"But first, let's finish up here."
"As you command," the three of them replied respectfully in unison. All of them bore witness to Caesar's power, and they knew that if they followed him, they would reach greater heights than ever before.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
The three figures behind Caesar didn't hesitate a second longer after hearing his commands; they lifted their weapons and immediately utilized their mana.
A strong wind erupted from Soka, while an intense flame erupted from Falthor. Last, but not least, a steady tide of water coiled around Rakan's body.
The few elites behind each of them also channeled their mana, and soon, a few dozen or so magic attacks were sent flying towards the enormous balls of fire that were still moving straight at them.
Caesar didn't just stand around and do nothing; he raised his slender hand and used what little mana he had left. A few ice crystals surrounded him and the others around him, effectively lowering the temperature.
One side had a vast diversity in elements, while the other side was just raw flame. As both sides about collided, Faust dashed away to steer clear of the aftermath, although he wanted to win, his life was more important than a lost cause.
The two huge masses of mana clashed, the clouds in the sky split, and the temperature was constantly fluctuating.
The birds in the nearby forests were startled and quickly flapped their wings in an attempt to escape. It wasn't just the birds, the earth trembling below their feet scared off many land beasts as well.
Caesar, who was currently in the eye of the storm, smiled widely. His troops that were scattered around the training grounds caught up with them and started to release their remaining mana at the balls of fire.
Soon, dozens turned into hundreds, and the small suns were finally being pushed back, their heat dropping and their size, visibly shrinking.
The clan heads that were behind their respective suns' started to frown. Their expressions grew anxious as they glanced between one another continually.
"Where is Faust?" One of them asked frantically.
"Once Azir interrupted his channeling, I assume he didn't have enough mana to cast another sun of that magnitude…" Leo replied, his face ashen with a small trail of blood trailing down his lower lip.
"GODDAMNIT, HOW ARE WE LOSING? THIS IS THE 13 SUN TECHNIQUE!" Another clan head roared crazily. He truly could not understand how they were losing.
Their rambling was soon interrupted by a crackling sound, the flames in the middle were losing their vibrant color, and even an outsider would be able to determine that the small suns' were going to lose their life at any second.
Caesar's lips curled even further and soon, the bright light that once illuminated the training grounds was gone, Caesar raised his hand to halt his soldiers' actions.
"Pause!" He roared at the last second.
His men all obliged and stopped their actions, they waited for the dust to settle, and shortly, 12 heavily breathing figures presented themselves from behind the dust.
Their bodies were overflowing with sweat and were exhausted. Azir, the green-haired man, was unconscious.
Caesar treaded toward the clan heads with slow and steady steps while loudly clapping his hands. His face carried a playful smile.
"You have all fought valiantly, alas, it would appear that my side has won… As the victors do not gain any physical rewards of any sort, those that were defeated naturally need to be punished."
His words paused as he scanned the training grounds, looking at all of the enemy soldiers slowly waking up, as well as Faust, whose expression was extremely downcast.
"You see, your clan has a dire food problem, to counter this problem, we need your crops to live longer, to do this, it is our job, to create a drainage system, well, it is now your job, I suppose," Caesar said sarcastically.
"T-this wasn't a part of the initial deal, you said this was just a friend skirmish," one of the clan heads said through clenched teeth.
"This was indeed a friendly battle. However, the training session is still going on. Think of this as a part of your training," Caesar replied. "Anyhow, that's enough chatter. I want the 13 of you to dig a relatively large ditch circling the stronghold. At the same time, I also want you to dig small pathways next to the farm so that if water were to rain down on the plants, they would drain into the ditch," Caesar calmly explained, once we knew the clan heads were listening carefully.
"Y-you bastard, do you really thin-"
His words were cut off by Faust, who waved his hand to silence him. "We'll do it. I refuse to lose any more face than I already have. The losers naturally need to be punished, and I will personally see to it that the ditches you asked for are completed."
Caesar nodded his head in recognition and turned around to face his soldiers, they all had broad smiles on their faces, and their mood was easy to discern.
"All of you have exceeded my expectations. I can't help but admire that feat. Although you do not gain any reward, in particular, you have gained not only my respect but also the clan leaders," Caesar said while shifting his attention to Musashi.
The soldiers followed suit, and the gleeful smile on their faces couldn't help but widen, they didn't care about rewards. They could go home and brag to their friends and family 'we beat the clan heads in a battle!'
The troops all turned their attention back to Caesar, and as if it was scheduled, they bowed at the same time. "Thank for leading us, Commander," they roared out in unison.
Adoration and respect were oozing out of the soldiers. They truly felt compelled to follow the man in front of them. Not to mention, he had led them to victory, while the clan heads lost to him. The thing they respected the most was, in fact, strength.
