The Final Boss Has Returned - Chapter 131
I smiled as I looked at the completed airship.
The majesty of the massive airship, whose size rivaled that of an aircraft carrier, was truly imposing.
Having grown so large that it could no longer be called a mere airship but rather a flying battleship, it was equipped with offensive mana cannons and even had space inside to carry wyvern squadrons.
Truly, the crystallization of over-technology from an ancient magitech civilization stood before my very eyes.
The price was exorbitant enough to make one gasp, but that was hardly a problem.
‘He who rules the skies rules the battlefield.’
Setting aside the overflowing money, this “airship” possessed military value commensurate with its cost.
An air force!
The effectiveness of air supremacy in war was painfully obvious.
In the skies of the Ard World, where wyverns were the best one could hope for, the airship was nothing less than a balance-breaking existence.
And I currently possessed the blueprints to produce that cheat unit.
‘Now it’s time for a field test.’
I thought as I gazed at the airship.
All that truly remained was the field test.
And so I boarded the airship, and soon the massive vessel roared from its mana engines, lifting its gigantic hull into the sky.
The long voyage toward the floating city of Boltaha had finally begun.
* * *
Drakan’s movements flying aboard the airship had concentrated the users’ attention.
But that interest melted away like snow before long.
[The construction of the Broken World Dimensional Gate has been completed.]
[The Broken World Dimensional Gate is starting operation.]
Eastern Lorein Castle!
Because the construction of the Broken World Dimensional Gate located there had finished.
“It’s finally done!”
“The dimensional gate!”
The moment construction ended, Lorein Castle fell into a truly festive atmosphere.
Lorein Castle, which had been reduced to ruins during the Eastern Colony Assault, had already been fully restored by the hands of users who participated in the construction.
Broken World.
Another world seen only through broadcasts, and the stronghold of the monsters!
The news that the gateway leading there had opened was enough to overshadow Drakan’s airship departure.
And at that moment, a quest appeared before the eyes of all users in the Ard World.
[Counterattack of the Ard World]
[Grade: Myth]
-The dimensional gate leading to the Broken World has been completed.
The days of merely receiving invasions from another world are over. Now it is time to strike back against the enemies who invaded the Ard World.
Cross over to the Broken World through the dimensional gate. Build settlements, establish bases, and attack the enemy. And slay the Conquering Monarch behind all this, the Hive Mind.
The protection of the Pantheon and the Hall of Demon Subjugation shall be with you.
[Quest Completion Objective]
-Slay the Hive Mind
[Rewards for this quest will be distributed differentially according to quest contribution.]
A Myth-grade quest!
Counterattack of the Ard World!
All users who saw the final objective of slaying the Hive Mind went wild.
Was this not truly an event for all users?
Moreover, it was unprecedented for all users to share the same quest.
Of course, the quest didn’t end there.
[Quest Contribution Ranking]
[1st place: -]
[2nd place: -]
[3rd place: -]
…….
[The contribution ranking can be checked at any time during the quest.]
Contribution!
The fact that quest contribution was the most important point in this Myth-grade quest to slay the Hive Mind became certain with the appearance of the subsequent contribution ranking window.
Countless users murmured as they saw the contribution ranking window appear after the quest information window.
Who would take 1st place in the contribution ranking!
But that debate was settled before long.
“This time, Yujin will take 1st place.”
“Because Drakan isn’t here right now?”
“What a shame about Drakan’s victory quest timing.”
“What are you talking about? Even if Drakan was here, Lord Yujin would obviously be first.”
Drakan!
The majority predicted Yujin’s victory due to his absence.
Of course, a minority of users—commonly called the Heukwoo—had claimed that if Drakan completed his victory quest and joined the Broken World counterattack with combat power equal to Yujin’s, a comeback was certainly possible.
But the majority of users, who knew well how important it was to secure an early lead, were skeptical of that possibility.
“It’s finally completed.”
And among the users delighted to see its completion was Ignis.
Ignis the Flame King!
Guild Master of JDG, one of the Eight Great Guilds, and now evaluated as something like Drakan’s right hand—a smile hung at his lips.
The JDG forces, including him, had remained behind instead of participating in Drakan’s floating city expedition.
This was to lead the users of the Dark Alliance toward the Broken World.
Drakan had anticipated this from the beginning.
The fact that it was impossible to progress the victory quest and the Broken World main story simultaneously!
The contingency Drakan had left behind was none other than Ignis.
Drakan as an individual might fall behind in the rankings, but the “Dark Alliance” could not bow to the “Holy Alliance.”
Because at this point, where countless users were beginning to feel a sense of belonging to their respective factions, they could not afford to show weakness in the competition between factions.
And if it was JDG, which held hegemony over both the north and the east, they could carry out a counterattack without disgracing the banner of the Dark Alliance.
That was the future Drakan had predicted, and now Ignis had to make that future a reality.
‘Building settlements, huh.’
Ignis glared at the quest window as he thought.
He wasn’t at Drakan’s level, but Ignis was also a veteran who would be second to none in this game!
