Foreshadowing the Demon Invasion
The Arkcrooks Continent, the main stage for Last Savior, was the kind of world anyone would picture when they heard "fantasy realm."
Swords and magic. Elves and dwarves. Beastkin, spirits, and other non-human races living alongside humans.
But the Arkcrooks Continent wasn't the entirety of the Last Savior world.
There was the Heavenly Realm and the Demon Realm.
The Arkcrooks Continent, where players roamed, was just one of three massive worlds—commonly called the "human realm" or "middle realm."
Whoa. This is straight out of every fantasy novel I've read a million times. You can't escape the Heavenly Realm and Demon Realm tropes anywhere.
-Human imagination all runs along the same lines, doesn't it?
Have you been there, hyung? The Heavenly Realm and Demon Realm.
-Of course I have. Oh, and there are places like the Illusion Realm or the Nether Realm, but they're minor worlds treated as side content.
Everything that sounds familiar is here. The scale is...
And demons, naturally, hailed from the Demon Realm.
They were beings you wouldn't encounter until around level 200, after completing a special quest.
-Not something a level 39 should be facing. Though in this case, it'll adjust to the situation.
Right. The quest success message said the demon appears weakened.
One lingering question, though, was what happened if the quest failed.
The demon manifesting at full power, polluting Ruana with "demonic energy."
Ruana was the first major city new players reached after leaving the beginner village, and in the game's lore, it was the largest trade hub in the Rudineria Federation.
If a place like that gets corrupted, wouldn't that be a massive disaster?
-It is a massive disaster. And that's exactly what happens in the actual game story.
What? What do you mean?
-Half a year from now—about a year after Last Savior launches—a huge event kicks off.
The demons' "invasion of the human realm."
It was the first time players learned about demons, and the impact was shocking.
A demon army invades Ruana!
-Once the event starts, a cooperative quest triggers for all players and NPCs to drive back the demons.
Your contribution—based on how many demons you slay—determines tiered rewards. A massive event.
Since Ruana's level restriction doesn't apply during the event, top guilds like the Big 10 lead the charge with their high-level players.
-For reference, I took first place in my previous run. Sigh. Brings back memories. The whole community went nuts trying to unmask me...
That's a story I wanna hear, but... anyway, how does the story play out?
-Nothing special. On the last day, a "Hero" NPC takes down the demon legion commander, the demons retreat, and the event ends.
But repelling the invasion didn't mean no scars remained.
The beach city of Ruana, turned into a battlefield, lay in ruins—corrupted by demonic energy, unfit for life.
-It was chaos. Ruana being a major city meant tons of guilds were based there. They lost everything overnight and threatened lawsuits left and right.
But most players raved about the groundbreaking event, so the minority complaints got buried.
Plus, as a low-level area, only small guilds were hit hard.
-After that, the starter city for newbies changes. About a year later? Ruana gets a reconstruction event. Fun stuff.
Man, Last Savior's scale is insane.
Sacrificing a mega-city that's a cornerstone of the game economy for one event?
No other game would dare.
-Now it makes sense. People always said the demon invasion felt so random.
The event was shocking and fun, but critics pointed out the lack of foreshadowing.
-Who knew the setup was hidden here? These Last Savior devs are nuts. How are players supposed to find this?!
Hmm. So if I clear this hidden quest now, does that cancel the demon invasion?
-Who knows. They might invade somewhere else.
What a satisfying quest.
Heroically averting a horrific future!
The role he'd always wanted to play.
"Got it. I'll help with the purification."
Thank you so much!
As Carpe accepted the quest, Silphiruaene cheered.
She began leading him to a certain spot.
In truth, I can purify the children enthralled by demonic energy with my power.
But it was pointless.
Purifying low spirits only restored them temporarily; without removing the root cause, they'd succumb again.
Constant exposure eventually made even me lose my reason to the demonic energy. I'm clear-headed now, but in time, I'll succumb again.
"That's bad. So what do we do?"
