The Game's New Beginning
The tense war had tilted sharply in their favor the moment the three teams joined up with the villagers' youths. Before long, the enemy forces could no longer hold and retreated in disorder.
"The first prince Cron's head is here!"
"Whoa!"
The succession war had been merciless. The eldest son of the Rion family, revered and feared by all, now lay headless before the knights, his body discarded like so much discarded armor.
"Whoa!"
"We won!"
"Cain, well done," Captain Grape said, clapping him on the shoulder as he approached.
"Shall we head to the lord's chamber together?"
Captain Grape and I made our way to the lord's chamber. Ryan, the young lord, sat upon the lord's throne, with the viscountess standing at his side.
"We saw the valor of the Green Grape Mercenary Corps," the viscountess said, stepping forward in Ryan's place to lead the conversation.
She praised Captain Grape and me, then summoned a servant at her side and handed each of us a small box.
"We have already paid the mercenaries through the mercenary guild. These gifts are for Captain Grape and you, Cain."
A servant opened the box. Inside lay a ring. The body was gold, and at its center was set a red jewel...
◈ Gold construction, red gem inlay
◈ Special property unlocked upon receipt
I chose the first option. I wanted to sell the necklace itself to buy better gear.
"What is this? I've suddenly gained a choice?"
When I had met the viscountess before, there had been no real choice. I had been forced into missions and had completed them.
This looked expensive. How much would I get if I sold it?
At least one gold. Maybe more. Ten golds, even?
'First option.'
"Thank you."
"Thank you."
As the event screen returned, Captain Grape and I both dropped to one knee and offered our gratitude.
Thud!
"Lord Ryan."
"Effective today, Ryan is the new viscount. Address him as Viscount Rion from now on."
The viscountess corrected the knight who had entered.
"My apologies, Lord Rion. The traitor Kses has fled to Pirion Territory."
The first son Cron had died in the fighting. The second son Kses had retreated, and it appeared he was heading to his neighboring territory.
Quest: Catch the Traitor
📍 Location: Rion Territory
🎁 Reward: Additional territory expansion and influence
"Gather the territorial forces and bring Kses to me at once!"
"I..."
The knight knelt but gave no answer. He was clearly waiting for a signal from the viscountess, not from Ryan.
"Do as my mother says."
"Yes, ma'am!"
The knight rose the moment he heard Ryan's order and left.
"Captain Grape, please lend the Green Grape Mercenary Corps as well."
"Of course, Lady Viscountess."
The event video ended. The background outside the lord's castle shifted as before.
"Cain, the three teams all have horses. You can head out first. I'll gather the rest of the mercenaries and follow."
Team 3 Mission: Eliminate Kses.
I assembled the three-team mercenaries and left Rion Castle at a gallop.
"Hmm... Pirion Territory?"
The minimap showed only Rion Territory. According to what I knew, the Hero game was still only offering Rion Territory.
"We'll find out when we get there."
I chased them at top speed.
"Team leader, enemy ahead!"
"Attack!"
I struck at the rear of the retreating regular soldiers. The soldiers afflicted with Exhaustion could barely resist.
Under my command the three teams easily routed the fleeing regulars.
The enemies had left some soldiers behind to buy time. It was not a bad idea. Although ruthless, the human-form NPCs would yield far more experience.
After a long chase we met another group of regulars. This time I wiped out the rear guards as well.
"Experience... is enormous."
War... At first I had worried, but the rewards turned out to be richer than I expected. Not just money. Experience as well.
I cleared the regulars left behind with Exhaustion and gained massive experience in one go.
"Cain, look ahead."
"It ends here, I think."
A gray wall appeared in the distance. We were nearing the boundary line that the Hero game offered.
A group of figures moved toward the gray wall ahead.
"Let's go."
I urged my horse closer.
"You cannot pass here!"
A fully armored knight barred our way alone. He was afflicted with Fatigue.
A knight afflicted with a status ailment was manageable. Even if he was strong, thirty to one would be too much.
"Take out the knight first."
The three teams surrounded him.
Thud!
Even with his shield raised, heavy damage came through. But he had not suffered any status ailment like before.
"Is he too exhausted to use aura?"
Without aura, he could endure a few more attacks.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Crack!
Just as I focused my attack on the knight, Seolhwa and the other mercenaries struck him from the side.
"Guh..."
One mercenary screamed and staggered back.
Despite the opening, the knight blocked the blow and dealt massive damage to another mercenary.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The exchange continued for a while. Instead of finishing the enemy, we focused on grinding his stamina through attrition.
Because he was already afflicted with Fatigue, we thought a little more and we would be done.
But he held on longer than expected. For ten full minutes, thirty mercenaries fought one knight.
"He's a complete monster..."
Yet the knight afflicted with Exhaustion could no longer endure.
The man who had resisted to the end fell to Seolhwa's sword.
"Kyahaaaak! Glory to Lord Kses!!"
After the knight fell, the level-up notification window appeared twice in succession.
"Cain, you've leveled up to 2."
"I have too... Let's chase."
"Yeah!"
Because time had been so costly, I drove my horse even faster.
"Cain, the enemy has reached right in front of the gray wall."
"No way... Are they actually trying to cross?"
Users could not pass the gray wall. What about NPCs?
