CHAPTER 26

Construction (4)

Strange rumors were spreading among the survivors.

The rumor was that when you killed a goblin, money would appear.

***

[You have hunted a Goblin (Lv. 7).]

[You have gained experience.]

[1,024 KRW has been deposited into Citizen Kim Minho's wallet.]

***

'…It's real?'

Kim Minho had taken a few days off from hunting to clean up his wrecked home and rest. He hadn't expected such a change to occur during that time.

Just as he was lost in thought, a goblin was creeping up behind him.

Screeech— Thud!

The ambush was thwarted as an arrow pierced through the goblin's temple.

The shooter, Moon Haeri, shouted at Kim Minho.

"Kim! Focus!"

"S-Sorry!"

Snapping back to reality, Minho tightened his grip on his spear.

'First, I need to focus on the battle.'

This place wasn't like the apartment safe zone, where they could exploit tricks to hunt.

If he let his guard down, he'd end up as a goblin's prey.

Some goblins even wielded dangerous weapons like kitchen knives or awls, making them even more lethal.

Minho had already fallen victim to such goblins a few times and had to rely on Kim Dajeong for help.

***

[You have hunted a Goblin (Lv. 7).]

[You have gained experience.]

[1,033 KRW has been deposited into Citizen Kim Minho's wallet.]

***

Their hunting party consisted of only three people, but their skill level was high.

Moon Haeri, a former national team athlete, and Nam Jiho, an ex-special forces soldier, had exceptional archery skills.

Even from the very first hunt, taking down a few goblins was an easy feat.

With the added support of bows and spears provided by Kim Jaehyun at the start, their combat efficiency was undeniable.

By shooting arrows from a distance, they could eliminate at least six goblins before engaging in close combat, making the hunts significantly easier.

Nam Jiho was also incredibly skilled with a spear, handling close-range combat with goblins effortlessly.

At first, he practically wiped out entire groups of goblins on his own.

'They're on a whole different level compared to a musclehead like me.'

Of course, Minho hadn't just been working out aimlessly—he was quickly adapting to combat.

As he became more proficient with the spear, the three of them could now take down groups of a dozen or more goblins without any trouble.

***

"Phew. Good work, everyone."

"You too, Minho~ Hoho."

Minho turned to his party members.

"Did you see that? We actually get money from killing goblins."

"Yeah. The notification for goblin kills and experience was always there, but money appearing is new. We've made about 5,000 won so far… Hey, how much do you have?"

"6,000 won."

"Wow! That means we've made over 10,000 won together!"

Haeri seemed to find amusement in the small amounts of money appearing each time they killed a goblin.

Minho pondered aloud.

"But… what can we even use this money for?"

"Who knows?"

Nam Jiho casually remarked,

"I saw something being built on the first floor."

"Oh! I saw that too! Maybe we'll be able to buy things?"

Haeri looked excited, but Minho wasn't particularly hopeful.

After all, their current living conditions were already quite comfortable.

His and Jiho's families had been the first to reach the milestone of killing 100 goblins, earning them full support from Kim Jaehyun.

With electricity, water, and gas now available, they were able to live normally in their homes. They even received supplies like eggs and milk, ensuring they had plenty to eat.

They hardly needed money.

And yet—

"Hoho, why don't we try to make a ton of money today?"

"Sounds good."

"Having money can't hurt, after all."

The goblins' small cash drops ignited a hunger for more hunting.

And it wasn't just Minho's party that felt this way.

People who had previously lost interest in goblin hunting after completing the basic 10-kill quest were suddenly getting back into it.

The real spark, however, came when a mysterious store appeared on the apartment's first floor.

***

I focused my gaze intently.

At that moment—

Crackle— Zap!

Sparks flickered in midair.

'It worked. Now, next…'

I shifted my focus to the bathroom tub, channeling my energy.

And then—

Gurgle—

A droplet of water formed out of thin air, gathered into a large mass, and fell straight into the bathtub.

