Chapter Summaries

Lister collected the supplies stored by the Poly Merchant Association, drank six potions to max out his attributes, and completed his first job change. He chose Basic Swordsman for its Saber Mastery passive, gaining new saber instincts as his status updated.

• Lister presented Chairman Porter's signed scroll to the Poly Merchant Association and collected the requested chest.
• Lister settled into a house prepared by the Viscount of Renekton and drank six potions, raising his constitution, intelligence, and agility to 20.
• Lister accepted the job change quest, which completed automatically, and considered Equalizer and Berserk Swordsman as options.
• Lister chose Basic Swordsman and gained the unranked Saber Mastery passive, along with memories of saber training.
• Lister's job change succeeded, and his updated status showed all four attributes at 20 and Saber Mastery at level 1.

Lister explored the outskirts of the Rai Territory, where he killed cyclopes and discovered that their main force was gathered in the central district near the former baron's castle. After returning to Renekton, he received a letter from Quint warning him about three guards and urging him to contact Count Connor within three months.

• Lister left his attendants behind and explored the deserted villages on the outskirts of the Rai Territory.
• Lister fought and killed cyclopes, using their slow attacks and vulnerable eyes to defeat them.
• Lister scouted toward the former baron's castle and estimated that about forty cyclopes were gathered in the central district, so he retreated for the night.
• Tim gave Lister a letter from Baron Will, which identified Quint's three third-tier guards and said they would not act for now.
• Lister inferred that Quint's guards might target him after three months and decided to write to Count Connor for support.

Lister found Milo’s Lost Travelogue, which identified the Lost Land and gave him a route toward the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty. When he returned to the baron’s castle to face the remaining cyclopes, the castle collapsed and a much larger cyclops emerged holding a green crystal.

• Lister burned through the travel books he had collected while leveling up and raising his Saber Mastery passive to LV12.
• Lister read Milo’s account of discovering the Lost Land and realized the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty lay beyond it.
• Lister decided to search for records of the Kingdom of Yating after clearing out the remaining cyclopes.
• Lister found more than forty cyclopes guarding the baron’s castle and concluded he could not defeat them alone.
• The castle collapsed, and a five- or six-meter cyclops climbed from the ruins holding a green crystal.

Lister discovered that the Cyclops occupying Rai Territory guarded a turquoise vein and its associated crystal, but he lacked the strength to defeat it alone. He secured Lawson Conner’s help to plan an assault, while Kailina confronted Quint at the Renekton Family’s old castle.

• Lister identified the Cyclops as a level 31 elite and realized its attack on Rai Territory was driven by the turquoise vein, so he retreated rather than face it alone.
• Lawson Conner arrived at Lister’s residence, and Lister explained that the Cyclopes occupied a turquoise mine containing an associated crystal.
• Lister persuaded Lawson that Quint could be trusted and suggested testing him by involving him in the mine’s profits.
• Lawson agreed to help eliminate the Cyclopes, though he insisted on directing the operation himself.
• Kailina entered Quint’s room and demanded to know why he had summoned her, threatening to train him if he had interrupted her for no reason.

Quint told Kailina that Lister had found turquoise and an associated crystal guarded by a fourth-tier Cyclops, prompting her to head for Rai Territory. Meanwhile, Lister and his allies prepared an ambush, with Kailina approaching and Ante drawing the giants away from the castle.

• Quint informed Kailina that Lister had discovered turquoise and an associated crystal held by a fourth-tier Cyclops.
• Kailina agreed to hunt the Cyclopes and said she would kill Lister if she encountered him.
• Quint abandoned his hope of winning Kailina over after she left.
• Lister waited near the castle with Lawson and Simmons, expecting Kailina to come for the crystal.
• Lawson spotted Kailina approaching and reported that Ante was luring the giants away.
• Lawson leaped from the eaves and led the group toward the castle's core area.

Lister and his allies killed the Ghost-Eyed Giants outside the castle, letting Lister gain enough experience to raise his Saber Mastery and overall rating. They then ambushed and killed the puppeteer Ante, who had mistaken the Duke of Will’s authority for protection.

