10x Rewards: Becoming Invincible With My Sign-in System

As the creator of Mana Batteries, Aegon knew everything about them, so he quickly understood Samuel’s confusion. After all, they hadn’t used any external source of mana like they intended to do with the factories.

"Quite simple," Aegon answered. "I have engraved Mana Gathering Formations into it too, so the mana is just taken from the surroundings. It’ll work for now."

Samuel nodded in understanding.

This wasn’t a plausible long-term solution, as the rate at which the Mana Batteries were produced would drain the surrounding mana in no time, and it took time for the environment to fill those gaps again.

The world had infinite Essence, but it was spread everywhere and existed in many forms, so this imbalance happened whenever someone extracted it too rapidly.

The only reason nobody noticed was because the mansion had a giant Mana Gathering Formation, so the interior held mana in far greater quantity compared to outside.

"What do you plan to use if you mass-produce these?" Micheal asked, glancing at Amon. "Certainly, you can help in this."

"I wish I could, but things with the God’s Hand..." He paused, then shrugged. "Sorry. Can’t tell."

Aegon rolled his eyes. "Don’t worry. I already have plans for it. And my dear Golden Old Man already helped me with it."

Micheal chuckled softly at the nickname while Amon just laughed out loud. Only Samuel glared at him and said, "You’re also golden."

"But I’m young," Aegon waved his hand dismissively.

Micheal smiled and said, "I see. Is that why Father gave you the Thornspire?"

"Yup. They found many rich mines there, so I plan to set up extraction plants there. It’ll extract mana underground without mining, so it can replenish quickly." Aegon flashed a quick smile at Samuel. "Thanks for the nepotism, by the way."

"You reported it," Samuel smiled as well.

"In any case, this is what I invented," Aegon clasped his hands and said. "Mana Batteries. They’re a better version of Mana Stones, as they function fundamentally differently. They store mana, or rather Essence, which can be used for various purposes."

He noticed how everyone was already trying it and continued.

"As you know, Mana Stones are a very important part of our civilization. We rely on them so much that without them, our current civilization would collapse and we would revert to ancient times. Enough for demons to crush us completely."

Arthur nodded in agreement, as he understood this far better than others. He had witnessed entire companies dying because they didn’t have Mana Stones.

They were that important.

"But Mana Stones have one major problem. They are one-time usable items, and even then, they have to be mined deep underground, which takes lots of resources and also endangers the lives of countless people."

Aegon turned toward Micheal and said, "Slaves are still used for this purpose, right?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Micheal nodded. "Even if we try our best, many escape our radar."

"Exactly!" Aegon patted the machine and said. "This solves all those problems. Mana Batteries will be made in factories and operated by skilled workers. It’s still dangerous, but to a much lesser degree."

Liliana smiled proudly from the side. She liked how he considered innocent lives in his grand plans too.

"And it’s also reusable. Ran out of mana? You don’t need to purchase a new one. Just refill it yourself to use later. That is, if you’re not in an emergency situation."

Aegon grinned and spread his hands.

"The best part? It’s all fucking cheap."

"Language," Xiu shouted, finally speaking up.

"Xiu, don’t disturb my amazing announcement," Aegon grumbled, but immediately shut up when he saw her narrowing her eyes.

It made him wonder though, ’Is she doing this because of Marshal or the First Prince?’

Shaking his head, he cleared his throat and announced again.

"The Mana Batteries will be so cheap that even mundane humans can buy them. Yes, unbelievable, right?"

Micheal and Arthur looked at each other, clearly disturbed by the news. Mana Stones had always been beyond the reach of normal people because of their expensive prices. It also created a massive divide between the lifestyles of influential people and the common populace.

Micheal had wondered if he could lessen that gap, but he had never found an answer. It was simply impossible as long as they continued to rely on Mana Stones.

’This... will change everything,’ Micheal’s breath caught in his throat as he looked down at the Mana Battery. ’Humanity will enter a new era with this.’

A better lifestyle meant improvement for society as a whole, as people would work more efficiently and productivity would increase severalfold.

The people who could use Mana Stones daily were only a small portion of the total populace, and while they controlled a huge part of the Empire, society itself relied on the hard work of mundane people.

Micheal knew it very well.

’This will create chaos.’

So many lives depended on Mana Stones that the sudden arrival of Mana Batteries, which were far cheaper and more effective, would collapse the Mana Stone industry.

Unfortunately, the people in that business were powerful and influential, so they would try their best to either suppress the Mana Batteries or seize control of them.

They wouldn’t allow something they had spent their entire lives building to be destroyed so easily.

As Micheal now looked at the grin on Aegon’s face, his lips couldn’t help but twitch as he thought, ’This confirms it. He really is her son.’

He finally realised why Aegon had gathered the top echelon of the Empire here. It wasn’t just to show them his new invention, but also to dump the responsibility of managing the resulting chaos onto them.

He would simply produce the Mana Batteries, and whatever came afterward would be handled by them. It was such a perfectly calculated plan that even Micheal was impressed.

’This crafty little fellow... he really fools people with his warm smile and playful personality. Just like her.’

Even knowing Aegon was shifting responsibility onto him, Micheal found himself happy about it. He would gladly take that burden as long as it benefited the Empire.

Micheal smiled and turned toward Xiu. ’You gave yet another miracle to this world. Really, what are you?’