Translator: Dreamscribe

Leon had departed.

Whether that should be called death was unclear, but one thing was certain, he could no longer be seen in Arsilan. Leon, who had always helped the Heroes, was no longer there.

The impact was truly immense.

The five theaters that live-broadcasted the invasion war couldn’t close even after the broadcast ended.

The theaters became oceans of tears, and they were paralyzed to the point they couldn’t even be cleaned up for a while. Though it was time to close, FS Games carefully extended the business hours. It was said to have continued until morning.

The same was true for Arsilan Worlds. Mourning wasn’t allowed. The message board was dominated by the opinion that Leon wasn’t dead, but just temporarily parted.

Title: Let’s just think of it as a short separation.

Leon nim’s soul has become the Holy Sword and is with us, right?

After we kill that Lord of Erosion bastard, shouldn’t we go to Ella’s Great Temple or whatever and resurrect him?

What? That’s not how it works?

Who said that?

Then prepare to die.

Anonymous1: fr ㅋㅋ

Anonymous2: I just want him to stay alive by our side!

Anonymous3: C’mon, would FS Games really be that insensitive?

Anonymous4: Whether it’s 8 or 100 scenarios, just bring him back already.

Anonymous5: Leon nim deserves to be happy too!

Reading the posts, fortunately, it wasn’t a rampage. It was like a volcano just starting to emit smoke, about to erupt but not yet blown.

Leon’s popularity extended beyond Arsilan Saga and became a hot topic even overseas.

'Even when Arsilan Saga's overseas service starts, we won't be able to meet Leon?'

It was burning up in a different sense.

Jinwoo had known it would become a topic of discussion.

He had succeeded in directing all emotions toward Erosion and even provided strong motivation. Moreover, since it wasn’t a tragic ending, he thought it would be resolved with time. Technically, it was closer to a happy ending.

But that was his mistake.

As Jinwoo came out of the mansion to go to work, he was met with a scene he had never seen before. His grandfather, noona, and hyung were sitting at the dining table.

They silently turned their heads and looked at Jinwoo.

Flinch!

Jinwoo felt a massive pressure from their gazes.

“Jinwoo.”

His noona called him.

“Come sit here for a moment.”

His grandfather said that.

“There’s something we need to talk about.”

His hyung was serious too.

Thud!

The three of them simultaneously reached their hands out toward Jinwoo and pointed to the empty seat. Jinwoo carefully took his seat.

“Is Leon dead?”

"He can be brought back to life, right?"

“You’re going to bring him back, right?”

His grandfather, noona, and hyung spoke in succession.

"That's..."

Jinwoo couldn't give them a definitive answer.

That was because Leon had been a character conceived and created for that one moment.

Jinwoo considered Leon’s final scene to be a perfect exit. Besides, the role of Leon had been honestly very exhausting.

Being asked to play Leon again was like being told to enlist in the military again.

“...There are a lot of updates prepared for the future, so please look forward to them.”

Jinwoo changed the subject and quickly stood up.

He arrived early at FS Games, but a crowd had already gathered. It had only been two days since what happened to Leon, yet protest trucks were lined up in front of FS Games.

[Creator God nim, we enjoyed this scenario. The ending will be good too, right?]

[We support Leon nim’s resurrection.]

-From Golden Alliance of Arsilan

Fortunately, it wasn’t an violent protest with trucks.

It was simply a silent expression of them watching closely. But to the employees of FS Games, that felt like even greater pressure. The vehicle carrying Jinwoo quietly entered the FS Games building.

Jinwoo held a company-wide meeting.

“Posts in Arsilan Worlds have increased by 32 times. We’ve had so many phone inquiries that we’ve temporarily turned off the phones.”

Han Yong-seon reported that.

He had observed the war situation from the office. He had reviewed all the scenarios sent from the Erosion Headquarters, and his heart sank.

‘No corruption ending! Please!’

‘Let’s avoid a destructive ending!’

Not just Han Yong-seon, but other employees were also earnestly praying for the Golden Alliance of Arsilan. Leon’s death was one thing, but had the scenario led to corruption and antagonism toward players, it might not have been protest trucks outside the FS Games building, it could have been real trucks crashing in.

‘Th-thank goodness!’

‘Hic!’

Fortunately, they had entered one of the better routes. Employees who had been monitoring the situation hugged each other in joy. It was dramatic enough to look like they had just scored a last-minute goal in an international championship and won.

Even so, this was the outcome.

It felt like things had gone a bit too far to simply say, “This is the power of an IP!” FS Games employees reportedly couldn’t look at their smartphones for a while.

The enthusiasm was nice, but it also gave off a sense of danger.

“Um..., CEO-nim, the Heroes are hoping for communication regarding updates.”

“There is a lot of content to update this time. How about calming public opinion down a bit?”

Director Han Yong-seon, and the planning team leader carefully suggested it.

