Chapter 119: Battle

Kwahhh!

The Orc Soldiers let out a roar to boost their courage.

Since it was a battle between 7 vs 3, the result seemed already set in stone. Wooijin possessed one of the Orc Soldiers to direct the three Orcs.

He had lost 3 Orc Soldiers, yet he was able to eliminate 4 infantrymen. However, there were still 3 enemies left.

"Everyone gather here."

Woojin gathered all the workers, and a single Orc Soldier exited the training facility just in time. He once again possessed the Orc Soldier and was able to eliminate all four infantryman.

However, Woojin could see 10 more infantrymen approaching from the distance.

"I lost. How frustrating."

This was like playing with dolls.

Woojin ended the mock battle without any regrets.

Hweeeehk.

The vision in front of him crumbled and the world broke apart. He blinked as his vision brightened once again, and Woojin was able to see his Dimensional Domain. The Holy Maiden hadn't moved an inch as she waited for him.

"How was it?"

"It was very frustrating."

It was understandable. One's own abilities were restricted. The Immortal had never experienced such an event before, so his frustration would be felt that much more.

"All the Dimensional lords are doing this?"

The other lords were growing their own Dimensional Domain through these frivolous matches? Woojin tasted bitterness in his mouth. The ingredient that fueled all of this was the Energy. When he thought about the methods used by the lords to gather those Energies, he couldn't help, but be in a bad temper.

"The Dimensional Battle is important to them. They bet small, but it is a safe and prudent way to increase their rankings."

Even if one lost 10% of the Dungeon Energy, it wasn't a large amount. The danger from participating in it was low. If one was in danger, one could be like the Holy Maiden, who was able to break the Dimensional Proof to discard the position of being a lord.

"This is so stupid."

This was the reason why they invaded other Dimensions to gather Bloodstones...

"What's this Duel supposed to be?"

"Dimensional Battle is a battle between Dimensional Domain... Duel is a fight between the lords."

"So I just have to do the Duels from the start."

"Duel cannot proceed unless both party agrees to it. The only time you can forcefully start a Duel is as a revenge for losing the Dimensional Battle."

Woojin grinned. He had been frustrated by the Dimensional battle, but he liked how the Duel worked.

"All right. If that's doesn't work, then I can just Raid their Dungeons."

If he didn't like the lord vs lord battles, he could challenge their Domain as an Adventurer. Woojin had cleared Rahsmode's Laboratory and Juliel's Field after he challenged them.

Since they didn't have the Rank of lord, he had no choice but to choose the Clear option.

"Well, all right. It seems it will be important for me to earn another Dimensional Fragment."

If he wanted to purchased a Dungeon, he needed a Dimensional Fragment. It didn't matter if he was opening a Gate into Alphen. He also had to be ready for the unforeseen circumstances where he might need a spare Dungeon that could connected to Earth. He needed to gather as many Dimensional Fragments as he could.

'Who care about losing 10% of the Energy.'

He was going to try to maximize his remaining Protection period by getting ready, but it couldn't be helped if it was too late to do so. Nothing would change by worrying about it. If nothing could change the outcome, it was better for him to give up cleanly. It was better to focus on what would come afterwards in the future.

Woojin stood up from his Throne.

"I'm sorry for my misunderstanding."

"N...not at all."

The Immortal gave an apology... Melody was too taken aback, so she didn't know what to do with herself. Woojin grinned, and he opened a portal to the Seoul Station's 1st Exit.

"You can go now. I still have to make preparations."

"Yes."

Melody gave her farewell. She passed through the portal and exited the large hall of Woojin's throne room.

"Master!"

Bibi ran towards Woojin and hugged him. Her cheeks were puffed out as she glanced around the interior of the castle.

"The Holy Maiden is gone?"

"She's gone."

"Uh whew. I was so surprised."

All of Woojin's Familiars hated the Holy Maiden. They were all Undead, so they didn't mix well with the Holy Maiden. It was inevitable for them to dislike her. Bibi, who was a devil, seemed to be in the same boat. She felt an instinctual repulsion.

"Heh heh. Jaemin is doing better now."

"Oh, is that so?"

This was the best news he had heard today.

"What is he doing right now?"

"He hunted in the morning. Now he is at his house."

