《Transmigrated into the Gacha Game I Abandoned for 10 Years》 Chapter 199: BONUS Final Thoughts BONUS Final Thoughts. Hello, dear readers, this is Bomhanbangul. At first, I wondered when I would ever be able to finish this story, but now that it¡¯splete, it feels incredibly nostalgic. There were so many things I wanted to say in the afterword while I was serializing, but now that I¡¯m actually writing it, my mind feels nk and I can¡¯t think of anything. First and foremost, I want to thank the readers for reading my imperfect writing. Even as Iplete this story, which has been left abandoned for 10 years, and write this afterword, I still feel a lot of regret. That¡¯s because there are still some unresolved plot points in the story. For example, the rtionship with the emperor, the holy kingdom, which only appeared in the southern part of the continent, and other subplots. Also, the moments where the heroes interact yfully with the protagonist, Kim Hyunwoo. In fact, I had already nned all the subplots and the daily yful moments of the heroes. However, I couldn¡¯t include the subplots because the story progressed faster than expected, and I thought it wouldn¡¯t be very interesting. Since the rtionships between the former heroes had already been restored and the main story was progressing smoothly, I felt like inserting a sudden substory would disrupt the flow. More than anything, I didn¡¯t want the main story to feel dragged out, so I decided to leave the subplots behind and focus on the main story. As I understand it, the main theme of this story was about the heroes, abandoned for 10 years,ing back and happily interacting with the protagonist. ¡­Though, in that sense, the personal screen time for the characters was small because I was focusing on progressing the main story. In fact, I n to write side stories to fill in these gaps after taking a short break. Of course, my main job is time-consuming, so I¡¯m not sure if I can make the time, but I¡¯ll try my best to find some time and work on it. And to the readers who have always leftments, thank you so much. I¡¯m really happy to experience that same excitement I felt when I was in middle school, receivingments on Joara¡¯s parodies. And I really want to thank the readers who supported me. Especially, one supporter wrote that reading my story made them enjoy reading again after the donation messages hadn¡¯t been blocked, and that made me really happy. The fact that my story could be an inspiration to someone truly filled my heart with joy. Thank you so much. ¡­Honestly, I¡¯m not sure how to end this since I¡¯ve been writing it without a clear structure. ^^; So, I¡¯ll end with a simple farewell. Thank you so much for reading and enjoying my imperfect writing. The past six months of serialization, which I spent with the readers, had its difficult moments, but there were far more joyful times, so I¡¯ll remember these six months as wonderful memories. Thank you so much for the good memories. Sincerely, Bomhanbangul. Chapter 0: Prologue I entered a game that had been neglected for 10 years. But then¡­ ¡°I- I was wrong. You won¡¯t leave now, will you? Please¡­ don¡¯t leave.¡± ¡°If you tell me what I did wrong, I¡¯ll fix anything, anything at all, gulp- I¡¯ll listen well-¡± ¡°Look at this, see this? I¡¯ve reflected, right? Right? I cut it off as a sign of reflection¡­ I¡¯ll never do it again. Never-¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need gold, nor any famous sword or artifact. In fact, for me¡­ for me, I only need you. So please ¨C don¡¯t abandon me.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± The 5-star heroes I had raised had all be strange. Chapter 1: Message (1) Looking back, there were many happy days. Even though it was just a mobile game, Arteil had brought Kim Hyunwoo many memories over the past five years. From nurturing and growing a territory from nothing. To diligently raising beloved 1-star characters to 5-stars. And devising strategies using those characters that he nurtured himself to solvebyrinths. He truly enjoyed it. But now, it was time for it to end. [5-star character ''Beast King'' demands a gift! Requested gift: Halcerthe''s Gauntlet (Payment of 72,000 won)] [5-star character ''Absolute Darkness'' demands a gift! Requested gift: Laios''s Amulet (Payment of 68,000 won)] [5-star character ''Crimson Dragon'' demands a gift! Requested gift: Blood Diamond (Payment of 99,200 won)] [5-star character ''Hero King'' demands a gift! Requested gift: Famous Sword ''Lykesister'' (Payment of 142,300 won)] [Refuse] [Refuse] [Refuse] [Refuse] [5-star character ''Beast King'' gets angry!] [5-star character ''Absolute Darkness'' is disappointed!] [5-star character ''Crimson Dragon'' is annoyed!] [5-star character ''Hero King'' sneers!] [The affection of the 5-star character ''Beast King'' is about to drop!] [The affection of the 5-star character ''Absolute Darkness'' is about to drop!] [The affection of the 5-star character ''Crimson Dragon'' is about to drop!] [The affection of the 5-star character ''Hero King'' is about to drop!] [¡ùIf affection drops, abilities will decrease!] Seeing the smartphone messages popping up before his eyes, Kim Hyunwoo let out an involuntary chuckle. ¡®Why was I so scared of this message that I even worked night shifts to pour money into it?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo pressed the home button and turned the game off. Right after, he went into the ¡®Applications¡¯ section, found Arteil, and pressed hard to delete it. [Do you want to delete ''Arteil''? Y/N] A notification window popped up as if seeking confirmation for a final decision. Without hesitation, Kim Hyunwoo pressed the button, and soon, Arteil, the game he had been ying for about four years, vanished from his smartphone. Just like that, ten years passed. ¡°Huh?¡± Kim Hyun-woo entered the game, quite unexpectedly. Into the game ¡®Arteil¡¯, which he had quit a decade ago. At least, Kim Hyun-woo, who likes subculture, knew that normally, web novel protagonists who possess a game usually recognize and adapt to being in the game within the first few minutes to a few hours. Rebuild the fief ''Lartania'' and eliminate the Labyrinth. Reward: Survival Failure: Death However, unlike those extraordinary web novel protagonists, it took Kim Hyunwoo a full three days to ept the fact that he had entered the game, even with such notifications before his eyes, but once he epted it, he thought, ¡®Surviving should be easy.¡¯ Of course, Kim Hyunwoo has been ying Arteil for nearly four years. Naturally, most of the information in his head has faded over time, and thebyrinth exploration, a main element of Arteil, must have changed from when he could devise strategies with his eyes closed. Yet, the reason Kim Hyunwoo could make such a judgment when he regained hisposure was precisely because he was the Lord of the territory he had built until now. In other words, it was because he had be the Lord, the yable character of the ount he had been using. Kim Hyunwoo, who had not taken a single step out of his room since falling asleep on the subway home after finishing a night shift, was convinced he had entered Arteil because of the word ¡®Lartania¡¯ in the notification window. Lartania was the name of the territory Kim Hyunwoo had chosen when he first started Arteil and had used until he quit the game. Therefore, Kim Hyunwoo was not worried. No matter how long Kim Hyunwoo hadn¡¯t touched the game in ten years, the territory he had built should remain the same. Since the territory, which was more like a vast kingdom than a mere territory and had been in the top 0.1% of Arteil, it was expected to significantly lower Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s game difficulty. That was the expectation, for sure. ¡°Shit, what¡¯s this¡­?¡± Kim Hyunwoo looked around with a deste expression. What he saw was ruins. No, it was more urate to say there was just nothing rather than ruins. The ruins were just a small part, and the rest was truly just an empty piece ofnd. ¡°Where the hell is my territory?¡± Kim Hyunwoo, who even used swear words he normally wouldn¡¯t in a situation where they involuntarily came out, looked more closely around, but the fact that there was nothing around did not change. ¡°Ah¡­¡± In fact, what Kim Hyunwoo further realized was that the Lord¡¯s castle he was standing in seemed like it could copse at any moment. And while Kim Hyunwoo was looking at what used to be his territory with a dumbfounded face, [...My Lord, wee back] [From now on, I will assist you in rebuilding the territory] Such a voice could be heard in Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s ears. Startled by the voice in his ear, it didn¡¯t take long for Kim Hyunwoo to realize who the NPC speaking to him was. ¡®Loria, the NPC help of Arteil.¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo immediately asked questions to the NPC who appears with an empty territory screen at the start of the game, informs yers about various things, helps build the territory, andter manages the yer¡¯s territory. Beginning from why he entered this game to why the territory ended up like this. Naturally, he did not get an answer to the former question. However, for thetter, Kim Hyunwoo was able to hear a shocking answer. ¡°¡­It¡¯s been ten years?¡± [Yes, it has been ten years since you left Lartania. The territory has fallen into a decline repeatedly in your absence and has been regrly looted by the neighboring territories] ¡°That¡¯s absurd. I mean, is there even anything left to loot in thisnd of nothing?¡± [There are still people living in the territory] ¡°What? Where exactly?¡± [In the residential area you see to the north] Kim Hyunwoo turned his gaze to the north. What he saw was the ce he earlier thought was ruins. A slum where the shapes of houses were barely maintained, practically couldn¡¯t even be considered ruins. [Most of the people have left, but about 120 residents are still living here] As Kim Hyunwoo made a dumbfounded face upon hearing that, a very familiar window soon popped up in front of him. [This is the current detailed information of the territory] A familiar window that Kim Hyunwoo had looked into thousands of times before. Territory: Lartania. Territory Development: -20 Territory Residents: [Humans: 98] Owned Buildings: [Lord''s Castle] Owned Troops: -None- Heroes in the Territory: Kim Hyun-woo (Lord) Kim Hyunwoo, who read everything in the window that appeared before his eyes in less than five seconds, let out a hollowugh of indeterminate frequency and said, ¡°Is this¡­ really the state of the territory?¡± [Yes, this is the current state of the territory] Hearing Loria¡¯s words, Kim Hyunwoo unwittingly clutched his forehead. There were too many things to criticize one by one. He was displeased that the territory window, which was a hassle to check even once when it went over 50 pages, was in this state. He was furious that the territory development, which never went into the negatives when he started the game, was now proudly marked in the negatives. Above all, what made him the angriest was¡­ ¡°Shit, all my money¡­¡± The fact that tens of millions of won in cash, which he had poured into growing this territory ten years ago, had simply evaporated. He felt an immediate urge to fly into a rage, but Kim Hyunwoo knew. That raging about it now would leave him with nothing. Hence, with a sigh, Kim Hyunwoo, looking at the territory window, opened his mouth with a glimmer of hope. After all, even though Kim Hyunwoo had spent a lot on the territory, the ce where he truly lost a lot of money was somewhere else. ¡°Just wondering, but none of the heroes I raised are left, right?¡± Kim Hyunwoo, a student who, filled with a sliver of hope, recalled the heroes he had insanely spent on to the point of reaching his limits by working night shifts like crazy. [Yes] However, Kim Hyunwoo involuntarily covered his eyes with his hands at the NPC¡¯s answer that shattered his expectations. ¡®I kind of figured they wouldn¡¯t be there.¡¯ In fact, Kim Hyunwoo naturally knew that the heroes would not remain. Because in this game, Arteil, it¡¯s not enough to draw heroes through gacha; if you don¡¯t continuously manage them and increase their affection, they will break their contracts and flee. At the time of ying, Kim Hyunwoo was afraid of his raised heroes¡¯ affection decreasing and them fleeing, so he had poured in an absurd amount of money. Eventually, he quit because of the gamepany¡¯s harsh mization policy. ¡®If I had known this, I would have just kept on ying the game.¡¯ Thoughte regrets flooded in, he soon collected himself with a sigh. Kim Hyunwoo was already in the game, and he had to rebuild the territory to survive. [My Lord, there is something more I need to tell you] A voice reached Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s ears as he began to ponder deeply. ¡°What is it?¡± [Are you pondering how to rebuild the territory?] ¡°What else would it be?¡± Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s response was a bit brusque. [It''s very good that you''re thinking about reconstruction even in this situation, but there''s a more pressing issue that needs to be addressed first.] ¡°What is it?¡± [In five days, a Labyrinth Break event will ur] However, Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s response began to take on a questioning tone as the conversation continued. ¡°A Labyrinth¡­ Break event?¡± Kim Hyunwoo ended with a question, but he was not unaware of the Labyrinth Break event. The Labyrinth Break event. It is an event that urs every two months in Arteil, where monsters pour out of abyrinth near the territory, and yers must fend them off to receive rewards. From the user¡¯s perspective, it¡¯s a generous event because you can obtain red stones, which are cash currency, and blue stones, which are in-game currency. However, that can only be called a generous event if there are heroes and troops capable of adequately defending against the Labyrinth Break situation; if not, the territory will simply be devastated. In other words, the current situation is extremely bad for Kim Hyunwoo, whocks the power to stop the Labyrinth Break. [You may not be aware, but if the Labyrinth Break is not stopped for 60 times, the Territory Stone that constantly controls the gate of thebyrinth will break, causing the territory to disappear] ¡°How many times are left?¡± [So far, invasions by monsters have been allowed 59 times, and now only one chance remains] ¡°Shit.¡± Kim Hyunwoo muttered to himself upon realizing that he had only five days left for his survival limit. [My Lord, given the circumstances, perhaps it would be wise to send a message] ¡°¡­A message?¡± [You may have forgotten, but upon the Lord''s return to the territory, it is possible to send a message once to the heroes who have left the territory] Kim Hyunwoo was able to hear such words from Loria. Chapter 2: Message (2) Following Loria¡¯s words, a notification window scrolled open before Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s eyes. Beast King Absolute Darkness Crimson Dragon Hero King Spectrum Witch Olunga''s Descendant ¡­ ¡­ .. . ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Responding to Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s puzzled voice, Loria answered. [This is a list of heroes who left after you departed, naturally leading to the decline of the territory. You can flip through the pages by touch, so it might be good to check] Following her words, Kim Hyunwoo quietly flipped through the pages of the notification window. The names of numerous heroes appeared as he swiped with his finger. Naturally, among them were the names of heroes who had left soon after being drawn from the gacha because Kim Hyunwoo did not nurture them, as well as those he frequently used. And then. ¡°¡­¡­¡± The names of the five individuals who could be considered Lartania¡¯s greatest strength, whom Kim Hyunwoo had nurtured by spending a tremendous amount of money, were also there. [You can send a message to one of them] ¡°Only one?¡± [Yes, only one. You cannot send it to everyone] ¡°That¡¯s stingy as hell.¡± Loria did not respond. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo thought, stroking his chin. In his current situation, the only heroes Kim Hyunwoo could feasibly call upon were naturally one of the individuals from ¡®The Round Table¡¯, whom he had raised with tremendous spending and affection ten years ago. Bringing back just one of them could neatly solve the Labyrinth Break situation Kim Hyun-woo was currently facing. However, the reason Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s mouth did not easily open, despite knowing this, was because this was not a ¡®guaranteed right¡¯ to definitively bring heroes back, but merely a ¡®message¡¯. In other words, even if he sent a message, the hero might not return. ¡®The message system itself was designed to make heroes reappear at a certain probability within the game, wasn¡¯t it¡­? Well, this isn¡¯t a game, so it¡¯s not about probability, but that makes it even more crucial.¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo thought coolly. About which one of the heroes, who are likely to have lost all affection by now, that sending a message to would yield the highest probability of sess. And after some time had passed. ¡°Can I send a message to the Beast King?¡± Kim Hyunwoo made his decision. [As you said, I will proceed to send the message] Following Loria¡¯s words, Kim Hyunwoo made a puzzled expression and asked in confusion. ¡°Wait, message? Don¡¯t I need to write something?¡± [No. The function of the message is merely to notify the hero that the Lord has returned; it cannot contain any text] ¡°¡­This is really dizzying.¡± Kim Hyunwoo, about to curse without realizing it, then smacked his forehead again and sighed. ¡®It would be quite troublesome if I can¡¯t send the message.¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo had raised the Round Table¡¯s 5-star characters, who could be considered Lartania¡¯s greatest strength, from when they were 1-star. Meaning, he was somewhat familiar with the background stories of the 5-star characters, which is why he decided to send a message to the Beast King. Based on the background information he knew, he believed that conveying a few words to the Beast King would be enough to move her. ¡°Is there really no way?¡± [There is no way to include text in the message. Moreover, the message has already been sent. It will be delivered to the hero about a day from now.] ¡°Wait, why does it take a day to send a message?¡± [Because it''s express mail] Muttering ¡®This is absurd,¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo shut his eyes tightly and sighed deeply, but, ¡®In the current situation, this is the best I can do. Besides, there¡¯s a chance that the Beast King wille just by receiving the message-¡¯ With that thought, he shook off his regrets and opened his mouth. ¡°Loria, show me what I can do in the current situation first.¡± Although everything would be resolved if the Beast King came back, Kim Hyunwoo, not wanting to rely on such luck, decided to look for actions he could take in the current situation immediately. After all, if he staked everything on the Beast King and she did note, Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s life there would be over. However, ¡°Isn¡¯t this a bit too much?¡± After rummaging through the game window Loria had created, simr to when he used to y Arteil, for several hours, Kim Hyunwoo realized the harsh reality. ¡°How can there be nothing that I can do?¡± Literally, there was nothing Kim Hyunwoo could do at the moment. ¡®There¡¯s no poption to recruit troops, no resources to erect barricades, and not even gold to distribute among the workforce.¡¯ ¡°This is fucking-¡± Truthfully, up to this point, Kim Hyunwoo wouldn¡¯t have been so angry. But the reason he was cursing at this moment was: ¡°If the territory is destroyed, the territory level should also drop to 1, what¡¯s the point of having a territory of Level 30!?¡± Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s territory, Lartania, was not at Level 1 but at Level 30. Of course, even Level 30 for a territory could be considered weakpared to when Kim Hyunwoo used to y Arteil. Because ten years ago when he yed Arteil, the level of Lartania he was building had exceeded 60. Having a high territory leveles with many benefits. Immediately, it allows for the unlocking of higher-level buildings, increases the number of territory residents that can be epted, and also increases the area ofnd that can be affiliated. Furthermore, the total number of gacha characters, i.e., heroes, that can be held increases, so the territory level is quite important. However, that¡¯s assuming the territory is functioning properly; having a high territory level in Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s current situation, with nothing in it, leads to adverse effects. In Arteil, the number of monsters attacking is determined by the territory level, and the Labyrinth Break, which holds his entire life in bnce, also varies in the number of attacking monsters based on the territory level. In short, the current situation meant that a monster army equivalent to a territory level of 30 was swarming towards a city that couldn¡¯t even function properly as a territory, with a development of -20. To summarize Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s situation simply, in one line, or rather in one word, it was this: Fucked. There was no other word that could perfectly and neatly summarize the situation, so he grimaced, but¡­ ¡°Loria.¡± [Yes] ¡°Spread out the map.¡± Kim Hyunwoo did not give up. ¡®Somehow, request reinforcements from the neighboring territories¡­!¡¯ Although he knew the situation was the worst of the worst, Kim Hyunwoo valued his life too much to just mentally break down and pray to the heavens. ¡®I¡¯ll try everything I can¡­!¡¯ He looked at the map spread out by Loria. The map was the same as he had seen ten years ago, withrge dots continuously marked based on a perfect square. Looking at the very familiar dot map, where brown terrain representednd, green terrain represented forests, and blue parts represented the sea, he soon checked the neighboring territories marked with green markers. ¡°Loria, what are these orange dots on the outside?¡± He asked, feeling a spontaneous curiosity. The orange dot, far away, that Kim Hyunwoo pointed out, would have sparked only minimal curiosity, even if found during his time ying the game, and he wouldn¡¯t have paid much attention to it. The reason he suddenly became interested in that dot was because it was the first time he had seen an orange dot. [Since I also awakened when you, my Lord, did, this is my first time seeing an orange dot as well, but upon examining the map system, it seems that the orange dot is likely a Boss zone] Following Loria¡¯s words, Kim Hyunwoo asked again. ¡°A Boss zone?¡± [Yes, if you send soldiers to defeat it, you could gain a considerable wealth. For your information, the name is-] Loria paused as if looking at something, then continued. [-It seems to be called ''Red Eye'' by the surrounding territories and kingdoms] Beastfolk are inherently a martial race. They enjoy struggle and fighting, taking pleasure in battling beings stronger than themselves, truly a race that could be called living weapons. Thus, territories ormunities where beastfolk gather never have a quiet day, thanks to their inclination to turn fighting into a form of y. Beastfolk love to fight at any opportunity and do not hesitate to confront those in higher positions. Anyway, such traits of the beastfolk naturally apply to themunity solelyprised of them, ¡®Red Eye¡¯, which is always noisy due to its nature. ¡®Gerta¡¯, a beastfolk who had recently joined thismunity, could not understand the situation. ¡°¡­¡­¡± It was quiet. By now, it wouldn¡¯t have been unusual for a fight or a drinking bout to break out in Red Eye¡¯s territory, but it had been silent for four days already. Thus, it was already the fourth day of silence in Red Eye. Being perceptive and good at fighting, even among beastfolk, and treated quite cleverly by one of the Four Kings, he could not contain his curiosity about the unending silence and asked. ¡°¡­Why has everyone been silent and not fighting like scared dogs since four days ago?¡± Gerta¡¯s question came out with the rough tone typical of beastfolk, perhaps due to not having satisfied their urge to fight for four days. In response, ¡®Giral¡¯, a member of the Langin tribe and one of the Four Kings of Red Eye, who had been maintaining silence like the other beastfolk, simply said, ¡°Because we don¡¯t want to die.¡± ¡°What? What do you mean?¡± Gerta made a puzzled expression. ¡°That¡¯s all, Gerta. It¡¯s the period set by our Leader, so remain silent. If you don¡¯t, you¡¯ll die.¡± ¡°¡­The Leader?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Regardless of Gerta¡¯s expression, Giral closed his mouth after that statement, indicating the end of the discussion. Gerta then turned his gaze towards the top of the mountain. The Leader, unlike the beastfolk who were always fighting and drinking, had nevere down from the mountain peak, a sight Gerta had rarely seen. Thus, Gerta, who had never had much interaction with her, had a somewhat diminished respect for her as a Leader. ¡°¡­Understood.¡± Gerta decided toply with Giral¡¯s words and remained silent. Of course, he had only seen the Leader a few times. Yet, the reason Gerta kept his mouth shut without any objection was the power of her, who he had only seen a few times. He had experienced a fear beyond shivering firsthand with his own eyes. When sheunched herself, dozens of soldiers exploded away. When she swung her arm once, massive monsters were sliced as easily as cutting tofu. Because he had seen with his own eyes how beastfolk who arrogantly gathered numbers to challenge her for the leadership were turned into mush with just a single gesture from her. Gerta remained silent, looking at the top of the mountain where the Leader, revered by the beastfolk, resided. At the center of that mountain¡¯s peak. She, with her slightly swollen, weary eyes forcibly closed, buried in her white tail¡­ Thump- ¡°¡­?¡± Received a letter that fell from the sky. Chapter 3: Message (3) Thinking back, there was nothing special initially about the wolf. No matter how well-treated, she was just amon member of the Langin tribe. Evaluating the reality of that time, she was merely a young wolf who had barely escaped from a ver, not even considered a proper member of the Langin tribe. Was that all? Despite escaping from the ver, the young wolf had nowhere to return to. The reason she was captured by the ver in the first ce was because her parents abandoned her for being timid andcking the instincts expected of a beastfolk. Thus, the only choice left for the girl was wandering in hunger. Naturally, for a young wolf who hadn¡¯t learned the basics of hunting from her parents, wandering was nothing but hardship. There were days without food, and sometimes she had to evade vers hunting her. Thus, the young wolf grew increasingly weary. As time passed, the number of years she had to endure hunger increased, and the relentless pursuit of vers mentally pressured her. At one point, she even contemted death. The prolonged hunger and mental pressure from vers were too much for her to bear. However, as those thoughts became more concrete, she met a man. The man, who introduced himself as the Lord of this territory, wanted to recruit the young wolf. Naturally, she was wary of such a man. Having met too many vers, the young wolf could not simply believe his words. Yet, surprisingly, the man¡¯s words were true. He was indeed the Lord of this still-small territory she had entered, and he recruited her with a contract fee that was somewhat generous for a young wolf. Desperate for a ce to return to, she epted his offer, but even then, her doubts about the man did not dispel, who was now her Lord. As a young wolf, she could not fathom why the man had recruited her. The Lord said he would use her as abatant, but she knew the money given to her could have recruited a more capable beastfolk or soldier. However, the distrust and doubt that filled the young wolf began to slowly disappear at some point. The Lord taught her how to fight. He invited beastfolk to teach her about beastfolkbat. He had her subdue a single goblin. Naturally, the young wolf knew this was consideration on the Lord¡¯s part. Goblins, while troublesome in groups, were weak enough that even amoner could defeat one with a weapon. In short, having her subdue a few goblins was of no help from the Lord¡¯s perspective. Yet, the Lord had her subdue goblins for a very long time. He did not scold the young wolf for getting injured by mere goblins. He simply treated her with expensive potions, encouraging her, ¡°You¡¯ll do better in the future.