A wind of change is blowing through the Prahum Kingdom’s capital.

The nobles of the Prahum Kingdom, led by the strategist Pan.

The ones who said His Majesty Ben had been seized by absurd delusions and memories.

Those nobles were made to pay for their sins and were imprisoned for seven days.

And yet, on the faces of those imprisoned, there was no resentment, no emptiness.

Instead, they decided in unison to give 30% of their wealth to the national treasury.

And the wind of change was this.

“The Negotiator saved us and gave us enlightenment.”

The nobles had despaired, thinking, We’re all going to die.

But there was one person who did not.

Blacksmith Hyun.

The image of the blacksmith, who did not stop crafting even as he was swallowed by the scorching flames beyond the collapsed wall, was seared into them.

“Even if it breaks.”

Murmuring the words that embodied his will, the nobles smiled.

“He may be from an enemy nation, but he is truly a splendid man.”

And elsewhere.

Hundreds of knights.

Knights those nobles commanded, some belonging to the Royal Knights, and others active in their own territories, spoke.

“I can’t forget it. That toughness worthy of chivalry, that martial might, that skill. Even though he’s a blacksmith, I think I’ve come to respect him. I’ve taken on thoughts I shouldn’t.”

“It’s fine. It isn’t just you. Many knights who were there took on the same feelings.”

The story of the Negotiator spread from the nobles’ mouths to their retainers, and from the knights’ mouths to the soldiers.

And astonishingly, this change had a close connection to the Negotiation Progress in the quest Hyunsoo had received.

Negotiation Progress represented many things, and it was the foundation for securing the initiative in peace.

The biggest way to seize the initiative in peace was a change in the hearts of the people of the Prahum Kingdom.

A new story exuded by someone from an enemy nation.

As for Hyunsoo, who had fainted again like some ill-fated male lead, these notifications were spreading over him.

[Negotiation Progress increases by 4%.]

[Negotiation Progress increases by 3%.]

[Negotiation Progress......]

[Negotiation Progress......]

That wind of change was not something only they welcomed.

The master of the Prahum Kingdom, Sky King Ben.

Late at night, unable to sleep, he stroked the World Tree in the garden.

SHWAAAAAA—!

After looking out at the vast leaves fluttering in the wind, he stepped out.

Then he opened the door to one room.

He looked at Blacksmith Hyun sleeping inside, then closed the door and stepped away.

He walked to his audience chamber.

Seated in the audience chamber, Ben fell into deep contemplation.

‘It’s not enough.......’

Ben judged it so.

‘Fawn Mane Hair, Fairy Dust, Orichalcum, Black Mithril, Mountain King’s Claw, Cradan spear techniques...... tell me.’

Those were the rewards Sky King Ben had presented when he gave the mission to save the Small World Tree.

In truth, even the material called the Small World Tree alone was a precious reward.

But he wanted to repay him for saving his beloved disciple Frak.

And now, he judged even that to be insufficient.

Of course, everything he had offered was priceless.

The materials he had offered were all artifact materials with staggering prices, and they also represented the blacksmith’s nation.

And Cradan spear techniques.

It might look like nothing more than ordinary spearwork, but it was the spear art that represented the Prahum Kingdom.

The Sky King himself would teach it, so how tremendous was that?

But even that was not enough.

Ben closed his eyes.

Soon, news would come.

‘Your Majesty, the people are crying out your name.’

‘Your Majestyyyy, barren land has changed into fertile land, and the kingdom’s food shortage has been eased.’

Hyun had achieved something so great.

And that was not all.

Originally, the Sky King’s power ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) was this much.

[Sky King Ben Lv.436]

But it changed because of the single spear Hyunsoo had crafted for him.

[Sky King Ben Lv.465]

For a named NPC like Ben to become this much stronger was an enormous matter.

So he thought.

‘What if I pass that power on.’

The Sky King had two powers that represented him.

One was Spear Overcome, which Frak had shown.

Frak had shown an incomplete Spear Overcome, and the true Spear Overcome unleashed truly tremendous power.

And there was another secret art of the Sky King that the public did not know.

Naturally, the public did not know.

How often would a powerhouse like the Sky King have to fight someone?

And before he even needed to manifest that power, he won his battles.

‘But passing that power on is something I should not do to my disciple.’

Ben’s head throbbed.

“Your Majesty, may we come in.”

A voice rang out then.

Soon, two men entered.

One was Frak, and one was Pan.

Pan, who had sinned, voluntarily paid 50% of his wealth as tax to the national treasury.

In addition, his noble rank was lowered by one step.

Even so, his expression looked calm.

The two had come for the king who could not sleep.

They listened to his worried words.

Ben watched their reactions.

He was extremely cautious.

“...So I am thinking that I might pass Ghost Steps on to Blacksmith Hyun.”

Ben also thought Frak might fall into deep sorrow for a while.

He might even have a fit.

‘That would be natural.’

Frak was his beloved disciple, and Hyun was the Negotiator who had come from an enemy nation.

A secret art of the Sky King that even Frak had not learned.......

“Please do.”

Yet Frak spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“In my humble opinion, is it not a very good idea.”

He even went further.

Only then did Ben realize.

That wind of change had reached everyone here as well.

“The materials Your Majesty offered him are things that can be obtained with money. And spear techniques would be meaningless power to him, since he already possesses Sword King Barad’s swordsmanship. I believe giving him that power is most fitting.”

Ben felt it.

Frak’s gratitude toward Hyunsoo was greater than he had thought.

“And even if he learns it, it is obvious that I will win in our next match, so what would I have to fear.”

Ben saw a future where two kings cared for each other.

Through his words, he learned one thing.

