Chapter 54: Seeking the Forgotten Heroes
[Server-Wide Broadcast: Congratulations to player Frost Monarch for slaying the Silver Grade General, Winston Volkov. This notice is issued as an encouragement to all players!]
...
One Server-Wide Broadcast followed another in rapid succession, leaving countless players reeling in shock.
Even though these announcements weren't as rare as they had been at the start of the game, the sheer volume Liam triggered in a single breath was still staggering.
Of course, the name Frost Monarch was already legendary among the player base. After the initial wave of astonishment passed, most simply returned to their own business.
However, compared to the players, the NPCs of the Astral Kingdom were far more shaken.
This time, Liam hadn't used Anonymous Mode. Everyone knew exactly who was responsible.
"Frost Monarch... Frost Monarch..."
Inside the Pluvius Palace, Queen Fiona wore a triumphant smile.
"Tiana, oh Tiana. You finally lost your composure. You actually made a move against Frost Monarch."
Seraphina looked surprised. "Mother, did you predict that Tiana would move against him?"
"Naturally." Queen Fiona nodded. "Tiana used Frost Monarch to prune my supporters, and since you haven't exactly been a high achiever yourself, she stopped seeing our lineage as a threat."
Seraphina felt a sting of resentment at the comment about her lack of progress, but she bit her tongue and kept the retort to herself.
"Leona has only just returned, and her strength and foundations are severely lacking. Neither of you poses a threat to Tiana."
At this point, Fiona’s tone shifted.
"However, there is one massive variable in our Astral Kingdom: Frost Monarch. To ensure her path to the throne is foolproof, she felt she had to remove him from the board."
Seraphina finally understood. "I see. It looks like Tiana bit off more than she could chew this time. She lost nine generals."
"Don't celebrate too early. Frost Monarch isn't exactly friendly toward us either. We still need to plan our next moves carefully."
Queen Fiona’s gaze sharpened. "Stay here in the Pluvius Palace and don't go out doing anything foolish."
Seraphina gave a helpless sigh. Her mother never pulled any punches when it came to her.
...
Aside from the Pluvius Palace, factions across the Astral Kingdom were all turning their attention toward Liam.
Meanwhile, at the Black-Wind Stronghold, Liam began looting the bodies.
[Ding! You have obtained Volkov Heavy Plate Set +9.]
[Ding! You have obtained Skill Tome +42.]
[Ding! You have obtained Special Item: General's Command Token +9.]
[Ding! You have obtained 450 AP.]
[Ding! You have obtained...]
Liam had previously spent 785 AP, so gaining 450 back was a decent recovery.
[Volkov Heavy Plate Set (Silver Grade)]
Requirement: Level 50 Warrior-type classes.
Attribute 1: Armor +22,100
Attribute 2: Magic Resist +19,980
Attribute 3: Attack +33,999
Attribute 4: Attack Speed +5
Attribute 5: HP +800,000
Set Bonus 1: Restores 15,000 HP per second; health regeneration is not interrupted by taking damage.
Set Bonus 2: Attacks have a 25% chance to inflict Bleed Status.
Set Bonus 3: Every enemy unit within a fifty-meter radius grants you +1 Armor, +1 Magic Resist, and +1 Attack Power.
Liam scanned the stats of the set.
The overall quality was excellent. In fact, it was arguably stronger than the attributes of Berserk’s Gold Grade set.
While Berserk’s Golden Set had no level requirements, its stats were scaled to the current situation. In other words, the Golden Set was likely balanced for the Level 20 to 30 range. Compared to a Level 50 Silver Grade set, it fell slightly short.
Liam had acquired nine sets of the Volkov Heavy Plate in one go. Even though they were Level 50, their value was immense.
Then there were the Skill Tomes. Forty-two in total, though many were duplicates. Liam tossed them into the guild warehouse, letting Barney and the others take their pick.
As for feeding them to Verdant Rebirth, Liam’s current skill set was sufficient for now. This handful of Skill Tomes wouldn't be enough to trigger a star-rank advancement anyway.
Just as he finished organizing his spoils, a private message arrived. It was from Berserk.
"Frost Monarch, let's go with your plan. I’ll deposit ten million Gold Sovereigns first."
Berserk initiated the trade, transferring the massive sum to Liam.
