Ark - Volume 12 - Chapter 4

ACT 4 War is Business

[TL Notes: Some people were asking questions about the house situation from the last chapter. Gyopolife left an informative comment which explained it so I’ve copied it below. If you want more information then you can also go to this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeonse

Gyeopolife: The 80 million won deposit is jeonse. Korea has a unique housing rental system in which you can deposit 50%-80% of the home/apt value and live there for 2 years. After the contract ends you receive your deposit back.]

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“We don’t have much time.”

Ark had triggered a coup and established a military government.  The Nakujuk had thousands of troops while the Baran clan only had 500~1000 warriors. However, Ark knew that the Letter Movement Tower had already been completed in the valley village. It was make it easier for them to move more troops to the south.

“But the letter movement has limitations on its uses.  It needed the Letter Movement Orb was required for the reception tower. And the Nakujuk shouldn’t possess that many of the orbs.”

“Why?”

Shambala asked slowly. Ark kindly explained it to Shambala.

“There are various reasons but the main reason is that they only built one reception tower in the village. The Magic Institute previously determined that letter movement used some kind of radio waves.  And it can only move a limited number of people until the necessary energy recharges.”

“I see what you mean.”

Shambala finally started to understand the circumstances.

“If they had enough Letter Movement Orbs then they would’ve constructed a lot of reception towers for fast transfer of troops. But there are no signs of that. In other words, there is no point in them constructing several towers. But the tower they constructed is sufficient for the Letter Movement Orbs they have.”

“That’s right.”

To put it simply, it was like constructing something in Starcraft. If there were overflowing materials then they could construct a lot of barracks. However, there was no point in increasing the barracks when there were only a few materials.

“That’s why there is no time. If there is a limit to how many troops they can move at one time then they’ll probably attack when they have the maximum amount. So the Nakujuk will probably attack in one week when they have 5,000 troops.”

“Wait, 5000 in one week? Where did you come up with such a number?”

“…..Of course I did some maths.”

Ark laughed at Shambala’s question with a twinkle in his eye.

“Beseutyu previously checked the rate of construction of the Reception tower in the valley village. It took around one week in reality. But the reception tower wasn’t finished yet. They just moved the Letter Movement Orb there after 1 week. So looking at tower’s degree of completion and the amount of troops they were able to move, I can estimate that they will move 300~400 in one day after the tower is completed.

“That means we have to be ready for war in one week. If they can increase their troops by 300~400 in one day then they’ll have an extra 2,100~2,800 in a week.  They currently have 2,000 people so they would end up with 5,000 troops.”

“Does everything make sense now Shambala?”

Ark tried to act cool by pretending to raise invisible glasses. Shambala turned his face and snorted.

“Sheesh, what a smartass…..”

“I’m not being a smartass, just showing my brain’s incredible reasoning power.”

Anyway, the uncertain enemy troops now became known. It gave Ark’s group one week. It the meantime, they had to be prepared to fight 5,000 troops. But Ark no longer needed to involve himself in this. Ark’s usual code of conduct was to ‘entrust it to people who can do well.’ It was stupid to do it alone when someone else might be able to do it better. And didn’t Ark now have JusticeMan who was a military expert?

“JusticeMan ajusshi, can you do it?”

“Huhuhu, I was in a similar situation when confronting anti-government guerrillas in South America.”

Anti-government guerrillas in South America? The more he heard of it, the most he thought JusticeMan’s past sounded like an action movie. The fact that he wasn’t bluffing was more frightening. It was why people like Lee Myung-ryong were so respectful towards JusticeMan. Anyway, Ark delegated all authority regarding military matters to him.

In fact, Ark’s role as the Commander was quite mixed. In New World, dozens of people was classified as a party, hundreds of people as a raid and thousands of people separated into corps. In a party, everyone had the same authority. However, the configuration becomes complicated for a raid group. The raid commander could appoint a leader from each party.  Then the organization became further complicated when it came to the corps. The leader of the troop would appoint two deputies who served underneath him.

