Lord of Column Village
Mu-hyuk had never imagined he'd receive a noble title and territory at this point in time.
This means I don't even need to join a guild anymore?
It felt like one major worry had vanished into thin air.
Yeah, I'll just make my own guild...
As these thoughts swirled in his mind, the emperor sheathed his sword. The sound snapped Mu-hyuk back to reality, and he spoke up.
"Thank you."
It was a plain and simple expression of gratitude, but the emperor seemed pleased.
"Your territory is a place called Column Village, located on the outskirts of the Hemil Empire."
Column Village
"Column..."
"Manage it well."
"Of course."
"Good. Then we'll meet again next time, both of you."
"Yes."
"You may withdraw."
Mu-hyuk followed Duke Amur out.
Creeeak.
The door opened, and they stepped back into the knight's corridor, but this time there was no oppressive pressure.
Apparently, they tested you on the way in but not on the way out.
After traversing the long hallway and exiting the main keep, Mu-hyuk parted ways with Duke Amur and headed to find his mentor.
Territory information window.
On the way, he checked the details of his new territory.
A very basic status window.
920 people.
A small village, but how it was managed would determine its development level.
Higher development would naturally increase the population, and with it, the flow of money.
Taxes would rise too.
And a portion of those taxes would become the lord's personal funds.
Properly growing a single territory could amass enormous wealth from taxes alone.
And on top of that...
It would give an edge in guild wars and territory battles.
This is a huge boon.
By then, he had arrived at Valsian's house.
No one around today.
"Master."
The door flew open.
"Hm? You?"
"Yes."
"Come in."
Mu-hyuk entered and sat down.
"So, what's up? You didn't come just to say hi again."
"Right. You asked me to find something before."
"Asked you?"
"Darkness..."
"Oh, right. That. Why bring it up?"
"I think I found it. Or rather, dealt with it."
"What? For real?!"
Valsian's voice boomed.
"Yes. By chance, I came across a black mage..."
Hemil Empire and the black mage Zikera.
He gave a brief rundown of what had happened in between.
"Hah, so that's how it went."
"Yes."
"Wait here a bit. I'll confirm for sure."
"Got it."
Valsian stepped out, leaving Mu-hyuk alone in the house. But just a few minutes later, an unfamiliar voice called out.
"Excuse me."
"..."
He ignored it at first.
"Excuse me!"
But the voice came again, followed by knocking.
Hm...?
Cautiously opening the door revealed a single user.
"Hello! I want to become a Gangster Necromancer, so I came here!"
Of all times, a user shows up when Valsian is out.
A newbie, at that.
"Uh, listen..."
"I'll work hard!"
"Well, you see..."
"I'll give it my all!"
"Hey...?"
Mu-hyuk's odd reaction must have tipped him off.
The user looked crestfallen.
"Please, I'll do anything."
"No, that's not it."
"Huh?"
"You're looking for the wrong person. I'm a user too."
"Ah...?"
"Master just stepped out for a bit."
"Oh, ohhh...!"
Realizing his mistake, the user flushed red.
"S-sorry!"
"It's fine."
"Th-then I'll come back later!"
"No, you could just wait..."
The man hurried off.
"...here."
Once his figure vanished completely, Mu-hyuk chuckled and closed the door.
Shaking off the absurd encounter, he waited for Valsian again.
Fortunately, the old man returned after about five minutes.
"The black mage was connected to the darkness."
It was obvious, since the quest had said so.
Quest: To Valsian
🎁 Reward: Massive EXP gained.
✨ Level Up!
The quest alone bumped him up a level.
Makes sense—it took a while.
But if that was all, it felt a bit lacking, so he waited a little longer.
"Anyway, good work."
As expected, something more was coming. Valsian patted Mu-hyuk's shoulder once, then headed to a corner of the room and pulled something out.
Gazing fondly at it, he turned back around. In his hand was a box. He approached and held it out to Mu-hyuk.
"Take it."
"This is...?"
"Something only a Gangster Necromancer can use."
This must be the real reward.
"Can I take a look?"
"Of course."
Mu-hyuk immediately opened the box.
A star-shaped item.
"This is..."
No matter how he looked at it, it was a rune item.
"My old friend made it for me."
"Old friend...?"
"Yeah."
Now one possibility came to mind.
He picked up the rune.
◈ Grants Command Authority to one summon.
◈ Use Requirement: Gangster Necromancer
Command Authority
Can read the summoner's thoughts and execute commands accordingly.
