Chapter 19

In the end, I shook my head to dispel any lingering thoughts and returned to Ardenia.

“My goodness…I feel so energized, Lordship.”

“Of course, your total stats have increased threefold.”

I assigned Priest (Rare) to Captain Flower. Additionally, when I logged out earlier, I had purchased Heal (General) with gold, which I now transferred for her to learn.

With this rare job, her stat increase was massive at 300 points. Previously, despite maintaining a slim physique through consistent care, Flower’s lack of spiritual abilities made her akin to an ordinary human woman. This sudden surge in stats felt like a monumental breakthrough for her.

Her primary stat, Mana Power, skyrocketed by an astounding 100 points, forcibly awakening her innate mana talent. The secondary stats, Mana and Mana Recovery, also rose by 60 points each. Furthermore, other stats such as Health and Stamina increased by 40 points.

Additionally, although it wasn’t immediately noticeable, there was also a continuous buff that increased healing effects by 50%.

‘If he had been reclassified as a rare warrior-type job instead of a priest class, I doubt he could handle this overwhelming power effectively.’

With these thoughts, I assigned Smile with the advanced class ‘High Wizard’.

I didn’t purchase any separate skills for them. Hundred and Smile, already being a knight and mage respectively, were capable individuals who could utilize their increased stats according to their own styles.

“I… It’s unbelievable! My mana has nearly doubled instantly!”

“Oh my God. My physical abilities have…”

I watched the astonished two of them for a moment before speaking.

“As you know, your classes can’t be compared to Stonestone’s.”

“Wow, despite being so strong?”

“Yes. It is just a high rank.”

“Oh, green means high… Then blue, like the light of the headband, must be rare grade.”

“That’s right. And purple signifies hero grade.”

Hundred and Smile nodded at my words. There was no situation where they questioned me with ‘Why do I have a lower grade than that scoundrel?!’. They weren’t fools. If these guys were stupid enough to question me in such a manner, we wouldn’t have survived in this brutal medieval land.

Only clueless nobles born with silver spoons or modern humans who could spout nonsense without fear of retribution would dare to question me like that.

As my subjects, they should ponder the reasons behind my decision instead of harboring dissatisfaction. And these intelligent individuals were well aware of something: Master Flower possessed qualities they lacked—loyalty and trustworthiness.

To be honest, it’s a waste not using them at their highest potential.

However, sometimes investments must be made. Although they weren’t entirely reliable, they wouldn’t betray me outright. Above all, discarding talents ranked among the top three in our territory would indeed be regrettable.

Without forced awakenings like on Earth, discovering someone with latent psychic abilities was extremely rare. Even after filtering through tens of thousands of humans, only a handful possessed such talent.

“I will do my utmost, Lordship.”

“We truly appreciate it, Lordship.”

“Yes.”

As I acknowledged them and prepared to leave…

“Hmm?”

Something appeared running over the hill. Using Inner Force, I enhanced my vision and recognized it as one of the scouts I had sent earlier.

That’s quick.

Although designated as a scout, he wasn’t actually a soldier. He gained his reputation for being exceptionally fast, leading him to assume the role during the dungeon catastrophe. Observing him now, he could sprint 100 meters in just 8.5 seconds.

Impressive!

His abilities weren’t just limited to physical prowess.

“Huff…huff… Lordship!”

I patted the back of the panting scout who had just reached me, trying to help him catch his breath. After waiting for a moment, he raised his head and spoke urgently.

“An army! An army of monsters is marching southward!”

“Do they have green skin and stand about three feet tall?”

“Huh? How did you know? Yes! Anyway, there’s a horde of them heading this way!”

“How many?”

“At least several thousand!” His scream-like cry caused the villagers’ expressions to darken. Fortunately, their fear was somewhat mitigated by our well-stocked supplies and ample armaments.

Although I knew the scout wouldn’t lie, something felt off.

Why is that?

Initially, only about ten thousand orcs had emerged from our dungeon. Later, when Vulcan, their grand general, appeared, there seemed to be more, but they still operated mostly in groups of around one hundred rather than large-scale armies.

It felt like they were merely cleaning up near the dungeons.

But now, goblin forces numbering several thousand were marching southward? This indicated a significant departure from the behavior patterns of the orcs.

In Revenge, once you clear at least four dungeons and establish your ‘Home,’ it becomes your declared territory, granting you full rights as its feudal lord. You can even control the respawn rate, making it possible to create a land devoid of monsters. Yet instead of guarding their dungeons, these creatures are dispersing… Is this unique to Ardenia, or perhaps the monsters here aren’t aware of these mechanics?

I had to ask, “Why are they moving south?”

“They’re fleeing.”

“Fleeing?”

“Yes, Lordship. The villagers from the northern territories—specifically, Redex’s domain—are migrating south, ranging from just a few individuals to groups numbering several dozen.”

“They’re evacuating.”

In some ways, their situation mirrored ours. If it took them this long to evacuate after the dungeon incident, it likely meant they hadn’t immediately fled like we did. They must have tried fighting multiple times before ultimately giving up on their territory.

‘As a feudal lord, that decision is understandable…but they couldn’t have won, especially not in a prolonged battle.’

Regardless of how weak goblins were considered as monsters, one fact remained unchanged: Monsters regenerated.

‘But who on the continent of Ardenia could immediately realize this?’

The fact that all deceased beings would infinitely respawn was not just miraculous but defied common sense. Even if someone witnessed regeneration firsthand, they wouldn’t instantly grasp its implications. Anyone who did comprehend it quickly would be considered not perceptive but rather, a madman with a twisted mind.