Splash! Ssshhh—

Success again.

'I'm getting used to this now.'

It wasn't a newly awakened skill.

This was purely an ability for maintaining dignity.

'I feel like a wizard.'

Though, it was a wizard who used money instead of mana.

'For now, I've definitely mastered electricity, water, and gas.'

Supplying electricity, water, and gas was originally part of a massive national infrastructure.

But when monsters appeared and the system collapsed, those resources were no longer available.

However, by using my dignity-maintenance skill, I could supply electricity and water anywhere within my home—no, within the declared territory of my household.

I could create them.

Naturally, I reached the conclusion that I could generate electricity, gas, and water within my domain, and after some practice, I became able to do so consciously.

'Phew.'

Just then—

[The daily revenue of the store has been settled.]

[320,981 won has been deposited into the Wallet of the Absolute Ruler of the Household.]

A 20% profit margin alone brought in 320,000 won.

That meant the total sales of the store for the day had exceeded 1.5 million won.

Which, of course, meant that many citizens were actively hunting monsters, earning money, and purchasing goods from the store.

I immediately used the Absolute Ruler's Eye to check on the store.

I spotted citizens shopping there.

"Hey, how much more do we need to save up?"

"This bow costs 150,000 won, and we've gathered about 10,000 won today, so… around 15 days?"

"You idiot! Did you forget we need to buy water and ramen for those 15 days?"

"Ugh, if you're so smart, why don't you do the math yourself, bro?"

Most of the purchases were essentials—water, ramen, and soda.

However, some were eyeing bows and spears, determined to go hunting.

'Who knew just distributing settlement money would change the atmosphere this much?'

Was it because they were so used to capitalism?

Once they had personal wealth, citizens voluntarily began hunting goblins, and now, a week later, goblins had practically disappeared from the apartment complex.

At this point, they had to venture outside the residential area to find more goblins.

'Leveling up is going smoothly too.'

Since reaching Level 11 in the Declared Household Territory, the entire underground parking lot had become part of my domain.

But in the process, fewer than ten goblins had been killed—proof that goblins in this area had been completely wiped out.

Now, there were effectively no goblins left within the first apartment complex.

'The number of citizens joining has increased significantly, too.'

Current Population: (789 / 11,000)

Bonus Experience: +100%

Bonus Settlement Funds: +100%

As goblins disappeared due to citizen activity, many who had been hiding indoors finally joined us.

The initial policy of offering electricity, water, and gas in exchange for accepting ten survivors had worked brilliantly, causing the population to skyrocket.

'At this rate, it'll keep increasing exponentially.'

Fortunately, reaching Level 10 had expanded the population cap to 10,000, meaning we could accommodate many more people for now.

'At the very least, we can take in all the survivors in this apartment complex.'

The only disappointment was that not a single newcomer had an awakened ability.

Out of the hundreds of new citizens, not even one had awakened powers.

That only proved how rare Awakened individuals were.

'Going forward, I should prioritize recruiting Awakened ones as my retainers.'

Ha Dong-gun's party could be considered a special case.

Among the countless survivors within the apartment complex, they were the only ones who ventured outside to hunt goblins.

They were early members who joined when no data was available.

At the beginning, rapidly increasing the number of vassals was advantageous.

Due to these circumstances aligning, all the party members were accepted as vassals.

'It's no longer urgent.'

There were only a few slots left for vassal registration.

Unlike ordinary citizens, even the actively hunting teams like Kim Min-ho's and Baek Seung-yeop's had no intention of recruiting vassals.

This was because they had painfully realized the stark difference between those with awakened abilities and those without.

[You have hunted an Orc (Lv. 18).]

[You have gained experience points.]

[₩1,243,817 has been deposited into the Absolute Overlord's Wallet.]

'It's starting again.'

I shifted my gaze from observing the citizens to Ha Dong-gun's party.

