Chapter 127
Chapter 127
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 127
Chapter Title: Knight Duel (4)
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“Gah!”
Hashimoto’s armor, already battered to hell, shattered first. But that didn’t mean Rokan had any breathing room. Even now, his HP was scraping the bottom.
A fight decided second by second. It wouldn’t be strange for either of them to drop dead first.
“Keheheheheh!”
It was impossible to tell who the madman was anymore. Hashimoto raised his shield in a near-delirious state, and Rokan brought his axe down with everything he had.
[Your HP has fallen below 5%.]
[The effect of the title ‘Unyielding Will’ increases all stats by 50%.]
And when his HP hit 5%, his final ace exploded.
All stats up 50%!
That terrifying power, strong enough to blow away the Berserk debuff, gathered in Rokan’s axe.
Boom!
“HP Charge!”
The moment it landed, another contingency kicked in. The embedded skill of the survey team member’s ring, HP Charge, restored 3,000 HP.
His HP had dropped by 100 right away, so he could’ve died without even getting to use it, but Rokan—addicted to those razor-thin controls—pulled off the risky maneuver perfectly.
[You have won the duel against Hashimoto.]
[You have achieved final victory in the Knight Duel.]
[Per the contract of the Knight Duel, ownership of Remington Territory has been transferred to Rokan.]
“Huff.”
A system message announcing the end of the Knight Duel, like an official declaration. Rokan let out the breath he’d been holding.
He’d held it to squeeze out that last bit of strength.
“Eek!”
When he whipped his head toward the Remington lord’s group with a sharp glare, they flinched in terror.
They’d just watched him smash four Expert-level knights they thought unbeatable, then butcher a Master-level knight. No one dared complain or argue.
“With this final duel, the winner is Rokan! I hereby declare that the sacred Knight Duel, commanded by His Imperial Majesty, concludes with victory for Rinai Territory!”
In the meantime, Croban’s announcement sealed the Knight Duel’s end. The result was now irreversible.
‘Count Luberon, you bastard... Just you wait.’
But Rokan’s anger hadn’t cooled. The Berserk hangover left him limp, but his fury burned hotter than when he’d activated Berserk.
It was clear who had sent the Master-level knight, Hashimoto.
He didn’t know who was behind Count Luberon or if it was the count’s solo decision, but one thing was sure: the guy had picked a fight with him.
“Congratulations!”
“Congratulations, my lord!”
Once Croban finished and stormed off without hearing more, the mood in the training grounds split to extremes.
Rinai Territory’s soldiers, sunk in despair moments ago, erupted in cheers and chaos. Remington’s lord and his men—who’d just lost their territory—looked like they were headed for the grave.
No, they might actually end up dead. Stripped of their territory, their value tanked, and with the loaned Master-level NPC Hashimoto gone, Count Luberon wouldn’t let him off easy.
Even if the Remington lord still had some use, it was doubtful it outweighed a Master-level knight.
“You did well, Remington lord. Oh, wait—not a lord anymore.”
Rokan rubbed salt in the wound for the ashen-faced bunch.
Tremble.
But they could do nothing. A Master-level knight was a monster no territory could handle, and Rokan had beaten one one-on-one.
They lacked the guts to snap back and deal with the fallout.
No, they had bigger worries—their own necks. Hashimoto’s defeat and death hadn’t spread yet, but once it did, someone would come for them.
“C-Congratulations.”
Their speech turned polite. He still held baronial rank, but the gap between them was now massive. A baron without a territory was just a title.
“Thanks. You built up the territory real nice for me.”
Heh.
Flashing a mocking grin, Rokan turned and headed back to his group.
“Fuck, we’re screwed, aren’t we?”
“Rokan’s already a noble with a territory... Did he really take down a Master-level knight? For real?”
“Damn. How much rep did we lose? When do we recover from this?”
“Who gives a shit about knight quests? If Rokan turns hostile and comes for revenge... We’re fucked. Grovel? End up like Hellhound?”
“Hey, tell the others to bail from the territory ASAP. If they get caught, they’re dead. Hurry!”
Behind him, the Meteor Guild members scrambled even harder.
They hadn’t known it’d be Rokan, but they’d opposed him and lost badly. Retaliation was a given.
If he decided to crush them with force, they might have to disband—like Hellhound.
