Level 0 Master

Clang.

After a moment, the dungeon door opened. Imprisoned virgins shivered with fear, wondering who would be dragged out today. But the one who entered through the door was not the Blood Ruler eminating the smell of death nor the three sex-driven knights. It was their savior with a golden halo.

"Everyone, you've been through so much. I'm sorry I didn't come earlier."

"Your… Highness?"

"Your Highness… did you defeat them?"

"Your Highness! Your Highness!"

The women who found their strength with a single ray of hope immediately knelt before the princess and began to cry. Seeing their thin faces and naked body on the dirty floor of the prison, Ereka, too, began to tear up.

When the late king was the ruler, this used to be a real prison where real sinners were imprisoned and punished. But now, the Blood Ruler dishonored this place by imprisoning innocent people to abuse them.

She couldn't let this be repeated.

"I'm glad at least you all are fine. It's the only good of many unfortunate events."

"Your Highness..."

A woman in a rug grabbed Ereka's dress. Looking at the dirt-caked woman, Ereka greeted her with a smile.

"Oh, Lady Nania. You're okay!"

"You remember… my name..."

"Of course. When I visited the volunteer's Hospital, you showed me around. I was worried about you."

"Your Highness..."

Her name was Nania, not number 29.

She bursted into tears.

"Now. Everyone, let's head home. Now… from now on… I will not let this happen again."

Ereka comforted every one of them.

Looking at the scene, Sungjin was proud. If the words "hope" and "salvation" had a body, this had to be it. This was a perfect example.

Yes, this is the better victory.

What he used to play on earth were e-sports games, but in this world, it was a war of victory or defeat. That meant that his choices had bigger consequences. He was able to do as much good as he was able to do evil.

The feeling of victory was good. The honor and compensation which came with it was also good. But those were not the only things he had earned in this battle.

He had also been able to protect and save many people. They were the people who were imprisoned in order to become sacrifices. And above all… there was a girl who abandoned her happiness to save them.

Beautiful.

Sungjin admired as he watched Ereka who was comforting everyone.

A smile befitting the grace of a princess.

The bright laughter of a girl.

The tearful dedication of a ruler.

She, who had everything, was beautiful.

And Sungjin had protected that beautiful flower, which made him feel more proud and feel like this was the greatest victory ever.

In the world where a game was a war and not a sport, he realized how glorious victory could be.

Hm. This aligns with my tastes.

He won in a battle where the destiny of a kingdom was at stake. There were other bigger words such as "honor," "pride," "self-respect" or "glory" that were better suited for his victory, but he summed it up as a tasteful experience and smiled.

After saving the people, Ereka took Sungjin to another place—the state coffers of the castle.

When Ereka unlocked the magic spell, gold bars and coins were revealed, living up to the name of a coffer.

"Is everything pure gold?" Sungjin asked.

"Yes."

Sungjin estimated the quantity. One gold bar was 1kg. Comparing this to the things on earth by ratio was impossible, but one bar had to be worth at least 40-50 thousand dollars.

"200 thousand gold bars… is there a similar amount of gold coins?"

He was speechless when he estimated the total worth to be around two billion dollars.

When one won first place on earth, the prize would be 1/10,000 of what he was looking at. Even if he took additional income such as advertising and broadcasting into account, the best would be 1/1,000.

The level of 'national budget' was on a different level.

"Yes, we won this over thanks to you. Half of this is yours."

"Half...?"

"To continue your journey to become an Arc Master, you will need a lot of money. This is yours."

Half was one billion dollars, and in front of an unrealistic figure, he shook his head briefly.

For him, who used to live off his inherited parent's insurance, and think of chicken wings as luxury, the sum was too large. Any average high school student would have lost their minds.

But he quickly refocused.

I see. This is the national budget. And the battle I've just fought is a civil war.

He was not just a gamer but a commander who was a vital player in the middle of a civil war.

On earth, a national budget was normally a few trillion dollars, give or take, depending on the country's economy. The taxes from ten million people would be around one billion dollars.

Having half of the kingdom meant having those people.

Ha. Look at me. I said I would become an Arc Master with such spirit, but am just realising the reality of what I've said.

When he saw the people he saved and now when he saw the countless gold bars, he realized that this was not a game, but a war between kingdoms. He didn't know what to do with this enormous sum of money.

Sungjin took one gold bar into his pocket as a souvenir. That was already worth tens of thousands of dollars.

And the rest...

"You use it."

"What? But..."

"I told you from the beginning. I will titularly become an owner of half of the kingdom, but you will be the sole ruler. The army of the Blood Ruler retreated, but the people's livelihoods must be still miserable. Use it to take care of them."

"Will that be… okay?"

"Let's put out the fire first. I'll take the remainders after everything's been organized."