Ark selected JusticeMan and Lariette to become the deputies. JusticeMan naturally took over all roles regarding military matters. And Lariette was an Innocence Knight so she could apply various buffs and bonuses to the entire corps. After leading Dark Eden, Ark was already aware of the attack configurations so he knew how the special effects of the deputies appointed could be applied. And right now, the one with the most powerful special effect was Lariette the Innocence Knight.

“I’ll work hard.”

Lariette’s face became determined after she received the title. Once he chose JusticeMan, he left further military matters up to him.

“The most urgent problem is building defense military facilities and moving military equipment, as well as training the troops we conscripted from the Baran clan to fill up the insufficient numbers.”

“Have you considered a base?”

“Beseutyu gave me a rough map of the southern region of the Netherworld. Every region in the Netherworld is separated by mountain ranges. The Nakujuk in the valley village is currently stationed in the south-east. It they want to advance to the south-west then they’ll inevitably have to pass through here.”

JusticeMan spread out the map and pointed towards one spot. It was a canyon located in the lower section of the Golgi Mountains.

“I heard from Beseutyu that there was a long abandoned castle in this area. It is almost in ruins but it is better than nothing. Hopefully we’ll be able to convert it to a stronghold. Once we’ve repaired Haman castle then I’ll have to train the troops.”

“Will it be ready in a week?”

JusticeMan considered for a while before asking Ark a question.

“How long do we need to endure to achieve your goal?”

It might not be obvious but his goal wasn’t to win the war. The Baran defeating the Nakujuk who came to the south and then marching north to the Nakujuk was……naturally impossible. In this war, his goal was to stop the Nakujuk conquering the Netherworld and gaining some time. Ark had to hold on until the right time.

“If we consume one week on war preparations then the remaining time is one week. We’ll have to hang on for a minimum of one week.”

“We’ll be able to do that much anyway.”

Thus they moved to Haman fortress and began preparations for war. It was also the first time all the Baran tribes in the south gathered together. Thanks to Ark holding the elders hostage, there was no real issues. Thus they gathered 2,000 Baran troops in a matter of days. Combined with the warriors and the Dark Brothers, the combined forces were 3,800. It couldn’t compare to the Nakujuk, but they might be able to fight against them with those numbers.

“But only the 800 Dark Brothers can be used properly. The rest were just extra. There wasn’t enough time for proper military training……but he might be able to train their individual skills.

Thus the Baran group was given full-fledged military training. JusticeMan also divided them into troops based on their specialities. And he left their training to the rehabilitation members with the right skills. The 1,000 Baran warriors were divided into the assault groups. Of course, the ones who took over their training were the ‘Guardian=Assaulter’ which was Bul-kkun and two other people. The members of the Baran clan experienced in cartography and hunting was organized into the scouting unit. Yapsab and two other members who changed to ‘Guardian=Scout’ took charge of this unit. And the farmers and architects made up the Engineer unit and they were led by Bu Dong-san and two others who had changed professions to ‘Guardian=Engineer.’ And finally, a number of old veterans like Beseutyu was trained by Jjak-tung who had changed professions to ‘Guardian=Strategist.’

Ark felt a little worried about JusticeMan’s decisions.

‘JusticeMan ajusshi is an expert but the other hyungs have never trained anyone so will they be able to teach the Baran?’

However, Ark’s worries disappeared on the first day of the training camp.

“The children can’t get it straight?”

“If you can’t do it well then you’ll have to duck walk for two kilometres!”

“Hieeeek!”

The Baran clan burst out screaming. The rehabilitation members had received personal training in tactics from JusticeMan. However, the rehabilitation members weren’t strangers to it. All the rehabilitation members had been called for the mandatory military training in South Korea. During those two years, they trained in tactics, discipline and drills. While it didn’t show in their social lives, all of the men in South Korea had military training. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that it was South Korea’s potential. In addition, the rehabilitation members were people with gloomy pasts who used to live in the dark. It was a requirement of those organizations to discipline their subordinates. Thanks to that, the Baran clan experienced a nightmarish training in the Netherworld under their dreadful instructors.

