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C980 Three Natural Basins

Leonel smiled as he saw Noah riding over with the daughter of the Grand Prime Minister Scarlet family, Jessica. The two sat on the back of an enormous turtle with an obsidian black shell. It was definitely the case that this creature was being controlled by Jessica's ability and it was actually well into the Fifth Dimension as well.

Leonel couldn't help but sigh to himself. This was a difference in talent.

From what Leonel had seen in the outside world, finding someone who could battle the Fifth Dimension while being in the Fourth was impossible out there. But here was Jessica, who was clearly still within the Fourth Dimension, using her talent to control a Fifth Dimensional beast. In that case, couldn't it be said that she could fight across Dimensions as well?

The people of Earth might have been lacking in their foundation and their Dimension level, but as the people of Terrain had learned first hand, the talent granted to them by their abilities was so great that this gap could be closed.

If it wasn't for the fact Leonel's ability was auxiliary and not strictly offensive, his own prowess would be even more exaggerated.

Well… That might not necessarily be true. But, Leonel was still a young man. He couldn't help but think that the grass was greener on the other side. As he aged and matured, he would definitely come to realize that his own ability was the most suited to him. If he had been born with an attack type ability, let alone becoming stronger than he was now, he may very well become weaker.

"Noah, Jessica. It's good to see you." Leonel greeted with a smile, looking up toward them as they leaped down.

The two were immediately caught off guard by Leonel's greeting, this was especially so for Noah. Leonel's attitude toward him had always been lukewarm. In fact, if it wasn't for the fact that he was Leonel's cousin, he might have already died at Leonel's hands.

Of course, there was a good reason for this. For one, they hadn't grown up together like many cousins would. At the same time, the first time they met was on a battlefield… After Noah tried to kill the woman he presumed Leonel loved. So, it could be said that they had gotten off to a rocky start.

The reason Noah had come over despite knowing this strain in their relationship was because he always put duty before his own comfort. He and Leonel were the Princes of this generation, if they were on the same coast and yet didn't meet, it would make the people conjure up stories in their mind. If the Imperial Family wasn't a solid block, how would the Empire be whole?

However, he had never expected for Leonel to greet him so warmly. It almost caused him to falter.

"Ah… Yes… Right." Noah forced a smile of etiquette, his white gold hair fluttering in the salty winds.

"Is this your cousin, Cap? Wow, I've seen him on live broadcast before. You really are a Prince." Raj spoke foolish words as he tended to do, granting him a slap to the back of the head by Milan.

"What's that supposed to mean? You think Cap lied?"

"Piss off," Raj snarled, rubbing the back of his head. "I just meant it's kind of lame. If he was a Prince, he should have told us a long time ago. Think about how many noble young women I've missed out on!"

"Keep dreaming, even if Cap was Emperor it wouldn't help you get pussy, you tub of lard."

"Are you tryna go, Milan? I won't let you off easy like your papa Arnold would."

"The hell did you say to me?!" Milan reacted like a cat who had his tail stepped on. Claiming Arnold was his better was definitely a reverse scale of his.

Leonel shook his head. It seemed he overthought things about these guys growing stiff in the face of nobility.

"Let's go over there. These guys have gotten riled up, it seems." Leonel chuckled. "I don't know a lot about this coast and how things are set up, maybe you could clarify some things for me?"

Noah nodded, having already regained his composure. "Yes, I can do that."

The pair of cousins began to exchange information and Leonel quickly gained a picture of just how things worked.

"… When Earth was Terraformed, it was designed with this day in mind," Noah explained. "Though we combined all seven continents, the truth is that Earth's mainland only has the equivalent land of about a third of that."

Leonel nodded. He knew this as he was taught in school. But, it was always explained away as a necessary trade off, not something that was done out of necessity like Noah was explaining it now. Leonel could immediately think of several possibilities now that it had been brought to his attention, one of which Noah began to describe soon after.

"The remaining two thirds of land was left to form underwater defensive measures. As Earth evolved beyond the Third Dimension, those mechanisms will only become stronger with time.

"The first line of defense are the Three Natural Basins. Essentially, most of the main continent is surrounded by shallow water not surpassing about 20 meters in depth. Essentially, powerful marine creatures avoid these areas as they're not deep enough to live in. These shallow water stretch out for hundreds of miles from the 'coast' and can essentially be counted as purposely flooded lands."

Leonel's gaze narrowed. This was indeed a great defensive option. Even in the rare instance a powerful creature did make a move there, it would be easily handled.

"The Three Natural Basins are the only locations surrounding the continent where this rule is broken. Not only are the waters not shallow, they're even purposely deep. Even right up into the coast, the water is as much as half a kilometer deep. An oceanic beast might not even realize they were approaching the coast as a result of this.

"These Basins are shaped like water droplets with a narrow coast and a wide base. This allows many creatures in but they begin to crowd the nearer they get to the coast. This leaves us with only about a hundred miles to defend.

"We are currently at one of the three Natural Basins—The Royal Blue Basin."

Leonel shook his head. His grandfather… Was an extraordinary genius. This wasn't something he could deny any longer.

To be continued