Ethan was staring at the blueprint that he had received for the upgrade.

[Magical Herb Garden Blueprint]

[Tier: 1]

[Function: Construction guide to building a garden that nourishes magical herb seeds and lets them grow.]

[Maximum Capacity: 1]

[Required Materials To Build: 20 units of Wood, 20 units of Stone, 20 units of sand]

[Construction Upgrade: 100 units of Wood, 100 units of Stone, 100 units of sand]

[Special Requirement: Architect-class Professional needed for construction]

His hands trembled slightly as he absorbed the implications of what he was reading. The residential blueprint was impressive, but this… this could change everything.

‘A renewable source of advanced materials.’

Ethan’s mind raced through the possibilities. His storage ring currently contained several magical herbs he’d acquired during his journey to Gold rank—precious tier 2 and tier 3 specimens that had accelerated his advancement to gold rank dramatically.

‘If I could plant those and harvest them repeatedly…’

One tier 3 herb planted could potentially yield multiple tier 3 harvests over time. But more importantly, he could devour the new yield…

‘Lower tier herbs becoming higher-tier through cultivation.’

His thoughts turned to the tier 3 Flame Rose still secured in his storage ring. That single herb represented years of normal cultivation in normal conditions in the real world, yet here was a blueprint that could potentially produce dozens of similar specimens.

Tier 2 herbs becoming tier 3. Tier 3 advancing to tier 4. Each upgrade would provide exponentially greater advancement benefits.

‘From Gold rank to Platinum. From Platinum to whatever is next.’

The timeline suddenly became manageable. Instead of decades of searching for rare advancement materials like Ezekiel, he could cultivate them directly. A personal advancement laboratory disguised as agricultural infrastructure.

Ethan studied the construction requirements with renewed urgency. The materials were trivial—he possessed far more than the blueprint demanded. Jacoub’s expertise could handle the architectural requirements easily.

His current resources did not allow him to build it yet, however, getting 20 units of wood and sand wouldn’t be difficult at all. He could either wait for an hour for the scorpions to spawn, or he could simply head to the forest and check out whether there are any monsters there.

-> 0/100 units of wood

-> 120/100 units of stone

-> 000/100units of sand

The defensive walls would be useless if he lacked the personal power when they fell eventually. Otherwise, he would simply be a sitting duck, waiting to be slaughtered.

His storage ring contained seeds from several magical herbs alongside the mature specimens. Those seeds, planted in magically enhanced soil, could become the foundation of unlimited advancement.

‘Vincent’s interrogation revealed their Lord might have reached Low-Platinum. If the advancement isn’t more staggering than usual, I could still probably fight him on equal footing on Peak-Gold rank.’

[Town Hall]

[Territory Tier: 3]

[Town Hall Effects: Currently, the Lord’s residence. Has no buffs.

[Territory’s Buildings: Town Hall (Tier 2), Summoning Gate (Tier 2), Residential Housing x2 (Tier 2)]

[Requirements: 400 units of Wood, 400 units of Stone, 400 units of sand, 50 Bronze-rank Monster cores, 50 Silver-rank Monster Cores]

The next tier upgrade loomed as a distant goal—resources he didn’t possess and couldn’t acquire before the enemy discovered Vincent’s fate. But that was acceptable. His priorities had shifted completely.

‘Forget about territory advancement. Personal power is everything now.’

The herb garden blueprint in his hands represented a path to victory that defensive walls couldn’t provide. Military fortifications might delay defeat, but only overwhelming personal strength could guarantee survival against a Platinum-rank opponent.

‘It’s mere hours until they start investigating. Every minute counts.’

Ethan strode toward Jacoub, who was sitting down with the exhausted crew. The architect’s face showed the strain of continuous labour, but his enthusiasm remained undimmed.

“Jacoub,” Ethan called out, extending the magical blueprint. “New priority. Everything else stops.”

The architect accepted the parchment with a nod, his eyes immediately drawn to the patterns throughout the design. His expression shifted from curiosity to fascination as he absorbed the specifications.

‘He understands what this means.’

Minutes passed in silence as Jacoub studied every detail with professional intensity. His fingers traced construction sequences while his mind calculated material requirements and structural complexities.

“Remarkable,” he breathed finally. “The magical enhancement arrays are unlike anything I’ve seen. This isn’t just agriculture—it’s applied thaumaturgy.”

‘A garden that can accelerate plant evolution. Worth more than any fortress.’

“How long?” Ethan asked, urgency sharpening his voice.

Jacoub’s eyes remained fixed on the blueprint as he performed rapid calculations. “Three hours to build. Maybe less if we optimize the workflow.”

‘Three hours. Manageable if nothing goes wrong.’

“The crew has improved dramatically,” Jacoub continued, professional pride evident in his tone. “Their coordination and technique have advanced beyond basic competency. Without that experience, this project would require twelve hours minimum.”

‘Experience accelerates everything. Good.’

But three hours represented precious time they couldn’t afford to waste. Every moment brought enemy investigation closer while delaying the garden’s completion.

“Alright,” Ethan announced, his voice carrying across the territory with military authority. “I want a team at the spawning point immediately for resource extraction.”

‘Materials first. Everything depends on steady supply flow.’

Jack stepped forward, already organizing his warriors for deployment. “How many, my Lord?”

“Minimum effective force. Six fighters to handle the harvest while maintaining security.”

‘Can’t spare everyone for resource gathering. Still need construction crews.’

Marcus raised his hand. “Should we maintain perimeter surveillance?”

“Absolutely. But reduce the scouting range—focus on early warning rather than deep reconnaissance.”

‘Intelligence gathering secondary to construction speed.’

Ethan’s attention returned to Jacoub, whose mind was already working through optimization strategies. “Find ways to accelerate this. Teach them techniques that could help. We’re in a predicament—we have no time to waste.”

‘Every minute saved could mean the difference between success and annihilation.’

The architect’s expression grew grave as the stakes appeared in his mind. “My Lord, I can implement parallel construction techniques. Multiple teams working simultaneously on different components.”

‘Divide and conquer the construction process.’

“Do it.”

“I’ll also teach them some placement methods—precision techniques that eliminate rework and reduce time waste.”

‘Efficiency through expertise.’

The territory buzzed with renewed activity as his subjects reorganized around the new priority. Warriors departed for resource extraction while construction crews prepared for the most challenging build of their careers.

‘Three hours to create a strategic weapon. Twenty-two hours before enemy investigation begins.’

Ethan watched his people move with desperate efficiency, each understanding that their survival depended on perfect execution under impossible time constraints.

‘The next three hours determine everything.’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep