He would build an independent nation.

That meant Hyunsoo would be leaving Goyard’s embrace.

There was a clear reason Hyunsoo had started thinking that way.

My growth is too fast. Faster than anyone can handle.

There was physical growth, sure, but there was also the growth of his standing in Goyard.

And when that happened, side effects followed.

Which side will the three marquises stand on?

The one who would become king someday—or the king they had served all along.

Of course, if it were the three men Hyunsoo knew, they would stand with whoever would make Goyard prosper even more.

That was his subjective opinion.

And that subjective opinion was the problem.

People’s thoughts are different in the end.

So the marquises could each end up striving for different people.

The real issue was that, because of that, the factions among the people and the soldiers would start splitting as well.

It was unavoidable.

Even in the real world, a prince who inherited the “pure” bloodline starts a rebellion because he wants to become king faster.

Like that, even though naming a successor had been Barad’s will, various forces that wanted to bring Barad down could still approach Hyunsoo.

That was politics.

Filthy, reeking like rot.

Of course, Hyunsoo believed the three marquises wouldn’t do that—but if it came to that, Goyard’s national strength would weaken.

And besides—

I’m living in the present era. So I’m going to do it my way.

He didn’t want to put his friend Barad in danger.

“In the Joseon Dynasty, everyone did it that way”? And this place, with its medieval backdrop, was similar?

Not my problem.

Hyunsoo would become king in his own way.

So the plan he built in his head was an independent nation.

Of course, it’ll be ‘independent’ in name only—more like a great territory that doesn’t even meet the requirements to be called a country yet. Yeah. First, we become an independent great territory.

To do that, he needed people on the same level as the three marquises who had made Goyard what it was.

Or people like Sword Duke Lysen.

And the moment Fenrir turned to ash-gray, Hyunsoo had felt it in his bones.

Now even the named NPCs will come after me.

The best way to raise your own value was to stomp down “a growing sprout.”

The ones already holding their positions didn’t fight each other.

They knew how strong they were.

But a growing sprout still lacked experience, and Hyunsoo—still known as someone running a “snot-sized territory”—was nothing but easy prey.

And I’m good at making artifacts, too.

Would they be tempted, or wouldn’t they?

That was why he needed to prepare—and the tools for that preparation were already being put in place.

First: Hyunsoo’s growth.

If I’m going to project the power of an independent nation, what matters is having strength—like His Highness Barad of that small kingdom.

After killing Fenrir, Hyunsoo hadn’t even had time to properly check his notifications.

All he knew was that, true to a legend, it gave an enormous amount of experience.

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up......]

Hyunsoo, who had been level 403, shot up to 415 in an instant.

Level 400s.

Even among high levels, that now put him in the upper tier.

Which meant the amount of experience that would have given five levels at level 300 now barely gave one level at level 400.

And most decisively—Fenrir wasn’t what it looked like.

That beggar.......

All it gave him was gold.

Sure, it was a massive sum—worth around 400 million won.

But still.

It didn’t even trigger the skill “Gather.”

Yet Hyunsoo’s mouth twitched.

Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh!

Territory residents passing by flinched when they saw Hyunsoo standing there, laughing to himself, but he didn’t care.

Because—

The ability to turn a beggar into a rich man!

Hyunsoo recalled the moment he killed Fenrir.

*****

[Fenrir’s HP becomes 0.]

The instant the alert sounded, Hyunsoo stabbed with the Dagger of Desire hanging at his neck before the bastard could turn ash-gray.

[Trait Storage activates.]

[Please set the trait you wish to obtain.]

[You did not designate one.]

[A 10% chance to attempt Trait Storage.]

[You acquire a trait at random.]

Up until now, Trait Storage on Hyunsoo’s Dagger of Desire had failed every single time.

On Legion Commander Robs, and on demon Gremory, too.

But with the Legendary monster, Fenrir, it was different.

[Random storage succeeds.]

Random.

All or nothing.

Honestly, Fenrir was a monster that was pretty disappointing in terms of traits.

Sure, it was amazing that it could use special magic unlike a typical monster.

But it was packed with skills that looked like you could learn as many as you wanted—if you just had money.

What Hyunsoo was betting on was this.

There might be a power I don’t know about.

The problem was that even an unknown power could end up being a double-edged sword.

Something trivial—or something genuinely good.

[Fenrir Charge is stored.]

And the first thing stored in the Dagger of Desire.

Its name looked ridiculously unimpressive.

Fenrir Charge? “Pikachu Tackle” sounds better than that.

Also, for stored power, it was displayed with 60% of the strength applied.

(Fenrir Charge)

Active skill

Grade: Legendary

Cooldown: One month

Level: None

Mana cost: 7,000

Penalty: None

Effect:

·Fenrir charges like a mad beast, trampling everything.

·When it tramples, it deals 250% additional attack power.

·Splash damage is applied near the trampled area, dealing 250% additional attack power.

·Charges for 8 seconds.

When Hyunsoo first saw it, he’d wondered if it was even good.

Trampling? So what—what am I supposed to do with “trampling”?

That was all.

Of course, that was only 60% of the effect.

Meaning at 100%, it would trample with 400% power, and the splash damage would match.

Why didn’t Fenrir use this?

He was thinking, Is it useless?—and then a chill ran through him.

...It didn’t use it because it couldn’t.

Dealing only 60% damage also meant the mana cost was reduced.

In other words, the original mana cost was over 10,000.

Hyunsoo’s total MP wasn’t even close to 10,000—he was only a little over 7,000.

And no matter how much it was a monster, it couldn’t just spam something that cost more than 10,000 mana.

Then another question.

Is Fenrir being summoned to charge, or am I charging......?

Hyunsoo charging was ridiculous.

