Dark Warlock in the Apocalypse

Justin was left speechless by Kade's shameless behavior. If he was going to make excuses, he should at least make them believable. The bloodstains on the floor were clear evidence of what had just happened, and yet Kade was still trying to act casual.

"Ahem, well, now that I've said my piece, I'll be off..." Kade muttered, trying to back away.

"Off? Who said you could leave?" Justin cut him off sharply.

Kade froze, his attempt to slip away failing. Justin raised his staff, gesturing to his waiting subordinates. "Prepare for battle."

"Shit...!" Kade finally realized the danger he was in and quickly grabbed his weapon. But it was more of a reflex than a show of confidence—he clearly knew he had no chance of winning.

Just as the situation reached the brink of violence and Justin was about to give the attack order—

Rumble.

"...!"

A loud sound echoed from the opposite side of the hall as another door opened. Everyone's attention, including Justin's, turned toward it. Moments later, a group of pioneers appeared through the open door, and Justin blinked in surprise.

"A... dragon?"

"Kyuurrr!"

The first thing that caught Justin's eye was a small golden dragon perched on someone's shoulder. The scales were different from those of Fafnir, but its appearance was unmistakably that of a dragon. This wasn't some lesser drake—it was a true dragon.

"Seems like something interesting happened while we were away," a young man's voice broke the stunned silence. His tone was casual, but a hint of amusement curled at the edges of his smile. He was just as striking as Zeal in appearance, and just as calm.

"If you don't mind, would you care to explain what's going on?" the young man asked politely while gently stroking the dragon on his shoulder. The dragon responded by shaking its body, almost like a contented kitten, something that only a legitimate dragon rider could achieve.

At that moment, Justin realized something. A dragon rider. The pioneer standing before him had acquired a hidden class, just like he had.

'Well, I guess it's not that surprising,' Justin thought. After a moment of initial surprise, he quickly came to terms with it. Hidden classes weren't exclusive to him, nor were there just one or two of them. Anyone who knew the requirements would try to get them.

Some hidden classes even had their conditions fully revealed by now, making them easier to obtain.

'Still, to meet a dragon rider as the first hidden class pioneer...' Justin mused. Dragon riders weren't chosen based on skill. It was pure luck—whether someone could find a dragon egg before reaching level 25. The job was so rare that most never encountered one, even as an enemy. Yet here one stood, right in front of him.

Just as Justin was quietly impressed by the improbability of the situation, Kade's desperate voice rang out.

"Please, help me! They were going to attack us! The moment they realized this place wasn't a safe zone, they tried to overwhelm us with numbers!"

Everyone else gaped in disbelief at Kade's blatant lie. He had been the one lying in wait to ambush, yet he was spinning a false story?

"Is that true?" the dragon rider asked, glancing at Justin with a skeptical look. Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire

Instead of answering right away, Justin scanned the group behind the dragon rider.

'There are a lot of them,' Justin noted. It was hard to see the exact number due to the distance, but he estimated about 50 shadows. If they decided to side with Kade, things could get tricky. But of course, that wasn't likely to happen.

Justin smirked and turned back to the dragon rider. "Do you believe him?"

The young man chuckled. "Of course not, but you never know."

"Fair enough. Let's go our separate ways, then."

"Agreed. I won't interfere—do as you please."

"...!?"

Kade's face turned pale as he realized how the situation had shifted. He still hadn't fully grasped what was happening.

"You really are stupid, aren't you?" Justin said with a cold smile. "We hadn't even entered the room yet, so how would we know whether this place was a safe zone or not? If anyone knew, it would be you, already inside."

Kade's face turned blue as he realized his mistake. In his desperation to blurt out anything that might save him, he hadn't even thought through his words.

"It seems like your followers got caught up in their leader's nonsense. Just step aside. I'll only kill him, and this will all be over."

"Wait! No! It wasn't me! It was that guy!" Kade tried to point to another pioneer, but Justin deliberately ignored him.

Justin didn't care who had come up with the plan. It was just a convenient excuse to avoid more unnecessary fighting.

The moment the opportunity to live presented itself, the other pioneers quickly distanced themselves from Kade. Justin raised his hand, pointing directly at Kade's forehead.

"Dual Enchant. Black Missile."

"Tch, he should have just taken it quietly," Justin muttered. Kade had somehow managed to block the attack, proving that he hadn't become a leader by sheer luck. But the price was steep—his arm, along with his shield, had been blown away, leaving him barely clinging to life.

For the small price of extending his life by five seconds, he had paid dearly. He might have preferred an instant death to the agony he was about to endure.

Clap. Clap.

"Impressive skills. You're quite strong," the dragon rider remarked, slowly clapping as if genuinely amazed. Half of it was flattery, but there was some truth to his reaction.

Justin glanced at the dragon rider, meeting his gaze. After a moment of staring, the young man suddenly seemed to remember something, and he quickly lowered his head.

"Oh, pardon me. I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Lucian."

"Justin."

"Nice to meet you, Justin. I heard that the banquet hall isn't a safe zone, but I hope we can all get through these next three days without any unpleasant incidents."

"Let's hope so. I'd rather not spend three days worrying about someone stabbing me in the back."

"Good to hear! By the way, what about the other pioneers over there? If they plan to continue the quest, they're welcome to join us."

