Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality Chapter 266
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Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality Chapter 266
58. A New Era (2)
I happened to hear that Count Reiers and President Kim Min-guk were together at the Blue House, so I headed straight there.
However, since the visit hadn't been decided through prior coordination, the Blue House was thrown into chaos when I and my companions suddenly appeared out of thin air, and a major commotion broke out.
It was only natural.
After all, the troops guarding the Blue House hadn't even confirmed whether we were friend or foe.
As we slowly descended and landed, the guard forces hurriedly surrounded us.
"W-Who are you?"
"Report immediately!"
"Please wait a moment!"
If anything, it was fortunate that they didn't immediately point their guns at us or issue threatening warnings.
It seems that having revealed my face through the media even just once had its effect.
And so, with the full attention of the Blue House guard forces on me, I waited quietly until entry permission was granted.
"You could have just quietly infiltrated, you know."
Arc Scarlet, who had grown noticeably more confident after recovering her strength, said that to me.
But I clicked my tongue, thinking, Do I look like a fool?
"Even so, they're the leader of a nation we have good relations with. I should show proper courtesy."
"Is there really any need for that? You've become an existence that completely transcends the human category just do as you please."
As expected, no matter how well she's learned to listen, the demon race's tendencies are apparently unavoidable.
I shook my head.
Then, I suddenly noticed people behind the guard forces, whispering as they looked at us.
They clearly didn't look like soldiers or government officials.
'Right, the Blue House was open to public tours.'
They appeared to be ordinary citizens.
Whether they had seen the video of my battle against the Demon King Lord Skrim in Japan on NewTube, or simply seen my face through the media, quite a few people recognized me and wore expressions of shock.
I waved at them.
A bit of fan service, perhaps?
Thanks to that, exclamations and the shutter sounds of smartphones rang out noisily among the crowd, and the soldiers had a hard time restraining the citizens.
"Greetings, Your Highness the King. Welcome to the Blue House. I will guide Your Highness the King and your companions."
And not even three minutes into this situation, a group of people came running out of the building in a fluster.
The man at the front was the Chief Secretary of the Blue House, whose face I recognized.
He gave me a bow and guided our group to the state guest hall where the President was, without any separate screening.
"Chief Secretary, what about the body check?"
One of the guards asked the Chief Secretary, but he waved his hand dismissively.
"Ah, no need. If these people so much as willed it, the Blue House would vanish without a trace anyway."
The Chief Secretary, having left the guards speechless, bowed politely and apologized for the inconvenience.
Shortly after, we arrived at the state guest hall where President Kim Min-guk and Count Reiers were.
"We have been waiting for Your Highness the King's visit. Are all your family members well?"
President Kim Min-guk greeted me and asked after my family's well-being.
Given that it was right after the Great Disaster, this kind of greeting seemed to be the norm.
"The situation in Rondel was resolved without significant damage. Thanks to that, my family is safe as well."
"That's a relief."
Count Reiers then knelt on one knee and paid his respects to me, and I asked him what state the domain was in.
"Fortunately, there was no major damage."
Good news.
I felt relief inside and had to express my apologies.
"I had no choice but to prioritize Rondel over Earth. I'm sorry I couldn't help during the disaster."
"Not at all. Thanks to the large-scale Vanguard forces and the Spirit Tower that Your Highness the King granted us, we were able to defend the island stably."
I don't think I need to ask about South Korea's situation.
Just seeing that tourists were allowed inside the Blue House told me the situation wasn't bad.
There are two things I came to ask these people today.
One is the situation of the investigation teams from various nations that came over from Rondel.
The other is to confirm whether any anomalies have occurred on Earth.
Since the goddess requested peace from me and said she would take appropriate measures herself for the balance of the two worlds, there was bound to be some kind of change.
So I sought out these two people to acquire solid information.
Upon hearing my business, they suddenly pressed their temples like twins.
"As Your Highness the King predicted, the investigation teams from the Rondel nations are making quite a fuss."
The two of them first informed me of the situation of the nations that had come over from Rondel, as if tattling.
Naturally, upon hearing the story, I had to put on a bewildered expression.
'They go to regions where the state system has collapsed, look after the natives, and claim territorial rights?'
For one thing, they hadn't started a war against Earthlings; rather, they were expanding territory in a way that provided help.
"They used their heads well."
There's no other way to put it.
After the Great Disaster, almost every surviving nation pursued a self-first policy and deliberately ignored the people of fallen nations begging for help.
Because of that, Earth's nations couldn't easily criticize the actions of the Rondel nations either.
Great powers including America are treating Rondel's actions as invasion and responding, but the other side just picks their ears and reacts as if to say where's that dog barking, so there's nothing they can do.
And waging war would be too great a burden.
"It's also awkward for our County to step forward. We're already occupying parts of Japan and China's territory, after all."
Earth's heads of state have been asking Count Reiers for help, but him stepping forward would itself be a situation of hypocrisy, so they're stuck unable to do this or that.
Moreover, among the nations that have seized and settled on Earth's territory is his homeland, Walter Kingdom, which made it all the more so.
"You're asking for help to resolve the situation, then."
In the end, that was what President Kim Min-guk wanted to say.
He smiled bitterly and nodded.
