Bad Things Are Learned Quickly.

“…Begin.”

There was no flashy light or cinematic effect for the item combination.

Four books suddenly blazed white, leaving dozens of pages per book. Those pages merged in midair, and in an instant the five books were condensed into a single volume.

“No.”

I can always reveal it later in the expedition report, so there’s no need to publish it now.

Actually, I planned to give these chronicles as a gift because Merus would like them and they’d be worth studying.

But Merus looked at the book in my hand with even brighter, eager eyes than when she’d seen the previous chronicles.

Like a puppy that found a bone, like Naruan seeing chocolate.

“Let me examine this first…”

“C-chief!”

Merus pleaded while swaying her body. A lizardman with such scholarly zeal—an involuntary laugh escaped me.

When I handed her the book, Merus bowed and hurried out of the room. She’d probably lock herself in and be engrossed in reading.

After Merus left, not a single member came to my room until evening.

I suddenly wondered whether this was normal.

These are representatives. Representatives you have to kill to survive.

They’re not lifelong martial artists training in combat or seekers pursuing the Way.

And yet they don’t covet these excellent weapons?

This is seriously abnormal. On the bright side, one might think they’re being considerate.

But there’s a limit to that; at this point, isn’t it likely there’s a serious problem somewhere?

As I mentioned before, the grade is, of all things, ‘Legend’—Legend.

I attached appraisal reports for the equipment obtained from high-ranking undead like the Archlich, in case they didn’t know the item’s details.

Still, no one came.

“Should I be pleased about this, or irritated?”

Knock-knock—

As if waiting for my complaint, a knock sounded. The person who entered when told to come in was not who I had been waiting for.

“Kim Han!”

It was steward Tess. And the five magic tower masters.

Tess immediately started talking about the theme park. Tess was unusually excited and said rumors were already spreading through the builders’ guild.

“Um… Kim Han.”

“Yes.”

“About Gu-baek-won.”

“Gu-baek-won? Who’s Gu-baek-won… Ah! That surrender!”

“That’s right. Could you hand over that Gu-baek-won?”

Tess suddenly wanted Gu-baek-won. I’d actually long since forgotten about him.

I was curious why Tess asked for someone I didn’t even know the current situation of.

“What is Gu-baek-won doing now?”

“He is…”

The life of Gu-baek-won. Even if he were a mainlander and not a representative, the situation was disastrous enough he would have killed himself by now.

Unless it was a scheduled event day, he survived on a single hard piece of bread; on event days he could eat a lot, but those events were utterly miserable.

“Cut the leash and eat food buried in filth within five minutes?”

“Yes. That’s the usual stuff.”

“And he succeeds at that?”

“Yes. He has never failed.”

“Crazy…”

“He’s something else. Haha.”

Tess had definitely become more brazen. As he gestured to let him be, imagining him rummaging in filth for food, I asked Tess out of curiosity.

“But what do you intend to do with such a guy?”

“Ah…! Lee Hyo-ju says there’s something in the theme park where they lock animals or rare creatures in cages for people to view. A zoo? A safari?”

“…There’s no way a theme park would have that!”

“Anyway, it’s a good idea. Haha. The Surrendered Representative Safari.”

“…Sigh. Do as you please.”

When Tess finished, the magic tower masters cautiously presented several rubbings.

“What is this?”

“They’re rubbings of historical records—scribbles that servants working in the imperial palace left on the walls of their rooms or out-of-the-way places.”

“And?”

“If you look here, there’s a record about the last emperor of Nisten Empire. It presents things in a manner different from the commonly known or recognized history.”

“Hmm?”

The last emperor usually refers to a tyrant.

Now that I think about it, the booklet I gave Merus earlier was titled something like ‘The Other Side of History.’

The notes were full of scattered comments like the emperor was so kind it was worrying, or how nice he was.

“So the tyrant was a bit different?”

“He was very different. In a good light, a benevolent emperor; in a bad light, a pushover emperor.”

“Is this important?”

Yes. That’s what I’m curious about. I was happy when the achievement popped up, but then I wondered whether history—tens of thousands of years ago—would really matter.

“You didn’t… know?”

“What?”

“The reason Exorsus is a peculiar land surrounded by the Monster Belt, and why Exorsus citizens were persecuted by the gods’ envoys yet didn’t—or rather couldn’t—leave, are all historical reasons.”

“What do you mean?”

“When Nisten Empire fell and the vassal states rose, they gathered all Nisten natives in one place. This was where monsters swarmed on the continent. It used to be called Monsterland, not the Monster Belt. Wizards built a barrier at its center—that’s how Exorsus began. In short, Exorsus locals carry the label of being from Nisten Empire, Nisten bloodlines.”

“Bloodlines, my foot! Even if you take it conservatively, twenty thousand years have passed; would bloodlines remain? They would’ve faded ages ago.”

“That’s true. But the Dark Empire and the Holy Realm Alliance don’t think that way. Even basic educational institutions teach it that way, so it hasn’t changed for tens of thousands of years. As a result, Exorsus citizens are discriminated against even up to the northern fortresses. That’s why Kim Han’s achievement of purifying the Deathlands is so remarkable. And if we find one or two such historical evidences, Exorsus might no longer be ostracized.”

