Asura’s Black Robe.

A Legendary artifact that only the Hell King Asura could wear.

It consisted of a total of three pieces, and crafting it had required an absurd amount of materials.

Because Kabel monopolized information first, they had spent about a month completing the full Asura’s Black Robe Set.

That was how badly they had needed Asura’s Black Robe.

And Asura’s Black Robe was an artifact packed with abilities useful to an assassin.

Its most useful ability, of course, was that it concealed the amount of damage the wearer had taken from the opponent.

A good number of rankers were seasoned fighters.

They were the sort of beings who could grasp the current situation just by looking at the other person’s expression.

To people like that, Asura Kabel—who kept a poker face and didn’t even show how much damage had been dealt—was a truly ghostlike existence.

And unlike Hyunsoo, Kabel could check the damage, and they had taken exactly three of Hyunsoo’s attacks.

The first hit.

[You have taken 107,413 damage.]

Kabel couldn’t believe it.

At the very least, when it came to attack power in user-versus-user combat, Kabel was one of the users who understood it best.

The basic-attack damage that close-range users at the same level as Hyunsoo could inflict on Kabel

was around 20,000 to 35,000.

What was even more shocking was when the critical hit landed.

You couldn’t calculate a critical hit as simply higher attack power.

Higher hit rate, increased cutting force, extra damage from striking vital points, and so on.

[You have taken 254,161 damage.]

The last strike had been art.

The force of a tiny whirlwind rising inside the chest.

It was as if a small storm capable of ripping apart anything was swirling inside the blade.

At that moment, Kabel understood.

[You have taken 767,401 damage.]

That a modifier was not an effect granted to many.

And that the harmony between Hyunsoo’s growth after the Tower of Honor and Master Blacksmith Takashi was tremendous.

No—more than the Sword for the One Who Follows the King, Kabel lavishly praised Hyunsoo.

Amazing, Hyunsoo. I respect you.

A way for a human being to grow this quickly.

In this limited world called Ares, there were no cheat keys and no bugs, so it should have been impossible.

For that to be possible, someone had to grind themselves down in the literal sense.

Then Kabel shivered.

Respect......?

Never once in their life had Kabel ever felt reverence toward someone.

Not even toward Bahala.

Because there were geniuses everywhere, and Kabel had always thought it natural that people like that existed.

But Hyunsoo was a mutant.

In the field of blacksmithing, yes, Hyunsoo was a genius.

But when you looked across all the many other fields, genius wasn’t even the right word for Hyunsoo.

“......”

Kabel understood.

The respect one felt through someone who had caught up from ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) below.

As they sat outside the capsule, the wind from the window stirred their hair.

Why?

Hyunsoo was another user.

And a good-natured rival.

At a time like this, what Kabel ought to have felt was jealousy, anger, inferiority, and a sense of inadequacy.

Kabel turned toward the window and smiled.

......You have a story, Hyunsoo.

A story everyone could love.

People loved success stories born from the impossible.

It was fundamental.

Ninety-nine percent of humanity lived ordinary lives.

And Kabel felt one other emotion too.

It was an emotion similar to what ordinary users felt when they looked up at the sky named Bahala.

So this is what ordinary users felt when they looked at Bahala and me.

Kabel laughed at the fact that they themselves were feeling it.

This story.

Something Hyunsoo had created.

And the story everyone had been waiting for.

[Kabel: ......Wait.]

And that was how the story began.

*****

It wasn’t that Nell was lacking.

It was because Kabel had felt Hyunsoo’s attacks firsthand, with their own body.

And Nell didn’t know.

That Kabel had not started out as the one doing the crushing.

While playing Ares, Kabel too had been crushed again and again.

So many times that it might have been hundreds, or it might have been thousands.

At the end of that long history of being crushed, Kabel had become the one who crushed others.

And now they had felt respect for the first time.

Their prediction had been right.

Bangbae’s HP had fallen to 2% from a single attack.

And on top of that, Kabel’s words appeared in the group chat.

[Kabel: Wouldn’t you like to join us?]

Crimson Flame Mage Jane.

Territory King Glass.