Sungjin recalled the weary people that were freed from the prison once more. Becoming an Arc Master meant he would have to defeat kingdoms, which also meant that he was going to amass political and economic power.

Although he didn't know what he was going to use it for, he wasn't going to regret using it to save those people.

Looking at Sungjin, Ereka's heartbeat started to quicken again.

You… really are a man of your word.

He promised to give her sole rulership, but she didn't expect him to keep his promise in front of gold.

He was a man of immense potential.

She slowly approached Sungjin.

Huh?

When her clear and beautiful eyes came close to him Sungjin froze. In that second, she pressed a kiss to his cheek.

What?

Sungjin, who maintained his cool before the massive amount of money, froze due to her actions. He didn't know how to explain the warm and tingling feeling spreading out from his cheek.

Anyways, this was the first time for him.

While his brain stopped functioning, Ereka stepped back blushing.

"Don't… Don't think of this as strange. I.. was following the traditional manner as a princess to show my appreciation to the knight who saved the kingdom. There… There wasn't any other intention."

"Ah, I got it. Hahaha."

Unlike his usual self, Sungjin replied dazedly with laughter.

"Yes. There was no other intention… So… So I'll leave you to it..." Ereka stuttered.

Asking him not to take it meaningfully, she ran away. She ran into the nearest wall to her right as she wasn't watching where she was going, and soon ran into the left wall in an attempt to run the opposite direction.

Sungjin vacantly stared at Ereka running zig-zag down the straight corridor.

Ah. Well… she said it was a gesture to thank me… In a traditional manner… Don't try to think about it too much. Ahaha.

Sungjin collected his thoughts with an awkward smile. But… the warm feeling remained.

On that day, Sungjin freed many people, and by giving up his gold, he provided enough food and hospitals to take care of them.

He deserved to assert that he saved many people.

His compensation was self-respect… And a special appreciation of a girl.

The next day.

Ereka prepared Sungjin's breakfast after finishing up her morning duties for the castle and the territory.

This was something which had turned into a normal routing.

She prepared amazing food as usual…

Or was supposed to, but was zoning out with the spatula in hand.

Ahh. Sungjin was so cool yesterday.

Deep inside, she had given up, but he saved her with one single letter. He was a strong, charming man despite the fact he had no level.

I did something way too bold because of his charm… No… It was according to tradition. There was no other intention.

It was right to show such a level of appreciation. It was right… but she didn't understand why she blushed everytime she recalled that moment.

I wonder how much stronger he could get when he attains a level.

He was not just strong. He had an incomparable character with the other high-level heroes. No other hero from any other kingdom tried to save her from the tyranny of the Blood Ruler. The three knights even pledged loyalty to the Blood Ruler.

It was only Sungjin… who fought against the strong enemy to save her.

On top of that, he forgave Rittier's rudeness without hesitation and gave an enormous amount of gold to save the people. Ahh. How manly.

Crackle.

Crackle.

Her fried eggs were burning beyond blackness into coals, but she was still thinking of Sungjin.

I wonder what he likes.

He seemed like a meat lover.

What if he hates me because I give him something he doesn't like?

She thought that whenever necessary, it was better to have people take bitter medicine even if they didn't like it.

But what if he hates me because of that…?

If not hate, he could think of her as a boring woman...

Haaa. What about the herbal medicine? He said that it was too bitter and that he didn't like it.

What if he got angry or annoyed with her when she insisted he take it? She thought that she was doing what she was supposed to do, but she couldn't understand why she was so worried.

Ereka couldn't pinpoint the reason.

Her eggs became charcoal, and they ruined the frying pan.

Haa. First, I'll serve him his breakfast...

Then she finally realized what was going on in the kitchen. The frying pan was burnt, the pans had flooded, and smoke was coming out of the oven.

"Oh… Oh gosh, no…. How… What should I do?"

She moved quickly to clean up the mess with a frown on her face, but it was too late.

On the breakfast table.

Sungjin blinked at the food which was different from the usual servings. There were some burnt, while others were raw. There was no need to describe the presentation.

"Hm?"

He was not the complaining type, but since someone who used to be a good chef made this many mistakes, he was rather worried.

"I'm sorry. I will prepare your lunch properly."

Ereka dropped her head and apologized over and over again.

"No. It's okay. We've all woken up on the wrong side of the bed once or twice."

"No. Let me prepare your lunch properly."

"Don't push yourself too hard."

Sungjin briefly thought maybe it was that time of the month, but he was polite enough not to ask such a question to a woman. He started to have his breakfast in silence.

"Ah, but this is okay," Sungjin complimented the fresh salad, despite the presentation.

"Is it?"

Ereka's eyes were shining with happiness. She was truly happy at least one thing had pleased Sungjin.

Oh, what a relief.

That was really good news. She was so relieved and happy. His comment made her happy again, just like magic.

