Chapter 14
Chapter 14
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Epithet (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"How...?"
A question slipped from Lord Malis's lips.
"Just... how?"
Everything was a mystery.
From the moment he became entangled with Lartania, nothing had been free of doubt.
He couldn't fathom why one of Lartania's heroes was lurking in the Kalan Kingdom.
Nor could he understand why Red Eyes, who had once rampaged for a lord with nothing but ruins—unlike ten years ago—was doing so again.
But the greatest mystery of all was that Red Eyes stood right before him.
This was undeniably strange.
Lord Malis was dead.
He had only been revived by the power of an artifact, and his death was an indisputable fact.
'And yet—why?'
Red Eyes had been waiting for Lord Malis.
As if she already knew he would come back to life.
So, to the question Lord Malis had blurted out without thinking, Red Eyes replied,
"Instinct."
It was an answer so utterly devoid of substance that it left him feeling hollow.
And in the next instant—
Splash!
"Gaaahhh!"
Lord Malis realized both his legs had been severed by Red Eyes, and he let out a scream laced with terror.
Merrillda silently picked up a wine bottle she had set aside, placed her foot on Lord Malis's chest, and uncorked it.
"Why are you doing this?! Why the hell are you doing this to me?!"
A roar erupted from Lord Malis's mouth.
"..."
Merrillda gazed down at him impassively, bottle in hand.
"This is insane! All of it is insane!"
But rather than the fear he had felt moments ago, Lord Malis's face now twisted with outrage and injustice, and he began shouting as if vomiting out his grievances.
"Red Eyes! Why are you going this far for the lord from ten years ago?! Why is the Absolute Ruler of Darkness lurking in the Kalan Kingdom?!"
"You—you're not even part of Lartania anymore! Neither you nor the Absolute Ruler of Darkness!"
Lord Malis knew that even though Red Eyes had attacked his territory, she was no longer a hero affiliated with Lartania.
No, he had no choice but to know.
Those who became lords through the Territory Stone could discern heroes' contract statuses by their colors.
Red meant already contracted, unavailable.
Green meant available for contract.
Gray meant unaffiliated and unwilling to join.
And when Lord Malis had first encountered Red Eyes in Sertova Territory, he had instinctively used the Territory Stone's power—just in case—and seen it.
The color emanating from Red Eyes's body was gray.
"You're not even affiliated—there's no connection left to that lord anymore! So why the hell are you doing this?!"
As he spat out his resentment, blood trickled from the corners of Lord Malis's mouth. Only after unleashing it all did he regain his senses, his face contorting in fear once more.
In the heat of the moment, it had felt like the whole world was holding him back, fueling his outburst of injustice. But now that the anger had subsided, terror crept back in.
However.
Surprisingly, Red Eyes looked down at him with an expressionless face—unlike before.
"...?"
As confusion flickered through him—
"There's one thing everyone, including you, has gotten wrong."
She spoke calmly, without a trace of rage this time.
"My bond with my lord isn't some flimsy contract."
Red Eyes leaned down.
"Who do you think gave a hunted slave like me this kind of strength?"
"Who taught a clueless, pathetic wolfkin how to fight?"
"Who do you think gave me the epithets you're all shouting about—the ones you all remember?"
"This outfit, this hairstyle. Even this gut instinct that told me you'd come back to life—"
She stared at Lord Malis.
"All of it came from my lord."
"Every last bit, from my lord."
Red Eyes gazed at Lord Malis.
Lord Malis gazed back at Red Eyes.
And in that moment, he realized two things he had misunderstood.
"My lord is everything to me."
One was that the seemingly cold and emotionless Red Eyes carried the unmistakable glint of a madwoman.
The other—
"Everything... to me."
"Uh, ahh—"
—was that Red Eyes wasn't calm at all. She was angrier than ever.
And then.
"That's why you're dying."
You, who tried to take everything from me—
Crunch!
With that, Red Eyes drove the wine bottle through Lord Malis's throat, ending him. She then vanished from the spot without a word.
📊 Territory Development:23
👥 Residents
🏗️ Owned Buildings
⚔️ Owned Troops
Kim Hyunwoo stared blankly at the territory window, where the population had swelled to nearly 900 in just a few days, his expression a strange mix of emotions.
The reason was the endlessly growing number of residents.
Of course, more residents were a good thing.
In Arteil, population directly translated to labor power.
But that only held true once a basic territory structure was in place. Without manpower to manage a sudden influx, riots could erupt in the worst cases.
The game never let riots happen early on, though.
New games started with basic buildings already built or quick to construct.
But Lartania right now?
The palisade walls had only just gone up, and the half-destroyed Lord's Castle still hadn't been repaired.
And that was just the beginning.
