The Lizard Lord's Rampage and the King's Election
Let's take a quick peek at the subspace storage.
[Bundle of Patience and Greed x1 (Time Acceleration in Progress)]
[Carmina's Crispy Preserved Chicken x72]
[Yulia's Chilled Beer Collection x432]
[Fox Spirit Tribe's Acceleration Orbs x14,251]
(...)
Something looks off?
Beep. All normal.
That's the beauty of subspace—you can freeze time and keep anything in perfect condition.
Once I gave my allies access, it basically turned into a giant fridge.
Sheesh, when did they stock up this much?
Fine, beer makes sense, but doesn't Carmina just order fresh chicken anyway?
It's not like she's a squirrel hoarding acorns and forgetting about them come winter.
Anyway, keep scrolling through the list.
Oh, there it is.
The buddy I stuffed right as it spawned back on floor 37, exploiting a system glitch.
Let's tune into its inner voice.
[It's stuffy in here... wanna come out?]
—Whoa! I didn't hear a thing!
[Wanna drop onto that US soil down there and play? Reviving corpses is my specialty, right?]
—Has Your Holiness's omnipotence extended to communing with stuffed monsters now?
[Spot on. As long as it's in my line of sight, I can store or release it no matter the distance.]
—Our master's gone nuts!
—Looks like we've got some entertaining drama ahead. Time to crack open a beer. Carmina? Mind if I grab some chicken?
—Chicken? Oh right! I stashed some!
······.
Sigh, what can you do.
If I grant the wishes of the dead, can't I do the same for a live lizardman?
Might as well rewind its time too—back to its prime, youthful peak.
Job done. Now, eyes on the top of Rhode Island's tower.
America's making a mess down there.
Guess I should match their energy, huh?
Seeing those poor folks in Koreatown getting bullied pissed me off a bit too.
Just so you know.
You guys are the ones who turned me into a thug.
Rhode Island's fierce battlefield.
BOOM!BOOM-BOOM!BOOM!
Monsters like gnolls and kobolds were swept away by the artillery barrage from the US-China-Japan alliance.
Broadcast helicopters and vehicles trailed behind, relaying the scene live to the world.
The American continent was gripped by madness.
(...)
Pride and euphoria for their nation.
Mockery of Korea and Hitchhiker.
Praise for Gail and Killdragon too.
External enemies and internal heroes—perfect targets for a wounded nation's full emotional outpour.
This manic atmosphere spanned online and offline alike.
"The world is ruled by America!"
"The crown returns to America!"
Cheers echoed through streets, marches waving the stars and stripes.
Giant screens on skyscrapers broadcast the extermination live.
And...
The world was watching the extermination too.
Territory reclamation—the dream of all nations.
Korea had done it boldly.
They'd love to outsource if possible.
But with no official word on Hitchhiker's meteors yet.
All eyes were on America's upgraded gear.
With the world glued to screens.
"Kirruk! Kirrruk!"
"Kirrrruk!"
The last monster horde, hundreds strong, backed into a dead end with the tower at their rear.
One volley from the alliance would pulverize them.
Reporters in frenzy spewed words like waterfalls.
"Citizens of the world! What a historic moment! The grand campaign of sleepless days and nights draws to a close!"
"Rhode Island is small! But no land is too big! America's great tech advances endlessly!"
The hype built relentlessly.
Whirr-whirr-whirr—!
Broadcast choppers swarmed for better angles.
Media prepped articles to fire off like fireworks at success.
Vrrrrm!
Upgraded power gloves on the alliance glowed, skills charging.
The nation's chests swelled.
Today, the world would reaffirm America's might.
"All companies, fi—."
The firing order dropped then.
Shh! Shhh!
An unforeseen twist.
Monster corpses in the area began reviving, red eyes aglow.
"Wh-what the hell!"
"M-monsters... why?!"
Chaos hit the alliance.
BOOM! BOOM-BOOM! BOOM!
They switched targets and fired hastily, but.
—Kirruk!
—Kirrrruk!
Revived monsters charged through the smoke unscathed.
No wounds. No scratches.
Movements far faster than before.
Close-range leaps led to casualties piling up.
"Aaaah! H-help!"
"4th Platoon! Requesting support!"
The commander atop the command vehicle panicked.
What the hell was happening?
That power rivaled the worst infestation zones in Mississippi.
"C-Commander! Orders, quick!"
"Why... why are the monsters reviving?!"
Crunch!
He bit down so hard blood trickled from his lip.
Why ally with those barbaric Eastern nations?
To pool S-ranks for reclamation.
And now the cost of that pride-swallowing move stared them down.
BOOM! BOOM-BOOM!
Incomprehensible, but one thing clear.
America failed reclamation.
Spectacularly, miserably.
Broadcasters cut feeds as reality sank in.
"T-turn the cars! Turn around!"
"Fuck! Take me too! Take me!"
The commander bellowed after agonizing deliberation.
"All units! Retreat! Retreat!"
Screee—
A dropped camera shattered under a monster's foot.
Black screen followed.
The world plunged into chaos.
Speculation and analysis flooded in.
One post dominated views and likes.
Meanwhile.
"······."
Gail sat dazed in his office, soul drained.
Knock knock.
His aide slipped in cautiously, handing over a tablet.
"Drone footage just sent from the site."
Atop Rhode Island's tall tower.
A figure pacing, thumping a staff.
"Lizard Commander Lord?"
