Not even 1% of hesitation. It was a perfect rejection.
âHow dare you maggots try to negotiate with me?â
Kang Chul-In was visibly annoyed, but that was to be expected. He didnât like how these third-rate dregs whom he had no prior interactions with were taking advantage of the situation. In addition, the Sharada Alliance was trivial to him. Those nations were not worthy of allying with at the cost of splitting the conquered land after battle.
Kang Chul-In, arenât you being very disrespectful here?
Grekio tried his best to suppress his rage. He had expected this reaction. The Lords knew that Kang Chul-In was an arrogant man who had a horrible temper. It was natural for someone like that to become infuriated after hearing an exorbitant demand.
Thatâs right, his pride is hurt⊠but if we state the facts, you will change your mind, Kang Chul-In.
Grekio let out a smile.
Look, Supreme King of the West.
He then began to reprimand Kang Chul-In with a staunch voice.
Try to read the grand scheme of things!
â...?â
Strictly speaking, arenât you on the losing end?
Grekio raised his voice.
Look at the Gullveig Allianceâs strength, Supreme King of the West! Although you may have murdered its chairman and vice-chairman, its fertile land and well-established infrastructures still remain! Honestly, what good is pride when the enemy has three times the national power of Valhalla?
âHmm⊠that is true.â
See!
Greiko began to speak with fervor after Kang Chul-In agreed to his statement.
Supreme King of the West, pride alone doesnât guarantee survival. We acknowledge that our demands are slightly exorbitant, but you have to understand that we are taking a huge risk by joining your side.
âHmm...â
As long as you can win the battle for hegemony, isnât it still to your benefit even after the distribution of land? You will be the emperor! The Sharada Alliance shall pledge loyalty to the newly crowned emperor!
Grekio flattered Kang Chul-In and concluded his speech.
âAlright.â
Kang Chul-In nodded.
âLetâs be allies then.â
...!
âRight now.â
Kueh! As expected from the Supreme King of the West! A wise choice indeed!
Grekio exclaimed in delight, thinking that Kang Chul-In was a simple and nave man.
âI will work out an agreement right now.â
Suddenly, Grekioâs face stiffened.
Supreme King of the West, we do not need some useless papers like that. We want a genuine agreement via a spiritual contract!
âHavenât you heard of a provisional contract?â
...!
âAn agreement is a sort of down payment. It doesnât truly indicate the formation of an alliance.â
I-Is that so?
âWe can first work out the agreement, then I can make a spiritual contract just before you send me reinforcements. Isnât that good enough?â
Oh! Great idea!
âI will immediately send my secretary and her underlings to your place, so do coordinate with them. I donât like to dilly dally when signing contracts.â
Alright! We will wait! Let us open up the warp gate channel right now.
Grekio was jubilant.
A secretary was a Lordâs aide and often the second-in-command in a territory.
For Kang Chul-In to send his secretary over, it meant that he had given his trust.
âGood.â
Kang Chul-In smiled.
âLucia!â
âYes, Your Majesty!â
âHead immediately over to the land of Corinth, where the headquarters of the Sharada Alliance is located at!â
âCertainly, Your Majesty!â
Lucia began to make her way to the warp gate.
âWhat a turn of events, Iâve never expected to hold hands with the Sharada Alliance.â
The same goes for us, Supreme King of the West.
âItâs an honor to fight alongside the Sharada Alliance.â
Not at all!
Grekio shook his head.
Donât say such things, Supreme King of the West! Itâs a great honor to fight alongside the strongest man in Pangaea. This glory will be passed down for generations to come.
âIâm flattered!â
Itâs the truth!
âQuite humorous, arenât you? Hahahaha~!â
Hahahahaha~!
A hearty laugh! Kang Chul-In and Grekio continued to flatter each other, as Lucia stepped into the warp gate. After 10 minutes, when Lucia finally arrived at the Lordâs hall in Corinth, trouble began to brew.
Argh!
Arrghhhhhh!
W-What is this!?
A blood bath could be seen over the monitor.
How dare you!?
Lucia bellowed.
You dare to live after displaying such a disrespectful attitude towards the God of War?
S-Secretary Lucia!
I, Lucia, shall punish you all in place of His Majesty!
Arghhhh!
Lucia was merciless when enraged. Zenith, the Sword of Heaven, ripped enemy bodies apart, while Aegis, the Shield of God, shattered their skulls. And that wasnât all. The phantom steeds neighed, and the spectre cavalry swung their huge swords around frantically.
âHmm.â
Kang Chul-In grinned as he observed the situation through his monitor. The Epic item [Owner of the Ghosts] always came in handy. He could lend it to anyone (the level of the spectre knights depended on the userâs level), hence it was very convenient. In addition, it allowed the user to conceal the size of the ghost army and did not require any maintenance fee. The only notable downside was its long cooldown time.
Kang Chul-In!
Grekio, who had spent a delightful time with Kang Chul-In just moments ago, was furious at this despicable act.
You are absolute scum, motherfucker!
âWhy donât you come up with better insults?â
W-What!?
âScum, fucker, bastard⊠Iâve heard these words so many times that Iâve become immune to them.â
You crazy fuckerâŠ!
âAh, that too.â
Kang Chul-In shrugged.
âTry harder.â
E-Eek⊠eek!
Grekio wanted to tear Kang Chul-In apart in anger.
How could a human be so evil?
Kang Chul...
âBefore you call my name...â
...!
âYou should watch your back.â
Huk!
Suddenly,
Crack!
Lucia smashed Aegis on Grekioâs head without mercy.
Thump!
