The situations right now, is clear, Bina and Lucas and also all the Military command chain knows and agreed to the point that the High Tiered dungeons is precious, both as a luxury resource and also a growth training for the soldiers. But at the same time, they also worried and rather anxious to speaks out about it, and to tell others about their suggestion, after all my initial orders is to clear all the dungeons without any exceptions. In another words all of them are currently questioning my very order, and that is something that the entire military didn’t want anyone to know about.After all, of all Ministry in Aeternum, the military should be the last one that were to in any case questioned the order that I, as the president has put out. These very behaviour can already be considered a borderline treason, in any other kingdom, if these weren’t Aeternum, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that all of them might be getting punished at once. In all means, I got where they were coming
As of now, the Military has been right on track with everything. The 2 new bases has been built and already operational and soon enough it will enters it’s peak usage and finally finalized the plans of all Aeternum military in a singular regions. Thus solidify my grip of power of my soldiers, with no chances of anything bad every happened at all. Even though I doubt that rebellion can happened to in Aeternum, at the end of the day, I am someone that is not keen to test whether a rebellion can happen or not. I always play it safe and will always be.Aside from the bases and all the new infrastructures, Military also started to implemented the new systems of ranking and also the overhaul of the entire military looks. Soldier started to wear the new badges and plates, on top of these, they also started to fashionably wears the new uniform designs. Which now, the soldier looks even more striking and appealing to the eyes. The looks were rather modernized and refreshing, almost like the f
As we were leaving the military base, a lot of people were suddenly just crowding at the side of the road from the base all the way to the Shark East Town. Looking at all of the people that were on the road side, it felt as if they were celebrating a festival or something. Which is rather a surprise to me, then I come to know that actually in the radio news, the words of me have come down and toured all the cities and region in Aeternum has made it out and were known to everyone. It was all thanks to Yggdrasil who called the radio station, requesting a song as she always does everyday, then when asked by the DJ she just casually answered it.Hence why there is so many people were here, looking at me, and cheering. Not there is much that I can do, but just waves around, thanks to the sudden celebratory atmosphere, I was accompanied out of the town by the saddened Mayor Baron Renoa. The Vampire Mayor who rushed out of his office, had to ride a horse with his Knights on to the road to c
At the Aeternum Agriculture Region, as of the moment, the entire regions were filled with activities, and to be precise, there is only 3 main activities that were currently going and, first is farming, which is all the region were about, and the second were the exterminations of wild monsters and dungeons. As for the third, it was following the entire country current trend, which is a full scale development, if in the north the project were lead by the Military, in the Agriculture Region, the Project were lead by the Resource Department itself, with Andrea at the forefront of it all. Personally she were on the scene from day one, overseeing the entire region, making sure that everything is as it should be.Currently the Agriculture Region have 4 towns inside the entire region, with it forming an equal side of square and right in the centre of it all, is the Agriculture Town. Which currently in the middle of being turned into a city, Large scale infrastructure constructions were curren
“Oi!..there’s a job at the east of Rice Town.. the Soldier’s said it wast the designated Dungeons for Adventurers and mercenaries…they said it will be open for 2 more days before the destroy order were issued out..”. ( Adventure Jack )“Really?…That’s neat…at least now we got another income source….the dungeons we went in yesterday..just got raided by the The Dukedom of Angela Knights…they already bought it…”. (Mercenaries Lina)“They’re rich..let them be…beside no matter who bought the dungeons…the right only lasted for these month…everything will be destroyed anyway…at the very least the Associations will always let us get our shares…”. (Adventurer Johnson)“Yep..I agreed…at least, compared to the Guilds before…being an Association members is more lucrative and rather easy…they pays more, more benefits..and we no longer get treated like garbage..”. (Adventurer Jack)Inside the roadside restaurant, at the Agriculture Town entrance, the inside of the restaurant and also the outdoor di
Aeternum Association Members were all loving their respected association, albeit they were still relatively new, after experiencing a lot of good things, naturally they wanted for it to lasted forever. But in reality, even if the Association were great, they are currently only available only in Aeternum. Whilst a lot of their job and desires always wanted them to move and roam around the place all over the central continent. All of them are secretly hoping that Association would soon be spread all over the continent, if not for spreading the good news to the masses, at least they wanted to be served by the associations for their own comfort. Therefore, Mercenary Lina inside news is definitely a news that everyone wanted to hear, if the other country also joined in in the Associations, wouldn’t it be great for them too.“Are you kidding me, Lina?…they are all here to discuss about association?…”. (Adventurer Jack)“Well, all that I can say is…it is highly possible…just look around us…
