CHAPTER 25
Construction (3)
As soon as I started supplying arrows in real-time, Kim Ga-young fired them relentlessly without a moment's rest.
Now, she could shoot at will, even when it wasn't the optimal moment or a crucial situation that required support.
This was all thanks to a newly unlocked function after my Absolute Eye skill leveled up.
〔Multitasking〕
Allows the use of other skills within the area being observed by the Absolute Eye.
Since I could now 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 Homebound Absolute One's wallet.]
[You have hunted an Orc (Lv. 19).]
…
…
A flood of notifications reporting orc kills poured in like a string of sausages.
Every single one of them was Kim Ga-young's doing.
She was hunting orcs at a pace that far outstripped Ha Dong-gun's.
'…I didn't expect it to go this far.'
…
[Citizens Kim Ga-young, Ha Dong-gun, Kang Deok-su, Moon Byung-ho, Yoo Hye-rin, and Kim Geon have completed the quest.]
[2,332,580 KRW has been deducted for quest costs.]
The quest to hunt 100 orcs, which 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 killed more orcs than even Ha Dong-gun.
'Just supplying arrows makes such a difference.'
The higher the contribution, the greater the quest reward.
The reward for hunting 100 orcs was a massive amount of experience points.
…
[Citizen Kim Ga-young has leveled up.]
'Oh. Level up.'
For vassals, there were two main ways to level up.
One way was simply using money to level them up manually. The method was straightforward—just press the [+] button next to their level.
This method wasn't commonly used, but I had made an exception for Kim Ga-young, investing 5 million KRW to raise her to level 25.
Despite only awakening a C-rank ability, her hunting efficiency was incredibly high.
Of course, I wouldn't use 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 was way better through quests.
Here's how I figured it out.
A few days ago, I discovered that daily quest rewards were insanely valuable and started assigning three daily quests to all my vassals.
Then, on the second day—specifically, when Choi Hyung-jun completed his fifth Strength Training Quest—this notification popped up:
[Citizen Choi Hyung-jun has leveled up.]
Sure enough, his level had risen to 21.
…
'If I manually leveled him up with money, it would have cost 1 million KRW, but by assigning quests, I leveled him up in just five or six completions.'
When quest rewards included stat boosts, the actual cost per level-up was only around 100,000 KRW.
And depending on the difficulty and nature of the quest, that cost could decrease further.
In the end, I had leveled up Choi Hyung-jun for less than 300,000 KRW.
A 1 million KRW expense was reduced to 300,000 KRW.
…
Of course, from level 25 onward, things get tougher.
From level 25 to 30, each level-up required a staggering 10 million KRW.
Even with quest rewards, this would normally take a long time.
To match that 10-million-KRW value, I'd have to complete at least 100 quests.
However, after multiple experiments, I found a way to speed things up.
And the solution was incredibly simple.
'Just set better quest rewards.'
For example, by assigning a party quest with a reward of "a massive amount of experience points", I could see immediate results, even if it cost some money.
…
'And it only cost 2 million KRW this time.'
Ha Dong-gun's party had earned around 2.5 billion KRW from hunting 100 orcs.
Spending 2 million KRW was nothing in comparison.
The return on investment was many times over.
"Assign the same party quest again—Hunt 100 orcs."
I was willing to invest even more, but unfortunately, that wasn't an option.
'For now, this is the best I can do.'
I tried modifying the quest rewards by adding words like "immense," "tremendous," and "overwhelming," but they all defaulted back to "a massive amount of experience points."
So, at the moment, that was the best possible reward.
…
One more perk of using experience points as quest rewards was that stat growth varied by individual.
For instance, Kim Ga-young's dynamic vision and reflexes increased, while Ha Dong-gun's strength and endurance grew significantly.
Even without manually assigning stats, each person gained what they needed most.
That's why, unless there was a specific reason, I was choosing experience points as quest rewards.
'Too bad the only skills I can use with Multitasking are the Shop and Storage.'
If I could use Invisible Hand, I'd immediately send Ha Dong-gun's party to Nambumin-dong.
They had the power to take down a level 28 Crimson Tiger with ease.
Most monsters would probably fall under the Invisible Hand's control effortlessly.
However, the invisible hand was a skill that took root and extended from my body, so I couldn't use it.
