Chapter 186

The Dungeon of Lamentation was known to be a place where prisoners never escaped, unless granted a special pardon by the emperor. Despite the grim reputation of the dungeon, Seojin and three adventurers had managed to surface with surprising ease.

“Please be careful! Thank you!”

Even they received a polite farewell from the supervisor, Viktor!

To Conis, Kargar, and Montblanc, this situation seemed awkward and bewildering.

“I will be sure to convey to the Golden King the help we received from you. He will be very pleased.”

“I am just grateful. But, err...”

“I can’t seem to remember our conversation before we arrived.”

“I appreciate your generosity. The other adventurers will be strictly managed as per your instructions!”

“With someone like you as the supervisor, we can operate with peace of mind. Take care.”

Viktor’s face remained smiling until their departure. Though reprimanded by Seojin, what did it matter? He had turned a blind eye, and even yielded a clear accomplishment with the three adventurers.

When they were far enough from the prison, Conis asked, “What was the instruction?”

“The 100,000 gold I called for was a joke, and the three of you now were drafted as toys of the Golden King... That’s what I told them to convey.”

“...Ah.”

“You didn’t fall for the money, so I had to make something else up. When it comes to the Golden King, isn’t it always about money? The important thing is whether they can be convinced by that.”

“It’s not their fault.”

“I know. It’s just unbelievable, given the circumstances.”

Now all three understood the situation Seojin had painted. He couldn’t be entirely trusted, but Seojin promised them additional security.

“As I said earlier, you’re free to leave whenever you want. You’re not bound by any constraints and can return to your countries... Whatever direction you choose.”

“I’m not thinking of leaving yet.”

The one who responded was Montblanc, a woman with short, striking green hair, holding her staff askew. She laid out her thoughts, which she had been harboring till now.

“Limiting our play area would be counterproductive. That’s why I came over to the Empire in the first place. Our kingdom lacks enjoyable content.”

What was the advantage of an open-world game? It was the ability to experience and consume the myriad of content sprawled across the vast continent.

Having completed all the core content at her starting point, she had come to the Empire seeking more. What if she returned now? She would be stuck doing meaningless repetitive quests every day.

“But I’m anxious. Can we survive on this land by ourselves...?”

“We’re not alone.”

“Huh?”

“You must have noticed, being rankers yourselves, that Midgard occasionally has peculiar quests. The quests sound like problems caused by players should be dealt with by players... You know about it, right?”

The three nodded. Sometimes, when a particular guild or a powerful individual caused an inappropriate ripple, a quest was given to resolve that action.

But this was different, wasn’t it?

“But there’s no proper player base in the Empire.”

“Yes, there’s none. So, think of the opposite.”

The opposite? Montblanc pondered in silence, arriving at a conclusion swiftly.

“Are you suggesting using NPCs?”

“We’re just four. The emperor could suppress us instantly if he wishes. We’ve only been safe because he hasn’t noticed us yet.”

The Camilton Empire was antagonistic towards players, and yet the strongest nation on the continent. Standing against it with just players was unthinkable.

“Maybe if all the nations unite against it, it would work, but that’s too idealistic.”

Even the rankers in that prison eagerly extended their hands for 100,000 gold. Lower-level players would gladly join hands with the empire for far cheaper.

“The Empire’s NPCs are not to be taken lightly. We’ve tried before, but...”

“Fortunately, I have more information and am in a much better position to work. The places I’ve already reached out to will probably exceed your expectations.”

“...I suppose, if you can freely use the name of the Golden King.”

“I’ll tell you more about it soon. But first, there’s something I want to check. By any chance, have any of you played Asgard?”

Conis and Kargar shook their heads. Only Montblanc nodded, with a look of ‘why do you ask?’.

“You were a ranker?”

“Yes.”

“What rank?”

“I was second on the European server, but...”

Seojin’s mouth fell open. Montblanc looked even more bewildered, but this wasn’t the time to worry about such things.

“The European server?”

“...Yes.”

“Change of plans. Conis, Kargar, let’s reduce the guild joining to you two. Montblanc, you’ll have to come with me.”

“Why?”

“Do you need a ranker?”

This time Conis asked. Facing Seojin, he spoke.

“I have a friend in the Brave Lions Guild who was a ranker. Do you need him?”

“Which server and rank?”

“North America. He was fifth. He dragged me to Midgard too.”

“Can we trust him?”

“He’s always apologizing to me. He doesn’t like the situation either, but he accepted the contract because he wanted to play the game in any way possible, rather than succumbing to the terms themselves...”

“Then, after joining the guild, check a few more times and contact him. More would be better. If he was fifth in North America, there should be more he’s still in touch with?”

