Zyrus’s troops had achieved a lot since the flag was upgraded the last time. Defeating Nuckelavee, conquering 2 more islands, increasing a tier after clearing the lair of Nidhogg…all of these were noteworthy achievements.
The reason why the rewards were a bit delayed was mostly because of Zyrus’s unconventional means. Nuckelavee couldn’t be said to have been killed since its entire body was fused with his fleet. The recent fight with revived Nidhogg wasn’t anything normal either.
Such feats couldn’t be judged by a fixed set of rules. As such, the rewards had to be personally managed by the administrator.
‘As expected, Matope is more hardworking than anyone else,’
Zyrus grinned as he saw the world announcement which appeared for the second time. He could almost imagine the kings on the continent who were rolling in anxiety.
[|] World announcement! Players have conquered the first zone beyond the continent of Kyros [|]
[Map will be updated after the yearly rankings!]
Unlike others though, Zyrus and his troops were able to access the map function in their faction tab. The only thing visible on the crude map were islands arranged like the Pisces constellation on a vast ocean.
Three of them were shining in the green light while the rest were divided in red and black. The key here was that a small green zone was portrayed around the three dots.
<{Buffs will be increased by 10% in the conquered Zone}>
<{Hostile monsters and players will have their stats reduced by 10% in the conquered Zone}>
<{Exp gain will increase by 10% in the conquered zone}>
[You have gained the Motif: Aura of the conqueror]
[Effect: All stats +1 when fighting against enemies who are intimidated by you or your allies.]
“Hoorray,”
“Hahaha, we’re ahead of everyone else,”
The players cheered after reading the new texts on their status. Zyrus told them to rest and arrange the camps while he sat down to read the remaining messages. As a leader, the rewards he acquired were much more than this.
<{You have met the conditions to create a unique authority}>
Note: The generated authorities are permanent and they will be created with a fair evaluation. While you can not interfere in the process, you ask for a desired direction for the authority.
Note: You have one chance to give input. It is advised that you use this option carefully as giving unrelated directions would be futile.
The words were somewhat confusing for new players, but it was easy to get the gist of it. The progression here was similar to a skill tree in the RPG games. The system determined which tree and branch you will unlock, but you can try your luck in selecting the direction of further sub-branches.
The more authorities one had, the more complex things would become.
Zyrus didn’t hesitate any further and opened the input menu,
<{Please think of the desired direction and place your finger under the empty space}>
He thought about what he wanted and placed his finger on the empty golden space, and soon enough, a new line appeared on the screen.
<{Desired Direction: Summoning}>
<{Analyzing….direction approved}>
<{Generating new authority…}>
‘Perfect,’
Zyrus rubbed his hands in excitement as he waited for the outcome. He was going towards an uncharted territory rather than aiming for the combinations he knew of. But he was more than willing to take the gamble.
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
‘I’m sure that this is the strongest path I can take,’
And indeed, his thoughts were proven true.
<{The authority “Stefna” will be applied to your flag!}>
Zyrus eagerly opened the tab to see the effects of the flag’s new authority.
[March forth to claim your throne, and conquer the vast lands with your flag held high]
[You have created a base on
[You have conquered a zone on
[Your Blank Flag has risen to Tier 4!]
[Inventory has expanded! You can store more resources on each base]
[Shop is unlocked! You and the people assigned by you can access it]
-You can now transfer resources without paying any charges
|Blank Flag: Tier 4|
Territory effect: +15% Exp gain, +15% MP and Stamina while defending, +5% loot gain (Zonal effects are excluded)
A primal force that transcends the worlds, The Eternal Watchers who guard the realm.
[You can appoint slain foes as the ‘Watcher’ of your base]
[Base specific and overall effects will depend on the appointed Watcher’s skills and traits]
[Note: Only special creatures can be appointed as a Watcher]
May thy call reach the forgotten realms, May the warriors of yore answer thy summons.
[You can build a summoning altar in each conquered zone]
[The summoning targets are selected at random. Their numbers, strength, and race will depend on your faction’s composition and your activity.]
[Note: There is a possibility that some of the summoned creatures will be hostile towards you. This authority only allows you to summon them.]
[Note: You can only connect with a single plane of existence using this authority. However, you can continuously summon more creatures from there after fulfilling the necessary conditions]
Time limit: ??? (Depends on the targeted plane)
‘It’s even better than I expected,’ Zyrus muttered as he read the text. A lot of time and materials were required to build the Altar, but for now, he decided to check the rest of the changes.
* Buffs
- Shipbuilding efficiency +10%
- Logging efficiency +10%
- Military research efficiency +10%
- Ballista production +10%
.
.
.
<{New classes are added to your faction! Anyone who joins you can directly acquire/change their classes to the ones mentioned below}>
- Tanner
- Butcher
- Lumberjack
- Shipbuilder
- Military Researcher
- Tent maker
.
.
.
‘Heh, I wonder who made so many tents to get this class,’ Zyrus wondered as he closed the tab. There were a lot of buffs and creation-based class options. He still remembered a lv 100 player he met who had a class of ‘Washroom master.’ Apparently, he was responsible for designing public infrastructure for different races in the third ring.
Anyway, he wasn’t going to bother with this section. He wouldn’t have any time left for himself if he managed finances and production on his own.
‘There are quite a few good things in the shop, but we’re dirt poor so there’s no point even if I know,’
Zyrus decided to list up some regional materials like fish scales and seaweed for sale. It wasn’t enough to create a windfall, but it would sell well enough due to the rarity.
He noted down all the materials needed for the construction of the altar as well. This would be the top of their purchasing priority for the time being. He also noted some items and materials whose prices will inflate in the future. Matope had told him to not cause any disturbances in the market. This didn’t prevent him from buying needed materials before their price increased.
And last but not the least, he made a separate list of currently on-sell items which had some clever uses.
‘Hmm…this should be enough while I’m away,’
Zyrus stretched his limbs and walked towards the command tent. The sun was now hanging overhead since it took quite a while to write things down.
*Flap*
“Oh, you’re here,”
“Mhm, here, your new task,”
“Let me see…,” Ria glanced over the unfurled rolls with a pondering look.
“Any problem?”
“Well, it’s not really a problem. I think that with the contribution system and now the shop, we need more manpower,”
“Aren’t we summoning more players everyday?”
“No, I mean manpower in administration. You don’t expect me to do all of this by myself, do you?” Ria asked with a wronged face.
“Oh, you can just hire whoever you want. Same goes for others as well,” Zyrus shrugged in response.
It would waste too much time if he had to approve of every little thing. All he cared was that right people were in charge of the important tasks.
“I see, I’ll look into it then. Are you going out again?”
“Yeah, tomorrow to be exact,”
“So soon?”
“Well, I don’t think there’s anything for me to do here,”
Ria pointed at the pile of scrolls at his words, but he acted as if he didn’t see that. The two talked about future plans in detail before he left for lunch.
It was decided that he’d take the dragon of war and 20 other ships to head to the east. Druv and Strongfist would travel with him, along with their subordinates and 13 beast squads. The rest would organize things here for a few more days and then depart for the south.
They decided to meet up again after 100 days. Zyrus advised them to prepare for the fight at the year's end as well. Matope didn’t specify what the fight was about or how many would fight, but Zyrus could guess that the players were involved since the administrator had mentioned the flag march section being inaccessible and whatnot.
'All things are taken care of...it's about time I attempt this mission,'
[Mission: Gain the acknowledgment of ?????]
[You must reach the bottom of the ocean to meet ????]
[Reward: Obtain the talent “Devour (A rank)”, Obtain the ??? stat]