Grekioâs corpse, with a shattered skull, fell limp onto the ground.
Your Majesty, your humble servant has accomplished her mission!
Lucia bowed to Kang Chul-In.
âWell done, Lucia!â
Iâm flattered, Your Majesty.
âIâve sent an adventurer with a waypoint nearby, so return as soon as possible!â
Certainly, Your Majesty!
âReturn safely. Donât get injured.â
Aye!That was the end. The Sharada Alliance had been erased off the map without a trace.
âHmm⊠what a waste of time dealing with these fools. How dare they threaten me?â
Kang Chul-In complained. Even if it was true that he was in a tough spot, he didnât want to hold hands with such incapable opportunists. Well, he could have reconsidered if even one of them had a remarkable ability.
âYour Majesty!â
At that moment...
âTactician Kwak is awake!â
âIs that so?â
Kang Chul-In stood up from his throne.
âLetâs go! I have to meet Kwak Jung!â
It was brutal to discuss work-related matters with a patient who had just woken up from a coma, but Kang Chul-In didnât falter. It was inevitable.Since the Gullveig Alliance had already declared war, Ragnark was about to begin.
***
Meanwhile, the Gullveig Alliance was enveloped in a mournful and grievous atmosphere.
âOppa! Sob!â
Mei Ling screamed herself hoarse at Vilhelm and Ao Xinâs funeral.
âKang Chul-In⊠Kang Chul-Innnn!â
She detested him more than ever, but that was a given. Kang Chul-In was the reason why her married life had been in shambles, and also why her brother had died.
âLady Mei Ling.â
A man approached Mei Ling, who was on the verge of losing her mind from anger.
âPlease calm down.â
âW-What did you say?â
âThis is not the time to be furious.â
âAre you kidding me? My brother and husband were murdered by Kang Chul-In. If you were in my shoes, would you be...â
âAre you going to give Kang Chul-In more time?â
â...!â
âYou have to be cool-headed in situations like this, lady Mei Ling! While you are mourning, Kang Chul-In is already making preparations to fight our army!â
âT-That is!â
He was absolutely right. Kang Chul-In was indeed getting ready for the upcoming war.
âLady Mei Ling, our alliance needs your help to respond swiftly!â
âAndrei!â
Thatâs right. The man who approached Mei Ling was none other than Andrei Ivanovic, the rank 2 Overlord.
âI do understand that my remarks may sound opportunistic, with an interior motive to take over the Gullveig Alliance.â
â...â
âBut there was no other alternative. I have to step up to deal with this chaos and launch a preemptive strike on Valhalla.â
âB-But I donât have any power to help!â
âYou do!â
Andrei emphasized.
âHow...â
âI will find you later.â
âWhen?â
âWe need to talk privately. Probably after the sun sets.â
âI-I see⊠how about the location?â
âLeave it to me. Well then, see you later...â
With that, Andrei Ivanovic passed by Mei Ling with ghost-like movements.
W-What is he thinking?
Mei Ling couldnât comprehend Andrei at all.
***
âHow are you feeling?â
âErr⊠not too great actually⊠sniff sniff...â
Kwak Jungâs face was pale.
âDamn it. Why did this happen to me? This is so unfair⊠a fortune teller⊠to think that Iâm a shaman now⊠eek!â
â...?â
âDo I have to flip tarot cards and read palms now? And interact with the spiritual realm?â
Kwak Jung groaned. He seemed unaware of the difference between an oracle and a shaman.
What an idiot.
Thanks to that, Kang Chul-In had to doubt the intelligence of his most brilliant underling.
âKeuk⊠by any chance, am I sick because a ghost possessed me?â
âNot at all?â
âT-Then what is it?â
âWell...â
Kang Chul-In was lazy, but he still explained the oracle algorithm to Kwak Jung. The intelligent latter could clearly understand his condition now.
âAh, so thatâs the reason? Itâs because Iâm too brilliant? WowâŠâ
âItâs hard to believe⊠but yes, seems like it.â
âHa⊠no wonder they say geniuses die young.â
â...â
âAm I now a bed-ridden tactician? Just like Zhuge Liang?â
Brrrr!
For a moment, Kang Chul-In almost wanted to punch Kwak Jung for spouting such bullshit. A bed-ridden tactician? What kind of nonsense was that?
âEnough with your bullshit. Just seal your prophetic ability, you hear me?â
âOf course I will. I wanna live long, for as long as I possibly can.â
âGood.â
âUrgh⊠but it still bothers me⊠welp...â
âSave your depression for later. Letâs talk about work.â
Kang Chul-In told Kwak Jung.
âCurrently...â
He then swiftly listed out the sequel of events that had happened. He wanted to make it short and sweet to give more rest time to Kwak Jung.
âDid Vilhelm and Ao Xin really die?â
Kwak Jungâs eyes widened.
âYou heard me.â
âB-But⊠wow⊠Iâm shocked⊠that black silhouette bastard⊠what an insane...â
It was at that moment.
âHuh?â
Kwak Jung tilted his head.
âY-your Majesty?â
âWhat?â
âI-I remember now!â
â...!â
âThat black silhouette!â
He exclaimed.
âI can recall who it is!â
âWho!?â
Kang Chul-In also exclaimed.
âWho is that person who returned from the past!â
âO-Overlord...â
â...?â
âAndrei, Andrei Ivanovic⊠itâs that bastard! That mosquito bastard!â
âReally!?â
âAnd that bastard, he isnât the real Andrei Ivanovic. He is actually...â
Kwak Jung began to speak the truth about this mysterious villain.
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