[V50C1P1] Time Sculpting

– A battle that will determine the fate of the Versailles Continent!

– The beginning of a great war in the Garnav Plain.

– Royal Road: Will we watch the rise of the emperor who will unite the whole continent?

– In 15 days, more than a billion people go to war.

The news of a head-on match between Weed and the Hermes Guild became the headlines of various broadcasting channels. Through crystal b.a.l.l.s or on TV, people could watch the sight of the great number of users from both the Northern and Central Continents gathering in the Garnav Plain.

“I’ve come to fight for the Arpen Kingdom. Once the battle begins, I’ll throw my life into it.”

“I might be a mere sparrow, *tweet!*, but with these wings, there is no place I cannot go!”

“Have a bowl of gra.s.s porridge, people!”

There were numerous users having an interview with broadcasting stations, and large bonfires were made in the Garnav Plain.

“Will Weed-nim really fight against Bard Ray?”

“There will be a full-frontal battle with all the users in the field joining in… I wonder if there will be a chance for them to meet each other in person?”

“I hope there will. But isn’t a one-on-one fight going to be very disadvantageous for a sculptor?”

“Well, he has become master sculptor and now he got the new profession as a Necromancer, so I don’t think that would be a problem.”

“But Necromancer isn’t exactly a good profession for fighting alone, is it?”

“Hmm, that’s true.”

From the very beginning of Royal Road, Bard Ray had reigned as the most powerful user of the game, and had been the owner of the nickname ‘the G.o.d of War’. On the other hand, his opponent was the person who, with the profession of a sculptor, had earned great fame by accomplis.h.i.+ng a number of almost miracle-like quests, and who had raised the small and insignificant village of Morata into a kingdom that currently dominated the entire Northern Continent. There were so many users who were looking forward to the epic fight between the two most iconic players of Royal Road.

“Weed-nim will win.”

“Yes. However the situation may turn out to be, we can trust Weed-nim.”

“Impossible? That is one word that is not in Weed-nim’s vocabulary. There hasn’t been a single easy task in his path of life up until now.”

“He is a legend. A legend!”

The number of users who supported Weed was simply overwhelming, not only because of the sympathy they felt for the relatively weaker of the two, but also because of the many great achievements Weed had attained to date.

However Weed, the center of all that antic.i.p.ation and attention, was currently devising a terrible and devious scheme with his living sculptures.

“I just can’t fight this fair and square. Do you know why people use cheap tricks? It is because they are effective!”

“Moooo….!”

“Golgolgol[1] !”

The various sculptural lifeforms, Yellowy and Geumini among them, cheered enthusiastically in response; flattery was a virtue these living sculptures had had to learn, as fate had dictated that they had to serve under such an ill-tempered master.

“I can’t help but feel that we’ve met the wrong master. Golgol.”

“If it weren’t for my honor as a knight… I would leave to seek my freedom.”

“Would it be so difficult to just make me a crown, for all the hard work I’ve done? My Ice Breath attack has become quite good now, too…”

For the battle of the Garnav Plain, all the sculptures that had been the subjects of Weed’s constant bullying were a.s.sembled together. Each of them was a force to be reckoned with in any battlefield, including Bahamorg, the warrior of blood and iron.

– Kuuuaaarggh!!

– *Blaaaaze*

King Hydra gave out a great roar as he shook his three snake-like heads, and Phoenix let its flaming feathers fly in all directions like falling snow. Binryong, Deathworm, Imugi and Fire Giant were all creating a very imposing picture just by standing there, due to their enormous sizes.

However, even at this splendid sight of the legion of sculptural lifeforms, Weed was still rather doubtful of their power.

“Sure, these guys are strong, but they wouldn’t be able to hold off even just one Legion of the Hermes Guild Army by themselves.”

Not that his sculptural creatures were incompetent, but the power of the Hermes Guild was simply too great. While it was true that Weed and his living sculptures had spent a long time improving their skills and strength through much effort, the Hermes Guild had just as much time to grow their forces and influence as they dominated the core regions of the Continent. At the time when Weed first started the game in the Rosenheim Kingdom, he wouldn’t even have been able to imagine that he would, one day, fight against this very Hermes Guild.

