Too tired to walk anymore.
I can't believe you're gone, Mihai...
They're sending us into a dangerous hotspot tomorrow.
I get the feeling I won't make it out alive.
Here to drag me back home?
No.
I'm here to wait on you as usual, milady.
Huh?
That's my job as your manservant, after all.
EPISODE 11: SNEAK ATTACK
Aw, jeez! Just go home already!
Here, Lady Cecil.
A little something to satisfy your appetite.
I'm not crying, you hear me!
Of course.
Say, Allen? My brother was strong, wasn't he?
Yes.
I was never able to beat him.
I'll be frank.
The thought of dying is scary to me.
Terrifyingly so.
I just want to go home to my family.
I'm gonna die, too. I just know it...
But I don't wanna!
Lady Cecil.
Will you like to come with me and leave the city behind?
Huh?
Just forget about your family. We can be free to travel the world and visit all sorts of places.
Have you gone crazy? You know we can't do that!
Then shall we wait until next year?
We can register as adventurers after we become 12.
Yeah, right. I'll be enrolled in the Academy by then...
Who says you have to go? It's only a school.
Huh?
It's your life, isn't it? You should choose how you want to live it.
What do you want to do, Lady Cecil?
What I want? I'm not sure...
At the end of the day, I'm not doing this for the people or even my family.
I'm here because I chose to be here.
Allen. We're going home now.
As you wish.
Hey.
Hm?
My legs hurt. Carry me.
Okay.
Allen?
Yes? What is it?
Thank you.
Don't mention it.
Cecil!
Father...
Cecil!
Sorry for being a bad girl...
Listen, Cecil. I don't want you to worry about anything.
Huh?
In the near future, we'll be able to mine mithril again.
Then we can get you an exemption from the Noble's Duty
by gifting the royal family with the mining rights.
I'll handle all the negotiations myself.
So rest easy!
That's why he's been in a rush to get the mines running.
Father. Mother.
As a member of the Granvelle household,
I shall meet my obligation to serve the Noble's Duty.
The whole reason that I came here was to overcome my own weakness.
I am going to follow in Mihai's footsteps.
I won't flee from responsibility!
ALLEN: AGE 11
MARCH
B-rank magic stone secured!
Half a year has passed since Mihai's death.
Life for the Granvelles has gone back to normal.
And the Knighthood has wiped out all the orc boroughs.
Well, mostly because me and my team did the dirty work.
We've finally started moving people to resettle the mithril refineries near the mines, eh?
Mining operations should be running at full steam come summer.
This should put the baron's mind at ease.
The only problem now... is whether Carnel will lash out after losing his mithril.
His silence so far is actually concerning.
Stay vigilant.
Yessir.
Despite what she says, there's no way Cecil could climb this mountain.
Take me with you! I'm going hunting, too!
I sympathize with the fact she wants to toughen up,
but the baron will never allow it.
Having long-range support from a Wizardess would be nice, though.
I made it!
These guys could cause problems for the mithril miners.
So I'm gonna wipe them out next!
From what I've heard about Armored Ant nests, there should be over 1,000 soldiers inside
along with a B-rank queen monster who lays eggs to birth more.
That's not a lot of info to go on.
And I can't get a look at the layout from the sky.
There's only one entrance. Just big enough for a single ant to pass through.
I'd get swarmed if I tried to fight them inside the nest.
Should I trim their numbers before I try to breach?
Well, nothing like a good challenge! We'll just wing it!
I'll start with a team of six.
Teddy! Spidey! Fillet!
Yikes. They just keep coming.
Get out here, everybody!
Alright! Give 'em hell!
ONE MONTH LATER
It's been a whole month and I still can't beat this ant colony...
I've come twice a week and taken down over 200 ants per day, which means about 2,000 total.
So what's the deal?
Not to mention, all the corpses of the defeated ants are cleared out
by the time I come back the week after.
