by Park Saenal
“Yes…? No, I will share it later when I receive the quest reward…”
“Hey, this friend. The mission reward is the salary from the kingdom. The shares from hunting monsters is calculated separately.”
“King Grid always said this. Take care of your own rice bowl.”
“…”
On this day. The Overgeared Kingdom became an issue on the community sites of each country. It had been a long time since the founding ceremony.
-It’s easy to ride the soldiers’ bus if you are a citizen of Overgeared. I want to move to the Overgeared Kingdom.
-But the soldiers are expensive…
-Still, the result is beneficial…
-Isn’t this a plane instead of a bus?
Thanks to Coke’s determination and the publicity effect of Overgeared Kingdom Today, the population of players in the Overgeared Kingdom started increasing rapidly. It was over 50,000.
***
“There are only 1,000 soldiers stationed in Reinhardt. They alone can’t support every player’s quest. Please, please adjust the difficulty of the quests from now on. Yes? Your Majesty.”
“Hum hum, the result is good. The players surpass 50,000 and the number of people is close to 800,000.”
“You should be more careful. Your position is very different from your old one. Don’t forget that your actions will directly affect the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.”
“…I’m sorry. Now that the population has increased, won’t the taxes also increase?”
“There still isn’t a profit. As you know, the cost of investment in developing a kingdom is very large. If it wasn’t for the support of Duke Steim’s funds, the kingdom would be in a deficit right now.”
Currently, the Overgeared Kingdom had 16 territories belonging to it.
Six of the northern territories were well ruled by Duke Steim, but the remaining ten territories ate up money like a hippopotamus. It was the result of erasing the remnants of the Eternal Kingdom and growing sectors such as domestic affairs, culture, and facilities from the ground up.
“Aren’t you too passionate about erasing the traces of Eternal? Due to this, the damage is too big.”
“It’s because it has an adverse effect on the thoughts of the people. What if the remnants of Eternal remain in our territory? There will be all types of problems if the people from Eternal are reminded of the Eternal Kingdom.”
“The stakes are thin.”
“If you’re talking about the period where Japan occupied South Korea… Sorry.”
“It’s a joke. I didn’t mean to speak ill of you. I believe and respect your choice. But I can’t get over Reidan. Are you still investing a large amount of money into the alchemy facilities?”
Lauel believed that alchemy’s growth was directly linked to wealth, but Grid didn’t agree. What? Alchemy could add options to items?
‘Nonsense. They only give garbage options.’
Grid was angry as he recalled old memories, while Lauel grinned.
“As I already mentioned, the combination of alchemy and blacksmithing will one day produce the greatest synergy. A large amount of funds have already been invested. It’s too big to stop now.”
“Well, if you say so… Okay, I understand.”
“Don’t think so badly of it. Isn’t the alchemy facility playing a very big role right now? The potions produced by the alchemy facility has dramatically increased the survival rate of our soldiers.”
“…The value of the potions are also expensive.”
“It’s better than losing the soldiers.”
“That’s right, that’s right.”
Grid knew that Lauel’s words were 100% correct. Since various advanced medicines started being supplied to the Overgeared soldiers, their survival rate was close to 100%. Considering the time, effort, and money spent to nurture the soldiers, he shouldn’t worry about the cost of the potions.
‘I can’t calm down when it comes to alchemy. I have to be careful.’
Lauel asked Grid a question.
“Are you not planning to attend the talent selection competition?”
A large-scale talent selection competition hosted by the Overgeared Kingdom and screened by the Overgeared members would be held in Reinhardt next week. The goal was to select individuals talented in specific fields such as the military, intelligence, production, and support.
Grid replied without thinking.
“Won’t you be able to pick out talents well, even if I’m not present? Your eyes are much better than mine. I don’t see the point of wasting hours sitting there. It’s better to use that time to make items.”
“But isn’t it good to enjoy the privileges of a king every now and then? Based on recent reports, you can afford to spare some time.”
He did it properly. Most of the hard work was left to Lauel, but Grid didn’t neglect his responsibilities. Recently, Grid had been training blacksmiths in large quantities, which was a very hard task. He observed the people daily with the Great Lord’s Sword, screened those with talent for blacksmithing, and trained them.
“I can’t afford to relax until there are at least 100 advanced blacksmiths. The Overgeared Kingdom will be a kingdom of blacksmiths.”
Grid clung to advanced blacksmiths for a reason. The advanced blacksmiths were able do the work of a blacksmith and help Grid when making items. The time it took Grid to produce items was greatly shortened when he received the assistance of an advanced blacksmith compared to when he was working on items alone.
“Well, it will be fine. I will trust you as always.”
“Thank you.”
Grid and Lauel. There were no doubts when they looked at each other. The two of them trusted each other. It was a relationship between king and subordinate, master and guild member, and fellow friends.
***
“Hey, what is this? The power of the empire exceeds imagination.”
Taturans Plains. A large scale war was taking place here at the border of the Saharan Empire and the Belto Kingdom. God of War Ares directed the Belto Kingdom’s troops, while 1st Knight Mercedes directed the imperial army. A bloody river was formed as the two sides exchanged blows. After three days and nights of war, the Ares army was on the defensive.