¡± It was the same afterward. She improved her skills by subduing goblins, which were of no particr help to the Lord. Each time, the Lordvished praise on the young wolf for aplishing tasks even amoner could do, taking good care of her. Over time, thanks to the Lord¡¯s care, the young wolf grew to the point where she could single-handedly subdue a goblin tribe that posed a significant threat to the territory. That day, unable to contain herself, the young wolf asked the man, who was overjoyed and praising her for subduing the goblin tribe. ¡®My Lord, why are you doing so much for me?¡¯ That question stemmed from her curiosity about the Lord, who had made an illogical choice to take her in as his servant from the moment she met him. ¡®I wanted you to be by my side.¡¯ With those words, the young wolf realized. That she truly had a ce to return to. That she had found a small piece of happiness. From that point on, the young wolf began to grow even more. From a certain moment, she had grown to such an extent that the adjective ¡®young¡¯ no longer applied to her, bing one of the top warriors in the entire territory. The territory, which was small when she was recruited, had grown so much over time that it could now be called a kingdom rather than a territory. The wolf felt pride in all of it. She thought that this territory was something she and the Lord had built together, and the Lord was pleased as the territory developed further. Therefore, she weed all the changes happening in the territory. Except for one thing: the increasing number of other heroes around the Lord. Of course, she knew that as the territory grewrger, it was inevitable that other heroes would appear around him. Neither the Lord alone could cover this vast territory, nor could she alone defend this now vast territory by herself. The wolf did not wee the heroes that multiplied around the Lord as the territory expanded. That seemed to be the reason. Why she uncharacteristically threw a tantrum. But with just one tantrum, she received a gift. Objectively, the gift that the Lord gave to the wolf wasn¡¯t anything remarkable. What she received was just a small pair of earrings. Yet, she was happy. She was overjoyed that the Lord had given her a gift, and it felt like it signified that she was different from the other heroes attached to him. The wolf wished to be someone special to the Lord. However, that joy was short-lived, and her expectations were soon shattered. The reason was that the Lord began giving gifts to the other heroes, just as he had done for the wolf. The wolf felt jealous. She felt as though she was being dragged down to the same level as the other heroes, despite believing she had be someone special to the Lord. Of course, she understood in her mind that this was not the case, but at some point, the wolf started to frequently show her disappointment to the Lord. To receive more gifts than the other heroes. Because she wanted to be even that little bit more special to the Lord. That was the root of the problem. What was not supposed to be normal, started to be so. From a certain point, the heroes started to demand more than just gifts from the Lord. The wolf was no different. Even when the Lord looked troubled, the wolf threw tantrums. Despite his troubles, as she saw the Lord taking care of her, she felt that she was being recognized as someone special to him. And time passed. The Lord refused to give gifts. He refused to show favor. He refused to show intimacy. It was not just to the wolf. That included all the other heroes as well. She and the other heroes expressed their displeasure. It might even have been a manifestation of anxiousness. However, despite that¡­ He no longer said anything to the heroes, as if there was no longer any need to do so. Not long after, the Lord left. He disappeared. The wolf, including the heroes, initially expressed their frustration with all their might despite the Lord¡¯s departure. When the Lord did not return for over a week, the heroes finally realized that something was wrong. They probably felt a faint sense of guilt around that time. Perhaps thinking it would be best to apologize first if he returned, wondering if they had made things too difficult for him. The wolf thought so too, but the Lord who had disappeared then did not return once. Continuously. On and on. A month passed. Three months passed. Even until half a year had passed. The Lord did not return. Only then did the wolf wonder if she had crossed a great river that she could not return from. Naturally, she clenched her teeth and denied it. ¡°No, it can¡¯t be,¡± she muttered habitually, staring nkly at the territory without its Lord for another year. The wolf, having finally shaken off her twisted senses and base desires, realized she had made an irreversible mistake and fell into self-loathing and despair as she looked at the territory. The territory she had built with the Lord was on the path to decline after his disappearance. The walls, after numerous invasions, had already crumbled, and the territory¡¯s poption was scattering even at this moment. The wolf did what she could. She stopped the invading enemies. She eliminated the enemies that appeared around the territory. ¡­That was all she could do. The territory continued to decline. Buildings were destroyed, and the walls disappeared. The people left, and thend became deste. To protect the memories she had built with the lord- -Just in case, to preserve a ce for the Lord to return, she did her best. In the third year after the Lord had left. The territory hadpletely lost its original form. What remained was a bit of ruin and the Lord¡¯s castle, nearlypletely destroyed. Nothing else remained. Even the training ground the Lord had built for her to train in. Even the house he had built for her. Everything had disappeared. No more memories of the Lord remained here. Nor did a ce for the Lord to return to remain. When she realized that, no more tears flowed from the wolf¡¯s eyes. She just looked at the empty territory with hollow eyes. ¡­Silently screaming at herself for her stupidity and dullness, for having thrown something so precious away. Thus, in the fourth year. The wolf, who had been sitting on the roof of the Lord¡¯s castle, stood up and left the territory, where nothing remained. To create a ce for the Lord to return. Of course, she understood painfully that the Lord would not return. She knew that the water she had spilled could not be gathered back. Yet, the reason the wolf moved was a kind of self-hypnosis. It felt like something would go wrong if she didn¡¯t do at least this much. So, the wolf who left the territory created a foothold for her Lord to return to in the way she could best do. She fought and fought, creating a crudemunity. Compared to the territory the Lord had created, it was a very crudemunity, but that did not matter much to the wolf. After all, she was just self-hypnotizing. ¡­Creating a ce to return to was just holding on to the hope that perhaps he mighte back. It had already been six years. The crudely mademunity of the wolf had grown into a rather decent one. Listening to the appointed Four Kings ramble on, it seemed hermunity had be famous in the area, known by everyone. The growth of themunity brought her no joy. Instead, she felt her emotions dulling as more time passed. As the years went by, the hastily made light of hope slowly extinguished, leaving only embers. As a result, she recently felt increasingly listless, spending much of her time sleeping. Ironically, when she slept, she would sometimes dream about him. Dreams of the Lord, whose face was now blurry and hard for her to recall properly. That was why she was trying to force herself to sleep again today. Until a letter fell onto her head just a moment ago. ¡°¡­¡­¡± And. ¡°¡­Ah.¡± Inside that letter, an unbelievable content until she read it. Her lips parted slightly, then closed again, repeatedly. The hand holding the letter trembled. To anyone looking, a clear fragment of emotion was seen from the wolf. Her eyes moved restlessly from side to side, repeatedly reading the single sentence written on a small card inside the letter. ¡®Your Lord has returned.¡¯ The words, which seemed utterly unrealistic to her. However¡­ ¡°¡­¡­¡± She stood up. The wolf did not know where this letter hade from. Nor did she know who wrote it or who had sent it. But the content written within was such a heartwarming story for the wolf, just thinking about it. She decided to find out. Whether the contents of this letter were true or not. And then. Crackling-! As the wolf¡¯s feet dug into the hard rocky mountain floor. With a loud Crash! Breaking through the rocky mountain, the wolf leaped. Chapter 4: Reunion (1) With only a few days left, as the Labyrinth Break was only a few hours away, Kim Hyunwoo did what he could. And that was to request reinforcements from the surrounding territories. Lartania, the territory Kim Hyunwoo had to rebuild, was not in a self-sustaining state from the moment he returned. Fortunately, it seemed not all surrounding territories were in a non-self-sustaining state like his, so Kim Hyunwoo sent a message requesting reinforcements with a promise of generouspensation. Although there was no immediate reward to offer, he could secure amplepensation for the reinforcements if they arrived and managed to prevent the Labyrinth Break. [Time remaining until thebyrinth break: 00:02:42] However, since this situation also ultimately depended on the arrival of reinforcements, Kim Hyunwoo waited with a somewhat anxious expression. When only about 30 minutes remained until thebyrinth break. [My Lord, it seems that people areing from the east.] ¡°¡­!¡± Upon hearing that from Loria, Kim Hyunwoo immediately turned his gaze eastward, where he could see soldiers walking towards the Lord¡¯s castle, treading over the deste territory. [¡ï¡ï¡ï Hero ''Knight Alto'' has entered the territory.] ¡ùNote, a hero from another territory. As the soldiers approached to a certain extent, a notification popped up before his eyes. Seeing that, Kim Hyunwoo felt somewhat relieved but also thought about getting additional information from the reinforcements that hade all this way. After all, he was overallcking information about this world. So, he started thinking about what questions to ask to gain information once the reinforcements arrived, but that was only for a moment. ¡°¡­?¡± Kim Hyunwoo realized one strange thing. ¡®¡­Aren¡¯t there too few soldiers?¡¯ Even at a nce, there were less than 50 soldiers dragging arge wagon, and after noticing something was off, with about 10 minutes remaining until the Labyrinth Break, to the knight who arrived with the soldiers, sporting a tantly arrogant expression. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but we are not reinforcements.¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± He was able to hear such words. ¡°Let me say it once more, we are not reinforcements.¡± The knight introduced himself as a knight from ¡®Hancia¡¯, a territory to the north, and said so in response to Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s question, who hade out of the Lord¡¯s castle. Kim Hyunwoo frowned with a confused expression for a moment. However, the knight, despite seeing his expression, continued speaking without any shrinkage, not erasing his arrogant smile. ¡°It seems you were indeed expecting us.¡± Seeing the knight smirk with a bit of derision, Kim Hyunwoo spoke with an incredulous expression. ¡°If you are not reinforcements, then why have youe here?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve merelye to scavenge whatever remains after this territory disappears, as per our Lord¡¯smand.¡± Upon hearing the knight¡¯s words, Kim Hyunwoo furrowed his brow as if realizing something and replied. ¡°¡­Don¡¯t tell me, you¡¯vee for the Territory Stone Fragments?¡± Seeing the knight smile without answering, Kim Hyunwoo let out a hollowugh. Territory Stone fragments. Those are, literally, items that appear naturally when a territory is left unattended for a very long time by a user who has quit the game, leading to its disappearance due to a Labyrinth Break. The number of Territory Stone Fragments that appear is determined by the territory¡¯s level, and within the game¡¯s economy, these fragments can rece the Red Stones, which are the only cash resources in Arteil. Hence, the knight before Kim Hyunwoo was saying this. He would quietly wait here, and once the Labyrinth Break urs, destroying the territory and killing Kim Hyunwoo, he would collect the Territory Fragments. ¡°Have you ever seen such bastards?¡± Understanding that, Kim Hyunwoo naturally cursed, causing the knight to stop smirking and frown instead. ¡°It would be wise to watch your mouth.¡± ¡°You¡¯re spouting nonsense.¡± Seeing the knight subtly show the sword at his waist, Kim Hyunwoo smirked. Of course, that¡¯s not to say he wasn¡¯t afraid of the sword. Even though he was aware that he was in a game, the ce where he lived was not one where threats of violence weremonly seen in reality. But now that things hade to this, the knight before him was no longer a figure of fear to Kim Hyunwoo. From Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s perspective, whether he died from the knight¡¯s sword or from the Territory Stone exploding in a Labyrinth Break, as per Arteil¡¯s setting, it was all the same. Moreover, if the knight was after the Territory Stone Fragments, he wouldn¡¯t be able to use his sword on Kim Hyunwoo anyway. ording to Arteil¡¯s settings, territory stone fragments would only appear when a territory explodes due to a Labyrinth Break. In other words, even if someone invaded the territory and exploded the Territory Stone in the same manner, all they could obtain were Blue Stones, a resource iparable to the Territory Stone Fragments. Knowing this fact, the knight frowned. Crunch-! Roar-! Soon, with the monstrous roar and the massive vibrationing from afar, he sighed and opened his mouth with a small smile. ¡°I know there¡¯s no need for me to intervene. You¡¯re going to explode and die anyway.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± The knight, having spoken with a twisted smile on his lips, began to distance himself from Kim Hyunwoo, followed by soldiers wearing simr smiles. Not too close, but not too far away. The knight stood at a distance where they could see each other¡¯s faces, wearing a smirk. As if he intended to witness Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s death right there. ¡°Truly a motherfucker.¡± Seeing the knight¡¯s behavior, Kim Hyunwoo also smirked and looked at the knight. The monstrous roar was growing closer!!! As the monstrous roars grew closer, Kim Hyunwoo turned his gaze. With no walls or barricades, he could easily see the horde of monsters screaming from beyond. ¡°There are so damn many.¡± Kim Hyunwoo had already experienced the Labyrinth Break event dozens of times, but that was only within the game. ¡°¡­¡­¡± The horde of monsters rushing straight towards this ce, though still far away, imposed a sense of pressure on Kim Hyunwoo. As the horde of monsters gradually approached, Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s smirk deepened. At the forefront were goblins clutching rusty weapons and charging in a frenzy typical of the Labyrinth Break setting, followed by orcs and wolves that had absorbed the Labyrinth¡¯s magic. ¡­And then, an ogre almost as tall as the nearly destroyed three-story Lord¡¯s castle was running with a huge club. ¡°It¡¯ll be my first time seeing a person explode and die.¡± From afar, yet clearly within earshot, Kim Hyunwoo clenched his teeth upon hearing the knight¡¯s voice mocking him. At a certain distance, Knight Alto, standing firm, watched the Lord looking at the approaching horde of monsters, thinking with a smirk full of satisfaction and mockery. ¡®I would have liked to kill him myself, but watching this will also be quite enjoyable.¡¯ As Kim Hyunwoo expected, Alto¡¯s reason for not killing him was because of the Territory Stone Fragments. If the knight killed the Lord, he wouldn¡¯t be able to obtain the Territory Stone Fragments, and if things went wrong in such a way, he wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid punishment from his own Lord. Therefore, although the knight felt a bit of dissatisfaction, he smiled at the thought of the rude Lord, who owned a territory that hardly seemed like one, dying before his eyes. ¡°¡­?¡± The knight wore a puzzled expression. That was because the expression on Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s face, which had been endlessly tense just moments ago, had changed. From an expression filled with negative emotions to one full of questions. And in addition¡­ Seeing a slight smile form on Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s lips, the knight wore a simrly puzzled expression. The distance between the monsters and the Lord¡¯s castle had already closed to the point where it could be considered closepared to before. However, there seemed to be no reason for the Lord, cornered as he was, to smile like that. ¡®Has he gone mad?¡¯ The knight thought so, but¡­ Of course, Kim Hyunwoo had not gone mad. The reason he unknowingly smiled at the horde of monsters that had now approached very closely. That was because. [¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡î Hero ''Beast King'' has entered the territory.] A notification like that had popped up before his eyes. At that moment. With a massive Roar-! From the forefront of the horde of monsters rushing towards the Lord¡¯s castle, a huge exploding sound urred, and monsters were flung in all directions. A goblin clutching a rusty sword rolled on the ground with its head separated from its torso, wearing a confused expression. An orc split in half, spilling its entrails, drenching the destend with its blood. Wolves that had absorbed the Labyrinth¡¯s magic were crushed and flung out of the dust pits. And, When all the dust had settled, Kim Hyunwoo could see¡­ ¡°¡­Merilda.¡± The wolf with red eyes. And then. Simultaneously, the knight also saw. ¡°Who are you trying to kill?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Halting the advance of the monster horde, emitting a killing intent so intense it seemed to paralyze the body and stop the breath. ¡°You dare, who?¡± Muttering clearly, ring as if about to rip Alto apart, now clearly showing emotion, ¡®Red Eyes¡¯. Chapter 5: Reunion (2) Knight Alto knew of the Langin tribe. No, from his perspective, it was impossible not to know of the Langin tribe. The blood-red eyes staring at him as if to tear him apart and the white hair. Despite the Langin tribe¡¯s disdain for wearing essories, the red earring on the right ear was exactly like the appearance of Red Eyes he had heard of through rumors. Seeing this, Alto felt puzzled at the same time. The question was why she, who should have settled in the north of the Southern Continent, in other words, where the Norba Kingdom was located, is here. As far as Knight Alto knew, the distance between where the Norba Kingdom was located and here was very far. Yet, Red Eyes appeared before the knight. ¡®What on earth?¡¯ Knight Alto, while experiencing a suffocating fear unknowingly, endlessly harbored questions on one side. Roar-! ¡°Huff-! Gah-!¡± Soon, as she let out a roar and prepared to charge again, the monsters turned their screams towards Alto, and he, gasping for breath without realizing, turned his gaze to Red Eyes. Her, facing and standing alone against a horde of hundreds of monsters. Simultaneously, the nicknames of Red Eyes shed through Alto¡¯s mind. The Emotionless Massacrer. The Hero Killer. The Mad Wolf. Each one a title representing her power, and at the same time, names created out of awe and fear towards her. Naturally, Alto thought all these nicknames were not unfounded, even though he had not seen her fight. If those nicknames were unfounded, the stories of a smallmunity formed in the faraway Norba Kingdom would not have traveled this great distance to reach his ears. Moreover, the appearance of Red Eyes he saw was indeed fitting of those nicknames. Just by making eye contact, Alto had already realized. That the monster venting anger towards him could easily kill someone like him, maybe even a being as powerful as one of the Five Swords of Cn. However, the reason Alto could maintain his sanity and continue his thoughts despite the fear of being targeted by such a powerful being was only one. ¡®She can¡¯t possibly stop that alone.¡¯ For some reason, Red Eyes appeared to protect the Lord of this barren territory, but naturally, the Labyrinth Break she had to stop could not be carried out alone. There were more than hundreds of monsters visible to him, among which were demonic creatures even heroes found difficult to confront. Therefore, to stop the Labyrinth Break, military forces and arge number of heroes were needed. Ultimately, this was not a singlebat but a war with monsters. He thought it was absolutely impossible to stop it alone. ¡°¡­!¡± Until he witnessed what happened before his eyes. The first thing the knight saw was Red Eyes¡¯ body bending over as she stepped on the corpse of a monster. Her legs were appropriately spread to tear through the deste earth. Her left hand was widely spread across the deste earth, and her right hand was simrly spread wide, aiming at an ogre about to smash down with a huge club. ¡°-Aran (Hungry Wolf)!¡± Swoosh-! She disappeared with a small murmur. As if she had never been there in the first ce. And then. Suddenly-! The monsters¡¯ movements stopped. Even the greenskins that were about to start advancing again. The ogre that had swung its giant club at Red Eyes. Even the demonic creature dripping acidic fluid and emitting strange noises. Everything. Stopped. As if time itself had stopped. And then, the next moment. Whoooosh-! A sound as if the wind was picking up reached the knight¡¯s ears. Boom-!! With a massive explosive sound, the ground where she stood burst open, and the bodies of monsters started to explode in unison. The bodies of hundreds of monsters exploded at once, scattering blood in all directions. The head of an orc, baring its fangs in a frenzy. The hand of the ogre that had swung down to strike Red Eyes. The legs of a gnoll, as if unable to contain its ferocity. The corpses of monsters fall from the sky. And then. Kim Hyunwoo, like the knight gaping in astonishment, was watching the scene. Thud-! Thudding! Along with the bodies of monsters falling to the ground. [You have thwarted the ''Labyrinth Break'' quest event!] [Your domain is preserved!] [Quest rewards will be given!] Along with the notification that appeared before his eyes, he could see Merilda, covered in blood, having returned to that spot. ¡°Uh, ugh¡­!¡± As if he had seen something he shouldn¡¯t have. Kim Hyunwoo, watching the knights and soldiers hastily turn around and start to run, just like he was contemting fleeing as well, soon quietly turned his head to see Merilda looking at him. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Kim Hyunwoo had some idea of how strong the 5-star heroes he had raised were. Although he couldn¡¯t actually see them fighting in the game right away, he could view the heroes¡¯ stats instead. That was why he thought that just one of the 5-star heroesing here could solve this situation. Kim Hyunwoo knew the strength of the heroes he had raised with affection, pushing in payments with part-time jobs at night and loading and unloading work he had secretly done illegally since he was a student, not even earning minimum wage. However, to be honest, he did not know it would be to this extent. No matter how high the stats were in the game, it was only expressed in brief messages and seemed like the character was attacking a few times. Therefore, that sight was extremely shocking to Kim Hyunwoo. [Would you like to make a recruitment offer to the 5-star hero ''Beast King''? Y/N] Kim Hyunwoo, without hesitation, reached towards the ¡®Y¡¯ option on the new notification that appeared before him. Of course, he didn¡¯t know what the Beast King was thinking toe all the way to this domain without even being able to send a message. As far as Kim Hyunwoo knew, the Beast King had no reason toe here because, in Arteil, if you don¡¯t maintain affinity by consuming various actions or using gift payments, the affinity would drop to nearly 0. ¡®Maybe it could even be negative.¡¯ Having seen the affinity of a hero character leaving because he didn¡¯t take care of them in Arteil ten years ago fall below zero, Kim Hyunwoo thought it might be possible, but he did not stop his hand. After all, the fact that the Beast King received the message and came here meant that he could have some conversation with her. Therefore, Kim Hyunwoo, who was moving his hand, Swoosh-! ¡°¡­¡­¡± He could not help but involuntarily pause his hand at the new notification that appeared before his eyes immediately after. The wolf with red eyes, no, Merilda, looked at the Lord standing before her. The Lord, who was gazing at her nkly. Her Master. ¡°Ah.¡± She involuntarily let out a dry exmation as she looked at him. The Lord seemed unchanged from ten years ago. Although he had matured somewhat over the course of ten years, the image of the Lord reflected in Merilda¡¯s red pupils was indeed of the same person she had seen ten years ago. ¡°¡­¡­¡± With that realization, tears began to well up in Merilda¡¯s eyes. Not because she was sad. Rather, she was happy. Because she could see that blurry face she had always seen in her dreams once again. Because the opportunity hade to reim the happiness she had kicked away ten years ago. Because the moment hade to beg for forgiveness from her Master. As if the emotions that had been dulled until now were a lie, a whirlwind ofplex emotions began to swirl within Merilda. ¡®I must¡­ ask for forgiveness.¡¯ As soon as that thought crossed her mind, Merilda¡¯s hands began to tremble. Her heart, which had been unbothered even when dealing with hundreds of monsters, began to pound fiercely. Her limp tail, without her realizing, wrapped around her waist. At the same time, such a thought crossed Merilda¡¯s mind. The thought of fear. Thud- Merilda knew her mistake. She knew very well that the Lord was fed up with the nonsense she had caused. So, she was afraid. She was afraid of whether the Lord would forgive her. She was afraid of what the Lord might say. ¡­She was afraid that the Master would reject her. Yet, Merilda took another step forward. Longing outweighed fear. Thud- She missed the hand that always stroked her head. Thud-! She wanted to see the smile of the Master who looked at her and smiled as if in trouble. Therefore, Merilda took steps forward and stood before Kim Hyunwoo. At that moment, another specific detail about the Lord that Merilda had forgotten came to mind. ¡®The Master is taller than I thought.