The first month didn't unfold exactly as Joel had anticipated. Even so, the outcome was far from a failure. Between the two mercenary companies, they managed to deliver a total of thirty-four prisoners, all of them now legally condemned slaves. Among them were three mystic experts and ten adepts, in addition to a majority of apprentices. All men.

  Joel had been explicit from the start: besides requiring mystic warriors, he didn't want women. A moral whim, perhaps. Or maybe a line he refused to cross, even in the midst of all this. Fortunately—and conveniently—the low number of women in mercenary companies meant that this requirement didn't pose a real logistical problem.

  The prices were negotiated shrewdly by the mercenaries, who knew how to deal with others in the same line of work. Joel didn't have to shell out exorbitant amounts, which confirmed a suspicion he'd had: there wasn't a huge demand for that specific type of slave. At least not at the time, and prices remained surprisingly stable.

  Apprentices could only be obtained in exchange for gold. Adepts rarely cost more than ten level one crystals. And experts went for around fifty crystals.

  It was the direct benefit of dealing with those who captured them. No middlemen, no additional taxes, and no awkward questions.

  The second month was considerably better. The companies managed to gather seventy-two slaves, including eight experts and, to Joel's surprise, a mystic master.

  This was a man captured on a front much further south, transported to Naros along with other high-value prisoners. Basil, leader of the Valiant Hearts, had managed to acquire him after a veritable bidding war, paying three hundred and thirty-five level one crystals.

  That made one thing clear: there will always be a strong demand for high-level condemned slaves.

  That single individual was able to produce around one hundred level one crystals per week. An absurd number up to that point. Unfortunately, his magical affinity was water, which prevented Nana from replicating on him the extraction she had once applied to Connor.

  It was also during that second month that the mercenaries managed to establish direct contact with certain authorities in the city of Morta, one of the closest to the border. From then on, they began acquiring a significant number of prisoners condemned to death.

  And there, everyone—including Joel—discovered the reality of that dark market. What was being handed over, in many cases, was no longer a person, but an unconscious torso. Arms, legs, tongue, and eyes removed. The body kept alive by metal tubes connected directly to the stomach, so it could be fed. A common practice, they explained without much ceremony. Especially when those “resources” were destined for mystical academies specializing in medical studies.

  Joel said nothing, nor did the mercenaries when they handed over the men's remains. He simply treated them as what they were… “Resources.”

  Throughout this time, he maintained constant contact with both companies. He established a temporary base of operations near the city of Photon, where he received the slaves and provided the funds for subsequent purchases. The final transport always remained in his hands. Only at night, and far from any prying eyes, did he transport each prisoner to the shelter.

  The third month was, without a doubt, the most fruitful. 163 slaves were acquired. Among them were 31 experts and four mystic masters. All thanks to a large-scale battle near the city of Cythontion, where at least four large Dirmistan mercenary companies managed to corner several enemy companies… and completely annihilate them.

  Rumors even spoke of the capture of two grand masters and the elimination of two others. But none of those captured ended up in the slave market. Joel suspected—with a fair amount of certainty—that they shouldn't have been criminals and that their fates had been decided directly by some local governor.

  Even so, the real gem arrived unexpectedly. One of the acquired mystic masters possessed an affinity for the element of air.

  Thanks to this, Nana managed a successful extraction. The process was considerably more complex and demanding, given the profound differences between the affinities of Gaea's warriors and those of the mages… but in the end, it worked. Adding a new skill, which Nana ironically first used by installing a kind of air conditioning in the shelter,

  That single result justified all the effort.

  The fourth month was mediocre in terms of quantity. Barely 61 slaves arrived at the shelter: ten mystic experts and only two masters. A number that, were it not for what happened later, would have been considered a failure by Joel's new standards. However, that apparent disappointment ended up being completely compensated for by an acquisition as unexpected as it was extraordinary.

  The opportunity arose in Morta. Reports spoke of a singular individual: a top-level assassin, hired to eliminate the city's governor. The mission, however, had gone wrong. The castle was guarded by a warrior far superior to the norm, someone capable not only of thwarting the attack but also of capturing the assassin alive. A fatal mistake for someone who had always lived in the shadows.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  When Joel heard the news, he immediately understood the value of that prisoner… and the fleeting nature of his existence. A criminal of that caliber would soon be executed. There was no time to lose.

  Moving at top speed, Joel deployed all his cunning. He bribed officials and bought favors until he achieved something very few outsiders in Morta managed: a direct audience with the governor. By then, the assassin was nothing more than a ravaged corpse, deliberately kept alive, like a trophy yet to be put to its final use.

  The negotiation was as brief as it was ruthless. The governor sensed Joel's urgency, his almost desperate interest, and didn't hesitate to exploit it. Twelve hundred level one crystals changed hands for the still-breathing remains of what had once been a great mystic master. It was clear the governor had squeezed every last crystal out of him.

  Joel didn't care in the slightest. He had obtained something infinitely more valuable than the money spent: an individual capable of producing around 500 crystals per week and, more importantly, a bearer of a magical affinity Joel had never seen or heard of: Shadows.

