The Strongest in the Game by Dominating Monster - Chapter 58

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Monster Domination: Game’s Strongest Episode 58

 

Ancient Empire Fortress.

 

An old castle located west of Gania Castle, and the place where he had tamed the Minotaur in the past.

 

It wasn’t exactly a place he wanted to remember.

 

It had been filled with corpses of animals and monsters that reeked with a nauseating smell, and the bloody mist had given off an ominous feeling.

 

However, had Arken ordered it? Or had the game system activated?

 

The bloody mist that had been spreading no longer covered the fortress, and the nauseating corpses that had been scattered everywhere had disappeared without a trace.

 

Thanks to that, the old fortress gave off the tranquil atmosphere of an ancient building.

 

“It’s better than I thought?”

 

Since it had been a large-scale fortress, the cleaned-up fortress looked quite decent.

 

He moved his steps and walked around various parts of the castle gate.

 

“Hmm. There’s a river flowing here?”

 

Looking at the stream flowing outside the castle gate on the north side of the castle, he muttered to himself, then headed toward the inner castle.

 

A massive hall and office. Warehouses and reception rooms, and so on.

 

This place was also full of old and aged traces, but it had everything it needed.

 

Though not as much as the Black Giant Castle, if properly maintained and used, it seemed like it could become quite a splendid castle.

 

To summarize his overall impression of the castle in one word, it was an old but usable castle.

 

“Hmm. However, the problem is…”

 

The moment he sat on the partially broken throne and muttered.

 

[Ancient Empire Fortress]

 

[Territory Residents] [Resources] [Military Forces]…

 

It was a system he had become familiar with through the Black Giant Castle, and the problem with this castle came to mind.

 

“Well, there’s absolutely nothing here.”

 

Territory residents? Resources?

 

Completely empty.

 

Since there were no territory residents, there was no way there could be military forces either.

 

It was truly empty land with only buildings but nothing else.

 

A chuckle escaped as he recalled the feeling of when he first became the owner of the Black Giant Castle.

 

Did he have to develop this place from scratch like the Black Giant Castle too?

 

Of course, it was quite attractive.

 

As far as he knew, among the users, only one person had claimed a castle – just the current ranking 1st place.

 

Even the global ranking 1st place only had one castle.

 

But he would rule over two territories?

 

If developed well, it would have tremendous potential.

 

However, no matter how much he thought about it, it was too much, so he shook his head.

 

The Black Giant Castle was still a territory with a long way to go.

 

There were mountains of buildings to construct and countless tasks to manage piled up.

 

In the midst of all that, managing this Ancient Empire Fortress from the beginning?

 

It would only be possible if he poured all his time into territory management without being able to pay attention to quests and hunting.

 

“Hmm…”

 

Thus began his contemplation.

 

What should he do with this castle?

 

Should he just sell it? Entrust the management to someone?

 

Or…

 

His contemplation deepened, one thought leading to another.

 

“Ah!”

 

Then he let out an exclamation at an idea that suddenly came to mind.

 

Would it be possible?

 

Though doubt arose, it was worth trying.

 

* * *

 

“Oh! Over here!”

 

The next day.

 

Yu Baekjin came out to Gangnam Station District, and Park Jinwoo, who spotted him, waved his hand widely.

 

“Where are the other guys?”

 

“They’ve arrived. We just need to go.”

 

Perhaps because he was looking forward to the gathering they were having after a long time, Park Jinwoo’s expression was endlessly bright.

 

“Why is your expression so sullen? Is it bothersome?”

 

“It’s not bothersome, I’m just busy. I have a mountain of things to do.”

 

“Keke. New World?”

 

“Yeah. I don’t know why a game has so many things to do.”

 

“Well. I saw the video. You did something proper again, didn’t you?”

 

Park Jinwoo, who had watched the war between Araon and the palace in real-time, gave a thumbs up.

 

When Kairen appeared with Gania’s knight order, he felt thrills throughout his entire body.

