Mystic Calling：Stone of Glory-Chapter 191: Second Awakening

"Really?!"

The moment Ethan said that, Elynn’s face lit up with excitement. "That’s amazing! Master, that means we can finally breathe a little easier!"

"Yeah..." Ethan nodded, his tone serious. "With this ceasefire agreement in place, they won’t dare make any sudden moves—for now. That’s exactly why I want to move fast and seize the opportunity. We’re setting sail immediately to track down the locations tied to those two orange-tier tomes."

"For Emerald Castle, staying holed up here in Sylvanwood is just a waste of time. We’ve hit a ceiling here—there’s no more room to grow. If we want to level up, we need to move."

"That’s true..." Eldorin nodded slowly, his voice thoughtful. "Sylvanwood’s structure is already set in stone. Unless we become powerful enough to completely dominate the region, we won’t be able to make any major moves. And without major moves, there’s no way we can grow quickly."

But then he paused, a flicker of concern crossing his face. "My Lord, I’m not against venturing out... but the sea—it’s terrifying. I’m sure you’ve heard the stories."

"To be honest, Emerald Castle doesn’t have a strong navy. We don’t have heroes trained for naval warfare, or units that specialize in maritime combat. If we just rush out there without preparation..."

He wasn’t exaggerating. The ocean was full of dangers—violent storms, pirates, ghost ships, sea monsters... and worst of all, they knew almost nothing about it.

Charging into the unknown like that—wasn’t it reckless? Wasn’t the risk just too high?

"It’s true—we don’t have a powerful navy," Ethan admitted. "But we do have someone who knows the sea."

"Who?" Eldorin blinked, confused.

"Auremax, maybe?" Elynn said softly, as if the thought had just occurred to her.

"Exactly." Ethan smiled. "Before Auremax joined Emerald Castle, he traveled across most of the world. Especially the oceans—he’s been to nearly every corner of them. So yeah, the sea is dangerous, but to him? It holds no secrets."

"Roooaaar!"

Just then, a dragon’s roar echoed from outside the meeting room doors.

At the same time, the confident voice of the Gold Dragon Auremax followed. "That’s right, my Lord. I know all seven seas like the back of my claw. Wherever you want to go, I can take you there."

As his voice faded, the sound of heavy, thunderous footsteps filled the hall—thud-thud-thud-thud!

Cicero, Seraphina, Auremax, and Balthazar had all returned.

"Master!"

"My Lord!"

They stepped into the meeting room and immediately bowed to Ethan, their expressions full of respect and readiness.

"Take a seat," Ethan said with a smile. "So, how did it go?"

"We took down six Elder Chimeras, four Green Dragons, and two Emerald Dragons," Cicero reported. "We were hoping to take out a few more, but they reacted fast—deployed an orange-tier Legendary hero, two purple-tier Epic heroes, over thirty Legendary Units, and more than two hundred Tier 11 and Tier 12 Royal Units."

"Their forces were overwhelming. We couldn’t win that fight, so we had to retreat."

"You took out six more Legendary Units?" Ethan raised an eyebrow, clearly pleased. "Nice. That’s another solid gain... That’s enough for now."

He nodded, then continued, "We’ve just signed a ceasefire agreement. So for the time being, Sylvanwood won’t be dealing with internal conflict. They’ll be focusing all their efforts on resisting the Dungeon army."

"That means it’s the perfect time for me to step away for a bit—head out to sea and start developing a secondary base."

"Who are you taking with you?" Seraphina asked. "Master, why don’t I come with you?"

"No, Seraphina, you need to stay here," Ethan said, shaking his head. "You, Elynn, and Elyra—all three of you are staying and joining the war effort. Seraphina and Elyra, you’ll lead the troops in battle. Elynn, you’ll take command of the overall strategy. Got it?"

"Wait... I have to stay too?" Elyra blinked, her voice tinged with disappointment. "But Master, I wanted to go with you..."

"Elyra," Ethan said gently, turning to her and Seraphina, "it’s not that I don’t want you with me. But this war—it’s the only real chance we have right now to rapidly boost your strength. And it’s also the fastest way to grow Emerald Castle’s power."

He looked at them both, his tone firm but encouraging. "Elyra, Seraphina—you both have incredible potential. Once you truly grow into your power, you’ll become the backbone of Emerald Castle. But right now, you’re still too young. And more importantly, you’re still far from your second awakening."

In the world of Glory Lords X, it was common knowledge: for any hero, whether it was the first awakening, the second, or the third—each one was a game-changer. A complete transformation. A massive leap in power.

And right now, that was exactly what Emerald Castle lacked.

The real threat from the Kingdom of the Night Elves wasn’t just their dozens of Legendary Units, or even their hundreds of Tier 11 and Tier 12 Royal Units.

No—their true trump card was Vaelion himself.

Why Vaelion?

Because he’s a second-awakened Orange Legendary hero!

