Shaking Down the Crown

So many message windows popped up that it was impossible to read them all. Saving the King's life was a monumental achievement! In the Erance Kingdom, if he so much as uttered, "Hey, do you know what kind of relationship I have with your King?!" most NPCs would have no choice but to bow and scrape.

He would receive special treatment in certain territories, be able to borrow soldiers in others, and get priority access to facilities in yet others...

'Wow. Maybe I should level up in the Erance Kingdom for a while?'

This was practically ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the highest level of VVIP treatment in the kingdom! Until this quest buff expired, staying in the Erance Kingdom didn't seem like a bad idea at all.

"Aaaack! Kim Tae-hyun! Lalgrgal is coming! Lalgrgal is coming!"

Tae-hyun ignored the frantic whisper and contacted Lee Da-bi.

"Lee Da-bi. Send the Noble Warriors to tie him down."

"Is it okay to use them?"

"Well, out of all the NPCs, they're the ones I'd regret losing the least."

Though they followed Tae-hyun loyally, they were ultimately the subordinates of Emperor Uipoatl. There was no telling when they might turn their blades on him.

"Pull the Archisus Artillery and the others back a bit."

Thorough profit management! Even in the midst of this chaos, his calculating nature was truly admirable.

"Whoa! Reinforcements are here!"

"What did I tell you! I knew Kim Tae-hyun wouldn't just abandon us!"

Alcott and Crawford cheered, completely oblivious to the actual circumstances!

Meanwhile, the King in front of Tae-hyun was slowly waking up.

"Uuugh..."

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

Tae-hyun grabbed the King and shook him back and forth. Everyone present was deeply moved by this seemingly affectionate display.

'They said the young King of the Atali Kingdom was a hero, and indeed he is!' Of course, Tae-hyun was only shaking the King to wake him up quickly so he could grab his rewards and run.

"Wake up quickly! Hurry, hurry!"

"W-wait... I can't see..."

Slap! Slap!

Tae-hyun slapped the King's cheeks left and right. In desperate times, one had to employ drastic measures.

'Wait, what?'

The King's cheeks possessed immense value. What other player would ever get the chance to slap a king? To think his stats would go up just from a slap!

"I-I am starting to regain my senses. Thank you..."

"Your Majesty! You mustn't lose consciousness!"

Slap! Slap! Slap!

"N-no, I said I'm fine..."

Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap!

'Tsk.'

Tae-hyun stopped his hands. If he beat him any further, even the senile King would probably get angry.

"Did you save me? Thank you..."

"Your Majesty. About the reward..."

"The first time I was poisoned was at a banquet held half a year ago... Come to think of it, what I drank back then..."

"..."

Tae-hyun felt a sudden foreboding. Why was he starting his story from half a year ago?

"Your Majesty! The reward...!"

'Damn it!'

Perhaps because he had just woken up, the King was completely out of it, rambling on about whatever he wanted! Watching the King drone on about how hard his life had been for the past six months, Tae-hyun clicked his tongue.

"Lalgrgal is breaking through!"

"This bastard is ignoring us and heading straight for the capital! Kim Tae-hyun! We did our best! We really did our best, okay?! Don't you dare blame us later!"

'I'll have to collect it later.'

Tae-hyun sighed and stood up. Surely a king wouldn't stiff him on a reward!

"Your Majesty. I am deeply moved to see you awake. However, the continent is still in grave danger, and I must hunt down the demon that put Your Majesty in such peril. I shall take my leave now!"

His words grew faster and faster in his haste! Even in his dazed state, the King managed to catch those words.

"The demon... Yes. You must catch the demon..."

The 4th Knight Order of the Erance Kingdom, the Silver Sword Knights! The knights currently trailing right behind Tae-hyun belonged to this very order.

As a knight order specializing in fighting demons and the undead, their skills were naturally top-tier. Normally, knights were so fastidious and proud that they wouldn't just obey commands simply because they were handed over, but...

"Y-Your Majesty! You cannot simply hand over the Silver Sword Knights...!"

The Chief Chamberlain cried out in panic. The King hadn't fully recovered yet, so he was talking nonsense!

Tae-hyun realized it too. 'Ah, so there are perks to him being out of his mind!'

"Your Majesty! To tell you the truth, I am heavily in debt..."

"Is that so... Then you must pay off your debts..."

The King was handing over the expensive art pieces decorating the room! Tae-hyun was deeply moved. How could such a generous soul exist in this world!

"Your Majesty, about a territory as well..."

"Kim Tae-hyun! Get out of there! You have to get out now!"

'Ah, damn it.'

Tae-hyun smacked his lips regretfully and stood up. Then, he bolted outside.

"Your Majesty! I shall see you again next time!"

He sincerely hoped the King would still be in this state then!

'I know that.'

As Tae-hyun scurried away, the Chief Chamberlain spoke to the King.

"Your Majesty. Even so, wasn't that far too generous?"

"Hoho... The King of Atali feels like a son to me..."

"Your Majesty! You must pull yourself together! If you are not here, who will protect the kingdom? And you have the Princes as well! I know the King of Atali is a hero, but giving our kingdom's knight order to the king of another nation... Wouldn't it have been better to entrust them to the Princes instead? They are all heroes in their own right."

"Those rascals... they didn't even visit when I was sick... They are utterly... insolent bastards..."

"Y-Your Majesty! Someone might hear you!"

