Birth Of The Crafts-God

Earlier in the day, the head of the Mertens family had departed inconspicuously for the Central Prefecture district. His destination was the central authority of Baylands city-state and the most powerful organisation in the city-state —the City Lord Manor.

Different from other organisations in Baylands city-state, the City Lord Manor directly controlled the city-state. Just like the other factions, the City Lord Manor also had a few investments. They were used to fund some of its activities, separate from the operations of the city-state.

Every senior official of any public unit in the city-state automatically belonged to the City Lord Manor. This included the Commissioner of Police, the Lieutenant Generals and Vice Admirals, and all other members of the Board of Officials and commissioners.

Apart from individuals with ranks, the City Lord Manor also had powerhouses in its roster. For instance, the Lieutenant General and Vice Admiral positions could only be taken up by individuals at the ninth level of the Apertures Opening stage. There was also a private military force separate from the Baylands City Patrol Corps (BCPC) or the Baylands City Defence Force. This private force answered directly to the city lord and focused on ensuring his safety. They could also be mobilised for secretive operations that were unsuitable for the public security forces to handle. It was said that the weakest among its members was at the third level of the Apertures Opening stage, making it a gathering of elites.

Not many knew the name of this secretive force, but they were feared even by those from the major families.

Finally, it was rumoured that the City Lord Manor has a Grade 5 vestige; the only one of its kind in Baylands city-state.

The combination of the unquestionable authority, the secretive force, and the Grade 5 vestige, made the City Lord Manor a daunting force even for the top four families.

As such, even after Russell arrived into the building, he had to wait in the waiting room until the city lord was ready to receive him.

"The city lord will see you now, Mr Mertens." A young lady walked up to him and said.

Even though she had a welcoming smile on her face and her aura was like that of Spring blossom, her energy level was terrifyingly high. It was on par with a seventh level stellar practitioner. What's more, the lady was quite young and was only in her late 30s, although she looked much younger than that.

For hyumans, due to the fact that they aged slower and had a longer average lifespan than humans, they tend to look younger than their age by human convention. For instance, a hyuman lady in her late 30s would look the same as a human in their late 20s or early 30s; in summary, a decade younger. However, this difference in appearance was only present after one turned 25.

"Lead the way." Russell stood up and followed her.

Along the way, there were a bunch of other individuals with impressive stellar refinement achievements, but none on par with the lady.

Russell wasn't surprised by the appearance of the young woman who was strong enough to rival some of the seniors in the Mertens family.

Although it was strange why someone so talented didn't start a force of their own, when her identity was considered, it was understandable.

The young lady was the secretary to the city lord and came from a special household.

Outside of the top four families, there were many other forces, factions and families that existed. Some of them were either close to rivalling a top four family or were formerly one; for instance, the Oder family.

The young lady came from one such family —the Bernáté family.

The Bernáté family was a family with a long history much like the Bergs and the Dufours. Similar to the Bergs, their family was also tied to the City Lord Manor. However, unlike the latter, they didn't produce any city lords. Instead, the Bernáté family was known for producing a long line of secretaries to the city lord, and even deputy city lords; a record that exceeded the Bergs' three-in-a-row city lord record.

If it weren't for an oath that the Bernátés swore which limited their growth, they could have easily become the strongest family in Baylands city-state.

The lady of the Bernáté household led the way for Russell and after a short walk, the duo arrived in front of an office.

After the female secretary knocked on the door, it automatically opened and the two walked in.

"You're here."

Noah, the city lord of Baylands city-state, stared at the newcomers. He then signalled to the arm chair in front of his table.

"Please, sit."

"Thank you, your excellency." Russell slightly bowed before taking a seat.

Even though he was one of Noah's staunchest supporters who enabled him to rise to the position of city lord, Russell didn't utilise that fact around Noah. He understood that when people who climbed from the bottom rose to high places, they were disdainful of their past selves and would shed off their history. Bringing back such topics or trying to manipulate them might cause more troubles than it would be helpful. As such, unless one could completely control them, it was better to be respectful, at least performing the basic decorum.

"Leave us."