“Lim Cheolho, that bastard!”
Ares, who was calm even when dealing with Kraugel, couldn’t help making a twisted expression. The power of the empire exceeded his imagination. It felt like Lim Cheolho had embedded a nail called ‘a player can’t overcome the empire’ into him.
“The 1st~3rd knights are on a different dimension. Kraugel and Grid… Even Agnus can’t win against them.”
Scott felt sick. The person who was highly evaluated by Kraugel was overwhelmed by the 3rd~10th knights. Despite Ares’ passive that increased all stats by 10% and all skills by 20% when there were over 1,000 enemies, they didn’t dare approach the 1st knight.
“A transcendent named NPC. Her level is too high.”
For the first time in his life, Ares felt despair. Despite accumulating strength in the Belto Kingdom for the past three years, he was frustrated because he couldn’t cross the borders of the empire.
“The pillars favored by the emperor didn’t even come out… Sheesh, everyone retreat. We’ll stop the enemy’s invasion at Grand Prix Fortress.”
Ares lost a great deal of troops and chose to retreat. Mercedes sent him a telepathic message as his army started to move.
-Don’t forget that the only owner of this continent is the empire.
‘Shit, I thought they can’t send whispers to players. I have goosebumps.’
Winning the war against the empire meant becoming the master of the continent. Therefore, Ares only aimed at the empire from the beginning. But on this day. He realized that his goal couldn’t be met.
‘The war with the empire will be in the long term. It would be better to completely swallow up the Belto Kingdom and rise to the throne first.’
Ares judged and led his army i
n retreat. He sacrificed a unit to block the empire’s pursuit. Looking at the distant Ares army, the empire became aware of the small kingdom they had been ignoring. It was the precursor to the massive ‘West Continent Unification’ episode in Satisfy.
***
“Reidorn?”
“He didn’t open his mouth today.”
“Really stubborn. How could he endure the torture for over a month?”
Reinhardt. Grid shook his head on his daily visit to the dungeon. The bloodied Reidorn bound with shackles smiled coldly at Grid.
“Only ruin is waiting for you.”
“Shut up, you mannerless dog.”
“Ggweg.”
Grid showed no mercy to his enemies! He stabbed Reidorn’s thigh with a spear. But Grid didn’t feel any excitement.
‘This strong determination to protect his secrets to his death… He’s as stubborn as the Yatan Church.’
The calm before the storm made Grid uncomfortable. The number of storms that Grid squashed was countless.
Chapter 610
Chapter 610
In Year 20XX, the number of player accounts created in Satisfy was over two billion. It was a huge number that was almost one-fifth of the world’s population. There was a reason why the world’s economy revolved around Satisfy.
Of course, the vast majority of those two billion users were light users, and there were many dormant accounts. But even considering that, it was hard for people to understand why a mere 50,000 users migrated to the Overgeared Kingdom.
『 It’s the first kingdom created by a player and has triggered many hot topics. But why are there so few players moving there? I think it should be normal for the population to grow rapidly. 』
『 There are two major reasons. First, immigration isn’t easy. People are the driving force of a nation and the other kingdoms on the continent don’t want their population to shrink. A person who wants to migrate is required to pay a large amount of taxes or complete a specific quest. In particular, the kingdoms are more sensitive because it’s the Overgeared Kingdom. There’s only one kingdom among the 15 kingdoms that are favorable to Overgeared. 』
『 The empire? Is the empire also preventing players from moving to Overgeared? 』
『 The empire doesn’t have to do that. The empire is the best nation on the continent. Who could be willing to leave it for Overgeared? It’s much better to be in the empire than the Overgeared Kingdom. 』
『 There’s a second reason for why the number of immigrants is small. The Overgeared Kingdom is new and hasn’t been proven yet. It has shown tremendous resources, including the support of the Rebecca Church and the Siren Kingdom, but it’s a small kingdom without any distinct advantages. There’s no reason to move to the Overgeared Kingdom, even though the players are suffering losses in their respective kingdoms. .』
***
“It’s slower than I thought.”
Grid’s face wasn’t good as he looked at the current status of the population. The flow of players due to the quests had slowed. It was because the soldiers able to support a quest were limited and the difficulty of the quests returned to normal.
“I need a way to make people relocate to Overgeared despite the immediate risks… What is it?”
Grid thought about it alone. He didn’t think there would be a point going to Lauel, who was already worrying over this problem.
‘Let’s think of a method that only I can come up with.’
Grid’s worries lasted for several days. Grid sought ways to increase the number of people moving to the kingdom while doing his job, spending time with his family and even brushing Noe’s fur.
The result?
‘What if I made items for quest rewards?’
Grid approached the problem from the perspective of a blacksmith, not a legendary blacksmith.
‘Of course, the items can’t have too high a value. I also can’t drop the rarity of my items. In addition, I need to prevent players from leaving after getting the items… Should it be set items?’
For example, the mass production Grid set.
‘Whenever a player clears two or three quests, they’re rewarded with an item from the mass produced Grid set.’
