Chapter 150

Chapter 150

Chapter 150 – Seoul Restoration (1) Just as the construction of the outposts at Seoul Station and Sindorim Station reached completion.

[An individual qualified for citizenship has been identified.]

[Would you like to approve their citizenship?]

Profiles belonging to thousands of individuals materialized in front of my eyes.

These were the scattered survivors who had been managing to scrape by in small pockets around Seoul Station and Sindorim Station, now brought together.

In the past, I would have had to carefully review each person’s background individually prior to letting them in, but such a tedious process was no longer required.

“Approve them.”

Each time my trusted vassals retrieved newcomers, they had already been meticulously scanned using the Absolute Dweller’s Eye.

Hence, even when admitting such a massive crowd simultaneously, there was very little to worry about.

“I simply need to utilize the Absolute Dweller’s Eye to scan their files.”

By casting the gaze of the Absolute Dweller’s Eye over this region for just a brief moment, verifying thousands of profiles took mere seconds.

[I appreciate the immense effort you have all put in.]

Before doing anything else, I conveyed my appreciation to the twenty vassals who had remained on-site to assist with building the outposts.

[Next, we shall launch the comprehensive campaign to take back Seoul.]

Our initial attempt to recover Seoul in the past had ended in a disastrous setback.

Originally, my assumption was that eliminating all the high-ranking boss monsters within Seoul would make reclaiming the metropolis a straightforward task.

That, however, proved to be an enormous miscalculation.

The intelligence I uncovered while saving isolated groups of survivors scattered across Seoul—acting separately from my vassals’ efforts—was deeply alarming.

Instead of minimizing casualties, the situation was actually deteriorating.

It became apparent that whenever the supreme predators were eliminated, the marginally weaker beasts would seize the vacated territories and grow highly active.

It was a classic scenario of the lion vanishing, only for the hyenas to descend and wage war over the leftovers.

On top of that, the movements of lesser creatures such as orcs and goblins surged dramatically.

This shift backfired terribly on the surviving humans, resulting in devastating casualties.

Certain pockets of survivors who had survived by adapting to and exploiting the specific routines of a boss monster suddenly found themselves utterly decimated when that balance was disrupted.

“Because of that, I halted our boss hunts and shifted our main focus to extracting survivors.”

Yet, that strategy also presented significant challenges.

Even though we assembled a specialized extraction unit composed strictly of high-level fighters, our numbers remained severely insufficient.

Furthermore, we faced a manpower drain because a minimum of five vassals had to remain stationed to secure outposts like the one at the Gori Nuclear Power Plant.

Our available forces were finite, whereas the sea of people desperate for rescue seemed completely boundless.

During this period, the outpost established at the entrance of Konkuk University Station for the JHS project proved to be an invaluable asset.

It stood out as the sole region that remained completely unharmed despite lacking any boss-level monsters.

This anomaly occurred because the territory was firmly under the control of entities whose power far eclipsed that of standard boss-level monsters.

“To the local beasts, Konkuk University Station must have looked like the undisputed domain of the vassals.”

Even when the vassals themselves were absent, a rescue squad averaging in the level 30 range routinely patrolled the area.

Outfitted with firearms, they immediately eliminated any creature that dared to breach their boundary lines.

For the monsters, attempting an intrusion was a suicidal endeavor.

The stark contrast between having a secure sanctuary and lacking one made it absolutely clear just how vital these outposts were.

Establishing fortified outposts in strategic sectors before engaging in clearing operations was far more effective at preserving human lives than blindly hunting down threats to save people.

This realization was the driving force behind the creation of the outposts at Seoul Station and Sindorim Station.

And now…

“The circumstances have evolved once more.”

To address our constant staff shortages, I had concentrated on expanding my pool of vassals, which subsequently unlocked the “Noble Title System.”

This mechanism allowed me to bestow noble ranks upon my subordinates according to the contribution points they compiled.

Bestowing these titles directly expanded the boundaries of their respective territories.

A baron was granted a 1km radius; a viscount commanded a 3km radius; an earl claimed a 5km radius, and the pattern continued upward.

