novelraw Chapter 210: Mini-Game (5)
Chapter 210: Mini-Game (5)
Translator: Dreamscribe
Heroes and Arsilanians enjoyed Arsilan Defense in creative ways. The Crafting Box, realized through the Holy Sword and the Magic Tower, unleashed an explosion of freedom.
As if pouring out everything they had been holding back, the Heroes created all sorts of things. With the Holy Sword, the Magic Tower, and the computational power of Jinwoo, who had become a god, assisting them, new crafting recipes emerged endlessly.
Exploits worthy of making one squeeze their eyes shut were taking place.
'But even that was something I anticipated!'
It had already been over three years since Jinwoo had shared the ups and downs of life with the Heroes.
Nothing surprised him anymore.
Using iron to build railways that seemed to stretch out into the galaxy, or running around declaring they would become space pirates, was rather cute in its own way. Constructing giant statues of Ella and Helby in bikinis was merely endearing.
He had even anticipated the grotesque creation that a full thousand people clung to, consisting of two massive spheres and one long stick.
"Hmm...."
Seeing them install a fountain at the tip of that stick, made by combining water-attribute magic and minerals, did make him squeeze his eyes shut, but since everyone looked like they were having fun, he let it slide.
What Jinwoo had imagined was people clearing the main quest while building creative and beautiful structures. But as always, reality was cruel.
Jinwoo observed the actions of the Heroes participating in Arsilan Defense from the study in the Imperial Palace.
Why on earth were they building such monstrosities?
Even guilds that had been competing in bloody rivalries united as one to build things like that, as if they had signed a peace treaty. On top of that, they even spent precious resources to make the surface more realistic.
Every single Hero wore an incredibly serious expression. It looked as though they were creating an invention that would change the world.
[Now THIS is art!]
[My heart swells with grandeur.]
[Even the Lord of Greed would gouge his eyes out.]
Such conversations could be heard.
The Arsilanians shook their heads in disbelief but helped out on the sly.
The innocent smiles everyone wore suited their Avatars perfectly. It looked as though they had returned to childhood.
"Do something about that monstrosity!"
"Hmm, isn't that a form of primitive worship?"
Ella and Helby were faithfully enjoying Arsilan Defense. Rather than entering directly, they played at a leisurely pace while lounging on plush sofas or lying in bed.
After the building she had painstakingly constructed was destroyed, Ella paid even more attention to building a house on the land that would become the Holy Magic Circle while progressing through the main quest.
Ella had more talent for destruction than creation, but using Arsilan Defense's building feature, she could construct a fairly decent house. All she had to do was download architectural blueprints from Arsilan Worlds, then follow the automatically generated guide.
Most of the beautiful structures required paid purchases.
Ella had even spent real money to build her house, only for that monstrosity to be erected right next to it. It had been a spot with a beautiful view of Arsilan, but now all she could see was the eyesore.
"How about moving somewhere else?"
"N-no! When am I supposed to build it all over again!"
At Jinwoo's suggestion, Ella flailed her arms and legs wildly as she shouted.
Helby was lying on the sofa in the study, upgrading her equipment. She seemed to be in a good mood, gearing up piece by piece.
"Heh, I'm stronger."
She mocked Ella's feeble Avatar.
Jinwoo shrugged and turned his gaze back to the Heroes through the Information Window.
'Nothing worse than this could possibly happen.'
At least, that was likely the case.
[That bastard keeps eyeballing me and I don't like it.]
[Should we just shove this thing right into that eyeball?]
[Oh? That's actually a great idea.]
Heroes began swarming in front of the monstrosity.
Jinwoo, Ella, and Helby tilted their heads and watched the scene. All sorts of things were being installed at the base of the monstrosity.
[3, 2, 1! Launch!]
The moment the countdown ended, flames erupted from the bottom of the monstrosity. Like a rocket soaring skyward, it tore through the void of space and flew straight toward the Lord of Despair.
"Oh..., that's, that's a little much."
"A fitting use, I'd say."