“They eventually managed to kill even Bar Khan himself; I cannot finish this war with these creatures alone.”

However, a well-devised trick had a power to reverse the disadvantageous situation in a dramatic way. Among many world-famous wars in history, it was easy to find a case in which a few tricks completely changed the outcome of a battle. How awestruck Weed had been, reading the stories about those genius strategists.

‘That is some remarkable cleverness.’

To be perfectly frank, Weed knew that he did not belong to this sort of brilliant strategist type, and that was all the more reason why he needed an appropriate trick to overcome the many obstacles.

‘When there’s a person with a great talent, I’ll just have to make the best use of their talent; just as what I did with Hestiger.’

He had drawn a big picture in his mind which had been conceived based on his Resurrection Sculpting skill — this meant that there would be yet another historical figure revived by his hands.

Weed spoke in a deep, solemn voice.

“My subjects, have you ever heard of the age during which every sculptural lifeform enjoyed peace and prosperity, under the reign of the great emperor who led the art of sculpting to the path of glory?”

Golden Bird, which had been drowsing, raised its head, its sleek and sparkling feathers giving off a spark of brilliance.

“Geihar von Arpen!”

“Yes. Golden Bird may remember. There once was a glorious age when the great living sculptures united this entire land, and commanded respect from every other species of the world.”

The emperor who united the Versailles Continent for the first time in history: Geihar von Arpen. Surprisingly enough, he was a sculptor and this great achievement of unifying the whole continent had been possible through the collective power of the sculptural creatures that he created.

‘Just by imagining it I can see it must have been an extremely difficult task. How effectively he must have sweated his sculptural servants! The extent of exploitation involved must be difficult to even fathom.’

A legendary exploiter whose equal would not be easily found in history books; in a certain sense, this emperor sounded more like a successful slave trader.

Weed made a declaration in front of the sculptures gathering around him.

“I shall once again create a world in which every sculptural lifeform can live as a proper slav- I mean, live with happiness and dignity. Your task is to find other sculptural lifeforms scattered across the entire continent. Through this war, I will turn this world into a place for them!”

Wyverns and other creatures that were capable of flying soared high into the sky and flew away. Deathworm, Fire Giant, Cerberus, Seville, Eltin and Gernika all turned around and began to march as well, each of them showing off their majestic appearance to match their power as a boss-level monster that could dominate the entire region.

“Farewell, master. Mooo.”

“I wish you luck. I promise to bring any sculptural lifeforms I can find. Golgol.”

However, just as Yellowy, Gumini, White Tiger, Nile the giant crocodile and Countryside Snake[2] were about to leave like the others, Weed stopped them.

“Hey, I need you guys to stay here with me.”

“Squeak!”

Countryside Snake rolled its eyes apprehensively, and just when the rest of the sculptures that had been left behind began to regret not having been quick enough to move away before they were caught, Weed used a skill.

“Travel Sculpting!”

< The Travel Sculpting skill that transcends time and s.p.a.ce has been used. >

A portal consisting of thousands of rays of light opened up. It was an advanced Time Sculpting technique which allowed the user to travel into a past moment in history.

“You guys will come with me.”

“Do we really have to, master?”

Yellowy asked Weed as it looked up at him with its innocent eyes.

“You don’t want to go there? Well, since I respect your free will I’ll give you two options.”

“Thank you, master.”

“Either you get beaten up first and go, or just go without complaining.”

“…”

The crime was theirs for having met the wrong master. Weed put Geumini and Yellowy through the portal one after the other. The next moment, Pale, Irene, Romuna, Surka and Zephyr arrived through Yurin’s Picture Teleportation — the top elite members for an adventure. Maylon couldn’t join them, as she was busy at work with broadcasting the war between Weed and the Hermes Guild.

“Let’s go.”

Weed directed his comrades towards the portal so that they could go before him. It was a natural precaution, in case any of them would take their chance and run off. The closer you are to a person, the more vigilant you need to be not to let your guard down in front of them.

***

Pale renewed his resolution right before stepping through the portal.

‘I am a battle slave; I have no concept of an ego!’

He was determined to do nothing but hunting for the 15 long days.

‘I just need to take it simple. After 15 days, I can be free. At least there’s some hope here.’

