The Final Boss Has Returned - Episode 63
[Drakan. First public reveal of his six-year hiatus in interview. Known to have paid off debts aboard a deep-sea fishing vessel.]
[(Photo) Drakan kneels before users, “I sincerely apologize for all my past wrongdoings. I will not repeat such evil deeds going forward.”]
[Yujin helps Drakan to his feet. “I trust Drakan’s promise, and hope for good results going forward.”]
The biggest news among them was the fact that I had knelt and that Yujin had helped me up.
Screenshots captured from the broadcast—as well as clips and GIFs—had spread across the entire internet, not to mention social media and the Arde forums.
[(KingGodTV) Drakan’s hiatus! Did he actually catch tuna on a deep-sea fishing vessel??]
[(We Apologize.) Drakan’s national apology announcement! Ppyusung-Ppasyung!]
[Shock and horror!! Yujin acknowledged Drakan?!]
Arde Live was, of course, in an uproar as well.
Creators like hyenas swarming the issue were already churning out all kinds of thumbnails based on the interview content and my apology, spewing out various speculative theories.
But even so, the overall public opinion was flowing in a direction satisfactory to me.
As I had expected, through this interview, I was able to completely reverse the flow of public opinion.
But that didn’t mean it was all over.
Above me, star users still existed, as numerous as the stars in the sky, and Yujin stood at the apex among such star users.
There were still mountains of things to be done going forward to approach such a Yujin.
Right when I was thinking that.
“Lord Drakan.”
Sin Ha-yeon, who was sitting beside me, spoke to me.
I took my eyes off my smartphone and gazed at her, and she leaned in close to my side, whispering into my ear.
“Today’s interview was truly excellent. The reactions are trending positively, just as expected.”
At Sin Ha-yeon’s words, I nodded.
But separate from the content of her words, Sin Ha-yeon’s expression was peculiar.
Slightly different from her usual ever-smiling face, she wore a smile that somehow seemed bitter.
“However, I……”
Sin Ha-yeon began to speak.
“I never want to see you kneeling like that again, Lord Drakan.”
At her words, I laughed.
She and I were in an alliance.
It was nothing more than a guess, but from her perspective, my kneeling might have felt similar to kneeling herself. I didn’t mind selling my pride, but she was different.
Thinking so, I looked straight at her, who had hung her head, and spoke.
“I won’t let that happen ever again.”
Never again!
I would never kneel.
Pride doesn’t put food on the table, but even so, I didn’t want to sell my pride too cheaply.
That’s what I thought.
Hearing my words, Sin Ha-yeon raised her head.
The same smile as usual hung on her lips, as if nothing had happened.
* * *
After many twists and turns, the interview concluded smoothly, bringing the long journey from Lawless Port to the Pirate Archipelago to a temporary end.
And now, I was receiving a briefing on the results from Team Leader I of the support team, at the top floor of the First Contents Hub Building.
“Public opinion regarding Lord Drakan is currently flowing in a generally favorable direction. Excluding some old-generation users who have been around since the previous work and the extreme fandom of the Infinite Yujin Church, the majority of users are evaluating Lord Drakan’s apology positively.”
The first topic to come up in Team Leader I’s briefing was precisely the trends in public opinion!
This was only natural, because right now, nothing was more important to me than controlling public opinion.
To sum up the current situation in one word, it was truly a case of ‘riding a tiger’—a perilous position with no easy retreat.
I had succeeded in leveraging Yujin in the interview to reverse a considerable portion of the public opinion surrounding me.
Not everyone, but the majority believed what I had said in the interview—my apology for past evil deeds and my promise to prevent recurrence—just as I had expected.
This was all thanks to Yujin, who served as a solid guarantor.
But I couldn’t be satisfied with just this.
If compared to a race, it was as if I had only just stepped up to the starting line.
Needless to say, going forward, to surpass Yujin and ultimately reclaim hegemony over the Arde World, I definitely needed public support far greater than what I had now.
To obtain that support, now was the time for me to live up to those masses’ expectations and trust.
And Sin Ha-yeon thought the same. She was pouring enormous material support toward me, to the extent that outsiders might think it inefficient.
But that didn’t mean I had produced no results compared to Sin Ha-yeon’s investment. Not at all.
“Public opinion trends are done. I already checked earlier. Did you prepare the quest settlement report?”
“Of course. I will begin the settlement report now.”
From Lawless Port to the Pirate Archipelago!
While clearing three large-scale quests, what I had gained was by no means small.
And now was the time to receive a report on how the seeds I had sown had grown.
“First, Lawless Port.”
Lawless Port!
My first territory!
Its state of development was displayed through a presentation.
[Lawless Port: Granado]
[Development Level: Upper Stage 1]
[Granado is a city of outlaws that has maintained its lineage in the Arde World for a long time. It is a city of evil where outlaws with nowhere else to go and numerous heinous criminals gather, whether to escape death or because they were exiled; it is also the garbage dump of the Arde World.]
[Over a decade ago, due to the Great Upheaval that shook the continent, the surrounding land sank to meet the sea, transforming the city of outlaws into the port of outlaws.]
[The new ruler who returned to Lawless Port poured astronomical sums of money into the city’s development and constructed an ultra-luxurious casino. Now Lawless Port will transform from being the terminus of smuggling trade and the city of outlaws into a city of gambling and entertainment.]
[Military: B] [A military force capable of defending the city from enemy invasion.]
[Economy: A] [Economic power is at a high level.]
[Security: B+] [If one is careful of back alleys and night roads, there will be no difficulty staying in the city.]
[Culture: A] [Lawless Port is the mecca of gambling, pleasure, and entertainment.]
