I Ascend to the Divine Throne through Arcane Means

Luoxue Mountain Range, West Valley.

The Luoxue Mountain Range was desolate in winter, most of the fierce animals and other creatures nowhere in sight, not even the Magic Beasts willing to roam at will.

The black mountain ridges were covered in pine forests blanketed with heavy snow, leaving only a hint of deep green, with nearly a meter of accumulated snow on the ridges—the color white almost becoming the sole hue of this world.

West Ridge is a narrow mountain ridge in the Luoxue Mountain estate, and the Luoxue Mountain Range, being a significant range lying between Feis Kingdom and Dillon Kingdom, made it almost impossible for the traders traveling between the two kingdoms to bypass the mountains to reach the other side, hence they had to cross through the range.

And as West Valley serves as an eastern passage of the Luoxue Mountain Range, although somewhat winding, it avoids the most rugged Luoxue Main Peak and offers the most convenient and gentle terrain route, chosen by half of the traders traveling between the two kingdoms to traverse the mountains.

Ordinarily, even traders would not choose to cross the Luoxue Mountain Range during winter, not to mention the severe snow and cold, which if accompanied by encounters with hungry Magic Beasts, would lead to a do-or-die struggle.

But here, near the entrance of West Valley close to Dillon Kingdom, where the snow was completely cleared revealing the dark brown ground, hundreds of people were bustling vigorously, a deep gray castle taking shape nearby, connecting to the narrowest part of the valley.

The twenty-plus-meter-tall gray castle walls were the first to be erected, built from large, carefully quarried stone bricks. Behind these walls, many areas were still under repair, the castle itself still just a frame.

The busy workers inside the castle, heads down in their tasks, silent among each other, their robust physiques and subtly emanating fierce aura spoke volumes about their extraordinary identities.

"Mr. Abbas!"

A deputy in deep black military uniform of Dillon Kingdom quickly tied the flaps of the tent to shut out the cold wind outside and walked over to Clint Abbas, speaking respectfully.

Abbas did not look up but continued to gaze down at the castle blueprints on the table before him, his brow furrowed.

"What is it, Frank?"

As the person in charge of overseeing the construction of the castle located in West Valley, Abbas obviously understood the significance and importance of this castle, which was why his workspace was set next to the construction site, allowing him to monitor the progress at all times.

Although this proved to be very arduous, even a fire inside the tent couldn't completely dispel the cold of the Luoxue Mountains. Yet, in order not to let down Anna's trust and responsibility entrusted to him, Abbas was willing to stay constantly beside the castle construction site.

"The latest batch of building materials has been delivered, now stored in warehouse three, four, and five."

"Master Tot told me that the main framework of West Castle is now eighty percent complete, and they can now proceed with the subsequent enchantment reinforcements."

"Good!" Discover hidden tales at empire

Abbas's eyes lit up, the best news he had received in days. Although he had always been at the castle, aware of all the progress, every step of construction needed affirmation from Master Tot, the architect. Despite his impatience, he could not rush anything.

After all, West Castle was being built to the highest standards of a war fortress, unlike any ordinary castle—not only built with more solid stone but also requiring the vast scale magic rune engravings by a Magic Rune Master to give it the capability of repelling magical attacks.

Thus, the control had to be maintained by Master Tot. Abbas dared not to rush the progress at the risk of compromising the castle's build, which was to be a bridgehead for Dillon Kingdom's advancements.

The massive cost of construction was such that Dillon Kingdom only planned to build two such castles in the Luoxue Mountains, the other located on Hette High Land in the western part of the mountain range.

"Then proceed with the plan immediately!"

Abbas turned back to his chair, closed his eyes in thought, and instructed his deputy, Frank.

"Understood... Mr. Abbas."

While Frank received the order, he hesitated and didn't leave immediately.

"What's the matter?"

Abbas opened his eyes and looked towards Frank, who stood by his side.

"The snow has started again, the weather is too cold, and now sixty percent of the soldiers have frostbite, ten percent have fainted, and three have already returned to the embrace of the Ice and Snow Goddess. Do you think we should... give the castle construction a rest for a day and let the soldiers rest properly?"

Frank, gritting his teeth, spoke knowing that this might infuriate Abbas, especially since the construction of the castle was so urgent.

In order not to alert the Feis Kingdom, they had even chosen to begin after the Luoxue Mountain had been blocked by heavy snow.

Although this made the construction of the castle much more difficult, it was also the safest method.

The agreement between the two kingdoms was to neither station troops nor construct castles within the Luoxue Mountain range, and Dillon Kingdom's act of building a war castle in West Valley was evidently a breach of that agreement.

But Frank felt he had to explain the situation to Abbas, as this was one of Dillon Kingdom's elite troops, and their loss saddened him.

Abbas exhaled deeply, usually very strict with his subordinates; this time, he did not scold Frank but said calmly:

"Tell the soldiers to hold on a bit longer, once the castle has its initial enchantments completed, they can rest for a day."

Abbas was well aware of the suffering the cold brought to his soldiers; they were his subordinates, the elites who had charged out with him from herds of ice beasts, and also the guarantee of his current status.

Even so, he had no choice but to endure until the castle was enchanted enough to have a solid defensive strength, then they could catch their breath.

"Yes."

Seeing Abbas's expression, Frank looked somewhat disheartened but still saluted and left the room to convey Abbas's orders.

Abbas stared at the crackling fire nearby, but his mind was already far from the blueprints in front of him.

He always had this feeling, urging him to speed up the castle construction at all costs, as if some danger was about to arrive.

Could it be Feis's army?

Abbas, who had faced death several times, never doubted his premonitions, which were the guarantee of his current status.

"Ah, I hope everything goes smoothly..."

Only a long sigh remained in the tent.

-----------------

At that moment, not far from the castle, on a ridge in the pine forest of the valley.

The falling snowflakes disappeared as they passed through this area.

Lis, who had used the "Advanced Invisibility Technique" and merged his figure with the surroundings, looked at the castle under construction with a grave expression.

This place was pointed out by Golden Dragon Sylvester Ludwig, and it was one of the two most important operational centers for Dillon Kingdom in the Luoxue Mountain.