Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Reunion (3)
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Kim Hyunwoo had decided the moment he saw the King of Beasts arrive in his territory that he had to keep her there, no matter what.
Even if it meant pouring almost all the resources he'd gained from this Labyrinth Break into it.
Sure, it would consume a ton of resources upfront, but once he recruited the King of Beasts, the possibilities would multiply.
But right now, staring at the swarm of alert windows floating before his eyes, Kim Hyunwoo realized the truth.
Recruiting her wouldn't just make rebuilding the territory difficult—it would make it impossible.
It would be like drinking from a poisoned chalice.
'Recruiting just one person brings way too many enemies.'
Of course, the Merrillda he'd seen was powerful.
So powerful that he'd unwittingly gaped in awe.
And according to the alert window, she wasn't even her original 5-star rating anymore. It was as if the game had updated with some new system, bumping her up to 5.5 stars.
But even so, the enemies tied to her were far too numerous to recruit her.
'There are even kingdoms and clans that didn't exist back in my day, and hostile territories... I can't even count them.'
Kim Hyunwoo inwardly clicked his tongue as he gazed at her utterly destructive relationship chart, wondering just what the hell she'd been up to since leaving the territory.
...Honestly, if that were all, he might have seriously considered recruiting Merrillda.
No, he might have dropped to his knees right then and there.
She'd approached him, after all, so her favorability seemed to be holding at some level for whatever reason. But he had no clue what she was actually thinking.
However, there was one more reason beyond her enemies that stopped him.
"..."
In Arteil's core mechanics, territory growth hinged primarily on immigrants.
Immigrants paid taxes, produced goods, and built basic infrastructure.
And in this game, they didn't multiply randomly as territory levels rose. Instead, slash-and-burn farmers or nomadic groups from outside settled in, gradually increasing the population.
So accepting Merrillda and tanking the already -25% influx rate to -1275% was absolute suicide for Kim Hyunwoo, who was fighting to rebuild his territory.
-25% was recoverable with his recent rewards, but -1275% was not.
'If the territory were like it used to be, I could've taken her...'
Kim Hyunwoo recalled the territory's glory days.
Territory level beyond imagination compared to now, Territory Development easily over 5000.
If it were at its peak, recruiting Merrillda might've only dipped influx slightly, no big deal. But he knew that was the past.
'Guess I have to pass.'
Looking regretfully at Merrillda, his eyes drifted to the earring dangling from her ear.
'...Once Territory Development recovers, maybe there's a chance later.'
With that thought, he pulled up the in-game window Loria had created and began fiddling with it.
Merrillda stared at Kim Hyunwoo with trembling eyes.
He looked back at her with a complicated expression, then swiped his fingers through the air.
Pop-
Suddenly, a small box materialized in his right hand and he placed it gently on Merrillda's frozen palm.
She blankly looked down to check.
It was a gift, wrapped in a tiny box.
A small gift that felt vaguely familiar, like something she'd seen before.
Merrillda lifted her gaze again.
Still, the lord's conflicted face.
And then.
"That earring's pretty worn out."
The lord spoke.
But Merrillda couldn't respond properly.
She couldn't comprehend why he was suddenly giving her a gift.
No—
Deep down, she understood.
Even if she didn't want to, her mind automatically grasped the meaning.
'Is this... the end?'
The lord.
Wasn't giving her this gift to apologize or praise her, to start over.
Of course not.
She hadn't conveyed anything to the lord yet.
Hadn't begged forgiveness.
Hadn't atoned for her wrongs.
Hadn't shown her devotion.
So to Merrillda, this gift meant one thing.
This was—
"See you next time, if fate brings us together again."
—closure.
No intention to start anew with her.
This chapter ends here—
"...Ah."
—the period at the end of their bond.
A low gasp escaped Merrillda's lips.
Her eyes stung.
She looked at the lord.
More precisely, his eyes.
Regret mixed with firm finality.
Merrillda felt tears about to spill, but she bowed her head.
She wanted to beg forgiveness right there.
To plead for another chance.
To say she'd been wrong about everything.
Couldn't he give her just one shot to go back to how it was?
But fear stopped her.
She knew what words would come from those eyes already looking at her that way. Sadly, she knew.
And if she troubled him again and he vanished for good?
'No.'
Imagining the lord she'd barely reunited with disappearing again filled her with terror.
So she said nothing.
