Pursuit Hawk
Why there?
'I want to become a great knight like my father.' Would that be enough?
'Yes, I believe you can do it.'
That was the end of the conversation.
He's a grateful man.
He trusted me to do what I had to without prying too much.
Of course, half of that answer was a lie and half the truth.
'The Dungeon Masters will launch their all-out assault in four years. We'll lose so much by then.'
The Dungeon Masters, who had turned the Asgard Continent into their playground, were still active all across the land.
The wars between empires were one thing, but the battles to drive out the Dungeon Masters raged on endlessly.
'There are so many I need to save. And I need their tokens too.'
The day the Dungeon Masters' total offensive began was called the Day of Despair by the continent's people.
Before that fateful day, folks always lamented with regret.
If only the 7th-class archmage Gorman had lived, or the Mercenary King Mullr had survived, or the great general Barbel hadn't fallen.
The people of Asgard wouldn't have been pushed back so far.
Arthur was heading to the battlefield to save them.
First, he needed to make his name known across the continent.
And through them, he could trigger quests with the Plunderer's Ring.
When he found talented or powerful individuals, the ring would react on its own.
He'd claim both the quests and the masters' tokens.
Every master carried one of these tokens, which they could give to only a single person.
And it was said they would offer unconditional aid—just once—to whoever received it.
Moreover, collecting twelve masters' tokens earned one the title of Lord Master.
No empire or kingdom could oppress a Lord Master; all masters had to obey their commands.
Within the bounds of basic morality, at least.
In his previous life, Arthur had managed only three.
They granted real-world command authority—and in the Monarch Game, units modeled after them.
That was Arthur's goal in this reality.
And Orwen.
She had returned to Pras.
Arthur had only told her who the spy was.
'Unbelievable.'
She was shocked.
'It's not time yet.'
Arthur told her to wait.
Until he came to Pras.
Shining on the battlefield would get him there soon enough.
This was still well before the massacre incited by the mage Brak.
Arthur turned away.
'Time to prepare for war.'
Arthur pondered the Monarch Game.
He'd left it to Gremori for a few days.
But war was now at his doorstep.
The 101st lord, Daph.
Arthur knew him all too well.
'What a piece of trash.'
Arthur's lips twisted into a sneer.
As he walked back to his residence, his Lord Nurturing Device scattered golden light.
A vast glow invisible to others enveloped him, connecting him to the Monarch Game.
Monarch Game.
Arthur first met Daph two years after starting the Monarch Game.
His exact thought upon meeting him was this:
'This brainless idiot is one of the 101 lords? What the hell are the criteria for selecting them?'
Daph was hot-tempered, selfish, and utterly clueless about strategy or tactics—an arrogant lord through and through.
Charge, charge, charge.
A brainless fool who only knew how to advance.
Not all 101 lords were equals.
Only twenty among them ranked from A to S.
The rest were mostly A-grade, with some fresh B-to-A promotions.
Daph was the sort where it was a blessing there was no system demoting him from A to B.
In truth, he was at the absolute bottom of the 101.
Yet in his previous life, he'd held onto that rank.
The others didn't know why, but Arthur did.
His territory's total level had now upgraded to 7.
Building from 0 to 1 took time for most, but upgrades after that didn't drag on for months.
1 to 2 usually took two days; 2 to 3, three days.
It just added a few days each time.
"Fighting a war with just thirty troops would be too much."
Arthur stood before the barracks.
Gremori was at his side.
They'd already reclaimed everything from Arhan Territory.
They'd scored generous rewards, enough to boost the territory total level by 2.
"Designate upgrade the barracks."
Arthur had taken Daph's designate upgrade from their battle with Kasas.
It allowed +5 levels total.
The barracks could now wield the power of level 12, not 7.
Barracks level 12 equated to what a C-rank lord could command.
But with territory total level 7, events posed no issue.
"Impressive ability. Level 12 barracks..."
Gremori seemed unfazed now, accepting it calmly.
Arthur glanced at her.
"Gremori."
"Yes, my lord."
"If there were a hawk flying at 500 km/h through the skies, could you believe it?"
"Pardon?"
Gremori looked puzzled by the cryptic remark.
