I approached the group of four and draped my arms over their shoulders. "It was nice of you to defend me... But do I look like I need defending, especially from the likes of you?" I asked with a smile.

They understood immediately.

"Hyung, you've got it wrong. We stepped in only because he was getting on our nerves," the fat guy hurriedly explained.

"Exactly!" the others chimed in agreement.

"And why have you started calling me 'hyung'?" I inquired.

"Hyung, since we don't know your name, 'hyung' seemed like the easiest option," the buff guy replied.

That made sense, and I didn't mind the nickname, so I saw no reason to object.

"Still, I feel bad not knowing your names," I said to the four, who looked at me eagerly.

"Let's fix that. You'll be Electricity, Tattoo, Buff, and fat guy," I suggested, pointing to each one. I noticed their dissatisfaction.

"What's the matter? Don't like your new names?" I asked, my voice taking on a menacing edge.

"No, they're good," the buff one quickly assured.

The one who seemed the saddest was the fat guy, as the others had nicknames that were somewhat acceptable.

"If you're upset about your nickname, then consider losing weight. But that's not what's important now. You all need to rest because we're entering the forest tonight to hunt elite goblins. If I'm satisfied with your performance, I'll set you free."

"And you should be aware of the consequences if you attempt to escape," I warned, drawing my finger across my neck in a slashing motion.

Without giving them a chance to respond, I left them to their thoughts.

I noticed Park Junsu organizing groups that were tasked with gathering food while also hunting elite goblins. These groups, comprising about 10-20 people each, were departing for the forest.

He also invited me to join one of the groups, but I declined, informing him that I had plans to go exploring with the four 'idiots' tonight.

Eventually, the field was left with about 30 people.

All that was left for me was to wait for nightfall. As time passed, I watched the groups return one by one, each bearing many boxes.

I looked at the clear condition.

[Clear Condition]

- Kill 1000 monsters [548/1000]

Since the wolf, only 48 monsters had been killed? That number was disappointingly low, and it meant I would be here longer than expected. Rising to my feet, I made my way over to the four idiots.

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"Wake up. Grab some food and water; we're leaving in 20 minutes," I commanded, nudging each of them with my foot to rouse them from sleep.

I waited by the forest's entrance, and soon enough, they joined me. My sword's weight settled comfortably on my shoulder as I appraised the four.

The Electric guy and tattoo guy were both holding long swords. The buff guy had a greataxe in his hands, and the fat guy was holding a spear.

'Not bad,' I thought.

This setup might just be effective. The goal for tonight was to slay as many elite goblins as we could and to get these guys to level up.

I wanted to make these idiots stronger than they were now, and just by looks alone they looked menacing.

Their fighting prowess was nothing compared to mine, but compared ot the other people, they would around the middle of the pack.

So to get them to be within the top 10 strongest people in the field seemed like a straightforward task.

But why was I so keen on them leveling up?

Well, I wanted some strong subordinates. I wanted subordinates that I really didn't care about, so I don't get attached too easily.

These guys were the perfect match. I know that is a little hypocritical, as I said I didn't want to make companions before.

But these guys couldn't be called companions; it would be more correct to see them as NPCs in a game.

With that in mind, I put my sword back in my sheath.

"Guys, to survive in this tower, you need to be strong," I began.

Their eyes turned to me, full of curiosity about what I was going to say next.

"Just like how you wanted to take food from those people because they were weak, I'm doing the same to you because you are weak."

"Therefore—"

"We didn't have any food," the tattooed guy suddenly interrupted.

A silence fell as I stared at him.

"Don't interrupt while our hyung is speaking!" The muscular guy gave him a smack on the back of his head.

"Strength is the most important," I continued. "You're probably familiar with main characters from webtoons and novels."

They nodded, indicating they knew what I was talking about.

"And I hate to break it to you, but none of you are the main character. You don't have cheat skills, and you won't be in the spotlight. At best, you are delinquents who will be easily forgotten."

Their shoulders slumped as they looked down, the corners of their mouths turning downwards.

"But don't worry. If you follow me and do as I say, even you can become strong characters. You know how strong I am, and I can carry you to the top!"

A spark of hope lit up their eyes, instantly erasing the disappointment. They smiled broadly.

"So all we have to do is sit on the bus?" The electricity guy asked, his voice tinged with excitement.

"Exactly! But you have to accept me as the leader," I declared, locking eyes with them.

Without hesitation, they knelt on the ground.

"We accept hyung as our leader!" they shouted together.

I applauded, pleased with their response.

"Okay, you can stand up now; we need to head into the forest."

I led the way as we entered into the forest. After a while, I sensed three elite goblins nearby. I raised my hand, signaling the guys behind me to stop.

"There are 3 monsters approaching us from the front. Do your best to kill it".

The four of them tensed and adopted battle stances. I stepped back a bit to avoid interfering.

Out of the shadows materialized the towering figures of the goblins, each standing two meters tall. Their green skin was thick and leathery, stretched over bulging muscles that flexed involuntarily.

They emerged from the bushes donning patchwork armor of leather and wielding heavy clubs that scraped the ground.

'Holy f*ck,' I thought, impressed by their dramatic entrance. Glancing at the four guys, I saw them shaking in their boots.

This was kinda expected. I tried to recall if I had felt the same during my first encounter with the elite goblin.

But It had been so long, that I couldn't remember it clearly.

The elite goblins soon noticed the four guys, and they quickly shouted as they charged towards them.

One of the elite goblins was faster than the other, but it soon got blocked by a huge magical shield appearing out of nowhere.

The shield trembled as if a bulldozer had hit it, but soon the other goblins charged towards the shield.

Crack!

Cracks started to appear on the shield, and the elite goblins stepped back to charge again.