(Story King’s Ring)

Grade: Legendary

Durability: Infinite

Defense: 54

Restriction: One who has received the ring from the Story King

Special Ability:

·Active Skill Story King’s Aid.

Description: This is a ring the Story King would give to one with whom he shares high affinity. If the ring’s power is used, you can receive the Story King’s help.

(Story King’s Aid)

Active Skill

Mana Cost: 4,000

·You may summon the Story King and receive his help.

·However, if the request is absurd, the Story King may decide not to help.

·After one use, the ring is destroyed.

This was the information on the ring Hyunsoo had received in the past after satisfying the Story King with the Tale Crafting Method for All.

However, if the request was absurd, the Story King could refuse.

Hyunsoo immediately met the Story King using Kkoko.

Please protect the sea of Goyad.

At that, the Story King wore an indifferent expression.

Naturally so.

It was true that the Story King had agreed to help, but this was far beyond the level of mere “help.”

The Story King was a tale, and history itself.

And he too was living in seclusion on Story Island, hiding himself away.

But while building the ship, Hyunsoo had thought of something.

Yi Sun-sin.

A tale.

The Twin Dragon Sword.

What was missing?

The Turtle Ship.

Hyunsoo had made a guess. The Story King needed his power.

Partly to repair the Twin Dragon Sword, but also to protect Story Island.

Story Island was, literally, an island, and what was needed to reach it was a ship.

But when he had asked Kkoko, he had learned that all of the Story King’s ships had been wrecked in past battles.

So, at first, the King of Stories—

In other words, Yi Sun-sin—had apparently searched for legendary ships.

But had failed to find any.

And so Hyunsoo had realized something.

One NPC can give countless quests, and if it’s a Named NPC, it’ll be even more.

That was why.

It was only because the time had not yet come that it had not happened. Hyunsoo believed that one day the man would give him a quest, and so he had said:

I’ll build you a ship.

For the first time, the Story King had shown interest—but it had quickly disappeared.

A ship, you say. I truly had many excellent ships. And yet you say you will build a ship for a man like me.

At the time, Yi Sun-sin had looked unconvinced.

Naturally so.

He was a man who had spent his entire life fighting atop ships.

A being who had lived hundreds of years ago, and thus had ridden countless ships.

And on top of that, Hyunsoo was not a shipbuilder, but a blacksmith.

But did you know?

Even in modern reality, the Turtle Ship is recognized as an exceptionally outstanding vessel.

And he could only build it because he knew of that ship from the past—and the one who had recreated it in reality together with his father had been none other than Hyunsoo.

That recreation—

And...

Masters who had worked as blacksmiths for decades.

Tower masters.

And it had been forged by people who possessed countless special skills.

Also, according to statistics, the average territory possessed around two top-tier blacksmiths.

And the average level of those top-tier blacksmiths—

410.

But what about those who had participated in building this Turtle Ship?

Roun was level 425.

The tower masters were in the high 400s.

And forty blacksmiths ranged between Advanced and Top Tier.

To put it simply, it was no different from summoning all the outstanding blacksmiths from every territory in a kingdom and having them build it under the command of master craftsmen.

The result was astonishing.

The Story King.

He had seen countless ships in his lifetime.

The golden ship that had once been built by the emperor of the place called the Golden Empire, once the richest empire, at the cost of tens of millions of gold. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

An enemy ship once forged by more than ten dwarven masters solely for battle.

Even ships said to look as though gods themselves had made them.

He had seen them all.

But this is the first time I’ve felt a resonance.

This was not merely the meeting of tales.

This was the judgment of a super-named NPC, and of a general who had fought in hundreds of strait battles.

“In my life, to encounter a ship like this is heaven’s blessing.”

The heavens were helping him.

That was how he regarded it, but then he corrected himself.

“Heaven’s blessing? Then I ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) suppose we create heaven’s blessings.”

At Hyunsoo’s words, the Story King did not answer, but he understood.

The heavens have sent me a single great talent.

That talent was Hyunsoo.

And because he coveted this ship, and because he knew that with this ship he could protect Story Island as well.

[The Story King accepts your proposal.]