• Lister stopped Lawson and Ximens from rushing into the castle and led them to attack the Ghost-Eyed Giants outside.
• Lawson restrained the giants with Verdant Growth while Lister repeatedly stole Simmons’s kills and cut down the monsters.
• Lister spent his experience to raise Saber Mastery from LV12 to LV14, improving his overall rating from E-rank to D-rank.
• Ante asked Lister to help Kailina fight the boss, then hesitated when he recognized Lawson.
• Lawson signaled to Lister, and the vines restrained Ante before Lister beheaded him.

Lister and his allies fought Kailina inside Baron Lai's castle, using Lawson's vines to hinder her and killing her healer, Lius. Kailina broke free of the vines and charged at Lister, but Simmons and Lawson joined the fight as she vowed to kill them all.

• Kailina used Blazing Sun Slash against the Cyclops, but it threw her aside after suffering only moderate damage.
• Lawson's vines spread through the castle and trapped Kailina while Lius was paralyzed and unable to help her.
• A silver-armored ally of Lister killed Lius, earning Lister experience for the hostile-faction kill.
• Kailina recognized Lister and charged at him, but Simmons blocked her greatsword with his greatshield.
• Lawson attacked Kailina from behind, and she recognized him as a member of the Conner Family and threatened to kill all three of them.

Lister and the others attacked Kailina, and Lister killed her during the fight. The Ghost-Eyed Giant then turned on Lawson and Simmons, while Lister joined the battle and severely wounded it.

• Kailina fought Lawson, Simmons, and Lister, but Lister's powerful saber strikes left her badly injured.
• The Ghost-Eyed Giant fired lasers into the battle, and Lister used the distraction to cut through Kailina's neck and kill her.
• The Ghost-Eyed Giant attacked Lawson, who met its blow with stone armor, while Simmons held it back with his shield.
• Lawson's vines wrapped around the Ghost-Eyed Giant and inflicted repeated damage and bleeding.
• Lister slashed through the Ghost-Eyed Giant's thigh, forcing it to drop to one knee.

Lister, Simmons, and Lawson defeated the Ghost-Eyed Giant and discovered a vast turquoise vein beneath the ruined castle. Lawson estimated that the explored reserves alone could support every professional in the Duchy of Will.

• Lister changed to crowd control while Lawson's vines worsened the Ghost-Eyed Giant's bleeding, and Simmons tanked its Laser Eye and Heavy Strikes.
• Lister stopped the Giant's third punch and struck its eye, thigh, and chest, killing it before Lawson could take the kill.
• Lawson gave Lister the Church's Intermediate Healing Water, and the three rested before digging through the collapsed castle.
• The three found a tunnel lined with high-concentration turquoise ore, and Lawson identified the mine as a large, unfinished vein.
• Lister asked how many professionals his share could support, and Lawson said the explored reserves could support all the professionals in the Duchy of Will.

Lister and Lawson recognized that the enormous turquoise vein could attract the Kingdom of Lucian’s power, so they agreed to keep it secret and wait for Count Connor to advise them. Five days later, Lister mastered the Will Breathing Technique and used experience points to raise it to level 5, increasing his overall rating to C.

• Lawson explained how a turquoise vein had helped establish the Kingdom of Lucian, and Lister realized their discovery was too large for their three forces to keep safely.
• Lawson ordered the mine’s location kept secret, arranged for Simmons to guard the castle, and decided to ride back to consult his father.
• Lister agreed to stall Quint for five days and insisted on receiving the vein’s associated crystals under their original agreement.
• Five days later, Quint guided Lister through training until Lister mastered the Will Breathing Technique.
• Lister spent 100,000 experience points to raise the technique to level 5, and his overall rating improved from D to C.

Lister, Quint, and Count Connor agreed that the newly discovered turquoise vein was too large for them to keep and should be handed over to the Kingdom of Lucian. They chose Lister to approach the royal family, but he hesitated when Count Connor’s motives remained unclear.

