by Park Saenal
The 1st place on the artillerymen rankings, ‘Lost Justice’—she didn’t take pride in her number one ranking. Out of two billion users, there were only 10,000 artillerymen. In fact, she was only level 180, barely reaching the average level of most players. It was a level she managed to gain thanks to joining the imperial army and receiving the daily cannon training quest. Her Firearms Mastery skill level had also been raised to the beginner master stage. Yes, beginner master…
It was garbage compared to NPC artillerymen. In the imperial army where there were countless NPC artillerymen, Lost Justice’s position was very low. The proof was that she didn’t have a chance to enter the war one month after the war with the Overgeared Kingdom started.
“Hah…” She had to suck her fingers even after a big war started. Lost Justice regarded war as an opportunity, but the reality of it was hopeless. She had worried about it hundreds and thousands of times already, and she started thinking again, ‘Should I change classes?’
It was now almost a habit. The reason she hadn’t changed her class so far was that she had pride. She was too proud to turn away from the last few years of frustration and hard work. The reason why she initially chose an artilleryman was simple. She thought it would be safe shooting a cannon from a distance.
[A friend request from ‘Lauel’ has arrived.]
“…?”
Staring at a distant mountain, sighing, pulling her hair, and so on, Lost Justice was showing intense signs of depression when she suddenly doubted her eyes. She received a friend request. Someone was asking to be her friend? It was a big event she had never experienced ever since becoming an artilleryman.
“U-Uhh?” Lost Justice belatedly accepted the friend request. She didn’t care about the person asking to be her friend. She was just glad, joyful and amazed.
[The player ‘Lauel’ has become a friend.]
-Hello? Are you Lost Justice? I am Lauel of the Overgeared Kingdom and Overgeared Guild.
-Ah, yes. H-Hello. Huhu.
She couldn’t believe the day when she would use the whisper system had come! The experience of talking to a strange whose face she didn’t know was really exciting. It felt very different from a phone call.
-…Huh? Lost Justice laughing excitedly belatedly made a blank expression. -O-Overgeared Guild?
Beings in a completely alien world—the members of the Overgeared Guild were world class stars who owned the Overgeared Kingdom and were currently in a war with the empire. Lost Justice recognized them as celebrities who could only be seen on TV. Now an Overgeared member, Grid’s right arm, had sent her a whisper?
“Is this a scam?”
It was an unbelievable situation. Lost Justice brought up her friends list. The information of her only friend, Lauel, was revealed.
[Lauel]
[Level: 335
Guild: Overgeared Guild
Kingdom: Overgeared Kingdom]
“Level 3-335!”
The current average level of the high rankers was around 370. Compared to them, Lauel’s level was rather low. In order to serve the country, he had no time to hunt because he was struggling with managing internal affairs. Yet from Lost Justice’s point of view, Lauel’s level was huge. The level felt like it was at another dimension.
-Y-Y-You are real!
-Haha, did you think I was an impostor? Well, I am a high-profile figures, so I’m a good target to impersonate. Kukuk.
-…Ah, yes. What is your business?
Lost Justice didn’t like Lauel originally. A man who lived on his high horse was tiring in many ways. Lauel was confused as Lost Justice’s fervent reaction quickly cooled down, so he cut to the chase. -We are recruiting artillerymen for the Overgeared Guild.
-Yes, I see. Huh? -You are recruiting artillerymen for the Overgeared Guild? Why?
-It is necessary.
-B-But the Overgeared Guild is the best guild in the world, and artillerymen are garbage.
-Garbage… That isn’t the case. Artillerymen are a must for the Overgeared Guild.
-This isn’t a scam?
-No.
-…
Indeed, it couldn’t be a scam. It would be a one-sided loss for a bigshot like Lauel to waste time tricking her. Lauel’s voice continued, -There is a village on the outskirts of the empire where the Ul Clan used to live. It is a completely ruined place now. If you send a whisper there, I’ll send a person to pick you up.
