Compared to the grand momentum of the Blade of Kings, the establishment of the Wings of Dawn seemed rather calm.
That was because the members of the Wings of Dawn were all transferred from the Blade of Kings.
Or rather, the Blade of Kings had jurisdiction over the Wings of Dawn.
The Blade of Kings functioned more like the military headquarters of Dawn City.
Under it were the Security Division and Patrol Squad responsible for internal security, and now a new addition, Wings of Dawn.
In Li De's plan, the Blade of Kings would eventually manage all military forces except those of the vampires.
The composition of the Blade of Kings would not be limited to humans; in the future, as needed, outstanding combat power could also be drawn from other races.
Such as cyclops, such as beastmen.
This army that had sworn allegiance to him would become the sharp blade in his hand, hence the name the Blade of Kings.
The edge of this blade would carry a deadly aura, slicing toward the throats of all his enemies.
However, as of now, the Blade of Kings was still quite weak. To form actual combat power, it would require a large amount of investment.
Armor, equipment, training, even real combat, these soldiers with an overall low level needed to at least reach Level 5 or even Level 7 before they could be considered truly formed.
For now, these new soldiers did not have a large impact on the overall situation, especially the warriors of the Wings of Dawn. They were mainly tasked with coordinating with the Whispering Bats in combat, and rarely engaged in direct close-quarters battles.
Most of their missions involved airdrops.
Moreover, the Whispering Bats weren't very strong in individual combat. In Li De's vision, once equipped with alchemical bombs, the Whispering Bats would serve more as bombers rather than fighter planes during combat.
"If that's the case, then perhaps I can follow Earth's example and design two types of armor, one for bombing, and one for combat."
As he thought about it, Li De's eyes suddenly lit up.
"Combat armor would handle fighting, and bombing armor would handle bombing. We could even take it a step further, after releasing their bombs, they could immediately switch to combat mode."
"But all of this has to wait until the armor is actually designed. This direction can be developed later; for now, let's focus on producing the first batch that can actually carry bombs and be deployed."
"At this rate, we might not have a real air force until the spring of next year. Still need time…"
Li De felt a bit emotional, but he wasn't too anxious about it.
Building a brand-new kind of military unit was definitely no simple matter. Every supporting system needed to be gradually perfected. It wasn't as simple as stuffing an alchemical bomb into a random frame and calling it done.
The beginning is always the hardest, but once a good foundation is laid, development can proceed step by step.
Knock knock knock~
The knocking interrupted Li De's thoughts.
"Come in."
"Good day, Patriarch," Harrison's slightly fatigued face appeared before Li De. As the City Hall Chairman, even though he was a vampire, he hadn't had it easy this month.
Behind Harrison stepped in a petite figure. A girl in a blue priest's robe entered with a cheerful smile and bowed to Li De.
"Good day, Lord Kachar."
Li De looked at the two and nodded, smiling slightly. "Harrison, you've worked hard these past days.
Niko, Dawn City is in a critical stage of development. This is a valuable opportunity, study well. You'll have to take on even greater responsibilities in the future."
Niko's big eyes darted around, her little face full of spirit. This petite girl who wasn't even seventeen yet was now a major figure in City Hall.
Many policies were issued through her hands. Her every word and action could change the fate of countless people.
Her talent in governance made Li De value her more and more. This girl was truly gifted, he was already considering grooming her as Harrison's successor.
Of course, Harrison, being a vampire, didn't actually need a successor. As long as he didn't seek death in battle, living thousands or even tens of thousands of years was like child's play for him.
"Got it, Lord Kachar~"
Niko giggled, revealing two cute little tiger teeth. Her face bore the unique charm of a young girl.
She bore about seventy percent resemblance to the sacred priest Nilo in her looks, but this little girl had a particularly rare spiritual vitality. Even after enduring countless hardships, she still retained it, and that was truly precious.
"Do you have anything to report?"
Li De looked at Niko, who was glancing curiously all around the room, feeling a bit amused. Unlike others, this girl rarely showed any nervousness in front of him.
"Lord Kachar, the Dawn Festival is only a few days away. Should we host a grand celebration?"
Niko asked with sparkling eyes, her tone filled with anticipation.
The Dawn Festival. Last year, during the Months of Deep Winter, Li De had hosted the Hero Selection Tournament to choose the first batch of vampires.
At the end of the tournament, twelve winning residents were selected and awarded the title of Twelve Heroes. In front of all the residents, they were turned into vampires and given the Dawn Medal.
Even now, the statues of those twelve heroes still stood along the main street of Dawn Square, at the very site where the Hero Selection Tournament had concluded.
The Dawn Festival was a holiday Li De had created to unite people's hearts, designated to be held annually on December 31st, symbolizing the coming of new hope.
The unity of a city's people cannot be achieved easily. A shared slogan, shared faith, shared holidays, shared language.
Each of these things boosts morale in its own way. When all are gathered together, the city becomes as solid as iron.
Li De had already planted the seeds for this last year.
"Of course we're celebrating. This is our very first holiday," Li De smiled. "Pass my edict, henceforth, the Dawn Festival shall be codified into law. The festival will be a one-week holiday, starting three days before the festival and ending on January 4th of the following year.
These seven days are the holidays of all residents of Dawn City. Apart from necessary departments like the Security Squad, City Hall shall also cease operations.
And all residents' salaries will be paid as usual."
Upon hearing those words, Niko's eyes lit up, her little face filled with delight, and those two small tiger teeth of hers looked even more adorable at that moment.
They were actually getting a seven-day holiday?? And still getting paid??
"That's absolutely amazing!! Praise you, Lord Kachar~"
At that moment, the little girl looked just like those office workers on Earth who hated their jobs, instantly thrilled at the mention of a vacation.
Li De found it rather amusing. These folks who worked 996 and 'enjoyed their blessings' all year long seemed to only get this one real holiday.
And yet everyone was deeply grateful to him, simply because they actually got to rest one day per week. That in itself was a luxury.
A single holiday could ease the tension that had been weighing on the city, without significantly affecting construction progress.
Besides, the cohesion it brought to people's hearts was worth far more than the cost of suspending work for a few days.
"Anything else?"
"Yes~" Niko finally came back to her senses from her happy mood, blinking her big black eyes at Li De.
"The first phase of the weapon factory has been completed. Grandmaster Valen conducted a forging test earlier this morning.
They just sent word that it passed the forging test successfully and can now officially be put into use."
Oh? The weapon factory was ready for production?
Li De's eyes lit up.