The Final Boss Has Returned
Chapter 34
[The construction of the structure 'Lighthouse of the Abyss' has been completed.]
Seven days of in-game time had passed, and finally, the long-awaited construction of the Lighthouse of the Abyss was completed.
The originally scheduled construction time had been ten days, but thanks to the users participating in the daily construction quests, the time was shortened by as much as three days.
[You have fulfilled a hidden raid condition.]
[The quest 'Shadow on the Beach' will vanish.]
[You have achieved the feat 'All Roads Lead to Seoul'.]
[Your level has increased.]
Following the lighthouse construction completion notice, a quest vanishment notification popped up.
Quest vanishment!
The message that appears when you've already satisfied the completion conditions for a quest that should have been a prerequisite!
It had been a while since I'd seen that message, so I smiled.
'So that Shadow on the Beach must have been the prerequisite quest for the merfolk quest.'
With my long gaming experience, I could immediately tell that the quest called Shadow on the Beach was the prerequisite for the merfolk quest.
Well, it wasn't a particularly important fact now that the Lighthouse of the Abyss was fully built.
Since I was already checking notifications anyway, I opened the internal affairs management window and reviewed the facility status of Lawless Harbor.
'The other facilities are also having their construction times shortened. That's a good sign.'
I smiled as I read the additional explanation about the shortened construction times.
It wasn't just the Lighthouse of the Abyss, which had just been completed, that had its construction time reduced.
Buildings with shorter scheduled times than the lighthouse, such as the City Hall, Hotel, and Casino, had already finished construction entirely.
Especially the ultra-luxury casino filled with gambling content had captured the attention of not just NPCs but users as well.
Gambling has captivated people throughout all ages and cultures, East and West.
Under such magical allure of gambling, crowds flocked to the casino regardless of whether they were users or NPCs, and the gold they spent there went straight into my pocket.
It was truly no different from a cash cow.
"If things continue this way, I don't think the Macau or Las Vegas of Ard World that Lord Drakan desires is such a distant future."
The casino was operating so prosperously that Shin Hayeon reported on its performance in this manner, and Lawless Harbor was gradually changing its image from a city of outlaws to a city of gambling and nightlife.
The influx of users, which I had thought would be temporary due to the Warlock class unlock, was instead rising even more steeply thanks to the casino.
As Shin Hayeon said, if things continued to sail this smoothly, one could say that becoming the Macau of Ard World was as good as assured.
"You're right. If only those Pirate League bastards were gone, it would happen soon."
Pirate League!
If only they didn't interfere, Lawless Harbor would flourish even more and become the Macau of Ard World!
Shin Hayeon smiled silently at my words, and I rose from my seat.
"I hear the Lighthouse of the Abyss is complete."
"Will you summon the merfolk immediately?"
"Yes."
I answered Shin Hayeon immediately.
Lighthouse of the Abyss!
The fact that this building had a function to summon the merfolk built into it had been explained long ago in a strategy meeting, along with the contents of the oracle quest I had received at the time.
Moreover, I had sufficiently prepared for the underwater environment through underwater breathing items and gathered ample information about the merfolk just in case!
Now, all that remained was to start the quest, since I had prepared so thoroughly that I could tackle it immediately as soon as I summoned the merfolk.
I left my office in the City Hall and headed toward the dock.
Perhaps because it had become night in game time, my vision was filled with two moons hanging brightly in the sky, the never-dimming lights of the casino, and people wandering the streets.
I passed by them and walked straight to the lighthouse standing tall at the dockside.
Lighthouse of the Abyss!
Without hesitation, I entered the deep-blue lighthouse standing tall with the city of nightlife behind me and immediately climbed to the very top.
The cold sea breeze and the deep-blue horizon made for an impressive night sea!
Gazing at that sea, I placed my hand on the crystal floating in the center of the lighthouse's top floor.
[Will you use the special function 'Light of the Abyss'?]
"I will use it."
The moment I replied to the message that popped up as soon as I placed my hand on the crystal.
An eerie blue light burst explosively from the crystal, illuminating the dock and the night sea.
For a moment, an overwhelmingly blinding torrent of light!
I closed my eyes against that light, and soon after, the sound of waves growing rough began to reach my ears.
[The Light of the Abyss illuminates the sea.]
[The merfolk who received the signal reveal themselves according to the ancient promise.]
[The Demon King of the Sea smiles in satisfaction.]
[The Demon King of the Sea sponsors you with 1000 points.]
Notifications popping up explosively!
I opened my eyes as I checked those messages.
Splash! Splash! Swoooooosh!
The moment I opened my eyes, what filled my vision was the tossing night sea and an enormous unidentified shadow reflected beneath the water's surface.
Having confirmed that shadow, I immediately descended from the lighthouse.
"What is that?"
"OMG! The waves are insane!"
"Did you see the lighthouse flashing? Wow, amazing."
Already, countless users had gathered at the dock!
The gathered users' gazes were all directed toward the violently churning sea before the dock, as if a tidal wave were about to surge in.
Right then.
Finally, the sea split apart and an enormous turtle shell revealed itself.
"A turtle?"
"What?"
"Is it a monster?"
"Is it a new raid boss?"
"Hey, there's someone riding on top! Is it an NPC?"
