Become Overpowered CEO of Hero Clan

Become Overpowered CEO of Hero Clan – 041

In the face of my endlessly weak self, misunderstood by people, magic engineering came to me as an attractive side business.

With the anticipation that custom magic engineering items could be crafted to increase survival rates, I delved into easy-to-read introductory books like [A Comprehensive Guide to Magic Engineering That Ends in One Volume] and more complex ones, including [Applied Mathematics, Physics, and Magic]. In just one week, I read five books.

It’s as if I read one book almost every day.

Throughout the process of reading, my heart was filled with the joy of learning, effectively managing stress.

‘If you dig deep, there’s no end.’

During the past week, I painfully realized the incredible level of skill possessed by the Clan of Heroes magic engineers NPCs, who promptly created items upon request.

Magic engineering, a discipline that combines magic and science, was the ultimate study in the field of applied sciences, requiring not only basic sciences like physics and chemistry but also advanced knowledge of thermodynamics, classical mechanics, intricate mathematical skills, and delicate magic control abilities for success in the field of engineering.

it is a field that humanity developed along with hero development and disaster management, although the history is not deep, its impact on modern civilization is tremendous.

‘It feels like my vision has widened.’

Unlike other disciplines, a magic engineer was a profession that collectively referred to researchers and technicians in engineering. There was a social atmosphere that did not recognize someone as a true magic engineer unless they excelled in both theory and technology.

Moreover, magic engineering majors were broadly divided into four specific occupations, ‘Alchemist’ who produced consumable potions like elixirs and doping potions, ‘Armorsmith’ who crafted and reinforced heroes’ weapons and suits, and ‘Jeweler’ who made accessories. Apart from that, those who crafted battle items, transportation devices, and other magical engineering equipment were simply referred to as ‘Magic Engineering Technician’.

‘Not all magical engineers are the same.’

The treatment of Alchemist and Armorsmith was excellent as their occupations directly influenced the combat power of heroes. However, it was said that it cost astronomical amounts to nurture a skilled craftsman, requiring high abilities and accumulating expertise with expensive materials.

Jeweler could engrave special options on accessories that couldn’t be activated with weapons and suits, but these special options were often useless to other heroes. Due to this lack of versatility, Jeweler were considered inferior to the other two

On the other hand, other Magic Engineering Technicians typically worked as researchers in private companies, manufacturing magical engineering equipment for commercial use.

The ‘Multidimensional Energy Sphere’ that I had effectively utilized was, in fact, equipment developed for industrial purposes.

Although there were a few artisans who exclusively crafted battle items, heroes tended to invest in armor enhancements rather than spending money on consumables. As a result, most magic engineering majors aspired to become ‘Alchemist’, ‘Armorsmith’, or ‘Jeweler’.

‘Learning can’t hurt.’

Although it was absurd for Isaac to become a magic engineer with an undeveloped magic circuit, the related knowledge would undoubtedly be beneficial in managing the clan.

That way, when obtaining rare materials, I could sell them at a fair price. Conversely, I might also be able to acquire expensive materials at a bargain from ignorant individuals.

– Tap, tap.

–

“Sir, it’s almost time for the meeting.”

Secretary Hwang announced from outside. Already, time had passed like this.

– Thunk.

–

I closed the book I was reading and went down to the meeting room. The main agenda for this week’s team leader meeting was the activation plan for the integrated fan cafe, the in-house production of web entertainment, and the extensive expansion of recruitment.

The integrated fan cafe had been open for less than a week, and the number of members had only reached a thousand. Considering that the only promotion was posting the fan cafe link on the community page of a small YouTube channel, it was considered decent by most opinions.

“How was the response from the fans?”

“Until the second day of opening, there were constant malicious comments, but the frequency has decreased. It seems that Seo Eun-ha’s fans were quite dissatisfied. We are continuously managing hate comments.”

“What about the response to the cafe itself?”

“Generally positive. Especially, the reactions to the emoticons and the club bulletin board were good. The fan art and webtoon sections haven’t been activated yet, but there were almost no complaints about the structure of the bulletin board.”

It was a smooth first step.

The name of the integrated fan cafe was ‘Harmony Square’. After repeatedly overturning several planning proposals, we decided to use the cafe service of a portal site for convenience. I thought creating a separate website would cause much more resistance.

The promotion for the fan cafe was set to distribute photo cards and hamburger sets through a comment lottery.

‘I need to give it my all when thinking about the year-end.’

Even though the recognition of the members had risen sharply, it was still far from enough. The production of in-house web entertainment was scheduled to begin shooting in two days, with the goal of continuously providing entertainment to increase fandom.

Next, we determined the approximate number of new hires for each department and laid out the framework for the second-half recruitment notice.

As the personnel expenses increased without any intention of cutting costs, the eyes of the team leaders became noticeably brighter in real-time. It seemed like they were enthusiastic about the rapid growth of the small clan they had visited to build up their careers.

They all had eyes that looked forward to next year’s salary negotiations, and I wasn’t planning to just hand out carrots. Whether it be bonuses or salary negotiations, they had to prove their abilities.

“We aim for at least two championships in the Hero Grand Battle this year-end.”

Ignoring the awkward reactions of the team leaders, I urged them to select categories with a high possibility of winning awards.

The reason I set such specific goals was because of a quest that suddenly appeared last night.

〈Quest – Sub〉

▷ Content: Achieve 2 championships in the year-end ‘Hero Grand Battle.’

▷ Reward: Significant increase in the gauge for the breakthrough limit of affiliated heroes.

At the end of August, as soon as it turned September 1st, the above sub-quest appeared.

