Chapter 953. Mood (4)

‘Busy, busy, and busy...’

Ten thousand people were going to participate in the expedition.

It could be said that the continent’s best forces were going to join the expedition.

The three major guilds of Lindel, the great generals of the Republic, the famous adventurers of the Union of Kingdoms the Federation, the knights of the Sacred Democratic Country, and the priests of the Vatican.

Every adventurer and their respective party had their own unique traits, personalities, and skills, so it was difficult to organize a raid with so many people. If these people were members of an armed force that had been training in one place, the situation would be different, but that wasn't the case at all.

Since there were so many people to manage, even creating the strike squad was incredibly difficult. Fortunately, no idiot had gone ahead and asked why the strike squad was important.

In addition, every single guild and party had their own way of handling their administrative tasks, which was incredibly helpful in our current situation.

It had been a while since I joined a dungeon raid, but I was sure we could complete the quest without that many issues. My Mind’s Eye and Telescope were super strong, after all. Of course, my genius brain and cool-headed mindset were even more powerful.

I was also a dignified and charismatic leader.

If I had to nitpick, I'd say that the administrative staffers of the guild and parties weren't looking fondly at me. To be exact, they looked nervous.

“This is the next one, Father Lee Ki-Young. It’s selecting people for the fourth strike squad.”

“Please leave it there, and my title from now on is Strike Squad Operations Commander,” I ordered.

“Yes, sir.”

Perhaps it was because the majority of them were young, but they looked nervous about my arrangements.

I understood their feelings, as it had been a while since I joined a dungeon raid. Of course, my strong symbolic image had to be one of the reasons they were nervous as well.

They probably thought I was crazy when I suddenly told them that I'd remake the strike squads in just three hours. After all, everyone here was a genius considered to be elite among their peers.

‘But guys, did you know that...’

—that I was the one who started the control tower boom?

I was the reason the higher-ups of basically every single organization out there had decided to invest in these guys.

The continent had no system in place when it came to raids prior to my arrival here.

'Why do you think your bosses sent you guys to me? They want you guys to obtain some experience and learn something from me, so you shouldn’t be talking behind my back like that.'

“He said he’s going to change the strike squad, but I think he’s working on the fourth strike squad right now.”

“We don’t have enough time to change anything. The strike squad members are going to get confused at this rate. Are you sure you told him the details about the raid?”

“Yes, I told him the details, but he suspended the operations of the first strike squad, and he's about to change them as well.”

“Why is he doing this... What the hell is the guild master...”

“I don’t understand any of this... why is he reforming the strike squads? Why the hell is he interfering with our system?”

‘You guys don’t understand my plan because you guys are idiots, and I can hear everything you guys are talking about, you know?’

“From what I heard, useless supplies have been coming in since Father Lee Ki-Young announced that he was going to participate in the raid. They’re basically sending in luxury items.”

“Expensive food including Mirror Salmon... Rainbow Cotton Candy for dessert...

Ha.

Even a chef specializing in creating cotton candy was enlisted as an expedition member. Premium glamping kit, a sleeping mattress, and ornately designed uniforms...”

"Does he not know that this isn't a playground?"

“I think this is all a political play. Perhaps the Vatican and the Sacred Democratic Country have joined forces to pressure everyone.

"Raiding a dungeon with Father Lee Ki-Young as the commander... Is that even a reasonable decision?

"We can surely handle a dungeon without him. If I were in their position, I wouldn't make the same decision as them. The problem is that this isn’t an ordinary dungeon. If we think of it as an ordinary dungeon, we’re going to suffer.”

'Yeah, that makes sense.'

“Do you think he’ll get it done in time? There isn’t much time left until the expedition... What did he mean by dispatching a separate siege unit... There are so many changes...”

“All we need to do is follow his orders.”

“What?”

Fortunately, some of them had a brain. I took a closer look at the one who chimed in and realized that she appeared familiar to me. I couldn't remember her name, and I had no idea where we fought together, but I presumed that she was once an adjutant.

The large glasses that covered half of her face, her short hair, and her soft manner of speech were really familiar to me.

“Keep in mind that he’s the honorary cardinal and the former sub guild master of the Blue Guild.”

“I know that, but...”

“Back then, the Blue Guild was on the brink of collapse, and it wasn't strange if the guild had simply disappeared at the time. You guys honestly don't believe that... the guild master’s power alone was enough to grow the guild, do you?”

“...”

“The Blue Guild was extremely short on manpower at the time, so the sub guild master had no choice but to take care of a variety of administrative tasks.”

‘Yeah, I remember. Kim Hyun-Sung, that evil bastard.’

'I can still remember how I had to work tirelessly like a dog upon being declared the sub guild master.'

“The sub guild master is the reason why the Blue Guild is at its current heights. I’m not simping over him. He actually did it. Remember the textbooks you guys are using to study? Where do you think they come from?”

“That’s...”

“Do you guys still not know... how the textbook that contains information about the Continental War, the Day of Destruction, and the big and small wars were created?”

“...”

“They weren't made because everyone idolized him. The tactics that were employed during those wars were direct orders from him... The administrative tasks, tactics, strategy, supplies, and personnels were all decided by him.

"He and Miss Lee Ji-Hye did them all together, and I was their assistant.”

“Really? That’s... so absurd...”

It was kind of exaggerated. However, I had to admit that she was pretty competent and was of great help to me at the time.