¡¯ Merilda looked up at the Lord looking down at her, silently, but with trembling eyes. ¡°Th-¡± A voice flowed from her lips. ¡°I-¡± But, it did not continue. Merilda was confused. She had no idea what to say at this moment. The sentences and words she had naturally uttered until now did notbine properly. It was as if her mind was broken. In the midst of this, tears welled up, fearing the Lord might get annoyed. And at that moment. Click- Merilda realized a warm hand was ced on her head. Something she hadn¡¯t felt in ten years. Therefore, a sensation she had longed for, was felt. With that feeling, Merilda¡¯s ears that had been pulled back gently rose again. At the same time, her head, which she had lowered because of the tears that welled up, was raised. The tail that was wrapped around her waist gently moved. At the same time, she felt joy. ¡°Thank you.¡± Because the Lord had said those words. At the same time, seeing the Lord stroking her ¨C her heart began to beat in a different sense. However. ¡°Still, it¡¯s enough now.¡± At Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s following words. ¡°¡­Eh?¡± Merilda¡¯s stopped. And so did Kim Hyunwoo. [Would you like to make a recruitment offer to the 5-star hero ''Beast King''? Y/N] [¡ùCaution, recruiting this hero to your domain will result in hostile nations and domains.] [Norba Kingdom Rtions ¨C282] [Cn Kingdom Rtions ¨C162] [Eastern Union n Rtions ¨C132] [Sertoa Domain Rtions ¨C112] [Hancia Domain Rtions ¨C 332] [Altronia Domain Rtions ¨C273] [Kamia Domain Rtions ¨C442] [Ebroa Domain Rtions ¨C 263] [Chelba Domain Rtions ¨C 213] [Anderm Domain Rtions ¨C733] [Kehm Domain Rtions ¨C633] [¡­] [¡­] [¡­] [¡­] [¡ùYou could be the continent''s public enemy!] ¡®This is a bit-¡¯ He sweated coldly as he looked at the notifications filling his vision. Chapter 6: Reunion (3) As soon as Kim Hyunwoo saw the Beast King arrive in the territory, he thought he must somehow keep her within the territory. Even if it meant spending most of the wealth acquired through this Labyrinth Break. Because he was certain that once the Beast King was recruited, there would definitely be much more he could do, even if it meant a significant consumption of resources. However, at this moment, Kim Hyunwoo realized something as he saw the flood of notifications before his eyes. That recruiting her would not just make the reconstruction of the territory difficult but impossible. That recruiting her would be like drinking from a poisoned chalice. ¡®Just recruiting one person creates too many enemies.¡¯ Of course, the Merilda that Kim Hyunwoo saw was strong. So strong that he found himself unwittingly gaping. Moreover, ording to the notification he saw, Merilda was not just a 5-star but had be a 5.5-star, as if the game had been updated or some additional system had been added. But still, there were too many enemies to recruit her. ¡®There are even kingdoms and ns that didn¡¯t exist in my time, and countless other territories in a hostile rtionship, right?¡¯ Seeing the destructive rtionships, Kim Hyunwoo involuntarily clicked his tongue, wondering what she had been doing since leaving the territory. ¡­In fact, if this were all, Kim Hyunwoo might have seriously considered recruiting Merilda. No, he might have even knelt right now. Seeing what hade up, it seemed that Merilda¡¯s affinity was maintained to some extent for some reason, but Kim Hyunwoo had no idea what she was thinking exactly. However, Kim Hyunwoo did not do so for another reason besides the fact that Merilda had many enemies. ¡ùCaution If you recruit the 5-star hero ''Beast King'', her infamy as the Boss ''Red Eyes'' will increase, negatively affecting the influx of territory residents. If the territory''s development level is high, you can nullify the infamy of the recruited hero. [''Red Eyes'' Infamy: 1442] [Lartania''s Territory Development Level: -20] Current Territory Influx Rate: -25% New Territory Influx Rate: -1275% ¡°¡­¡­¡± Fundamentally, in the setting of Arteil, the biggest factor in the growth of a territory is its residents. Taxes can be collected only if there are residents, and goods can be produced and basic infrastructure can be designed only if there are residents. And such residents in Arteil are not randomly copied as the territory level rises, but the system involves sh-and-burn farmers or nomadic groups from outside settling down and gradually increasing. But in such a situation, epting Merilda and increasing the already -25% territory influx rate to -1275% was absolutely something Kim Hyunwoo, who had to reconstruct the territory, should not do. -25% was a number Kim Hyunwoo could fully recover through obtaining this reward, but -1275% was not. ¡®If the territory was like it used to be, I could have epted her-¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo thought of the territory as it was in the past. A time when the territory level was unimaginably higher than now, and the development level of the territory easily surpassed 5000 units in his memory. If the territory was in its heyday, epting Merilda would have only slightly reduced the territory influx rate without major issues, but he knew all that was in the past. ¡®Indeed, I have to give her up.¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo, with a look of regret, nced at Merilda and then at the earrings at her ears. ¡®¡­Maybe there will be a chance to recruit her once the territory developster.¡¯ With that thought, he opened the in-game window created by Loria and began to operate something. Merilda looked at Kim Hyunwoo with trembling eyes. He, with a troubled expression as he looked at her, soon waved his fingers in the air and then, Thud- Soon a small box appeared in his right hand and he ced it in the frozen Merilda¡¯s hand. She dully looked down to check it. It was a gift wrapped in a small box. A small gift that she seemed to have seen sometime before. Merilda raised her gaze again. Still, what was visible was the troubled face of the Lord. And then¡­ ¡°Your earrings, they¡¯ve worn out quite a bit.¡± The Lord¡¯s mouth opened. However, Merilda could not properly respond to Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s words. She couldn¡¯t understand why he was suddenly giving her a gift. No- Actually, she understood. Even if she didn¡¯t want to understand, her mind automatically grasped the meaning of his actions. ¡®Is this the end?¡¯ The Lord¡­ Meant it as a starting over. It wasn¡¯t a gift for an apology orpliment to her. That was obvious. Merilda hadn¡¯t conveyed anything to the Lord yet. She hadn¡¯t asked for forgiveness. She hadn¡¯t admitted her fault. Nor had she shown affection. Then, there was only one meaning to the gift in Merilda¡¯s mind. This is, this was- ¡°Let¡¯s meet again sometime if we¡¯re meant to.¡± ¡­It was a farewell. A sign he had no intention of starting over with her. A deration that this was the end of their rtionship¡­ ¡°¡­Ah.¡± ¡­The punctuation mark on their rtionship. A low exmation escaped Merilda¡¯s lips. At the same time, her eyes narrowed. She looked at the Lord. Precisely, she looked into his eyes. She felt aplex yet firm determination in his gaze. Merilda felt like the tears she was holding back would pour out, but she just bowed her head. She wanted to beg for forgiveness right there and then. To be epted once more. To admit all her wrongs. To ask for just one chance to return to how things were before. But she couldn¡¯t say any of it because she was afraid. Sadly, Merilda knew the words that the Lord, who already looked at her with such eyes, would say. Moreover, what if she troubled the Lord again and he disappeared once more? ¡®No.¡¯ Merilda felt a wave of fear engulf her at the thought of the Lord she had barely met disappearing again. Therefore, she said nothing. Nod, nod. Just bowed her head, nodding. A few hours after seeing Merilda leave with a slightly grim expression and nodding her head in displeasure. ¡®Could it be that some affection is still there?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo tilted his head slightly, thinking about Merilda¡¯s somewhat gloomy expression, but soon shook his head. If affection was maintained ording to Arteil¡¯s settings, she wouldn¡¯t have left the territory. ¡®Or was the gift too trivial?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo thought about the gift he had given to Merilda. The earrings, the first gift he gave to Merilda, were worth only 300 won in cash if bought with in-game currency. ¡®I gave her the gift before she entered the territory to maintain affection so I could recruit herter if possible.¡¯ Thinking about it, Kim Hyunwoo remembered that Merilda was only happy with the first gift, and afterwards, she demanded gifts worth tens of thousands of won, making him click his tongue in retrospect. ¡®Well, after receiving dozens of items worth tens of thousands of won, a 300-won gift now does seem a bit meager.¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo thought it was a poor choice, but shook his head as if there was nothing he could do about it. What he needed to think about now wasn¡¯t the feelings of a hero he couldn¡¯t recruit but the life-or-death rebuilding of his territory. ¡°Loria, show me the UI.¡± [Understood.] Immediately after those words, the UI appeared in front of him. Kim Hyunwoo, looking at the UI that appeared just like it did when he yed the game ten years ago, soon checked the currency written at the top of the UI [Red Stones: 9700] [Blue Stones: 1500000] [Gold Coins: 0] Unlike a few hours ago when both were at zero, seeing the now filled, though not abundant, currencies made Kim Hyunwoo smile. The currencies earned as a reward for clearing the level 30 Labyrinth Break of the territory would surely be a great help in restoring this devastated territory. ¡®Especially the Red Stones.¡¯ The value of Blue Stones, being in-game currency, is higher than Gold Coins. And Red Stones, being cash currency, had infinite value and utility. Although he had used about 300 to buy Merilda¡¯s gift, 9700 Red Stones were enough to restore this territory, which had hit negative development progress, back to its original state. ¡®Interestingly, it seems you can still buy cash items even after entering the game.¡¯ Furthermore, even after ten years, Kim Hyunwoo was one of the 500 most devoted yers, as well as a top-ranked yer, until Arteil was on the verge of copse. Meaning, he had enough knowledge in his head to restore this territory to its original state. ¡®Shall we start?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo began to operate the UI. Merilda, walking out of Lartania in a daze, soon found herself unwittingly kneeling and sitting down. Drip- Drip- Tears, which hadn¡¯t flowed in a long time, fell from her red eyes, streaming down her cheeks. Her heart, which she thought had cooled and wouldn¡¯t race again, was pounding madly. Yet, Merilda felt as if her heart had been hollowed out. Certainly, her heart was beating, but it felt so empty and painful ¨C she couldn¡¯t bear it. It hurt. It hurt too much. The words of farewell she heard from the Lord, her Master. Those eyes. That gesture. The more she thought about it, the more it seemed to tear her heart apart. Merilda, without realizing it, gripped her chest and clenched her fist. ¡°¡­!¡± However, soon after, she hurriedly rxed her grip. At the same time, she looked at the gift given by the Lord in her left hand. Fortunately, the box was intact. ¡­Unfortunately, the box was in her hand. The Lord¡¯s farewell gift was clearly in her hand, as if it wasn¡¯t a dream. Unknowingly, Merilda gripped the gift and cried her heart out. It felt like thest thing linking her to the Lord. At the same time, hating the gift for symbolizing the end of their rtionship, yet finding it precious. She repeatedly checked the gift, clenching it as if with force while crying, then, startled, loosened her grip to ensure it was still there. Fortunately, despite the many teardrops soaking the box, it still maintained its shape. How much time had passed like this? ¡°¡­¡­¡± Merilda, stood up from her ce. ¡°No, it can¡¯t be.¡± Still shedding tears as if pouring out years¡¯ worth at once, she stood up. She, as a wolf, with red eyes¡­ ¡°¡­¡­¡± Merilda had no intention of giving up. The Lord had returned. She wanted to be forgiven somehow. By any means necessary, even if it meant offering her life to a demon, she wanted to be forgiven. She wanted to gain his affection. She wanted to gain his favor. But at the same time, Merilda knew. If she kept throwing tantrums, he might disappear like the wind again, never to return. She didn¡¯t want that. At least for her, it was as good as a death sentence. Therefore, ¡°There¡¯s¡­ hope.¡± Merilda murmured. Her tearful eyes were looking at the gift. A gift of farewell given by the Lord. ¡°There will be.¡± He gave Merilda a gift. If he truly hated her to the point of loathing, he would have pushed her away without a gift. He would have hurled abuse at her. Just like she, who was foolish ten years ago, would have done. But the Lord gave her a gift. Even if it surely meant farewell, it was now in Merilda¡¯s hands. Meaning, in the Lord¡¯s heart, there still was, still had a small space enough to give her a farewell gift. A very small bit of reluctance remained. Merilda judged. No, she decided to think. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Then, there was one thing she had to do. She had to help the Lord. She had to help her Master. She had to help with anything possible, to open a very small crack in a corner of his heart. She didn¡¯t intend to make it obvious. Just silently, she decided to do whatever she could. If she continued to help the Master like that, and if the Master notices and shows her a very small bit of affection instead of a gift. The wolf ¨C Merilda, that would be enough. Therefore, ¡°¡­¡­¡± With red eyes, Merilda looked at one ce. The ce where the knight, who had tantly mocked at the Master¡¯s death, had fled to. Chapter 7: Wolf (1) Knight Alto, despite the day turning to dusk, did not camp but was almost running back to his territory to get as far away from Lartania as quickly as possible. Thanks to that, the sound of heavy breathing was heard all around, and although the soldiers had abandoned the wagon they had brought from the territory, the knight did not reprimand them. No, he couldn¡¯t. His mind was preupied with survival rather than reprimanding the soldiers for abandoning the wagon at the moment. ¡®Surely this wasn¡¯t the mission I was given¡­!¡¯ Alto¡¯s mission from the Lord was clearly only to retrieve Fragments of the Territory Stone from a failing territory. He hade from the distant Northern Continent to receive favorable treatment, unaware, but ording to the Lord, the territory of Lartania was said to have been of great prestige ten years ago. The mission seemed pretty easy to Alto, and indeed, he thought things were going smoothly until the halfway point. The Lartania territory he visited was, in fact, hardly worthy of being called a territory. That was, until it appeared. Knight Alto recalled the scene from earlier. With a single leap from Red Eyes, hundreds of monsters were instantly torn apart, a sight he had never before witnessed. And recalling the Langin tribe, who had done such an unbelievable act, looking at him with a clear expression of anger, the knight unconsciously clenched his teeth. ¡®Monster, that thing is a monster¡­!¡¯ He quickened his pace even more. Now, it was more than brisk walking; he was almost trotting. The knight, using his sense of duty to quickly inform his Lord of his justification, was trying to escape the trembling fear in his body. Just as Knight Alto was about to climb the entire uphill path of the mountain¡­ Thud-! His body suddenly fell forward. Crash-! Thump! Feeling a sharp pain in his chest, Alto grimaced but also felt a bit of shame. Even drenched in fear, he was well aware of how his current state must look to the soldiers following him. ¡®I must get up-¡¯ Thus, Alto, trying to ovee his shame and get up as if nothing was amiss, noticed something was off. ¡°¡­?¡± He knew something was wrong. His lower body felt lighter. For him, wearing te armor that was so heavy ordinary knights couldn¡¯t even wear it, yet capable of blocking even an ogre¡¯s club, this sensation was exceedingly unfamiliar. So, naturally, when he turned his gaze to look behind him. ¡°Eh?¡± Alto could see. Unlike his fallen self, his two legs were still standing on the ground. And. Spurt-! From the severed section of those legs, red blood was pouring out. The moment he realized it, a terrible pain began to fill Alto¡¯s mind, who had not understood the situation until then. ¡°Aaargh!¡± He realized that his two legs had been severed. And that had happened before he even realized it. At the same time, ¡°Did you think you could escape?¡± With eyes mixed with fear, he could see Merilda, who was already standing at the top of the hill, looking down at him. ¡°At-attack! Attack!¡± Alto, without realizing, opened his mouth seeing Red Eyes looking at him with endlessly indifferent eyes devoid of any emotion. Of course, there were no soldiers to respond to such amand from the knight. That was because the soldiers who had climbed the mountain with him were¡­ ¡°Ah-¡± Already all dead. Shiver- With trembling eyes, Alto turned his head to look at the soldiers who had died without even screaming. All of them had their bodies split into three parts or had their heads had disappeared, dying without a scream, staining the mountain path red. Alto, after looking at them, turned his gaze back to Red Eyes. Still with an indifferent expression, her eyes shining brightly under the moonlight, she was slowly stepping towards Alto. ¡°Sa-save me-!¡± At the same time, Alto cried out. He had no intention of opposing Red Eyes. No, he couldn¡¯t. Because he was critically injured? No. Alto had realized from the beginning. That he could never defeat the monster before him on his own. Thus, the scream that instinctively burst out, was a cry for survival. But Red Eyes just silently moved forward, step by step. ¡°If-If you touch me, do you think our territory will just stand by!? Our Lord of Hancia is under the protection of the Kingdom of Cn!!¡± Despite Alto¡¯s increasingly frightened state leading him to throw polite speech far away and resort to threats, Merilda just silently moved on. However. When Red Eyes stopped right in front of him, about to raise a fist emotionlessly, ¡°Do you think the Lord of Lartania will be safe if you kill me!?¡± Suddenly-! At the scream-like utterance from Alto, Merilda¡¯s movement stopped, and at that moment, Alto instinctively realized. That this was Red Eyes¡¯ weakness. Therefore, Alto started to babble in order to survive. ¡°If I-if I do not return, of course, the Lord will know something happened to me and send troops! Do you think you can stop those troops!?¡± ¡°No!? You cannot stop the army of our territory! We have as many as three heroes in our territory!¡± ¡°Of course, you could run away!! But could the Lord you wished to protect run away?! No! That¡¯s impossible! Your Lord will be captured by the army sent by our Lord and will not escape execution!¡± Alto was screaming at Merilda, who stood still. In fact, his words were a cunning mix of truth and lies. It was true that Hancia had many soldiers, as he said. It was also true that there were three strong heroes, and over fifty knights, which could be considered elite troops. However, the only incorrect part was that all those forces would not move just because of one hero who entered Lartania territory this time had died. At least, the Lord would not move the soldiers until making a decision. Because the Lord he knew was such a person. However, for Alto at the moment, that wasn¡¯t what mattered. Surviving was all that mattered. Seeing Red Eyes wavering, Alto, for whom only survival was important, immediately shouted a cunning mix of truth and lies. ¡°So if you kill me here, you-¡± At the moment Alto, who saw herpletely stop with her fist raised, was about to speak with a triumphant smile. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Alto stopped speaking. His neck wasn¡¯t cut. His neck was still well attached to his body. And his tongue was also properly attached. Eyes, nose, mouth, not one was harmed. Yet, the reason Alto stopped speaking was- ¡°Say it once more.¡± ¡°Ah-¡± Shiver- Because his body was trembling. To the extent that he felt like he would suffocate under the murderous intent emitted by Red Eyes, who looked down on him with a demon-like scowl. ¡°What did you say?¡± Trembling even more- The knight couldn¡¯t answer. He just realized one thing. The Lord of Lartania, who had declined and diminished over ten years holding nothing, was not her weakness. The Lord was- Crack-! -A taboo to Red Eyes. A taboo that must never be brought up. Alto screamed as he btedly realized he had done something that should never have done and that his right arm had been torn off. Regardless of whether he screamed or not, Red Eyes, who had grabbed the knight by the head to meet his gaze, said, ¡°Listen well.¡± ¡°Ugh-!¡± ¡°No one, absolutely no one, can touch my Master. If they do-¡± While looking into Alto¡¯s eyes trembling with fear and pain, ¡°¡­I will, by any means necessary, kill them all.¡± Crunch-! And then, by squeezing her hand, she crushed his head, killing him. Thud-! Thump. The wolf, Red Eyes, carelessly threw away the corpse of Alto, whose head had burst and died. ¡°No, absolutely- absolutely not.¡± Looking north, where the territory of Hancia is located. ¡°No one can touch the Master.¡± Red eyes shed. ¡°Anyone, no matter who.¡± Holding a small gift box in her arms, treasuring it. ©\©\©\ About two days after the end of the Labyrinth Break incident, Kim Hyunwoo had drawn up all the blueprints to restore Lartania and began working in earnest. Of course, there were problems along the way. No, to be precise, there were many. Immediately, in Lartania, there was not a single building left besides the Lord¡¯s castle, and the few remaining houses in the residential area were almost all ruined, not even considered buildings by the territory¡¯s standards. Still, it was okay. From Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s perspective, who could use game currency just like when he was ying the game ten years ago, such a problem could be solved. If there were no resources to build, it was necessary to pay a bit more than usual, but resources could be purchased through in-game currency. Thanks to that, high-quality wood that could be used to build fences around the entire territory and houses were piled higher than the Lord¡¯s castle itself at the back of the current castle. Simrly, ample supplies of minerals like stone or iron were prepared for use as well. Is that all? The barrennd was made into arable farnd, capable of plowing a few percent of its area, using an item called ¡®Blessed Holy Water¡¯ that could be bought with 2000 Red Stones. Now, what remained was to build various essential buildings and homes for the territory¡¯s residents to settle in properly, and to proceed with the primary industry by actively usingbor. The problem arose right here. ¡®There¡¯s just not enough manpower.¡¯ As Arteil exined time and again, the territory¡¯s residents were the most important. The number of residents equates to the amount ofbor that can be mobilized. Given Arteil¡¯s characteristic of constantly consuming resources,bor to produce resources is an indispensable element. And the construction window of Lartania, currently maintaining just over 90 residents, was: [Construction List] Ruined House Repairs [Time Remaining: 208 days 5 hours 22 minutes ¨C In Progress] Fence Construction [Time Remaining: 92 days 2 hours 15 minutes] Training Ground Construction [Time Remaining: 182 days 9 hours 30 minutes] It was in a very dire state. Even if there were 90 residents, the problem arose because less than 50 of them could actually work. Of course, even if all 90 becameborers, this disastrous number would not decrease. ¡®¡­It would be nice if manpower could be bought with cash currency.¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo, clutching his head as if it hurt, thought. However, from the beginning, when enjoying Arteil as a mobile game, funnily enough, this game was only bizarre in terms of BM elements for heroes, but was rational in terms of BM for operating a territory. In other words, whether it¡¯s cash currency or in-game currency, the only way to buybor was for Kim Hyunwoo to either properly set up a trading post or establish friendly rtions between territories to receivebor support, otherwise, it was impossible. So, it was just yesterday that Kim Hyunwoo was pondering how to solve this problem. Yes, until yesterday, he was worrying. ¡°The territory influx rate, it¡¯s not disyed incorrectly, right?¡± [Yes.] ¡°¡­Why all of a sudden?