Hyunsoo, charge!

The image of himself running while shouting it like some cringe middle schooler flashed through his head.

He shook it off.

Given that it was described as Fenrir Charge, the odds were high that Fenrir would be summoned.

And Hyunsoo’s eyes widened as his uncertainty snapped into place.

“...Wait a second. This.”

He’d realized the truth.

Used on a single target, it was a trait so garbage it belonged in the trash.

But—

What if it manifested in the middle of fifty thousand Blood Ghoul Corps?

If Fenrir’s massive body charged and trampled through them, it could cause an enormous number of casualties.

Of course—

...Burning 7,000 mana has to be done carefully.

But he could think of it this way.

The more I grow, the higher my total MP gets.

So the more he grew, the more this trait would become a source of power.

He’d obtained the best skill for fighting people.

Even if he could only use it once a month.

Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh.

How could he not laugh?

He’d hit the jackpot on a mob that gave him nothing.

And what Hyunsoo truly looked forward to wasn’t even that.

Leaving the memories of hunting Fenrir behind, he focused on what he’d really been waiting for.

[Contribution measurement is complete.]

The alert had appeared, but he hadn’t been able to check the details because of his conversation with Barad.

[You killed 800 Blood Ghoul Corps alone.]

[You killed roughly 15,000 Blood Ghoul Corps through demon Gremory.]

[With excellent command, you annihilated over 14,000 enemy troops.]

[Your vassal Luxiu has killed 52 commanders and the supreme commander.]

[Territory contribution x2 is applied.]

[You hunted the Legendary monster Fenrir alone.]

[Your contribution regarding Fenrir is multiplied by 3.]

[King Barad acknowledges your merit and bestows high contribution.]

[They are totaled.]

Even Barad’s bestowed contribution at the end.

Hyunsoo expected a foothold—something that would let him stand as an independent power.

Then the number that appeared made even him flinch.

[You acquire 1,153,010 territory contribution.]

*****

“1... 1.15 million...?”

Nell couldn’t hide her shock.

They were someone who believed in data more rigorously than anyone.

This fall campaign—

And the continental wars that had erupted across the world’s continents elsewhere.

An ordinary guild had ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) amassed roughly 60,000 to 100,000 contribution.

A strong guild: around 100,000 to 180,000.

And the truly formidable guilds that secured many rankers averaged around 200,000 to 350,000.

But Hyunsoo’s contribution was in the 1.1 million range.

...Right. That’s what it was.

Nell recalled what the “experts” had been shouting during the fall campaign.

Strength was relative.

And to break the existence of that relative strength, you needed someone with strength worthy of it.

And also—

Rewards are relative, too.

Depending on who moved for the reward, there could be a twofold or fivefold difference.

Right—Bahala was the example.

How was Bahala so overwhelmingly unique?

Relative strength?

They ignored all of it.

A single individual with unrivaled strength had been monopolizing rewards worth four or five times what ordinary users got.

And now Hyunsoo had joined that rank.

Nell couldn’t even imagine it.

With 1.15 million... what kind of people can you awaken?

Atlas—though ruled by the Holy Lord—was a territory where powerful people had been concentrated.

“...Who will you awaken first? No—buy Talent Check first.”

Talent Check required 200,000 contribution.

“There’s no need. It’s unnecessary.”

Unnecessary?

Confirming what talent existed was a very good thing.

And it let you gather contribution with specific targets in mind.

But Hyunsoo was looking farther ahead.

“If I awaken the single best one and they pledge loyalty, they’ll tell us what kind of talent we have.”

“...That’s true. Then maybe...”

Nell was impressed.

They’d realized who Hyunsoo meant to awaken.

The person he’d encountered not long after arriving in Atlas.

And the thought of daring to awaken that person filled them with anticipation.

“Let’s go awaken Bon.”

His name—Bon.

He had been the commander who led Atlas.

More precisely, he had been the leader of the Black Wind Corps.

[Do you wish to purchase Black Wind Corps Leader Bon and 2,000 Black Wind Corps for 800,000 contribution?]

An absurd amount of contribution.

But watching Hyunsoo buy it without hesitation, Nell asked—

“Do you have to spend that much?”

“...It’s way cheaper if you buy it bundled.”

They had no choice but to accept that.

[Bon and the Black Wind Corps awaken.]

*****

The outskirts of Atlas.

The statues rising from the earth began to crack apart.

Little by little, fissures spread across the stone.

Among them, Bon was furious.

...What were you thinking, awakening me?

Even asleep, Bon could feel it.

It hadn’t even been two months since he met the new lord, a man named Hyunsoo.

Back then, on the day he went back to sleep, Bon had thought this.

When I awaken, will you be able to earn even my loyalty?

Right. What that man needed to do wasn’t awaken him because he needed him right now.

You should awaken me only when you can prove you’re a master worthy of obtaining me.

The weak cannot command the strong.

To make that possible, you need bloodline.

The man Bon had seen two months ago had been a greenhorn.

In truth, the soldiers had been swept away by his attacks, but Bon himself hadn’t taken much damage.

And yet he’d awakened Bon a mere two months later.

Blinded by power.

And Bon’s eyes were special.

His eyes saw the dead.

The souls of those the other party had recently killed—or even beings sealed by them.

RUMBLE—

As Bon began to open his eyes, he planned to burst into mad laughter at the dead he would see.

Arrogant. A misjudgment.

[Eye of the Dead]

Bon opened his eyes—then froze when he saw Hyunsoo approaching in a brown coat, looking down at him with the gaze of a king.

Right now... what am I seeing?

The dead above Hyunsoo’s head.

A seductive Transcendent species with enormous horns—demon Gremory—was staring at him as if he were an insect.