Since the daily quests were proving to be highly efficient, I had been assigning them to as many citizens as possible.
As a result, I was collecting hundreds of rewards per day, with the contents varying depending on the nature of the quests.
Most of the time, since the quests involved hunting monsters, the rewards were small amounts of experience points.
Given the sheer number of completed quests, # Nоvеlight # occasional jackpot rewards did happen.
However, even then, the reward was just a large amount of experience.
But this time, it was skill points.
‘Well, I can't ignore that.’
I was also curious to see exactly what this newly unlocked Inventory feature could do.
‘The question is whether the Inventory unlocks at level 5.’
Currently, my Absolute Dweller’s Warehouse skill was at level 4.
If I was unlucky, leveling it up still might not unlock the Inventory.
‘Even so, there’s no downside to upgrading the Warehouse.’
Aside from supporting my retainers, the Warehouse was also my most powerful offensive weapon.
By using the Warehouse to launch Meteor, I could wipe out most monsters with ease.
‘The higher the weight capacity of the Warehouse, the stronger the Meteor becomes.’
There was no reason not to invest in this.
[Are you sure you want to level up Absolute Dweller’s Warehouse?]
"Yes."
Vwoom!
[Absolute Dweller’s Warehouse has been upgraded to Lv. 5.]
[Conditions met.]
[Inventory has been unlocked.]
The moment the feature activated, detailed information about the Inventory was automatically imprinted in my mind.
‘Each citizen can store up to 20kg.’
As an extension of the Warehouse skill, the Inventory also followed pure mass-based storage limitations.
The base limit was likely 10kg, but thanks to the Absolute Crown I was wearing, the capacity had doubled to 20kg per person.
‘Just like the Warehouse and the Marketplace, items in the Inventory don’t decay.’
I had already noticed that many of the Marketplace’s functions closely resembled those of my Warehouse.
‘These features probably unlock at certain skill levels.’
At the same time, a new question arose.
‘Then why wasn’t the Inventory unlocked before the Marketplace?’
To be honest, the Marketplace seemed far more useful than the Inventory.
The Marketplace had no weight limit—only a 20-slot restriction.
That meant people could buy and sell things like used cars without issue.
Meanwhile, the Inventory was limited to just 20kg per person.
At best, it could store food or essential supplies.
But then—
‘...Huh?’
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The real-time updates to the Inventory system were far beyond my expectations.
[Absolute Dweller holds supreme authority over all Inventories.]
[Absolute Dweller has absolute control over all stored items.]
Absolute control.
The implications of that were staggering.
I could see what every citizen stored in their Inventory.
I could deposit or withdraw items at will.
I could even restrict specific individuals from using their Inventory entirely.
In other words—
‘I can use everyone’s Inventory as if it were my Warehouse.’
At level 5, my Warehouse had a maximum storage limit of 3,000kg.
Only 3 tons.
But now, with 500,000 citizens each having a 20kg Inventory...
That meant I had just gained a total storage capacity of 10,000 tons.
3333 times the original limit of my Warehouse.
‘...This is incredible, but also a bit tricky.’
The Inventory had some fundamental limitations.
For example—it couldn’t store single items weighing more than 20kg.
Each person’s Inventory was a separate, isolated space, meaning they couldn’t be combined into a single storage unit.
This meant I could store 500,000 items weighing exactly 20kg each,
but I couldn't store a single item that weighed 10,000 tons.
‘And one more thing.’
Items stored in a citizen’s Inventory couldn’t retain their momentum like they did in my Warehouse.
In the Warehouse, objects froze in place once stored.
That allowed me to store a flying projectile mid-air and fire it back out at full speed.
But the Inventory didn’t have this function.
If I stored Ha Dong-geon’s spear or an active projectile, they wouldn’t retain their kinetic energy, meaning they couldn’t be used for attacks.
‘Still, for individual citizens, this is one of the most convenient features possible.’
Of course, I wasn’t about to grant this function to everyone.
Only my retainers and those I had been keeping an eye on would get access.
First, I unlocked the full 20kg capacity for my retainers and then activated the Ring of Communication.
[Everyone, I have an announcement to make.]
***
Seo Ye-jin, upon hearing Kim Jae-hyun’s announcement, immediately decided to test the Inventory function.
"Store in Inventory!"
At her command, a massive 10kg wheel of cheese disappeared into thin air as if it had melted away.
‘It really works!’
At that moment—
Thud!
The sound of something heavy hitting the ground.
It was the Queen Ratman, Mary, collapsing to her knees in despair.
She had been drooling over the cheese just moments ago, and now it had vanished right before her eyes.
Seo Ye-jin smirked as she watched the scene unfold.
"Mary, where do you think the cheese went?"
Queen Ratman Mary turned toward her, looking as though she might burst into tears at any moment.
Seo Ye-jin patted the edges of Mary’s drooling mouth and spoke softly.
