Gourmet Gaming

Mercenary King Candidate Avak tried his best to get up from his knees. However, he was no match against the legend among legends, the man that ended the mercenary hunt and united all of the mercenaries from all over the world. He could not even lift a single finger in front of Mercenary Emperor Brod and the ‘Mercenary King’s Aura’ that he was exuding.

There were even those thousands of books that released lightning that the handsome black-haired man used to sweep away the mercenaries around them in an instant. What about that old man that was wielding the white spear over there? Every swing of his spear made dozens of mercenaries disappear without a trace.

Tremble, tremble, tremble—

Avak’s body shook. ‘That guy is a king that commands these men…?’

Only then did he realize that the only reason why he thought he could kill Minhyuk was because he came here without any of his vassals. But the moment he had them by his side, he was like a huge, overbearing mountain that seemed impossible to overcome.

In just a few short minutes, most of the Black Panther Mercenaries were already killed. The enemy did not show them any mercy, even after they fell on their knees without being able to move.

That was especially the case for Venteio. He even took the lead in punishing them.

‘These are the men that followed Avak and wanted to sell the pride and dignity of the mercenaries to the empire.’

Because of that, Venteio made the choice to kill them. He did not have any intention of letting anyone with such ideals live.

“Ve, Venteio… there wasn’t anything I could do. Avak is holding my family hostage…”

Venteio looked at Elder Sven in pity too. He knew why the elder made such a choice. In fact, Elder Sven was the cleanest person among all of the elders. He was the one that worked hard for the basic human rights of the mercenaries. However, in the end, Sven still gave in to Avak and even participated in trying to kill him and Minhyuk.

“I will make sure to take care of your family until they grow old.”

Venteio was offering him a final courtesy. Elder Sven knew this fact well. So, he smiled faintly at him and said, “…I’m forever grateful, new Mercenary King.”

Slash—

Elder Sven also died by Venteio’s hands. As for Mercenary King Candidate Ars, he was already in a desperate situation, his entire body filled with holes created by Spear God Ben’s spear. The 30,000 Black Panther Mercenaries were now all dead. The only one that remained alive was Avak.

Venteio stood in front of Avak, his gaze cold and piercing. “You must have known, right? If you became the Mercenary King and signed that contract with the empire, all of the mercenaries would be nothing but tools. The empire would turn them into disposable meat shields that would take the arrow for them and die on their behalf.”

Avak just laughed. “In the first place, mercenaries are people that live on the battlefield to make money, right? So what if the mercenaries died?! This was my opportunity to become the Mercenary King and rule the continents with Emperor Nerva! Besides, if I refuse, all of the mercenaries will be killed anyway!”

That was true. If Avak and the elders rejected the empire’s proposal then they would immediately start a mercenary hunt. Once the mercenary hunt began, all of the kingdoms and empires under the rule of the Luvien Empire would put a bounty on their heads. With that, all of the mercenaries in the entire world would not have long to live.

“Even so, you should have chosen to fight.” Venteio’s will was conveyed through his eyes as he looked at Avak coldly. “You should have chosen to fight even if you’re going to die. You should have chosen to fight until you have taken your last breath.”

“…”

Minhyuk could not help but shudder when he overheard Venteio’s words. How many people could live and uphold such will with great determination? He was even prepared to sacrifice his life to continue to uphold it. But would Avak feel the same way?

“Fufufufufufu! What crazy nonsense are you spouting? You want me to fight for something like that even after knowing that I’m going to die? That’s some noble bullshit.”

Until the very end, Avak still remained a trash.

“Rather than fighting to death like that, it’s better to gain money and spend it lavishly while living a life of pleasure…”

Slaaash—

Thump—

Venteio’s sword swung without any hesitation. Just like that, Avak’s head fell and rolled on the ground.

At that moment, several notifications rang in Minhyuk’s ears.

[You have completed the Sudden Quest: God of Mercenaries’ Descendant.]

[You have gained 5,000 platinum.]

[You have gained 1,550,000,000 EXP.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You will receive the additional rewards from Venteio.]

Then a burst of red energy appeared from the God of Mercenaries’ statue and shot toward Venteio, who stood there, absorbing it as it wrapped around his body.

[Venteio, the one that received the recognition of the God of Mercenaries, has become the God of Mercenaries’ descendant!]

[In the future, he will become the God of Mercenaries!]

[Venteio has become the Mercenary King that will unite the continents.]

Then, the additional notifications rang loudly and turned into world messages.

[The God of Mercenaries’ Successor has been born to the world!]

