The chaotic brawl in the graveyard lasted less than ten minutes.
I watched BlackWhale through the mirror display. He was swinging that rusted iron shard like a madman, hacking at a Corrosive Wolf. The beast's fangs shattered one of his ribs, but he didn't flinch. Instead, he used the opening to lock his arm around the wolf's throat.
"Die! You mangy mutt!" BlackWhale roared, soul-fire spinning violently inside his skull.
The wolf went limp. He stood up, covered in muck, clearly exhilarated by the rewards popping up on his panel.
"So these are... CP? And Bone Repair Fluid?" He couldn't wait to unscrew the vial of glowing green liquid, pouring it over his cracked ribs.
*Sss—*
White smoke rose as the fracture healed before his eyes.
"Holy crap! Guys, look! This repair fluid doesn't just heal HP, it increases the 'Bone Density' cap!" [BlackWhale] shouted as if he'd discovered a new continent. "When that wolf bit me earlier, my ribs were like crackers. Now that I've patched them up, I feel like I could tank a sledgehammer!"
"For real? Let me take a bite and see?" [IronButt] leaned in, snapping his mandible as if to test the claim.
"Get lost! Those are my ribs!"
"Stop arguing and look at the wolf carcass!" [Dr_Boom] was crouching by the body, using a broken finger bone to perform a crude dissection. "The gathering system is manual! If you don't cut along the muscle fibers, the material integrity drops. I tried to rip it apart, and the system warned me that the [Wolf Pelt] turned into [Ruined Hide]. It only sells for 1 CP. What a ripoff!"
"Manual gathering? Is the dev a sadist?" A crowd of skeletons gathered around, starting to study how to elegantly skin a wolf with a piece of rusted iron.
I sat on my throne in the tower, tapping the armrest. It was time to make an appearance. As a proper "developer," I couldn't just hide behind the scenes forever. I needed to give them a clear goal to strive for.
I swiped open the void, performing a final check on my Lord Panel:
```yaml[Lord Panel]Name: Mordekai von AstoraIdentity: Lord of Astora / Sole "Developer"Tier: T0 (Mortal) —— Locked by Territory Level (LV 1)(Note: Player perspective tier displayed as: ???)Level: LV 22Soul Energy: 1240 / 5000 Territory Reputation: 10 (Infamous)Current Subjects: 1 (Succubus) + 42 (Human Outcasts)Descended Players: 16 / 50 ---Facilities: Starting Graveyard (LV 1), Crumbling Tower (LV 1)```
I stood up, adjusting my worn but still crisp black robes. This garment had once been a symbol of my family's glory; now, it held only the dust of history.
"Seraphina," I called softly.
"Here, Highness," a succubus in a maid outfit with small purple wings emerged from the shadows. She curled her lip, looking at the players on the screen. "Are you sure you want to rely on these... monsters who haven't even stabilized their **T0** tier and only know how to strip their own ribs to restore Astora?"
"They aren't monsters, Seraphina." I pushed open the heavy tower doors, letting the cold wind rush in. "They are the purest war machines in this world. Give them enough rewards, and they'll drag the gods themselves off their pedestals."
I walked down the spiral staircase and pushed open the castle's main gates.
The ruckus in the graveyard stopped instantly.
A dozen skeletons froze, turning their heads in unison. Deep within their hollow sockets, soul-fire flickered with sudden tension.
I stopped on the steps, looking down at them. I knew that in their view, my name must be glowing in brilliant gold: [Lord Mordekai von Astora (???)] .
"Warriors," I lowered my voice, making it sound authoritative yet tinged with a hint of melancholy. "Welcome to Astora. This was once a beacon of civilization; now, it is but a cursed ruin."
BlackWhale was the first to react. He took a step forward, rusted iron still in hand. "You're the Lord? The main NPC?"
"I am your Lord, and the only one you can rely on." I spread my arms toward the crumbling castle behind me. "Your arrival was no accident. The outcasts of Astora are weeping, and the Inquisition's blades are drawing near. I need you. I need your strength to reclaim this land from the darkness."
[System Announcement: Lord Mordekai has initiated the Territory Construction Phase.][Main Quest Updated: Repair the Sanctuary.][Description: Carry stones and timber to repair the castle's outer defensive walls (0/100).][Reward: 1 CP per delivery. Top 3 contributors will receive the 'Diligent One' title.]
BlackWhale, who had just been acting like a "hardcore gamer," looked like his blue eyes were about to pop out at the mention of rewards.
"A title? Does it have stats?""Who cares! Get the stones! Don't touch that big one, it's mine!"
Watching this pack of skeletons, who were complaining about pain just a moment ago, now frantically hauling rocks for a single point of CP, Seraphina fell into a profound silence behind me.
"Highness," she spoke hollowly. "I take it back. They aren't monsters. They're lunatics."
I looked out over the busy graveyard, already calculating the remaining bread and water in the territory. The outcasts were reaching their limit, and these "lunatics" would be my first batch of labor to trade for survival supplies.
"Lunatics are good," I smiled faintly. "This world has always been a playground for the mad."