The mass produced Grid set were divided into six parts: weapons, secondary weapons, armor, gauntlets, helmets, and boots. When two or more set items were worn, a set effect would be applied. If players were given Grid’s set as a reward, it was obvious that the players’ desire to collect would be stimulated.
‘Players won’t be able to leave the Overgeared Kingdom until they have all six set items…’
From the Overgeared Kingdom’s point of view, the players would complete all types of quests and develop the power of the kingdom in the process.
‘By the time they collect all of the Grid set, the Overgeared Kingdom will be well developed.’
It was clear that the developed Overgeared Kingdom would appeal to the players. There was no reason for players to leave once they immigrated to Overgeared.
‘Good.’
Grid had the idea and ran straight to Lauel. Grid was the king and Lauel the subordinate. Grid should summon Lauel to him, but he didn’t want to interrupt Lauel when he was so busy.
***
“It’s a great idea.”
Generate linked quests with the mass produced Grid set as rewards, utilizing the players’ abilities to speed up the development of the kingdom. If a player had a long-term goal, their passion and concentration would be great. The Overgeared Kingdom would be able to make rapid progress.
“I think that the developed Overgeared Kingdom will bring in more and more people…”
Lauel nodded after hearing Grid’s plan. But then he gave a bittersweet smile.
“Do you have enough resources and manpower to produce thousands and tens of thousands of mass production Grid sets?”
“…”
Grid noticed his mistake. It wasn’t just technique, but resources and manpower needed to mass produce items.
“Uh… Ummm…”
Grid was embarrassed because it hadn’t occurred to him before. It was impossible for him to produce large quantities of items quickly and he didn’t have enough capital to consume large quantities of black iron, which was the main ingredient of the mass produced Grid set.
“Hah, I was too short-sighted.”
Grid lamented his ignorance and sighed, while Lauel smiled benignly.
“You don’t need to blame yourself. Don’t be ashamed for working hard to try and develop the nation. Huhut.”
“Thank you for the words. But it’s no help.”
“No, it has opened up some possibilities. If your plan is realized, I am sure it will be a great help to the development of the Overgeared Kingdom. My role is to make your plan come true.”
“How?”
“Is it possible to have the other blacksmiths make the mass produced Grid set?”
“Ah.”
Why didn’t he think of this? Until now, Grid had made Khan focus on nurturing blacksmiths. Currently, the 1,000 blacksmiths in Reidan were all passed onto Khan and Grid only occasionally improved their skills. Grid hadn’t thought about passing on specific production methods to the blacksmiths. He hadn’t felt the necessity.
Grid thought for a moment before replying.
“The advanced blacksmiths can learn how to make the mass produced Grid set.”
“How many advanced blacksmiths are there in Reidan?”
“It was 10 people before the founding ceremony. Then there should be 15 around now?”
Reidan’s blacksmiths were talented. It was because Grid had individually selected the talented people using the Great Lord’s Sword. During the past few years, the blacksmiths had trained under Khan and their growth rate was enormous. Lauel’s complexion brightened.
“Let’s shake the treasury. We will have the 13 advanced blacksmiths present in Reinhardt as well as Khan and the advanced blacksmiths of Reidan start production of th
e Grid set. Ah, of course.”
There was a premise behind it.
“This is after we have enough capital to mass produce the set.”
“How long will that take?”
“It should be 3~4 years? If you instruct Marquis Peak Sword to hasten the development of the black iron mine, that period might be shortened by half a year.”
“Four years…”
Four years was enough time to go to the army twice. When would that day come? Lauel laughed at the frustrated Grid.
“Don’t be nervous about the kingdom. We will slowly and steadily develop. Think positively. In four years, the number of advanced blacksmiths will increase and production of the Grid set will be even easier.”
“Umm… Yes, it isn’t as easy as giving rice to a dog. I shouldn’t be so nervous.”
Grid was convinced when a soldier entered the office and reported.
“Minor has returned.”
“Minor?”
Grid had forgotten about Minor since he had been gone for the past year.
“I thought he ran away again.”
What had he been doing in the past year? Minor was an excellent miner, but he had a unique talent for discovering new minerals. Grid once had great expectations for him. Minor had the unprecedented position of ‘minerals detector’ and it was believed he would be a great help to Grid. But was it that easy to find a new mineral on this wide continent? Minor had never found one and Grid had completely forgotten about him.
“That brat, surely he didn’t come holding a woman’s hand?”
Grid frowned while Lauel questioned.
“A woman?”
“He’s at the age to be interested in the opposite sex. Who knows how many women he was involved with instead of working during the past year?”
“Haha, no way.”
Was there such a crazy NPC in the world? Lauel thought that Grid’s worries had no basis. But what was this?
“The genius born in the stream that is called Bairan. The genius Minor, who will become the second mythological commoner, has returned. Duke Grid… No, should I call you king now? Heh, are you glad to see me after a long time?”
“….”
Minor was really holding a woman’s hand. She was an impressive woman in flashy attire and dark makeup. She was someone who could typically be seen in the back alley pubs.