The Count’s Youngest Son Is A Player - Chapter 279
Episode 279
The war that took place in Geumyeok was becoming more and more intense.
There are two battlefields where the empire participated in full scale.
The monster forest in the west and the elemental jungle in the east.
Although the Empire appeared in the northern Ice Mountains, it was a small number of troops rather than a large army.
Although they had already secured the frontier, they only defended it thoroughly and did not seem to have any intention of actively attacking the dwarven city.
The same goes for the southern Devil’s Sea area.
The empire did not appear to be strengthening its power, perhaps because it thought that it was not easy to break through the natural fortress called the sea.
‘They said there wouldn’t be any major changes on the wall…’
In the end, the empire’s invasion route seemed to be limited to two places.
And on those two invasion routes, the empire was engaged in a fierce battle.
“I will report to you. “In the battle in the northeastern part of the Monster Plains, the Empire pushed back the Orc army!”
“What is the situation at the base? Have you even secured a base?”
“It looks like they have started building a temporary fortress. But we don’t know yet whether it will stabilize.”
“I guess so.”
Most of the battles on the northern front resulted in victory for the Empire.
Although the Orcs were ahead in number, the Empire was superior in terms of concentration of elites.
Moreover, the lack of numbers was made up for by cavalry made by capturing monsters and orcs, and undead necromancers dispatched from the wall.
In terms of troop loss ratio, the Empire had an overwhelming advantage.
However, despite this, there was virtually no actual criminal record.
When the empire that won the battle tried to establish a base on the plains, a large army of Orcs would inevitably arrive.
The Orcs did not operate under a unified command system, but rather took the form of a coalition.
Each of the five large tribes had command authority, and the small and medium-sized tribes under them operated separate units.
Therefore, even if the empire actually won the battle, it had no choice but to retreat again when a large-scale army worthy of being called the ‘main force’ was added.
And the Orcs didn’t sit still either.
This is because the Wolf Riders of the great tribe, known as the elite, occasionally entered the forest and destroyed the empire’s base fortresses.
Even the Empire could not easily block the destructive power of the fast-moving, super-human orcs called Daejeonsa.
‘In the end, the bases near the northern forest are almost in tatters.’
As they attacked each other one at a time, there was no time to properly repair the walls.
And that also contributed to the cumulative damage on both sides.
Moreover, Raoul was closely observing the battle between the two forces and accumulating data.
The size of the troops they operate.
The identity and level of the commander.
Even the elite level of soldiers and bases.
A lot of information obtained through the help of players with reconnaissance skills was reflected in the data and displayed on the battlefield map.
“If this is the case, it won’t be a problem to have a fight, right?”
“As the influx of players increases, there is no reason for us to be pushed back in terms of troops. Moreover, players do not have one life, so even if it becomes a war of attrition, we have the advantage.”
After understanding the enemy, the First Guild commanders also became more confident.
If you combine the superhumans of the Marquess of Ashton and the First Earl, they are not at all inferior to them.
Moreover, the power of the Knights that grew through the First Guild was so powerful that they could be proud of being the strongest on the continent.
The problem with the troop, which I thought was most insufficient, was that players who had completed their second job change continued to join and grow in size.
And finally Raoul made a decision.
“Operation ‘Tsunami’ will begin as soon as the unit formation is completed. Let everyone be ready for battle. “It’s all-out war!”
“Yes Master.”
A large-scale operation that will determine the hegemony of the Monster Plain has begun to unfold.
* * *
Meanwhile, after giving instructions and returning to his room, Raoul looked out the window at the city beyond and lost himself in thought.
Callips, the home of Count Raoul.
A small castle with a population of only 15,000 soon grew into a castle with a population of hundreds of thousands.
The four-fold expanded fortress wall included a huge urban area and various facilities and farmland.
Dozens of portals connected to each territory and base were constantly spitting out players and residents.
