The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 307

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 307. The New Feractrum (1)
Feractrum, the Kingdom of Dwarves.
The Beast Lord, T-Rex, who had threatened Feractrum.
I managed to dispatch T-Rex without incident.
However, after that.
I lost consciousness, unable to endure Mungu’s fussing.
Therefore, I had no knowledge of what became of Feractrum.
“….”
Broombar clamped his mouth shut.
It wasn’t just Broombar.
The expressions of the other Dwarves around us darkened rapidly.
Their faces suggested they could guess what had happened to Feractrum.
And indeed.
Broombar opened his mouth heavily.
“The place where Fafnir was sealed was not merely a cavern underground.”
Something about the mana veins of the earth.
Five currents bound together, and so on.
Feractrum was built upon it.
Using the earth itself as a power source, and so forth.
“In short, Fafnir was sealed in a place akin to the heart of the Berka Mountain Range.”
“Ah.”
Now I understood somewhat.
“Over thousands of years, the seal itself became increasingly interlocked with the earth.”
But when that seal shattered.
“Approximately 120 kilometers of the Berka Mountain Range collapsed all at once.”
“…Ah.”
I let out a gasp.
It wasn’t from shock.
The same thing had occurred in my previous life.
Only then, I had believed it to be the Emperor’s power.
Of course, the Emperor’s power must have certainly played a role.
‘But it seems it wasn’t solely that.’
I now understood it was the result of multiple complex factors converging.
‘So the Emperor’s power wasn’t entirely omnipotent after all.’
In other words, the Emperor had merely guided the outcome.
He had not created all the causes.
The Emperor, whom I had regarded as overwhelmingly supreme.
Of course, he remained an absolute existence that even Ian could not break, but he was no god.
And so, ever so slightly.
The Emperor began to descend from the realm of abstraction into reality within my heart.
“So Feractrum─.”
Broombar trailed off.
He lowered his head quietly and continued.
“It has completely collapsed.”
“….”
“But Feractrum itself hasn’t collapsed.”
Broombar lifted the head he had lowered.
“Only the land where Feractrum stood has crumbled.”
Broombar’s eyes gleamed with light.
“The children, the craftsmen—they all survived. Though the land where Feractrum stood has collapsed, Feractrum itself endures.”
Broombar’s eyes, now hardened with resolve, turned toward me.
“All thanks to you.”
Broombar fell silent for a moment before continuing.
“If you hadn’t evacuated the Dwarves to the Whitewolf Territory… many of them would have been buried alive beneath the collapsing mountain range.”
And so.
“Feractrum would have been buried with them.”
“….”
“But we survived unscathed. And as long as we live─.”
Broombar clenched his fist.
“We can rebuild Feractrum anytime. The collapse of the land doesn’t extinguish the fire in our hearts.”
Feractrum is not the land.
It is the place where the Dwarves now stand.
Wherever that may be.
Whatever that may be.
“That is Feractrum.”
Broombar struck his chest with a resounding thump.
At that, the Dwarves also beat their chests in unison.
From that sight, I understood.
Feractrum had not fallen.
What had crumbled was merely the fortress built of stone and rock.
The true Feractrum, the steel-forged heart of the Dwarves, still burned with scorching intensity.
I nodded once and spoke.
“Have you decided where to establish your new home?”
“We haven’t decided yet.”
“Then, if I may suggest─.”
I paused briefly before continuing.
“What if you settled beside the Whitewolf Territory?”
“…?”
Broombar tilted his head in confusion and asked.
“Beside the Whitewolf Territory?”
“That’s correct.”
“Are you referring to Sylvandir Forest?”
He was talking about Whitewolf Territory 2.
Though its official administrative designation was Whitewolf Territory 2, people had already begun calling it Sylvandir Forest.
“No, that’s not it.”
I shook my head.
Of course I didn’t mean Whitewolf Territory 2.
Elves already lived there.
And Elves and Dwarves.
More precisely, Elves and Dark Elves.
Though relations have recovered now, their fundamental values regarding nature differ fundamentally.
Living together would inevitably lead to conflict.
It would be better for them to settle elsewhere.
“Then? Could you mean the Snowy Mountains Zone?”
“That wouldn’t be suitable as a residential environment, would it?”
The Whitewolf Territory’s lands were vast.
Yet wastefully so.
Moreover, with the recent population surge in the territory, every habitable area had been developed.
Yggdrasil had expanded villages and outposts on its own, leaving no land for the Dwarves to settle in Bon County.
Now only survival-threshold regions remained.
Cold, high altitudes, and such.
Only areas difficult to establish as settlements.
‘The Dwarves apparently liked it because the Core acts as a natural cooling device that cools itself.’
But that only meant it was good for industrial purposes.