"Yes, presumed to be."
And the analysis.
"The red glow in all revived monsters matches the commander lord's necromancy from floor 37 exactly."
Gail was floored.
This bastard screwed us?
But how'd a tower interior monster get outside?
No lizard-types even in Rhode Island?
Questions bombarded his mind.
But the most baffling part.
"Did the Lizard Commander Lord always look like that?"
"W-well, analysis team can't pinpoint why. Must be a variant..."
Lizard Commander Lord.
Powerful monster, sure.
But appearance-wise, it's a scrawny old geezer.
Meaning.
[Kirruk! Protein! Kirruk! Muscles! Kirruk! Crush humans!]
Not this jacked menace.
And those eyes—like they'd pierce steel?
Hell, actually.
Screee—!
A beam from its eyes wrecked the drone. Feed cut.
This freak a Lizard Commander Lord...?
"Th-the alliance formation and tower height make approach tough, and all Rhode Island monsters are revived now."
Aide stammered through the report.
Gail waved him out.
Creek—slam!
"Huuuuh."
Rage surged madly.
Stomach churning, head spinning.
Click!
He jammed a cigarette in compulsively.
The conclusion to this insane mess?
One thing.
Some asshole used tactical items against America.
China or Japan?
Hidden tacticals?
Allies wouldn't backstab.
Two possibilities.
Korea or Germany.
Last round's 1st and 3rd.
Gut screamed Korea.
They got some world-announcement-free item, for sure.
Click!
"Huuu, huuuu."
Blood pressure skyrocketing.
In Korea's mere two days in America, everything went to shit.
Click! Third cig.
Most burning issue.
Korea cut all contact with America.
What's their game? Stance on today? Next scheme?
Click! Click!
"Fuck this!"
Gail hurled the unlit lighter with all his might.
After heavy breathing and a dry face-rub, he steeled himself.
Game ain't over.
Glance.
Until Next Event: 6 hours 52 seconds
The game-changer showdown.
Final winner decided there.
Until Next Event: 58 minutes 3 seconds
Shoooo—
Long flight over.
The private jet touched down in Korea.
Cha Minhyuk and officials rushed straight to HQ, no rest.
Well, Cha Minhyuk separately.
Destination: NIS, not Agency.
Down to the Room of Truth.
「I'll extract every bit of info. That US kidnapping stunt? Best to compile intel, plan perfectly, then expose internationally.」
Solid logic.
Half-ass it, and America laughs it off.
They'd prepped defenses.
Raccoon nation.
Tough part: US agents' iron wills.
「No worries. Mine's tougher.」
Ooh. Clap clap clap!
—Octopus uncle's badass!
—Dopamine cult's heresy inquisitor!
Carmina zipped back via shadows across Seoul.
"Master, I'm home! Yulia! Go-stop time! Hati! Sis is here!"
Machine-gun words as.
"Krrrng?"
She snatched Hati from my lap.
Shhhrrk! Magic-set blankets and cards in the corner.
Thud!
Dove onto bed, hugging Hati, rolling violently.
"Kyahaha! Home sweeeet home—!"
"Krrng! Krrng! Krrrrng!"
You know the vibe.
Hati joined the frenzy.
Carmina, exemplary modernite shrimp-posing on phone awhile.
Spring!
Boiled water in kitchen, slurped spicy ramen with young radish kimchi.
"Nothing beats home cooking!"
Your home's Nosferatu.
If I'd known, would've shipped taste-matching food during US trip.
Then Yulia, on her laptop, spoke up.
"Your Holiness, monitoring nonstop—no related articles at all? Not even a line on that warehouse fire outside DC."
"America's got no reason to spotlight it. They'll bury it traceless."
US Agency Director Gail.
Head probably splitting now.
No clue what Korea knows or plans next.
Then we all hit the tower.
Time for today's dopamine fix.
[Orc Tribe Tasks]
📍 Destroy Orc Tribe Totems:0/50
📍 Kill Orc Chieftains:0/15
📍 Kill Orc Great King:0/1
📍 Time Limit:10 days
Complex mix of stealth, annihilation, negotiation, etc.
But.
"Just questions!"
"By Lord's side!"
"Krrrng! Nom! Haaak!"
—Shkk! W-wait! Shkk! T-talk!
BOOM!Bang!Crash!Krrrh!BOOM!Crack!
Allies (3x speed) rampage.
Meteor and Black Hole skills.
Cleared easy.
Tower 44F World Ranking Updated.
1st. Hitchhiker. 15:25.
2,200,000 points (MAX). Korea
Ding!
Until Next Surge: 23 days 1 min 55 sec
Display: Absolute Points Gained
Still neck-and-neck.
Any alliance could snag #1, no surprise.
But.
Until Next Event: 30 seconds
A fork incoming.
Until Next Event: 15 seconds
Planet-wide voting event.
Not 100% public, but core clear.
Where do non-USCJK/Korea alliance votes go?
Until Next Event: 10 seconds
Korea.
Built a friendly global image.
Exaggerate a tad—near-sanctuary status.
But can't fully secure other alliances' votes on image alone.
Nations are people-powered.
People move for gain.
Why politicians stake lives on promises?
Vote me, get this benefit.
Until Next Event: 5 seconds
My cards: Mass holy water and acceleration orbs.
And.
"National image and benefits."
Snag both again.
I'm a greedy bastard, after all.
Until Next Event: 0 seconds
Ding! Ding! Ding!