Chapter 427

『 Huhu, Grid pulled out the A lot. 』

『 The first match of the siege... It’s also against the United States. 』

『 Look at Grid’s expression. He has never sweated like this before. 』

『 It’s a rare appearance. This means he doesn’t have much confidence. 』

The ratings of the siege relay started to rise rapidly. It showed that most people were having great fun with this situation.

-Didn’t Yura and Jishuka sleep in Grid’s room last night?

-I want to deny it, but it’s true... The paparazzi took photos of them leaving Grid’s room this morning...

-Kuoh... He deserves punishment for being alone with the best beauties in the world.

-The United States will trample on him!

-Grid’s misfortune is my happiness!

Hundreds of millions of men were blinded by jealousy. They wanted to see Grid collapse quickly. The Korean people were resigned.

-Well... It would be hard to win a medal in the siege war, even if we didn’t meet the United States right away.

-In retrospect, it’s better to be eliminated early. Our players will be able to take a day off and fight hard tomorrow.

-In particular, Grid must’ve spent a lot of energy last night.

-Grid was the one who drew the United States. He thought of the big picture.

-Truly God Grid.

The early elimination was confirmed. The Korean citizens tried to think as positively as possible. It was the same with Grid.

‘I’ll finish it quickly and go to the capsule room.’

What if he concentrated on hunting while the other rankers were busy with the National Competition?

‘I can get a little bit ahead.’

Grid only thought about the game and had no intention of exploring Paris. Lauel came near him.

“Think of this as war exercises.”

“War exercises?”

Lauel grinned brightly at Grid.

“Isn’t your ultimate goal to be rich, to be the best, and to be recognized by people? To achieve that goal, you must become a king.”

The first condition for becoming a king was lineage, but users had no concept of lineage. What Grid needed was justification and a vast territory. It was his destiny to constantly take part in wars to expand his territory.

“Originally, a war simulation requires huge manpower and money. It’s difficult to do with Overgeared’s current capacity. But today, we have an opportunity to try a free simulation.”

"...”

“Try your best. I will teach you strategies and tactics. Well, if you’re afraid, you can give up early. This is your limit.”

Lauel was the only one in Overgeared who criticized Grid. Lauel always pointed out Grid’s faults, sometimes making him feel ashamed. The reason? He was hoping for Grid’s development. Yes, it was the same right now. Lauel spoke in a high and mighty tone, clearly provoking Grid.

He knew. The current Grid had lost motivation. Thus, Lauel couldn’t stay still.

"...”

The Grid of the past would’ve felt resentful without grasping Lauel’s intentions. But now it was different. He saw why Lauel was provoking him and replied.

“Okay, bring it on.”

He was idle for a moment. Giving up? It was clear that he forgot himself these days.

‘Wake up.’

Clap.

Grid slapped his cheeks with both hands. His black eyes once again gained their like.

'I will try my best to win.’

As always.

***

"You’re taking care of Grid.”

“Do you think I will lose on purpose?”

The American representatives heard the conversation between Lauel and Grid. Lauel shrugged at them.

“You don’t need to worry. I will fight my best for Grid’s development.”

Above all, he had to win until they met Russia. Lauel had no intention of being defeated by South Korea.

‘The variables that Korea has are the Ruler’s Cloak and the Hooded Zip Up.’

Lauel was aware of most of Grid and the Overgeared members’ items. First, the Ruler’s Cloak. It was a legendary rated item that Grid acquired the day that Reidan’s Overgeared knights were created. Charge Command, Military Command, and Ruler’s Voice were all skills attached to the Ruler’s Cloak, allowing for a simple and efficient commands delivery system. If Grid took advantage of it, he would be able to efficiently command 50 NPCs and act as a moderate threat.

Next was the Hooded Zip Up. The invisibility cloaks made by Grid out of the sylphid scales were luxury Overgeared items. Grid, Yura, and Peak Sword all possessed one, so it was necessary to guard against stealth.

‘Other than that.’

He needed to pay attention to Grid’s basic attack power. Yura hadn’t grown enough to be comparable to the US representatives outside of hell, while Peak Sword could only tie up one US representative. The other Korean representatives weren’t worth discussing.

"Let's go."

South Korea and the United States were the opening match of the siege event. Hundreds of thousands of people cheered for them as they entered the capsule.

***

[You have entered Anterava Forest.]

[You have 20 minutes before the siege starts. Please prepare during these 20 minutes.]

“South Korea... They are only good for warming up the body.”

"Can they even warm up the body?”

“Hahaha!”

In fact, the atmosphere in the United States team was the worst when Zibal picked the A lot. The siege where they only knew the map and simple rules. There was a lot of pressure because they didn’t have information about 50 NPCs and were expected to open the event in the first match. They were also worried about meeting Japan in the beginning.

But Grid pulled out the A lot after Zibal. He was truly a nice guy. The US representatives could relax because they weren’t worried about South Korea. Their footsteps were light as they entered the castle, which had walls of a low height of one metre.