500 km/h?
"Not quite 500, but I've heard the Thousand-Li Hawk flies at up to 350 km/h."
The Thousand-Li Hawk.
A decent hawk, classified as a unique unit.
No—considering normal hawks hit 200 km/h, it was a good one.
'30,000 gold is plenty to deal with that moron.'
At barracks level 10, lords unlocked unit fusion.
'Perfect timing before a real territory war.'
Arthur opened the Cash Shop first.
It sold Fusion Scrolls.
Normally, they came from the system at territory level 10 or via quests.
But Arthur could buy them here for 5,000 cash.
He purchased one without hesitation.
A Fusion Scroll parchment appeared in his hand.
Gremori watched curiously, wondering what he'd do next.
'I trust my lord.'
He never attempted what he couldn't handle.
Arthur opened the Gold Shop.
He bought a scout hawk.
◈ Scout hawk for reconnaissance (12-hour duration, 1,000 gold)
Piii!
The scout hawk circled above Arthur's head.
Scout hawks cost 1,000 gold for 12 hours of use.
A bit pricey for a consumable.
Arthur bought another.
Piii.
Piii.
Two.
Then three, four, five.
He kept buying scout hawks nonstop.
'M-my lord...?'
Gremori trusted him more than anyone, but this bizarre scene baffled her.
Opening the territory status, she watched gold drain away at alarming speed.
From 80,000 to 50,000 in a flash.
Dozens of scout hawks now filled the skies above Arthur.
One-use.
They'd vanish after 12 hours.
Not even wartime mode.
To outsiders, this screamed wasteful spending.
But Arthur clicked the Gold Shop relentlessly, buying more scout hawks.
Purchase confirmation?
He hammered 'Yes' so often his finger went numb.
But he didn't stop.
Soon, fifty scout hawks swarmed the air.
Piii!
Piii!
Piii!
Dozens of scout hawks wheeled overhead.
"Ha... haha..."
Gremori laughed hollowly.
The gold from Arhan and dungeons vanished in an instant.
And then.
Arthur didn't hesitate.
He tore the Fusion Scroll.
"Fuse the fifty scout hawks."
"...?!"
Gremori's eyes flew wide.
The torn scroll floated slowly upward.
The fifty scout hawks gathered around it.
They clustered together, erupting in brilliant light.
Fusion of 50 Scout Hawks begins.
Woooong!
Fusions carried failure risk.
Failure meant pure gold down the drain.
Beyond the five free scrolls at territory level 10, getting more via trades or quests was tough.
A massive loss overall.
But Arthur's lips curled in a smirk.
'If that fails...!'
Gremori had thought she'd never be shocked by Arthur again.
Yet here he went, pulling off another wild stunt.
Staring at the hawks above him, she prayed fervently.
Fusion, succeed!
A holographic window popped before Arthur's eyes.
And where the fifty hawks had gathered appeared a hawk of entirely different form.
Successfully fused a Secret Unit.
You have become the owner of the Secret Unit.
Pursuit Hawk.
Arthur smiled contentedly.
Just as lords had secret classes, units had secret variants.
Secret units, unique units, and more.
Secret units came from unlocking hidden systems.
Think about it.
50,000 gold wasn't pocket change for lords.
Plus a Fusion Scroll.
Buy fifty hawks on a whim?
Only one madman in the world did.
Or rather, among those rich enough, the tycoon Genesis discovered this Pursuit Hawk.
Genesis's trait? Triple Gold.
It tripled his gold gains.
Plunder 10,000 gold in a territory war? He got 30,000.
He was wealthier than average lords. In reality, he was a merchant magnate, with innate trading savvy fueling his lavish spends.
Piii!
The Pursuit Hawk was 1.5 times larger than a normal one, with a longer, sharper beak.
Its phoenix-red feathers stood out.
"Ahhh...!"
Gremori, who'd been on edge, sighed in relief and collapsed.
Arthur extended his right arm.
The Pursuit Hawk perched on it.
'Did I tease her too much?'
He'd started enjoying her shocked reactions lately.
'What a weird hobby I've picked up.'
Arthur watched her rise, thinking that.
Secret unit.
In truth, this fusion recipe never failed.