Mystic Calling：Stone of Glory-Chapter 52: Do you like your gift?

"Of course!"

Ethan nodded calmly and said, "The force backing me is incredibly strong. To put it bluntly, even the top ten guilds might not necessarily be stronger than us. We’ve just been keeping a low profile, quietly building our strength, which is why no one knows about us... Otherwise, Mr. Carter, you should understand—if we weren’t qualified, there’s no way we’d be able to offer 8-Tier units for sale, right?"

He paused slightly before continuing, his tone steady. "Originally, I was planning to discuss this deal with the top ten guilds. But because of what happened with Inferno Dragons, I changed my mind. No reason to let outsiders take the profit... Mr. Carter, what do you think? Are you interested in this deal?"

Truthfully, Ethan had considered simply gifting Isabella a batch of high-tier units.

But after thinking it through, he realized that wouldn’t be the best approach.

The highest-tier units he could currently provide were 9-Tier at most. While they were powerful in most situations, they weren’t overwhelmingly dominant to the point of absolute suppression.

And that posed a serious risk.

Having something valuable makes you a target.

People would envy it. Covet it.

No matter how skilled Isabella was, she was still just one person. Without absolute power to back her up, sudden wealth would only attract jealousy and trouble, making things worse in the long run.

Sure, Ethan could help her—but most of his time was spent in Sylvanwood’s Emerald Castle. More often than not, he wouldn’t be able to intervene in time.

However, if Nocturnal Crescent, the guild standing behind Isabella, could rise to power—if they could become truly formidable—then not only would it shift the attention away from her, but it would also provide her with better protection and stronger support.

That was why Ethan had fabricated this fictional identity and placed the unit trade deal—originally meant for Legion of Shadows—right in front of William.

As long as William wasn’t a fool, there was no way he’d turn this down.

"I’m interested! Absolutely interested!" William’s excitement was palpable as he looked at Ethan, his voice hurried. "Ethan, don’t worry—I’ll agree to any terms you set! Nocturnal Crescent will do whatever it takes to secure this deal... Thank you, really, thank you!"

He knew exactly what this meant. Ethan wasn’t just offering them a business deal—he was handing them a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to skyrocket to the top!

Seventy to a hundred 8-Tier units per year—did he even realize what that meant?!

Right now, Nocturnal Crescent’s entire guild combined barely had a few dozen 8-Tier units.

Inferno Dragons, a guild three times stronger than them, had around two hundred.

And that was before they got slaughtered.

In other words, as long as they had enough gold and resources, in just two or three years, Nocturnal Crescent’s high-tier forces would surpass Inferno Dragons at their peak!

If that wasn’t a meteoric rise, then what was?!

It was like a dream—like winning the lottery!

"Mr. Carter, no need to be so formal. A sale is a sale, after all—so why not sell to our own people?" Ethan chuckled, then suddenly narrowed his eyes and said slowly, "But... I don’t want to see anything like what happened to Isabella ever again."

William froze for a moment, then looked at Ethan with guilt in his eyes. After a long silence, he spoke seriously. "You have my word—I won’t let anyone bully my daughter ever again. Not even you. Got it?"

He paused, then asked, "Ethan, what’s the price for the 8-Tier Silver Pegasus Knights?"

As he spoke, William couldn’t help but feel a little anxious.

The official market price for an 8-Tier Silver Pegasus Knight was set at around 300,000 gold coins. But everyone knew that actually buying one for that price was nearly impossible—unless you got extremely lucky.

Because as a flying unit—and a high-tier flying unit at that—Silver Pegasus Knights were incredibly valuable, with almost no substitutes.

So realistically, 300,000 gold was just a theoretical price. No one would actually sell them for that.

A more reasonable price would be at least 350,000, maybe even 400,000 gold.

Even if they went with the lower estimate—350,000 gold per unit—buying a hundred of them would cost 35 million gold coins.

Converted to real-world currency, that was 21 billion dollars.

That kind of money would completely drain Carter Group’s current cash flow.

No wonder he had agreed so quickly before—but now, he was starting to feel nervous.

Could Nocturnal Crescent really afford to take on a deal this massive?

As if sensing William’s hesitation, Ethan thought for a moment before speaking.

"Mr. Carter, if I may offer a suggestion—I don’t think Nocturnal Crescent can handle this deal alone. But you don’t have to. You can bring in partners to take it on together."

"I heard that Scarlet Legion has been backing you? Well, my sister happens to be in Scarlet Legion’s Sixth Legion right now. You could send Isabella to meet her—let her take the lead in setting up a collaboration between Scarlet Legion and Nocturnal Crescent."

"As for how you want to divide the units between the two guilds... that decision is entirely up to you, Mr. Carter. What do you think?"

"Really?"

William immediately got excited, repeatedly thanking Ethan. "Ethan, thank you! Seriously, thank you so much..."

His excitement was almost on par with before.

After all, a business deal of this scale—even if they had to split the profits—would definitely catch the attention of the Scarlet Legion guild!