Hah, this guy… Justin thought. He was clearly trying to sound casual, but it was obvious he was already eyeing the leaderless pioneers, hoping to absorb them into his own group.

The abandoned pioneers hesitated at the sudden offer but finally responded.

"No, we'll pass."

"We don't want to risk our lives any further."

"We'll just head back the way we came."

"...I see."

Lucian nodded with a smile, but he couldn't fully hide the disappointment in his voice. As the situation was about to conclude and the conversation was coming to an end—

"Wait, stop."

"Huh? Why, why are you stopping us?" one of the pioneers stammered, freezing in place with a fearful expression. They seemed worried that Justin would break his word and attack. On the other hand, Lucian watched them with gleaming eyes, ready to jump in at any moment. His thoughts were obvious from his expression.

'The moment I attack them, he plans to act as their protector and absorb them into his own faction,' Justin thought. Unfortunately for Lucian, Justin had no intention of doing so.

Speaking in the calmest voice he could manage, Justin said, "I'm not going to attack. I just want to make an offer of my own. Is anyone interested in joining me? Not just traveling together—actually switching allegiance to my group."

"We... We already told you, we're not doing that. We'll just head back..." one of the pioneers stuttered nervously.

"I'll give 300 mana stones to anyone who provides information on their territory. First come, first served. Really, no takers?"

"...!"

Everyone around him stared in shock at Justin's sudden offer.

'A good harvest,' Justin thought, smiling at the new additions to his faction. Four pioneers had accepted the offer, two from each of the two territories. It was the best possible outcome for him, but there was still a bit of confusion.

"I mean, I'm not complaining—more info is always good. But why did you two come along if I said it was first come, first served?" Justin asked.

"You looked like someone who's loaded with cash..." one of them replied.

"..."

Justin was momentarily speechless at their blunt answer. Sure, it wasn't entirely wrong, but it wasn't like his money was theirs to spend.

Noticing Justin's expression, one of the newcomers quickly explained, "The previous leader of our territory—the guy you just killed—was always short on money, so he taxed us heavily. I figured under someone rich, that wouldn't happen."

"Yeah, and since you're strong, I figured your territory would be a good place to live."

"Ah," Justin responded, realizing they had seen his offer of a large reward and assumed he had plenty of resources to spare. It was more practical reasoning than he'd expected.

"Good choice. I'll give you both 300 mana stones as well."

"What!? Really?!"

"Yeah. Here, take them." Justin promptly pulled out the mana stones and transferred them into their inventories. Their eyes widened at the sight of the high-grade mana stones, and moments later, they bowed deeply with grins on their faces.

"We swear our loyalty to you!"

"Forget that. Just give me accurate information about your territories. If I find out you've lied, I'll consider these mana stones wasted."

"Leave it to us! I've lived in that territory ever since I arrived in this world!"

"Me too! I know the way there and everything inside is like the back of my hand!"

...Considering how well they knew their territories, they must've been pretty desperate to switch sides just for the mana stones. Their earlier testimony confirmed how bad things were in their old territories.

'Well, it is called the Banquet of Kings, but I suppose some people got lucky and made it here without having the actual skills to back it up.'

Some leaders had risen beyond their ability until they could no longer keep up, just like the leader Justin had killed, or the ones who disappeared before they even had a chance to meet their peers. It made sense now.

"You sure know how to manage people," Lucian remarked with a slight tremble in his voice. He'd been watching the entire exchange and seemed to be stinging from the fact that Justin had succeeded where he'd failed.

"Managing? It's just money. Anyone could do it if they had the resources."

"..."

Lucian's face tightened. While Justin's remark sounded humble on the surface, it was actually a subtle boast about his wealth. Lucian knew it too.

"...It seems we'll be seeing each other often, Justin. Let's share a meal sometime," Lucian said, leaving a parting pleasantry as he turned to leave, realizing there was no point in continuing the conversation.

"Kyurrk!" The little dragon on Lucian's shoulder let out a short, grumpy growl, seemingly in tune with its master's mood. As they walked away, Justin quietly smiled. He had left an impression—enough to avoid hostility while ensuring they couldn't take him lightly.

Though they had entered the banquet hall, no rewards had been given yet. The quest hadn't changed either. It seemed the rewards would only be granted after the three days mentioned in the quest were over.

'I'll find out soon enough,' Justin thought, pushing the thought of rewards aside as he began to explore the banquet hall.

Though the quest called it a "banquet hall," the place was far too large to be referred to as just one hall. There were ten separate lodging areas, each capable of housing hundreds of people. A massive banquet hall produced luxurious food constantly, and there were numerous private lounges scattered about, perfect for secret conversations.

"This place is enormous," Justin murmured in awe. The size of the hall could easily accommodate thousands of people for days on end. From the moment he had seen the entrance, he realized the place was built for more than just a single banquet or dungeon.

Rumble.

'Another one.'

As Justin and his group explored the hall, more and more doors continued to open. With each new faction that arrived, the chances of encountering others increased. No matter how big the hall was, it was inevitable that people would run into each other frequently in the same space.

As the hall began to feel smaller and the tension between factions grew, the long-awaited system message echoed in everyone's ears.

"Ding! All participants, except those who have been eliminated, have gathered."

"Ding! All doors will be sealed for the next 72 hours."