noveldrama
Chapter 209: Corrupted Angel’s Cradle (1)
Chapter 209: Corrupted Angel’s Cradle (1)
Chapter 209: Corrupted Angel’s Cradle (1)
The man of darkness observing the battle let out a tone as if amused, "Oh?"
After four hours of observation, he thought he had grasped their skills entirely. But he was mistaken.
Is that guy their leader?
The man of darkness kept a close eye on the man who had charged ahead of everyone else, opened the battle, and single-handedly took down fifty desert bats.
Judging by his attire, he looks more like a priest than a paladin... Just who are you?
He was someone who could never suppress his curiosity once it was piqued.
As he was about to leave the twin gorge, a voice stopped him.
—Stop right there. Are you planning to ruin the grand plan?
"This voice is... Is it you, Cardinal Atroc?"
The man of darkness looked around with a curious expression. However, there was no trace of the speaker, nor any other creature nearby.
Impressive. An old eagle is better than a young crow, huh? I never thought he would transmit just a voice across such a distance...
Despite its decline, the Church of Muldine was once a force that struck terror across the continent. Atroc, the Cardinal of the church, was someone even the man of darkness couldn’t treat lightly.
Eventually, he took a step back and smiled, saying, "Oh, you could’ve at least shown your face if you've come. Only letting me hear your voice every time is making me feel sad."
—I spoke only because I was concerned you’d act on impulse and ruin things. Remember, I am always watching.
"I’m not exactly an exhibitionist, so that’s a bit embarrassing. But you saw everything earlier, didn’t you?"
—A mere high-ranking priest is no concern. Having irked someone powerful, death is only to be expected.
"This is why I respect you, Cardinal." The man of darkness chuckled as black smoke began to spread over his body like spilled paint. "Since you issued a warning yourself, Cardinal, I’ll go and just greet them briefly. That much should be fine, yes?"
—As long as you don’t overdo it.
“I should lure them into the cradle.”
—What... The dwarves are constructing an altar there. That’s a dangerous approach.
“It’s fine. Given their level, they wouldn’t be able to defeat the guardian of the cradle even if they tried.”
—Are you certain?
“Yes. The cradle’s guardian possesses the Demon King’s bloodline, and isn't vulnerable to ordinary attacks.”
As the man of darkness gestured, a majestic white sword appeared in midair.
"Without a holy sword, it’s impossible to even land a blow. However, the holy sword is in my possession, isn’t it?"
—Very well. I’ll trust your judgment.
With those words, Cardinal Atroc’s presence vanished.
A moment later, the man of darkness also faded away like paint washing off a canvas.
***
“Good! Just a little more!”
“Victory is within reach!”
The Holy Blood Order members were in a state of high excitement, anticipating their imminent victory. The horde of monsters that had attacked them had been powerful, but in the end, they had proven stronger.
No, to be precise...
It was the Commander. He was stronger.
Covered in the red and blue blood of monsters, Kai showed no signs of exhaustion as he plunged into the battlefield, cutting down any monster in his path. He was, quite literally, a death reaper—a relentless demon on the battlefield!
“Huff, huff.”
As the battle progressed, his mental exhaustion grew, but paradoxically, his blade became sharper. It was a strange sensation; it was as if every nerve was focused on the front of his head.
The moment Kai took in the scene before him, he instantly read the trajectory of the enemies’ attacks and moved. His lower body moved first, followed by his upper body, slicing through enemies as he went.
Slash!
The term one-man army didn’t do justice to the display of divine power! That sight alone was more than enough to gain the overwhelming faith and trust of the Holy Blood Order members.
“The Commander is fighting with us!”
“Follow the legend of the Church, the Paladin of Radiance!”
“There’s no defeat on the battlefield with him by our side!”
Ding!
[You have demonstrated overwhelming strength, greatly boosting the morale of your allies.]
[+5% to allies’ health and mental strength.]
[+10 Dignity points.]
Crunch!
Kai broke the neck of a desert ogre, then took a moment to steady his heavy breathing as he looked around.
This should be enough.
Even with the Reaper of the Battlefield effect that kept him from tiring, he could still feel fatigue setting in—a sign of his mental exhaustion. But thanks to his relentless effort, only a few dozen monsters remained.
Kai glanced at the battlefield that was nearly finished and let out a sigh of relief. “Whew. Holy Blood Order status window.”
Ding!
Faction: Holy Blood Order
Rank: S-
Members: 300
<Member Status>
Karakal LV 410. Status: Stable.
Sirdo LV 408. Status: Stable.
Dek LV 402. Status: Stable.
Teferen LV 394. Status: Critical.
.
.
.
Through the status screen, Kai could check the current state of the Holy Blood Order members. By tapping on a member he wanted more detailed information about, an additional status window would display.
Through the faction window, Kai identified those who seemed to need assistance and provided focused support.
Defeating a lot of monsters is important, but not losing any members of the Holy Blood Order is way more important.
The Holy Blood Order, now fully under his command, was an S-rank group. This meant each member was as strong as, if not stronger than, a typical field boss monster.
And to launch a full-scale siege, the Holy Blood Order is my instant source of power.
Of course, mobilizing such elite forces for a siege would require a valid cause. But Kai wasn’t overly concerned about that.
Those big guilds are increasing taxes like crazy.
After the Invasion Event ended, MID Online entered an era of territorial battles. There were currently 299 territories across the continent controlled by players, but fewer than 10% of these territories were collecting regular taxes.
As a result, NPCs are facing all sorts of hardships.
