Miles away, in a territory marked by jagged grey stone and deep, silent caves, another Lord was watching the chaos in the Global Chat with a serene, detached amusement. This was Robin.
While Ryan's territory was a bustling hub of frantic construction, Robin's was an oasis of quiet contemplation.
He had no citizens, save for the one he was about to purchase. He had no buildings, save for the naturally formed cave he called home. He had spent his first days not in a desperate bid for survival, but in a deep, meditative trance, his mind connected to his SS-Rank talent, 'Truth's Blessing'.
He emerged from the cool darkness of his cave, blinking in the bright sunlight. His appearance was that of a wild man, his hair and beard long and unkempt from days of single-minded focus. He looked far older than his twenty-something years.
But his eyes were a startling, piercing blue, shining with an intelligence that was almost unnerving.
He checked his system panel. He had 100 Development Points, saved from the initial system rewards and by killing a few wandering stone lizards that had stumbled into his cave.
It was all the money he had in the world.
He opened the Population Market, his gaze skipping past the humans, goblins, and dwarves.
His eyes landed on the Elves.
Agile and perceptive. Masters of the bow and knowledgeable about forests.
The description was mundane, but Robin's talent told him more. It whispered the truth: Elves had a natural, dormant affinity for the world's hidden energies. They were the perfect vessels for his grand experiment.
He spent 60 points, a fortune for him, on a single Elf. The remaining 40 he spent on a week's worth of preserved rations.
A pillar of blue light descended, and a graceful, silver-haired Elf appeared.
She was terrified, her large, almond-shaped eyes wide with fear. But when she looked at Robin, she saw not a wild man, but a deep, calming wisdom in his piercing eyes.
He didn't treat her like a servant. He sat with her, not as a Lord to a subject, but as a teacher to a student. For seven grueling hours, he guided her. He taught her how to feel the warmth of the sun not just on her skin, but in the air around her. He taught her how to feel the life in the earth, the energy in the wind.
He was teaching her magic.
The Elf, whose name was Lyra, was a prodigy. After hours of intense concentration, her brow beaded with sweat, she held out a trembling hand. A tiny spark sputtered in her palm, then fizzled out. Robin smiled encouragingly.
An hour later, she did it again. This time, the spark held. It grew, wavered, and finally blossomed into a small, stable ball of fire, no bigger than a peach. It hovered an inch above her hand, casting a warm, wondrous glow on her face.
She gasped, her eyes reflecting the tiny flame.
"I… I did it."
Robin felt a surge of triumph so powerful it was almost overwhelming.
He had just created the world's first mage.
He looked at Lyra, her face alight with a new kind of power, and then at his own disheveled reflection in her wide, wondrous eyes. He walked to a small, clear lake at the edge of his territory.
Using his talent, he found a piece of flint with a razor-sharp edge. He hacked away the long, tangled hair and shaved the wild beard, his movements precise and practiced.
When he was done, the reflection that stared back was that of a young, handsome man with an aristocratic brow and an unnervingly intense gaze.
He looked less like a hermit and more like a scholar from a lost age.
Satisfied, he opened the Global Chat. He saw Nameless's name still causing a stir from the alliance announcement.
He opened the DM.
[Robin]: "How goes the empire-building, Nameless?"
[Nameless]: "Slowly," came the reply. "We're working on a second cabin now. The goblins are a nightmare to manage. They're stupid, but surprisingly useful for hauling logs. It's organized chaos over here."
Robin let out a genuine laugh. Ryan's practical, messy approach to lordship was a hilarious contrast to his own quiet, focused pursuit of cosmic truths.
They were two sides of the same SSS-Rank coin.
[Robin]: "Organized chaos seems to be your specialty. I think it's about time I made a little chaos of my own. Watch the Global Chat."
Before Ryan could ask what he meant, Robin navigated to his profile.
He changed his name from the generic system-assigned one to a simple, powerful statement:
'Human'.
Then, he opened the main chat, took a deep breath, and prepared to drop his own bombshell on the unsuspecting world.
A moment later, a silver-bordered announcement, the same type as the event notification, blazed across every Lord's screen.
[SYSTEM DISCOVERY ANNOUNCEMENT!]
[Congratulations to Lord 'Human' for being the first to successfully impart latent magical abilities to a citizen of a different race!]
[A new path has been unlocked! The Age of Magic has begun!]
[Reward: 'Archmage's Insight' Title. The chance to successfully teach magic is permanently increased. All magical research actions are more effective.]
The Global Chat, which had been buzzing with talk of Ryan's alliance and the new event, came to a screeching, grinding halt.
For a few seconds, there was only the sound of five thousand jaws hitting the floor.
[LuckyLucy]: "HUMAN?! FINALLY! SOMEONE ELSE IS MAKING ANNOUNCEMENTS BESIDES NAMELESS! I WAS GETTING TIRED OF THAT GUY!"
[David Chen]: "Wait… read that again. Impart… magical abilities? To another race?"
[BigBadBill]: "Age of Magic? What…?"
[Kaiser]: "IMPOSSIBLE! THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS…"
Kaiser's frantic denial was cut off by a single, perfectly typed word that appeared from dozens of Lords at the exact same time, a collective gasp of pure, mind-shattering revelation that echoed across the entire planet.
[RandomLord45]: "MAGIC?!"
[MonsterSlayer_69]: "MAGIC?!"
[FishyFrank]: "MAGIC?!"