[He will protect the sea of Goyad.]

And all their hearts bloomed like a wildfire, and the ship let out a cry.

RUMBLE—!

And just like that, the Story King’s ship cried out as well.

Just as it had on that day, hundreds of years ago, when it had protected Story Island.

Standing nobly while receiving everyone’s gaze, he dispersed the crowd and gave his order.

“All hands, sortie.”

“...”

“...”

Everyone there was captivated by the sight of him.

Roun felt heat rise in his chest, and the Korean blacksmiths resolved that they absolutely had to watch the broadcast.

But the emotion did not last long.

“Um... General. You have to go alone.”

“?”

“??”

“...?”

“???”

The Story King thought for a moment.

Didn’t they say 300,000...?

And on top of that, had they not just said the number of enemy ships exceeded 900?

“Heh heh, a territory war is about to break out, so enemies are going to come flooding in from every direction.”

Hyunsoo looked at Atlas with melancholy eyes.

“I’ll protect my own sea.”

A short while later—

Roun and the blacksmiths stared at Hyunsoo, who had been forcefully boarded with a hand at the back of his neck.

“You have two choices. First, board this Turtle Ship and come with me. Second... be tied up and board this Turtle Ship.”

“Where exactly is the choice in that?”

The Story King raised the shattered Twin Dragon Sword.

“...”

Anyway, that was how the ship began its departure.

Roun and the blacksmiths thought:

It really would’ve been shameless to send him off alone...

I knew this would happen.

If it were me, I’d have started by punching him once.

The blacksmiths waved as they watched the ship set out.

Anyway, our hero—

No, our heroes—

Set out like that.

*****

As the lord of Atlas, Hyunsoo had the duty to protect and defend it.

The Parion Empire’s reinforcements would first cross over by the land and sea connecting the continents.

Their first attempt would be to encroach upon Goyad.

However, there would also be those who aimed not for Goyad, but for the territories of Atlas and Balas first.

Namely, users.

In the case of users, even if they had not accepted a quest from the Parion Empire, there was a high probability that they would band together and launch attacks.

If I’m not there, who’s going to command them...?

Seated on the ship, Hyunsoo pictured the territory’s residents grieving and trembling in fear in his absence, and his chest ached.

[Hyunsoo: So... I boarded the ship.]

[Nell: ......^^;; I figured that would happen?]

[Hyunsoo: .......]

Hyunsoo realized something.

[Nell: If it were me, I would’ve tied you up nice and tight and dragged you aboard.]

Everyone except himself had, in fact, expected this, hadn’t they?

[Nell: The Story King may become one of the central figures of the third Ares. And the fact that he brought you aboard with him suggests there may be some kind of reason.]

[Hyunsoo: I think he just brought me because I annoyed him......?]

[Nell: ......Honestly, from what I can see, that is part of the reason.]

[Hyunsoo: .......]

[Nell: Even so, you’ll be able to maintain a friendlier relationship with the Story King, and perhaps there may even be people like a ‘Heavenly Army’ hidden away by him.]

Heavenly Army.

An army sent by the heavens!

Thinking about it, it did make sense. It wasn’t as though he had intended to protect Story Island all by himself, was it?

Hyunsoo asked the man as he surveyed the sea.

“The many commanders who once stood by your side—surely you’ve been planning for the future together with them?”

“There were such men. But they all died.”

Hyunsoo thought, Some Heavenly Army that is, and asked how exactly he intended to defend Story Island.

“There is also me, fighting one against 300,000.”

Hyunsoo had nothing to say.

Then, after looking at him for a moment, the Story King said,

“Do you know why I brought you aboard this ship?”

“...Because I annoyed you?”

The Story King smiled more gently than expected.

At first, it was true that the Story King had felt that way.

But—

“It is because I thought I might lose. If it is you, whom I have acknowledged... yes, if it is you, like the Heavenly Army you mentioned just now, then perhaps you may come up with some ingenious plan.”

Hearing that, Hyunsoo was grateful to the Story King.

And he was able to realize that the man had truly acknowledged him.

“It is only natural for a lord to seek to protect what is his by any means necessary. You truly did spare no means or methods, and it is true that you came up with an ingenious idea.”

