Chapter 454: Fortress City

Before Ethan even realized it, another two weeks had flown by, and the weather had begun to turn cold.

With the arrival of the ninth month of the year, the first snowflakes were already falling—tiny ones that melted the moment they touched the ground.

The entire Eternal Forest seemed to be preparing for winter. The smaller animals were retreating into their burrows, and every breath turned into a white cloud in the morning air.

It would be a short winter.

It had started late, and from what Ethan had heard from the older locals, late winters like this one rarely lasted more than three or four months.

With a lively sparkle in his eyes and Alice in his arms, Ethan made his way through the Eternal Forest.

He was on his way to build Goldenveil County’s newest city. For now, it would be the only city to the east, and it would also serve as a fortress and a buffer zone.

If an army from the Kingdom of Burning Ice ever marched toward Goldenveil, it would have to pass through that city first. And Ethan intended to make that passage a true nightmare.

"Don’t you think it would be better for you to get some more rest?" Ethan asked, lowering his gaze to the woman nestled in his lap atop the saddle. The horse’s slow, steady sway rocked them both with every step.

Alice was about to enter her fifth month of pregnancy.

Her belly already showed a noticeable curve—firm and rounded beneath her clothes—and she had grown considerably more sensitive, avoiding the use of magic whenever she could.

Ethan’s free hand rested there almost all the time, feeling the warmth of her skin through the fabric and the gentle rise and fall of that curve as she breathed.

She wore modest clothing, buttoned all the way up to her neck, and was wrapped in a soft blanket, clinging tightly to her husband.

Her body had become fuller in recent months. Her breasts, heavier now, pressed against his chest through the layers of fabric.

Around them, twenty women of the Order of the Golden Rose Guard rode in tight formation, their armor catching the pale morning light.

Farther out, another five hundred knights, the entire First Cavalry Unit of the Goldenveil Army, accompanied the couple, forming a protective shield that no bandit or forest beast would dare to test.

Along with them all came Lucius, one of Goldenveil’s most renowned military commanders, who had recently advanced to the fourth stage.

His wife and children were traveling with him. Lucius was to become the new Lord of that city, founding the GoldenShield family, the protectors of eastern Goldenveil.

"I’m fine..." Alice murmured, snuggling even closer to her husband, her full breasts pressing into him as she tucked her face into the curve of his neck.

Ethan sighed.

"I just want to get away for a bit with my husband, see more of the world... I think it’ll be good for our little heir." She rubbed her belly in slow circles, her face glowing with a maternal love that Ethan never got tired of seeing.

"I understand, love... just relax and enjoy the trip." Ethan leaned down and planted a lingering kiss on her lips, soft and slightly chilled by the wind.

She smiled against his mouth before settling back into the blanket.

The journey continued for about eighty kilometers, to an area that was relatively easy to defend and offered total control over the entrance to the Eternal Forest.

It lay twenty kilometers from the forest’s border with the Kingdom of Burning Ice.

There, squeezed between the wide Solene River and the imposing Eternal Mountains, the flat land suitable for a city was only six kilometers wide.

In that stretch, the Eternal Forest was not as dense, and several clearings opened up along the water, letting the sun shine through.

Alice watched it all with a gentle gaze: the beautiful landscape, the light glinting off the river, the many powerful knights riding around her.

They had come a long way. And she, without a doubt, was very proud of her husband.

Soon, Ethan’s horse began to slow, and the mounts around them followed suit, their hooves treading ever more lightly on the grass until they came to a complete stop.

"Lord Ethan." Lucius, the Leading Tribune of the Third Battalion of the First Legion, brought his horse alongside Ethan’s.

One of his sons sat in front of him in the saddle. The other child, an adorable girl, rode with his wife—a red-haired woman of exotic beauty, with skin darker than was common in the North.

"What do you think of this place?" Ethan asked, scanning the clearing.

The grass was green and short; the wild animals that grazed there kept it that way.

In that region, the water of the Solene River was crystal-clear and abundant, and a strip of clean, golden sand ran along the riverbank—perfect for a swim on a hot day.

It was a pleasant place, with mild temperatures in the summer and, of course, great potential.

"It’s perfect, my lord..." Lucius said, turning to his wife. She was smiling too, her eyes sweeping over every corner of that land with approval.

His loyalty was already at its peak, but if it could have grown any further, it would have doubled in that very moment.

He wore his full suit of armor, the metal creaking softly as he dismounted with his son held securely in one arm.

He set the boy down and, holding his small hand, took a step forward, his boots sinking slightly into the grass.

Ethan also dismounted and held out his hands to Alice.

She let herself slide from the saddle into his arms, Ethan’s hands firm on her waist. Her body came down the length of his, the soft, heavy swell of her breasts pressing and shifting against his chest.

He held her there for a moment before letting her set her feet gently on the ground.

Then, without hesitation, Ethan took one of the most precious items he owned from his spatial ring.

A Divine-Rank Fortress City Creation Core, Rank S.

It wasn’t of the same quality as Goldenveil’s current core, since it was only Rank S, but it was still comparable to those of the largest and wealthiest capitals of the Kingdom of Burning Ice.

[Name: Divine-Rank Fortress City Creation Core

Description: A core for creating a fortress city. It allows for the creation of a city of up to fifty square kilometers, at a cost of one million gold coins per ten square kilometers.

The entire city is fully walled, with enormous warehouses prepared for prolonged sieges, barracks large enough to house fifty thousand soldiers, and powerful protective arrays.

It can have up to 120,000 initial houses and 150,000 buildings in total, with an initial capacity for 600,000 inhabitants.

Up to thirty million gold coins can be invested in the city’s construction.

Effects: +100% morale and vitality bonus for defenders. +150% wall resistance. +100% food conversion efficiency.

Rank: S]

Ethan didn’t think twice. He activated the core and invested the full thirty million all at once.

He used a blueprint he’d received from Elena to guide the construction, setting the architectural style to match Goldenveil’s.

With everything set, all that was left was to watch the wealth drain from his coffers as the ground began to shake beneath his feet.

A deep rumble rose from the earth.

Horses whinnied and stamped, and the knights tightened their grips on the reins. Lucius’s boy clung to his father’s leg, eyes wide.

Alice’s fingers closed around Ethan’s arm, and he pulled her closer against his side.

Tons upon tons of trees tore loose from the earth, snapping and toppling with a crash that sent flocks of birds fleeing in panic across the sky. The sharp smell of torn soil and fresh sap filled the air.

At the same time, towering concrete walls burst from the ground and climbed skyward with a grinding roar, stretching from the Eternal Mountains to the Solene River and hugging the riverbank.

A second wall advanced into the water, churning up waves and foam, closing off a stretch of the river and creating a sheltered harbor.