Over the next week, all of Kayden’s subjects were able to perform the surgery, even more so after Locke willingly shared a breathing technique to deal with pain and increase concentration.
Kayden tested it out and was impressed with the results. It was practically like having your mind immersed in cold water all the time. Everything was sharp and slow in his vision. The pain could be ignored with just a little willpower.
"Now that everyone is here, let’s begin the meeting," Kayden said. He and his subjects were sitting at a long wooden table with different foods arranged on the table. "I will give half a billion gold coins every month to you."
"Isn’t that something like 30 million gold coins each? That’s crazy, Kayden!" His servants didn’t know that the boy had won even more money besides the bet with the king.
100 billion was more money than any of them would see in their entire lives. This amount was reserved for a minority of people in all of humanity. The amount that Kayden was giving them would be around 6 billion a year and, adding all the household and employee expenses, the boy would only spend 7 billion a year.
That would be if Kayden only had 100 billion...
"I don’t think you understand. It’s 500 million each," said the boy, smiling. This made the 15 teenagers fall silent, not knowing how to respond. Even for Locke, this was a reasonable amount.
"Of course, this has a price. First, your expenses must be noted and justified. I don’t care if you spend it on women or send it to your families. I just want one thing: I want you to reach 9th rank before the final competition ."
They still had about 10 months to reach that level. It took Kayden longer than that to go from first rank to eighth, but he didn’t have the conditions they would have now.
If they utilized the money correctly, they could purchase mana stones and cultivation techniques that would be ideal for their styles. The boy took a contract out of his pocket and showed it to everyone.
"This is a proposal. Those who do not reach the target will be expelled from the family, but you can also continue as normal without this amount." This caused some to swallow hard. First, they got a taste of unlimited wealth and then they were knocked out of this imaginary paradise.
The first to raise his hand was Sirius. The boy had come from a poor family. He knew the value of money and hard work. Many times, his cultivation was hampered just because of hunger, but he still managed to get to where he was. So, he would accept this money without even thinking twice.
After he signed the contract, Kayden asked the boy to check his bank account. There was the promised 500 million. Sirius almost didn’t cry when he saw his bank account. But Kayden’s next sentence made him cry outright.
"Anyone who wants to bring their family members to the academy district, please speak to the head butler. He will sort out all the legal details, but remember that you must pay for his service out of your pocket."
As soon as Kayden finished his sentence, a series of hands were raised. Everyone wanted to sign the contract. In the end, it would only benefit them in one way or another. The majority there were commoners. Apart from Locke, there were only three other nobles: two barons and a son of a viscount.
"Finally, I want you to abandon your current surname and take on the name Heart. At this time, you are worthy to bear it." His sentence was something everyone had already expected. It was not necessary to delete the last name they currently had, but Heart should be the last name. Because, in this kingdom, only the last name symbolized your status and power.
Locke was the first person who raised his hand to sign the name change contract. His action surprised everyone who imagined that he should refuse to lose the royal surname, which, without a doubt, carried much more weight than that of a newly formed family of marquises.
What they didn’t know was that Locke had already jumped into this adventure. There was no going back and he felt the strength that ran through his body. It wasn’t something he could achieve any other way.
Many would think that he could have gotten the technique from his father and didn’t even need to enter Kayden’s house. But in truth, his focus was on the person who developed the mana heart. This proved correct over time.
Locke had gone through the biggest revelation of his life when he understood the size of his insignificance, at that moment he would accept a dog as a master if he could take him to levels beyond the ordinary.
After that, Kayden explained a little about trading mana stones and other things fundamental to cultivation that only money could buy. Another thing he made clear was that they should continue to live in the mansion and should not disturb the peace of the house.
After lunch, Kayden headed towards the royal library. To do this, he had to take one of the buses. Incredible as it may seem, the library was not located in the palace area, but in a district dedicated only to libraries and theoretical academies.
Kayden was impressed with the magnitude of the place. As soon as he arrived, he noticed how every street had cafes and shops for people to relax while reading. Not only that but also dozens of second-hand bookstores and bookstores.
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The royal library occupied an entire block and looked like a building because of its height. Kayden estimated that, at a minimum, it should be 10 stories high. The structure was entirely made of yellowish stone and marble. There were huge pillars that seemed to ascend to the heavens along with the building.
As soon as the boy entered, he realized that it was much more crowded than he expected. At least 80% of the tables on the first floor were completely occupied. He thought he would be a little more selective in getting in.
"Hello, first time at the library?" A middle-aged man wearing casual clothes approached Kayden. Upon seeing Kayden’s nod, he continued: "Our library has 11 floors. The first 10 are released to the public, but you must have authorization to access each of them. The eleventh is reserved only for royalty."
The man’s speech seemed to be rehearsed and repeated thousands of times every day. Kayden had already done his research and knew all this information. He already had the catalog of books from all floors on his cell phone and he already knew which books he was going to read.
"Take me to the manager, please," Kayden asked politely, surprising the attendant. Anyone in the kingdom would recognize Kayden at that moment and everyone knew he had the title of marquis. But... he was very polite to commoners. This was the reason for the employee’s surprise.
A few minutes later, he faced a ridiculously old man, at least in appearance. His white beard reached his waist and his skin was entirely wrinkled. Matching his look, he had light blue eyes.
"Hello, Marquis." The man made a small bow of respect to the nobility.