Ella and Helby marveled at the grand spectacle.
Jinwoo stared blankly at the scene, then quickly opened a gap in the Barrier just before the monstrosity reached it. The monstrosity flew slowly but surely toward the Lord of Despair. The Lord of Despair had no choice but to keep watching the thing hurtling toward him.
[WOOOOO!]
[Hell yeah!]
[Hahaha!]
The countless Heroes and Arsilanians at the scene cheered, then raised their middle fingers toward the Lord of Despair. All things considered, it was a wholesome sight.
"Hehe! The eyesore is gone!"
Ella was overjoyed now that the monstrosity tormenting her eyes had vanished. Helby clicked her tongue in disappointment. She had wanted to watch Ella suffer a little longer.
Jinwoo checked the main quest's progress.
"Going smoothly."
Through the main quest, lands were spreading like a spider's web over the areas that had been chewed away bit by bit. When a certain amount of work was completed, players would receive keys to open treasure chests, or new blueprints and crafting recipes would be unlocked.
Jinwoo rose from his seat and moved directly to Levannas.
He planned to release Arsilan Defense in Levannas as well. The Demon Race population of Levannas was far smaller than Arsilan's, but it still numbered twenty million.
"By royal decree! If you haven't received yours, please make sure to pick one up!"
"One per person!"
Envoys dispatched from Arsilan handed out rectangular crystals to the demons across cities and towns. They were bar-shaped, like looking at a smartphone, and the registration method was simple.
Just holding it in one's hand would scan their body and automatically register them with the Magic Tower.
Since the demons' information had not been registered with the Magic Tower, magical support had been difficult, and spatial travel was impossible.
The demons were unfamiliar with magic.
The plan was to distribute these devices, register the demons with the Magic Tower, and gradually acclimate them to magic through Arsilan Defense. For that reason, only Mobile Mode was provided in Levannas.
The demons adapted to the devices quickly.
They could make calls to each other, and various apps offered features like photo and video recording. The devices also connected to Levannas's TV and radio, so they caught on in no time.
Jinwoo moved to headquarters and approached Tiris, who was preparing the Arsilan Defense launch for Levannas.
"Device distribution has reached 97%. They adapted quickly. We've been providing various content to boost the adaptation rate."
Jinwoo nodded.
Since the demons enjoyed highly advanced Magitech Engineering, they adapted even faster than the Arsilanians.
Looking to the side, Serazade and her staff were also holding devices, peering at the screens that had appeared. Levannas didn't have much in the way of entertainment culture, so even the default content was more than enough to flood the demons' brains with dopamine.
Announcements about Arsilan Defense had already been made through the devices. Through Serazade, it had been introduced as the way to fight back against the Lord of Despair.
The demons of Levannas had always been victims, struggling to survive just like Arsilan had in the old days. The fact that they could contribute to this great battle awakened a dormant instinct within the demons.
The instinct to relish combat against the strong, to pursue strength.
That instinct, suppressed by the Lord of Despair, was slowly raising its head.
Even though it hadn't launched yet, a considerable number of demons were staring holes through their device screens, waiting.
"We will win through the game."
"Yeah. Let's have fun with it."
"Yes, Master."
The anticipation building in the demons reached Jinwoo. It felt similar to the way he used to wait as a child for a game cartridge to arrive at his doorstep.
It was certain to be incredibly fun.
"Launch it."
Tiris pressed the button floating in midair.
[Arsilan Defense, in partnership with Levannas, is now open!]
[Please access it through the app!]
The message was sent to every device the demons possessed!
The number of Levannas players began to climb rapidly.
Their first encounter with a proper game hit the demons like a shockwave.
* * *
Heroes, Arsilanians, demons.
Everyone had begun enjoying Arsilan Defense. Arsilan and Levannas joined forces and started laying the groundwork for the Holy Magic Circle.
"Wow, the demons are insane."
"They don't even turn on auto mode. They play manually all day long?"
"That's not easy to pull off. Their dedication is something else."
