[V49C08] Heroes a.s.sembled (part 2)

Clink! Clink! Clink!

Herman and Fabio had been ceaselessly crafting swords even after they had become master blacksmiths, as if competing with each other.

“Weed and Bard Ray…hmm…”

Wars didn’t bring any harm to blacksmiths; no matter who took control, they would not dare mistreat the blacksmiths with the best skills in Royal Road. Still, the prospect of the great battle that would possibly determine the strongest force of the entire continent piqued their curiosity.

“I guess I’ll set off, then.”

***

Miretas the farmer.

The farmers of Royal Road had to rely on manual labor through each and every stage of their farm work, from cultivating a wasteland to harvesting the crops, as no agricultural machines exists in this world. Tilling the soil of the vast land by hand, they did not have the luxury of taking even a single day off as they had to look after various kinds of crops, tens of different fruits and ornamental trees.

“This is beautiful.”

Miretas watched his golden rice field that rolled in waves whenever a gust of wind swept the stalks.

“Farmer is a profession that is all about sowing seeds in nature and earning the fruits of hard and honest work. There is no regret in the life of handling earth and plants, not to mention the great pleasures it provides.”

His forehead was s.h.i.+ning with sweat from the labor of farm work.

Ding!

______________________

< New plant variety developed!

You have created a new variety of rice. It is highly nutritious, top-grade rice which melts instantly in your mouth when cooked.

A First cla.s.s food ingredient! >

______________________

“I’ll need to share this with other farmers.”

A farmer could be of great help to those who shared the same profession by distributing rare seedlings or new varieties of plants they had developed by themselves, as other farmers could increase their skill levels or fame just by growing them. Of course, Miretas could have chosen to be the only one who raised those valuable plants if he had been greedier, but he did not do so. Increasing the average yield for the farmers would make Royal Road that much richer.

“So, the Garnav Plain…”

Miretas had just received the invitation from Weed, delivered by novice sparrows of the avian race who had been hired with an hourly wage of 2 silvers.

– Come and watch the fantastic battle in the Garnav Plain.

As we are always grateful for all the efforts you have made for the Arpen Kingdom, you will be provided with a seat on Wy-3’s broad back for your convenience in spectating.

– VIP invitation –

“Of course I should go. I need to have my revenge on those Hermes Guild fools who always looked down on us farmers.”

Miretas fully stuffed his backpack with seeds used for combat purposes modified by himself. While farmers were not proficient in combat, they could still a.s.sist their allies in indirect ways such as creating a forest full of man-eating trees, or making a paralyzing plant grow all over the field.

***

Drago the tailor.

He received the invitation while doing the laundry that had been piling up.

“It’s a shame, but I don’t think I can make it because of all the work.”

He was doing everything he could to clear the quests for becoming the master tailor, but it was one big obstacle after another. He had been doing so much laundry that his delicate and graceful tailor’s hands were full of blisters. True, the laundry quests had the benefit of making it easier for him to handle fabrics — already the clothes were completely cleaned of old stains and became softer the moment his hands touched them.

“I’ll need to do some fancier quests after I’m done with this… It just can’t be all manual work until I make it to the master rank, can it?”

Drago lifted his head to check how much laundry was still left to be washed.

“…”

And there it was, the mountain of dirty clothes, looking as if it hadn’t been reduced in size at all.

“I… I need to escape.”

Thus he decided to run to the Garnav Plain immediately.

***

Elkgoon[1], the cook of the Gra.s.s Porridge Cult.

He was a chef of remarkable skills, capable of creating the most delicious tastes with his hands, yet he felt humbled whenever he had a plate of gra.s.s porridge.

“It tastes so light… and there’s nothing to add or take out; it’s just right. This is a dish that only serves to fill one’s belly, yet there are those who starve because they don’t have even this. This is why we must not waste any ingredient.”

Elkgoon was also the very person who created actual dishes after the names of the various Porridge groups. Some variations of the Poisonous Mushroom Porridge were so difficult to cook that other chefs couldn’t even make them even if they knew the recipes. Only Elkgoon could prepare the perfect Poisonous Mushroom Porridge that gave off the strong, fragrant earthy smell.

“The people from the Central Continent have quite a different palate from the Northern users. I must go there, if only to let more Central Continent users have a taste of this Poisonous Mushroom Porridge.”

***

Mibullo the architect.

Ever since he moved to the North, the style of architecture in the region had gone through a dramatic change. Large and sophisticated looking buildings gave a beautiful view to the cities. The transformation of many shantytowns in Morata was also his work.