The first thing that caught my eye was a bear dashing through the subway station.

Even in the dark underground, the surroundings were illuminated by the bright light radiating from the bear's body.

The bear charged straight into a group of orcs and sank its teeth into one of their throats.

"Squeeeaak!"

With a sound like a pig being slaughtered, an orc collapsed.

The fate of the other orcs was similar.

They had no chance to swing their glaives properly before their lives were taken.

Crunch!

In an instant, the bear had slaughtered seven orcs, its eyes glowing an intense red.

"Huff, huff."

The bear, visibly excited, took deep breaths as its body gradually shrank, transforming into a human.

"Eon-joo unni!"

Kim Da-jeong ran over and greeted Oh Eon-joo warmly.

"Are you okay? You're not hurt, right?"

"I'm fine. Even if I get injured, it's nothing."

Kim Ga-young, who had followed, shook her head in amazement.

"You're incredible, unni. We never even get a turn to fight."

"Sorry for hogging everything. I have my reasons."

"Huh? Why would you be sorry, unni? Thanks to you, we're safe and comfortable."

Oh Eon-joo only responded with a cryptic smile.

She was obsessively hunting monsters for my sake.

I had told her that resurrection required a certain amount of energy, and she was actively gathering it.

Thanks to her, the orcs swarming Jeonpo Station had significantly decreased.

My current balance was a staggering 3.1 billion won.

If conditions were right, I could reward Oh Eon-joo right away.

'Recruiting Oh Eon-joo and Kim Da-jeong was the right decision.'

Their synergy was astounding.

They had grown close while living together, which made their teamwork seamless.

Oh Eon-joo, rampaging under Kim Da-jeong's blessing, was a sight to behold.

'Amazing.'

Even the muscular orcs were nothing more than helpless lambs before her.

'Well, given her stats, it makes sense.'

『Name: Oh Eon-joo (Lv. 40) [+]

Title: [Ninth Species] [Knight] [Warrior]

Trust: 66

Loyalty: 66

Awakened Abilities: Werebear, Ancient Vitality, Berserk

EXP Distribution Rate: 200%

★ Quest Assignment』

{Warrior}

Melee attacks are 50% stronger.

 Ancient Vitality(A-Rank)

Regeneration speed drastically increases as injuries accumulate.

Berserk (S-Rank)

Seeing blood turns the eyes red, increasing physical abilities by 300%.

She started at level 40.

On top of that, the new titles and awakened abilities she gained as a vassal created an overpowered synergy.

When she transformed into a beast and activated Berserk, her physical abilities multiplied several times.

With Kim Da-jeong's blessing added, she became an absolute monster.

That's why she could crush a group of level 18 orcs like insects.

Then, it happened.

"Grrraaaaah—!"

A monstrous roar echoed from the subway entrance.

'That…?'

The creature had a more aggressive physique than regular orcs, wielding a polearm with a blade wider than a typical glaive—more like a crescent halberd.

It was immediately clear that this was the orcs' leader.

The orc warriors returning with him were just as formidable.

Their eyes burned with fury and bloodlust.

"Grrrrr—"

Just as the orc chieftain was about to punish the intruders with a murderous glare—

"Chwik?"

Oh Eon-joo, glowing from head to toe, charged at him.

The orc chieftain frowned and raised his weapon at the sight of a frail-looking, unarmed woman.

But then—

Crunch—

"!!"

Startled by her sudden growth and monstrous aura, he instinctively stepped back.

In the next instant—

Crack!

Oh Eon-joo's arm shot forward, piercing deep into the orc's chest.

[You have hunted an Orc Chieftain (Lv. 28).]

[You have gained experience points.]

[₩73,263,099 has been deposited into the Absolute Overlord's Wallet.]

Immediately afterward—

[Citizen Oh Eon-joo has slain the ruler of 'Jeonpo Station.']

[Conditions met.]

['Forward Base' is now available for construction.]

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