Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 169 Fearless Swordsman
Su Mu received a letter from Sederlos, which detailed his experiences in Vatra, the second largest city in the Arcane Empire, along with a thick travelogue and a precious magic scroll.

【Fire Shield (Level 4 Fire Elemental Magic): When friendly units are attacked in melee, they reflect 20% of the fire damage. The duration is affected by spell power.

Advanced Fire Elemental Mastery: When friendly units are attacked by melee attacks, they reflect 30% of the fire damage (unaffected by magic resistance or magic immunity, but affected by fire magic and elemental damage reduction). The duration is affected by spell power.

Ivan has already mastered advanced fire elemental skills, but the Ragefire Armor can only be used for fire control techniques, lacking more proactive offensive capabilities.

The Fiery Shield is the most suitable magic for Ivan to use his skills, but unfortunately there are no level 4 magic guilds in the area under Su Mu's command, let alone the relatively rare fire elemental magic.

The tower, however, is different. Not only can it build level 5 magic guilds, but it also has a library that increases the number of spells at each level, naturally giving it an extra option compared to other factions. Sederos used his alchemical wisdom to replicate the Fiery Shield and sent it back to his territory through special channels.

Maggie stroked the warm cover of the parchment scroll and exclaimed, "To be able to create a level 4 magic scroll in the early stages is simply unimaginable. No wonder Beatrice was overjoyed to hear that she could take Cedros away. If he had been born in the Arcane Empire, he would probably have become a remarkable sage!"

But would this mean Sidelos would stay in the Empire and never return? After all, compared to the war-torn Eldon, the Arcane Empire offered a more peaceful environment, allowing for better magical research—a long-held desire of Sidelos and a great attraction for him.

Although not explicitly stated, Maggie felt that without the binding of the Governing Arts, and with Cedrus having witnessed a more prosperous world, it was very likely that his will would waver, which was only human nature.

Su Mu remained calm and unconcerned: "What we are looking for are like-minded comrades-in-arms, pioneers who can build great achievements. They may have shortcomings or flaws, but if they cannot persevere together in difficult times, there is no need for them to stay."

Magic isn't something to be confined to isolation; it's also an art of combat. If Cedrus indulges in comfort now, his future will end here. Even if he eventually reaches the Arcane Throne and becomes a legend, my Hall of Kings will not reserve a place for him.”

The Kuraki territory is indeed weak now, but Su Mu never thought they would stop here. The governor's characteristic is to gather heroes from all over the world and keep developing.

After saying his bold and inspiring words, Su Mu smiled again: "Besides, I won't give him a chance to waver. Cangmu's development keeps pace with the times, and we must also show our potential and courage."

Why demand selfless returns from talented individuals? It would be better to build a more efficient platform, leveraging the architect's ability to enhance the magic guild's capabilities and providing mages with benefits they can't find elsewhere. This would naturally attract geniuses like Sederlos back to serve.

When it comes to development and competition, no one can compare to Kuraki!

Castles are indeed naturally weaker in terms of magic, not as powerful as towers. But the guild that Kuraki is facing, apart from Maggie who has a lower guild level but possesses Dream Domain knowledge, has mastered almost all low-level magic, making them more powerful than more than a dozen magic guilds.

If the magic guild weren't limited by the form of spellcasting, Maggie could display dozens of magic foundations, which is Kuraki's confidence.

Ultimately, they don't lack magic, but town development needs to keep up, and they still need to acquire more boundary stones.

Su Mu did not inquire about the ducal treasury because the ducal territory could use its own resources to build a secondary boundary marker and bestow titles upon its lords, but the scope was limited to the northern territory.

To upgrade Cangmu City, we still need the Kingdom's help. The ancient ruins are still somewhat dangerous, and Su Mu dares not act rashly.

He had spoken with the priests of the trial about whether they could obtain a batch of boundary stones through the religion. Lian indicated that the national treasury currently lacked sufficient boundary stones, and to acquire such a large quantity, one would need to achieve significant merit or advance further within the religion.

The implication of these words is that Kuraki has completely joined the cult and is now under its control.

The title of Viscount Thorns is just one of the religious titles, but in essence, he is still a nobleman. If Su Mu is willing to join the cult, the high priest will naturally find a way.