"The demons are all hardcore gamers."
The demons' playstyle came as a fresh shock to the Heroes. They were the very embodiment of grinding. As if competing against each other, they mined like maniacs, hoarding resources, and squeezed every last drop out of not just the main quest but every piece of content available.
While Heroes and Arsilanians had fun chatting and socializing as they played, the demons dove in obsessively without so much as a word.
At first, the Heroes even mistook the Avatars bearing the Levannas icon for NPCs set to repeat actions.
Of course, no one could call that a bad thing.
They were simply enjoying the game in a different way!
Two demon Avatars heading out to mine bumped into each other on a path. They ended up facing each other head-on.
[Move.]
[Move.]
In Mobile Mode, a chat bubble appeared above the Avatars' heads. Many people played exclusively in Mobile Mode because they enjoyed this classic feel.
The path was wide, but neither demon yielded.
Backing down here meant losing.
The fighting instinct etched into the demons' very souls made them forget the virtue of compromise.
PK was not allowed in Arsilan Defense.
Of course, even if PK had been enabled, these two would have stood their ground just like this.
[Move.]
[Move.]
They didn't even argue.
They simply stood there in stubborn silence. To prove they hadn't gone AFK, they steadily typed in chat.
At first, the Heroes watched them with curiosity as they passed by. So did the Arsilanians. Three full days passed without either one so much as twitching.
"Demons are terrifying."
"They've been doing that for three days straight. No AFK either, they type in chat every minute."
"That's impressive."
When five days had passed, the ground split beneath them from all the mining, and it seemed the long standoff might finally end. But still, no winner emerged.
The two demons walked out to flat ground and faced each other once more.
[Move.]
[Move.]
The Heroes pulled their share of stunts driven by madness, but in the face of true madness, they could only feel humbled. The frightening part was that there was no telling when it would end.
Two more days passed, and only after the fragment of land they stood on completely split apart did the long standoff conclude in a draw.
"Huh!?"
"Demons? L-let's get out of their way!"
From that point on, Heroes and Arsilanians immediately cleared the path whenever a demon approached.
As time went on, lands began spreading like a spider's web across the chewed-away space, forming the foundation for the Holy Magic Circle, and multiple landmasses settled into place like floating islands drifting through the void.
The massive storehouse the demons had pooled together by forming guilds was impressive. Since purified Magic Stones and resources from the storehouse could be brought back to Levannas, the demons were gathering them at a frenzied pace.
Belzerad frequently visited the storehouse, gazing at the resources with a satisfied expression. Serazade and the staff were the same.
Just looking at it was enough to feel content.
Belzerad and the staff had already drawn up plans to use that vast stockpile of resources.
The demons were buzzing with anticipation as well.
"Hmm...."
Jinwoo watched the scene and nodded.
The main quest was progressing well, and everyone was absorbed in gathering resources. Many were also spending time building beautiful structures. Storehouses and various buildings occupied prominent locations.
"That's not going to end well."
Why was this mini game called Arsilan Defense?
If everything just flowed along this peacefully, there would be no reason for the name "Defense." They had to protect Arsilan from the threats that would come pouring in when the Lord of Despair awakened.
Right now, there were no defenses whatsoever.
The Erosion Insect wave would begin soon.
The first incursion of the Erosion Insects, the "Stage 1 Erosion Insect Wave."
Jinwoo observed the state of Arsilan Defense from the Levannas headquarters. For the first time in a while, Tia had brought a heap of snacks and sat down beside him.
"I came because I sensed the scent of ruin after so long."
"Hmm...."
Tia was looking forward to the spectacle that was about to unfold.
The schedule of the Erosion Insect waves had been set. After a brief wait, an Information Window appeared inside Arsilan Defense.
[The Lord of Despair gazes upon Arsilan.]
[Warning! Warning! A massive surge of Erosion energy has been detected!]
A siren piercing enough to split eardrums blared out.
[Stage 1 Erosion Insect Wave begins in 10 minutes.]
