The Final Boss Has Returned – Chapter 31
The Black Tower!
Since ancient times until now, it had served as the headquarters of the Black Ring Association, a headquarters of darkness concealing countless secrets!
The underground of such a Black Tower was a place no different from a secret zone, one that outsiders including users could not enter.
But who was I?
Was I not a user who was the contractor of the Demon God, and who had earned the loyalty of the Black Ring Association to acquire the title of Great Elder of the Black Ring Association?
For someone like me, there was no zone in the Black Tower that was off-limits.
[You have entered Underground Floor 1 of the Black Tower.]
The underground of the Black Tower, entered alongside a dry system message, exuded a gloomy atmosphere.
Shattered beakers and burnt magic books strewn about everywhere!
And the debris that hadn’t been cleared in time, along with corpses that had been reduced to bleached bones, were emitting an even more spine-chilling atmosphere.
A horrifying sight that might have made timid users scream!
I looked at that sight indifferently and continued descending deeper underground.
‘The quest definitely said the deepest part of the underground!’
Recalling the quest contents, I kept descending underground.
And finally…….
[You have entered Underground Floor 5 of the Black Tower.]
On Underground Floor 5 of the Black Tower, I discovered a massive, heavy steel door engraved with the Demon God’s symbol, one that looked unquestionably suspicious at a glance.
‘It won’t budge an inch!’
A steel door that wouldn’t move even when I pushed!
Considering that other doors opened without special locking devices or were in a destroyed state, this door was the most suspicious.
[The Demon God of Darkness smiles.]
The Demon God’s message that appeared at just the right time!
Seeing that message, I quietly raised my left hand and manifested a skill.
“Demon God’s Seal.”
[The door of the Dark Secret Vault reacts to the Demon God’s Seal.]
The moment the Demon God’s symbol rose above my left hand!
Rumble!
The massive door vibrated heavily and soon began to open slowly.
[You have discovered a hidden place, the Dark Secret Vault.]
[All stats have increased by 1.]
[You have completed the quest ‘Legacy of Darkness’.]
[Your level has increased.]
[All stats have increased by 10.]
Status and level-up notifications that always felt good to hear!
Along with that, the interior of the opened Dark Secret Vault was bleaker than I had expected.
A stone chamber that was utterly empty, with no mountains of glittering gold and silver treasures or Legendary-grade items in sight!
On the stone altar in the center, a single unfolded sheet of paper and one book were placed.
‘I thought at least one Legendary-grade item would come out, even if not mountains of gold and silver treasures.’
Thinking so, I quietly approached the stone chamber and picked up the unfolded sheet of paper.
[Sion’s Letter]
[Grade: Legendary]
[Category: Miscellaneous]
[A letter left by Sion, the Apostle of Darkness, for a successor who would one day discover this secret vault. His last wishes are written within.]
The identity of the paper was none other than the letter left by Sion!
I carefully read the letter, which I presumed to be the quest-starting item.
[To my successor.]
[My name is Sion, contractor of the Demon God and Apostle of Darkness.]
[Successor, if you are reading this letter, it means you are His contractor, just as I was. Also, I must already be dead.]
[I leave this writing presuming my death.]
[My dream was a world where the followers of darkness, who since the Age of Myths had been forced to hide in the shadows of the Arde World, could stride proudly beneath the bright sun. For that world, I did my utmost to revive the ancient alliance and rebuild the Dark Empire.]
[But my efforts, my plans, were thwarted by the Hero Leonhardt. The utopia I dreamed of collapsed, and I failed.]
[Successor.]
[I have failed. Therefore, use my failure as nourishment, and I beg you to build a world where the followers of darkness can stride proudly.]
The quest’s contents were simple.
He had failed, so he wanted me to inherit his dying will and rebuild the Dark Empire!
It was identical to what I had expected, without the slightest deviation.
‘Not much nutritious content!’
There was nothing substantial in the letter that could be taken as a clue for the next quest.
In other words, this letter was nothing more than a medium item that triggered the quest.
[A quest has been generated.]
[Path of the Apostle]
[Grade: Myth]
[The utopia of the Age of Myths that all followers of darkness longed for! The Dark Empire!]
[To build that world, Sion, the former contractor and Apostle of Darkness, did his best but ultimately failed.]
[But his dying will has finally reached you, the Demon God’s contractor, through the letter.]
[To begin the empire’s reconstruction, the Apostle of Darkness must become the center and revive the ancient alliance made with the Six Children of Darkness and the Black Ring Association.]
[And to revive the ancient alliance, you must first subjugate all six races.]
[If you subjugate all six races, finally you will ascend to the position of the true Apostle of Darkness, and you will be able to revive the ancient alliance.]
[Quest Objective]
[Subjugation of the Six Races]
[Subjugation Status]
[Merfolk=Not Achieved]
[Undead=Not Achieved]
[Vampire=Not Achieved]
[Lycanthrope=Not Achieved]
[Orc=Not Achieved]
[Dark Elf=Not Achieved]
Finally, a large-scale quest had appeared!
I smiled as I looked at that quest.
An Oracle Quest!
Because its main body had finally revealed itself before me.
Its grade was none other than Myth grade!
It was a quest grade that even I, who had played the previous game, had never seen, and it was the highest grade among the six grades of the Arde Saga series.
Considering that quest grade equaled difficulty, it was clearly going to be damn difficult and damn treacherous, but anyway, it was also a quest that absolutely had to be completed in order to become a rival on the same level as Yujin.
‘Merfolk are included too.’
