Episode 38

Elena, having bowed to Kim Hyunwoo who had said they would talk later with a serious expression, was-

Woo-woong-!

-She gritted her teeth upon hearing the resonating sound of the Territory Stone inside the Lord’s castle.

And for good reason, as Elena knew about the phenomenon of the Territory Stone resonating.

‘Why the sudden Disaster (災殃) phenomenon…!’

The Disaster phenomenon.

This Disaster phenomenon, related to the Labyrinth and occurring when ‘the door to another dimension’ randomly opens, was a truly terrible phenomenon that could only be described as a ‘Disaster’.

The giant monsters that emerge from this Disaster phenomenon resonate with all nearby Territory Stones and then charge at the nearest territory, destroying everything in their path.

And Elena, who had lived a very long time as a mercenary, had seen such disasters firsthand.

“……”

Elena’s hands trembled slightly.

Memories of that time flashed through her mind.

The sight of a commercially successful neutral territory being overrun by monsters with bodies larger than the territory’s walls.

The soldiers’ spears and swords could not make even a single scratch on the monsters’ bodies.

The heroes’ attacks only wounded the monsters’ flesh without stopping them.

…Instead, the heroes were all swept away by a single movement of the monsters, who, with just one attack, destroyed the territory’s walls and instantly eradicated everything within the territory.

Buildings crumbled and disappeared against the monsters’ bodies.

Fires broke out one after another.

The screams of soldiers and residents echoed like a panorama.

The last memory that surfaced was of a child crying in front of the monster, and the child’s mother crushed under the monster’s body-

“……”

-Elena cut off her recollection there.

Because she felt a surge of nausea.

However, the clear resonating sound from the Territory Stone inside the Lord’s castle continued her recollection, and soon Elena remembered the last image of the vanished territory with nothing left.

The commercial city that had completely evaporated, leaving behind only the Lord’s Stone enveloped within the Lord’s castle, with only traces that the territory ever existed.

That scene, which could only be seen as a Disaster (災害) that humans could not prevent.

Elena turned her gaze to look at the residents from atop the Lord’s castle.

The expressions of the residents looked uniformly grim, as if everyone understood the meaning of this resonance.

Some had expressions of despair,

while others wore faces full of resignation.

Seeing the expressions of these residents, Elena also frowned.

Because Elena knew as well as the residents did.

That as the Lartania territory, they absolutely could not stop this disaster.

…She too was painfully aware of the fact that they could not stop the Disaster.

‘We must evacuate the Lord.’

Elena decided to evacuate the Lord.

For her, the Lord had become someone who must not be lost.

And when Elena had made that decision,

creak-!

Kim Hyunwoo came out as the door opened, and

as Elena turned around and was about to speak,

“Elena, please gather the people in the square.”

Kim Hyunwoo spoke.

Hans, a man who had moved from Harlancia to Lartania with his family and young daughter Rosie, wore a look of despair.

“Honey, what do we do now?”

“…Sigh.”

Hans’ better half, his wife, spoke with a worried tone, but he had nothing to say.

From the moment the resonance began from the Lord’s Stone, the fate of the residents was essentially sealed.

Death.

That unfamiliar yet terrifying word muddled Hans’ mind.

Of course, some might not understand the source of Hans’ despair.

After all, a resident could save their life just by leaving the territory.

However, that was a foolish thought for those who know one thing but not another.

The Disaster does not disappear by attacking just one territory.

After consuming one territory, the Disaster moves on to the nearest territory, destroys it, and continues to the next, demolishing every territory until it dies.

Thus, even if one survived by leaving Lartania, any territory they settled in would surely be erased by the Disaster unless it is stopped.

Initially, there were no key territories considered important by kingdoms near Lartania, nor were there any outstanding heroes.

Just thinking up to that point, it was clear that Hans would have to wander for a very long time to find another territory.

That too, with his young daughter who was not yet fully grown.

…And even if Hans’ family reached another territory after a difficult journey, it wouldn’t be the end.

Having invested all the money he earned in Harlancia and here to obtain a market stall to make a living in this territory, he had no money left.

In other words, even if they saved their lives here, he and his family had no basis to live on in another territory.