Nod, nod.
She could only bow her head and nod.
A few hours after watching Merrillda leave, her face slightly frowning, nodding with a gloomy expression.
'Maybe her favorability was holding a bit?'
Kim Hyunwoo tilted his head recalling her somewhat downcast look, then shook it off.
In Arteil's mechanics, if favorability remained, she wouldn't have left the territory.
'Or was the gift too cheap?'
He thought back to what he'd given her.
The first earring gift for Merrillda, worth a measly 300 won in cash terms.
'Gave it before entering the territory to boost favorability for a future recruit, but...'
Remembering how she'd loved it at first but later demanded tens-of-thousands-won items, he smacked his lips.
'Yeah, after dozens of pricey items, a 300-won one feels off now.'
He figured it was a poor choice, but shook his head helplessly.
Right now, he needed to focus on life-or-death territory rebuilding, not a hero he couldn't recruit.
"Loria, show me the UI."
With those words, the UI popped up before him.
Identical to the one from ten years ago when he played.
Kim Hyunwoo checked the resources at the top.
[Red Stone: 9700] [Blue Stone: 1,500,000] [Gold Coins: 0]
Unlike a few hours ago when both were zero, now they were stocked—not overflowing, but enough. He smiled.
The rewards from clearing a Territory Level 30 Labyrinth Break would surely power this shattered territory's recovery.
'Especially the Red Stones.'
Blue Stones, as in-game currency, outvalued gold coins.
Red Stones, as cash currency, had infinite value and uses.
He'd spent 300 on Merrillda's gift, but 9700 was plenty to reverse the negative Territory Development here.
'Weirdly, even inside the game, I can still buy cash items.'
Plus, after ten years, Kim Hyunwoo was one of the 500 diehards who'd kept Arteil alive till the end—a ranker, no less.
His head was full of knowledge to restore this territory.
'Time to start.'
Kim Hyunwoo began manipulating the UI.
Merrillda wandered out of Lartania in a daze, then suddenly collapsed to her knees.
Drip- Drip-
Tears, absent from her Red Eyes for ages, streamed down her cheeks.
Her heart, which she'd thought cold and still, pounded wildly again.
Yet it felt hollowed out, aching unbearably.
It hurt.
So much.
The lord's—her master's—words of closure.
His gaze.
His gesture.
The more she thought, the more it tore at her heart.
Clutching her chest, Merrillda gripped tightly without realizing.
"!"
But she quickly released her hand in panic.
Then she stared at the gift in her left hand from the lord.
Thankfully, the box was intact.
...Regrettably, it was still in her hand.
Proof the closure gift wasn't a dream, firmly in her grasp.
Merrillda clutched it and sobbed uncontrollably.
It felt like their last link.
Yet as closure, she hated and cherished the gift.
She'd grip it while crying, then flinch and loosen, checking it repeatedly in her mess.
Fortunately, countless tears soaked the box, but it held its shape.
How much time passed?
"..."
Merrillda rose.
"No... I can't."
Tears still poured like she was unleashing years' worth, but she stood.
She—the wolf—the Red Eyes—
"..."
Merrillda had no intention of giving up.
The lord had returned.
She wanted forgiveness, somehow.
Whatever it took—even selling her soul to a devil—she craved absolution.
Favor.
Devotion.
But she also knew.
If she kept whining endlessly, he'd vanish like wind, never to return.
That was unbearable.
To her, it was a death sentence.
So.
"There's... hope."
Merrillda murmured.
Her tear-filled eyes fixed on the gift.
The lord's closure gift.
"There... has to be."
He'd given her a gift.
If he truly despised her, he'd have shoved her away giftless.
Showered her with abuse.
Like she—the pathetic her of ten years ago—deserved.
But he gave a gift.
Even if it meant closure, it was now in her hand.
Meaning, in his heart, there was still—a tiny space.
A sliver of lingering attachment. Merrillda decided.
No, she convinced herself.
"..."
Then her task was clear.
Help the lord.
Help her master.
Whatever she could, to pry open that tiny gap in his heart.
She wouldn't make it obvious.
Just quietly do what she could.
If she kept aiding him, and he noticed—rewarding her with a speck of favor instead of gifts.
For the wolf—
For Merrillda—that would suffice.
So.
"..."
With red eyes, Merrillda gazed one way.
Where the knight—who'd openly mocked her master's death—had fled.