Elincia stood with Maylock, watching how Broken was conducting the recruitment. She couldn’t help but comment.
“I’m not saying I don’t trust him, but is he sure about the salary he’s offering them? Doesn’t it seem too high?” she asked.
Maylock answered evenly. “Broken, as his name suggests, is anything but ordinary. Common sense doesn’t quite apply to him. If someone else were doing the same, I’d have harsher criticisms. But for him, I just surrender to his methods.”
“He pays them very high salaries. Is he too kind, smart, or… does he not really understand how to pay someone?” Elincia said.
“I’m sure he has strong reasons for what he did. You need to just calm down and trust him,” Maylock replied calmly. “He said he can inspect their talents, right?”
“Yes, but why do you trust him so much?” she asked.
“Didn’t you place great trust in him first, Elincia?” he countered. “By commanding us to find him and forge an alliance with him, it all started with you.”
“Yes, but why do you trust Broken so much? I want a deeper reason from someone as analytical as you,” she pressed.
“He is simply special, extraordinary, and such things,” Maylock said, appearing reluctant to elaborate.
“Are you serious? Where did you get that idea from, Maylock?”
Maylock replied, “I can definitely tell he is something special. I am fully convinced what Goldrich proclaimed is true-that Broken is one of the Divine Champions. I am so certain of it that I’d bet my life on the notion that he might be the Champion of Sloth.”
“You speak with such certainty and conviction, as if you know what you’re saying is true.”
“That’s how my brain works,” Maylock replied. “I can infer things just by observing what’s going on around me and make a conclusion based on intuition. But don’t worry, my intuition and analytical brain have never been wrong.”
“Now, I need the reasons why you said Broken might be the Sloth Champion.”
Maylock took a deep breath and began. “After the global announcement about someone who met the Goddess of Sloth, Akidia, and even made physical contact with her, I want to bet that the player in question is Broken.”
He continued, “Just from that, there’s a strong reason to believe that someone like him received many benefits. The achievement of meeting a God directly and making physical contact with them likely led to gaining the Blessing and becoming the Sloth Champion. I’m sure all of that came with a set of skills, blessings, and advantages. It starts making sense when you see all the seemingly unbelievable things that surround Broken. And quite frankly, I’m too lazy to explain everything point by point,” he sighed.
Elincia chuckled. “Broken does seem to be very lucky with women, doesn’t it? Even a goddess has bestowed many blessings upon him. Is he really that special?” she giggled.
On the stage where Broken continued his selection process, it soon became apparent that no more recruits had been chosen, leading to disappointment among many hopefuls. However, the presence of Ivana kept the complaints at bay-her formidable appearance in armor left little room for dissent.
Then, another person approached, this time a man in his fifties with a warm smile. He bowed slowly before Broken.
“My Lord,” he said reverently, “I sincerely hope you will accept me to work here. I have great passion in my field, and as long as I can express it, I’ll be more than content with earning just enough to meet my basic needs.”
The man continued, “My name is Ingolf, My Lord.”
Broken quickly inspected the man’s status and once again found himself stunned.
“Don’t tell me you found another super talent?” Freya whispered to him.
[Name: Ingolf]
[Armor Smithing (S) – Metal Manipulator (A) – Master Forger (A)]
[Armor Smithing: Focuses on crafting exceptional armor pieces that offer unparalleled protection.]
[Metal Manipulator: Molds and shapes metal with exceptional skill, creating intricate designs and forms.]
[Master Forger: Crafts weapons and armor of superior quality, renowned for their durability and effectiveness.] ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com
Broken rose to his feet. “If I may ask, what is your Blacksmith Rank?”
Ingolf was astonished by the question. He hadn’t disclosed that he was a blacksmith, yet Broken seemed to know.
“My Lord,” he replied, “I am an Expert Rank.”
Broken nodded slowly, a smile spreading across his face. He had found an Expert Rank blacksmith in a place like this? An Expert Rank that even the palace had difficulty finding? Another jackpot for him!
With a blacksmith like Ingolf here, Broken could entrust him with important tasks, including crafting something special for the knights. Plus, Ingolf could help other blacksmiths grow by guiding them.
“Your talents will be an invaluable addition to Slumdon town,” Broken said.
He offered Ingolf a suitable salary, which the blacksmith accepted without hesitation. Ingolf stepped down from the stage, once again leaving many people astonished.
As Broken sat down again, Freya whispered to him, “Why doesn’t someone like him work in the palace? Wouldn’t he get better treatment and facilities there?”
“How could I answer that?” Broken replied with a smirk. “But knowing someone with such talent, there’s no way I’d offer him to the palace. It’s better if I recruit him myself,” he said,
grinning.
“You know you’re part of Dissidia Kingdom now, but you still think that way. You surely are greedy.”
“I invest money into this city, so the first thing on my mind is to break even. I think that’s
fair.”
“So, how much of a salary have you promised those NPCs so far?” she asked jokingly.
“I haven’t counted it exactly, but I think I still have enough money to afford it,” he said. Freya chuckled. “You should have seen the looks of horror on the faces of the Ass Guild members when you suggested such high salaries for those NPCs,” she commented. Broken smiled. “I’m not too worried; I have you to help me find sponsors if they decide to back out of this high-risk gambling,” he said.
On the other side, Elincia and Maylock were still deep in discussion about Broken. Elincia started, “Broken doesn’t seem lazy enough to be the Sloth Champion. I wonder what kind of skills he has as the Divine Champion. Tell me more. I know you’ve done a lot of analysis about him. I’m just curious to see when he’ll reveal it himself.”
Maylock paused and sighed, then began to explain. “First, Broken doesn’t seem to care at all about his level. While others are constantly trying to level up, not him.”
He paused for a moment, seeing Elincia’s interest. “I thought the same thing, and why is
that?”
Maylock continued, “Broken only kills monsters for the drop items-and he always seems to get double the amount compared to other players. He can enter any domain without restriction, and there are numerous other things he can do as well. It’s almost like he’s been blessed with more than one special skill from God!
“It’s as if he’s the only one with these extraordinary blessings. I think that’s what makes him super special, and if he continues to grow at this unstoppable rate, he might even break the game.”
Elincia was intrigued. “Care to explain in more detail, Mr. Holmes?” she asked.