Henwell travels nearly three hundred kilometers south in just two days.

  When he reaches Lake Wheat City, he slows down.

  This is the Western Federation’s second-rgest city, even a bit bigger than Guardian City.

  After all, it’s the Groias Empire’s core stronghold in the region.

  With over 800,000 permanent residents inside the city and more than four million counting the surrounding satellite towns and vilges, this massive city-state is bustling.

  To Henwell, Lake Wheat City is even better than Guardian City in many ways. It’s more livable, more comfortable.

  Like Guardian City, this giant city is built on the foundation of a war fortress.

  Its defenses and design specs are superior to Guardian City’s.

  Plus, Lake Wheat City sits between two major rivers, with a huge innd ke called Lake Wheat to the northwest.

  Its seafood and grain production are impressive, enough to make the city nearly self-sufficient.

  This gives Lake Wheat City strong resilience against risks, combined with its rge popution and tall, sturdy city walls.

  By all rights, this city should be the capital of the Western Federation.

  But there’s one thing Guardian City has that Lake Wheat City just can’t match.

  First, the concentration of extraordinary elements in Lake Wheat City is at least a third lower than in Guardian City.

  Second—and most importantly, Lake Wheat City has no direct route to the Abundant Continent.

  These two factors keep Lake Wheat City under Guardian City’s shadow.

  The Western Federation exists as a way for the two giants on the Abundant Continent to control and monitor the Forgotten Continent.

  So having a passage to the Abundant Continent is crucial.

  Also, the Western Federation’s prosperity relies on a higher concentration of extraordinary elements compared to the eastern countries.

  Don’t underestimate that one-third difference in element concentration.

  The chance of awakening extraordinary abilities isn’t just one-third lower, it’s way more, sometimes even double.

  Especially for professionals trying to break through limits, a one-third higher concentration means several times the chance of success.

  These two advantages cement Guardian City as the Western Federation’s core.

  If it weren’t for its location between two big rivers, making transport easy and allowing it to grab more extraordinary resources from the east, Lake Wheat City would struggle even more to retain top professionals.

  But Henwell personally likes Lake Wheat City way more than Guardian City.

  Life here feels more vibrant, less like Guardian City, which is almost a religious city through and through.

  Also, the city’s craftsmanship is more developed, and agriculture has a solid foundation.

  If you take control here, you can grow fast.

  Of course, if Henwell ever really makes a move, he’ll have to focus on taking down Guardian City.

  Otherwise, once the Groias Empire and Holy Spirit Church catch on, they’ll definitely send a ton of elite troops to crush Henwell’s offensive.

  If Henwell blocks the route from the Abundant Continent to here, he can slowly clean up the forces those two powers left behind.

  For both factions, this pce is a strategic hotspot, and it’s just as crucial for Henwell.

  But for now, Henwell isn’t thinking about that.

  He’s still just a minor lord; first, he needs to sit on the throne and get crowned king before worrying about anything else.

  Dressed in his eye-catching Padin armor, Henwell steps into the city and is immediately escorted by an officer to the city lord’s mansion.

  The lord of Lake Wheat City, Leopold, is waiting for Henwell.

  Leopold is the fourth most powerful figure in the southern Western Federation and one of the Groias Empire’s top officials here.

  Though he’s close to seventy, Leopold looks no older than his forties.

  Henwell instantly recognizes him as a top-tier Iron Knight.

  His strength isn’t much weaker than Bridge, whom Henwell has met before.

  This likely means Leopold has broken through to the Glory Knight rank.

  More than that, Henwell senses something special, Leopold carries a hidden power within.

  If that power can be combined properly, Leopold might even be on the verge of Glory Knight.

  Henwell suspects this is the so-called bloodline power.

  In other words, Leopold’s ancestor was an incredibly fierce figure.

  Only beings above the Brilliant Star Arrow rank can influence their descendants’ bloodline, imprinting part of their extraordinary will into their lineage.

  So Leopold’s ancestor was at least a Brilliant Star Arrow-level Domain Master.

  Grand Knights live over a hundred years; Iron Knights can live more than three hundred.

  Glory Knights are even crazier, their vitality undergoes a qualitative leap, giving them a baseline lifespan of over five hundred years.

  And that five hundred years isn’t counting years lived before the breakthrough.

  It’s an added five hundred years starting from when they become a Glory Knight.

  As for the Brilliant Star Arrow rank, once you become a Domain Knight, you basically get to witness the rise and fall of dynasties firsthand.

  Beyond that, Newwood is a bit of a mystery, rumored to be even more powerful.

  Back to Leopold. If he really is a bloodline professional, there’s a good chance that his ancestral forebear is still alive.

  But Henwell doubts it.

  If that ancestor were still kicking, there’s no way Leopold would be stuck on duty in the Forgotten Continent.

  At least a Brilliant Star Arrow-level professional wouldn’t be.

  According to Newwood, those guys are the kind of people who can casually drink with emperors and have popes greet them with smiles.

  Leopold’s next words kind of confirm Henwell’s suspicion.

  After sizing Henwell up for a moment, Leopold nods slightly.

  “Not bad at all! So, what do you say? Want to join me? I appreciate talented young men, and I’m sure you know there’s always someone better out there. If you come under my wing, I’ll send you to the Abundant Continent next year.”

  ”I’m a marquis of the Groias Empire. You might not realize what that means yet, but I promise you’ll have better opportunities. I won’t hold you back, as long as you marry a woman from my family. I’ll provide you with all the extraordinary resources you need to become an Iron Knight, and I’ll recommend you for nobility within the empire.”

  ”With your current status, I can at least get you a baron title! Don’t underestimate that. It’s not much different from your duke. If you break through to Iron Knight before you turn forty, you’ll get a viscount title. And not just a vassal under me, but a real, powerful estate within the empire. If you prove yourself, becoming a count of the empire won’t be hard.”

  Henwell can’t help but think: What a load of bullshit! Does this guy think I am idiot who’ve never seen the world?