CEO in a Fantasy World 4 Read online

  Musashi, of course, understood why Caesar was rushing, even he, himself, who knew his health better than anyone, intended to rush for an heir. That was the primary purpose of the tournament, after all.

  "Speaking of quickening the pace, the tournament should reach the preliminary rounds tomorrow, we have 500 entrees, 250 of them will be knocked out tomorrow. All of those who are seeded high do not need to fight. However, since you are not a clan head, you are required to fight tomorrow," Musashi said after being reminded of this critical detail.

  This was indeed, in Caesar's calculations, if he, a man without a fox-kin bloodline, although respected, was seeded for no apparent reason, he could already imagine the anger of the clan heads. Thus, this was an appropriate decision made by Musashi. Though, Caesar couldn't deny that he was slightly annoyed that he had to fight mere foot soldiers.

  However, Caesar's annoyance didn't appear on his face, and instead, his lips curled, "very well, I will arrive at the training grounds tomorrow, at noon. I assume you and the other clan heads will be spectating?" Caesar asked to which Musashi just nodded his head in confirmation.

  While they were in the middle of their in-depth discussion, they soon arrived at the inner gates. The guards saluted towards Musashi and didn't hesitate to open the gates, allowing passage without much hassle immediately.

  Caesar couldn't help but feel disgruntled at the different treatment received by him and Musashi, alas, it was only natural, as Musashi was the clan leader. That is, for now.

  Once they exited the inner gates, Caesar led Musashi to the western wing, although Joe had to repair the outer gates, he figured he would have already completed the task as the hole in the wall was a simple fix for a dwarf.

  Thinking to here, the large number of gnomish tents soon appeared in their line of sight. The aftermaths of last night's party seemed to have been cleaned up. The flasks, horns, and other trash were no longer on the ground.

  As Caesar and Musashi got closer, the gnomes quickly caught sight of them and approached, with Magni in the lead, "C-clan leader, and Caesar, we humbly greet you!" they said while bowing, none of them had seen or met Musashi yet, however, they were told many stories about him. Thus, they were filled with respect and admiration toward a figure that hadn't even spoken to yet.

  "Hoho, be at ease, I'm merely here to greet our new allies as well as take a nice afternoon stroll" Musashi greeted back and waved his hands as to put the gnomes at ease, he didn't enjoy when others held themselves back with formalities.

  Once his words entered into the gnomes ears, all of them straightened their backs and smiled widely.

  "How old are you?" one of the gnomish men asked.

  "Are you married?" one of the females inquired.

  "If so, how old is your wife, and do you have a daughter?" a middle-aged man asked.

  Soon, a load of questions was hurled at Musashi all at once, though the gnomes were slightly shy. When they started talking, they seemed to never stop.

  Musashi, who was slightly overwhelmed with the sheer amount of questions being asked, tried to answer each and every one of them, creating a strange spectacle of what looked to be, an older man catering to a batch of children.

  This continued for a few minutes until finally, a somewhat short and stout figure appeared on the horizon, his muscles drenched with sweat and his expression carrying anguish, this was, of course, Joe.

  His abrupt appearance would've looked similar to the entrance of the main character in a movie or novel. However, his sweat-filled body and his remorseful expression quickly discarded any great features Joe could have possibly had.

  Joe was slowly walking towards Caesar and Musashi while gnashing his teeth, he was glaring at Caesar with a look that screamed 'I want revenge' alas, Caesar just ignored it and greeted him with a smile, "did you fix the wall, Joe?" he asked once Joe made it closer to them.

  Without replying, Joe kicked off the ground and hurled a right fist toward Caesar, "you bastard! It was you who made the hole!" he said while in mid-motion, however, Caesar responded by gracefully raising his right palm and stopping the fist with ease.

  He gripped Joe's hand and took out the ingot in his storage ring, putting it directly in front of Joe, "alright, alright, I'll give you something in return later, for now, I have acquired the steel you needed" Caesar said, resulting in Joe calming down and inspecting the piece of steel in Caesar's left hand.

  "A-Aronian steel!?!?" Joe said in a startled voice.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Judging from Joe's shocked reaction and how much importance Musashi placed on the Aronian steel, Caesar had long figured that the steel was special in some way or another. Nonetheless, his knowledge of the world was lacking, so he was not entirely sure what was so exceptional about it.

  "Where did you find this?" Joe abruptly asked and broke Caesar from his thoughts.

  Instead of answering him, Caesar just gestured towards Musashi. He didn't want to take the credit for finding something so rare when in actuality, it came from Musashi's storage room.

  Joe's eyes followed Caesar's hand gesture and gazed upon Musashi with realization in his eyes, "ah, right, Caesar did say something about asking you for the mana augmentable steel" His words paused for a moment as he took a closer look at the metal in Caesar's hand, "I'm surprised your clan owns Aronian steel. Although it's not the most durable, it is indeed scarce."

