Dark Warlock in the Apocalypse

"Ding! After 72 hours, the "Banquet of Kings" will automatically end, and rewards will be distributed."

"Ding! Following the end of the "Banquet of Kings" quest, the "Final Legacy" quest will be activated."

"Ding! The "Final Legacy" quest allows for joint participation in a single trial."

"Ding! Find other leaders to collaborate with during the banquet."

"Ding! It is possible to participate as a single force, but the difficulty will not change."

"...."

"...."

The unusually long system message abruptly ended, leaving everyone in stunned silence. Despite the message concluding, none of the pioneers moved. They simply stared blankly into space, their minds seemingly unable to process what they'd just heard.

Moments later, screams erupted from the dazed pioneers.

"What the hell!?"

"What kind of nonsense is this!?"

"Could they explain things properly for once!?"

Shouts of anger filled the vast banquet hall. Their frustration was understandable. The system had offered little clarity, merely suggesting cooperation, along with a veiled threat that going solo would be a considerable risk. For the pioneers, it felt like an insult.

'Well, I pretty much saw this coming,' Justin thought, smirking slightly.

From the first dungeon at the temple entrance to the compulsory banquet, the system had been pushing for interaction between leaders. It wasn't surprising that the next quest followed a similar format.

It was a simple deduction.

'Of course, even if you predict things accurately, that doesn't mean the results will be easy to handle...'

Justin's smile widened. It seemed that he had already found a favorable result before any real problems surfaced.

Turning around, Justin spoke to Damian and Zeal.

"We have nothing to worry about, do we?"

"Indeed. As long as things proceed like this, we'll be fine," Damian replied, nodding in agreement.

"This must be divine guidance," Zeal added.

Both leaders agreed with Justin's assessment. Unlike the other pioneers who were now scrambling to form alliances and seize control, they had already secured a solid alliance with clear leadership. All they needed to do was wait for the next quest without breaking their existing pact.

Satisfied with the agreement, Justin grinned and shouted to his companions, "Alright, let's head to our lodgings! We've been roughing it for days, so let's finally enjoy a proper bed for once."

"Wooohoo!"

While the rest of the banquet hall was filled with screams and frustration, Justin's group was the only one cheering.

'The bedding isn't bad. For group lodging, it's almost as nice as a noble's mansion in our city.'

Justin pressed down on the bedding and couldn't help but be impressed. Although the room was meant for a hundred people, the accommodations were lavish. Even the decor rivaled that of noble estates in their city, giving the impression of a luxurious collective lodging.

After inspecting the bedding, Justin turned to his companions and gave instructions.
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"Everyone must be tired. If anyone wants to rest, feel free, but remember to always stay in groups. We can't afford to relax too much—this isn't a safe zone."

"Understood. We'll stay on alert," one of his companions replied.

"Rachel, keep an eye on the others. When traveling in small groups, make sure you accompany them. What we need right now is defense to protect our teammates," Justin instructed.

"I'll make sure of it, oppa," Rachel answered.

Justin turned his attention to another member of the group.

"Nathan, be extra careful. Don't act recklessly, and always stay with Rachel. As a second-tier class pioneer, you could be a target for assassination by the other territories."

"I won't take any chances. Besides, I'm more of a rear-guard type, so I don't have the confidence to act otherwise," Nathan responded with a grin.

Justin nodded, satisfied with the quick and organized responses from his team. They had worked together long enough to fall into rhythm seamlessly.

"Good. Make sure you get some rest. And remember, let everyone know before you head anywhere."

"Wait a moment, my lord. There's something I need to discuss," Zachary said, approaching Justin as the group was about to disperse.

Justin raised an eyebrow and gestured for Zachary to continue. With a meaningful glance toward the adjacent lodgings, Zachary spoke in a low voice, "Those two—are you sure it's okay to have them stay in separate quarters?"

"You mean Damian and Zeal? I don't see why not. Even though we're in an alliance, there's no need for us to share the same lodgings," Justin replied.

"That's not what I mean." Zachary frowned, clearly concerned.

"Those two are leaders who each command over ten thousand citizens. Yet, recently, they've completely lost control of the leadership to you."

"And?"

"Don't you think they might be harboring some resentment? If they can't regain control, they could look to form new alliances elsewhere to take it back."

"Ah, I see."

So, Zachary was worried that Damian and Zeal might break the alliance and form a new one behind Justin's back. His suggestion was that keeping them close would allow for better monitoring.

While there was enough room for everyone to stay in the same lodging, Justin shook his head.

"It's fine. The alliance won't break."

"Are you sure? But—"

"Damian owes me a debt. With his personality, as long as he's in debt to me, he won't betray us. Even if he wanted to, he'd settle his debt first."

The debt Damian owed to Justin wasn't something he could easily repay. He could give up the shield Justin had provided him, but it was too valuable—a perfect fit for his class synergy. It would be unlikely for another group to offer something as beneficial in exchange for his loyalty.

