Han Yuseong was resting in his studio apartment.And just as he opened his eyes,
[Lo and behold, I, your lady, require coins.]
Kakasha grumbled as if she were greeting him—though it was more of a complaint.It was a surprisingly welcome greeting. Han Yuseong closed his eyes again.
[Do not ignore me! I require coins!]"I'm listening. Why, do you think it's finally possible to appoint an Apostle now?"[Hmm, sometimes when I speak with you, it feels like you can read my mind… it's unsettling... Regardless, you're right.]"Hah, well, I guess it's about that time."
Even among the Vowed, there are ranks, and the highest of them is 'Apostle.'Strictly speaking, there is one rank above that.It's the rank of 'Agent.'However, the Agent is a position that cannot be reached through ordinary means, and even most Lords are reluctant to appoint Agents.So in practice, Apostle was considered the highest attainable rank.
[As you already know, I've lost most of the power I once had. I even lost all the 'Blessings' I used to possess. I intend to appoint you as an Apostle to help me rebuild the power I once had.]"You gorged on coins like a pig, and now you're finally seeing the consequences?"[Kyaa! I am no pig!]
Those who form a pact with a Lord—known as the Vowed—receive blessings.But that's not the only benefit.Each time a Lord accumulates a certain level of power, they can choose something called a 'Blessing.'
There are various types of Blessings.Some enhance the Vowed's blessings, others improve their stats, and some unlock special skills.
[I'll entrust you with the authority to choose those Blessings. As I've said before, you and I share a fate.]"You're getting long-winded. So, how many more coins do you need?"[…To appoint you as an Apostle, 60,000. To choose a Blessing, 20,000 more.]"I feel like I've made a pact not with a Lord, but with a coin-devouring hippo."
Kakasha let out a gloomy groan.That's the reason behind the rumor that the Lord of Stars is obsessed with coins—to the point of greed.Whatever the case, coins were being drained rapidly.
"I think I have around 30,000 coins right now."
They were coins he had earned as a reward from the Trials of the Gods.Which meant he still needed another 50,000 coins.
"Feels like it's about time for an event to pop up."
Han Yuseong checked the player community.The community was ideal for picking up light info and catching up on current trends.Sure enough, the posts he was looking for were there.
[An event is scheduled to begin in Battlefield of Stars for Bronze-tier players. According to a certain Lord, there's a high chance this event will be dungeon-type.]
[Promising players from various countries expected to participate.]
[Rumor has it top-tier up-and-comers from the U.S. and Japan will appear too?]
[Korea's rising star, Kim Junghwi, joins the lineup!]
The first batch of news was about Battlefield of Stars.A dungeon-type event was about to begin, and there were rumors that promising players from different countries would be participating.All of it was true.
A promising player from Japan had participated and earned rewards.
"That player was Makiros's Vowed, wasn't he?"
Lords do not operate within the bounds of a single country.They act across multiple nations and gather Vowed followers from all over.While national affiliation matters to players, it doesn't matter to the Lords.What matters to the Lords—above all—is coins.And what matters even more is who gathers how many coins. The national origin of the Vowed collecting those coins is completely irrelevant.
"That Japanese player's name was… Maezato Moju, I think?"
That was probably his name.He wasn't entirely sure—it had been quite a while since the guy died in his previous life.But the fact that he could still recall the name after all that time meant Maezato had been both talented and skilled.And—
"He was also a complete piece of trash, personality-wise."
Arrogant, maybe even a bit unhinged.Whatever the case, while Maezato Moju was still considered a rising star now, he would eventually grow into one of Japan's representative players.That was the problem.
If you considered future nation-versus-nation competitions—
"I'd better break his spirit early."
Earn coins, hinder Makiros, and crush a rising star's momentum.There was nothing to lose in this event.
"Time to cash in, big."
[Ku-hu-hu, war! I smell the rich scent of war!]
Kakasha was elated.Han Yuseong casually scrolled down the community posts.He was checking if there was anything else worth noting.And then—something caught his eye.He blinked, doubting what he had just read, and looked at the post title again:
[Lord of the Dead in conflict with Lord of Shadows.]
[Claiming the Lord of Shadows has trespassed upon her domain. In response to being ignored, she is now preparing what she calls a 'War-Level Difficulty' assault.]
