Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: Another World’s Rush Gallery
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The nation of the Dark Elves. Ardel was located underground.
They too were unequivocally members of the World Tree and had their own tasks to perform.
If the Elves managed the trunk and branches, the Dark Elves managed the roots.
It was only natural for beings who lived in the dark and were active 24 hours a day to be close to darkness.
Much like how a 13-year veteran NEET, a hikikomori, or a nocturnal author loves stimulating content. They were no different.
Stimulating meant something sexy and fun!
For that reason, the Dark Elves were utterly obsessed with gallery surfing.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Title) What do you think?
(A beautiful, large chest reflected in a shadow.jpg)
— User
Ohh wow ㅋㅋ
— User
This is modern art ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
Shadow art is legendary
— User
Wow, look at the shape ㅋㅋ
— User
Looks so damn tempting
Title) What do you think?
(Male part.jpg)
— User
The fuck is this
— User
Hey you son of a bitch
— User
Ah fuck, why do I have to see a guy's pic when I'm browsing the gallery?
— User
Oh, where do you live?
— User
Ardel
— User
That place is a bit ㅋㅋ
— User
Fuck, those Ardel bastards get horny as soon as dawn breaks
— User
ㅋㅋㅋ ㄹㅇ
Living in the dark and remaining unseen by others, the Dark Elves were nonetheless active in the gallery.
Their playground was the gallery, a place where they could indulge in their love for stimulating content and all their bad habits.
"You know... Elves... must maintain their chastity... and pay even more attention to their conduct...!"
Their level of participation was entirely different from the Elf spies who would say "Ahem" and pretend not to be browsing while secretly lurking.
The Dark Elves held a surprisingly high share of the gallery.
Their queen, Serendia, who had developed in that direction, also checked the gallery frequently.
However, right now, she was staring at the screen with her eyes narrowed.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
Head Admin... is a dangerous existence.
Serendia focused on the ability he possessed.
Tracking the location of the Auction House and gallery users. For Ardel, this was an unwelcome ability.
Specifically pinpointing the location of certain individuals?
If he picked any random user, wouldn't he eventually realize that the target belongs to Ardel?
If he gathered information like that... eventually, small dots would gather and form a complete map.
The threat of Ardel's hidden underground cities and bases being exposed was not something to be taken lightly.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
Head Admin is a threat to Ardel.
To the Dark Elves, who hid their dwellings and restrained themselves to the extreme, the Head Admin was a ticking time bomb.
They might end up repeating their painful history.
Serendia immediately called for the personnel of the diplomatic department.
Only three people gathered.
"Is this everyone?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Well, we don't really do diplomacy, do we?"
They were a closed-off race, active in the darkness and night of the underground city. The Dark Elves.
They were not skilled at interacting with others or resolving issues through conversation.
Persuading with words? Not easy.
It was more familiar for them to negotiate while holding a dagger to someone's throat.
"Ah. That's true."
"On top of that, with 'act first, report later' becoming the norm because who has time to do diplomacy..."
The diplomatic department, which had shrunk in size over time, was not functioning properly.
"So that's how it is."
"Yes."
The Dark Elves manage the roots of the World Tree.
To manage the roots of the world that spread across the continent, they had to encroach upon other nations' territories to do their work.
Every time they had to conduct military activities, they had to exchange letters.
Having a formal conversation? Also not easy.
So, at some point, they stopped doing diplomacy.
Why bother when they could just move quietly and solve things with force?
However, swinging a sword (power) in the gallery was the authority and role of an admin.
All Serendia, a mere gallery user, could do was talk.
"Minister of Foreign Affairs."
"Yes."
"What do you think of the Head Admin?"
"I think he's fun."
"Not that."
"Huh? From Ardel's perspective, what is he?"
He thought for a moment.
"Hmm. If he uses the location tracking feature... wouldn't he be a threat to our Ardel...?"
"As expected of you. You're smart for being the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Then what should we do?"
"Hmm."
He thought again.
"Let's instill fear in him."
