I Thought It Was a One-Time Thing

"I thought it would be a one-time thing."

Tae-hyun had assumed he would abandon this fortress after using it once. But looking at it now, it seemed like this place would actually last a long time. After all, this was the only town in the vicinity where players could rest! Where else would they go to sell ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the junk items they hoarded while hunting, or to take a quick breather and recover?

No, that's way too far down the line, Tae-hyun replied internally, but a massive grin spread across his face. Even if he didn't collect direct taxes, there were plenty of other ways to squeeze money out of this place.

"Hey! Hey!"

"?"

Lee Se-yeon grabbed Tae-hyun and shook him back and forth.

"What? Why? You want to pay taxes?"

"What are you talking about? Look over there, someone's coming."

Lee Se-yeon pointed toward the horizon. At the edge of the empty desert, kicking up a massive cloud of dust, someone was approaching. It was Uipoatl.

—Kim Tae-hyun! I thought highly of you, yet you dare...!

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"I see. Fire the welcoming committee!"

The moment Tae-hyun's command fell, the Archisus Artillery finished loading and fired. *Boom! Boom! Crash!* Many members of the Archisus Artillery hailed from the desert tribes. Naturally, quite a few of them harbored a deep resentment toward Emperor Uipoatl!

—Insolent fools!

Standing atop his chariot, Uipoatl swung his massive spear. As the spear, shaped like a vajra, swept through the air, lightning and storms erupted in all directions, deflecting the incoming shells.

"Ooh...!"

Tae-hyun marveled at the sight. That item looks pretty sweet!

—Come out, you swindler! I will personally tear you limb from limb!

Pantheon's Fortress was incredibly overpowered. Just as it had effortlessly melted away Nevuchadnezzar's undead horde, it completely ignored Uipoatl's roar. When his skill produced absolutely no effect, Uipoatl flew into an even greater rage.

—Noble Vanguard! Bring me Kim Tae-hyun's head!!

Of course, nothing happened. Tae-hyun had already sent the Noble Vanguard far away, anticipating exactly this. But Uipoatl, entirely unaware of this fact, was utterly flabbergasted. Why wasn't the Noble Vanguard responding?

"Uipoatl! Do you really think the Noble Vanguard is still on your side?!"

Seizing the perfect opportunity, Tae-hyun began to spin his web of lies.

—...What utter nonsense...

"The Noble Vanguard was so moved by my greatness that they decided to switch sides! They said they have no desire to serve an emperor who couldn't even resurrect properly!"

—Cut your lies, you bastard!

"Why would anyone want to follow a pathetic loser who can't even find his own crown!"

"Why do you think those nobles you sent haven't reported back? They've all betrayed you!"

Tae-hyun shouted shamelessly, completely ignoring the fact that he was the one who had locked them in a dungeon. From Uipoatl's perspective, however, the seed of doubt was planted, and his fury reached a boiling point.

—How dare you...

*Thud, thud, thud, thud—*

"Huh?"

Tae-hyun blinked in confusion. Why was the sound of galloping hooves coming from right in front of the fortress? The answer revealed itself almost immediately. A few players, swept up in the excitement, had charged out of the gates. Tae-hyun yelled after them.

"You guys should probably turn back!"

"Gasp. Kim Tae-hyun is calling us."

"Pretend you didn't hear him! Just keep going!"

Wait, aren't those guys rankers? Tae-hyun estimated their levels based on their gear. They were clearly wearing high-level equipment. If they were clueless newbies, it would be one thing, but the fact that veteran rankers were charging out meant they had already run the numbers. They're getting greedy.

"Idiots..."

Lee Se-yeon muttered. She, too, had immediately seen through their intentions the moment she saw them leave. Since Nevuchadnezzar hadn't attacked and the battle seemed to be winding down, they were trying to snatch some easy glory! Their plan was obvious: land the first few hits on Uipoatl to secure some contribution points, keep fighting with support from the fortress if things went well, and simply retreat behind the walls if things turned south.

