"Sora-nim, was that really necessary?"
Even as her closest aides questioned her, Jung Sora simply smiled calmly.
"Can’t you see what we’ve gained in return?"
"That is..."
Her aides hesitated, taking a moment to glance around.
The temporary shelter they had been assigned was overflowing with supplies.
Instant rice, cup noodles, dried seaweed, Choco Pies—there was more than enough to sustain everyone present and then some.
After being officially accepted by Kim Jae-hyun, they had brought thousands as a vanguard, and tens of thousands more from their main faction.
Yet despite that staggering number, ample provisions awaited them.
But even more astonishing was the electricity and running water.
Since the monster outbreak, power grids had long been destroyed, and the entire city had been without electricity for years.
Normally, such a situation would only be possible in a building with emergency generators or through special abilities.
Given the circumstances, the latter seemed far more likely.
"It was all true."
They had all heard the intelligence reports.
Even Jung Sora and her closest aides had been briefed on what was happening in Busan.
But the reports had sounded too absurd, too impossible.
They had dismissed them as exaggerations or the ramblings of people under mind control or hypnosis.
"Ji-woong-ssi, is there anything wrong with our minds right now?"
Park Ji-woong's Awakening Ability allowed him to create illusions so tangible that they felt real.
And as someone who manipulated mental states, he possessed exceptionally high resistance to mind-based interference.
That same Park Ji-woong firmly declared:
"...There are no effects at all. Everything we’re seeing and feeling is real."
Jung Sora looked down at the paper cup of coffee in her hands.
"We already confirmed that before, didn’t we? None of our informants showed any signs of mental manipulation. And most of them chose to bring their friends, family, and loved ones with them here."
Taking a sip of coffee, she let her gaze drift across the humanitarian supplies, microwaves, and other conveniences scattered around them.
She smiled bitterly.
"This is just a temporary shelter. Yet even here, this level of preparation is possible. Compared to our faction, where everyone was slowly starving to death, the difference is like heaven and hell."
"......"
One of the intelligence officers had used the exact same phrase before.
The memory left the closest aides visibly shaken.
"...But with your power, Sora-nim, you could have negotiated from an equal standing."
Hearing this, Jung Sora chuckled softly.
"Equal, you say?"
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At first, she had thought the same.
Based on all the reports, she had assumed that the Busan faction was a group of powerful individuals, each at least equal to herself, who had miraculously built something together.
People who could create safe zones, generate electricity, control water, and even replicate food.
Unlike in Seoul, where the strong scattered into factions, Busan’s elites had unified.
Or so she had believed.
'It was a misconception.'
She closed her eyes, recalling the scene she had witnessed.
In [N O V E L I G H T] truth, Jung Sora had been shaken even before meeting Kim Jae-hyun.
The colossal wall that stretched across Hannam Bridge and the Han River, towering into the sky.
Strangely, no one else seemed to notice its presence.
'It wasn’t a lie.'
The idea that all of Busan was enclosed in such a barrier had seemed like an exaggeration.
But after seeing this with her own eyes, Jung Sora understood instantly.
'If this barrier exists here, then the one in Busan must be even greater.'
Her closest aide, who had arrogantly suggested they were equals, suddenly seemed pitiful in her eyes.
Even after meeting Kim Jae-hyun in person, he still hadn’t realized the sheer scale of the power they were facing.
Unlike Cha Hyun-seung, who had focused on Kim Jae-hyun’s physical strength, Jung Sora had perceived him through his presence and aura.
And as a Spirit User, she had felt the full weight of his power.
At that moment—
Woooong—!
A bright light burst forth around her.
"Ah!"
Jung Sora gasped as she felt dark energy seeping into her body.
Woooong!
Even before all the radiant energy had finished merging with her, a noble aura had already begun swirling around her body.
***
[Citizen Jung Sora's Loyalty has reached 100.]
[Citizen Jung Sora has been registered as a Retainer.]
[The maximum number of retainers has increased.]
[Citizen Jung Sora's Trust has increased.]
[Citizen Jung Sora's Trust has reached 100.]
