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Chapter 4: Reunion (1)
With only a few days left, as the Labyrinth Break was only a few hours away, Kim Hyunwoo did what he could.
And that was to request reinforcements from the surrounding territories.
Lartania, the territory Kim Hyunwoo had to rebuild, was not in a self-sustaining state from the moment he returned.
Fortunately, it seemed not all surrounding territories were in a non-self-sustaining state like his, so Kim Hyunwoo sent a message requesting reinforcements with a promise of generous compensation.
Although there was no immediate reward to offer, he could secure ample compensation for the reinforcements if they arrived and managed to prevent the Labyrinth Break.
[Time remaining until the labyrinth break: 00:02:42]
However, since this situation also ultimately depended on the arrival of reinforcements, Kim Hyunwoo waited with a somewhat anxious expression.
When only about 30 minutes remained until the labyrinth break.
[My Lord, it seems that people are coming from the east.]
!
Upon hearing that from Loria, Kim Hyunwoo immediately turned his gaze eastward, where he could see soldiers walking towards the Lords castle, treading over the desolate territory.
[ Hero 'Knight Alto' has entered the territory.]
Note, a hero from another territory.
As the soldiers approached to a certain extent, a notification popped up before his eyes.
Seeing that, Kim Hyunwoo felt somewhat relieved but also thought about getting additional information from the reinforcements that had come all this way.
After all, he was overall lacking information about this world.
So, he started thinking about what questions to ask to gain information once the reinforcements arrived, but that was only for a moment.
?
Kim Hyunwoo realized one strange thing.
Arent there too few soldiers?
Even at a glance, there were less than 50 soldiers dragging a large wagon, and after noticing something was off,
with about 10 minutes remaining until the Labyrinth Break, to the knight who arrived with the soldiers, sporting a blatantly arrogant expression.
Im sorry, but we are not reinforcements.
What?
He was able to hear such words.
Let me say it once more, we are not reinforcements.
The knight introduced himself as a knight from Harlancia, a territory to the north, and said so in response to Kim Hyunwoos question, who had come out of the Lords castle.
Kim Hyunwoo frowned with a confused expression for a moment.
However, the knight, despite seeing his expression, continued speaking without any shrinkage, not erasing his arrogant smile.
It seems you were indeed expecting us.
Seeing the knight smirk with a bit of derision, Kim Hyunwoo spoke with an incredulous expression.
If you are not reinforcements, then why have you come here?
Weve merely come to scavenge whatever remains after this territory disappears, as per our Lords command.
Upon hearing the knights words, Kim Hyunwoo furrowed his brow as if realizing something and replied.
Dont tell me, youve come for the Territory Stone Fragments?
Seeing the knight smile without answering, Kim Hyunwoo let out a hollow laugh.
Territory Stone fragments.
Those are, literally, items that appear naturally when a territory is left unattended for a very long time by a user who has quit the game, leading to its disappearance due to a Labyrinth Break.
The number of Territory Stone Fragments that appear is determined by the territorys level, and within the games economy, these fragments can replace the Red Stones, which are the only cash resources in Arteil.
Hence, the knight before Kim Hyunwoo was saying this.
He would quietly wait here, and once the Labyrinth Break occurs, destroying the territory and killing Kim Hyunwoo, he would collect the Territory Fragments.
Have you ever seen such bastards?
Understanding that, Kim Hyunwoo naturally cursed, causing the knight to stop smirking and frown instead.
It would be wise to watch your mouth.
Youre spouting nonsense.
Seeing the knight subtly show the sword at his waist, Kim Hyunwoo smirked.
Of course, thats not to say he wasnt afraid of the sword.
Even though he was aware that he was in a game, the place where he lived was not one where threats of violence were commonly seen in reality.
But now that things had come to this, the knight before him was no longer a figure of fear to Kim Hyunwoo.
From Kim Hyunwoos perspective, whether he died from the knights sword or from the Territory Stone exploding in a Labyrinth Break, as per Arteils setting, it was all the same.
Moreover, if the knight was after the Territory Stone Fragments, he wouldnt be able to use his sword on Kim Hyunwoo anyway.