[Population: 52,420]
[Available Funds: 62,343,210 Gold]
[Monthly Income: 5,750,000 Gold]
[Special Notes]
[NPC outlaws and criminals make up the majority of residents. Their presence had worsened security, but the presence of JDG, tasked with maintaining order, has improved it.]
[It is the terminus of the smuggling route extending from the Eastern Sea. Numerous smuggled goods and stolen items are traded in the Black Market.]
[The residents initially feared you for destroying the city with overwhelming force, but now revere you for having developed the city.]
[To properly rule Lawless Port, you must gain recognition from the five major powers. Reveal your strength and subjugate them.]
[It is a city where gambling and pleasure facilities, including casinos, have developed. The reputation of the ultra-luxury casino is gradually spreading beyond the east to the entire world.]
[Floating population of outsiders has increased by 1000%.]
[Major Facilities]
[Port – The final destination for trade ships crossing the Eastern Sea. Cargo volume has risen since the ruler recently seized the Eastern Sea in the naval decisive battle.]
[Black Tower – The symbol of the Black Ring Society and Black Mages. Countless outsiders visit to class-change into Black Mages, and fledgling Black Mages come and go to carry out class quests and purchase class items and skill books.]
[Black Market – An underground market where various smuggled goods and stolen items are traded. Secret auctions are occasionally held, and it also serves as a pawnshop for the casino.]
[Ultra-Luxury Casino – The largest and most splendid casino in the world. Numerous gamblers come and go, and it is a city that never sleeps with lights on twenty-four hours a day. It accounts for a considerable portion of Lawless Port’s income.]
‘It inspires awe no matter how many times I see it.’
Territory info window!
Even though it was information I had provided to the support team, it was a status window that inspired awe every time I saw it.
Compared to the Lawless Port information from right after its destruction, it was such a dramatic change that the idiom ‘mulberry fields turned to blue sea’ fit it perfectly.
A transformation as if watching Dubai change by the day in the past was currently taking place in Lawless Port.
“The ultra-luxury casino of Lawless Port is tremendously efficient, to the point of being dramatic compared to the investment. It has already recovered all of Lawless Port’s reconstruction costs, and the number of users and NPCs heading to the casino is increasing daily.”
When the presentation was turned, a graph appeared.
It was the casino’s revenue graph.
At that endlessly rising rate of return, climbing like virtual currency increasing in value daily, both I and Sin Ha-yeon naturally smiled.
It was the moment when the classical truth—that gambling is the business with the highest return on investment throughout all ages and cultures—finally held true in the Arde World as well.
“If it continues like this, the Las Vegas and Macau of the Arde World that Lord Drakan mentioned won’t be just a dream.”
Sin Ha-yeon, sitting beside me, whispered this into my ear.
Hearing her words, I smiled.
Even as that happened, Team Leader I’s briefing continued.
“New user influx to Lawless Port is also increasing daily. The Black Mage class fills the role of a debuff class that had been lacking in the Arde World until now, and the perception that it is an essential class that cannot be left out of party hunts or raid parties is gradually forming. Because of that, new users are flocking to Lawless Port to class-change into Black Mages.”
Black Mage!
It was the new class I had unlocked as the reward for the Lawless Port Reclamation War.
New users choosing the Black Mage class were increasing with each passing day.
The reasons were various.
While the proportion of users who simply liked the concept of wielding the power of darkness was significant enough that it couldn’t be ignored, the most fundamental reason was that, as Team Leader I said, the Black Mage class had proven its value in dungeons and raids.
Until Black Mages appeared, the Arde World had no proper debuff class.
In that situation, users had quickly caught on to the value of the Black Mage’s debuff skills.
On the data screen Team Leader I presented, there was footage of beginner Black Mages gathered together using magic to beat rabbits, deer, wolves, foxes, and other beginner monsters in the fields near Lawless Port, as well as public opinion data on Black Mages collected from the internet.
Black Mage had risen to fourth place in the new class recommendation rankings for newbies!
Considering that first through third place were the traditionally popular classes of Warrior, Mage, and Priest, this could be called a tremendous achievement.
I smiled in satisfaction at that figure.
The more popular the new class I had unlocked became, the more my influence would grow little by little, so it was a good thing for me in many ways.
“The number of users selecting the Fishman race during character creation is also continuously increasing. It is presumed to be because the Fishmen showed impressive performance in this naval decisive battle.”
Fishman!
A new race I had unlocked as a result of the Fishman quest.
Users choosing Fishmen were also on the rise, just like users class-changing into Black Mages.
The reason was simple: because Fishmen had shown dazzling performances in the naval decisive battle.
From the naval battle to the landing operation!
Fishmen had spearheaded every battle of the naval decisive battle, so naturally their media exposure had inevitably become just as extensive as the users’.
[Guys, where can I watch the full version of the naval decisive battle replay? I missed the middle part.]
[You just missed half your life. The Fishmen were insane at the end.]
[Guys guys, I’m a level 69 Warrior but I ruined my build, so I’m deleting my character and trying to raise a new one. Would it be better to switch to Fishman when leveling the new character?]
[If you’re rerolling anyway, switching is definitely the answer. The racial bonus is huge, especially for warrior classes since they give exclusive armor through quests.]
[Fishmen are ugly as hell, don’t do it lol]
[Bullshit. If you’re a man, you play a Fishman. Only real men play Fishmen.]
[This. The kids trashing Fishmen are elf custom addicts, right? Obvious, right?]
Looking at the captured data Team Leader I showed, I held a smile.
Sin Ha-yeon, whose eyes met mine, smiled faintly as always and whispered in a sweet voice into my ear.