[You have obtained Blessing of the Four Great Spirits.]
‘Huh?’
A series of notifications appeared in rapid succession.
‘Already?’
From the moment she had joined, Jung Sora’s trust and loyalty levels had been extremely high.
This puzzled Kim Jae-hyun.
‘Cha Hyun-seung only just unlocked his loyalty stat.’
Even now, his loyalty remained too low for him to be accepted as a retainer.
Yet Jung Sora had been eligible from the start.
He had merely delayed the official offer.
And now, without him even making the request—she had reached loyalty 100 and automatically became a retainer.
‘Looks like I’ll have to talk to her later.’
The theory that higher-level individuals required special events to increase loyalty and trust had just been completely shattered.
‘So, does it just depend on the individual’s personality? I have no idea.’
Either way, this was a huge win.
Another powerful figure had joined his ranks.
Checking her status screen, Kim Jae-hyun saw that her level had risen to 50, and her SR-rank ability, “Blessing of the Four Great Spirits,” had upgraded to SSR-rank—“Protection of the Four Great Spirit Kings.”
She had become even stronger.
And then—
[A new reaction has been detected between Protection of the Four Great Spirit Kings and Lifeforce of the World Tree.]
A completely new notification appeared.
[Protection of the Four Great Spirit Kings has been upgraded to Companion of the Four Great Spirit Kings.]
And at that moment—
"!"
The scenery changed.
Everything turned pure white.
And then—
{Who are you?}
A voice, laced with irritation, echoed in the void.
Fwoosh—!
Blazing flames erupted from the left.
But before they could spread—
Ssssshhh—!
A wall of water formed, extinguishing the fire.
{What do you think you’re doing—?}
{This one has not been chosen by the World Tree.}
{So what?}
At that moment, a gust of wind brushed through Kim Jae-hyun’s hair.
{Hmm~ Does it even matter~?}
And then—
Kugugugugu—!
The ground trembled.
As the white landscape shook, the wind curled around Kim Jae-hyun.
{See? Trowell says he likes him too~}
The flames roared violently.
{Sylphy, you don’t care about anything anyway!}
The wall of water immediately countered.
{It seems you’re the only one objecting, Salion.}
Once again, the wind whispered playfully.
{Mmm~ As long as it’s fun~!}
At that moment—
[Advanced Fire Magic has reacted.]
Suddenly, flames burst forth around Kim Jae-hyun.
It was the Fire Magic that had evolved alongside Three-legged Crow, one of his summoned creatures.
It had naturally resonated with the Fire Spirit King.
{This is...?}
And then—
Woooong!
An expanding force surged outward, swallowing everything.
[The Absolute Ruler of Home has encountered a favorable divine entity.]
[A lesser divinity is being absorbed.]
Fwoosh!
The first to disappear was the Fire.
「Salion (Lv. 1)」
Fire Spirit King.
The once majestic inferno had shrunk to a mere basketball-sized flame.
{Eh—?}
{Oh~?}
And then—
Sssshhh!
Boom!
Water and wind reacted.
「Elquines (Lv. 1)」
Water Spirit King.
「Sylphid (Lv. 1)」
Wind Spirit King.
Each took on the form of adorable young girls composed of water and air.
And finally—
Kugugugugung!
The white ground shook violently.
「Trowell (Lv. 1)」
Earth Spirit King.
Now reduced to the form of a tiny golem.
And then—
Fwaaash—!
I was back at Seoul Station.
"W-What the heck—?! What just happened?!"
"Heehee~ This is fun~"
"Kuruk?"
Elquines was shocked, Sylphid was already zipping through the air as if she had fully adjusted, and Trowell just stared at me blankly.
‘...What the hell just happened?’
Everything had escalated too quickly for me to properly process the situation.
At that moment—
Whoosh—!
A small flame slammed into my chest.
Yet, unlike before, it didn’t feel hot at all.
[You bastard! You stole all my power! And you still dare to call yourself our friend?!]
Hearing those words, I finally understood.
The Four Spirit Kings had all been turned into summons.
‘...Similar to Lilith’s case?’
