"Just Taking a Walk. Breathing in Some Fresh Air."

"Just taking a little walk. Breathing in some fresh air."

Nitinger looked around. Thanks to the fierce battle between Tae-hyun and himself, the surrounding area was completely devastated. Acrid smoke was rising from everywhere, so how exactly was this "fresh air"...?

"Ah. The view over there looks nice. Let's head that way."

Nitinger quietly moved his feet, not wanting to displease Tae-hyun. Who knew when Archisus would pull another Archisus-style scam!

'Hmm. I wonder how effective this will be.'

Leisurely enjoying the scenery from atop Nitinger, Tae-hyun fell into deep thought. He wasn't doing this because he actually wanted to take a walk. This was preparation for the future!

There was absolutely no harm in showing everyone how close he was with Nitinger. Before anyone dared to attack Tae-hyun, they would have to think twice.

'Wait, Kim Tae-hyun is close with Nitinger. Isn't it too dangerous to mess with him?' they would think.

'If they have half a brain, they might realize I'm just riding him for a stroll...'

However, the people of the world were sometimes far more foolish than Tae-hyun anticipated. It was the power of collective madness!

While Tae-hyun was casually taking a stroll on Nitinger's back, rumors were already spreading like wildfire among the players.

Meanwhile, Alcott was indulging in sweet dreams as he waited for the negotiations to conclude.

'Hehe. Seeing Kim Tae-hyun negotiate with Nitinger, I guess we can consider the quest cleared.'

He honestly couldn't believe that Kim Tae-hyun had taken a Red Dragon as a pet, but one thing was absolutely certain... they had cleared the [Quest]!

'Kim Tae-hyun really is an incredible guy.'

To be honest, Alcott had half-given up, but Tae-hyun had actually suppressed a Red Dragon and brought about a successful negotiation!

Who could have predicted this outcome when Nitinger was running wild in a frenzy? Alcott felt immensely proud. He had made the right choice to follow Kim Tae-hyun without doubting him!

'I guess life really is all about choices...'

'Huh? What is it?'

Alcott panicked when he suddenly received messages from the Guild Alliance executives. 'What? No way...?'

Having a guilty conscience, Alcott flinched. Could it be?

'Did they find out I'm doing a quest with Kim Tae-hyun? Was I too obvious? I even brought other rankers along...'

Although he had various excuses, it was still a bad look in the eyes of the executives. Wouldn't it seem like he was actively helping Kim Tae-hyun?

While Alcott's mind was racing with all sorts of scenarios, Su Ning sent him a direct whisper.

"So this is the Auston Kingdom."

"Yes."

"Ha. To think a kingdom that inherited the territory of the Ancient Empire is only at this level. Truly disappointing..."

The prisoners of the Ancient Empire clicked their tongues in disapproval. Indeed, these were the very prisoners who had resolved to travel the world to find a candidate worthy of becoming Emperor!

Of course, while Tae-hyun was the overwhelmingly dominant frontrunner, evaluations always had to be fair. The Chimera prisoners of the Ancient Empire intended to give other heroes a chance as well.

Su Ning, the King of the Auston Kingdom, was one of those candidates.

"Eek. What's with that guy?"

"Must be a monster."

"Isn't that Cain?"

"No. The number of arms is different. Besides, why on earth would Cain come here?"

"True..."

Passersby whispered among themselves, but the prisoners paid them no mind. Ah, we must be so noble that they dare not even meet our gaze!

It was a way of thinking possible only because every single one of these prisoners was completely unhinged!

"Hear ye! Bring forth your king."

"...???"

The guild member guarding the castle gate was utterly bewildered when a bizarre group of monsters suddenly appeared and demanded to see Su Ning. What is this? Are they Cain's friends? If so, are they assassins?!

"W-where did you come from?"

"Do you not recognize this crest?"

"I don't...?"

Lacking any knowledge of the Ancient Empire, the guild member had no idea what the crest represented. The prisoners clicked their tongues and spoke.

"We are those who have just broken out of the prison of—"

"G-guards! Guards! There are escaped prisoners here! What are you doing?!"

The guild member shrieked in terror and summoned the NPCs. Agh! They really are escaped convicts!

"Why are they calling the guards? Are they preparing a welcoming feast for us?"

"Seize them! When did they escape from prison?!"

The soldiers of the Auston Kingdom were high-level. It was a level built on Su Ning's blood, sweat, tears, and gold! Having invested so heavily in the military sector, this was only a natural result. However...

The prisoners of the Ancient Empire were not opponents that mere castle guards could contend with. Each and every one of them possessed strength on par with a boss monster!

Craaaash! The prisoners subdued the guards in the blink of an eye.

"What insolent fools! What do you think you are doing?!"

