CHAPTER 57
Savior (5)
As always, after enduring constant pain, the monsters within my domain were turned into experience points, and citizenship was granted to the people.
This time, instead of an extension of the foundational structure, the level-up expanded the dome-shaped area, significantly increasing the territory of my annex.
So far, everything followed the usual leveling-up process.
However, there was one difference.
[A dungeon has been discovered.]
[You are the first to discover this dungeon.]
[You have received 100 crystals as a reward.]
A dungeon had appeared within the newly expanded area.
'Receiving crystals as a reward must mean that this place is somehow related to them.'
The dungeon was located on the mid-slope of Hwangryeong Mountain, behind an apartment complex.
'I should send Lee Jun-hyuk's party.'
If I made a contract of subordination with him and his party members, their combined strength would be more than sufficient.
With the territory now expanded, the rescue team's operational radius was also fully included within my domain, eliminating the need to keep a hunting team stationed with them.
Using the Eye of the Absolute, I observed Lee Jun-hyuk's party.
They were spread out across an alleyway, exuding an atmosphere as if their battle had abruptly ended.
Since they were now within my expanded domain, the monsters they were fighting had likely been wiped out by my influence.
I spoke to the bewildered Lee Jun-hyuk.
[Jun-hyuk, gather your party members and come find me.]
"Yes, understood."
Without questioning, Lee Jun-hyuk quickly gathered his party members and began heading back to the apartment complex.
As I monitored their movements, I also kept an eye on Ha Dong-gun's party.
However, there was no need for my intervention.
Having grown significantly stronger, Ha Dong-gun's party could now handle hordes of monsters on their own.
Furthermore, they had already eliminated the Twin-Headed Ogre, the dominant boss of that area, making everything afterward proceed smoothly.
Before long, Ha Dong-gun's party approached an apartment complex.
I could see the brand name of the complex where Ha Dong-gun, Kang Deok-soo, and Kim Geon's families were supposedly staying.
They had already arrived at their destination.
However—
"Chwiik!"
The moment they stepped into the apartment entrance, they were not greeted by survivors but by a horde of jet-black-skinned orcs.
These were nothing like ordinary orcs.
Unlike the orcs at Jeonpo Station, who only carried glaives, these creatures wielded an array of unique weapons.
Spears, bows, swords, sabers, hammers, axes—
Their diverse weaponry, along with the crimson tattoos covering their entire bodies, made it clear at a glance that these were no ordinary monsters.
Moreover, their levels—
「Black Orc (Lv. 31)」
Even the weakest among them was in the low 30s, stronger than the orc chief at Jeonpo Station.
「Black Orc Warrior (Lv. 35)」
The armored orcs were even more formidable.
And worst of all—
"Chwiik?"
"Chwiik!"
Their numbers were still increasing.
Dozens of them were pouring out of the underground parking lot right in front of the main entrance.
The implication was obvious.
Crack.
It meant that there were likely no survivors left in this place.
And that also meant Ha Dong-gun, Kang Deok-soo, and Kim Geon's families had probably been slaughtered by these creatures.
"Rise!"
At Kang Deok-soo's furious command, ten knights of steel emerged.
"Slaughter them all!"
The knights carried out their orders with precision.
Slash!
Bravely charging forward, the knights swung their halberds at the Black Orcs.
"Khwek!"
[You have slain a Black Orc (Lv. 31).]
[You have slain a Black Orc (Lv. 32).]
Their valiant charge yielded results—they managed to take down two of the lower-ranked orcs.
However—
"Chwiik!"
Crash! Crack!
The Black Orc Warriors swiftly overwhelmed them.
While the knights' halberds failed to penetrate their armor, the Black Orc Warriors' attacks easily crushed the silver armor of the knights.
A completely different outcome from previous battles.
It was undeniable proof of how powerful these monsters were.
No wonder this area was unusually devoid of other monsters.
It seemed strange that none of the numerous sea monsters could be seen anywhere near here, but it turned out they had all been hunted down by those things.
