Chapter 38
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Dialogue - Qualification
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Right after parting with Asha, I sent a message to Viewer 1: ‘What’s going on?’
Of course, I used the private message function on the streaming platform.
Until then, I thought it was something quite urgent, but.
[Viewer 1: My apologies for the late reply, Hanul.]
His reply came an hour after I had already arrived home.
[Viewer 1: To get straight to the point, my Lord wishes to speak with you, Hanul.]
By ‘Lord,’ he must have meant the Dream Lord.
But was there really a need to go through Viewer 1?
I could just open the ‘Conversation with the Lord’ skill window if I wanted to.
As if sensing my confusion, Viewer 1 continued.
[Viewer 1: To be honest, my Lord told me not to, as it might disturb your rest, but how could I possibly do that! This is by no means a matter to be taken lightly. For someone who rarely shows interest in anything to be curious about your recent activities is an incredibly surprising event, I must say…]
It was so long that I didn't even read the entire message that popped up in the status window.
…Bro, it's a bit awkward for me to say this, but.
You're being quite meddlesome.
[Viewer 1: Ahem. Therefore, as one who assists my Lord, I have simply done what I must. Now, please get some good rest, Hanul.]
With that, Viewer 1's message disappeared from the status window.
Seriously, after saying all that, how am I supposed to get some good rest?
“This guy is a bit much. Right, Sage?”
Prrr.
The Sage, who was lying face down on the bed, rolled its eyes up to look at me.
It then shook its body up and down, making it look like it was rubbing its face against the mattress.
Cute little fella.
Anyway, despite its actions, the creature was busy.
[The Beholder Sage is analyzing an unknown ‘Interference’.]
As soon as we returned home, the Sage had begun analyzing the concept of ‘Interference’ again.
The fact that it was this fixated on it…
…meant that ‘Interference’ held significant value among the hidden information.
“Well then, while you finish your analysis, I'll get to work on my own things.”
I stroked the Sage's body once and fiddled with its earlobe.
[Connecting to ‘Monsters Are Blocked by Monsters’.]
A 32-inch pixelated screen appeared before me as I leaned against the bed frame.
Soon, the Lord's Castle materialized.
The square dungeon hadn't changed since the 702nd wave.
The four barracks filling the passageway and the final defense line in front of the Audience Chamber.
“First, let's try using this.”
[Spatial Development Permit]
The ‘Spatial Development Permit’ I got from capturing the Queen Ant.
[Consuming 1500 Gold to construct a Workshop.]
The various byproducts obtained after each wave.
I created a space next to the barracks in the first passageway and built a workshop to utilize those byproducts.
[Constructing a Workshop in the first passageway. Time until completion: 24 hours.]
This wasn't a ‘Special Spatial Development Permit’ that would complete construction instantly.
This time, it would take quite a while to finish.
After confirming the pixelated hammering animation, I looked away.
“Next, the monsters.”
The monsters were all just as I had placed them.
The monsters I hadn't placed yet were all stationed in the Audience Chamber.
“You guys are the front line.”
First, I converted the existing ‘Room of Light and Salt’ into a barracks and placed the Burrowing Fly colony and the Parasites, a total of 101 creatures.
The red-eyed flies were placed inside the square space.
Although they couldn't deal damage, they would help in tying down the wave.
After placing the flies, I checked the ant pixel remaining in the Audience Chamber.
[Queen Ant Akasha]
[Type: Named Monster]
[Rank: 4-Star (MonMonMak Standard)]
[Stats: Strength 43, Agility 34, Stamina 70, Intelligence 33]
[Skills: Kingdom Construction Lv.10, Formic Acid Lv.5, Royal Blood Lv.1]
[Akasha is the last ant of the Amur Dynasty. She is still clumsy with everything. However, the royal blood flowing within her will one day be of great help.]
There was only one reason I wanted to obtain the Queen Ant.
[Kingdom Construction]
[If the Queen Ant is placed alone, a kingdom will be constructed in that barracks. After the kingdom is constructed, 50 Soldier Ants, 40 Cannon Ants, and 10 Legion Commander Ants will be automatically deployed in the barracks. These numbers are automatically replenished after each wave.]
The ants deployed upon the kingdom's construction are all 2-star grade.
With a single 4-star monster, I get 100 2-star monsters.
Besides the Queen Ant, I can't equip items on the others or control them, but.
It's still a fact that they're a tremendous addition to my forces.
Especially in a situation like this, where resources and forces are limited.
“This… is a skill I've never seen in MonMonMak before?”
But amidst all that, I noticed Akasha had a skill that the original Queen Ant didn't possess.
“Royal Blood?”
It seemed to be her special skill as a named monster.
I immediately viewed its information.
[Royal Blood - Growth Type]
[The blood of the Amur Dynasty is special.]
“Growth type?”
Just a simple explanation and the additional information ‘Growth Type’.
It seems I'll have to place her and find out more about it slowly.
[Placing Akasha in the ‘Final Defense Line’ in front of the Audience Chamber.]
I lifted the ant pixel and placed it in front of the Audience Chamber, where Iramatus had perished.
[Akasha begins kingdom construction. Akasha can be hired after the kingdom construction is complete.]
After wandering around the barracks for a moment, Akasha settled in a spot and began to dig.
Watching the ant diligently digging, I was suddenly reminded of the desperate battle of the 702nd wave that took place here.
“Come to think of it, I forgot about Iramatus.”
I was able to find Iramatus's demilich form right away.
In a corner of the Audience Chamber.
To be precise, a pixelated pile of bones had appeared next to the main gate of the Audience Chamber.
It was said that he would be reborn as a complete lich from this.
“Can I just leave it like this?”
Hmm.
I'm feeling uneasy.
