Three Days Until PvP Protection Ends
Kai stood on the balcony of the Arcadia City Hall—a polished marble tower he had "accidentally" copied from a high-end main city and then rewritten with ivy-covered walls and floating lanterns.
Below, hundreds of adventurers bustled through the streets.
Potion shops. Weapon traders. Crafting guilds. Side alleys glowing with enchantment runes. Even a bard NPC sang about "The Mysterious Novice Who Built a City."
> "I really did it," Kai whispered. "And I still only have one combat skill on my hotbar."
Behind him, Pipkin burst into the room.
"Kai! The Valkyrion guild just delivered something HUGE. Like… really huge!"
---
Delivery from Aria
Down in the town square, Aria stood beside a glowing cage being wheeled in by enchanted wagons.
Inside was a towering, obsidian-scaled creature with emerald eyes and crackling chains of lightning.
> Monster: Stormfang Behemoth – Lv. 98 (Alpha-Type)
Classification: Unruly Guardian Candidate
Status: Incompatible with Town Systems
Aria smirked. "We found him locked in a raid vault. He's basically untrainable. But he's strong as hell."
Kai stared in wonder. "Can I try something?"
---
Codewalker Activation: Rewrite Monster Data
> Rewrite: Guardian Compatibility → TRUE
Loyalty Scaling → Based on City Happiness Score
Aggression AI: Only trigger when PvP is initiated near gates
Add Unique Trait: "Rageform" – Summons thunderstorm during siege events
Rename: "Guardian of Arcadia – Stormhowl"
The monster blinked. Then bowed.
Pipkin's jaw hit the ground. "You tamed it?!"
Kai smiled. "Technically… I just made him like city parades."
---
[System Announcement – Server Wide]
> City of Arcadia has appointed a Guardian Beast: STORMHOWL
Category: Unique
Classification: City Defense Unit
PvP Attacks near Arcadia Gates will trigger Beast Defense Mode.
---
Opening the Auction House
With Arcadia now booming, Kai opened the Arcadia Nexus Auction Hall—a tower with layered floors and gliding elevator platforms.
> Features:
Low auction fees (only 1%)
AI-monitored item protection
Time-limited silent bid option
Rare Item Showcase Room
Other cities charged 5–10% fees and had long queues.
Adventurers and merchants flocked in.
Within hours:
> Record Broken: Most Auctions Posted in a Single Day (Server)
Revenue: +4,800G from auction handling alone
Kai watched with a grin.
"Let the main cities cry."
---
Rare Item Collection: Secret Development Phase
Kai began hunting (and stealing) rare items with hidden functions, planning his next big upgrade to the city.
> Item: Crystallized Warp Rune (Dev-Item from glitched vault)
Rewrite: Expand Range to cover Arcadia + All Major Cities
Cost: 10 Mana per jump → 1 Silver per use
Rename: "Arcadia TeleChannel: Direct Link System"
> Item: Soulcore Relic – Supposed to bind to 1 player Rewrite: Can be embedded into city's central statue
Effect: Boost all visitors' XP gain by 5% while inside Arcadia
> Item: Forbidden Enchanter's Core Rewrite: Allows any player to enchant once per day at no material cost in Arcadia
Cooldown: Per account
Soon, Arcadia became more convenient than main cities.
Players called it:
> "The Freelancers' Haven."
"Kingdom of Buffs."
"Capital of Cheats – unofficially."
"The City That Makes You Rich While You Shop."
---
Aria Visits Again
"I thought your goal was to stay hidden," she said as they walked through the city.
Kai shrugged. "I am hidden. I'm just a Novice who happens to run a city that's better than any capital."
She smiled. "Other guilds are getting nervous. Crimson Eclipse wants a trade deal. Frostveil's talking about building their own teleport gate here."
Kai nodded. "Auction houses don't care about politics. Only traffic."
Then Aria paused at a plaza that Kai had left unfinished.
"You should build a guild district here," she said. "Auction off permanent headquarters. Let each major guild carve their own identity into Arcadia."
Kai paused.
"That would draw even more attention."
"Exactly."
He laughed. "Remind me never to call you just a warrior again."
---
The King Watches from Afar
Inside the capital palace, King Eldran received another update.
> "Arcadia is now the third-most-visited city. Their auction house is affecting tax flow."
His royal advisor spoke. "Should we impose tariffs?"
But the King waved his hand. "No. Let him thrive. The real test comes when his protection drops."
"Three days remain, Your Majesty."
"Then we watch… and see what he truly is."
---
Meanwhile: Dark Forces Stir
In the depths of the Black Sun Syndicate's hidden base, ReaperZion sat in silence.
A spy knelt before him. "Arcadia will be vulnerable in 72 hours. They've deployed one guardian monster, but the rest is unguarded. We can strike."
ReaperZion didn't reply. Instead, he looked at a holographic map where Arcadia's influence spread like a glowing wound across the world.
> "Get everyone. Prepare all war-path scrolls. In 72 hours… Arcadia falls."