Back when the fairies had first started tracking his scout goblins, Taehyun had meticulously examined the terrain between Crowley's territory, Lasten, and the Arid Plains. The geographical advantages were obvious—the area was surrounded by mountains with a narrow cliffside path, perfect for an ambush. But in his analysis, Taehyun had discovered something far more critical: the true distance between the Arid Plains and Lasten.

'Of course, the journey from Balak to Lasten takes a full three days,' he had mused. 'But I don't have to start from there.'

Lasten—or rather, Hyuntae and his Supporter—was oblivious to one crucial fact.

[You have moved to Yuslan's Ice Palace.]

The ancient ruins in the Arid Plains. Having cleared the first level of the Ice Palace, Taehyun could now use its 'Cold Jade' to transport his soldiers. He could return just as easily, and more importantly, he could instantly close the distance, just as he was doing now.

"So that was it," Riel said, understanding dawning in her eyes. "The Ice Palace. If we use the Cold Jade, we can certainly arrive by the second day."

"Exactly. That's the entire strategy," Taehyun confirmed. "They have no idea the Ice Palace exists. They're expecting Grai and the assault squad to arrive on the third day."

Lasten's main army, reinforced by Mederia, was too powerful for Balak's main force to handle alone. Mana bullets would rain from the sky, and Hyuntae likely had at least five B-rank soldiers of his own. A direct confrontation was unwinnable. So, Taehyun had used the gear-stripped goblins as sacrificial pawns to create a diversion while his main army maneuvered into the hills.

'Even when the Sight Priority wears off, they won't be discovered immediately. I can buy just enough time for them to rendezvous with the assault squad on the second day.'

The reason for seeking high ground was simple: it was the perfect staging ground to assassinate Mederia. Once Lasten's army was deep in pursuit of Balak's forces, an opening was bound to appear. At that exact moment, Grai would ambush her from the hilltop. The rest of the assault squad would then merge with the main army, turning the tide of the battle in an instant. That was Taehyun's scenario.

'The probability of this plan succeeding is over 90 percent. As long as they remain ignorant of the Ice Palace, the bastards from Lasten will never see it coming.'

The moment the fairies began their pursuit, the outcome had been decided.

"Riel, just in case, you go with them, too," Taehyun instructed. "Your skills don't work through the screen near a territory, unlike in a dungeon or fortress."

"Yes, understood."

To eliminate even the smallest margin of error, Taehyun included Riel in the squad. After sending them off, he leisurely returned to Balak. All that was left was to watch the screen and give a few minor orders.

'Grai has already established himself as commander. He can handle the direct orders.'

There would be no mercy for an enemy who bared its fangs first. He would simply devour them before he was devoured. Taehyun planned to use Lasten as the first stepping stone to expand Balak's influence. First Lasten, then the surrounding villages, then the towns, and eventually, the small city of Partren. His primary goal was to dominate the entire region. Other prey might present itself later, but for now, this was the plan.

'To survive, to return home, I can't just play defense. I'll be the one to devour them first.'

---

On the second day of the battle, the goblin decoys were all dead. The Sight Priority shielding Balak's main force had expired.

"Now is our chance, Lord Hyuntae!" Kinjo urged. "The Guardian and the assault squad can't reach here in two days. You must strike the main force now!"

"I know!" Hyuntae declared. "According to your plan, this victory is mine!"

Without a moment's hesitation, he deployed Mederia and his entire army. The wyverns had long since fled, and he even used a Sight Expansion item to hasten the pursuit. Soon, they spotted Balak's soldiers fleeing downriver.

"Muahaha! It seems they planned to escape down the river!" Kinjo crowed.

"Fool!" Hyuntae sneered. "He must have thought we couldn't follow. This is your limit!"

