The Grand Plan (1) and The Grand Plan (2)
Demonia Gorge, under the management of the Darkness Guild, was like a goose laying golden eggs.
Proof of this is that the size of the guild has doubled in just a few months.
However, Guild Leader X-Large considered the harvest so far to be just the tip of the iceberg.
‘It was luck that I didn’t lose this land to Hyeon.’
In Assrian’s world, NPCs intervene everywhere.
When I finally found a place where there were no NPCs, powerful monsters appeared without even trying.
It was safe to say that there was almost no land that users could occupy with peace of mind.
Demonia Gorge is a land free from all influences.
It was the only place where real companies could establish a base.
‘This must be the start.’
X-Large was one of the people who had been predicting Asrian’s changes since the day of the festival.
As the days passed, the boundary between reality and Asrian became blurred, and now the two worlds have reached a point where they are on the verge of merging.
The moment when the world’s attention is focused on Assrian!
X-Large was convinced that something comparable to the Industrial Revolution would soon happen in Asrian.
At that time, the value of this land will rise to the ceiling.
Perhaps even reigning as the king of this world is possible. If that’s what you expected.
The secretary’s report came up when X-Large was dreaming of a rosy future.
“I… Guild leader.”
“What is it?”
“I got a call from Negle to cancel the meeting.”
“What do you mean?”
“We haven’t received an official response yet, but Negle doesn’t seem interested in renewing the contract.”
X-Large tilted his head.
Hasn’t Negle shown a move to extend his contract a few months ago? Why are you changing your attitude now?
But the secretary’s report was not over yet.
“And Esta directly sent a notice to terminate the contract.”
“Esta too… ?”
“yes. The fog that periodically descends on Demonia Gorge keeps deforming the test samples.”
At the secretary’s report, X-Large groaned.
“I don’t understand why. The reason Esta wants the site is probably not for research.”
“I think the same. Maybe it’s not an excuse… .”
Two companies withdrew from the contract.
The situation is undesirable for Darkness, which becomes more advantageous as it competes with many places.
‘No, thinking about it again makes no sense. To terminate the contract in this situation… .’
Above all, I did not understand the judgment of the companies.
Their actions were like putting down a spoon right before eating steamed rice.
I can’t do that unless the chicken is suddenly delivered.
‘Is there something I don’t know?’
Anxiety flashed through X-Large’s mind.
Just as there is a possibility that the younger brother secretly ordered chicken, the circumstances of companies may have changed in an instant.
If that was really the case, I had to quickly find the cause.
“This is a report from the guild leader.”
The secretary’s voice interrupted X-Large’s thoughts once again.
His anxiety increased.
Could it be that there are more contracts that have been terminated?
“What else?”
“Now a suspicious person is making a fuss about entering Demonia Gorge.”
Phew, X-Large was relieved.
Fortunately, there is no news of contract termination.
Intruders are no big deal.
There were countless people who tried to take Demonia Gorge, but none of them could break through the strong defense of Darkness.
It was also thanks to the overwhelming power of the Darkness Guild that they were able to set the terms of contracts between companies in their favor.
“How many are there?”
“There is only one.”
“Wait, one person? no way… .”
But again, X-Large’s eyes became urgent.
It was an absurd idea to break into the fortress alone.
However, there was a user who could make that absurd thing come true.
“First of all, it is not prefecture. It was a woman I didn’t know.”
The secretary, noticing X-Large’s concern, said.
“Woman… ? It’s not Ain, right?”
“yes. Seeing that his face isn’t familiar, he doesn’t even seem to belong to a higher ranker. She doesn’t even have a permit, but she’s in a situation where she’s making a fuss about entering the gorge… .”
The secretary uploaded a video of the scene where the incident took place.
There, a woman dressed as a priest was arguing with the Darkness guard users, and the atmosphere around her was getting more and more frightening.
‘huh… ?’
X-Large’s pupils gradually dilated.
For some reason, I thought I had seen her face somewhere.
It was the next moment that his breath stopped.
“Wait, stop that person now!”
“yes… ?”
“Just let them in, right now!”
The woman’s true identity is a genie.
Excluding Hyun and Ain, the only member of the Shade Guild revealed!
The reason X-Large was able to recognize Genie’s face was because he was very interested in ‘international competitions’.
‘That’s one hundred percent string… ! Genie is not like that!”
Maybe that’s a fairy tale skill… !
