The messenger of the Alparion Empire came to see Chris. Instead of me, who was tired from a long outing, my guardian Chris took care of it.
Yawn.
I yawned.
Rubbing, rubbing.
I rubbed my eyes.
Connecting right after the flower viewing, huh? You should definitely get some sleep after a long day out.
Pat, pat.
I was sitting on Chris’s lap, who was perched on a tree stump while she gently patted my head.
“An audience? A ball?”
“Yep. The Emperor of the Alparion Empire sent invites. ‘First, Second, and Third Clear raids of the Abyssal Tree’—to each of them. The Emperor’s messenger has left, and I told the No Name Raid that you’d be the one to relay the message.”
“Hmm…”
First Clear Raid, No Name Raid.
Second Clear Raid, Hong Baek Raid.
Third Clear Raid, Skada Raid.
All of us were invited to the Emperor’s palace in Alparion.
“Well, Hong Baek is from Alparion, so that makes sense, but Skada is affiliated with the Betarion Empire, right?”
“Dig a little deeper, and you’d find that. But, the users are kind of like hired mercenaries at the end of the day, right? Technically, they’re none. This also might be a ploy to draw them into their own country.”
I nodded.
The struggle between the two empires happening behind the scenes. Users fighting each other in the Faction Battlefield to mine precious Magic Stones.
Users battle to obtain the Magic Stones through quests, while the Alparion and Betarion Empires use those users to reap the benefits. In some way, you could say these two empires are quite something, thinking of how to exploit ‘adventurers from the stars’ for their own gains.
Suddenly, a thought popped into my head.
“By the way, inviting the heroes who defeated the Legion Commander…”
“Could it mean the empire is keeping an eye on the growing influence of the Demon Race in the northern part of the continent? Isn’t it fascinating? The empire, which seemed busy bickering over power, is making a move.”
I thought they didn’t care at all about the shadows looming over this continent, concerning the Demon Race. So the empires were actually on the ball.
Then perhaps…
“Haven’t you gotten an invitation from the Betarion Empire?”
“Sharp, aren’t you? That’s right. The Betarion Empire sent a messenger as well, but when they confirmed that the Alparion Empire’s messenger was already here, they turned back.”
This order seems to follow the First Clear, huh? I, as a member of the First Clear No Name raid, belong to the Alparion Empire.
Regardless, since we’re essentially mercenaries with no official ties, Skada Raid must also have been invited.
“Could it be that they want to give out some raid completion rewards instead of the game developers? Hehe. Compliments for our achievements, and on top, they throw a grand banquet. Nobles attending and dancing at the ball! Classic event in a fantasy game, right?”
Of course, the public intent would probably be as Chris mentioned.
Celebrating their mercenaries’ efforts while also trying to win over foreign mercenaries.
Yet, it feels like there’s more.
*
Capital city, long time no see!
I jumped around in the central square fountain of ‘Patama’, the capital of the Alparion Empire.
Boing, boing.
“Sister, sister! It’s the fountain!”
Chris chuckled as she watched me bounce in front of the fountain.
“Haha, why act like it’s your first time seeing it? We’ve seen it a million times while leveling in the plains—shopping here with you.”
“But it’s been ages since the last expansion, hasn’t it?”
Since starting my adventures in the north, I hadn’t stopped by the capital. After the expansion dropped, I had been using the northern towns and the Elf forest as bases.
“Did you swing by home?”
“Oh, housing. Uhm, is there anything special?”
Chris seemed to think of my housing in the empire’s capital.
I had restricted user access with the door lock feature. NPCs wouldn’t be affected, but even if a petty thief broke in, there wasn’t really anything they could steal.
Thud, thud.
I strolled along the main road with a cheerful step.
The capital of the empire is quite spacious. Yet, the grand buildings are clearly visible.
Following the straight road from the square, I could begin to see the magnificent palace standing grandly between the stone buildings.
“It’s so big that we can see it from here. We might be the first users to enter, right?”
As if to flaunt the power of one of the two great empires in the continent, the massive fortress site visible here was filled with beautiful medieval-style architecture. Could there be architectural styles in the Astria continent similar to Earth’s Baroque style?
“The users allowed in that palace still haven’t been allowed, right?”
“Yep. It seems that NPC guards and knights are keeping them out.”
Sure, maybe one could force their way in, but who among the users would dare challenge the entire empire? If things went wrong, they might never be active again in the Alparion Empire.
We walked for quite a while and finally reached the front of the palace.