And just like that, Nocturnal Crescent’s importance in Scarlet Legion’s eyes would rise significantly.

This was crucial for their future growth!

Take Carter Group, for example. Among the many factions under Scarlet Legion, they had always been insignificant—practically invisible.

Because of that, Scarlet Legion had never bothered to support them, letting them fend for themselves.

Even when Inferno Dragons came knocking, Scarlet Legion didn’t lift a finger to help...

But now?

If this deal went through, William wouldn’t even need to ask. The moment Inferno Dragons dared to make a move again, Scarlet Legion’s forces would wipe them out before the night was over—completely annihilating them.

That was reality. That was what it meant to be important.

Value determined importance. Importance meant being needed. And being needed meant protection.

And now, Ethan’s decision to hand over this deal was essentially granting Nocturnal Crescent that very importance.

To them, this was an enormous favor!

The more William thought about it, the more grateful he felt toward Ethan. He kept thanking him over and over.

"Mr. Carter, you don’t have to be so formal. We’re on the same side—no need for all the thanks."

Ethan shook his head with a smile before continuing, "As for the price... three Pegasus Knights for one million gold. Sound good?"

"Yes, yes! Absolutely!" William was even more excited now.

Three Pegasus Knights for one million gold—that meant each one was about 333,000 gold. That was an incredibly fair price.

It was obvious that Ethan was giving them the absolute lowest price possible...

Realizing this, William felt another wave of gratitude.

Just then, Ethan spoke again.

"I’ll bring the Silver Pegasus Knights over in a while. But for now... Mr. Carter, is Nocturnal Crescent interested in 9-Tier Genies?"

He paused for a moment, then held up two fingers. "I’ve got two 9-Tier Genies. Selling both."

If he could sell these two 9-Tier Genies, he’d have enough funds to recruit his 11-Tier Unicorn.

That meant, despite a few bumps along the way, this entire troop trade plan would wrap up perfectly.

However, the moment Ethan said that, William’s pupils shrank again. His expression shifted—shock, disbelief, and sheer astonishment washing over him.

"9-Tier... You’re selling 9-Tier Genies?!"

William’s breath caught in his throat. He was completely stunned.

Normally, he wouldn’t even dare to imagine someone willingly selling 9-Tier units...

Even if such a thing happened, it would be at a level far beyond his reach.

But now, Ethan had just shattered his expectations entirely.

For a long moment, William stood frozen in place.

It took him a while to regain his composure.

Ethan understood and patiently waited.

After a long pause, William’s voice was hoarse, but he was visibly thrilled and excited.

"Ethan, how much for the 9-Tier Genies?"

"Package deal—2.6 million gold."

"Deal."

...

Not long after, 2.6 million gold was transferred to Ethan’s account.

At the same time, the two 9-Tier Genies were now in William’s hands.

Shortly after, when the higher-ups of Nocturnal Crescent received the news, they were completely dumbfounded.

"Wait... what?"

"What’s going on?"

"The chairman bought two 9-Tier Genies? Am I dreaming?!"

"Are you kidding me? Is this real? We’re talking about 9-Tier Genies here!"

"Holy shit, Isabella’s boyfriend is seriously something else. He’s willing to sell 9-Tier Genies for love?!"

"Why are other people’s boyfriends always this amazing..."

"I need a moment to process this."

"Am I the only one who feels like Nocturnal Crescent is about to skyrocket? With these two 9-Tier Genies holding the fort, even Inferno Tyrant’s 9-Tier Minotaur won’t be able to intimidate us anymore! Isabella really found herself an insane boyfriend... this is unreal."

"Isabella is a total badass!"

...

It wasn’t just them—Isabella herself felt like she was in a daze, as if she were dreaming.

9-Tier units... even the top ten guilds wouldn’t casually sell them!

But now... what the hell just happened?!

"Ethan..." Isabella tugged at Ethan’s sleeve, wanting to understand what was going on.

Ethan chuckled and repeated the excuse he had come up with earlier, along with the details of the troop trade deal.

Hiss...

Isabella’s eyes widened in shock, and she gasped. "One hundred... one hundred...!"

Ethan reacted quickly, reaching out to cover her mouth before she could finish.

At the same time, he raised a finger to his lips.

"Shh."

Isabella’s chest rose and fell rapidly as she tried to calm herself down. Her face was flushed, her breathing uneven, and her eyes were filled with excitement and disbelief as she stared at Ethan.

An 8-Tier troop trade...

And not just a one-time deal—a hundred 8-Tier units per year.

She knew exactly what that meant.

If that was true, then the mysterious force backing Ethan was beyond terrifying—powerful enough to rival the top ten guilds!

"Do you like your gift?" Ethan leaned in and whispered into Isabella’s ear.

Her face turned even redder, her heart swelling with emotion.

But despite her excitement, she still couldn’t help but worry. In a soft voice, she asked, "Ethan, you made this decision to work with Nocturnal Crescent on your own... will this cause any trouble for you?"