Memories of the past Darkness guild members being slaughtered flashed through X-Large’s mind.
Even if they did their best, victory could not be guaranteed, but Bear Shield was the only elite player left in Demonia Gorge.
No, the bigger problem than losing the battle was the fact that Mayday’s relationship with the prefecture, which had been restored so far, could deteriorate again.
“Never fight!”
“But our side has already been attacked? If you respond poorly to this case, you will lose trust with the contractors… .”
“No, because that doesn’t matter! From now on, I will even consider expelling users who disobey my instructions even slightly!”
X-Large first ordered the uninvited guest to be treated with the utmost respect, then stood up.
‘It’s not like this, I’ll have to hurry up too!’
I couldn’t stay still once I found out her identity.
Hyun had to figure out the reason why he came to Demonia Gorge.
Meanwhile the entrance to the fort.
“It’s too bad.”
Ginny licked her lips.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t Hyeon who caused the mayhem, but Jini!
The reason for the deliberate quarrel was to weaken the power of the competitor.
If a fight broke out, he was going to summon Ain as it was and destroy the Demonia Gorge, but the opponent bowed his head first and the justification disappeared.
This situation will surely be recorded, so if you attack an opponent who consistently resists, it will become a big problem in the future.
Especially, if the face of the Shade Guild is hanging.
“Someone seems to have recognized my face. I thought you were pretty disguised.”
“Iknow, right… .”
Hyun was very impressed with Genie’s strategy.
Is this just a bookstore?
Learned useful skills.
If you make good use of justification, you might be able to ‘righteously’ repeat what you did in Asura’s days.
‘I’ll have to try this method later when I get a chance.’
After X-Large notifies everyone of Hyun’s existence with a full notice.
The attitude of the Darkness Guild members changed 180 degrees.
Hyeon and Jini were treated very hospitably and entered the Demonia Gorge.
“Hyeon! I was surprised by the sudden visit.”
Just in time, X-Large came running quickly.
“Thank you again for your concessions at the Shade Guild last time.”
Even though he was an uninvited guest to Darkness, he greeted Hyun with a wide smile.
“Did you manage to know it was me?”
“Of course I know! Shade Guild member Genie. You’re a user who recently made a name for yourself, right?”
“I am surprised. I thought you wouldn’t recognize it.”
“Haha, since I often scout in tournaments, I have a lot of interest in pro gamers too.”
The first sentence is what Hyun said, and the second sentence is what Jini said.
Hyeon didn’t notice, but the genie set a trap here again.
Recognize the members of the Shade Guild who haven’t officially revealed their faces yet?
Then, he could have tried to press him again under the pretext of whether he was digging up information from this side, but X-Large escaped the trap of Genie again by mentioning the tournament.
“Darkness Guild Leader. Contrary to what he looks like, he is a very clever man.”
“is it so?”
“Yes, you are very quick-witted.”
Genie looked at X-Large with meaningful eyes.
He still hadn’t asked why they were visiting.
It must be that you don’t want to make excuses. It was clear that he understood their intentions.
I had no choice but to give up my first plan.
Aside from arguing and causing a fight, there were other reasons for coming to Demonia Gorge.
“just. I came to see how you are doing these days.”
Although not on the scale of a city, Demonia Gorge was the first land a corporation took an interest in.
Looking at similar places will be a good reference when urbanizing the Dark Island.
“I want to take a look around this area. Would it be okay?”
“yes… ? Yes, of course.”
From then on, Hyun and Ginny asked various questions to X-Large whenever they saw an unfamiliar facility.
X-Large smiles and kindly answers questions.
But deep inside, he was constantly guessing at Hyun’s intentions.
‘Did the prefecture belatedly figure out the value of this land?’
‘I don’t know if he’s regretting what he had patronized.’
‘I’m guessing it was a fight to take back the land or to claim a stake?’
Of course, those thoughts didn’t come out of my mouth.
As if dealing with a division commander who visited the unit, X-Large informed the guild members of the current route in advance and asked them not to make a mistake.
‘Who is that woman?’
Occasionally, non-Darkness Guild members looked at Ginny with curious eyes.
Most of the people who belonged to the reality research group didn’t even know Hyun’s face, so it was natural that they couldn’t figure out the identity of the genie.
I just assumed that a new contractor had come to see the place.
‘Who the hell is it that people treat me so carefully?’
‘Where is the head of a large corporation? You look quite young.’