“Eh? What am I seeing?”

“You can’t die from this level of discipline.”

“Even the reserve corps in South Korea can train to this degree.”

“If you fall behind in this simulation training then brace yourselves!”

“The slogan of our unit is defeat evil!”

Each of the rehabilitation members led hundreds of troops so they burned with competition. They pressed the Baran hard because of that.

“Oooh, I’m going to die from this training.”

“I want to fight with the Nakujuk as soon as possible.”

The Baran were so tired that they were even saying those kinds of things. Anyway, the training was effective. Two days later, or 6 days in game time, the forces had managed to get used to the system and were able to somewhat take advantage of each other’s specialities. In particular, the assault troops showed tremendous growth. Although they looked like refugees, they were people who had inherited the Baran’s warrior lineage. The rehabilitation member’s training developed their potential and strength and they were now able to match the Nakujuk warriors. Their forgotten battle skills also manifested quickly. In addition, the scouting unit and the Dark Brothers went through joint training while the engineer troops levelled up their skills by repairing Haman Fortress.

“Okay, now I don’t have to worry about that.”

Ark nodded his head with satisfaction after observing some of the Baran’s training. But the next day Ark had to face a problem he never considered.

“Ark-nim, gathering the weapon supplies isn’t as easy as I thought.”

Lariette sighed as she spoke. While the rehabilitation members were assigned to training, Lariette had been responsible for requisitioning munitions from the southern villages. The Baran clan was a race which centred on farming, raising livestock or extracting minerals. So when the elders first started requisitioning, they were able to gather an overflowing amount of food and minerals. But they could not gather the most important military materials, weapons and armour. Of course, even the Baran clan had blacksmiths. However they were only experienced with rakes or shovels and had never created a weapon. Not only was there no weapons, the Baran clan’s equipment was like the Bronze Age while the Nakujuk was the Iron Age.

Daeng kang!

“Huk! The handle broke!”

It was normal for the handle of a spear to break during training. It the handle broke then the spear or javelin wouldn’t be able to be thrown. There was no need to explain the importance of weapons in a war. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say the performance of the weapon affect the combat power in a game.

‘Unbelievable. Every time something is fixed then another problem occurs.’

Ark continuously sighed. Weapons production was the most important problem that needed to be solved at the moment. Even if he started properly training a blacksmith now, it would take a while for them to be able to produce weapons. It took a great deal of time and money to become a skilled blacksmith.

‘Well, the Baran clan is able to obtain the ores necessary for production…..’

Wait, why had he never thought about that?

“Leave the problem to me.”

Ark immediately used the Dimensional Movement Powder to return to Lancel village. He visited the raccoon clan and showed them the ore from the Netherworld.

“This ore. What do you think about it?”

“Ohu, it is a very high purity ore. Where did you get it from?”

The raccoons were craftsmen so they felt greedier for the ore than money. As expected, the raccoon clan showed signs of desire as they were shown the ore. Ark grinned and made a proposal.

“In fact, I’m visiting with a request. Would you make weapons for me if I supplied you with this ore? As much as possible. I really need weapons so I’ll also supply the coal and whetstone. Please take the ore as payment for the weapons.”

“You’ll pay for all of it using the ore?”

The raccoon clan thought for a moment before nodding.

“We accept. Ore is similar to money for us so it’s not a problem. And this is a good ore so we’re quite greedy for it.”

That was the method Ark came up with. He took the ores from the Baran clan and commissioned the raccoon clans to produce weapons.

‘Now the problem of weapons supply will be solved. In addition…..’

Ark laughed after the raccoons entered into the weapons supply agreement. The munitions were the property of the NPC. Although Ark was the Commander, he couldn’t just embezzle it. So although Ark saw the munitions piled up in Haman Fortress, he could only swallow his saliva. Then he had a brilliant idea after hearing Lariette’s words. Currently, Ark made all the decisions as the Commander. He couldn’t take the war materials, but he could use the goods to barter for war preparations.

‘I’m in the middle so I won’t be able to profit if I deal directly with the raccoons.’

