Chapter 220
Chapter 220
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 220
Chapter Title: Paradox Prophecy
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"...Isn't this ridiculous?"
Looking at the world message window, Jang Wan grumbled.
What was listed as the generator-producing nation wasn't the Blacklin Empire, but Polybia.
In other words, the Empire had fallen behind technologically to other countries.
"No, we invested so much to make the Empire the land of supreme intellect. So why didn't it appear in the Empire?"
Seong-un denied it.
"That can happen."
"Plus, we even have the demonic spirit that handles electricity?"
"The more you want something, the closer it is, the harder it is to obtain sometimes."
Paradoxical, but Seong-un could accept it.
The Empire's chosen ones all wielded electricity, so it was hard for them to think of using it in other ways.
To the people of the Empire, electricity was the power of the gods, and even the smartest and wisest saw it less as a form of energy and more as a weapon.
Moreover, there were plenty of alternative forces that could replace it.
Even after internal combustion engines with superior output appeared, their adoption was slow.
Because substitutes were already flooding the market.
'It's a bit late, but now that it's out, it doesn't matter.'
Now that the spread of electricity had begun, there would be all sorts of reactions to its distribution rights and speed.
'For now, it'll just be seen as a way to transport some kind of energy...'
But the world was full of geniuses besides Sima.
'Electric communication, telephones, computers... The world will truly enter the modern era.'
Seong-un said,
"Anyway, the land has nothing to do with us, but the inventor Sima believes in our faith. Plus, the investor belongs to the Empire."
Jang Wan lightly tapped the desk.
"But at this rate, it'll be taken away. It's right in the heart of enemy territory?"
There wasn't much information circulating among players, but it was accurately known that the Ronante-Oroban alliance had allied with the Union Kingdom.
Of course, the Empire was already at war with the Ronante-Oroban alliance, but the fact that the two enemy nations had formed even a temporary alliance was cause for vigilance.
The easing of tensions between the alliance and the Union Kingdom meant they could move defensive forces, making the Empire's war even harder.
Moreover, the apostles of the Ronante-Oroban alliance, who had been holding back until now, were starting to show themselves one by one.
"...The alliance's army is smaller than the Union Kingdom's, but still not negligible."
"The naval blockade has already begun. The Empire's economy can run on domestic trade between the two continents, but if this continues..."
"We'll lose electricity."
For now, the patent holder Sima believed in the Pantheon, but it wouldn't be strange if it was taken away in some way.
Polybia itself was neutral, but sharing a border with Polybia was the Ronante-Oroban alliance, and the Union Kingdom was even closer to Polybia's seas.
Seong-un said,
"But invading Polybia by force won't be easy."
"Why?"
"Because the ones supporting Polybia aren't the Ronante-Oroban alliance, but the surrounding small nations."
Currently, on the First Continent, the Ronante-Oroban alliance held the most territory, but proportionally, it was just a bit over half.
"We can't deny that the alliance is the hegemon of the First Continent, but they don't fully control it."
"Come to think of it, there are other players there too."
"Don't expect anything from them."
"Micro players?"
"Exactly."
As Lost World progressed into the late game, there were people who kept playing without any special purpose.
In the late game, major players engaged in faction wars had territories too vast to bother moving armies for small lands, while small-territory players could concentrate defenses effectively.
Thus, major players ignored those micro players and proceeded.
Those players rarely influenced the final battles, either getting eliminated or allying with the biggest faction to scrape some victory points.
That style was called micro play.
"We haven't talked, but both are typical micro players. They've united the surrounding small nations through diplomacy, but they're not provoking Supeonari or Vladimir."
"Possibility of allying with them?"
"Who knows. They're further west, so if the Empire lands on the First Continent, they'll feel it first. Their rail infrastructure is poor, so hard to get alliance help. If we devour them and advance, we'll gain more experience."
Jang Wan pondered and said,
"Then, conversely, if they propose an alliance to us?"
"We'd have to think about it. If they're already with the Ronante-Oroban alliance, it'd be a backstab for us. Plus, no reason for us to request alliance first. Keeping the central continent as a buffer isn't bad. No need to worry about alliance land forces on top of their fleets."
The Ronante-Oroban alliance was the merger of Ronante, which dominated the central inland of the First Continent, and Oroban, which controlled the southeast coast. The two nations had different army and navy systems.