***
The development of the Overgeared Cannon was definitely a great accomplishment, but Lauel had a headache. Grid had overlooked one aspect, which was the scarcity of artillerymen. In particular, the Overgeared Kingdom’s army relied more on the mass-production Grid set than artillery and they neglected the training of artillerymen. The Overgeared Kingdom had only 100 artillerymen, and even those small numbers weren’t trained properly. They had to consume shells to practice shooting cannons, and this all consumed money.
‘It is ridiculously small.’
100 artillerymen could only operate 33 Overgeared Cannons. It might be different if only Grid could make the Overgeared Cannons, but the craftsmen were able to produce the Overgeared Cannons. Considering the volume of black iron, hundreds of Overgeared Cannon could be produced in the future. More artillerymen were needed.
Then Lauel was reminded of the players. Lauel changed the rankings to the class lists, went to the ‘artillerymen’ category and identified the first 100 ranked artillerymen players. Then he became scared.
‘The 1st ranked player is level 180.’
The 100th ranked play was only level 113. It felt like he was seeing the rankings list five years ago.
‘Did time stop for the artillerymen?’
It was an absurd idea. Lauel shook his head and sent a friends request to all 100 players, starting with the 1st ranked Lost Justice and ending with the 100th ranked player. Then he had an interesting experience. 100 people accepted Lauel’s friend request. Moreover, the response to his whisper was instantaneous. They seemed like hungry people.
“This…”
Originally, Lauel was planning to present good conditions to the artillerymen. He thought he should appease them with the best terms since he was in the unfavorable position. Then he changed his mind after learning about the realities of artillerymen. Lauel just gave them the offer to join the Overgeared Guild, and the 100 artillerymen readily agreed.
‘The time has come to create Overgeared Four.’
It was the guild name. The Overgeared Artillerymen group.
‘The key is who to make the guild master…’
Who would be the person to command the 100 artillerymen rankers? Lauel considered the role the artillerymen would play in the future. He wondered about the leader they needed.
‘The main stage of the artillerymen is the battlefield, not the hunting ground. In order to control them, I need a leader who can read a battlefield well. Artillerymen have low mobility, their defense is weak and they shouldn’t attract aggro…’
They needed to have quick judgment and composure to set the shooting point. It was good to have the ability to read wind direction. Who could be the leader who met all these conditions? After a while, Lauel came to a conclusion.
“There is no one.”
The Overgeared members had strong and individual personalities. They were geniuses with strong self-esteem and selfishness. In the first guild, there was no one with the ability to lead the artillerymen.
“It can’t be helped.”
He would have to lead the artillerymen to Toban, who had been the former chief of staff for the Tzedakah Guild. Toban had experience with reading the field in the war and skills to protect his allies. He might not be perfect, but he would lead the artillerymen well until their place was settled.
‘I need to pay more attention to the guild members in the future.’
Overgeared One, Overgeared Workforce… No, Overgeared Two… and finally, there was the Overgeared Shadows. Currently, there were three guilds and
913 guild members. Lauel remembered all of their abilities and characteristics, but he didn’t know the details of their background or personality.
The excuse was that he lacked time. He fully understood the early members but didn’t have time to interact with the new recruits. The main problem was that Grid was the same. Lauel had the intelligence to memorize all the names, faces, and basic features of the members, but Grid was different. Grid didn’t even know the names and faces of the guild members. Lauel had a hunch that this was the most important time.
‘If we are being swept away by the outside, we need to firm up the inside.’
Lauel rushed to the smithy. Grid and the craftsmen were trying to produce something bigger than their height.
“You said you are going to invite artillerymen? You have suffered a lot.”
How far ahead was his development? Lauel was impressed that Grid had noticed his approach despite the uproar.
“Kukuk, as expected of the man who received my recognition…” Lauel laughed while covering his face with one hand, and Grid ignored him. He had learned from experience that it was better not to react when Lauel suddenly spoke bullshit. It was as expected.