The raccoons signed a contract to trade one weapon for one ore and coal. There was no way for someone in the middle to profit. But who was Ark? Using cheap tricks, wouldn’t Ark be able to obtain coffee from a well?

‘Huhuhu, there’s also a handling fee when trading through an intermediary agent.’

The method Ark devised involved Ark’s Comprehensive Store in Lancel village. Using this method, Ark’s store received 1,000 ores from the Netherworld.  At this stage, the ores still belonged to the NPCs. That was the key. The store would pass the ores to the raccoons who created 10 weapons out of them. The deluxe weapons of the raccoon family had considerable value to the Baran who didn’t have a method of developing advanced weapons. So during the war, he could barter and increase the value to 1,200 ores. Ark would then hand over the ores again for weapons production. In other words, except for the first time he paid 1,000 ores he was able to get an extra 200 ores with every transaction afterwards.  It was like someone else arranging the table while he picked up the spoon. This was just his handling charge.

‘I get 200 ores for every 10 weapons. It is enough to create one weapon. Presently, we need approximately 1,000 weapons and armour. All that work will give me 20,000 ores. I could make a profit of at least 2,000 gold if I could sell all the weapons and armours!’

All Ark had to do was go back and forth between Lancel village and the Netherworld carrying the ores. Of course, he had to use the Dimensional Movement Powder every time but there was still a lot left. Besides, was the powder necessary once the Netherworld rose to middle earth? It would be like swimming on land!

‘Hahaha, war is also money!’

“Buksil, you will carry the weapons between Lancel village and the Netherworld!”

Ark made Buksil who was a profession merchant in charge of the trade route. At the end of the deal, Ark would be able to embezzle approximately 2,000 gold. In addition, the Baran clan’s lack of equipment was quickly solved. At that time, Ark also discovered that the weapons produced by the blacksmiths weren’t all the same. Just like Ark could create an ‘A la carte’ dish, the blacksmiths created 50~60 deluxe weapons. Of course, the stats for the deluxe items were significantly better than an equivalent item.

“Usually a masterpiece will be more expensive because of the labour put into it, but I will give it to Ark-nim for the same price.”

‘Jackpot!’

Ark purchased the deluxe items and then sold them to the rehabilitation members for a more expensive price. Even the rehabilitation members needed weapons and armour. There was no reason to sell a deluxe item for cheaper than the market price.

“It’s usually 40~50 gold but I’ll give these to hyung for 30 gold.”

The rehabilitation members’ eyes shone like lanterns at Ark’s words.

“As expected, we only have you.”

Thanks to that, JusticeMan and the rehabilitation members were able to purchase deluxe goods. The rehabilitation members received better equipment while Ark’s wallet became warmer.

‘But it’s still lacking. I need 45 million won in two months!’

In fact, JusticeMan and the rehabilitation members knew that Ark would get a profit from it. But they didn’t care about something like that. They knew the reason why Ark’s personality was a little strange. Thanks to the lease contract, JusticeMan and the rehabilitation members wanted to somehow help Ark. They also knew Ark wouldn’t accept such one-sided help so they wanted him to swindle them. It was a fair price for them. They bought it with the money they saved.

But Ark’s opinion was firm. It was the one part Ark was sure about.

“I’ll pay 50 gold for these items….”

“No, it is 30 gold.”

Ark thought of the rehabilitation group as brothers so he didn’t want them to lose money.  However, he wouldn’t hesitate to swindle other users or NPCs. That was his firm standards for money. It was why the rehabilitation members knew that Ark wasn’t just about money, money, money. After a few days, he ended up securing 1,000 weapons and an information window appeared.

‘Huhuhu, it was worth the trouble.’

That was the reason why Ark did the transactions through the store. Trading the materials through Ark’s store was a huge process. In addition, the raccoon clan who were NPC residents could also learn money. Thanks to his achievements, the commercial value of the town rose and his upper limit for shares increased as well. Ark nodded with satisfaction before looking at Dedric and Razak.

“Come on, do you think you can just play around?”

