System's POV

Chapter 696: Project EXODIA [Part 1]



A week after the battle of Glory City had ended...

Claude sighed for the umpteenth time as he read the report of his subordinates.

Many parts of the city were destroyed, and some buildings needed to be built from scratch. Because of this, a large amount of funds were needed to be allocated for the construction.

Naturally, he agreed to use the Clan's Treasury for this undertaking. After all, Glory City was their main city in the Sirius Continent.

If the city wasn't rebuilt properly, the other Clans and Prestigious Families would look down on them.

He couldn't remember how many times he wished for this incident to have appeared somewhere else instead of their territory.

The giant hole was still being investigated, and countless teams of Wanderers were sent to explore the underground tunnels and look for any signs of the Warlord Pangolin, whom they believed to have escaped at the last moment.

Given the number of tunnels located underground, Claude decided to employ the Wanderers who had joined the defense of the city a few days ago.

They were currently short on manpower, so he had to use whatever resources he could at the

moment.

The Central Government also volunteered to dispatch four of their teams for this search operation.

Claude didn't reject their initiative because, at the end of the day, a Rank 7 Sovereign wandering the underground of the Sirius Continent posed a significant threat to the people. But the real problem was the upcoming Dragon and Phoenix Tournament.

Based on the current situation, he was very tempted to host it in another city since Glory City was currently not in the right condition for such a big event.

But the prestige of the Ashford Clan was at stake, so Claude was thinking of other alternatives on how to deal with the current situation.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

He already delayed the tournament for a month, which he believed was enough time for him to think of a way to salvage the situation.

Just as he was looking at the map of their domain, the door of his office opened.

"Didn't I tell all of you to not disturb me at this time?" Claude asked without even lifting his head to see who the newcomer was. "Get out before I expel you from the Clan."

It was at that moment when a voice filled with amusement reached his ears.

"Oh? I'd like to see you try."

Claude immediately raised his head because he could recognize this voice from anywhere.

"Father, you're finally back!" Claude said in joy because he had been feeling too much pressure as of late.

With the return of his father, he would be able to delegate some of the important tasks to him, lowering his workload.

"It seems that a big event happened while I was away," Aaron said before sitting on the couch. "It must have been hard on you, Claude."

"It's been a tiring week," Claude replied bitterly. "It will probably take months before the city is completely restored. The immediate problem is the Dragon and Phoenix Tournament." Aaron nodded in understanding. "Proceed with the elimination rounds as planned. Since the testing area isn't affected by the Monster Outbreak, there's no problem with using them.

"Also, even though some parts of the city are destroyed, allow the people to return to their homes a week before the tournament starts. Many visitors came to watch this tournament, so canceling it is troublesome."

Aaron thought for a bit before asking about the venue where the important battles would be held.

"Is the Colosseum still fine?" Aaron asked.

"The Colosseum is untouched by the Monster Outbreak," Claude reported. "Perhaps, that is one of the silver linings of this incident."

"Good." Aaron nodded. "Don't care too much about face right now. There's nothing you could have done at that moment. What we need right now is a resounding victory for our clan.

"So, make sure to increase the rewards for our people to motivate them to do better in the tournament."

Claude felt better after hearing his Father's advice on how to handle the current situation. Now that he didn't have to worry about the possible criticisms about the incident, things became clearer inside his mind.

"Oh, before I forget, what is the deal with Norman?" Aaron asked. "Did you compensate him for his help?"

"I did," Claude replied. "But he's not too happy since he didn't get what he came for. Also, Zion Leventis had led hundreds of Wanderers to loot the Monster Parts of the dead monsters.

"We didn't get much after the clean up operation. That brat really is very shameless and annoying."

Aaron snorted. "He can still do what he wants now. But after the Cygni Continent's Jinn invasion is over, he will become the target of many forces."

"There's a saying that the nail that sticks out gets hammered in. No one wants to see the rise of another genius in the Leventis Family. Gerald was already a problem, and now, we have his son making waves.

"By the way, did our Agents confirm if they are in possession of some of the Majin King

Scales?"

Claude shook his head. "No. The agents searched Gerald's Smithy, but they didn't find any of the scales that had been auctioned."

Aaron crossed his arms over his chest and looked up at the ceiling.

"Any possibility that he might be the one who crafted that Mythical Equipment that appeared

in Solterra?" Aaron inquired.

"We have sent our people to investigate the Leventis Family residence right after the phenomenon appeared," Claude answered. "But Gerald was there when they arrived.

"The Remington Clan, the Smiths, and the Lockwood Families were also there. We are not the only ones who thought that Gerald is the crafter of that possible Mythical Equipment." Several years ago, a phenomenon appeared in the skies above the residence of Gerald's home. The Leventis Family had deployed their elite forces to block anyone from trespassing on the mountainside, preventing the other families from investigating.

Arthur only said that he was just testing a new skill of his, resulting in that phenomenon.

Of course, none of them believed him.

However, it never occurred to them that it might have been caused by the birth of a Mythical

Gear.

After all, no one in Pangea had managed to craft a Mythical Gear since the Jinns invaded their

world.

However, the timing of the phenomenon in Solterra became the deciding factor.

Zion Leventis had supposedly defeated a Majin King, and he was rumored to be in possession of several of its scales.

Since it was a High-Grade crafting material, the possibility of crafting mythical equipment

was very high.