According to Arteils settings, territory stone fragments would only appear when a territory explodes due to a Labyrinth Break.
In other words, even if someone invaded the territory and exploded the Territory Stone in the same manner, all they could obtain were Blue Stones, a resource incomparable to the Territory Stone Fragments.
Knowing this fact, the knight frowned.
Crunch-!
Roar-!
Soon, with the monstrous roar and the massive vibration coming from afar, he sighed and opened his mouth with a small smile.
I know theres no need for me to intervene. Youre going to explode and die anyway.
The knight, having spoken with a twisted smile on his lips, began to distance himself from Kim Hyunwoo, followed by soldiers wearing similar smiles.
Not too close, but not too far away.
The knight stood at a distance where they could see each others faces, wearing a smirk.
As if he intended to witness Kim Hyunwoos death right there.
Truly a motherfucker.
Seeing the knights behavior, Kim Hyunwoo also smirked and looked at the knight.
The monstrous roar was growing closer!!!
As the monstrous roars grew closer, Kim Hyunwoo turned his gaze.
With no walls or barricades, he could easily see the horde of monsters screaming from beyond.
There are so damn many.
Kim Hyunwoo had already experienced the Labyrinth Break event dozens of times, but that was only within the game.
The horde of monsters rushing straight towards this place, though still far away, imposed a sense of pressure on Kim Hyunwoo.
As the horde of monsters gradually approached, Kim Hyunwoos smirk deepened.
At the forefront were goblins clutching rusty weapons and charging in a frenzy typical of the Labyrinth Break setting, followed by orcs and wolves that had absorbed the Labyrinths magic.
And then, an ogre almost as tall as the nearly destroyed three-story Lords castle was running with a huge club.
Itll be my first time seeing a person explode and die.
From afar, yet clearly within earshot, Kim Hyunwoo clenched his teeth upon hearing the knights voice mocking him.
At a certain distance, Knight Alto, standing firm, watched the Lord looking at the approaching horde of monsters, thinking with a smirk full of satisfaction and mockery.
I would have liked to kill him myself, but watching this will also be quite enjoyable.
As Kim Hyunwoo expected, Altos reason for not killing him was because of the Territory Stone Fragments.
If the knight killed the Lord, he wouldnt be able to obtain the Territory Stone Fragments, and if things went wrong in such a way, he wouldnt be able to avoid punishment from his own Lord.
Therefore, although the knight felt a bit of dissatisfaction, he smiled at the thought of the rude Lord, who owned a territory that hardly seemed like one, dying before his eyes.
?
The knight wore a puzzled expression.
That was because the expression on Kim Hyunwoos face, which had been endlessly tense just moments ago, had changed.
From an expression filled with negative emotions to one full of questions.
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Seeing a slight smile form on Kim Hyunwoos lips, the knight wore a similarly puzzled expression.
The distance between the monsters and the Lords castle had already closed to the point where it could be considered close compared to before.
However, there seemed to be no reason for the Lord, cornered as he was, to smile like that.
Has he gone mad?
The knight thought so, but
Of course, Kim Hyunwoo had not gone mad.
The reason he unknowingly smiled at the horde of monsters that had now approached very closely.
That was because.
[ Hero 'Beast King' has entered the territory.]
A notification like that had popped up before his eyes.
At that moment.
With a massive
Roar-!
From the forefront of the horde of monsters rushing towards the Lords castle, a huge exploding sound occurred, and monsters were flung in all directions.
A goblin clutching a rusty sword rolled on the ground with its head separated from its torso, wearing a confused expression.
An orc split in half, spilling its entrails, drenching the desolate land with its blood.
Wolves that had absorbed the Labyrinths magic were crushed and flung out of the dust pits.
And,
When all the dust had settled,
Kim Hyunwoo could see
Merilda.
The wolf with red eyes.
And then.
Simultaneously, the knight also saw.
Who are you trying to kill?
!
Halting the advance of the monster horde, emitting a killing intent so intense it seemed to paralyze the body and stop the breath.
You dare, who?
Muttering clearly, glaring as if about to rip Alto apart, now clearly showing emotion, Red Eyes.