[The inauguration for the One that became the Mercenary King and the God of Mercenaries will start in an hour!]

[An anonymous player has contributed greatly to the birth of the God of Mercenaries’ successor!]

Venteio felt the power that he had gained when he became the God of Mercenaries’ descendant, surge through his veins. The existence that was already an Absolute Supreme NPC had gained even more strength.

‘I wonder what would happen if he sparred with Ellie noona?’

Sword Emperor Ellie was also an Absolute Supreme NPC that had also gained power. Both of them, with one working as the emperor of the Eivelis Empire and the other working as the Mercenary King, also had quite a huge influence in the continents.

However, instead of feeling happy about becoming stronger, Venteio was looking at someone sadly. The man that he was looking at was none other than Brod.

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Just like before, Brod slowly disappeared from their sight. The reason why Venteio fought so hard to protect the pride of the mercenaries, something that all of them had turned away from, was because of Brod.

Venteio had experienced many sad and lonely days. There were even times when he felt like he wanted to give up and just live a comfortable life away from the path of the mercenaries. But each time the thought flashed in his head, he would always recall the words that Brod had imparted to him, stopping him from doing so.

“…I greet the former Mercenary King.” Venteio knelt down and showed courtesy.

Brod, on the other hand, looked like he was having a hard time deciding on how to express his joy and delight. He just stared at Venteio for a long time before slowly approaching him and pulling him into a tight hug.

“You, who have fought for the pride of the mercenaries without backing down and losing hope…”

“…”

“I have never forgotten you. You might have once been weaker than anybody else, but you trained alone every single night.”

“Sob, sob, sob, sob…” Tears streaked down Venteio’s cheeks. He had been waiting for this moment for a very long time. He had longed for the day that he could meet this man that gave him confidence. Every day he hoped that he would not disappoint him should that meeting ever happen.

“You have become the Mercenary King. You will now fight desperate battles in this new era.”

Venteio knew that the empire would continue to put pressure on them.

“Never back down. Continue to grow and move forward.” Brod smiled softly when he saw Venteio nod at him.

Brod did not actually want to leave. But all he could do right now was hug Venteio more tightly than ever. Then, he said, “You are like a son to me.”

Venteio felt Brod’s body shake slightly. So, he held the arms that hugged him even tighter as he showed the man in front of him a bright and wide smile. Then, Brod slowly disappeared.

The disappearing Brod and Venteio shared a short conversation, something that Minhyuk did not hear. Minhyuk looked at them warmly. He felt like watching them talk intimately like that, albeit for a very short time, was heartwarming.

Silence fell upon the hall after Brod disappeared completely. The man that became the Mercenary King was just sobbing a few moments ago. He could not help but blush when he saw Minhyuk staring at him and seeing his poor display.

“…”

“…”

The awkward atmosphere around them was truly inevitable.

***

The entire world was in a buzz.

[Breaking News. A new Mercenary King has been born to the world. And it is believed that a yet to be identified anonymous player was deeply involved with the episode.]

[We can expect many mercenaries to come to the inauguration ceremony that will happen in an hour.]

[Breaking News. The continents’ new Mercenary King is also named as the God of Mercenaries’ successor.]

[Who helped the man that will become both the king and the god of the mercenaries?]

[The Rothschilde Kingdom’s founding ceremony will also be held at the same time.]

The emergence of the new Mercenary King, who was the new God of Mercenaries at the same time, inevitably caused a huge stir among the players of Athenae.

The Mercenary King could exert much more power and had a lot more influence than a kingdom or an empire. What more if he was set to become the God of Mercenaries too? However, there were not many broadcasting stations that chose to step in Aeopia, and there were two reasons.

First, Calauhel was holding the founding ceremony of his newly established Rothschilde Kingdom at the same time. Interestingly, it was said that he would do a lottery and give out plenty of artifacts to those that attended his kingdom’s founding ceremony. He was basically gathering players and migrants rapidly through his money.

Second, many people already assumed that the new Mercenary King would be the man called Avak, who was renowned to have sold out the mercenaries’ freedom for his own self-interest and greed. Although countless mercenaries from all over the world would have to follow him, how many of them would truly stand by his side with sincerity and loyalty? They also expected that there would only be a few mercenaries that would attend the inauguration. Simply put, Avak might have won the money but he would never win the heart of the mercenaries.

However, ATV’s PD Kim Daeguk thought differently. He was currently checking the real-time situation through the lenses of the cameraman from the single team that he sent to the Rothschilde Kingdom.

‘Just in case something unexpected happens there.’