• Quint questioned Lister about the mineral vein, and Lister said they should wait for the others to arrive.
• Count Connor arrived with Lawson Will, and Quint learned that the turquoise vein was large.
• Count Connor proposed handing the vein to the Kingdom of Lucian to avoid making it an enemy and potentially gain greater benefits.
• Quint and Count Connor said they could not approach the royal family themselves, so they asked Lister to make the trip.
• Lister questioned why Count Connor wanted to keep the Conner Family distant from the royal family, and Count Connor remarked on Lister’s cautious nature.

Count Connor explained the founding agreement that let the seven great families keep their privileges, then entrusted Lister with dealing with the Kingdom of Lucian. After returning to Merrick Castle, Lister attended Will II’s ceremony and saw the Merick Family elevated to viscount status.

• Count Connor told Lister that the Will Family held the ducal title while the seven other families kept their interests and independence under an old agreement.
• Count Connor asked Lister to handle the matter with the Kingdom of Lucian and promised to prioritize whatever reward Lister wanted.
• Lister agreed to return to Weier Main City after completing the Ghost-Eyed Giants task, while Count Connor took Kailina, Lius, and a third person ahead and Quint continued mining turquoise.
• Lister returned to Merrick Castle and learned that Viscount Anbeite had paid for its renovations as an apology over Anna.
• Walen summoned Lister to Duke Will’s castle, where Will II granted the Merick Family the title of viscount and appointed Lister captain of the kingdom city guard’s seventh squad.

Lister completed the first stage of his main quest when Will II made him a viscount and granted him a copper mine. After returning home, Lister spent his rewards on levels, attributes, and skills, raising his overall rating to B and leaving him far stronger.

• Lister received five free attribute points, two million experience points, and ten thousand gold coins after completing the first stage of his main quest.
• Will II made Lister a viscount and captain of the city guard's seventh squad, then granted the Merick Family a medium-sized copper mine.
• Erica Connor congratulated Lister, and he recognized her as the woman his predecessor had been encouraged to pursue.
• Lister told Butler Anke to mine the copper deposit or turn it over to the Poly Merchant Association, and asked him to find books about the Kingdom of Yating.
• Lister spent his experience and attribute points to raise his level and skills, increasing his overall rating from C to B.

Lister studied Yating’s history and concluded he had little time to reach the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty before players arrived. On the way out of the city, he killed three fourth-tier professionals sent by Duke Will to ambush him.

• Lister read about Yating’s fall and judged that Lucian’s wars and the Great Chu expansion would begin soon.
• Lister fought Nasis, Tracy, and their healing companion at the Kingdom of Lucian’s border.
• Lister killed the healing professional with a single saber strike despite being only third tier.
• Tracy’s Extreme Fireball failed to harm Lister, and he killed Nasis after cutting through his shield and severing his arm.
• Tracy tried to distract Lister by exposing herself, but Lister killed her with a saber strike and gained twenty thousand experience points.

Lister reached the steam-and-alchemy capital of Bode and searched for a way to approach the Lucian Royal Family with his offer of a turquoise mine. After ruling out the other royal heirs, he chose the unfamiliar Sixth Prince Carven Lucian as his first target.

• Lister searched the assassins' bodies, took a few portable items, and continued toward the royal capital.
• Lister entered Bode, explored its steam-powered streets, and registered with the Professionals' Association as a third-tier professional.
• Lister studied information about the royal heirs and concluded that approaching the royal castle through administrators would risk his offer being diverted.
• Lister identified Sixth Prince Carven Lucian, who taught and studied at Lucian Professionals' University, as the royal family member he could most easily approach.
• Lister wondered whether Carven might be connected to the later Church of Mechanical Truth bishop, then set aside the thought and chose him as his first target.

Lister visited Lucian Professionals' University to find Professor Carven, but learned that the professor was Carven Dill, a name matching the infamous future mechanic he remembered from a later act. He decided to meet Carven despite his uncertainty and entered the university as a visitor.