We must eliminate the root source spewing the demonic energy.
Silphiruaene, guiding Carpe, stopped before a cave wall.
She began chanting in an unknown tongue.
"Oh?"
-Ho. A hidden space.
The wall vanished, revealing a new passage.
A temporary measure to block the demonic energy as much as possible.
Deeper in, another dead-end wall appeared.
A massive black rift scarred it, demonic energy leaking out.
Enter... that rift... and destroy the source of the demonic energy...
As they neared, the thickening energy strained her voice.
"The source of the demonic energy?"
The Magic Core... You'll know it when you see...
"Got it. Now get out of here before you get corrupted again."
He pulled her back outside, and she recovered.
Sorry. Spirits are embodiments of nature's essence, so we're easily swayed by other energies...
"Ah, that explains it."
Carpe nodded.
He'd gotten right up to the rift without issue—why was she so vulnerable?
"Guess you can't come in with me."
Correct. I'd lose my mind the instant I entered.
"Hmm."
And probably attack him. Better to leave her here.
"I'll head into the rift alone. Find the Magic Core and smash it?"
Yes. It's very distinctive—you won't miss it.
Crossing from the Heavenly or Demon Realm to the human realm was never simple.
Differing world laws demanded harsh conditions; forcing it triggered severe penalties from the realm's repulsion.
-Players ignore that crap, though. Clear the quest, and you're in. Outsiders don't follow the rules.
Huh. Even the hand-wavy parts have lore.
Anyway, the Magic Core was key now.
Magic Cores are rare treasures—only about a hundred exist even in the vast Demon Realm. They reshape the surrounding space to mimic the Demon Realm's environment.
Demons used them for invasions, per her explanation.
Summary:
1. Toss a Magic Core into the target world first.
2. Wait for the environment to demonize. Time varies.
3. Once corruption completes, invade freely.
They're placed in hidden spots to avoid destruction. Sometimes guarded.
"Guardian, huh. Got it."
Enter rift, kill guardian, smash core. Simple.
Nice and straightforward. I like it.
-Difficulty depends on the guardian.
Worst case, just smash the core.
He didn't know the guardian's strength, but he could at least destroy the core.
Then I'll purify the children here. Be careful.
Silphiruaene left, and Carpe summoned his retainers, explaining.
"...That's the deal. Now we head into the rift."
"Understood, my lord."
"Kyuu!"
"Eek... Demons..."
"Alright, let's—"
"My lord."
"Yeah?"
"Before we go, I have something for you."
Tina approached, handing him a small rectangular object.
"Whoa! Ooh!"
It was a skill pack—special, bearing her epithet.
Carpe gawked; Tina replied calmly.
"Slaying wind spirits leveled me up. This is the level 15 reward."
"Ah! Right, retainers get skill packs too. Forgot—it's been ages."
-Hmm. Retainers usually get theirs at 10. Special case? Exclusive pack maybe?
Is that it?
-Beats me. You're the only one with Magic King's homunculi.
"Ha, ridiculous. How long since I got Tina, and she's only 15?"
-Told you: retainers level like hell. Yours are fast.
Carpe grumbled, but he was clueless.
Average pets hit maybe 30 by the time owners reached 100.
"Good omen anyway. Power-up before the guardian."
-Rip it open. First time seeing this—curious what pops.
"My lord, please. Your luck will surely yield something great."
"Leave it to me."
He took a deep breath, tore the pack.
Flash!
Five cards floated up amid a brief glow.
"This is it!"
The moment he grabbed the first:
Bam-bam-boom!
Rainbow Effect!
"...Huh?"
-Whoa.
No silvery shine or golden gleam.
Rainbow.
A shifting, prismatic rainbow effect.
Carpe tilted his head.
"Rainbow? Rainbow effects exist? What's rainbow rank?"
-......Star.
"Pardon?"
-8-star, you lunatic! Fuck, this shitty game trolls again! This ain't a game!
"Fuck yeah! 8-star?! This is a game!"