'Still, hope is finally in sight.'
The distance from here to my family home was only about 10 km.
A walk of about three hours would be enough to get there.
Despite that, there was a simple reason why I couldn't assign a quest to them to save my parents.
Screech.
After handing Kim Ga-young a sufficient number of arrows, I shifted the Absolute Eye's perspective to the rooftop.
'…'
The top floor of a high-rise apartment built on the mountainside.
From such a high vantage point, I could see quite far.
Thanks to that, Seomyeon was visible at a glance from here.
Seomyeon, one of Busan's most bustling districts, was a lively place where young people gathered, tall buildings stood close together, and brilliant lights illuminated the night.
But now—
'It's devastating.'
That place was filled not with life but with death.
Even calling it hell wouldn't be enough.
The roads, once packed with cars, were now occupied by strange creatures instead. Black smoke billowed from various buildings.
Shattered glass windows.
Buildings with deep gouges in their sides.
A high-rise building, blackened and toppled over as if it had exploded.
Even if a war had broken out, the damage wouldn't be this bad.
Clench.
I already knew.
In this cursed world, the chances of my family surviving were close to zero.
'I have to hurry.'
Yet, I couldn't let go of hope. If I didn't do this—if I didn't believe they were still alive—
'There's no time.'
It felt as if everything could collapse at any moment.
'Should I at least send Hadonggeon's party?'
Three days ago, Kim Geon had met the requirements for vassal registration, allowing me to make Hadonggeon's entire party my vassals.
[Name: Kim Geon (Lv. 22) [+]]
Title: [Seventh Servant]
Trust: 59
Loyalty: 33
Awakening Ability: Crow Servant
★ Quest Assignment
Moreover, the skill Kim Geon had obtained was a C-rank ability that allowed him to control crows, making it extremely useful for reconnaissance.
His skill played a major role in sending Hadonggeon's party out to scout beyond the apartment complex.
'No, I should still wait until the team is fully assembled.'
My ideal composition included Hadonggeon's party along with the powerful bruiser Oh Eun-joo and the healer Kim Dajeong.
However, I had yet to win over Oh Eun-joo.
[Name: Oh Eun-joo (Lv. 33)]
Trust: 51
Loyalty: 12
Awakening Ability: Werebear
Experience Share: 70%
Reward Share: 30%
★ Quest Assignment ☐ Expel
Her loyalty was proving difficult to raise.
'Kim Dajeong, on the other hand, had been registered as a vassal right away.'
Unlike Oh Eun-joo, Kim Dajeong's trust had risen quickly from our very first meeting. She unlocked loyalty almost immediately, surpassing 30 as soon as it was available.
Thanks to that, I was able to register her as a vassal without any issues—and the results were excellent.
[Name: Kim Dajeong (Lv. 30) [+]]
Title: [Eighth Servant] [Knight] [Priest]
Trust: 70
Loyalty: 63
Awakening Abilities: Heal, Blessing, Magic Armor
Experience Share: 100%
★ Quest Assignment
Blessing (A-rank)
Consumes mental energy to temporarily increase the target's physical abilities by 70%.
Magic Armor (B-rank)
Consumes mental energy to generate a magical armor that protects the target.
She had even awakened two additional skills.
That was exactly why I wanted her in the group.
If she could cast Blessing and Magic Armor on Hadonggeon, he could overwhelm most monsters with ease.
'There's no doubt—people who awaken abilities from the start are significantly more efficient.'
This was why I was so determined to make Oh Eun-joo my vassal.
She had awakened an A-rank ability.
If I could register her, the benefits would be immense.
With Oh Eun-joo as a vassal and part of Hadonggeon's party, reaching my family home—just 10 km away—would be a simple task.
'There has to be a way to raise Oh Eun-joo's loyalty.'
The reason I was so obsessed with vassal registration was simple: I needed to be prepared in case something went wrong.
If all the party members being dispatched were vassals, then even if something happened, they could simply use vassal summoning.
He didn't want anyone to die.
'As expected, there's no other way but that to raise Oh Won-joo's loyalty.'
At that moment—
[Citizen Oh Won-joo has completed a quest.]
It was the notification he had been waiting for.
She had completed a quest to hunt 100 goblins.
