Chapter 2025

"So where is Grid and what is he up to?"

Every time something important happened and players who participated in an event got in trouble, this was the public's reaction. At some point, it became a meme that mocked the so-called 'Grid parrots' who always mentioned Grid if things became a bit difficult.

However, it had been quiet lately. There were many hateful comments every time there was a chat message or post mentioning Grid's whereabouts.

Why the sudden change in atmosphere? This was because of what Grid had shown over the past few months.

Grid's battles were occasionally captured through world messages and epics. Ordinary people had little opportunity to actually witness his fights. This made sense, given that Grid had fought high-level opponents such as Transcendents, demons, gods, and dragons.

But recently, some people had been witnessing his battles. News of these battles spread. People's hearts sank. Seeing Grid fight was different from what they had imagined. It wasn't easy seeing him struggling to not die even though he'd gotten close to death several times. He looked exactly like an ordinary person. Still, he kept fighting, but he looked absolutely horrendous as he did that. Ordinary people couldn't bear that.

Despite repeatedly showing hopelessness at the enemy's endless potential, Grid always fought until the end. Even if he got injured multiple times, he fought back rather than backing down. People even saw themselves in Grid because, at the end of the day, he was just an ordinary human, just like them. The moment Grid took a step back from fighting, they remembered that his life could also fall apart if something critical happened.

Since then, people hadn't been mentioning Grid as much as they used to.

"That's good."

Reinhardt, the capital of the Overgeared Empire.

Grid inspected the situation of the battlefield as soon as he logged in. Just by looking at the contents of the guild chat and the announcements, he could picture the general situation. The periodic correspondence from the assassins of the Overgeared Shadows revealed details of the war.

"......"

Several Overgeared members tried to approach Grid, who was reading the letter, but gave up and turned back. This was because Grid was virtually bare. His helmet was set to be invisible, but he wasn't wearing armor, gaiter, gauntlets, or boots. Normally, they would've dismissed this while thinking, 'I guess he is planning to craft some items.'

But this was a rare situation. Even with less than a day left in the quest to stop the erosion ceremony, it was unlikely that Grid would lock himself up in the smithy. On top of that, Grid had recently battled Garam, which meant that all of his armor had probably been destroyed.

'So even the dragon armor made from Greed can't withstand an Absolute at the level of a God of the beginning?'

The members of the Overgeared stopped by Reinhardt to pick up various elixirs, potions, and buff scrolls. They were about to suggest to Grid to return to the battlefield together, but they ended up leaving quietly. Another ten minutes passed.

"Chensler is finally awakening his potential..."

Grid read all of the correspondence and recalled old memories. Armored Cavalryman Chensler... Grid had analyzed his armor to gain his immortality, but he was shocked. The armor only provided infinite physical strength and vitality to the wearer. It provided no such thing as immortality. Chensler becoming immortal was a miracle born out of his loyalty to Juander. Miracles often happened in Satisfy.

Grid was lost in thought for a bit. Lord approached him and greeted him politely.

"Father."

Most of the troops had left to fight on the Tomb of the Gods. Lord and the Daughters of Rebecca were guarding the imperial palace. Lord couldn't bear to leave his duty of protecting the capital.

"The due date is just around the corner."

Soon, his younger siblings would be born. There were only two Full Moon Fortresses left.

The odds that the cultivators would give up on the Full Moon Fortress and launch a counterattack on the capital were low, but Lord had remained behind to protect his family just in case.

Lord's expression darkened as he explained what was bothering him. "Queen Basara also moved to the imperial palace, but... I got no response from Marie Rose, no matter how many times I tried to contact her. Thus, I'm anxious."

Surprisingly, his father had impregnated Irene, Mercedes, Basara, and Marie Rose around the same time. All of their due dates were almost the same. This was why Lord had invited all of them to the safest and most comfortable place in the world—Reinhardt, the capital.

However, Marie Rose didn't cooperate with him. She didn't reply to him no matter how Lord felt.

"Why are you so worried? She is in the safest place possible."

Grid reacted as if what Lord was telling him didn't matter. He believed that no one in the world would dare to raid Marie Rose's castle. However, he changed his mind when he saw the expression on Lord's face.

Grid remembered that there were no unbreakable rules in the world. He was proof of that. How could he guarantee that no one would dare to raid Marie Rose's castle? Marie Rose was about to give birth. She was pregnant, so she wasn't in the best shape.

More than anything else...

'Lord will keep being anxious.'

Lord was a very grateful child. He grew up so well by himself. He respected and admired his father. Even though he suddenly ended up with three stepmothers, he readily accepted them. He possibly reacted this way because of the medieval setting of Satisfy, but in any case... Grid wanted to make sure Lord would be there for his siblings when they would be born.