The users clamored as they saw the dark figures riding atop the giant sea turtle's shell!
Some among them even prepared for battle, perhaps thinking it was some kind of event raid boss.
Tension flowed through the dockside!
Cutting through the waves, the giant sea turtle quietly approached the harbor.
As the sea turtle approached the harbor, only then did the figures riding on its back properly reveal their forms.
As I expected, they were not human.
Merfolk!
Their appearance—half-human, half-sea creature, with striking glittering scales—revealed under the moonlight, left the users truly shocked.
"Wow, is this for real?"
"What are they? Merfolk? I don't think I've seen them even in the previous game."
"What? Just what is happening right now?"
This was the first time the merfolk had revealed themselves directly in both the previous game and Second!
At this unprecedented sight, countless users flocked to the docks.
"I am Nereus! Prince of the Merfolk, who has come to this place following the Light of the Abyss to uphold the ancient promise! One who called me, step forward!"
Right then.
One merfolk with golden scales, holding a glittering pearl staff, descended from the turtle's back to the dock and shouted in a booming voice.
Hearing those words, I smiled and took out a ring from my inventory to equip it.
[Ten Thousand Year Coral Ring]
[Rank: Hero]
[Type: Ring]
[Durability: 4000/4000]
[A ring made of ten-thousand-year coral that lives in the deep sea. It holds some mysterious power, but because you are not yet qualified, you cannot see it.]
[A ring imbued with the essence of ???.]
[The true name is sealed.]
[Item Effects]
[Underwater Breathing] [Underwater Communication]
[Underwater Adaptability +100%]
[Water Attribute Resistance +80%]
[Ice Attribute Resistance +60%]
[All Stats +20]
A Hero-rank item that Shin Hayeon had bought for me at the auction house for my expedition to the seafloor!
Its real-world value was over fifty million won, and equipping this ring—which clearly exuded an aura suggesting that additional quests or events would trigger if the seal were broken—immediately made me feel vitality coursing through my body.
[You have equipped the Ten Thousand Year Coral Ring.]
Having seen that pleasant notification, I began to push through the crowd.
"Drakan?"
"It's Drakan."
"Drakan's over there!"
When some users spotted me, they shouted out like this, and soon the users' gazes began to focus on me.
From the tutorial to the Lawless Harbor Reclamation Battle, I was a user who carried every issue imaginable—the very center of attention—so it was only natural that I drew people's eyes.
I approached Merfolk Prince Nereus with a relaxed smile.
The moment I faced Nereus like that.
Nereus looked at me with a surprised expression and spoke.
"You are... a contractor of the Demon God. Was it you who called me?"
"Yes. I called you."
The moment my words ended, the users' clamor grew even louder.
The giant sea turtle that suddenly appeared in the waters before Lawless Harbor, and the merfolk who had appeared for the first time in the entire Ard Saga series!
They were shocked by the fact that I had created that historic moment.
"Merfolk Prince Nereus. Submit to me according to the Ancient Alliance."
I spoke to Merfolk Prince Nereus.
Ancient Alliance!
That alliance mentioned in the Path of the Apostle quest, formed by the Black Ring Society and the Six Children of Darkness—that was what I was now speaking of to Nereus.
To revive the Ancient Alliance, I absolutely had to subjugate six races, including the merfolk.
"The Ancient Alliance... Yes. The merfolk certainly followed it in the past. But contractor, unfortunately, I cannot join the Ancient Alliance."
After I finished speaking, Nereus answered in a regretful voice.
I wasn't surprised by Nereus's answer at all.
The rank of the quest I was currently undertaking, 'Path of the Apostle', was none other than Myth!
A quest rank that even I, who had experienced every conceivable battle in the previous game, had never seen!
It was practically impossible to think that even a part of a Myth-rank quest—the highest of the six quest ranks in Ard Saga—could be cleared effortlessly with a single word.
Moreover, the number of races I had to subjugate was a whopping six!
Even if I solved the merfolk quest, there were still five more tasks ahead, so it was indeed a scale befitting a Myth-rank quest.
Anyway, the existence of the merfolk quest had just been confirmed once again through the quest vanishment message.
What mattered wasn't the quest's existence, but its contents.
'Let's hear what kind of quest it is.'
Thinking so inwardly, I listened to Nereus.
"Though it is tradition for me, first in the line of succession, to ascend to the throne of the Merfolk King, the kingdom is currently in crisis, making that impossible."
"In crisis?"
To the extent that the prince cannot ascend the throne?
"Only a Merfolk King acknowledged by the eight merfolk tribes can lead the merfolk and participate in the Ancient Alliance. But I am merely a prince."
"Nereus. Speak. What is this crisis that has befallen the kingdom?"
I asked to draw out the quest, and Nereus gnashed his teeth, his eyes burning red with rage.
"Mermaids! It is they. They have brought crisis to our kingdom."
The moment Nereus's answer rang out, a video rose before my eyes.
'Cinematic video!'
That video, similar to what had appeared when I received the Lawless Harbor Reclamation quest, had revealed itself once more.
I smiled as I watched that video.
I was looking forward to seeing what kind of quest content would be given.
Now, it was time to watch the reason why Nereus could not ascend to the throne of the Merfolk King.