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VFA’s NPC hero training system allows players to bind exceptional NPCs to themselves and train them as heroes.

Recruiting NPCs isn’t always easy since they have their own will, although it has become easier with Full Minak’s growing fame.

There are two types of binding for heroes: primary and secondary.

The Primary Allegiance is the true owner, while the Secondary Allegiance is more like a support role for training the hero.

Only the Primary Allegiance can control the hero’s skills, but the Secondary Allegiance has all other permissions, except for skill manipulation.

They can use the hero freely but usually need the Primary Allegiance’s permission to summon the hero, since the Primary Allegiance is the true owner.

A single player can bind up to six NPC heroes as the Primary Allegiance, but there is no limit for Secondary Allegiances.

All guild members can view and level up the hero’s skills and development status, so typically the entire guild works together to train S-rank heroes.

This collective training method is called “joint childcare.”

From the guild’s perspective, each NPC-bound hero is a cherished weapon and family member.

However, in the upper ranks, Space King treats NPCs more like slaves than family.

Pyun Whistle greeted me and the guild members who had just arrived.

“I just returned from the field.”

The betrayal of Prince Hiron. The gravity of the situation didn’t hit us because Kali spoke too lightly about it. Soon, a normal reaction erupted from behind me.

“What the hell, that ungrateful Hiron bastard! We worked so hard to train him to S-rank, and he dares betray us?!”

“His management was a mess.”

A cold voice cut in, and Mino shut his mouth.

[Name] Abyss (lv99)
—Korean server ranking: 2nd
Affiliation: Full Minak
Position: 1st Battalion
[[View Details]]

Another guild member, Abyss, who had arrived earlier, glared at Mino, the manager of Defronta Empire, then looked at me and spoke with a hint of disapproval.

“I tried to kill him, but Space King’s troops were there.”

“You didn’t fight them right before the siege, did you?”

“No. I killed a few, though.”

“…”

So you did fight them.

Anyway, seeing you safe is enough. Surviving that ordeal wouldn’t have been possible if you weren’t the 2nd rank Abyss.

Enker, who had been gaping at the absurd situation, glared at Mino.

Mino is the manager of Defronta Empire.

“Damn it, Kim Mino, you bastard!!”

“Nooo! This can’t be real!!”

“Right! This isn’t real life, it’s a damn game, you loser!! How could you manage Defronta Empire so poorly?!”

Enker exploded, grabbed Mino by the collar, and shook him violently.

“So what, it’s just one NPC.”

Kali remarked indifferently. But Enker’s face clearly showed he couldn’t just let this go.

“Wow! That Hiron bastard, betraying his homeland because of a honey trap?! Does he think he’s the Prince of Troy?! In that story, he should be seducing the woman, not getting seduced!!”

“Our guild’s first conquered nation had a matriarchal system, so it’s a gender reversal situation…”

“Shut up, you idiot!!”

Enker grabbed Mino’s collar and shook him roughly.

“Ugh, I’m sorry. Everything our Guildmaster did for Wichen will be leaked now. What should I tell everyone? They’ll beat me to death.”

Mino, held by the collar, whimpered in a sad voice.

I checked the guild chat.

[Taurine: WTF]

[Taurine: Why did you let Hiron slip away???]

[Taurine: Seriously LOL]

[Samsin: Are they trying to provoke us by taking NPCs?]

[Samsin: High-level mind games?]

[Taurine: Space King just spanked us hard]

[Gentleman: Space King spanked LOL]

[Taurine: Guild name fits LOL]

[Samsin: Haha…]

[Samsin: Or maybe Space King didn’t expect this either…]

[Taurine: LOL that would be embarrassing for us]

[Taurine: How’s the territory management?]

[Kimwhale: Mino… you should have managed Defronta Empire better…]

[Mino: Sorryㅠㅠ Sorryㅠㅠㅠ]

Ignoring the guild chat’s mood, Kali spoke.

“It’s fine. Kaisha has pulled faith-based preps multiple times. Space King always kills royal NPCs upon conquering a territory, so what’s the difference?”