"If a cheap trick like that actually worked, I would have taken down Uipoatl myself already," Lee Se-yeon said.

Tae-hyun nodded in agreement. "True. With your personality, there's no way you'd just sit back and watch."

"...You're not wrong, but why does hearing that make me feel so annoyed? Hmm?"

Uipoatl and his royal guard glared at the approaching rankers, their eyes flashing with malice.

—Crush them under our wheels!

Uipoatl charged forward, driving his chariot directly toward them. The rankers braced themselves to clash!

"I can already hear my viewer count skyrocketing! Let's go!"

The rankers refused to back down and charged ahead. And then...

*Thwack!*

"......"

"......"

Tae-hyun, Lee Se-yeon, and the other players remaining in the fortress fell dead silent.

Seriously, how did they get one-shotted? They knew Uipoatl was a monstrous boss capable of slaying dragons, but they hadn't expected a single thrust of his spear to send them straight to the respawn screen.

It's a bit too late for that now... Tae-hyun thought. The two of them had already crossed the point of no return to ever make up.

"Wh-What the hell! What is that?!"

"He's a literal monster...!"

The remaining rankers gasped in horror. They knew Uipoatl was a powerful boss, but they hadn't realized the gap was this astronomical. Despite being nothing but a skeleton, Uipoatl was a truly overwhelming warrior.

—Where do you think you are running!

As Uipoatl swung his arm, a violent sandstorm erupted, swallowing the fleeing rankers.

*Crunch! Grind!*

"Kim Tae-hyun! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Help us!"

"Save us!"

The rankers screamed for Tae-hyun. It was incredibly shameless of them, but then again, shamelessness was practically a passive trait for high-level rankers. Since Tae-hyun had saved the assassins earlier, they assumed he would bail them out too if their attack failed. What they didn't know, however, was that Tae-hyun hadn't saved those assassins out of the goodness of his heart—he had simply been testing a skill!

"Hmm. Uipoatl's skills are making so much noise that I can't hear a thing."

"I know, right? It sounds like they're saying something, but it's just too faint. Isn't it?"

Tae-hyun and Lee Se-yeon casually chatted with straight faces. The rankers had overlooked one crucial detail: when it came to sheer shamelessness, Tae-hyun and Lee Se-yeon were top-tier rankers who wouldn't lose to anyone in the world!

"Hey! Kim Tae-hyun! Everyone is watching, and you're just going to stand there?!"

As they were ruthlessly torn apart by Uipoatl, the rankers shrieked in desperation. Of course, Tae-hyun couldn't care less whether people were watching or not. In fact, the community's reaction was the exact opposite of what the dying rankers expected.

Uipoatl pursued the fleeing rankers, hunting them down one by one. Because he had been so obsessed with his crown, Tae-hyun had once assumed Uipoatl was a Necromancer. But seeing him now, Uipoatl was a pure warrior. The ultimate evolution of the warrior class! He moved with blinding speed, delivering devastating blows with terrifying precision. When this simple, brutal combat style was backed by an astronomical level, absolutely no one could stand in his way.

In the end, only one or two rankers remained. And the one who saved them was none other than Nevuchadnezzar.

*Rumble—*

"Kim Tae-hyun! You came to save us!"

"No, I'm still standing right here."

"Hey! They can hear you if you say that out loud."

Lee Se-yeon nudged Tae-hyun in the ribs. We're supposed to be pretending we can't hear them, so why are you replying?

Nevuchadnezzar's undead army, which had been planning to abandon the fortress and march elsewhere, finally began to surround Uipoatl. There was no way Nevuchadnezzar could ignore such a massive commotion in the middle of the desert!

—And what kind of lowlife bastard is this?!

Nevuchadnezzar's fury was practically piercing the heavens! No emperor would be pleased to find some random Lich spreading corruption all over his empire.

"Guild Master. I know you're close with the Lich, but the land here is becoming seriously contaminated."