As expected, an Ancient Rune.
One related to command, no less.
"This Ancient Rune grants command ability to your summons. Only to four—just four of them! The moment it's applied, they'll command as if reading your mind. Impressive, right? Don't get it yet? Think about it, disciple. Even the best get confused leading hundreds of skeletons, and some get ignored. Lately, you've felt it too, huh?"
Mu-hyuk nodded instinctively. It was something he'd noticed recently.
"This rune eliminates all that. Your army stays at peak efficiency. Imagine skeletons moving on their own without orders!"
The image flashed in his mind.
Like a scene from a movie.
A chill ran down his spine.
"You get how amazing it is."
"Of course. I'm your prized disciple, after all."
"Heh, yeah. But listen."
Valsian's tone suddenly grew heavy.
"The darkness isn't fully gone yet."
"Pardon...?"
He couldn't process it at first.
The black mage Zikera—he was definitely dead.
"He was part of it, sure, but the darkness lurks deeper."
"..."
"No immediate threat, so focus on getting stronger. This help of yours might even boost my standing a bit. Anyway, priority is power. Here's a test."
"Ah, yes."
"Clear a dungeon perfectly with your fellow Gangster Necromancers."
A new quest.
To Grow Stronger
📍 The stirring darkness has vanished, but its unseen essence still breathes. Avoid the dormant darkness and build your power. Head to the location Valsian provides with your fellow Gangster Necromancers. Clear the dungeon at S-rank level.
🎁 Reward: EXP, Skill
[Accept?]
[Yes / No]
This was the group quest for Gangster Necromancers that had been mentioned before.
It differed slightly from what he remembered, but with a skill as the reward, he had no complaints.
The "S-rank level clear" phrasing was a bit odd, but he took it as "clear perfectly."
No hesitation—he hit Yes.
"You can do it, right?"
"Of course."
"Good. Come back tomorrow after lunch."
"Will do."
After bidding farewell, he left Valsian's house.
Tomorrow would be busy.
For now, time to restock.
First, the general store to offload junk from his inventory. Then the food shop for spices, ingredients, and cooking tools. Finally, the blacksmith for disposable crafting tools.
He considered using achievement points and contribution points but saved them since nothing urgent needed them.
What about the Ancient Rune?
That too—he'd decide which skeleton to use it on after some thought.
Now then...
Suddenly, Illusion TV came to mind.
Ah, time to turn it on?
Logging out briefly, he fired up Illusion TV and linked it to the capsule.
Linked to Illusion.
Channel activated.
Viewers flooded in instantly.
Smiling at the chat, Mu-hyuk lay back in the capsule.
Fully restocked, he decided to tackle a commission with his remaining time.
At the mercenary guild, he scanned the board, but nothing quick caught his eye.
"Anything else?"
"Hm? What's up?"
"Something I can finish today."
The attendant pondered.
"How about lowering the rank filter?"
"Commission rank?"
"Yes. You're at B-rank now; C-rank ones would wrap up fast. Rewards are smaller, though."
"Hm, let's see."
"Here."
Scanning C-rank urgent commissions, one stood out.
This should work.
A subjugation quest—close by, low-level monsters. He could knock it out quick.
"This one."
"Got it. Normally 30 contribution points, but halved due to your rank. Note that."
"Fine."
Reward cut, but still decent for the effort.
15 points was okay. With his title, 16.5. Accepting immediately, he headed to the hunting ground and unleashed his new skill, Power of Darkness, to his heart's content.
Dark aura spreads around you.
Fixed damage (20) to hostile lifeforms within 10m radius.
MP -1 | HP +2 | MP +2
Messages flew up relentlessly, so he turned them off.
Hm, maybe...?
He summoned his full army.
"Summon."
MP drained steadily, but this setup could sustain hunting for at least six hours.
Not infinite, but close enough. Continuous six-hour fights were rare anyway.
Grinning in satisfaction, Mu-hyuk massacred the local monsters. Thanks to that, he cleared the subjugation before 11 PM.
Returning straight to the Hemil Empire mercenary guild, he completed it and claimed his reward.
Difficulty confirmed (C-rank).
Reward adjusted due to higher rank.
Mercenary Points +10
Gold +5
Small EXP gained.
Hemil Empire Contribution +15
Witness to Change title: +1.5 Contribution
And so the day ended.
At that hour, as Mu-hyuk slept, a fresh bombshell hit the Illusion homepage.
It was the dawn of a new era.