It took two hours for Hyun and Jini to complete their reconnaissance.
“Looks like you’ve seen it all. Everything I saw today was recorded on video.”
「How about it, do you think it will help?」
“yes. quite.”
“Good for you.”
That’s how the two finished their business at Darkness’ home base.
“Thank you for guiding me today.”
Pod! Hyun lifted the fairy tale and said hello.
… ! X-Large was startled the moment Hyeon’s figure was revealed, but she immediately regained her composure after realizing that she was not trying to be hostile.
“Haha, as long as it’s a guide, it’s always possible. Are you going to die now?”
“yes. Please see Genie out of the canyon.”
“Then the Shade Guild leader… ?”
“I will go back on my own.”
Genie’s business is over, but there is still one thing left for Hyun to do.
After moving to the middle of Demonia Gorge, Hyun quietly closed his eyes.
‘I can do it here.’
Demonia Gorge is a trace of the movement of the entire subterranean land to the surface.
That means you can safely move from here to the symmetrical world.
Hyun started praying right in the middle of the gorge.
Thanks to frequent prayers lately, I was able to lower my consciousness in an instant.
After a while, the new type of string completely disappeared from its place.
“Wow… !”
Without knowing that X-Large, who misunderstood that ‘invisibility’ had been activated, hurriedly tried to pull himself out and fell.
***
dark land.
No, Hyun met the Skeleton Duke in a place that used to be the land of darkness.
When using the ‘Blessing of Darkness’ skill, the opponent appeared first.
Scotanatos, the one who serves the darkness.
He was very curious about the news of the darkness that suddenly disappeared five years ago.
Hyun first set an example and revealed that he was a being similar to the apostle of darkness.
“Darkness needs your help.”
I told Scotanatos about Louise’s recent situation.
The story that she is in great trouble.
It’s been days since I’ve been stuck in a private room. It was no lie that Louise was bored and was about to die.
Scotanatos was delighted to hear the news of Louise. It was because he, who had the body of a skeleton, couldn’t easily go to the sky or the ground.
“The darkness is in trouble… ! Yes, what can I do to help… ?”
“Whatever.”
Hyun received 2,000 skeletons from Scotanatos.
I couldn’t move it all at once, so I was transporting the skeletons several times by transport.
At the word that they should be used near the sky for a long time, Scotanatos carefully selected sturdy ones.
These skeletons will be used as workers for the time being, and as workers in charge of security and administration after the city planning is over.
It was a method that Hyun had been thinking about since he and Genie put their heads together and made a plan.
“perfect… do!”
Ginny was thrilled as she looked at the skeletons lined up on the island.
It was not an easy sight to see 2,000 workers moving in order according to their own directions.
Although Hyun had said that he would save undead workers, she did not expect that there would be so many of them.
“At this level, the labor force must be overflowing! Shall we make it a duplex?”
Suddenly, Ginny’s enthusiasm was ignited.
“It’s a duplex… ?”
“To develop even the underground of the island! Set the final goal to around the 50th floor, and dig up to the 10th floor first… .”
“No, wait… !”
Hyun stopped Genie from running wild.
I’ll admit that she’s got a lot of entrepreneurial flair, but the plan must have just been impulsive.
“Assuming there is enough labor, what to do with contracts that have already been signed?!”
“You can get more new companies! Well, I have enough time!”
“No, is it because I don’t have enough time?”
As the head of the Shade Guild, Hyun had the duty to oversee all tasks.
Among them, there were many things that could never be entrusted to others.
“If you’re really confident, start with the first basement floor, and we’ll discuss the rest later.”
“All right. You need a sample.”
The plan has changed a bit.
It was decided to place a highly accessible and popular facility on the land.
Shops, concert halls, duels, gymnasiums, etc., I narrowed down the ones that are popular with users.
And it was decided to drive all specialized facilities such as factories and research centers underground.
After starting Assrian, Hyun felt like working for the first time.
It was the first time in my life that a character stopped growing for a week.
Fortunately, Ain was investing more time than usual in hunting. Later, he was in order to restore the experience he had lost.
like that… … A week passed.
“after… It’s finally over.”
“Is this the start?”
“No, my job is roughly finished.”
A lot has really happened in the meantime.
First of all, SHA Company was established.
It is a symbol of the initials of SeoHyun and Ain, as well as the first part of Shade.