Zephyr was finding the whole situation quite odd.

‘So these are the members for a hunt? And even Weed-nim’s sister has joined us this time?’

He had been intending to flee right away if Yurin hadn’t been there. In order to avoid Weed’s grasp, he had even learned some diving technique as part of his profession as a fisherman; Weed wouldn’t be able to call him to a hunt when he was deep under the sea.

‘Considering that Yurin’s here… this might just be a quest rather than a hunt. Then it shouldn’t be too difficult, should it?’

On the other hand, even after so many experiences of being exploited by Weed, Surka was still her naïve and innocent self.

‘He said we are going to have an interesting journey, that we are going to see and experience many wonderful things…’

In a way, Surka was the one who had the most positive, prejudice-free opinion of Weed among them.

‘His lips were dry when he said that. It wasn’t a lie![3] ’

She was certain that Weed had been honest, at least for this time.

Irene trusted Weed without a single shred of doubt. He asked her to join him to this adventure, so she followed him willingly: her skills would be needed more if there were a lot of heated battles involved.

The first thing Weed and his companions saw when they stepped out of the portal was a view that was so magnificent it made their jaws drop.

“Wow…”

“Ah…”

“This is great!”

“…”

Beautiful birds in hundreds of different colors were flying in the clear, blue sky. In the green field bloomed many flowers, and there were life forms of b.u.t.terflies and bees with markings they had never seen before. In a plain further away, other life forms similar to water buffalos, horses and elephants were wandering about lazily.

“Mooo.”

Yellowy and other living sculptures that had arrived before Weed’s party were also appreciating the scenery. Such a peaceful, pretty sight; the herbivores were leisurely grazing in the field, tending to their young. Just looking at it put a smile on their faces and relieved their stress.

Pale asked Weed hesitantly.

“Weed-nim, do we have to… kill those things this time?”

Each of Weed’s companions here was a seasoned hunter, but they all looked reluctant to wipe out the creatures in this place. Weed scanned the animals with his sharp eyes.

“They’ve got some nice hide. Bones look quite solid, too… I’d say they’ll make fine materials for smithing, not to mention carving.”

*Gasp*

“I’m joking. For now, let’s just enjoy this great view for some time. I’ll cook some food for you.”

“What? You haven’t even licked your lips before lying like that this time[4] …”

“I’m not lying.”

Weed took out his cooking tools and started a fire. Using a frying pan, he made some simple sandwiches and gimbap[5] . Surka also picked a few fruits and made fresh juice out of them.

“My, they look delicious!”

As Irene clapped in delight, curious animals began to gather around them, cute things like rabbits, deer and kangaroos that didn’t avoid them even in the presence of Countryside Snake and Nile the crocodile. Yellowy already had his eye on a female buffalo and was sitting beside her.

Pale and Zephyr were both feeling fearful.

“He’s already feeding us so well this early in the journey… how hard is he going to drive us this time?”

“I think we’ll all have to brace ourselves for at least a couple of deaths each.”

They had never seen Weed do anything for them without getting something in return. But even as they solidified their resolve once more, they couldn’t help but enjoy the landscape surrounding them.

“The atmosphere here is really nice.”

“I feel so content as if I just stepped into paradise. All of my fatigue that has been acc.u.mulating is gone, too.”

A cozy place for a rest, deep within the heart of the nature.

In actuality, the Versailles Continent was a place for people who wanted to live their life as they chose. Weed spent his entire time on adventures and hunting, going from a dungeon on one day to a hunting ground on another, but that was not the only correct way of life; even if one decided to while away their life building a cabin and looking at the calm blue sea, there was n.o.body who would judge them.

“Here, take your time to enjoy the food.”

“Okay.”

“I will.”

Once they had decided to embrace the death that may come later, Pale and Zephyr had regained their calm. Weed usually finished his meal so quickly that other people had difficulties keeping up with his eating speed, but right now he was extremely relaxed as if he had just had a bowl of Ramyun with some additional steamed rice.

‘Looks like we’re really going to die in this quest. Maybe he’ll offer me as a living sacrifice this time.’

‘Right. What kind of boss monster is he going to defeat this time? I guess it can be counted as an honor to join him.’