“I suppose. I’d have to check, but he should know some.”

Seojin turned to Montblanc again.

“And you?”

“...I do. But they haven’t entered the Empire yet...”

“I won’t spare any support. Just make sure they meet the minimum requirements to enter the Empire.”

The Pantheon of the Temple of All Gods. The twenty player names Seojin had encountered there were all rankers from the Korean server.

‘The developer wouldn’t be crazy enough to favor Koreans only. The most likely guess is that rankers from one’s own country appear on that list.’

Seojin, being Korean, encountered Korean server rankers, and Montblanc should encounter European server rankers.

As a forgotten god, that is.

* * *

The operation went smoothly. Conis and Kargar, disguised as having contracted with Alio, easily joined the guild of the Brave Lions.

Suspicion? Naturally, there was none.

The Empire had them so tightly in its grasp that such a situation was beyond imagination.

-The guild has 110 members.

-Levels are all around 200, give or take a few.

-Twenty-one members contracted with Alio, they’re the largest group.

-They have the best financial conditions.

-The rest are evenly distributed.

-No player has directly contracted with the emperor. However, the guild master has contracted with the Empire’s minister of foreign affairs.

The two infiltrators relayed information in real time. When enough data had been gathered, Seojin sought out the Vegetable Wholesaler Raul.

“That’s how it is.”

“And the person next to you?”

“She’s Montblanc, an adventurer. We’ve agreed to work together on this.”

Raul’s eyes narrowed at the sight of the green-haired female mage. She didn’t seem quite reliable to him.

“I’ve checked her out by my standards. It’s a bit messy to explain, but she didn’t waver even for 100,000 gold. Despite rotting in there for two months.”

“...100,000 gold? Are you that rich?”

“Of course, it was just a bluff. But I could produce that much if I have to.”

“Then I trust her.”

Raul extended his hand to Montblanc. Having heard almost the entire situation from Seojin on the way, she had no reservations.

“Nice to meet you, Montblanc. Anyway, you did well. All ten tests, completed perfectly.”

“Tests?”

“I have my minimum conditions to trust someone, just like you did with Montblanc.”

Raul’s smile was full of warmth. Then, messages appeared in succession.

Sub-quest Complete

Your relationship with the main NPC of the episode has changed to Firm Ally.

“Vegetable Wholesaler” Raul now fully trusts you.

Your intimacy with Raul may decrease in certain events.

Raul’s influence in the Camilton Empire is enormous! A decrease in intimacy may affect your relationships with some NPCs in the Empire.

These were expected, and the real information was yet to come.

Your relationship with “The Rat” Muedron is friendly.

Your relationship with “Golden King” Alio is friendly.

Your relationship with “Sword of the Empire” Ferret is very hostile.

Your relationship with “Grand Admiral” Martini is neutral....

The relationships with the Empire’s main NPCs were completely reestablished.

Seojin, wide-eyed, only saw Raul shrug sheepishly.

“This...”

“I thought an adventurer like you would notice right away. Not everyone in the Empire is loyal to the emperor.”

Raul explained that it was only because Grand Emperor Kalus was so overwhelmingly powerful that everyone treaded carefully. The NPCs who had just become “friendly” shared the same sentiments as Raul.

“So, Duke Ferret has become a complete enemy.”

“There’s no compromising with him. He’s the true sword of the Empire, a tool that happily accepts the emperor’s manipulation. A true knight, but... an unwelcome figure for us.”

Three friendly NPCs. Three hostile NPCs. Two neutral NPCs. And Raul, the only Firm Ally.

“Another one will join our side soon, thanks to you.”

It was clear whom Raul referred to - the Staff of Faith, Harry. Until now, he had been neutral, but Seojin had already made significant progress on that.

“That’s true. Aikora will be pleased with another achievement. The adventurer with me is that case.”

“Do you think the Staff of Faith feels the same?”

“I assure you he does. Maybe even happier than Aikora.”

“Go ahead. I’ll move as I please.”

Whatever Raul was planning, it would undoubtedly be a great help in the future. However, Seojin didn’t move.

“Why? You’ll wait for the call?”

“Before that, Raul.”

“What now?”

“I still haven’t heard. You know why I’m doing this. But I haven’t heard what you want, Raul.”

“Haven’t you already guessed? You said you came to me because I’m like your senior.”

“Not at all. The process may be similar, but I don’t know what’s at the end. Raul is Raul, and I am me.”

Raul nodded slowly, a reasonable and, in retrospect, obvious response. He had verified Seojin’s capabilities to see if they could be useful to him.

After a brief silence, Raul finally opened up to Seojin.

“You don’t know what’s beyond this land, do you? Beyond the tiny plot of land called Salevania.