Lancer Bangbae.

There was only one reason they were leaving Hyun’s Forge.

People sometimes compared territories to stocks.

And people said—

-Delisting soon lol

That was why they had been planning to leave this territory before it got delisted.

And yet—

they liked Hyun’s story, and they had definitely come to like this territory.

But they had more than enough reason to leave.

And although each of them had their own individual dreams, they also shared one dream.

To stand in a high place.

But they understood.

They might be able to stand high,

but they themselves could never become something more exceptional.

Yet they had realized that they could put one person in an even higher place.

[Kabel: By making him king.]

That was why Bangbae had sent in the join request even while collapsing.

In the face of power that overwhelming, they simply couldn’t feel jealousy.

Jane’s heart pounded as if it were being heated.

Part of the reason it swelled so fiercely was that, for the first time in a long while, they had been captivated by Hyun again.

Black full plate armor.

Short-cropped hair.

And a black blade that contrasted with the crude white grip.

SHIIING—

Hyunsoo sheathed it at their waist, then grabbed Bangbae’s hand and hauled them to their feet.

And Jane was shocked by something else as well.

Users were swarming all around them.

“Isn’t Bangbae that ranker people call Korea’s Zhao Zilong?”

“Did you see that? Bangbae got blown away in one hit.”

“Look at that sword. The sword Master Blacksmith Takashi dedicated to him. And it’s putting out damage like that, and enemies think they can invade? Let them try.”

“With that sword, it’d cut heads clean off in one stroke.”

“Just a few months ago, Hyun wasn’t anywhere near this strong. So how much hunting did they even do?”

“......And on top of that, they’re the first person to ever make a Mythic sword.”

Among all that admiration, Jane realized something.

Reality comes after praise.

Soon, they would face that reality.

But—

“If you doubt it that much and can’t believe it, then come at me all at once.”

“......?”

Hyunsoo had come to understand the true nature of the Sword for the One Who Follows the King and the growth they had achieved up to now.

Hyunsoo also knew the users were draining away like the tide.

But that’s their choice.

Their choice came from doubt.

Hyunsoo gripped the sword tightly.

Maybe they would make faces like this, Hyunsoo thought.

That bastard?

He’s gone insane, doing that to people who stayed in his territory?

He really thinks he’s untouchable, huh?

You’re dead, asshole! Ptooey!

But reality turned out differently.

Because Hyunsoo had run into a situation they hadn’t expected at all.

They were smiling instead.

“Seriously?”

“We can jump you?”

“Can we go for weak points!?”

“Can I use my finisher?”

Why are they so into this?

Hyunsoo couldn’t understand it, but that was because Hyunsoo still didn’t know who the ones who hadn’t left yet were.

Who were the ones who still hadn’t left?

They were the ones who had remained because of at least a little love and hate.

Some stayed because they had hope in Hyun.

Some stayed out of pure greed, thinking that if Hyun became king, some scraps would fall their way.

And some simply believed in Atlas.

“Can we use finishers!!!!?”

One user shouted that.

“Y-Yes.”

“Explosion.”

“......!”

At that moment, the reason Hyunsoo should never have given permission was revealed.

We’ll decide for ourselves whether we’ll serve you or not!!

Jane’s long fingers pointed at Hyunsoo’s head.

And because their Intelligence stat was overwhelmingly higher than an ordinary user’s, the power of that spell was three times a normal Explosion.

BOOOOOM—!

A massive explosion went off, and the scream that came wasn’t from Hyunsoo, who had simply stood there and taken it—

but from Jane.

FWAAAAAAASH—!

The hidden principle of Overlord’s Armor had swallowed Jane whole.

“KYAAAAAH!”

Jane’s HP plummeted as they were flung backward, dropping below 50% in an instant.

[You have equipped Overlord’s Helm.]

As hundreds of users suddenly rushed them at once, Hyunsoo hurriedly equipped the helm.

And at the same time—

KRAAAAAANG—!

The users’ insane attacks hammered Hyunsoo from every direction.

They had expected Hyun’s HP to fall below 10%—

but instead, they were the ones left reeling by the result.

