Episode 37

Arteil’s Affinity System is essentially the flower of hero cultivation and one of the systems that players must manage most delicately.

The reason is that how this affinity system is handled can cause the stats of heroes affiliated with a territory to fluctuate unbelievably.

Thanks to this, players meticulously managed their heroes’ affinity, and Kim Hyunwoo also carefully managed his heroes’ affinity.

…Ultimately, he quit because of the brutal BM (bad manners).

Anyway, the point is that Arteil’s Affinity System is one of the most important elements within the game, and most players strive to increase the initial affinity right after recruiting a hero.

The reason is that the difficulty of increasing affinity later depends on the initial affinity level marked after ‘measuring’.

For example, if the initial affinity after measuring is Level 1, the difficulty of raising it to Level 5 increases significantly.

Conversely, if the initial affinity after measuring is Level 2 or 3, the difficulty of raising it to Level 5 is not as arduous.

…Ultimately, maintaining affinity at Level 5 boasts a brutal difficulty.

Anyway, the point here is that it is easier to increase affinity if the initial level is close to Level 5, so all players try to raise the early stage of affinity, but surprisingly, affinity does not increase easily.

Even with the utmost care, it is rare for a hero’s measured affinity to exceed Level 2, and achieving Level 3 is notable enough to make headlines in the Arteil galleries.

Considering that Kim Hyunwoo had only one hero start at Level 3 when he began with 1-star heroes, it was really no easy feat for a hero’s initial affinity to be marked above Level 2.

But then,

in the information window of Elena that Kim Hyunwoo was looking at, the affinity was boldly marked as Level 4.

“…Really, Level 4?”

He made a dumbfounded expression.

Certainly, it was a bit unusual for Elena’s affinity to have been measured for such a long time, but Kim Hyunwoo did not expect it to reach Level 4.

After all, Level 4 affinity, as far as Kim Hyunwoo knew, was a very high rank.

He recalled the affinity levels as divided by the players.

“…Level 1 was a business relationship, Level 2 was a friend, Level 3 was a very close friend, Level 4 was a precious being, Level 5 was someone you could sacrifice your life for… I think.”

Kim Hyunwoo thought about this and looked at Elena’s affinity chart.

The affinity level displayed in the information window was still Level 4.

“…No, I don’t think there was ever any sign of that?”

In fact, it is obvious that not every hero’s reaction changes just because their affinity increases.

Initially, this level of affection did not really arise from romantic interest between sexes but was literally about closeness and a slightly more intimate relationship.

However, even if it wasn’t necessarily romantic interest, a reaction would be normal at around Level 4.

After all, in Arteil, as the level of affection increased, the response from the hero AI changed dramatically.

‘Compared to that, Elena is…’

Kim Hyunwoo, thinking that Elena often showed a level of affection that remained around Levels 1 and 2, tilted his head in wonder.

‘Honestly, it doesn’t seem like I did enough to raise the affection to Level 4… Well, good is good, I guess.’

Ultimately, that was the conclusion he came to.

If the affection was at Level 4, then raising it to Level 5 should be very easy, and if her affection reaches Level 5, she would become much stronger than she is now.

That is why.

‘…Elena, as I originally thought, seems to be the type whose emotions don’t show easily.’

With that thought, Kim Hyunwoo continued to ponder about the third tier.

Meanwhile, on a hill overlooking Lartania.

“Boss, aren’t you going?”

“Not going.”

Giral sighed silently as he looked at Merilda, who was flicking her tail towards the territory, and asked.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“But, still, isn’t it a bit off to leave the guys under you like this?”

“You guys can just fight it out amongst yourselves and sort it out.”

“That’s the thing, our group didn’t come together with that kind of vibe in the first place.”

“Not interested.”

Giral sighed once again at Merilda’s firm response.

‘As expected… or maybe, can this even be considered as expected?’

No, in fact, for Giral, the entire situation unfolding was a continuous surprise, something he thought could never happen.

Giral had not even thought that he could have such a long conversation with her like this.

He hadn’t thought he would ever see Merilda acting like this.

Giral had expected that even if they went out of their way to find Merilda, they wouldn’t be able to bring her back.

After all, among the beastfolk affiliated with Red Eyes, there was no one, including the Four Kings, who could move her.

But.

‘I didn’t know the reason the Boss wouldn’t move was just because of a human man.’

Of course, Merilda hadn’t specifically said anything.

However, after quietly observing her behavior for almost a few days, it was too obvious to know.

After all, the only thing she did all day long here was look at the Lord’s castle of the Lartania territory.

Is that all?

The moment a human man appears through the window of the Lord’s castle, she perks her ears up and wags her tail, but when the human man disappears from the office window, her tail droops, and her ears sag.

Merilda was just sitting here, repeating that over and over.

‘…What’s so good about just looking from afar?’

Giral looked at Merilda’s expression.

Her listless eyes remained unchanged, but her ears perked up, and her tail wagged.

Seeing the faint smile on her face, Giral began to doubt whether the being in front of him was really that Red Eyes.

“……”

Honestly, Giral didn’t understand Merilda like that.

He didn’t understand why she was so fixated on a single human man, nor why she was just voyeuristically watching that human man.

So, after days of suggesting that Merilda return without saying anything else, Giral spoke out for the first time.

“What’s so great about that human man? After all, he’s just a weak, inferior race-”

And then, he realized.

The fact that he had made a mistake.

Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-!

As a beastfolk, his instincts instantly made his heart race and transformed his body into a battle-ready state.

His fur bristled, and his hidden claws extended out.

However, despite the instinctive reaction, Giral, the Four Kings of Red Eyes and called the second in hierarchy within Red Eyes, couldn’t move.

The reason was.

“……”

Because of the crimson eyes of Merilda looking at him.

Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-!

His heart pounded.

Fear devours instinct.

The extended claws retract under fear, and the sharply raised fur subsided.

Only then did Giral realize once again.

The being in front of him was not just any beastfolk, but a formidable opponent capable of slaughtering dozens of heroes alone, comparable to a great hero.

That she was the leader of Red Eyes that he belonged to.

Only after thinking this did Giral realize how much leniency Merilda had been showing.

After all, he remembered all too clearly the fate of those who had spoken out of turn to her before.

“Watch your words, Giral.”

So, Merilda, looking at Giral trembling, spoke to him.

“There won’t be a next time.”

In the face of the Boss’s leniency, staring directly at him.

“I’m-I’m sorry, Boss.”

Giral could only bow his head.

Two days later.

Kim Hyunwoo, who had been wracking his brain over whether to tackle the third tier or not, finally made a decision.

To go down and tackle the third tier with Elena.

In fact, it would have been better to increase Elena’s stats a bit more for a safer approach to the third tier.

‘If Elena’s affection is at Level 4, it should be safe.’

Kim Hyunwoo judged that he could somewhat safely tackle the third tier because Elena’s affection level had reached Level 4.

Elena’s stats, having been recruited by the Lord, were influenced not only by stars but also by her level of affection.

Thus, thanks to the stat buff from reaching affection Level 4, Elena now had pretty decent specs to challenge the third tier, so Kim Hyunwoo decided to go through with it.

“I think I’ll tackle the third tier.”

Kim Hyunwoo, who was about to call Elena to convey his intention to tackle the third tier, was…

Woo-woong-!

“…?”

Suddenly, a resonating sound spread throughout the entire territory, causing him to unconsciously wear a puzzled expression.

“Ah.”

Upon seeing the notification that appeared before him.

“Damn it.”

Kim Hyunwoo grimaced and unwittingly cursed.