CHAPTER 25

Construction (3) 

As soon as I started supplying arrows in real time, Kim Ga-young began shooting relentlessly without a break.

Now, she could fire at will, not just at the optimal moment or when absolutely necessary.

This was all thanks to a new feature that appeared when the Eyes of the Absolute skill leveled up.

[Multitasking]

I could now use other skills in the areas I observed through the Eyes of the Absolute.

With the ability to supply arrows in real-time through the shop, Kim Ga-young's influence had multiplied.

[You have hunted an Orc (Lv. 19).]

[You have gained experience points.]

[2,100,338 KRW has been deposited into the Homebody Absolute's wallet.]

[You have hunted an Orc (Lv. 19).]

...

...

Notifications about orc kills poured in like a string of sausages.

And they were all thanks to Kim Ga-young.

She was taking down more orcs than Ha Dong-geon himself.

'…I didn't expect it to go this far.'

[Citizens Kim Ga-young, Ha Dong-geon, Kang Deok-su, Moon Byung-ho, Yoo Hye-rin, and Kim Geon have completed the quest.]

[Quest expenses: 2,332,580 KRW deducted.]

The "Hunt 100 Orcs" quest I had just assigned was completed in no time.

'Kim Ga-young ranked first in contribution?'

When a party quest is completed, the names appear in order of contribution.

That meant Kim Ga-young had hunted more orcs than Ha Dong-geon.

'Just supplying arrows changes the entire picture.'

Higher contribution meant greater rewards from the quest.

The reward for hunting 100 orcs was "a large amount of experience points."

[Citizen Kim Ga-young has leveled up.]

'Oh. A level up.'

For vassals, there were two main ways to level up.

One was to simply spend money to increase their level—an easy method, as all I had to do was press the [+] button next to their level.

Normally, I didn't use this method much, but I had invested 5 million won to raise Kim Ga-young to level 25.

Despite having only awakened a C-rank ability, her hunting efficiency was incredibly high.

Of course, I wouldn't be using this method much going forward.

I had found a far more efficient way.

'You can level up by increasing stats or gaining experience points through quest rewards.'

And the efficiency of this method was much better.

I had discovered this a few days ago.

After realizing that daily quest bonus rewards were incredibly useful, I had been assigning and completing three daily quests for each vassal.

Then, on the second day—specifically, when Choi Hyung-joon completed his fifth Strength quest—an unexpected notification appeared.

[Citizen Choi Hyung-joon has leveled up.]

I checked, and sure enough, Choi Hyung-joon's level had increased to 21.

'It costs 1 million won to level up directly, but using quest assignments, I can achieve the same result in about five or six quests.'

If I assigned a stat-boosting quest, the actual cost would be around 100,000 won.

Depending on the quest's difficulty and content, the cost could even be reduced further.

In the end, I had leveled up Choi Hyung-joon for less than 300,000 won.

100 million won had been reduced to 300,000 won.

However, level 25 and beyond is a different story.

From level 25 to 30, leveling up costs 10 million won per level.

Even with quest rewards, it would still take a long time to make up for that cost.

To match the value of 10 million won, I would need to complete at least 100 quests.

However, through various experiments, I found a way to shorten the time.

And the method was simple.

'Offer better quest rewards.'

Like this party quest, where I set the reward as "a large amount of experience points."

It required some investment, but the results were immediate.

'And it only cost me 2 million won.'

Ha Dong-geon's party had earned about 2.5 billion won from hunting 100 orcs.

Spending 2 million won was a negligible expense.

The efficiency far outweighed the cost.

"Assign the same party quest again. Hunt 100 orcs."

I was willing to invest more, but unfortunately, that wasn't possible.

'This is the best I can do right now.'

I had tried adding modifiers like "immense," "huge," or "overwhelming" to the experience reward, but all of them were converted into "a large amount of experience points."

For now, "a large amount of experience points" was the best possible option.

Another benefit of setting quest rewards as experience points was that the stats increased differently depending on the person.

For example, Kim Ga-young's dynamic vision and reflexes increased.

Meanwhile, Ha Dong-geon's strength and stamina grew rapidly.

Even without manually assigning stat growth, each individual's most needed attributes improved.

That was why, unless there was a specific reason, I always chose experience points as the quest reward.

'It's a shame that only the shop and warehouse can be used with Multitasking.'

If I could use Invisible Hand, I would have immediately sent Ha Dong-geon's party to Nam-Bumin-dong.

Their strength was enough to easily subdue a Level 28 Red Tiger.

Most monsters would likely be defenseless against Invisible Hand.

However, since the skill extended from my body, I couldn't use it remotely.

'Still, I'm starting to see hope.'

The distance to my family home was only about 10 kilometers.

A three-hour walk would be enough to get there.

Yet, I hadn't been able to assign a quest to rescue my parents.

The reason was simple.

Swoosh—

After giving Kim Ga-young a fresh supply of arrows, I shifted the perspective of the Eyes of the Absolute to the rooftop.

'…'

Atop a high-rise apartment built on a mountainside, I had a clear view of the city.

From here, Seomyeon was visible in a single glance.

Seomyeon—one of Busan's busiest districts.

Normally, it was a lively place filled with young people, glittering neon lights, and tall buildings standing close together.

But now...

'It's devastating.'

Instead of being filled with life, it was a graveyard.

Even the word "hell" wasn't enough to describe it.

The roads, once packed with cars, were now overrun by strange creatures.

Black smoke rose from buildings in every direction.

Shattered windows.

Skyscrapers with their sides caved in.

A high-rise, charred and collapsed, as if an explosion had occurred.

Even in a war zone, things wouldn't be this bad.

Clench.

I knew.

In this damned world, the chances of my family surviving were close to zero.

'I have to hurry.'

Still, I couldn't let go of hope.

Because if I did, if I stopped believing my parents were alive…

'I don't have time.'

Because it felt like everything would collapse if I hesitated.

'Should I at least send Ha Dong-geon's party?'

I hesitated.

And then—

A realization struck me.

"Ah…?"

This could work.