Everyone who had been peacefully enjoying Arsilan Defense jumped in shock. Only then did they grasp the situation and scramble to pull out their crafting tools to start building defenses.
But it was far, far too late.
[3, 2, 1]
[Stage 1 Erosion Insect Wave has begun. Good luck to all.]
The Erosion Insect wave had started!
Everyone connected to Arsilan Defense looked up toward the Lord of Despair.
A massive surge of Erosion energy erupted from the Lord of Despair. Blotting out the starlight, it rushed toward Arsilan like a colossal tidal wave in an instant.
Surely the Barrier surrounding Arsilan would hold?
That hope vanished quickly.
The moment the Erosion energy touched the Barrier, the Barrier shuddered violently.
Enormous Erosion Insects latched onto the Barrier.
They had wings, and their heads and mouths were far larger than ordinary Erosion Insects. Their heads split open, and dozens of tentacles burst forth. The tentacles coiled together into a drill.
KRRRRUNCH!
The drill bored a hole through the Barrier. Through that hole, Erosion Insects born from the Erosion energy flooded in and flew toward Arsilan.
The massive wings on the Erosion Insects' backs stirred the air, allowing them to swim freely through the void of space.
These were Erosion Insects painstakingly designed by FS Games!
[S-stop them!]
[What the!?]
Everyone fired off skills and magic trying to stop them, but it was useless. The Erosion Insects destroyed the buildings that had been built with such care. And that wasn't all.
[The, the storehouse...!]
[What the hell is happening!]
[No!]
The Erosion Insects swarmed toward the storehouses and obliterated every container and facility inside. Then they opened their gaping mouths and gulped down the hard-earned resources.
High-quality, massive Magic Stones disappeared into the Erosion Insects' bellies. Rare resources obtained through painstaking effort were devoured like someone snacking on treats.
Every massive storehouse the demons had built was cleaned out.
The storehouses built by Heroes and Arsilanians vanished just the same. Every Hero, Arsilanian, and demon who had been happily enjoying Arsilan Defense wore a dazed expression.
KIREEK KIREEK KIREEK!
The Erosion Insects lifted their heads as if mocking everyone, trembling with glee. Then they smashed every last structure that had been built with such effort and soared into space.
Every Erosion Insect that had gorged itself had a bulging belly.
They passed through the holes in the Barrier and returned to the Lord of Despair. It was to deliver what they had stolen to the Lord of Despair.
[F-FUUUUUUCK!]
[You sons of bitches! Do you know how much that was worth!]
[AAAARGH! Just one more hour and I could've taken it back to Arsilan!]
With everything they had worked for destroyed, the Heroes and Arsilanians erupted in fury.
It was hateful!
That Lord of Despair was utterly, impossibly hateful!
[Huh?]
[The demons....]
The Heroes turned their gaze to the demons.
The demons were staring blankly at where their storehouses used to be. They weren't moving at all. Then, one by one, they began trembling violently or spinning in circles on the spot. They appeared to be in the grip of utter panic.
"AAAAARGH!"
"KYAAAAH!"
"AAAAAH!"
Screams rang out from every corner of the royal palace.
The knights' barracks shook violently, and soldiers clutched their heads in despair.
Jinwoo opened a window and looked outside.
"Let go of me!"
"N-no, you mustn't!"
Belzerad was dragging his aged body toward an Airship, trying to board it. The knights barely managed to hold him back. He was ready to take the Airship right then and there to reclaim what the Erosion Insects had consumed.
FLASH!
Serazade and the staff transformed into Magical Girls and rose into the sky. Anguished cries from the demons echoed from cities and towns across the land.
Jinwoo nodded.
"The Lord of Despair, indeed..., how terrifying."
FS Games had designed it and Jinwoo had put great care into creating the Erosion Insect wave, but regardless, all of this was the Lord of Despair's doing!
"You have become the God of Ruin!"
Tia gazed at Jinwoo's back with deep emotion.
The flavor was a little different, but surely this too was a genre of ruin!