Chapter 77 – Manifest Destiny

Meanwhile, along with the Black Mage’s combat preparations…

Preparations for the defense battle were also in full swing. In a way, the battle with the Black Mage was essentially a prelude to the defense battle.

The reason I wanted to incorporate Gwak Sangyong’s Faction quickly was to merge them completely before they were swept up in my own defense battle.

In particular, the reason for my concern was that this expansion of the Mana Facilities involved a staggering number of eight additional units. However, as some time had passed, those preparations were now nearly complete.

Only this time, the direction of development was slightly different from when I was in Incheon. Unlike Incheon, where I tried to defend the entire city…

The southwestern part of Seoul was not the entire city to begin with.

Nor was there any reason for it to be.

Unlike Incheon, there were no port facilities, refineries, or manufacturing plants. Now that real estate values had plummeted, the most valuable thing in Seoul was the [talent pool] above all else.

And unlike buildings, people could move.

The people rescued from Seoul generally flowed into Incheon, and from there, they were filtered once more, with some flowing into my castle. A population drain was occurring.

Therefore, rather than trying to encompass all of Seoul, I opted to build small citadels and military bases sporadically, centered around Mana Facilities, so that influence could be projected onto the surrounding areas.

In other words, unlike previous expansions, the shape of the territory this time was composed of points rather than a plane, with the intention of expanding only the influence as a plane.

Then, I organized the roads between those citadels and established patrols to travel back and forth periodically.

This method had significant advantages.

The core benefit, of course, was that there was no need to build a long wall like the Great Wall of China, allowing for the acquisition of vast amounts of territory with a small investment of resources.

And since that territory included the atmosphere from which the Mana Facilities could extract mana, it translated directly into my own military power.

Furthermore, because the size of the key strongholds to be defended was small, the number of troops required to be stationed there could be reduced accordingly.

Of course, in exchange for such advantages, certain disadvantages had to be considered. For instance, territories where only influence was expanded in this manner were neither surrounded by city walls nor had troops permanently stationed…

Inevitably, public security would be lacking.

No matter how much they patrolled, that was only for the moment; when the troops were away, there was no telling when they might be ambushed by Monsters or Looters.

However, this was not a major drawback. The biggest reason was, again, that the population had decreased significantly.

This wasn’t the Republic of Korea, the “Apartment Republic.”

Even if the population newly incorporated into the faction continued to be crammed into Incheon, Incheon still had more than enough empty houses.

Thus, the plan was to increase only the territory where resources could be acquired while reducing the number of locations that absolutely required defense.

However, there were valuable facilities within the territory to be incorporated this time. Those were, of course, the various research facilities of Seoul National University. Therefore, I had Seoul National University surrounded by city walls to function as a formal city.

After hearing this plan, Choi Yongjin gave the following evaluation.

“Is it sheer destiny… This is a method similar to how the United States expanded. I like it very much.”

“What does that mean?”

As Sua tilted her head in confusion, Choi Yongjin began to explain in a complex manner.

“What is called a ‘territory’ in English is [territory], not a ‘state.’ Here, a state can be seen as a [province] where the administrative power of the government reaches.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about…”

“For example, think of the American Wild West. The places where outlaws ran rampant were certainly inside the United States, but the influence of the central government didn’t reach them much. That’s an example of [territory], and Chicago or New York, which were putting up skyscrapers in the same era, are examples of [states].”

It was the moment Sua’s expression became even more clouded with confusion.

“Siwoo-oppa, Uncle Yongjin is weird.”

Yongjin grinned, looking slightly embarrassed.

“I’m not a graduate of the Military Academy for nothing.”

He then added:

“Just know that for rapidly expanding a faction, the method Siwoo chose is the optimal method chosen by history.”

Despite his fierce appearance…

It seemed Yongjin was unexpectedly quite the intellectual.

* * *

While organizing the defense battle operations, I did not forget to keep an eye on the Black Mage through the Observation Probes and Observation Ships.

“Seven demons in total, huh.”

Compared to the past when I managed demons in the dozens, it was considerably easier, but the demons he summoned were tricky ones, each boasting significant strength.

Also, the Monster called the [Observer] by his side was a big problem.

Looking like a hideous eyeball floating in the sky with several tentacles resembling blood vessels…

It was essentially a lower-end version of my Observation Ship.

But even so, it had everything it needed.

Although its floating altitude was low, it could check the battlefield from a high vantage point. It also had the ability to detect enemies in a state of invisibility, albeit limited.

‘It’ll be hard to utilize the Gladiators this time…’

In my heart, I wanted to eliminate the Observer and then finish things off by having the Gladiators slice through, but the problem was that these two things could not happen simultaneously.

‘If I eliminate the Observer, that guy will hide immediately.’

The Black Mage was extremely cautious.

Therefore, as long as the Observer was present, it was difficult to get the Gladiators close. But if I eliminated the Observer, he would likely notice the anomaly and hide instantly.

The guy was already manipulating Sand Squids.

He had undoubtedly already dug a complex network of tunnels, just as he had in the first timeline. In other words, to eliminate him, I had to handle it with a lightning-fast ambush before he noticed.

It was while I was explaining these operational difficulties.

