Chapter 192

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 192: The Seven Lords (5)

The Red Flag flutters everywhere.

This was also the case in District 1 of the Heavenly City.

“…So, my brother is dead? By a mere mongrel?”

Blood Wolf Lupus growled, having seen the urgently submitted report.

A crimson haze rose above the giant werewolf, who was well over 5 meters tall.

“Did they not know he was my brother?”

“…They say they knew.”

“And yet this Kim Minwoo killed my kin.”

Blood Wolf sneered.

“Ermian. Though incompetent, he was my brother. A blood relative who shared the same blood, and a loyal subordinate who raised the flag with me.”

“…”

“Do you think I should just let this go?”

“Blood Wolf, the Demonic Cult’s momentum is fierce. We cannot withdraw from District 1 now.”

“Damn that Ghostly Butterfly, why did she suddenly create a group…”

They were too close to the Red Flag’s territory to withdraw.

It was a situation where they had to fight, whether they liked it or not.

“If you move now, you’ll have to make major concessions to the Demonic Cult. It’s the worst possible outcome to suffer such a loss just to catch a single human from District 9.”

“Hmm…”

Although Lupus was known for his short temper, he could still distinguish between feces and soybean paste without having to taste them.

After a moment of contemplation, he spoke.

“So, what do you propose? If we leave him alone, he’ll surely climb up and muddy the waters.”

“But we can’t use a butcher’s knife to kill a rat. It just so happens that District 6 has some spare manpower. We’ll mobilize the branch there…”

It was then.

A subordinate rushed into Lupus’ office.

“B-Big trouble! The Shadow Guild has moved!”

“Moved? How?”

“They’ve completely withdrawn from our protected areas. Seeing as their members are moving towards the Demonic Cult, it seems they’ve joined forces with them!”

“…What? Why would they do that?”

“W-We’re still looking into it…”

Lupus furrowed his brow.

Although there were countless conflicts and battles in District 1, the Shadow Guild had maintained neutrality as an information guild. But why would they suddenly tip the scales to one side?

It wasn’t as if they had a major grudge against the Shadow Guild.

Looking down on information brokers was something that any upper-tier guild would do.

“Damn it!”

Bang!

Lupus slammed his fist down on the table.

The table, made of adamantium alloy, known for its durability, instantly split in two.

“Those vermin dared to declare war on us…”

This was practically a declaration of war. Lupus’ eyes flashed.

“What guts they have. The newly established Demonic Cult doesn’t even have branches in the lower districts.”

The Red Guild, on the other hand, was different.

From District 9 to District 1.

They had guild branches established.

No, District 9 ‘had’ one. For a long time, but still.

In any case, the Red Flag Guild still had plenty of resources left.

The same was true for the Shadow Guild. As an information guild, they had established branches in each of the lower districts.

“…If you give the order, I will wipe out all of their bases.”

“Of course. They need to taste bitterness to come to their senses, don’t they? Kill them all. Leave no one alive as an example.”

The matter of his kin had long since vanished from his mind. Something more urgent had arisen. Dealing with a single human from District 9 could wait, but the alliance between Shadow and the Demonic Cult had to be dealt with immediately.

* * *

After killing Blood Wolf’s brother.

Following Lilith’s visit.

It had already been about three weeks since he arrived in the Heavenly City. Despite the passage of time, District 9 was remarkably peaceful.

He soon learned the reason.

The Shadow Guild had sent word.

The Shadow Guild’s District Manager from District 8.

He came down personally to deliver a letter.

[I’ve joined forces with the Demonic Cult. We both wanted something, so the conversation went well. Of course, my ideal symbiotic relationship would be with you, Guild Master Kim. Anyway, it’s a big deal. I’ve been eavesdropping, and it seems Blood Wolf is quite angry. He’s shifted his focus from catching and killing you to catching and killing us. Many of our people might get hurt. So, I’d appreciate it if you’d keep this in mind.

-Lilith]

“Are you sure about this? I don’t think the Red Flag will just sit idly by.”

“We’re good at hiding. So, we have to try. It’s the Empress’s order.”

Kim Minwoo nodded.

He hadn’t expected them to be so proactive in helping. In any case, it wasn’t bad news for him.

The more the Red Flag’s attention was directed towards Shadow, the more time he would have.

‘They must be confident to have done this.’

Then he just needed to trust them.

“Thank you. Please tell Lilith that I’ll keep it in mind. And please take this as well.”

Potions, equipment, runes, and more.

He handed over a bundle of items crafted here. Of course, these were items that wouldn’t be effective in the higher districts.

But it was different for District 8.

It was only one level above.

They would make good use of these luxury goods.

Indeed, the District 8 Manager’s reaction was intense.

“Oh! Rare+ rank!”

“It’s very good stuff. We don’t even distribute these to our guild members easily.”

Considering that two or three out of ten crafted items turned out to be Rare rank, it wasn’t that rare.

In any case, when giving gifts, one had to boast a lot.

“The options are amazing too. Stealth, escape, ambush related… Our Shadow Guild members will find them very useful.”

“I’ve been saving them for a time like this.”

“How can you have such a supply… The more I look, the more impressed I am. I will definitely convey your help, Guild Master, to Lilith!”

That was the intention.

By nurturing them well, he was letting them know that they would have an excellent supplier of equipment, potions, and runes in the future.

Then Lilith would find it hard to abandon them.

Well, she probably had all of this in mind when she provoked the Red Flag in the first place.

After the Shadow members left, Amteron approached. His face was filled with joy.