¡± [That, I don¡¯t know well either...] Domain Influx Rate: 292% ¡ùDue to events caused by an incident, the correction for the decrease in influx rate due to development disappears! Until such a disy appeared in front of Kim Hyunwoo. Chapter 8: Wolf (2) The Hancia territory, located just a bit north, was a territory developed around a very prosperous agricultural industrypared to the territory Kim Hyunwoo was cultivating. Thick walls surrounded the territory, and within it was fertilend grown with numerous crops. Additionally, no one dared to meddle with the Hancia territory, which received protection from the Sertoa territory, part of the Cn Kingdom, under the condition of handing over 30% of the resources harvested each year. Thanks to this, the Hancia territory had maintained steady growth from the past to the present, but the current Lord, the son of the former Lord who suddenly died a few years ago, was dissatisfied with this arrangement. He had ambition. He was far more interested in the mercenary or magic industries, which could attract more money and better manpower than agriculture. He also wanted to developbyrinths, which he couldn¡¯t do due to the guise of protection from the Sertoa territory. However, the reason the Lord couldn¡¯t do so was that, thanks to his father, the previous Lord, the Hancia territory had already be dependent on the Sertoa territory for many of its problems. Thus, for the Lord, who had been pondering how to gain independence from the Sertoa territory since his inauguration, the territory of Lartania was a very good solution. The Lartania territory, once acquired, would soon yield Territory Stone Fragments, which could bring in an enormous amount of wealth. Therefore, the Lord of Hancia considered it very fortunate that the Lartania territory was nearby. To his knowledge, there weren¡¯t many abandoned territories like Lartania on this continent to begin with. In fact, there were only a few such ces throughout the entire Southern Continent. Initially, Territory Stones don¡¯t just disappear when a lord dies without passing the territory on to someone else; they immediately designate the next person to be the lord and continue the lordship. Thus, since territories hardly ever get abandoned even if a lord dies or disappears, opportunities to obtain Territory Stone Fragments like this were rare. Therefore, from the Lord of Hancia¡¯s perspective, it was fortunate that the Lartania territory was right nearby. Due to the geographical advantage of being very close to the Lartania territory, the Hancia Lord was able to possess all the Territory Stone Fragments alone. Of course, the Fragments obtained after the Lartania territory was partially destroyed could not be monopolized by the Hancia territory. The reason Hancia could initially possess the Territory Stone Fragments alone after the territory was destroyed was because of a promise made. The promise to hand over 80% of the obtained Territory Stones to the Sertoa territory. Thanks to this, those who aimed for the Territory Stones resulting from Lartania in this area, which could essentially be considered part of the Cn Kingdom, disappeared under the protection of Sertoa. Hancia was put in a situation where it could safely devour the Territory Stones. However, naturally, the Lord of Hancia had no intention whatsoever of offering the devoured Territory Stones to the Sertoa territory. Instead, he nned to offer all the Territory Stones directly to the Cn Royal Family, changing the head of the Hancia territory from the Sertoa territory to the Cn Royal Family. Of course, from someone else¡¯s perspective, one might wonder what the difference was. After all, the Sertoa territory was part of the Cn Kingdom. But that was distinctly different. Unlike the Sertoa territory, which did not want the Hancia territory to expand the Cn royal family would not impose such restrictions on the Hancia domain. Is that all? If there were disputes with the Sertoa domain over offering the domain stones, the royal family could mediate adequately if they stepped in. Thus, the Hancia domain, under the protection of the Cn Kingdom, would gainplete freedom to grow without restrictions, and he was hopeful for this. He had no intention of helping when the owner of the territory, neglected for ten years, suddenly returned and sent a letter requesting reinforcements. No, on the contrary, the Lord smiled upon receiving the letter. He didn¡¯t know why the Lord of Lartania had returned, but ultimately, the request for reinforcements meant there was no force to stop the Labyrinth Break. Upon reflection, that was obvious. The prosperity of Lartania was ten years ago, and the Round Table of Lartania, once called the strongest in this vicinity, naturally dissolved as the Lord disappeared. Therefore, the Lord of Hancia was waiting for Alto, who had gone to fetch the Territory Stone, to return as soon as possible. Until he knew that Alto had died. ¡°¡­¡­¡± The Lord¡¯s of Hancia looked out at thendscape outside the castle with a vacant expression. What he saw was apletely destroyed wall. Beneath that wall, there was a path lined straight to the castle, decorated with the blood and bodies of soldiers. In front of him, ¡°How did you, by all means¡­?¡± She was standing there. No, terror stood there. One of the Round Table of Lartania, who had killed the hero most cherished by the former Lord of Hancia in just five moves, ¡°You ordered it?¡± -Now, a member of the Langin tribe, called ¡®Red Eyes,¡¯ stood in front of her. ¡°Watch the master die and bring back the Territory Stone.¡± The Lord of Hancia could not understand why Red Eyes was in front of him. No, in fact, it was somewhat deducible. Red Eyes was a hero who belonged to Lartania in the past. However, the reason the Lord could not fullyprehend the situation was because she had belonged to Lartania ten years ago. Thus, she should have no connection to Lartania now. Even if the Lord had returned, the Lord of Lartania, who now had nothing, could not possibly recruit her. Therefore, ¡°Now, calm down, Red Eyes-! Why are you doing this? After all, you are no longer affiliated with Lartania-¡± The Lord opened his mouth to persuade her, but the moment he spoke, Crack-! The lord could no longer speak. ¡°Grrrugh!!!¡± His face was grasped and lifted by Merilda¡¯s hand. The Lord struggled to escape from her grip, blood flowing between Merilda¡¯s fingers, possibly with a broken jaw, his eyes bloodshot. However, Merilda spoke with clear signs of anger, ¡°Who said I¡¯m not affiliated?¡± ¡°Ugh-! Eugh-!¡± The lord writhed in midair, caught in her grasp. She then threw the Lord¡¯s body down. Bang! Crack! The Lord, flung against the antique wooden furniture, screamed, holding his mouth, but Merilda, seemingly unconcerned with his screams, approached him again. ¡°Whether in the past or now, every single oneing from your territory always speaks infuriatingly.¡± Crack! She then stomped on the Lord of Hancia¡¯s head, crushing it. The Lord trembled and then went limp. Merilda, looking at the Lord, ¡°¡­¡­¡± Suddenly, she recalled a memory from the past. The one who spoke to her, sitting in the castle wearing the Hancia territory¡¯s insignia, waiting for her master- ¡°Let¡¯s go together, Beast King. All the other heroes have left, and you¡¯re not even originally from Lartania. Why are you still here? It¡¯s been three weeks of persuasion; how about you at least listen to what I have to say?¡± ¡°Ha! If you can¡¯t ept it, I¡¯ll tell you directly!! Your master has abandoned you. They won¡¯t even look for you! You¡¯re forsaken, a-¡± The hero whom they had killed, bearing the mark of Hancia. And then. ¡°No¡­ No.¡± ¡°I am, I am-¡± ¡°I am still affiliated.¡± Merilda stared as if she would kill the dead lord. ¡°Not yet-¡± Her hands trembled, which did not even when killing hundreds of soldiers. ¡°¡­I just¡­ can¡¯t return.¡± She clenched the gift box she held in her arms tightly. Trembling- ¡­Her trembling hands only calmed down long after she had left the territory of Hancia. Kim Hyunwoo, who was amazed to see Lartania¡¯s territory influx rate suddenly reach 292% yesterday, didn¡¯t feel any particr change that day. After all, just because the territory influx rate suddenly increased didn¡¯t mean that residents would suddenly show up that day. Therefore, Kim Hyunwoo wondered what had happened outside for the territory influx rate, which had been -25%, to rise this much, but naturally, he couldn¡¯t find out anything. After all, the only thing he could find out through the notification window was the fact that the territory influx rate increased due to an event. Thus, Kim Hyunwoo, having spent a day immersed in curiosity, ¡°¡­What¡¯s this?¡± As the next day began, he found himself with a bewildered expression at the enormous number of people who hade into the nearby abandoned vige. [Territory Influx Rate: 310%] [¡ùDue to the event caused by the incident, the correction for the decreased influx rate due to development disappears!] After confirming that the territory influx rate, which had been 292%, had improved to 310%, he unwittingly opened his mouth wide and hurried to check the territory window. Territory Lartania Territory Development: -14 Territory Residents: [Humans: 288] Owned Buildings: [Lord''s Castle] Owned Forces: -None- Heroes in the Territory: Kim Hyunwoo (Lord) ¡°This is crazy.¡± Kim Hyunwoo unwittingly cursed, his eyes widening. He had never seen so many residentse into a territory at once, no matter how much the territory influx rate increased. ¡®Even if the influx rate is high, the average would be 1020 peopleing in steadily.¡¯ With over 200 people increasing in just one day, Kim Hyunwoo couldn¡¯t hide his unwittingly formed smile despite being dumbfounded. Kim Hyunwoo, who was seriously pondering where these territory residents hade from, ¡®Thinking about it, I could just ask, right?¡¯ Recalling that this wasn¡¯t a game, he immediately called for a representative among the refugees who hade to settle in this territoryst night to hear their story. And then. ¡°So, all of you came here because the Hancia territory was destroyed, right?¡± ¡°Yes, the soldiers said that ¡®Red Eyes¡¯ attacked the territory.¡± ¡°¡­Red Eyes?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± As Kim Hyunwoo unwittingly tilted his head at the refugee¡¯s words¡­ The Lord of Sertoa territory, which is a certain distance east from Hancia and under the protection of the Cn Kingdom. ¡°¡­Say that again.¡± The former ¡®Hero¡¯ Roadmalis. ¡°What?¡± Listening to the servant¡¯s report that the Hancia territory was half-destroyed and that Lartania was not destroyed during the Labyrinth Break incident, he wore a very intrigued expression. Chapter 9: Territory Development (1) ¡°Hmm-¡± Lord Roadmalis of the Sertoa territory fiddled with his suit, listening to his servant¡¯s words with great interest before speaking. ¡°So, to conclude, the Lord of Lartania has suddenly returned, and the Hancia territory was single-handedly destroyed by Red Eyes. Is that what you¡¯re saying?¡± ¡°It¡¯s unbelievable, but yes.¡± ¡°¡­Unbelievable¡­¡± Following the servant¡¯s words, Lord Roadmalis muttered and then chuckled before speaking. ¡°Well, that¡¯s possible.¡± ¡°What do you mean by, that¡¯s possible?¡± ¡°I mean, someone like Red Eyes could indeed destroy a ce like the Hancia territory on their own.¡± As the Lord of Sertoa and someone who had previously operated as a 4-star hero, Lord Roadmalis knew the strength of Red Eyes. No, to be precise, he remembered the power shown by Red Eyes ten years ago, when they were still known as the ¡®Beast King¡¯ in Lartania. However, Lord Roadmalis also spoke with a peculiar smirk. ¡°After all, that ce wasn¡¯t properly defended to begin with.¡± Lord Roadmalis knew well how the Hancia territory was run. In fact, it would have been strange if he didn¡¯t know. In reality, Lord Roadmalis was the one managing the Hancia territory, and it was his will that maintained the agricultural industry that the Lord of Hancia so desperately wanted to escape from. ¡°The 500 guards deployed to handle monstersing from the Labyrinth were not enough to stop that monster. Not to mention, the heroes were all worthless.¡± ¡°Not to mention, the walls, neither high nor made of quality materials, were something Red Eyes could easily break through or climb over.¡± Muttering the reasons why the Hancia territory was destroyed so quickly, Lord Roadmalis spoke to his servant. ¡°So, what¡¯s the current state of the territory?¡± ¡°First off, one of the hastily assessed Baron¡¯s clerks was chosen by the Territory Stone to be the Lord and is now hastily stabilizing the territory. However-¡± ¡°However?¡± ¡°Many residents have also fled after Red Eyespletely destroyed the territory.¡± At his servant¡¯s words, Lord Roadmalis fell into deep thought. Of course, he wasn¡¯t thinking about the residents who had fled the Hancia territory. He was pondering why Red Eyes had attacked the Hancia territory. Naturally, he had pieced together some of the puzzle in his mind. ¡®The Lord of Hancia must have sent a knight to obtain the Territory Stone, and Red Eyes, after defending Lartania during the Labyrinth Break, must have killed the Lord of Hancia¡­ that seems to be the most likely scenario.¡¯ Despite fitting most of the puzzle pieces, there was one reason Lord Roadmalis was still pondering. ¡®Why is Red Eyes helping the Lord of Lartania?¡¯ As far as Lord Roadmalis knew, Red Eyes was no longer affiliated with Lartania. Likewise, the Lord of Lartania surelycked the funds and ability to recruit Red Eyes. So, why did Red Eyes help Lartania? After pondering for a while, Lord Roadmalis eventually shrugged. Frankly speaking, from Roadmalis¡¯ perspective, such matters were of no concern to him. What mattered to him was that the Lord of Lartania had returned, giving him a pretext. Perhaps a pretext to expand his territory by acquiring a new colony. ¡®Red Eyes must be handled with caution, but-¡¯ If everything went ording to his n, the colonization of Lartania would naturally ur. Even if Red Eyes was attached to the Lord of Lartania, it would be done so covertly that it would go unnoticed. Therefore, instead of themon smile he had been wearing, ¡°Send someone to Lartania with a gift.¡± He said, a greedy smile on his lips. Five days after the residents began to officially enter the Lartania territory. Territory: Lartania. Territory Development: 5 Territory Residents: [Humans: 518] Owned Buildings: [Lord¡¯s Castle LV1] [Walls LV0 (Under Construction) 0%] [Residential Area LV0 (Under Repair) 22%] [Barracks LV0 (Under Construction) 0%] Owned Forces: -None- Heroes in the Territory: Kim Hyunwoo (Lord) The residents of the Lartania territory reached 518 in just five days. Of course, even though the number of territory residents had dropped to only 450 as of yesterday, and the influx rate to the territory had decreased back to 5%, Kim Hyunwoo was quite satisfied with the situation. After all, even just five days ago, Kim Hyunwoo had been earnestly pondering how he could possibly fill his territory with residents. However, even though the number of territory residents had already been replenished to 518, and on top of that, the number of workers who could be employed as constructionbor immediately exceeded 300, Kim Hyunwoo was still worried. No, to be more precise, it would be more urate to say he was slightly annoyed rather than worried. And with good reason. [Labor Efficiency: 54%] ¡®Look at these guys¡­?¡¯ The territory residents were cking off in their work. In other words, they were loafing around. Of course, Kim Hyunwoo wasn¡¯t exploiting the territory residents for free. He had provided sufficient resources to the territory residents who suppliedbor, and of course, he had even arranged for houses (though they were dpidated for the time being) where the territory residents could live. Yet, the territory residents were still doing their work half-heartedly. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Kim Hyunwoo knew why thebor efficiency of the territory residents was only in the 50% range. Initially, the basicbor efficiency of the territory residents was influenced by various factors of the territory, but to maintainbor efficiency above 80%, there basically needed to be either a high level of territorial development or a practical hero capable of managingbor efficiency. Otherwise, it would suffice if just the loyalty of the territory residents to their Lord was high. However, the problem for Kim Hyunwoo was that hecked all three of these conditions. And the reason Kim Hyunwoo was even angry now was because. [Thieves have invaded.] ¡°How many?¡± [There seems to be about 30.] It was that thieves had appeared who not only further reduced the already lowbor efficiency of the territory but were also forcing the territory residents out. And this was happening at a time when there were no basic soldiers to protect the territory. ¡°Huh-¡± Of course, this was not entirely unexpected. ording to Kim Hyunwoo, most of the events happening now were issues faced when first ying Arteil. However, the problem was that the situation of Lartania¡¯s territory was even worse than when the game was first started. Not only that. ¡°30?¡± [Yes.] ¡°¡­¡­¡± The level of territorial development was disgustingly low, but the territory level was high, which meant that the inherent difficulty was very high. But he knew that no one would help him just because heined about the difficulty being in hell mode. [It seems they are now entering the residential district and looting.] Kim Hyunwoo, who had been thinking for a while upon hearing Loria¡¯s words, ¡°Ah.¡± Let out a strange exmation as if he had a good idea, then rose from his seat. Rosie, a girl who hade to Lartania¡¯s territory with her parents from Hancia¡¯s territory, did not like this ce very much. Of course, aside from that, the girl, who was already somewhat mature and had received much praise for being intelligent or clever from those around her, knew why her parents hade to Lartania. Initially, they had no other choice but Lartania. Even Sertoa, which was rtively close to Hancia, was quite far away, and above all, it was certain there would be no work there. And most importantly, Sertoa did not indiscriminately ept territory residents. This meant that if they went to Sertoa and were not epted, they would have no choice but to stay in the shantytowns outside the territory. Therefore, including Rosie, the residents of Hancia hade to Lartania this time because of rumors that the Lord had returned and started to function properly as a territory. ¡®Is this a territory?¡¯ Lartania was truly a barren wastnd. The only ce to live was a vige of dpidated houses, and there were no walls built; it was to the extent that one might wonder if this could actually be called a territory. And, as befits a territory without proper soldiers or defenses, Lartania was vulnerable to the invasion of thieves. The territory residents could only watch in fear as the thieves looted the belongings they had put in the newly settled vige of dpidated houses, emerging from their homes with frightened looks. ¡°Wow, what¡¯s with all this stuff? There¡¯s so much food too?!¡± ¡°Jackpot, jackpot, grab everything!¡± ¡°I came just in case, but who knew we could make such a solid haul¡­!¡± The territory residents gritted their teeth as they watched the thieves, who seemed very excited, rummaging through the dpidated houses and taking out their belongings, but no one dared to step forward because of the weapons at the thieves¡¯ waists. Just silence. However. ¡°¡­?¡± At some point, Rosie inadvertently raised her gaze and looked ahead at the sound of the territory residents murmuring. Rosie looked at a man who had appeared in front of the thieves who were dumping their loot in the middle. No. ¡°Isn¡¯t that the Lord?¡± ¡°The Lord?¡± They could see the Lord of Lartania. ¡°¡­Ah.¡± As someone let out a sigh, simr sighs could be heard from here and there. The quiet sighs that followed the murmuring quickly dissipated the strange sense of expectation that had arisen. And Rosie also felt the territory residents¡¯ sighs were just low sighs. And with good reason, for Rosie, even though it was her first time seeing him, the Lord looked nothing more than ordinary. And since he hadn¡¯t brought any soldiers with him, the territory residents sighed with overt disappointment and regret. Interestingly, the Lord¡¯s expression remained calm. No, rather than calm, he appeared confident. And then. ¡°Do you guys know this?¡± Kim Hyunwoo looked at the thieves, who, even at a nce, had faces that looked like they¡¯d been ground against asphalt, expressing ¡®my life hasn¡¯t been easy¡¯ with their entire being. At a nce, it was clear that the thieves, possibly refugees or sh-and-burn farmers, wore mismatched clothing. The problem, however, was the weapons at their waists. Naturally, Kim Hyunwoo, not being a hero, couldn¡¯t stop those thieves by force. However, the reason Kim Hyunwoo confidently stood in front of the thieves was because¡­ [Would you like to use 1000 ''Blue Stones'' to purchase logs? Y/N] He had a way of dealing with the thieves without needing to resort to force. ¡°Huh? What¡¯s this guy saying?¡± The moment a thug with a fierce expression looked at the Lord. ¡°People die when they get crushed by logs.¡± Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s finger moved without hesitation towards ¡®Y¡¯. ¡°Wha, what!? Shit!¡± ¡°Uh! Ughhhhh!¡± Logs suddenly appeared above the thieves, as designated by Kim Hyunwoo, and fell. Bang! Crash! Starting to crush the thieves. And then, as the thieves were swept away. ¡°¡­¡­¡± The territory residents, who had been wearing disappointed expressions, all watched in stunned silence, unable to close their mouths. Chapter 10: Territory Development (2) Kim Hyunwoo sighed in relief internally as he looked at the thieves who had died instantly without even a scream, crushed by the logs. ¡®Did it somehow work?¡¯ Of course, the reason he thought of this method was purely by chance. After all, in Arteil, when summoning resources, moving his fingers to ce them on the desired tile would just disy mobile graphics. However, in this world, he could summon any desired material anywhere within his territory, so Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s attempt out of a ¡®what if¡¯ thought was sessful. However, ¡°Hmm.¡± Kim Hyunwoo nced down. What he saw was a huge pile of logs. ¡®To be honest, summoning about ten logs would have been enough to deal with the thieves.¡¯ Due to the thought of ¡®just in case¡¯ and the fear that if the attack didn¡¯t work, it would be the end, he summoned too many logs, creating a chaotic mountain of logs around the abandoned vige. ¡®Still, I did make too many.¡¯ Despite such thoughts, Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s expression was not a frown. Logs were a resource with many uses, and since he couldn¡¯t immediately import or gather resources from outside, having to convert all resources into Blue Stones first, it wasn¡¯t really a loss. Thus, after looking at the mountain of logs for a while, Kim Hyunwoo turned his gaze to look at a territory resident staring nkly at him from afar. ¡°Alex.¡± He soon spoke to one of the territory residents looking at him from beyond his line of sight. ¡°Ah, yes¡­!¡± A man in his mid-30s quickly stepped forward to face Kim Hyunwoo as soon as he spoke. Kim Hyunwoo, who had been rying various messages to the territory residents as their representative until a hero to handle internal affairs would arrive, felt puzzled after hearing about Red Eyes a few days ago. ¡®Was he always this brisk?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo cocked his head at the sight of Alex moving briskly, unlike his usual slowbor efficiency, but soon shrugged and told Alex to prioritize the logs here as resources over those behind the territory before turning back. After dealing with all the thieves, Kim Hyunwoo turned around to leave. The territory residents, standing there and witnessing the scene where over 40 thieves were annihted in one go, were in awe. ¡°How did he do that?¡± ¡°Did you see it? The logs just fell from the sky?¡± ¡°How did he do that??¡± Suddenly plunged into confusion, they began to murmur among themselves. ¡°Is he a wizard?¡± ¡°How is that magic?¡± ¡°But the logs fell from the sky¡­?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that impossible even with magic?¡± ¡°Is it like that?¡± ¡°I heard that magic can¡¯t make creations like that¡­¡± The territory residents, each offering their opinions on the strange technique shown by their Lord, soon began to chatter among themselves. ¡°Our Lord, isn¡¯t he actually quite amazing?¡± ¡°Think about it, the Lord who led Lartania ten years ago, isn¡¯t he that Lord? Initially, he suddenly disappeared, and that¡¯s why the territory became like this-¡± ¡°Certainly, the Lartania territory ten years ago was strong enough to be unmatched by any surrounding territories-¡± Strange rumors started to flesh out from the mouths of the territory residents. ¡°Thinking about the rumors from ten years ago-¡± ¡°I was in the Hancia territory even then, and there were rumors that the Lartania Lord was an incredibly great person.¡± Soon, the absurd rumors from ten years ago, which were not even based on truth to begin with, began to morph again in the memories of the territory residents. About 30 minutester. ¡°Could our Lord actually be like an apostle of a God?¡± ¡°A God¡¯s apostle?¡± Among the territory residents, a strange misconception about Kim Hyunwoo began to take root. And around that time, Kim Hyunwoo, who had returned to the Lord¡¯s castle and was sighing, suddenly felt a strange sense of discord. ¡®Come to think of it, didn¡¯t I just kill people?¡¯ That was the discord in his own feelings. It might sound strange, but Kim Hyunwoo, having entered this game, was naturally an ordinary person. He was not a psychopath, just a young man who had graduated from a boys¡¯ middle school, a boys¡¯ high school, and a vocational college,pleted his military service as a sergeant, and worked hard in a furniture factory. Of course, there was a period when he was obsessed with Arteil and worked night shifts instead of studying during two years of high school, but the point here is that Kim Hyunwoo considered himself ordinary. In other words, while it might be unknown in the game, killing someone in this reality should normally inflict a moral blow to his mentality. It certainly should be. ¡®¡­Why do I feel so normal?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo felt normal, by his own assessment. Not to the extent of having a life-disdaining philosophy like the protagonists in some Chinese martial arts novels, but just a matter-of-fact thought that he had killed. Therefore, ¡®Could it be¡­ that I¡¯m a psychopath?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo, beginning to doubt his own normalcy, soon discovered the truth. Hero Name: Kim Hyunwoo Title: X Star(ÐÇ): ?? Star -Stats- Strength: 9 Agility: 10 Intelligence: 6 Luck: 9 Magic: 1 -Traits- Indomitable Spirit (²»„ÓÐÄ): In any case, if desired, quickly regains peace of mind. beobmeokmwongiddwi rukddukgyeong: beolgyeongyeonuddyeom ryeotgeotgyongbegaem ddingeukddangmungmong beobmeokmwongiddwirukd dyeonkkongddwidaegyeon ungeongryeotmwogyeong beobmeokkkeumkkongnwi wonryumbokgungddung meorumbengkkaddae bwotddungreonbokgwong dongbeotkkwiddumneong ryungdatgwongregnon kkwiddumnyumyeonggwong romdikgyongbellyeom ddukgwiwongryeotryeo gwakdingddaengmipheu Surprisingly, from the hero window that he had never opened until now. ¡®Was it because of this?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo looked at ¡°Indomitable Spirit¡± and felt slightly relieved that he wasn¡¯t a psychopath, but his slightly odd expression did not ease. The reason was the broken words written below ¡°Indomitable Spirit.¡± ¡®What¡¯s this?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo, having never seen this ability window before, toggled the traits window on and off several times, but naturally, the broken words did not restore. Kim Hyunwoo, pondering what these broken words could mean, soon stopped caring. After all, Kim Hyunwoo currently had no time to worry about such things. Thus, satisfied with confirming that he was indeed not a psychopath, he wore a content expression the next day. ¡°Should we indeed enforce discipline?¡± Kim Hyunwoo was discussing with Loria. The topic of discussion was, of course, the management of the territory residents. [To increase thebor efficiency of the territory residents to at least 70%, as you mentioned, building a tavern and recruiting a hero to manage the interior or recruiting those with rted traits would be good, but since that¡¯s not possible in the current situation, enforcing discipline through force seems like a not-so-bad n.] Kim Hyunwoo decided to enforce discipline to slightly increasebor efficiency and quickly establish the basic form of the territory before it reached a certain level of development, as thieves would continue to invade until then. [However-] ¡°But?¡± [At this point, it seems unnecessary.] ¡°Huh? What do you mean?¡± [Please open the construction window.] Kim Hyunwoo, puzzled by Loria¡¯s words. However, he soon opened the construction window as Loria instructed. ¡°¡­Huh?¡± Soon, Kim Hyunwoo could see. [Labor Efficiency: 84%] Thebor efficiency, which was just 50% until yesterday, was now at 84%. ¡°¡­All of a sudden?¡± Kim Hyunwoo looked at the skyrocketedbor efficiency with a startled expression, puzzled. [Congrattions. You¡¯ve obtained your first title.] [First Title: ¡®King of Logs¡¯] [As amemoration of your first title, an event reward will be given!] Upon opening the territory window, the notification popped up as if it had been waiting. ¡°¡­What¡¯s this now?