There were many players from other countries, but because they joined much later, they were quite far behind. These players were often in smaller countries and islands in the middle of the continent, but because of the automatic translation program, their respective countries were often not revealed.
Everyone spoke the same language in Royal Road, so a player’s country of origin had no real meaning.
The Executive Director of Management, Son Il-gang chuckled.
“That’s a relief. There is not even the slightest chance an Emperor will rise from a player in a foreign country.”
“However you look at it, it seems to be the case.”
A smile played on Jang Yoon-soo’s lips.
Royal Road.
The Emperor of the Versailles continent would receive 10 % of a month’s profit as a prize.
It was the ultimate goal of the entire game, and the person who achieve the dream of becoming Emperor would receive incredible privileges.
The press focused solely on this immense prize money.
However, there was another unique reward besides the money.
5% of Unicorn’s shares.
Scientists and researchers worked on the project, along with existing shareholders opposed to the idea. The Systems and Operations strategy department, however, pushed the issue and succeeded in making it the reward.
The one who becomes Emperor was bound to wield incredible power. He would be able to destroy or create anything at will.
Even the company who created an innovative economic system based on Versailles, Unicorn, would not be safe from the Emperor’s hands.
Even the Goddess of Versailles would be unable to lawfully lay hands on the ruler.
The emperor of the virtual reality world in which a multitude of players lived.
It was a secret prize which was immeasurably larger than the reward the public knew of.
A conference was held in the early morning concerning Royal Road’s new Public Relations strategy, support for new technologies, and business partners.
Nevertheless, the members of the meeting did not discussed Bardray, other high leveled players, or guild leaders. Instead, they focused earnestly on various other important topics.
“Strategist Yoon Young-sil will elaborate. Recently, NPCs from the Kingdom of the Horde have been popular for their cute appearances. I’ve sent documents about character analysis. Did you get a chance to look at them?”
“Yes. We are rushing the production of popular NPCs.”
“More and more players are utilizing the trochet carriage for their vacations. They’re becoming increasingly renowned and well-regarded because of its price, speed, and safety. What do you all think about installing them on resorts?”
“Transportation in the resorts? Whether for mountain climbing, skiing, or golfing, I think it would work out pretty well. I will consider it.”
It was a meeting with light ideas.
The heads of each department ate sandwiches whilst conversing amongst themselves.
As soon as breakfast ended, the atmosphere around supervisor Jang Yoon-soo changed.
“Well…. the external balance of power on Royal Road needs to be examined.”
Department Head Son Il-gang stood up and turned on the screen in the middle of the room.
The territory of each Guild, castle and town were displayed on the map.
“The power in Versailles is split up something like this: Central has 66 %, the East 10 %, West 8 %, South 13 %, and North 3 %.”
Jang Yoon-soo pointed at flags on the screen which were placed in various places.
“The East is unexpectedly big. There’s a guild occupying the village whose members are impressively high in level.”
“Based on the new players, the kingdoms beyond the plains of despair are blooming, but the Orcs are responsible for the noticeable growth.”
It was a grand sight — races merging together with the emergence of the Orcs, changing the balance of power.
“From the traditional kingdom in the South, there are those who enjoy adventuring using their own strength; in the West, there are only a few players, but, due to the escalating conflicts stemmed from the scarce resources, strong warriors are being born. At this time, the place needs to be focused is the center of the continent.”
Department Head Son Il-gang gestured toward the center of the Versailles continent.
The Kallamore Kingdom and Haven Kingdom were traditionally the powerhouse nations concentrated in the central continent.
“Based on their political economy, the area was perceived to be capable of development. However, the area accumulated overwhelming growth, incomparable with other regions. We must watch out for approximately 149 players.”
Jang Yoon-soo asked in a light tone.
“Yes, how did you decide on those players needed attention?”
“It was determined by the players’ influence and player levels.”
“Then that group must contain a lot of Guild leaders, Nobles and Lords.”
Even supervisor Jang Yoon-soo did not receive materials prior to the conference. Of course, when leaving the conference room research materials could not be taken out. So materials would be distributed at the meeting upon request.
“That’s how it is. Although there are some players who stand out even while playing solo, but in general, their influence is limited. First, take a look at the players in the most prestigious guilds of the continent.”
The members of the meeting took a look at the data of the 149 aforementioned players. Only the rustling of paper could be heard in the silent meeting room.
This information is different from the info spread by the game network. It’s been gathered by the Strategy and Systems operation departments, so it’s highly reliable.
If one was to take a look at the documents, he would see the diversity in both nationalities and genders.
If one particular guild was notably more powerful than the rest, the 5 or 6 guilds which ranked right below the guild will form an alliance against it. In some cases, 10 or more similar sized guilds fought in a single country.
Because of the large number of players in the Versailles continent, this was only natural.
Whenever the balance gets disrupted, the weaker gets absorbed as the winner becomes a little stronger, but when it happens, the stronger side makes more enemies.
There were great wars which would upset such a tenuous balance, but there has yet to be a war so large, the continent itself would be forever changed.
The chief of the company’s development department, Ha Yun-ji, looked doubtful as she read the file and spoke.
“The power of Bardray and the Hermes guild seems to be far higher than I expected. What are you basing this on?”
“You’ve asked a very good question.”
All eyes slowly concentrated towards Son Il-gang.
The meeting, itself, had to be treated with the utmost secrecy. Until now, comprehensive ranking reports of all of the players’ activities, like brass trading or quest progression, was shared publicly, even with Unicorn Corporation. However, this special report was only available for a few important, special people to review.
In the report, it is a fact the military, financial, and the productive prowess of the Hermes Guild, as well as their territory and skills, were an overwhelming 5 times greater than the other prestigious guilds of the Haven Kingdom was revealed.
“Bardray is an amazing player. Ever since the beginning of the launch of Royal Road, he has been the best, and has established the Hermes Guild. There was a time he fell behind while founding and managing the guild, but he quickly ascended back to the top position. This is probably the first time all of you have been aware of Bardray’s level being 447.”
Everyone in the conference room dejectedly nodded their heads.
Bardray’s level was a matter of course. But they did not know there were this many 400 level players.