“Old does not mean ugly. Just modifying it a little will reveal these buildings’ true worth.”

He changed the structure or color of each shabby house slightly, and created a wonderful scenery in which, when watched from afar, the houses of Morata seemed to form a beautiful picture together. The great architect was both an artist and a sculptor, which made this kind of design possible.

Dawn City, the construction of which Mibullo had partic.i.p.ated in from the planning stage, represented the history of the North itself in addition to its neat districts scheme: the Road of Ice, the Road of Frontiers, the Road of Art, the Road of Culture, the Road of Trade, the Road of Adventure, and the Road of Production.

When building a city, the happiness of the future residents was an imperative factor.

“May all the people in this city always have good dreams and lead happy lives.”

It was his belief that a beautifully and conveniently designed city would make the people who stayed in it happier; a city where the residents and tourists alike wanted to stay as long as possible, even for just a day more.

It was when he was building this Dawn city that he received the invitation from Weed.

“Well, I was already intending to go even if he hadn’t asked… hmm-mm.”

A decisive match between the Arpen Kingdom and the Haven Empire — this was an event that he simply had to attend, because if the Haven Empire won by any chance, those people from the empire would occupy and use the precious Earth Palace which he had built by the sweat of his brow. If worst came to worst, Mibullo was even prepared to break it all down with his own hands.

“All the better. Weed has saved my face by sending the invitation. It feels good to be acknowledged like this, ever since I moved to the Arpen Kingdom.”

The Arpen Kingdom treated the workers of the production industry very favorably, maybe because its own king was a sculptor himself. Mibullo was determined to return the favor to the best of his abilities.

***

Oberon — one of the users who had played Royal Road from the very beginning, and the founder of the Frozen Rose Guild. Once he had led many a fantastic adventures, and currently he was the lord of Vent Castle in the Arpen Kingdom. Even when an enormous number of Gra.s.s Porridge Cult members were marching towards the south, he had stayed behind and kept his place as the lord of the castle to ensure the region’s safety and support other users. But now he received the invitation from Weed.

“So there’s going to be a showdown between the two sides? Then of course I must go and help.”

Thus he also set off towards the south, bringing the entire troops of Vent Castle.

On his way, Oberon made the most of his influence to rally others, and he even gave a very impressive speech in the town square of Morata.

“Why do we fight? Why do we live? I can’t say I know a lot about life, but what I do know is that if we do not raise our swords right now, we will spend the rest of our lives feeling shame and regret. Let us march on with dignity. We are the Gra.s.s Porridge!”

***

Pavo and Gaston, the leaders of the architects from the North, were moving along with the main force of the Gra.s.s Porridge Cult.

“Let’s build the road. This will become a major trade route for the Arpen Kingdom to advance its economic influence towards the south.”[3]

Since they had been a.s.signed as the heads of the construction department for the Arpen Kingdom, they had an ability to create new quests.

__________

This is a nation quest for the Arpen Kingdom.

Build a road that leads to the plains in the southern regions. The workers who partic.i.p.ate in the construction project will have their contributions acknowledged.

Difficulty Level: D

Reward: Nation Contribution points

Quest Restriction: for the residents of the Arpen Kingdom only.>

__________

As the architects moved, a new road was created in their wake. Their devotion was what enabled the swift advance of the Gra.s.s Porridge’s main army, as well as what secured the transport route on which the carriages could rush up and down at extreme speeds.

“Let’s Run! Tssssskk.”

The orc army was also marching along the same road, their numbers without end[4].

***

Chaser the adventurer.

“Seeking out even the tiniest clue and beating about the entire continent to find out where it leads, that’s the job of an adventurer. The thrill of discovery is what we live for, even if we know it only lasts for a second.”

He was the one who uncovered the old relics of the Niflheim Empire and brought them to the Arpen Kingdom. The effect of those relics brought about the rapid growth of the kingdom’s economic and technological power as well as its commercial progress. As one of the key contributors to the development of the Arpen Kingdom, the name Chaser became widely known among the users of the Northern regions.

And naturally, he would be present in the upcoming battle as well.

***

Daymond. He was the Guild Master of Predator of the Land, and the first user to have ever received an S-cla.s.s level quest. He had once been a Priest of Resurrection, too, and invaded the Central Continent with the army of demonic spirits of the Embinyu Church. But after his forces had been suppressed by the Haven Empire, his player character itself was deleted by permanent death as the penalty of failing the quest.