¡± Kim Hyunwoo murmured with an incredulous expression unknowingly. [I believe it¡¯s a title that resulted from how you dealt with the thieves yesterday. However, as far as I know, the term ¡®Apostle of God¡¯ was mentioned first-] ¡°Then why is it ¡®King of Logs¡¯ instead of ¡®Apostle of God¡¯?¡± [I¡¯m not sure either.] Kim Hyunwoo felt a mix of emotions watching Loria subtly cut off his exnation. Actually, having a title itself wasn¡¯t a bad thing. ording to Loria, thanks to his actions yesterday in dealing with the thieves, the loyalty of the territory residents had increased, leading to greaterbor efficiency and even an event reward. ¡®Still, ¡®King of Logs¡¯ is a bit-¡¯ Knowing what ¡®logs¡¯ might mean in certain inte circles, Kim Hyunwoo felt a bit strange, but¡­ Since everything had turned out well, Kim Hyunwoo decided to quietly ept the title. A day after Kim Hyunwoo became the ¡®King of Logs¡¯. ¡°¡­Sent from the Sertoa territory?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Someone hade from the Sertoa territory. Moreover, ¡°Lord Sertoa sent a gift.¡± ¡°¡­A gift?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s wine.¡± With the gift, Kim Hyunwoo, who had been puzzled by the sudden kindness from the Sertoa territory, couldn¡¯t help but stiffen upon seeing the wine delivered by the territory¡¯s messenger. The wine brought as a gift from the Sertoa territory was of a moderate price and quality. However, the reason Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s expression turned peculiar was unknown. Starlpan Wine. A wine produced in the ancient Southern Continent territory of Starlpan. It is traded at fairly high prices in the market. [¡ùCaution, this wine contains a colorless, odorless, intangible poison.] Intangible poison manufacturer: Absolute Ruler of Darkness. ¡°¡­?¡± Because the alias of the hero he had raised from 1-star along with Merilda ten years ago was engraved in the wine¡¯s notification window. Chapter 11: Territory Development (3) Arteil originally did not have NPC territories when it was first released. The reason was that Arteil was initially well-received for its blend of territory system and cute girl gacha system. Until then, all territories existing in the field were owned by yers. However, as Arteil began to focus heavily on mization, introducing bizarre mechanics into the cute girl gacha, the number of deserters increased, and yers rapidly left the game. At that point, Arteil hastily began transforming the territories abandoned by users into NPC territories in an attempt to somehow maintain the game. This led Kim Hyunwoo to sometimes wonder if he was ying a single-yer game, given thatter on, there were many territories around him but not a single yer, only NPC territories filling the space. Anyway, the reason Kim Hyunwoo suddenly recalled his past memories was precisely because of the Sertoa territory. More precisely, ¡°The Lord of Sertoa is really d that the Lord of Lartania has returned.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes. Moreover, the Lord of Sertoa sincerely hopes for the revival of Lartania¡¯s territory.¡± ¡°It¡¯s good to hear that the Lord of Sertoa thinks that way.¡± This was because of Sertoa¡¯s envoy, who, with a sycophantic expression, gifted him wine and left several insincere well-wishes whileughing. Therefore, ¡°Then, having delivered the gift, I shall take my leave now.¡± Watching Sertoa¡¯s envoy disappear with a smile, Kim Hyunwoo, from his Lord¡¯s astle, watched him leave the territory and thought. ¡°¡­What exactly is their intention?¡± Of course, he knew that the Lord of Sertoa was plotting something sinister. They might not know this side, but Kim Hyunwoo had the ability to check the information of any item just by picking it up, just like in a game. However, the reason Kim Hyunwoo was tilting his head in puzzlement was because there were still unresolved questions. ¡°Why go about it in this manner?¡± The map function that Loria opens, though not precise, gives a rough indication of the development level of surrounding territories, so Kim Hyunwoo was aware of Sertoa¡¯s territory development level. ¡°It was definitely around 2500.¡± 2500. Of course, the territory development score wasn¡¯t purely a measure of military strength, but a development score of 2500 indicated that Sertoa¡¯s territory had a decent military power, ording to his assessment. This meant that there was no need for them to go about dealing with me in such a roundabout way. Unless Kim Hyunwoo had some sort of backing, which he did not. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Of course, it wasn¡¯t that nothing hade to Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s mind up to this point. ¡°Is it because of Merilda?¡± Merilda, now called Red Eyes, had destroyed the Hancia territory not long ago. And that Hancia territory was allied with Sertoa¡¯s territory, while Merilda, on the other hand, had connections with Lartania¡¯s territory. This meant that, from the Lord of Sertoa¡¯s perspective, they might have acted this way out of concern that Merilda had returned to Lartania. But that also seemed a bit off. ¡°Loria, open the rtionship window, please.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± As soon as Kim Hyunwoo spoke, he saw a translucent window appear in front of him and wore a subtle expression. [Lartania Territory Rtionship Chart] [Hancia Territory: -24] [Sertoa Territory: -1] Theplex territory rtionship chart from ten years ago was nowhere to be found, and the chart currently before Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s eyes was so simple it was monotonous. If Merilda had entered Lartania¡¯s territory, the rtionship chart wouldn¡¯t have been this dull. The territory window that Kim Hyunwoo was looking at would have been so long that it required several pages of scrolling, and the current rtionship status with Hancia and Sertoa territories would have ridiculously hit the minus hundred mark. ¡®It seems that Merilda¡¯s actions were not because of Lartania after all¡­¡¯ Having pondered for a while why the Lord of Sertoa acted this way, Kim Hyunwoo eventually shrugged and set the wine aside. In truth, thinking about it one by one was endless. Right away, Kim Hyunwoo didn¡¯t even know why Merilda had destroyed the Hancia territory. He also doubted whether the rtionship chart he saw functioned like it did in Arteil. Above all, he couldn¡¯t understand why the poison sent by the Lord of Sertoa was named ¡®Absolute Ruler of Darkness.¡¯ ¡®¡­Has the Absolute Ruler of Darkness attached to Sertoa territory?¡¯ After a brief thought, Kim Hyunwoo decisively shook his head. If the Absolute Ruler of Darkness mentioned in the wine¡¯s description was the hero he had raised since level one, then it wouldn¡¯t make sense for Sertoa territory¡¯s development level to be stuck around 2500. Ultimately, Kim Hyunwoo, burdened with unsolvable problems, realized that worrying was pointless and decided to focus on developing his territory first. Two dayster. Labor efficiency exceeded 80%. Moreover, as the number of people providingbor increased, the reconstruction of the territory naturally began to happen rapidly. Looking north from the terrace of the Lord¡¯s office in the castle, the always visible ruined vige had been reced by houses. Although not the entire territory, about 40% around the Lord¡¯s castle began to be enclosed by fences. Even though it was only 40% and not the entire territory, and the construction took a long time due to the increased level of the territory, Kim Hyunwoo was quite pleased to see the fences being erected from the Lord¡¯s castle. ¡®It¡¯s finally starting to look like a territory¡­¡¯ In fact, the scenery looked too shabby to be called a territory¡¯sndscape. The houses built in the area of the former ruined vige were mostly shabby log houses, and the fences surrounding the territory were too flimsy to be called walls. Honestly, it was more urate to see it as a slightly well-developed sh-and-burn vige rather than a territory. However, for Kim Hyunwoo, who had first seen Lartania¡¯s territory as nothing but a ruined vige, seeing the wastnd-like territory gradually taking the shape of a vige was incredibly moving. ¡®Once the fences are finished, and the barracks and tavern are all built.¡¯ From that point on, he could seriously start managing the territory, and while Kim Hyunwoo was smiling at this thought, Bista, the man who had delivered the wine to Kim Hyunwoo as an envoy from the Sertoa territory, was returning to Sertoa by carriage, a two-day journey from Lartania. ¡®It¡¯s a bitte.¡¯ ¡°I¡¯m sorry, it seems the orb I brought this time was faulty, it took some time to fill it with magic and make contact.¡± ¡®Then, it can¡¯t be helped.¡¯ He was speaking with Lord Roadmalis, visible beyond the crystal orb. ¡®Was the gift delivered well?¡¯ ¡°Yes, it was delivered well. Naturally, he epted the wine without any suspicion.¡± ¡®That¡¯s fortunate. What was the state of the territory?¡¯ ¡°To be honest, it didn¡¯t look very good.¡± ¡®To what extent?¡¯ ¡°It seemed more like a sh-and-burn vige than a territory. There was a Lord¡¯s castle, but it had been in disrepair for a long time, there were no walls, and houses in the residential area were just being built. However-¡± ¡®Was there something?¡¯ ¡°If there was something unusual, it was that the resources were abundant.¡± ¡°Resources¡­?¡± ¡°Yes, as you know, apart from the characteristic of the Labyrinth, the Lartania territory would be a prairie with nothing around it, but in such a wastnd, there were unusually abundant resources, like logs-¡± Bista, seemingly recalling something, nced upwards as he spoke, continuing to discuss Lartania Territory for a while. ¡°Anyway, it¡¯s good that the poison was delivered well. We¡¯ll discuss the rest when you return.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± After listening to the Lord¡¯s words and bowing his head, at the moment he was about to cut off the magic flowing into the crystal orb. Creak-! Lord Roadmalis saw. Bista, who was surely bowing to him, had his neck twisted 180 degrees on the spot. ¡°¡­?¡± At that moment, Lord Roadmalis¡¯ expression contorted. -Bang! Crash! A loud noise came from inside the crystal orb, and the screen began to spin chaotically. ¡°What, what¡¯s that!¡± ¡°At-attack! Att-Aaaaah!¡± At the same time, the voices of the soldiers. No, screams began to be heard. ¡°¡­¡­¡± The screen Lord Roadmalis was looking at was just a crystal orb showing a broken carriage, but with chilling screams and the sound of something being torn apart, Lord Roadmalis inevitably realized that something had happened. Thus, in less than 30 seconds as the soldiers¡¯ screams subsided, Lord Roamalis was able to realize. That more than 50 soldiers sent with the envoy had all perished. And then, the moment the screen of the crystal orb spun chaotically again and stopped. Lord Roadmalis involuntarily held his breath. The reason was, inside the crystal orb was she, who must have directly caused the recent catastrophe. Red Eyes. She, whom he had seen as one of the Round Table of Lartania ten years ago, with an infinitely expressionless face. Yet, with a face that seemed to convey clear anger, she looked at Lord Roadmalis from beyond the crystal orb. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Without saying a word, she stared intently at Lord Roadmalis and soon pointed a finger at him, and then, ¡°Wait-¡± Ending with the words, ¡°Because I¡¯ming to kill you right now.¡± Crack! The connection was severed along with the sound of something breaking. ¡°¡­¡­¡± And that night. A ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡î hero ''Beast King'' has entered your territory. A ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡î hero ''Beast King'' has left your territory. ¡°¡­?¡± Kim Hyunwoo, lying down to go to bed, unwittingly wore a puzzled expression at the notification window that appeared and disappeared in less than five seconds before his eyes. At the same time, Red Eyes, holding a wine bottle in each hand, began to move towards the Sertoa territory. Chapter 12: Tinnitus (1) Fundamentally, in a siege, the defending side can manage the battle much morefortably than the attacking side. No matter how many troops attack, the presence of walls provides an advantage that can cover for overwhelming numbers. Of course, in this world, there are heroes who canpletely negate the advantages of such walls, but that¡¯s only when the walls are ordinary. From the moment serious resources are invested in the walls to imbue them with ¡®magic¡¯, the walls begin to hold significance, even for the heroes. ¡°Hu, huhuhu-!¡± Just like now. Lord Roadmalis looked around with a confident expression. On the walls, there were hundreds of archers armed with superior equipment and ten wyvern riders prepared for sortie, standing proudly behind him. Beside them, more than six heroes, who had already shown brilliant performances in dozens of territory battles, were lined up on either side. Among them, four heroes had particrly distinguished titles. Baron the Massacrer. Arta the Spear Collector. Sharen of a Hundred Battles. Tn the Silencer. They looked down at the area below the walls with confident expressions. Just like the heroes, Lord Roadmalis turned his gaze to Red Eyes, standing in the deste in. With endlessly expressionless, hollow eyes, Yet, with a gaze that seemed to oddly contain anger, looking at him. ¡°¡­¡­¡± The moment Lord Roadmalis felt his breath catch at that gaze, unknowingly. Boom! In front of Lord Roadmalis, a loud explosion could be heard. Specifically, the sound came from a blue barrier that appeared to block the punch swung by Merilda, about five meters away from Lord Malis. Crack-! Fizzle! The barrier began to crack with a harsh thundering sound. However. Thump!!! The barrier soon pushed Red Eyes back with strong bulletproof force. Seeing her, who hadunched an attack so fast that not even Lord Roadmalis or any other hero could perceive her form,nd on the ground, Crunch- soon smiled, sweating coldly, as he saw the cracks in the barrier quickly repair themselves to their original state. ¡°You¡¯vee this far with difficulty, but I¡¯m sorry, Red Eyes. You cannot cross this protective wall.¡± There was a reason Lord Roadmalis had a confident expression. It was because the walls of Sertoa were enchanted with protective magic. Not just any protective magic, but a protective magic circle created by inviting dozens of magicians and investing an astonishing amount of resources. Of course, the protective magic circle was not invincible. Just constructing the protective magic circle, as mentioned, requires pouring in several years¡¯ worth of territory budget. Oncepleted, it can block most attacks from outside, but that¡¯s only as long as there are Mana Stones to be used as energy. In other words, the protective walls that Lord Roadmalis is confident about will no longer function once the Mana Stones embedded in Sertoa are depleted. Despite being fully aware of this fact, the reason Lord Roadmalis was confident is because Sertoa has a considerable amount of Mana Stones. ¡®Of course, they weren¡¯t meant to be used for the walls¡­!¡¯ Honestly, the fact that the Lord of Sertoa had collected over 100 tons of Mana Stones for a different reason meant that it was a painful loss for him. However, thinking differently, it was obvious that the 100 tons of Mana Stones would surely preserve his life from Red Eyes, allowing him to smile confidently. Hearing that, Merilda charged again and swung her fist. Whoosh-! Her fist was blocked by the protective wall, as expected. ¡°I was slightly afraid because of the ¡®Hero Massacrer¡¯ and such titles, but it¡¯s nothing. Rather, isn¡¯t she a bit foolish?¡± ¡°Yeah, why is she doing that?¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because she¡¯s a beastfolk that her intelligence is a bit low.¡± Along with that, heroes including Baron the Massacrer, standing next to the Lord, sneered as if they had been waiting to mock, opening their mouths withughter. Of course, they also knew how strong Red Eyes was. After all, the heroes hadn¡¯t been able to follow Merilda¡¯s attack with their eyes even once. But still, they could mock Red Eyes because, like the Lord, they knew the power of these overwhelming protective walls. Merilda, seeing the heroes mocking her along with the soldiers who sneered at her supposed folly, then, Swiftly. She lowered her gaze to look for something and then, picking up a stone the size of her palm from the middle of the barren field, Scrape-! She began to carve the stone with her fingernails. ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°What is she doing?¡± ¡°Who knows, maybe she suddenly felt like sculpting.¡± ¡°Is she a bit off in the head?¡± Lord Roadmalis, along with the heroes who chuckled and talked while watching Merilda, also mocked her. However, she said nothing and continued to carve the stone until it became thin like an arrowhead. Then she looked straight at Lord Roadmalis. The moment Lord Roadmalis felt a threat through a hero¡¯s unique intuition upon seeing her. Whoosh-! At the voice he heard from the side, Lord Roadmalis turned his gaze. And soon saw. ¡°Choke- Gag?¡± That Baron the Massacrer, who had ughtered hundreds of soldiers alone on numerous battlefields, had a sharp stone embedded in his neck. Gush-! As Lord Roadmalis realized the stone was embedded in Baron¡¯s neck, the blood that burst forth was sprayed around in an instant. Thump-! One of the heroes Lord Ro had trusted was met with death. Before he could even question how it happened. ¡°Ah-¡± Soon from below the walls. ¡°¡­I missed.¡± At the indifferent voice of Red Eyes. Shiver! Lord Roadmalis felt a shiver down his spine and unwittingly stepped back from the walls. A few dayster. [Congrattions! You have obtained a title.] [Title: ''God of Stone''] ¡°¡­What¡¯s this.¡± Kim Hyunwoo, who had just produced the necessary resources for the barracks and cksmith, muttered incredulously at the title he received soon after. He turned his gaze to see the fences of the territory¡¯s castle nearingpletion, then suddenly looked at the cab on one wall of the office. More precisely, he looked at the shelf of the cab from which the wine had disappeared. ¡®¡­Why did Merilda take the wine?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo thought of this because the wine had been missing since Merilda had entered and exited the territory in an instant, he then tilted his head in confusion. After days of thoughts that led only to various spections without a clear answer, he suddenly shifted his thoughts elsewhere. ¡®The Beast King, now that I think about it, I don¡¯t see what was so great about it.¡¯ The title ¡°Beast King¡± attached to Merilda was not given by Arteil but was coined by Kim Hyunwoo himself. In Arteil, heroes born with four stars came with their titles, so you couldn¡¯t give them one, but if you raised a hero from one to three stars to four stars or higher, you could give them a title. From Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s perspective, there was one hero he felt slightly sorry for at the moment because of the title. ¡®The Absolute Ruler of Darkness¡­¡¯ As soon as Kim Hyunwoo thought about it, he involuntarily grasped his forehead as if dizzied and then clenched and unclenched his hand without realizing it. ¡°It¡¯s not easy.¡± A title not easy enough for him to murmur unknowingly. ¡®What was I thinking, giving such a cringeworthy name?¡¯ Of course, the person who could answer that had disappeared ten years ago. The Absolute Ruler of Darkness was a title Kim Hyunwoo came up with at 17, thinking it would be cool while ying Arteil in the back of the ssroom. In fact, even at that time, and even after quitting the game, he had no regrets or much thought about the title he had given. However, now that he was in the game and realizing the hero he raised was using that title, he felt sorry. ¡­Honestly, even Kim Hyunwoo thought the title he came up with at 17 was filled with adolescent cheesiness. Therefore, ¡®¡­If I ever get the chance to meetter, I should apologize for this.¡¯ As Kim Hyunwoo was lost in these thoughts, staring nkly at the graduallypleting fence¡­ In Sertoa Territory. ¡°Lo-Lord¡­! The amount of Mana Stones we have-!¡± ¡°Shut up! I know, so just shut it!¡± ¡°Yes¡­ y-yes!¡± Lord Roadmalis sat in his office chair with a very anxious expression, biting his lip with a mix of anxiety and nervousness- Boom! Crash! Boom! He gritted his teeth as he saw the sparkling blue barrier protecting the Lord¡¯s castle amidst the tremendous noiseing from outside. ¡®That monster¡­!¡¯ Lord Roadmalis thought of Red Eyes. She had sharpened a mere stone to pierce the barrier and kill one of his heroes, Baron the Massacrer, in one go. ¡®How on earth did she prate the protective magic circle¡¯s barrier to attack¡­?!¡¯ Lord Roadmalis frowned, unable toprehend the phenomenon. Fortunately, it seemed that was her only means of attack, as she then resorted to throwing rocks or punching to try to break the protective magic circle. However, that only further agitated Lord Roadmalis¡¯ anxiety. After all, only about 30 tons of Mana Stones remained from the original 100 tons, all due to Red Eyes. ¡®Is this¡­ is this even a usible situation¡­?¡¯ A hundred tons of Mana Stones,ughable as it may sound, were enough for a massive warsting a long time, not just to be depleted in a few days by one person. But Red Eyes had depleted those 100 tons of Mana Stones in just a few days alone, making Lord Roadmalis feel increasingly suffocated as time went on. He was all too aware of what would happen to him if the protective magic circle engraved on the walls broke after a little more time. ¡®When on earth is iting¡­!¡¯ Thus, Lord Roadmalis, with his hands sweaty and his eyes filled with anxiousness, was in a state of extreme nervousness. ¡°Lo-Lord!¡± The servant who had fled the office after Lord Roadmalis¡¯ scolding came back. ¡°The Swords of Cn have arrived¡­!¡± He reported to Lord Roadmalis. Upon hearing that, Lord Roadmalis wiped away his anxious expression and smiled broadly. When Lord Roadmalis first announced that Red Eyes had appeared in the crystal ball with a murder threat, the very first thing he did was to request support from the Kingdom of Cn. Not just any support, but he requested help from the five strongest warriors of the Cn Kingdom, the Swords of Cn. Of course, calling upon the Swords of Cn was not something that could be said to be easy even in jest, but the Sertoa territory had given much to the kingdom over the years. More precisely, they had given much to one of the real power holders of the Cn Kingdom, Lord Rosetonia, which allowed them to request the support of the Swords of Cn. Believing that their lives would be undoubtedly saved if only the Swords of Cn came, they were able to wait with a glimmer of hope despite the protective magic circle being consumed at an rming rate. ¡°I¡¯m alive¡­! I¡¯m saved now!¡± As Lord Roadmalis saw Shin Sword Loriel, one of the Swords of Cn, enter his office, he immediately attempted to bow his head, but then, Immediately after, ¡°¡­?¡± Lord Roadmalis expressed his confusion when Loriel immediately stepped aside and bowed slightly towards the door. Of course, the Swords of Cn do not bow their heads to anyone. Nor do they show awe. The only ones the Swords of Cn bow to are the King of the Cn Kingdom or those with powerparable to the King. Thus, Lord Roadmalis was expressing his confusion. Immediately after, as a girl entered the office and he heard her voice, ¡°I will ask.¡± Instinctively he felt that something was amiss. ¡°You-¡± The reason was¡­ ¡°Is it true that you sent the poison I made to the Lord of Lartania?¡± Because the gaze of the girl, who was receiving the awe of the Swords of Cn and looking at him, was filled with immense hatred. Chapter 13: Tinnitus (2) A few seconds after realizing something was terribly wrong due to the hateful gaze of the girl revered by the Swords of Cn, Lord Roadmalis broke the silence. Swoosh! ¡°Ah?¡± It was the first time Lord Roadmalis, feeling a burning pain from his right, turned his head sideways involuntarily and let out a dumbfounded noise. ¡°Aaaaah!!¡± That was the beginning of the screams filling the previously silent office, starting with the scream after he realized his right arm had fallen off. Lord Roadmalis screamed, pressing on his severed right arm with his left hand. However, the girl who had done it approached Lord Roadmalis with a face still full of annoyance and hatred. Crack! She then mmed his head onto the ground. ¡°Kwaaack!¡± Despite breaking the wooden floor of the Lord¡¯s office, Lord Roadmalis, formerly a hero, did not die but screamed instead. The girl, staring intently at him, then moved her hand to grab Lord Roadmalis by the hair and pulled him up. His face was covered in blood due to scratches from the wooden splinters. ¡°Answer me, did you send my poison to the Lord of Lartania who returned this time?¡± He felt fear at hearing the girl¡¯s voice once again, yet he struggled to grasp the situation. ¡®Why has this suddenly-!¡¯ Clearly, Lord Roadmalis had requested the support of the Swords of Cn in anticipation of Red Eyes¡¯ arrival. Therefore, the Swords of Cn present here should undoubtedly have been his ally. ¡®It was supposed to be an ally¡­!¡¯ Bleeding, Lord Roadmalis looked at Loriel, one of the Swords of Cn standing by the door, but she did nothing and just watched him suffer. As if she had no wish to intervene. Then, Lord Roadmalis turned his gaze to the girl holding his hair. ¡°¡­Huh?¡± He, unwittingly, let out a sound of incredulity. That was because the girl¡¯s appearance was definitely one that Lord Roadmalis had seen somewhere. Her long dark hair, as well as pupils as dark as if drawing one into an abyss. Simrly, her wearing a dark cheongsam and the distinct darkness floating above her shoulders reminded Lord Roadmalis of a certain being in his memory. The moment he fully recalled that being, ¡°What¡­?¡± Lord Roadmalis looked at the being in front of him with an incredulous expression. If what he understood and deduced was correct, then he understood the entire situation now. Of course, there was still much he did not understand. It was a question why she, who had disappeared starting eight years ago, appeared here now. It was also a question why the Swords of Cn showed reverence to a being who was once part of Lartania¡¯s Round Table. However, such questions were not that important. What was clearly visible on his face was fear. ¡°Uh, aah-¡± Emotions drenched in fear. His eyes began to tremble at his clearly visible end, and his left hand holding the stump started to shake. It was only natural. After finishing all his deductions and realizing who the person in front of him was, it was all too easy to predict his own end. Thus, Lord Roadmalis opened his mouth to beg for forgiveness as cowardly as possible with fear in his eyes, but, ¡°Absolute Ruler of Darkness, there has been some- some misunderstanding-¡± The moment those words flowed from Lord Roadmalis¡¯ mouth. ¡°Ah.¡± For the first time, Loriel, who had not uttered a word since entering this office, let out a low exmation. A calm, yet somehow regretful exmation. For a fleeting moment, Lord Roadmalis met Loriel¡¯s gaze. He looked at Loriel, who was looking at him with an emotionless, yet regretful gaze, as if he could not understand. ¡°My title given by that person is the Absolute Ruler of Darkness.¡± The moment the voice was heard. Lord Roadmalis could see the girl¡¯s expression. The girl¡¯s face, which had been frowning until now, twisted like a demon¡¯s. ¡°Ah.