After they finished the meal, they followed Weed to take a walk across the field. Soon they arrived at a nearby hill where cool breezes greeted them. Beyond it, a vast emerald sea and coral reefs stretched out far and wide.

“Wooow.”

“This is incredible.”

–

You have arrived at one of the unexplored lands of the world.

–

The discovery of The Wulhoff Reef!

It was the largest coral reef of the Continent, spreading over the distance of 876 kilometers from the Strait of Rudin to the Alcard Sea. The depth of water ranged from 3 meters to maximum 80 meters, and it was home to 600 species of corals and 1,890 species of various sea creatures. As one of the Nine Unexplored Lands of the Versailles Continent, numerous adventurers had hoped to find this place since the early days.

—————————————————————————————

– Your adventure has earned you 6,940 points of fame.

– Your level has increased.

– You have discovered a historical region. Your Knowledge and Wisdom have increased by 10 points each as a result of this special experience.

– The wonderful scenery has increased your Art stat by 8 points.

– You will obtain additional rewards for reporting the rare discoveries.

—————————————————————————————

“Huh…”

“We’ve even leveled up. By G.o.ds…”

All they had done was to walk a little with Weed’s guidance, yet the amount of fame and experience points they earned was enormous. The field of coral reefs seen through the clear sea was beautiful beyond belief; the colors of the ocean made them stare at it blankly on and on, not even caring to take time to check all the message windows popping up.

At that instant, something burst upward from the sea.

– Foooo!

A blue dolphin broke the surface and leaped up, then disappeared again.

(Continued on next chapter…)

Clarifications and questions from the translator

[1]At first I thought this was a sound made by a purring cat and translated accordingly, but later I realized that this is most probably the sound made by Gumini, or Gold Man.

[2]I looked up the LMS Wiki page to use the proper names for Weed’s sculptural creatures, and found it very interesting that this creature’s name was translated as Countryside Snake, because its original name in Korean actually means “Country Mouse”, as in the tale “The City Mouse and the Country Mouse.” I’m a.s.suming this translation is because the species of the creature is in fact a snake. Just something that I thought I should point out.

[3]There is a Korean expression that is directly translated as something like “At least lick your lips before lying.” which is often used to tell off people who lie through their teeth. Surka’s logic here is that since his lips were dry when he said this things to her, he didn’t lick them before speaking, and therefore he was being honest.

[4]Another reference to the same expression explained above.

[5]A very popular Korean dish that is made by rolling steamed rice (bap) and other ingredients in a sheet of dried seaweed (gim). This dish is most commonly prepared for a picnic.

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[V50C1P2] Time Sculpting

< You have found a Rainbow Dolphin.

A magical species of dolphin whose body color changes with temperature and sunlight; Rainbow Dolphins are highly intelligent and capable of communication with humans, and their kind was called a treasure among all sea creatures. There is also a mysterious rumor which claims that if you follow the track of this playful dolphin, you can find a grave of black pearls.

– Your fame has increased by 1,308 points.

– Your Luck stat has increased by 2 points.>

___________________________

“*Squeal*! My Goodness, this is… the prettiest place I have ever seen in my whole life!”

Irene was even having tears in her eyes as the unexpected rush of awe overwhelmed her.

“Huh… I’ve never dreamed that such a site would exist. It’s amazing.”

Pale started to cry as well; something about this place made them feel the deep joy of life.

“Moooo. I fancy some sea mustard. [aka Wakame, a sea vegetable, or edible seaweed.]”

“I like rivers. It’s hard to swim in a sea.”

Yellowy and Nile the crocodile complained, but that was not enough to break the mesmerized mood shared by the party.

“Let’s have a cup of coffee while we’re here, shall we?”

“Sure.”

Weed and his companions sat in a line on the back of Nile and enjoyed the peaceful coffee time. The view of the vast sea lay before them, and the coffee from Morata was warm in their mouth. Yellowy put its front legs comfortably on Nile’s tail while chewing a bunch of gra.s.s.

“Now, what do we have to do?”

When his cup was empty, Pale asked Weed gravely. He was prepared to throw away even his own life, as he was only too familiar with the level of danger involved in Weed’s adventures through first-hand experience.

Weed stretched himself lazily.

