0.
Immediately after the emergency meeting of the Rapid Guild concluded, the senior members began dispersing to handle their respective duties.
As Kim Jinwoo prepared to leave for his hunting session, two individuals stood in his path: Rysil, the guild’s personnel officer, and Grond, the leader of Raid Team 3, known as "The Crusher."
Seeing them approach, Jinwoo let out a sigh and shook his head.
He had expected this, but seeing it happen for real was still exhausting.
He could guess why they had come.
Grond was the first to speak.
“The Demon Knight? How strong is it?”
“Hah.”
Typical. If not a battle maniac, what else would he be?
Jinwoo immediately lowered his head and sighed at the question.
Anyone who had heard about the clearing of the Ancient Citadel should already know. Yet here Grond was, undoubtedly eager to hear the story straight from the source.
Jinwoo was about to answer when he glanced at Rysil and tilted his head in confusion.
“What brings you here, Rysil? It’s unusual for you to join something like this.”
“It’s nothing. Just answer his question first.”
“...?”
“Go on, Jinwoo, tell us how it went.”
Despite having already recounted the tale in the meeting, the towering man was stubbornly demanding more details.
Jinwoo, clearly eager to avoid further entanglement, answered quickly.
“The Demon Knight? Among all the summons I’ve seen, it’s the strongest. To beat it at the same level... I’d say you’d need at least a Legendary-tier player.”
“Hmm, that strong?”
“That’s right. The scariest thing about it is its ability to command legions, though.”
“Commanding legions? I don’t care about that. Anyway, if the summon of a rookie is that strong, they must be formidable. I look forward to meeting them.”
The moment the conversation veered toward strategy and command, Grond lost interest and turned away.
Can a team leader really afford to be like that?
Watching Grond leave, Jinwoo shook his head in disbelief. However, his attention quickly turned to Rysil, who hadn’t left yet.
It wasn’t like Rysil to involve herself in something like this. Why had she come?
As Jinwoo wondered, Rysil ran a hand through her hair with a frustrated expression.
What’s bothering her?
Just as Jinwoo was about to ask, she sighed deeply and spoke.
“You mentioned earlier... there’s a legion capable of clearing the Ancient Citadel solo?”
“Yes? Oh, yes.”
“Haah... This is troublesome.”
“Why? What’s the issue?”
Unable to understand her concern, Jinwoo asked for clarification.
Shaking her head, Rysil let out another heavy sigh before answering.
“Is it really right to assign someone that strong to a team?”
“Ah? ...Ah!”
“We’ve placed him in Luna’s team for now, but if he’s at the level you described...”
Jinwoo nodded as her words trailed off.
Then, he added, “...He might not even need a team to clear a raid soon.”
Raid bosses are usually tackled by teams—often multiple teams working in coordination. Yet, there are rare instances where individuals manage to defeat raid bosses solo.
These individuals are typically among the top-ranked players, known as Single Rankers.
Yuna was one such individual.
If Seong was already showing similar potential, was it really appropriate to assign him to a team?
“What should we do?”
“...Good question. For now, it seems he’ll join Luna’s team soon, especially after completing his second advancement.”
“Even the Guild Master is aware of this. He might... test whether Seong can handle the next raid solo.”
“That’s likely, but the problem is...”
As Jinwoo hesitated, Rysil nodded and continued for him.
“Right. Luna’s team won’t take that lying down. But Luna... she’ll probably mediate things, right? She’s calm and level-headed.”
“Do you think Luna can handle those lunatics on her team?”
“Haah. I’ll go report this now.”
With another long sigh, Rysil slumped her shoulders and headed toward the Guild Master’s office.
It was obvious she was going to discuss the matter, but her dejected demeanor made her look pitiful, almost like livestock being led to the slaughter.
Jinwoo couldn’t help but pity her.
She’d likely end up dealing with all the complaints from Luna’s unruly team.
‘Good luck.’
Muttering a silent prayer for Rysil, Jinwoo hurriedly left the guild citadel to avoid getting dragged into the mess himself.
