I Died and Became a Noble's Heir-Chapter 427: Scouting

Jack looked toward the massive tree in the center of the floor, where he could feel Stormfang's presence even from this distance.

The Blessed One was watching, evaluating whether Jack would be prey or rival.

"Stormfang," Jack said with certainty. "It's already marked me as a potential threat. Better to deal with it before it decides to become proactive about eliminating competition. Plus, a Disaster-class lightning creature would be an incredible addition to the army."

{You're seriously planning to bind all three Disaster-class entities?} Oscar asked, his tone carrying equal parts excitement and concern. {That's... ambitious. Even for you.}

'Why settle for less when more is available?' Jack thought back. 'I have the capacity for five hundred bound creatures. These three alone would justify a significant portion of that capacity. Plus whatever else I can gather from the populations.'

Kaedor's rings clicked rapidly as he processed Jack's casual discussion of binding three Disaster-class entities like it was a shopping list. "Master, you can't be serious. Those creatures are called Disaster-class for a reason. They're threats that entire armies struggle to defeat. Stormfang alone could devastate a small kingdom if it left the Spire."

"I know," Jack replied calmly. "That's why I want them in my army instead of opposing it."

He turned to his fifteen newly enhanced panthers, which had been waiting patiently throughout the conversation. They looked at him with absolute focus, ready to follow any command without hesitation or doubt.

"Spread out," Jack commanded. "Scout the jungle zone. Find the rest of your kind. I want to know how many panthers exist on this floor, where they den, and what their pack structures look like. Return in one hour with your findings."

The fifteen panthers moved as one, melting into the jungle. Their camouflage ability activated immediately, scales reflecting their surroundings until they were nearly invisible even to Jack's enhanced perception.

Within seconds, all fifteen had vanished into the foliage, leaving only the faintest disturbances in the mist to mark their passage.

"That's a good use for them," Loryn observed with approval. "The binding ensures absolute loyalty, and the enhancement gave them the power to survive scouting missions that would kill lesser creatures. Young master, you're building something unprecedented here."

Jack nodded, already planning the next steps. "We have one hour before the panthers return with intelligence. Kaedor, you mentioned the mist creatures can dissolve into mist. What do they look like when they're physical? What should I expect when hunting them?"

Kaedor pulled a small notebook from his robes. An old habit from his merchant days, documenting everything he learned about the Spire's various floors and their inhabitants.

"The Mistborn vary in size, but most are roughly humanoid in shape when manifested physically," he explained, flipping through pages covered in dense handwriting and sketches.

"They appear as figures made of condensed fog, with glowing cores visible in their chests. The core is their weak point. Destroy that, and they can't reform."

"How many are we talking about?" Jack asked. "Dozens? Hundreds?"

"Reports suggest somewhere between fifty and eighty individuals in the swamp zone," Kaedor replied. "They're not as social as the panthers. More territorial, each one claiming a specific area of the swamp. But they'll coordinate against threats that endanger the whole population."

Jack did quick mental math. Fifty to eighty Mistborn, probably ranging from Terror to Dread rank based on Kaedor's description. Binding costs would vary...

'High two to low three million tokens to bind the entire Mistborn population,' he calculated. 'Plus enhancement costs if I want them at useful levels. Call it eight million total investment.'

He had over thirty-five million tokens remaining. Plenty to work with.

"And the minotaurs?" Jack prompted.

"Larger population but individually more powerful," Kaedor said, flipping to another page. "Maybe three to four hundred total, organized into six or seven clans. Nightmare-rank at minimum, with clan leaders pushing into low Disaster-rank. They're intelligent, and they have some form of lightning resistance from living in the wasteland."

Thirty million death tokens to secure just the minotaurs.

Expensive, but worth it for just the fact of being able to bring them to Erebon without drawing attention.

"Master," Kaedor said hesitantly. "May I ask why you're so focused on building an army? You're already powerful enough to conquer floors through personal strength. Why invest so heavily in bound creatures?"

Jack was quiet for a moment, his red eyes scanning the jungle around them. Finally, he spoke, his voice carrying certainty that allowed no doubt.

"Because personal power has limits. I can be in one place at one time. I can fight one battle at a time. But an army? An army can be everywhere, fight multiple battles simultaneously, and overwhelm opposition through sheer numbers."

He gestured at the jungle, the swamp, the wasteland.

"Right now, I'm strong enough to challenge individual threats. But I'm planning for a future where individual strength won't be enough. Where I'll need forces that can hold territory, protect assets, and wage war on multiple fronts simultaneously."

Jack's voice dropped, taking on an edge that made even Loryn pay closer attention.

"I'm not just trying to survive the Spire, Kaedor. I'm building something that will let me reshape it entirely. And that requires more than just personal power. It requires an army absolutely loyal, impossibly diverse, and powerful enough to challenge kingdoms."

The clearing fell silent as the weight of Jack's ambition settled over them.

Kaedor's rings had stopped clicking. Loryn's expression showed something approaching awe despite his usual composed demeanor.

"You're serious," Kaedor finally whispered. "You actually intend to..."

"Yes," Jack interrupted. "I intend to do exactly what you're thinking. And floor twenty-three is just a start."

He looked toward the swamp, where the Mistborn waited.

Then toward the wasteland, where the minotaurs battled lightning and each other.

And finally toward the massive tree where Stormfang watched from its nest.

"We have one hour before the panthers return with intelligence," Jack said, his tone shifting back to tactical precision. "Let's use that time productively. Loryn, I want you to scout the edge of the swamp zone. Don't engage the Mistborn, just observe and report back on their behaviors."

Loryn bowed. "As you command, young master."

The shadow demon vanished into darkness, teleporting away to carry out his assignment.

Jack turned to Kaedor, who was still looking somewhat shell-shocked by everything he'd witnessed in the past hour.

The clearing fell quiet after Loryn's departure, leaving Jack alone with Kaedor and the lingering scent of burned flesh from where Stormfang had fed.

Jack moved to a fallen log at the clearing's edge and sat, his red eyes distant as he reviewed his mental calculations.

Kaedor remained standing, his rings clicking softly as he processed everything he'd witnessed. Finally, he spoke, his voice carrying genuine curiosity.

The hour passed slowly. Jack used the time to review his interface, examining the Soul Management section in detail and planning his resource allocation for the coming hunts.

Kaedor eventually settled onto another log, his initial shock fading into contemplative silence.

Exactly fifty-three minutes after the panthers had departed, Jack felt the first stirring through his Soul Link.

It wasn't telepathy exactly, more like shared awareness. He could feel their presence, sense their general emotional state, and with concentration, understand the intentions they wanted to convey.

Now, that link pulsed with incoming information as fifteen minds reached out simultaneously.

Jack closed his eyes, focusing on the connection. The panthers couldn't speak in words, but through the Soul Link, they conveyed meaning through impressions, emotions, and mental imagery that his mind automatically translated into comprehensible information.

Jack opened his eyes and looked toward the jungle. "They're returning."

Kaedor's rings clicked nervously. "How do you know? I don't hear anything."

"Soul Link," Jack explained simply. "A connection between me and every bound creature. I can sense their presence, feel their intentions, understand what they want to communicate."