That was true.

Right now, the man before him—the Story King, wearing the form of Yi Sun-sin—was sincerely acknowledging Hyunsoo.

“And so, think. Think of a way to win in a battle of 300,000 against one ship.”

He was also trying to help Hyunsoo grow.

The meaning behind his words, Think, held many implications.

It meant he acknowledged Hyunsoo as a commander.

And perhaps it also meant that in some aspect, Hyunsoo possessed something superior even to himself.

But soon, Hyunsoo became puzzled.

Is there really anything I could be better at than the General?

It was true that his artifact crafting ability was outstanding.

But he had come this far because of that artifact crafting ability, not because he was truly someone deserving of the name of a great lord.

There’s no way that could be...

Then something flashed through Hyunsoo’s mind.

It was something called flow.

The instincts he had gained through countless brushes with death, hardships, and battles had taken shape as experience, knowledge, and wisdom, and now came fully to life.

Until just a moment ago, Hyunsoo had been looking at the Story King with uncertain eyes.

But—

In an instant, his gaze changed, and he looked out across the sea.

And first—

“Kkoko.”

WHOOOOSH—!

The Myriad Mile Bird appeared.

“From now on, capture every single Parion Empire messenger pigeon and hawk in the sky.”

This was the open sea.

And neither the Parion Empire’s forces nor Akao were familiar with this sea.

At a time like this, to deprive them in advance of the messenger pigeons, hawks, crows, and even eagles that would watch the sea for them—

The sky was cleaved apart by the legendary bird.

SKREEEEEEEE—!

[Kkoko rapidly captures all of Parion Empire’s birds, including messenger pigeons!]

[The enemy fleet loses its ears and eyes!]

[In an instant, it captures 41 messenger pigeons and hawks!]

Upon the endless sea, he brought about the loss of their eyes and ears.

Second—

“Pretty.”

Pretty, summoned forth, raised its alluring tail feathers.

“Keep transmitting every piece of information from Akao’s ship to me.”

“Meeeow.”

Then Pretty vanished into invisibility mode to carry out its task.

“This ship is a high-speed vessel faster than any other, and with Kkoko’s power, it can strike the enemy’s rear. We’ll hit their rear.”

At that, the Story King laughed in admiration, and a notification rang out for Hyunsoo.

[You understand the Turtle Ship better than anyone.]

[Your application ability regarding the Turtle Ship is exceptional.]

[You gain enlightenment through the Story King.]

[You have acquired the skill Ship Operation.]

[You have acquired the skill Navigation.]

RIIIING—

[The probability of victory in battle increases greatly.]

The Story King looked with affectionate eyes at the young lord who was beginning to dominate the sea.

He was faster, more capable, and stronger than the Story King himself had been when he first learned seafaring.

Even so, the Story King still could not guarantee victory.

But—

Hyunsoo did not stop there, and looked one step further ahead.

“......”

He pulled the offensive Twin Dragon Sword out of his inventory.

SHIIING—

Seeing it, the Story King, almost entranced, set aside the shattered Twin Dragon Sword he had been holding.

And Hyunsoo respectfully presented the sword.

When he had first boarded, it had been by force.

This battle would not be easy, and he had been thinking selfishly only of his own territory.

But—

“Please take the Twin Dragon Sword.”

BWOOOOOOOOOO—!

The enemy army’s horn blast began to sound, and he realized what kind of moment this was.

A blacksmith born in the twenty-first century was presenting what he had forged to a man who had been the hero of an entire nation.

That was—

“Our hero.”

[The Twin Dragon Sword meets its true owner.]

[Hidden Piece. Chain of Tales completed.]

[The moment the Twin Dragon Sword is gripped by its true owner, all of its skills change to suit him.]

[All skill levels of the Twin Dragon Sword increase by 3.]

[The attack power of the Twin Dragon Sword increases by 400.]

RIIIING—

[Congratulations.]

[You have discovered one of the hidden modifiers!]

[The modifier you discovered is ‘Hero’!]

[The Hero’s Twin Dragon Sword comes to life!]

This would be a battle more glorious than any other moment.