Evan D. Sherden. Becoming the Count (4).​

The turmoil caused by the opening of the Dungeon did not abate easily after a few weeks. People continued to challenge the Dungeon for fear of falling behind others even though they knew it had become difficult, and the number of deaths increased as time went by.

“When will the situation be settled?”

“Wouldn’t it at least take another month? It will take time until people realize that there’s nothing special about hunting the early boss first, except the outside dungeons.”

When Shine​ sighed at the advance of explorers filling the streets whilst speaking, Evan responded indiscriminately while also monitoring and supervising the new construction of the Brotherhood Brewery on the outskirts of the street.

“To acquire a discriminatory reward from the Sherden Dungeon, a quick fix alone is not enough.”

“Whether it be a hidden boss or secret passage, the Sherden Dungeon​ ​ exclusively offers rewards to extremely demanding challenges and secret-seeking exploration.”

“Yes. And that’s just an additional element. The only thing humans need to pursue in the dungeon is a powerful encounter to become stronger.”

The dungeon itself was a bridgehead for the demons to invade the human community. God and His subordinates had intervened and made it possible for humans to counter the Demons and grow effectively.

Most of the available goods from the dungeons were just a means to make humans more active.

Of course, there were valuable treasures, like the feathers of Phoenix, that could only be born in a particular environment—in a Dungeon.

However, it was not attainable by hasty exploration.

Indeed, after the Great Change​, the dungeon had become so wide and deep that it wasn’t comparable to the previous one. The wild explorers that rushed into the dungeon meet their end before even facing the true nature of the dungeon.

“Well, once they are dead, and the danger and difficulty of the dungeon are clear, it’ll be our turn.”

“It seems like you will indeed go into the dungeon.”

“We have to draw up guidelines for the Marquis’ knights and soldiers, and also raise Diona.”

Shine grinned at Evan’s calm words and replied, “You really are an Indoja.”

“Shut up.”

Indoja—also known as a leader—was the name for the second class Evan had earned in the past dungeon.

The class did not amplify or assist an individual’s ability, but it did amplify the power of every person who truly followed Evan by 30%, even doubling one’s growth rate. It really was the best ability in the leader class!

Like Waedo, the class of external affairs, it was a class that had never been seen in games, but in fact, the ability of this class itself was so powerful that it was enough to bow to God. Just by leading the party members, Evan could enhance the power of the whole party!

There was nothing wrong with the Indoja class itself, but out of all things, his first title Waedo was the problem…

“Indoja of Waedo… Leader of external affairs. It sounds like I’m about to take people and build a pseudo-religion.”

“I don’t think that’s bad either. Will you give me a seat if you make one?”

“No. You will be the first offering in a sacrificial ritual.”

“That is too harsh.”

“Master!”

“Ah, Maybell.”

While Evan was conversing with Shine and supervising the construction site, Maybell suddenly appeared as usual and reported progress one after another.

“The negotiations with the Bloody Apple, Phoenix, and Hit Shield are all sorted. The three guilds promised to exclusively supply raw materials to the Brotherhood Brewery if the item list is made properly.”

“For the item list, I planned to distribute with the collection method from the beginning. What about the general explorers?”

“They are blinded by a greater reward, so it seems they do not care about minor requests yet, just as I expected.”

“I thought so. But make sure you advertise thoroughly. The building’s construction will be completed soon, so you need to hire staff as well.”

“Yes. By the way, Master,” Maybell nodded and said as if she had just remembered.

“The Marquis will hold the Dungeon Festival in July.”

“Ah… I forgot about it.”

Three years ago, the Dungeon Festival was canceled, of course. Despite the Bloody Apple, Dungeon Knights​​, and Evan’s outstanding performance, Sherden had relatively little damage, but one couldn’t ignore all the tragic events.

And so, it was not until this year that the postponed Dungeon Festival was held again. Instead, the festival, which would have been held in October, was moved to July.

“It seems appropriate to hold it in July. Everyone would have calmed down a bit, and it’s good to celebrate the opening of the dungeon.”

However, the problem was whether the backflow of the dungeon would burst in there. Although the backflow did not occur for some time, the dungeon was closed for a long time.

Also, one decided not to rely entirely on the information of the game, so putting one’s mind at rest was forbidden.

“Should I talk to my father and brother about that matter? I’m not going to be out this time, and I will prepare for another attack properly.”

“Sherden’s soldiers have become remarkably strong. It will be alright.”

Another thing that Evan regretted during the Demon Invasion was that he did not foster more soldiers.

Of course, Evan tried his best to train the soldiers with his secret tactics, but they could not counter Demons or high-ranking monsters.

After that, Evan spread training methods specialized in defense and tracking capabilities throughout the Sherden army, directly monitoring and supervising them and training them vigorously. He collaborated with the chief-of-army Mikhail D. Aerock, and trained the soldiers even harder.

Although the number of soldiers reduced due to the tragedy of that day, the Sherden army grew incomparably stronger as a result. Now, the Sherden guards were famous for their strength that even amateur explorers could not penetrate.

‘Now, it is necessary to choose and foster the best of them, especially the soldiers and knights with attacking skills.’

The dungeon was open. The Yo-Ma Great War 3’s scenario would soon begin. In other words, full-scale clashes with the Demon tribe were imminent.

It wasn’t enough to protect many if only Evan himself and the Dungeon Knights were strong.

He would accomplish everything he could by any means, and at all costs.

“What about the things we talked about then? Any new signs?”

