Chapter 1461 - To Recruit An Army (Patreon)

There were a lot of things Jake didn’t like about being a Chosen, but there were also certain benefits. Besides the obvious, such as having unlimited resources due to this sugar daddy Patron, the overly respectful attitude everyone adopted towards him did lead to advantages.

One of those was that no one expected him to do any menial tasks. Ever. He could delegate easily, and most just assumed it was because he found a job beneath him, while in reality, Jake had no idea how to even go about things. This was one such situation where he had no clue how to organize the armies, pick those he wanted to recruit, and ensure that the soldiers he brought into the World of the Exalted Prima were at least somewhat useful.

Of course, he would be the one judging their level of power to fulfill the system’s requirement of him only being able to bring people “weaker” than himself. It was a terminology rarely used, but appeared identical to the requirement for bringing people out of Venus and into the rest of the multiverse.

Speaking of bringing them out of Venus, the very first thing they tried when it was recruitment time was to bring a Nomad into the World of the Exalted Prima. This was primarily to see whether Jake needed to bring them beyond the barrier first, or if he could recruit them directly from within Venus.

Secondly, Jake wanted to confirm what the system meant by them being weaker than him. Finally, he wanted to know whether the people from inside Venus were considered natives of the ninety-third universe before they were brought out of the Minor World. The Venusian Shaman and others he’d brought outside only gained their titles designating them natives after going beyond the barrier, so there was a chance that even if he could recruit people while inside Venus, it would be better to bring them out first for the massive ninety percent discount.

It didn’t take long to learn that things were fortunately very straightforward. Jake could recruit people directly from inside Venus; he did get the discount as if they were natives, and the requirement was truly that the system deemed them weaker than him.

What did it mean to be weaker than him? He had no idea, but Jake had a pretty good feel for who counted. Not entirely, though, as with the more crafting-focused individuals, he couldn’t easily recruit them even if he was stronger than them in combat, showing the “stronger” and “weaker” was more than just “I have an over fifty percent chance to win a fight.”

As for what happened when someone was recruited... well, that first Nomad served as a great experimental subject to test just that.

In front of the leaders of the Venusian and Arachnec factions, as well as the tribe leaders of the Nomads, he used the recruitment function on a level 380 Nomad who was definitely weaker than Jake, while also being higher level.

When he did so, the ring on his finger – the Chief Administrator’s Seal of the Exalted Prima – lit up as energy fell upon the Nomad. The snake stood still for a few seconds before informing the crowd what had happened.

“I’ve been given the option to be recruited into the Milky Way Galaxy Territory, and should I accept, I’ll be teleported to the Seat of the Exalted Prima within the Milky Way Galaxy,” the snake guy said, evidently not understanding many of the words.

“I see,” Jake nodded, standing there like the stoic Chosen he was supposed to be. “Anything more? We require all the details.”

The Nomad nodded enthusiastically before continuing. “It also says that should I leave the Seat of the Exalted Prima again, I will be unable to return for a week, while should I perish inside the World of the Exalted Prima, I will be forcibly expelled from the Seat of the Exalted Prima and be unable to return unless re-recruited.”

Jake continued nodding, happy that the system was being such a good sport when it came to informing people of stuff like that. It made sense, though. The recruited people had to give consent, and to give that consent, they needed at least some information about what they were getting themselves into.

The Nomad snake also gave some more details, which were pretty much just an explanation of what the World of the Exalted Prima was, a warning that they could be expelled by Jake or someone else in charge of the Territory, and that they wouldn’t truly die even if they perished inside. All good things that only confirmed or reinforced what Jake had told the crowd earlier.

“Now accept the invitation,” Jake said in a stern and serious tone. “And immediately afterward, leave the Seat of the Exalted Prima again and return here to confirm the result.”

“As the Chosen commands,” the Nomad said with a bow, and a second later, magic enveloped him, and he disappeared, much to the shock of the many A-grade onlookers. None of them had been able to detect what had happened, which was pretty good proof that system shenanigans were at play.

“Now, it may take some time for him to return, so organize and prepare those who are to join my forces in the World of the Exalted Prima,” Jake said. “As you have just been informed, this is a world where death isn’t a consequence. Take the opportunity to gain power and explore a virtual world as a taste of what the multiverse has to offer. Interact with other factions. Learn what awaits you. Just do not forget why you are there.”