[All eyes are on who will emerge victorious…]
News of a conflict between the Lord of the Dead and the Lord of Shadows.Han Yuseong tilted his head in confusion.
"That never happened in my past life…"
For these two to clash at this stage of the timeline…He was pretty sure there hadn't been any friction between them before.Yet now, things had escalated.
[This is probably your doing.]"Yeah, probably my fault."
When he escaped from Yeoju City, Han Yuseong had used shadows.Specifically, the legendary item Shadowbane and its effect, [Boundary of Illusion], made for perfect misdirection.
[Didn't you wipe out nearly half the necromancers there before leaving? No one would believe that was the work of a single player.]"They probably think the Lord of Shadows was behind it."[That's the most likely scenario. Especially that cursed woman—the Lord of the Dead—she's got an ego the size of a planet.]
It was a situation caused by misunderstandings and misjudgments piling up.The Lord of Shadows had ignored it, thinking it wasn't her doing, while the Lord of the Dead, regardless of the truth, became enraged by that attitude.
[Hoo-hoo… So they're not going for an all-out war, just enough to settle the score. They're probably setting up a 'War-Level Challenge' to determine victory.]"They'll probably settle it with reparations from the loser to the winner."[And… are you interested in this?]
Han Yuseong paused for a moment in thought.Lords usually resolve their disputes by creating a special battlefield or scenario—a "war-level challenge."They wouldn't launch into full-on war right away, so there was still time.He could join after finishing the current event without it being too late.
"If I recall, the Lord of Shadows is short on Vowed followers."[Correct. She runs a small elite group. Given the structure of war-level challenges, she's likely to recruit external mercenaries. Hmph, and…]"Mercenaries are rewarded based on performance."
The Lord of Shadows was well-regarded among players—one of the more trustworthy Lords.You could say her rewards were as reliable as those from the Lord of Pleasures.But beyond that—
"Eventually, people are going to find out it was me who attacked Yeoju City."
Han Yuseong had no intention of hiding his identity for the rest of his life.The time would come when he'd need to use his reputation, too.Eventually, it would be revealed that he was the one who resolved the Night of the Hunt.And when that happened, the existence of the reward dungeon would also become known—and a Lord like the one of the Dead would surely deduce that Han Yuseong had cleared it.
"I'd better do some damage control in advance."
There was no need to turn all the Lords into enemies at once.
"I already know what kind of personality the Lord of Shadows has. If I use that well, I should be able to extract the maximum benefit even from a twisted situation.But that's for later."
"First, let's earn some coins."["Mm-hm, that's the priority! Coins! Coins!"]
But first, he had to deal with that whining.Han Yuseong left his one-room apartment, muttering about the event details.
Japan.A country considered one of the two powerhouses of Playverse, along with the United States.In its capital, Tokyo, countless facilities were built for the Lords.An infrastructure truly on a different level from other countries.As a major power in Playverse, that meant many Lords had gathered here.And among those facilities—
Rather than a typical guild house, it looked more like the head office of a major enterprise.A woman in a suit was descending into its basement.Deep underground—into an Execution Room, where unauthorized individuals could not enter.
— "Urgh, stop! Please, spare me! I'm begging you, damn it…!"
"…Looks like it's already begun."
A scream filled with agony echoed through the space.The woman sighed and opened the door, revealing the scene inside.
A room stained with blood that could not be washed away.People bound at their limbs writhed helplessly, their eyes filled with terror as they stared at someone.A man tightly gripping a blood-dripping sword.
"Sharp..."
Slash!With incredible speed, the blade flew and severed one captive's neck.The man retrieved his sword and struck again like a flash of lightning.
"Light."
The blade pierced straight through another person's heart.Two died instantly, and their spilled blood further desecrated the execution room.Those still alive screamed in sheer terror.
The man ran his fingers along the blade and smiled faintly.
"Not bad. It's a decent sword.""…I'm relieved to hear that, Young Master."
His name was Maezato Moju.Moju brushed back his blood-soaked hair and turned his head.His cold, detached eyes pierced the woman like a dagger.
"Ran, the execution isn't over yet.""If I recall correctly, these were traitors and failures. Wasn't someone else assigned to handle their disposal?""I chose to do it myself. I wanted to test the feel of this new sword."
"Is that so."