After an exchange of attacks, the Steel Knight Order and the orc horde remained tense, warily keeping each other in check.
Then, it happened.
BOOM!
A spear infused with dark energy struck the center of the orc formation, causing a massive explosion.
Ha Dong-gun watched the scene with an indifferent gaze and murmured quietly.
***
"Battle commence."
With the explosion signaling the start of the battle, chaos erupted.
As expected, the most aggressive combatants were Ha Dong-gun, Kang Deok-su, and Kim Geon.
Bang!
Kim Geon's handgun continuously spat fire, while the steel knights, even as their armor was dented and torn, swung their halberds. Meanwhile, Ha Dong-gun, unsatisfied with just throwing spears, charged directly at the orc horde.
"Blessing!"
At that moment, Kim Da-jeong's blessing enveloped Ha Dong-gun's body.
It wasn't just reckless fury driving his actions.
The Black Orcs were naturally high-level and agile. They dodged every spear he threw, preventing him from inflicting significant damage, so he had no choice but to engage them directly.
Clang!
At the same time, Ha Dong-gun made full use of the steel knights summoned by Kang Deok-su.
Exploiting the distractions caused by their aggression, he steadily increased his kill count.
A Black Orc's side exploded in a burst of dark energy.
[You have hunted a Black Orc (Lv. 31).]
[You have gained experience points.]
[731,093,221 won has been deposited into the Absolute Ruler's Wallet.]
Having reached level 38 through continuous hunting, Ha Dong-gun displayed movements befitting his rank.
Moreover, with the power of trust and the Baron-grade buffs, his physical abilities were exponentially enhanced.
The low-ranked Black Orcs had no chance of holding out against him.
"Grrr!"
Elsewhere, Oh Won-joo rampaged, supported by the covering fire of Kim Ga-young, Kim Geon, and Moon Byeong-ho. With such overwhelming firepower, Ha Dong-gun's party clearly dominated the Black Orcs.
However.
Clang!
"Tch."
When not just the grunt orcs but the warrior-class ones started stepping in, the previously one-sided battle began to shift.
'Summon Storage—Warhead.'
Whoosh!
Though my assistance helped them escape danger at crucial moments, the fact that they needed my intervention meant they were constantly walking a tightrope.
Eventually—
Slash!
A chilling sound rang out as Ha Dong-gun's right shoulder was deeply cut.
"Urgh."
Despite doing his best, the numerical disadvantage was undeniable.
Blocking one attack left him exposed to another from a different angle.
"Heal!"
Kim Da-jeong's healing kicked in immediately, restoring his wounds, but the outlook for the battle was far from optimistic.
Orcs kept pouring out endlessly from the underground parking lot.
Even after killing a dozen, even more took their place.
And the weapons they wielded weren't just swords and spears.
Swoosh! Thud!
"Aaaah! Da-jeong!"
An orc's arrow pierced the weakest member of Ha Dong-gun's party—Kim Da-jeong—straight through the stomach.
With the arrow lodged in her body, healing magic was useless.
This meant that from now on, they could no longer rely on Kim Da-jeong's healing.
Oh Won-joo, with his natural regenerative ability, might be able to endure for a while, but Ha Dong-gun could not.
And if Ha Dong-gun was forced out of combat due to his injuries, the balance of the fight would tip drastically.
This battle had been doomed from the very start.
If they were going to escape, this was their last chance.
However, Ha Dong-geon couldn't easily give the order.
"Uaaaagh!"
Seeing such a desperate sight, something he would never normally show, made my heart ache.
It would have been the right decision to order a retreat, but I couldn't bring myself to say it. I, too, shared in their fury.
So instead, I chose to empower them.
'Ha Dong-geon, level up. To level 40.'
The cost to level up from 35 to 40 was 1 billion won.
He had been at level 38, so I spent 2 billion won to push him to level 40.
At the same time—
'Kim Geon, level up. Kang Deok-soo, level up.'
Both Kim Geon and Kang Deok-soo, who had been at level 32, were forcefully raised to level 40.
More than 10 billion won was spent, but it didn't matter.