That Frak and Hyun would become splendid rivals.

And since one reward had been decided, it was time to speak of the spear’s value.

“We must also count the price of saving these wretched fools, so give him 50% more.”

No one could deny those words.

And Pan thought that a truly astonishing sum had been assigned to a single spear.

‘Your Majesty.......’

And strategist Pan, watching Ben, held a small worry.

He could not bring himself to speak that worry. Everything was decided, and morning dawned.

*****

“Ugh.......”

Waking from sleep, Hyunsoo looked around.

It was a luxurious bedroom.

‘What was that notification?’

The notification saying he was approaching a special name.

For now, there was no way to know.

Then a new notification rang out and snapped Hyunsoo fully awake.

[Many within the Prahum Kingdom have changed how they view the Negotiator.]

[By the Small World Tree you revived, the Prahum Kingdom’s national strength increases by 1.2%.]

[Total Negotiation Progress reaches 62%.]

Hyunsoo had been unconscious, but he could tell what this notification meant.

‘Did national strength rise because of the rice grains?’

With ten grains of rice, the number of starving people would decrease at an exponential rate, so national strength would rise.

“His Majesty requests your presence.”

There was one more proof of that change.

[Strategist Pan]

Whenever he looked at Hyunsoo, he had looked with contempt.

Since he had come from an enemy nation, that was natural.

But now he was observing etiquette, and as they walked together, he said this.

“Thank you for saving us.”

Receiving a polite greeting, Hyunsoo kept walking through the royal castle.

The expressions of the people he passed were completely different.

And Hyunsoo thought carefully about what he would demand from Ben.

The things Ben had said he would give if Hyunsoo saved the Small World Tree.

But now those things felt strangely hollow.

When Hyunsoo finally met Ben, Ben wore the mischievous grin of an old man and chuckled as he spoke.

“Let us pretend the talk of rewards we had before never happened.”

Hyunsoo’s heart sank.

‘Did I do something wrong?’

[Rewards are maximized.]

Ben smiled slyly.

“I will give you something else, not such things. I will pass Ghost Steps on to you.”

[Ghost Steps is Legend grade.]

Hyunsoo was awed.

And unlike when he learned swordsmanship from Barad, a skill quest did not appear.

When receiving something from an NPC, sometimes a skill quest appears, and sometimes it does not.

Usually it appears when the NPC teaches and tests you.

But Ben had decided to teach him without testing him.

‘Legend grade......?’

A sudden acquisition of a Legend-grade skill.

And because it was a secret art of the Sky King, Hyunsoo felt it was too valuable.

‘To me, who is still lacking, it’s like an oasis.’

Hyunsoo still had a long road to carve through.

On that road, Ghost Steps would be a great help.

“I have also finished measuring the value of the spear you made. I will give you 1,700,000 gold.”

1.7 billion won.

It was a record-breaking amount among everything so far.

Hyunsoo felt he had gained a lot here.

Ghost Steps, the Highest-grade Small World Tree, and a vast fortune worth 1.7 billion won.

“Thank you.”

Hyunsoo, prostrated, waited for Ben to dismiss him.

But strangely, Ben said nothing, and only after a long time did he finally speak.

“...Can you not remain by my side?”

It was not something a retainer of an enemy nation should say.

Hyunsoo was flustered by those words.

*****

Standing beside Ben, Pan realized that what he had worried about had come to pass.

He understood His Majesty’s heart.

The period an enemy nation’s Negotiator could remain was only ten days.

Hyun had stayed for four days.

In the end, six days later, he had to leave. After that, there was no promise of meeting again.

‘Hyun has no choice but one option.......’

Pan knew that option was the Kingdom of Goyard.

The Hyun he had seen was such a man.

“I can even give you a noble title above count. So can you not become a person of the Prahum Kingdom?”

At last, Ben’s words, close to forcing it out.

Hyun’s eyes did not waver at all.

“I refuse.”

That cold reply stabbed deeper into Ben’s chest.

Pan looked at His Majesty and felt bitter.

It might be because he coveted Hyun’s power.

But there was something larger than that.

In truth, after that cold reply, Ben reached the point of almost resenting Hyun a little.

“I covet your strength, but more than that, I feel a deeper loneliness.”

Ben had felt and learned much from him, and he had taken comfort in his heart.

And how long would an old man like him live?

And Barad made him terribly envious.

Hyun refused the offer without the slightest hesitation.

A higher title, and more gold and treasures.

That was the charm Hyun possessed.

So Ben wanted him gone even less.

But it was something he had to swallow.

‘I do not want to send you away.......’

But he could not see a way.

Pan could not see a way either.

Yet only one person, Hyunsoo, found it.

“...I am sorry. Let us stop this talk.”

Ben spoke in a cold voice as he swallowed his desire.

Hyunsoo, still prostrated, spoke in a gentle voice.

“Then I will do it. I will listen to what Your Majesty wants to say.”

Ben could not understand.

How could a retainer of an enemy nation listen to his words after leaving this place?

“I want to see Your Majesty as someone else, not as Your Majesty’s retainer, and not as a noble of an enemy nation.” 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Was there such a way?

Ben doubted it.

Before he knew it, Hyunsoo was looking at him with a warm smile.

Hearing those words, Ben’s heart softened.

Pan marveled at Hyun’s cleverness, catching two rabbits when he could only choose one side.

The words he said to Ben.

“Please become my friend.”

Hyun bared his teeth and smiled faintly at Ben.

The lonely old man chuckled and said,

“You insolent brat, how many years apart are you and me. Hah.”

On this day, Hyunsoo gained two friends.

One was Sword King Barad, and the other was Sky King Ben.