Lord: Sequence Master

The giant of water shed torrents of water as it washed over the Oceanic Anthem, gradually freeing the ship from its icy imprisonment. Once released, the ship quickly regained its course, surging forward with the speed of a tsunami created by the giant.

Rosen stepped out of the Mysterious Study Room and returned to his cabin, waiting for the crew to knock on his door.

When the crewman finally knocked, he seemed surprised.

"You're the first passenger in my assigned cabins to answer the door," the crewman remarked, visibly taken aback.

"I apologize for the poor experience this incident has caused you," the crewman continued humbly. "As compensation, Oceanic Anthem would like to upgrade you to a noble-class cabin. Additionally, we'll refund the cost of your ticket, and if you have any other requests, we'll do our best to fulfill them."

"That's more than enough," Rosen replied, not wanting to press the matter further.

He suspected that this series of incidents was no mere accident. Someone was clearly targeting the Blazing Shadow Duchy, and after suffering such a heavy blow, the kingdom would likely retaliate. Rosen wasn't sure if the attackers were humans or non-humans, but he knew the situation was far from over.

After moving into his noble-class cabin, Rosen released Graymouse from the divine beast pen. If Graymouse continued to sense danger, Rosen was prepared to retreat into the Mysterious Study Room and potentially abandon the ship altogether.

Fortunately, Graymouse remained calm, and the rest of the journey passed without further incident.

During his meals at the ship's dining hall, however, Rosen noticed that less than half of the passengers were still dining aboard the ship. The casualties from the previous attacks were significant, and the loss of life paled in comparison to the damage done to the reputation of the Oceanic Anthem.

The ship was a symbol of the Shadowfire Kingdom's strength and prestige, and now that image had been shattered. If this incident wasn't resolved, it could lead to nationwide conflict. Whether the assailants were human or some other species, the kingdom would not take the attack lightly.

Standing on the deck, Rosen caught sight of an island in the distance as the ashen clouds parted.

The island wasn't very large, spanning only a few dozen kilometers, but what stood out was a massive pillar of water shooting into the sky. Beneath the waves, he could barely make out the shadow of an enormous creature that stretched for thousands of meters—likely one of the Void Whales he had seen in the films.

The port of the island was already bustling with people waiting for their arrival. After the Oceanic Anthem docked, the crew began unloading the cargo.

Only after all the goods had been offloaded did the ship's announcement system notify passengers that they could disembark.

Rosen, along with the remaining passengers, stepped off the ship. Many of them visibly relaxed, relieved that the ordeal was finally over.

Before coming to the Blue Whale Kingdom, Rosen had done his research. For outsiders like him, the best course of action for non-noble supernatural beings was to join a merchant guild or at least register with a local association. As a noble, however, Rosen had the option to apply for permanent residency, which would allow him to purchase property and integrate into the Blue Whale Kingdom.

Rosen discreetly removed his Actor's Mask disguise, revealing his identity as a Howard family noble. With his noble crest displayed on his attire, he began browsing through the island's various trading houses, seeking resources for developing his divine domain.

Expanding a divine domain required multiple steps: first, acquiring soil to expand the territory, then planting crops and raising supernatural creatures. Lastly, he would need to establish a population of subjects and ensure a military force to defend the territory.

After gathering information, Rosen discovered a type of soil particularly suited for developing a divine domain.

While ordinary soil would suffice, it would be a waste for such a valuable divine domain. The Blue Whale Kingdom's Void Whales could dive into the deep sea, and the seabed mud they brought up was rich in nutrients. This mud was the primary soil used in the kingdom's plantations.

In areas where spiritual crystal veins were found, the mud in those regions would also be infused with spiritual energy, creating what was known as deep-sea spiritual mineral mud. This soil was considered top-tier for expanding and strengthening divine domains.

However, while the mud was plentiful, the kingdom's nobility was numerous, making large purchases of the soil difficult unless one was willing to pay a premium.

After calculating the costs, Rosen decided against purchasing large quantities of deep-sea spiritual mud. Instead, he thought it might be more cost-effective to find a mineral vein on his own and dig for the mud himself.

For humans, finding underwater mineral veins was relatively simple—such veins were often located near concentrations of supernatural sea creatures or in the lairs of high-level supernatural beings. Most of these areas had a high probability of containing natural spiritual crystal veins.

However, even the Blue Whale Kingdom, with its mastery over Void Whales, had to tread cautiously in the deep sea. While Rosen had the Mysterious Study Room and divine scavenging space, the real challenge would be figuring out how to get to the seafloor and return safely.

He considered using a supernatural vehicle to descend into the deep sea. If he entered the Mysterious Study Room from a mundane vehicle, the study's spatial coordinates would remain fixed in place. But if he entered from a supernatural vehicle, the study would follow the vehicle's movements.

Thus, it wouldn't be difficult for him to reach the seafloor. The real problem was returning.

The Mysterious Study Room could withstand the pressure of the deep sea and the threats of supernatural sea creatures, but the vehicle containing the study's entry point would be far more vulnerable. If the vehicle encountered a supernatural sea creature, it would almost certainly be destroyed.

For now, Rosen realized he needed more time to work out the details of his deep-sea scavenging plan.

After days of exploration, Rosen reluctantly opted for a more practical approach.

Using an upper-grade spiritual crystal, he purchased 250,000 square meters of deep-sea spiritual mud with a depth of one meter. Additionally, he obtained 1,000,000 square meters of ordinary deep-sea mud, ten meters deep.

While this might seem like a lot, it was barely enough to cover an area of about 375 acres within his divine domain.

The merchants, of course, didn't lose out in the deal. Rosen had paid using an upper-grade spiritual crystal, and with this quantity of quality mud, he could expand his domain to its current maximum size of 1,600 meters in radius.

The size of a divine domain was directly linked to the spiritual power of its ruler.

After spending nearly three years in the Void Gallery painting his self-portrait, Rosen had increased his spiritual power from 12 points to 16 points.

As the mud was transferred from his scavenging space to the divine domain, Rosen watched as the domain slowly absorbed the nutrient-rich soil, gradually expanding to its maximum radius. Once the expansion was complete, he began planning the layout of his domain.

At the core would be the alchemical fortress, surrounded by residential housing. Beyond that, 375 acres of farmland would be cultivated using the deep-sea spiritual mud, dedicated to growing supernatural crops.

Further out, the remaining land would be used for ordinary crops.

Now that the land was prepared, what Rosen lacked were subjects to populate his domain.

There were three main sources of subjects for a noble's divine domain: recruiting freemen from the outside world, bringing in people from spirit realms, or creating artificial beings—such as clones, modifications, or living beings painted by an artist.

(End of Chapter)