Since then, the members of Predator of the Land started anew in Royal Road, and currently they had barely reached level 100. The once mighty power of the guild only existed in their memory now, but still the members were working hard to grow their strength, crawling the dungeons in Morata.

“This place is a paradise.”

“Prices are so low here, and the products have high quality.”

“It’s quite surprising that the merchants are willing to repair or exchange any faulty items. Those merchants groups of the Hermes Guild would have never done that.”

Quite unlike the days when they stayed in the Central Continent, they were enjoying their lives even as novices.

“Hey boss, shouldn’t we be there too?”

“Of course. Let’s go!”

***

Hegel, Bella, Rumi and Nide.

The students from the Department of Virtual Reality in Korea University were also presently staying in Morata.

“You know, shouldn’t we… go to see this battle?”

“Hmph, there’s no point. It is simply impossible to defeat the Hermes Guild. Even that mighty Black Lion Guild was no match for them.”

“Why are you being so pessimistic about all this, Hegel?”

“Just take one look and it’s so obvious how this fight will turn out. It’s not wise to live with a meaningless illusion that clouds your eyes to the real world.”

“It’s so frustrating how you just don’t see which way the wind is blowing. No wonder you don’t have any friends.”

“…Ouch.”

At this moment, Nide the Thief[5] quietly rose from his seat. Rumi noticed this and her eyes twinkled.

“Where are you going?”

“The Garnav Plain.”

“It’s quite far.”

“Still, I want to go and watch the battle. It feels like I’m going to regret it for the rest of my life if I miss this.”

“Let’s go together, then.”

The other students of Korea University also got up from their seats.

Hegel refused to go for some more time and tried to hold his ground, but even he had to admit that the normally busy streets of Morata had become very quiet and rather empty. The castle gates were crowded with carriages and flocks of cows heading southwards.

“Bah. Okay, okay, I’ll go… but it’s not like I’m interested or anything.”

***

“Big brother[6] is having a fight against the Hermes Guild?”

Petrov, the Aqualight Painter, was painting graffiti in the sewers of Aren Castle. His graffiti had the effect of disturbing public order and even lowering the loyalty of the resident users.

“That means ‘she’ will be there, too…”

Petrov thought of Yurin, and decided that he could not just sit there doing nothing.

“I need to get there at once, using Picture Teleportation.”

He rushed to finish the painting he had been working on — a depiction of Bard Ray the Emperor, cooking a packet of Red Crab Ramyun[8] and eating it all by himself without sharing with anyone.

***

Halma, Margo, Rewis, and Gran.

There were not many users in this world who knew of their existence, but those who that had been victims of them quivered with rage at the mere mention of them; a quartet of backstabbing muggers![9]

“Weed-nim, the G.o.d of War himself, will fight against Bard Ray, the one called the G.o.d of War…!”

“I must say, even having been beaten by him is a great honor.”

“Hey, if he wins this time, doesn’t that mean he will unite the whole continent?”

“Don’t be silly. They’re not going to lose all their lands in the Central Continent just by losing one battle.”

“Still, winning the largest and the most critical battle would eventually lead to conquering the entire continent. How would the Hermes Guild stop him after they get defeated in this fight?”

“Wow. The emperor of the Versailles Continent…!”

“And we tried to rob the person who would become just that.”

The quartet of muggers was usually lurking about in the Rosenheim Kingdom. Despite being located in a remote region to the east, the Rosenheim Kingdom boasted a vast territory; there were a great number of villages, cities and castles, along with hunting grounds still untouched by anyone and mysterious quests yet to be uncovered. Becoming the ruler of just one kingdom was already a remarkable accomplishment so, needless to say, the Emperor of the united Versailles Continent would be a position of glory beyond imagination.

“What do you say, shall we take this little trip?”

“Absolutely!”

“And we can search for some easy targets on our way there.”

“Sure, we shouldn’t miss any chance to strike people on the back of their heads.”

***

Eunling, Ben and Elix.

They had met Weed during the time he came to the Desert.

“You are the adventurers of the Shadow of the Earth party, correct? I have heard a lot about your great exploits before I started playing Royal Road.”

“It’s an honor that you recognize us.”

Elix shook hands with Weed on behalf of the rest of the party.

“I believe you have also sent me a challenge once.”

“Well, that’s… *ahem*, indeed we have, as we were somewhat… overenthusiastic during those days.”

