The Final Boss Has Returned - Chapter 136
After all the quests were completed.
I gave the expedition members who wanted to explore the field or hunt some free time, took selfies for those who wanted fan service, and finally got some personal downtime.
Hall of Iron Blood.
Seated upon the Steel Throne, I reopened the quest information window I had received earlier.
[Aerial Mobile Fortress Volta]
[Rank: Legendary]
- The starting point of legend has finally returned to your hands. However, the floating city Volta is not yet ready.
The countless devices and facilities you installed have all been destroyed by the ravages of time or have rusted away, and the mystery of the floating city has lost its luster. Now you must reclaim the mystery of the floating city. Transform the floating city Volta into an aerial mobile fortress and restore the awe of the Steel Monarch.
Your enemies shall tremble in fear at the sight of the aerial mobile fortress Volta, a symbol of terror soaring through the skies.
[Quest Completion Conditions]
[Complete the Construction of the Aerial Mobile Fortress Volta]
An aerial mobile fortress!
I rested my elbow on the armrest and propped my chin as I gazed at this quest.
Unlike the Reconquest Quest, this one presented the completion conditions perfectly clearly, and seeing that it demanded I restore the awe of the Steel Monarch, it was clearly a quest that would mark the final chapter of a long campaign quest.
‘Whether I can hit EX rank or not is the key.’
EX rank!
Possessing power on par with Eugene didn’t simply mean going up by a single rank.
It meant ascending as another icon, a true counterpoint to Eugene, that top-ranker.
And from that point on, the true contest between him and me would begin.
‘If it’s the Conqueror’s Sword, EX rank should be sufficient, but if not, I’ll have to find another way.’
I recalled the Conqueror’s Sword, a campaign skill not yet unlocked.
The Conqueror’s Sword. The only Mythic-grade skill I possessed!
Given the overwhelming might of that skill, one might say EX rank was in the bag, but there was always the chance of failure, so I might need to look for another path.
With that thought, I activated Management Mode.
“Management Mode.”
[Floating City Volta]
[Development Level: Beginner Stage 1]
- A thousand years ago, Volta Castle was where the legend of the Steel Monarch began and the center of his iron-fisted rule. Even after the World Revolution ended and the Steel Monarch was cast from his throne, it continued to prosper as one of the core metropolises of the Central region.
But during the Great Cataclysm over a decade ago, Volta Castle suffered concentrated attacks from monsters, and soon the surrounding earth was torn away by the Cataclysm’s influence, sending it soaring into the sky.
Nothing remains in the floating city of Volta. Having returned to the throne of Volta, you must now create something from nothing.
[Military: F] [No military force.]
[Economy: F] [No economy exists.]
[Security: F] [Monsters are rampaging across the field.]
[Culture: F] [The once glorious cultures of the past were destroyed long ago.]
[Population: 0]
[Funds: 0 Gold]
[Monthly Income: 0 Gold]
[Special Notes]
- There is not a single person in the population.
- There are zero incoming sources of income.
- Most facilities are destroyed.
- Numerous monsters still roam the surrounding fields.
[View Major Facilities]
[Steel Palace – A considerable number of basic facilities destroyed]
[Reconstruction Priority: A]
[Volta Citadel – A considerable number of basic facilities destroyed]
[Reconstruction Priority: A]
…….
The territory information for Floating City Volta that appeared the moment I activated Management Mode was beyond miserable—it was downright pathetic!
‘No population and no funds whatsoever?’
I let out a hollow laugh at information so unbelievable I could hardly accept it even with my eyes wide open.
So that’s why the quest rank was Legendary.
Across both the first game and Second, Volta was easily the worst situation among all territories I had conquered thus far.
‘It deserves to be a Legendary-rank quest.’
Looking at the territory’s condition, I was newly reminded that the quest content was Legendary rank.
At this point, it wasn’t just pouring water into a bottomless bucket—it was on the level of having to forge an entirely new bucket.
I waved my hand to close the information window and pulled up the facility list.
[Steel Palace]
- The legendary palace where the Steel Monarch Drakan resided and ruled with tyranny.
Once the most magnificent palace in the World, where gold and silver treasures from across the World gathered, but now only faint traces remain.
[This building requires repairs. The effects below are restricted.]
…….
[Total Repair Cost: 200,000,000 Gold]
[Proceed with repairs?]
A total repair cost of 200 million gold for Floating City Volta!
An astronomical price comparable to the Dimensional Gate that had kicked off Broken World’s main quest!