“No, not yet.”

“Hmm.”

The early weapon of the Yo-Ma Great War 3 was Sherden, but in the meantime, the main character would get involved in events that occurred here and there, and the event would rapidly intensify.

The Demon tribe’s filthy and secret work happening in the globe; humans who harmed others at the instigation of the demons; Jundong of the Gandae monster tribe who resisted Demons and despised humans even more; the impending battle against the pseudo-religious institution that stems from Yo-Ma Great War 3…

Such big events tended to bode little by little even before they appeared on the surface, but so far, there seemed to be no problem.

‘It may be because the game officially starts two years from now. But the reverse in the dungeon began much earlier than expected. One can’t rule out the possibility that the types of events have changed completely, and one must be alert to any possible circumstances.’

Rather than that, Evan looked to Maybell, who was staring at him, said he heard enough about the report, waved his hands, and murmured, ” I have no idea where and what the damn protagonist is doing now. The sooner we find him, the more advantages we have…”

“You mean ‘Name’, right?”

“Yes.”

If one must choose the best-talented one out of all the Yo-Ma Great War Series except for the Yo-Ma Great War Zero, the protagonist of Yo-Ma Great War 3 will be the one without a doubt.

Of course, Leo, the protagonist of the Yo-Ma Great War 2, had such talents, but he grew slowly, putting himself in extreme circumstances.

On the other hand, the protagonist of Yo-Ma Great War 3 came up to the dungeon city with a dream of becoming an explorer at the age of 18. And he did become the strongest person in the world in just a few years; in every aspect, he was an innately talented man, unlike Leo.

‘It frustrates me. He is the luckiest, most talented man with a lot of women. Damn it. It’s so unfair.’

If someone else had overheard Evan’s thoughts, one would have said, “Who the hell are you talking about?” However, Evan didn’t care about that.

Anyway, as soon as Evan gets Name, Evan would be sure to be harsh on him. Of course, Evan didn’t want to be with Name, so Evan wouldn’t allow him to join the Dungeon Knights. However, Evan did believe in Arisha, but one couldn’t trust the main character, Name. Evan would make sure to keep him away from himself.

However, Name couldn’t be found…

“Are you sure he is from the Silk Line, Master?”

“Yes, he comes from a remote mountain village on the Silk Line.”

Yo-Ma Great War 3 would begin when the protagonist (Name) arrived at Sherden with a dream of becoming an explorer in the spring when he turned 18.

More precisely, it all started from a collision with Renail, a training wizard who was the same age as the main character, not Arisha, another main character of Yo-Ma Great War 3.

A lively girl with a blue-haired ponytail and exploring spirit. Arisha was Arisha, but one couldn’t ignore her aristocratic origins.

In the game, if Arisha appeared as a beautiful and untouchable lady of noble status, supporting the main character and giving him the motivation to grow, Renail grew up together next to the main character and supported him mentally from the beginning.

The protagonist who came to the dungeon city without knowing anything about it depended heavily on her, and his ignorance creates several minor incidents. But as a result, their relationship deepened in the process of solving the case together… Well, to put it simply, such a pattern was the easiest to follow.

“It feels weird to hear you summarize things like that… Oh, but I’m always a very easy target for you! Congrats on earning my heart already!”

“What do you mean very easy? I did nothing, but somehow you fell in love with me!”

Maybell seemed to be controlling herself these days, but did she change her plan to approach again? Shine tilted her head and spoke, “The attack is complete,” as Evan was desperately pushing Maybell, who claimed she earned Evan’s heart, away.

“Your prediction this time seems familiar in the novel. Many stories tend to start when boys and girls meet.”

“Shine, you sometimes say such useless but accurate things. Anyways. Maybell, what is Renail doing?”

Maybell, who created a mercenary and information guild, has gathered information about Renail earlier, as Renail was deeply related to Name.

“Renail is practicing in the dark tower of Pellati, as always. The report from a week ago says she won’t come out for a long time.”

“Just as I expected.”

“Master, what are you going to do with her information?”

“Good question. Well, I will thoroughly observe Renail from the moment she comes to Sherden.

Even if I cannot find the main character, she is bound to meet the main character!”

“…Really? Are you sure about that?” said Shine.

“To be honest, no.”

Evan burst into laughter. He was surprisingly accurate unless it was about him.

“It’s just my wish. There’s a good chance they won’t be able to see each other because something trivial goes wrong. I’m just watching her because I think they’re likely to meet. In fact, we are searching for the main character differently.”

Already, this world was different from the game in every way. Evan knew it better than anyone.

Nevertheless, that Evan expected Renail to meet Name perhaps was not his prediction, but his wish.

This was a wish that stemmed from the good memories of playing Yo-Ma Great War 3.

Evan wanted to see Renail and Name, the symbols of the battle, together.

There was also a wish that the two of them would get along together, and that Arisha wouldn’t dare intervene.

If Arisha tried to approach them, there was no main character or anything. She would be ruled out in a very unpleasant way and forced to hunt down the Demon King.

“Oh, Master. How surprising. I just got a new report about her.”

“Her?”

It was then that Maybell had put her hand on her ear, looked startled, and said, “The report of Renail you just mentioned.”

She had a communicator in one ear that she could hear reports regardless of the location since she became the guild manager.

After Maybell heard a report from a mysterious servant, she opened her eyes slightly and looked back at Evan.

“She’s getting ready to get out of the tower!”

And she continued her report to an anxious Evan.