Flames of Conquest and Continental Dominion
Woooong…… The unreset Pharhum's Tomb lay utterly empty.
"Rerto Karen. Don't be too bummed out. Even if you'd taken it outright, you had no choice—you needed that quest item."
I pulled out the Death Flame, its crimson glow slowly returning from within, and gazed at it with a low chuckle.
"But the real treasure here is something else entirely."
Whoosh—!! Black Eye materialized before me.
"Heh."
I snorted at his words.
"Flame Soldier Summon."
Whoosh—!!! No sooner had I given the command than five flame soldiers appeared before me. As before, they now took distinctly human forms—unlike during the Parahum fight.
Seems it varies by user. Not bad, though. Humanoid forms are tactically more versatile than monstrous ones.
I eyed the five flame soldiers kneeling before me. Gray text floated above their heads: Flame Soldier.
Hmm. It said the number of soldiers increases with soul absorption levels. I wonder if absorbing high-quality souls upgrades their rank too?
I mulled over the soul-gathering stone.
"So this is why you came in alone."
That was when it happened. I turned casually toward the familiar voice I'd been expecting.
"Even with your special agent buffs, open dungeons like this—not hidden or instanced—take time to reset. I couldn't imagine you'd just stand around twiddling your thumbs."
The one who'd tracked down the dungeon was, naturally, Isabel Silver. She was the only one who'd known I'd secretly pocketed the Death Flame before we left.
"Flame soldiers, huh…… For a solo player like me, you've cost me big time in all sorts of ways."
"Eh, you had the Death Flame first, sure—but without knowing about the soul-gathering stone, it was useless anyway."
"Hmph……."
"Besides, flame soldiers are handy, but their nature leaves traces after a fight. Doesn't that go against the Hidden Eater style of stealthy quest clears?"
She shot me a look.
"If you want soul soldiers that badly, shadow puppets would suit you better than flame soldiers. They leave no traces."
I lightly shook the enigmatic note I'd gotten from Rerto Karen and held it out to her.
"This is a quest pointing to the location of relics left by the Wraith Lord, history's greatest necromancer. It's not enough to find the place on its own…… but if you clear it, you'll get shadow puppets stronger than any assassins out there."
"Why give this to me?"
Silver stared quizzically at the note placed before her.
"Just handing it to someone more suited for it. Shadow puppets seem like they'd fit you better than me."
I leaned in and added, "Besides, flames suit our side more, don't they?"
I pointed playfully at Black Eye.
Whoosh……!! Black Eye spat a massive burst of blue flame her way, glaring.
"No greed for the item? Or do you have some other scheme?"
"Not the first one—spot on for the second."
"Hm……."
"Players grind to get stronger, climb higher. But that greed stems from what they lack, what they can't have."
Whoosh—!! The flame soldiers encircled me.
"But hogging everything isn't always best. I'm not settling for top dog in some colosseum like last time. This round, I'm expanding the stage."
"Expanding the stage……?"
"To the continent itself. Hidden Eater, you said you hate what the eight great clans are doing, right? How about we topple them?"
"……What?"
Her eyes wavered.
"Colosseum number one, quest master extraordinaire. We shine individually, but the ones driving the game's flow are the eight clans and mega-guilds."
"You planning to start a clan?"
"More than that."
Isabel Silver slowly turned to face me.
"Unify the continent. Players and NPCs alike will follow me."
"……You're insane."
She spat the curse, but that slip betrayed her emotions more than words could.
"You expect me to buy that pie-in-the-sky nonsense? Did Nam-gung Yun sweet-talk you with the same crap?"
"Sweet-talk…… Not really into guys. If anything, it'd be you, not him."
At my words, Isabel Silver glared like she wanted to devour me.
Black Eye clicked his tongue at me.
"The continent survey isn't even done, but you've already found the Veil. You've uncovered multiple hidden class quests others can't even dream of…… And the Veil's leader is an elf, a vanished race—you've even got affinity with them. Your creds are proven. How could anyone not be tempted?"
I smirked and continued.
"Then let me ask one thing. What job were you gonna push on Nam-gung Yun?"
"More curious about him than your own brother? Obsession or resentment, I can't tell."
