The rest looked like they were waiting and watching to see whether the announcements would result in something concrete, and not be just fake ones designed to pull them into the fold.

Now, Daneel was happy that he had gone with this plan, as the walls also kept out the emissaries of the Queen.

The Queen probably knew that if she carried out such things inside his kingdom, he would definitely find out right away.

Either way, he was happy with the progress.

The foundations had all been filled up, and in some places, construction of the actual wall had also begun. As he saw all this, he couldn't help but remark on just how easy things on Earth would be if magic could be used.

For example, the major time taking and resource intensive task was lifting heavy objects, but here, it could be easily accomplished by a few mages working together. Besides, as the mages of Eldinor were already quite powerful, and because they really wanted to be a part of this historic construction, they worked very efficiently and they even had high stamina which allowed them to keep working for quite a long time before breaking for rest.

Using the most simple, yet effective design of all, hollow metallic sections were being set up first before being filled with earth. The earth would then be solidified in a process very similar to how bricks were made back on earth, and along with a few spells that were from the Empire and that had been used during the construction of the walls of Lanthanor(which allowed him to escape suspicion on this matter from the Big Four), a majestic border wall would arise.

After they were done, they arrived back in the palace, where Eloise spoke about another topic that had been on her mind since quite a long time.

"Daneel, why don't we use this opportunity to bolster our army, too, if possible? So far, the armies have been small because of the fact that not everyone can train as a Fighter or a Mage. Is there no way to make that change? Right now, patriotic feelings are very strong, and there has always been the general idea that entering the Army would allow one to settle for life, both because of the hefty pay and benefits that are given to each soldier and his family, even after death. What do you think? Even if we can't increase their potential now, as the Big Four are watching, can't we do so later? Or use some kind of formation to allow them to be effective?"

This was something that Daneel had thought of before, but he had hesitated as he had already been under the purview of the High Council, which was also definitely keeping a close eye on his military might.

That was why he had also not gone ahead with the 'resurrection' of the mages who had been sacrificed during the event with Eldinor, but as Eloise spoke, he realized that he could do something which would not call too much attention upon him.

In his mind, he recalled a certain image that was a part of the memories of the Emperor, which he had come across when the first transfer had occurred.

Then, some images had been seen by him, although the rest had appeared like a blur while being recorded by the system.

Maybe this image was just too grand to be ignored, so it had flashed for a moment in front of his eyes, and he had never forgotten it.

It was that of an army that looked like ants swarming a large figure, and it looked as if that figure would fall at any moment.

He had not been able to see many specific details, but as he inquired the system about it, he realized that he had been right in remembering that image in this context.

Ants really could take down a giant if there were enough of them.

And in that image, apparently, a Hero had been killed by a formation that consisted of 100,000 Amateur Humans Fighters and Mages who were training together for that task for a long time.

True, the same thing might not be possible in this age, as they were not as many Amateur Humans. After all, just getting to that stage would allow one to enter an army.

Yet, if the minimum power level could be decreased, wouldn't it be pretty impressive even if the target's power level was also decreased, in turn?

What if 100,000 normal soldiers, with no power, could bring down a Champion?

Daneel's eyes blazed with hope as he thought of this, because in the fight against the Church that was sure to come, there would be many Champions to take care of.

If the general populace could help and take up at least a little bit of the slack, then he knew that it would go a long way in helping them achieve a favorable outcome.

But first, he had to take baby steps, and not hurry in this momentous task.

So, he told Eloise, "Devise a new job. It should be for fit and young people, and they will be added into a new corps in the Army where even those with no potential whatsoever in either Path can join. However, to make sure that not everyone will flock toward it, make it so that the benefits and the salary are lower than regular soldiers, but also keep in mind that it should stand out among other jobs, too. Of course, it should be made clear that they will be risking their lives as there will be active campaigns or even life-threatening tests, so that should be enough to dissuade too many. After all, even though we will be picking those with no potential, I want to go for quality, not quant.i.ty. Set the limit to 10,000, and when it is reached, notify me."

This hasn't exactly been what Eloise had been expecting, but she still felt glad that there was a different job which could be fulfilled, as that meant that they now had more options to employ people.

Nodding and giving him a smile, she left to begin instantly, after which Daneel went back to his chambers.

Checking back on his list of things to do, he realized that he had still not checked up on the other schemes that he had begun.One thing he really did not want to do was be like many governments back on Earth where all sorts of schemes would be announced and begun, and then left to themselves to fail. This could be prevented by monitoring them on a timely basis, so he intended to definitely do that as he did not want any failures to his name.

Other than that, in the Nine Sovereigns, except for Eloise who was still not ready, his father was the other Peak Exalted Human who was ready for a breakthrough.

For a moment, Daneel wondered whether he should also be placed in the Road through h.e.l.l, but he hesitated because of all the things that had gone wrong so far with that approach.

Besides, he definitely did not want to see history repeat, such as seeing his father aim for his 'royal b.a.l.l.s', too, if he really did go ahead.

Thinking for a bit, Daneel saw a pattern.

In both the cases of Luther and Kellor, where both men had been quite mature, their breakthroughs had been smooth with just a little push being needed.

Yes, this approach would be better. Right now, his father was taking care of the construction of the walls, and after he was done, Daneel planned to maybe a.s.sault him in disguise while threatening the life of his wife, which would definitely be enough for him to find the 'need' to break through.

As that matter was settled, he s.h.i.+fted back to the most pressing one – the Queen's plan.

However, surprisingly, the moment he began thinking about it, it was as if a light bulb turned on above his head.

He didn't know whether it was because of the break he had taken, or all the things he had handled during it, but he had just gotten an excellent idea which was unconventional, but which just might work.

Taking a deep breath, he asked the system, and when he got the green signal, a wide smile spread across his face.

Oh, she would definitely not be expecting this.

Still, if he wanted everything to go smoothly, there were a lot of preparations to make.

Without any further hesitation, he got down to them with gusto, as he really did love plans like these in which he was using the system with his creativity in order to get a solution.

Funnily enough, her expression when everything unfolded was one of the things he was looking forward to the most.

So, with that in mind, the king worked through the night.

…

In the Sect of Hedon, a section of the medical bay had been completely closed off for the past few days, and rumors abounded regarding just why this was happening.

The seniors in the sect instantly understood that it must be that another valued sect member must have sustained an injury which required him to be treated by that scary healer. Each and every sect member who had gone to that sect and come back would always tell the most horrific of stories, so even the seniors felt a heavy feeling in their stomach as they spoke about it in hushed tones.

Listening to all this, the newcomer to the sect who was the reason behind this happening breathed a sigh of relief as he had been a bit scared that this guy could go outside the sect and come back to, maybe, disturb his plans before he went ahead with them.

It had been quite easy finding someone else to do the job, especially in a sect like this which valued power over everything else. A simple promise to get the person to the Hero level had been enough, and even though he had sworn an oath to do so, it wasn't like oaths needed to be fulfilled if the person on the other end was dead.

On enquiring, he found out the timeline in which the 'stabilising' of the person would be done, with let him know that his plan of setting the Mad Doctor loose might just coincide with the time when the guy who had blinded himself would be taken outside.

Well, in that case, there was no chance whatsoever that there was any risk in anyone finding out that there was something amiss.

Soon, the king would either be dead, or too crippled to do anything more. If that wasn't the case, then he would simply be getting even more 'presents' from the Church which would help him handle the person.

Either way, the King's fate was sealed, and this was a thought which made a low laugh appear from the man.