The influx had forced extra labor into the residential district, delaying the blacksmith—vital for barracks and farming tools—and it still wasn't built.
No tavern to recruit heroes for internal management? Nope.
No trading post? Same story.
In short, Lartania was in a precarious state where residents kept pouring in despite Kim Hyunwoo having nothing he could do, teetering on the edge of revolt at any moment.
Yet his expression remained oddly nuanced because—
[Labor Efficiency: 75%]
The efficiency hadn't plummeted with the population boom; it was holding steady at a respectable level. And resident dissatisfaction was lower than expected.
The reason for that was—
"...Because of the title?"
[Yes. The tale from when you earned the 'King of Logs' title has spread to the new refugees.]
Kim Hyunwoo nodded at Loria's words.
"Oh, so the story about being a messenger of the gods or whatever lowered their dissatisfaction?"
[No.]
"Huh? Then what? Didn't you just say that?"
[The King of Logs anecdote is accurate, but it's not the god's messenger part that's spreading. It's the bit where you crushed the bandits' bodies with logs.]
"..."
[To be more precise, the story going around is that right after you said, 'Wanna taste my log, you bastards??' you swung your hand, logs shot out, and turned the bandits into ground meat.]
"I never said that!"
[Rumors get twisted. My lord.]
"...Twisted in the weirdest way."
[Still, thanks to it, dissatisfaction is markedly low.]
Realizing it wasn't reverence but fear keeping dissatisfaction down, Kim Hyunwoo made a subtle face before speaking.
"So, how long until the territory runs properly?"
[As you're probably anticipating, about 20 days—once the blacksmith, barracks, tavern, and trading post are fully built. Then you can start proper management.]
"Yeah?"
Satisfied, Kim Hyunwoo nodded and gazed toward the residential area beyond the Lord's Castle.
The population had clearly exploded.
No market yet, so refugees were setting up stalls on blankets here and there. That reminded him of where they'd come from.
'Sertova Territory—'
Sertova Territory.
The refugees' representative had explained it right after the event popped up: Red Eyes had wrecked their home, turning them into refugees who fled to Lartania.
At that moment, Kim Hyunwoo had realized one undeniable fact.
For some reason, Merrillda was helping him.
Of course, he had no clue why.
But dismissing it as coincidence didn't fit—every territory Merrillda hit had slight inconveniences crop up for him right before.
Deep down, he was sure his hunch was right.
So.
'Maybe I should meet her sometime. Say thanks, at least.'
As Kim Hyunwoo thought that, Loria spoke up.
[By the way—]
"Yeah?"
[Once the basics are complete, how do you plan to develop the territory? Population is covered for now, but as you know, standard growth won't be easy in this situation.]
"Hm."
Loria had a point.
He was idle now, unable to manage much, but he couldn't leisurely build like in his old Arteil days.
Small territories flew under the radar, but once resources piled up, others would attack to plunder.
Plus, the excessive Territory Development relative to level meant periodic monster spills from the labyrinth. And if his predictions held, level 30+ brought high-risk, high-reward events.
'Layer bosses and such will hit full force too.'
Standard play now? Instant failure.
Not just likely—inevitable.
But knowing that—
"It's fine. I've got a plan."
Kim Hyunwoo said confidently.
[May I ask what it is?]
To Loria's follow-up—
"I'm building a labyrinth city."
[A labyrinth... city?]
"Yeah."
Kim Hyunwoo grinned and muttered,
"A city that the continent's top talents won't be able to resist gathering in."
Lai Pellaosin, Duke of Laifel Territory—located east of the Kalan Kingdom and boasting one of the kingdom's top three prosperity levels—was a man of arrogant disposition by nature.
Yet most nobles and even the king overlooked his haughtiness.
Simply put, he was in a position to warrant it.
One of the kingdom's top three powerhouses, including the king himself. He commanded over eight legendary heroes with inherited epithets in his territory alone.
Not to mention thousands of troops at his constant call, and uniquely among kingdom territories, numerous combat guilds.
Thus, with mercenaries always available for a price, the arrogant Duke Lai Pellaosin—
"Just kill him, right? Master was inconvenienced."
"Hush, Ruin. Master said only to warn him."
"Can't I kill him if I want to?"
"You want to trouble Master?"
"Hah. I have no idea why we should spare this pig who ignored Master's one warning—'Never touch Lartania Territory'—and can't even pretend to have heard it."
"Shut it, Ruin. This could harm Master's 'lord' too."
"Why?"
"Gotta give her the chance to kill him herself."
"Ah."
"Right?"
"Then half-kill him?"
"Hmm—"
—was trembling in fear before the Five Swords of Kalan, who had come at the Absolute Ruler of Darkness's command.