We’ve been driving straight from the shark region all the way to the Agriculture Town, naturally we were all famished by now. Since that was the case, I stopped by at the town signature restaurant, Aunty Beth’s. which also the oldest restaurant in the town, who’s able to opened it’s business thanks to my personal arrangement’s. Aunty Beth is one of the Aeternum first generation residents, I’ve known her and to be honest, about 80% of her current recipes, is all coming from me. She is quite a great cook, but at the same time, she is also a stubborn person and have a nasty habit of being rather straight forward all the time.Even so, her personality when she were around me and also around the Ministers, who has been the pillar of Aeternum and the one that saves her from the clutch of slavery, she is very mindful and respectful of us. It has been a year since o last come and see’s her, and looking at the restaurant right now, which is at full capacity, and with her husband and 8 children
“Thanks, Beth…See you around…”.“You too, Your Highness, Take care..”. (Auntie Beth)Getting all my packaged foods, out of the bustling restaurant, we left the restaurant at once. After all, as of right now, it was already 4 in the afternoon. The sun already started to dip into the horizon, and naturally the traffic that comes into the town started to become heavy. Although, it was rather rare to see any Aeternum cars, still a lot of people were still using their carriage. As far as my eye can see, the Knights riding horses and carriage are already coming in, I knew that all of them is from the allied nation.Also from what I know, there were Kings and queen as well as nobles, prince and princess in the midst. I don’t want to stumble with them at all, who knows how long they would hold me up. Especially when I have so much on my plate right now. Without further ado, Bina drives the Jeep and head straight to the Presidential residence here in the town. The Presidential Residence here w
“But that’s not all,” he said. “We’re not just building stores. We’re buying land.”Elijah’s eyes narrowed. “Land?”Andrea arched a brow. “Personal Aeternum-controlled territory?”“Exactly,” Mies said. “We’ll negotiate the purchase and designation of sovereign Aeternum land within Hallerus. Locations where we will build permanent structures—embassies, farms, factories. Property they can’t touch. Not legally. Not politically.”Andrea crossed her arms. “You want to turn this alliance into territorial leverage.”“I want security,” Mies said. “We trusted them once. And they betrayed us. This time, we own the pieces on the board. If they want access to food and prosperity, they give us something real in return. Soil.”Elijah nodded. “No oversight from their monarchy. No interference. Full extraterritorial jurisdiction.”Mies smiled. “Exactly. We build an Aeternum that lives inside their walls. One they can’t tear down without declaring war.”Andrea added, “And when we build those farms and
“We’re proud Aeternians now,” said one local organizer. “But we remember where we came from. If we can help fix the old home while serving the new one, why not?”In university lecture halls, students debated passionately.“Strategically, re-integrating Hallerus into Aeternum’s economic sphere is a no-brainer,” one economics major argued. “We’ll be able to shape their policies from within.”“But trust is a currency too,” another replied. “If we spend it on the wrong partner again, we might pay more than we think.”In a small park in the east district, a group of Aeternum veterans sat on a bench, medals on their coats, eyes on the screens showing news footage of Andrea’s visit.“You remember that street?” one said, pointing.“I remember clearing it house by house,” another replied. “They cheered us one day. Chased us out the next.”The youngest of them, silent until now, finally spoke.“We gave them peace once. Maybe it’s time to give them a future.”Silence followed. No one disagreed.
“Accepted,” Helen said firmly.Andrea paused. “You are aware that this pricing is higher than what our allied nations pay?”“I am.”“And that it reflects the cost of your past decisions.”“I am aware.”Andrea’s expression didn’t soften. But there was a shift. A sliver of respect, perhaps.“We also request that Queen Helen and her full court travel to New Concordia,” Andrea said. “To sign the official alliance treaty in Aeternum, under President Mies' direct oversight.”That stung.A silent reminder: You no longer stand as an equal.But Helen did not flinch. “We will come.”Merrica remained quiet beside her, eyes locked forward, proud but weathered. He knew this was necessary. He knew, like her, that survival always demanded a cost.And this was the only path forward.Andrea stood, signaling the end of the meeting. “Then prepare your delegation. You have one week.”As Andrea and her entourage exited, Helen remained still, her hand brushing the edge of the map of Hallerus that lay on th
