Chapter 56

I reorganized my army’s hierarchy as planned by implementing ranks within the military structure. I appointed fifteen hundred noncommissioned officers and five hundred commissioned officers while increasing the number of regular soldiers to thirty-one thousand.

The number of regulars ballooned thanks to the new refugees and soldiers.

There were so many applicants that competition was fierce.

“Hunter, from this moment on, you are hereby appointed as both the highest-ranking officer and Great General of Yangmol Regiment. You have been granted the rare Sniper class, Advanced Visionary Charge Shot, and Farsighted Longbow. May these empower you to fulfill your duty with unwavering determination.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Big Man, as of this moment, I hereby appoint you to be the highest-ranking officer and Great General of the Flag Regiment. You have been granted the rare Lancer class and Advanced Dash Vision Paper. Additionally, I bestow upon you Knight Lance, so wield it with courage and never back down from your duty.”

“I swear my allegiance to you!”

“Hardlock…”

“Goldman…”

I appointed five Great Generals. They were chosen among existing lieutenants who had achieved sufficient levels and made notable contributions (in terms of honor coins and gold). Of course, they also needed to possess mana, enough experience, and support from their fellow soldiers.

And the former swordsman Great General…

became the first general.

“I can’t believe it… Me as a general?”

In truth, his rank fell far short of being a general, but due to the lack of talent currently available, he was the best candidate under these circumstances.

“You’ll be a training commander, not just any commander. Additionally, you will also oversee Wild Boar.”

The Wild Boar Castle provided the most jobs since it was located near pig dungeons, which produced both food and leather. Moreover, its position on the outskirts guaranteed stability for the region. For this reason, I decided to establish a training facility there to cultivate soldiers.

“As of now, I appoint you as the commander of the Wild Boar Training Brigade and leader of a ten-thousand-man unit. You shall receive a rare Visionary Command Scroll, Black Wolf Full Body Armor, and Rare Pet Grizzly Bear. Fulfill your duties with these gifts.”

Grrr!

Everyone gasped as they laid eyes on the red-furred bear standing over three meters tall. The swordsman was equally stunned but quickly straightened up and pledged his loyalty to jae-yeon.

“I shall serve you faithfully.”

Next, jae-yeon addressed the knights lined up behind him.

“Knight Stonestone. From this moment forth, I appoint you captain of the Knights of the Steel Shield. You will be granted rare mithril full-body armor and a pet stingray. Please fulfill your duties accordingly.”

Thud, thud!

Out of thin air appeared a rhinoceros covered with steel scales. Its size alone, comparable to that of a van, elicited awed exclamations from the villagers.

“It’s an armored rhino!”

“Lord Sungchul used to ride this… Wow, it’s truly awe-inspiring.”

The Steel Shield Knights Guild consisted of eighty-seven knights and two hundred seventeen reserve knights. Notably, over three-quarters were female.

“Knight Hundred, from this moment on, you are appointed as the commander of the Silver Cross Knights Guild. You will be granted a Hero Class Sentinel unit and a rare Frost Wolf pet. Please fulfill your duties accordingly.”

The Silver Cross Knights Guild comprised sixty-two knights and two hundred eighty reserve knights.

“It is an honor.”

“I pledge my loyalty!”

Both knights bowed respectfully. Stonestone looked his usual self, but Hundred appeared quite thrilled with sparkling eyes. He couldn’t hide his excitement, especially when gazing at the frost wolf pup.

“Smile, from this moment on, I appoint you as the commander of my fire magic battalion. As gifts, I bestow upon you a hero-class elemental and a rare salamander pet. Carry out your duties well.”

I referred to them as ‘magic battalions’, but among the forty-two who had completed their magic circle training and ninety-four currently being trained, few could be considered proper mages yet. They were merely proficient at creating circles, so more time was needed for them to master spells.

“Once enough mages have been properly trained, I will build a mage tower for you.”

“I’ll give it my all until my body gives out!”

Smile seemed almost dazed by the presence of the fire elemental before him. The hero-class elemental was undoubtedly more valuable, but his attention was solely focused on the pet.

“Flower, I appoint you as my chief attendant and bestow upon you the Necklace of Protection and the rare pet Panser.”

She would serve as a sort of Chief Secretary role. Currently, with numerous administrative tasks to handle, I assigned over a thousand literate servants to assist her immediately.

‘I’m glad Revenge is a South Korean game, so even the text uses hangul.’

