Noan wasn't particularly surprised at this news. He stroked his chin, thinking montarily before asking, "Can you take care of those zombies?"
"Hahaha…" Vylyss laughed charmingly as she traced circles on Noan's chest with her fingertip. "Master, this task is really difficult."
"But you're already Rank B, Level 1," Noan frowned. He had a feeling she was up to sothing.
"Master… even though I'm Rank B, Level 1, you know just how many zombies there are—more than 6,000," Vylyss pouted. "Besides, among them are quite a few Rank D zombies. It won't be easy."
Noan sighed. "You… Fine, I don't need you to kill all of them. Just take out enough so I can collect 1,000 Rank F energy crystals."
"Master, those zombies act as a horde," Vylyss said as if this were an impossible task. "If I attack even a single one, the entire swarm will berserk."
Noan lowered his gaze to see Vylyss resting her head against his chest, acting as if she truly wanted to carry out his orders but simply wasn't capable.
But Noan knew exactly how terrifying her strength was.
Ultimately, he sighed and said, "I'll reward you after you're done."
"Oh! Really?" Her reaction, however, was completely unexpected. "Master, I want your reward, but… this is a difficult task."
"One night," Noan said.
"Hehehe…" Vylyss giggled seductively. "Master, even though this is a tough job, I will do my best to complete it."
"I'll gather the required energy crystals within four days."
After saying that, she gently kissed his lips before vanishing into a wisp of smoke.
"Master!" Suddenly, Malrik called out, "I can also—"
"Shut up!"
Malrik sat back down, sulking as he drew circles on the ground.
…
Two days later, while Region 27 had not yet fallen into chaos, certain groups of Lords had begun showing signs of rebellion against Caleb.
However, they knew Caleb's overwhelming strength well, so they didn't dare act too openly.
Even so, their efforts to recruit mbers for an uprising against him were blatantly obvious—even a blind man could see it.
While food remained sufficient, the rapidly increasing number of Lords had made organising fishing teams and water collection at the river more difficult.
From an initial count of 200 Lords, the population swelled to 250 within two days.
Fortunately, Caleb was strong and intelligent enough to maintain order, preventing the region from descending entirely into anarchy and war.
However, a new force had erged, threatening this fragile balance.
At another domain, Adrian stood before a blond-haired man, his head bowed, his face full of fear and anxiety.
"Are you telling the truth?" the man suddenly asked.
Adrian hurriedly responded, "Yes, Austin."
"Hm?!"
"Ah, no! Big Brother Austin," Adrian imdiately corrected himself.
Austin nodded lightly, his face filled with contempt as he looked at Adrian and said, "Huh! Just a re Rank D Hero and a Rank D Hero, yet you all surrendered to him? You're truly pathetic."
Hearing Austin's disdainful words, Adrian didn't get angry. Instead, he simply smiled and said, "That's right. I was a fool for following him before."
"But now it's different. I've found my true Big Brother. I will be loyal to you."
Austin glanced at Adrian, then scoffed in disdain.
Since the day Adrian abandoned Caleb and ran away, he had never dared to return.
Why?
Because he was afraid.
Afraid that Caleb would hold a grudge against him. Afraid that Caleb would kill him for his betrayal.
Even though his actions at the ti were purely instinctive, without intending to betray Caleb, Adrian knew full well that his desertion had angered him.
That was why he had chosen to stay hidden.
But now, things were different.
Yesterday, among the newly arrived Lords in the area, one had suddenly declared his intention to establish a leadership group to manage the region.
At first, Adrian didn't pay much attention, but when that Lord revealed a Rank D-Peak Hero under his command, Adrian imdiately recognized his opportunity for a fresh start.
Without hesitation, he acknowledged Austin as his new Big Brother and provided him with all the information about Caleb and the area.
"Don't flatter !" Austin said, though his words contradicted the smug satisfaction on his face. He enjoyed being revered as if he were a king.
"Big Brother!" Adrian said eagerly. "Do you want to kill Caleb, and then—"
"No need to rush," Austin sneered. "Huh! He's just a nobody. However, he arrived at this place earlier than I did, aning he had more ti to prepare. It would be foolish to act recklessly."
"You're right, Big Brother. You are incredibly wise," Adrian took this chance to continue flattering him. "I was the foolish one—please forgive , Big Brother."
Austin chuckled and said, "First, we need to stockpile food. That will be the foundation for us to sustain a prolonged battle."
Austin wasn't wrong to think that way.
After all, Caleb had arrived here much earlier than him and had a significantly more significant number of subordinates. Moreover, Caleb's group had seized control of the only route to the river.
Even though Austin possessed a Rank D-Peak Hero, he was only a Level 2 Lord, whereas Caleb had already reached Level 3.
If a battle were to break out now, his chances of victory weren't very high.
Not to ntion, the number of loyal subordinates he had was still limited, making the conflict even more difficult.
He wasn't foolish enough to believe that just because he had a single Rank D-Peak Hero, he could easily beco the ruler of this place.
Austin decided that the best action for now was to stockpile food while quietly rallying more Lords to his side. Once they had gathered enough forces, they could overthrow Caleb together.
That way, his chances of winning would be much more significant.
At that mont, Austin suddenly asked, "You said there's a terrifying monster in that forest?"
"That's right," Adrian quickly replied. "That day, only Caleb and I made it back—everyone else was killed."
"That's also why Caleb no longer cares much about that forest. He's allowing anyone to enter freely but won't guarantee anyone's safety."
"Lately, many people have been venturing into the forest out of desperation for food. But out of every ten who enter, only five or six return."
Austin frowned and asked, "Did you see this monster yourself?"
Adrian scratched his head awkwardly. "Well… I… I didn't see it. But from what others have described, it's a High Orc with skin as black as tal."
"Its strength is overwhelming—whether it's a Hero, a monster, or even a Lord, they all explode into chunks of at the mont its spiked club lands on them."
Hearing this, Austin's expression grew puzzled.
From what he knew, High Orcs typically had green or red skin—he had never heard of a black-skinned High Orc before.
Moreover, no matter how strong a High Orc was, it should only be Rank D or, at most, Rank D-Peak.
But it would undoubtedly fall even if it were Rank D-Peak, facing an onslaught from such a large number of Lords.
However, Adrian's account contradicted everything Austin knew.
"You're certain there's only one of them?" Austin asked suspiciously.
"Absolutely!" Adrian answered imdiately. "Everyone who made it back alive told the sa story. It seems that the forest only has that one monster."
Austin stroked his chin, finding the situation more and more bizarre.
"Big Brother, do you want to kill that monster?" Adrian suddenly asked. "You have a Rank D-Peak Level 2 beast—I believe you could take it down."
"If you succeed, that entire food forest will belong to you."
Hearing this, greed stirred in Austin's heart. However, he wasn't a fool.
He had survived this long because he had experienced many things—and faced many dangers.
Because of that, he trusted his instincts. Sothing about this forest monster felt off. His gut told him that acting recklessly would be a grave mistake.
"No need to rush!" Austin said with a smirk. "We don't know its exact rank or level. If we charge in blindly, we could suffer unnecessary losses."
"Instead, we should first et with this region's so-called 'Big Brother'. Besides, I'm quite interested in that kid, Noan."
"Is it true that he can bring food into this area from the outside?"
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