Even as he departed, curiosity bubbled in his mind.
‘I wonder how Seong will turn out in the end.’
1.
Once players surpassed level 50, they were able to move on to the third village. Seong, however, was already at level 57.
The reason he hadn’t moved yet was simple—he was testing his newly acquired items and skills.
Even in the second village, where parties were more or less mandatory, there were field monsters. Seong was using them as practice targets for his experiments.
[『Helena’s Maiden Staff』 is replicating 『Belt of Giant Strength』.]
[Strength +20%, Attack Power +5% increased.]
[The original options of 『Helena’s Maiden Staff』 are still applied.]
A satisfying message.
The boost in strength was noticeable, significantly increasing the damage dealt by his sword.
But that wasn’t the most important thing right now.
The surrounding area was noisy, filled with the sounds of battle.
Was it because multiple users were fighting nearby?
No.
This wasn’t a particularly efficient hunting ground. If anything, it was rare to see players here, let alone this level of commotion.
Yet, the sounds of conflict echoed loudly.
Undead cloaked in darkness and exuding a turquoise glow were everywhere.
They lacked apparent intelligence, groaning and shambling about.
Though different from Seong’s usual Death Soldiers, they were remarkably organized, thanks to one figure.
"Bring victory to our master! Attack their legs first, topple them, and then overwhelm them!"
Following the commands of Barfur, the Commander of the Legion of Death, the undead army moved as one.
In an instant, the mindless undead began to act with a startling level of coordination.
Their enemies were gnolls, disorganized warriors in small groups. However, their lack of cooperation made them easy prey for the undead army.
When the undead targeted their legs, the gnolls lost their mobility, making escape impossible. Forced to stand and fight, they were quickly overwhelmed.
With no leader to direct them and no reinforcements, the gnolls fell rapidly.
Even worse, the fallen gnolls were resurrected as new Death Soldiers under Seong’s command.
With the Add More ability, their numbers doubled with each resurrection.
It was a cycle of relentless despair.
Some gnolls, struck with fear, dropped their weapons and awaited death rather than resisting.
It was a scene filled with terror and hopelessness.
Seong nodded in satisfaction as he observed the battlefield.
‘This is ridiculously overpowered.’
Until now, he had often discarded soldiers created by Add More due to the lack of resources to sustain them. But with the addition of a Legion Commander, that was no longer necessary.
Barfur’s leadership brought order to the previously mindless soldiers, making them as effective as those with intelligence.
With Barfur managing the Add More soldiers, Seong could allow his other Death Soldiers to think and act independently.
This latest battle had added 40 gnoll ghouls to his forces.
Though half of them were created using Add More and lacked souls, it didn’t matter. Seong stored them all in the Netherworld.
‘Even with limited mana, I should still be able to summon them all at once if needed.’
Seong felt that his mana reserves were still inadequate, but it was an exaggeration.
[Status Window]
『Seong』
『Lv 57』
『Class』 → 『Overlord』
『Titles』 → 『Ruler (Legendary)』 ...and 25 others.
『Attributes』
→《Strength: 69 (53+16)》《Agility: 61 (55+6)》
《Endurance: 59 (53+6)》《Intelligence: 149 (135+14)》
《Wisdom: 149 (135+14)》《Willpower: 133 (120+13)》
《Dexterity: 7 (6+1)》
『Additional Stats』 → 《0》
‘Hmm, maybe it’s not so bad?’
If anyone else saw his stats, they’d probably accuse him of cheating.
But Seong still felt unsatisfied.
Managing his entire army in the Netherworld meant commanding over 100 soldiers.
Including Baltar, Barfur, and Fiora, the total was 103.
The ability to command such a massive undead army was already extraordinary. Complaining about mana would be ridiculous.
Even with Add More and the multiplying undead, the sheer scale of his army was absurd.
But human greed knows no bounds.
‘I wonder if there’s a title that boosts wisdom?’
The experience of ghosts could also be valuable.