“Hum hum. I think we need to establish Overgeared Four,” Lauel coughed with embarrassment and brought out the main point.
“Is it due to the artillerymen that will be recruited this time?”
“Yes.”
“Well, then. Let’s create it.”
“Yes. Additionally, let’s have an event to celebrate the formation of the fourth group.”
“…An event?”
Weren’t they in a war right now?
Lauel laughed at Grid’s absurd reaction. “I will call the Overgeared members to Reidan and set off fireworks.”
“Is it to show our composure to the empire?”
“Yes, it’s a common bravado. The effect will be clear. The morale of the imperial soldiers will fall when they see us partying in a war.”
“Yes. Then do it.”
The event would end with a toast.
Lauel’s next words were like a bolt out of the blue for Grid who was trying to think simply.
Chapter 1010
“Your Majesty, please give a word of encouragement to each of the guild members.”
“Uh, yes. What?”
It was ridiculous. The number of Overgeared members exceeded 900. This time, new artillerymen had joined, and the number went beyond 1,000 people. Did Grid have to give encouragement to all of them? How many hours of hard labor did he have to give in exchange?
“Isn’t this a waste of time?” Grid responded in a confused manner.
Yet Lauel added, “Please promise to make an item that suits their needs.”
“What? I don’t even know all the guild members, but now I have to promise to make items by looking at them?”
“That’s right. Your Majesty doesn’t know all the guild members.”
“…I-It was originally like that.” Grid noticed what Lauel was pointing out and temporarily closed his mouth. However, Grid had an excuse. “Aren’t you the one who is supposed to manage the guild in the first place? That’s why I agreed with your opinion to increase the guild members.”
If Grid had to take care of the guild members, then he wouldn’t have increased the number of guild members. Now Lauel was blaming his indifference.
“I want to focus on increasing my level and making items. Now I have to care about the guild?”
Grid was busy. It was troublesome. There was no time. He wasn’t trying to make excuses.
“I’m different from you and don’t have your ability. I can’t do several things at once. I can only focus on one thing…” The irritated Grid suddenly closed his mouth. Work…? Remembering his colleagues and sharing greetings with them was considered work? Grid got goosebumps. He realized how much he had neglected the new Overgeared members.
‘I think of basic manners as work…’
On this subject, he hoped they would work hard for the Overgeared Guild and Overgeared Kingdom. He shouted that they were his colleagues. Yet, from Grid’s point of view, he used a pretext to give them cheap items. Grid’s face turned red. He felt ashamed of himself and sorry to the guild members.
Lauel’s eyes trembled, and he waved his hand. “You don’t have to take it seriously. Isn’t it a hard time right now? I just thought it was an opportunity to give the guild members a sense of bonding and belonging. I didn’t mean to condemn you…”
“No. I deserve to be condemned.”
In the past few years, there were countless people who knocked on the door of the Overgeared Guild. Some had approached the Overgeared Guild to satisfy their desires while others had terrible intentions. Lauel had been the one who spent time and money to examine and select the current Overgeared members. Grid had accepted the result of Lauel’s blood, sweat, tears, and runny nose as a natural right. He hadn’t respected Lauel’s efforts to win over their colleagues.
“A person can’t change easily.”
He was still selfish. Grid smiled wanly as he realized this.
“Y-Your Majesty.”
Grid couldn’t raise his head, and Lauel didn’t know what to do. Lauel was troubled that he was placing pressure on the busiest person. Grid was quite for a while before raising his head again. “Okay. Let’s exchange greetings with everyone.”
His eyes stopped shaking, and his gaze became clear. Until the foundation of the artillerymen group, he would remember all the faces of his dear colleagues who believed in him and followed him. Feeling determined, Grid was prepared to stay up all night for days. The roles of a king, a warrior, a blacksmith, a tailor, and most of all, a guild master…
It seemed he didn’t have enough body parts for them, but he had to perform them. Grid believed in his tenacity and enthusiasm.