Led by the infiltrator fairies, Lasten's army closed in. Balak's forces, caught mid-stream, scrambled into a defensive formation. But as Mederia's magic bullets rained down and the fairies swarmed them, they were overwhelmed by sheer numbers. The shield-bearing Trolls and Minotaurs fought valiantly, but they were useless against a Guardian. Slowly, Balak's army was pushed back until they broke ranks and fled.

"Don't let them escape! After them!" Hyuntae commanded.

"Indeed!" Kinjo echoed.

Elated by the sight of the routing army, they ordered the chase. Balak's soldiers scrambled upstream, taking heavy losses from the relentless barrage of magic bullets. They died one after another, but they never stopped running. Hyuntae saw it as the desperate struggle of cornered rats.

But Kinjo watched with a growing sense of unease. 'Why are they retreating upstream? They must have come down this way.' Balak's army was still under Taehyun's command. Would such a clever Dungeon Master truly make such a foolish decision? It was too suspicious, no matter how desperate the situation. 'If they'd continued downstream, they could have at least gained some distance. But upstream is an uphill climb, a terrible escape route. They're bound to be caught.'

He couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong and tried to halt the advance. But Hyuntae, his eyes blazing, roared, "What are you doing? We've almost got them! We can't let them get away! Just stay put!"

"But something is strange, Lord Hyuntae! There's no reason for them to flee upstream!"

"Shut up! This victory is mine! I will not lose!"

Hyuntae pressed on, completely ignoring Kinjo's warning. Kinjo watched the screen with an anxious gaze. Balak's forces seemed to be hitting their physical limit, their movements growing sluggish. 'Why? They haven't even run that far.' They were only about halfway up the stream. It made no sense for level 30 soldiers in full gear to be exhausted already.

Oblivious, Hyuntae grew even more excited, barking out orders. His soldiers exploited the enemy's fatigue and closed the distance in an instant. A magic bullet from Mederia exploded directly in front of Balak's vanguard, shattering a boulder and cutting off their escape.

"See?" Hyuntae gloated. "What was so strange? Now all we have to do is finish them—"

At that moment, a figure leaped from the hill behind them. It descended like a hawk, plunging a sword deep into Mederia's back and sending her plummeting from the sky.

"W-what the?!" Hyuntae stammered.

"L-Lord Hyuntae!" Kinjo shrieked. "It's the assault squad! And that's Balak's Guardian!"

It was Grai and his unit. The orc announced his arrival by instantly incapacitating Mederia.

"How did this happen?!" Hyuntae cried out. "You said they wouldn't arrive until tomorrow!"

"I don't know, sir! They shouldn't be here!"

They should have been in the Arid Plains, a three-day journey away. Yet here they were, as if by magic. Grai drew his Fire Dragon and Ice Dragon Swords, his voice booming across the battlefield.

"You have endured well, soldiers! Now begins the slaughter!"

The hero of the battlefield roared. With a single Storm Splitter, he tore through the surrounding soldiers, his presence a massive boost to morale. A shimmering light then washed over Balak's forces as Riel, positioned on the hill, began casting buffs and heals, signaling the start of the second round. The assault squad merged with the main army and crashed into Lasten's forces.

"This way! Moo!"

The Trolls and Minotaurs unleashed their hidden skills, forming an unbreakable wall. Behind them, the Orcs and Goblins followed Grai's lead, systematically eliminating the enemy's ranged units. The tables had turned in an instant.

Watching the screen, Hyuntae collapsed. "Ah… No. My dear Mederia!" He stared at her fallen form, oblivious to the slaughter of his own soldiers.

Kinjo turned away, his face a mask of despair. All hope was lost. Once the main army was annihilated, the next target would be the dungeon and its Crystal Sphere.

"Lord Hyuntae," he said softly. "It seems we have lost."

"Aah, Mederia… my beloved Mederia…"

"Lord Hyuntae, snap out of it! This is no time to be fixated on your Guardian! We must move the Crystal Sphere and try to rebuild!"