“Tch. Wait. Merus, bring the history books here at once.”

History is always written by the victors. Of course the tyrant wasn’t entirely blameless—he was commanding undead until recently, and his manner and personality were kind of a mess.

But if Exorsus is culturally and historically ostracized like that, our owning a legion house here might cause us subtle disadvantages. People are forgetful creatures.

‘Thanks for curing the plague, but I don’t like that you’re from Exorsus.’

That’s entirely possible. So if we can change Exorsus’s perception, it’s obviously beneficial to do so.

Thinking that far, I could also understand why Exorsus worshipped me so fiercely.

‘That isn’t the reason, but they may have believed they were always abandoned by the gods’ envoys.’

From the perspective of continentals unaware of the condition that they must leave Exorsus before the fifth year ends, such thoughts could arise.

But since Rebound—who made a name early on—remained in Exorsus, they might be acting like obsessive fans.

My thoughts stopped there as Merus opened the door and entered.

After briefly explaining the history book Merus held to the magic tower masters, they became excited, launched into passionate discussions about historical events, and I sent them all away.

As expected, no member came to see me about performance until midnight.

Naruan popped in whining and left, and Merus excitedly came and was likewise shown out.

The next day.

Without exception, the members waited for me in the first-floor hall from early morning, tables pushed together in rows.

When I went down, the members were already gathered and waiting.

“No one came yesterday.”

Perhaps they felt proud at my remark; a light chuckle rippled through the hall. Some shrugged their shoulders.

Just as expected. In this atmosphere, even those who wanted to come might have been deterred.

“I’ll let it slide this time, but if you create this atmosphere again, I won’t stay quiet. You are not protagonists in a novel enjoying adventures or members of a hero’s party. Don’t be deluded. There are tens of thousands of representatives aiming for your necks. Not even attempting to obtain a weapon that could bridge that numerical gap is… foolish and arrogant.”

“……”

The previously buoyant hall fell silent. Proy and Lee Hyo-ju’s faces hardened more than anyone else’s. That alone made clear who had fostered this atmosphere.

“Someone probably said that. My weapon ‘Predatory Fang’ can absorb strong weapons and thus grow stronger. Or Arun might have been ordered by someone and, like preaching, mistaken consideration for a right. Don’t be ridiculous. Aren’t you the ones who should be getting stronger, not me? Who’s worrying about whom? If your toes can catch up to knees, it’s not too late to worry. And if you treat consideration as a right, I’ve arranged a month-long full-course sparring with Talis and Bioss.”

They all flinched at the final warning. In the unexpectedly heavy atmosphere, the first piece of equipment I revealed was a sword with a dark sheen.

Everyone’s gaze was fixed on the sword, so much that you could hear someone swallow.

“Now, let’s begin.”

“W-what do you want me to do!”

“Presentation. Don’t you know what a presentation is? Huh?”

“Aaaah! Really! Father!!”

“Don’t want to? If you don’t… f it.”

“…!!”

The Creator’s playful tone and reply. When he said ‘f it,’ a huge appeared in the air in divine power.

The gods’ laughter echoing everywhere felt like it was mocking Amor herself, making her feel worse. She felt like ramming into the Creator.

While Amor seethed, the five goddesses from Aetas to Ludicer turned red in the face.

They weren’t angry so much as embarrassed.

‘Ah… You’re revealing too much all at once.’

‘Kim Han! What on earth did you teach this brat!’

‘What should I do? Should I laugh?’

‘Should I laugh even now?’

‘You’ve already missed the timing!’

As the five goddesses muttered, unsure how to react, Amor’s scream-like shout rang out.

“What on earth are you doing?!”

“Amor…”

The Creator’s solemn tone. A faint halo glowed behind him, and a bit of authority accompanied it. He appeared as the Creator used to be.

“Yes…”

“You said you were curious why the Ego of the Setting changed. As you said, you are gods participating in the Battlefield of the Gods, so you have the right to hear it. But the beings involved in this matter are more closely connected to the Battlefield of the Gods than you are. So if you want to hear, you must pay an appropriate price.”

“Beings more deeply involved than us…”

“Yes, the representatives.”

“Mere slaves…!!”

“You summoned not only the other gods but even me to hear why the ‘Setting’ of that war among mere slaves changed. And you even threatened the Creator.”

“…Profit!”

Amor bit her lower lip, barely containing her rising rage. The Creator looked down at her with a strange victor’s smile.

“So, Heavenly God, show it first, then?”

Amor couldn’t brush off the Creator’s jest as mere joking. More than half the gods nodded because his words made a certain sense.

If they saw scenes related to the representatives, they might find some hint. Who could guarantee they wouldn’t then exert influence over those representatives?

“O-okay!”

“All right, tell us.”

“W-what do you want?”

“Reverse presentation? Reverse presentation, enjoy.”

Boom!!

Amor, unexpectedly overwhelmed by uncontrollable anger—commonly known as being pissed off—emitted a truly murderous aura toward the Creator.