***
At night, there were the direct descendant vampire and the assassins. During the day, there were the giant worms and top rankers of the Overgeared Guild. The imperial army was attacked by enemies in the desert. The pace of the march was very slow, and they couldn’t rest their minds, so they were very tired. The horses couldn’t easily adapt to the terrain, and the temperature of the desert was the worst. The cavalry lost their mobility and destructive power.
“The morale of the soldiers isn’t great. Last night, 359 people tried to desert.”
“The enemy’s condition won’t be much different from ours. Whenever the enemy raided, didn’t we respond well and kill many of them?”
“Yes. We might suffer the same damage, but we have the superiority of our troops. The psychological pressure on the Overgeared Kingdom is greater. There are 359 deserters in our army…? There must be 1,000 deserters in the Overgeared Kingdom.”
“It is an optimistic interpretation. They have strong walls and abundant food while we have thin barracks and not enough water to drink.”
The imperial army’s original goal was to cross the desert in two days. No matter how slow the pace of the march was, Reidan wasn’t far away, so they thought it was possible. However, reality was different. Due to the emergence of successive enemies, it took more than four days. No, it was likely they would die alone in the middle of the desert if they stuck to the march.
The lack of drinking water was a problem. Every oasis in the desert was contaminated with poison. The imperial army had to rely on the supply unit for drinking water for hundreds of thousands of troops, but how could a convoy cross the desert easily? Would the Overgeared Kingdom passively let the convoy reach them?
“…” An awkward silence flowed in the barracks of the imperial army’s leaders. There was a limit to their efforts to interpret the situation positively.
There was a long silence before a young nobleman spoke on behalf of everyone, “Why don’t we retreat first?”
“…” No one disputed it. Neither was there a rebuke.
The young noble’s courage increased, and he kept talking, “The hundreds of thousands of tro
ops here are relatively inexperienced. They aren’t used to the terrain of the desert and can’t demonstrate their full abilities. The elite armies who have participated in all types of wars over the past decades will be different. The armies of the Seven Dukes would cross the desert like ducks meeting water.”
“Are you suggesting to hold the army outside the desert and wait for the arrival of the elite troops?”
“Yes.”
“…”
Dozens of imperial forces were gathered at Reidan’s border. There had been 280,000, but now they were reduced to 230,000 in their mission to conquer the Overgeared Kingdom. They had planned to attract the enemy’s attention and tie up the Overgeared Kingdom’s feet while the air force infiltrated the Overgeared Kingdom and seized their base. This was the role that had been given to them.
Then they received news that Sky King Rigal and the air force had already been wiped out. Nevertheless, the reason for their advance to Reidan was to build up achievements. Consequently, they lost the troops due to greed. Now was the time to be cautious.
“Umm…” Commander Marquis Fulbas was deep in thought. He felt sick as he saw the eyes of the nobles who wanted to retreat. When had the empire become so weak? The empire, who had ruled over the continent’s losers for hundreds of years without a suitable adversary, was now reduced to a predator who didn’t know how to hunt.
“We don’t need cowards in the empire.”
“…!”
It happened suddenly. The smell of alcohol filled their nose, and blood spread through the tent. The three heads that rolled to the ground belonged to the nobles who earlier insisted on retreating.
“S-Sir Diworth!” Marquis Fulbas rose to his feet. The nobles and knights who followed his actions were astonished. With an oil-covered head, loose-fitting clothing, and a wrinkled face that was completely red, the identity of the noble drinking from a bottle of wine was Drunk Duke Diworth. It was one of the empire’s Seven Dukes.
“W-We greet My Lord!” The nobles and knights bowed in unison. None of them condemned Diworth’s killings. Who would dare speak harsh words to an existence above them? Even Marquis Fulbas couldn’t speak.
Diworth laughed grimly as he checked the marquis’ distorted expression. “Are you angry that I killed those trash?”