Chapter 220
The central spire of Reidan Castle was a huge 11 stories. It was nearly twice as high as the spire of the lord’s castle in common cities.
“Is the height of the central spire important?”
“In a sense, it symbolizes the power of the lord. The greater the prestige and power of the lord, the higher the height of the spires.”
“In other words, the former lord of Reidan enjoyed the same authority as the king.”
“That is the correct interpretation.”
In fact, the size of Reidan Castle was comparable to the king’s palace.
“The castle has a total of 127 rooms. In addition, there are six other outbuildings. There are five gardens, three parade grounds, and a barracks that can accommodate 8,000 troops.”
There were no small decorations or basic furniture left. It was left untouched for a long time, so there were many rusty places and it was desolate. But the form itself was completely preserved, so Grid was amazed.
“It’s surprising. I thought the castle would be completely ruined like the city.”
“The people of Reidan sacrificed themselves to protect it.”
The days when the empire defended the Hebend River. The people of Reidan had to give a certain amount as tribute to the empire, and it came to the point where they had to dismantle the city’s buildings. However, they couldn’t touch the castle, which was the symbol of Reiden, and their last remaining pride. As a result, the entire scenery around Reidan Castle was a ruin.
Grid was deeply impressed by Lauel’s explanation.
‘The people of Reidan might be dying of starvation, but they protected their pride…’
Grid was a selfish person, but at least he had patriotism. It was the result of the forceful education during military service. Thanks to that, he was able to understand the hearts of the Reidan people without laughing at them.
‘The people really love the place where they grew up.’ Grid had a positive observation.
“It will be a big help to me to save the people of Reidan. Then the people of Reidan will be loyal and follow any orders. Isn’t that right? Lauel.”
Lauel was impressed. “I can’t believe you thought that deeply.”
Anyone could think about it. But he thought that Grid couldn’t.
Grid spoke to the astonished Lauel. “Don’t exploit the people or give unreasonable commands.”
“…Yes?”
Lauel was shocked. He was more surprised than when he observed the unique rated rake several hours ago.
‘What’s wrong?’
Wasn’t Grid the type of person to use others for his own sake? It was unbelievable to Lauel that he would make such a statement about the people. He was at a loss when Grid whispered to him.
“I am the lord of the people, so I can’t act childish. Just do it properly.”
The people were the cash flow. Grid still thought so. He wanted to do the minimum amount to protect them. This was the least he could do for the people who sacrificed themselves to protect the symbol of the lord.
“In the first place, people must live here. Isn’t that right?”
Grid was the lord of Reidan and leader of the Overgeared Guild, so he decided to act in a manner that wouldn’t shame them. Now he was trying to act according to that determination. Lauel smiled with satisfaction at Grid’s growth.
“I will keep it in mind.”
“I know.”
Grid went ahead. After a few hours, he grasped the structure of the castle.
“It’s really big. This great castle is mine?”
“It isn’t just this castle. You’re the master of everything in Reidan. In addition, you’re eligible to get your hands on something greater. The spires of Reidan will become higher than the royal palace.” Huroi remarked as he appeared.
Grid smiled. “Welcome Huroi. Your words always make me feel better. Thank you.”
Thank you? Huroi was baffled. The original Grid wasn’t someone who would express appreciation for anything.
‘Reciprocating the goodwill of others…’
The selfish Grid was starting to fill up his lacking spots. It was gratifying. He noticed things that weren’t pointed out.
‘He grows every time I see him.’
Huroi and Lauel were impressed.
Thump thump.
Grid moved to the great hall that could accommodate around 500 people. Apart from the old throne, it was just a room full of dust. However, Grid didn’t doubt that this would soon shine a brilliant gold. He sat on the throne and quietly closed his eyes.
“Now it feels real.”
He was a duke of the Eternal Kingdom. Next to the king, he had the highest status and held the greatest power in his hand. He represented Huroi, Lauel, Jishuka and the other Overgeared members.
But.
‘Am I qualified?’
Many memories went through Grid’s mind. At a young age, he learned to be anxious around others. As an adolescent, he had many limitations. In his 20’s, he experienced a lot of frustration. Hardships came to mind.
His memories before Satisfy were the worst. But everything changed after he started Satisfy and became Pagma’s Descendant. He used the abilities he obtained to overcome his limitations, as well as the trials that he received.
‘Is this purely the result of good luck?’
Grid wondered. After a long moment of thinking, he came up with an answer.
‘No.’
There was a lot of luck, but in the end, it was his own strength and efforts that led to this result. It was unclear if the Northern End Cave even existed, but he had found it after several months of exploration.
‘I am qualified. I was able to climb up to this point because I’m qualified.’
Sururuk.
Grid was filled with joyful emotions and slowly opened his eyes. Was this the influence of his higher charm stat? Or was it the effect of the true pride that he realized at this moment? Grid’s eyes were deeper than ever, like the sea.
“Huroi, Lauel.”
“Yes.”
Grid called out and Huroi bowed with a sincere heart. Lauel followed as well. The two of them prostrated before him. It was a common action. Grid didn’t feel awkward because of their exaggerated behavior.
“Both of you said that I’m destined to be the best. Was that false or exaggerated?”
Huroi and Lauel responded in unshakable voices.
“My Lord is already the best.”