Woojin opened his Achievement Store, and he bought a manual about the Dimensional Battle. He looked through it, and there wasn't anything new in it. It was basically what he had learned in the mock battle. It explained the basics, and the system.

"Try reading this. You'll be going out to the Dimensional Battle in my stead."

"All right."

Bibi took the book and skipped away. She went into a cute hut placed in front of the castle. It seemed Bibi had bought herself a house.

"I can give the authority to my vassal to act as my proxy."

If he couldn't avoid the upcoming Dimensional Battles, then he would just have to participate in it. It would be great if he could win. However, if his preparations were inadequate, he couldn't do anything about it. It was unfortunate.

Instead, he must get his revenge through the Duel.

The Great Lords of the 72 Thrones were very high in their rankings, yet Woojin was confident that he would be able to hold his own against them in a Duel. If he was going to lose the Dimensional Battle, he didn't need to participate in it.

He'll just let Bibi have some fun as a form of entertainment. If he lost Energy or items, he'll just take it back through the Duel.

Woojin sloughed off the frustration he had felt from the mock battle and headed towards Jaemin's house.

"Are you here, Jaemin?"

"Yes, hyung."

Woojin opened the door and he entered. Jaemin was sitting on the table reading a book.

"Huh. Where did you get a book?"

"I bought it from a general store right in front of here."

One week had passed in reality, but about 20 days had passed inside the Dimensional Domain. Woojin had developed his Domain as he focused on the living situation of the people inside his Domain.

There used to be only an empty lot present, but he had erected a lot of buildings. He created a lot of shops like the general store, a butcher shop, pub, restaurants, and even a cafe.

He was taking in refugees at a steady rate, so he had the Ho-in race, Orcs, Dwarves, and even a couple humans present here. They had all become residents of the Domain.

Woojin had only one policy. He didn't allow the residents to hunt in the only Dungeon he had. There was no merit system, since the 'Seoul Station's 1st Exit', was off limits.

Since he wasn't charging any fees for refugees staying only for a brief period, there was no harm to his policy.

"What kind of book is it?"

It's just a travel book."

Woojin glanced at the book cover, and it was traveler's journal of the author visiting the most famous Dimensional Domains.

Woojin sat on the table.

"I heard you hunted earlier."

"...Yes."

"How was it?"

"It was... Well..."

Jaemin scratched the back of his head with an awkward expression on his face.

His thirst for blood had worsened, so he asked Kiba to hunt with him. If he didn't, there was a chance he would have jumped a resident after losing his mind.

There wasn't much difference between the monsters and refugees.

If they followed the Domain's rule for resettlement, they were refugees. If they didn't, they were treated as monsters. It didn't matter what race they were from.

Humans hunted humans. Orcs and Elves worked with each other.

Jaemin had been shocked at his own change, and he had been shocked by the existence of other Dimensional Domains. However, it seemed he was getting a bit used to the situation.

"How about we go see your sister now?"

"Mmm. Can my sister come here?"

"It'll be hard for your noonah."

Only the Roused could enter the Dungeons. To be precise, only the Roused could pass through the Portal.

Jiwon was a normal person with no abilities. Moreover, when he thought about her clear soul, there was a very slim chance she would be able to become a Roused.

"I'll head out... However, please tell her to wait a little bit more."

"Well, you take your time."

Jiwon was very worried about him, but in the end, Jaemin had to sort through all of this by himself.

"Also, hyung.."

"Uh, what?"

Jaemin looked at Woojin with a serious expression.

"Is hyung a god?"

"A god...."

Jaemin was truly curious about this point.

Within his Dimensional Domain, it wasn't an exaggeration to think of a lord as a god.

If one had the Energy, one could make anything come true.

Was he a god?

Woojini shook his head from side to side.

"I'm human."

He had met gods before, but they were different from him. No, he wanted to stay different from them.

"Whew. Oh yeah. The people here are worried."

"Who?"

"The Domain residents are worried. They said the lord here is a push... over. They were worried about your Domain being seized by someone else."

It was easy to see why he would look like a pushover to them.

Normally, the lords required an incredible amount tax when a refugee wanted to settle in their Domain. Currently, Woojin didn't even ask for a resettlement fee. He gathered tax through the businesses he ran.

