The King Slayer's Free Ride
After the king and his main forces were wiped out, the Gwyun Grand Duke's army marched into Aden City almost for free.
Once inside, Grand Duke Gwyun handed out rewards to every hero who had earned a name on the battlefield.
First came the Duke title for the King Slayer Cheolhyeolpaegun, followed by the Count title for each of the three Cheolhyeolgeoms below.
These weren't mere honorary ranks. They came with real authority, including the ability to call upon NPCs.
Cheolhyeolpaegun could summon an entire NPC army whenever he wished, and the lower-ranking Cheolhyeolgeoms could command their personal escort squads as they pleased.
“Today we’re clearing the Peron Cave. Watch my back.”
“Yes, sir.”
The escorts’ stats were staggering. Five 200-level NPC knights, and even dungeon-crawling players at 150 levels would find themselves hunting in comfort.
“Oh, and send all the other adventurers home. They’re getting in the way.”
“Yes, sir.”
The knights, following orders, chased fleeing players from their hunting grounds.
“Get out now, you commoners!”
“If you don’t want to be hunted alongside monsters, then scram!”
“Hiiik……”
“W-wait! Please don’t kill us!”
The knights threatened to slay anyone who didn’t flee immediately.
Helpless users were ruthlessly driven away.
“Heh heh. It’s good I followed Chairman Park, huh?”
Cheolhyeolgeom chuckled to himself.
With knights at his side, he could play and grind without worry. Levels rose automatically, quests completed themselves.
High-grade items, quests, and materials dropped straight into his inventory. He was living the dream of a rich gamer who never had to lift a finger.
It felt like the life of a real estate tycoon or top-tier gold spoon, but in the game.
Every day was pure happiness. He had become the true ruler of the Horizon Korea server.
- You have committed evil deeds.
- Karma has decreased.
Even though karma dropped, he could restore it anytime by donating more.
‘Not that bad compared to the income pouring in, heh heh.’
By monopolizing every famous honey-hunting spot, he earned thousands of gold daily.
That was only what Cheolhyeolgeom was receiving.
Hunting was effortless, taxes were free, and the life of a real power player was something he could feel down to his bones.
Of course, Cheolhyeolpaegun wasn’t finished yet.
“Take all the control-hunting grounds and buildings from the rebel guilds! Especially the Five Star bastards. Leave nothing! Zero!”
The meeting room where the leadership gathered was tense.
The King Slayer slammed his fist on the table.
“The hostile guilds are still out there, right? If they resist, we use it as an excuse to wipe them out completely. Start infinite hunts at their revival points.”
“My lord, managing all of that would require a lot of troops.”
Hunting had become easy, but the Iron Blood Hammer Guild still had far fewer members than before.
Cheolhyeolpaegun sneered in response.
“Use the NPC soldiers. If we’re short, hire mercenaries. Those street wanderers have been causing trouble for ages.”
“Where do we even get the gold for that…”
“I already thought of that too.”
Cheolhyeolpaegun chuckled and swept his gaze across the assembled leaders.
“Starting tomorrow, close all the hunting grounds and NPC quest givers to outsiders. We collect entrance fees now.”
“……!”
The next day, the Iron Blood Hammer Guild’s announcement was posted across the site.
【Title: Iron Blood Hammer Guild Control Guidelines – New Release】
- Author: King Slayer
- Content: Hello everyone, I am the King Slayer. With the large event over, this guild……
The announcement stretched across several pages.
In short, it was simple.
- Guild alliances, Five Star, and Ark Guilds are enemies; we will exterminate them.
- Internal Baran Kingdom dungeons and repeatable quests now require entrance fees. Half of all revenue goes to the guild. Violating quest dialogue will result in fines.
- Breaking these rules means infinite slaughter even at revival points.
A control system straight out of pay-to-win games!
The community exploded with outrage. >Those crazy bastards. With 50% of the profit, it was basically just experience left. >This is exactly why we can’t let “you guys” take over. Sigh……
The rage boiled over in the comments.
In-game, however, no one dared to fight back.
Why? Simple reason.
Anyone who showed resistance was swarmed by NPC soldiers and knights and arrested on the spot. >Once arrested, it’s over. You get executed right there, and even if you revive, the King Slayer waits at the revival point until you give up. >We really should just quit this damn game. What kind of game makes dying the only outcome? >Yeah~ Without you guys, we’ll survive~ You can go if you want~ >No way lol, so you’re not even playing Horizon anymore?!
Countless users faced the impossible choice of complaining about real-world suffering while unable to log out of Horizon.