Is the queen eating them and laying new eggs?
YOU HAVE DEFEATED 1 ARMORED ANT.
YOU HAVE GAINED 3,000 EXP
YOU HAVE DEFEATED 1 ARMORED ANT.
YOU HAVE GAINED 3,000 EXP
YOU HAVE DEFEATED 1 ARMORED ANT.
YOU HAVE GAINED 3,000 EXP
YOU HAVE DEFEATED 1 ARMORED ANT.
YOU HAVE GAINED 3,000 EXP
I love all this delicious EXP,
but the endless stream of ants is blocking me from entering the nest
and I can't even collect their magic stones!
ANOTHER MONTH LATER
I've gotta change my strategy.
YOU HAVE DEFEATED 1 ARMORED ANT.
YOU HAVE GAINED 3,000 EXP
YOU HAVE DEFEATED 1 ARMORED ANT.
YOU HAVE GAINED 3,000 EXP
YOU HAVE DEFEATED 1 ARMORED ANT.
YOU HAVE GAINED 3,000 EXP
Bruh. I've killed 5,000 of these damned things.
Am I just gonna have to camp out here every day?
Really wish they'd let me be a Huntsman full time...
Huh? What the-?!
They stopped! Has my persistence paid off?!
Time to stamp out the queen.
Come on out, Hollow!
BIRD D
AGILITY +20, INTELLIGENCE +20
Do your thing!
Vision sharing with Hollow activated.
Thank God for night vision.
This place is like a huge maze.
Oh crap! An ambush!
Let's try that again.
Ew! There's the egg chamber!
Pull back!
Now I'll send one the other way.
And have another Hollow check out this passageway.
Controlling eight at once is mentally exhausting.
Man, I could really use some chocolate...
Feels like playing one of those long-ass mini-games in an RPG.
The sun's going down, so I should head home soon.
But I can't pass up this chance...
Thar she blows!
Alright! Time to end this!
Finally, after two months of grinding.
The Queen Armored Ant!
Look at that! She's like three times the size of a normal one!
Well, except for the head, I guess...
Alright, we all know how boss fights go.
Defeat the small fries first, Teddy squad!
Sweet! Now all that's left is the queen.
Shit.
But I can summon them faster than she can beat them!
Teddy! Go for the abdomen!
Sink those teeth into her!
CHOMP LIKE NO TOMORROW!
YOU HAVE DEFEATED 1 QUEEN ARMORED ANT.
YOU HAVE GAINED 45,000 EXP.
Only took me 20 summons to win, huh?
I needed more than 100 to beat the Orc King.
Maybe she was just super weak after birthing all those extra soldier ants.
I can't go back to town at this late hour. Gonna have to camp overnight.
Bet I'll get a serious earful for it later.
Need to find something to prove I wiped this place clean.
Wait, is that...?
THE HARDCORE GAMER DOMINATES
IN ANOTHER WORLD WITH GARBAGE BALANCING
I brought this back from a nest up in the White Dragon Mountains.
It's the exoskeleton of a Queen Armored Ant.
Weird...
I thought this would be a big deal, but they seem unfazed.
You went up the White Dragon Mountains? At least make your stories somewhat believable.
It's plausible. Armored ants do come in different colors.
What do you think, Zenof?
Hard to say as I've never seen a queen myself.
Huh?
I mean, not even the Knighthood has enough resources to defeat an entire ant colony.
What?!
You didn't just slap a coat of paint on it, did you?
N-no way!
Allen, my boy.
Armored Ant colonies are filled with thousands of soldiers.
And the interior is a complex maze.
That makes them nigh impossible to defeat.
True enough. It was really only possible thanks to my summons.
W-well, I have one more thing to show you!
I came across these in the chamber where the queen ant was.
M-my God! That's mithril ore!
Certainly not something that one just stumbles across.
Allen. Give us all the details.
Yessir!
So he was telling the truth...