Okay. I will make his lunch well.

After breakfast, Ereka walked with an elated mood and a clenched fist against her beating heart.

Ahh, Sungjin.

She brought him disastrous food, but Sungjin was nice to her instead of complaining.

And he even praised the better of it to encourage me.

She had to give him a better lunch.

I wonder if he likes anything else.

Questions about Sungjin rose in her mind.

I wonder what his favorite color is. Or his favorite flower?

And… what she really wanted to know the most was…

Did he… have a… lover… back in his world?

When she summoned him, she thought he was one of those people who violated and reigned over numerous women, but after realizing he wasn't such a man the question pestered her further.

If he did have a lover...

She sighed.

He must have had one, right?

A charming guy like that, there must have been a line of girls waiting for him.

But how many...

She was curious, really curious, but she didn't have the courage to ask him. She wanted to know the truth, but she was too scared to hear his answer.

Haa… what should I do…?

She shook her head after sighing deeply.

Silly me. What am I thinking? The war is not over.

When the Blood Ruler returned awakened, the kingdom will be in danger.

She only just recovered half of the kingdom; the people living in the other half were still suffering.

I need to focus on the final victory.

Supporting Sungjin to come up with a brilliant strategy was her job, not worrying about his past lovers.

Yes. No matter how many women he's had, he is still my savior. I need to support him to stay on the top of the game while training myself as a knight.

Curiosity was not a part of her duties.

Yes, I need to train my mind. My mind.

She walked into the practice room with her spear.

Hm.

She slammed the block of wood, and the wood which swung back returned. By repeating that numerous times, a few dozen pieces of wood started to attack her from every direction.

She kept hitting them without using her Heroic Power to train herself. It was impossible to level up outside of the battlefield. But martial arts skills could still be trained.

In real situations, victory and defeat were decided by the skills given by god, but training herself in martial arts was better than nothing.

She tried to concentrate.

Concentrate… concentrate...

And so she tried, but Sungjin, even Jenna, entered the training room.

"Oh, princess!"

"Ho? She's practicing already."

"She is good, don't you think?"

"I agree. She is good."

Sungjin nodded.

Moving rapidly with a spear, Ereka's movement looked like a beautiful dance rather than a fight. It was martial arts and dance at the same time. It was powerful yet beautiful, practical yet formal.

Ereka's ears twitched.

Oh. He's looking. Oh no.

Although she gave up being a girl a long time ago… She became hesitant about showing this side of herself to Sungjin.

Her spear lost its balance, and a piece of wood struck her shoulder.

Ah! What am I thinking? That doesn't matter. Concentrate!

"Huh? The princess made a mistake. That's rare."

"Hm, no one can be perfect all the time."

When Jenna tilted her tail, Sungjin pretended as though he didn't know what Jenna 'supposedly doesn't know'.

"Hehehe. But don't you think the princess with her spear is really beautiful? Other people say women are supposed to wear dresses and not armor, but I think the princess right now is more cool!"

"Ah, I agree with you."

A blooming flower in a dancing ball was beautiful, but the princess who was sweating from training to protect her people was equally beautiful.

"But… Hm..." Sungjin didn't finish his sentence.

That pure figure which stood on the battlefield, suppressing the desire to cook and love dolls. On one hand it was elegant and beautiful, but on the other he inwardly thought that she was pitiful. It wasn't something he could say out loud before someone who was training hard.

Ereka couldn't stop listening to their conversation.

Why didn't he finish his sentence? Like wanting something a bit more revealing...

Three pieces of wood struck her.

Ouch. What I'm I doing, listening to other people's conversation in the middle of my training.

She corrected the grip of her spear.

There's no reason to be flattered. Sungjin is not a guy who would say bad things about someone to their face. Even if he thinks I'm ugly, he is generous enough to compliment me.

Hadn't she given up pursuing beauty when she wore an armour instead of a dress? To think she still had lingering attachments, it was unbefitting a ruler.

I need to concentrate solely on training...

"Hm. She doesn't seem to be in a good condition today."

"We had a huge fight yesterday. It 's okay to relax a bit."

"Hehe. You have a point. Ah, right. Oppa, oppa."

"Hm?"

"How's the princess compared to all the girls you used to have in your world? Is she pretty like them?" With twinkling eyes and a flapping tail, Jenna asked Sungjin with an innocent face.

"Cough."

What kind of misunderstanding is this kid having?

"Why in the world do you think I was a womanizer?"

Ereka couldn't stop eavesdropping.

"Huh? Because Grandpa told me you may be a Level 0 extra, but looking at your ability you used to be the ultimate king of your world and will become one in this world as well. So he told me to treat you accordingly."

"To correct that, I've never even dated a girl."

"Really?" Ereka asked suddenly, thoughtlessly turning around while lowering her spear.