"Wait."
At those words, Mary’s ears drooped in utter disappointment.
Meanwhile, Seo Ye-jin synchronized her senses with a different rat several kilometers away, scurrying through the sewers.
Squeak—
‘Summon cheese.’
She summoned a small piece of the stored cheese to that distant location.
Bzzzzt—
A tiny chunk of cheese materialized.
‘It works.’
Having always watched Kim Jae-hyun use his abilities, actually being able to use something similar herself felt surreal.
‘Thank you, oppa.’
Up until now, the rats under her command had lived by a self-sustaining principle.
This meant that many of them either died while foraging for food or starved to death when they failed to find enough.
But that problem had just been solved.
Grrrrr.
Mary let out a low growl.
"I get it."
Seo Ye-jin turned back to face the Queen Ratman and issued a command.
"Summon cheese."
This time, she retrieved a large portion of the cheese stored in her Warehouse.
"Eat."
The moment she gave permission, Mary devoured the cheese ravenously.
Seo Ye-jin watched her eat for a while before glancing around.
Other Ratmen stood nearby, salivating as they watched their leader feast.
Just to experiment, Seo Ye-jin looked at one of them and issued another command.
"Store in Inventory."
Nothing happened.
Living creatures could not be stored in the Inventory.
‘As expected, that doesn’t work.’
She purchased more cheese through the Marketplace and called out to the other Ratmen.
"You can come eat too."
The number of Ratmen had greatly decreased compared to before.
Many had died in battle during the operation to eliminate the Radiation Slimes.
Furthermore, since they looked too much like monsters, they couldn’t be allowed into the Safe Zone, meaning they had to live outside of it.
Because of that distance, it was rare for Seo Ye-jin to personally bring them food like this.
And since she had forbidden them from hunting humans, they had no choice but to hunt other monsters.
However, monster hunting wasn’t easy, and the weaker ones died off.
The only upside was that, thanks to Seo Ye-jin’s Evolution skill, the stronger they became through battle, the higher their levels rose.
"From now on, none of you will starve to death."
With those final words, Seo Ye-jin climbed onto Kelikán’s back.
"Let’s go home."
The creature understood her and spread its wings.
Seo Ye-jin was able to communicate with Kelikáns, albeit imperfectly.
This was thanks to her "Beast Tamer" title, which allowed her to ride them even without direct orders from Kim Jae-hyun.
Upon arriving home, Seo Ye-jin lay down on her bed and closed her eyes.
Through the eyes of her rats, she observed a certain building.
‘Where should I go today?’
With the expansion into Seoul, a huge influx of new people had arrived.
Seo Ye-jin enjoyed watching their reactions.
Every time she saw someone struggling to comprehend the sanctuary they had entered, she felt a sense of satisfaction.
Watching people cry from relief, or gradually adapt to their new lives, had become a secret hobby of hers.
While shifting her perspective through various rats, she stumbled upon something interesting.
A dilapidated church near Seomyeon.
"...We have spent our lives following false teachings and nurturing a false faith. But now, our Savior has descended to rescue us Himself."
"Amen."
"This land, blessed by the Savior, is untouched by monsters. Thanks to Him, we can live normal lives once more. We must always be grateful for that."
"Amen."
A small group of people was praying.
They were worshipping Kim Jae-hyun.
‘There’s more of them now...’
Lately, these kinds of places were popping up everywhere.
This trend had exploded after the collapse of the JHS cult and the mass influx of former believers.
Of course, some people had already worshipped Kim Jae-hyun before, but this level of full-scale idolization had only begun after the cult’s destruction.
‘Is it because they were already used to following cults?’
That would explain why so many of them latched onto a new figure to worship.
Still, Seo Ye-jin couldn’t completely dismiss their perspective.
‘Oppa is special.’
She had spent so much time with him that she saw his human side.
But if she only considered his abilities, Kim Jae-hyun was a being beyond comprehension.
‘Calling him special doesn’t even begin to cover it.’
She spent a while trying to think of a word that could fully capture Kim Jae-hyun’s abilities—
—but nothing seemed sufficient.
"This blessed land is reserved only for the chosen. We have been selected by the Savior!"
The man leading the sermon wasn’t lying.
He wasn’t demanding anything.
He wasn’t telling them to do anything.
He was simply...
worshipping Kim Jae-hyun.
"Let us pray! The Savior has rescued us, fed us, and given us shelter. Today, once again, we can sleep peacefully without worrying about monsters. For that, we give thanks. Amen."
And then—
Vwoooom—
A brilliant light burst forth from the man giving the sermon.
"Ohhhh!"
"A divine light...!"
"Aaaah!"
The congregation cried out in awe.
Seo Ye-jin tilted her head.
‘Didn’t retainers emit a light like that when they were registered?’
The man looked just like a typical cult leader.
That made it even stranger.
‘Is there something special about him?’