An environment suitable for industrial zones.
An environment suitable for residential zones.
These two were strictly different.
I pulled out a map of the territory from my inventory.
And pointed with my finger.
“What about here?”
“This place….”
“It’s a hill region.”
A hill region.
Terrain where mountains and plains were evenly mixed.
Which made it an optimal environment for the Dwarves.
“Isn’t this land outside the territory’s jurisdiction?”
“That’s correct.”
It wasn’t Whitewolf Territory’s land.
“Administratively speaking, it’s outside the territory’s boundaries.”
“But would it be alright for us Dwarves to settle there?”
Broombar exhaled sharply and continued speaking.
“I was concerned about how humans might view it.”
It was a reasonable worry, naturally.
And naturally.
I hadn’t overlooked that concern myself.
“If the Dwarves possessed legitimate rights to the land, the situation would be entirely different.”
“…Legitimate rights?”
“If the Dwarves were to gain rightful ownership of the land, who would dare object?”
“…??”
Broombar tilted his head in confusion.
The other Dwarves, equally bewildered, mirrored his vacant expression.
An explanation seemed necessary—
‘Twenty to thirty million gold should be more than enough to purchase the land.’
One action spoke louder than a hundred explanations.
No, one deed was always superior to mere words.
* * *
At this moment, when the entire Continent buzzed with talk of the Dragon.
Wherever one ventured.
At any hour of any day.
Stories of the Dragon and Adrian, who had hunted it, circulated endlessly and spread far and wide.
“Did you hear? Adrian and the Dragon were actually lovers!!”
“Ah! Then could that be why Adrian disappeared before…?”
“That’s right! They were setting up house together!!”
“That makes no sense! But why did they suddenly fight?”
“Apparently the Dragon laid eggs in secret.”
“An affair?!?!”
While rumors far grander than reality and far more sensational than fact rippled outward in waves.
There was one place.
One place alone in Battenberg, the Capital, that differed.
Leon’s private administrative office within the Royal Palace.
Leon stared at the pendant before him with an expression of utter disbelief.
Gold and diamonds.
A frame wrought from every precious metal imaginable.
Yet all that ornamentation served merely as a frame to showcase the gem set at its center.
Or rather, could this truly be called a gem?
“…So.”
Leon swallowed hard as he spoke.
“This is… this is really the Dragon’s eye?”
Leon gazed intently at the gem at the center.
No—at the Dragon’s eye itself.
Golden irises resembling a reptile’s eyes.
Within them, a retina shimmering with shallow ripples.
An indescribable sensation was telling Leon something.
“…It’s real.”
Leon rubbed the back of his neck, feeling an inexplicable chill run through him.
And then.
“It’s called a Dragon Eye Stone Pendant.”
A voice suddenly reached his ears.
When Leon lifted his gaze, a man stood before him.
Crimson eyes.
Black hair.
The very figure who was currently turning the entire Continent upside down—Adrian.
“Its effect assists in expanding your field of vision, deepening your perception, and extending your sensory range.”
“….”
“Simply put, your current capabilities aren’t…rather.”
“….”
“Your abilities, which were already broken, become absolutely absurd…rather.”
“….”
“In any case, it’s beneficial, so please wear it.”
Adrian reached his hand into empty air.
Then, with a whoosh!
Something materialized in Adrian’s grasp.
Armor emanating a dim blue radiance.
Yet it was neither metal nor leather.
The identity of that thing, writhing like a living creature—
“I haven’t given it a particular name, but it’s an inner armor crafted from Dragon scales.”
“….”
“Based on my experiments, it remains unharmed even when struck directly by an Aura Blade slash across the abdomen.”
“….”
“According to Broombar, it would likely deflect even magic cannons, but please don’t test that theory.”
“….”
“Don’t go dying in some unexpected place—always wear it.”
Adrian held out the Dragon Eye Stone Pendant and the inner armor to Leon.
Leon asked with an utterly bewildered expression.
“…You’re giving me all of this?”
“It’s not exactly a gift.”
Adrian cleared his throat once before continuing.
“It’s about the Northern Hill Region.”
“The Northern Hill Region?”
Leon briefly sketched a mental map of the Kingdom in his mind.
“Are you referring to the land of Edmond Territory?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Why is that?”
“I would like you to grant me that land.”
“…?”
Suddenly?
“Originally, I intended to purchase it with gold, but as it turns out, it’s state property.”
Count Edmond had lost his life in an unexpected accident.
And he had left behind no legitimate heir.
A countship is a title bestowed by the sovereign.
Without a proper successor, the land loses its master and reverts to state property.
“And according to kingdom law, state property cannot be purchased or transferred—they were quite adamant about it, I must say.”
State property, by definition, belongs to the state.