MonMonMak isn't that easy of a game.
I cautiously tapped the pixelated pile of bones with my finger.
A faint ripple spread across the pixelated screen.
[You have caressed Iramatus's demilich form with a gentle touch.]
“?”
A strange pixelated window popped up.
[Iramatus's affinity has increased by 0.1.]
Affinity?
No, it can't be.
Surely not.
[When affinity reaches 100, Iramatus's demilich form will activate.]
“Crappy game.”
Of course.
If it's 0.1 per click, that means I have to tap it 1000 times, right?
In that case, if I just set my mind to it and tap like crazy for an hour…!
[There is a set cooldown for raising affinity. Excessive interaction may actually lower affinity. Be careful. Iramatus's skull is whole and thus quite sensitive.]
“Damn crappy game…”
Even as I cursed, I had no choice but to wait for the cooldown timer floating above the skull.
At this rate, it would take quite a while.
I couldn't just stare at the skull pixel forever.
For now, I stroked the unconscious lich's skull five times.
After raising its affinity by 0.5, I turned my attention elsewhere.
The most important thing remained.
[Conversation with the Lord]
[Inside the Dream Lord's Castle - Audience Chamber]
The Audience Chamber zoomed in as if a camera was focusing.
And then, *that* choice flickered before my eyes.
[Should you greet her?]
1. Greet her.
2. Do not greet her.
“…”
This will change later, right?
[You waved your hand in greeting.]
A speech bubble appeared next to the Lord.
[Hello. Have you had dinner?]
“Oh.”
My greeting was the same, but the Dream Lord's words had changed.
She wasn't just greeting me, but also asking how I was.
And on my end, a choice I'd never seen before appeared.
[What topic should you discuss?]
1. Akasha
Unlike last time, there were no trivial topics.
There was only one option.
“Ah.”
Only then did I guess why the Lord wanted to talk to me.
She was curious about the new Queen Ant.
I moved my hand and tapped the option.
[You decided to talk about Akasha.]
Alright, what now?
Don't tell me there's another choice here?
A conversation based solely on choices would take way too long.
But my worries were unfounded.
[Voice input is now active. Topics unrelated to the subject will not be registered.]
Such a pixelated window had suddenly appeared.
“Voice input?”
[Voice input?]
My words were transcribed exactly into the input window.
Aha, so that's how it works.
I let out a chuckle.
“I'm not much of a storyteller.”
[You said you are not much of a storyteller.]
[That's fine.]
The female knight replied.
She seemed ready to listen intently to everything I had to say.
So I smiled and nodded.
“I'll do my best.”
For the next thirty minutes, I spoke about an ant.
About her time as a small princess, leaving her comfortable home.
Sometimes shivering in the bone-chilling cold.
Sometimes hiding in a predator's den to escape another predator.
And sometimes, having to swallow her tears and eat her own young.
[And yet, with a blood-soaked body, she built a kingdom.]
How she stained her body with blood to protect her kingdom until the very end.
About a certain queen, a certain lord.
The Dream Lord listened to my story in silence.
Very carefully, with her full attention.
Seeing the ‘…’ speech bubble appear next to her from time to time, I assumed so.
[You have finished telling the story of Akasha.]
I was in the middle of my story when I snapped back to reality, a rigid pixelated window floating before me.
The female knight remained still.
Five minutes passed without any new windows or speech bubbles.
Finally, she spoke.
[Does Akasha have the right to be a lord?]
The meaning of the question was simple.
Akasha ultimately failed to protect her kingdom.
If so, wasn't everything she did as a lord in vain?
The female knight was asking if Akasha was truly worthy of the title of lord, judging not by the process, but by the result.
1. She is worthy.
2. She is not worthy.
And I was given a choice.
This was a bit strange.
It had been working fine with voice recognition until now, but this time it just threw two dry options at me.
I pondered.
But the answer was already decided.
[You answered that she is worthy.]
No lord is eternal.
Even an emperor who has walked the path of conquest his entire life must meet his end.
But future generations do not judge them solely on their ruin and downfall.
They evaluate a ruler's worth based on the path they walked until they reached that end.
There are things that cannot be judged by results alone, and in that sense, Akasha was a more splendid lord than any king.
[I see.]
A speech bubble appeared.
The Dream Lord didn't say much else.
[That was very enjoyable. Thank you for taking the time to speak with me, despite your fatigue.]
That was it.
As I wondered if my thoughts had been properly conveyed…
[Conversation finished. Leave now?]
1. Leave.
2. Do not leave.
The choice to bid farewell appeared.
There was no reason to stay.
As soon as I selected option 1, the pixelated images of the Audience Chamber and the Lord's Castle began to blur and fade.
And then.
A rather surprising message appeared.
[The Lord's affinity has increased by 10.]
“By 10?”
I had been a little worried, thinking her reaction was lukewarm.
But the message that followed after the castle scene disappeared was enough to convince me.
[You have aided in the Lord's ‘Value Formation’.]
“This isn't Princess Maker…”
What is this terrible hybrid game?
I closed the status window and chuckled.
At that moment, a new pixelated window appeared.
[Each time a certain level of affinity is reached, the Lord will grant one of her skills.]
“Huh?”
She grants a skill?
Now that changes things.
The very same Lord who wiped out dozens of monsters with a single sword strike is gifting me an ability.
I clenched my fist and checked the skill information.
Prrr!
The Sage, having finished its analysis of the Interference, quickly scooted next to me with expectant eyes.
“Hold on a sec, Sage. Let me just check this.”
Alright, the skill the Lord gifted me is…
[You have reached 10 affinity with the Lord and obtained ‘Lord's Swordsmanship - Ordinary Horizontal Slash’!]
“?”
[૮( ´⁰▱๋⁰` )ა?]