Liam was slightly surprised. "Impressive. That’s a bold decision."
With ten million Gold Sovereigns, Liam could generate 100,000 in interest daily through his high-return perks. Even after paying Berserk his 10,000 Sovereign cut, Liam would still pocket 90,000.
Furthermore, this interest would compound. The 100,000 earned today would produce another 1,000 Sovereigns tomorrow.
Liam wasn't a saint. He was charging a straight 0.1% daily rate. Many people claim to hate capitalists, but almost everyone wants to be one. At least Liam felt he was a capitalist with a conscience.
A 0.1% daily return meant an annual return of over 30%. Who else could offer that?
It wasn't just Berserk; other major guilds were also choosing to deposit their funds with Liam. Since they could rake in profits while doing absolutely nothing, they had no reason to refuse. It was a win-win scenario.
After handling the deposits for Berserk and the others, Liam began planning his next move.
Originally, he had intended to use this opportunity to force Tiana and Seraphina into a total fallout.
In truth, Liam’s calculations went deeper. He had no reason to actually help Tiana over Seraphina. Tiana’s power was already at its zenith; helping her further would normally break the balance between the two princesses.
But Liam had helped Tiana anyway. To be precise, he wasn't helping her—he was setting her up.
From his past life, Liam knew certain details about the Astral Kingdom’s Throne War. Though his knowledge was limited, one piece of information was crucial: King Abraham had no intention of stepping down.
Even though the Astral Kingdom had stagnated under his rule, he was determined to hold onto his crown. Therefore, the biggest threat in this war wasn't Tiana or Seraphina.
It was King Abraham himself.
The King was the one who could open the Ruins of the Frost-Corpse, and he could certainly see the clearance records. He undoubtedly knew that Liam had cleared the dungeon on Hell Difficulty.
Who would be most threatened by Tiana successfully recruiting such a powerhouse? Without a doubt, the King.
According to Liam’s judgment, it was unlikely the King would personally move against him. However, sabotaging Tiana would be a simple matter for the monarch.
As soon as the King acted against Tiana, she would inevitably lash out. Pitting Tiana and the King against each other—while dragging Seraphina into the mess—was Liam’s original goal.
But Tiana’s sudden betrayal had shattered those calculations.
Now that he had struck back at Tiana, there was no turning back.
To take his plans to the next stage, he needed to meet King Abraham in person. Tiana had essentially self-destructed. Currently, the only ones capable of putting up a fight against the King were Queen Fiona and Seraphina.
But Liam felt those two were incapable of carrying the burden. Unless... someone started a rebellion.
For instance, Grand Chancellor Kaslow or Grand Marshal Alistair Thorne. If they chose to revolt, there was a real possibility of success.
However, after coming into contact with the Fragmented Tome of Laws, Liam’s ambitions were no longer limited to the Apotheosis of Faith. He could pursue Enlightened Apotheosis.
While the Apotheosis of Faith could condense Divinity, it would never be as powerful as the Divines produced by Enlightened Apotheosis.
After a moment of reflection, Liam realized that expecting the Grand Chancellor or the Grand Marshal to rebel was somewhat unrealistic. If he had to pick a side now, he would have to side with the King.
But the time wasn't right yet. He needed to let the situation simmer.
Tiana likely didn't realize how absurd the Tome of Mortality truly was; she probably expected the health drain to eventually stop. He needed to break her psychological defenses completely to get the prerequisite Quest Scroll for the Blessing of the Gods from her.
The Weaver of Fate, The Gilded Lord, and Gaea the Earth Mother—he had three now. He still needed seven more.
Tiana, Seraphina, Leona, Queen Fiona, King Abraham, Grand Chancellor Kaslow, and Grand Marshal Alistair Thorne. That made exactly seven.
Aside from them, Liam himself knew of one and a half more ways to obtain them. He called it "one and a half" because one was a certainty, while the other was still a gamble.
Since he decided to wait for the political situation to develop, Liam chose to tackle those leads first. Simultaneously, he had to plan who would be the target of his Crimson Thread of Destiny.
As it stood, the best candidate for the thread would be Rhea. However, that was clearly impossible. Using the thread required a face-to-face meeting and the other party's consent. Whether Gaea would agree was one thing, but even seeing her in person was currently unrealistic.
Liam left the Black-Wind Stronghold and headed deep into the mountain range.