He too possessed the basic technique of analyzing keywords in the quest information window to find walkthroughs.
‘Being told to build settlements and bases means stationing troops. Which means this quest could last beyond the long term—into the ultra-long term.’
Ignis gave orders to his guild members through whispers, regarding quest content that was obvious in a way.
The orders were to prepare materials to build a base in the other world beyond the dimensional gate.
After sending those whispers, Ignis stood before the massive dimensional gate.
The Broken World Dimensional Gate!
Watching the swirling rift in the center of the wide-open gate, Ignis boldly threw himself beyond the rift without hesitation.
[You have entered the Broken World.]
A brief message immediately appeared before Ignis’s eyes.
The Broken World.
It was the moment he first set foot there.
* * *
I closed the quest window that had appeared before my eyes.
‘A quest that openly displays rankings.’
I was already well familiar with the concept of a contribution ranking.
It was exceedingly common for ranking windows to appear alongside messages about differential rewards based on contribution whenever localized defense events or guild war events occurred.
But this was the first quest to score contribution rankings against all users.
‘I didn’t know it would turn out like this.’
This was a result beyond my expectations.
Of course, it wasn’t that I hadn’t expected a counterattack-related quest to appear after the dimensional gate was completed.
That much was an obvious result that anyone could have predicted, not just me.
But I hadn’t imagined that the quest would take the form of scoring against all users like this.
‘If it’s come to this, I need to finish the victory quest as quickly as possible.’
Of course, I had prepared for a just-in-case future by having Ignis, JDG, and their allied guilds on standby near the dimensional gate.
Thanks to that, the expedition force aboard the airship consisted of my fandom—commonly called the “Heukwoo”—some streamers affiliated with Jeil E&M, and Sin Hayeon.
Recruiting expedition members from the fandom had been Team Leader Lee’s idea.
My fandom had grown quite large by now, and a considerable number of core fans had formed, so there was a need to do fan service or fan meetings like other users did. And since Ignis and JDG couldn’t be mobilized just then, the idea was to use them to do fan service while clearing the quest.
And I accepted that opinion as it was, recruiting an expedition force from the fandom through an announcement.
The competition rate to join the expedition was higher than I expected, and as a result, the fans who participated in the expedition could be called the core of my core fans without exaggeration.
‘To think a day like this would come for me.’
Recalling the fans who had gathered and cast heated gazes toward me before departure, I smiled awkwardly.
I should have grown used to having a fandom by now, but I still wasn’t.
It might have been different for Yujin, who had roamed around gathering countless fans like clouds under the name “Infinite Yujin Church” since the previous game, but to me, who had been accustomed only to a guild system of absolute obedience to orders, a fandom was still awkward.
I had witnessed with my own eyes the fans rejoicing and calling it a “fan meeting” when they received the quest at the expedition send-off ceremony, but no matter how enthusiastic a fan they were, I couldn’t predict which direction public opinion would swing among those who missed out on the large-scale quest that was the Broken World main story.
I looked past the full-length window.
I could see the blue sky spread out above the white sea of clouds laid out beneath the airship.
The altitude was already far beyond what wyverns could reach!
‘Quite a sight indeed.’
It was my first time seeing such a spectacle in-game, so I thought as much.
In the previous game I had played to earn money, and in the Second to defeat Yujin and get revenge on him, but that didn’t mean I didn’t like the Ard World.
In the previous game, and in the Second, I had liked this world well enough.
If I hadn’t liked it, I never would have come back.
‘I’ve gotten unnecessarily sentimental.’
My thoughts having reached that point, I shook my head to throw off the sentimental notions.
Anyway, my goal now was only one.
Revenge on that bastard, Yujin!
That alone.
At that very moment I was thinking that.
“Lord Drakan.”
I heard someone’s voice from behind.
It was Sin Hayeon.
“Did you see the quest window?”
“I did.”
I nodded and spoke at Sin Hayeon’s words.
“What is the expedition’s sentiment?”
At my words, Sin Hayeon sidled up to me, gently took my hand, and whispered in my ear.
“There hasn’t been much change in the expedition’s sentiment. They still have expectations for the floating city expedition with you, Lord Drakan. Rather, there are many people looking forward to the floating city more than the other world.”
The expedition’s sentiment I heard from Sin Hayeon was unexpected.
To think they still supported me even though the ranking had appeared!
To the point where I secretly wondered if my worries hadn’t been unfounded, it was an unexpected result.
“That is a bit unexpected.”
“Core fandom loyalty doesn’t waver over something like this.”
I smiled at Sin Hayeon’s words.
Because her words reminded me of the Infinite Yujin Church.
Fanatics who would throw themselves into a fire pit for Yujin!
Of course, my core fandom wasn’t at that level, but as she said, it was undeniable that I had underestimated core fandom loyalty.
“It’s fortunate that morale isn’t shaken.”
The moment I thought that and formed a satisfied smile.
KWA-KWANG!
The airship shook violently with a deafening roar.