The only difference was that these spirits weren’t hostile.
Because of that, unlike Lilith, whose ego shattered immediately upon becoming a summon, they remained intact.
"...You’ve all turned adorable."
"Me? Adorable?!"
"Haha~"
Water, wind, and earth seemed completely carefree.
Only the Fire Spirit King, Salion, looked genuinely concerned about the situation.
[Everyone, wake up! Do you not realize the gravity of what’s happened?!]
But none of them took his words seriously.
"Alright, everyone, gather around for a moment."
"Okay~!"
"Sure-!"
"Kuruk."
[W-Why is my body moving on its own?!]
As expected—
All summons instinctively followed my commands.
I had never thought much about it before, but judging by Salion’s reaction, there seemed to be a strong compulsory force at play.
If they willingly obeyed, they seemed fine, but if they resisted—some kind of force took over.
‘Lifeforce of the World Tree...’
I gathered them all in one place and infused them with the World Tree’s Lifeforce.
After all, it had been the World Tree’s power that allowed me to encounter them in the first place.
Even the first words that Salion had spoken were about the World Tree.
So I decided to share its energy with them.
And then—
"Wooow~"
"It’s so warm~."
"Kururuk."
The Spirit Kings smiled in delight.
[Hmph. Do you really think this will make me submit?]
Even Salion wasn’t immune to its effects.
I continued infusing them with the World Tree’s energy for a while longer.
"Ugh, enough! I can’t take anymore!"
"Me neither~"
As they reached their limit—
[Sylphid's level has increased.]
[Wind power within the territory has increased by 100%.]
[Elquines' level has increased.]
[Water power within the territory has increased by 100%.]
[Trowell's level has increased.]
[Earth power within the territory has increased by 100%.]
[Salion's level has increased.]
[Fire power within the territory has increased by 100%.]
All of the Spirit Kings had leveled up simultaneously.
"So? Do you feel any stronger?"
"Yes-!"
"Maybe yes, maybe no~"
"Kuruk."
[Hmph!]
It seemed like I would need to regularly provide them with the World Tree’s Lifeforce.
‘...I do feel a little guilty about this.’
Even though it wasn’t my intention, I had effectively robbed them of their power in an instant.
‘At least until they hit level 10, I should keep strengthening them.’
It felt like the least I could do.
Even though only Salion seemed to care about it.
For a moment, I fell into deep thought.
‘Is this power really mine?’
The system always prioritized my will.
‘The message earlier mentioned a “favorable divine entity.”’
Unlike Lilith, who was hostile at first, these spirits had shown no resistance.
And yet—the system had absorbed their power anyway.
‘What does the system actually want? Divine absorption?’
The fact that divinities had different ranks implied a hierarchy.
It was possible that the system’s true objective was to ascend to a higher plane.
‘And if absorbing other divinities is necessary for that...’
What would the system do once its goal was achieved?
Would it guarantee my safety and the safety of my people?
There were still too many unknowns.
And then—
"Jae-hyun-nim, Park Sung-hyun is leading his forces toward Konkuk University Station."
A name I had been keeping an eye on.
Commander Lee Hak-gi had specifically warned me about him.
I had already been monitoring his movements.
Ideally, I had wanted to maintain peaceful relations, but—
He was trash.
A man who treated human lives like garbage.
Whether he had always been this way or had become this way due to his environment, it didn’t matter.
His entire faction was made up of people just like him.
Until now, I had let them live—
Only because killing Park Sung-hyun too soon could have put the tens of thousands under his rule at risk.
But that was no longer an issue.
Now that Count’s Territory was fully established around Seoul Station, we could absorb them without consequence.
‘Absolute Ruler’s Eye.’
Checking Seo Ye-jin’s mice, I saw that—just as expected—they were tracking Park Sung-hyun’s group.
After confirming his location, I activated the Communication Ring.
[Lee Joon-hyuk-ssi. Park Sung-hyun is heading toward Konkuk University Station.]
"We’re ready."
Hearing that he was fully prepared—
‘Open North Gate.’
I opened the entrance.