"You don't have to worry about Damian at all."

"If you say so, I'll let it go. But what about Zeal? He's not the type to care about debts, and he's a rare healer. Won't he receive offers from all sides?" Zachary asked.

"That's true. But no matter how many offers he gets, if he can't accept them, he'll have no choice but to turn them down."

In the banquet hall, countless frontline pioneers had gathered, but among them, Zeal was likely the only one with a healing-specialized second-tier class. Simply revealing his class would bring him an overwhelming number of offers. Many of those would come with enticing rewards. Given that his alliance with them had been formed under some degree of pressure, it wouldn't be surprising if Zeal betrayed them at some point.

That is, if he weren't bound by his role as a "cult leader."

"The truth is, Zeal is less of a concern than Damian. Since Zeal uses religion as his tool for control, no matter what offers he receives, he'll have to refuse them, no matter how much he hates it."

"What do you mean by that...?" Zachary asked, confused.

"There's more to it than meets the eye. Just know you don't need to worry about him. Actually, we're the ones who should be worried."

"Worried? About what? We have nothing to do with it, right?"

"No, we do. Because I'm a warlock," Justin replied, smiling faintly as he unfurled his long black robe.

Anyone could tell from his outfit that he was a warlock. The other pioneers must have already guessed his class just by looking at him. And if they had experience with World Breaker, the old prejudices would surface in their minds.

"A high-ranking leader with a powerful force, but his class is a weak warlock. How many of them do you think are already plotting, thinking, 'If I can manipulate him, I could take over everything?'"

"No way..." Zachary began, before Rachel suddenly approached.

Seeing her expression, Justin raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"We have an uninvited guest," Rachel replied, her expression tightening. "That dragon rider we met earlier, Lucian, wants to speak with you."

"...."

"Good to see you again, Justin. It hasn't been long since our last conversation, but here we are. I had a feeling we'd meet again," Lucian said, smiling brightly.

To Justin, it was nothing short of absurd. Lucian was acting as though fate had brought them together, even though he was the one who had sought Justin out.

"Get to the point," Justin said coldly.

"No need to be so harsh. The system message we received earlier emphasized the importance of cooperation for this quest, didn't it?"

"I heard it. But I already have allies, so I don't think I'll be needing anything else."

"Hmm." Despite the cold response, Lucian's smile didn't waver. It was a stark contrast to the frustration that had briefly shown on his face during their last encounter. Had he come to some new realization in the short time since then?

As if answering Justin's unspoken question, Lucian spoke in a calm, confident tone. "You say you don't need anything, but are you sure about that?"

"What do you mean? I said I don't, so I don't."

"No, I think you're about to start needing something soon."

"Kyurrk!" The baby dragon on Lucian's shoulder let out a noise, almost as if it were mocking him.

Was it his imagination, or was that dragon actually laughing at him? Justin couldn't tell.

After a pause, Lucian finally said what he had come to say. "You're probably starting to feel the effects of your 'expiration date,' aren't you?"

"What?" Justin frowned.

"Your expiration date. As a gamer, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about."

Justin tilted his head in confusion, so Lucian continued, smiling as though to say, 'don't play dumb.'

"The warlock is certainly a powerful class. In the early stages, it has unmatched firepower. But after the early game, it becomes more of a burden to its leader than an asset."

"Hmph."

"Sure, you've managed to maintain an advantage so far through early snowballing, but do you think that will last? What about a year from now? Two years? After all, warlocks need sacrifices to recharge their magic, don't they?"

Ah, so that's how he saw it. Lucian must have thought Justin's power and wealth were the result of early-game snowballing, but believed the warlock's limitations would soon become apparent, and that Justin himself was probably starting to feel the strain.

'For any other warlock, he'd probably be right, but not this time,' Justin thought with a smirk. Shaking his head, he indicated how wrong Lucian was.

But Lucian, unphased by Justin's reaction, smiled even wider. It was clear he wasn't falling for it. "Don't bother bluffing. I know enough about warlocks."

"Oh, really? So, were you a warlock yourself?"

"No, but I've played through World Breaker several times."

"...!?"

Now Justin was genuinely surprised. Warlocks were notorious as a "bad class" in World Breaker, and only a handful of players had the patience to stick with them. Justin had thought he was the only one crazy enough to play that cursed class multiple times.

Seeing the reaction on Justin's face, Lucian chuckled smugly and bowed slightly.

"Come to think of it, I didn't mention this earlier during my introduction. In World Breaker, I was known by the username 'ResonanceKing.'"

"What!? No way...!" Justin's eyes widened as he stood up in shock.

'ResonanceKing'? That was a name Justin knew well.

"That's right. You must be a beta tester as well, considering you recognize me," Lucian said, clearly pleased with Justin's reaction.

'That's Tongi, the footsie king who got second place because of the resonance trap!' Justin shouted.

At this, the smug grin fell from Lucian's face, his expression quickly souring.