After Miss Bernáté had prepared a pot of tea for the two, Noah ordered her to leave.

"I was thinking you wouldn't show up." Noah said, breaking the silence.

It has already been more than three weeks since the fiasco at the cabinet's headquarters, the Assembly of the People. Noah had already presumed that Russell won't be meeting him again.

"I was caught up with a couple of things earlier on. Do forgive me for showing up late."

Russell replied as he took a sip from the cup. The aroma of the tea was refreshing and it seemed to also help calm and improve the flow of stellar energy inside the body.

The icterine-coloured tea was an exquisite product made from a high-grade tea tree that only grew in the planet Jota. Not only was it expensive, but it was also quite rare and high in demand. Most of the imports were usually sold to the top figures in Belfargos territory, with little being left for the other city-states. If it weren't for the City Lord Manor's connection to the Oklo Dynasty, it would be hard for Noah to get his hands on it.

Being treated to such high quality tea showed Noah's respect for Russell.

"I heard the kid is back, and this time around, he came back with a surprise."

Noah stared at Russell's face trying to see if he could gleam any reaction from it. However, Russell wasn't a newcomer.

With an expressionless look on his face, he nodded.

"Indeed."

Giving up on looking for hints, Noah asked the question he had on his mind.

"What are your plans then?"

"It's as you've found out." Russell stared at him.

Feeling that the reply was probably not good enough, he added,

"I've decided to simply focus on my company and improve my family's position. I'll be stepping back from politics with this. So you don't need to worry; I won't be competing with you."

After completing his words, Russell set his attention back on the tea and relished its flavour. Even for someone at his level, it was not everyday he could have a taste of such a luxurious delight.

Noah raised an eyebrow but he wasn't entirely surprised. He was also somewhat relieved, but also disappointed.

One should know that if Noah were to step down, the most suitable candidate to take on the post of city lord wasn't Fredor, but Russell. Even if Noah was in the picture, Russell was a stronger candidate especially since Noah has lost a lot of support from the people.

Although Russell was weaker than the two of them, in terms of experience, skill, and ability, he was much better than Fredor and Noah. He was a much more suitable leader for the position of city lord, but for some reason, he never went for it.

As for his disappointment, it stemmed from the obvious fact that Russell had decided not to support him anymore. Russell's decision to step away from politics also implied this.

"The Seven Stars Spring Dealership..."

Noah didn't complete his sentence, but he believed that Russell would understand his intention.

As expected, Russell frowned slightly.

"I don't think it's appropriate. He doesn't have a positive opinion of the state after the previous incident."

"You can speak up for me, no? I'm willing to invest however much he needs. And this isn't about the state, but myself." Noah explained.

The Seven Sparks Forge was a store that anyone could see the massive potential within it. It was because of this potential that all the top powers of the city got greedy months ago and planned Lucas' downfall. Yet not only did they fail, but the latter had returned with stronger backing and possibly even for revenge.

Noah wasn't worried about Lucas' revenge, because in his opinion, even with a Tier 1 Grandmaster backing him, Lucas couldn't do anything to him. Instead, his interest was still in the potential of the store. Since his original plan of using the store to weaken the forces of the city didn't work out, Noah decided to change his methods. He wanted to become an investor and a shareholder of the limitless possibilities the store could offer. Not as the city lord, but as Noah Bergs.

"You're not confident?" This time around, it was Russell's turn to be surprised.

Noah's request might seem normal, but it was actually implying that the latter wanted to create a backup plan. If he was confident in his victory in the next coming elections, Noah would have invested in his capacity as a city lord, not as an individual.

After taking a sip from his cup, Noah explained,

"You should already know that this situation is strange. It's clearly instigated by more than one party."

Russell nodded. How could he not know when one of the major instigators was his close friend?

As for the other instigators, it was clear as day that they were the Bergs family faction under Fredor, and the Dufours.

"I don't mean those guys." Noah said, as if having read Russell's mind.

"If it were just the local forces, I wouldn't be worried."

"Then, who?" Russell frowned.

"I don't know." Noah shook his head.

"But I'm confident that there's a third party involved."