Outside the castle walls were crowded with soldiers in training and carriages going up and down the cavalry to clear the gate.
‘It’s really been a while… I’ve been running like crazy and I ended up here before I know it.’
When I first opened my eyes in Raoul’s body, I was at a loss.
The youngest member of the family, who is weak and has nothing.
Fortunately, that family was also on the verge of extinction.
However, after overcoming many hardships, he not only saved his family from crisis, but also became independent and established his own family.
Now he was a lord with over a million residents and the de facto ruler of an association that controlled millions of players.
A number of knights equivalent to the entire kingdom were loyal to him, and countless superhumans were waiting for orders to watch his back.
‘But this is not the end.’
Although we have achieved a lot so far, it could have become an illusion that crumbles like a sand castle.
A scenario that goes along with this connected world.
I wasn’t yet sure where that scenario would end.
But now it has been almost five years since I opened my eyes again.
I finally got a clue.
Raoul’s blue eyes twinkled as he recalled the system message that had appeared not long ago.
-You have met special conditions.
– Provide information about [Final Scenario: Coordinator] to player Raoul.
-To become a candidate for [Final Scenario: Coordinator], you must meet certain marks or qualifications.
-The more marks you have or the qualifications you have met at the start of the final scenario, the more advantageous you are.
-Marks and qualifications are hidden inside the scenario. Move to Connect. Qualifications will follow naturally.
-The final candidate selection will be determined based on the progress of the [Geumyeok Scenario].
I was always curious.
What is the end of this scenario.
What is the purpose of Connect to attract players to this place?
It seemed that the day to find the answer was not far away.
And one more thing.
Why on earth did countries and large corporations try to intervene in Connect?
In my past life, I never thought about it seriously.
I simply believed that greedy companies were trying to monopolize the huge market called Connect.
And at that time, I didn’t have time to think about that.
Connect was everything to Bae Do-hyeon, and he was busy fighting alone against the large guild alliances and empires that were trying to take over his home.
But I wasn’t alone anymore.
We have built a strong foundation and have taken root in the real world.
Perhaps because I am now in a position of responsibility for many people, my perspective on the world has changed from before.
The quality of information I could obtain was also completely different from my previous life.
‘There is a connection between the Connect scenario and an abnormal phenomenon on Earth…’
There were rumors like this in my past life as well.
There were also many people who speculated that Connect might not simply be a world in a game.
Of course, there was nothing scientifically proven, and everyone only said it as a half-joke.
But that could be true.
Information circulating from governments and leading corporate research institutes clearly said so.
‘And Alex Song, Chairman of Connect Co., Ltd. His presence is certainly strange.’
The keyword that Label extracted from the relevant information obtained through hacking was ‘wizard’.
The president and wizard of a company that deals with high-level scientific products called capsules.
Don’t you feel a sense of heterogeneity just by looking at it?
Maybe Alex Song was the only person who knew about the connection between Earth and Connect.
‘But they won’t meet me…’
I had already communicated with Chairman Alex Song several times through email and messenger.
I needed his help to handle the affairs of the First Guild and Earth’s First Company.
However, I could not hear any information about anything outside of business.
‘It felt like I wanted to say something but couldn’t. Yes, just like Master Cardenas.’
Cardenas could not tell Raoul about anything other than swordsmanship.
It was said that memories of past eras were ‘banned’, so perhaps Alex Song might also be in that position.
Anyway, I could roughly guess why the government and companies were snooping around Connect.
There is an expectation that the cause of abnormal phenomena on Earth or ways to deal with them may be found through Connect.
There will also be a purpose to uncover the secrets of the connect or capsule.
‘If you think about it that way, you can understand the strange behavior shown by the large guild alliance in your past life.’
What do those who take the lead or hegemony in the game care about most?
Perhaps it is the scenario itself.
Beat the scenario before anyone else, complete the quest, and see the ending.
The purpose of the game is to see the original ending.
However, the large guild alliance showed the opposite.