The Hero Grand Battle was the nation’s largest year-end festival, and regardless of the prize, winning any award would lead to tremendous rewards.

I, too, aimed for awards whenever possible, and now that an opportunity has come to increase the breakthrough gauge for ‘affiliated heroes’ as a whole, not just the 1st squad, I couldn’t help but turn my attention to it.

However, the opinions of the team leaders were somewhat skeptical.

“So, you’re saying that the only possibility is for the Rookie Award?”

“Well, um… for now, yes. Sir, you must know that this field is tough, right? Large clans have a tight grip on it. Ha, hahaha.”

Despite Harmony Clan making a few impactful night, the team leaders’ objective evaluation was that compared to the achievements of large clans, there was still a long way to go.

Well, I preferred hearing such a cool-headed story rather than useless flattery. I knew that winning the 2 championships would be difficult.

The upper neighborhoods were filled with A-class squads carrying out missions vigorously. Naturally, we would fall behind in terms of activity.

Whether it be a special award, meritorious service award, or peacekeeping award, unless I actively participated, winning an award would be challenging.

“Then let’s aim for the B-Class Hero of the Year. Hwang Man-deuk has a possibility, and Jin-soo’s promotion is confirmed in the fourth quarter, right? Is that correct?”

“Yes! We have certainly exceeded the criteria. However… Both of them are lagging in popularity to be candidates.”

It was a discussion about the possibility in terms of skills.

The ‘Hero of the Year’ award just below the ‘World Class’, the top award in Hero Grand Battle, was given to the winner of the tournament duel in A and B Classs. Below C Class, there was a tournament duel to award prizes, but that was a relatively small-scale event held a few days before the Hero Grand Battle, not the battle itself.

Anyway, b Class had a 32-team competition, and A Class had a 16-team competition. To become a candidate, you needed popularity, and that was a factor to consider. In that aspect, seo Eun-ha was confirmed as a candidate, but she was in a supporter position and weak in 1:1 duel. The same goes for the marksman, Gil-seong, unless she suddenly becomes a 2-point player.

The problem was that there were only two people with a high possibility of winning Hwang Man-deuk and Yeo Jin-soo, both strong in 1:1 duel. However, the issue was that they lacked popularity to enter the top 32.

“What are their popularity rankings?”

“In B Class, hwang Man-deuk is ranked 182nd, and Yeo Jin-soo is 228th.”

These rankings had risen considerably recently with Harmony Clan’s name becoming known.

Seo Eun-ha’s fans were really… a bit much.

They were fellow heroes working together on the scene, but it would have been better if they hadn’t voted together during Seo Eun-ha’s voting. By the way, her popularity ranking in B Class was 3rd. Considering that she maintained this level of career in a clan like Harmony Clan that neglected substance, seo Eun-ha’s fan management skills could be considered exceptional.

‘I might need to create some special reason.’

The selection of tournament candidates was not necessarily decided by a popularity vote. If there were disqualifying reasons such as personality problems or illegal activities, the association would filter them out. In cases where there were excellent examples of heroes displaying outstanding spirit despite having low brand value or popularity, they would be selected.

Anyway, once selected among the top 32, it would be a pure battle of strength, so I also needed to pay attention to leveling up my specs.

‘I’m starting to get tired.’

The meeting ended with a discussion on how to spread Seo Eun-ha’s fandom into squad-sized fandoms, but it ended without much gain.

“Let’s stop here.”

“Thank you for your hard work!”

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***

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Like a mix of summer and fall, mid-September brought warm afternoons and gradually cooler evenings, with Chuseok, the Korean harvest festival, approaching after two weeks had passed.

Isaac spent the fortnight reviewing only approval documents, dedicating the rest of his time to reading. Even after work, he didn’t let go of magical engineering books, pushing aside the game he once enjoyed.

His learning ability was sufficient, enabling him to master the foundational theories and engineering books that usually take undergraduates a year to study in just two weeks, almost reaching perfect comprehension.

However, isaac’s pursuit of knowledge wasn’t driven by a genuine passion for studying. Once he grasped the workings of the magical engineering industry, he immediately delved into practical applications.

Rather than vaguely accumulating diverse and complex engineering knowledge, he decided to study only what was necessary each time he purchased the recipe or blueprint for the item he wanted to create.

He discovered that directly developing new items was the domain of the top craftsmen in the industry and was generally only possible by buying or receiving the transfer of crafting methods. But even that wasn’t an easy task.

Without magic circuits in his body, isaac, like non-talented majors, had to use a method that involved injecting magic power extracted from magic stones into the designed formula, pouring money to check the normal operation of the formula.

Talented individuals with developed magic circuits could easily inject and control magic power, relying on advanced equipment. However, isaac, without developed magic circuits, had to resort to the method of injecting magic power extracted from magic stones and verifying the proper operation of the formula by pouring money into it. Moreover, the magic stones used each time were so expensive that Isaac sometimes shook his head in frustration.

Nevertheless, isaac found joy in learning, and despite repeated failures, his blue eyes, gaining practical experience, looked surprisingly clear.

‘I didn’t know I had the temperament of a researcher.’

Walking down the street, isaac let out a bitter laugh at his newfound vocational aptitude. Despite putting aside the effects of his daily skills, the act of studying magical engineering itself was surprisingly enjoyable.

“Sigh.”

However, while walking leisurely, isaac let out a long sigh. Today was Wednesday, and for the first time since the possession, it was a day with a company dinner. Moreover, it was a gathering of all the employees and clan members.

‘Just calculate and it should be fine.’