 

It wasn’t just because they were best friends, but it was really goosebump-inducing, cool and dazzling.

 

“Really, my mouth is so itchy today that I wonder if I can hold back.”

 

When Park Jinwoo smiled slyly and spoke playfully, Yu Baekjin lightly hit his shoulder.

 

“Drink moderately today.”

 

“Moderately? How many bottles? Five bottles?”

 

With hearty laughter, Park Jinwoo entered the bar.

 

Following him inside, three men sitting in a corner spot made a fuss.

 

“You’re here!”

 

“Wow! How long has it been, Baek Jin!”

 

“Wait, why did he get more handsome after being discharged?”

 

Yu Baekjin’s face, hearing this after a long time, also brightened up.

 

They were truly welcome faces.

 

Three friends who, though not as close as Jin-woo, he had been particularly close with within the department.

 

After enlisting, he finally met faces he hadn’t seen even once.

 

“Everyone, have you been well?”

 

Yu Baekjin sat down and looked around at them with a smile.

 

Ahn Seongjun, who looked good in round rimless glasses.

 

Lee Myeongho, who hadn’t lost any weight despite going to the military.

 

Chae Munsu, whose M-shaped forehead stood out despite being only twenty-three.

 

They were classmates who had stuck together with Jin-woo throughout university.

 

“No. Baek Jin. I’m really curious, why do you really hang out with us?”

 

Ahn Seongjun pushed up his glasses and asked with a serious expression.

 

At that silly question he always asked whenever they met, Yu Baekjin smiled and drank some water.

 

“Enough of that, tell me how everyone’s been doing.”

 

That was the signal.

 

The young men who had gathered after a long time had so much to talk about that they chattered non-stop.

 

The night deepened, and the soju bottles multiplied.

 

“Ah. So Baek Jin, are you returning to school this time?”

 

“Yeah. I have to.”

 

He nodded at Munsu’s question.

 

Though he was busy with New World, he had no intention of giving up his studies.

 

He had already submitted his application to return to school.

 

“Hehe. The female students at our school will have life back in their faces again.”

 

“No, I’m really not joking – after Baek Jin took a leave of absence, all the female students at our school looked gloomy, you know?”

 

“Right? It wasn’t just me who noticed that, right?”

 

“What about the MT? Are you going? If you go, Baek Jin, I’ll go too.”

 

“If it’s the second semester MT, that’s the college MT, right? Why bother? What’s a returning student doing at an MT?”

 

He shook his head while downing his soju.

 

The MT for this second semester return would be the college MT.

 

It was much larger in scale than the department MT held in the first semester.

 

Spending 2 nights and 3 days with hundreds of people whose faces he didn’t even know?

 

Maybe when he was a freshman, but as a returning student now, he wasn’t particularly interested.

 

“Ah! Why! Let’s go!”

 

“Right! Hey! When else do we get to interact with other departments besides then?”

 

The three people except Park Jinwoo clamored.

 

To them, MT was a symbol of youth.

 

Having just been discharged from the military, that youth was particularly boiling over.

 

“Hehe. Right. I was actually thinking of going to this MT too?”

 

“Jin-woo, you too?”

 

Surprised by Jin-woo’s words that he was also thinking of going, he asked back, and Jin-woo nodded.

 

“Yeah. College MTs are fun, you know. We had all sorts of things happen during our freshman year too. Don’t you remember? Munsu, you got drunk and confessed to that girl you had a crush on and got rejected.”

 

“Ah! Why are you bringing up that story again! Hehe!”

 

Chae Munsu, whose dark history was mentioned, shouted angrily then burst into laughter.

 

Soon, the others also burst into laughter remembering that time, and Yu Baekjin laughed heartily too.

 

That’s right. Come to think of it, there had been quite a lot of fun incidents.

 

When he was thinking it might be okay to make such memories with them at least once.

 

Myeongho brought up a new topic.

 

“Ah. But do you all play New World?”

 

New World.

 

At those three words, the eyes of the four men except Yu Baekjin changed.

