“Hey, bring his child here.”
The Nakujuk brought a young boy in shackles. Jewel kicked the boy and waited.
“Huk, w-what is this…..?”
“Hahaha, didn’t I tell you? You can rest for one or even two days if you want. Instead, your son will take your spots.”
“Ack, Father!”
“S-stop! Please don’t. I’m going to work. So please stop….!”
The trainer screamed and grabbed Jewel’s pants, who then spat on him and muttered.
“Bah, how dare you ask for a break? If you act like this again then I won’t leave you son alone. Take his son away.”
“Huh? Yes!”
Even the Nakujuk was amazed at Jewel’s viciousness. However the other Hermes guild members just smirked and gave a thumbs up to Jewel.
“Oh Jewel, you really were a villain this time.”
“Huhuhu, I was still restraining myself.”
Ark was outraged while watching.
“A S (Sadist)? Did those guys open their eyes and became a S?’
Ark was not a messenger of justice. Ark was more irritated then sick whenever he saw news about people dying in terrorist attacks. But…..but this wasn’t right. Even if the people were NPCs, how could they behave like that with no hesitation? And to even laugh as the father and son were separated……
He wanted to run down there and punch them in the jaws. But the opponents were Jewel’s group and the 400 Nakujuk. In fact, the 400 Nakujuk weren’t a big problem. Ark had already killed more than 600 Nakujuk in the Abyss of Despair. Of course he couldn’t handle 400 at the same times, but if he planned it properly then he could kill 400 or 600 Nakujuk. But the problem was the combined power of the players and monsters coalition. It was impossible to use such plans against a user.
‘Unbelievable. It’ll be better if Jewel’s group wasn’t in the village……’
Ark was worried until he suddenly tilted his head to one side.
‘Wait, what on earth is Jewel’s purpose? Jewel and the Nakujuk wouldn’t be making them labour for no reason. So there must be some purpose….but what is it? Where are they moving stone and timber to? I suppose I’ll have to check it out.’
Ark walked along the outskirts of the village using ‘Shadow.’ After moving to the other side, he managed to see the problematic structure. It was a tower that was already 50% completed.
‘Eh? I’ve seen that structure somewhere before…..?’
Ark dug through his memories because there was a sudden flash. As expected, it was the tower in his memory. The tower seen at the Magic Institute in large cities on middle earth! Of course, it was a much smaller scale but the shape was approximately the same. An oddly shaped sphere was rotating with a hazy light around it at the top of the tower. Ark realised Jewel’s and the Nakujuk’s plot as soon as he saw the sphere.
‘That is the reception tower used for letter movement!’
That’s right. Jewel’s group was constructing a tower to receive letter movement. Letter movement was a spatial movement technique that the Magic Institute was still studying. It wasn’t something that users like Jewel’s group could make. Since their civilization was delayed, the Nakujuk wouldn’t have such knowledge either. So how the hell could they build a tower for letter movement? It was incomprehensible. But Ark could understand the reason for building it.
‘Oh my god, the Nakujuk are planning to conquer the Netherworld using the valley village as a base!’
Yes, that was the only reason he could think of. There was probably another reception tower in the Nakujuk’s kingdom. With the two reception towers, they wouldn’t have to march their troops through the northern mountains to reach the south. The Nakujuk could freely come to the south whenever they wanted. After occupying the valley village, they would spread through the south and the Baran clan wouldn’t be able to resist.
‘This problem might be worse than I thought.’
Ark’s face became serious. Jewel would never make the decision to ally with the Nakujuk alone. Raiden the leader of the Hermes Alliance would definitely be involved. It was a high possibility that they made a contract with the Nakujuk to conquer the Netherworld together. It would be impossible in middle-earth, but is such a thing was possible…..?
‘At present, there is no benefit to occupying a town in the Netherworld. But the Netherworld and middle earth is not completely disconnected. Although it would take some time, many users could enter with the passage I used.
So what if the Hermes Alliance decided to enter the Netherworld and conquer some towns? Clearly the Hermes Alliance would undergo an incredible growth in a short amount of time.
‘And all that power would be concentrated in Silvana.’
Ark knew about Nagaran’s current state through JusticeMan. The 5 alliances each occupying a castle had similar forces and held each other in check. If one of the alliances tried to grab more power than the other four alliances would ally together to stop them. But it was a different story if one alliance could hide the growth of its forces from the others. That was Raiden’s target. Hide in the Netherworld and conceal his strength. After raising it by a certain amount, return to Silvana and concentrate on conquering the rest of Nagaran. If the Hermes Alliance managed to take control of the Netherworld then that wouldn’t be a dream anymore. And the Hermes guild was his enemy so it was like a death sentence to Ark.
‘Oh my god, I wouldn’t be able to handle it alone!’
Ark’s face turned dark. If the Hermes guild had that kind of power then regaining Silvana was impossible for Ark. He would have to discard the secret tunnel in the dungeon and the two sets of books from the trading post. But was that all? The Hermes Alliance would spread throughout New World. They would have an influence in middle earth as well as the Netherworld. Ark would have no place to hide.
‘It’s the end if Jewel and the Nakujuk manage to conquer the Netherworld. I have to stop it somehow!’
But the opponent was the Hermes Alliance and the Nakujuk. The Hermes Alliance couldn’t leave Silvana empty so they couldn’t concentrate their energies on the Netherworld. But the Nakujuk had been aiming for the southern region for hundreds of years so they would use all their power. The Nakujuk were soldiers of a kingdom so they weren’t simple monsters. Didn’t that mean he would have to fight against a kingdom in the end?
‘This…..I can’t stop it….. I’m screwed…..’
Ark was feeling pessimistic. At that time, Bona’s words came to his head.
‘Wait? Didn’t Bona tell me Beseutyu wanted to escape to ask for help from the other Baran clans? That’s right, the Baran would definitely want to stop the Nakujuk from conquering the Netherworld. Although they are scattered, if the Baran knows about the situation then they might join forces to fight them.
Ark was thinking that when something interrupted. He suddenly heard Dedric’s desperate voice in his ear.
“M-master….. Nakujuk have detected the group…..hurry…… quickly……”
Since they were quite far apart, the communication wasn’t that great. However, he was able to understand the vague information. The Nakujuk chasing after Bona had probably discovered them. Ark felt his heart fall.
“Dammit. If Bona asks the other villages for help then it will be a big problem. Of course the Nakujuk wouldn’t easily give up on pursuing Bona. If I’d known in advance then I would’ve never left them……”
If Bona was captured by the Nakujuk then his one strand of hope would disappear. Ark hastily ran out of the village and shouted to Radun.
Ssak ssak? Ssak ssak ssak ssak!
Ark frantically rode Radun. Then he finally reached the forest near the hideout.
“Master…..this way….. Those guys are around…..be careful.”
Dedric’s voice was heard in the opposite direction of the hideout.
‘Fortunately they’re still not caught!’
Ark got off Radun, used ‘Shadow’ and followed the voice. He soon discovered Lariette and Bona hiding in some bushes on top of a hill.
“You’re safe.”
“Yes, but Buksil-nim is…..”
“Buksil?”
Ark noticed that Buksil wasn’t there. Then Lariette pointed down the hill with a dark look. Ark followed the finger with his eyes and frowned.
“That bastard…..!”