¡± And with that. Boom! Crack! Before he could properly piece together the puzzle of thought, his head was torn apart and burst by the darkness floating behind the girl. Loriel, known as a Shin Sword and one of the Five Swords of Cn, sighed involuntarily upon seeing Lord Roadmalis¡¯ body mmed into the ground like a rag doll. ¡®To make such a mistake, of all things.¡¯ Of course, Lord Roadmalis¡¯ death had been certain even before she arrived here. Because of whom? Because of Lord Roadmalis himself, due to the report he had submitted. But if not for the mistake, Lord Roadmalis could have lived at least another ten minutes before dying. Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! ¡°¡­¡­¡± Like this, the body wouldn¡¯t have been instantly smashed into the territory¡¯s ground in such a messy way. Loriel silently looked at the ce where Lord Roadmalis¡¯ body was destroyed, then looked at her. Seeing her still not appeased, her face filled with deep anger unlike her usual expressionless appearance, was something even Loriel saw for the first time, enough to slightly intimidate her. Looking at her, Loriel once again thought of her title. ¡®The Absolute Ruler of Darkness.¡¯ In truth, even Loriel thought her title didn¡¯t sound all that impressive. ¡­Honestly, to speak a bit more candidly, her title seemed childish. Yet, as far as she knew, no one dared to disregard the girl before them. Not even the Five Swords of Cn. Not the major nobles who secretly knew her identity. ¡­Not even the King. No oneughed at the girl¡¯s title. The power that the girl held was so immense that even the King had to speak of it with awe. Because everyone who knew the girl knew what happened to those who crossed her. And above all, she was- ¡°Loriel.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°Did you find it?¡± Because she was the Master of the Five Swords, considered the greatest force of the Cn Kingdom. ¡°If you mean Yuliarr¡¯s Pendant, I found it.¡± ¡°Give it to me.¡± At the girl¡¯s gesture, Loriel took the pendant out from her bosom and respectfully bowed her head slightly to hand it over to her Master. ¡°It was on the delivery list, so it was easy to find in the warehouse.¡± Upon hearing Loriel¡¯s words, after receiving the item, she seemed to float the pendant in the darkness and examine it. ¡°It is done.¡± Then, putting the pendant away, she asked, ¡°Loriel, which noble is connected to this scoundrel?¡± ¡°¡­Duke Raipeoshin.¡± Loriel named the Duke, who was among the top three nobles of the Cn Kingdom, including the King. Yet, even upon hearing the name of the Duke, who held power that even the King couldn¡¯t recklessly oppose, she remained unemotional. ¡°Tell him,¡± she said. ¡°If he fails to heed my warning just one more time, I will personally rip his throat out and hang it in the center of his territory.¡± Loriel, who heard this as well, replied, ¡°Everything as you wish, Master.¡± She bowed respectfully and said, ¡°If the Duke makes another mistake, we, the Five Swords, will dismember him and present him before you, Master.¡± She showed her unwavering loyalty. And then, the Absolute Ruler of Darkness, without hesitation, turned around. ¡°Now, just two more ¨C just two more.¡± She murmured quietly and left the office. And then, there was no one left there. And at that moment. ¡°My Lord.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Kim Hyunwoo, deeply contemting whether to build the cksmith or the tavern first after the palisade was fullypleted, responded to the voice. ¡°There has been a change in the territory¡¯s influx rate.¡± ¡°Of course, it would rise, with the palisade built, we have some foundations, so it would have gone up by about 10%, right?¡± He spoke as if it was not a big deal, but then, ¡°It¡¯s not just that.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I rmend checking the territory¡¯s influx rate.¡± Loria suggested that. Soon, Kim Hyunwoo had a puzzled look. ¡°???¡± Territory influx rate: 333% ¡ùAn event triggered by the incident will start. Chapter 14: Tinnitus (3) ¡°How, why?¡± From Roadmalis¡¯ mouth, a question flowed out. ¡°How on earth?¡± There was not a single thing that wasn¡¯t a question. From the moment he became involved with Lartania, there was not a single thing that didn¡¯t raise questions. It was a mystery why one of Lartania¡¯s heroes was secretly operating in the Kingdom of Cn. It was also a mystery why Red Eyes was rampaging on behalf of a lord who now had nothing but ruins, unlike ten years ago. The biggest mystery was that Red Eyes was standing right in front of him. This was, without a doubt, a strange story. Roadmalis had died. He had only been resurrected with the power of an artifact, and his death was an undeniable fact. ¡®Even so ¨C why?¡¯ Red Eyes was waiting for Roadmalis. As if she already knew that he woulde back to life. Thus, to Roadmalis¡¯s unwittingly thrown question, Red Eyes, ¡°Intuitively.¡± Gave an answer that was so void of substance it left Roadmalis feeling utterly deste. The next moment. Swoosh! ¡°Aaargh!¡± Roadmalis screamed in terror as he realized his legs had been severed by Red Eyes. The moment Merilda, without a word, picked up a wine bottle she had ced to one side and opened it while stepping on Roadmalis¡¯s chest. ¡°Why are you doing this! Why!! Why are you doing this to me!!!¡± A scream burst from Roadmalis¡¯ mouth. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Merilda looked at Roadmalis indifferently with the bottle cap off. ¡°It¡¯s strange, all of it is strange, everything!!¡± However, Roadmalis, filled with indignation and anger over the injustice rather than the fear he had just felt, began to shout as if spitting it out. ¡°Red Eyes! Why are you doing this for the Lord from ten years ago!? Why is the Absolute Ruler of Darkness secretly operating in the Kingdom of Cn!?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not part of Lartania anymore, are you! Neither the Absolute Ruler of Darkness nor you!¡± Roadmalis knew that even though Red Eyes had attacked the territory, she was not a hero affiliated with Lartania¡¯s territory. No, he had to know. Those who became Lords with the power of the Territory Stone could know whether they were bound in a contractual rtionship with heroes by their colors. Red indicates a hero who has already made a contract and cannot make another. Green indicates a hero who is avable for contract. Grey, showing no color, indicates a hero who belongs nowhere and has no intention of being recruited. And when Roadmalis first saw Red Eyes in the territory of Sertoa, he saw, just in case, by using the power of the Lord¡¯s Stone. That the color emanating from Red Eyes¡¯ body was grey. ¡°Why are you doing this when you¡¯re not even affiliated with that lord anymore ¨C why!!!¡± Spitting blood from his mouth as if venting his frustration, Roadmalis regained his senses after all his words and wore a terrified expression. The moment he spoke out, he felt as if the whole world was holding him back, shouting out of a sense of injustice, but after venting his anger, fear began to creep in again. However¡­ Surprisingly, Red Eyes, who had been listening to Roadmalis¡¯ angry cries, looked down at him with an unexpectedly indifferent expression, unlike before. ¡°¡­?¡± Just as he felt puzzled by this, ¡°There¡¯s one thing that everyone, including you, has got wrong.¡± She spoke calmly, not with anger as before. ¡°My rtionship with my Master is not bound by just such a contract.¡± Red Eyes leaned down. ¡°Who do you think is the reason I have this much strength, being chased by ve hunters?¡± ¡°Who do you think taughtbat techniques to a clueless fool of a Langin tribe?¡± ¡°Do you know from whom I received the epithet and name that you all shout and remember?¡± ¡°These clothes, this hairstyle, even the instinct to realize that you woulde back to life-¡± She looked at Roadmalis. ¡°All of it, I received from my Master.¡± ¡°Without exception, all from my Master.¡± Red Eyes looks at Roadmalis. Roadmalis also looked at Red Eyes. And then, he realized two things he had been mistaken about. ¡°My Master is my everything.¡± One was that Red Eyes, who seemed endlessly indifferent and cold, had something uniquely characteristic of a madwoman. The other was¡­ ¡°My, everything.¡± ¡°Uh, aah-¡± That Red Eyes was not calm, but angrier than ever before. And then, ¡°So, you who tried to take everything from me-¡± Crack! ¡°-Are going to die.¡± Red Eyes, who killed Roadmalis by thrusting a wine bottle through his throat, soon disappeared silently from the spot. Territory: Lartania. Territorial Development Level: 23 Territory Residents: [Humans: 918] Owned Buildings: [Lord¡¯s Castle LV1] [Wall LV1] [Residential District LV1] [Forge LV0 (Under Construction) 0%] [Barracks LV0 (Under Construction) 77%] [Tavern LV0 (Under Construction) 77%] Military Forces: -None- Kim Hyunwoo, staring nkly at the territory window that showed the number of territory residents had increased to nearly 900 in just a few days, wore a very strange expression. The reason was due to the endlessly increasing number of territory residents. Of course, an increase in territory residents is a good thing. Since, in Arteil, the number of territory residents essentially trantes tobor force. However, that¡¯s when the basic structure of the territory is in ce; if the number of residents increases without the manpower to manage it, it could lead to a rebellion in the worst case scenario. Of course, in the original game, there are no rebellions at the start of y. This is because when you first start Arteil, you either start with all the basic buildings already constructed, or they are built almost instantly even if they are not. But what about the territory of Lartania now? The palisade has just been constructed, and the partially destroyed Lord¡¯s castle has yet to be repaired. Is that all? Due to the influx of territory residents, additionalbor had to be allocated to the residential area, and the forge, which should be the foundation of the military and agriculture projects, has not yet been constructed. Moreover, the tavern for selecting heroes to manage the inner workings of the territory? It¡¯s non-existent. The trading post? Likewise, non-existent. In other words, despite Kim Hyunwoo essentially not being able to do anything, the situation is such that it wouldn¡¯t be strange for a rebellion to ur at any moment due to the influx of territory residents. Yet, despite such a situation, the reason Kim Hyunwoo wore a nuanced expression was because: [Labor Efficiency: 75%] Thebor efficiency, which should have decreased with the increase in territory residents, was still maintained at a quite high level, and moreover, the dissatisfaction level of the territory residents was lower than expected. And the reason for that was- ¡°¡­Because of a title?¡± [Yes, the story about the title ''King of Logs'' that emergedst time has also spread among the refugees who arrived this time.] Upon Loria¡¯s words, Kim Hyunwoo nodded and said, ¡°Ah, so you mean the dissatisfaction is low because the story about being a messenger of the Gods or something has spread?¡± [No, that''s not it.] ¡°Huh? Then what is it? Wasn¡¯t that what you just said?¡± [It''s true that the story is about the title ''King of Logs,'' but it''s not the story about a messenger of the God that has spread; rather, it''s about crushing the bodies of bandits with logs.] ¡°¡­¡­¡± [To provide more detail, the story that has spread is that right after saying ''Wanna taste the log??'', waving his hand made logs fly out and turn the bandits into minced meat.] ¡°I never said that!?¡± [Rumors tend to get distorted, My Lord.] ¡°¡­It got distorted weirdly.¡± [Still, thanks to that, the dissatisfaction level is significantly low.] Having realized that the dissatisfaction was low not for religious reasons but out of fear, Kim Hyunwoo, with aplex expression, said, ¡°So, how much longer until the territory starts functioning properly?¡± [As you might expect, you should be able to start managing the territory properly 20 days from now, once the forge, barracks, tavern, and trading post are fully constructed.] ¡°Really?¡± Hearing Loria¡¯s words, Kim Hyunwoo nodded in satisfaction and looked over the residential spaces beyond the Lord¡¯s castle. The poption had certainly increased significantly from before. Seeing refugees from outside setting up mats and starting to sell goods, as there was no market constructed yet, Kim Hyunwoo suddenly thought about where the refugees hade from. ¡®Sertoa-¡¯ The Sertoa territory. The representative of the refugees, who came shortly after an event popped up, said that they became refugees and came to Lartania after Red Eyes had destroyed their territory. Upon hearing that story, Kim Hyunwoo realized one certain fact. For some reason, Merilda was helping him. Of course, Kim Hyunwoo could not fully understand why Merilda was helping him. However, considering that every territory Merilda had attacked was after some slightly inconvenient events for Kim Hyunwoo, it was hard to attribute it to mere coincidence. He inwardly thought his spection was correct. Therefore, ¡®Maybe I should meet and talk to her once I get the chance, as a way of saying thanks.¡¯ As Kim Hyunwoo was thinking this, Loria spoke up. [But-] ¡°Hm?¡± [Once the basic form of the territory ispleted, how do you n to expand the territory? The poption has been met for now, but as you know, it won''t be easy to grow the territory in the usual way given the current situation.] ¡°Hmm.¡± Loria¡¯s point was certainly valid. While he was rtively free now due to not being able to manage just yet, he couldn¡¯t afford to leisurely grow the territory as he did in Arteil. While it might not seem a big deal now as the territory hasn¡¯t grown much, once it does grow and resources begin to umte, other territories will eagerly start conflicts to plunder those resources. Moreover, due to the territory level being higher than the development level, strong monsters from the Labyrinth would periodically emerge, and if Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s predictions were correct, high-risk, high-return events would ur frequently starting from territory level 30. ¡®Things like major raids would proceed just the same.¡¯ So, if Kim Hyunwoo were to manage the territory in the usual way at this point, it would naturally fail. No, it wouldn¡¯t just be likely; it would be inevitable. However, despite knowing this¡­ ¡°It¡¯s okay. I have a n.¡± Kim Hyunwoo confidently stated. [May I ask how you n to manage the territory?] Following Loria¡¯s question: ¡°I¡¯m going to create a Labyrinth city.¡± [A¡­ Labyrinth city, you say?] ¡°Yes.¡± Kim Hyunwoo smirked and murmured, ¡°A city where the best talents from across the continent can¡¯t help but gather.¡± The Lord of Raipel, a territory located to the east of the Kingdom of Cn, also ranks among the top three in prosperity among the territories belonging to the Kingdom. Duke Raipeoshin, one of the top three most powerful figures in the Kingdom, fundamentally possesses an arrogant character. However, most nobles and even the King of Cn have not criticized the Duke¡¯s arrogant nature. The reason is simply that Duke Raipeoshin was in a position where he could afford to be so. He is among the top three most powerful people in the Kingdom, including the King, and he has more than eight heroes in his territory, heroes whose reputations go beyond mere fame to the level of legends. Moreover, his territory has thousands of soldiers that the Duke can call upon at any time, and it¡¯s the only territory in the Kingdom to have a significant number ofbat guilds established. Thanks to this, there are mercenaries who can be hired at any time for the right price,plementing Duke Raipeoshin¡¯s arrogant nature. ¡°Why don¡¯t we just kill him? The Master was bothered by him, wasn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°Shh, Ruin. The Master said to just give a warning and nothing more.¡± ¡°I want to kill him; can¡¯t I just do it?¡± ¡°Do you want to trouble our Master?¡± ¡°Ha. I don¡¯t understand why we should spare that pig who doesn¡¯t even listen to our Master¡¯s words, the one who didn¡¯t heed the single warning to never touch Lartania territory.¡± ¡°Shut up, Ruin, it could inconvenience our Master¡¯s ¡®Master¡¯.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we give him the opportunity to do it himself?¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°Right?¡± ¡°Then, shall we kill just half?¡± ¡°Hmm-¡± Trembling in fear, thanks to the Five Swords of Cn who hade to follow themand of the Absolute Ruler of Darkness. Chapter 15: Tinnitus (4) Inside the office, where the Five Swords of Cn were speaking freely, Duke Raipeoshin felt a sense of shame in this situation. And for good reason, as the Duke had never been treated this way by anyone before. To his territory¡¯s residents, he was like a God. Even nobles of the same rank would fawn over him, flipping over like dogs at a single word from him. Even the King of Cn could not ignore the Duke. The abundant resources from his territory brought him wealth and power that could not be ignored. However, the reason he could not raise his head, despite his arrogant nature, was because those in front of him were the Five Swords of Cn, the Kingdom¡¯s greatest force, capable of destroying a territory with just their five members. The reason they hade was because of their Master. This Master was an entity unknown to most nobles, known only to the six who attended the highest council within the Kingdom of Cn. They hade ignoring the warning of the Absolute Ruler of Darkness, who in the shadows had grown the once overall weaker Kingdom of Cn to beparable to other nations, their Master, thus he remained silent. ¡®Even so, this is¡­!¡¯ The Duke frowned and looked at the Five Swords. Duke Raipeoshin himself realized that it was somewhat wrong to have misused the brainwashing poison. After all, it was he who had given it to Roadmalis without proper warnings to use for colonizing neighboring territories. However, Duke Raipeoshin considered it an ident. After all, who would have thought that the Lord of Lartania, a territory almost ruined and about to vanish, would return? ¡°This was an ident, so don¡¯t speak so recklessly-!¡± Thus, as the ident started to take such a turn, the Duke tried to speak to the Five Swords with a hint of difort, but¡­ ¡°¡­¡­¡± The Duke suddenly stopped what he was about to say and shut his mouth. That was because the Five Swords of Cn, who until moments ago had been speaking leisurely without any change in expression, all red at the Duke simultaneously. ¡°Hey Duke, you seem to be under some misunderstanding; do you think we¡¯re keeping you alive because we want to?¡± ¡°Gasp¡­!¡± Feeling as if being strangled by the murderous intent from Ruin, one of the Five Swords who had been talking about taking the Duke¡¯s life, he instinctively shut his mouth. ¡°Don¡¯t be mistaken, Duke. Thanks to our Master¡¯s grace, you¡¯ve grown this much, so don¡¯t wag your tongue like a dog.¡± Ruin, ring at the Duke with eyes shimmering with murderous intent as if about to kill him at any moment, growled but- ¡°Stop it, Ruin.¡± Upon hearing Loriel¡¯s calm voice, Ruin red at the Duke for a while longer before turning around without hesitation and leaving the office with a frown. And Loriel, who had stopped Ruin, said: ¡°Duke Raipeoshin. This time, the Master said to just let it go with a warning, so I won¡¯t say much.¡± She said while looking at the Duke with her characteristic serene expression. ¡°If such a situation arises again, I won¡¯t stop Ruin. In fact, there won¡¯t be any need to,¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I will personally execute you and hang your head on the Lord¡¯s castle g.¡± Shiver! Loriel clearly did not show any trace of emotion. Yet, despite this, the Duke involuntarily felt a chill course through his body at those words. ¡°Remember, Duke. The reason you were able to rise to your position. And-¡± With those words, ¡°That we, known as the Swords of Cn, originally belonged to whom.¡± The Five Swords of Cn disappeared from the Duke¡¯s office, and for a long time, the Duke could do nothing but stop breathing, his eyes filled with fear. Thinking about it, she did not like the name ¡°Absolute Ruler of Darkness.¡± No, she actually detested that title in the past. The reason was, of course, because it was childish. Of course, that title was given by him who had taken her in without any discrimination, a half-demon who had to hide her identity all her life, and who had helped her grow without asking for anything in return. But back then, she found it embarrassing and detestable. Not knowing how much of an honor it actually was. ¡°¡­¡­¡± In the underground castle built in a huge cavern beneath the Saint Territory, a major stronghold of the Kingdom of Cn, where the King serves as the Lord, she looked at the parchment in her hand. The short piece of parchment read, ¡°The Lord of Lartania has returned.¡± She received this parchment a week ago, realizing that the Lord of Lartania had returned, and it was three days ago she confirmed that it was indeed him from ten years ago. However, even after realizing that fact, she, the ¡°Absolute Ruler of Darkness,¡± did not act. Because her heart had wandered? No. Her heart, which had been quiet for ten years, raced just from reading the characters written on that mere piece of parchment. Just recalling his voice, whose face she could barely remember now, made her tremble. ¡­And on days when she reminisced about the day she realized he had disappeared, tears flowed all day long. Yet, the reason why the Absolute Ruler of Darkness did not seek out him, who could be considered her only light, was because of the sins she hadmitted. ¡°¡­¡­¡± The Absolute Ruler of Darkness recalled a day after he had left. That day was one month after the Lord, who was undoubtedly her light, had left. Looking back, she felt like an utter fool for being annoyed at the Lord who did not return. No, perhaps it was anxiousness. Maybe, the anxiousness that the Lord might never return. But, to forcibly suppress that anxiousness, she fancied that the Lord was engaging in a power struggle. It had not been this long before, but there had been a few asions where he had not returned for an extended period. Thus, she brainwashed herself. The Lord was engaging in a power struggle with them. He was not returning to break his pride. Repeating this self-brainwashing, the half-demon began to believe over time that the Lord was indeed not returning in order to win the power struggle. On the day two months after the Lord had disappeared, she destroyed all the gifts he had given her. She broke the essories he had given her. She broke the weapons he had given her. She tore the clothes he had given her. She trampled on even the minor items he had given her. She wanted to exact revenge on the Lord who made her heart suffer so. Wanting to give a hard time to the Lord who couldn¡¯t even properly ept her slightest tantrums. Foolishly convincing herself, firmly believing her own lie that he was not returning because he was engaged in a power struggle, she vented her umted frustration. The Lord would surely return. Because he couldn¡¯t possibly abandon her. But then, another month passed. Half a year went by. And then another year. She realized. That the Lord was noting back. Sitting in the ce where the Lord always sat, the half-demon spent days and nights crying after realizing that. Crying until exhausted, falling asleep, waking up, and then crying until falling asleep again became her routine. After spending a few days in such apletely broken state, she staggered to her room. She wanted to escape. From the fact that the Lord was noting back. To escape from the fact that his voice and face were gradually fading from her memory. She headed there. To her room, where the gifts from the Lord were. And then¡­ When the half-demon returned to her room, what she saw were the gifts from the Lord, her only source of light, shattered to pieces. Seeing that, she immediately thought of her past self. The fool she had been, destroying all the Lord¡¯s gifts. The half-demon wept bitterly. Over the Lord¡¯s items she had broken herself. Gathering every memory, she hugged the now scrap metal remains of the gifts and cried. Her body became covered in blood from the sharp metal shards, but such things did not matter to her. Because the pain in her heart, as if it had been hollowed out, was far more terrible than any physical wounds. Ridiculously, she cursed herself as she sobbed. In the end, the only thing left to her at that moment was the title ¡°Absolute Ruler of Darkness¡± given by the Lord. Yes, nothing but that. ¡­The bond and memories with the Lord, only that remained. From then on, that title became her sore spot. And so, another year passed. The half-demon left the territory. To once again fill the void left by the Lord¡¯s gifts she had destroyed herself. So that when the Lord someday returned, he would not be disappointed in her, to return all the gifts to their original state. Because she was afraid. She couldn¡¯t bear the thought of the Lord returning, seeing the destroyed gifts, and looking at her coldly. ¡®If-if I were to receive such a look from the Lord, I would-¡¯ ¡°Ah, gasp¡­ huff¡­ sob!¡± Just imagining it made her feel suffocated, so she forcibly stopped her thoughts. Her breathing did not calm, her heart throbbed as if it would burst any moment, and tears formed in her eyes. ¡°No, no ¨C such a thing must never happen¡­!¡± I don¡¯t want to be hated. I didn¡¯t want to be rejected. In her life, she didn¡¯t want to lose the light again, the only one who had reached out and saved her, a half-demon. That was why. ¡°I must gather them all, everything-¡± She couldn¡¯t go back. Until she had collected all the gifts given by the Lord. She could never go back. ¡°¡­Just two more to collect.¡± Fortunately, her current situation wasn¡¯t too bad. Although she disliked her, the arrogant wolf girl was protecting the Lord, and now there were only two gifts left for her to collect. ¡°Just two more to collect-¡± Moreover, it was only a matter of time before collecting the two items. ¡°¡­I can be forgiven.¡± She found herself imagining. Having collected all the gifts. Returning nonchntly, prostrating herself before her light, asking for forgiveness. And the Lord, smiling, epting her apology. ¡°Haah-¡± Feeling a dream-like hope, whether possible or not, she unwittingly reveled in joy. But to escape the anxiety that always crept up on her, she- ¡°Eh-¡± As she had always done, she indulged in pleasure alone to rid herself of the anxiousness. Calling out the Lord¡¯s name. Chapter 16: Pioneering The Labyrinth (1) Fundamentally, Arteil¡¯s territorial development follows a pretty standard route for territory-based content. Starting with the Lord¡¯s castle as the base, after building all the basic production buildings, then the first-tier buildings are constructed. That is, until all the first-tier buildings are built and the territory is somewhat on track. However, after that, when you can start building second-tier buildings and define the territory¡¯s actual direction, Arteil bes distinct from other web-based territory games. Unlike the usual territory content where you simply level up buildings, recruit many soldiers, and blindly battle to plunder resources or expand territory, Arteil has many forms of territories. Among them, there are three main types:mercial, production, andbat territories. Forbat territories, as the name suggests, it¡¯s a type that uses PVPbat to plunder resources and seize castles for territorial development. Commercial territories, literally, involve operating arge tradingpany, buying territories with money, or investing funds for development. Lastly, production territories are a type that focuses on developing the territory by selling special resources that can only be produced through a production route, along with hero-equipped artifacts from Labyrinths. While there are many other forms of territories, users basically choose one of these three directions. Of course, as the territory level increases and develops, you can enjoy all content evenly, but Kim Hyunwoo also initially raised his territory level as amercial territory. If Arteil were amon territory game,bat territories would have been the most highlighted, but surprisingly, Arteil wasn¡¯t well suited for indiscriminate fighting. The reason is due to the rtionship system based on the territory¡¯s direction. For each,mercial territories have high rtionships with tradingpany NPCs, and production territories have high rtionships with production guilds, adventurers, and heroes based on actions, making it difficult forbat guilds, which must solely supply resources from outside, to interfere. Conversely,mercial and production territories must also consistently consume resources to maintain high rtionships to deterbat territories from plundering, making Arteil well-bnced and diverse in direction for a territory game. ¡°Well, even that well-made bnce was blown away by a single BM.