The players were thoroughly controlled and the progression of the scenario was prevented.
No matter how you look at it, it wasn’t their intention to see the ending first.
‘Probably the influence of each country’s government was involved.’
As the scenario progresses, abnormal phenomena on Earth accelerate, so the intention may have been to prevent the situation from worsening by blocking the scenario itself from progressing.
Thanks to this, the growth rate of players slowed down significantly, and in the case of rankers, their growth even stopped.
The ban scenario was held for over ten years, and the progress of the abnormal phenomenon slowed down.
But was that really the right answer?
Although he didn’t see the result until the end, Raoul somehow didn’t think it would end well.
And there was a reason for thinking that way.
* * *
a few days ago.
Kim Il-woo came to the office alone.
Since he often visited the Purple Guild or the association First Management Co., Ltd., I thought he was there for work that day as well.
However, the matter he brought up was something that Raoul had not even thought of.
“Hey, Chairman. Actually, I came here because I wanted to get some counseling…”
“Counseling? “Is it work-related?”
“Whether I should say it is… related or not. “In some ways, it may be a rather personal matter.”
If that’s the case.
“If it is a personal matter, I will consult with you as a friend. what’s the matter?”
After Bae Do-hyeon’s identity was revealed, Raoul decided to become private friends with several members of the Purple Guild.
Of course, number one is Kim Il-woo, who was my best friend from my previous life.
He was troubled, but eventually decided to become friends due to Raoul’s continued requests….
“Then I’ll talk comfortably. “I don’t know if it’s just me, but… I feel like I can now use my abilities in real life.”
“…! “What does that mean?”
Raoul, who was comfortably leaning on the sofa, was startled, jumped forward and asked.
“That’s it.”
Ilwoo’s explanation was simple.
As usual, I stopped by the company to take care of my actual work and headed to the training room with the intention of working up a sweat for the first time in a long time.
However, the body does not seem to have changed much, but the weight of the equipment used has increased by about 1.5 times.
Moreover, I felt like something was tickling me, so I used my ability like in the game…
“The ability really activated?”
“okay. Of course it was very weak. It’s not even a proper alter ego, it’s just that one finger was created. But shouldn’t that be the case anyway?”
“…Yes, but.”
“Anyway, I was so surprised that I practiced using my abilities in real life for a while, and I felt like I was getting better at it. So, I was wondering what to do with this, and you were the first thing that came to mind, so I came here.”
Raoul asked after clearing his complicated mind for a moment.
“Since when? “When exactly did this phenomenon start?”
Then Il-woo, who had been searching through his memories for a while, snapped his fingers and said as if he remembered him.
“that’s right! “I think it was shortly after I surpassed level 100 and became an advanced clone caster.”
Except for Bae Do-hyun, Il-woo was the first player to surpass level 100 and reach the status of a superman.
And after that, the Purple Guild’s rankers began to complete their 3rd job advancement (level 100) one after another.
“First of all, it would be best not to tell anyone about this for a while. And since we will provide a separate space, how about consistently practicing demonstrating your abilities in real life? “If the ability has already been revealed, it should be at a level where it can actually be used so that we can prepare for an emergency.”
“okay. “I don’t want to reveal this right away either.”
“And immediately double the security of the rankers through First Security. “In particular, I would like to inform those who have completed their third job change so that they do not leave their dormitories as much as possible.”
“Even if you don’t say that, everyone doesn’t get around well in real life anyway. “For now, I will do as you say.”
“Thank you, Ilwoo. Maybe this is really important. If there are any other changes, I hope you will tell me about them instead of hiding them. And no matter what happens to your body, I’m always on your side. I won’t let anyone who tries to mess with you. So don’t worry and act like you normally do.”
“Thank you for saying that. “It’s really reassuring.”
After finishing the consultation with Ilwoo, Raoul’s mind became complicated.
‘Connect. What is your true identity…?’
(Continued in the next part)