"Fear, you say."
"Isn't that what we're best at?"
Fear...
Seemed like a good method.
Serendia immediately posted on the gallery.
— Serendia
Title) To the Head Admin. If you don't want to die, don't mess with Ardel.
— Head Admin)
?
Out of the blue, an Ardel-style diplomacy had begun.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The line that can be solved by force is only in the case of individual versus individual.
What if groups clash? They have already surpassed the point where things can be solved by force.
It must be solved through conversation and politics. Or else, it's war.
But Ardel's diplomatic skills were so excellent that they transcended such methods of resolution.
They transcended them so much that they just hurled threats first.
— Serendia
Title) This is Ardel's stance. Head Admin, stop your hostile acts against our Dark Elves. You seem like a puppet for those damned Elves. Stop now, and we will forgive you, Head Admin.
💬 Comments
— User
??
— User
??
— User
??
— User
¿
— User
Dude, is she crazy?
— User
Hey, looking at the verification, she's really from Ardel?
— User
It's really Serendia, the queen of Dark Elves ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
But who hit the Dark Elves?
— User
What did the Head Admin do?
— User
Seems like they beat up the Dark Elves?
— User
What kind of hostile act is it?
— Head Admin)
I didn't do it;;
— User
ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
— User
Seems like she just exploded on her own ㅋㅋ
⭐ Top Comment
— User
ㅋㅋ ㄹㅇ, spontaneous combustion is still an explosion ㅋㅋ
— User
If sparks fly from spontaneous combustion, how are we supposed to dodge ㅋㅋ
— User
Not knowing the Dark Elves' history, you wouldn't know ㅇㅇ;
— User
They were oppressed by Elves, so they split off to form Ardel.
— User
That's why they're so tightly-knit.
— User
Elves?
— User
Elves kicked the Dark Elves out of Elan ㅋ
— User
Ah
— User
Elves again ㅋㅋ
— User
They're a hated nation, gotta admit ㅋㅋ
— User
Basically, if you pick Elves for the continent's problems, you're mostly right ㅋㅋ
— User
They're pitiable though ㅋㅋ
— User
They founded Ardel after being chased out by Elves, for real.
— User
They don't want to lose their home this time.
— User
They want to protect their home somehow ㅠㅠ
— User
Aw, I didn't even know that.
Title) Why Dark Elves are pitiable
Because of their past of being backstabbed by their own race, they naturally can't trust other races ㅋㅋ
What the Head Admin says? Predictable ㅋㅋ They won't believe it.
— User
This can't be helped...
— User
No matter what you do, you can see the potential for getting backstabbed ㅋㅋ
— User
That's why they're prickly towards other races.
— User
They still complain even if you're nice to them.
— User
?? : Why are you being so nice to me...?
— User
?? : Fuck, this is full of ulterior motives no matter how I look at it... This can't be right...
— User
"I'm interested in you. How about a drink...?"
— User
?? : That can't be...
— User
But isn't this just a classic case of being a loser?
— User
ㅅㅂㅋㅋㅋㅋ
— User
A loser who never received love from others ㅋㅋ
— User
Don't talk about me...
— User
Fuck, I just got hit in the bone.
— User
ㄹㅇㅋㅋㅋ
— User
They just have no trust in other races.
— User
If it were me, I wouldn't trust anyone either, you son of a bitch ㅋㅋ
— User
Abandoned by their own kind, who can they trust, you idiot ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
— User
For real, only their allies are allies. Everyone else is an enemy ㅋㅋ The Elves they trusted as neutrals betrayed them ㅋㅋ
Title) The Dark Elves bastards are the problem
They sneak around only at night and always stay underground.
Try thinking from the Elves' perspective, for real.
— User
Wow, fuck, look at that personality ㅋㅋ
— User
Elves...
— User
This bastard's ID is a chew ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
Elf spy gay?
— User
Wait, this is a bit much ㅋㅋ
— User
The hated nation is crazy.
— User
Elves, please ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
— User
But the Head Admin's location is unknown, can we assassinate him?