It’s akin to those who, instead of trusting their government when vaccines are released for public health, believe it’s part of a sinister plot by authorities to implant wireless tracking chips through vaccinations, aiming to control both bodies and souls of citizens.

“You run really well, I noticed earlier. What’s your name, scout?”

“I-I’m honored, Lordship! My name is Running Man!”

“Haha. You seem energetic now that you’ve become a scout. Running Man?”

“What?”

“Huh?”

For a moment, the scout and I looked at each other with confusion on our faces. Then, feeling absurd, I asked:

“Is it your real name?”

“Of course, Lordship! My mother gave me this name!”

“So, Running Man grew up to be a scout…”

In general, people of Ardenia were given names with clear meanings. For example, Stonestone meant ‘growing as solid as stone and steel’, Hundred implied strength enough to fight against a hundred enemies, Flower signified beauty like blossoms, and Smile represented living life always smiling. Naturally, these straightforward names were mostly used by commoners, while nobles had different conventions. However, it was fascinating how Running Man became a scout due to his exceptional running abilities.

I thought it was just a nickname due to his role as the butcher (slaughterer) running the only restaurant in the territory.

“My mother gave me such strength through my name!”

“I see.” I nodded and took out a card. It was an Archer (General) class card.

“Ah.”

“That…”

The villagers watching were surprised by this sight.

“Lordship?”

“Take it.”

“Ah, yes.”

Pop!

A white color burst forth, indicating a general class.

“H-Huh? Huh?” Feeling the increased stats from the class effect, Running Man momentarily moved around before launching himself upwards.

Pang!

His body jumped two meters high from a standing position!

“Incredible! He can jump that high in one leap?”

“No matter how swift the Running Man is…”

“Is that the power of the card?” The villagers watching were all surprised. Running Man landed gracefully on the ground and knelt before me.

“T-Thank you Lordship! To give me such strength…”

“This is just the beginning. You will become stronger every time you kill those monster guys.”

“My goodness.” His face was filled with joy. It was natural. This world was savage where strength was everything. Our territory had relatively good law and order but it only meant there were no criminal organizations present. However, this didn’t change the essence of the world.

I looked at the villagers staring at me and said, “Prepare for battle! For those who show sufficient potential, faithfully carry out orders, or achieve outstanding achievements…” I spoke solemnly while looking at them, “I will sow the seeds of possibility.”

It was 3:30 am. Everyone should’ve been asleep but the Nemesis Soft building shone brighter than daytime.

“Kieeeeeeek! I-I can’t do it anymore!” One employee, who had been wildly typing with magic gloves, collapsed while screaming. The other employees nearby were startled and moved quickly.

“Assistant Manager Kim! You can’t collapse! There are only 61 hours left until the Hot Summer 2nd Event!”

“I can’t…I can’t…”

“Just finish designing the Ifrit before collapsing!”

“Grrr…” Assistant Manager Kim fainted. Director Kwon watched from afar and said, “Deacon Yang, inject.”

At his firm words, the woman standing next to Director Kwon turned her head. With her neatly combed back hair and petite stature, she appeared impressively youthful, almost resembling a student.

“The Awakening Potion lasts for twenty-four hours, but there’s still sixty-one hours left of this event. Will that be enough?”

“We can administer another dose when needed.”

“Pardon me? But using it consecutively could lead to—”

“I’ll call on the priests. Isn’t that why we pay them so well?”

”…Yes, sir.” Deacon Yang approached the unconscious Assistant Manager Kim and injected him with the potion.

Shhhk!

“Aaaaargh!” As foam bubbled from his mouth, Assistant Manager Kim suddenly sprang back up.

Director Kwon quietly observed before speaking up.

“Assistant Manager Kim. Ifrit.”

“Aaaaargh! Ifrit!”

As Director Kwon watched their work resume, he discreetly turned to ask:

“Anything unusual to report?”

“Oh… There is one thing.”

“Really?” Director Kwon prompted, turning towards Deacon Yang.

“A new player spent about forty million won on class Summoning Stones.”

“What’s so unusual about that? Isn’t it common practice?”

Revenge was notorious for being extremely pay-to-win, and the spending habits of its top players were beyond imagination. It wasn’t unheard-of for some whales to drop several hundred thousand dollars just to acquire a single costume. So what made someone spending merely forty million won, and specifically on Summoning Stones, noteworthy?

“He purchased them but then destroyed them afterward,” Deacon Yang explained, prompting Director Kwon’s confusion.

“What do you mean? Did he destroy regular or premium stones—that is, blanks?”

“No, sir. He destroyed the actual Summoning Stones themselves.”

“But why? He bought them without even attempting to summon anything first?”

“Yes, he purchased Summoning Stones but didn’t use them and destroyed them instead. He eliminated almost forty million won worth of Summoning Stones like that.”

“…Why?”

“I have no idea. Not only that, he also discarded his starter pack items and bought skill books with gold earned from hunting monsters just to destroy those as well.”

“Has there been any request for restoration?”

“No, none at all.”

“What kind of guy is this? Is he doing it for some online stream or something?” Deacon Yang asked Director Kwon incredulously.

“Should I look into him further?”

“No need. It’s not causing any harm to the company, right? Let it be. If he asks for restoration, we’ll remind him that despite destroying so many, we can restore only three items per request.”

“Yes, sir.”

“All right then. Get back to work.”

As Deacon Yang bowed and left, Director Kwon muttered absentmindedly, “Buying cash items just to destroy them…?”

He chuckled and shook his head. “There’s one nutjob out there for every kind.”