Since he owned a farm gathering Blood plants, there were a lot of refugees staying and wanting to work for him.

Since Woojin didn't hunt in his Dungeon, the amount of Bloodstones he gathered was low. If one didn't have a strong defense, there was a good chance this Domain would become prey to the other lords.

If this Domain was attacked, their situation would worsen and they would have to travel again to other Domains as refugees.

Woojin replied with a question of his own.

"Do I look like a pushover?"

"No way."

Woojin didn't feel the need to squeeze everything out of his Domain's residents. His goal was the 72 Thrones that was way ahead of him. He had no plan on mucking around with the low ranking lords.

"Don't stay inside the house too much. You should hunt like today. In a way, aren't you a Roused now?"

"A Roused?"

"Yes. From a normal person's perspective, all Roused are monsters."

"A Roused...."

Jaemin quietly chewed on that word.

He had a Blood drinking ability and a Transformation ability. Should he view himself as a Roused, who was a bit special?

"You should rest."

"Yes, hyung."

Woojin left Jaemin's house.

Woojin watched the beings of various races walking on the roads constructed between the buildings. They took a peek at Woojin and gave their greetings. When the train of greetings stopped, they started to carefully move away from him. Woojin smirked as he looked at them.

'A pushover.'

If he thought about how frustratingly the Dimensional Battle proceeded, they might have a valid point. If he didn't have a talent for coming up with strategies, he might lose every time. The Dimensional Battle itself was basically a noble's game.

The lords could fight each other without putting themselves out there.

They preserved their own lives while using their underlings to bring in the Energy. This methodology was incompatible with Woojin.

"I don't care which loser comes after me. They better be ready for me."

Who cares about losing ten thousand or twenty thousand Energy Points?

He'll take his revenge through the Duel and he'll just take it all back. Woojin was looking forward to it. He waited to see who would be the first one to request a Dimensional Battle.

***

The Dimensional Domain, Comode's Swamp, was ranked 3,213.

Chief Comode was the owner of this Domain. He was long in body, and he had long canines. He was of the Troll race.

"Goo-hoo-hoo. Here's a good prey."

Comode looked a the new Domain Alandal which was a single rank ahead of his. He smiled with his eyes.

Why were the beginner lords given the Protection period?

It was given so they could make preparations and fortifications. However, it was rare to find a new lord, who had made the proper preparations.

"His name is Kahng-woojin. He is a beginner amongst beginners."

He was the first Dimensional lord to be registered from a Dimension called Earth.

This Dimensional lord had no prior experience of ruling over a Dimensional domain, so there was no way he would be ready. Even if he was prepared, he would be bad at the Dimensional Battle.

"I'll have to target him before everyone else does. Goo-hoo-hoo."

This kind of Domains were first come, first serve.

It was best to bet the maximum amount, while the new lord had no idea what was going on. He had to rip him off in a single battle. If he did this right, he would have the chance to go up 300 ranking spots at once.

Comode waited for the new Domain Alandal's Protection period to end. He sat on the Domain's Throne an hour before the Protection period ended, and he got ready to send the Dimensional Battle request.

He had to be faster than his other competitors!

When the time finally came, Comode requested a Dimensional Battle. He was buoyed with expectation.

As his heart beat faster from the anticipation, his eyes suddenly widened.

<The Dimensional Battle with Alandal has started.>

"Goo-hahaha."

Comode let out a yell of delight.

"Shall I go rip him off?"

Commode was sitting in his throne, and he headed towards the field where the Dimensional Domain would take place.

***

<You received a request for Dimensional Battle from Comode. Will you like to refuse?>

<You can refuse up to three times. Afterwards, it will proceed forcefully.>

<If you win, you will gain 4 days of Protection period. If you lose, you will be given 12 days of Protection period.>

"It's finally here."

Woojin grinned as he sat on his throne. There was a small chair in front of him.

<Dimensional Domain Commander>

Bibi, who was going to carry out the Dimensional Battle in his stead, was sitting there. She had a determined expression on her face.

"Go gamble away to your heart's content."

"Hoong. I'll win, so you don't have to worry about it. You promised. If I win, you'll let me use half of the Energy?"

Woojin smirked at Bibi's determined answer.

"Of course."

He didn't care if she won or lost. He'll get his revenge after the battle.