It made perfect sense.
Compared to Horizon’s hyper-realistic world, other games were just polygons and text. >I’m starting a Resistance right now. If they mess with me, I’ll stop those bastards. >Horizon Gallery Resistance Army recruiting! Details and inquiry only in the Gallery Notice Cocoa OpenTalk!
Users who had decided to resist began joining local noble warlords or the Resistance itself.
Then someone asked, >Hey, what about Fafnir? >What?? >Fafnir. He’s number one in contributions, so there’s a huge bounty on him, but I can’t find him anywhere. >Yeah? Where’d he go?
A new mystery began. >He wasn’t in the east last time, was he? >I think I saw him fighting on the last day’s field.
Not even Five Star, Ark, or even the King Slayer had caught up to Fafnir’s contribution points.
Fafnir, known across the Korean server as a famous personality thanks to topping the contribution charts.
It was only natural for users to be curious about his next moves. >No arrest reports, so he must be out there somewhere. >Probably grinding hard in some high-level dungeon or untouched field. >Somewhere we can’t even imagine. >Number one contributor, after all.
Users began hoping Fafnir would arrive and crush the Iron Blood tyrants. >Later, when he shows up, I hope he wipes out those Iron Blood bastards. >Please……!
【Image of a single otter clapping and praying】
Reaching number one in contributions wasn’t possible with raw power alone.
He must have cleared absurd difficulty quests in a row.
***
“That one’s ours!”
“This one’s ours!”
Users who had reached the secret area scattered in every direction.
Eighty in total—eight per party across ten parties.
“Wow, this is the first real hunt in forever.”
“Finally, I can stretch my limbs!”
Since the united battle ended, Resistance players had never enjoyed a single comfortable hunt.
They had to keep moving south without losing the formation, and once they arrived, they faced serious construction and monster defense duties.
Being cursed or insulted by unicorns was just part of it.
【Image of an otter clapping and praying】
“This is boring.”
“All we do is march or grind, nothing else.”
Naturally, more users grew frustrated.
Trapped in the base, they could only grind, and even that was limited to skill practice.
Knowing their treatment was better than elsewhere didn’t stop the irritation.
It was at that exact moment Fafnir introduced the secret area.
“You may begin now.”
The moment Fafnir gave the green light, users surged forward.
“Waaaaah!”
“We’re heading that way!”
Copybara hunting began in every direction.
But as time passed, something strange happened.
Screee!
“Uwaaah!”
“M-my shield… it’s crushed!”
The hit Copybaras moved.
Their bodies were the size of small trucks, but they were faster than most wild beasts.
They vanished from sight in an instant and turned on a dime.
Tanks blocking the front had no choice but to flee.
“Attack now!”
Close-range users rushed in and stabbed with spears, but the thick fur and fat layers shrugged off the blows.
To land a proper hit, they had to climb on top, but the Copybaras were far too fast.
Arrows and magic fared no better.
“This is harder than I thought?”
“Whoa, heading this way!”
Chaos erupted from the front lines.
But Fafnir paid no attention and kept working.
【Collection successful.】
- ‘Southern Horn Carrot’ acquired.
‘How many have I gathered? Inventory.’
【Southern Horn Carrot】
- Grade: Unique
- Type: Material
- Effect: Increases Intelligence by +3, maximum MP by +150 (applies once per character).
- Description: A legendary herb said to be formed from a thousand clear horn spirits. Packed with massive mana, it excels at mana absorption and amplification.
- Current count: 49
In just two hours he had collected a staggering 49!
Not a professional herb collector, but the yield was enough to reach the next tier of skill.
Not only that, his Herb Collection skill had leveled up, and Handicraft +1 had been added.
Fafnir smiled.
‘That’s plenty for my own use.’
‘The rest are seeds for a farm. We can take our time.’
In the novel, Southern Horn Carrots were extremely valuable herbs.
Eating them directly raised stats, but their true purpose was crafting.
They were used for high-level golems and skeleton soldiers, and as the main ingredient for “Celestial Enhancement” on epic items.
The massive Copybara bones were similar.
Feeding a Max Copybara Southern Horn Carrots infused its bones with enormous mana, allowing them to craft powerful armor, joints, or catalysts.
‘And they’re an item almost impossible to obtain anywhere in the world.’
‘So I should gather as many as possible this time.’
Fafnir looked up.
‘That way seems noisy.’
Watching the hunters, Fafnir narrowed his eyes.
‘They look a bit stuck.’
The hunting wasn’t going smoothly.
