[You Have Slain A Grublisk - Level 25]
[Reward: ...]
"Hah, whooh."
Deep breaths, in and out.
[25 Minutes Have Passed]
As the clock ticked closer to the required half an hour, Keel slowly dragged himself up from the cold, damp grass.
He glanced down at his interface, his face going white as it read:
[Health: 5%]
"I can't survive another," Keel muttered beneath his breath.
Quickly realizing the seriousness of the situation, Keel limped forward...
Earlier, as he placed down walls, he successfully completed a hidden objective:
[Hidden Objective: Are You in Danger? - Completed]
Mission Description: Create 175 walls within 15 minutes.
Reward List:
2 levels
Builder Blueprint: Iron Dome
Iron Dome
Stands 3 meters tall, 3 meters wide, and 3 meters thick.
A simple construct made of iron.
Cost: 25 Units of Iron
Special Effect: Closes upon entry
40 Minutes Ago
"This is great," Keel spoke with conviction as he felt slightly better about his situation.
This could easily last 10 minutes by itself.
Present
Keel could hear them getting closer, various roars rushing toward him. As the metal cube appeared in his line of sight, Keel was terrified to find the last hog sniffing around its entrance.
Keel would usually never be afraid of a creature like this, but with everything at stake and his health close to bottoming out, Keel couldn't help but curse.
[27 Minutes Have Passed]
"Fuck."
Keel hesitated for a moment before silently grabbing his sword. As he quietly approached the hog, heavy footsteps erupted from behind, unlike anything he'd heard that day, making his back run cold. As the hog started to turn, Keel lunged.
The hog tried to evade as best it could, but it wasn't enough. Keel made a feint toward its neck, but that wasn't his true target.
Keel summersaulted on the ground, using the momentum from his dive to increase his speed. As he aimed for the hog's soft underbelly, it suddenly sidestepped, and Keel tragically missed his mark.
The hog turned, fury evident in its eyes. Keel quickly sprang into action, and as the Iron Dome closed in behind him, he let out an exhausted breath.
[29 Minutes Have Passed]
As Keel relaxed, happy with how it had turned out, a deafening crack echoed through the space, as if the cube were imploding on itself.
[29 Minutes and 30 Seconds Have Passed]
The sound was sickening, like a sharp thunder splitting the sky, wreaking havoc on his ears.
[29 Minutes and 50 Seconds Have Passed]
"What am I supposed to do?" Keel muttered. "Was this doomed from the very beginning?"
With only a few seconds remaining, the cube shattered like glass, fragments piercing Keel's skin as he screamed in agony.
[30 Minutes Have Passed]
[Congratulations]
The words rang out as a shard of iron pierced Keel's throat. This marked his first death in over four years.
"Ugh, still as unpleasant... Luckily, death hasn't become permanent yet," Keel muttered, clearly displeased with the outcome. Dying was always a jarring experience.
The voice sounded out loud once again:
[Congratulations, Adventurer Keel Arden]
Evaluating performance:
Survival Time: 30 Minutes and 2 Seconds Final Score: E
Enemies Killed: 8 Monsters, Minimum 5 Levels Higher Final Score: S-
Special Achievements:First to Achieve a Legacy - Final Score: SSS
Completing the Challenge Before Level 15 - Final Score:S
Eliminating a Monster 10+ Levels Higher - Final Score: A
Overall Score: S+
Keel couldn't believe his eyes—the outcome far surpassed his wildest imagination.
I wonder what sort of rewards I'll get.
His eyes widened, and as he restlessly shifted his weight from one foot to the other, it finally came.
[Distributing Rewards]
[Class Upgrade]
Builder (Growth) - Blueprint Baron (Growth)
Legendary Item: Summon Stone
[Item Description]
Summons 10 NPCs who think, act, and look indistinguishable from regular adventurers.
They are guaranteed loyalty to the user unless mistreated.
The summoned NPCs can freely enter both the user's world and the other world, traveling between them at will.
[Limits]
Must be used in one's own territory.
"What!"
His breathing grew labored as his fingers trembled, slowly cradling the stone as though it were a precious treasure. Every slight movement made his heart jump.
"There has... never been anything like this. In my 7 years of exploring, nothing close to this ever appeared."
The possibilities were endless. It was like obtaining 10 growth rate items, which by itself seemed improbable. Yet this was somehow better.
It was like accepting the responsibility of 10 soldiers, something he had done numerous times in his past. Yet it all felt different when he thought about their loyalty—something he was unsure if he'd ever trust again.
As the surroundings warped, Keel carefully placed it into his inventory. As he waited, he couldn't help but realize how different things had gone.
As space stabilized, Keel was met with a massive map showing Axion in its entirety.
From massive empires to tiny kingdoms—each marked with a name and a flag.
The middle continent, named Nexus, had largely been off-limits to adventurers, with some exceptions for most of his past life, or at least that's what he thought.
As the foundation necklace quietly hummed, the map swiftly moved, and the Nexus continent in its entirety lit up, filling his vision.
To the North lay the massive Celestial Empire. In his past life, it was rumored to be ruled by true gods! This was never confirmed, as the highest-ranking Earthling had only ever reached the "King" rank.
To the West lay the Berserker Empire, filled with bloodthirsty warriors, always at war.
The middle, south, and eastern parts of the continent were a mixture of wilderness, countries, and death zones. It was commonly known as a rural area, its citizens often treated as country bumpkins by commoners in the different empires.
The power of the different continents varied, but they could all resist possible invasions, and when needed, even the most bitter enemies would bind together to fend them off.
Keel was deep in thought as he gazed at the map, seeing the home of the number one Earth-ruled kingdom from his past life. He had once dreamed about ruling a nation as vast and powerful as that.
Keel couldn't help but think of his past, struggling to establish himself in a world where the strong reigned supreme. If only he'd had such a great starting point, everything might have been different.
"Giant" had been developed from nothing into a massive kingdom, built and ruled by various superpowers back on Earth.
An area easily defended, yet hard to attack. Its name was:
Ironhold Ridge.
As the name suggested, it was located along a long and narrow, not to mention tall, mountain range, with multiple peaks spread out. In his previous life, it had developed into a vast range of cities, stretching in and around its different peaks.
Before his rebirth, the area was still in rapid development, with cities being built on the vast plains beneath it and beyond.
In this life, this would eventually be his.
[Have you decided?]
[Yes] [No]
Warning! Once Made, User Cannot Change His Territory Again!
Please Make a Choice.
As his fingers moved, the world started to morph. Keel suddenly found himself standing in...