Choi Yongjin made an unexpected suggestion.

“Could you perhaps draw some attention?”

“Attention?”

“In a way that the opponent doesn’t feel threatened, but is forced to focus all their attention on it.”

At that moment, Yoon Sanghoon cautiously raised his hand.

“I’ll give that a try.”

I thought silently.

The Black Mage was certainly a tricky opponent.

If I let him slip away this time, he would undoubtedly survive even more tenaciously, being even more cautious next time.

That was how much was riding on this operation.

‘But still…’

However, I trusted Choi Yongjin.

Although it was the first time in this life, there had never been a time in previous timelines when a plan Choi Yongjin stepped forward to devise failed.

Rather, he always produced results beyond imagination. Also, considering Yoon Sanghoon’s abilities, he was perfect for this operation.

“Then, Sanghoon-hyung. How about we try it like this?”

I began to explain the detailed operation to him.

* * *

Jamsil was a core area, almost like a capital, for Gwak Sangyong’s Faction. While not as much as Siwoo’s faction, it was still a fairly prosperous and powerful force, so it was always a bustling place.

But today was exceptional.

It was because a rumor was circulating.

“I heard support arrived from the castle this time?”

“Uh… but…”

“What is it?”

“The thing is… he’s alone.”

“What do you mean alone?”

“I mean the support that came is just one person.”

“A-alone?”

It was because the force that came as support consisted of only one man.

“Could it be that person who was an Army Captain?”

“Ah, the Volunteer Knights?”

“I heard he looks incredibly burly and fierce…”

The middle-aged woman speaking said with a voice full of hope.

Rumors of the Volunteer Knights and Choi Yongjin were common, so they were known even within Gwak Sangyong’s Faction.

However, the response that came back was a voice full of despair.

“It’s definitely not him. His face is pale… how should I put it, he has a bit of a pretty-boy vibe?”

“Then who on earth…”

“Ah, there he is!”

With a pointing finger, the eyes of the two landed on the ‘support.’

It was none other than… Yoon Sanghoon.

Behind him, executives were following, continuing to ask questions with suspicious expressions.

“No, what on earth do you mean by that?”

“I told you, I’m fine on my own.”

“So… you’re saying you’ll reclaim Hanam alone?”

“Yes.”

“No, I don’t know how strong you are, but our forces were actually at a considerable level. Even with our elite few hundred, we had no choice but to retreat from that place—”

“I got it.”

“No! I’m asking what you mean by that!”

“If you’ve had it confirmed by Apoin, you should know.”

“The word is that it’s impossible alone!”

“Ah… right. That’s none of my business. Just contact the people so there’s no trouble when I pass through.”

“Sigh…”

The executive who let out a sigh—

“Hey, Team Leader Moon. Go spread the word.”

“Yes, sir!”

In the end, they had no choice but to succumb to Yoon Sanghoon’s ‘stubborn claim.’

‘It’s a good thing Gwak Sangyong-nim told us to follow his lead unconditionally…’

The executive shook his head.

* * *

Thus, Yoon Sanghoon crossed through their faction and headed toward Hanam City.

“Do you see him over there?”

“Wow, he really is alone?”

“Alone?”

“What kind of ability does he have…”

The troops stationed nearby, who had been notified in advance, were equally surprised to see Yoon Sanghoon.

But… it was too early for them to be surprised. A group of Monsters was approaching Yoon Sanghoon.

It was while they were watching from a distance with interest, the moment Yoon Sanghoon and the Monsters faced off.

“Oh, the battle has start… ed?”

The sentence had started with a normal tone, but… the final ‘ed’ was mixed with a voice of confusion.

“What? What just happened?”

Baaaang!

A powerful impact sound rang out then.

“Ugh?!”

“What!”

It was a simple physical brawl.

But to others, it looked different.

At a speed that would be barely visible to those who weren’t Ability Users, Yoon Sanghoon was turning the Monsters into bloody pulp.

Having started to push forward, Yoon Sanghoon quickly cleared the vicinity and continued moving toward Hanam.

“My god!”

“He’s really fighting alone?”

“He just keeps going?!”

But this was merely a warm-up.

The demons that had been harassing Gwak Sangyong’s Faction began to appear, moving to block Yoon Sanghoon’s advance. Among them, the appearance of one particular demon made all the soldiers tremble in fear.

“Ba… Baphomet!”

A demon with two large horns on a head similar to a goat, rectangular pupils, and a horribly twisted lower body.

With abilities as strong as a nightmare, it was one of the core demons that had killed countless people and forced them to abandon Hanam—

Kwaaaaang!

With a single punch from Yoon Sanghoon, its neck was pierced through.

“Th… this is impossible…”

“Baphomet was…”

“Is that the strength of a human…?”

They were the ones who had suffered from Baphomet until now, but they couldn’t even cheer in this unbelievable situation. They could only stand there with their mouths agape in shock.

However, Yoon Sanghoon himself had a dissatisfied expression.

“This isn’t it.”

He muttered to himself, looking at his fist covered in dark red blood. He was currently… ruminating on the single strike Siwoo had shown at Baengnokdam Crater Lake.

“…Is it because the Mana Quantity is too low?”

He felt that he needed to strive even harder.