Chapter 115
Chapter 115 – Clash (5)
[Achievement Unlocked: Conditions of the Kingdom (1)]
[Rewards Available for Selection]
“…”
Before the enemy’s attack, Balun’s preemptive strike, planned in expectation of victory, created a miracle. It swiftly overwhelmed the disorganized enemies and began to absorb most of the conquered Garhan faction under Luke’s command.
Even now, countless people were lined up heading toward the tunnel, and I could see them arriving at the village after passing through.
However, there was a more accurate indicator than what was visible. It was the achievements and status report provided by the Master Program.
The Master Program revealed that the achievement Balun had established this time hinted at our potential to rise from being mere peripheral tribes to becoming a kingdom.
“Impressive.”
I couldn’t help but admire it, especially since I had been with them from the very beginning.
From a small tribe with just a few dozen escapees, we had absorbed nearby tribes and vagrants until we reached this point.
I vividly remembered their first steps into this game world. The players who were startled and wary upon seeing me as a game character now utilized their in-game abilities even better than I could.
The miracle they had achieved was a testament to their immense capabilities.
‘First, I need to establish a foothold.’
As I pondered where to begin, I decided that the priority should be to help the newcomers settle in. To utilize them as new human resources, a solid foundation was essential.
I had to help the immigrants genuinely feel that they were united with us and recognize this newly acquired land not as a terrifying place teeming with monsters but as a land overflowing with hope and resources.
The power granted to me was all for that purpose.
‘I should also increase the number of hunters and gradually breach areas where the Essence of Monsters can be farmed more efficiently.’
I thought about activating another game after Glory Tower, which was a defense game, but postponed it for the time being. Now that we had a significant increase in population, it was more important to enhance our well-established existing system.
So, I upgraded the activation level of the third game, Creature Hunting, to increase the number of deployable personnel.
The original count of 6 was significantly raised to 10 in Creature Hunting, establishing Naru and Dune as fixed members to cultivate new hunters and train craftsmen to learn crafting skills.
I spent some points earned in the meantime to nearly double the number of personnel assigned there. Among the hunters, there were those specialized in hunting and others strong in gathering, so increasing the numbers would broaden our options.
The first game, Sandbox Crafting, provided us not only with food and various resources but also with efficient abilities, such as miners and transporters, and was our precious gold mine.
This game had been long activated at the highest level, so there wasn’t much that could be done besides quickly changing the deployed personnel.
“–? –!”
The valuable resource, the Essence of Monsters, which was being farmed within, could now lead to the creation of a new hunting ground where it would drop more frequently.
Those who had been working diligently inside were startled and stirred when they suddenly saw my character appear.
‘I need to carve a path to the Void.’
The monsters in the underground world were indeed stronger than those in the fields and dropped better items, but there existed beings even above them.
Those creatures gathered in a place known as the Void.
To access it, I needed means beyond merely digging the ground with a titanium pickaxe. I had to open a dimensional portal.
“If they don’t provide the materials, I can just take from them.”
This game was clearly modified to prevent items of a certain grade from dropping, making it impossible to enter the Void, but I had already found a solution while crafting the titanium pickaxe.
It was the file converter. A function that could transform the items from the outside world that the residents possessed into game items.
[Dwarf’s Helmet] [Kingdom Mage’s Memorize Ring] [Chief’s Command Staff]…
I needed several items to open the dimensional portal, so I had to forcibly requisition multiple objects. Seeing the residents, dwarves, and captured kingdom mages who had their belongings taken from them sitting dumbfounded on the ground, my heart felt uneasy.
Yet, this was a decision made for all of us, so I resolved to provide them with something in return, converting points to give back to them.
“—…”
What I handed over was the Essence of Experience which had enabled Shura to grow rapidly. Those who received it were left staring blankly at the golden orb in their hands.
At around 100 points, I could afford to spare a few.
“—? —!”
I then chose a location to create the dimensional portal using the materials I had secured. Right near the wall where the passage to the underground world existed.
With numerous residents glancing over curiously, I stacked blocks on the ground to create a base and began setting the materials on the wall to construct the dimensional portal.
The actual construction was finished in no time. It was simply a matter of arranging the materials according to certain conditions.
I crafted stairs leading to the portal and, using the mouse, summoned the warriors who usually farmed the Essence of Monsters.
Until now, the task of farming the Essence of Monsters had become a place where rookie warriors learned to handle the skills they acquired from the hunting mode of Dark Blood.
With more equipment being supplied and many seniors in that class having ascended, the standard of the warriors had risen, so it seemed it was time to gradually increase the difficulty.