First, there was the symbolic figure called the "Heavenly King," a descendant of the Ronante and Oroban royal families.
But after the merger, the Heavenly King family couldn't prevent the inflation of local nobles from both sides and now held only symbolic meaning.
Afterward, Ronante's local nobles handled the alliance's army composition, Oroban's the navy, with nobles from each holding key officer positions in army and navy, so even united, they still harbored mutual antagonism.
'That's because Supeonari and Vladimir don't trust each other that much.'
Thanks to that, the alliance's land army was tied up with other small nations for now, so the Empire only needed to deal with their navy.
"So better to leave the First Continent's small nations as an uneasy alliance than a shaky one?"
"Sometimes an uncomfortable relationship is the best. With small nations there, the land army has excuses not to move, and the navy won't commit big if it means land army losses."
It wasn't mere speculation.
The Empire invested the most resources in reconnaissance worldwide.
There was reliable intel.
But Jang Wan seemed dissatisfied with Seong-un's words.
"Fine for war now. But what about electricity?"
If they lost the patent and couldn't acquire the tech until commercialization, they'd lag in many areas.
The Empire had magical communication, but it wasn't omnipotent.
Even in the Empire, mages were limited, and even fewer useful in actual war or operations.
Moreover, since it was a war the technologically superior Empire couldn't end, letting the opponent gain even temporary advantage was a gamble.
'At some point, we can acquire the tech and develop it fast in the Empire. But before that, the Union Kingdom could regain momentum.'
Any other player, maybe not, but Hegemonia could.
Hegemonia used the Possession skill to participate directly in wars when needed.
Often as a commander, but sometimes possessing an assassin's body to kill enemy leaders, an engineer's to blow bridges, or an artilleryman's to land the first shot.
Then the god dwelling in that mortal showed miraculous moves that turned battles.
Reviving armies from total annihilation, turning near-defeats into victories.
'More detailed now? Much stronger than in normal game play.'
Seong-un had to admit Hegemonia's ability to find such victories. Hegemonia was truly a war god.
Of course, Seong-un had the skill to turn Hegemonia's flashy appearances into small wins on a broader game board, countering miraculous victories with near-perfect management.
Seong-un said,
"There's a way."
"A way?"
"Theoretically exists, but I've never used it in practice."
"Explain."
Seong-un explained to Jang Wan.
After hearing it all, Jang Wan asked incredulously,
"...You're serious? That possible?"
"Never tried in ranked matches, but it's possible. No reason it wouldn't work here."
"...Hmm."
"If you're not keen, I won't force you."
Jang Wan sighed and said,
"Someone has to do it anyway, right? I'll do it."
"On second thought, I don't want to torment my cousin."
Jang Wan grumbled,
"You suggested me because you trust me more than others, right?"
"Yeah."
What Seong-un proposed was hard to accept just because they were allies.
For stronger ties, he needed real-world connections to trust someone.
Fortunately, though not the closest, there was family here.
"Then I'll do it."
Jang Wan thumped his chest with his thumb.
"The sacrifice."
With the screen between them, Hegemonia and Seong-un stared at each other.
Hegemonia said,
"What scheme now?"
"You know the generator was invented?"
"That?"
Hegemonia crossed his arms smugly.
"You won't touch it."
"Strictly speaking, the generator's creator Sima is my believer, so I've already laid hands on it. One of our apostles contributed to its creation too."
"...Uh, ...hmm. Right! Even better. I'll make good use of the generator you made."
"How? Marching armies into Polybia means war with the First Continent's small nations."
"Ah, true. No plans to move armies. But..."
Hegemonia, about to speak, fell silent.
"No, why should I tell you?"
"Don't then."
"Don't piss me off, get to the point."
Seong-un said,
"We've fought a long time. Normally, we'd bet big and clash spectacularly, but with so much at stake in this game, it's been dragging."
"Yeah. So?"
"When fights were even, such gambles were hard. But now, I'd like to solidify my advantage and win the war, while you're looking to turn the tables, right?"
Hegemonia pondered.
He roughly guessed what Seong-un meant.
'As is, I'll get the generator first, wield electricity, and recover losses from the revolution. Nebula wants to stop that somehow.'
Seong-un said,
"If you're so confident, how about a showdown after all this time."
"Showdown?"
Seong-un said,
"Paradox Prophecy."