¡± With that thought, Kim Hyunwoo looked at the territory window. Territory: Lartania Territory Development: 58 Territory Residents: [Humans: 1084] Owned Buildings: [Lord''s Castle LV1 >>> Upgrading 0%] [Wall LV1] [Residential District LV1 >>> Upgrading 0%] [cksmith LV1 >>> Upgrading 0%] [Barracks LV1 >>> Upgrading 22%] [Tavern LV1 >>> Upgrading 0%] Owned Troops: -None- In about three weeks, many aspects of the territory had changed. Immediately, the residential area was densely popted with many people living together, a stark contrast to when Kim Hyunwoo first arrived, and small businesses were operating between the narrow paths. In front of them were a cksmith and a tavern, with barracks built to the east of the Lord¡¯s castle and residents engaged in farming to the west of the residential area. In other words, positively speaking, Lartania had now finally taken the form of a proper territory. Of course, negatively, one could say it had only just reached the very beginning of the tutorial in Arteil, but ultimately, the important thing for Kim Hyunwoo was that the foundation for properly managing the territory had been established. ¡°Lord, basic management is now possible.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s start getting down to it.¡± Starting with Kim Hyunwoo responding to Loria¡¯s words with a smile. ¡°Well, shall we start with developing the territory first?¡± He murmured. ¡°Lord, I¡¯m sorry, but may I ask you something?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I remember you mentioned making a Labyrinth cityst time, but what exactly do you mean by that type of territory?¡± Kim Hyunwoo nodded as if that was a reasonable question to Loria¡¯s curious inquiry. She was basically an NPC that helped with the development of the territory, but a territory like thebyrinth city mentioned by Kim Hyunwoo did not exist in Arteil. Thus, contemting how to exin this territory, Kim Hyunwoo soon opened his mouth as if he had thought of a good exnation. ¡°Simply put, think of it as doing business through the Labyrinth.¡± ¡°Doing business through the Labyrinth, you say¡­?¡± ¡°Yes, more precisely, it¡¯s about doing business with Magic Stones thate from the Labyrinth.¡± Basically, there are monsters inside the Labyrinths of this world, and when these monsters are dealt with, Magic Stones are dropped. These Magic Stones are an energy source like oil and electricity in Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s world and an essential resource for weapons and more in Arteil, hence the demand is high, but the supply is limited. The reason is the Lords¡¯ monopoly on Magic Stones. Basically, in this world, the only way to obtain Magic Stones is to hunt monsters in the Labyrinths. However, Labyrinths exist only in territories with a Lord¡¯s castle, and naturally, one cannot enter such Labyrinths without the Lord¡¯s permission. Thus, at this point, only Lords with territories could produce Magic Stones, and hence, they strictly controlled the demand for Magic Stones. The important resource of Magic Stones gave the lord a strategic advantage over various guilds, adventurers, and mage towers. ¡°Does that mean you intend to open Lartania¡¯s Labyrinth?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± However, at Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s deration to give up the strategic advantage a Lord could gain without hesitation, Loria seemed to pause for a moment before speaking. ¡°¡­I hesitate to say this, but isn¡¯t that too reckless?¡± ¡°It might seem that way.¡± Kim Hyunwoo thought Loria¡¯s concern was valid. The system he mentioned had never been attempted in any territory before, and more strictly speaking, it was a method that no one had even dared to consider initially- ¡°I understand your thinking, Lord. You n to open the Labyrinth to the public, not just ordinary citizens but to gather adventurers, mercenaries, and guilds.¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°Doing so will solve most of the problems you are currently facing, Lord. The territory¡¯s development level will skyrocket, and the city will naturally be prosperous with just a sufficient number of troops for management. However, as you know, Lord, that requires-¡± ¡°You mean to say that Magic Stones must continue toe out of the Labyrinth, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± This method was, in fact, a form of territory that originally couldn¡¯t exist. Monsters in the territory¡¯s attached Labyrinth basically drop Magic Stones. That was an undeniable fact. However, one additional fact to be aware of is when the Labyrinth¡¯s monsters respawn. The Labyrinth¡¯s monsters typically respawn on a weekly basis. Thus, the amount of Magic Stones that can be obtained from each territory on a weekly basis is ultimately limited, even if one delves deeper into the Labyrinth. Even if one obtains high-quality Magic Stones, the quantity avable is still limited, and even that quantity is notrge, so it¡¯s unlikely that adventurers or guilds would flock to it. However, the reason for Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s confidence despite this is. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, there¡¯s a way for everything.¡± ¡°A method, you say?¡± Because he had a very good method for making this impossible Labyrinth city. ¡°Loria, you said we have to start from the beginning with Labyrinth exploration, right?¡± ¡°Yes, every time we fail to prevent a Labyrinth break, the exploration level is reset by oneyer, so at this point, you have to start from the very beginning.¡± Following Loria¡¯s words, Kim Hyunwoo spoke with a confident expression. ¡°Let¡¯s go find a hero first.¡± Elena is a hero. ¡­To be more precise, she was a hero who was unwee everywhere, just an ordinary hero. It was because, even by her own admission, Elena¡¯s abilities were too ambiguous. Although she was abat hero, her abilities were oddly inferiorpared to other heroes. Of course, as a hero, she was stronger than ordinary soldiers, but that was all;pared to other heroes, her abilities were significantly lower, and thus, she continued an unwanted nomadic life without being able to settle in any territory. While it might have been different in the past when territories were barely emerging, at this point, no Lord wanted to hire a hero with such ambiguous abilities as hers. Of course, it wasn¡¯t that Elena hadn¡¯t tried. She was filled with the desire to be famous, to spread her name across the Continent, and to be stronger than others. ¡­And at the same time, wanting to take revenge on the Lords and heroes who had scorned and ignored her, she had tried several times over the past few years to break free from this cycle. With the money she had painstakingly saved, she changed weapons, trained until dawn, and even tried to learn magic and archery, which she had never used before. But no matter how much Elena tried, that was all. It was as if her limits were set, and after struggling for five years, Elena gave up on bing stronger. She crushed her pride and simultaneously acknowledged it. That her limits were just that. Afterward, while wandering from territory to territory earning money through minor jobs, Elena heard a rumor. That the Lartania territory, which had beenpletely destroyed after its Lord disappeared ten years ago, was beginning to be rebuilt with the return of its Lord. Upon hearing that, Elena, as if enchanted, headed towards the Lartania territory. Perhaps because of the hope that she might be employed by the Lord. ording to the rumors she had heard, the Lartania territory seemed no different from the territories that had employed her ten years ago, just beginning to emerge. However, when Elena arrived at Lartania and entered a tavern, she was unwittingly disappointed. The reason was, of course, because there were quite a few heroes inside the tavern. At that moment, Elena was disappointed. Having realized that there were already more than five heroes in the tavern, she had an epiphany. Thus, she had been giving up. ¡°¡­You want to hire me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Until that answer came back without a moment¡¯s hesitation. Elena looked around in surprise. Of course, the heroes sitting in this tavern didn¡¯t seem very strong to Elena, but objectively speaking, they were stronger than her. Sadly, among all the heroes, she was the one with the lowest capability. ¡°¡­Are you sure I¡¯m okay for the job?¡± So much so, she stuttered these words out with a voice that seemed to crawl along the floor. It was a kind of cold self-deprecation automatically ingrained in her due to a series of unfortunate past events. ¡°Yes. No, rather!¡± But. The answer came back instantly again, as if there was no need to even ponder. As if she was really needed. And then. Snap-! ¡°If not you, then it won¡¯t do!¡± At the Lord¡¯s action of snatching her hand up and saying such words, Elena¡¯s eyes widened in an instant. ¡°This, this is¡­!¡± A confession? It couldn¡¯t be, right? While Elena was startled by the sudden turn of events, Kim Hyunwoo, who was actually holding her hand, ¡°This is amazing¡­!¡± Was smiling as he looked at Elena¡¯s information window that appeared before his eyes. Chapter 17: Pioneering The Labyrinth (2) The first thing Kim Hyunwoo had to do was hire a hero for Labyrinth exploration. This was because only heroes employed by the Lord could undertake Labyrinths affiliated with the territory. ¡°If I had the heroes I raised before, this part would have been easier.¡± Kim Hyunwoo made a slightly regretful face with that thought but quickly dismissed it. Certainly, if he had the heroes he raised before, Labyrinth development could have been done in an instant, but the heroes Kim Hyunwoo raised were not here now. ¡°It would be convenient if I could negotiate a deal with Merilda for Labyrinth exploration.¡± Of course, it seemed there was some degree of favorability with Merilda, but unfortunately, Kim Hyunwoo had no intention of asking her. ¡°That would be like burning down the house to catch a flea.¡± It was clear that it would be convenient to somehow make a deal with Merilda and explore the reset Labyrinth. Kim Hyunwoo had already witnessed her strength firsthand. The problem was that if he hired Merilda, the Labyrinth city that needed to grow rapidly might just copse. In fact, the possibility of the Labyrinth city copsing if he hired Merilda was almost inevitable. The rtionship penalty incurred from recruiting Merilda was significant enough to make that possible. ¡°¡­If only the rtionship was a bit more intact.¡± Kim Hyunwoo unknowingly recalled the endless list of rtionship penalties he saw when Merilda¡¯s recruitment window popped up, breaking out in a cold sweat. Each one seemed to easily surpass -70, potentially leading to war, along with the nearly -1200% influx rate of territory residents when she was recruited. ¡­Anyway, given the situation, Kim Hyunwoo thought it best to find a new hero for Labyrinth exploration and came to the tavern, though he did not have high hopes. After all, the chances of high-level heroes appearing were not very good unless the building¡¯s level was fundamentally high. More urately, it would be correct to say that the gacha probability was not high. Since the essence of this Arteil was gacha territory material, heroesing was purely a gacha element, and with good luck, it was possible to draw a 5-star hero even if the tavern level was 1. However, Kim Hyunwoo did not wish for such a stroke of luck. After all, he had once spent the staggering amount of 500,000 won at the age of a middle schooler without drawing a 5-star, experiencing the bitterness of this world. ¡­Even then, the price for 10 consecutive draws was only 9,900 won, so he ended up using it for a total of 500 draws without getting a 5-star hero, leading him to tearfully convince himself that ¡°raising a 1-star hero to 5-stars would be more fun,¡± which is why Kim Hyunwoo headed to the tavern without much expectation. Yet there, he made a discovery. ¡°Uh, excuse me¡­ If you¡¯re okay with me, please take care of me.¡± He stumbled upon a jackpot. For some reason, Kim Hyunwoo looked at the hero window floating in front of him while watching her shyly greeting him. ¡ùThe target for recruitment is in the tavern, so the information window is avable for viewing. Hero Name: Elena Title: X Star: 1 star ¡ï Affection: 0 -Stats- Strength: 19 Agility: 24 Intelligence: 17 Luck: 18 Magic Power: 15 -Traits- Hard Worker: Efforts to diligently perform any task, maintaining maximum efficiency in training and execution. Insight: When using a weapon with a talent beyond ''innate,'' there''s a 50% chance for attacks to be considered as ignoring defense. -Talent- Has an innate talent for hand axes. -Skills- [View] Contrary to Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s beaming enthusiasm, her information window appeared to be a typical 1-star ability window with nothing particrly special. Yet, what he liked was, ¡°The Hard Worker, Insight, and innate talent¡­!¡± It was because Elena¡¯s trait and talent windows formed an incredible harmony. In this Arteil, what fundamentally determined a hero¡¯s performance were traits and talent. Of course, naturally 5-star heroes from the start have insurmountable basic stats, but for all other heroes, traits and talent were very important. To the extent that depending on how harmoniously these traits and talents align, it could determine the number of stars a hero could ultimately achieve. In that sense, the information window of Elena in front of him was so good that Kim Hyunwoo couldn¡¯t help but apud. ¡°How can it fit together so perfectly?¡± Of course, Kim Hyunwoo had seen many heroes with better traits and talent than Elena. Even just ncing through the information windows of about seven heroes present here, there were those with better stats or superior trait and talentbinations than Elena. However, what is important in this game is that the synergy between traits and talent must be properly harmonized. For example, the hero sitting immediately to Elena¡¯s right had a trait called ¡°Eyes that See the Truth.¡± The ¡°Eyes that See the Truth¡± trait, as extraordinary as its name, is a fraudulent trait that, for talents prefixed with ¡°incredible,¡± allows all attacks to be considered as ignoring defense. Unfortunately, that hero does not have a talent with the ¡°incredible¡± prefix. All it has is a usable level of swordsmanship. In other words, no matter how good the trait is, in such a situation, it just ends up being a mirage. And in Arteil, there are many such regrettable trait and talentbinations, making Elena¡¯sbination exceptionally excellent. ¡°Of course, growing like this, 4-stars might be the limit.¡± Kim Hyunwoo, who has a history of raising all 1-star heroes to 5-stars, has a lot of know-how in raising heroes. Thus, confident in his ability to ovee Elena¡¯s innate limits to make her a 5-star, he smiled confidently. [¡ïWould you like to make a recruitment offer to the hero ''Elena''? Y/N] ¡°Please take care of me.¡± ¡°Uh, uh¡­ I, too, ask for your care.¡± He ced his hand on Elena¡¯s recruitment window without hesitation, smiling, and then said, ¡°Shall we get started with the work right away?¡± The Altaz mercenary group,posed of about ten members, not of particrly high rank but well-known in this region for their long-term activity. Among them, Column, who could be called the leader, looked ahead with a nk expression. In front of them was a goblin tribe in a forest not far from the Lartania territory. ¡°But are we really just going to stay like this?¡± Looking at the tribe, which seemed to have been neglected for quite some time and had grown considerably, Column responded to a subordinate¡¯s voiceing from beside him. ¡°What?¡± ¡°No, I mean, is it okay to just watch like this?¡± ¡°If I said to watch, then that¡¯s what we should do.¡± The subordinate spoke with a look ofplete iprehension to Column¡¯s nk-faced response. ¡°It¡¯s strange. What was the Lord thinking when he hired us?¡± ¡°How would I know that?¡± The reason the mercenary group, including Column, was here was because Kim Hyunwoo, the Lord of Lartania, had hired them upon their visit to the newly established territory, wondering if they were looking for work. The reason they did not approach the goblin tribe beyond a certain distance was that the mercenary group was not hired to subdue the goblins. ¡°¡­Watch the hero fight and save her if an unforeseen situation arises, perhaps.¡± As these thoughts came to him, Column looked at the subject of the request in front of him. Her, standing in front of the goblin tribe, with long blue hair, holding a small hand axe in each hand. Chuckle. Seeing Elena standing timidly in front of the goblin tribe, Column chuckled without realizing it. ¡°¡­So the Lord who established Lartania ten years agocks discernment.¡± Column knew Elena. To be more precise, he couldn¡¯t help but know her. She was a woman known in the vicinity of this area as the ¡°Failed Hero,¡± a name that was clearly a derogatory term to anyone who heard it. Despite being a hero, her abilities were so meager that mercenaries who had worked with Elena even once often ridiculed her, wondering how she became a hero. Even though the mockery sprang from the sullenness of mercenaries who had not be heroes, it was true that she was weak. Thus, the mercenaries, including Column, said, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to see a hero die in front of my eyes when it¡¯s not even a war.¡± ¡°What nonsense? If she dies, we won¡¯t get our fee.¡± ¡°Ah, right. Well, even if she wasn¡¯t a failed hero, heroes without a reputation couldn¡¯t possibly single-handedly eliminate a goblin horde of more than 200 individuals.¡± The mercenaries¡¯ conversation went as such. Indeed, as they said, it was virtually impossible for a hero without even a reputation to eliminate a goblin horde alone. ¡°Seems like she won¡¯t be able to kill even one, right?¡± ¡°Last time, it seemed like she managed to kill about 34 by sneaking into their gaps.¡± ¡°Shall we make a bet?¡± The mercenaries started betting on how many goblins Elena could kill. Along with the mercenaries¡¯ conversation, they began to watch the failed hero¡¯s fight as goblins, as if on cue, burst out of the tribe and ran towards Elena with their rusty weapons raised. About ten minutester. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Silence spread among the mercenaries who had beenughing and jeering. Even the mercenaries who had been smiling. Even the ones who had been scoffing. Even Column, who had just mocked the Lord¡¯s discernment. All fell silent. The reason was the numerous goblin corpses surrounding Elena. ¡°What¡­ what?¡± ¡°Does this make sense?¡± At the same time, it was because of Elena, who, despite having wounds all over her body, stood covered in blood, holding a hand axe in each hand. ¡°???¡± Seeing this, all the mercenaries looked at Elena with expressions full of astonishment and questions. Elena had single-handedly decimated the goblin tribe with two unremarkable hand axes. ¡°???¡± Breathing heavily, she stood there dumbfounded, with a look of not understanding why. ¡°Eh? What¡­ what?¡± She murmured to herself unknowingly. Chapter 18: Pioneering The Labyrinth (3) Honestly, before she massacred all the goblins in the tribe, Elena seriously thought that the Lord might have had some ulterior motive. After all, the first thing Kim Hyunwoo did after hiring Elena was to hand her two hand axes she had hardly used and assign her the task of single-handedly dealing with the goblin tribe using only those axes. Naturally, Elena refused such a task from the Lord. She knew her own abilities too well, and besides, it was typical for her, a hero without any renown, tock the capability to handle a goblin tribe on her own. However, the Lord sent her to the tribe along with the mercenaries, calling it an ¡®opportunity to assess her abilities objectively.¡¯ Hearing the Lord¡¯s words that it was fine to run away without hesitation if it seemed dangerous, Elena, with reluctance, reached the tribe and was prepared to flee at once when the goblins appeared. Even with the derogatory title of a failed hero, she was still a hero chosen by the world, so escaping from goblins was somehow within her capabilities. Despite thinking this, the reason she did not flee was that her hands naturally lifted as if guided towards the charging goblins. ¡°¡­Huh?¡± It was because the hand axe in her hand had shattered the skull of an approaching goblin too swiftly. Barely adapting to the situation that urred in a sh, she instinctively swung the axe at the goblins that kept pressing in. The small hand axe in her hands moved back and forth, slicing through the bodies of goblins. Her hands moved as if possessed, reliably taking down a goblin with each attack. The sensation of being someone else stopped only after she had split open the heads of all the attacking goblins. ¡°Pant, pant-!¡± Elena gasped for breath and slumped to the ground where she stood. Her heart was pounding madly. Her whole body ached as if she had muscle pain, and her arms and legs were trembling. Despite being in what could definitely be described as a not-so-good physical condition, Elena¡¯s thoughts were wholly focused on what had just happened. ¡°Did I¡­ fight this well?¡± Elena reflected on herself but firmly shook her head. Having given up her dreams and slowly started topromise with reality, she was thoroughly self-aware and knew her own abilities well. She was weak. As weak as the derogatory title of ¡®failed hero¡¯ that was attached to her indicated. Therefore, she could not understand the situation. ¡°Is it because of this?¡± Elena looked at the hand axes in her hands. Axes so small that they seemed only suitable for splitting already chopped firewood or for throwing. She turned the axes over and over, but she felt nothing special about them. Rather, the axes were excessively ordinary. ¡°Did I ¡­ have talent?¡± Just by holding a hand axe, to be this strong? A fleeting thought. Elena shook her head firmly again. Before and after receiving the title of a failed hero, she had made a great effort to be stronger and learned numerous weapon skills. Among them was naturally the skill with axes, and although she had used a hand axe once or twice before, this was the first time for such an experience, making Elena suddenly remember the Lord¡¯s words. He had spoken of an opportunity to objectively assess her abilities. ¡°Try to trust it¡­ once.¡± At the same time, recalling the Lord who had said such things to her, she decided to go see him. That afternoon. As the sunset slowly faded and night approached, Elena, who had arrived at the Lord¡¯s castle, immediately went to see the Lord. ¡°What happened to me?¡± She asked Kim Hyunwoo. A questionden with many implications. Even Elena, not knowing what to ask first, instinctively threw this question, and the Lord, as if guessing everything, smiled and spoke. ¡°It seems you¡¯vepletely dealt with the goblin tribe on your own.¡± ¡°Well, yes, but¡­¡± Seeing her slightly confused expression, Kim Hyunwoo did not hesitate to take out a box from his robe and hand it to Elena. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gift.¡± ¡°What? Just like that-¡± ¡°First, open it. If it feels like a burden, consider it a reward for trusting my word.¡± At Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s words, Elena looked mildly startled but soon opened the box he handed her. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the weapon you¡¯ll use from now on.¡± Inside the box were two hand axes. However, these axes, unlike the ones Kim Hyunwoo had handed over in the afternoon, had a somewhat more luxurious aura. ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll rece it with better ones as you gradually earn money, so please make do with these for now.¡± At Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s words, Elena looked up and replied. ¡°¡­What exactly did you do?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± At Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s tilting head, she fumbled with her words and then slightly shrank back as she spoke. ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s my ce to say this, since I¡¯ve already been hired, but I¡¯m weak. Weak enough to be called a ¡®failed hero.¡¯¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°And yet, I dealt with the goblin tribe alone, even though there were more than 200 of them. A massive tribe that heroes without any fame like me would struggle to fight properly. This is-¡± ¡°Are you asking if it doesn¡¯t make sense unless I did something?¡± As Elena hesitated and nodded slightly, Kim Hyunwoo, as if choosing his words, stroked his chin a few times before speaking. ¡°Well, you¡¯re half right, to begin with.¡± ¡°Half, you say?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s true that I did something.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± At Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s words, Elena let out a low exmation. Of course, it was something she had already sufficiently guessed. However, despite her suspicions, there was a sense of regret as if a part of her had hoped otherwise, and Elena unwittingly attempted a self-deprecating smile. ¡°But the truth is, what I did was only half of it, and Elena, you truly have talent.¡± At Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s continuing words, she inadvertently retorted. ¡°Me?¡± ¡°Yes. You seem to be misunderstanding something; I can¡¯t create powers in others that aren¡¯t there to begin with.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a God, after all,¡± Kim Hyunwoo added, before continuing. ¡°If that were the case, there would¡¯ve been no need for me to specifically choose you.¡± At his candid voice, Elena unwittingly recalled the recent events. The Lord¡¯s appearance as he held her hand firmly and eximed. ¡°Hmm, hmm-¡± Recalling this made her face flush with unnecessary heat, and she cleared her throat unwittingly, but Kim Hyunwoo, unfazed, continued. ¡°To put it simply, I can help bring out your talent.¡± ¡°My talent?¡± ¡°Yes, because the talent Elena has is not just this much.