During Marvin's absence, White River Valley was still running smoothly.

In fact, even though he had experienced such a long and challenging trip, from the point of view of those in the Sanctuary, he had only been gone for about four days.

When Marvin arrived at the Wizard Tower next to River Shore City, Madeline immediately came out to greet him.

The Succubus City Lord was very surprised. After all, Marvin returned so soon after departing.

But she didn't find it odd to see the girl that he brought back with him.

Since it was late in the night, Marvin didn't wake Anna and the others, who were already asleep, instead returning to White River Valley on Madeline's magic carpet.

On the way, Isabelle remained silent. She had changed greatly, and Madeline also wasn't the same Madeline as before. The two didn't talk to each other at all as they travelled.

Marvin only asked about what had happened after he left, and Madeline dutifully answered, methodically summarizing everything.

Thanks to the foundations laid by Daniela, the entire Sanctuary was in good working condition, including River Shore City, the Valley itself, as well as the newly established Sword Harbor.

Under the protection of the Dark Knights, Marvin's new orders were implemented strictly, and no talent in White River Valley was wasted. The able were armed and sent to hunt in small teams, killing some small monsters every day, reducing the pressure on the Sanctuary.

As for the refugees whose fighting capabilities were lacking, some of them also started joining the training camp on their own.

Marvin had arranged for the instructors to receive very significant rewards. They gained twice as many contribution points as a regular warrior each week, spurring them to go all-out with the soldiers' training regimens. In four days, the first training camp was already one-third done. Many people joining the militia were in their primes and already possessed the most basic fighting abilities.

Marvin did not expect them to become experts. It would be good enough as long as they could cooperate to get rid of some monsters in the Sanctuary's surroundings.

At the same time, he also knew that these people would grow a lot faster when hunting than when waiting in the safety of the Sanctuary.

From this it could be seen that although they didn't have the Essence Absorption System, when under pressure, it was easier to trigger their potential.

...

Having top-tier forces wasn't something White River Valley was concerned about. What Marvin needed right now for the territory was to strengthen its most basic powers, including the militia and the hunting squadrons, as well as to create a knight troop. As for the last matter, before Marvin made the final decision, potential recruits were screened by the knights from River Shore City.

After all, River Shore City's defenses had a better foundation in this field. After a fair amount of education and training, they would become the core of White River Valley's power.

On Sword Harbor's side, it was still at a rudimentary stage for now.

Many fishermen gathered there and started building some small fishing boats.

Because the Chaos Magic Power permeated the sea very slowly, the surface was still peaceful. Some people were able to go out to fish in the past few days, which was good news.

In any case, the people there didn't lose hope and just settle for eking out a living while waiting to die. They had recovered their yearning for life. These were the people Marvin wished to protect.

...

This was the current situation regarding the manpower in his lands.

Then there were the matters of food and weapons. Marvin's trip to Steel City had fulfilled the latter need to some extent.

They had reached an agreement with the people from Morrigan's Heart. The soldiers were willing to sell weapons to White River Valley.

But they wanted to barter rather than be paid in gold, with food as their main request.

Before leaving, Marvin had said that they couldn't use force to coerce these upright soldiers. Under the great efforts of Madeline and Lola, both sides made several offers back and forth, but due to White River Valley also needing to keep a reserve of food, they didn't have enough to exchange for as many weapons as they needed.

With White River Valley's growing population and all the people that were joining the militia or hunting squads, if they couldn't provide enough weapons, these people would have to train empty-handed.

This was a possible problem that Marvin had thought of before leaving for the Supreme Jungle.

'It seems that it's time to head for Arborea,' Marvin decided.

He already had a solution.

There was a lot of food in the twelve golden bulls, but that didn't solve the root of the problem.

The grains of the season had just started being cultivated. White River Valley's sprawling land and the areas along the river would have to wait till autumn for this year's harvest. But before that, they still needed to pass the days.

Thus, the only way to have enough food to trade some away was to buy from Arborea.

Marvin's trip to Arborea had convinced him that it was a very suitable plane for growing food. If the Shadow Prince hadn't squeezed the inhabitants for faith so thoroughly, they might have already become very prosperous.

And Arborea's current ruler could be considered Marvin's close acquaintance. Her older brother, Prince Aragon, was in Sword Harbor and would break through the Legend Realm anytime. The only troublesome part was that with Marvin's current level of strength, he couldn't enter Arborea!

Arborea was a Secondary Plane that could only sustain beings of up to level 18. Marvin was now level 22 and would be rejected by Arborea's will.

He believed that unless he figured out a way to bypass the problem, he could only send someone else.

But he was worried that the person he sent wouldn't be able to succeed. It wasn't that Marvin had no one to trust, but this was an interplanar deal. It involved too many factors. He would feel uncomfortable about it if he didn't go in person.

Moreover, there were various other matters that needed attending to.

There had been some change in the western Deathly Silent Hills.

A few days ago, the traces of some Dwarves seemed to have appeared in Jewel Bay, to the north, according to some scouts.

And furthermore, while he was away, the Adventurer Camp had expanded further. A group of adventurers found an anomaly to the south.

One thing after the other… Even though Madeline was clear and concise, Marvin still felt a headache coming on.

While he wasn't there, most of the matters were handled by Anna, but Marvin still had to take care of the most important ones. They were piling up waiting for him.

"Being an Overlord isn't such a good thing. So many things are happening these days."

Marvin couldn't help but rub his temples on the trip back.

As they arrived, Madeline showed a teasing smile. "How will Master deal with these matters?"

Marvin sternly answered, "These matters can only be resolved one by one."

"The most important thing now is to get some good rest."

After saying this, he ignored Madeline's surprised expression as he jumped down from the magic carpet with Isabelle following just after, and entered the castle.

After casually finding a servant and having her take Isabelle to a room, Marvin returned to his own room.

As he lay down on the soft bed, a wave of fatigue surged up.

He had been adventuring outside for all this time and had been tensed up for so long.

But he could relax now that he was back in his Sanctuary.

The radiating Source of Fire's Order made him feel very comfortable. He felt at ease with the Eye of Justice and the Dark Knights protecting his territory.

Marvin wasn't normally someone who would easily feel secure.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so meticulous when accomplishing everything.

In this chaotic world, each night was so nerve-wracking.

The events of the Crimson Wilderness had put him through so much pressure.

He had earned himself a nice, long rest.

His eyelids became heavier, and slowly drooped shut.

He was so tired, he didn't notice that just as he closed his eyes, a barefooted woman with fair skin appeared in his bedroom.

There was a feather between her ring and index fingers.

"Sleep tight."

"You deserve to have a beautiful dream. After all, it is too tiring for someone to support a Sanctuary all on their own," Ambella softly cooed.

Marvin, who had still been frowning, suddenly relaxed.

He fell asleep.

It felt like a thousand years passed.

When he woke up from the embrace of oblivion, noisy voices could be heard next to him!

"Low Light Vision +10 Necklace of Whispers, huge sale!"

"Recruiting specialists for the [Hidden Granary] instance! Assassins and Rangers not needed, we'll be gathering around the pillar to heal!"

"Carrying newbies, 5000 credits to go from level 1 to 5. Can also help with advancement missions!"

Marvin fell into a daze.

'Where... is this?'