And what does that even mean?

To put it bluntly, in a one-on-one fight, it’d probably take Seraphina, Cicero, and Balthazar teaming up just to guarantee a win against him.

If it’s just two of them? Sorry—not gonna cut it.

In other words, when it comes to top-tier combat power, Vaelion alone puts the entire Kingdom of the Night Elves above Emerald Castle. He’s literally a one-man army standing over them.

Which also means—if they ever push Vaelion too far...

The consequences could be catastrophic.

If he decides to go down swinging and take everyone with him, no one’s walking away from that.

That’s exactly why Thalor and Archmage Eldrin have been so cautious around him. Why they’ve tolerated him again and again, never daring to push too hard.

It all comes down to one thing:

Raw, absolute power.

The kind of power that can hold an entire nation in check.

And to reach that level? You need to be a second-awakened Orange Legendary hero—at the very least.

Without that second awakening, forget it. It’s all just smoke and mirrors. Empty talk.

And that’s exactly what Emerald Castle is missing right now.

"I need one of you to hit second awakening as soon as possible," Ethan said, his tone sharp with urgency. "Only then can we raise Emerald Castle’s top-end combat power. Only then will we have the kind of deterrence that makes enemies think twice."

Then he turned to Elyra.

"And right now, Elyra, you’re the one with the best shot at reaching second awakening first. And the only way that’s going to happen is in a war like this—where there are enough enemies for you to kill, enough battles to push you forward fast."

"So you’re staying. You’re fighting in this war."

Why Elyra?

Simple.

First, she’s a mage hero—specializes in AoE attacks. When she kills, she wipes out entire groups at once.

That makes leveling up and grinding way easier for her.

Second, Seraphina might be a Crimson Ultimate hero, but that’s actually a disadvantage here. Her experience bar is at least ten times longer than Elyra’s. Getting her to second awakening anytime soon? Not happening.

Elyra, as an Orange Legendary, is the more realistic bet.

"I understand, Master... I’ll give it everything I’ve got!" Elyra nodded without hesitation, her voice firm.

She knew how serious this was. The fact that Ethan was placing such a heavy responsibility on her shoulders—it meant he trusted her. Believed in her.

And for that alone, she had to give it her all.

She couldn’t—wouldn’t—let Ethan down.

Not after he placed his hopes on her.

Only Seraphina muttered a few words under her breath, clearly a little annoyed, but she didn’t argue. As a Crimson Ultimate hero, she knew better than anyone just how hard it would be for her to reach second awakening.

At least in the short term, it was flat-out impossible.

So this burden had to fall on Elyra.

And Seraphina knew she had to do everything she could to help her get there.

"My Lord, what about us?" Balthazar suddenly spoke up. "If we’re heading out to sea, the Behemoth clan might not be the best fit."

The Behemoths—whether Legendary or even Mythic units—weren’t exactly limited by terrain. Sky or sea, they could still fight.

But that didn’t mean there weren’t drawbacks.

Especially since they couldn’t fly.

And if you’re not a naval unit and you can’t fly? Yeah, you’re gonna be clumsy as hell on the open ocean.

"You Behemoths are staying to fight," Ethan said, shaking his head without hesitation. He understood the issue perfectly well.

Besides, he’d already promised Thalor and Eldrin a full force of 30 Legendary Units for the war effort. If he pulled the Behemoths out now, he wouldn’t be able to hit that number.

After a brief pause, Ethan continued, "Balthazar, you and your clan will fight under Seraphina’s command. But overall command of the battlefield goes to Elyra. Everyone follows her lead."

"Yes, my Lord," Balthazar nodded firmly.

"Also, Orryn and Oakenmaw are staying. The Green Dragon Legion and the Ancient War Trees too," Ethan added.

"Cicero, Auremax—you two are coming with me. As for troops, gather Thunderbirds, Wyverns, Wyvern Monarchs, and both Unicorns and War Unicorns."

He didn’t have any naval units under his command.

So first priority? Flying units.

That immediately ruled out the Behemoths and Ancient War Trees.

Green Dragons could’ve worked, sure—but Emerald Castle only had a handful of them left. They were already stretched thin. If he pulled even a few more, Seraphina would be left with practically nothing.

That wouldn’t just be bad tactically—it’d look bad, too.

So he scrapped that idea.

Instead, Ethan shifted his focus away from Legendary Units and locked in on Tier 10 Thunderbirds, Tier 11 Wyverns and Unicorns, and Tier 12 Wyvern Monarchs and War Unicorns.

They could all fly.

And more importantly, there were plenty of them.

Once grouped into a proper formation and placed under Cicero—a Crimson Ultimate hero—their overall combat power wouldn’t be far off from a dozen Legendary Units.

And with Cicero and the Gold Dragon Auremax—two absolute powerhouses—by his side?

That was the real reason Ethan felt confident enough to head out to sea and expand their reach.

That was his ace in the hole.