• Lister tried to enter Lucian Professionals' University but the student on gate duty said visitors needed permission from someone inside.
• Lister offered the student gold and claimed he was visiting him, then asked whether the university had a Professor Carven.
• The student used a mechanical crystal to search the school's records and found Professor Carven Dill, whose office was on the laboratory building's top floor.
• Lister recognized the name Carven Dill as matching the future Madman Mechanic and founder of the Church of Mechanical Truth, though he could not tell whether this was the same person.
• Lister chose to enter as the student's visitor and received a campus-only communication stone.

Lister visited Carven Lucian’s laboratory, where an experiment exploded after Lister interrupted him, and agreed to compensate him with something other than cash. After scanning Carven and discovering his A-rank lord-class strength, Lister admitted he was afraid, while Carven promised to follow equal exchange and not attack him.

• Lister entered Carven Lucian’s laboratory and watched him stabilize a volatile alchemical core.
• Carven pulled Lister out of the laboratory just before the core exploded, destroying the room and damaging the building.
• Carven charged Lister 36,953 gold coins for his share of the failed experiment’s costs, and Lister offered to pay in something other than cash.
• Carven agreed to appraise knowledge, property, equipment, or special creations, and Lister scanned his information to discover his A-rank lord-class abilities.
• Carven noticed Lister’s fear and asked whether he intended to deceive him, so Lister admitted he was afraid of Carven’s strength.
• Carven said he sought the truth, believed in equal exchange, and had no intention of attacking Lister.

Lister discovered that Carven Dill and Carven Lucian were two personalities of the same sixth prince, then offered Carven intelligence about a turquoise vein and ancient alchemical ruins. Carven agreed to arrange a royal meeting but still demanded compensation, and he eagerly asked Lister for the ruins’ location.

• Lister asked whether the man before him was Carven Dill or Carven Lucian, and Carven explained that both names referred to him.
• Carven convulsed and changed into the anxious Carven Lucian, whose outburst revealed his fear of taking responsibility for the royal family.
• Carven shifted back to his calm Dill personality and agreed to arrange a meeting after Lister shared news of a massive turquoise vein in the Rai Territory of the Duchy of Will.
• Carven refused to waive Lister’s gold-coin compensation, explaining that he had supported himself since age six through his inventions and businesses.
• Lister told Carven about a preserved alchemical civilization’s main city beneath the Lost Land, and Carven asked where it was.

Lister shared the location of a vast alchemical-city ruin with Carven Dill in exchange for first access and 20% of the gains, then went to the royal residence to discuss the turquoise mine with the Lucian royal family. The chapter ended with King Kerry leaving the decision to Hughes, who appeared anxious about the mine.

• Carven Dill agreed to cooperate with Lister on the condition that the ruin matched his description, and Lister revealed its location beneath the Lost Land.
• Carven's guards and a construction crew arrived to clear the explosion debris and repair the damaged roof.
• Lister went to the royal residence in the City of Bode, where Carven introduced him to King Kerry and First Prince Hughes Lucian.
• Lister scanned Hughes and King Kerry, finding that both were level 40, though the king's attributes had weakened with age.
• King Kerry asked Carven about Lucian, then let Hughes decide what to do about the turquoise mine; Hughes appeared anxious about it.

Lister gained Hughes's approval to investigate the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty as a Lucian representative, while revealing the turquoise mine to the royal family. A week later, he pledged loyalty to the Kingdom of Lucian as King Kerry began to ennoble him.

• Lister explained how he found the turquoise vein, and Hughes questioned why he had not told Duke Will first.
• Hughes agreed to grant Lister a squad and make him a representative tasked with investigating the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty and recording useful information.
• Lister left the palace pleased that he could pursue contact with the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty under Lucian authority.
• A week later, Lister entered the council hall before King Kerry, Hughes, and Lucian officials.
• King Kerry asked Lister to pledge loyalty to the Kingdom of Lucian and its royal family, and Lister agreed.