“Eh? We’re going to train as well?”

Clack clack? Clack clack clack clack?

Dedric and Razak stepped back with a wince.

“Of course. Aren’t you motivated watching the Baran clan become stronger?”

“What the, we’ve already gone through a professional course so why do we have to be compared to those things? We’re resting and storing our power so that we can comfortably use it during an important moment in battle! It is better to hunt than go through basic training.”

He couldn’t say anything……

Dedric’s words weren’t completely wrong. In fact, Dedric and Razak had increased their power several times through high intensity training. Therefore, their performance rate for the operations was over 90%. Their ability to adapt in a crisis was also considerable. That’s why they were able to help Ark deal with monsters 100 levels above them. So there was no reason for them to receive basic training like the Baran.

‘But it’s a different story if they can raise their skill proficiency.’

Recently, Ark had discovered through Radun that using ‘Affection’ could increase the skills of his pets. However, the skill didn’t rise if he just invested Affection into it. Ark and his pets also had to gain an understanding of the skill in order to raise it.

‘I don’t have to increase the understanding of the skills through training. I can increase their understanding by utilizing the skills while hunting. The japtem and experience will also be a bonus. Furthermore, Affection might increase if I accept the opinions of my pets.’

“Okay, let’s go hunting.”

While the Baran were busy training, Ark dedicated himself to hunting around the area. He forgot himself and a week quickly passed by. While he was hunting, Shambala and the Dark Brothers had been scouting the Nakujuk and finally returned to the fortress.

“Ark, they’ve begun advancing into the western region.”

Finally the war had started.

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Chae chang, seokeok!

The sharp sounds iron and flesh being cut rang out. An enemy appeared in front of him while swinging his sword. He blinked once and paid careful attention. Being able to detect the sharp sword would save his life. It was a battlefield.

‘How long will this battle last?’

Ark thought as he knocked down the group of Nakujuk. It was already the 5th day of fighting against the Nakujuk and dozens of battles had been fought. As expected, the Nakujuk had 5,000 troops. On the other hand, the Baran managed to gather a few more troops and increased their numbers to 4,500. The numbers were almost equal but the combat power between the Nakujuk who was a warrior tribe and the civilian Baran clan was completely different. Despite the high intensity training, there was a limit to how much they could learn in a week. The Baran clan were defeated many times in the early stages and were pushed towards the first defensive wall they built in the canyon.

‘If it wasn’t for JusticeMan then the Baran clan would already be wiped out.’

Ark looked at JusticeMan who was standing on a hill overlooking the battle. In fact, JusticeMan had already foreseen what would happen in the early stages. Because the early strategy was to preserve the troops rather than maintaining the high ground. But they strategy changed to counter-attacking once the Nakujuk marched into the canyon. JusticeMan chose the strategy of ‘Backtracking.’ When the Nakujuk moved from point B to point A, they would backtrack and attack point B. The war of NPCs in New World was also similar to wars in reality. In other words, they had to secure a supply route if the troops wanted to continue marching. If they lost the supply route then they would run out of food and weapons and armour won’t be able to be repaired. In addition, the soldiers would feel anxious and their morale would start to fall. Of course, the Nakujuk had to move back to point B to secure the supply route again. Then JusticeMan would build a defensive structure at point A. Thanks to that, the Nakujuk were now only able to advance near the entrance of the canyon.

Of course, this strategy had been used since ancient times. The NPCs might not know about it so Jewel’s group would see through it immediately. However, ‘knowing’ about it and ‘stopping’ it were different issues. Thus the strategy they envisioned was a success! In the ever changing battlefield, it was difficult to make a RTS succeed but it was possible using real-time simulation games.  Now to mention the field in New World was reminiscent of an actual battlefield. JusticeMan and Lariette also had an enormous impact on the battlefield. Without JusticeMan’s expertise and Lariette’s special abilities, it would be impossible to succeed. Of course, the rehabilitation members and the Dark Brothers also helped execute the strategy.

“Ah ah ah, I’m going to kill everybody!”