According to his past-life knowledge, a group of rebels resided in the depths of the Black-Wind Mountains. They had originally been an elite unit of the Astral Kingdom. In a battle where they were heavily outnumbered, three thousand of them had faced twenty thousand elite enemy troops.
The result was eleven thousand enemies slain and the invasion repelled, but of the three thousand heroes, fewer than three hundred survived.
They were the Astral Kingdom’s greatest contributors—men who had literally crawled back from the gates of hell.
Yet, when they returned to the Astral Capital, they weren't greeted with rewards or titles, but with mere verbal praise. Even the warriors who had died on the battlefield didn't receive proper pensions for their families.
The remaining two hundred men snapped. They broke away from the kingdom and hid in the mountains, becoming a rebel force that struck fear into the hearts of many.
To be honest, Liam sympathized with them.
After the Cataclysm in his previous life, he had seen too many people sell their souls to the Alait System for personal gain—betraying their own and playing double games. Similarly, he had witnessed iron-willed men use their own bodies to shield others against the system, dying without a single regret.
In this era of rampant materialism, those willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good were becoming increasingly rare and precious.
Liam didn't consider himself a "good person." But if he had such men under his command, he would give them the rewards and respect they deserved. The Astral Kingdom had truly crossed a line.
He remembered the guide saying their leader held a prerequisite Quest Scroll for the Blessing of the Gods. To get it, one didn't need to fight; they only needed to earn the group's respect.
Liam couldn't remember the leader’s name or the specific details of the guide, but he felt that with his current strength, earning their recognition shouldn't be hard.
After a moment's thought, Liam turned back. He needed to visit the Capital City first.
Upon returning to the city, he purchased a hundred Town Portal Scrolls. At a hundred Gold Sovereigns each, ordinary players couldn't afford them, but Liam had money to burn.
He then stocked up on healing and mana potions, followed by clothing and daily necessities. Finally, he bought seasonings, vegetables, meat, and—most importantly—alcohol.
He didn't buy expensive spirits, but rather the rice wine that commoners preferred. The rebels living in the mountains certainly weren't living a life of luxury. These items might not win their total respect immediately, but they would certainly earn him some goodwill. Once he had that, everything else would be easier.
To save time, Liam activated his Glacial Wings and took to the sky.
His flight speed was boosted by his movement speed attributes, and more importantly, flying allowed him to travel in a straight line, avoiding the tedious trek through the dense forest.
After an hour of traveling through the woods—flying whenever the wings were off cooldown—he finally spotted signs of human habitation.
He only recognized the traces because of his vast experience from his past life. Anyone else would have walked right past, thinking it was just a normal part of the jungle.
These rebels... No, these Insurgents!
If he wanted their respect, he had to stop thinking of them as common rebels.
The moment Liam stepped into the area, he felt numerous eyes locking onto him.
"My name is Frost Monarch. I'm an adventurer. I've heard there are heroes living in these mountains, and I’ve come to pay my respects."
As he spoke, Liam pulled out the fine wine and food he had prepared.
Sure enough, at the sight of the supplies, a tall, burly man clad in animal skins stepped forward.
"Are you the Frost Monarch who single-handedly slaughtered the nine Silver Grade generals of House Volkov?"
Liam nodded. "I am."
"You've got guts. You're a subject of the Astral Kingdom, yet you kill its generals. Aren't you afraid of death?"
"I don't fear death. They were tyrants and lapdogs; I had no reason to let them live."
"Well said." Garrick the Rebel nodded. "But I doubt you came here today just to deliver some wine and food."
"I didn't. I want to become stronger, and the Astral Kingdom no longer offers me that opportunity."
Liam continued, "I’ve heard of your deeds. I believe that through you, I can find the path to true power."
Liam didn't mention the Blessing of the Gods scroll directly. He wasn't sure if the knowledge of the leader possessing it was common even among the Insurgents.
"You're honest, I'll give you that," Garrick said. "I have an Archer here who possesses an Earth Grade Hidden Class. Just for the fact that you killed those House Volkov bastards, I could give that class to you."
Liam shook his head. "I already know what I want. I'm looking for... the Blessing of the Gods."
The advance reading chapters on have reached 12chapters. Thank you for reading!
https://www.pattreon.com/cw/Eliasvaney