If not for the use of hangul, the high illiteracy rate among NPCs would have made managing affairs significantly more challenging.

“I-I will serve you faithfully.” Despite being slightly intimidated by the appearance of the massive black panther, Flower calmly pledged her loyalty amidst her fear.

With all formalities completed,

“Waaaaahhh---!”

“Han Hae-yeon! Han Hae-yeon!”

“Congratulations, Swordsman-nim!”

“The beautiful Flower-noona!”

Cheers erupted. Hundreds of thousands of people were screaming while watching the lined-up soldiers. There was admiration and trust in their eyes. Seeing the pride on the faces of the soldiers made my heart itch.

‘Wow, it feels good to spend money.’

Despite spending a huge amount on classes, equipment, skills, pets, etc., I didn’t regret it at all. The strength of my ‘influence’ had increased significantly…and seeing my happy minions was worthwhile. Their reaction was so great that I decided to do another pet lottery next time. It seemed more visible due to their response.

‘My position is becoming clearer.’

I created the position of commander for the First Army Group. My subordinates advised me to proclaim myself king, but it was still premature. Instead, I made all newly formed units directly subordinate to me.

‘The Knights Guild and mage soldiers need more training. The Training Brigade will train new recruits…so the main movers will be the ten-thousand man units.’

Out of the five newly created ten-thousand man units, I designated two - Yangmol’s 1st and 2nd Regiments - as combat transport units responsible for moving supplies between castles. The remaining three regiments under Gipbal were tasked with occupying the recently neglected castles.

‘With the increased population, these tasks become easier.’

In conclusion, most refugees along with a significant portion of the Fox Army soldiers chose to stay at Starting Castle.

The White Fox was furious but it couldn’t change reality. The act of distributing meat to both soldiers and refugees had a profound impact on them. Above all, the miraculous duplication (?) of meat seemed to have deeply shocked the Fox Army. I accepted the newly surrendered soldiers as regular troops, including one knight and two advisers. It was difficult to use them immediately after accepting their surrender, so I placed each of them in either training or the feudal lord’s castle. In time, they would become valuable assets fulfilling their respective roles.

“Completed occupation of Blue Hammer Castle. Out of 1,500 refugees, 400 were accepted as new recruits, and living areas have been allocated.”

“Completed occupation of Beast Castle. Of the 4,400 refugees, 1,100 were accepted as new recruits, and cultivation has begun.”

“The Cane Dungeon is currently underway. Marquis Part leads approximately eight hundred soldiers claiming rights to the area.”

“Deliver enough food for ten thousand settlers each to Blue Hammer Castle and Beast Fortress. As for the Cane Dungeon… Send Hundred with whomever he deems fit.”

jae-yeon had been working nonstop from his study for almost a month without logging out. The population kept increasing, surpassing forty thousand at Starting Castle and seventy thousand at Wild Boar Fortress. Managing this many people became another task itself, but as administrative personnel were recruited among the refugees, things began running more smoothly.

“I should have some time soon.”

“Must you go?” Flower asked, concerned.

jae-yeon nodded.

“I have no choice since I’m the only one with flying pets. Plus, my solo combat power is… Don’t worry; tell the guild members to diligently farm experience points. They need to reach level 6.”

“Yes, Sungchul.”

“If any problems arise, signal the exchange.”

Although he had characters at his disposal, there were no accounts associated with them, which locked out features such as Mail and Chat. Consequently, Sungyoon had to rely on the Exchange for long-distance communication. He would register items promised beforehand or use an incantation scroll filled out on its backside.

“Alright. See you later.”

With vigorous flapping of wings, Sky took flight.

“All hail our Lord!”

“Hail!”

As the soldiers saluted him, Sungyoon controlled Sky towards their destination located to the south: Zhimail, the capital city of Chrome Kingdom.

The flight to Zhimail was uneventful.

“It feels somewhat anticlimactic.”

There were no problems or obstacles along the way. jae-yeon occasionally spotted groups of refugees on his journey, but since they weren’t in any immediate danger, there was no need for him to descend and help them.

“Khan Slasher is still struggling out there.”

Thanks to Khan’s efforts, the castle was holding its own against the onslaught, but it was still overwhelmingly outnumbered by enemies. Not only did the Flower of Avarice spawn numerous elite monsters, but the elemental disadvantage also made things harder for Khan’s troops. Despite their tenacity, once the special boss, Ice Queen, arrived, all would be lost.

