A Fiefdom Kicked Away

"Once missed, a quest never returns!" This was a famous maxim in Pan-On. Timing was everything when it came to quests; a mere second's difference could mean missing out entirely. And yet, Cain had just kicked it away like that!

"I don't think the chances are zero..."

"R-Really?"

"I mean, the fact that you could have gotten it so easily in the first place..."

Tae-hyun fell into thought. Surprisingly, Cain seemed to be highly regarded by the 4th Prince. But why?

No matter how I look at him, he doesn't seem like the type that nobles would like.

For starters, his Speech skill was low. While his Reputation had grown quite high from tagging along with Tae-hyun, his Infamy had also accumulated in equal measure. His class, Aykisus's Slave, wasn't exactly a crowd-pleaser either... nor did he possess any titles useful for dealing with nobility. Cain truly had almost nothing going for him that would appeal to aristocrats! Yet, he was on such good terms with the 4th Prince.

Sometimes, things just worked out this way. A player's stats, class, titles, and everything else just happened to perfectly align with an NPC. As the saying goes, every jack has his Jill!

It's certain. Cain is incredibly lucky in this regard.

While ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠others struggled to gain a noble's favor even after delivering countless quest items and offering rare treasures, Cain had befriended one almost effortlessly! If that was the case, maybe a missed quest could actually be reclaimed.

"It means the 4th Prince is a bit of a pushover, more ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠than you'd think."

"?!"

Of all the princes in the Erangs Kingdom, why had the 4th Prince alone participated in the Demon Realm vanguard quest? It was a dangerous quest he would normally never touch! This meant his standing was quite precarious. With older, more powerful princes above him, it was only natural.

And he barely has any knights escorting him, too.

"What do you mean by 'pushover'?"

"The 4th Prince is in a tight spot with nowhere else to turn. That's why he offered you a fiefdom."

"Oh... then in the future, too...?"

"If another problem crops up, won't he cling to you again, offering fiefdoms or whatever else he can?"

"!"

Cain's face lit up with joy. Seeing this, Tae-hyun could only shake his head in disbelief.

Does this idiot not realize how insanely difficult a quest of that caliber would be?

The higher the reward, the higher the difficulty. It was a basic rule of the game. In other words, the opportunity Cain had just kicked away was truly monumental! Where else in the world could you find a quest that granted a whole fiefdom just for staying behind in a fortress?

But I shouldn't tell him.

If he told him now, Cain's bright smile would instantly turn into a pout! Tae-hyun decided to let him enjoy his ignorance. Besides, the fact that he had kicked away a fiefdom just to come here was actually quite touching...

No, but seriously, who kicks away a fiefdom?!

It was utterly incomprehensible!

"So, how's the situation outside?"

"Ugh, it's insane. The rankers are all holding their breath..."

Furneus and Adad were tearing each other apart. Since both were Demon Dukes, the battle wasn't easily settled. As a result, the surrounding area was being utterly devastated.

The crystal region was already freezing, but the places where Furneus unleashed his Authority were so deeply frozen that they were completely inaccessible. Adad fought back fiercely, refusing to be outdone. He swung his hammer, smashing everything in sight, carving out several bottomless chasms in the process. The battlefield where the two clashed would remain a place even demons would avoid for a long time.

"Furneus is losing ground."

"Hmm. I expected as much."

Adad was in peak condition and had brought his subordinates along. In contrast, Furneus had been ambushed and had lost all of his underlings. Even though this was Furneus's Territory and he could utilize the spirits, he was bound to be at a disadvantage.

"Actually, it's impressive he's held out this well. He has to deal with Adad's subordinates too, whom Adad brought specifically to take him down. Is Furneus stronger than Adad?"

"Huh? No. Adad's subordinates aren't fighting."

"Why?"

"They've been hit by plague and poison."

"..."

Indeed. The plague and poison spreading through the territory! While high-level entities like Furneus and Adad could shrug them off with raw levels, the lesser demons could not. The moment they arrived, they began to wither under the plague and poison. Lalgral's Evil Venom was truly sinister, potent enough to poison even Adad's elite subordinates. Adad was dumbfounded but had no way to counter it. Lalgral wasn't there to provide an immediate antidote, after all. And with the plague on top of that! In the end, he had no choice but to order his subordinates to retreat.

No wonder my skill levels kept rising earlier...

With more and more demons falling victim to the plague and poison, his skill experience was naturally skyrocketing!

"Then let's call the rankers over. It's almost over anyway."

In any case, he was nothing but grateful to Adad. To think he would buy them so much time. If not for Adad, they wouldn't have been able to remodel Furneus's castle.

Should we?

It was a conversation that would have brought tears of blood to Adad's eyes had he heard it.

