City of Desire: Chapter 1079 Lt. Colonel Halewright (Patreon)

Proofread by Thomas F

Arik Halewright

“You are completely healed, Lt. Colonel,” the healer announced, and I grinned.

I had overexerted myself in the battle of Panar, but thanks to all those charms and the Archbishop’s spells, I was nearly healed by the night of Gaihorn’s raid.

In that battle, I didn’t exert myself much, but since I returned to Panar, I have been touched and prodded all over.

There have never been so many spells used on me, not to mention charms and even skills that expedite healing, which would have helped others more.

It feels a little strange to me.

I know they value me, given the strength I have shown, but it feels almost a little too much.

I feel like something more is happening than I realize. I tried asking around, but no one seemed to know anything.

Maybe I am just imagining things.

“So no more tests?” I asked, and the healer smiled. That did not give me a good feeling, and I didn’t press. In the past few days, I've gotten to know her well, and I know she won’t explain.

So I got up from the bed and walked out of the examination room. Only to find an orc in uniform standing there.

My Captain and I know him; he is one of General Jarvis's staff members.

“Lt. Colonel, please, follow me,” he said, turning and walking, saying nothing else. I hesitated for a moment before following behind the man. I had questions, but here, too, they were unlikely to be answered.

Soon, we walked out of the hospital and mounted the beasts.

I looked around the city, and it had already returned to its liveliness. The curfew had been removed, and internal control had been handed back to the police.

They are quite effective, more than the city guards of the empire. Father praised them a lot after our guards came back from Greltheaven after their training.

They became more professional, polite, and less corrupt.

Well, after a third who went to the training had been removed after the commissioner advised that they were not fit to be a police officer.

Soon, we reached the large building in the military compound and dismounted.

A short walk later, I stepped into General Jarvis's office.

“General!” I saluted.

Father does not like him; he says the man is too straight-laced, but that’s no surprise. Both merchants and lords like people who can be flexible in their morality and work.

“Take a seat, Lt. Colonel.” I nodded my thanks and sat down.

“It’s good to see you fully healed,” he said, his eyes evaluating me. They seemed to want to look at my soul, which made me a little uncomfortable.

Given his presence, I am more sure that this man had advanced to Lv. 40.

“I healed a few days ago, but the healer took a few extra days to declare me fit.”

He smiled at that, opened the file, took out the page, and slid it toward me.

“Now that the healer declared you fit, we are temporarily transferring you to the forgebase,” he stated, to my surprise.

“General, I’d rather stay where I am.”

A few of the people, I know, have been transferred to the forgebase as they tightened its security. Now that everybody knows what they are.

People say the forgebase is impressive, but it is nothing more than a guard posting.

Not to mention, those who temporarily transfer guard the outside of the cavern. They only get a glimpse of the forgebase, and only then sometimes.

They saw no golems; at least that’s what they had told me.

“It’s an order, Lt. Colonel,” he stated, and I sighed.

A few minutes later, I walked out and rode toward the mine. The order was to report there immediately.

I planned to practice my new skills and a few moves I had thought of during the battle. I hope I can do that there.

I reached the mine, which functioned like a regular mine, but also housed one of the most important places in the dominion. I showed the order and was allowed inside.

Inside, I changed the beasts and rode toward the forge base, with the escort already waiting for me. I couldn’t help but feel a little excited about it, despite not liking the transfer.

I'd heard a lot about Forgebase, a thousand-year-old inheritance.

Not to mention the golems.

“The security is pretty tight,” I said, looking around. “There have been a few incidents.” I looked at him, but he didn’t explain further.

I had heard about the incidents but no details; the people I knew had been tight-lipped about it, like this man.

Finally, we reached the gate; it was open, but I couldn’t see it because of the energy screen covering it.

“Let’s go,” he said as he dismounted.

“Inside?” I asked, and he nodded. There is an office right outside; it is where most of those stationed here temporarily work from.

Still, I didn’t hesitate and followed after. I wanted to see the forgebase that I had heard so much about.

I reached the gate and stepped inside.

Immediately, the forgebase appeared before me. More spectacular than I had heard.

“Wow.”

This is all I could say. I have no other word for it; it is incredible. The only thing I'd seen before that impressed me more was the Velvet Garden, but this is different.

That is a legacy; this is a marvel of people’s ingenuity.

I stared at it for a couple of seconds before looking around and finding there were far fewer people inside than I had expected, but every one of them, especially the guards, felt powerful.

My escort began walking, and I hoped he would lead me to the Forgebase, but he led me toward a three-story building to the left.

It is new, like all the buildings here.

We stepped inside and walked to the top floor, where we reached the black wooden doors.