  Musashi, who was still surrounded by a group of gnomes, scratched the back of his head, "when your clan lives long enough, some things just naturally pile up, even the rarest of treasures," he replied humbly.

  Joe nodded his head and didn't dwell too long on the topic. Instead, he snatched the ingot from Caesar's hand and inspected it even closer, nearly forgetting his past grievances for fixing the hole in the outer gates.

  Seeing that Joe was genuinely interested in the steel, Caesar simply smiled and turned away. There was no reason for him to remain here. Although he was intrigued by the concept of magic accessories, he doubted Joe was going to craft them right at this moment, as his needles still need to be prepared by Magni.

  Thinking to here, Caesar quickened his pace towards the farm located in the fox-kin stronghold, according to his knowledge, Faust should have long completed the drainage system that Caesar had asked of him. Thus, he wanted to see it for himself.

  Caesar's abrupt disappearance from Joe, Musashi, and the gnomes, didn't go entirely unnoticed, Musashi was gnashing his teeth in anger as he placated the gnomes, "that bastard left me here alone with these talkative midgets!" he thought angrily.

  Caesar, of course, wouldn't know of Musashi's complaints, and after a few long moments, he could finally see the relatively large and colorful farm. Its colors were as vibrant as ever, and it appeared that they added another squarish box that was filled with soil.

  He walked a bit closer and could see a few ten centimeters wide, and five centimeters tall, cylindrical tunnels that lead through small holes within the outer walls, presumably leading to the large ditch Faust and the others created.

  Seeing this, Caesar nodded in approval and decided to inspect the new addition to the farm. He could see a surplus of small sprouts coming from the fertile soil, alongside the already large assortment of vegetables and fruits, this would undoubtedly help the fox-kin with their food problem in the distant future.

  Once Caesar made sure everything was as desired, he quickly left the area, he didn't want to stay long enough and be spotted by that strange head-farmer, though he seemed nice, Caesar couldn't help but shiver around him.

  Caesar walked towards the outer walls and climbed up the nearby stairs, he calculated the walls to be about 10 meters tall as he walked, and once he reached the top, he surveyed the surroundings. The fox-kin stronghold was in dire need of defenses, which made Caesar slightly regretful he didn't bring a few engineers from Rahvin kingdom. If he had his ballistae and crossbows, the battle would pose to be much more comfortable.

  He walked atop the t
all and broad walls while inspecting each detail in preparation for an attack. He suspected that once the trolls realized they were recruiting nearby clans; they wouldn't hesitate to attack. This would mean they could potentially be attacked tomorrow or in a few weeks, thus, Caesar decided to prepare early, not to mention, the tournament started tomorrow.

  Although Caesar has, indeed, fought off a large number of troops with a meager amount, such as back in Rahvin kingdom, he didn't have his crossbows, ballistae, trebuchets, nor enough time to recreate such a grand victory, in fact, one of the reasons why it was so easy, was because the opponents themselves were hardly united, as the elves betrayed the humans in the end.

  Unfortunately, even though Caesar speculated that the trolls were being backed by others, he doubted these people hiding in the shadows would help the trolls in a frontal assault, meaning it was just one enemy they had to face off against. The only hope Caesar had of winning was using superior tactics, leadership, and coordination.

  This, however, would only be possible if Caesar gained control over the fox-kin, which would pose to be difficult if it weren't for the upcoming tournament, though Musashi and Faust had their plans, Caesar, of course, had his own as well.

  Caesar planned to win and take everything. Although Musashi added the option of taking Renee's hand in marriage as one of the rewards you could choose if you were to win, that was not Caesar's plan. Renee's hand was already his, so Caesar planned to challenge Musashi instead.

  Caesar knew that his chances of winning were low; however, with every training session he and Musashi took part in, he could feel his personal strength progress, not to mention his control over mana. If he didn't win, there was nothing to lose.

  While thinking about these troublesome matters, Caesar nearly walked around half of the outer walls, the nearby guards looked at him curiously, but their reaction was relatively normal. Without paying the guards much heed, he inspected the ditch that Faust and the others created, which surprisingly was within his expectations, it wasn't too grand nor disappointing.

  Caesar suddenly took a large whiff of the air and couldn't help but notice the moisture in the air, he looked left and right and could see a large number of clouds forming in the east, they looked as though they would pass through the fox-kin stronghold in a few days.

  Seeing this, Caesar let out a small chuckle, "ah, what perfect timing…" he muttered under his breath and headed down from the walls, he walked down the stairs made of what looked to be some kind of stone and soon arrived back at the ground.

  Caesar looked around and noticed there was no one nearby, so he took out the long scythe from his spatial ring. The scythes shaft was a bit longer than his body and was dark in color. The curved blade was adorned with a strange and almost demonic pattern engraved into it. The details of the weapon seemed to gain more life. The more Caesar used it.