The Heroes of Arsilan Worlds desperately wanted to communicate with Jinwoo. It was rare for a game company CEO to step forward directly, but when talking about Arsilan Saga, the first names that came up were Jinwoo and Leon.

Both were Jinwoo.

‘Hmm.’

He was an Archmage.

He could have left it to Han Yong-seon and stayed behind the scenes, but he didn’t. An Archmage was someone who faced trials head-on. He had even overcome Helby.

"I understand. Let’s try a communication broadcast.”

As Jinwoo nodded and spoke, everyone let out a sigh of relief.

Holding an offline event was too much, so simply introducing things via an online broadcast seemed sufficient.

First, calming things down with a massive content update and then shifting the mood seemed like a good plan.

The atmosphere in the conference room instantly brightened.

In any case, every indicator was explosively positive.

“Then about the new recruitment...”

“And the office relocation...”

The meeting continued in a lighthearted mood.

Immediately after the meeting ended, an urgent notice was posted. It was good timing, as posts in Arsilan Worlds were becoming increasingly aggressive.

Jinwoo, for the first time in a while, spent his time at FS Games instead of going to Arsilan.

“So peaceful.”

He had always been anxious from the moment he established the Magic Barrier and began planning Arsilan Saga until now. His heart had been restless. But now, it was different. He could trust the Heroes and wait while letting go of the burden on his heart.

“Hmm.”

Jinwoo sipped his tea as he leisurely looked out the window from the CEO’s office.

‘Yes, if it's the Heroes, they’ll maturely move forward toward the future.’

Even now, a few more protest trucks were lining up in front of the FS Games building, but Jinwoo nodded to himself with that thought. He began preparing for a live broadcast at the hologram center in the company building.

[The broadcast will begin in 2 hours]

From two hours before the live broadcast, an enormous number of people gathered. It easily exceeded 100,000 viewers. For official broadcasts, a million viewers was the norm.

-Open the doors! Open them! Open them! Open them!

-Explain! Explain! Explain! Explain! Explain!

-Bring him back! Bring him back! Bring him back!

Jinwoo tightly closed his eyes.

It was chaos from the start.

They were not mature at all.

Indeed, operating a game was no easy task.

Jinwoo set the background to an inn filled with a rich fantasy atmosphere. The gentle background music enhanced the mood. He also paid considerable attention to his attire, and Han Yong-seon along with other staff were standing by off-camera to assist with the broadcast.

The broadcast began.

“Hello? This is Lee Jinwoo from FS Games.”

Jinwoo bowed his head.

The chat window was going up like crazy despite various filtering and slow mode being applied. After apologizing, he displayed chat messages specifically from Soul Link holders.

“First of all, I would like to express my gratitude to the Heroes who have protected Arsilan, and to the future Heroes who have shown their support. Thank you.”

Jinwoo politely bowed his head and expressed his thanks.

A polite expression of thanks!

It was a very good start.

-So, is Leon nim dead? He can come back, right? You’ll bring him back, right?

-The news is flooded with it! There are so many articles! So, you’ll bring back Leon, right?

Of course, it wasn’t very effective just yet.

“First, let me talk about the update.”

Open wide!

Here comes the update!

Snap!

As Jinwoo snapped his fingers, a window popped up beside him.

[150 new skills added! 60 new spells added! 30 new sacred techniques added!]

Jinwoo was planning to heavily support the Heroes heading to the Land of Erosion. The Heroes’ strength lay in the game elements, and skills were the most important among them.

Skills were a support system controlled by the Magic Tower.

Skills allowed Heroes to exert over 90% of their inherent abilities through the Magic Tower’s regulation. Since no special effects were needed for now, the Magic Tower’s computation power could be fully redirected here.

-Wowㅋㅋ

-Insane, that’s a total of 240?

“Let’s take a look through this video.”

Some were prepared by the FS Games development team, while others had been conceptualized by Jinwoo. However, most were techniques that had actually existed in Arsilan.

In the video, a swordsman charged forward and thrust his sword powerfully. Then, blue magic power burst out, and the surrounding straw dummies were split into multiple pieces.

It was a sword technique any skilled soldier in Arsilan could perform, but it took years of effort to master. However, the Hero’s body was a bio golem, and since it could be moved purely by the power of the soul, it could be used immediately as long as their stats were sufficient. They just had to shout the skill name to activate it.

When a wizard swung their staff, multiple fire arrows flew out and pierced moving straw dummies.

In the wizard’s case, they had to perform their own spell calculations, but except for the essentials, support was provided to allow quicker casting of complex magic.

Jinwoo presented several videos of skills, spells, and sacred techniques.

-Wow, so romantic.

-Now that’s magic! Looks like no balance patch is needed?

-The swordsman looks amazing.

-So, you’re going to bring back Leon nim, right?

-Wow, everything would be perfect if Leon nim just came back!

...Still, they were at least in a state of listening now.