— User
Their assassination skills are good, they might find him first.
— User
ㄹㅇ
— User
I heard they can find him using dark magic?
— User
Not many people know about dark magic, so there's no information.
Elves use magic, and Dark Elves use dark magic.
The reason information about dark magic hasn't been released on the continent is that no one knows what they can do with it.
However.
They might really find him. There were surprisingly many opinions like that.
"Dark magic, huh..."
This is a bit scary.
The Head Admin trembled with fear.
When he thought about them actually finding and chasing him, he got goosebumps.
Wait... turning a crisis into an opportunity...?
What if I welcome a pretty Dark Elf noona who comes to find me as my wife?
That's not going to happen. He stopped his idle thoughts and started writing a post first.
— Head Admin
Title) I think there's a misunderstanding. I didn't do anything hostile to the Dark Elves;; Well anyway... I'm sorry ㅇㅇ;; Should I delete the pictures of the Dark Elf noonas I saved;;;
💬 Comments
— User
Surrendering like a dog ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
The Head Admin was secretly looking at pictures of Dark Elf noonas alone. Tsk tsk.
— User
So that's why Ardel got mad.
— User
Release your Dark Elf collection, you bastard.
— User
How do you endure Dark Elf noonas ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
The post went up a few minutes ago and he's already lowering his tail, is this real? ㅋㅋ
— User
For the Head Admin, anything is fine anyway ㅋㅋ
⭐ Top Comment
— User
ㅋㅋ ㄹㅇ, whether it's hostile, ignored, or surrendered, it doesn't matter.
After waiting for a moment, another post went up.
— Serendia
Title) There is no sincerity. Prove it.
💬 Comments
— Head Admin)
How do I prove it?
— Serendia)
Do we have to tell you how to do that?
— User
ㅋㅋㅋㅋ crazy idea
— User
You figure it out ㅋㅋ But if it doesn't please us, we'll go crazy ㅋㅋ
— User
Wait, she said there's a lack of sincerity? ㅋㅋ
— User
What is sincerity anyway ㅋㅋ
— Head Admin)
If I can't do it
— Serendia)
I will take your life as the price. There is no reason to spare a threat to Ardel.
— User
Alright. Here to collect the neck~~
— User
Out of the blue, she's taking the neck ㅋㅋ
— User
Did you borrow a neck? ㅋㅋ
— User
Pay back the neck quickly ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
ㅅㅂㅋㅋㅋㅋ
— User
Who borrows a neck ㅋㅋ
— User
The Head Admin has 2 necks?
— User
Give one, it'll be fine.
— User
Still, one left, so it's fine ㅇㅇ
— User
Crazy bastards ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
If you have one neck, you can borrow it, snap it, and pay it back, right?
— User
?
— User
What is this ㅋㅋ
— User
How do you borrow a neck, you bastard ㅋㅋ
— User
Let's negotiate ㅇㅇ;; 0 necks ㅇㅇ;;
— User
How do you negotiate?
— User
With a sincere negotiation, it's possible.
— User
ㅋㅋㅋㅋ A sincere negotiation is inevitable ㅋㅋ
— User
Will it work ㅋㅋ
— User
Dark Elves have rarely negotiated in their history ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
ㄹㅇ They definitely won't compromise.
— Head Admin)
Why are you doing this to me?
— User
Look at how desperate he is ㅋㅋ
— User
ㄹㅇㅋㅋ The Head Admin didn't do anything but is getting threatened with murder.
— User
She's saying she'll remove the threat to Ardel in advance, just in case he becomes one ㅋㅋ
— User
She's just sick with the disease of not being able to trust others ㅋㅋ What can you do ㅋㅋ
— User
This is their daily life.
— User
Look at the surrounding countries, they don't mess with Ardel as if it doesn't exist ㅋㅋ
⭐ Top Comment
— User
ㄹㅇㅋㅋㅋㅋ So that's why they don't get messed with ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
No, why is Serendia acting like this?