“The weak Baran are acting so arrogantly!”

The Nakujuk had thought the battle was going to be easy so they eagerly rushed forward. Although the Baran’s line of defense collapsed, JusticeMan just waited and said.

“Heh, they’ve started to lose control after 40 minutes. Their flanks are spread widely thanks to them eagerly rushing forward. Dark Brothers, Intercept Operation!”

Lariette cast her ‘glow’ at JusticeMan’s command. The Innocence Knight always caused a glow whenever she used a skill. The Dark Brothers had been hiding using ‘Stealth.’

Kwa kwang, kwa kwang, kwa kwang, kwa kwang!

There was a huge sound as hundreds of Dark Brothers emerged and used backstab. The Nakujuk had already been missing quite a lot of health thanks to the battle so they quickly collapsed.

“Ugh, w-where did they come from…..!”

“F-fall back. Retreat from their attack range and rearrange the formation.”

“But we’ve already entered too deeply into enemy territory. If we retreat then all the troops will be isolated.”

“Send the Draken unit to support them.”

The shout emerged from the confused group of Nakujuk.  And after a while, dozens of Draken rushed across the battlefield.

Kurwarwarwarwa-!

It was the Draken who could fly freely in the sky and had immense attacks! They were so strong that they were able to face 10 of the Baran clan’s monsters. They always appeared in a decisive moment to cause a crisis among the Baran. However, this time emergence of the Draken was an opportunity for JusticeMan.

“Tactical units, intercept the Drakens!”

After the command was issued, hundreds of soldiers on the hills on both sides of the canyon raised their bodies.

“Don’t spread the attacks. Concentrate on one target and attack.”

Jjak-tung used his skill to place clear signs above the Draken’s head.

“It’s this one for the moment. It is an all-out attack. Exterminate them!”

Tu tu tu tung, kwa kwa kwa kwang!

Firing sounds were heard from the tactical unit’s hands as hundreds of artillery hit the Draken at the same time, causing it to spew blood and collapse. Ark had commissioned cannons from the raccoon family. The cannon was a perfect weapon for the tactical units. The tactical unit was smart but powerless so they couldn’t face the Nakujuk directly. This wasn’t a problem if they attacked from long distance. And cannons were classified as a machine rather than a weapon, so they showed higher performances when used by NPCs. In addition, the tactical units was led by Jjak-tung who was a ‘General=Strategist.’ One of the skills Jjak-tung learned was ‘Feng Shui.’ When used in battle, ‘Feng Shui’ increased the effect of terrain by 50%. In other words, the cannon had extra damage and accuracy when fired from a higher position. Feng Shui increased these effects by 50%.

‘Ugh, this, unbelievable……..!’

The Nakujuk could only watch as one Draken fell after another. Just like that, the tactical units instantly handled the Draken and started attacking the Nakujuk. They fired from the top of the hill towards the bottom. Also the Nakujuk were closely gathered in the canyon so it was easy to hit them! When shooting the cannon, there was no way it could miss. Jjak-tung shouted with excitement on his face.

“Attack, attack, attack! No signs are required for these guys. Just fire blindly!”

Tu tu tu tung, tu tu tu tung!

The artillery fell from the sky like a shower of rain, causing the Nakujuk’s camp to collapse. But this was still only a skirmish.

“That’s it!”

Ark had been waiting for that message to appear. While the battle had been going on, Bu Dong-san had split the engineer unit to construct three towers on top of the hill. Of course, they didn’t have that much time so the towers weren’t strong or durable. But the Nakujuk had to break through the 2nd line of defense in order to move up the hill and attack the towers. In other words, it meant they couldn’t directly attack the towers Guard towers…..if anyone had every played a Warcraft RTS game then they would know the strength of guard towers. There was a huge bonus applied to the range and attack power of arrows shot by the guard tower. Furthermore, the guards in the tower wouldn’t be hurt until the tower collapsed. Thus the guard towers were a necessary resource but it required a lot of resources and people to create. The guard towers and the tactical units with cannons! The shower of arrows and artillery immediately decreased the health of the Nakujuk.