“You are the only person I acknowledge. So you are a qualified person.”
They were sincere. Grid’s power, stats and abilities were among the top out of the two billion users in Satisfy. The only flaw was that he was lacing financial power, but he could overcome it if Reidan developed.
Defects in personality and intelligence? Grid was developing, so that wasn’t a problem.
“…Yes, I will believe you and take pride in myself.”
At this moment, Grid developed some self-pride. This was pure pride, not arrogance or egotism.
“Sigh…”
He let out a deep exhale. The victim mentality and inferiority complex was deeply rooted because of his experiences in the past. He hadn’t fully shed it yet, but this was the moment his heart cleared. His jealousy towards others disappeared. His heart was light. His head became clear and his vision widened.
“This feels much better.”
Grid said with a bright smile.
Now he was reaching the end of his steady internal growth process.
***
Reidan was a very large city that could accommodate 430,000 people, but it was currently impossible to increase the population. It was because Reidan didn’t have any charms to attract people from other parts of the world to it.
Lauel believed that they should make good use of the 20,551 people currently living in Reidan.
“We have addressed the food shortage. The pace of the farmland clearing has increased exponentially thanks to the discovery of water by Piaro, the legendary farmer and feng shui expert. It’s easy to spread drinking water.”
‘Legendary farmer? Feng shui expert?’
Grid and the Overgeared members were in the meeting room. How did Piaro become a legendary farmer and feng shui expert? Grid questioned this while Lauel laid out policies for the future.
Developing agriculture would encourage the birth of the people, promote consumption and attract external resources. In addition, there was a plan to grow the smithy on a large scale, centering on Grid and Khan. This would build up a foothold to become a commercial city.
“At this time, the role of the Overgeared members is to subjugate the monsters. We need to reduce the power of the monsters occupying the west. In particular, the ultimate goal is to destroy all the giant worms.”
As with most online games, Satisfy’s monsters respawned after a certain period of time from their deaths. But monsters that caused certain episodes, such as the giant worms, were in the special category.
“There is probably the home of the giant worms somewhere underground. If we find and destroy it, I’m sure that the giant worms will no longer respawn.”
The giant worms had to be destroyed. Then the west could develop and the episode would move to the next stage. Lauel’s words stirred the enthusiasm of the Overgeared members.
“Levels are guaranteed.”
“Yes. The monsters in the west give a lot of experience.”
“In return, they are too strong.”
“We have the power of our items. Have you forgotten? We fortunately have Grid.”
“Lauel, are there no longer any villages or cities in the west where people live? If it’s possible to find a place where people are still living, can’t we bring them to Reidan to increase the population?”
This was the opinion of Toban, the former chief of staff of the Tzedakah Guild. The Overgeared members responded positively to his words, but Lauel expressed concern.
“For the time being, I don’t plan to search for other villages or cities. We should ignore the cities and villages found in the middle of the desert. There is likely to be a vampire lair.”
Vampires had a minimum level of 250. However, this was the case of the young vampires. Vampires who lived for over 300 years were likely to have levels over 400. The possibility of being wiped out was high if they stepped into a vampire lair, so Lauel wanted to avoid such a situation.
Grid rose from his seat.
“I’ll go now. There’s a mountain of work piled up in the smithy.”
Grid’s word was far from being a lord. In fact, Lauel was taking the role of the lord while Grid acted like a blacksmith. At first glance, the situations should be reversed, but this was actually right.
Grid wasn’t smart enough to lead a big city. It was Grid himself who appointed Lauel to this role.
After that.
The Overgeared members were able to level up and secure resources by hunting the monsters. The desertification of Reidan meant that timber was lacking, so securing timber was the first priority.
Piaro and Bland immersed themselves in farming with the people, while Jude was tasked with training the strong people who Grid discovered through the Great Lord’s Sword.
“Jump. Roll. Gear up. Spear…? Stab and swing your spear.”
Jude’s reckless training caused many soldiers to leave. However, a handful endured and were gradually reborn into elite soldiers. Unfortunately, their Weapons Mastery skill didn’t grow, but the speed of their strength and stamina rise was abnormally fast.
“Anyway, my soldiers don’t need a high Weapons Mastery skill.”
Grid made weapons with low usage conditions and high attack power and spread them to the soldiers. Even the farm equipment was powerful, so the soldiers armed with his items were different from other soldiers in the region.
Ttang! Ttang!
Grid worked in the smithy around the clock. He was now working on construction tools instead of farming tools. Agriculture was stable now, so they were focusing on constructing facilities with the resources secured by the Overgeared members.
‘I feel like I’m dying, but my persistence and dexterity stats are rapidly growing.’
Grid wasn’t bored. Obtaining a different outcome every time from his production work was a different type of fun from hunting and boss raids. In any case, he was a blacksmith and needed to do it for the rest of his life.
‘Irene will like it.’
His dexterity stat kept rising, so he would be able to make Irene even happier. Grid laughed while thinking about it.
On the other hand, Khan was busy nurturing young blacksmiths.
“Hey! That forging quality isn’t great! Hey! If you put the firewood in now, your control of the fire will fall!”
Khan’s voice seemed to become more vigorous as the days passed. Khan’s passion made Grid smile.
Then after a while.
“It’s been a long time.”
Rabbit finally arrived.