"By the way, Goblins."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Tae-hyun, who was inspecting the state of the castle, called out to the Goblins. Since the remodeling was nearing its final stages, the Goblins were working harder than anyone else.

"I just had a thought... the original plan was to float this castle and take it with us, right?"

"Yes! That is correct!"

They had considered attaching legs to the side of the castle to make it walk, but that was far too slow. Speed was the lifeblood of castle theft! Thus, the Goblins planned to attach massive boosters all over the sides of the castle to lift the entire structure into the air. Once the remodeling was finished, Furneus's Castle would become ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the Sky Castle!

"...But this is the Demon Realm. Even if we float it, we don't really have anywhere to go, do we?"

If they fled to another Duke's territory, they would likely be greeted with: "Ah, yes, welcome! We've been waiting for you, you Akisus bastard!"

And if they fled to an uninhabited territory, Furneus would relentlessly pursue them unless he lost his mind... There seemed to be no answer unless they escaped to the Central Continent.

"Fufu. Your Majesty. Do you think this is our first or second time doing something like this?"

"You've only done it once before."

"We have our ways!"

Ignoring Tae-hyun's remark, the Goblins quickly spoke over him.

"What is it?"

Thud!

The Goblins pulled out a massive device from their luggage. It was a contraption that rattled and hummed ominously.

Me too.

"!!!"

If even his Highest-grade Mechanical Engineering skill suffered a penalty, this device had to be an incredibly massive relic. The word 'Legendary' in its name wasn't just for show!

To be honest, I thought those Goblins just tacked 'Legendary' on there to make it sound cool!

If other items had keywords like 'Legendary' or 'Ancient', it was a guaranteed jackpot. But when it came to Goblin-related items, the story was different. No matter what grand name it had, you had to look at the actual performance! However, looking at the system messages now, it seemed to be a truly remarkable item.

"This is a device passed down through generations of our Goblins. A grand item that has never been used before."

"To use such a thing for me... No, wait. 'Never been used before' is a bit..."

"To think you'd use such a thing for me, I'm so touched" -> (X)

"You're going to use something that dangerous on me?!" -> (O)

"Why has it never been used? Didn't you use it when you escaped?"

"Oh, we just escaped across the desert and hid underground, so they couldn't find us."

"..."

Comparing the Demon Realm to a desert, escaping the Demon Realm was on a whole different level of difficulty!

"Do not worry, Your Majesty. This item is truly magnificent and reliable."

"Hearing that from someone doing Engineering doesn't exactly inspire confidence..."

The Legendary Goblin Special Transport Device was, simply put, a teleportation item. It was powerful enough to cover a massive scale, even something like a castle! Considering that normal teleportation or portal magic usually had a short range and could only transport one or two people, it was a truly mind-boggling item.

...If only it wasn't made by Goblins!

If it were a portal created by an Archmage, he would have felt a lot better...

The description is exactly as expected.

I know that even without you telling me.

Tae-hyun had spent enough time learning Engineering to easily grasp this much.

Even if it malfunctions, the worst-case scenario is just ending up somewhere on the continent. Honestly... just being able to escape the Demon Realm is satisfying enough.

Tae-hyun had two options.

First, complete the castle's remodeling while Adad and Furneus were busy fighting and slip away quietly. This didn't require using the device and was much safer. Furneus might give chase, but they would have bought plenty of time.

Second, boldly declare, "Shock and awe, you demons! I, Akisus, have returned!" and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠then make a run for it. The moment he made that declaration, he would draw absolute aggro from every demon around, making it insanely dangerous... but it came with the reward of completing his Authority quest.

The moment I declare it, escaping by flight will be impossible...

Tae-hyun wanted to fly away if he could, but the demons weren't so easygoing that they would just stand by and watch. He had accumulated far too much resentment for that!

I can't not clear the quest. I have to clear it this time, no matter what.

Otherwise, there was no telling when such an opportunity would arise again.

Tae-hyun glanced at the Goblins. They were staring back at him with wide, sparkling eyes. These Goblins had brought out their tribe's heirloom just to help him!

...It would be too shameless of me to complain that they should have brought something better.

Just having a way to escape was a blessing! Although it was a bit untrustworthy and worrying, he had to be grateful that a method existed at all.

"Thank you. I'll use it."

"Oohhh...!"

"As expected of Your Majesty...!"

"We believed in you!"

"We finally get to use it!"

"Sniff. I wanted to try using it once, but the elders stopped me back then. It was such a regret!"

"Fufu. Thanks to Your Majesty's approval, we can finally use it. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"

"I don't get why the elders forbade us from using such a great device."

"They get cowardly as they age. Hmph. But I'm different from those old geezers. Keke. I'll just take this device and..."

Listening to the Goblins' conversation, Tae-hyun felt an intense wave of foreboding.

...If the device breaks and doesn't work, I'll consider it...