This was already her second quest today, meaning she had slain a total of 200 goblins in a single day.
Her obsession with goblins remained unchanged.
'The last quest for today is…'
Thanks to the efforts of Hadong-gun's party, his wallet had grown considerably thick.
A hefty sum of 3.7 billion won had piled up.
And it was still increasing in real time.
Maybe… it could be possible.
'Quest reward: Son's resurrection.'
The quest was set to involve rescuing his parents in Nambu Mindong.
However—
[Insufficient funds to grant the quest reward: Resurrection.]
[Please increase your available cash and try again.]
A notification popped up immediately, as if to say it was completely out of the question.
'…Hmm.'
This was already within his expectations.
'Let's maximize the quest difficulty.'
The important thing was to show Oh Won-joo the possibility of resurrection.
'Quest objective: Hunt a level 40+ monster.'
She hadn't even hunted a level 30 monster yet.
A level 40 monster would be incredibly powerful, and the reward would be equally immense.
Since hunting such a creature was the condition, the quest difficulty was already sky-high.
On top of that—
'Time limit: 24 hours.'
Just finding a level 40 monster would be difficult.
Finding and defeating one within a day would be even harder.
'The penalty…'
He hesitated for a moment before setting this.
Even if he could cancel the quest at will, the mere content of it felt unsettling.
If he handled this poorly, the trust he had built up could crumble.
Even so—
'I have to show her the possibility first.'
That was the only way to raise Oh Won-joo's loyalty.
'Penalty: Death.'
This was the most extreme quest condition he could think of in the current situation.
Ding!
[Insufficient funds to grant the quest reward: Resurrection.]
[Please increase your available cash and try again.]
But nothing changed.
'So even 4 billion won isn't enough?'
He had somewhat expected this.
A human life wasn't something that could be restored for a few billion won.
This was an issue of great importance to him.
The moment he discovered the resurrection function, he had already considered the worst-case scenario—using it to save his family.
"…Phew."
At that moment—
[You have hunted an Orc (Lv. 18).]
[You have gained experience points.]
[2,788,221 won has been deposited into the Absolute Ruler's Wallet.]
Hadong-gun's party was still hunting orcs.
Suddenly, he recalled the party quest he had assigned to them.
And then—
"Ah…?"
He realized something important.
'If that's the case!'
He immediately applied the idea.
'Quest reward: Son's resurrection for one day!'
And then—
Ding!
"Quest Assigned"
Quest Objective: Hunt a level 40+ monster (0/1)
Time Limit: 24 hours 00 minutes 00 seconds
Reward: Son's resurrection for one day.
Failure Penalty: Death.
[Do you wish to assign this quest?]
[Yes / No]
It worked.
This meant that if the resurrection was limited to a single day, it could be managed within a 4 billion won budget.
'Is Oh Won-joo worth investing 4 billion won in?'
There was no need to think long.
The value of an A-rank skill was undeniable.
Moreover, if an awakened individual was registered as a vassal, the efficiency would triple.
'And if she manages to hunt a level 40+ monster…'
Even monsters below level 30 were dropping close to a billion won.
Higher-level monsters would undoubtedly yield even greater earnings.
'First, I need to bring Oh Won-joo to my side.'
Just showing her a glimmer of hope.
Call it selfishness, call it demonic.
None of that mattered.
Saving his family was far more important.
"Assign the quest."
And a few minutes later—
Thud, thud, thud—
Something was rushing up the stairs with a battle-like intensity.
It stopped in front of his apartment door and pounded against it.
Boom—!
Rather than knocking, it was more like a full-body slam.
Beyond the door, Oh Won-joo's urgent voice called out.
"Hey! Please! Open the door! Jaehyun!"
Click.
As soon as the door opened, she stumbled inside, gasping for breath.
"Huff, huff…"
Oh Won-joo stared straight at him and asked,
"This… this is…?!"
"That's right. There's a time limit, but it seems possible."
"Sniff—! Thank you. Even if it's just for a day… If I can see my son again…"
Oh Won-joo collapsed on the spot, as if her legs had given out.
[Citizen Oh Won-joo's loyalty has surpassed 30.]
[Citizen Oh Won-joo has met the conditions for vassal registration.]