“…”

“If you’re so worried about the Wichen royals, just conquer Wichen before they do.”

I half-listened to Kali while checking the chat.

[Kaisha: If you conquer Wichen, will you kill all the royals again?]

[Kaisha: Be humane, please]

[Kaisha: As you know, our empire and Wichen are neighboring lands with close blood ties]

[Kaisha: Our NPCs are crying]

After typing a polite message and sending a whisper, Space King’s Guildmaster replied immediately.

[Dart: Overly-immersed otaku]

Snap.

[Kaisha: You psycho]

I got so angry that I almost used foul language, then just closed the chat.

Phew.

Let’s see how the siege goes.

“Kaisha, sir.”

Valen, the second prince of the Defronta Empire, called out to me.

With his neatly trimmed black hair and striking purple-tinged red eyes, he was another of my bonded heroes.

[Valen of Defronta]

Rank: SSS+

Affiliation: Defronta/Full Minak

Position: Second Prince

Primary Allegiance: Kaisha (Full Minak)

Secondary Allegiance: Mino (Full Minak)

[Would you like to train him?]

]][[View Skills]][[

Valen, my bonded hero and the second prince of Defronta, was a tall and handsome NPC, popular even within the royal capital.

Heroes generally tend to become more attractive as they are trained.

With a thud, Valen knelt on one knee, looking up at me.

“I’m sorry for not being able to control Hiron. As a member of the royal family, I will take responsibility for this.”

“It’s not something you need to take responsibility for.”

Even though I reassured him, Valen seemed troubled.

I’ve often told him not to discriminate against his royal siblings and to befriend them.

While Hiron was ostracized by the princes because he was an illegitimate child, it was also true that Hiron wasn’t particularly mature, so the situation was somewhat understandable.

The real problem was that Valen’s older brother, the crown prince, bullied Hiron excessively.

If anyone should take responsibility for this mess, it should be the crown prince.

Enker chimed in.

“Exactly. This is all Mino’s fault, not Valen’s. Our noble prince of Defronta shouldn’t have to take any blame.”

“Ugh. My life is worse than an NPC’s….”

Mino muttered sorrowfully as Enker put him in a headlock.

I looked at Valen and said,

“Don’t kneel before the war.”

Valen immediately stood up and gave a short bow.

Pat, pat.

I lightly tapped his shoulder.

The number of people who can participate in the siege of VFA is limited.

That’s why only the elite players and the strongest bonded NPC heroes can join.

“Kaisha, sir!”

At that moment, Elper, an NPC hero of the Defronta army, walked up with his long golden hair shining brilliantly.

Including him, I had a total of three bonded heroes in the Defronta royal capital.

The rest were in other countries.

[Elper]
Rank: SSS+
Affiliation: Defronta/Full Minak
Position: Ranger
Special Note: Survivor of the Fairy Forest
Primary Allegiance: Kaisha (Full Minak)
Secondary Allegiance: Mino (Full Minak)
[Would you like to train him?]
]][[View Skills]][[

Elper, a blond, blue-eyed beauty from the fairy race, was an NPC I was quite fond of, with a personality like a golden retriever. He also suffered a lot due to the crown prince’s antics.

For reference, the crown prince is an NPC whose potential maxed out at rank S, leading Mino to give up on training him.

It’s not easy to train any random NPC into a triple S-rank hero.

Because of this, the crown prince had a strong inferiority complex towards outstanding heroes.

“Hiron has betrayed us!”

Elper’s bright and cheerful voice silenced the guild members and NPCs in the capital.

Elper had a knack for blurting things out.

Of course, the reason he was so cheerful was because he was happy to see the crown prince get what he deserved.

I called out to Elper.

“Elper.”

“Yes?”

“Try using this weapon and submit an analysis report.”

“Yes, sir!”

I handed him a junk item, and he ran off excitedly. That NPC, who gets thrilled over receiving a single item, is the strongest ranger hero of the Defronta Empire, and even Dart covets him.

Kali asked me,

“So, what are you going to do?”