  When Nana absorbed that strange affinity, the effect was, at best, bizarre and unsettling. Her form began to blur, as if even light hesitated to touch her. Soon she discovered she could literally transform into a shadow, merging with the darkness, camouflaging herself completely, and moving stealthily, especially at night. A perfect ability for criminal activities.

  Joel had no doubt that this affinity held many more possibilities. But that potential would have to be explored by Nana at her own pace.

  By then, Joel was fully convinced of the brilliance of his idea. Buying condemned slaves was not only generating enormous wealth for him, but it was also expanding the arsenal of Nana, the great guardian of the refuge, with abilities that were slowly transforming her into a kind of magical Titan, especially considering the enormous mana reserves she possessed.

  Everything seemed to be progressing flawlessly. Until the fifth month arrived, and everything came to a sudden halt.

  The disaster began with the fall of the province of Cythontion, following a crushing defeat of Dirmistan's forces. Under normal circumstances, this would have been just another shift in an unstable and illusory border. But the new governor, a clearly unbalanced man, made a decision no one expected.

  The newcomer refused to respect the delicate balance of the Cold War and declared the province independent from Dirmistan. That simple statement was enough to completely explode the situation.

  The nation's central authorities could not ignore such a blatant violation of sovereignty. Entire military battalions were mobilized to surround the city of Cythontion, and a special security law was invoked, placing all mercenary companies in the region under direct military command. No one was spared. Not even the Valiant Hearts and the Red Hammers.

  A full-scale siege was then deployed. Tens of thousands of soldiers surrounded the city, while the enemy entrenched themselves in the main fortress, using civilians as hostages. Tensions escalated to unbearable levels.

  The Duke of Migozyria responded firmly, declaring that his duchy had no involvement whatsoever. However, his words lost their weight when the southern provinces began sending reinforcements with the intention of breaking the siege.

  All-out war seemed inevitable.

  Fortunately, before the conflict escalated to a point of no return, an individual of extraordinary power intervened. According to rumors, he was a mystical General (level 7). He infiltrated the fortress amidst the chaos of the siege and eliminated the governor and his inner circle in a single, precise, and decisive operation.

  The siege, which had promised to drag on for months, ended abruptly, halting the escalation on the border. Reinforcements from the duchy never fully materialized, as someone must have given the order not to worsen the conflict.

  The state of emergency was eventually lifted, but calm never fully returned. The border remained ablaze with rumors, with increasingly insistent warnings that other Free States could be drawn into the conflict, and open calls—now barely disguised—to “bring order” to the Duchy of Migozyria before the situation spiraled completely out of control.

  The cold war had survived… but it hung by a thread.

  For Joel, however, what had happened marked the definitive end of his grand project. Not because it had failed, but precisely because it had gone as far as it could. If the opportunity arose in the future to acquire more condemned slaves, he wouldn't hesitate to take it, but the structure that had sustained that operation ceased to exist overnight. The mercenary companies he had hired withdrew from the sector as soon as the restrictions were lifted. None of them had suffered losses during the siege, but neither were they willing to risk their luck a second time.

  The message was clear: the border had ceased to be a place for business and had become a full-fledged military chessboard.

  Even so, the final balance was undeniable. Before the arrival of the first slaves, Joel's weekly production barely exceeded two hundred crystals. By the time the operation closed, that figure had skyrocketed to more than four thousand five hundred crystals per week. An obscene amount, enough to make him one of the wealthiest people in the entire region… if he simply decided to let the crystals accumulate for a couple of years.

  But Joel had never been interested in wealth for its own sake. Money, for him, wasn't an end in itself, but a tool. A means to build real, lasting, and difficult-to-take advantages. And the first of those advantages had to be an organization capable of operating openly on his behalf.

  During the months they had worked together, Joel had forged a particularly strong relationship with the Valiant Hearts. Basil and Calista had proven themselves not only as competent leaders but as exceptional negotiators, directly responsible for acquiring a good portion of the high-value slaves. It was Calista, in fact, who had tirelessly traveled to the base of operations to personally inform Joel of the capture of the assassin in Morta, an act that was crucial in securing the individual in time.

  Because of all this, Joel presented them with a proposal that none of them expected: a contract of mutual cooperation.

  The Valiant Hearts would become his personal guard and the public face of his future financial investments. A company with a name, prestige, and legitimacy, operating openly while Joel remained in the shadows. In return, they would receive a fixed monthly budget of one thousand level one crystals, intended for an aggressive expansion of their ranks, talent recruitment, and the acquisition of resources that would allow them to strengthen themselves.

  The offer was so staggering that it left everyone speechless when Joel presented it to Basil and his lieutenants. Calista even fainted upon hearing the sum of money offered.

  Neither Basil nor the rest of the high command could conceal their shock. That amount of resources surpassed any contract they had ever had in their entire history as a mercenary company. It wasn't just about financial stability; it was the opportunity to become a top-tier force.

  Three full days of internal debate were necessary before a decision was reached. In the end, the response was unanimous. The Valiant Hearts accepted the proposal.

  And with that, Joel took the first step toward something much larger than a simple crystal accumulation project: the construction of a power structure that, this time, didn't depend on the chaos of the frontier… but on his own will.