Chapter 91
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 91
Chapter Title: The 704th Wave (1)
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Five days had passed since I visited Jeong Taewoo's workshop.
[Prepare yourself. The 704th wave will begin in 3 hours.]
I stared at the blinking pixelated screen. This wasn't an alarm from the Saan Tower, but a warning from MonMonMak itself.
All preparations were already complete.
I connected to the Lord's Castle, just as I had tirelessly done for the past few days.
“Alright, I've done everything I can for now.”
I checked the key elements for defending against this wave.
First, the fifteen mana deployment turrets positioned in the barracks directly below the northern wall.
I tapped on one of the dark elves manning a turret.
[Dark Elf Artilleryman]
[Type: Enhanced Monster]
[Rank: 4-Star (MonMonMak Standard)]
[Stats: Strength 45, Agility 55, Stamina 40, Intelligence 30]
[Skills: Mana Deployment Turret - Howitzer Lv.5, Direct Fire Lv.5]
[A dark elf who has had a taste of cutting-edge technology. He is no longer satisfied with mere bows and arrows.]
This was an unexpected boon.
When I stationed the dark elves on the mana deployment turrets, the monsters evolved like this.
Thanks to this, the combat power of my relatively weak long-range interception units increased in one fell swoop.
“Next up is...”
The monsters lined up behind the mana deployment turrets.
[Mana-Powered Golem - Prototype]
These were the golems produced by the Father of Steel over the past few days.
There were already over fifty golems on standby inside the castle. Individually, they were insignificant, but their numbers were sufficient to delay an invasion.
Even now, golems were being produced one by one in the workshop deep within the castle and heading toward the frontline barracks.
“I should give the Father of Steel a separate reward.”
For some reason, I had a feeling he'd get along well with CrappyGame-bro's stalker fan... no, with Jeong Taewoo. I should introduce them sometime if I get the chance.
I knew it. It was a silly thought, completely out of place right now.
But I needed to ease the tension, even if it was like this.
*I need to get a grip.*
Because I still felt like it wasn't enough.
This wave was special.
Not knowing the identity of the monster named Idic was a huge disadvantage. The moment the advantage of a veteran player who "knows everything" faded, I was no different from any other newbie.
It was then.
*Tiring!*
“Hm?”
An exclamation mark had appeared above the Lord's head.
This was the first time she had initiated contact in such an urgent situation.
[You waved your hand in greeting.]
The Lord, who had been sitting on the throne, stood up and bowed her head.
[Greetings, Lord of the mortal world.]
Normally, a set of rigid choices would have appeared. But the pixelated screen didn't change. Instead, the Lord's speech bubble appeared, filled with ellipses.
Suddenly, the Lord continued.
[Lord of the mortal world, this invasion will be a much tougher battle than the last few. The beings of the Void have realized the importance of this castle, and what they have sent this time is a being that serves as a vanguard from the Abyss.]
So what exactly were these beings of the Void? What did it mean to serve as a vanguard from the Abyss? What was the Abyss in the first place?
But the Lord didn't answer my questions. Instead.
[Therefore, if you, the Lord of the mortal world, so desire.]
The Dream Lord said something I never could have imagined.
[For invasions involving the beings of the Void, we would like you to lead us directly.]
Directly?
Even now, I'm leading directly through the pixelated screen. What's the difference?
Does that mean... no way.
It took me a moment to grasp the meaning of her words.
The Dream Lord finished her sentence there.
Instead, a new message appeared on the static pixelated screen.
[Accept the proposal?]
1. Accept the proposal.
2. Do not accept the proposal.
While the options blinked, a speech bubble hastily appeared from the Lord.
[This is not a demand. For you to enter the castle means you will be participating directly in combat, and naturally, your life could be in danger. Of course, I will take every possible measure to prevent that.]
Hmm, in that case.
I immediately tapped the choice on the screen.
* * *
[Prepare! The 704th wave will begin in one hour.]
