Chapter 320

Episode 320. Who Am I? “The King of Neutrality.” (1)

—

It must be because the story is so touching.

“Manipulating emotions is why it feels like a scam.”

At first, I just wanted to step back and watch the users rebel among themselves.

But after hearing the whole story, I started leaning toward accepting them.

But that was short-lived.

—

“Commander, Commander.”

“Hmm… What?”

“I can tell what you’re worried about, but did you know there’s a major issue if you go through with it?”

“Hmm.”

—

Listening to Jessica, her red eyes sparkling, I paid attention, thinking she might have an opinion.

And right after.

—

“Think about it. If you accept them… wouldn’t the other Commanders think you’re forming a Clan?”

“…Ah.”

—

Jessica’s words made me realize there was a serious problem with this situation.

—

“If I’m not careful, I could face a large-scale invasion like Walpurgis.”

“Exactly. It’d be even more thorough than the Walpurgis Union, an invasion beyond comparison.”

—

After hearing Jessica, I definitely felt it was dangerous.

Even Walpurgis didn’t have a base, but they had over 500 users.

I’m alone here, except for my bases.

And now I have two bases. If I accept a bunch of users at once…

Wouldn’t it look like I’m trying to form a massive Clan by taking over bases?

Plus, in that situation, people would try to cling to me…

And I’d have to deal with endless, annoying Clan defense battles.

“Ugh, horrifying.”

I couldn’t help but shudder.

I never even wanted to form a Clan in the first place.

I didn’t want to risk being misunderstood and dragged into unnecessary trouble.

—

“Last time, I barely survived an attack from just 500 people. I can’t repeat that in this situation, right?”

“Of course not.”

—

If 500 almost took me down, what about more?

For example, if Menaldu and other rankers rallied around 6,000 people, claiming they’ve realized the truth about Walpurgis, could I hold out?

“Ugh, totally impossible.”

No matter how I thought about it, it seemed genuinely impossible.

So, after some thought, I decided to reject the offer.

—

“Sorry, but I’d rather not get involved with people I’ve had no connection with until now.”

-“I see…”

—

Of course, the user on the other side of the screen looked visibly disappointed.

But realistically, it was natural for me to reject them, so I left it at that.

—

-“Well, I’ll let our people know.”

“Alright, take care.”

—

Anyway, after exchanging minimal courtesies, I was about to cut the communication when…

—

-*Bzzzz… Kaboom!*

“Huh?”

“Commander! Dozens of ‘Bases’ just warped near Avalon Fortress!”

“Wait… what?”

—

Suddenly, dozens of User Bases appeared around Avalon Fortress.

Despite my clear rejection, they barged in recklessly.

—

“I’ll deploy the Guard Fleet and our Fleet right away!”

—

As Jessica quickly gave orders to deploy the main and Guard Fleets, I nodded.

Then I turned back to the still-connected communication and was about to demand an explanation.

But when I turned my head and met their gaze…

—

-“Uh… uh…??”

“…”

-“Wait, why did they come here?”

—

Their eyes were shaking uncontrollably, and they were sweating bullets, clearly panicked.

Unless they were a professional actor, this situation was clearly unintentional.

And most importantly, the Guard Fleet and our Fleets, hastily deployed after the Bases warped in, said…

—

“···Commander? The state of the bases doesn’t seem normal.”

“What’s going on?”

Stimulated by the curiosity-inducing remark, I immediately threw out a question.

In response to my reaction, Belial and Tiamat, who were leading the fleet, sent me photos taken from their ships and reconnaissance planes via communication.

–<A picture of bases with most of their defense facilities destroyed, black smoke billowing from various spots.jpg>

–<Close-up photos from the reconnaissance plane, showing CIWS systems completely destroyed and emergency repairs underway.jpg>

-“This is roughly the situation.”

-“There are hardly any ships left. When the base warps, the ships should warp along with it, right?”

“Oh···.”

Judging from the explanation I just heard, those bases probably belonged to the users who were trying to start that ‘rebellion.’

Seeing how utterly destroyed they were, it seems the rebellion failed.

And with the bases themselves on the verge of exploding, they apparently rushed to the Avalon Fortress near their team (?) via forced teleportation.

The problem is, if we leave them like this, there’s a chance that nearby users might suspect clan activity, as Jessica and I discussed earlier.

For now, they’re in a neutral state, so they won’t fight me, but what if they start mining resources here and producing fleets under the guise of revenge?

Then it’ll look like I’ve accepted them, no matter what.

With a heavy heart, I was about to mobilize the fleet to drive out these unexpected refugees (?).

But in response to my fleet’s movements, these self-proclaimed community users frantically contacted me using both communication and chat.

-“Wait, hold on!”

-“We won’t build any fleets or anything here, just let us stay until we figure out how to leave on our own!”

-“Leahru.”

—————————————-

<‘Pegasus’ has invited you to the ‘Community Chat Room’!>

<Will you accept?>

<Y/N>

—————————————-

Seeing how desperate they looked, I decided to hold off on deploying the demolition squad.

I pressed the accept button for their chat room invitation, and as soon as I entered, I boldly asked, “What am I supposed to trust you guys for?”

—————————————-

<Community Chat Room>

<Announcement: ㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌ>

<Icarus has entered the chat.>

-[Guys, what am I supposed to trust you for?](Icarus)

-[Ah]

-[Well, you see…]

-[Do we have to show you some desperate last-ditch effort?]

-[Why don’t we just take a screenshot of our bases for proof?]

-[?]

-[To prove we’re not a clan, we’ll take verification shots of our bases.]

-[And with the help of the guard fleet here, we’ll gather ourselves and just need to find the coordinates for an escape point with the patrol ships…]

-[…And then leave?](Icarus)

-[Yeah, that’s right.]

—————————————-

Impressed by their surprisingly decent plan, I thought for a moment.

“What do you think, Jessica?”

“Uh… if they’re willing to verify in the gallery, most people probably won’t attack them recklessly.”

“Right?”

“Of course, we should set a firm deadline, and if they exceed it, we’ll have to kick them out no matter what.”

Seeing no major issues, I nodded and left a message in the chat saying they could stay here for about a month.

—————————————-

<Community Chat Room>

<Announcement: ㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌㅌ>

-[You can stay here for now.]

-[But finding coordinates and all that shouldn’t take more than a month, so if you can’t find it by then, look elsewhere.](Icarus)

-[A month is more than enough.]

-[Wow, where is this? Thanks, thanks!]

—————————————-