After hearing Newwood’s expnation, Henwell feels a chill run down his spine. “What problems do I have here? Why can't I get the attention of the people from Abundant Continent?”

  Newwood shakes his head. “That, I don’t know. All I was told was to distract the Abundant Continent delegation’s attention.”

  Henwell suddenly thinks aloud, “Is it because of my smelting industry and that steam engine?”

  Newwood ughs. “There are plenty of smart people in the world. Don’t think your little projects are enough to make the Abundant Continent’s empire nervous.”

  ”Besides Abundant Continent, there’s the Divine Continent, where magical tech is incredibly advanced. At your current pace, it’ll take hundreds of years before they even start to concern about you. The real reason outsiders shouldn’t notice probably has more to do with your system and ideology.”

  Newwood jumps down from the bed and forcefully breaks free from the Shackles of Civilization.

  At this moment, both Newwood and Henwell suppress their killing intent. The strength of the Shackles keeps fading until Newwood easily breaks them, and no new chains appear.

  Newwood walks over to the window, gazing out into the night. “While I’ve been healing here, I’ve seen a lot. You’re effectively wiping out the entire noble css, aiming to build a unified feudal dynasty. Sure, nobles will still exist, but those without nd won’t have the power to resist the central authority.”

  “Losing nd means losing armies. Without those two, nobles become nothing more than puppets the emperor can dispose of with a word.”

  Henwell knows this all too well, which is why he never dares to rebel. Otherwise, every noble would see him as an enemy.

  Only if Peace Haven is strong enough, with new social csses rising outside the nobility, can Henwell continue expanding.

  But it’s a slow, gradual encroachment—not a swift conquest.

  That’s why Henwell carefully ys pns across regions.

  Only when Peace Haven has enough new ruling csses to repce the nobles can it unch major expansions.

  This is a long game, measured in decades or more.

  Rushing won’t work.

  Conquering the world isn’t a gambler’s all-in bet.

  It’s about steadily accumuting small advantages until they become overwhelming.

  There’s no room for luck or carelessness.

  Underestimating or belittling your enemy is just digging your own grave.

  Newwood then turns to Henwell and asks, “Brother, what’s your name?”

  Henwell pauses for a moment before saying a name that feels a bit unfamiliar to him: “Barry Allen.”

  “Heh! Barry Allen! That name reminds me of a certain superhero,” Newwood chuckles.

  Henwell ughs along, “It’s just a kind of mental anchor for me.”

  Newwood extends his right hand. “Well then, Henwell! Nice to meet you! I’m Newwood!”

  That long-lost formality strikes a chord with Henwell, who also reaches out his hand. “Hello, Newwood! Meeting you in this damn world makes me gd too!”

  Their palms csp tightly. Two lonely souls, fighting in a strange world, finally find a genuine moment of comfort.

  They sit down together, and instead of diving into his own questions, Henwell asks Newwood, “So, what’s your pn now? How’s your injury? Need any help? Money? Or extraordinary resources?”

  Newwood shakes his head. “I’m almost healed. I’ll stay here no longer than a month, then I’m leaving this continent. Right now, I’m mainly hiding from a round of detection. The Holy Spirit Church’s Oracle Magic and the Groias Empire’s Great Prophecy Magic can’t lock onto this pce.”

  Henwell frowns. “Why is that?”

  Newwood shrugs. “I don’t know, but that’s what my superiors told me. He said you can avoid a lot of surveilnce here. I’m curious about it too!”

  He smiles and adds, “But don’t worry, I’m not just freeloading! I’ll pay rent! So, tell me, what do you need here?”

  Henwell doesn’t hold back. After all, they’re essentially tied together now.

  “I need high-level metal formus. I want to create even better extraordinary alloys!”

  Henwell expects Newwood, who’s well-traveled and knowledgeable, to agree right away. But to his surprise, Newwood refuses.

  Frowning, Newwood says, “I do know a lot of high-level extraordinary alloy formus, but I can’t give them to you. Not just that, anything reted to magic here, like potions or magical knowledge, I’m not allowed to share.”

  Henwell is taken aback for a moment, then cautiously asks, “You mean... that’s the order from above?”

  Newwood doesn’t answer directly, but his silence confirms it.

  Henwell starts to piece things together. Maybe the higher-ups want him to develop these things himself, not just copy them outright. It probably ties into that whole civilization advancement, the light of civilization, and the shackles of civilization stuff.

  Still not satisfied, Henwell presses on, “What about intel on Abundant Continent? Surely you can tell me something!”

  But Newwood shakes his head again. “No. Saying too little is pointless; saying too much would put you in danger. Remember, this is a world full of magic with countless incredible abilities. Some things, some people—once you know about them, powerful professionals involved will notice. So don’t rush. When the time comes for you to access that info, you’ll have your channels.”

  “For now, your main focus should be on expanding your territory and influence.”

  Henwell thinks it over and realizes Newwood’s right.

  His primary mission remains making Peace Haven stronger.

  Later, he’ll have to pn how to seize a kingdom’s nds, whether to start with Ogiro or Vorry.

  But that doesn’t mean Newwood holds no value for him.

  There’s one organization that’s always lurked in the shadows for Henwell.

  Maybe Newwood can shed some light on it.

  Henwell tells him about the Veil Organization.

  Newwood thinks for a moment. “Yeah, that group exists. They have ties to Abundant Continent and even Divine Continent. But from those two continents’ perspective, they’re a terrorist organization. You can cooperate with them, but be careful—getting involved with them is a headache if others find out.”

  Henwell asks, “Worse than if they found out about you?”

  “About the same, maybe even worse,” Newwood replies.

  Henwell drops the topic, mentally recalibrating his pns around the Veil Organization.

  Then he makes a request: “Can you help me get some weapons and gear? High-level stuff. I’m already at Iron Knight rank, but my old equipment’s broken. I have no way to get Iron Knight-grade gear right now, and I don’t want anyone here to know I’m at that rank. It’d mess up my pns to quietly scheme against them.”