Eunling and Ben avoided Weed’s eyes. The incident in which they had gotten themselves involved in the affairs of the Embinyu Church had become something of an embarra.s.sing past to them, as it was Weed who actually managed to defeat the order in the end while they were wasting their time.

“Nowadays we are working on the quest of founding the new Pallos Empire. It is about building an empire in the Desert Region.”

Elix said proudly, not having fully abandoned his compet.i.tive nature. Uniting the entire vast Desert Region, raising warriors and establis.h.i.+ng a nation — he was confident that the value of this quest would not pale in comparison of that of founding the Arpen Kingdom itself.

Weed smiled broadly, as if he was a neighbor who had just purchased a big land[10].

“Ah. THAT quest.”

“You already know about it? I a.s.sume you have heard the story from Geomchi and his pupils-“

“I’m working on that same quest myself.”

“…What?”

“As a matter of fact, there’s currently only one last step left until the foundation of the Pallos Empire. That last step shouldn’t be overly difficult, either, I expect.”

“…”

“I believe you have saved us a lot of trouble for the next quest[11], considering the fact that you have done all the c.u.mbersome work and got it out of the way for us.”

Thus the Shadows of the Earth party once again witnessed the fruit of their hard work s.n.a.t.c.hed right under their noses, by a compet.i.tor who had intervened in the middle of the quest for which they had been making gradual progress through effort and ordeal. If it had been any ordinary compet.i.tor, they wouldn’t even come close to a match for the Shadows of the Earth, but the problem, of course, was that it turned out to be Weed of all people.

Weed, with his skills in every obscure profession, his stats that he had built through countless hours of manual work, his fame, his experiences in quests, his combat capabilities and his social connections. Once he had wedged himself into the picture, it was just in the course of nature that the rest of the people would be squeezed out to the background. Even worse was the fact that they were not exactly in a position to complain, as it was mainly thanks to Weed that the Shadows of the Earth party had been able to come to the Desert to carry out the quest in the first place. The quest itself wouldn’t have been able to make so much progress if Weed hadn’t laid a firm foundation for it during his time as the Great King of the Desert.

“Since he’s waging a war against the Hermes Guild, I guess we’ll have to go and join him. *sigh*”

“Yeah, we shouldn’t miss the chance to witness the moment that will determine the future course of history.”

“Do you think we should help Weed?”

“Well, we cannot just let the Hermes Guild win, can we? Though I admit, I’m not feeling too eager myself…”

***

Robin had been burning with revengeful thoughts towards the Arpen Kingdom.

“Taking away all of my lands… all the time and efforts I had put into developing my territories, and they just took them for nothing!”

When the Haven Empire lost its control over the regions in the North, the local lords who had been a.s.signed by the Hermes Guild suddenly found themselves in a very awkward position. They tried to protect their status and interests through negotiations with Weed, but the outcome was the worst they could have imagined. The failure lay in the fact that they had thought him to be a naïve young man, which was a complete and thorough mistake. The seven lords who burned down their towns and left in opposition to the terms of the negotiation were branded as the worst villains[12] , never to step into the Versailles Continent again. Now the rest of the local lords who remained in the North were forced to offer 70 percent of the total tax revenue collected from the cities on whose growth they had been spending tens of millions of gold.

“I’m not denying that there is still a certain pleasure to be had in managing the city, but…”

Robin had not given up on his feelings for Seoyoon yet, which was why he chose not to return to the Central Continent.

‘There is no person who is both as beautiful and intelligent as her. Most importantly, I fell for her the moment I first looked at her and I cannot get over my feelings now.’

With his wealth and good looks, there had been a lot of women approaching him or requesting for blind dates. For some time, when the distance between him and Seoyoon was not showing any hope of closing, he tried meeting other ladies, more than ten of them a week, but that only resulted in his longings for her getting even deeper. In his eyes, no other women could match her, not only because of her appearance, but also because of the unique aura about her.

‘She wouldn’t continue going out with a guy like Weed forever. Yes. Royal Road… the problem is Royal Road.’

Robin’s thoughts had taken a direction towards a rather wild speculation, although it was not entirely baseless.

‘Like many others, she has also lost herself in Royal Road… understandable, of course, there is a lot to enjoy in this world. To a person like her who had had such a lonely life… it must have felt like paradise. That’s why she started to date Weed, a man of strength and fame in this game world[13] .’

The conclusion drawn from that speculation also felt quite reasonable to him, as he just couldn’t imagine how else he would lose to a rival like Weed, except for the fact that Weed was better at Royal Road than him.