CARNEL FIEFDOM
GRANVELLE FIEFDOM
The nest was around here.
And this is a map of the interior.
There is no doubt about it now.
He's found a fifth vein of mithril for us to mine from.
I'll have my knights scope it out immediately.
Superb work, Allen. You've truly outdone yourself this time.
I will forgive your illicit overnight excursion.
Thank you, my lord.
Furthermore,
you've become the first to discover a brand new vein of mithril where this ore came from.
That entitles you to a stake in the operation.
I shall grant you a 30 percent of the mining rights.
Huh? The mining rights, my lord?
This is bound to go over your head.
But just give it a few years and you'll start to understand the benefits.
Okay.
I get the feeling this is a huge deal...
Now it's October.
And I've finally turned 12.
Keep it up, fellas! Good work today.
The mithril mines have restarted after a century of unuse.
But work on the vein that I discovered won't start until next year.
I have nothing to fear from the monsters around here anymore.
And I don't have to worry about money thanks to my stake in the mines.
That said...
something doesn't feel right.
SEARCH
This isn't the hardcore gaming I thrive on.
VIDEO GAME
GARBAGE BALANCING
HARDCORE
I wanna live on the edge! Not in comfort!
It's time to expand my horizons.
I'll bring up the idea with the baron later.
Aw jeez...
Guess who's paying another visit? The royal messenger is here.
Ugh. What does he want this time?
Yeesh, talk about double trouble.
Viscount Carnel is here, too.
I can already tell they're going to stir up shit.
Greetings, my good sirs. May I ask what brings you here today?
I heard good news that the mithril mines are up and running again.
I've come to present a proposal for your consideration.
The Granvelle and Carnel fiefdoms
have been trapped in an endless cycle of prosperity
and decline at the whims of the White Dragon.
The royal family seeks to solve this problem once and for all.
Unbelievable...
You're suggesting that we co-manage the White Dragon Mountains?!
Huh? Is he for real?!
Indeed.
Both families shall manage the mining operations and split all the profits equally.
That should put an end to the turmoil of the past.
I reached out to the Vice Minister of Justice and had him draft that contract personally.
Viscount Carnel has already affixed his signature to it.
Heh.
All we need now is yours.
Just look at that smug bastard. He's obviously behind all of this.
My deepest apologies.
I'm afraid this is too abrupt.
I must play it safe and visit the royal capital to appraise the situation first.
Say what?!
You dare to suggest that I am untrustworthy?!
I am saying this is a critical decision that I cannot in good conscience rush to make.
The mithril profits have clearly poisoned your mind!
Mark my words, your greed shall be your undoing!
We suffered for a century!
And just when fortune finally swings our way, they have the gall to demand half of it?!
This contract is beyond outrageous!
Captain Zenof is up in the mountains right now, isn't he?
Yes, milord. He is scheduled to return in two days' time.
Then we head for the royal capital as soon as he's back.
Well, shoot. This makes it awkward for me to talk to the baron about moving on from manservant...
Let me get this straight.
A co-management contract means the economy won't go downhill
even after the White Dragon migrates, right?
That's right. We can never be sure when it might come back to this side, anyways.
Sure, it sounds good on its face, but we can't trust anything involving Viscount Carnel.
He'll stab us in the back for sure.
The problem is that we can't refuse without coming off as greedy.
Can the baron even get out of this double bind?
Oh no! Lady Cecil!
What's going on?
Cecil!
Friggin' brat.
What's the problem? Kill him already!
This guy's tough.
I'll have to change up my stock of cards.