“What do you mean, what am I going to do?”

Thinking about Hiron’s betrayal made me feel bitter.

It was embarrassing for Full Minak’s reputation with NPCs, and getting caught working with Wichen in Space King was also humiliating.

“I’m going to sleep.”

Kali laughed, crossing her arms at my neat and perfect solution.

“That’s genius. But where are you going without logging out?”

“Just going to take a look around.”

I walked out of the operations room.

Fwoosh—

As I drew back the curtain and stepped out, the view opened up before me.

Standing high in the capital of the military empire Defronta, I looked down at the players and NPC soldiers gathered in the courtyard preparing for the siege.

Above the capital floated the premium item ‘White Night.’

Midgard would be as bright as day until the siege ended.

Kali, who followed me out, muttered,

“I can’t believe this is the final siege.”

“Yeah. It’s amazing that we, who started from the corners of Midgard, have conquered the south and made it this far.”

This siege is a battle of the best among the most hardcore players, a true showdown of the kings among them.

Considering VFA’s lore, it should be called the God King’s War.

Kali said,

“I thought the map would expand before the Wichen siege opened, but it never did. I hope this isn’t really the last siege.”

“No way. What would happen to us game addicts if it were?”

Kali and I laughed.

Many game addicts are obsessed with this game, and it’s very popular on the internet too.

There’s a small concern about the game shutting down, though.

“If VFA shuts down, I won’t let the devs off easily in the name of all game addicts.”

“Fair warning. I won’t be cleaning up any bodies.”

He sometimes makes scary remarks about suicide attacks, so I can’t take him lightly.

Kali suddenly looked up.

“Wow! How unloyal!”

“This is true loyalty. If Maya were here, we could nag together like crazy.”

“She’s a proper member of society now.”

True.

The two of us game addicts fell silent.

“…I’ve submitted my resignation.”

Kali’s eyes widened at my bombshell announcement, and then he burst out laughing.

“Pwahahaha—!!”

As Kali’s laughter echoed loudly, curious about what was so funny, Mino, Enker, and even Abyss came out one after another.

Enker asked Kali, “What’s going on, bro? Let me laugh too.”

“Puhaha! Kaisha quit!”

Enker’s jaw dropped. “Wow. As expected of our Guildmaster.”

“Respected Guildmaster, sob sob. Please save me from this devilish guy.”

“Hey! Why would the Guildmaster save you? Be infinitely grateful that he hasn’t thrown you into Abyss, I mean, the fires of hell.”

Enker said this while sneaking a glance at Abyss on the other side. Despite nodding at the undeniable truth, he added, “Seeing the NPCs, let’s tone it down for a bit.”

“Yes, sir!”

At a single word, Enker let go. Mino, suddenly freed from Enker’s persistent headlock, fell flat on the ground.

NPCs below noticed us and began to gather. Soon, some players also acknowledged us, waving lightly.

When I smiled and waved back, a loud cheer erupted from the NPCs within the fortress.

Startled, I said, “What, what’s this?”

Kali, beside me, performed ventriloquism and smiled pleasantly. His waving hand was unusually generous, contrary to his usual personality.

With the siege battle imminent, all NPC soldiers in Differonta had gathered.

Enker and Mino also waved back.

Full Minak. To the NPCs, it was the name of the group of gods that had conquered the entire southern region of Midgard.

It was ranked number one in terms of recognition.

While Space King boasted a notorious reputation from the beginning, our guild, somehow, ended up taking the exact opposite path. Not that it was intentional.

“Woooaah—!! Kaisha-sama!! Please win again this time!!”

“……”

Even though it’s a virtual reality game, I couldn’t help but wonder where else I would receive such love and respect if not here.

Feeling overwhelmed, I was determined to do even better.

“My beloved children, trust only me. I shall save you from Psychopath King.”

“Bro, please moderate your immersion.”

Kali briefly protested beside me, but I lightly ignored him and showed a motherly smile to the NPCs.

The cheers grew louder.

It was the happiest moment.

* * *