[True Game - Day 2 Player Test Compilation: 1/32,178]
As Lince quickly clicked on the compilation video, the first thing he saw was the total video count.
Over thirty-two thousand 'Day 2 Players'.
'So, after this three-hundred-day simulation, how many Players will be left?'
The Rock Dragon Giant Lizard was certainly a good starting point, its power placing it among the top tier of Players.
But in the game, on the Oakland Continent, the Tier Three strength of a Rock Dragon Giant Lizard was really far from enough.
Moreover, Lince had previously created a 'Miracle,' and he had no idea what kind of impact it would have on the Swamp Territory during this three-hundred-day simulation.
Thus, Lince was feeling somewhat uneasy at the moment.
After all, the True Game's simulations were filled with too many uncertainties.
The Swamp Territory was wedged between the Human Countries and the Demon Beast Mountain Range. As for this kind of location... well, if he'd had a choice, Lince certainly wouldn't have picked it.
'Perhaps this is what they call a mixed blessing,' he thought.
Filled with a mix of apprehension and eagerness, Lince decided not to watch the other Players' videos.
This time, he directly entered the keywords 'Giant Lizard' and 'Knight Clan' and quickly found the three-hundred-day simulation video for the Swamp Territory.
——————
Nighttime, in the Swamp Territory.
"Tier Two! Haha, Lucia, I've reached Tier Two!!!"
"To think, it's been less than a year since I became an Official Knight! And now I'm already Tier Two!"
"This feels like a dream!!!"
In the simulation video, on just the fifth day, York successfully broke through to Tier Two.
He was incredibly excited, even lifting his beautiful wife, Lucia, and spinning her around in their tent!
"Hey, hey! York, put me down! I'm carrying our baby, you know."
Lucia cried out in alarm, but her face was wreathed in a blissful smile.
"Oh, oh! Sorry, Lucia! I'll put you down right now. I was just so excited that I..."
York put Lucia down, a goofy grin on his face.
In response, Lucia said happily:
"This is certainly something to be happy about. A 24-year-old Tier Two Elite Knight... even in a clan with a Middle Tier Bloodline, that would be considered excellent talent."
"Praise be to the great Your Majesty. None of this would have been possible without Him."
Hearing this, York immediately chimed in with praise:
"Yes, it's all thanks to the grace of Your Majesty."
"Speaking of which, being able to adapt to my Power so quickly and break through to Tier Two is also thanks to the Divine Protection Clan Badge that Your Majesty bestowed upon us."
"And I can feel that even now that I'm Tier Two, this Divine Protection Badge still increases my Meditation speed by nearly ten percent."
"At the same time, the surging and growth of my Bloodline seems to be accelerated as well. That's easy enough to verify; I just need to take off the badge to know for sure."
"This Divine Protection Badge is incredibly powerful. This is a true 'Divine Artifact'! With this Divine Protection Clan Badge and the Swamp Territory, Lucia, I'm certain that even without any further boons from Your Majesty, I can directly challenge the level of a Tier Three Great Knight within five years."
"..."
Lucia listened quietly to York's excited words, simply offering him a smile.
However, on this very night that York had successfully broken through to Tier Two in seclusion, just as he was chattering endlessly to Lucia about his joy, his expression suddenly went slack.
But the vacant look lasted only a moment. Then, under Lucia's stunned gaze, York's face suddenly flushed red again as he exclaimed:
"Praise Your Majesty!!!"
"This!!! This... your servant truly does not know how to repay Your grace and generosity!"
"York? What's wrong? Did you receive another Oracle from Your Majesty?" Lucia was very sharp; she guessed what had happened in an instant.
York looked at Lucia, his expression a mixture of excitement and apprehension.
"Yes, Lucia. Just now, Your Majesty suddenly sent down another Oracle."
"To the east of the Swamp Territory, that damned swarm of Giant-toothed Rats has been dealt with by Your Majesty's earthly avatar. From now on, our camp will no longer have to worry about their nightly attacks."
"Is that so? But isn't that a trivial matter for Your Majesty? Is that really worthy of an Oracle? I thought those rats died five days ago, since they haven't attacked the camp at all recently." Lucia seemed taken aback, and her words revealed what had been happening in the Swamp Territory for the past five days.
York was a little surprised by this, but he replied:
"I see. But, Lucia, you're wrong about one thing. Your Majesty didn't just inform me that He had dealt with the rats."
"The real reason He sent the Oracle is that our Swamp Territory is going to have its own Magic Beast breeding farm!"
Lucia stared at York blankly, her mind momentarily unable to process it. But it only lasted a moment before something clicked, and she whispered in astonishment:
"York, are you saying that His Majesty... He subjugated that swarm of Giant-toothed Rats?"
"And from now on, these Giant-toothed Rats will belong to our Swamp Territory?"
York nodded gravely. "Yes, Lucia."
"From now on, the Giant-toothed Rats will be an asset of our Swamp Territory. Of course, at this stage, we certainly can't sell them openly and draw so much attention."
"We need to raise and breed these little guys properly, and then give a surprise to anyone who dares to make a move on the Swamp Territory."
Giant-toothed Rats were capable of Drilling Ground, and because of their small Body Type, they were perfectly suited to act as the eyes of the Swamp Territory.
And so, as the two discussed their plans, the video began to fast-forward.
At the same time, the perspective of the simulation video shifted to a bird's-eye view, showing the construction progress of the entire Swamp Territory.
Skyscrapers rise from flat ground. Although the Swamp Territory had no skyscrapers, the territory's construction was still incredibly fast.
During this period, the video occasionally cut to scenes of York and Lucia checking on the Giant-toothed Rats, and even showed two Knight's Squires successfully forming a Blood Covenant with two of the rats.
The development of the Swamp Territory was flourishing.
There were minor problems along the way, but no major issues arose.
Whether from Demon Beasts or from the Human Race itself.
But soon, the inevitable arrived.
The simulation video paused on the two hundred and thirty-first day.
By this time, the initial castle of the Swamp Territory was more than halfway complete. A large number of residential houses had even been built, centered around the Lord's Mansion castle.
Of course, most of the farmland had also been cleared, and the Swamp Territory's two existing Black Iron Ore mines had entered the formal stages of excavation and sales.
At this point, the total number of the Swamp Territory's residents—including its citizens, hired miners, small merchants and peddlers, and the establishment of merchant guilds—had surpassed the 2,500 mark.
Large numbers of humans were coming and going from the Swamp Territory, and while this made it seem to be thriving...
...it had also begun to agitate the nearby Demon Beasts.
As a result, an increasing number of incidents involving Demon Beast attacks began to occur near the Swamp Territory.
Until the two hundred and thirty-first day. According to intelligence gathered by the Knight's Squires, three Entry Tier Magical Beasts had allied themselves to the south of the Swamp Territory's border.
They were continuously driving Tierless Demon Beasts toward the Swamp Territory's border. It was obvious they were planning to launch an attack on the Swamp Territory in the near future.