Chapter 909: You're Greedy
He spun around and pointed toward the island in the distance, "I will develop Draconia over the next few years. Cities and towns will pop up everywhere along with my company, which will reach out to other continents to expand."
"Won't you have to change the name? Wyldheart Industries is a dead giveaway that it belongs to you."
Archer shrugged, "Oh well, I don't care who knows because no other person on Thrylos will have what we will be selling. Plus, there are the Silvershield Mercenaries that I am planning to start; they will guard the company's properties worldwide while the navy supplies them by sea."
When they heard his plan, they all smiled, but the Kraken Princess asked in a curious voice, 'How will you afford all this?'
"Eventually, they will pay for themselves, but the initial investment will come straight from the banks of the Novgorod and Nightshade. Rumors speak of generous donations toward the good people of Draconia."
When the three girls heard this, they laughed, clearly understanding his implication. Archer chuckled at their reaction before addressing the platform manager, who was anxiously standing with a few Sea Guards.
"Who are you, human?" he asked the nervous-looking individual.
The man bowed. "I am Philip Silverthrone. Son of Alfred and Mia Roger," he introduced himself respectfully.
"So you're my uncle then?" Archer asked.
Now, he looked at the older man who shared the same features as the other Silverthrones, which surprised him, but he soon didn't care as he knew the family had joined the Draconia Kingdom after leaving the empire behind.
That's when Philips's voice reached his ears and pulled him back to reality, "Yes, Your Majesty. I believe I've met you a few times when you were a baby."
Archer nodded, "Do you mind giving us a tour of the platform before taking us down to the seafloor? I haven't seen it yet."'
Philip looked regretful as he replied, "I cannot, Your Majesty. Lady Farrah asked me to help with a third platform to the north, and I was about to board a ship."
'Well I'll do it myself,' he thought before waving the man away, "Don't worry about it; setting up another one is more important. I'll explore the place myself."
The older man nodded before rushing off with the guards following behind. Once they were gone, Demetra commented, "I'm hungry. Can we see what sort of food they serve here?"
"Yes, let's head to the dining hall, which is this way," Archer said while leading the three girls toward a large building.
When they got close, a delicious smell hit their noses. Archer's stomach rumbled, causing him to laugh as they entered. Seeing the place busy with workers and guards on their lunch break, he ignored all the shocked looks they were getting before joining the line.
The workers attempted to let them pass, but Archer dismissed them with a wave before addressing the girls.
"Why do you think the sea monsters attacked the kingdom?" he inquired.
Demetra and Teuila shrugged, but Kassandra responded, "Perhaps the Swarm displaced them from their usual territory, as they have done in the past."
Archer nodded before he studied the dining hall, which was big enough to seat one hundred people without any problems. Two doors led outside, but one was for the kitchen staff. He noticed dozens of miners covered in mud and monster blood.
Following that, the line shortened, allowing Archer and the girls to grab some plates as the cooks dumped sausages, scrambled eggs, and bacon alongside some bread. When the staff noticed it was him, they nearly panicked, but he spoke, "Bring even more of this to my table; I'll pay you for it so you don't lose out on anything."
The cooks nodded in agreement before the group headed for an empty table. Once they sat down, Archer started eating by trying a mouthful of scrambled eggs, which he loved, causing him to demolish the meal.
Ten minutes later, the cooks brought over a few trolleys full of even more food; this made the girls laugh as Teuila commented, "You're greedy Arch; I'm surprised you're not fat."
Archer started laughing before taking out five gold coins and handing them to the young woman, who thanked him. After the dining hall staff walked off, he ate even more food. In the meantime, the three girls ate normally, but Archer teased them for eating like mice, which made him laugh.
Demetra reached over and pinched his side, causing him to yelp in surprise. He turned to the shark girl with narrowed eyes, "I will punish you, Dem, and this time, I'll use ropes and a gag."
The blue-haired girl shivered but shut up, which made him grin. He continued to eat until everyone was full, and the hall was empty as they returned to work. "Do you ladies want to see the seafloor?" Archer asked the group.
Everyone nodded before heading to the lift just as a transport ship arrived, escorted by a few Destroyers. When Archer saw this, he stopped walking and used Mana Manipulation to create a bird to scout the surrounding sea.
The violet bird soared into the air and started flying over the ocean while Archer could see everything. That's when he spotted a group of pirate ships coming from the south, which caused him to sigh.
Without thinking, he sent the bird soaring toward the flagship. When the man hit the vessel, it exploded in a beautiful violet explosion that lit up the surrounding sea, which alerted the warships guarding the platform.
Archer watched them storm toward the pirates while their cannons roared to life as a wave of mana shells soared through the sky. When this happened, he sent a message to Aisha to prepare the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd legions for invasion.
The dragonkin woman asked for the reason, and Archer revealed they were clearing the pirate islands due to the Swarm War, which had paused their previous invasions. When Aisha heard this, she agreed and said everything would be ready soon.
He was happy before speaking to the group, "Let's head to the lift; we need to head back to the island to plan for the war."
"War?" Teuila questioned.
"Yes, there are three islands that pirates are still inhabiting but hiding after we tried to clear them, but the Swarm appeared, forcing the legions to pull back," Archer answered. "Now everything is peaceful. We can deal with all the islands around Draconia."
Following that, Archer and the girls reached the lift, where a few Sea Guards stood on watch. When they spotted him, they saluted while the group stood on the platform just before it
started lowering.
When the lift traveled downward, the group saw a massive green shield blocking the seawater from pouring in. The cold air caused the three girls to shiver, so they took out their winter cloaks and wrapped them around themselves.
As the lift lowered, they spotted hundreds of mana lamps moving around like a hive of ants while the workers stacked a pile of crates off to the side. Demetra spoke, "There's a Titan skeleton down here; I can feel its aura."
When Archer heard this, he grew curious and questioned, "Where?"
The shark girl pointed to the east, where there was a massive hill with only a few lights. "I'll
send some workers to unearth it before the platform moves."
Demetra nodded, but Archer continued, "What can these bones be used for?"
"Armor for your warships, sea wall, and airships, husband," she answered. "There are many things. I'd have to sit down and think about it, but I can give you a list when I do."
"Thank you, Dem," Archer said before leaning over and kissing her on the cheek. Just after that, the lift hit the seafloor below, allowing him to see the army of Sea Guards patrolling the area while miners worked hard to pull resources from the caves and caverns.
Archer was amazed by everything. It looked like an alien world, with various plants littering the landscape while underwater trees stood tall. The ground was muddy, but he noticed a walkway made using earth magic that made travel easier.
The group stepped off the lift and was greeted by the Sea Guard commander, a woman in her forties, "Your Majesties, what brings you down here?"
"I just wanted to check out what the mining platforms could do as this is the first time I can see them," he said just as an explosion went off.
Archer looked at Kassandra and Teuila, who nodded before rushing toward the noise while he
and Demetra stayed behind, which confused the shark girl who questioned, "Why aren't we
going love?"
"More creatures are coming," he said before turning around and transforming into his Shadow Prince form. "Guard the lift, Dem, and don't let the monsters close, or they will
destroy it."
She nodded with a determined look in her yellow eyes before he sunk into the shadows and spotted crab-like monsters. These were the size of cars and had a black carapace hiding them in the surroundings.