I looked at the Merfolk in the subjugation status window and thought.
‘Very good!’
Closing the quest window, I picked up the book beside me and checked its title.
The book’s title was ‘Research on the Ancient Dark Empire’!
The author was Sion.
‘So this is the real hint regarding the quest.’
Having seen the book title, I immediately derived a rational conclusion through countless gaming experiences.
If the letter was the quest-starting item, then this book was the key item that held the real hint for clearing the ‘Path of the Apostle’ quest!
So I opened the book and began to read quickly.
[You have acquired information about the Six Children of Darkness.]
[You have acquired information about the Apostle of Darkness.]
[Magic Power has increased by 3.]
Savoring the continuous information acquisition messages and the sweet stat increase messages that popped up occasionally, I finally finished reading the entire book, and the result appeared before my eyes as a notification.
[You have completely read the book ‘Research on the Ancient Dark Empire’.]
[A special stat, ‘Knowledge,’ has been created.]
[Knowledge has increased by 10.]
[Facilities related to the Ancient Dark Empire have been added to the constructible facility list in Management Mode.]
Ancient Dark Empire facilities!
Looking at that notification that was no different from a full-reading reward, I smiled and opened the management window.
The 500 million gold that Sin Hayeon had handed over!
The time had come to pour that enormous sum into the reconstruction of Lawless Harbor.
* * *
Management Mode!
Management Mode was a convenience feature given to users who became lords, a function that allowed them to manage territories, castles, cities, and the like that they owned.
Unlike NPC lords, user lords could handle everything related to territory management through Management Mode, such as adjusting various tax items, loans, investments, land and housing sales, soldier conscription, army training, and so on.
In other words, Management Mode could be called content that temporarily changed the genre of Arde Saga from MMORPG to a construction management simulation.
Anyway, while Management Mode had countless functions, what I needed most right now was the construction category!
The moment I turned on Management Mode, I looked at the 3D holographic map of Lawless Harbor that appeared before my eyes and the floor plan spread out beside it, then pressed the construction category.
[Currently Held Funds: 511,843,210 Gold]
The very first thing that popped up was truly an enormous amount of funds!
‘To think I’d already be handling funds in the hundreds of millions that I only touched when I became a Grand Duke!’
I happily smiled as I recalled anew the past in the previous game where I cleared quests, accumulated contribution in the Kingdom of Sachsen, grew from a castle lord to a lord with territory, and then to a Grand Duke who commanded those lords.
Whether game or reality, most problems could be solved as long as you had money!
And I had been given that money to the point of overflowing.
I smiled and pressed the current facility status located right below the construction category.
[Black Market]
[A black market with a deep history, indispensable to the history of Granado.]
[A district where various dangerous goods and secret smuggled items come and go, which can yield large income but has a negative effect on city public order.]
[This is a building in need of repairs. The effects below are restricted.]
[High-quality material items can be traded.]
[High-risk smuggled goods circulate into the market.]
[Secret auctions are held irregularly.]
Most existing facilities, including the Black Market, were listed endlessly, and most had messages attached stating that repairs were needed.
I checked all the buildings that needed repairs.
[Total Repair Cost: 20,000,000 Gold]
[Will you proceed with repairs?]
The total repair cost for the buildings that came up was 20 million gold.
It was an outrageously expensive price, but I pressed the repair proceed button without any hesitation.
[Proceeding with repairs.]
[Total Repair Completion Time: 14 Days]
[City Development Level increases due to large-scale building repair work.]
[Once all repairs are finished, Lawless Harbor will return to its original form.]
Various notification windows followed!
I waved my hand and closed the notification windows.
There were still many places where money needed to go.
Because I hadn’t turned on Management Mode just to return Lawless Harbor to its original state.
[Constructible Building List]
[City Hall] [Grade: Normal]
[A beautiful white mansion symbolizing the lord’s authority.]
[Administrative tasks such as quest distribution, city management, faction management, and appointing officials can be handled. It can be upgraded to a royal palace later.]
[Construction Cost: 3,000,000 Gold]
[Estimated Construction Time: 7 Days]
[City quests can be distributed.]
[Alliance formation becomes possible.]
[City district reorganization becomes possible.]
[District managers can be appointed by city sector.]
[Training Center] [Grade: Normal]
[A defense facility that trains greenhorns and motley rabble into elite soldiers. Residents of Granado can be conscripted and organized into a regular army. The combat power of the training commander has a great influence on the soldiers’ grade.]
[Construction Cost: 2,000,000 Gold]
…….
[Shipyard] [Grade: Rare]
[A facility where ships to navigate the rough seas of the east can be built or modified for their purpose. Shipbuilding skills can be acquired depending on the facility’s level.]
[Construction Cost: 5,000,000 Gold]
[Estimated Construction Time: 12 Days]
…….
[Ultra-Luxury Casino] [Grade: Mystic]
[A casino representing the pinnacle of pleasure and entertainment. In addition to the gambling hall, various performance facilities are arranged, allowing for large income, but it negatively affects public order.]
[Construction Cost: 8,000,000 Gold]
[Estimated Construction Time: 7 Days]
…….
[Luxury Hotel] [Grade: Mystic]
[Estimated Construction Time: 8 Days]
[Construction Cost: 7,000,000 Gold]
[An accommodation business providing high-class services unlike an inn, a facility preferred by the wealthy and nobles. It can guarantee public order for guests, but high maintenance costs are required.]
…….
This much was the normal construction list.
And finally, the black magic-related buildings I had been waiting for began to appear.