The Crystal Sphere in the final room could be relocated, but it meant abandoning the entire dungeon. It was a Dungeon Master's worst nightmare, forcing them to start from scratch, but there was no other choice. Kinjo grabbed Hyuntae's arm, pleading desperately. But Hyuntae violently shook him off, his hands pressed against the screen as he wailed.

"I can't do anything without Mederia! Mederia, my love, please don't die! I'm begging you!"

The Dungeon Master was half-mad. A hollow laugh escaped Kinjo's lips as he sank to the floor. 'What on earth have I been working so hard for all this time?'

He had believed Hyuntae trusted him, relied on him. Even when his master was so infatuated with Mederia that he barely paid him any mind, he had always been given tasks. But now, he saw the truth. It wasn't trust; Hyuntae had simply been too lazy, dumping all the work on him. The proof was right here: as his army was being annihilated, his only thought was for Mederia. All his efforts had been for nothing.

"I, Kinjo, thought I had fulfilled my duty as a Supporter," he whispered, "but it seems I went too far. Muahaha."

"Aah! Mederia! Mederia!"

"This is really sad."

The Dungeon Master's room was filled with nothing but the sound of one man's weeping.

---

A clean slice, and the Fire Dragon Sword cleaved through the last fairy's torso. Grai surveyed the annihilated forces of Lasten and sheathed his blade. Mederia was incapacitated, and the fairies who had once stood in neat formations were now corpses. Riel's buffs had been tremendously effective. Even with the assault squad's arrival, Lasten's army had held the numerical advantage, yet the battle had ended in an instant.

'No,' Grai corrected himself. 'The Supporter's heals and buffs were a factor, but we won because of the Master's strategy.'

The order to target Mederia first, the command for the main army to feign exhaustion—it had all been born from Taehyun's mind. A faint smile touched Grai's lips as he turned away.

'He is no longer just a Master,' he thought, a newfound respect solidifying in his mind. 'From now on, I will call him My Lord.'

The battle with Lasten had unequivocally proven Taehyun's worth. Grai sat on the ground to rest while Riel finished tending to the soldiers' wounds.

---

On the fifth day, Taehyun entered Lasten with Balak's army. The dungeon was eerily empty without its defenders, allowing them to advance unopposed. They easily dealt with the occasional traps in the fairy-themed rooms. When they reached the final chamber with the Crystal Sphere, they found Hyuntae slumped against it.

"Hey," Taehyun called out.

"Where's Mederia?" Hyuntae asked, lifting his bowed head.

At his side, Grai unceremoniously dropped the barely breathing fairy onto the floor.

"Ah, ahhhh! Mederia! Mederia, my love!" Hyuntae scrambled to her side, clinging to her broken form and weeping.

Taehyun scanned the room for Lasten's Supporter but saw no one. All that remained was the corpse of a goblin behind the Crystal Sphere, an apparent suicide. 'Judging by that long nose, he must be a variant goblin. So he was the Supporter.' It seemed he couldn't bear it and had taken his own life before his master.

Taehyun turned his gaze back to Hyuntae. 'To think the C-rank number one was nothing more than an obsessed loser.' He recalled Grai's report. Mederia had likely become an emotionless doll, unable to endure Hyuntae's suffocating obsession.

"Don't die and leave me," Hyuntae sobbed. "Please, Mederia. I'll do better. Okay?"

"…Isn't that enough?" Taehyun cut in.

"You said you loved me! Your body is mine and mine alone! If you die, I'll never feel your embrace again!"

The cloying words made Taehyun's stomach turn. He gave Grai a pointed look.

"Is this sort of work my responsibility now?" Grai sighed. He drew his Ice Dragon Sword and advanced on Mederia.

"W-what are you doing? Stay back!" Hyuntae shrieked.

"Unfortunately," Grai said flatly, "I find this quite disgusting to watch."

"You son of a bitch! Put that sword away! Ah, noooooo!"

That day, the name Lasten was erased from the world map.

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