 

They all seemed to have a lot they wanted to talk about as they fidgeted with their mouths.

 

“I just started recently, and wow, it’s really insane! How is that even a game?”

 

And starting with Ahn Seongjun, they all began chattering non-stop again.

 

Unable to reveal his identity, Yu Baekjin nodded along appropriately for a while.

 

“Ah. Right! Then, did you guys see that? Kairen! Yesterday, the war between Bow and Araon!”

 

“…!”

 

At that moment, Yu Baekjin’s body flinched at the three syllables “Kairen” that came from his friend’s mouth.

 

“I saw it! I watched it in real-time, and wow, I really got goosebumps all over!”

 

“Isn’t he really freaking cool? Wow. It’s the first time in my life I’ve become someone’s fan!”

 

“No, the Mosaic Mode is really amazing! Like, you can feel this sense of mystery, you know.”

 

At the endless stream of praise, Yu Baekjin was so embarrassed he didn’t know what to do with himself.

 

Feeling awkward for no reason, he gulped down water.

 

Jin-woo, who happened to make eye contact, was holding his stomach and laughing as if he found it hilarious.

 

“What? Why are you like that?”

 

“Nothing. Just funny. But I don’t really get it. Is Kairen really that amazing?”

 

“Ugh! Are you really playing New World? Of course he’s that amazing!”

 

“Kairen is a god!”

 

For no reason. Jin-woo, who had tried to joke around once and got hit with fierce backlash, waved his hands dismissively.

 

“Hey. Playing games with Kairen. Dating Jang Chaea. Which would you guys choose?”

 

Then someone threw out another pointless topic.

 

If it were the friends Yu Baekjin knew, they would have chosen the latter without hesitation.

 

They were friends who always praised idol Jang Chaea as a goddess.

 

“Wow. This one’s pretty tough.”

 

“Honestly, even Chaea noona is a bit… in front of Kairen.”

 

“No, if you date Chaea noona, that’s the end of it, but if you play games with Kairen, wouldn’t you get some crumbs falling your way?”

 

However, completely unexpected answers burst out.

 

That response was so funny that Yu Baekjin burst out laughing.

 

The pointless and meaningless talk characteristic of early twenties.

 

That conversation was enjoyable, and his friends’ talk was embarrassing and awkward, but somehow made him feel good.

 

The alcohol going down his throat was incredibly sweet.

 

* * *

 

“Ah! This is really frustrating!”

 

The highlight of the war between Bow Mercenary Group and Araon Mercenary Company uploaded on NetTube.

 

Ryu Sia, who had watched that video without blinking an eye and finished it in an instant, stamped her feet and expressed her regret.

 

Why did she have to schedule Rookie’s health checkup at that exact time?

 

If not for that, she could have witnessed that heart-stirring scene with her own eyes.

 

It would be something she’d regret for a long time.

 

Woof!

 

“No, Rookie. I’m not blaming you.”

 

As if reading her mind, when Rookie barked briefly, she hurriedly hugged him.

 

Right. Still, thanks to that, she found out Rookie was healthy, didn’t she?

 

Even if she had regrets, it had been time well spent.

 

“Now. Then…”

 

Ryu Sia, who had been hugging and playing with Rookie for a while, got up and sat in front of the computer.

 

Just now, watching that video had made her motivation surge again.

 

After editing the video for a long time like that.

 

Finally, having finished her work, she stretched long.

 

“It’s done!!”

 

Shouting with joy, she immediately played the video.

 

“….”

 

This was a video she had personally worked on.

 

These were scenes she had replayed countless times while editing.

 

However….

 

Her eyes watching the video never blinked even once.

 

She was absorbed in the video and couldn’t break free.

 

To that extent, Kairen hunting the Troll in the video was incredibly captivating.

 

Though she had no intention of sharing it with others.

 

Though it was a video she would only carefully present to Kairen.

 

It was so good that she thought it was almost too precious for her to watch alone.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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