The Age of Thrones and Chaos
No one knows when people first became able to summon Fairies.
At some point, a handful of the chosen gained the power to call Fairies to their side. And as a result, the world that had once been unified under a single colossal empire — Ferdium — began to tear itself apart, splintering into a thousand fragments, then ten thousand.
Those who summoned beautiful, powerful Fairies and forged private armies of their own began styling themselves King or Queen, and declared their independence from the empire.
Had it only been the Kings and Queens, the world might not have fallen into such chaos. Ferdium, after all, had accomplished the great work of unifying all of Gaiarium. Its power was so immense it could have slain a god.
But the appearance of the Kings and Queens coincided with an explosion of dungeons across the world, and Ferdium could no longer throw its full strength into crushing the rebels.
If a dungeon was not regularly cleared, its power would erupt — and the monsters living inside would pour out into the world. As if they believed humanity itself had imprisoned them, the creatures that burst from the dungeons turned an infinite hostility and bloodlust upon mankind, killing and devouring every person they could find.
The sun of Ferdium, which had once held Gaiarium in its grip, was setting. Those who possessed the mysterious power of Fairy summoning proclaimed themselves Kings and Queens. Vicious monsters spawned without end from the dungeons.
People named the present age thus:
and Chaos
"Ah, so that's why the place is crawling with so-called Such-and-Such Kings and Such-and-Such Queens."
I closed the book and nodded.
Having read a history of Gaiarium — this world that shared the same setting as Fairy Masters — I finally understood why so many people were called King or Queen, and why Prisia Lily was so determined to become one.
In the actual game of Fairy Masters, every humanoid boss aside from the monsters themselves went by some variety of King or Queen. I'd always thought it was strange that people who barely ruled a single city would slap on titles like that. Now it made sense.
The thrones of King and Queen were the product of human desire — the hunger to climb ever higher. In any case, every humanoid enemy that appeared in the game, with a single exception, was called a King or a Queen.
"Haa..."
I slid the history book back onto the shelf and sat down on the bed. Having accepted Princess Prisia Lily's proposal and become her vassal, I would be staying at her mansion for the time being.
"I really lucked out."
Without Prisia Lily's offer, my future would have been a complete blank.
"Never thought he'd be controlling the dungeons."
Hwaryongwang locking down the dungeons was something that had never happened in the game. I hadn't seen it coming at all.
"Hmm... so what now?"
I'd had to become her subordinate, but I had a place to sleep, meals, and even access to dungeon raids. The conditions I needed to put my knowledge to use were finally in place. Now I had to plan carefully for what came next.
Something that had never happened in the game had just occurred. That meant things like this could happen again — anytime. And to keep from getting swept up in them...
"Yeah. I need to get stronger. And summon a Fairy."
I needed power. Hwaryongwang had been able to control the dungeons because he had power — because he commanded so many Fairies, because he ruled Indigo. Gaiarium was a different world from the Earth I'd lived on in my previous life. In this world, the word of the strong was the law.
"Haa..."
Just thinking about getting stronger made me sigh.
On my main account, I'd raised the player character to 8-Star. On my alt, I'd only gotten as far as 4-Star. The huge gap between the two accounts wasn't just about whether I'd opened my wallet. More than anything, there was almost no benefit to investing in the player character at all.
A non-elemental player character was good at hunting Light-attribute units, but Light-attribute characters barely showed up in the story. On top of that, the player character couldn't learn any traits except Fairy Master. By the time I poured money and hours into my main account, I'd realized that fact far too late — and I'd already raised the player character all the way to 8-Star.
I'd only pushed the alt to 4-Star to clear quests. If it hadn't been for those quests, I would have focused even harder on raising Fairies.
"Oh, right — there were quests, weren't there? I wonder if quests are implemented here too. That'd be an absolute jackpot."
I thought to myself that I wanted to see the quests. And just like that, a quest window actually appeared before my eyes.
☐ Clear a Normal Dungeon 1 time — 30 Gems(Incomplete)
☐ Clear an Enhancement Dungeon 1 time — 30 Gems(Incomplete)
☐ Clear a Resource Dungeon 1 time — 40 Gems(Incomplete)
☑ Use 50 Stamina — 1,000 Gold(Complete)
☐ Enhance equipment 1 time — Lowest-grade Enhancement Hammer(Incomplete)
☐ Participate in PVP Battles 3 times — 2,000 Gold(Incomplete)
☐ Guild Attendance Check — Lower Growth Stone(Incomplete)
☐ Raise player character to Lv. 5(2/5) — 100,000 Gold
☐ Raise player character's Strength to 15 (10/15) — Lower Strength Growth Stone
☐ Raise player character's Agility to 15 (10/15) — Lower Agility Growth Stone
· · ·
"Master Quests and Event Quests are deactivated... Maybe they'll unlock once I get a bit stronger? Anyway, thank god."
After checking the quest window, I let out a sigh of relief. Quests — especially Beginner Quests — were essential for rapid growth in the early game. Unlike Master Quests and Event Quests, which had steep clear conditions to match their generous rewards, Beginner Quests were easy to finish.
"For now, I'll focus on getting stronger."
And just in case, I should write down everything I knew about Fairy Masters.
"....."
I collapsed onto the bed and tried to sleep.
