Everyone who had been glancing around shook their heads. Of course they did. Empires had levels, and LV.5 was considered top-tier. Back in the Beta test, even the rank 1 player had only reached Empire Level 6 — that said it all.
“Then I’ve clearly played the most. I’ll start off as the village head here, and if anyone has complaints, speak up now. No objections? Then I’ll take that as agreement.”
This place was filled with people who had nowhere else to go. That meant everyone here either had no empire or had already lost theirs. The middle-aged man claiming the title of village head was the same.
People kept stealing glances at Gwak Junghan, but none dared voice any dissatisfaction. Even Gwak Junghan himself listened quietly despite his frown. After all, in this situation, the one with the most experience should become king.
“Then I’ll be king, and everyone else will join as residents. We’ll start over from scratch and rebuild a village, damn it.”
“Wait a moment.”
As the middle-aged man poked at the air as though touching invisible panels, someone raised a hand. It was Sehyun. All eyes turned toward him as he calmly made a request of the self-declared village head.
“I’d like to join as a temporary resident. Ah, and so would this student here.”
“What? A temporary resident? Ha… if you’re not going to be of use, get out. Or is it that you’re planning to bail later when things go south? Or maybe your empire’s so grand you can afford to? Then why come here at all instead of going back to it? I don’t see why you’re bringing up temporary resident status.”
Despite the biting words, Sehyun didn’t even blink. He simply lowered his hand and looked at the man with the same calm expression.
The middle-aged man had his reasons. Before building a village, the number of residents was crucial. Once someone joined as a resident, they couldn’t just leave freely unless a special event occurred.
On the other hand, a temporary resident could leave at any time, as long as they notified the village head or king. They weren’t even counted in the official resident numbers.
There was no need to argue further. It was obvious this so-called head would descend into tyranny. Sehyun wasn’t about to tie himself and Jaeyoung to that.
“Then I’ll support Mr. Gwak Junghan as village head instead. Looking at you, I’d say someone who reached Empire Level 5 and still ended up like this must have already ruled with tyranny. And who’s to say you won’t do the same here? Ah, and refusing temporary resident requests also counts as tyranny, in case you didn’t know. If you didn’t, then your Level 5 claim is nothing but bluster.”
Sehyun pressed the word “bluster” with weight. The man’s face flushed scarlet in rage. Sehyun ignored his murderous glare and turned to Gwak Junghan.
“Mr. Gwak Junghan. If you become village head, you’ll let me and this kid register as temporary residents, won’t you? We can’t run off in the night since leaving requires the head’s approval, and while we’re here, we’ll do our share.”
“…Yes. If there are circumstances, I believe it’s worth considering.”
“See, old man? That’s what a wise ruler looks like.”
“Y-you… you son of a bitch…! Fine! Damn it, fine, I’ll allow it!”
“Then I ask that you make me and this boy temporary residents, sir.”
Sehyun smiled lightly as he said it. The man clutched his neck with a groan of frustration. Yet that wasn’t the end. Two other men raised their hands and asked for temporary resident status.
“I request it as well.”
“I also request to be a temporary resident.”
One was Gwak Junghan. The other was the man who still hadn’t let go of his bundle of papers.
“If anyone else has an empire, speak up now! If not, then temporary residents are capped at four! Any more requests and you’ll be thrown out!”
The middle-aged man ground his teeth as he barked the warning. Faced with his fierce glare, people stayed silent, cowed into submission.
But this much was clear now: the only ones here with empires were Sehyun and the man with the papers. If one counted broadly, Jaeyoung might also qualify.
In truth, this was a matter of posturing and political maneuvering. The only reason the man allowed temporary residents was because Sehyun and Gwak Junghan were obstacles to his power. Keeping them in the village meant inevitable disputes and difficulties in controlling people. Better to discard such pieces later.
That was usually the fate of temporary residents, empire or no.
Still fuming, the man thrust both hands upward, his fingers tapping the air like a keyboard. At last, he jabbed a finger forward, and a pillar of deep blue flames surged up beneath his feet. It was an Awakening, carrying over his existing character data.
The roaring blaze only died down when his form transformed into something resembling a shaggy Australopithecus, scattering ashes in the air.
And that wasn’t the end. When the newly awakened man stomped down, the ground itself convulsed. Earth rose up, expanding into a village. Crude wooden houses sprang into being, and a makeshift palisade formed around the outskirts.
The ground shook like an earthquake, sending people crouching in fear with their heads covered. Only a few stood steady without flinching — among them Sehyun, Jaeyoung, Gwak Junghan, and the man with the papers.
[An unnamed village has been established.]
[Kim Gapjun has become the head of the unnamed village.]
[Total residents: 98.]
[Total temporary residents: 4.]
[The village is currently LV.1.]
As the quaking ceased, the system messages appeared before their eyes. Reading the confirmation of his temporary resident status, Sehyun nodded in satisfaction.
Kim Gapjun. That was the name of the Australopithecus who had become head. Just as expected, he was a king without an empire — likely one who had ruled tyrannically, collapsed, and abandoned it. He probably hadn’t reached Level 5 but had managed at least Level 3. Still, his sense for quickly building a village was impressive.
Of course, all the houses except the head’s were tiny and shabby. The smallest and most pathetic among them was surely the lodging for temporary residents.
And then another Australopithecus appeared — most likely Kim Gapjun’s Daegong. Its presence radiated an aura of overwhelming dominance.
Fortunately, the people had not been forcibly changed into Kim Gapjun’s race. It seemed everyone retained the race assigned during their aptitude test. Awakening would bring that out eventually. Gwak Junghan was the proof: blue skin and fins.
Sehyun’s eyes flicked to the Awakening window hovering at the edge of his vision. He had chosen “Postpone,” so the window remained. With ten days as the limit, he would have to decide before then.
“Roles will be assigned in the village, so line up here and don’t dawdle!”
His dialect already made him sound rustic, and Awakening had turned him into a true primitive. Sehyun patted Jaeyoung’s back as they joined the forming lines. Even as temporary residents, they would have to pull their weight.
“Jaeyoung, aren’t you hungry?”
“I-I’m still okay. What about you, hyung?”
“I’m fine too.”
Perhaps as consideration for Road Players starting at zero, each inventory came stocked with ten potions of two types and ten pieces of tough bread. But seeing Jaeyoung, Sehyun thought that might not be enough for a growing boy.
“If you get hungry, I’ll give you mine. I don’t really like bread.”
“No, it’s fine. I can manage. I won’t take your share.”
Just as Sehyun suspected, Jaeyoung was very young — only fourteen, a first-year middle schooler. Looking around the village, no one was younger.
It was ironic. When Elix first launched, teenagers had shown little interest. They looked at the adults’ obsession like it was some mutation and stayed away for no clear reason.
There had been some teenagers who played, of course, but the majority of users were overwhelmingly adults. Now, Sehyun realized — maybe the system had deliberately excluded kids.
Which made Jaeyoung a rare case. A particularly unlucky one.