‘So, I just need to become a successful man in Royal Road. Then there will be no reason for her to stick to a n.o.body like him.’

Thus Robin had been desperately investing great amounts of money on his city, Aath.

“Convert and put in 80 million gold. There will be another investment of 100 million next week.”

Even to him those amounts were considerable, but he did not stint on any expenses. He believed that he would be able to prove his competence by achieving a rapid growth of the city of Aath through these enormous investments. His pa.s.sion for the city development enterprise became even stronger when he received the news that Seoyoon would effectively a.s.sume full charge of all the administrative matters of the Arpen Kingdom.

‘She is somewhere close to me. I will make this city into the most prominent place in the North, nay, in the entire Versailles Continent.’

Robin spent the wealth he had been given in advance from his parents and sold the real estate he owned to invest on Royal Road. As he himself was the lord of the city all that money was not exactly wasted into thin air, but the fact remained that a colossal amount of capital had been consumed by him, despite his status as the successor of a major conglomerate[14] .

– A free 1,000 gold reward for any user who registers their place of residence in the city of Aath.

– For all the novice users, a prize of 500 gold will be given whenever you complete a quest.

– Enjoy some welfare benefit! When purchasing any item, 20 percent of the price will be returned.

– An event for visiting users! Every user visiting the city of Aath will be given free travel goods.

– Free meals for everyone! Every restaurant in the city of Aath will provide food for free from 8 to 10 in the morning!

From building brick houses and distributing them to the residents free of charge to opening up a whole new guild for a group of no more than three pirates, he was making a range of blind investments that would normally be strongly discouraged unless one is setting up an extremely far-sighted plan for about a hundred years in the future.

‘It’s better to be excessive than deficient. I shall create a city so magnificent that it overwhelms anyone who beholds it.’

The construction of the lord’s castle was also underway, slowly revealing the shape of the extravagant palace. The estate was divided into a total of 52 sections, and each section was to be completed in order starting from the first; once the construction is finished, the entire area of the castle would surpa.s.s even that of the Earth Palace. In addition, a famous architectural firm from a foreign country had been commissioned to design the palace.

While such astronomical expenses were put into the development of the city of Aath, its streets were becoming ever more boisterous day by day as Northern users came streaming into the city.

“This is a very good place to live.”

“Yeah. Well, it’s the Arpen Kingdom.”

“The city is really clean, too.”

“As I said, that’s because it belongs to the Arpen Kingdom.”

“It’s all thanks to Weed-nim that such a great city can be created.”

“We should really be grateful for Weed-nim.”

This felt as if he had been dealt a huge blow from the opponent with his eyes fully open. But while Robin was trying to swallow his anger, he spotted a familiar face: among the crowd of merchants visiting the city for trade was Bart, Seoyoon’s father.

“Chairman Jeong[15] !”

“Haha. I have long resigned from that position. Well, it was taken from me, to speak frankly. So just call me whatever you like.”

“I wouldn’t dream of addressing you in such an impolite way. What brings you to this city, by the way?”

“I’ve brought some olives and beer.”

Bart pointed at the carriage he was riding in, as well as the wagons standing in a line at the back.

“I didn’t know you were into Royal Road. I a.s.sume you are playing as a merchant?”

“Yes. It’s a simple living and I joined the trend only recently, but I’m quite enjoying myself.”

“Well, I shouldn’t keep you outside like this; please allow me to show you into the castle.”

As Robin ushered Bart to the lord’s castle he couldn’t hide his delight.

‘It was worth spending all that money on this city. He would be so impressed when he sees what a magnificent job I’ve done with the lord’s castle.’

Looking around at the luxurious streets and the great palace at the pinnacle of the city’s extravagance, Bart nodded.

‘When this guy takes over the H group… I’m afraid it won’t be able to last long. This fellow will squander the whole company’s fortune in a day.’

From that day on, Robin treated Bart with utmost devotion. Whenever Bart brought some goods to the city, he purchased all of them, naturally with great prices, on top of all the necessary service he provided Bart with during every visit.

“I have arranged to build a house for you, Chairman Jeong.”

“A house? Just for me?”

“Yes. Just think of it as your vacation home and feel free to stay in it whenever you come to visit here.”

He had also obtained top-quality equipment and gears for a Merchant by staying up all night to search the auction site for equipment for different skills and levels, and purchasing the best possible pieces.

“This is a small token of my respect.”

“Why, thank you.”

Whenever he saw Bart happy, Robin’s delight became even greater.