NAME: ALLEN
AGE: 12
TALENT: SUMMONER
LEVEL: 41
HP:
MP:
ATTACK:
ENDURANCE:
AGILITY:
INTELLIGENCE:
LUCK:
EXP
SKILLS: SUMMON (5), CREATE (5),
FUSE (5), ENHANCE (5)
EXPANSION (4)
STORAGE, SHARE, DELETE,
SWORD MASTERY (3), THROW (3)
SKILL LEVELS: SUMMON 5
CREATE 5
EXP
FUSE: 5
EXP
ENHANCE: 5
EXP
SUMMONS AVAILABLE
FOR CREATION:
INSECTS: DEFGH
BEASTS: DEFGH
BIRDS: DEFG
GRASS: DEF
STONES: DE
FISH:D
INVENTORY: INSECTS E, 5 COPIES
BEASTS E, 5 COPIES
BIRDS
GRASS E, 40 COPIES
STONES
FISH
Chickening out already, brat? Bring it on!
Challenge accepted!
He's hitting a lot harder all of a sudden.
Baron Granvelle!
We're under attack! Intruders have taken Lady Cecil!
What?!
Screw it! We're outta here!
Cecil...
Cecil?!
Thank God. She's alive.
Those bastards tied me up extra tight.
But they don't know Summoners can still fight as long as they can see!
Chappy! Get out here!
Vision share!
It's the kidnappers from earlier.
Looks like we're inside a warehouse somewhere.
Oi!
Ya need something, Dagrah, sir?
What you'd nab two kids for?
Well, the little guy knows how to wield a sword.
Figured we'd make some dough selling him as a slave.
You don't get to call the shots. I'll gut you next time.
Got it. Sorry...
Kill the boy right away if he causes any problems.
That guy is way more of a threat than these clowns.
You all right, Marcus?
Yeah. Bloody hell.
Why'd the boss put that violent asshole in charge? It's such bullshit.
Cuz Dagrah's a combat pro who fought in the war.
Pssht. More like he's a pussy who ditched his post after a year.
Dude. It's your funeral.
In any case, he's the only one of us who can fight Zenof.
Zenof? They must be talking about the knight captain.
But Zenof's a certified badass who held the line at the fort for over a decade.
Does Dagrah actually stand a chance against him?
Hell if I know.
I mean, Zenof still lost his entire squadron by the time he came back, right?
Might as well just go down with 'em at that point, yeah?
Well, whatever. War is for idiots with a death wish, anyways.
You said it, man.
Interesting.
So, there really is some kinda war going on...
Anyway, there's no sense waiting for rescue. I can take these jerks.
Oh, crap! I dropped my mithril sword!
These are all the weapons I have on me right now.
I'm not confident that I can fight and protect Cecil with just these.
Gonna go take a whizz.
Now's my chance!
I'll start by scoping out an escape route.
Whoa.
What's a bird doing on the ship?
Huh? Ship?
Are we on a boat?
Nobody told me you could reach the sea from the Granvelle fiefdom.
Man, this ship is huge.
It's pitch-black outside. Already nighttime, huh?
Wait a sec. Are we flying?
This ain't a boat...
it's a magic ship!
Well, crap! How am I supposed to escape in mid-air?!
Okay, keep calm. There should still be a chance when it descends.
Wow, there's even a restaurant?
This ship is bigger than I thought.
I recognize that stupid laugh.
Figures he was behind all this!
You know what I expect, right?
I pulled a lot of strings to set things up for you.
I presume you mean the mining rights?
You shall have them on a silver platter, good sir!
Of course, it will be problematic if Granvelle raises a fuss at the capital.
Have no fear!
I made sure that he got a letter warning against any funny business.
And if he still refuses to sign the contract,
then I'm certain that sending his precious daughter's hand in the mail will convince him.
Scumbags! They took Cecil hostage to steal the mining rights?!
That's playing dirty!
Shit. She's awake.
We're almost to Carnel's territory. Don't bother struggling.
Might have to kick her a few times before she gets it.
I have to do something, fast.
I've specced out my stats for PVP.
They're going down this time!
Papillon! I choose you!
Put 'em to sleep!
Nice, that's one down. We're off to a great start!
It disappeared?
Now for some payback!