The advantages and disadvantages of users and NPCs were clear.

Now that Second Ares had opened, the level of NPCs was still overwhelmingly higher than the users’.

The point everyone had to keep in mind was simple: just four years ago, users had started at level 1.

The fact that users had even managed to catch up to NPCs at all was astonishing.

NPCs had the advantage of being born here, growing up here, and developing here—while users had the advantage of something called quests, which let them chase that growth.

Users cleared quests, gained stats and skills, and kept moving forward.

They could even learn information that NPCs would never know—through quests.

And quests had one more advantage.

They let you anticipate what was going to happen.

Sometimes, they told you what was about to happen.

Sometimes, they didn’t.

They were pretty unfriendly like that.

But users didn’t complain.

Because even being told once in a while was better than nothing.

And now, Hyunsoo learned about one of those impending events.

[A group at the center of the dissatisfaction with the royal command raises forces.]

[An army numbering 4,000 begins to move to depose the king’s descendant.]

[Prepare for war.]

Hyunsoo’s face—still fresh from meeting Arte—twisted with confusion, and at the same time, a quest erupted.

Ding!

[King’s Path Quest: Rebels]

Grade: S

Restriction: King’s descendant

Reward: Acquire spoils of war, and all guild members gain +3 to all stats

Penalty on failure: You step down as a descendant.

Description: Those who harbored dissatisfaction with the royal command took advantage of the chaotic gap created when the continents connected and raised forces. Wipe them out completely as they sow chaos in the Kingdom of Goyard.

This is bad....

Personally, Hyunsoo had been thinking that if he ended up fighting a territory war, the first ones would be users.

Posts keep going up—people saying they crossed over to the Asgan Continent server to prove they’re here to find my hidden territory.

The fortunate part was that they wouldn’t touch Valas Territory.

That was because of Nell’s strategy.

“We need to pull out most of Valas Territory’s forces. Only a minimum number of residents and a minimum number of blacksmiths should remain. And even though the true lord is Lord Bark, we must make it look like Bellin is the lord.”

“Why do we have to do that? Wouldn’t Valas Territory be way too vulnerable if it gets attacked?”

“Ares is set in the medieval era. A world where war never ends, power rules, and human rights are scarce.”

“Yeah, so that’s why we need more forces—”

“But users aren’t like that.”

Back then, Nell had filled in what Hyunsoo lacked.

“Users today are people who live in the 21st century. In the war that broke out in 2022, Russia—the one that started it—was condemned worldwide. Modern people loathe one-sided plunder and massacres of the powerless.”

“...So you’re saying that if users indiscriminately attack Valas Territory—since it looks like civilians—they’ll be terrified of the backlash and won’t attack? But no matter where you go, there are always lunatics.”

“Correct. But even lunatics gain nothing by looting Valas Territory right now. The only thing they gain is Hyunsoo’s anger. So let me ask you this: how many users would want to earn Hyunsoo’s anger right now? And global users are burning with competitiveness, not hostility toward Hyunsoo.”

“Then what about NPCs?”

“Even if there are those plotting rebellion, if they dare to commit plunder in a country where His Majesty Barad resides, they will be annihilated.”

Hyunsoo had been impressed by Nell’s wisdom.

And just in case, we also placed Lord Bark, the Gale members, and Lukburg in position—disguised as ordinary territory residents.

Hyunsoo knew he had to return to Atlas Territory.

“Arte, I’m heading back. If anything happens, send a messenger pigeon immediately.”

Before Hyunsoo tore the Return Scroll, he whispered to Nell.

[Hyunsoo: Nell.]

[Nell is currently logged out.]

Hyunsoo made a puzzled face.

What? This isn’t the time for them to be offline.

Hyunsoo tore the Return Scroll.

Meanwhile.

Hyein had also confirmed the quest that had broken out—“Rebels.”

The moment she saw it, she logged out.

“This is Hyun’s Forge’s first unprecedented crisis.”

If users and rebels discovered Atlas at the same time, Hyun’s Forge could fall immediately.

One wave, we can endure. Two waves, we can’t.

But Hyein had been feeling that something was off.

She checked the information she’d collected on her computer.

There were screenshot posts there.

Came to the Korea server to take down Hyun’s Forge. Got trapped in some place called an endless maze that never ends. What is this?

The poster was a Korean who had obtained Chinese citizenship.

Endless maaaaze lol. Why’d you even go in there.

That place is f***ed. Even the Sword King doesn’t go there.

THIS IS THE KOREA SERVER!!!!!

LOOOOOOL

CLICK—

She checked other information.

[I am Musashi of Japan. I officially declare that I have become enemies with the information broker Kabel. Kabel was a fraud whose name only ever existed as rumors.]

“Kabel...?”

She rolled the name around in her mouth.

Beyond that, posts were going up saying Kabel was a scammer, no longer an information broker, or that people had been tricked by an impersonator.

And aside from Pond, most of the rankers who crossed over from around the world had been scattered across high-difficulty dungeons.

In other words, they’d accomplished nothing.

Aside from Pond, the others didn’t come here with malice toward Hyunsoo. So they aren’t at the scale of marching an army. They came with only a minimum number of people.

So they didn’t look like an immediate threat.

Still, what Hyein found strange was this.

“Why would Kabel...?”

She knew Kabel, too.

They were an individual whose price tag was far higher than Lee Hwan—the #1 in the Korea rankings.

The one also called a shadow had never once revealed themself to the world.

Even buying information from them was extremely difficult.

What felt wrong to Hyein was this:

The rebels aren’t moving toward Atlas.