“We have one earl alongside five viscounts.”

Out of all my vassals, Oh Eon-ju was the sole individual to achieve the status of earl.

Upon the launch of the title system, Oh Eon-ju stood alone with over one million contribution points, meeting the threshold required for the earldom.

She had single-handedly brought down the most dangerous adversaries, including the initial Cyclops and the supreme commander of the vampires.

Consequently, her accumulated contribution points were staggering, securing her position as a Countess.

Those holding the rank of viscount were Ha Dong-geon, Moon Byeong-ho, Lee Jun-hyuk, Jang Seong-jun, and Kim Dabin.

“For the most part, contribution points are earned by slaying beasts.”

Unsurprisingly, the individuals with the highest scores were those who had consistently brought down formidable, high-level opponents.

It was a natural outcome.

Eliminating monsters directly yielded experience points and financial rewards, fueling my own advancement.

“Nevertheless, combat is not the sole avenue for earning these points.”

Had hunting been the only metric, Kim Dabin would never have attained the status of viscount.

She had never actually fought or killed a single monster herself.

Even so, her score surpassed those of Kang Deok-su and Kim Ga-young, both of whom had hunted extensively, proving that the title system evaluated non-combat contributions with absolute fairness.

“The telepathy ability Kim Dabin unlocked upon reaching maximum trust has been incredibly valuable.”

It allowed her to broadcast commands directly to the populace and proved highly effective for commanding tamed beasts like the Kellican.

“All of these auxiliary actions were clearly factored in by the system.”

Ultimately, this set the stage for me to establish a proper domain.

Establishing a new territory required meeting two primary criteria.

You needed a vassal possessing a noble rank and an active “safe zone.”

Essentially, to expand our territory beyond our primary residence, an outpost had to serve as the foundation.

In many ways, a fully realized “territory” was simply a highly advanced version of an “outpost.”

[Oh Eon-ju, Ha Dong-geon, are you prepared?]

The two of them were positioned at Seoul Station and Sindorim Station respectively, waiting for the signal.

“Yes, Jae-hyun-nim.”

“We are prepared.”

Oh Eon-ju and Ha Dong-geon awaited the initiation of the domain building process with grave expressions.

Their apprehension was well-founded.

Immediately after unlocking the title framework, we had attempted to set up our very first domain at Konkuk University Station.

We had designated Count Oh Eon-ju to anchor the project, but the process had barely commenced before she lost consciousness.

Upon waking, she explained that the exact moment the construction began, she was assaulted by a blinding, unbearable agony.

‘It is likely identical to the severe pain I experience during a level up.’

Her blackout halted the project instantly, and we only recovered seventy percent of the initial resources invested.

That incident taught us the hard lesson that aborting the process midway meant forfeiting a significant portion of the cost.

[The ordeal will be severe, but you must hold on.]

Oh Eon-ju gulped in anxiety.

Ha Dong-geon closed his eyes, focusing his mind.

‘Domain creation.’

Beginning with Oh Eon-ju.

[Establishing this site requires a citizen holding the rank of ‘Count’ or higher to remain present for the 5-day duration.]

[Do you wish to initiate the process?]

[Yes / No]

She was facing five continuous days of sheer torment.

Although the Tranquil Mind skill mitigated the strain slightly, I was intimately familiar with how agonizing the sensations of rapid advancement could be.

‘…Please endure.’

One strange rule of domain construction was that pooling multiple vassals together did nothing to speed up or ease the process.

The only thing I could offer them was silent support and words of motivation.

[We will proceed with Oh Eon-ju first.]

Following that system prompt—

‘Begin construction.’

[50,000,000,000 won will be deducted.]

[The construction of the ‘Count’s Domain’ has commenced.]

[Remaining time for the Count’s Domain construction:]

119 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds

The creation of the Count’s Domain was officially underway at Seoul Station.

Simultaneously—

“Urgh…!”

A strangled cry of pain escaped Oh Eon-ju’s lips.

[Now, we will proceed with Ha Dong-geon.]

