Chapter 431

Episode 431. The Birth of the Central Zone’s Guardian, Deathwoong. (1)

Of course, right now, whether other users are talking nonsense about my “triangular pyramid” or not, I don’t have the time to care.

And for good reason, because proving that I ate Spiralus wasn’t about proving that my territory had become a three-dimensional triangular pyramid.

It was more like, “Oh, this is a base, huh? Those guys from other zones keep trying to eat here, so I should give them a little lesson!”

After posting the proof, I just closed the gallery window, so whatever they said, I wouldn’t know.

Well, if I didn’t have anything else to do, I would’ve opened the gallery again soon enough…

But unfortunately, after closing the gallery window, what I had to deal with was a major issue related to faction territories.

So, the proof I posted in the gallery was pushed way, way down the priority list in my mind.

Anyway, so now, who am I talking to and about what…?

“Icarus, I heard that the Earth Federation’s flagship and its fleet have taken refuge with you recently!”

“Ah, yeah, sure.”

It seemed that Princess Luka, who had come while being hugged by Oxianor, had heard the news about Leviathan and his friends arriving.

And seeing Princess Luka, the “representative” of the Monster Force, I suddenly felt a longing for Marian, who was still in seclusion.

But since now wasn’t the time to indulge in nostalgia, I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind.

Instead, I decided to respond to Princess Luka’s lively attitude first.

After some back-and-forth, the conversation eventually circled back to the Leviathan Fleet, as per the law of conservation of narrative…

“By the way, Princess Luka.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“Wouldn’t you say this place is practically a joint zone between the Pirate Alliance and the Space Monsters?”

“Strictly speaking, no, but you could say that!”

“But in such a situation, wouldn’t it be uncomfortable for you to have the Earth Federation’s flagship and escort fleet here?”

“Huh?”

Of course, I was the one who brought it up first.

Even though they started with the Leviathan topic, their response was oddly evasive.

Wondering if they were using diplomatic rhetoric even in the game, I decided to push the issue.

But in response to my question, Princess Luka said…

“The Leviathan Fleet… Earth Federation’s flagship? Why should we worry about that?”

“Huh?”

“Even though Leviathan is a very powerful ship and its fleet is quite threatening… it’s just one fleet, right?”

“Wow.”

No matter how strong they are, in the end, it’s just one fleet.

Princess Luka seemed confident that the Leviathan Fleet, having lost the vast backing of the “Earth Federation,” its supply bases, and rear support, could easily be crushed.

“Indeed, Princess, your words are truly wise.”

“Is that so?”

“Those who rely on a handful of large ships like the Leviathan Fleet can never withstand the sheer numbers of us or the pirates.”

“Hmm… that’s true.”

Even Oxianor chimed in, saying, “Yeah, if a force like ours just rushes in, we can crush them right away!”

Continuously agreeing with Princess Luka.

“More importantly, how about the battleship from the hobby… I mean, the royal fleet I’ve been diligently raising? I really put a lot of effort into it this time!”

“Hmm, impressive.”

Princess Luka, as if to prove her point, completely lost interest in the Leviathan Fleet and started showing off her royal (hobby) fleet, which she had been raising like a pet or a plant.

Feeling that there was no real need to worry, I confirmed that they wouldn’t do anything strange to the Leviathan Fleet.

“Then, I’ll make good use of the hobby fleet you’ve built, Princess Luka.”

“What.”

Now, with battleships included, the royal-hobby fleet had grown to about 100 ships, and I was determined to use them well.

Of course, this led to Princess Luka, who had been proudly showing off her hobby fleet, tearing up with big, chicken-poop-like tears in her eyes.

==========

Anyway, with all that miscellaneous chatter done…

“Commander, today’s daily quests are all finished.”

“Took you long enough to finish them leisurely.”

After hearing that all the daily quests were done, I figured there wasn’t much left for me to do.

—

**[Large Ship Dedicated Shipyard Construction List]**

– **[Dock 1]**

[Dreadnought under construction…]

[Remaining time: 7 days 4 hours 44 minutes 34 seconds]

– **[Dock 2]**

[On standby]

– **[Dock 3]** (Fortress-provided facility)

[On standby]

—

With the first Dreadnought gone, I decided to start building the second one. Then, I opened the community chat I had set aside earlier, expecting to deal with the usual flood of reports or check the comments on the post I made earlier.

But the moment I opened the gallery, what greeted my eyes was…

—

**Title: Current Status of the Central Zone.txt**

**Author: ㅇㅇ**

**Content:** [A picture of the Central Zone model that looks like a rotting tangerine.jpg], [A picture of an actual rotten tangerine.jpg]

The two look almost the same.

**Comments:**

– [At least there’s a safe zone in the center, right?]

˪[Where? The triangle zone?] (Author)

˪[It’s a triangular pyramid now.]

˪[When did it become 3D?]

—

**Title: The Only Safe Haven in the Chaotic Central Zone.jpg**

**Author: ㅇㅇ**

**Content:** [A picture of Icarus’s area, transformed into a truly 3D triangle zone after eating Spiralus.jpg]

[An image of a toad taking off its sunglasses in amazement]

That’s the Icarus Triangular Pyramid!

If you go there, you can live safely without suffering in this dump of a place!

**Comments:**

– [LOLOLOLOLOL]

– [LMAOOOO]

– [But seriously, the Leviathan Fleet that Humanity missed is stationed there now.]

˪[That’s why no one dares to invade the Central Zone anymore lol.]

˪[Oh, damn, you’re right.]

– [Not just the Leviathan Fleet, but there’s also an unlimited mercenary group that can summon 1 million ships in an instant!]

˪[This is insane.]

—

Suddenly, I saw a flood of mysterious praise posts about me and my area. At least those posts weren’t complete lies. Unlike other places, this area has a thoroughly planned patrol route made up of Level 7 and Level 5 bases, making it relatively safe and “stable.” So, I could accept that much.

But that was as far as I could accept…

—

**Title: Declaration by Users Controlling Level 4+ Bases in the Central Zone.txt**

**Author: ㅇㅇ**

**Content:** [A screenshot of a group statement by users of the “Base Alliance” in the Central Zone posted in the global chat.jpg]

The full text is roughly summarized as: “We hereby appoint Icarus as the sole Clan Leader of the Central Zone’s unified clan.”

By the way, Icarus’s opinion was not asked.

**Comments:**

– [???]

– [Forced Clan Leader promotion??]

– [LMAOOOO]

– [Icarus, who was just chilling at the base scratching his… uh, stuff, suddenly gets a badge and becomes the Central Zone’s Clan Leader?]

—

“What the hell is this?”

“Wow.”

Seeing the post about suddenly appointing me as Clan Leader, I was utterly speechless.