"Old man, I can't believe those words came out of your mouth," Brian said, looking at him in disbelief.
Feeling Brian's stare, Giovan's playful tone vanished, replaced by a serious one.
"You brat! I was just supporting you earlier, hmph! You'd better be careful not to hurt my beautiful granddaughter."
"Alright, old man," Brian replied.
Well… what can I say? My plan was to find beautiful women on my own… but if one's handed to me, I'm not gonna complain, heheh, Brian thought.
After entertaining those motivating thoughts, Brian suddenly remembered the state of his city.
I need to head back as soon as possible. If what the old man said is true, I have to speed up the city's development.
"Old man, I'm going back to the Alge Kingdom," Brian said.
"Oh? Alright then. Since you're my disciple now, take this. If you can, come back in four months—I want to see how much your cultivation has progressed," Giovan said, handing him a storage ring.
Storage ring… Brian muttered to himself.
"Old man, can I request that the room I've been staying in be reserved just for me? And don't let anyone else in."
"Why? Well… I don't mind," Giovan replied.
"Actually, I can make a teleportation array. I want to set one up in my room."
"Oh? You can make a teleportation array? Go ahead! Oh, and I want to see how you do it, haha."
"Alright," Brian said with mild enthusiasm.
The two went into the room, and Brian began constructing the array.
"Oh… this method is completely different from the usual teleportation arrays," Giovan remarked, watching Brian finish.
Brian only chuckled. Of course it's different. This is the system's version—it's supposed to be easier than the ones from this world.
Just then, Leo arrived with the rest of the group.
"Young master, everyone's here," Leo said.
"Good. Step into the array. Old man, we're heading off—see you in four months," Brian said, glancing at Giovan.
As soon as he spoke, the teleportation array lit up. When the group regained their senses, they were already inside the teleportation cave of Sevenbeast City.
Ah… nothing beats being back home. Sevenbeast, I've returned.
"Come on, follow me," Brian said.
Before they could leave, hurried footsteps approached—full of energy.
"Your Grace, you're finally back!" a girl called out, running toward them. It was Lylia.
"How have you and your brother been?" Brian asked.
"Ah, we've been fine… it's just that lately, it feels like too many eyes are watching Sevenbeast City, Your Grace," Lylia said with a worried tone.
"Hmm, I already know. Gather everyone in the meeting room. And—have my mother and father been visiting often?" Brian asked.
"Yes, Your Grace. Marquis and Madam are here right now," Lylia replied.
"Oh? Where are they?"
"I believe they're in the castle's sitting room, Your Grace."
"Alright, I'll go see them. Oh, and as for the people behind me—take them to rest and have someone build houses for them."
"Yes, Your Grace. Please, follow me," Lylia said to Leo and his men, giving them a quick glance before leading the way.
Once they left, Brian headed toward the castle. The guards and soldiers all recognized him, saluting as he passed.
Inside, he found his mother and father enjoying a cup of roselly tea.
Hearing footsteps, both looked up and spotted him.
"Oh! Son, you're back?!" his mother exclaimed, quickly standing and pulling him into a hug.
"Yes, Mom," Brian replied, feeling a warm sense of comfort.
His father remained seated and said, "Brian, let's talk in the study."
"You! He just got home—let him rest first," his mother scolded.
His father gave a bitter smile. He couldn't argue with that.
"It's fine, Mom. I'm not tired—we used a teleportation array," Brian said.
"Oh, right, you can make teleportation arrays… but still, you need to rest. I'll cook something for you. Wait here," Tessa replied, heading to the kitchen before Brian could say anything.
Brian simply shook his head, feeling a warm sense of comfort.
"So? Your sister passed, didn't she?" Caspian asked.
"Mm. Her scores were excellent—she's a genius," Brian replied.
"Hmmm… So, what are you planning to do now? Lylia already told you about the situation in your territory, right?"
"Not yet. But I already know what's going on. I told Lylia to gather everyone," Brian said.
"Alright."
They chatted briefly until Tessa called both father and son into the dining room.
After eating, Brian made his way to the meeting room. Inside, five people were already waiting: Lylia, Key, Dyami, Frank, and Leo—whom Lylia had also informed to attend.
When Brian entered, all five stood and bowed in greeting.
"Alright, have a seat," Brian said.
He looked over them and noticed that Key and Lylia's cultivation had already reached Master Rank 3, while Frank and Dyami were now at Spirit Stage 2. Brian was certain that Key and Lylia's rapid progress was related to the inheritance they had received when becoming Guardians.
"Good. You've all improved a lot. Oh, have you met Guardian Leon yet?" Brian asked.
"Yes, Your Grace," they replied in unison.
"Uncle Leo will serve as the leader of the Seven Guardian Beasts. That means he's your commander—aside from me."
They nodded in understanding.
"Alright, let's begin the meeting. Start with your reports," Brian instructed.
Key nodded and began summarizing everything that had happened during Brian's absence.
First, the city's population had grown to around 10,000 people. Brian already knew this from the system's rewards and from gathering refugees displaced by war.
Second, they had discovered a wild goat den, captured the goats, and built a simple pen to start breeding them.
Third, the harvest of Roselly and Melty flowers had been abundant, resulting in a large supply of tea now stored away.
Fourth, the city was short on funds to feed the population, so they had temporarily borrowed money from the Marquis.
Lastly, the most worrying matter: lately, there seemed to be too many eyes watching Sevenbeast City. Because of this, they had been hesitant to make any major decisions.
Brian closed his eyes for a moment, processing all the information. The first three were excellent news for the city, but the last two were troublesome.
"The first three are all good news—we'll set them aside for now. For the fourth issue, I'll allocate two hundred thousand gold coins: one hundred thousand for food supplies, and the other hundred thousand for Dyami. Use it to buy paper and ink, select one thousand people, and once you've chosen them, report back to me so we can discuss further."
"Understood, Your Grace," Dyami replied.
Brian nodded and continued, "As for the fifth matter, don't worry—within three days, they'll be gone."
The four looked at him in surprise, while Leo—who already knew the situation—remained calm. None of them had expected that the city truly was under surveillance.
Seeing their reactions, Brian smiled and explained everything he knew to them.