A red window blinked before my eyes.
I finished my preparations to face the wave.
These preparations were a little different from those for the waves in the 700s.
I equipped my items and checked my stats one more time. I made sure the Sage floating next to me was firmly perched on my shoulder.
And then.
[Would you like to transfer to the Lord's Castle to defend against the wave?]
I checked the information window that had just appeared with the warning.
I touched my earlobe.
[The final privilege, "Direct Participation in Wave Defense," is granted.]
Ah, I see. Just like with the previous waves, transferring to the castle was also a privilege.
But to think this was the last one... I felt a little disappointed, but at the same time...
[Transferring to the Dream Lord's Castle.]
*Fwoosh!*
In an instant, a brilliant light, as if from a lightning strike, overwhelmed my vision.
The sensation of my body sinking endlessly downward. Behind the blinding flash was a darkness of unknowable depth.
I was flung into it.
It felt like being thrown into a starless void. Or sinking into the depths of an unfathomable ocean.
It was a completely different sensation from transferring to a dungeon.
To be honest, it was several times more unpleasant, heavy, and viscous.
[The Sage informs you that it is by your side.]
[(๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵)و ♡]
If the Sage hadn't shown me its status window, I might have been overcome with fear.
[The Sage has determined that you are about to arrive at the Lord's Castle!]
I let out a small laugh.
The Sage avoids vague and abstract expressions like "about to arrive."
So this must have been its way of reassuring me.
*It's okay, Sage. Thinking of it as a trip to space isn't so bad.*
The words didn't come out of my mouth.
Still, the Sage seemed to understand, rubbing its cheek against me.
And then.
After an indeterminable amount of time had passed.
[Transfer to the Lord's Castle is complete.]
*Fwoosh!*
Along with the familiar pixelated screen, my vision brightened.
*Thud.*
My shoes landed on the ground. It was a hard stone floor.
I looked around.
I was on the highest watchtower in the Lord's Castle.
*So this is the world where the Lord's Castle exists.*
I saw a night sky with two moons.
Below it, a plain where nameless grasses swayed.
Beyond that, treeless, barren mountains rose high. And where those mountains met, there was a deep canyon.
This time, I turned around.
Down below, a vast labyrinth, faintly illuminated by the blue light of torches and magitech lanterns, came into view.
“Hah.”
My chest swelled with emotion, and I let out a breath.
The pixelated Lord's Castle I had seen on a computer screen for the past seven years.
Was now spread out before my very eyes.
“This seals the deal.”
I let out a wry smile.
I had, of course, accepted that the MonMonMak linked to me was no simple game.
And that the responsibility I'd been given was heavier than I'd thought.
But even so.
To witness a world once represented only by pixels with my own eyes was another story entirely.
[Welcome to the castle, Lord of the mortal world. I have been waiting.]
And suddenly, a voice echoed in my mind.
A woman's voice, as clear as a bell.
*The Dream Lord?*
[Yes, Lord of the mortal world. What do you think? This is the very castle you have protected all this time. It is likely just as you have seen it from your world.]
She was right.
The Lord's Castle spread out below the watchtower was exactly as I had seen it in MonMonMak.
A labyrinth of corridors, barracks, various traps, and crafting rooms.
Countless monsters and golems were moving about vividly in the barracks and corridors.
*I can see Odolph over there.*
I waved at the yellow ogre waiting in the second barracks.
But, as expected, he didn't see me.
*Still, seeing it in person after only looking at pixels... the scale is insane.*
The walls separating the corridors and barracks were like castle walls themselves; from here, it looked like a massive, multi-layered phantom fortress.
Deep within the labyrinthine walls stood a tall, main tower.
The place where the Audience Chamber should be.
If I go to that main tower, will I be able to meet the Dream Lord, the female knight?
[I am terribly sorry, but the only space I have prepared for you, Lord of the mortal world, is the watchtower where you now stand.]
