With daybreak marking the end of a work shift, Rino unsummoned all his shadow slaves to rest in his shadows while making his inspection rounds.

He needed to walk around and clear his mind. As a leader, he had many worries that he could not share with anyone else. Well, if Noir was around, he would have tossed ideas with the mysterious cat, but the little ball of joy wasn't present.

Although he had never been a king before, Rino was once in charge of the magician's tower. As the court magician, he had the strongest influence over the tower even though he was, in name, one of the council members. In reality, he was the one making huge future decisions for the tower.

Rino recalled how his radical policies incurred the objections of many nobles even though he managed to convince the old mages. His teachers understood and respected his ideals, but it was difficult to get the self-centred nobles to agree that education should be made free to everyone so that they could spot and groom the talents the nation needed.

Needless to say, Rino had a falling out with the nobles in court and placed the king in a spot because of it. That incident went down in history as the most dramatic social and trade war between nobles and magicians. The civilians under the duchy suffered tremendously, while the refugees the magicians took in became more than the tower's resources could handle.

Both sides lost, and the king had to step in, calling for a long meeting that dragged on for months as both sides refused to give in. The kingdom's treasury funds were running low from the sanction of resources on both sides, and Rino was eventually forced to give in to the nobles as an order by the king to compromise his ideals.

Education was given free to everyone interested in it but only for basic literacy. They could not learn more for free even if they wanted to.

In anger and sorrow, Rino secluded himself for two years and refused to attend to any court summons. He even told the king that he could remove the title he was bestowed upon Rino if he didn't like it.

Helpless, the king could only pay him personal visits to try and justify his actions for doing so. Rino's world became lacklustre after that. Without talent, there was no hope. He might be talented, but talent without power was useless. He couldn't change anything even if he was right.

It was something that sparked the fire of hatred in him. Back then, Rino was just seventeen. Now, he wondered if he would walk the same path the king he served and hated walked as a monarch.

There was nobody to tell him if he was right or wrong. The shadow slaves and faes who formed a contract with him did not have free wills. Rino needed their skills but not necessarily them. Back then, his policy had flaws. He was looking for talent, but that was not the only thing people in high positions needed. They needed nerves, individuality and charisma to bring everything together.

As a king, he should have the most nerves, individuality, talent and charisma. However, Rino knew that he was too flawed to lead anyone. Hence, he should find others to run the show on his behalf. The first cog in this complex plan was already secured. He had Fronzo managing his farms.

The second cog was a work in progress. Rino wanted that lady who managed the social welfare of everyone working here to become his provincial secretary. That way, he could leave this place with peace of mind and visit when he was needed. He needed more time away from this place to set up something bigger and better for the kingdom he wanted to build.

Mutt was a very loyal hound. However, Rino did not know if the lone wolf was able to fit in any position. It was very obvious that Mutt was not a good team player. He was strong and bowed to one master but he worked alone. Rino wasn't someone keen on changing someone else's personality. He simply put them to work, where he knew they performed best.

Maybe he would keep Mutt by his side for a little longer.

Speaking of talents, Rino knew a few inspiring individuals. The gnomes and brownies made amazing crafters. The wisp that evolved into a pixie had the drive for greater things. Rino sensed ambition in that little girl. However, she was still too young and weak. The fire sylph he appointed as one of the four elemental leaders gave him updates on her progress. Despite being a little clumsy, she was the most hardworking pixie at the kiln.

Maybe Rino could leave her in charge of managing the kilns. He would suggest that to the fire sylph but not make the decision as he wanted to still respect the judgement of the elemental sylphs he appointed as representatives of the faes.

Speaking of talent, Rino had a very troublesome character he refused to summon unless absolutely necessary. The arrogant archer who claimed to be the best hunter might be as skilled as he claimed to be. However, Rino disliked those with swollen heads and prides. He preferred the humble and willing to learn characters because they were malleable and accommodating to changes. Those who think they know it all are difficult to correct because they resist change. Rino hated those who think that they have learned everything there is to learn and that everyone else's thoughts were beneath their experience.

He had a few of those teachers before, so Rino made sure to have them all replaced and demoted in the magician's tower when he became a court magician. Those were the people preventing progression. Learning was a journey without a destination.

On the topic of individuals who were hungry to learn, Rio was pleasantly surprised that the goblins adapted very quickly and wanted to learn more. They were not afraid to put aside their past differences or grievances to work with other species. Perhaps it was because they were very simple-minded that they could sort through things that more intelligent people overthought.

Either way, Rino saw potential in these goblins, who also happened to know the terrain here very well. He wondered how good they were at teamwork and couldn't wait to test their abilities out.