The Ha Dong-geon party had already earned more than that, and hunting down those damn Black Orcs would bring in even more.
"Rise!"
Immediately, Kang Deok-soo's skill transformed.
The number of Steel Knights he could summon jumped from 10 to 30 in an instant, and their movements became as agile as their new level demanded.
Clang!
"Squeal?"
Their armor had also strengthened.
Slash!
The weaklings who had previously been shattered by the Orc Warriors were now overwhelming their enemies instead.
Thirty Steel Knights spread Kang Deok-soo's wrath in every direction.
[You have hunted a Black Orc Warrior (Lv. 35).]
[You have gained experience points.]
[1,023,322,854 won has been deposited into the Absolute Tyrant's wallet.]
Kim Geon's crows also began to change.
Caw!
They flew menacingly, focusing on the Orcs armed with bows.
Their sharp talons and beaks tore into the enemy.
The Orc Archers, who had been targeting Kim Da-jung, were now forced to aim their arrows at the crows threatening them instead.
During that time—
Swoosh!
Kim Ga-young's Light Arrow pierced through a Black Orc Archer's head.
'How's Kim Da-jung? Can she return to the front line?'
Thanks to Kim Ga-young's help, Kim Da-jung barely managed to pull out an arrow and clutched her stomach, panting heavily.
It seemed she had no energy left to heal herself.
'Kim Da-jung, quest granted. Quest reward: full recovery.'
As soon as I assigned the blank quest, the reward was applied.
[Citizen Kim Da-jung has completed the quest.]
[100,000,000 won has been deducted.]
Kim Da-jung, who had been healing herself, fully recovered.
At the same time—
'Kim Ga-young, Moon Byung-ho, Kim Da-jung, level up.'
The rest of the party members were also raised to level 40.
Another 10 billion won was spent, but it was worth every bit.
Bang!
Moon Byung-ho, who had appeared suddenly, blew an Orc Archer's head off.
[You have hunted a Black Orc Archer (Lv. 36).]
[You have gained experience points.]
[1,243,234,460 won has been deposited into the Absolute Tyrant's wallet.]
Even more money was pouring in. There was no time to regret the expenses when the Ha Dong-geon party was performing so well.
'If that's the case…'
The money they had earned so far had been used to expand their territory, support electricity, gas, and water for the people, and construct new facilities.
But at least for now, wouldn't it be okay to use the funds earned here for the Ha Dong-geon party?
The three most effective fighters against the Black Orcs were—
'Ha Dong-geon, Oh Won-joo, Kang Deok-soo—raise them to level 45.'
Oh Won-joo, who had been at level 44, required 3 billion won.
Ha Dong-geon and Kang Deok-soo, who had just reached level 40, needed a total investment of 15 billion won.
Level 45.
That put them on the same level as the Twin-Headed Ogre they had encountered earlier.
Now, there were three of those monsters on their side.
As they rampaged, the Orcs began to die in droves.
"Kwaaaagh!"
"Kiiiek!"
"Screeee!"
Cornered, the Orcs started their last desperate struggle.
The tattoos covering their bodies emitted a red glow, and their muscles swelled to the point of almost bursting.
Only Orc Warriors could unlock the power hidden in their tattoos.
"Gruuugh!"
[Black Orc Warrior (Lv. 37)]
Their levels were rising in real-time.
But—
Splat!
The tip of Ha Dong-geon's spear, wreathed in black energy, stabbed through an Orc's armor and exploded, blowing its head off.
[You have hunted a Black Orc Warrior (Lv. 37).]
[You have gained experience points.]
[1,323,546,574 won has been deposited into the Absolute Tyrant's wallet.]
Thirty Steel Knights moved systematically, cutting down the rampaging Orcs.
"Grkkk!"
Crunch!
Oh Won-joo, with his enhanced physical strength, was ripping through the Orcs' armor with his bare hands.
No one in the Ha Dong-geon party was kind enough to wait for the Orcs to finish their awakening.
Moments later—
Only the Ha Dong-geon party remained standing on the battlefield.
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