Dark Warlock in the Apocalypse

"...It's not even surprising anymore."

Everyone nodded at Derek's muttering from behind. No one was curious about why the sudden appearance of the massive tower occurred. After all, when you travel between dimensions, a tower like that could easily appear and disappear.

What mattered was what kind of reward they would receive if they went there.

"Let's go," Justin said.

The pioneers silently began to move toward the black tower. It was clearly a distance that couldn't be covered in just a day or two. Yet strangely, with every step they took, the tower seemed to draw closer.

'Even the sense of perspective is going crazy,' Justin thought, as the tower loomed closer. Before they knew it, crowds began to gather around them. What had been an empty expanse not long ago was now filled with people, and from the looks of it, there were not just a hundred or two hundred, but tens of thousands.

"Are you kidding me?!"

"So many!"

"Where did all these people come from?!"

His companions gasped, their mouths wide open in astonishment. Could all of these people really be pioneers and not civilians? Even Justin couldn't help but be shocked by the sheer number of people.

'Is every pioneer from the United States... no, from the whole world here?' he wondered. The number was incomprehensible otherwise.

As they all stood frozen by the overwhelming sight, a voice broke through the silence.

"Welcome, pioneers."

"...!?"

Suddenly, the black tower was right before them, and a figure appeared. It was an old man with a hunched back and a pockmarked face. While the others recoiled in surprise, the old man bowed politely and introduced himself.

"I am Dino, the examiner for this trial. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Monster!" Grayson growled, baring his teeth as he brandished his axe at the sight of the hunched old man with yellowed teeth.

Before Grayson could launch an attack, Justin and the others hit him to bring him to his senses. Rubbing his bruised eye, Grayson grumbled.

"I didn't mean to!"

"Shut it. You almost ruined the quest for us," one of them scolded.

"Well, I mean, can you blame me? Someone who looks like that just shows up out of nowhere, anyone would've made the same mistake. He should've at least turned on a signal."

"What's a signal?"

"Don't worry about it. It's just something we say," Justin replied, pushing Grayson aside and looking at Dino.

"Enough of this. Just explain the quest already. You're the examiner, right?" Justin asked.

"Ah, yes. The quest. It's my duty, and yours as well," Dino said, blinking his eyes as he sized up Justin. Despite his ragged appearance, the old man's gaze was sharp, full of an unexpected force.

"But even though I am the examiner, I'm not the one to give you the actual challenge. I'm merely here to present the options. Look at the vast number of pioneers," Dino said, stretching his arms wide and gesturing around.

There were still countless pioneers filling the distant landscape.

"Aren't there a lot of them? These are all pioneers, not civilians. Of course, you'll never meet this many pioneers again. Every pioneer in the world is here. But..." Dino paused.

"But what?" Justin prompted.

"But things are different when it comes to civilians. While you won't see this many pioneers again, there will be far more civilians—tens, maybe even hundreds of times more. If, after this quest, a mass migration happens from Earth, the numbers could be overwhelming."

"You have potential. No, all pioneers have potential. To command such a vast number of civilians, to collect taxes at will, to bask in the glory of a ruler's future, that radiant future..." Dino's words slithered like a snake as he spoke, watching their reactions closely.

He seemed to wonder if they could grasp the allure of what he was describing.

"..."

"..."

"...That radiant future!" Dino emphasized, sensing the lack of response from the group.

"Mm," Justin muttered, unimpressed.

When the group still gave no reaction, Dino grew desperate. The civilians, at this moment, were far from being helpful allies. Glory didn't seem to have any real appeal.

Desperate, Dino raised his voice with a hopeful expression, "...All of that can be collected as taxes!"

"Oh!"

"Now we're talking!" the pioneers cheered at the mention of taxes.

At this reaction, Dino's eyebrow twitched in frustration.

"You greedy scoundrels…"

"What did you just say?" Justin asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Ah! Nothing at all!" Dino quickly cleared his throat and continued, "But without the right land to house such a large number of civilians, it will all be for nothing. Especially if you don't have a fortress. Without one, everything can be easily taken from you. If the region has no potential for growth, it will have limits."
Experience exclusive tales on empire

"There's no way there are enough cities with all those resources for every leader," Justin noted.

"Of course not," Dino replied with a sly smile.

"Some will end up with cities lacking resources. Some will have no fortresses. Others will find cities with no potential for development. In the worst case, someone might get a city that lacks all of those things."

But others will get the opposite, cities that have everything. Some may even get more than they need.

"And as the disparity between leaders grows wider than ever, the true journey will begin," Dino concluded.

Tension hung in the air as everyone realized the stakes. This quest was the first real step toward establishing a solid base. This was different from the previous villages, which had no fortresses or walls.

Some would have fortresses or walls, and others wouldn't.

'In other words, once this quest ends, the difference between us will be almost impossible to catch up to,' Justin thought. Unlike in the past, a single invasion wouldn't be enough to turn the tide of a disadvantageous war. There would even be cities where attacking would be a suicidal act.

Dino, satisfied with the tension on the faces of the pioneers, nodded.