“Hoh, they are the rumored NPCs.

"Let’s take a closer look.”

The castle’s garden.

50 NPcs were present. 15 of them were tankers who were heavy armor and were armed with large shields, while 20 were close combat soldiers wearing light armor and holding sharp weapons. On top of that, there were 10 archers and 5 magicians.

"Panmir, check the status of their items. Then we will measure their stats with a simple spar.”

Zibal was surprised to see the NPCs’ faces when he issued the orders.

"Isn’t it rude to want to look at our equipment and skills just like that?”

"A rude group of people arrived as reinforcements...”

“Do you have any skills? I don’t trust you.”

The NPCs remarked. Zibal and the US representatives were baffled at their attitude.

‘These NPCs aren’t our subordinates...’

‘They are equal to our position?’

'We are playing the role of NPC reinforcements?’

Then a notification window appeared in front of the US team.

[A joint quest has occurred.]

[Siege War]

Level of Difficulty: Not measurable.

Two countries are in a war for ownership of Anterava Forest.

You are a member of Kingdom A.

Cooperate closely with the knights of Kingdom A to occupy the castle of Kingdom B and take over Anterava Forest.

* This quest is specifically developed for the National Competition and isn’t related to Satisfy’s story. However, the NPCs understand Satisfy’s worldview.

Victory Condition: Take over Castle B or wipe out the troops of Kingdom B.

* The time limit is 2 hours. If there is no victor within the time limit, the country with the highest number of survivors wins.

* If you don’t attack and only defend, your affinity with the NPCs will drop exponentially and this will lead to defeat.

‘This...’

They thought that the NPCs had the concept of soldiers. But they were allies? It was quite different from what they expected. It would be difficult to form an absolute command system.

"Let’s go the enemy castle. Let those seven people follow our plan.”

The NPCs started to act arbitrarily. If the US team couldn’t give orders to them, any plans developed would become useless. What should they do? The US representatives were in turmoil for a while before coming up with a good idea.

{Lauel, explain your strategy to the NPCs.}

{Yes, if they listen to a good plan, they will understand and pass the command rights over to you.}

It was true. However, it was doubtful if explaining the plan would change the attitude of the NPCs. They couldn’t rule out the possibility that there might be stupid NPCs. Lauel asked his team members.

{Who has the dignity, leadership, or charm stats?}

‘Ah!’

The US team members noticed Lauel’s intentions. Among them, Zibal, Skill, and Zephyr went forward. They were top rankers and held various titles, including a nobility title. They had at least 300 points in dignity. In particular, Zibal and Skull had opened up the leadership and charm stat.

Lauel took the lead and declared to the NPCs.

"I am Lord Lauel. As an earl and hero of the Eternal Kingdom, we won’t fail. If you trust in my honor and status and follow my commands in this war, I will guarantee victory.”

Lauel was followed up by Zibal, Skull, and Zephyr. Then more than half of the NPCs exchanged looks and nodded.

“I will trust you for the moment.”

"But if you’re judged incompetent, we will no longer follow your orders. At that time, you will have to follow our orders instead.”

“...Okay.”

Lauel and Zibal nodded without hesitation. Exactly 31 NPCs bowed to them, while the remaining 19 NPCs watched silently. Still, it was a level where the chain of command could be completed. On this positive note, Lauel started to explain the plan to the NPCs. The NPCs became impressed by Lauel and gradually started to trust him.

The viewers of the world watched this process and were impressed.

-Wow, I thought it would be bad at first when I saw the status of the NPCs.

-The dignity stat of the US representatives is enormous. Now the NPCs are following them willingly.

-Lauel is first class.

-Doesn’t Lauel seem to have over 500 dignity?

-The dignity stat is the dignity stat, but the NPCs were quickly inspired by the plan. It seems like Lauel has prepared a great operation.

Then what about South Korea? As the US representatives checked the equipment and skills of the NPCs, the screen switched to the Korean castle.

『 Grid is the first user to become a duke, so it’s estimated that his dignity and charm stats are higher than Lauel’s... 』

『 It’s unknown if the other Korean representatives have opened up special stats like dignity. 』

『 In addition, South Korea doesn’t have a strategist like Lauel. We have to worry if it is possible for Grid to persuade the NPCs... Heok? 』

『 W-What is this? 』

The commentators were amazed and their mouths dropped open. It was the same with the viewers. Why? Grid wore a small crown and as he walked forward...

“I will swear allegiance to you!!”

“Just say the word! I will follow you!”

The 50 proud NPCs knelt before him! The world fell into a great shock as Grid smiled.

'Lauel, it doesn’t matter if you are good at strategies.’

Grid would show his unique value by breaking all this down with items. Grid grabbed the Great Lord's Sword and gave an absurd command to the kneeling NPCs.

“Take off your equipment.”