[HP falls below 98%.]

“This armor makes me invincible.”

“......?”

“......?”

“......?”

Right before Hyunsoo’s next ordinary basic attack—

“Send duel requests.”

[Akran requests a duel.]

[Poruu requests a duel.]

[Keido requests a duel.]

“Accept them all!!!!!”

If you died during a duel request, your experience didn’t drop.

And you didn’t become Chaotic.

Looking at Hyunsoo, some people thought Hyunsoo would probably go easy on them.

But they were wrong.

[Critical Hit!!]

WHOOOOOOSH—!

One precious user who had stayed behind in Atlas scattered into a handful of ash.

All from a single strike.

Of course, that person had only been Level 237.

But—

SLASHSLASHSLASHSLASH—!!!

The refreshing slicing sounds bursting out from all over made it clear that Hyunsoo truly intended to kill every last one of them(?).

Naturally, it was to reassure them(?).

And the battle lasted until the next day.

Hyunsoo killed them the entire day.

Some of them re-entered the moment their forced logout entry restriction penalty ended.

And at last Hyunsoo collapsed, lying there and gasping for breath.

Jane and Glass looked down at that sight.

[Jane: Is there really a territory like this?]

[Glass: Kabel must have thought we would join after seeing this kind of force, but they were wrong.]

Jane and Glass had never seen a sight like this before.

The lord of a territory lying there together with more than five hundred users.

Sadly, it wasn’t martial force that had overwhelmed them.

It was that they had been captivated by the sight of everyone being together with the story of who Hyunsoo was.

That day—

[Jane has joined Hyun’s Forge.]

[Glass has joined Hyun’s Forge.]

new guild members were recruited.

And from that day onward,

not a single one of the users who had been here left Atlas.

*****

CLANG!

CLAAANG!

CLAAANG!

The Tower of Honor.

A man with an unbending body was forging there with a rough, unsightly sword hanging at his waist.

Ever since learning forge work from Hyunsoo, he had started to enjoy blacksmithing.

Of course—

“......”

his talent for it wasn’t particularly good.

Even after several days, his skill showed no improvement.

Then he remembered something.

I wish they’d come visit our territory, but that’d be difficult, wouldn’t it?

He had made a clear contract with the Tower of Honor.

So once a week had passed after leaving the Tower of Honor, he would disappear.

But he thought perhaps a week would be enough.

And besides, maybe it would have been different when his memories were hazy.

But now that his memories had returned intact, the martial power he possessed was enough to let him leave the Tower of Honor for a while.

And because his mind was whole again, it was only natural for him to feel bored.

There was no one here.

The man with the rough sword hanging at his waist left the Tower of Honor.

And he was able to reach Atlas at high speed.

When he arrived at Atlas and someone asked what kind of person he was, he answered like this.

“A blacksmith.”

And right now, that was true.

He was no longer just a figure from history.

He had learned techniques from the blacksmiths for a short time, and now he could feel that it was time to leave again.

“......”

He thought of his friend Hyunsoo, but shook his head.

He had neither the intention nor the time to go see Hyunsoo before leaving.

If there was one regret—

I want to learn more forge work......

Forge work had given him a new kind of joy.

For someone who had spent all his time killing and slaughtering, he had never known making something could be this enjoyable.

But he had to leave.

And right then—

“......?”

PANT, PANT—

A little puppy came trotting over.

“??”

And then—

“Woof!”

These are my younger siblings!

A flaming bird tilted its head. Beside it, the somewhat delinquent-looking hatchling of a Bon Dragon stood there with its hands behind its back.

Next to that was a cat arching its tail gracefully, and a mini-golem timidly mumbling, “I’m, Golem.......”

It was suddenly introducing its younger siblings?

And then something even stranger happened.

The little thing flopped over and exposed its pink belly.

[Lucky Lump is cute.]

Whose story was that?

SCRAPE SCRAPE SCRAPE—

The one sharpening blades while learning forge work properly from the ground up.

“The youngest!”

It was the story of Rock, the youngest member of the forge.

Rock was having fun in Atlas.