“If that’s true, then there’s no reason for him to create a separate command tower—”

“Don’t think about it.”

“What?”

“I suggest you get rid of any opinions or doubts you have in your mind. We’ve become components of his plan. You’re not here to brainstorm. Think of yourselves as being the hands and feet of the sub guild master and the cogwheel that executes his plan. It may not make sense, but trust me. You do that, and you’ll obtain something after all this.”

It felt good to know that someone was defending me.

‘Her name is Floretta. She must be from the Union of Kingdoms.’

It seemed that she had been enjoying a good position since then. I could see it from her outfit and her overall demeanor.

However, she really was exaggerating, as I never thought of the staffers as my hands and feet. As expected, some of them glanced at me. The majority of them still couldn’t believe it, and I was bothered by them. The impact didn't really diminish, as I really liked receiving attention, but their gaze felt burdensome.

I was now afraid of not being able to meet their expectations.

The simulation that I was running in my head in real-time told me that the satisfaction rate was seventy-six percent, which was pretty high.

‘Not to brag, but I made that, too, guys.’

They were looking forward to seeing what else they could do here to achieve even better results.

Floretta nodded as if she was telling them to trust her.

‘It’s honestly not a hard task.’

I had data from the dummy world, Mind’s Eye, and the Telescope, so it was like solving a slightly difficult puzzle. Yeah, it was just that.

I simply ran the program that matched the dummy world data using my personal account on the Goddess’ Hand Mirror. I updated the variables tied to the named characters and double-checked those variables against the information that I could see from Mind’s Eye.

I would then update the data if there were any discrepancies.

The program sorted people into their own groups, and grouping them into strike squads made me feel like a marriage agency matching couples for life

‘That’s just an example.’

It was a lot more elaborate than that.

The program would create parties and groups by ensuring that the members' styles, stats, battle records, and individual characteristics were compatible with each other.

In other words, everything was automated.

Although I had to change some things here and there, it wasn’t really a big issue.

I needed to put on a performance, as these administrative rookies were looking at me as if I were a fool. Getting a nosebleed would be pretty dramatic, but it'd make me look like I was focusing at the very least. They’d be touched if I did that, too.

'Ah, damn it. I got dust in my eyes.'

The satisfaction rate was going to the moon. Seventy-seven percent. Seventy-eight percent.

My hands danced across the keyboard as I pretended like I was busy. I took a sip of my coffee and returned to typing when I heard familiar footsteps behind me. The footsteps were from Floretta, a senior member of this command center.

“Check the supplies one last time and report back to me afterward. The Blue Guild said that they’re done with the preparations,” I ordered without looking away from the screen.

I got dust in my eyes, but I endured it and focused on the Goddess’ Mirror.

“Is it all done?

” I asked.

— Yes, Mr. Ki-Young. I’ve completed everything you asked me to do.

“Wait, Mr. Hyun-Sung. I sent someone over there right now,”

I informed him.

— M-Mr. Ki-Young... you don’t have to overdo it.

“I’m not overdoing it, so don’t worry,”

I told him.

I had him on speaker, so I had to hang up before he said something strange.

Seventy-nine percent. Eighty percent. The satisfaction rate rose to a decent percentage, so I felt like I was finally free.

I thought about which task I had to complete at the same time as what I was doing right now, but I found no more tasks to handle.

What would happen if I included the field commanders in my calculations?

Eighty-one percent...

Nice...

Eighty-two percent...

I noticed people whispering with each other while glancing at me. They looked like they had realized that something indescribably was happening before their eyes.

“What in the world...”

“That doesn't make any sense...”

'That's what they said, but this

does

make sense, you idiots.'

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young, I heard you called for me?” Kasugano Yuno asked.

“It’s been a while, Miss Yuno,” I greeted.

It was Kasugano Yuno, my special guest. However, we could just catch up later, as I was still too

busy

.

“I want you to help me minimize the variables as much as possible,” I requested.

“Yes, sir,” Kasugano Yuno answered. It wasn't exactly that detailed, but she could see the future, and there was nothing better than that.

Eighty-four percent. Eighty-five percent.

'I don’t want to put Elias and Jo Hye-Jin on the same squad... but they’re so compatible with each other. Is there something wrong with the program?'

Eighty-nine percent.

The satisfaction rate was now ninety percent.

I saw the idiots casting envious looks at me. Actually, they were staring at me as if they were looking at a monster. However, they'd definitely be more shocked once they saw tactical Kim Hyun-Sung. This was nothing compared to him.

Since this was such a big dungeon, there was a chance that I had to deploy him.

“Let’s get ready to head out. The second and third strike squad will enter the dungeon first,” I ordered.

“Y-Yes, sir.”

Ninety-eight percent....

At this point, ninety-eight percent made me feel a bit disappointed.

I didn't really want to do this, but I decided to put Elias and Jo Hye-Jin in the same squad.

99.1 percent. It was minus 0.9 percent, but the data from the dummy world was kind of exaggerated, so I had to take this with a grain of salt.

“The command center will head in together with the guards and the seventh strike squad,” I added.

I was sure I looked like a genius to them.

‘I feel the same way.’

There was only one thing I was worried about, and it was about how we were going to go down to the lower levels, but...

‘These guys... they actually prepared a palanquin?’

“Get in, Mr. Ki-Young.”

I nodded upon seeing an ornately designed palanquin.