The guards standing by it opened it. It’s clear they did it for me; still, I hesitated for a moment before stepping inside.

“Warden,” I greeted the man sitting on a chair. He nodded and motioned toward the chair.

I sat down and saw a scroll there. It made me tingle all over.

“Lieutenant Colonel Halewright, you have been formally designated as a candidate for appointment as a golem controller.” He stated. I had expected many things, but never this.

Rumors said there were more golems, but they were just rumors, and even in my dreams, I never thought they would let me try with them.

“If you agree, review the terms and sign it, and we will test your aptitude with the golems,” he added while I stood still in shock.

It took me a few seconds to take the scroll in my hand and nearly throw it away, feeling the massive power contained within. Enough. If triggered, it could kill the man standing in front of me and me.

Hell, even this entire building may get vaporized.

My mental abilities make me very sensitive toward such things, and right now, they are screaming at me to throw this thing away. With effort, I did not.

Instead, I opened it slowly and began to read it.

From the first line, my eyes widened, and by the time I finished, I was scared. It is a non-disclosure agreement, but not a simple one. If I break it, there will be a massive backlash.

It also gives them legal permission to kill me if I speak of what is not allowed.

So, I signed it. Handing them my life.

I looked at it for a moment before taking the knife and puncturing my finger, squeezing the blood onto the scroll, and using it to sign my name.

The moment I did, the scroll burned, and the smoke seeped into me.

The agreement is scary, strict, and binding, but no different from the service agreement I signed when I joined the army. It is just hundreds of times stricter with fatal consequences.

“Let’s go,” he said, and a few minutes later, we stepped through the gate of the building on the left.

Gasp!

Immediately, a gasp escaped my mouth when I saw the rows and rows of golems. Some of them were huge, and some weren’t even humanoid.

“Which one do I have to try?” I asked, turning to the warden.

“All of them,” he replied to my utter shock, before moving. I followed him, dumbfounded, before we stopped in front of the biggest golem.

I'd noticed it earlier, but it was on the other side of the room. So, I could only see one side of it.

“These golems are a single operational unit called Forgeband. This is a command golem, inside which the controller would be, controlling it through this command tool,” he said.

I looked at the massive golem and the ring floating in front of it.

The golem is huge, bigger than the two general Aliza had commanded, and it's open, with space for a person to be inside it. In front of it, a head-sized ring floats, with red gems attached.

“Each of these Golems is Grade V, with the leader being an upper Grade V. In current standards, it could be classified as Grade VI.” I barely heard anything after I heard that every golem was Grade V.

“Now, you understand?” asked the Warden. Looking like a devil with his smile.

In front of me is a power greater than the entire Dominion. It could slaughter every powerhouse in the Dominion. Nothing would be able to stand in front of it.

Not Lord Silver, General Stone, or even General Azalia.

No wonder they made me sign that contract, and now I am breaking into a cold sweat.

They wouldn't care that my father is a baron or that I have a special power. If I dare to leak even the slightest information about it, even a hint. They would kill me without hesitation.

My life has just become a hundred times more dangerous.

A single wrong word and I am dead.

“Ready to try?” His voice brought me back to reality, and I turned to him, trying to control the fear in my heart. But it wasn't the only emotion I was feeling.

“How many people had tried before me?” I asked, and the man smiled.

I sighed before looking ahead. I hesitated for a moment, then raised my hand and picked up the ring with red gems; there was no resistance.

“Behind the head,” he corrected as I was about to place it on my head, as I saw General do with the circlet.

I moved it back on my head, and it locked itself. I felt relieved, seeing that, but only for a moment, because the next moment, the mental load I had never felt before descended on me.

Nearly making me unconscious.

I signed a contract, and I would be damned; I let that sword hang over my head without getting a prize.

So I bore it before activating High Fortitude and Expanded Mind. High Fortitude let me withstand high mental strain; it is because of this skill that I could last against that Lv. 40.

Next is Spread Load, my newest skill; it spreads the load across my mind, lessening the pressure.

In the short term, it's good, but in the long term, it’s incredible.

The skill helped; the pressure was still immense, but now it is bearable. 

“You should have warned me about the pressure, Warden,” I said to the man as politely as possible when I wanted to do the opposite.

“Would it have changed anything, Lt. Colonel?” the orc asked back. I opened my mouth, but closed it before shaking my head.

A moment later, I focused on the command golem before walking toward it.

It's time to step inside.

This is just the first hurdle. If the little information packet I received is right, I will face a lot more once I'm inside.

It scared me, but more than that, it excited me. It is for adventures like this; I joined the army, and now I am even more sure that it was the right decision.