A smirk formed on JusticeMan’s face.

“Okay, shall we throw something else at them? Assault units charge!”

“Wah ah ah ah!”

Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa!

They rushed onto the battlefield which split like the Red Sea. The earth sounded like it was shaking as 1,000 mounted troops charged towards the enemy’s camp. This was the concentrated assault of the Baran clan. They were also riding monsters that the trainers had tamed. In fact, JusticeMan had struggled with how to use the monsters in the war. Four or five monsters could only deal with one Nakujuk. And when the battlefield became complicated, the trainer couldn’t handle all the monsters alone. To overcome those drawbacks, JusticeMan had decided to use them as cavalry troops.

The Hellhound, Bolkanasu and Kajel Wolves were ridden into battle.  The situation went through a 180 degree change. Thanks to the speed of the rush, the attack damage of the Baran clan and the monsters were greatly improved. It was possible to say that the battle once truly started with this assault. When the assault units appeared, Ark’s eyes brightened and he shouted.

“Huhuhu, it’s time Radun. Transform!”

Ssak ssak, ssak ssak ssak ssak!

Pa pa pa pa, pa pa pa pa!

Radun finally had a chance to play an active role as he ran with Ark on its back towards the assault troops. There was a deafening noise as the assault troops collided with the Nakujuk and the Nakujuk went flying. However, Ark slowed his speed after a quick peek. Ark wasn’t eager to fight and just followed behind the assault units. It was a battle involving thousands spread out through the canyon. While the soldiers were interlocked and fighting, many items also fell. But it was difficult to move easily in such a hectic battlefield. And even Ark was limited in his ability to grab items and store them. But the situation changed when the assault troops broke through the enemy line. Dozens of Nakujuk collapsed from the charge of the assault troops. And an empty space opened between the general Baran troops and the enormous speed of the cavalry unit. The person who picked up the items first was the owner.  It was the moment Ark was waiting for! Ark ran after the assault troops and scraped up the items which had fallen to the ground.

“Over there, an item just fell!”

Ssak ssak, ssak ssak ssak ssak!

Ark’s eyes looked around and Radun instantly ran to that place when he shouted.

‘Hahaha, this is a field of items!’

Ark rode Radun and chased after the cavalry troops. On again, it was like someone else arranging the table with food while Ark picked up the spoon and ate it. He had to do it even if it was shameful. If he didn’t do this then how could he raise 45 million won in two months?

“Ark, what are you doing? Is now the time to be playing around?”

At that time, Shambala passed by him and shouted angrily.

“Have you forgotten our mission?”

“I know. I’m looking for it so you don’t have to tell me.”

Ark answered in a brusque voice while Shambala continued into enemy territory. Yes, Ark was the Commander so he wasn’t in the battlefield just to pick up some trivial items. It was due to a special mission.

‘Although it is trivial, gathering a lot will still make me some money.’

Ark’s sharp eyes looked over the battlefield. At that time, Dedric contacted him through radio from where he had been searching in the sky.

“Beep beep. Chiik, chiik. You hear me, Master……the goal is found….over.”

‘Where?’

“Where Master is now…..in that place…..6 o’clock…..50 metres away.”

‘6 o’clock….okay, I found it!’

Ark searched the camp and discovered the target.

‘Oho, the opponent is Jewel? Lucky. Shambala was start complaining about it being unfair.’

Ark looked at Jewel throwing magic all over the place. The most annoying presences in the war were Jewel and the Hermes guild. Thus Ark and Shambala were given a special mission to handle the Hermes guild. Shambala and Ark were the only ones who could beat them in a melee situation. Ark prioritized this special mission as the most important. The reason was because they had money. The Hermes guild was in a war against NPCs so they were all chaotic.  When they died, they would receive 2x the death penalty and would unconditionally drop one item. In other words, they weren’t different from a special monster. In addition, they commanded the Nakujuk so they were good prey for Ark.

‘Now Jewel looks even prettier. What will I get this time?’

“Radun, to the right. Charge!”