They fired off guild messages to evacuate members from Remington Territory and planned to skip heading back themselves.
The central continent was vast. If they ran like hell, maybe they could dodge him.
They’d heard Rokan excelled at tracking and assassination, but if they braced for a few deaths, they could avoid quitting the game altogether. They ground their teeth.
“That Remington fucker. We’ll get him.”
“You pulled that shit earlier, huh? Just run into us on the road.”
Instead, they redirected their rage at Remington’s lord—no, Baron Sakin Kun. They hadn’t even earned knighthood yet, but with his knights gone, they figured they could assassinate him.
They’d already beaten knights who hadn’t joined the duel with pure control skill.
‘They’re having a blast.’
But Rokan ignored the emotional whirlwind. He was done with them.
Meteor Guild had potential—he’d heard of them in his past life—but there was no bad blood. They hadn’t joined the Knight Duel to target him specifically, so no grudge.
“Rune Book use: To Remington Territory.”
He left them glaring and teleported straight there.
“Territory Management.”
He opened the management window right away.
“Oh, this fucker saved up nice.”
Amid the territory’s info, his eyes locked on the treasury.
They hadn’t expected to lose to Rinai—or Rokan—so the vaults overflowed.
That’s why some ‘scammers’ existed in his past life. Swallow a territory whole, jack up taxes with lord powers, loot the funds, and bail.
Buy or accept one blindly, and you’d suffer rebuilding from scratch.
[Territory Funds: 10,132 Gold, 97 Silver, 23 Copper]
“This’ll sting.”
Rokan’s loaded smile wasn’t for Baron Sakin Kun.
Remington was the richest around, sure, but no way they’d amassed this solo.
Outside backers had invested or funneled cash. Now it was all in Rokan’s pocket.
“What were they planning with this...? Hmm?”
Gleefully scanning the overflowing funds, Rokan spotted a blinking item. A notice for territory anomalies.
[Diplomacy in progress with Royota Territory. View?]
[Diplomacy in progress with Miurita Territory. View?]
[Diplomacy in progress with Hoyoroi Territory. View?]
“Diplomacy?”
Puzzling, but half-expected. He tapped with faint hope, and details popped up.
[Suggested surrender and merger to Royota Territory. Continue?]
[Suggested territory sale to Miurita Territory. Continue?]
[Suggested to Hoyoroi Territory...]
“Continue all.”
As expected, Remington’s lord—ex-lord Sakin Kun—had been gobbling neighbors, starting with Rinai. Rokan’s meddling and Rinai’s growth sped it up from his past life, but now Rokan got fat off it. No complaints.
Rokan kept all Sakin Kun’s diplomacies running, then reassigned personnel.
Rinai and Remington—both his. No point dumping everything in one. Whichever grew, he won. Maximize synergies.
Link their trade caravans as baseline. Pour mining dev talent into Rinai, accelerate the third bonanza mine.
[Knight Rhino has left Remington Territory.]
[Knight Corona requests to stay in Remington Territory.]
[Knight Palnahi...]
Meanwhile, many Remington guards and knights bailed.
Some volunteered to stay, but some oath-bound to Sakin Kun followed him out.
“Can’t be helped.”
Rokan had eaten the territory raw, but oaths didn’t give him life-or-death say. No point forcing.
He wouldn’t trust his back to the unreliable anyway.
Letting them trickle out left only the contract-bound or those rooted here.
“Troop Transfer.”
Rokan split them into two groups.
No backstab worries. Even all-in, he’d steamroll them. Respawns meant no real threat anyway.
But they had a job.
“Auto-farming is sweet.”
Special dungeon loops. User entries burned limited slots, but NPCs didn’t.
That’s how Remington pushed royal jelly as a specialty.
So, for Rinai?
“Enhancement stone monopoly, easy.”
Enhancement stones, duh. Rokan demolished his old house, sent knights on repeat hunts.
Users? Restricted, obviously. No plans to recruit them as underlings. No need to share the goodies.
“What specialties do nearby territories have...?”
His greed eyed bigger prizes. He tapped lord powers to scout neighbors.
Soon, good news trickled in.
[Royota Territory has accepted merger.]
[Miurita Territory has agreed to territory sale.]
[Hoyoroi Territory...]