‘I’m making a good impression to her father. All that remains is for Seoyoon to come to her senses, and all the conditions will be perfectly to my favor.’

Waiting patiently was a long and difficult task, but he was happy knowing that the person he was waiting for was Seoyoon. Meanwhile, he received the news that Weed was planning to fight against the Hermes Guild in the Garnav Plain.

‘Haha. Here is the solution. After he gets defeated by Bard Ray, she will finally return to me.’

Robin offered Bart to go and watch the battle in the Garnav Plain together.

“Yes. Let’s go.”

“By the way, sir, who do you think will be victorious this time?”

Even as he asked, he was confident that the Hermes Guild would win the battle. It would be another fantastic outcome if the Haven Empire gains control over the city of Aath once again.

Bart answered right away, as if it was quite obvious.

“Weed, of course.”

“Yes, Weed… Pardon?”

“I believe he will win. He is a man who knows how to create miracles.”

“…”

Robin could not stop his face from crumpling into an ugly grimace.

‘Is Mr. Jeong… no way, he can’t, can he?’

He tried to restrain himself, but another question was forming in his mind, and this time he was genuinely anxious to hear the answer.

‘Guess I’ll just have to be a man and ask him directly.’

Robin came to a firm resolution, and opened his mouth.

“About Seoyoon… Well, with all things considered, the most ideal partner for her would be… me, wouldn’t you think so?”

“Weed will be a good match.”

“…What?”

“The lad is the real deal. The more you come to know about him, the more you find out what a fine and honest young man he is.”

“…”

“I’m glad my daughter met him. They will make such a happy couple.”

Notes from the translator

[1]I’m not sure if ‘-goon’ is just part of his user name or if it is an honorific that is commonly used to address a young man. Any clarification would be appreciated.

[2]In the original text the word used here is actually ‘life’, but as the same word appears in the very next sentence it sounded very awkward when I used the direct translation, so I decided to change this sentence slightly.

[3]The direct translation would just be “for the Arpen Kingdom to advance towards the south”, but I changed the sentence a bit to make the context clearer. There are a few more sentences in this chapter that I have modified to convey the context of the text better, but feel free to let me know if you think this kind of translation is inappropriate.

[4]Here the original text only says ‘without end’. I wasn’t sure if it was the number of the orcs or the length of the road that was without end, so I just decided to stick to one of the possible interpretations.

[5]I was considering using the word ‘rogue’ instead of ‘thief’, but since the original text clearly says ‘thief’, I thought it would be better to just use the same word.

[6]Obviously Weed is not really a big brother of Petrov, and this is more of an affectionate t.i.tle indicating that he wants to be close to Weed, as Petrov seems to fancy Yurin).

[8]A sort of (usually spicy) instant noodle quite similar to j.a.panese Ramen. We usually just use the word ‘instant noodle’ or ‘Ramen’ for this food but I thought it would be more appropriate to use the proper Korean name here.

[9]The original Korean text only says ‘backstabber’ here, so I wasn’t sure if their job is professional betrayers or just muggers who steal people’s belongings after hitting them from the back. I decided that the second interpretation fits the whole context better, but it might turn out to be wrong later.

[10]The author is referring to a famous Korean adage that directly translates to something like ‘A person gets a stomachache (with jealousy) when a neighbor (or a relative) purchases a land, which has the same meaning as ‘An envious man grows lean with the fatness of his neighbor.’ In this case Weed is compared to the neighbor who purchased a land, seeing that he got the upper hand on the Shadows of the Earth party once again.

[11]Even though the Korean text says ‘next quest’, I’m suspecting that this is in fact the last stage before the foundation of the Palos Empire Weed has just mentioned. Since this can cause some confusion, I will change the word later to make it easier to understand.

[12]The original text just says that those seven lords had ‘become the worst villains’, but I thought this translation might fit the whole context better. Let me know if you would rather have me use the direct translation.

[13]The original text only says ‘a man of strength and fame’, but since Robin thinks that Weed won Seoyoon’s heart only because he is more successful in Royal Road than himself, along with the fact that Weed is (at least in the beginning) far from a strong and famous guy in real life, I think it would be better to clarify this point in this sentence.

[14]The original text actually refers to a ‘chaebol’, a large family owned business conglomerate found in South Korea. Should I use this word instead?

[15]I first considered using direct translation and write this sentence as ‘Chairman-nim’, but it just sounded too weird to my ears and I decided to use the surname of Seoyoon’s father.