Pa pa pa pa, pa pa pa pa!

Radun quickly rushed towards Jewel.

“Huk, t-that guy….!”

Jewel screamed as she spotted Ark running towards her. In fact, this was not the first time he met Jewel. He had meet Jewel two times since the war began. At that time Jewel had rushed frantically towards him.  However, the result was a complete defeat for Jewel. Now the pioneer Jewel couldn’t match Ark anymore. Jewel was prideful but she finally admitted it after being defeated by Ark twice. The two defeats meant double the penalty and items dropped.

“S-stop him! Don’t let him come!”

Jewel fell back and yelled at the Nakujuk. But Ark wasn’t going to miss a source of money.

“Hah, trying to run away? Not a chance!”

Ark took out the Saw Blade and threw it. The Saw Blade flew through the air and landed in front of Jewel.

“Undo transformation, Razak Shield Stroke!”

The Saw Blade immediately morphed into Razak at Ark’s command. Jewel flinched as Razak immediately struck her with the shield. This was the method Ark developed to hunt the Hermes guild. Ta da da dang, there was a continuous ringing sound as Jewel was pushed back towards Ark. It was the power of intermediate Shield Stroke.

Ark had studied Shield Stroke during the one week dedicated to hunting. When the new technique was learned, he consumed 50 Affection in order to raise Razak’s Shield Stroke.

“Ugh, t-this bastard…!”

Jewel muttered as she stumbled. However, the stiffness meant that Jewel was unable to move.

“Shut up and give me items! Demonic Opening, Dark Blade!”

Ark’s enormous attack instantly decreased Jewel’s health to 30%. The stiffness was released but Jewel from the strongest Hermes guild didn’t dare to fight and just ran away.

“What are you doing? Block him!”

Jewel cried out and the Nakujuk came stampeding towards him. But Ark just smiled and murmured.

“This is all you have? Assault troops, push against them!”

The Baran assault troops heard Ark’s shout and pushed against the Nakujuk. But some of the Nakujuk got past and came to help Jewel. At that time, Dedric flew down like a thunderbolt and spat towards the Nakujuk.

“Your opponent is over here you communist!”

He had also consumed 50 Affection points to raise his Taunt skill!

“Kuaaak, that bat is spiting on us!”

“Hahaha, it’s not just saliva. It is sputum!”

“Sputum? This freaking bat, I’ll tear it apart!”

“H-hey you morons, where are you going?”

Because they were chaotic, they deliberately put away their best items. It wasn’t possible for them to have a huge effect on the war wearing good items and the damage would be too large if they died. However, it was still more expensive than the items the Nakujuk would drop and it relieved his stress so he continued hunting the Hermes guild.

“Jewel’s equipment is more expensive than that other guy. Wasn’t the armour I got from that warrior only worth 100,000 won? These fellows are like beggars.”

Ark clicked his tongue and looked around again.

“Anyway, I’ve caught more than Shambala at the moment.”

Although he was hunting the Hermes guild, they weren’t the only targets.  The chieftains were often hidden in the back or buried in a group of Nakujuk.

‘Shall I see how many Nakujuk I can kill while hunting their chieftains?’

“Dedric, use satellite mode!”

“Sheesh, don’t call it that name. It is surveillance mode!”

Dedric grunted and flew into the sky again. And soon they found another commander not far from there. Naturally a special monster would drop better items than a normal monster. Instead of killing the chickens, Ark wandered around and sliced up the Hermes leaders. Of course, it was determination for a jackpot but Ark’s achievements also contributed greatly to the military situation.

“Ohhh, Ark-nim has already defeated another leader!”

“Those guys aren’t a big deal!”

Thanks to Ark, the morale of the Baran clan went up while the Nakujuk’s decreased. Meanwhile, Shambala had finished hunting the Hermes guild and changed targets to the chieftains as well. The Drakens were completely destroyed and the Hermes members and chieftains were collapsing one after the other. After approximately 2 hours had passed…….

“Eeeugh, retreat, everybody retreat!”

The Nakujuk fled after suffering enormous damage.