Even though I’d grown accustomed to spending gold like water, I couldn’t help but be surprised that a mere “repair” would cost this much.
And this was before even beginning the quest objective of the “Aerial Mobile Fortress.”
‘But simply restoring the city won’t activate it.’
My gaze sharpened.
A city couldn’t be activated through simple restoration alone.
Floating City Volta.
On the surface, it was an attractive island floating through the sky, the kind you’d see in a fairy tale, but as a city site, it was the absolute worst of the worst.
At an altitude unreachable even by wyverns, the only means for users to reach Floating City Volta at present was by airship—just one way.
Whether users or NPCs, you needed a population first to activate the economy, but as the status window showed, Volta’s population was “0.”
That meant I had to start with immigration.
But immigration alone wouldn’t solve everything.
I needed productive industries to revitalize the economy of Floating City Volta.
I looked at the hologram of Floating City Volta floating before me and thought.
The landmass of Floating City Volta was unexpectedly vast.
It was wide enough to serve as a decent territory, so it was more appropriate to call it a floating island rather than a floating city—a sky island drifting above.
And across Volta’s fields, countless monsters still swarmed.
If I looked hard enough, I’d likely find remaining dungeons or ruins too.
‘Monsters themselves can be resources.’
My eyes gleamed.
Monsters.
Fields where high-level monsters appeared had a high probability of being useful resources by their very existence.
Moreover, Floating City Volta was the only floating city in existence.
The tourism demand generated by the special terrain of a floating city would surely be considerable.
I pulled up the list of constructible facilities.
Even if it was a Legendary-rank quest, there was always a strategy.
And I had a strong feeling that strategy lay in this constructible facility list.
When I called up the list, countless buildings surfaced.
From the Ancient Dark Empire-related buildings I had already constructed in Lawless Port to ordinary buildings!
And among them, I finally discovered several useful facilities.
[Steel Knight Order Headquarters]
[Rank: Legendary]
- In the ancient past, a symbol of terror that swept across the World alongside the Steel Monarch Drakan, slaughtering enemies with blood and iron—the new headquarters of the Steel Knight Order. Having returned after leaping over a thousand years, the Steel Knight Order is now ready to welcome new members.
[Tower of Trials]
[Rank: Legendary]
- A training facility that rebirths greenhorns into true warriors of iron and blood. Filled with countless traps and monsters, users who enter the Tower of Trials will have their limits tested here. Those who pass all trials shall receive fitting rewards.]
[Sky Harbor]
[Rank: Legendary]
- A harbor where airships can dock. Multiple airships can be operated. It is the sole route connecting the ground and the floating city.
[Multiple airships can be operated.]
[Regular flights to the ground can be operated.]
[Sky Shipyard]
[Rank: Legendary]
- A shipyard that manufactures airships to sail the blue skies. Various airships can be constructed, from small to large, including combat models.
[Super-Luxury Casino]
[Rank: Mystic]
- The pinnacle of entertainment and pleasure. In addition to the gambling hall, it is equipped with various performance facilities, allowing for great income, but it negatively impacts city security.
[Sky Hotel]
[Rank: Mystic]
- A hotel that can be built on a cliff with a direct view of the floating city’s beautiful skies.
Unlike inns, it is a lodging facility providing premium services, favored by the wealthy and nobility. It can guarantee security for guests, but consumes high maintenance costs.
From the Tower of Trials to the Steel Knight Order Headquarters that unlocked a new class, the Sky Shipyard, the Sky Harbor where airships could dock, and even the casino business—the most lucrative venture in the Ard World, proven in Lawless Port!
The cost to build all these facilities was…….
[Total Construction Cost: 49,000,000 Gold]
It was 49 million gold.
‘That’s not very expensive compared to what I expected.’
That was right.
It wasn’t very expensive compared to my expectations.
Perhaps because the reconstruction cost was a whopping 200 million gold, even though this was clearly a large sum, I didn’t feel much excitement.
Anyway, at this rate, it might become quite a useful city.
Especially if I built casinos and hotels atop the unusual terrain of a floating city, a gambling mecca that might surpass Floating City Volta itself could be born.
Furthermore, the appearance of a new job—especially a new production job called “Magic Engineer” that anyone would imagine when thinking of fantasy—could be a sufficient incentive to draw people to the floating city.
Following that line of thought, I continued scrolling through the list with my hand, and finally, at the very end, the facility that would become the key to the quest appeared.
[Aerial Mobile Fortress Conversion]
Aerial mobile fortress.
The quest’s objective had finally revealed itself.