‘The entrance is sufficient; if all goes well, we might even reach the depths.’
The warriors I had summoned were as inexperienced as newbies, just having class-changed and learning skills compared to those like Riena or Rakum. Nevertheless, I thought it was still entirely feasible, so I grabbed my sword and waved my arm to signal them to follow me.
“Just recognize it as a new hunting ground.”
After crossing through the dimensional portal, I stood in a new land with a sky of burning red as I watched the other warriors arrive one by one.
Monsters from the Void that had already spotted us were approaching. I intended to teach them how to hunt those creatures.
After all, even if the predetermined action patterns were somewhat meaningless, the physical weaknesses and characteristics of those monsters remained unchanged.
For instance, the trait that they wouldn’t chase if they saw us.
“–? –!”
“–!”
The problem was that communicating such knowledge and information through actions and gestures, moreover through my character’s movements instead of my own, was incredibly challenging.
Even if I jumped around to show them the large eyeball stuck to the back of a monster’s head, they just stood there dazed.
“Ugh, it’s so frustrating I’m actually going to die.”
Perhaps because I already had so much to do, my frustration, which I thought I had been managing well so far, finally burst forth.
[Real-time Strategy Simulation Game Recommendation]
“Huh?”
Immediately, a notification popped up. A new game being recommended by the Master Program that could calm my irritation had appeared.
Watching the warriors fend for themselves against the monsters, I blankly read the description.
‘Forbidden War. Real-time Strategy Simulation Game.’
The game recommended by the Master Program was something I had dabbled with in my youth but hadn’t played in ages. A game where you mined resources and produced troops to battle against opponents.
I understood why this game was being suggested to me at this moment.
[Forbidden War: 5000P]
“No, that’s too expensive…”
At that critical moment when I had enough leftovers to handle it, refunds or cancellations were out of the question. And with that single decision, I could end up causing a massacre of the many residents.
This was also why I refrained from activating games rashly on my own.
Hesitantly, I fiddled with the mouse. I couldn’t be sure how this game would assist me.
So far, all the games I had activated pulled residents into the game world and assisted me by allowing them to bring skills and items back out.
In contrast, the most recently activated Glory Tower functioned oppositely, allowing me to utilize the abilities gained in the game.
“Surely, I’m not sending people into that crazy world, right?”
To allay my unfounded worries, I chuckled to myself and cautiously moved the mouse.
If my thoughts were correct, this new game was likely to provide me with gameplay functions similar to Glory Tower. Surely, they wouldn’t send residents off to battle monsters set against a cosmic backdrop.
Fighting beings that shot beams at each other in space, I couldn’t guarantee safety even if they learned skills from a fantasy game.
Of course, that was the extent of my reasoning, yet my hand trembled as I prepared to press the button.
[Game Activation]
Fortunately, even after activating the game, there were no prompts to deploy personnel. So, entering the game world wasn’t a requirement for now.
[Unit Command Possible]
[Currently Commandable Unit: 1 Unit]
[Quest Completion Required for Additional Units; Deployable Personnel: 0/4]
“…”
It was a brief thought. The game being activated, Forbidden War, possessed the types of gameplay displayed in all previous games.
‘For now, I’ll go for it.’
“–!? —!”
My head throbbed, but since I had power in hand, I moved the mouse without controlling the character myself.
Everything I had previously done with the mouse was limited to picking up and moving items. But not anymore.
I could now manipulate the 12 dragged warriors according to my will.
I could command them to move or attack.
‘This is a double-edged sword.’
Having experienced it firsthand, I was certain that this was not necessarily a good feature. The warriors’ faces were etched with shock at their own erratic movements, and the commands I bestowed were utterly simplistic and lacksadaisical.
Fighting was better left to them, so using this function to assist them would only be basic directives. Where they ought to go, when to attack, and so on.
Of course, for now, that was enough.
Utilizing this function would allow me to eliminate the monsters in the relatively simple Sandbox Crafting without too much hassle.
‘Could this possibly apply outside as well?’
As the warriors grew accustomed to hunting the mobs from the Void, I turned the screen elsewhere.
I looked at many residents doing ordinary jobs in the village.
With a glimmer of hope, I decided to drag them as a group.
“It works.”
I let out a chuckle. The 12 people I dragged moved in a rush toward the direction I right-clicked.
All of them widened their eyes in shock. For now, I could command just one unit, but as other games continued to evolve, it would soon become possible to move dozens or even hundreds of them at once under my will.