In front of the massive palace gates, two guards and a knight in splendid ceremonial armor greeted us.
Chris approached the knight and handed over the invitation received from the messenger of the Emperor.
“Confirmed. Lady Chris, Sir Rain.”
The knight bowed courteously with the palace etiquette and had the guards open the palace gates.
Creak, creak—
“This way.”
A middle-aged man dressed similarly to a butler guided us. I think his name was something like ‘de…whatever’. Either way, judging by his long name, he seemed to be from a noble background. After all, didn’t they say that even butlers in palaces are of noble descent?
Central royal palace, broad and elongated corridors.
The various decorations and artworks lining both sides of the corridor caught my eye.
Truly, an empire that has endured for a millennium. You could feel its power even in these minor details.
“A thousand-year empire, huh.”
In my memory, a thousand years ago, the Alparion and Betarion Empires had no real empires.
What was this country like a millennia ago?
In fact, it wasn’t even much of a country. Humans, driven from their lands by the Demon Race, had grouped together simply to drive them out and establish a nation of humans!
The leaders of the two nations met in a field tent back then. Gorgeous buildings? They didn’t exist.
Chris and I arrived at a massive door.
Tap, tap.
Chris, who had been gawking at the palace, tapped my shoulder.
“Rain, Rain! Look here! Is this the audience room? Could the Emperor be waiting for us inside? Will the ball begin immediately after we meet? Should I have bought a dress? Maybe I should shop at the auction house right now…!”
“Sister…”
I pinched Chris’s side, glancing at the butler. It meant she should calm down a bit.
“This is the waiting room. Once all invited guests have arrived, you will be guided into the audience room.”
Creek.
The door opened and familiar faces appeared.
Pat, pat, pat.
“Rain! Sister Chris!”
“Bae Merong, you got here first.”
I ran towards the pink-haired mage who rushed over and exchanged smiles.
“You guys were the last among our guild members to arrive.”
Behind Bae Merong, familiar faces from Hong Baek guild waved at us—Deathly Death and Cherni were waving over here.
Near them were the sturdy duo of frontline fighters and the ranger duo, with wizards and spiritualists also nearby.
Chris looked at Bae Merong’s attire and frowned.
“What’s up, Bae Merong? Why didn’t you dress up?”
“Huh? Dress up, you say?”
Bae Merong was in her mage robe.
Some had on something resembling suits, but everyone was wearing the unique outfits obtained from dungeons.
I poked Chris’s side once more.
“See, Sister Chris? Everyone’s in their regular outfits.”
“Tsk, it’s supposed to be a grand event at the imperial palace, and everyone’s being so casual.”
Chris clicked her tongue.
“Huh?”
I tilted my head while looking at the people gathered in the room.
Bae Merong asked.
“Rain, what’s up?”
“There’s no sign of the Skada Raid members.”
“Oh, Skada? She said she’d be a little late, but she’ll be here soon enough. There’s still a bit of time before the appointment.”
Seeing Bae Merong casually refer to Skada as ‘sister’ already—even though they had only raided a few times together—indicated that Bae Merong had struck a bond with her thanks to her natural charm.
Knock, knock. Creak—
The wait wasn’t long.
Just as we were late, the Skada party soon arrived.
“Looks like you all got here first. Hehe, nice to see you.”
The ‘Skada Raid’, the third clear of the ‘Abyssal Tree’, stepped into the waiting room.
Leading the way was the beauty with brown hair, Raid Leader Skada, alongside the tank Park Jeong-kwon. A few familiar faces from the dual-character raid party were recognizable, but there were also new faces.
“Now that everyone’s here, one, two, three…”
Chris began counting the number of people.
Hong Baek Raid had 12 members, and Skada Raid had 12 members.
Everyone is gathered. Seems no one was busy.
“Hmm…? Is the No Name Raid represented by just you, Sir Rain?”
Skada tilted her head and looked in my direction.
I avoided Skada’s gaze and gripped Chris’s sleeve.
“It’s quite crowded.”
“Not just one or two people. But the audience room should be spacious enough, right?”
Knock, knock.
We heard a knock, and the butler who had guided us before reappeared.
“It’s audience time.”
Excitement mixed with nervousness, a variety of reactions scattered among the 25 heroes.
I too, began to feel a different kind of anticipation.
A thousand years ago.
The leaders of the two nations that battled the Demon Race alongside me.
Their bloodline.
Let’s see what they look like.
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