I have to consume this castle before then.

However, consuming it wouldn’t solve everything. He needed to upgrade Sky to at least hero rank immediately after devouring the castle in order to withstand the relentless enemy attacks.

In conclusion…

I need to make money.

That’s why Zhimail had come here.

Whoooo…

Despite traveling nearly two hundred kilometers south, it only grew colder instead of warmer. This abnormal weather was undoubtedly due to the influence of ice elementals entrenched at the flower shop.

The Ice Queen isn’t around… And considering she hasn’t invaded the orc dungeon either, perhaps she’s attacking another one.

After scanning the area, I began my slow descent. The Mage Tower resembling a wagon wheel served as a landmark, allowing me to easily locate and land on its rooftop.

“It doesn’t seem like there was much chaos here.”

It appeared that mages didn’t go down without a fight, evidenced by scattered items and gold throughout the area. Buildings lay in ruins, and the mage towers were frozen solid.

I bet it’s below minus forty degrees Celsius.

Even for this season, the temperature was insane, but fortunately, it didn’t affect me.

[Frost Guardian Ring (Rare) +9.]

This was the result of numerous failed enforcements. Although it didn’t emit any warmth, wearing this ring prevented me from feeling even the slightest chill.

“Ah.”

It didn’t take long to find what I was looking for. It couldn’t be otherwise.

“Only novel books remain.”

The library of the wagon wheel mage tower was scattered in disarray, reflecting the chaos during the attack. The floor was littered with various books, including novels. The shelves were empty as mages had taken all the theoretical magic and spellbooks, along with encyclopedias.

Thud.

I moved the empty bookcases to block the broken doors, effectively shielding against the biting wind. Despite the extreme cold inside the library, thanks to the Frost Guardian Ring (Rare) +9, I remained unfazed by the chill.

“Let’s see…” I stacked the remaining novel books on a desk to one side and picked up one volume.

“This seems like a good place to start?”

Whenever I mentioned Sword Master to people from Ardenia, they would say:

[Lordship, such words only exist in legends.]

[Aura Blade…Sword Master?]

[Crazy talk! It is just a legend!]

Everyone thought that Sword Masters didn’t exist, but nobody was unaware of them. They had never seen a real Sword Master, but everyone heard the ‘legends’.

The Great Emperor Shine Sight—a legendary name. He was the emperor who ruled over more than half the continent before the Holy Empire or the Ming Empire existed.

The “Shine Sight Heroic Legend” recounts how he rose from being born a slave to becoming emperor.

Apparently, it’s considered the most modern-feeling among the classics and also the most widely read.

In Ardenia, cultivation techniques were so inferior that even those with considerable talent found it challenging to advance their skills. Only geniuses could reach Sword Master level using the Three Elements Cultivation Technique.

And Shine Sight the Great was indeed such a genius. As a coming-of-age story featuring a prodigy as its protagonist, one would expect some degree of popularity!

튀긴감자: No fun at all. Well-written but utterly boring.

꾹꾹2020: Seriously, WTF?! Over five volumes in, and we’re still in the prologue?!

검사: Huh, why hasn’t he escaped yet? Enjoying his slave life or what?

010****: Don’t get what this is about.

꾹꾹2020: Seriously, damn it! It’s already past Volume 1, and he’s still a slave!

Noah: Huh, isn’t this worldview too weak? If I continue like this, I will kill everyone and become king!

Q.Q2020: Seriously, it’s Volume 2 but still a slave? Is the title ‘Heroic Legend’ correct? Shouldn’t it be ‘My Wise Slave Life’?

I wondered if there was any similar content within Revenge, so I purchased a plagiarism checker, and the results were appalling. There were 191 previous works with identical elements.

Furthermore, starting from Volume 3, the novel became paid, yet the average number of purchases couldn’t surpass 20.

“Well, it wasn’t going to succeed anyway.”

Despite the discouraging outcome, I didn’t lose heart. Had my meticulously crafted ideas and carefully refined sentences received such a tepid response, it would’ve been disheartening, but remember, this was just plagiarized work after all.

While juggling multiple part-time jobs, I continued serializing Shine Sight’s Heroic Legend every weekend. Initially, I wrote two volumes per weekend, but soon increased it to four.

Q.Q2020: Wow, check out the speed of this boring story updates.

And thus, time flowed by.