“I can prep the full economic framework in three days. I’ll soften it slightly—give them just enough dignity to sign without choking.”“Good,” I said. “Let them keep their crown and their pride, as long as we own their economy.”Andrea gave a subtle nod. “Then I’ll schedule the official visit. They’ll come to us.”“And when they do,” I said, voice cold and precise, “we’ll welcome them with smiles. And let them know who holds the scales now.”Andrea paused. “Anything else you want me to add in the background?”“Yes,” I said after a moment. “Tell them we’ll open an Aeternum Super Store in the capital as a gesture of goodwill. Make it sound benevolent.”Andrea smirked. “And on the inside?”“It’s a spearhead,” I said. “Once we’re in, we don’t leave.”“Understood, Mr. President.”The screen blinked as the call ended. I turned to Elijah, who was already compiling the summary.“Draft the formal invitation,” I ordered. “Summon Queen Helen and her full court to New City. They’ll arrive as sove
“This city is broken,” she said at last.“Which means it’s ripe,” Jessica added with a glint in her eye. “Imagine if we opened Aeternum Super Store branches here. Not just in the capital—but in every major city.”Robert nodded. “We’d dominate the market before they even knew what hit them. Food, tech, textiles. We could monopolize the entire consumer chain.”Andrew chuckled, finally seeing the silver lining. “We’d be heroes to the people. And villains to the nobles—well, if any are still left standing.”“People like what fills their stomachs,” Jessica said. “Right now, they’re starving for quality. They’ll welcome us like saviors.”Andrea folded her arms, surveying the square again. She could already envision the clean, modern storefronts replacing the crumbling stalls. Self-sanitizing kiosks. Subsidized food packs. Nutritional water stations. Supply chains optimized by Aeternum AI logistics.“This city’s a blank slate now,” she said softly. “Their failure is our opportunity. And this
“Minister Andrea, Her Majesty sends word. She invites you to join her in the council chamber once your tour is complete.”Andrea nodded without looking at him. “Tell her I’ll return shortly. Let her know the city has spoken louder than any court could.”The young man paled but bowed again and hurried off.Andrea resumed walking. “They’re ashamed. Helen saw the city, I’m sure. She knew I’d see this mess.”“She should be ashamed,” Jessica said. “But she’s trying. And she listened to her uncle, at least.”“Yes,” Andrea admitted. “That’s the only reason we’re even here.”They continued walking in silence until they reached the edge of the once-thriving industrial sector. The machinery was still, some pieces looted, others rusting like ancient bones. Andrea crouched beside a discarded engine part, running her fingers over the insignia stamped on the metal.“Aeternum-built,” she whispered. “We left it here. And they left it to rot.”She stood, her voice tightening. “No more gifts. No more r
“I come bearing news from President Mies,” Andrea said. “He has authorized me to reestablish economic relations between Aeternum and Hallerus.”The words fell like rain on droughted soil. Gasps. Whispers. And then—cheers stifled by etiquette.Helen blinked. “You’re serious?”Andrea raised a brow. “I don’t waste time, Your Majesty. Our logistics and trade units will begin routing initial shipments within two weeks. In exchange, we’d like preferred trading status for key Hallerian exports. Wheat. Marble. Blackvine spices.”Helen nodded rapidly. “Of course. Anything.”Andrea turned her gaze slightly. “Be aware: the initial tariffs will reflect… the past breakdown in our diplomatic relations.”A slight smile touched her lips. Not warm. Calculated.Helen bowed her head, just enough. “A fair penalty. One we accept.”Andrea’s expression softened—barely. “Good. Then consider today the first page in a new chapter.”Helen stepped forward. “Minister Andrea, may I speak plainly?”Andrea nodded on
“We’re sending an envoy,” I said. “I want a diplomatic team ready to leave within the week. Formal clothes, soft language, but firm posture. They’ll deliver the proposal to reopen channels with Hallerus.”Andrea raised an eyebrow. “And if they hesitate?”“They won’t,” I said. “Helen’s smarter than she was. She knows what Aeternum means now—not just power. Stability. Progress. A future. Her people know it too. They’re already lining up to buy our products again. Her economy needs us more than she’d ever admit.”Andrea took notes. “Do we offer full partnership or just trade?”“Start with trade. Let her work for the rest.”Elijah crossed his arms. “You’re playing the long game.”“Always,” I said. “She showed backbone. Now she has to show consistency. If Hallerus stays clean, stays reformed, we talk alliance in two years. Maybe joint ventures. Maybe intelligence sharing.”Andrea looked up. “And if they regress?”“Then the gloves come off,” I said. “I owe Merrica nothing now. The ledger is
“Shadow diplomacy?”“Shared progress,” I corrected. “No puppet states. No conquest. We build allies, not subjects.”“And if she fails?”“She won’t.”“You trust her?”“I trust momentum.”Silence settled between us. Weighty. Calculated.“She came to the edge,” I said. “She looked down. She chose to climb.”I placed my palm on the table. Pulled up the interlink data from the last ACIA relay. A still frame of Helen and Merrica, standing beside a new council—half of them former commoners. Not a single noble.“She’s rewriting the code of kingship,” Elijah said.“She’s writing history.”Elijah nodded. “I’ll alert the Council of Governors. Phase One integration can begin. Cultural exchange programs. Civil training volunteers.”“Quiet. Measured.”“As always.”I watched the horizon past the glass. My reflection stared back. Older now. Sharper.“Hallerus lives,” I said.Elijah placed the closed folder back into his case. “And Aeternum listens.”I sat behind the presidential desk, sunlight spilli