“Understood.”

[This process demands a citizen of ‘Viscount’ status or higher to anchor the area for the 3-day duration.]

[Do you wish to begin?]

[Yes / No]

‘Start.’

[30,000,000,000 won will be deducted.]

[The construction of the ‘Viscount’s Domain’ has commenced.]

[Remaining time for the Viscount’s Domain construction:]

71 hours 59 minutes 58 seconds

The instant the system message declared the start, Ha Dong-geon’s features twisted in intense agony.

A short while later—

‘They succeeded. Neither of them has lost consciousness this time.’

Konkuk University Station had been excluded from this phase because establishing Namdaemun during active construction was impossible.

We needed to keep transit pathways clear for the civilian population to travel.

‘Just hang in there.’

I offered a silent prayer as I observed their struggle.

Desperately wishing for the hours to fly by.

Ha Dong-geon fought hard to keep his focus even as a wave of intense torment washed over his body.

While his sheer willpower was crucial, being mentally prepared for what was coming made a massive difference.

The raw physical agony was indeed immense, but a different realization shocked him to his core.

‘Is this…’

The suffering was so profound that it felt beyond the capacity of any normal human being to withstand.

‘Has Jae-hyun-nim been bearing this level of torment all along?’

As one of the original, senior members of the vassals.

Those who had followed Kim Jae-hyun since the early days knew that he occasionally suffered private bouts of severe pain or lost consciousness.

They had also witnessed the safe zone expanding exponentially following those painful episodes.

‘But to think it was this bad…!’

It was simply mind-numbing.

It was the sort of agony where fainting would have been a merciful release.

Yet, Kim Jae-hyun had repeatedly weathered this excruciating process.

“Ngh.”

Before experiencing it himself, he could not have even conceptualized such pain.

It felt as though massive spikes were skewering his entire frame, radiating a blistering heat of 1,000°C from within his body.

His flesh and muscles felt as though they were liquefying, while high-pressure gas seemed to expand between his cells, splintering his bones in microscopic detonations.

‘Ah.’

Yet, Ha Dong-geon remained unaware of the full reality.

The agony he felt was but a fraction of what Kim Jae-hyun had gone through.

Because the process of domain building drew upon Kim Jae-hyun’s power and developed gradually, Ha Dong-geon was only enduring roughly one-thousandth of the true intensity.

Even so, having to bear this sensation continuously for three full days was a hellish prospect.

‘Jae-hyun-nim…!’

Clinging to consciousness, Ha Dong-geon kept his mind focused on Kim Jae-hyun.

Grit!

As Ha Dong-geon gritted his teeth and persevered, the secure barrier centered around Sindorim Station slowly began to push outward.

Simultaneously, his own psychological fortitude was being forged and strengthened.

While Oh Eon-ju and Ha Dong-geon endured their grueling trials, the remaining vassals were far from idle.

In contrast to Kim Jae-hyun’s personal level-ups, where the expanding safe zone bypassed or integrated nearby monsters and humans instantly, domain construction met physical resistance from external forces.

During a standard level-up, any beings in the area were absorbed into the safe zone without friction.

Domain expansion, however, physically shoved outside entities backward step by step.

For human survivors, the solution was straightforward; Kim Jae-hyun could simply grant them citizenship.

Monsters, however, could not be converted, nor could they be vaporized as effortlessly as they would be inside a true safe zone.

Consequently, any physical resistance from monsters would cause the pain felt by Oh Eon-ju and Ha Dong-geon to spike exponentially.

Oh Eon-ju’s previous collapse had been triggered precisely because monsters blocked the expanding boundary.

Armed with this knowledge, the team had thoroughly cleared out as many surrounding beasts as possible before starting.

Even at this very moment, the active vassals were patrolling the perimeter and eliminating any encroaching creatures immediately.

In this manner, three excruciating days slowly trickled by for Ha Dong-geon.

[A domain has been successfully established.]

‘It is finally… finished.’

Thud!

The moment the system confirmed completion, Ha Dong-geon went limp, collapsing to the ground in overwhelming relief.