*If I go beyond this place...*
[The restraining force will exceed its control limits, and you may be forcibly ejected from this world.]
Then the only permitted space was the top of this watchtower, an area of a few hundred square yards.
It didn't matter.
This was the tallest of the watchtowers built on the walls, offering a panoramic view of the entire scene.
It was a suitable place to grasp the state of the battle and issue commands.
“So, how do I give commands?”
As I muttered that, a familiar screen appeared.
It was the pixelated screen showing the interior of the Lord's Castle.
“Oho.”
So I could issue commands the same way I did when defending against waves before?
As a test, I tapped on the pixelated Jen Karuk I had stationed in the second barracks and moved him to the first.
In the distance, the real Jen Karuk, who had been sitting in the barracks, stood up and headed for the other one.
*Snort!*
[The Sage conveys that this situation is quite interesting!]
“I know, right?”
Everything was much more intuitive than I had thought.
With a system like this, I could defend against the wave far more efficiently than by just staring at a pixelated screen cooped up in my room.
But there was still one thing I was curious about.
“Uh... Dream Lord?”
Fortunately, the Dream Lord answered my call immediately.
[Yes, Lord of the mortal world. You don't have to be so formal.]
Easier said than done.
The Dream Lord and I were partners, not master and servant. Besides, we had never even met in person.
Still, I continued with an awkward smile.
“I'll try. There's something I want to ask. Can we speak freely here?”
The reason for asking was simple.
I still didn't know much about this world, the Lord's Castle, or the Dream Lord.
Not even why the MonMonMak system was linked to me in the first place.
If we managed to defend against the wave safely, I planned to talk to the Lord about it.
[We can talk, but I will not be able to give you the answers you seek. If I try to tell you what you want to know.]
The Lord quietly said something.
[The reason you ■■■■ is ■■■■--.]
“?”
Then, as if someone were jamming the transmission, her voice was drowned out by harsh static.
[This is what happens.]
“I see...”
[I apologize, Lord of the mortal world.]
“No, there's no need to apologize.”
Was this the same principle that had blocked my questions with the voice input system?
I didn't voice any complaints.
Just being able to converse like this was a huge step forward.
And she hadn't called me here for a leisurely chat.
We had to deal with the problem at hand first.
[Prepare! The 704th wave will begin shortly.]
For a moment, a red warning window blinked before my eyes.
At the same time.
*Kugugugung!*
The floor of the watchtower I was standing on began to vibrate.
I quickly walked to the outermost edge of the watchtower, to a spot overlooking the area outside the castle.
The vibrations shaking the ground grew more intense.
The clouds adorning the night sky.
The feathery cirrus clouds gathered in one place, morphing into a giant cumulonimbus.
The nameless grasses covering the vast plains swayed as if hit by a wave.
And then.
*RUMBLE!*
With a deafening roar that seemed to rip the heavens and the earth apart, a fissure opened in the canyon where the mountains met.
The fissure was monstrously huge.
Large enough to swallow one of the mountains forming the canyon whole.
“――――――!”
A bloodcurdling shriek erupted from the massive fissure, blanketing the world.
A suffocating and unpleasant stench rode the north wind and washed over me.
*Ssssk*, as if lifting a curtain.
Like a child dipping a toe into the water.
Something like a black mass, nestled within the fissure, began to squirm and poke its head out.
[The 704th wave will now begin.]
A red pixelated window appeared.
A heavy pressure, as if a giant iron ingot were crushing my body.
A constricting feeling, as if someone had seized my heart.
My tense body was stiff and rigid, even though there were no gameplay restrictions on it.
[May the blessing of ■■■ be with you, Lord of the mortal world...]
But as the female knight's blessing echoed along with a gentle breeze that melted my tension.
After I swept my gaze over the forces lined up inside the castle, awaiting my command.
The duty of a lord became stark and clear.
From the highest command tower, I brought up the familiar pixelated screen before my eyes.
[“Monsters Are Blocked by Monsters” will now commence.]