The Church of Light would welcome a promising member. However, Su Mu's path was not one to be dictated by religion, so he had no choice but to reject the offer.

The only remaining option is to use military merits to obtain rewards. If we can't defeat the ancient ruins and the undead Grand Duke, surely we can defeat the forces that Isildur has broken into from the North.

Rhodes Suliman, having just ascended to the throne, urgently appealed to the Kingdom for aid. With Nortonburg fallen, the North alone could not withstand the invasion of Isildur and desperately needed support from all sides. This situation severely disrupted Raven's plans, forcing him to send a portion of his army north to reinforce the area. However, Lloyd had been waiting for this opening, unleashing his previously concealed contingency plans to block the border between the hills and the North, defeating the Kingdom's vanguard and securing this northward route.

By this time, the kingdom's scouts had discovered Lloyd's plot. Imperial reinforcements had already arrived, but remained silent. If Raven dared to act rashly and continue the pursuit, he might fall into an ambush and be wiped out.

Those in Congress who had been urging Raven to stop fell silent, but a new group emerged criticizing the Marshal for failing to defend the front lines. Even though it was a city lost by Salman in the North, it still plunged the kingdom into trouble, and the Marshal was certainly responsible. In short, they felt that Raven had not done a good job.

Fortunately, King Finaxia VI trusted Raven and, bearing all the pressure, allowed Parliament to continue recruiting soldiers to support the front lines. He also sent diplomats to neighboring countries to lobby for their support in exchange for resources or other conditions.

I've heard that the Finaxia family is planning to marry off a princess to a foreign country in order to forge an alliance with the Western nations; this matter is already on the agenda.

To reiterate, the surrounding countries are willing to see Elton decline, but do not want it to be completely defeated. Once Isidore gains the upper hand, the neighboring countries will increase their support.

The nobles of the trading city are well-versed in the rules between nations, which is why they act with impunity.

But Su Mu felt that war was the most unpredictable thing, and relying on others was not as good as relying on oneself. Only by becoming strong could one be fearless in the face of various challenges.

Therefore, the first step for the Thunder Swordsmen upon returning to Kuraki was to instill their battlefield combat experience and raise the level of their training center.

【Fearless Swordsman (Special Super-Tier Unit): Attack 16, Defense 16, Damage 16-20, Health 45, Speed ​​9, Medium to Strong Size.

Element: None. Sword of Piety for Cultivators

A series of slashes, the greatsword flashed, and lightning struck.

Unyielding Will: Immune to negative mental magic effects, unaffected by any morale-lowering effects, and immune to hypnosis or fear from unit-specific skills.

If the previously powerful Thunder Swordsmen had any weaknesses, then their vulnerability to magical manipulation was their most fatal flaw. As the enemies they face grow stronger, advanced mind magic such as madness and bewitching is gradually being brought to the forefront. If a Thunder Swordsman is manipulated and becomes a weapon for the enemy, it will pose a great danger to their own forces.

Now that threat is gone, the fearless swordsmen can charge without restraint; they are the sharpest swords on the battlefield!

The strongest swordsman's training ground has already reached level 5, with the added benefit of advanced civil engineering. The final level 6 can be built, which will unlock the true strongest swordsman. However, the required combat experience this time is far greater; the devout swords of a few dozen swordsmen might not be enough.

【Strongest Swordsman Training Grounds (Advanced Barracks Auxiliary Building, Tier 5): Greatly increases the Thunder Swordsman's damage output and grants Unyielding Will.

Next tier: Receive a special baptism. Additional building costs 100 Primogems, 50 Logs, and 50 Crystals.

In fact, the upgrade to level 5 also provides a slight increase in health, but compared to the increase in damage, it is indeed insignificant.

The current fearless swordsmen are even comparable to cavalry in terms of functionality, and Su Mu is somewhat looking forward to seeing what level the true strongest swordsman can reach.

So he waved his hand and sent all the swordsmen from the three cities to Kuraki for promotion. With his and Maggie's financial support, they could finally start mass-producing troops without restraint.

"Give the soldiers a boost in training, and let those guys in the north see the power of the fearless!"

(End of this chapter)