"...No. I shouldn't be so arrogant at such a crucial moment. Marie Rose should be here too. I will persuade her to come to Reinhardt."

"I'm glad."

Lord's expression immediately brightened.

"I think that if my younger siblings get along together from a young age, they will care for, love, and rely on each other without any prejudices. Marie Rose is of a different race. That's why I was worried, but I am relieved that you changed your mind, Father."

"......"

Seeing his child smile so brightly, Grid realized the real reason Lord seemed so upset. Lord was only a teenager, but he was very considerate. Definitely more than Grid was. Lord clearly resembled Irene more.

"You..."

Grid hugged Lord as tightly as possible without saying anything else. Because of the affection that welled up deep in his heart, he inevitably hugged too tightly. It was a relief that he was hugging Lord of all people like that. If Lord hadn't had superior stats to anyone else of the same level or if he hadn't inherited Grid's items, he wouldn't have been able to handle Grid's strength and his ribs would've been crushed.

Grid laughed when he saw the worry in Lord's eyes. "Don't worry. I will be able to control my strength better when it comes to your younger siblings."

Irene would've been in the most danger if Grid hadn't been able to control his strength every time.

Grid hadn't been so excited for a long time. He finally realized how much he cared for Lord.

"I can't wait to see my grandchildren."

The way Grid was talking was a bit bizarre. His manner of speech naturally changed depending on who he was talking to. Grid, who was immature in front of anyone else, acted somewhat like an adult when it came to Lord. However, the way he was acting wasn't strange or awkward. This was a natural phenomenon that every father went through.

"There are some girls I would like to introduce to you, Father. Once this war is over, I will try to imitate you."

"G-girls? S-sure..."

As expected, Lord was talking about the Daughters of Rebecca. Surely he didn't mean all of them? Even though Lord was a prince, this was a bit...

For the first time in ages, Grid understood how his parents felt. He remembered how badly they had reacted when he introduced Yura and Jishuka at the same time, saying he was serious about their relationship and that they were considering marriage...

'But I won't give up on any of them.'

In today's world, it was rare to see someone bound by the laws of their respective country. Since science and technology had developed so much, the distance between countries had closed rapidly. Physical distance and language wasn't an impediment anymore. If Grid decided that the laws of his country infringed on his interests or happiness, he could change his citizenship. There were countless countries in the world who wanted Grid, Yura, and Jishuka.

'...Wait. Could it be that Lord feels the same way I do?'

His thoughts stopped spiraling out of control. A chill went down Grid's spine.

'I will leave the empire because Father doesn't allow me to marry these girls. I will abandon my status as a prince and seek asylum in a faraway country that welcomes us.'

He imagined Lord telling him this coldly. Grid was deluding himself. Good thing he realized he was doing this. Nevertheless, he felt sad and depressed.

"Ahh... Irene, I'm sorry. This is all my fault, so I'll let it slide this time..."

"Father?"

Grid was teary-eyed because he felt sorry that Irene would lose her son, but he came to his senses. Lord's head was tilted to the side. Embarrassed, Grid cleared his throat.

"I will go to Marie Rose's castle, so don't worry and just wait."

"Alright. I will take good care of my mothers."

Lord said goodbye respectfully and returned to the palace. Grid really wanted to follow him. It had been a long time since he saw his wives. However, he was in the middle of war. All his comrades were fighting, so flirting would have to wait for now.

'How about I don't forget my duties? I need to be an example to others.'

Grid stopped feeling regretful and was just about to enter the warp gate when he received a whisper from his clone.

-I've made armor and gaiters for you to use right away.If you send Noe, I will deliver them through him.

When Grid had forcibly been logged out, Grid's clone had made some decisions by himself. He kept an eye on Asgard's developments while working with Khan and Hexetia to craft new armor for Grid. Of course, the item was slightly weaker than armor that Grid could craft himself, but it was strong enough to be used as a spare. Grid's armor had shattered, so this was better than nothing.

"Thank you."

A clone like this used to be an incarnation that only the chief gods of Asgard could create and manipulate. Judar had used it as a bargaining chip with Grid as if it was a tremendous treasure. The cultivators also really wanted the clone, calling him an out-of-body incarnation. Grid finally realized why. The clone was like another self. There were more benefits to this clone than Grid had initially thought of.

Unexpectedly, the clone had even crafted armor while he was away... Wasn't this almost like an ureongi gaksi? [1]

[You have entered Marie Rose's castle.]

Grid smiled happily as he arrived at his destination in an instant thanks to the warp gate. This world had become so much more convenient...

Grid's smile suddenly disappeared. There were no traces of anyone around. Marie Rose was nowhere to be seen in the huge castle.

"Marie Rose...?"

1. Korean folktale about a poor man who breaks the taboos and marries a woman who emerges from a snail shell. The snail woman does most of the chores at home ☜