“How many does the Chosen need?” the Venusian Oracle asked, pretty clearly fully on board with whatever Jake wanted at this point. So was the Grand Weaver and Warlord, of course. Meeting Villy tended to have that kind of effect.

“The system has limited how many can be brought by requiring me to pay a cost for every recruited individual. Fortunately for us, my performance and the performance of my Territory have been beyond exemplary, providing me more funds than likely any other Territory in the World of the Exalted Prima. So answering your question... I’ll tell you when I run out of Prima Credits. Just don’t be the one to run out of eligible recruits first.”

The Oracle nodded, and Jake saw her instantly take out a token and send a message, probably asking them to bring more potential recruits. It probably wasn’t needed, but Jake was fine with having more to pick from. The frog cavalry was not optional, though, and he really wanted to just recruit them all now, but there were some things to confirm first.

Fortunately, it did not take long before the Nomad returned as instructed. While Jake and the Great Sea Serpent discussed which kind of individuals he wanted from the Nomads, the snake guy returned, teleported in with the same kind of energy from before, and in the exact same spot.

That’s interesting, Jake noted when he appeared, feeling a barrier surrounding the guy. One that seemed utterly impenetrable to all but Jake’s sphere, as the guy was even invisible based on how not a single A-grade had noticed. However, when the snake opened his eyes and oriented himself, all those defenses disappeared as the Nomad quickly looked toward Jake and bowed.

“I have returned as requested, and can report that...”

To cut a long story short, the second that the Nomad had appeared within the Seat of the Exalted Prima, it was treated the same as if he had left the Minor World through the barrier surrounding it. He got the Forerunner title just like the Shaman had, which naturally complicated things a little bit, as that did mean that anyone who joined him in the World of the Exalted Prima would also be free to leave Venus after they returned.

“Did you see this coming?” Jake asked the snake god after this revelation.

“Definitely struck me as a potential outcome worth considering,” Villy answered casually. “Part of the reason it seemed smart to tame the Minor World and keep it under control before recruiting them into the World Wonder. Even if it didn’t end up freeing them from this prison of theirs, having them be loyal would have been beneficial, anyway.”

As much as Jake hated to admit it, Villy was making a very good point. It really was a good thing Villy had been at the helm for this entire ceremony stuff, as quite frankly, Jake’s level of planning would have ended at making the frogs and undead spiders amicable enough to not consider him their mortal enemy.

“Hopefully, this won’t end with us unleashing an army of B-grades upon Earth,” Jake muttered mentally, feeling a bit nervous about that part. Not that he thought the Venusians, Arachnecs, and Nomads would purposefully create trouble on his home planet. He was more afraid they would accidentally cause problems due to their high level of power and very different cultural norms.

“That follower of Oras is still there, and I’m not even sure Earth would be considered interesting to them. There is an entire multiverse to explore, and quite frankly, your little planet barely has any B-grades. They may stop by, but few will bother, and if I were you, I would work to establish a connection directly to the Order. Teleporting directly from within Venus might be difficult as it adds another layer of spatial separation, but it should be more than feasible to create an artificial planet or space station orbiting the entrance to the Minor World,” Villy once more offered some good insight and advice.

“Might be an idea,” Jake agreed, knowing that integrating the natives of Venus into the rest of the multiverse was quite a task. “I do also hope that their time within the World of the Exalted Prima will help avoid future trouble.”

“You have gathered subordinates you believe to be competent, yes?” the Viper asked. “Then trust in them. I’m sure they’ll figure things out, so just get recruiting and give them an army. It’s what they expect, so they should have many preparations.”

“You’re right,” Jake once more agreed, and having no more testing to do... it was recruitment time.

--

Miranda had indeed made plenty of preparations, expecting natives of Venus to arrive within the World of the Exalted Prima. She had started getting ready after Jake had left, though she admittedly had gotten a little distracted by Sim-Jake being an absolute menace, making his own plans and having his own fun, even if the situation had ultimately turned out to be advantageous for the Milky Way Galaxy Territory.

As the days passed, she started to get a little worried, though. It shouldn’t take that long to reach Venus, but then again, she wasn’t sure what kind of groundwork Jake would have to lay in order to recruit soldiers from the Minor World. If it took too long, though, it would be a serious waste, and he should have instead just gone to the Order of the Malefic Viper and grabbed some elites.