“This is a relief. Now those guys from the upper districts won’t be able to come down easily.”

His status was that of a resident.

Unlike Kim Minwoo, who came and went as a visitor, Amteron’s worries were naturally greater.

What if the Red Flag Guild came down while he was away?

It would be absolute chaos.

He had heard that by using Merit Points, the cooldown for the Heavenly City Transfer Ticket could be reduced to a maximum of fifteen days.

But even if it was reduced, it was a fact that there would be times when Kim Minwoo would be absent.

That’s why he was diligently training his guild members. Whether he liked it or not, they were now under his wing.

From potions to equipment and runes.

The five hundred or so members of the Money Talks Necromancer Guild were all top priority for supply.

The performance was, of course, extremely satisfying.

It was only natural that the guild’s popularity increased as they were the first to be supplied with items that were otherwise unavailable.

Although the threat of the Red Flag was distant, the benefits were very close.

“How are the other guilds doing?”

“There’s no significant movement. After all, once the top 10 guilds are gone, the rest are no different from chaff, right?”

“That’s true.”

“That’s why they seem to be adapting to the trend. As you instructed, Guild Master, we’re giving preferential treatment in supply to guilds that have clearly bowed their heads to us.”

“We have plenty of goods, so bring in as many as possible. The city is vast, and we’ll need more administrators in the future.”

“Understood.”

He had about nine days left to stay. Since he had no intention of taking the Practitioner Exam right away to move to the next district, the only major task remaining was…

‘Probably the raid.’

He had heard that a massive horde of hybrids swarmed the Mist Forest once a month.

The fundamental reason why District 9 couldn’t develop was because of these hybrid raids. It was incredibly difficult to defend against the hybrids in a district without any proper defensive structures.

They could manage to defend, but at the cost of significant damage to the facilities.

It was a cycle of development followed by destruction due to raids.

But now it was different.

Development speed?

No matter how superior the heteromorphs were to humans, they couldn’t work without sleep.

But the undead were different.

They could develop 24/7, 365 days a year.

Moreover, other undead lacked intelligence, requiring constant commands to develop a city, resulting in crude constructions…

Kim Minwoo’s undead were different.

They were truly the best of the best.

Half were used for crafting, half for city development, and the results were soon evident. He went on a tour of the construction site with Amteron.

“Wow, this is amazing.”

“…It seems like there’s nothing your undead can’t do, Guild Master.”

A massive stone fortress blocked the Mist Forest. It was a defensive structure created through the combined efforts of the architects in the Heavenly City, Cedric, and Merhen.

Its magnificent form was being revealed.

“For now, we’ve only blocked the area near the Mist Forest due to the urgency, but the plan is to eventually surround the entire District 9.”

“Then the casualties will definitely decrease.”

“Right. And the more it does, the more Merit Points will be duplicated.”

“Heh heh…”

Amteron smiled slyly.

The Merit Points he had earned in three weeks with Kim Minwoo were far more than what he had earned in decades with the Hamorn Guild.

Thanks to his position as Vice Guild Master, he had earned quite a bit of Merit Points.

“If this is how much I have… How many Merit Points have you earned, Guild Master?”

“Not much. About 80,000?”

“…80,000?”

“I used some for the Heavenly Projection, so I didn’t accumulate as much.”

“…Huh? You call 80,000 not much?”

He hadn’t even gathered 10,000 Merit Points in his entire life, and Kim Minwoo had earned that much in just three weeks and was calling it little?

Looking at his face, it seemed like he was sincere.

“This isn’t even enough to buy a single Diamond Sponsorship Ticket. That costs 100,000 Merit Points.”

“No, Guild Master… Diamond Sponsorship Tickets aren’t meant to be purchased in District 9…”

“Then where do you buy them?”

“You need to go to the higher districts to earn more Merit Points, so… probably… you’d have to go to at least District 4 to be able to splurge on one. And that’s even for a very well-off resident.”

In District 9, it was normal to tremble at the thought of buying even a Bronze Sponsorship Ticket (100), let alone a Diamond one.

“Anyway, it’s far from enough. I need to buy three.”

“…Three?”

Kim Minwoo nodded.

There were three guild members from Earth.

He had made a promise to Seo Yerim in the past, so he had to give her one. And if he gave one to her, he had to give one to the other guild members too, right?

‘I can’t discriminate.’

If he was going to give them something, it was better to give them Diamond than to be stingy and give them Gold, Silver, or Bronze.

Once the rank was set, it usually stayed that way until the end, so he had to get them the best one.

Well, whether they would reach the murderous difficulty level even with a Diamond ticket was up to the guild members themselves.

Anyway, he needed at least three.

Considering that, he still had a long way to go.

‘I’ll probably get a lot of Merit Points from this raid, right?’

He had received a flood of Merit Points just for providing a house and equipment.

If he cleanly prevented the monster raids that always caused destruction?

It was hard to imagine how many Merit Points he would receive.

And on top of that…

‘It’s a game set for a Necromancer.’

Monsters were coming.

Necromancers were inherently strong in war. Even if he was an unusual Necromancer who was strong in combat, that absolute truth wouldn’t change. He planned to gather all the guilds in District 9.

The walls were wide, so it would be better to defend together.

‘It would be good to show off our skills this time.’

He had taken down the top 10 guilds, but most people had only heard about it through rumors. The actual experience of seeing it with their own eyes would be completely different.

That’s why he planned to show them.

Who the true ruler of District 9 was, in this raid.

That day was not far off.

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]