bit ashamed that he doubted his Lord’s words.

  “Young Sir, the scouts spotted Goblins in a cavern nearby,” said Qarat.

  Lark grinned. “Tell the soldiers to assemble their spears. March until we’re a five hundred steps away from the target. From there, start unloading those things from the carts and assemble them. That should be easy enough, yes?”

  “Understood,” said Qarat. As he was bowing his head, he peered at the Young Master for a moment. “Sir, if this soldier may ask…”

  Lark stared back. “What is it?”

  There was a moment of hesitation from Qarat. “Is it really alright to use spears? Each of the soldiers are also equipped with short swords. I believe that when fighting inside the cavern, those long spears will hinder us instead. I suggest that we use short swords.”

  Lark was pleased that at least this soldier had common sense. And he was also pleased that he was courageous enough to speak of his thoughts and suggestions. Lark approvingly nodded at this.

  “What you’ve said is correct,” said Lark. “Fighting with spears when inside the cavern is nothing but foolishness. But Captain Qarat — we wouldn’t be fighting inside the cavern.”

  Seeing the confused look of the captain, Lark continued. “We’ll be smoking the Goblins out. That’s why we’ve bothered to bring wooden stakes and hemp ropes with us. We’ll make a defensive line with those things. We’ll fight them outside.”

  Qarat remembered the wooden stakes and hemp ropes that filled the first five carts.

  “Disseminate the orders to the soldiers. I want the preparations to be completed within two hours.”

  Qarat left and began issuing his orders to the soldiers. Immediately the small army began to march once again. Upon reaching their destination, they began setting up wooden fences using wooden stakes and
hemp ropes. There were small gaps between the stakes, which would, according to the Young Master, become a convenient place to thrust their spears through. Small pitfalls were placed in front of the fence, which were immediately covered with leaves.

  Now, all that was left was to force the Goblins outside of the cavern. Once outside, they would have no choice but to clash against the soldiers behind the barricade.

  If only I have more gold in the treasury, I wouldn’t be rushing the subjugation like this. I don’t know when I’ll find another monster’s den. A waste of experience, really, since these guys will be fighting behind already-made defenses. But if they fight the Goblins head-on, there’ll surely be casualties. These guys aren’t proper soldiers yet.

  Lark sighed. He jumped down the carriage. Under the command of Captain Qarat, the soldiers gathered before the Young Master. Their spears were already assembled, spanning almost two meters in length. On their waists, short swords dangled.

  Lark had decided to make them fight without using the magic weapons he had made. For now, it would be better if these guys had a hard time fighting against the Goblins. Several wounds or maybe a severed finger or two would be good too. It’ll drill into them what a real battlefield was like.

  “Listen, from here on, we’ll be fighting against monsters – Goblins. A small army of them.”

  Some of the soldiers swallowed, while some quivered upon hearing the name of the monsters come out of the Young Master’s mouth. Although Goblins were at the bottom of the hierarchy of monsters, they were still creatures stronger than these hastily made soldiers. In a one-on-one battle, they would probably be victorious over these men.

  Lark was getting a headache when he thought of this. Giving them the magic armor and spears would immediately give these guys an overwhelming advantage, but that would be putting the cart ahead of the horse.

  “Your job is simple.” Lark pointed at the small entrance in the fence. “Kill all the Goblins that will come out of that pathway. At most, only two or three of them will come at a time. There’s more than fifty of you. Use those damn weapons to kill them.”