Though his mind was wandering, the King of the Erance Kingdom remembered his grudges with crystal clarity!

The princes had been terrified of catching the disease, and the 1st Prince of Erangse had even anticipated inheriting the throne upon the King's death. Of course, now that the King had recovered, they would have to face the consequences.

"Utter... unfilial scoundrels...! Especially that John...!"

"Prince John surely had his reasons..."

"What did you say?"

"...Prince John was entirely in the wrong! He is an incomparable scoundrel!"

The Chief Chamberlain quickly changed his tune. The danger signals were flashing. If he took the wrong side here, he might actually get beaten!

He could only hope the King wouldn't remember this later, given his current state. No matter how much trouble the princes caused, they were still the King's sons. If he insulted them needlessly, he would ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠be the only one suffering the consequences later.

'Once his anger subsides, he will surely forgive them.'

But the Chief Chamberlain was mistaken. The King of Erance was far more disappointed than he realized!

"How can I entrust anything to such people... Send an envoy to the King of Atali... Tell him to return."

"What do you intend to say to him?"

"That is none of your concern."

The Chief Chamberlain felt an inexplicable sense of dread. What on earth was the King planning to do?

"I hit the jackpot! A whole knight order!"

Tae-hyun cheered. Of course, the rest of his party couldn't share in his joy.

"Aaaack! Someone block him!"

Lalgrgal was rampaging forward like a madman! He was the definition of pure terror. He absorbed almost every attack thrown at him, and his own strikes swallowed up everything in his path, rendering evasion utterly meaningless...

There was no way to stop him! Lalgrgal looked like death slowly creeping toward them.

"Guys! I just won a whole knight order!"

"Is now the time to be talking about that?!"

"Tsk. What a lukewarm reaction."

Tae-hyun clicked his tongue in disappointment and pulled out a bomb. Then, he threw it with all his might.

Lalgrgal, who had been advancing while swallowing up his surroundings, flinched and scrambled backward. The terror of the Dragon Bomb was still vividly engraved in his memory!

Thud.

But it was a fake. There was no way Tae-hyun would waste the Dragon Bomb, which consumed stats to use, so recklessly. Especially when he wasn't even sure he could kill the demon, and his own life wasn't in immediate danger.

"..."

"Rroooooaaar!"

Lalgrgal charged! Tae-hyun threw another bomb. Lalgrgal ignored it and swallowed it whole.

Kaboom!

He was playing him like a fiddle! Lalgrgal could no longer even form words, letting out nothing but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠monstrous shrieks.

"Looking at him, it seems external attacks don't work, and we have to hit him from the inside somehow. You guys were doing that, right?"

"O-Of course."

"W-We already figured that much out."

Alcott and Cain averted their eyes! Even though their attacks did absolutely no damage from the outside, the two had simply been bashing away with the simple-minded belief of, 'If we keep hitting him, his defense will eventually break and we'll deal damage!'

"Looks like Kim Tae-hyun cleared it."

"Unni, aren't you annoyed?"

"We got our rewards, didn't we?"

Everyone who participated in the Legendary Quest received rewards of varying sizes. Though, of course, no one received nearly as much as Tae-hyun.

"This is barely enough to satisfy anyone..."

"Don't worry. We'll soon see Kim Tae-hyun coming to us with his tail between his legs. At ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠first, I wondered what kind of demon that was, but..."

Lee Se-yeon was certain. Even Kim Tae-hyun couldn't defeat Lalgrgal right now!

This was information she had obtained from the Legendary-grade grimoire, Necronomicon, which she had acquired while clearing her Necromancer quests.

Lalgrgal's body possessed a cheat-like attribute that absorbed almost all attacks from enemies lower-level than himself. This was a boss monster meant to be tackled much later once players became stronger, not now!

Yet Lalgrgal was chasing Tae-hyun around. She couldn't help but find it highly amusing.

'He'll be coming to apologize soon.'

No matter how shameless and underhanded Tae-hyun was, he wasn't someone who couldn't read the room. If necessary, he was the type of person who would swallow his pride and do whatever it took!

"Dragon Bomb!" (shouting a fake skill name)

Lalgrgal scrambled backward. Tae-hyun kept Lalgrgal in check by mixing fake bombs with real ones.

His Speech skill, which had reached the highest tier, made his deceptions look incredibly realistic.

From Lalgrgal's perspective, his blood pressure was skyrocketing to the point where he felt like spitting blood!

"Ah, that's not going to cut it... Is there really nothing we can do about him? If we drop him in the ocean... Hm, probably won't make much of a difference."

Whether it was the deep sea, a freezing tundra, or a scorching desert, it seemed unlikely any of those environments could stop Lalgrgal. Even dropping him into lava probably wouldn't work...

'Do I really have to ask Lee Se-yeon for help? I really don't want to.'

However, having Lalgrgal constantly tailing him was a massive problem. It made normal questing impossible!

"Tae-hyun-nim."

"?"

Just then, a report came in from a Power Warrior guild member stationed in the capital.

"I'm a bit busy right now. Is it urgent?"

"No, just wanted to report. The Empty Dungeon has been completely built."

The miracle dungeon with zero construction cost, the Empty Dungeon! Since it was a dungeon where you entered without any monsters and simply starved, it was only natural that the construction cost was dirt cheap.

"...!"

Tae-hyun blinked.

Lalgrgal and the Empty Dungeon. They seemed to be an incredibly perfect match.