The Rise of the Black Plain

"Hmm, that's good." Minos said in satisfaction after hearing that soldier's entire report. "Well, guys, let's start taking care of this fort."

"Divide the soldiers who are already here into groups and move around this fort. Try to find possible tunnels, people who shouldn't be here, etc."

"And for those who are not yet wearing the uniforms of the royal guard, don't waste too much time and find something for yourself! Until the soldiers who will be staying here arrive, you will have to fulfill the function of managing this place!"

"Yes, young master!" Those people responded simultaneously as some were already beginning to follow Minos' orders.

On the other hand, it was not long before those stronger individuals of the royal guard of this place were healed by the army doctor who had come on this mission.

However, these hostages were already with spiritual arrays on their necks, something that would prevent them from acting even though most of them had recovered after the doctor's help.

With that, soon, Abby began to use her ability on the leader of that place, General Doran.

"What is your name?" Minos asked.

"My name..." Doran tried to say while squirming in an attempt to resist Abby's innate ability. 

The veins in this man's neck then dilated considerably as his eyes turned red, and he seemed to be almost suffocating. 

"My name..." However, due to the array on his neck, this man couldn't resist for long until he answered young Stuart's question, "My name is Doran."

"So, Doran, let's talk a little bit about this place..." Minos then began to ask a series of questions about the operations of this fort, things that only the leader of this place could know.

The young Stuart wanted to know what this Spiritual King usually did in this place. How long it would take for the royal family to replace Doran, who such Spiritual King interacted with, etc. Things that might make it easier to replace this man with one of the soldiers from the Black Plain Army.

But of course, Minos was aware that it would not be possible to replace someone completely, at least at their level, and in a region as poor as the one in which they were. 

So, unlike most ordinary guards of this place, Minos would need to keep this person in the Maritime City if something problematic happened and they needed such a person.

On the other hand, young Stuart wanted to find out something helpful with this man about the Brown family.

Although young Stuart had once been the son of a subordinate, this sovereign knew very little about such a power. But this was for a good reason. That is, when Albert was alive, this Minos was just a child who would not need to know important things.

On the other hand, Minos, at most, was just the son of a subordinate... He had no possibility of learning things about the Brown family that were unknown to other great families or ordinary people.

Consequently, this young man knew very little about the organization of such a family, about the correct numbers of specialists, etc.

Anyway, soon several of his questions were answered, while others had been left unanswered.

But this was to be expected. After all, Doran was only a subordinate and had certainly had to sign Soul Contracts to access some resources and information. Hence, the main secrets of such a family had remained unanswered.

Minos didn't want to force the situation and end up killing this person, one that he definitely needed to maintain alive.

But the Soul Contracts didn't include all the relevant points, and as such, young Stuart had learned a little more about the royal family of the Brown Kingdom.

For example, he learned that such an organization had over 200,000 members, including royalty, nobles, and subordinates. Of that people, about 70,000 were Spiritual Generals, and there were 61 Spiritual Kings!

As for the top cultivators, those above level 57, such an organization had 5 of them, with three at level 57, one at level 58, and one at level 59.

Anyway, the interrogation continued until the group finally started talking to the other individuals who were still there, the level 49 royal guards.

At the same time that Minos and his people were asking their questions and those people were answering, one of the soldiers was writing everything down so that such a thing could be stored at headquarters for future actions.

Collecting information about regional powers was important for future generations, who would understand the circumstances in which certain events happen. And with this, the training of more capable people could be facilitated, among other benefits.

...

After this, several hours had passed, and the day had dawned on the Maritime City.

But although the night passed quickly, many things had happened in the meantime. 

The soldiers who had participated in missions similar to the previous one, in other locations in this city, had returned with information and had given their reports to Minos' team.

With this, young Stuart had officially defeated the royal forces in this city and had, therefore, successfully occupied this place and unified the Black Plain!

Of course, none of this was official, and on the surface, this place would still belong to the royal family for a few more years. But for the Minos plans, that would be good enough.

And with such a result, the other royal guards that had been left in this city had been sent to the Dry City, where they could join the rest of their comrades in the local prison and in the agricultural fields of such a place...

So, it was not long before Minos and Abby finished their business regarding the invasion of the forts. But they had not returned to Dry City immediately.

That was because they had spent the whole night solving problems and needed a few hours to recover and then return to that place.

Both of them might be cultivators and quite strong by regional standards. Still, there were risks that they would be unlucky enough to run into powerful beings, not only humans but also beasts. Among them were birds similar to White, which could make life very difficult for travelers in certain circumstances.

Hence, the two had decided to spend the rest of the morning in this city, to cultivate and then rest for a few hours.

...

"Eduard, you have already reached level 52, and with that, there shouldn't be many subordinates of regional powers able to defeat you anymore. However, if any nobles above level 54 appear in this place, be very careful." Minos said with a resolute expression on his face as he looked at the man who was a few meters away from him. "Opponents like that are above your limits."

"I see... Don't worry, Mr. Minos. I know my limits and will not attempt anything risky. I will only maintain our position in this town while I spend my time training." Eduard said as the breeze made part of the uniform of the royal family tremble on this man's body.

Minos had already brought this Spiritual King out of the Spatial Kingdom, something that had happened just after young Stuart and his girlfriend had finished their rest. After that, the two and some of the soldiers from the Black Plain Army were saying their goodbyes outside the Maritime City.

"Well, as soon as we have a chance to bring a replacement for you, I will send you back to Dry City. So, hang in there for the time being, hehe." 

"As for the rest of you, try not to do anything outside the forts until the interrogations of those guards are over."

"OK, young master!"

"That's all... But be prepared. Things will soon get more complicated." Minos said, just before nodding in the direction of those people and then giving the order for White to take off.

"By the next time we see each other, I will be a Spiritual King, hehehe..."

After that, Minos and Abby disappeared into the midst of the clouds of that region, following on White's back towards Dry City.