If it wasn’t for Ain, I would never have come to where I am today. Hyun decided to put her name along with his.
Everyone except himself still thinks he is the abbreviation of Shade.
‘Looks like Poppy made things easier.’
In the past few days, Hyeon sees Papi again.
Poppy joins the Shade Guild to pay off her debt.
In many ways, he showed abilities that could not be thought of as an NPC.
It was a welcome shock to Hyun, who subtly thought that Poppy’s AI level was low.
When he created a command system by classifying 2,000 skeletons by ability, the work speed increased several times.
Also, it was hard to believe that the idea of maximizing efficiency by competing with each other was the idea of an NPC.
Most dangerous job.
Even when it was necessary to build a waterway along the fog that circulated the island, the heavenly spirit prevented potentially fatal accidents.
Rather, as his aesthetic sense was added, the island of darkness was transformed into a huge work of art with black fountains gushing out.
‘All the necessary facilities are equipped.’
The biggest challenge was making the ‘teleport gate’, but thanks to Poppy, it was easy.
Because making magic circles was his specialty.
If the altitude of the land is raised a little, the island reaches the sky, a zone where celestials can freely exercise their power.
After drawing a magic circle there, I was able to complete a gate in an instant by lowering the altitude of the island again.
Of course, it didn’t start right away.
Since Hyun was planning to create a city only for ‘users’, he placed the following restrictions on the teleport gate.
– Objects with souls cannot be moved.
Users with the trick of being in a state of rest would be able to use the gate without much difficulty, but NPCs would never be able to come over here through the gate.
In this way, thanks to Papi taking on most of the work, the rest of the guild members were able to focus only on administrative work.
“Hyung, I finished everything you asked me to do! Would you like to take a look?」
A whisper from Tartar arrived at Hyeon.
“Ah, send it.”
Tartar’s specialty is identifying the needs of the public.
While Jini handles administrative duties and Poppy takes care of chores, Hyun has instructed him to create core content for the city.
Is there any way to make users stay in the city continuously?
The answer presented by Tartar was to introduce VIPs.
[Shade Point]
– This is a non-exchangeable commodity issued by the Shade Guild.
-Can be obtained by clearing Dark Island quests and achieving guild achievements.
– The VIP level increases according to the Shade Points you have.
300p – VIP1
-Popular gun rental available (limited quantity)
1500p – VIP2
-Using the general store
6000p – VIP3
-Using the rare shop
– Daily gold payment
30000p – VIP4
-Using Unique Shop
– A lot of gold paid every day
– Possible to submit an application to the Shade Guild
300000p – VIP5
-Using the Legendary Shop
-Payment of reward after confirmation of achievement
(※Caution: Every midnight, 0.1% of your points will automatically expire!)
The core is a point shop operated at the guild level.
Although the word “general~legendary” does not literally mean an item grade, it was a system that allowed you to purchase better items at a higher grade shop.
Items other than guns were registered in the shop.
For example, at the Unique Shop, rare magic materials were sold as points.
‘huh? What is this?’
While going through the list Tartar had set, Hyeon tilted his head.
It was because something strange caught my eye on the sales list at the Legendary Shop.
[Encounter ticket]
– In real life, you can have a meal with Hyun.
(Price: 10000p)
(Stock quantity: 1 per day)
Are there any users who would buy something like that to have a meal with me?
Even the price is very expensive at 10,000 points.
I couldn’t figure out what Tartar was thinking when he registered these things.
“Oh, I didn’t post that.”
“then?”
「Ain noona asked me to add it to the list, so I added it.」
‘Ain… ?’
The string is pierced while looking at the explanation.
‘Heh, if you want to eat with me like that, you can tell me anytime.’
I smiled and closed the information window.
Anyway, there is no user who can go to VIP level 5 within a year anyway.
There was something very sinister about this system devised by Tartar.
That 0.1% points decrease periodically!
A user with 100,000 points loses 100 points a day even if he does nothing.
I didn’t know how long it would take to collect 300,000 points, a condition for VIP level 5.
Tartar or the Legendary Shop would feel empty without anything, so he might have put something in there.
‘Well, I think I’m ready at this point.’
Hyun opened the management window.
‘I guess I can open the gate now.’
The necessary facilities for the city were already in place.
This is because Assrian’s construction speed is abnormally fast thanks to magic.
Development will continue even as users come and go, and in a few months, this place will be transformed into a complete metropolis.