"No, I must thank all of you, a battle is not only won by the commanders, but also the soldiers… you may all leave and rest early tonight" Caesar spoke humbly and released all of the troops home, he wanted to let them sleep on their victory.
"THANK YOU, SIR!" they shouted at the top of their lungs and scurried away with excited smiles, presumably enthusiastic about telling their families.
Caesar looked through the exiting soldiers and spotted a dirty looking human, hiding amongst them, he pointed his figure at him and reminded the soldiers.
"Someone, make sure that man makes it back to temporary housing, if you can't find anything, throw him in a jail cell for tonight," he ordered, to which Ronny's happy smile faded and was replaced by anguish."
"As you command," a few fox-kin men replied and grabbed Ronny by the arms.
Once they left, Caesar was a solitary figure in the middle of the training grounds, appearing almost desolate.
Caesar turned around at the sound of footsteps, and Musashi's figure appeared in his line of sight.
"To think you would gain their adoration, at the same time as tarnishing the clan heads," Musashi spoke while deep in thought.
"Haha, this helps you as well, if their authority fades, then you will be able to lead without the fear of backlash, correct?" Caesar said with a chuckle.
"Indeed…" Musashi replied with a hesitant look on his face.
Seeing his hesitant look, Caesar knew what he was worried about, "don't worry, I won't take your throne unless it's given to me," Caesar said reassuringly.
"Sigh, make sure you win that tournament, also, meet me at my room, tomorrow at noon," Musashi said with a deep sigh and disappeared from Caesar's sight.
Caesar stood there in silence for a moment, "U-Uhm… good job" A slightly embarrassed and shy voice sounded out from behind Caesar… he turned around and could see Renee's somewhat short, but beautiful and seductive figure being illuminated by the moonlight.
Caesar didn't hesitate to pick her up in a princess carry and smile seductively, "what happened to that feisty personality from the bar?" he asked in a deep voice.
Renee averted her eyes, and her face visibly reddened, "w-when Charlie told everyone what happened that night, I-I
realized you were faking your intoxication… I apologize for being angry at you," Renee said shyly, she was genuinely apologetic for being so angry that night.
"It's only natural you would angry at me for getting drunk with some other lass. If I had found you were drinking with another man, Charlie, for instance, I would probably rip his throat out," Caesar said while licking his lips, his tone seductive. However, his words the opposite.
"Rip his throat-" Renee's words were cut off by Caesar stealing her lips, he gently carried her while running to her room.
"Don't worry about such small things. I am not so petty that I would get angry at you for something so silly." Caesar said reassuringly while opening the door to her room. Looking at her disheveled look, he found it hard to hold himself back.
'Sigh, If I didn't have to meet that old man so early, I would surely indulge… alas,' Caesar thought to himself bitterly while undressed and putting his undergarments on and sliding into bed. He tried not to pay much attention to Renee as he didn't want to lose control.
Soon, only the sound of breathing exited the room.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Loud banging echoed throughout the room and abruptly woke both Caesar and Renee up. The afternoon sun rays seeped into the room, giving off a very soothing atmosphere.
Caesar ripped the covers off of his body and walked to the door. He was shirtless with a pair of loose black pants. His morning hair was scattered over his shoulders, resulting in him having a very seductive 'bad boy' look.
Caesar opened the door, still half asleep, and peered down at the short lass that was enthusiastically knocking on the door.
His sleepy eyes, combined with his perfect abdominal muscles, may have been too much stimulation for the poor girl, as she just looked at Caesar with a blank look for a few seconds.
"Do you need anything?" Caesar couldn't help but ask quietly.
"Ahem, right, it's time for the empresses bath," the young maid cleared her throat and explained shyly.
"I see," Caesar said with understanding while scratching his hair and yawning loudly, he turned back from the door and headed to the bathroom to splash some water on his face.
Renee, who was awoken at the same time as Caesar, was already preparing to head out. It was clear that she had previously known why the maid was knocking on her door.
"Okay, I'm leaving, I'll see you tonight" Renee shouted excitedly before leaving the room.
Caesar, who was now in the bathroom, splashed some water on his face and shook his head with a wry smile after hearing Renee's excitement.
He lazily brushed his hair and put on a black overcoat with tight black jeans, he looked into the mirror and could see his lazily brushed hair resting on his shoulders combined with his casual clothes. He gave off a very different atmosphere than his usual sophisticated look.
Caesar just sighed and walked out of the room. He didn't feel like dressing nicely just because he was going to meet Musashi. He traveled through the long corridors and walked past the many guards until he finally reached the core of the mansion.