If an unexpected situation occurred, then the ATV broadcasting station would be the one that would gain high ratings.

‘Broadcasting live was originally a gamble, no?’

The number of drones and shooting equipment that each broadcasting station could release was limited. Although he had sent a team on Rothschilde Kingdom, he was more focused on the situation here.

When he saw the scene here, PD Kim felt like he had hit the jackpot. There were more than 500,000 mercenaries gathered around the fortress in Aeopia, the land of the mercenaries. It was quite a huge crowd. But that was not the end of it.

‘Mercenaries fall under the category of a sub-class. There should be a lot of players that have made money by working as mercenaries at least once while they are playing in Athenae.’

All of these mercenaries heard the same set of notifications that reminded them to attend the Mercenary King’s inauguration ceremony. Of course it was their choice whether they wanted to go or not.

“PD Kim. The player that contributed greatly to the birth of the new Mercenary King has not yet appeared?”

“Yes. He hasn’t appeared yet. After all, the Mercenary King has not yet made his appearance.”

The mastermind that helped the Mercenary King sit on his throne. This title was enough to guarantee the future of any high ranker!

Then, at that moment, a man, with his huge build completely covered with blood and a tattered cape carrying the symbol of a wolf fluttering behind him, walked out of the fortress and stood on top of the ramparts.

“V, Venteio?”

Murmur, murmur—

The entire broadcasting station was in a buzz. This was a completely unexpected situation. Then, one of the broadcasting team members said, “The viewership rating has increased from 4% to 6%.”

They watched as Venteio took out his bloody sword and held it in front of him.

‘…There was absolutely no chance of Venteio becoming the Mercenary King before…’ That was what PD Kim Daeguk thought.

After becoming the empire’s enemy, Venteio lost the power to unite all of the mercenaries. In fact, there was even a high chance of a coup happening if he sat on that throne. Because of that, the mercenaries had no choice but to shut him out and not show him any of their trust.

‘But if he is the God of Mercenaries…?’

Then, the narrative would change. Venteio would become the hope of the mercenaries. They would be given the strength and the courage to fight against the empire with his existence alone. Based on the information that they got, something else stood out.

“These people did not rush here. They are people that have already been there since earlier…”

There were 500,000 mercenaries attending the inauguration ceremony. However, they had already been there earlier. None of them came from a long way away.

At that moment, light flashed all over the place. It was obvious that it was caused by several mass teleportation magic being activated. When the light subsided, mercenaries wearing capes that held the figure of a roaring dragon appeared.

“The Dragon Mercenary Corps…!”

The Dragon Mercenary Corps was one of the top ten strongest mercenary corps in the world.

“P, PD Kim. The viewership rating has dramatically increased. We have already reached 15%!”

The light of the mass teleportation magic flashed one after the other.

“The Crow Mercenaries, the Red Hawk Mercenaries, the Black Spear Mercenary Corps… the top ten mercenary corps are appearing one after the other!”

The light of the mass teleportation magic did not stop shining for a very long time.

Thud— thud— thud— thud—

As the flags carrying the symbols of the top ten mercenary corps rose to the skies signaling their attendance of the Mercenary King’s inauguration ceremony, loud footsteps echoed loudly in the area. Various mercenaries from all over the world were marching uniformly toward the fortress.

Flash—

Flaaaaash—

Flaaaaash—

“Our viewership rating has increased to 18%!”

The appearance of the mercenaries from all over the world marching from all directions was so magnificent and awe-inspiring, to the point that it could give anyone watching them goosebumps on their skin. With a scene like this, the increase in their ratings were only natural.

“…This is incredible.” PD Kim Daeguk trembled.

Everyone that had gathered in this place held their breaths as they looked at the bloody Venteio holding his sword and stabbing it on the ground beneath him.

Stab—

At that moment, the nearly two million mercenaries that had gathered to attend the inauguration ceremony all knelt on one knee and shouted in unison…

“Congratulations on becoming the Mercenary King of the new world!”

“Congratulations on becoming the Mercenary King of the new world!”

“…Sir, our viewership ratings have surpassed 25%.”

PD Kim felt his entire body shake.

Two million? No, if they combined all of the other mercenaries that were not able to attend right away, there would be more. All of them would trust and follow this man, and this man alone, for the next era.

‘He will be the master of the new episode.’

Gulp—

PD Kim felt a huge tension settle on his shoulders. ‘Just who was the one that helped Venteio become the Mercenary King?’

That person would be the star of their show, the one that would allow their ratings to sky rocket. Right now, everyone was wondering the same thing.