¡± At Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s words, Elena involuntarily shrank back. Of course, contrary to her gesture, she was very pleased. Having lived a life more ignored than recognized, as befits the derogatory title of a failed hero attached to her for the past ten years. Therefore, the recognition she was receiving from the Lord at this moment was an incredibly sweet and spontaneously body-warmingpliment to her. However, despite such thoughts, the reason Elena¡¯s body instinctively shrank back was due to the habits and thoughts ingrained in her over the past ten years. The frustration of never being recognized in thest ten years instinctively weighed her down. She knew. As always, it was more tormenting to see a disappointed expression after receiving hopeful looks than to be disappointed. ¡°If it¡¯s hard to believe in yourself, just believe in me.¡± However. ¡°I¡¯m going to make Elena a 5-star hero ¨C no, a hero famous in her own right.¡± At Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s confident voice, Elena found herself nodding involuntarily. ¡ùThe hero is currently under the effect of a Proficiency Elixir. Hero Name: Elena Title: X Stars: 1 Star ¡ï Affection: (Measuring) -Stats- Strength: 20¡ü Agility: 25¡ü Intelligence: 17 Luck: 18 Magic: 15 -Traits- Hard Worker: Always strives to diligently perform any task, keeping the efficiency of training and execution at its maximum. Insight: When using a weapon with ''innate'' or greater talent, there''s a 50% chance that attacks will be considered to bypass defense. -Talent- Has an innate talent with hand axes. -Skills- [View] ¡ùThe hero feels trust towards you. After she left, Kim Hyunwoo, looking at Elena¡¯s information window, wore a satisfied expression. ¡°It seems to have taken effect well.¡± Objectively speaking, Elena¡¯s information window hadn¡¯t changed much. The only changes were a single increase in both strength and agility, the affection level changing from zero to being measured, and a trust indicator appearing in thest notification window. However, those three changes alone meant Kim Hyunwoo had achieved his original objectives. ¡°First impressions are always important with heroes, after all.¡± Unlike other games where affection could be blindly raised or lowered, in Arteil, the heroes¡¯ first impression drastically changed the difficulty of building affectionter on. Especially Kim Hyunwoo, who had a history of turning all his characters into 5-stars, knew very well the importance of first impressions. Not only that, but Arteil also had many elements to consider in raising a hero. The hero AIs, created using inte AI technology that was rumored to have reached a singrity at that time, were significantly affected by each and everyrge and small element. The reason Kim Hyunwoo initially bought a Proficiency Elixir with cash currency to temporarily increase Elena¡¯s talent proficiency and sent her to the goblin tribe was also rted to this. ¡°Elena¡¯s confidence was too low.¡± Seeing the mercenaries¡¯ reactions and collecting information about Elena through Loria, Kim Hyunwoo made such a judgment. A hero with low confidence falls into various debuffed states. Although he couldn¡¯t yet open detailed traits of the hero due to not having raised the tavern level, Elena¡¯s detailed traits likely included a ¡®Slump¡¯ debuff for sure. It¡¯s a very troublesome debuff that reduces the efficiency of all proficiency work to one-third as soon as it takes effect. Therefore, Kim Hyunwoo deliberately spent the little remaining cash currency to push confidence into her, aiming to boost Elena¡¯s self-esteem. To remove the Slump debuff. Of course, he had no intention of continually filling Elena¡¯s self-esteem. Continually pampering her wasn¡¯t a good choice either. While this is fundamentally influenced by personality, in the case of heroes, self-esteem that is too high makes them hard to control. In short, the key is to properly arrange both carrot and stick until you raise the bond and affection with the hero. ¡°Moreover, I need to make them realize that my presence is absolutely necessary to prevent a somewhat grown hero from leaving.¡± While thinking this, Kim Hyunwoo suddenly remembered one of the heroes he had raised. Certainly, a hero of a rare half-dragon race, whose self-esteem was so low that he had to soothe her low self-esteem through chatting, leading him to increase his typing speed from 300 to 500. And while Kim Hyunwoo was lost in these old memories. A hill in the far reaches of the territory. In that ce where animals or monsters had ceased to be seen for some time. Red Eyes was intently watching Elena, who was moving with a slightly ted step. Chapter 19: Pioneering The Labyrinth (4) Merilda stared nkly at Elena moving in the distance, inadvertently thinking to herself. How envious she felt. She was envious of her. So very envious. The fact that she was so casually by the Master¡¯s side made her feel like she could die of envy. So envious that she wanted to kill that woman right here and now- Merilda forcibly restrained herself as her hand involuntarily started to rise. She coldly assessed that killing that woman right now would gain her absolutely nothing. Furthermore, the moment the Master found out about it, if ever. Merilda momentarily felt as though her breath was being choked off, but she quickly shoved the malicious thoughts aside and looked at Elena again. Seeing Elena, who didn¡¯t realize how blessed she was, Merilda suddenly wished she could be her. Of course, objectively speaking, there were too many differences between Merilda and Elena. So much so thatparing them one by one would be ridiculous. Yet, Merilda wanted to be that woman. If it were possible, Merilda was willing to give up everything she had built up to this point right here, right now. At least for her, the chance to return to the Master¡¯s side. ¡­To start over by the Master¡¯s side held value beyond anything else. Therefore, Merilda, looking at Elena with endless envy but also with hatred, With a grit of her teeth, involuntarily raised her hand again as she saw Elena entering a room, biting down hard, But then, forced herself to lower her hand once more. As a beastfolk, she barely suppressed the destructive impulse rising instinctively within her and looked with bloodshot eyes at the room into which Elena had walked, located on one side of the Lord¡¯s castle. All too familiar to Merilda. The door with several nail marks on the handle. ¡°My¡­ room¡­¡± That was originally Merilda¡¯s room. The very first room the Master had given her. ¡°Ah¡­¡± Tears began to well up in Merilda¡¯s eyes without her realizing. All she saw was Elena entering a room, but to Merilda, that scene felt significantly meaningful. ¡°Uh¡­¡± The tears brimming in Merilda¡¯s eyes spilled over. She felt as if she had lost a ce to return to. At the same time, it felt as if the Master was erasing her presence. Erasing and oveying- That pain was so unbearable, Merilda clutched her chest. Tears flowed from her hate-filled red eyes. ¡°Sob¡­ sob-¡± And her gaze remained fixed on the door of what used to be her room, now Elena¡¯s. ¡­She could not stop her self-loathing and grief until the day broke. It has been a week since Elena was gifted with two hand axes. Hero Name: Elena Title: X Stars: 1 Star ¡ï Affection: (Measuring) -Stats- Strength: 23¡ü Agility: 29¡ü Intelligence: 18¡ü Luck: 18 Magic: 15 -Traits- Hard Worker: Strives to diligently perform any task, maintaining maximum efficiency in training and execution. Insight: When using a weapon with ''innate'' or greater talent, there''s a 50% chance that attacks will bypass defense. -Talent- Has an innate talent for hand axes. -Skills- [View] ¡ùThe hero trusts you. As Kim Hyunwoo hoped, Elena was growing quite rapidly. ¡®In just a week, her strength stat increased by 3, and her agility stat by 4.¡¯ Objectively, the stats hadn¡¯t increased dramatically. Intuitively, Elena¡¯s stats had only increased by a total of 7. However, considering that the game itself hardly showed serious increases in stats, as if they were practically fixed, Elena¡¯s rate of improvement was incredible. ¡®¡­The road to 5 stars seems a bit long, though.¡¯ In Arteil, stars increase sequentially as the total stats increase. For a 1-star hero, if the total stats are below 120, they are treated as 1-star. For 2-star heroes, they be 2-star once their total stats exceed 120. Subsequently, 3-star heroes need a total of 200, 4-star heroes 330, and finally, 5-star heroes must exceed a total stat count of 450 to be 5-star characters. Therefore, Elena, currently with a total stat count of 103, will be 2-star once her stats increase by 17, and upon bing 2-star, heroes receive stat adjustments ording to their stars. ¡®This is the difference between ordinary soldiers and heroes.¡¯ In Arteil, all ordinary soldiers also have stats, and among those called elites, there are soldiers with stats superior to 1-star, 2-star, or even 3-star heroes. Yet, the reason soldiers cannot defeat heroes is due to the stat adjustment rate that exists for ¡®heroes¡¯. Heroes called so from 1-star receive a 10% stat adjustment rate. For example, if the agility stat is 20, a 10% adjustment makes it effectively 22. Furthermore, as stars increase, the stat adjustments be stronger. ¡®2-stars get 20%, 3-stars 30%, 4-stars 50%, and 5-stars 70%¡­right?¡¯ While talent and traits are important, stats, being an indicator of strength, cannot be ignored, so this hero-exclusive stat adjustment creates an absolute gap between heroes. A 1-star hero cannot defeat a 2-star hero, and a 2-star hero cannot defeat a 3-star hero unless they have exceptional talent and traits. Moreover, 5-stars can increase their bond and affection with the lord to receive additional ability bonuses, allowing for 100% stat adjustments. When the affection level reaches stage 5, the adjustment rate exceeds 100%, so Kim Hyunwoo endured the horrendous BM to avoid dropping the heroes¡¯ favorability. The stat increase due to the adjustment rate at 5 stars was too important. ¡®Eventually, I quit because of that BM, though.¡¯ Since the moment he entered the game, the bond with heroes became an element he could not help but obsess over, so he was quite concerned about Elena. ¡®But, is it normal for affection to be measured this long?¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo, still seeing the affection not properly determined, tilted his head for a moment, suddenly curious. ¡®¡­Thinking about it, what criteria does this world use to determine a hero?¡¯ It was a question that naturally arose now that he was in the game, though he had epted it without question when it was just a game, but he soon shook his head. Because that wasn¡¯t what he needed to focus on at the moment. ¡°Loria.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How is the recruitment of soldiers going?¡± ¡°There are about 100 applicants currently. However, due to the limited number of cksmiths, it may take some time to supply the materials.¡± ¡°How long?¡± ¡°Considering the speed of producing materials, it might take about a month.¡± ¡°That¡¯s too long.¡± ¡°But under the current circumstances, this is the best we can do.¡± ¡°Show me the cksmith¡¯s situation panel.¡± The situation panel appeared immediately at Kim Hyunwoo¡¯s request. cksmith Personnel: 13 / 150 Comparative Efficiency: 23% (Efficiency is low due to theck of specialized personnel!) Production Status: Iron bars / In production. [Daily production / 3 units] Helmets / In production. [Daily production / 3 units] Light armor / In production. [Daily production / 2 units] ¡°It¡¯s definitely low.¡± The forge is running with an absurdly low number of people, perhaps because not many refugees from specialized professions like cksmiths havee in. ¡°I wish it could be roughlypleted within two weeks.¡± [Are you nning to pioneer the Labyrinth?] ¡°Right.¡± Kim Hyunwoo was nning to pioneer the first and secondyers of the Labyrinth to coincide with Elena reaching 2 stars. And, of course, soldiers were needed to pioneer the first and secondyers of the Labyrinth. ¡®Actually, it seems like Elena could be sent alone.¡¯ Despite thinking this, Kim Hyunwoo needed soldiers because of affection levels. A Labyrinth is basically a ce where anything can happen, and sending a hero alone could certainly lower affection levels. ¡®I can¡¯t do anything that would lower affection levels, especially if I want Elena to grow quickly.¡¯ Knowing how powerful the stat correction rate from affection is, Kim Hyunwoo did not want to do anything that might lower the correction rate. Above all, there was another reason Kim Hyunwoo wanted to enter with the soldiers. ¡°We need to secure a base, you know.¡± [A base, you say?] Kim Hyunwoo nodded in response to Loria¡¯s question. ¡°I¡¯m thinking of creating a safe zone, a resting space, inside the Labyrinth.¡± [A resting space inside the Labyrinth?] Kim Hyunwoo grinned at Loria¡¯s puzzled question. ¡°It¡¯s better to do business with everyone rather than just a specific ss, right?¡± With that, Kim Hyunwoo immediately got up from his seat as if organizing his thoughts. ¡°I need to visit the forge.¡± He said. [For what reason...?] ¡°I need to increase thebor efficiency.¡± Kim Hyunwoo said with a smile in response to Loria¡¯s question. Tienus Merchant Group is an incrediblyrge tradingpany that travels across the entire continent, and to put it a little exaggeratedly, they sell everything that exists in this world. Therefore, every territory in the Southern Continent hopes that the Tienus Merchant Group will visit theirnds. The items they sell can only be bought from them, and once the Merchant Group visits a territory, the dissatisfaction among its people noticeably decreases. For this reason, while every territory wanted the Merchant Group to visit, none of them pressured the Merchant Group toe. Even the Eastern n, known as the most powerful force in the Southern Continent, did not recklessly pressure the Tienus Merchant Group. There were two reasons for this. One was that if rtions with the Tienus Merchant Group soured, it was always the territory that suffered. The other was because of the guardians that appeared when the Tienus Merchant Group was tampered with. For these two reasons, the Tienus Merchant Group could travel the Continent freely without even needing soldiers. The owner of the Tienus Merchant Group was a girl with red hair. ¡°If you¡¯re talking about Lartania territory, you mean the ce that¡¯spletely ruined in the Cn Kingdom?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Hmm, Lartania territory has been revived-¡± The woman known as the ¡®Golden Witch¡¯ in the Southern Continent, ¡®Adria,¡¯ listened to her assistant¡¯s words. ¡°Shall we go take a look?¡± ¡°If you say so, I¡¯ll prepare immediately.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go then, well ¨C it might not be much.¡± She muttered this with her characteristic calcting smile. ¡°There might be something that person wants.¡± Chapter 20: Tier 1 (1) Most cksmiths, while not all, tend to have a prickly personality. This is because the job of a cksmith itself is very arduous, but also because it is a profession where mistakes cannot be made in any part of the production process. Items made in the forge involve working with iron and fire, so even a small mistake can lead to various problems. Not only can there be idents,rge and small, but an item that has been worked on for a long time can be unusable due to a single mistake. Therefore, cksmiths generally have a prickly nature, and this was also true for the cksmith who came from Sertoa and is now employed as a leader in the Lartania forge. ¡°Tsk-¡± He sighed discreetly while looking at the Lord of Lartania, who entered the forge with a displeased expression, surveying the surroundings. Ralph had already guessed why Kim Hyunwoo had stopped by the forge. ¡®It must be about the production volume.¡¯ Ralph began to imagine what the Lord, who was looking around the forge, would say next. The first thing likely to be said would definitely be a criticism about production volume directed at Ralph. After Ralph starts pointing out the issues with the low production volume, the Lord will likely propose a nonsensical solution. Then, the administrative staff who follow the Lord around might apud, and the Lord will be pleased as if he has done something great, which was the behavior Ralph had observed from Lords in the past. Therefore, Ralph was seriously considering what to say to the Lord in front of him. The forge was currently short-staffed. Although there were definitely good materials, whose origin was unknown, there was a dire shortage of cksmiths to work with the iron. Thus, although Ralph was clearly aware of the problem, he was choosing his words because whatever he said, the response from the Lord was predictable. After all, even if he detailed the current issues of the forge to the Lord in front of him, the likely response would be nonsensical suggestions like, ¡®No manpower? Then just add more people from the territory.¡¯ Working with iron to produce weapons or armor in this manner was a task only somewhat skilled cksmiths could do. Inserting residents with no experience would be meaningless. However, Lords who not only looked down on the profession of cksmithing but also regarded it as some form of menialbor casually made such remarks in front of Ralph. Ralph disliked hearing those words. Of course, he was fully aware that the Lord was in the position of an employer, and leaving the forge he had opened with his own money, he recognized that being able to work here was somewhat fortunate for him, who otherwise had nothing. Even if he had been somewhat sessful, it was clear there would have been no ce for him to work outside of Lartania, as other ces already had cksmiths established. However, having pride in his profession as a cksmith, he wanted to avoid being belittled to his face, even if he was an employee. However. ¡°That¡¯s impressive.¡± The first words from the Lord¡¯s mouth were quite different from what Ralph had expected. ¡°¡­Yes?¡± ¡°I said it¡¯s impressive. All the equipment in the forge is properly managed, and the efficiency shown by just about ten people must be because the cksmiths are working hard.¡± The Lord, who was seriously looking around and muttering, soon started to speak as if in admiration after looking around. ¡°That, it looks like the equipment was ced arbitrarily to increase production. Indeed, operating in such a way has its advantages since everyone can work together. However, it would increase the difficulty ¨C considering the production volume, the skills must be exceptional.¡± ¡°The smelting process also seems to have had a lot of effort put into it, are you using a mixture of powdered flux and y? Indeed, doing it this way can produce iron of a higher purity.¡± ¡°And the quenching process-¡± As each word flowed from the Lord¡¯s mouth, Ralph¡¯s mouth hung open, and his irritated gaze filled with surprise and astonishment. The reason was that everything the Lord said was true, not just superficial. Therefore, Ralph found himself asking a question without realizing it. ¡°By any chance, have you worked with iron before, My Lord?¡± At that, Kim Hyunwoo showed his hands, free of calluses, and said, ¡°That¡¯s unlikely, I¡¯m not cut out to be a cksmith. After all, cksmithing requires endurance, physical strength, and perseverance, doesn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Ick the perseverance for cksmithing,¡± Kim Hyunwoo said briefly, prompting Ralph to ask further. ¡°But how do you know so much about working with iron?¡± ¡°Am I not the Lord? I should know how hard the people working for me are working. And also have the discernment to see how diligently they are working.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± At the Lord¡¯s words, Ralph unwittingly stared at him with a nk expression. Thinking about it, he had rarely been acknowledged for his work as a cksmith. Although he was certainly a skilled cksmith, he was not the master craftsman sought after by the Lords of all territories. Thus, receiving recognition from a high-ranking individual for the first time in decades. ¡°I look forward to your continued good work.¡± ¡®This Lord, he¡¯s different.¡¯ Ralph faintly realized that the Lord of Lartania was different from any he had seen before. Recently, Elena has been repeating a routine that umtes quite a bit of fatigue throughout her day. Waking up in the morning to train, eating lunch and then training, and training after dinner ¨C her days are not much different from five years ago when she desperately trained to shine on her own. Thinking back, this meant that Elena always had fatigue and irritation on her face five years ago. The insane amount of training brought fatigue, and theck of improvement despite such efforts led to negative thoughts. However, despite spending as much, if not more, time training as she did five years ago, Elena¡¯s face now bore a smile instead of fatigue and irritation. The reason was that Elena herself felt that she was growing. Unlike five years ago, when she felt like she was floundering in a swamp, she was now growing rapidly, a fact she herself could feel. After the Lord did something for her, the awkwardness of her hand axe improved noticeably with more practice. The hand axe she wielded became precise enough to hit targets urately in any situation. Furthermore, her movements became more agile and flexible day by day. Movements that were previously impossible became possible, and her body, which was neither stiff nor particrly flexible, could now perform some level of acrobatics, giving Elena a sense of achievement. The sense of aplishment from her own growth and the confidence that she was taking another step forward. This made each day enjoyable for Elena recently. For her, who had not received any rewards despite her efforts, the fact that her efforts were now being rewarded was sweeter than any fruit. Furthermore, for this reason, Elena truly felt grateful to the Lord. ¡®It must be because the Lord did something for me.¡¯ Elena thought of her Lord. The one who recruited her, once called a failed hero, a week ago and awakened talents she herself was unaware of. Indeed, as the Lord had said, she had a talent for the hand axe. But at the same time, Elena knew. That such unbelievable growth day by day couldn¡¯t just be due to having talent. ¡­Of course, Kim Hyunwoo did nothing beyond giving Elena a potion to boost her skill on the first day to increase her confidence. Thus, Elena¡¯s daily growth was indeed due to her ¡®innate¡¯ talent, but unaware of this, she sincerely felt grateful to the Lord. After all, without him, Elena would never have had such an experience in her lifetime. ¡®Once I be stronger, I must repay this kindness.¡¯ Elena smiled softly, thinking of the Lord who had recruited her and continued to allow her to train. Soon, in a tavern she visited for a simple meal due to the absence of a restaurant nearby- ¡°The Lord is a very fascinating person.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Elena, seeing Ralph talk about the Lord inside the tavern, wore a surprised expression. The reason was that Elena knew about Ralph to some extent. ¡®Master Craftsman Ralph.¡¯ As she knew, Ralph was a well-regarded cksmith from the Sertoa territory. It was fair to say that no better cksmith existed in the territories near Sertoa. Evenpared to the masters of the Norba Kingdom, aside from their signature techniques, his skills were not much different from theirs. For this reason, adventurers, heroes, and mercenaries active in the nearby territories would wait more than half a year to purchase weapons he made. The weapon Elena had used before was also made by him. However, she was surprised not because she saw Ralph, but because of what he said. As far as she knew, Ralph had a strong sense of pride in his profession and was not one to easily acknowledge or praise someone as a cksmith. Moreover, in Sertoa, it was well-known that he would criticize the Lord in taverns almost daily, and she had heard Ralph speaking ill of the Lord before. ¡°¡­I don¡¯t know how it was made, but that blue me is also useful.¡± Therefore, seeing Ralph seemingly acknowledging the Lord instead of criticizing him, she couldn¡¯t help but wear a surprised expression. ¡®The Lord is truly versatile.¡¯ Following Ralph¡¯s words, Elena expressed her admiration for the Lord, who had received the cksmith¡¯s acknowledgment. ¡ùThe Blue me Package is in effect. Smelting time is reduced! [29 days remaining] Forge Personnel: 13 / 150 Comparative Efficiency: 50% (Efficiency is low due to theck of specialized personnel!) Production Status: Iron bars / In production [Daily production / 6 units] Helmets / In production [Daily production / 6 units] Light armor / In production [Daily production / 6 units] [That''s impressive.] ¡°What is?¡± As Kim Hyunwoo responded to Loria, who was looking at the information window with satisfaction, she continued. [The Blue me Package only increases efficiency by 15%, but you, My Lord, have soothed the cksmiths to raise efficiency to 50%, haven''t you?] Kim Hyunwoo shrugged at Loria¡¯s words. ¡®I honestly didn¡¯t think it would increase this much.¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo praised the cksmiths to the point of dryness because he knew efficiency varied with the cksmiths¡¯ morale. ¡®Who would have thought that my experience of running around the forge to make a great sword for a hero in Arteil without spending cash woulde in handy here¡­¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo, who yed the forge minigame thousands of times to make cash items demanded by heroes without spending money, was able to praise the cksmiths with that knowledge. Thanks to the descriptions that appeared all day during the thousands of minigame attempts, he was able to increase efficiency by praising the cksmiths for even the most minor details. However, one thing was puzzling. ¡®It seemed like he wasn¡¯t that pleased.¡¯ Kim Hyunwoo had seen Ralph¡¯s stats when he visited the forge. ¡®Currently, he hasn¡¯t fully developed, but if he grows, he has the talent to be at least a master, and if nurtured well, even surpass having a signature to be a true master.¡¯ A true master refers to a cksmith with the talent to create weapons of greater value than those farmed in Labyrinths. Such cksmiths were rare. Even Kim Hyunwoo was surprised when he first saw Ralph¡¯s stats. ¡®Originally, cksmiths came in randomly, so I didn¡¯t pay much attention.¡¯ Like a 500 consecutive gacha blowout, Kim Hyunwoo, who had no expectations due to his generally bad luck, felt as if he had struck it rich upon seeing Ralph. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± In any case, the point was that despite Ralph¡¯s reaction not being very noticeable, and assuming that the efficiency wouldn¡¯t increase much because he was well-regarded by those around him, the efficiency turned out to be higher than expected. Feeling puzzled, Kim Hyunwoo soon shrugged. After all, as long as the efficiency was high, he had noints. Therefore. ¡®I¡¯ll gradually help Ralph grow, and with this level of efficiency, we should be able to start in earnest in about two weeks, including what we¡¯ve already produced.¡¯ He looked forward to the Labyrinth expedition happening in two weeks. And so, two weeks passed. The day of the Labyrinth expedition arrived. And at the moment when Kim Hyunwoo was about to seriously tackle the firstyer. ¡°It¡¯s okay, it will be okay¡­ because it¡¯s still, still just one person. Still-¡± The Absolute Ruler of Darkness was muttering to herself alone. ¡°I too, just one more¡­ if I gather just one more, then I can go.¡± ¡°Just a little more-¡± ¡°¡­I can, go.¡± With gloomy eyes. ¡°Just, a bit more.¡± Quietly. , Episode 20: Tier 1 (1) ,