"Just answer the question."
She glared back before replying. "Spirit Seeker for starters. I gave him the key to the Illusion Altar. If his luck holds, he'll tackle it with my friends."
"Nam-gung Yun as a mystic beast tamer? Absurd."
"Note the 'for starters.'"
"……What?"
"Spirit Seeker is the only class that can find mystic beasts, but only Zodiac inheritors from the Illusion Altar can actually control them. No real merit."
"That means……."
"It's a test. If he truly wants to follow me and picks Spirit Seeker, I'll evolve him to Mystic Shaper at second job change."
"……!!"
She gulped dryly without realizing it.
"N-No way. How do you even know about one of the three great Pathfinders? Even Asera, the Veil's leader, only knows the name—no clues."
"Funny. So you know about the Pathfinders too. Don't tell me you've been to Geshutalt? What kind of player are you?"
I was more shocked she'd even know the job existed than her reaction.
Geshutalt is the fairy kingdom's knowledge repository, built by Fairy King Mirage. Fairies were the only race tied to the Pathfinders' past. It's shrouded in mist like the fairy kingdom itself—hard to find……
Even the Mirage mist powder I'd bought from the illusion merchant in the White Swamp—harvested from the fairy king's wings—could hide the entire swamp. A place built by that king himself? Finding it is less discovery, more being chosen.
"Stumbled into it during a Veil quest. Not my doing—Asera's. Elves are the only ones who can communicate with fairies."
She downplayed it, but knowing Geshutalt existed was impressive enough.
Veil and Geshutalt…… Curious how deep she's dug into the continent. Yeah, that job I have in mind is perfect for you, Isabel Silver.
I gave her a sly smile. Now I understood why the illusion merchant had her eye on her.
"Info on the legendary great adventurers, the Pathfinders, is basically nonexistent. But Mystic Shaper? Traces exist."
"……Where?"
"Can't spill that yet. Can't show all my cards. Didn't even tell Nam-gung Yun the class details—just gave him a shot to trust me blindly."
Silver bit her lip slightly at my answer.
"Pathfinders are explorer types anyway—Nam-gung Yun could get it too. Even post-job change, higher branches allow sub-changes. No loss for him."
I patted her shoulder lightly.
"Got a class in mind for you too…… But that'll wait till you decide to join me."
"……My job?"
She knows I'm a Veil successor, yet she's suggesting another? Second change to legendary tier—does she mean something beyond that?
Her mind reeled; she fell silent.
"……What's the plan going forward?"
"I'll poach the duchy’s dwarves via Obela's Red Cat Mercenaries. Norpa will bridge it—thanks to you."
"The clans under the ducal houses won't sit idle."
"Dwarves want to preserve their tech—not swear loyalty to the duchy. I'll make NPCs mine."
Using magitech started in the duchy as basic player setup. But I was flipping the script entirely.
"Think players are the most numerous in Dimension World? Nah—NPCs are."
……Never seen anyone play like this.
Isabel Silver was an oddball clearing overlooked quests, but she'd never broken core game setups.
Turning no-man's-lands into his domain like playing a grand strategy game.
One thought struck her. Countless clans had challenged the eight great clans' dominance—none succeeded. Their unspoken alliances were why.
To topple the eight, you need to match their combined scale.
And that was impossible.
Los Clan alone is 1,800—nearing 2,000 now. Eight clans, each with thousands…… That's nearly 10,000 total.
Building even one over a thousand took massive funding and national backing. Ten times that as an individual? No one dared start.
But…….
He's overturned what we all took for granted.
"Players outpower NPCs, sure. Eight clans are elite of elites. But Eltia Iron Kingdom alone has 300,000 troops."
Thump-thump- thump- Her heart raced unbidden.
She couldn't forget Nam-gung Yun's flushed face returning from Dimension World.
This is what hooked him.
She looked at me.
"Duchy, Deus Union, magic towers, Northern Plateau, warriors of the Land of Savages. Over a million strong. What could the eight clans—barely ten thousand—do against that?"
Gulp— The dry swallow shattered the silence.
"Hidden Eater. Join me."
I extended my hand.
Her gaze trembled faintly on it.
"How about we flip the board for real?"