As Seong pondered such shameless thoughts, he remembered something he had almost forgotten—the baby Shapeshifter nestled in the pocket of his robe.
It still showed no signs of waking up.
The system helpfully provided an explanation:
[Unable to awaken yet as it was just born.]
‘Hmm, maybe it’s because it’s still a baby?’
Although it seemed to sleep unusually long, Seong brushed it off, assuming it was simply because the creature was exceptionally powerful.
He had been hoping to see it move or do something soon, but that would have to wait until it awoke.
Now, only one task remained.
‘They told me to let them know after completing the second advancement, right?’
Seong sent a message to Rapid, informing them that he had completed his second advancement and reached level 57.
Would he now join a team to take on a raid boss?
‘They said raid bosses appear starting from the third village.’
Seong smiled to himself, feeling a small sense of excitement about teaming up with others.
Party hunting was enjoyable in its own way, though he couldn’t recall having particularly great encounters with people before.
Still, this was the guild, so it should be fine, right?
For a moment, the word “troublemakers,” which his sister had mentioned, flashed in his mind.
He pushed the thought aside.
Surely they wouldn’t be actual troublemakers.
As Seong was about to move on from the thought, a message from Rapid arrived.
[Rapid - First, congratulations on completing the second advancement. But I’ve got a bit of a situation... Would you be up for trying a raid solo today? I’m asking this privately, so I hope you don’t mind.]
[Seong - Huh? Does that mean no team-up?]
[Rapid - For now, you’ll officially be assigned to Luna’s team, but if you can handle the raid boss solo... Well, we’ll need to make some adjustments. It’s just that if you’re capable of soloing it, teaming up would be inefficient.]
Seong nodded as he read the message.
It made sense. Having someone who could solo a raid boss join a team would indeed be a waste of resources.
The question was whether he could actually handle a raid boss alone.
If they were suggesting it, they must have their reasons, Seong thought. Accepting the logic, he sent a reply.
[Seong - Sure, I understand. I’ll go along with that.]
[Rapid - Sorry for springing this on you out of nowhere. It’s just that there’s been some discussion within the guild.]
The relief in Rapid’s response was almost palpable.
It seemed they’d been worried about how Seong might react.
But why would he be upset? Especially after receiving a 2-billion-won signing bonus.
Who wouldn’t be okay with this after receiving such an enormous sum?
[Seong - That’s totally understandable. It’s just part of life, right? Hahaha.]
[Rapid - Thanks for being so understanding. Oh, and if anyone from Luna’s team starts causing trouble, let me know. Luna will try to manage it, but don’t tell Yuna about it.]
[Seong - Huh? Oh, got it.]
Trouble?
Were they really the “troublemakers” his sister had warned about?
Scratching his head in mild frustration, Seong received another message from Rapid.
[Rapid - Thanks again. Once this is all over, we should renegotiate your contract. I’ll push for an increase in your base pay and bonus.]
[Rapid - Oh! And if someone does cause trouble, feel free to hit back. You don’t have to hold back! I’ll message you later with the raid details—it’ll probably be in the evening.]
[Seong - Hahaha, thank you.]
At this rate, he’d be willing to let them cause trouble just for the money.
This wasn’t just pocket change; they were talking about tens of billions.
Who wouldn’t want to provoke a little trouble for that kind of money?
He might even encourage them to stir things up.
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Laughing to himself, Seong ended the conversation and fell into thought.
A solo raid boss, huh.
Could he really pull it off?
But the thought didn’t trouble him for long.
‘I’ll figure it out when I try.’
He wondered if he could claim the raid boss marked on Kahku’s treasure map for himself.
The idea left him feeling excited as he began stretching lightly in preparation.
‘Alright, time to warm up and get ready for the raid...’
Just as he was about to start his preparations—
[You’ve received a voice message.]
[Seong~ Time for lunch!]
‘Guess I’ll eat first.’
Hearing the cheerful voice of his mother, Lee Na-gyeong, Seong immediately got ready to head out.
After all, even battles can wait for a meal.