At the hour Alan Han fell asleep, the mistress of the mansion and her Fairies had not yet gone to bed.
"Master! Are you seriously going to take that guy as a subordinate? Can't you just... not?"
Ivan, one of Prisia's Fairies, puffed out his cheeks and whined, clearly unhappy that Alan Han had been made a vassal.
"He is one of those chosen by the gods today. It will take considerable time before he becomes a usable asset. Hwaryongwang may well reveal his true colors before that man has a chance to grow."
Unlike the childlike Ivan, Kyle voiced his opinion with a grave, measured air.
"Heheh."
Even as her Fairies expressed their disapproval of her decision, Prisia smiled, as if she found the whole thing amusing.
"What is it that has my Fairies so worried? Don't tell me you're afraid I'll drag him into my bed?"
"You just try it! I'll seriously throw a fit!"
"....."
Ivan leaped to his feet at that, while Kyle averted his gaze. So that was the answer. Prisia burst out laughing.
"Don't you worry. As if I would ever do that when I have the two of you."
Prisia waved a hand, putting her Fairies at ease. The newly acquired vassal was quite the handsome man, but her tastes ran exclusively to her own Fairies. A Fairy was a Master's finest subordinate, companion — and sex partner.
"Right now, the only people in Indigo chosen by the gods are myself, Prince Trilly, Hwaryongwang, and that man. To restore the balance that collapsed last year, I have to make him a Prince. There is no other way."
In Indigo, Prisia Lily was called Princess, and Bison Trilly was called Prince. They were not called Princess and Prince because they were Hwaryongwang's children by blood. They were called Princess and Prince because they possessed the potential to become King.
Princess Prisia Lily had joined hands with Prince Trilly and set herself in opposition to Hwaryongwang, the ruler of Indigo. The two of them had a single goal: kill Hwaryongwang, seize the title of King, and take Indigo for themselves.
Of course, once their common enemy fell, they would naturally turn on each other over the throne — but that was a problem for later. Scheming to weaken Prince Trilly now, for the sake of a future problem, would be a foolish move.
"Damn it. If that idiot hadn't died so pathetically last year, we could have shattered the balance in one stroke."
Princess Prisia bit down on her cherry-red lips as she recalled the Prince who had died the year before.
Until last year, Indigo had two Princes and one Princess. The three of them had formed an alliance and stood against Hwaryongwang. In Fairies, the numbers were six to five; including the Masters themselves, seven to eight — nearly even.
But last year, while fighting goblins that had invaded Indigo, one of the Princes took a fire arrow through the throat and died on the spot. The one who killed him wasn't a goblin. It was Ryona, the Flame Archer — one of Hwaryongwang's Fairies. Ryona had assassinated the Prince in the chaos of battle.
Having lost their only Master before they could even attempt anything, the maddened Fairy had charged the palace to kill Hwaryongwang — only to be outnumbered and beheaded. And so the scales of a balance that had barely been holding tipped toward Hwaryongwang.
"...Hwaryongwang may attack the Masters before Alan Han has a chance to grow. And that man may not even be able to summon a Fairy."
Watching Princess Prisia's expression, Kyle offered his assessment. She shook her head.
"That won't happen. If we weren't here, he'd have to start holding the monsters back himself next year — and that cowardly bastard would never do that."
Hwaryongwang was a man — no, an old man — unworthy of the title of King. He was the type who belonged not on a gold-inlaid throne, but locked in a back room, hatching underhanded schemes. And for all that his ambition burned, his cowardice burned just as hot. He kept no fewer than six Fairies, and at least four of them were always assigned to his personal guard.
If Prisia and Trilly weren't around, he would have to send Fairies and soldiers to stop the monsters invading Indigo — and the timid Hwaryongwang didn't have the guts for that.
"And even if he can't summon a Fairy, it doesn't matter. Just being chosen by the gods will make him a useful asset."
Clearing dungeons yielded things called Growth Stones. Using them could raise the stats of a Master or a Fairy. In other words, even if someone chosen by the gods failed to summon a Fairy, they could still become vastly stronger than ordinary humans.
That was why Princess Prisia had taken Alan Han as her vassal.
"Besides, the night has grown late. Time for bed, don't you think?"
"Yes, Master!"
"...Yes."
Princess Prisia rose from her seat and turned her back to Kyle, whose face had gone red. Kyle reached out and unfastened the dress his mistress was wearing. A smooth, naked body was revealed — a figure so beautiful and perfect it looked as though a god had sculpted it.
"Both of you, come here."
"I'm going first!"
As Princess Prisia lay back on the bed and reached out with a sultry expression, Ivan stripped in a rush and threw himself at her, naked. Despite a youthful face that made him look no older than a middle schooler, the thing hanging between his legs was truly formidable.
"Hahk!"
"Ah... Master's inside... it feels so good!"
His thick cock pushed between Princess Prisia's legs.
"Ah..."
Kyle, who had been staring transfixed at his mistress's beautiful naked body, was bitterly disappointed to have lost the first turn. But he too stripped, produced a member no less impressive than Ivan's, and took his place at Princess Prisia's bedside, by her head.
"Aaaah~!"
"Kh! Master...!"
Soon, cries of pleasure were echoing through her chamber.