Should I just ban them all and wreck the gallery? As he was thinking, an alarm went off.
✨ LEVEL UP! ✨
Gallery Admin Level ↑
+ You can choose an Admin Privilege.
⚔ Available Privileges ⚔
— Option
Gallery Photo Pre-screening
— Option
Gallery Auction House Admin +1
— Option
Gallery Search Function Enhancement
— Option
Gallery Banner Photo Decoration
— Option
Gallery...
The gallery is on my side.
Is there anything useful here?
Let's find a decent choice among them. Ah. This seems like it might be good?
The Head Admin selected one privilege.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The Queen of Ardel, Serendia, wrote a post on the gallery and gave a satisfied smile.
"With this, they'll know how scary our Ardel is."
"Yes. They must have surely realized it."
When her aide chimed in from the side, her smile deepened.
Head Admin. With that warning, he won't do anything now. She was sure of it.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
There will be no more incidents where Ardel trembles in fear.
Even if he tracks the personnel of the Auction House and finds their location, he won't speak of it out loud.
That was enough.
If Ardel's information, consisting of small underground cities, were to leak to someone, that would be the worst-case scenario.
Where the underground bases are, and where the underground cities are located. Other races must not know.
Ardel... can no longer trust anyone.
"While I am here, Ardel should not have to endure such humiliation."
Ardel being torn apart by someone or its power being reduced?
That would be an unbearable sight.
Serendia couldn't even imagine the Dark Elves trembling in fear while she was active in the gallery.
"And yet, if he speaks of it out loud..."
She planned to go take the Head Admin's neck immediately.
No matter how well he hides, darkness and shadows exist everywhere.
Using dark magic to find someone. It was slow but definitely possible.
Even if the Head Admin was hiding ever so tightly.
There would be no more incidents where Ardel trembles in fear.
That's what Serendia thought, but a new post went up on the gallery.
— Gallery Notice
A new notice in the gallery?
Serendia clicked on the post and her eyebrow twitched.
— Head Admin
Title) Gallery Notice Out of respect for Ardel's will. To prevent the Head Admin from tracking Ardel Gallery users, we will block access for Ardel Gallery users. Your gallery surfing. Has been replaced by Serendia's protest. Always be grateful to her.
💬 Comments
— User
What's to be grateful for, fuck
— User
What is this, isn't this a regional lock?
— User
Why only Ardel?
— User
Fuck, what is this!!!!!
— User
I'll die if I can't use the gallery!!!!!!
— User
Please open the door please open the door please open the door please open the door
— User
Is this because of what Queen Serendia said?
⭐ Top Comment
— User
Kingly reasoning, god-tier decision ㅋㅋ
— User
He's saying he'd rather make it so they can't gallery surf at all than leave them causing a ruckus in the gallery ㅇㅇ
— User
In order to remove the cause of the threat to Serendia, he blocked the cause itself, Ardel ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
What's the public sentiment in Ardel going to be like ㅋㅋ
— User
The public sentiment in Ardel is going to be a total mess.
— User
Openly targeting Ardel is so manly ㅋㅋ
— User
Serendia is a woman, so she's a 'wo-man' (상여자), right?
— User
Why 'furry-ah' (상퍼리아)?
— User
Furry-guya...
— User
The Head Admin and the Dark Elves are having a battle of wits.
— User
The battle of wits is on ㅋㅋㅋ
— User
In a battle of wits, the Head Admin won't lose either.
— User
Look at this bastard begging for sexy pics ㅋㅋ Would he lose in a battle of wits? ㅋㅋ
— User
It's been a while since I've seen a regional lock ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
— User
When was there one?
— User
What was it? It's hazy, it was a few years ago.
— User
It was a divine punishment or something. There was one once.
Regional lock?
"Hah. Fine, do what you want."
Serendia openly ignored it.
Ardel will not be shaken by this.
Rather, it's a good thing because it preemptively removes the threat to Ardel.
She believed that.
The next day, a riot broke out in Ardel.