In the end, it was the NPCs—residents of these cities—who suffered under the burden of skyrocketing taxes. Kai planned to use this fact as the justification for his siege.
The reason he, who usually acted quietly, was so intent on a siege was simple.
I need to take the eastern region of the Kingdom of Rashion.
It was all for his city, Libertia.
Libertia will soon become the goose that lays golden eggs—or rather, diamonds.
Even now, the city was gaining attention as a must-visit destination due to its specialty products crafted by elves and mermaids and its beautiful urban landscape.
And if I can safely rescue the dwarves and bring them there...
Normally, one plus one equals two, but sometimes it produces an effect of three or even four. And this was one of those cases.
The dwarves will continuously mine minerals from the mines belonging to Libertia, and they’ll beautify the city, which is still somewhat lacking.
The visit to the dwarves’ shelter had only solidified these thoughts. With their artistic craftsmanship, Libertia’s growth would triple or quadruple. However, that wasn’t all Kai aimed for.
Production-class players from all over the world will visit Libertia.
For players in production classes, dwarves were considered the best of the best—especially for architects and blacksmiths. They would visit the city, even for a chance at the smallest bit of guidance.
Since they won’t just be doing nothing, high-quality gear will be produced in the city every day.
Kai had already spoken with Karius and Queen Elania to secure space for building workshops! He planned to rent out buildings, designed and marketed like real-world studio apartments, to them at a high price.
The monthly revenue will be at least a few hundred million.
Considering Libertia wasn’t even the size of a metropolis, it was a huge profit. A prime piece of land that anyone would want! Kai knew he needed a way to protect Libertia because of this, and that was how he came to the conclusion of securing the eastern region of Rashion.
There are currently two ways to gain a noble title.
One was to develop a city owned by him into a metropolis with a population of over 100,000. However, Kai had already given up on that option.
Libertia will be a city strictly for non-human races. Even if I accept NPCs, they’ll have to be carefully selected. So realistically, reaching a population of 100,000 will be difficult.
Additionally, to accommodate 100,000 residents, the city would need significant development. It would require massive funds and manpower. In the end, the first option was a path for giant guilds like the top ten.
I only take what I can manage myself.
Kai shifted his focus to the other option.
Owning three or more territories.
In other words, it was more about quantity than quality! Kai planned to acquire two additional territories to obtain a noble title.
Once I have a noble title, regular players won’t even be able to declare sieges on Libertia.
It would serve as an excellent temporary measure to protect Libertia.
With his thoughts organized, Kai opened the map and smiled.
Once this mission is complete, it’s straight to siege battles.
He always planned at least two steps ahead.
As he wore a satisfied expression, a notification window appeared before him.
Ding!
[You have defeated the entire army corrupted by demonic magic.]
[Congratulations! Not a single ally has died.]
[You have gained extra XP for achieving a major victory.]
[+4,817,546 XP.]
[Level increased.]
[Level increased.]
[Level increased.]
.
.
.
[Acquired 25 stat points.]
The names of the Holy Blood Order members began to shine even on the faction status screen.
“Wow! I feel as though the power of Helik is filling me!”
“Hm. Earlier, I struggled with that desert ogre, but somehow, I feel like I could defeat it with ease now.”
“I’ve gained new enlightenment!”
Just like players who leveled up by gaining XP from defeating monsters, the same applied to NPCs.
The Holy Blood Order members already had high levels, so the one who gained the most only leveled up twice.
Members of the Pray guild also saw great benefits, but their XP gain was far less than that of their commander, Kai.
“Jafa, everyone looks exhausted. We need to find a place to rest.”
“If we walk just a few more kilometers, we’ll reach the twin gorge. There’s an oasis there, so it should be a good spot to rest.”
“Good. Lead the way... Hm?”
As Kai was speaking, he felt an unpleasant, hair-raising sensation that made him shudder, and he turned to look behind him.
“Wow, I wasn’t expecting it, but you actually won.” The man of darkness landed softly on the red sand, glancing around and clapping. “I have to say, I’m genuinely impressed. I didn’t think you’d actually win. By all accounts, our side had the advantage, but hmm. I might need to analyze this further.”
“Who are you?!” Teferen, the Holy Laterre, drew his sword and threatened.
He instinctively judged that someone exuding such an evil aura could not possibly be an ally.
“Haha, I didn’t come to fight. I just came to say hello.”
“Teferen, get back,” Kai issued a warning.
Though the opponent acted casually, as if on a mere stroll, an unexplainable sense of danger washed over Kai.
This feeling...
At some point, somewhere, he had experienced this feeling before.
As Kai felt an inexplicable familiarity that left him confused, Teferen charged forward boldly, shouting, “Don’t worry! I’ll subdue him quickly and make him compliant!”
“Come on now. I told you I didn’t come here to fight.”
As the man of darkness’s voice grew slightly colder, a black hand shot out from thin air, striking Teferen in the abdomen.
“Kugh!” After rolling several times across the sand, Teferen coughed and spat out sand.
However, as if unsatisfied, the black hand shot toward Teferen once more.
“Supernova.”
As the desert heat intensified, Kai’s figure cut through the wind and burst forward.
Clang!
Kai’s sword clashed with the dark hand, making it slightly recoil. At the same time, his eyes moved swiftly.
We exchanged attacks. Now I’m in a hostile state with him.
This meant he could now see the opponent’s name and level. But the moment he checked the information that appeared above the man’s head, Kai’s expression hardened.
[Zirukan LV.742]
Why are you here...?