Caesar approached the large double doors and nodded towards the two guards protecting it, once the guards noticed Caesar, they bowed respectfully and opened the doors, allowing passage.
Caesar nodded thankfully and walked through the doors. He then passed the long hallway and reached the elegant looking door, that he had seen the last time he came here.
Caesar gently knocked on the door and patiently waited. He could hear rushed footsteps from the other side of the door until finally, the door opened.
Musashi appeared in the doorway with a simple, darkish green kimono; he had a broad smile on his face and welcomed Caesar inside.
"Come in, come in," he said while gesturing to his room…
Caesar walked past Musashi while glancing at him curiously, "what did you want to talk about?" he asked.
Musashi closed the door and walked towards his bed to sit down, seeing this, Caesar pulled the chair from a nearby desk and sat down in front of him.
An awkward silence ensued for a few moments before Musashi coughed and grabbed Caesar's attention.
"Look, as you probably already know, I don't have much longer to live… My son, Renee's father, was my pride and joy, alas, he was abruptly taken from me" Musashi opened up with a solemn face, vastly different from his routinely, carefree smile.
"My granddaughter happened to inherit the nine-tailed fox bloodline, a rare and ancient race that could even rival the vampires. Therefore, she will face many, many roadblocks as she walks through life. As my only remaining family, I would love to be there and help her along the way. But, fate has different plans for me," Musashi explained in a depressed tone.
Caesar's piercing red eyes flashed, he could see many weaknesses within Musashi's body, more so, around his heart. "Why are you discussing this with me and not Renee?" Caesar asked.
"Sigh, it's not as though I don't want to, I'm fearful of her reaction…" Musashi replied downcast.
"Renee isn't as weak as you think. The longer you keep this from her, the more hurt she will be. Still, that's just my opinion; this can't be the only reason you asked me to come here, right?" Caesar spoke while deep in thought.
"Haha, I just wanted to vent out what was hidden in my heart, and you are correct, this is not the main reason why I asked you here. I initially asked you to come here because I wanted to train you in the ways of mana manipulation. After watching your last battle, I realized that your ice magic is unbelievably powerful, more condensed, cold, and solid than any other Ice magic I've ever seen. But, because of your crude manipulation methods, it is unrefined and weak," Musashi explained and took a tobacco pipe from god knows where.
Caesar rested his chin in the palms of his hand and held a contemplative expression, "I had thought that each affinity had a different method of control?" Caesar asked curiously.
"Well, that's true. However, I can still teach you how to control your element… just because we have different affinities doesn't essentially mean my experience wouldn't benefit you."
Caesar stood up from his chair, "very well. I will not decline any method to gain strength. Let's get started," Caesar said straightforwardly.
Musashi stood up and rested his hands on Caesar's back, "I will help direct your mana. This is the only thing I am capable of doing. If you had used the weapon that your ancestors used, I could perhaps help you a bit more," Musashi whispered regretfully, just barely enough for Caesar to hear.
"The weapon my ancestors used?" Caesar asked bewildered
"A very long staff-like weapon that has a sharp curve. It was sometimes used to reap fields. Consequently, once the four progenitors used it, it became known as a cursed weapon of death and is forbidden to be crafted"
Caesar's eyes squinted, and he took a weapon out of his storage. It was the scythe he had found in the dwarven treasury room.
"Is this the weapon that you're talking about?" Caesar asked while tilting his head to the side.
Musashi's eyes nearly popped out of their socket once he saw what Caesar brought out, "w-w-where did you find this" he asked.
"In a mountain!" Caesar replied curtly
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Caesar leisurely spun the long scythe in his hands, to which Musashi just followed the weapon with his eyes incredulously.
"You said you got this from a mountain?" Musashi asked, baffled.
"Not just any mountain, to be precise, it was a dwarven mountain… This weapon was hidden in one of their treasuries," Caesar explained with a calm smile.
Musashi's shock died down a tad bit after hearing Caesar's words. He had initially thought that Caesar just picked it up on a nearby mountain.
Musashi reached out with his hands and yanked the Scythe out of Caesar's grasp, he streaked his fingers across the metal and couldn't help but smile widely, noticing the refinement and elegance of the beautiful piece of craft.
"This is a remarkable piece of work, count yours
elf extremely lucky…" Musashi said while begrudgingly handing back the scythe.
Caesar took back the Scythe and took a closer look at it. He couldn't help but feel that it was just a standard weapon. Albeit, crafted slightly better than others. He couldn't understand Musashi's excitement.
"According to my understanding, a weapon as large as this is somewhat impractical, are you sure it's as great as you make it out to be? In my eyes, it would be best used to reap fields," Caesar said doubtfully.
CEO in a Fantasy World 3 Page 13