“This is also over. The video will be released in an hour.”
Salon also reported through the guild chat.
“Is Louise’s appearance perfectly edited?”
“of course. Of course, you are the main character, but I think I was quite satisfied with my appearance.”
Today was the day the ‘Playing Documentary’ produced by Steven was released.
It’s not anywhere else, it’s on the main Asrian homepage, so there’s no need to say what the ripple effect will be.
Originally, it was scheduled to be released earlier, but Hyun asked for it, so the date was slightly delayed.
In order to match the timing with the opening of the city!
“Robert, are you sure what you said back then?”
Finally, Hyun contacted the development team, Robert Kerner, through the contact information he had previously received.
Right after the main quest ended, Hyun was able to get a promise from him.
“A new episode of the History Quest? It will probably be added at the same time as the documentary is released!」
“What about the statue of history?”
“Even if I don’t touch it, if a new city is born, it will be created automatically. That’s because it’s such a ‘system’.”
“Aha, thank you for your reply.”
So all the preparations are done.
Hyeon calmed his throbbing heart and waited for time to pass.
At this moment, all the members of the Shade Guild were thinking the same thing.
Maybe today will be a day that will be engraved in real history.
***
Stephen Young.
It has always been a name that is not missing when discussing action movies.
“Steven’s films lack artistic quality.”
“He was eaten up by public opinion. He has to learn to put philosophical meaning into his films.”
There were critics who criticized Stephen in that way, but no one could doubt his skill.
The midas hand of the film world.
The films Steven made were unconditionally hugely popular.
If you list the rankings of all-time movie revenues, half of his works are in the top 10.
The fact that the myth that there is no sequel as good as the original was broken was a feat achieved by Stephen Young alone.
The reason why he always hits the jackpot is his overwhelming directing skills.
Because the directing was so good, it was not too uncomfortable even if the probability was out of line.
It was ten days ago that I heard the news of him who thought he was taking a break because he had been quiet for a while.
<Steven Young predicts a revolution in cinema on X/XX.>
If the phrase appeared in media such as news, newspapers, and TV, it would not have had a very big impact.
Because Steven showing the revolution has become a daily routine now.
However, if the same phrase pops up on the Assrian official website, the meaning is different.
About 6 months after Kwon Dae-ho’s major announcement.
Numerous research groups have jumped into Assrian as the first hitter, but the ‘public’ has yet to feel the special aspect of Assrian.
They don’t know what’s so great about using games to investigate physics.
Even if you made a gun in the game, “Isn’t that enough possible in other games?” I used to say
But what if it’s a movie?
-Steven Young? Are you talking about the Steven who filmed ‘Ascendant’?
-There is no other Steven in the film industry.
After the meaningful phrase was posted on the official website, each community started to buzz.
The name Stephen Young had the power to entice even those who had no interest in games at all.
D-Day finally came.
People around the world who learned about the news through rumors, advertisements, and news kept the Assrian official website open.
The moment the promised time came, the background of the page turned black and the video started playing.
“It started.”
Hyeonu’s eyes sparkled.
The members of the Shade Guild, including him, were watching the screen together in a private room.
Poppy was working outside saying something had to be checked, but Louise was sitting on the sofa with the other guild members.
Her eyes were almost about to be sucked into the screen.
A playing documentary about 30 minutes long.
Perhaps to unfold the story quickly in a short running time, the video was conducted with a narration technique.
“So this is a movie… .”
“Strictly speaking, it is not a movie. Well, a similar movie will come out soon.”
“Everyone is over there, where am I?”
“That prisoner girl is probably you.”
As per his request, Louise’s appearance in the video was CG processed.
Not only that, but the story also seemed a bit dramatized.
Instead of the existing content of recovering the duke’s castle, it is an intuitive story of infiltrating the castle to assassinate the enemy’s leader.
‘Is that me?’
Hyun felt a strange feeling.
In the video, he seemed to be handsome for some reason.
No, it seems that the appearance of all the guild members has been slightly beautified… ?
Salon, in particular, seemed like a completely different person.
<Leave this to me>
<I will show you how terrifying it is to be prepared for death.>
The lines were also re-recorded, and Salon’s middle schooler-like feeling was nicely packaged.
When the low voice and the tense screen create a dramatic contrast, Hyun immediately wonders, ‘Did Salon use a double?’ I even heard the illusion.
Except for those minor differences, the video proceeded the same as in the past.