“Whatever you want to do.”

“…Pardon?”

“Just take as much rest as you want here. Maybe do some fis.h.i.+ng, or swim in the sea. I’ll throw a small barbeque party in the evening so come and join me if possible.”

“What on earth are you saying?”

Pale’s eyes were wide open with amazement. A doubtful thought crossed Zephyr’s and Irene’s minds as well.

‘He must be lying.’

‘When a person changes so dramatically all of a sudden… could it be?’

Weed went on, still looking extremely relaxed.

“Don’t you think a person needs to have a break once in a while in their life? This is a vacation, so to say.”

“…”

The companions were rather apprehensive as the person who spoke that line was none other than Weed, but soon they decided to accept the situation and enjoy themselves.

‘Alright. If this is time to have some fun, then I shall have some fun, even if I’ll die later.’

‘This place is paradise. I’ll just think that I’ve come here in the afterlife. That’s not too bad.’

***

A dreamlike vacation in the great coral reef!

The video of Weed and his companions enjoying their little break was broadcast live right in that evening by various stations.

“The sea looks so gorgeous. That place truly deserves to be called a heaven on earth.”

“It seems that the suns.h.i.+ne and the view of the sea alone are enough to relieve people’s stress. Staying in a place like that even just for an hour would in itself be some great life experience…”

“Oh, look, Weed-nim just picked a fruit from a tree. How tasty it must be, especially when eating it in such a lovely place!”

The staff members of the broadcasting companies couldn’t hide their envious admiration as they watched the transmitted live footages.

The sea creatures didn’t show any hostility towards humans, and they even came along to mix themselves freely among the adventures. Pale and Zephyr were enjoying water sports as they rode on the back of the dolphins, and the sight of Nile the giant crocodile attempting to overcome the challenge of sea swimming was also quite fun to watch in its own way.

– Just look at that landscape. That’s some crazy stuff.

– Wow… I want to go and have some fun like them, too.

– An incredible vacation that will leave a lifelong memory.

– I want to have a break in that place, just for a day.

– Look at Weed dive in the sea and catch a lobster. That thing’s almost as big as a man!

– Just roast it over a fire and you have the epitome of delicacies.

Comments from the viewers that were full of envy and awe were being posted nearly in real time, but there were also quite a few people who raised some questions.

– Can they really afford such a leisurely break when there’s a crucial battle coming that might determine the fate of the whole Versailles Continent?

– Where is that place anyway? I’m a sailor, and I have never seen nor heard about such a location before.

– You wouldn’t miss a big coral reef like that even if you were just pa.s.sing by in a s.h.i.+p. It just doesn’t make sense that such a high-quality landscape hasn’t been known to anyone until now.

Numerous users said that they would love to visit the place in person after watching the video of Weed and his companions taking a break, yet there was no one who claimed that they had actually been to that site before. Then one user posted a comment.

– Isn’t that Shelgium? The coastal features look quite similar to those in Shelgium.

– No way! I once stayed in the Tartan Island for more than five months, and I know that’s not the same place.

– I think it is, though. There’s even a silhouette of an island in the distance.

– I’m currently working as a geography professor, and I think this is a highly probable conjecture, judging by the soil structure and the plants species seen in the land as well as the amount of sunlight.

– I’m a merchant specialized in marine transportation. In the video you can see those gold-colored turtles, right? I don’t know much in detail about them but I do know that in the sea north of Shelgium there are a lot of turtles that have gold markings in their sh.e.l.ls.

– But the sea itself looks completely different, so how could it be…?

A serious investigation was taking place among the viewers, with the inputs of experts from all walks of life as they always appeared whenever there was a heated argument between the users. Reflecting the popularity of Royal Road and Weed, many world-cla.s.s scholars and professionals a.n.a.lyzed the videos from every broadcasting station at 0.1 second intervals. The broadcasting companies in turn relayed their progress back to the viewers as though they were also quite enjoying this whole situation. Among the staff members of those companies was a female employee of KMC Media named Noh Yeon-Hye, who happened to know Irene’s Kakaotalk[1] email address as she had to send the appearance fee to her.

– Irene-nim, where exactly is the place you are currently in?

