Emerald Castle
All new characters start the game as commoners.
And, well, everyone knows what that means.
Basically, cannon fodder.
Heroes, on the other hand? Even the lowest-tier white Common heroes are considered nobility in the Eight Great Duchies.
The gap between nobles and commoners is obvious—no need to spell it out.
As a noble hero, you get a ton of perks and privileges.
The most important one early on? Every month, on Recruitment Day, you get five free recruitment slots for Tier 3 units at the city's recruitment center.
Sure, it's just the right to recruit them—you still have to pay the resources—but come on, that's a huge advantage!
The moment you have Tier 3 units, even just a handful, the major factions will be lining up to recruit you.
And this isn't a one-time thing—it's a steady, ongoing benefit.
Over time, those units will add up, becoming a crucial resource for growth!
On top of that, becoming a hero means you get a hero skill.
Hero skills are a game-changer.
Not only that, but heroes have way better base stats than commoners. Their growth potential is also much higher.
Meanwhile, commoners? They're basically blank slates. Zeroes across the board. You could grab a handful of them, and they'd all be the same.
So getting promoted to a white Common hero right from the start? That's like winning the lottery!
A massive head start.
No wonder Ethan was so excited.
"Knew it! Travelers always get perks! This has to be my newbie gift pack, right? Sure, it looks a little 'basic,' but hey, I'll take it! Heh… Hahaha!" Ethan grinned like a guy who just got a free meal and was still pretending to complain about it.
He wasn't expecting some overpowered cheat that could instantly dominate the world. Just getting this was already amazing…
At that moment, the system voice chimed in again.
"Vanguard Knight 'Valkarion,' please select your starting location, or choose random."
"Unicorn Duchy, Winterkeep."
Ethan didn't hesitate—he immediately picked Winterkeep, where his sister was.
The Unicorn Duchy was a powerful ducal kingdom, ruling over countless fiefs—knights' holdings, baronies, viscountcies, counties, marquisates, and so on.
Winterkeep was the Viscountcy of Viscount Winter, a noble of the Unicorn Duchy.
It wasn't as grand as the major county or marquisate capitals, but it was still a decent place.
A solid starting point for a newcomer without much power.
Plus, it was one of the officially designated gathering spots for players in the Boston region.
"Starting location set: Unicorn Duchy, Winterkeep. Beginning descent… Beep! Error detected. Player possesses the aura of an Ultimate Unit—Green Dragon. Adapting… Generating a Rampart faction castle! Vanguard Knight 'Valkarion,' please name your castle!"
"…A c-castle?!"
Ethan was completely stunned, staring blankly at the system prompt.
Did he hear that right?
A castle?!
A full-fledged faction castle?!
Out of the billions of players worldwide, not a single one had their own faction castle!
This was insane!
Was he dreaming?!
Wait… what's this about the Ultimate Unit Green Dragon's aura?
Wait… don't tell me I brought those two Green Dragons I recruited in the previous world with me?!
Ethan was completely dumbfounded.
Ethan was double dumbfounded.
Ethan was triple dumbfounded…
By the end of it, Ethan's entire face was just one big expression of shock!
But at the same time, an overwhelming surge of joy and excitement started bubbling up inside him, impossible to suppress.
His whole body trembled—he was beyond thrilled!
Forget about whether the dragons were green or not for now.
This was a faction castle! The first one in the entire world! If he managed to claim it, then in a way, before he even properly entered the game, he'd already be the number one player globally!
With a faction castle backing him up, who could possibly compete with him? He'd be unstoppable!
"Please name your castle!"
The system's voice rang out again, urging Ethan to decide.
"Green, green, green… Let's go with Emerald Castle!"
"Castle name confirmed… Rampart faction castle, Emerald Castle. Castle level: 1. Spawn location: Unicorn Duchy, specific coordinates randomized. Confirm?"
Phew…
Ethan took a deep breath and said, "Confirm!"
"Emerald Castle spawn location randomizing… Emerald Castle spawn location set! Final location: Unicorn Duchy, Sylvanwood, Verdant Ravine…"
"Game login initializing…"
"Login complete!"
At the same time, a brand-new character panel appeared in front of Ethan.
[Valkarion]
Race: Half-Human, Half-Elf (Reincarnation Possible)
Class: Vanguard Knight
Nobility Rank: Noble (Hero)
Hero Tier: White (Common Hero)
Level: 1 (Max: 40. Can reach 60 after reincarnation. Gains 1 attribute point per level, which can be allocated to the four core stats.)
HP: 15
Damage: 2~4
Attack: 4 (Boosts army attack power, increasing damage)
Defense: 2 (Boosts army defense, reducing damage taken)
Power: 1 (Enhances magic damage, improves spell effects and duration)
Knowledge: 0 (Determines max mana; 1 Knowledge = +10 Mana)
Artifacts: None
Resources: None
Troops: None
Hero Skill: Luck's Favor (Level 1)
This was Ethan's starting character panel.
Compared to his previous state, where every single stat was a miserable zero, this was a night-and-day difference!