So Hyein asked herself a question.

Do NPCs buy information, too?

The answer was yes. If they needed something badly enough, they also bought information from the most famous names.

“Did Kabel send the rebels toward the endless maze, too?”

The two groups that went into the maze had something in common.

First: they were large-scale forces.

Second: they had malice toward Hyunsoo.

And Kabel—just as mentioned—sent the other rankers who came in small numbers into dungeons.

Hyein thought for a moment.

“Ally... or enemy.”

With that question in her mind, she could only solve it by logging into Ares.

“Kabel...?”

Hyunsoo realized who the nameless friend was—and felt genuine awe.

It wasn’t that he’d gained a friend he could rely on.

He hadn’t even known their name, and he hadn’t known what kind of power they possessed.

He was simply amazed and happy that his friend was far more remarkable and formidable than he’d expected.

“Yeah. I knew you were the real deal.”

Hyunsoo explained the entire situation to Nell.

“...Raon, you mean?”

Nell realized Raon was a thoroughly reliable ally.

“But why?”

Why did they send the two groups with the same commonality there?

To find an answer, she worked her brain as hard as she could. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

At that moment—

[You have entered the Ponder Continent.]

Kabel—who had arrived on the continent where you could walk the path of Asura—let out a bitter smile.

This is a method you can only use once.

A method Kabel could only use by throwing away everything they’d built up until now.

Of course, since Kabel intended to walk the path of Asura now, it didn’t matter.

You are the only person I have ever acknowledged.

Kabel didn’t acknowledge people. That was why they hadn’t acknowledged even the most famous strategist in China.

But while staying in Atlas Territory, Kabel had learned that the key figure there was Nell.

Only someone with a mind as extraordinary as yours can find the answer quickly.

Kabel had only sent them there.

What happened next—what results were created—depended on her.

*****

“His ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) Majesty has been consumed by loneliness. He can no longer see the world straight, and he is being toyed with by Count Hyunsoo—a parasite clinging like a corrupt courtier.”

Those were the words of Sword Duke Roman as he led the rebel army.

In the Kingdom of Goyard, there were two massive sword families known as the Two Pillars.

One was the family led by Sword Duke Raisen, who had clashed with Hyunsoo before.

And the other was the Pryder Family, led by Sword Duke Roman.

Unlike Raisen, Sword Duke Roman was very young.

“That is correct.”

“This is our last chance to open His Majesty’s eyes.”

He looked over the rebels gathered from all directions.

He spoke those words, but their hearts were black beyond measure.

If it isn’t Bella—and if it isn’t the bloodline—then shouldn’t the one sitting on the throne be me? Sir Raisen is old now. Am I not the only light of Goyard?

He hid his greed behind lies—words stuffed full of false righteousness about how His Majesty needed to “see correctly.”

And—

If Count Hyunsoo falls, Roman might move closer to being the descendant.

If that happens, a great seat will come to us as well.

Those following him were the same.

Roman spoke again.

“This is reform—for the future of Goyard.”

“That’s right!”

“For Goyard!”

“For Goyard!”

A young knight asked,

“What about the territory residents?”

Roman’s face twisted into a bitter expression.

“If they become our ears, our bodies, and our tongues, we will spare them.”

When the brutal war ended, the Sword King would interrogate them.

At that time, the residents of Hyunsoo’s territory would have to declare it was a just war.

“If not, they’ve been brainwashed by Count Hyunsoo—so we’ll have to kill them all.”

Even continental law stipulated that you did not kill civilians.

The laws of the Kingdom of Goyard were even stricter.

Roman, who would ignore that, was a creature of truly terrifying greed.

Before long, they reached a forest.

And then something strange happened.

“Isn’t this the road we came from?”

“...Odd. The one I bought information from was supposed to be an information broker whose fame reaches even beyond the continent. Fine—let’s go this way.”

A little later—

“This is the road we came from!”

“Then this way.”

A little later—

“...?”

“...?”

“...?”

Roman looked flustered—then burst into laughter.

“So it’s true. They said Count Hyunsoo is someone who’s mastered brainwashing, and it seems they weren’t lying. There’s magic laid over this place. Count Hyunsoo’s territory must be hidden somewhere in here. Hurry. Find it.”

Roman and the rebels moved to find the hidden territory, Atlas.

And then they spotted an unidentified group surging toward them from ahead.

Two thousand...?

Roman frowned as he watched the mass of bodies flooding in like a black tide.

Those aren’t Count Hyunsoo’s colors...?

Tilting his head, he raised his guard against the approaching force.

*****

The rebels are NPCs, and Pond’s forces are users.

Nell closed her eyes and sank into thought.

Those two groups can’t help but collide inside the endless maze.

And then Nell thought:

NPCs don’t trust users.

Users don’t trust NPCs.

And—

“Pond doesn’t know which NPCs they belong to, and the rebels don’t know what kind of people those who crossed over from China are.”

Nell’s eyes opened.

“I understand Kabel’s intention, Hyunsoo.”

She almost got chills—genuinely.

Sending people everywhere.

Sending them somewhere.

Sending some here, some there—while judging that she would be able to see the pattern.

Once she saw the whole board, Nell felt truly grateful to Kabel.

“Hyunsoo’s friend left us the only way we can protect Atlas.”

It was true.

Atlas couldn’t withstand 4,000 rebels and 2,000 of Pond’s elite forces.

“What is it...?”

“[Use the Enemy to Control the Enemy].”

Hyunsoo normally used that phrase to mean winning with the enemy’s power.

But its real meaning was different.

“Catch barbarians with barbarians.”