This was just the beginning.

“Next, take a look.”

[First Job Advancement Added!]

Thanks to the compromise made with Helby through this incident, they were able to proceed immediately. The rewards obtained through the Trials were Helby’s powers. Now, all her abilities could be used through the Magic Tower.

-Job advancement?

-When did they work on this!

-Crazy... was this all part of Leon nim’s plan...

“If you're level 20 or higher, you can proceed with the First Job Advancement through a related quest.”

First-tier classes familiar to everyone, Knight, Guard, Paladin, Cleric, Summoner, Wizard, Reaper, were added. Clearing the Trial would result in a significant stat boost. Some would awaken latent Traits as well.

That could become what is commonly referred to as a hidden piece.

-Paladin, whoa

-I’d better hit level 20 fast

-Look at that Knight’s aura slash. Insane.

As expected, the reaction was extremely positive. Han Yong-seon, visible beyond the camera, nodded, and the staff smiled broadly. Time to ride this momentum!

[High-Rank Items Added!]

"E-rank and above items exist in the Land of Erosion. After obtaining items, you can use them through purification.”

When Erosion monsters were defeated, the components that made up their bodies vanished into particles. However, if the erosion energy was strong, they sometimes left behind parts. Also, the Land of Erosion contained various artifacts and weapons that had been consumed during wars.

This meant Jinwoo didn’t need to put in the effort to create them, Heroes could just go and claim them from the Land of Erosion.

[Item Exchange Added!]

“Item Exchange will be added. You can register and sell items at each village’s exchange. Items can be purchased directly at the exchange, and also through Arsilan Worlds. But note that items can only be collected at the exchange itself.”

Transaction fees were determined by item rank. Jinwoo went on to introduce a variety of other update contents.

-But, aren’t these still in development?

-This level of content will take at least a year...

“When will it be updated? Let’s check.”

Jinwoo displayed the date immediately. It was set for the next regular maintenance.

-Wow!

-Crazy…!

-They’re dropping this right now, this week? God-tier game.

The reaction naturally exploded.

Public opinion soared sky-high. Jinwoo smiled in satisfaction as he enjoyed the chat’s responses. With this much, wouldn’t the sorrow be somewhat soothed?

Perhaps Leon could fade away into history.

-But updates are updates.

-So you are bringing Leon back, right?

...Apparently not.

Chats like these began to take over.

Public sentiment regarding updates and regarding Leon were two separate matters.

‘Hmm.’

In that case, let’s stir the pot a bit.

Jinwoo looked at the chat window for a moment, then smirked.

“There seems to be a misunderstanding among the Heroes....”

Jinwoo’s tone lightened.

"You're already talking as if you've driven out the Lord of Erosion from the Land of Erosion. Even though the Land of Erosion revealed this time is the weakest region, it will be tremendously difficult for you heroes."

-?

-??

-???

Countless baited reactions shot up.

It was a bit of a provocation.

“I, too, would love to grant every request from our Heroes. But what meaning would a world I control entirely have? Arsilan Saga is a world created by the Heroes. All relationships have been formed by you.”

After the provocation, he slyly stepped back.

Jinwoo’s acting had clearly improved.

To anyone watching, he appeared genuinely heartbroken.

“I think it’s more appropriate to discuss that after the Land of Erosion is conquered. Just like always, how things will unfold depends on you Heroes. I will always be on your side.”

Jinwoo said that while staring into the camera.

-Ahh!

-He’s right. It’s all our choices.

-Argh! Kill the Erosion!!

“I’ll make a promise here. When that day comes, we will hold a grand festival. An incredibly magnificent festival. So huge that all of Korea will shake!”

-Wow! Festival!

-Keuh!

-As expected, you know what you're doing!

“And lastly, I’ve prepared a gift. 10 Platinum Coins for everyone! No, wait make that 15!”

He gave in to the atmosphere.

The chat window exploded in cheers.

"I will always support you heroes! Thank you."

Jinwoo offered his farewell and ended the broadcast.

“Phew.”

As soon as the broadcast ended, Jinwoo’s expression completely changed.

Han Yong-seon and the staff approached him.

“CEO-nim, that was amazing. We haven’t even received the next scenario yet, but you already had it all planned out! My heart’s already pounding just thinking about how incredible it’s going to be! Hahaha!”

Han Yong-seon’s eyes sparkled. The staff standing nearby were the same. You could even sense their admiration.

Jinwoo smiled at them.

It was a smile filled with many meanings.

‘Somehow, it’ll work out.’

For now, it seemed like he had managed to settle things. Rather than a resolution, it was more like pushing it off for later. Reclaiming the land and securing the Magic Stone Mine came first.

As for what came next, let the Archmage of that time handle it!

‘Besides, it’s not like Leon’s presence is completely gone.’

There were things he had prepared in advance.

Was he becoming more like Tia?

Jinwoo found himself thinking that for no reason.