Unlike royal demesne, which is under the direct control of the sovereign, state property belongs to the kingdom itself.
Therefore, state property—legislation, taxation, administration, and all such matters—
are exercised through the Internal Affairs Council, not the Royal Court.
Thus, state property is not the sort of land that can be disposed of or transferred at will.
“I offered a premium, but they insisted that land is not something to be toyed with for mere gold—they were remarkably principled about it.”
“….”
“Even when I offered one hundred million gold, they said that putting a price on land itself was an insult.”
What? Wait, how much?
One hundred million gold?
Surely at that price, it should be sold, shouldn’t it?
No, it absolutely should be sold, shouldn’t it?
“The Battenberg Kingdom does not sell its land.”
“What kind of—. No, who was it?”
“It was the Royal Minister of Justice.”
…Ah, that bastard.
The last time, when Seraphia was being called an adopted daughter or some such nonsense.
That infuriating wretch who had ranted endlessly about how she couldn’t marry Leon, the one who had lost all flexibility—the Royal Minister of Justice was precisely that sort.
“He said that not selling land means not selling the people, not selling the law, and not selling history.”
…And so he was indeed suited to be Royal Minister of Justice.
He was fairer and more impartial than anyone else.
Though he was an infuriating wretch who had lost all flexibility, he was all the more trustworthy for it. The Royal Minister of Justice was such a man.
“Well, what can be done? The law is the law.”
“….”
“So I looked into it and found there is such a thing as a special grant based on merit.”
But what do you know?
“It was the very justification Your Majesty used when granting me Beneron Barony.”
It was true.
In the past, Leon had granted Adrian the Beneron Barony as a reward for suppressing Queen Marceline’s act of treason against the Royal Court.
“So when I looked further, there was an exception clause for national prestige? Well, such a law existed too.”
But then what?
“It was the very justification Your Majesty used when issuing the special royal relocation decree to Whitewolf Territory.”
This was also true.
In the past, when Adrian became known as the Saint of Caravana, Leon had issued a special royal relocation decree under the pretext of service to national prestige.
“I was concerned that the nobility would resist if I reused the same justification.”
…That was also valid.
The protruding stone gets its corners worn smooth.
There were quite a few high-ranking nobles in the kingdom who viewed Adrian unfavorably.
Wielding authority recklessly was not advisable.
The moment the Royal Court’s authority became arbitrary.
Its legitimacy crumbles.
So when Adrian built that bathhouse.
I had no choice but to withdraw my plan to transfer the countship to him.
“So when I looked further, there was a special regulation for noble treasure donations? Well, such a law existed too.”
“….”
“The name alone gives me a headache, so I brought it just in case you weren’t familiar with it.”
Adrian produced the decree.
“Let me show you.”
Leon carefully examined the decree.
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【Exception Clause for Royal Land Grant Upon Noble Treasure Donation】
1. Overview
-This ordinance specifies the conditions under which portions of royal land may be exceptionally granted in accordance with noble treasure donations.
2. Definition of Noble Treasure
-Rare assets that the state or Royal Court cannot produce or possess independently.
-A singular artifact with clearly proven military and strategic value.
-An object that serves the national interest and survival.
3. Donation Conditions
-The noble treasure must be presented in physical form and must be impossible to counterfeit or replicate.
-It must pass appraisal by the King and the Internal Affairs Council, and its benefit to the state must be proven.
4. Grant Range
-Per noble treasure, the grantable land is limited to a county or below.
-The granted territory must be limited to uncultivated land, uninhabited territory, or unused royal land.
====
“So I’ve prepared some dragon equipment.”
Leon gazed at the equipment placed on the table.
A dragon eye stone pendant.
Dragon scale inner armor.
It was a treasure that could not be obtained anywhere on The Continent, let alone from the Royal Court.
Frankly, even if the entire Battenberg Kingdom were offered up, it would not suffice.
Military and strategic value?
There was no need to elaborate.
The Dragon’s inner scales alone would absolutely guarantee The King’s safety.
And the moment The King’s safety was secured.
The options available to the Kingdom would shift to an entirely different tier, both qualitatively and quantitatively.
A war where the commander never falls.
Everything changes—the soldiers, the strategies, all of it.
The entire operational spectrum of the Kingdom expands tremendously.
Moreover, it was designated as a national treasure, clearly meeting the Kingdom’s criteria for state preservation value—.
“The Dwarf Clan Chief made it himself.”
It was the only treasure on The Continent that could not be forged, replicated, or even technically reproduced—.
“Wouldn’t two of them be worth at least one barony?”
The law explicitly stipulated that one inner scale was worth a barony or less—.
“Please grant me some land in the Northern Hill Region.”
“….”
“No one lives there anyway.”
Leon found himself at a complete loss for words.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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