As Ran responded calmly, Moju struck down yet another person.The people tied up here were those who had either severely failed missions entrusted to them by the Zanwol guild, or had committed the crime of colluding with rival guilds or corporations.Initially, they were supposed to be handled by the guild's internal audit team.
Of course, not all of them were meant to be killed.
'Only the traitors were supposed to be executed…'
And yet, Moju was slaughtering even the failures.Ran felt a sharp headache coming on.She had made a deliberate effort to keep this from reaching Moju's ears, knowing something like this might happen.But it seems the news had reached the ears of this bloodthirsty lunatic after all.
"But it's not enough. Still not enough. Ran, this alone..."
CRACK—!Moju began swinging his sword like a madman.Blood splattered across the execution room, and screams—no longer just desperate, but utterly horrific—filled the air.Unable to bear watching the carnage, Ran turned her head away.
"This doesn't satisfy me. Ran, how long does that old man intend to keep me locked up in here? Haven't I atoned enough by now?""Calling the chairman—your father—an old man... haah. You know full well this is your reflection period. After the last trial, where you nearly killed your assigned teammates just because they didn't 'click' with you…""They couldn't follow my orders. They didn't even have the ability to.""Of course you'd say that."
Ran, the woman, sighed—one of many that day.Maezato Moju was arrogant—no, haughty.He treated others like disposable tools and would not forgive anyone who failed to follow his commands.
But it couldn't be helped.From birth, he was the heir to one of Japan's most powerful conglomerates.
He had been treated like royalty from the moment he was born.
'And on top of that, he awakened as a Playverse user with a unique ability.'
With both innate privilege and acquired power, it was only natural for him to believe he was someone special—chosen.He was born into authority and later gained strength. That combination led to all kinds of reckless incidents.Unable to tolerate it any longer, the chairman had confined him here.
"Please try to be mindful of public perception, even just a little. This place—Zanwol—was created by the chairman specifically for you. One day…""Enough of that. Just answer my question, Ran."
Ran's eyes twitched.Suppressing a surge of emotion, she spoke in a low voice.
"…Coincidentally, the chairman has decided to give you an opportunity. An event is about to take place in the Battlefield of Stars. He and the Eye of Justice want you to go there and clear it.""What, do they think that'll cover up the bad press about me?"
Moju scoffed, clearly unimpressed.Ran bowed her head in silence.
"Fine. Tell me what kind of event it is.""It's a dungeon raid. I don't know all the details, but it seems you'll have to fight monsters and clear the dungeon. Probably a race to see who completes it the fastest.""How boring. Killing monsters isn't even fun in those kinds of events."
His comment could easily be mistaken for a psychopath's rambling.And in truth, it wasn't far off.
Moju looked completely uninterested.But Ran, who had observed him for a long time, knew well how to capture his attention.
"Players will be participating too—from here and abroad. In the course of the competition, there's a good chance you'll clash with them.""So… I can kill them if I want?"
"It would be troublesome if you killed domestic Playverse players. But if they're from other countries…"
They could easily frame it as an incident during competition.And in the Battlefield of Stars, where death was a natural risk, even more so.All they really needed was the reputation—that Moju had cleared a difficult event on his own.Moju seemed to catch on to that intention, letting out a faint smirk.
"Because the reward for the last trial ended up going to a foreign country, public opinion is in an uproar. Not that I care much about it.""That was Korea, right?""Yes, that's correct."
Traditionally, the U.S. or Japan were the ones to clear major trials the fastest.This time, even in Japan, media had been flooded with articles—asking what had happened, expressing embarrassment, national pride wounded.
Moju hadn't cared much for the neighboring country before.He didn't think they were worth paying attention to.But this time… it was different.
"If I hunt down those Korean Playverse players, the pigs will cheer even louder. Not bad… that's actually a proposal I like, Ran.""Then…""Tell the old man—I'll participate."
A smile curled on Moju's lips.A cruel smile, thick with the stench of blood.
He looked at the last remaining failure and raised his sword.
"In return, I'll do things my way on the battlefield.""Yes… I'll make sure that's conveyed."
Ran bowed her head, trembling.
She had a feeling.A terrible premonition that that madman would go on a rampage in the Battlefield of Stars, hunting down countless Playverse players.
And surely…
'…That's exactly what will happen.'
That premonition—would not be wrong.
Slash!
Ran was certain of it.