Other territories did not collect low taxes like Lartania, and most required a toll to enter in the first place.

“Damn…”

In short, the series of hardships that began for Hans and his family the moment the territory of Lartania disappeared was essentially tantamount to leading them to death, so Hans tightly closed his eyes.

“Daddy, are we in big trouble?”

Hans clenched his teeth when he heard his daughter, who knew nothing, say that with a worried face due to the wailing sounds around them.

“The Lord will make an announcement in the square! Everyone, gather in the square!”

Hearing the soldiers shouting outside, Hans thought of the Lord of Lartania.

The one called the ‘King of Logs’ or the ‘Messenger of God’ among the residents.

‘If it’s the Lord, maybe-?’

Thinking of him, Hans considered harboring hope for a moment but soon let out a deep sigh.

Most of the residents knew that the Lord of Lartania was special.

After all, the miraculous deeds he had shown were truly worthy of being called the actions of a Messenger of God.

But no matter how talented the Messenger of God was, it seemed impossible to stop the Disaster.

After all, a ‘Disaster’ is not something that can be stopped by mere talents.

“Wait, I’ll be right back.”

Despite being clearly aware of this fact, Hans rose from his seat and headed towards the square.

He was curious to hear what the Lord had to say first and foremost.

And when Hans arrived at the square after a bit of walking, the place was already crowded with residents.

The residents, like Hans, all wore expressions filled with gloom and despair.

In front of the square, the Lord could be seen standing on a hastily made platform.

“Now, let’s get one thing straight first.”

Following the Lord’s words,

“If you all help, we can certainly stop the disaster.”

The residents’ gazes

“Before the Disaster even reaches this territory.”

All converged on the Lord.

Right after Kim Hyunwoo’s brief speech,

“…Lord, are you serious?”

“About what?”

“That we can handle the Disaster.”

Elena immediately followed him to the office and asked Kim Hyunwoo that question.

At least she had no idea what Kim Hyunwoo was aiming for or why he had made the residents do such a thing.

But one thing she knew,

was that no matter what, they could not stop the Disaster.

Thus, Elena had followed him with the intention of persuading Kim Hyunwoo, but-

“Of course.”

-Kim Hyunwoo responded very cleanly to Elena’s question, thinking,

‘This could actually be an opportunity.’

In fact, the special event ‘Disaster (災殃)’, was indescribable.

Simply put, the name ‘Disaster (災殃)’ was the most fitting description.

In the setting of Arteil, the giant monsters that emerge from ‘the door to another dimension’, related to the Labyrinth, charge at the nearest territory with a Territory Stone, wreaking havoc as soon as they appear.

Furthermore, as these monsters approach, they resonate with the Territory Stone, causing the territory’s functions to deteriorate rapidly, increasing the residents’ anxiety and causing them to flee.

From the Lord’s perspective, this special event was indeed a dreadful one.

‘Of course, it would be a different story if there was a guild.’

Naturally, within the game, this special event was not one where players were merely beaten up; its essence was a Raid event recommended for 8 players.

That is, if there was a guild to undertake the 8-player Raid, they could defeat the monsters and receive a substantial reward.

Of course, even without an 8-player Raid, if a player had spent enough time on Arteil, they could clear it alone.

However, the unfortunate part was that Kim Hyunwoo currently had neither players to run the Raid with nor strong heroes to defeat the monster.

It was as if he had nothing at all.

Yet, there were two reasons why Kim Hyunwoo, who had initially cursed upon seeing the notification of the Disaster, confidently answered Elena’s question and considered this situation an opportunity.

One reason was that the Disaster appearing this time was the ‘Ghost (귀)’ class monster ‘Magdaora’, which he had defeated thousands of times.

The other reason was,

‘200 fully armed soldiers, 300 Magic Stones, and – Elena. This should be enough.’

Kim Hyunwoo had a method to defeat Magdaora with just these resources and Elena.

After all, Kim Hyunwoo was a veteran who had played Arteil for over ten thousand hours,

and during that time, he had completed all sorts of ridiculous feats for achievements that seemed designed either for fun or frustration.

Therefore,

“Alright, no need to delay, let’s go defeat it right away.”

Kim Hyunwoo grinned.