Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Message (2)
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With Loria's words, a notification window slid into view before Kim Hyunwoo's eyes.
"What’s this?"
In response to Kim Hyunwoo’s puzzled voice, Loria explained.
Following her words, Kim Hyunwoo quietly swiped through the notification window’s pages.
Every time he flicked his finger, countless hero names popped up.
Naturally, among them were heroes he’d pulled from gacha at the start but abandoned right away, never raising them, as well as those he’d used frequently.
And then.
"..."
There, too, were the five names that Kim Hyunwoo had protected through massive spending—the pinnacle of Lartania’s forces.
"Just one?"
"Man, that’s stingy as hell."
Loria didn’t respond.
What should I do?
Kim Hyunwoo rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
In his current situation, the only heroes worth calling were, obviously, one from the ‘Round Table’—the ones he’d raised with massive spending and affection ten years ago.
Even bringing back just one would cleanly resolve the Labyrinth Break crisis he was facing right now.
But even knowing that, he couldn’t bring himself to speak easily. This wasn’t a guaranteed summon ticket—it was just a ‘message.’
In other words, there was no guarantee the hero would come even after sending it.
The message system in the game itself was probabilistic, set up so heroes might reappear after a while... But this isn’t a game anymore, so no probabilities—but that makes it even more crucial.
Kim Hyunwoo thought coldly.
Among the heroes whose affinity was surely in the dumps by now, which one had the highest chance of responding to a message?
And after some time passed.
"Can I send a message to the King of Beasts?"
Kim Hyunwoo made his decision.
At Loria’s follow-up words, Kim Hyunwoo blinked in surprise before asking in confusion.
"Hold on, it’s a message, right? Don’t I need to write something?"
"...This is making my head spin."
He nearly cursed under his breath, then smacked his forehead again with a sigh.
If I can’t send a proper message, this could be trouble.
Kim Hyunwoo had raised Lartania’s top-tier Round Table 5-star characters from 1-star.
That meant he knew their backstories to some extent—which was why he’d chosen the King of Beasts.
Based on what he knew, a few specific words could move her.
"No real way around it?"
"Wait, why does sending a message take a whole day?"
He muttered, This is fucked, squeezed his eyes shut, and let out a deep breath.
Anyway, in this mess, it’s the best option. Plus, the King of Beasts has a good shot at coming just from the message—
Shaking off his regrets, he spoke up.
"Loria, first, show me what I can do in the current situation."
Even if the King of Beasts came and solved everything, Kim Hyunwoo had no intention of betting it all on that slim hope. He immediately decided to check what he could do right now.
Putting everything on her and having her not show up would end his life right there.
However.
"This... isn’t this a bit too much?"
After rummaging through the game windows Loria had set up, just like in the old Arteil days, for a solid few hours, Kim Hyunwoo faced the harsh reality.
"How? There’s literally nothing I can do?"
Exactly as he said—right now, Kim Hyunwoo could do absolutely nothing.
No population to muster troops, no resources to build barricades, not even gold to hand out to workers.
"This fucking—"
Honestly, up to this point, he wouldn’t have been that pissed.
But the reason a curse was flying out of his mouth right now was.
"If the territory’s trashed, shouldn’t the territory level drop to 1 too? What the hell am I supposed to do with a level 30 territory!?"
Kim Hyunwoo’s territory, Lartania, wasn’t level 1—it was level 30.
Of course, level 30 wasn’t strong by the standards of Arteil back when Kim Hyunwoo played ten years ago.
Back then, the Lartania he’d built was over level 60.
Higher territory levels brought perks: unlocking advanced buildings, supporting more residents, claiming more land, even housing more heroes.
Territory level mattered a lot.
But that assumed a functioning territory. When everything was gone, like now, a high level became a curse.
In Arteil, monster invasion numbers scaled with territory level—and the Labyrinth Break gripping his life did too.
In short: a barely functioning city with Territory Development at -20 was about to face a level 30 monster horde.
To sum it up simply—one line, one word: Fucked.
No word captured the situation so perfectly and cleanly, so he scowled deeply.
"Loria."
"Pull up the map."
Kim Hyunwoo didn’t give up.
Somehow, request reinforcements from nearby territories...!
He knew it was the worst of the worst, but he valued his life too much to just pray to the heavens with a shattered mind.
I’ll try everything I can...!
He stared at the map Loria displayed.
It was the same as ten years ago: a grid of massive dots on a perfect square grid.
Brown for land, green for forests, blue for sea—the familiar dot map. He checked the nearby territories marked in green.
"Loria, what are those orange dots outside?"
The question slipped out from simple curiosity.
Orange dots in a distant spot he’d noticed in-game but never cared about.
He’d fixated on them because it was his first time seeing them.
At Loria’s words, Kim Hyunwoo asked back.
"Boss zones?"
Loria’s words paused, as if peering at something, then continued.
Beastkin were inherently a combative race.
They loved strife, enjoyed battle, and felt thrill rather than fear when facing stronger foes—living weapons, truly.
Thus, beastkin settlements or packs were never quiet, thanks to their habit of turning fights into games.
Beastkin fought at every opportunity, challenging even those above them without hesitation.
This trait fully applied to the all-beastkin pack known as ‘Red Eyes,’ which was always rowdy.
So, the newcomer beastkin ‘Gerta,’ who’d only recently joined Red Eyes, couldn’t comprehend the current situation.
"..."
It was quiet.
At this hour, brawls or drinking bouts wouldn’t be odd in Red Eyes territory—yet it had been silent for four days straight.
Four days of silence in Red Eyes.
Sharp-eyed and skilled in combat for a beastkin, treated as fairly bright even among the Four Heavenly Kings, Gerta couldn’t hold back his curiosity amid the endless hush.
"...Why has everyone been acting like scared dogs—no fighting, mouths shut—since four days ago?"
His question came out rough, beastkin-style, from four days of pent-up battle lust.
Kirral, a wolfkin and one of Red Eyes’ Four Heavenly Kings, who’d also been silent like the rest, answered simply.
"Because we don’t wanna die."
"Pardon? What’s that supposed to mean?"
Gerta’s face twisted in confusion.
"That’s all, Gerta. It’s the date the boss set—so stay silent. Break it, and you die."
"...The boss?"
"Yeah."
But whether Gerta made that face or not, Kirral ended with that and clamped his mouth shut, signaling silence.
Gerta, staring at Kirral, shifted his gaze to the mountain peak.
The boss who never came down—unlike the rowdy, booze-loving beastkin he’d barely glimpsed.
Having never really spoken with her, Gerta’s respect as underling was a bit thin.
"...Understood."
Still, he accepted Kirral’s words and quietly shut his mouth.
Sure, he’d only seen the boss a handful of times.
But he obeyed without argument because, in those few glimpses, he’d witnessed her power.
A power that went beyond awe to sheer terror, etched into his eyes.
When her body launched once, dozens of soldiers exploded.
When her arm swung once, massive monsters sliced like tofu.
When her hand flicked once, insolent beastkin who’d gathered numbers to challenge her leadership turned to pulp.
He’d seen it all with his own eyes.
Gerta fell silent, gazing at the peak where the boss all beastkin revered waited.
At the center of that peak.
She lay buried in her long tail, her slightly swollen, hollow eyes forcibly shut.
Plop—
"...?"
A single letter fell from the sky into her grasp.