"T-that's my line! Hey! Help! Crazy prisoners are running amok!"

"How dare you insult us?!"

Technically speaking, they *were* crazy prisoners, but truth always hurts the most. The prisoners grew even more enraged ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and went wild.

As a massive crowd began to swarm the area, the prisoners of the Ancient Empire had no choice but to make their escape. They were so incredibly powerful that even though they retreated quite openly, the guild members didn't dare to pursue them.

"Who on earth are those guys...?"

"Are they really Cain's friends?"

"I told you, no. They said they were prisoners who just escaped from jail."

"Maybe they're prisoners that Kim Tae-hyun kept locked up and raised..."

"Ah, you crazy bastard! Stop it! Does everything have to be related to Kim Tae-hyun? You're being completely paranoid!"

Indeed, quite a few members of the Guild Alliance had fallen into a state of severe paranoia, linking literally every single event to Kim Tae-hyun. But honestly, how could that even make sense?

Having escaped to the outskirts, the prisoners grumbled and cursed Su Ning.

"What arrogant scoundrels!"

"How dare they attack us without recognizing who we are?"

"Let's disqualify the King of the Auston Kingdom immediately. How can such a baseless fellow sit on the throne?"

"Hmm. But we must remain fair. Are we not the true successors of the Ancient Empire?"

"But to give such an unlucky, classless bastard..."

"No. We will deduct many points, but we must give him a chance. Let us seek him out and test him once more!"

The prisoners were casually discussing things that would have absolutely horrified Su Ning had he heard them! They called it a "test," but it was practically harassment.

"Hmm. This [Trial of Ruin] is far too precious for a guy like him..."

"Shall we test him with the [Trial of Ruin]?"

"Hmm, shall we start with the [Trial of Ruin]?"

"A trial as precious as the [Trial of Ruin] on a lowlife like him?"

The [Trial of Ruin] was a time-honored test that had existed since the days of the Ancient Empire. It was a test designed to see how well a candidate could endure after all of their precious wealth was completely destroyed! Because it required systematically obliterating the target's assets, it was a highly labor-intensive test.

To think they had to perform such a noble trial on such an obnoxious fellow... The prisoners grumbled in dissatisfaction.

"Ahem! Did I not say we must remain fair?"

"Kh... Understood. Then I shall prepare the [Trial of Ruin] as well."

"The fellow will surely weep tears of gratitude for the honor!"

Nitinger actively appealed to be released as soon as possible. The way he gestured with his front claw to point the way made him look exactly like an office worker desperately waiting to clock out. Send me home already!

'Wouldn't it be better to just wait until his body recovers and fly away?'

Tae-hyun watched Nitinger with confusion as the dragon insisted on swimming across the ocean instead of flying.

"Thank you. If not for you all, I wouldn't have been able to scam... ah, persuade Nitinger."

Tae-hyun expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the Battle Angels. Their role in the battle against Nitinger had been truly monumental.

Ah! To think the Archisus Church actually had such decent, reliable followers!

Above all, he was glad that he could meet them again through [Summoning].

"Mmm! I've actually been thinking the exact same thing."

The Battle Angels of Archisus coolly departed into the sky, just as they had arrived.

They cracked their whips as they drove the captured demons forward!

"Nitinger."

"No. I was just curious. What do you plan to do about the cities you destroyed?"

One southern port city of the Erangs Kingdom, and one southern port city of the Auston Kingdom. Nitinger had cleanly burned both of them to the ground!

Nitinger spoke in a flustered tone.

"I'm not telling you to rebuild them. I just think it's a waste to leave such hard-won land abandoned. Location-wise, it's an incredibly prime spot."

Since they were port cities, they offered direct access to the sea. Furthermore, these two cities were vital transportation hubs connecting the Erangs Kingdom, the Auston Kingdom, and the Atali Kingdom. It was truly a waste to leave such land abandoned!

"Why don't you rule over it yourself?"

Nitinger looked intrigued. While the concept of a "Dragon Lord" might sound strange at first, dragons did indeed rule over territories. The area surrounding a dragon's lair was essentially their domain! The nearby races would typically worship the dragon as their king and bow down in submission.

Hearing Tae-hyun's words, greed began to stir within him. After all, dragons always coveted gold!

Dragons valued their nests immensely. No dragon would stay far from their nest for long. Nitinger had no desire to linger in this area, which lacked any suitable place to establish a proper lair.

"Hmm. Then how about I manage it on your behalf and just send you the taxes?"

Nitinger's face lit up. Handling all the tedious management while simply sending him gold? What an incredibly kind and generous offer!

"Then I'll take care of managing the territory, alright?"

"Sure, sure. Have a safe trip back."

Tae-hyun smiled warmly as he saw Nitinger off. Wow...! To think I could acquire land so easily!