  He closed his eyes and inserted his mana into the scythe, creating a bluish mist that escaped from the weapon. Caesar felt more connected with the scythe whenever he inputted his mana inside, similar to a limb. He had more control over it.

  Instead of swinging down with the scythe, he rotated the scythe like a propeller and flung it toward the wall. It moved at extraordinary speeds; however, just when it was about to collide with the outer walls, Caesar lifted his right hand and gestured with his index finger. Suddenly, the scythe abruptly stopped spinning and fell to the ground.

  Caesar gasped for breath, and a few beads of sweat trailed down his face. He couldn't comprehend how Musashi controlled his chains with such ease. However, Caesar wouldn't give up easily; he once again raised his index finger and used the remaining mana in the scythe to make it retract.

  As Caesar wanted, the scythe reacted and slowly started retracting back to Caesar's hands, as if it were alive. This was the progress he had achieved from practicing with Musashi, and of course, by himself.

  Caesar continued this practice for a few hours until finally, he collapsed on the ground, he gazed upon the starry sky while gasping for breath. The precipitation on his body soaked his clothes, and Caesar was exhausted. Utilizing all of your mana was a different kind of physical exertion than just training your body.

  As Caesar was drifting to sleep, a sound suddenly echoed inside his head.

  [Vampiric physique evolution progress: 22%]

  Caesar could feel his exhausted body being revitalized, his sore muscles become lax and the mana within his body being restored, albeit slowly. He could feel even the skin on his body slightly strengthen.

  Caesar's lips curled as he slowly stood up from the ground; he was delighted. This was, after all, the first time he had gained some progress with his physique since he last had that battle with Joe.

  He stretched his arms and headed towards the mansion, he wanted to get a good night of rest before the tournament tomorrow, as he could not take it lightly because if he were to fail, all of his plans until now would be for naught.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Although Caesar's body was indeed revitalized, the sweat that soaked his clothes was by no means removed. Thus, Caesar unbuttoned his shirt and stashed it inside of his storage ring, he then took out a simple white tunic and adorned that instead.

  Once he was finished, he resumed walking toward the mansion. It was still dark. However, the morning sun was going to set soon. Therefore, many of the fox-kin citizens and guards alike were currently sleeping.

  This earned Caesar a relatively quiet journey, different from his usual, and after a few minutes of walking, he arrived in front of the inner gates. The guard stationed atop the gates noticed Caesar's approaching figure and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

  "Open the gates!" he roared to the other guards.

  At the man's orders, the gates were pulled open by eight or so guards, and Caesar, who didn't halt his footsteps in the slightest as if it were planned prior, walked through with ease. Once he passed through the gates, he briefly thanked the guards and continued on his way.

  He didn't want to waste his and the guards' time with unnecessary formalities. He assumed that most of the guards that worked the morning shift were immensely tired at this time, not to mention the fact that they don't get to see their families often.

  Thinking to here, he soon entered the mansion and walked through the ever so familiar halls until he reached his and Renee's room. He quietly turned the doorknob and stepped inside. He didn't want to wake Renee, so he moved on his tippy toes. Still, his efforts were in vain.

  Right as he entered the room, the dimly lit candles alongside the walls immediately entered into his vision alongside Renee, who was sitting on the bed with crossed arms, seemingly awaiting his arrival.

  Though this would generally be a romantic scenario, Renee's angry and deep frown somewhat ruined the occasion, and also made Caesar think to himself, 'Oh my, what did I do wrong this time?'

  However, contrary to his expectations, Renee wasn't mad at him in the slightest. Instead, her frown was replaced by an expression full of worry as she stood up. "I'm sure you have noticed it, but my grandfather is starting to look older and older as the days go by… I-I don't know what I would do without him… after losing my father and mother, he is the only one I have left," she said while walked toward Caesar, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

  This surprise attack was, indeed, out of nowhere. However, it had probably been on Renee's mind for a long while. She just didn't have the right time to talk about it.

  Caesar, in response, hugged Renee tightly. Not in a seductive or romantic way, but in a more soothing way, "Musashi is an old man and has accomplished a lot in his time… he has even lost his son and daughter-in-law, maybe it's time to let him go?" Caesar spoke in a soothing tone. Even he had grown fond of Musashi; however, ever since he first met him, he had been prepared for his inevitable death.

  His words made Renee choke on her tears, "I know that… I know that, but I can't 'just' let him go… he is the only family I have left," she replied with
small whispers.

  It was clear that even Renee herself knew that saving Musashi was impossible, however, as her last remaining family member, when he falls, the hit she is going take will by no means be light.

  Soon, his thoughts were broken by Renee's continued sobs, "I know that dying is a part of life, and I have long prepared for it, I am not so weak… it's just, even his last days, even when he has already suffered more than anyone, the trolls are taking advantage of his old age, and the clan he had created himself is facing destruction!" she growled.