According to the explanation, they were heading for Pirion Territory. The area beyond the wall must be Pirion Territory.
"Keep running!"
"Yes!"
The enemy's assumption was exactly right. They had crossed the gray wall.
"Halt!"
We had stepped beyond the service area provided by the Hero game.
From now on, it was no longer under my control.
Clomp. Clomp. Clomp.
From behind came the sound of hundreds of hooves and a massive dust cloud as a large cavalry force approached.
"Cain! What happened to the traitor Kses?"
"Captain Grape, I apologize. I lost them."
Captain Grape's face hardened. So did the territorial commander who had come with him.
"It is unfortunate. For now, let us return."
"Understood."
Upon reaching the lord's castle, the event screen returned.
"Lord Rion, we could not catch the traitor Kses."
The territorial commander spoke for the group.
"I see... It cannot be helped."
The viscountess answered beside the young lord.
"The mother of Lord Rion's eldest and second sons is from the Pirion family."
If Kses was connected to the Pirion family, it was no simple matter. The enemy could trigger another succession war with their support.
"Prepare all territorial forces for war."
"Understood."
The territorial commander replied to the viscountess and left the chamber.
"I will hire the Green Grape Mercenary Corps again. Please assist us in the coming war as well."
"Yes, Lady Viscountess."
The event screen ended and we moved outside the lord's castle.
"Cain, grow strong by the next war. This time it will be far more dangerous."
Captain Grape said and left his seat.
"Cain, how did it go?"
Seolhwa, who had been waiting outside the lord's castle, approached.
"The war is starting again."
"Yeah..."
Name: Cain
Level: 34
Job: Head of the Household / Mercenary Commander
DNA: Gambler
Strength: 41 | Agility: 41 | Stamina: 50 | Intelligence: 30
Charisma: 33
Level 34. Thanks to the war, I had leveled up a lot in a short time.
I checked the status window and opened the inventory to confirm the ring the viscountess had given me.
"Huh? Where did the ring go?"
It was gone.
I had definitely received the gold ring with the red gem and placed it in the inventory.
Just in case it was a glitch, I closed and reopened the inventory window. Nothing.
I logged out, logged back in, and checked again. Nothing.
"Cain, what's wrong?"
"The item disappeared."
"The item? Can items in the inventory disappear?"
"I don't know..."
Since the game had high freedom, there might be a skill that stole inventory items.
But there was no time.
After receiving the ring and leaving the lord's castle, I had immediately begun chasing Kses.
I had fought regular soldiers and knights. How could anyone steal the ring in the middle of that?
It seemed impossible.
Item acquisition would have to be put on hold. The budget had been reduced because the ring was lost.
"Seolhwa, let's go to the mercenary building."
"Yeah!"
After completing the simple mission, I ended the game.
"Ah... I'm tired."
I had been too focused on the Hero game from the start of the vacation.
I stretched, then collapsed onto the bed.
"So this is the second succession war."
"Because there's a gray wall. A defensive war?"
"I won't be able to find the ring."
...
Lying in bed, I let my thoughts wander until I fell asleep.
Ziing. Ziing.
The vibration of my smartphone woke me from sleep.
『Na-eun』
We had not met for a while after the vacation.
She had been busy with academy classes, and I had been busy with the Hero game.
"Hello?"
"Dowoon, are you preparing for the interview well?"
"Interview?"
"Yeah! The interview for Forest High School is in a week."
"Ah... Yeah. I need to."
I had not paid attention to the interview because I had been playing games.
"Let's prepare for the interview for a week."
"Interview... Okay."
"Whoa~ Then let's prepare at my house tomorrow. I'll let Eunhye know too."
"Sure."
Even though the competition rate was not one, I had to prepare for the interview.
But I had decided to do it. If I failed Forest High School, I would have to go to a regular high school. Then I would have far less free time, and naturally less time for the Hero game...
I met Seolhwa in the game.
"Seolhwa, did Naeun contact you?"
"Yeah. She said she'll start preparing for the interview tomorrow..."
"Right. Let's meet at the apartment entrance at 10 a.m. tomorrow."
"Yes!"
After the war ended and I completed the simple missions, it had felt like this.
Like goblin extermination...
And when evening came, a single notification appeared.
『The Hero game is undergoing a one-week update. I will return in a new form next week.
(10 minutes remaining until logout)』
"What? A whole week?"
What kind of game took a week to update?
Normal games usually did not last more than a day.
Was it because it was a free game? If a paid game operated like this, there would be huge backlash.
But the Hero game aimed to be completely free. As it provided the service for free, the company had relative freedom when it came to user criticism.
"Seolhwa, it can't be helped. I'll see you tomorrow morning."
"Yeah..."
8 p.m.
I shut down the computer earlier than usual.
"Ah... What now?"
I went out to the living room. Mother and Hyemi were watching TV.
I sat down beside them on the sofa.
"Oppa? Aren't you playing the game today?"
"Yeah... I can't for a week."
"Really?"
Hyemi asked with a bright face.
"Why?"
"Oppa. Let's go play tomorrow."
Hyemi said with a face full of expectation.
"Sorry. I have to prepare for the interview tomorrow."
"Interview? What interview?"
Mother turned from the TV and asked.
"For entering Forest High School."
"Forest High School?!"