"Even if peace is maintained for now somehow, as time passes and the political situation of the Earth-side nations stabilizes, the probability of armed conflict will be high."
If war breaks out, the winning side will be Rondel.
But winning without damage is difficult.
Earth's nukes were clearly an effective means against Rondel as well, after all.
I don't wish for a Rondel VS Earth war to occur.
There was also the request from the goddess, so I shrugged my shoulders and had to answer that I understood.
"Leave that matter to me. I'll handle it on my end."
"Oh! How reassuring! Thank you!"
At my calm acceptance of the request, the President's face brightened.
"May I ask how you plan to handle it?"
"I'll try talking first, and if that doesn't work, I'll resolve the situation even if I have to use force, so don't worry."
At my answer, which was no different from declaring a resolution, the President bowed his head in gratitude.
"Want me to go crush them?"
At the same time, Arc Scarlet cut in with a pleased smile.
"What?"
"You're going to entrust Earth's affairs to me anyway, right? I'll try resolving this one."
"No."
Though she was restrained by Arcia, the President tilted his head at her eager appearance.
Arc Scarlet looks like a young girl based on appearance alone, so it seemed he found it puzzling that Arcia and I reacted seriously.
So I answered plainly.
"She's quite notorious in Rondel. From now on, there will be many occasions where she acts on Earth on my behalf."
Count Reiers had also seen the girl a few times coming and going, but he didn't even know Arc Scarlet's name, so he was likewise tilting his head.
She was said to be notorious in Rondel, but judging by her appearance alone, no one came to mind.
"Her name is Arc Scarlet. No Rondel person could not know it."
"Hek!"
-Thud crash!
The moment the girl's name was revealed, Count Reiers's face went pale and he toppled backward with his chair.
At that, the President expressed doubt, asking who she was.
"Th-the name of the Demon King who drove Rondel to the brink of destruction."
"What?"
At Count Reiers's explanation, the President's face hardened.
"Is this the same Crimson Demon King I know of?"
"Yes."
As my confirmation followed, Count Reiers staggered as if about to faint.
Count Reiers's extreme reaction now a magnate on Earth made not only the President but also the Chief Secretary and the head of security, who had been quietly holding their positions, stiffen.
I placed my hand lightly on Arc Scarlet's head and said.
"It's fine now, since she's a subordinate who cannot disobey my words."
"I'm going to live a long life. Picking a fight with Adrian would only shorten it."
Aside from Arc Scarlet, I also had Dark Square and Lord Skrim, whom I'd captured on Earth no less than three Demon Kings under my command.
On top of that, there was also one powerful Heavenly King I had acquired this time.
But seeing their extreme reactions, it seemed better not to reveal each one individually.
"Th-this person will be active on Earth?"
"Yes, she will take charge of the Rondel Peace Organization's Earth branch as its director."
At my words, Count Reiers reacted as if asking why I was giving him such a trial.
"Shouldn't someone of this caliber be standing guard so that the Rondel people who've advanced into Earth can be properly controlled?"
"Everyone will probably scream and run away."
When Arc Scarlet approached Count Reiers and thrust her face forward as if asking if he had a complaint, he could no longer mutter anything further.
"Leave the treatment of the Rondel nations to me, and let's move on to the next topic."
I smoothed over the unsettled atmosphere and changed the subject.
To whether the goddess's measures the real point of this discussion had brought changes to Earth or not.
At that, Kim Min-guk the President and Count Reiers, whose faces had lost all color, cleared their throats and came back to their senses.
It was the picture of consummate politicians.
"There have been a few changes that came after the Great Disaster."
"Is that so?"
As expected, the goddess's measures had already been in effect.
"First, the number of monsters has exploded."
"Is that so? That's a serious threat."
With everyone already reeling from the disaster, an explosion in monster numbers could only be a headache.
But at the words that followed, I opened my eyes wide.
"Not necessarily."
"What?"
"The monsters can't leave a certain radius. Even if a monster is killed, it quickly reappears but a fixed number of monsters is maintained within a fixed zone."
What is that?
Doesn't it seem just like a hunting ground in a game?
"Not only that when you kill a monster, you can obtain something called a magic stone with a certain probability, and we've learned that these magic stones can be used to strengthen the abilities of Gift users."
"Huh…."
Well, well even level-ups?
At the President's words, I couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh.
I had thought the measures the goddess would take to balance the two worlds would be drastic, but I never imagined it would be like this.
"Moreover, monsters drop not only magic stones but also various items with magical effects, so many countries are enthusiastically hunting monsters."
"Korea too?"
"Yes. However, when monsters are killed with firearms, no items drop at all, so the hunting is centered on units that possess Gifts."
Still, it seems some thought was given to balance.
I listened to the changes occurring on Earth with an amused expression.
But at Count Reiers's following words, my interest was amplified even further.
"And when magic stones are ingested, it's not only Gift users whose stats rise. We conducted experiments on our side with Mages and Knights, and the effect worked on them as well."
"Which means?"
"Yes, it means Rondel people can also hunt monsters on Earth and strengthen their abilities."
I had to furrow my brow.
If that was true, the territorial disputes on Earth could only worsen further.
I wondered if the goddess had trusted me too much and blown things out of proportion.