Immediately after sending this message without much prior thought she realized that she might have made a mistake by asking such a question, but a response came right away.

– We’re in the Wulhoff Reef, that is, north of Shelgium!

– Huh?! You sure you can just tell me your location like that?

– Sure. Weed-nim said it’s hardly a secret.

– Then why didn’t he say anything about it to us from the beginning…? When we bought the broadcasting right he only said that it’s going to be some epic adventure, so we were just doing our broadcast based on that…

When dealing with the broadcasting stations, Weed had spoken very few words.

“I’m going on an adventure. And I will not take any questions. So, are you going to buy this broadcasting right or not?”

He had decided that the two essential elements that could increase his worth were mysterious att.i.tude and power tripping.

– He said no one had asked him about it so he just didn’t bother to say anything. He told me to let you all know in his stead.

– So, can we put this info on the air?

– Yeah, it really doesn’t matter.

– But, wow… why does the landscape look so different?

Noh Yeon-Hye started walking as she typed in more messages with her trembling fingers. In just a couple of minutes, this new information she obtained would be pa.s.sed to hundreds of millions of people through broadcast.

– That’s because we travelled in time far back into the past. The Wulhoff Reef is to be destroyed due to the invasion of some monsters, and Weed-nim is going to stop that event.

– I see. So you hadn’t been planning on just taking a break in that place after all.

– I suppose not.

– I guess the scale of the battle would be quite large as well?

– Apparently there will be tens of millions of monsters swarming in.

– What? How are you going to stop them all just by yourselves? Of course, I don’t mean to belittle your capabilities, but still…

Noh Yeon-Hye burst open the door of the studio which had been in the middle of a live broadcast, and rushed inside.

“Hey, this is a live show-”

“I know. Just look at this, quick!”

Oh Joo Wan and other guests were engulfed by astonishment when they read the text messages in Noh Yeon-Hye’s phone.

“They are from Irene-nim!”

“Breaking news; the information regarding their current location is being revealed right now!”

Experts from around the world had been arguing and a.n.a.lyzing the given data for hours, while just a few text messages contained the answer to every question they had. On top of that, there were still more messages coming from Irene.

– This is the Arpen Empire — that is, we have travelled back in time to the age when Geihar von Arpen is still alive and has united the Versailles Continent for the first time ever.

“The Arpen Empire, not Kingdom?”

“That’s the name of the empire that appears in history books[2] .”

“And the legendary historical figure — Geihar von Arpen!”

– You mean you’ve travelled to the real Arpen Empire that once existed in history?

– Yep. Golden Bird told us some stories; according to him, after the Arpen Empire united the Continent, some oceanic monsters surged in.

– I see. The damage they caused must have been devastating.

– Yes. The sculptural creatures managed to stop them from hitting the land, but the sea was completely destroyed.

“Sculptural creatures?”

“Why would there be sculptural creatures in those days?”

The guest stars in the studio were also quite fascinated by the truth that was gradually unfolding before them one fact after the other. The camera had already zoomed into Noh Yeon-Hye’s mobile phone screen, so that all the viewers could read the messages as well.

– How did the sculptural creatures stop the monsters? In fact, why were they there in the first place?

-The sculptural creatures? Weed-nim says that Geihar von Arpen was in fact a sculptor himself.

– A sculptor?

“The emperor’s profession was sculptor?”

“More importantly, he was a real person and not just a mythical figure? His name is hardly mentioned in history books.”

“There have been a lot of conflicting opinions about Geihar von Arpen the Emperor… A few of them did claim that he would have been a monster summoner or a sculptor.”

“If Weed-nim said so, I suppose that’s the truth.”

They didn’t even need any second opinion from experts and scholars: on matters of Royal Road, Weed’s word was law and truth, because there was simply no existing user who had had such a wide variety of adventures as him.

“So that’s why Weed-nim chose to become a sculptor.”

“I knew it. Even back then he was able to see that there’s something special about that profession.”

“It certainly was a bit odd. I mean, nowadays most people have come to know about the potential power of a sculptor because of Weed-nim, but at first there were loads of people who simply couldn’t understand his choice.”

“Yeah, and that sentiment was even more common among the former users of Continent of Magic.”