Polle, the genius ice mage ranker, offered his advice to Kim Tae-san and the other guild members. Even though he had been captured and forced to do daily quests for them, this warning was genuine.

"So what?"

"Huh?? No, I mean, public security... it'll plummet... and then the kingdom will fall, families will be ruined..."

Polle stammered, trying to explain. Why did he have to spell out why land contamination was a bad thing?

"Polle, there's one thing you don't know."

"...?"

"Our public security was already complete garbage to begin with."

"?!?!"

Normally, when undead appeared in a kingdom, territory stats like [Military], [Diplomacy], [Economy], ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠[Technology], [Population], [Public Sentiment], [Divinity], [Public Security], [Culture], and [Development] would take a hit—specifically stats like [Military], [Economy], [Public Security], and [Public Sentiment]. But Uruk was a different story. Public sentiment? Orcs weren't soft enough to whine just because a few undead popped up. Divinity? The Archisus Church wasn't the type of religion to care about a minor undead presence. If anything, the Archisus Church itself was far more toxic and corrupt than any undead horde!

"What is that supposed to mean? The Archisus Church is more corrupt...?"

"Ah, it's nothing. Let's just move past that. Anyway, only our public security stat is affected, but since I invested in everything else first, our security stat is already rock bottom. Even if more undead show up, there's literally no room left for the security stat to drop."

"Ah, I see."

Polle nodded. Put that way, it actually made perfect sense.

*Pat.*

"Have you fallen for our brilliant guild management style? If so, you can join us right now..."

"No, thank you."

"Come on, let's be honest. None of the other guys care, but you keep asking questions."

"...I'm not joining!"

Polle quickly scurried away.

"We won't give up on you, Polle!"

"You have what it takes to be a member of the Ultimate Supreme Matchless Guild!"

Meanwhile, Uipoatl was literally shredding through the undead as he advanced. It was an exhilarating battle. Whether they were Death Knights or Ghouls, none of them stood a chance against Uipoatl's overwhelming level.

"I'm jealous. I wish I could fight like that too."

"...???"

Lee Se-yeon stared at Tae-hyun with a look that clearly said, What kind of nonsense is that? In reality, Tae-hyun's combat style was remarkably similar to Uipoatl's—both favored charging straight ahead and obliterating their foes with overwhelming damage. Of course, Uipoatl relied on his sheer level to tank everything without dodging, whereas Tae-hyun was the type to meticulously dodge even the weakest attacks just to be absolutely safe...

"Go, Uipoatl, go! You can do it, Uipoatl!"

—Aaargh! You absolute bastard! How did you break my curse again?!

Uipoatl roared in fury upon realizing his curse had failed to take effect. He could clearly sense the curse lingering somewhere far away, but how on earth had Tae-hyun managed to leave it behind?

*Rumble—*

Uipoatl suddenly turned his chariot. Surrounded by an endless sea of undead, he had apparently decided to bypass the minions and strike directly at the summoner.

"Uh-oh."

Lee Se-yeon quickly ducked.

"What's wrong?"

"I need to stay out of sight so I don't get dragged into this if things go south."

"...Lee Se-yeon! What are you doing? Stand up!"

"Hey! You jerk!"

If we're going to risk our lives, we should do it together, my friend!

In the meantime, Uipoatl plowed through the undead horde and finally stood face-to-face with Nevuchadnezzar.

"Finally... the clash of two incredibly prideful monsters...!"

"...Though both of them are probably suffering from some major penalties right now."

Nevuchadnezzar was burdened by the Curse of Hunger, while Uipoatl suffered from an incomplete resurrection. Which of them held the upper hand?

Uipoatl made the first move. As he hurled his spear, the massive black sphere enveloping Nevuchadnezzar began to violently fluctuate.

*Crackle! Spark!*

"It's breaking through!"

Seeing the barrier shake—when it hadn't even budged before—Tae-hyun's eyes gleamed.

"Holy Knights! Prepare for battle! Get ready to deploy immediately!"

"Yes, sir! ...Wait, hold on. Why are you the one giving us orders...?"