Elites they were starting to sorely need, as the last few days had made it clear other factions were on a recruiting spree. The Holy Church suddenly had far more actual people and not just NPCs showing up on the front lines, and the same was true for the United Tribes and other major factions. William had also sent back messages informing her that Valhal was rapidly expanding their forces.

Meanwhile, their Territory had not recruited a single soldier yet despite quite a lot of time passing. It had gotten to the point where some of their allies and even Vassals were questioning what was going on, and she even heard rumors that they’d spent all their Prima Credits summoning a 10-Star Unique NPC.

Miranda wasn’t a fan of sitting on so many Prima Credits either. She’d spent some on new special structures and upgrading their existing structures, but the vast, vast majority were left untouched for Jake to spend on recruitment.

It was fortunate that a lack of soldiers hadn’t hurt any of their frontlines yet, but it would soon become a problem, and Holstred and Tramon were both having a tough time dealing with so many additional powerful enemies.

Standing in the command center of their Territory, she looked at the ever-expanding map she spent so damn much time staring at every day. She noted the movements of the frontlines, their struggling allies to the east, and the situation which remained very much in their favor where Sim-Jake was causing a ruckus, having even destroyed another Territory Beacon recently, taking out a weaker Vassal of the United Tribes.

Right as she was mentally noting where to send more reinforcements and agonizing over whom to send... she knew it was time. Checking the balance of Prima Credits and the balance sheet, she saw that Jake had recruited one person. Some kind of Miresnake, it seemed. Just that one, but hopefully, it was only a prelude to what was to come.

Walking outside, she went to a designated campsite constructed outside the main city surrounding the Territory Beacon. She had a function to assign where recruited people would enter the Territory, though it had to be within a certain range of the Territory Beacon, and this was just about on the edge. Seeing as they would get natives from a Minor World that had never interacted with the rest of the multiverse before, she expected some friction and initial challenges, which was why keeping them separate seemed smart.

On the way out, she met Lillian and motioned for her to follow.

“Reinforcements arriving?” she asked, having quickly realized why Miranda seemed in a rush.

“Hopefully soon,” she answered. “Jake recruited one person a bit ago, though they haven’t appeared in the simulated world yet. I can only assume he is doing some sort of experimentation to figure out the nitty-gritty details of how this recruitment system works. Probably also adds some complexity that he’s recruiting natives of that Minor World.”

“True,” Lillian nodded. “But that he’s even experimenting indicates he’s succeeded somewhat, and we should have reinforcements incoming sooner rather than later.”

“That’s the expectation,” Miranda said as the two hurried over to what she’d just now decided to name the Venus Camp. The camp was pretty damn big, capable of housing thousands, with different sections to it, given the different races Jake could potentially recruit. Maybe it was wrong of her, but she assumed that the undead spiders and frog people who’d been at war since before anyone could remember wouldn’t be glad to share living quarters.

The center of the Venus Camp was a massive open square for people to appear after getting recruited. She and Lillian made it to this square where they met a single Administrator who bowed towards them.

“Greetings, Lady Wells,” she said, Miranda really wanting to address the way he called her. “What brings you here today? No activity yet... unless? Are reinforcements coming?”

“We’ll find out soon enough,” she answered, finding a better place to stand for when the natives of Venus got there.

Miranda had to be honest; she wasn’t sure what she expected. There were a lot of unknowns regarding how powerful people Jake could recruit, the actual cost of recruitment, and, of course, how many he would be able to rope into fighting for the Milky Way Galaxy’s Territory. Hopefully, he would at least get a few hundred, as that would already be a massive help. Just having individuals capable of individual thought was incredibly valuable on the front lines.

She briefly discussed matters with Lillian and the Administrator, just waiting for something to happen. She hoped that she wasn’t wasting their time having come to the Venus Camp already, something every passing minute made her question. Miranda wasn’t going to leave, though, but kept hopes up.

Just as she was dreaming of at least a few hundred powerful B-grades appearing, there was movement ahead on the square, making all of them turn their heads.

Energy had gathered, and before they could even fully register what was happening, a figure appeared. An odd snake with arms suddenly sat in the middle of the square, and a moment later, a second, third, and fourth appeared, before it really picked up speed.

Constant flashes of energy appeared throughout the square for the following minutes as Miranda stared, her smile growing with every passing second as it just didn’t stop.

Sometimes he does surpass expectations... well, often he surpasses them... should have considered that and built a bigger square.