Fafnir shrugged.
‘They’ll figure it out.’
New players always learned the hard way by rolling in dirt at first.
Plus these monsters were weaker than others anyway.
Then,
“There!”
“Run!”
Pat!
A lone Max Copybara that players had missed charged straight at Fafnir.
Fafnir sidestepped and thrust his sword.
Screee!
The aggro-pulled Copybara spun 180 degrees.
In that instant, Fafnir rolled across the ground and slid several meters.
Naturally, skeleton soldiers appeared ahead and Fafnir behind.
Squeak?
The missed Max Copybara tilted its head, then slowly backed away as if planning to investigate later.
‘Now.’
Fafnir thrust his sword toward the monster’s rear end.
Burn End!
Screeeeee!
The Max Copybara screamed in agony after being stabbed in the butt.
The important part was that it had stopped moving.
“Stab now!”
Following Fafnir’s command, the skeleton soldiers swarmed like ants spotting prey.
Skeleton soldiers climbed on and stabbed with spears and swords.
Squelch…… squeee……
The Max Copybara, hit in the rear, collapsed and turned gray.
Experience gained.
Max Copybara meat acquired.
“Are you okay over there?”
“Got it! Whoa……”
Players who had rushed in belatedly opened their mouths in shock.
“How did you catch it?”
“It was almost at full HP… and you took it down in five seconds?”
The players stared in disbelief at the easily slain Max Copybara.
“A little trick, that’s all.”
Fafnir answered calmly.
A user jumped in fright and bowed his head.
“Ah…… Fafnir-nim! I’m so sorry! I should have apologized first!”
“We caused the aggro by mistake. We brought you here……”
“It’s fine. I wasn’t disturbed much.”
Fafnir had indeed caught it quickly, and he knew it was an accident, so he felt no resentment.
These players had been hunting diligently just to collect his materials anyway.
“By the way, the hunting isn’t going well, I see.”
“Ah……”
“Yes, we can’t match your stats or levels like Fafnir-nim……”
“There’s no way. My level is in the 130s.”
“What? Then we’re similar?”
“So how did you…… Did you use a hidden skill?”
The users were clueless.
‘Hmm……’
Fafnir stroked his chin.
‘If this keeps up, my inventory will be full of herbs.’
The two materials needed to be balanced, but one-sided stockpiling meant they’d be useless later.
The surplus would become toxic stock.
He needed to offer at least basic help to prevent that.
“It’s not that. I’ll teach you a simple trick, and you can share it with the others.”
Fafnir taught the users the Copybara hunting tips.
From blocking their escape route to targeting the weak rear end.
“The rear end. If you poop, movement speed drops sharply. Stab there and it’s simple.”
“Ah……!”
“I’ll try it!”
The users nodded and left.
“Let’s do it like that?”
“Um…… Let’s give it a shot.”
The other party members took positions and began hunting.
The results were astonishing.
“Oh…… It’s caught!”
“Now!”
Even after ten minutes, they hadn’t caught one, but now they were snatching one per minute.
Ignoring the slight disgust of stabbing the rear end, the method was flawless.
Squeeeee!
Screams echoed from Copybaras pierced in the butt as users continued hunting diligently.
“Wow, when you hit the weak point it just freezes.”
“Honestly, you sound just like Fafnir.”
“Don’t say that. I’m pressing hard on the rear end and grabbing it.”
“Still, it’s super easy. Check the speed.”
Users stabbed Copybara rear ends and finished them off in seconds.
For the first time, they had time to chat.
“Did you hear that from Fafnir-nim?”
“The tip? Yeah.”
“Oh……”
“How did you think of it the moment you saw it? You moved without thinking earlier.”
The chatting users tilted their heads.
“Did you try it before?”
“Then it’s still amazing. You’re giving away a free tip you invented.”
“That’s true.”
“No matter how you look at it, it’s amazing.”
Even a simple tip could be sold for high prices on the Horizon Market.
Releasing it for free had already made Fafnir seem extraordinary to the users.
“Is he from a big guild?”
“He doesn’t seem to be following orders.”
“Necromancer, right? …… I think I’ll try the Necromancer class next.”
Some users even dreamed of becoming necromancers like Fafnir.
Meanwhile, Fafnir stood up from his spot.
‘Material collection is complete.’
He could return to the base and take the next quest, but there was still one more thing to do first.
‘Then let’s move on to the main task.’
Mount Aeolos was where Flush obtained countless hidden pieces.
Since he had arrived first, it was time to make a real mess there.