– It’s not going to be just us and Weed-nim fighting when a war breaks out against the monsters invading from the sea. We would be joined by the Arpen Emperor and the countless number of living sculptures.

– Wooow. That sounds amazing.

– Yes. And Weed-nim also added that there’s something we need to do that is the most important.”

– And what is that?

– He said flattering the Arpen Emperor would be almost as important as winning this battle.

– Flatter? Why would you need flattery?

– I don’t know the exact reason myself. But he said that it would be our core strategy for this adventure…

As various broadcasting stations began their live coverage, the viewers were on the brink of starting a riot. The Haven Empire and the Arpen Kingdom — the audience’s interest in the war whose outcome would hold the key to the fate of the Versailles Continent was naturally very high. Most users were planning to go online on the day of the battle or watch the broadcast, but something felt different.

– I think Weed-nim is about to set off something huge.

– Just giving an adequate fight is not Weed-nim’s way. I think he’s secretly preparing a great blow behind his back.

– The Hermes Guild would be too preoccupied with thoughts of fight and war to even dream of such a trick, with their Steel Knights and whatnot.

– Well, to be frank we don’t know what exactly Weed will do either.

– But don’t we all agree that he will win this, at any rate?

– Of course!

– It’s occasions like these that really make me feel that Weed doesn’t just rely on the Gra.s.s Porridge Cult’s power.

– The Gra.s.s Porridge Cult is merely another creation of Weed-nim. We need to get our facts straight: about half of the users of Royal Road are having such a great life thanks to Weed-nim.

– I know, right?! If it hadn’t been for Weed-nim, we would all have been slaves.

– Yeah, there’s good reason why so many people chant ‘Gra.s.s Porridge, Gra.s.s Porridge’.

As a natural course of event, the senior executives of the broadcasting stations were facing a very urgent situation. They had 14 days left until the battle in the Garnav Plain; after securing the broadcasting right, they had been making preparations and promoting their upcoming programs at leisure, when suddenly Weed was going on an adventure. In addition to that, there were hints of him coming up with some big plan, which was driving the viewers crazy with antic.i.p.ation.

In the office building of every major broadcasting company an urgent meeting was called which was attended by the president and board of directors.

“We need to get Weed on our side[3] .”

“I agree. The question is, what conditions would we need to provide to him in order to do that?”

“Slip a blank check in his hand if necessary. Or we can give him a deluxe car and build him a mansion that will make his jaw drop. This is a chance for us to take advantage of the fact that our station is an affiliated company of a chaebol group[4] .”

“I’ve heard he loves to own lands, so we could buy him some.”

“In terms of land category, he’s said to prefer built-up areas to forest lands. It’s said that he is especially interested in shopping districts.”

“But don’t you think this kind of investment is a bit too risky, when we haven’t even checked all the facts yet? I myself am feeling rather worried…”

“What if Weed manages to take hold of the whole Versailles Continent? By then we wouldn’t even be able to meet him so easily even if we brought him piles of money.”

Each of the broadcasting stations held a meeting separately, but eventually every company reached a similar conclusion: get Weed!

The war in the Garnav Plain was drawing near, and whichever side that wins the battle and secures dominance over the Versailles Continent will exercise absolute influence on Royal Road. Each broadcasting station was preparing itself for that time, but now they were unable to stop their moves as Weed’s adventure was being broadcast in real time.

(Continued on next chapter…)

Notes from the translator

[1]The name of a very popular messenger app among Koreans.

[2]I noticed that in some other previous chapters I have translated there are some more mentions of these ‘history books’ and I’m beginning to wonder if there is some sort of a famous and unique ‘History Book’ in the game’s lore that serves as an official record of Royal Road. Any clarification regarding this issue would be appreciated.

[3]The original sentence in Korean is simply translated as “Get Weed” and I decided that I need to add some of my own interpretation to make the context clearer. To be honest I’m still not sure what exactly these broadcasting stations are trying to achieve here; my guess is that they are trying to get on the good side of Weed so that they will enjoy some benefits when Weed takes over the whole continent.

[4]A family-owned business conglomerate most commonly found in Korea. I was wondering whether I need to use the direct Korean term or just replace it with ‘conglomerate’, and decided that it might be more appropriate to use the Korean term.