Your Commander-in-Chief – Chapter 143

Friday, December 8.

The day Deron’s update finally wraps up.

The official server hasn’t opened yet, but everyone is eagerly waiting for Deron to go live.

The integration of the Korean server and the global server, plus a new expansion pack. Deron’s unprecedented large-scale update is even pulling in those who had no prior interest in the game.

I sighed as I looked at my phone screen, a bit troubled by the messages piling up from my classmates.

Who am I? When it comes to Deron in Korea, I’m practically the first name that comes to mind—I’m a well-known player.

That’s why my phone was buzzing nonstop with messages.

Friends who previously didn’t care about Deron are suddenly asking me all sorts of questions, curious about everything from job recommendation trees to hunting grounds and leveling routes, even guild memberships.

If these were questions from strangers, I’d have ignored them without a second thought, but this situation was different.

“Ugh—”

Letting out a naturally flowing sigh, I patiently responded to each of their inquiries.

Thanks to my years of experience, I had a wealth of knowledge to share, offering completely different leveling routes than what typical guides pitch online.

Of course, I made sure to clarify that these were just my personal methods.

If it gets too tough, they’ll find their own way eventually.

When kids started asking me for specific items right off the bat, I naturally began to cut off my replies.

Asking for items before even getting into the fun of RPGs? Such players are likely to vanish faster than they appeared.

What I could offer to those just dipping their toes in Deron was light advice.

If they truly showed passion for the game and committed to playing steadily, I’d be the one to reach out first, even without them asking.

Nodding to myself, I realized that newbies need to be built up strong.

I tossed my phone onto the bed.

The server opening time was fast approaching.

The countdown began.

Watching the reactions of other users on the stream, everyone was waiting for the server to launch just like me.

From one minute to thirty seconds, and then ten seconds.

Why does waiting for those brief moments feel so nerve-wracking?

I swallowed hard and closed my eyes.

As soon as Deron’s server opened, I made my move to log in.

My body felt like it was floating; my mind sank calm like being submerged in water.

Even though I knew I was sitting inside a capsule, it felt as though my entire being was soaring somewhere.

Whoosh—!

Light poured before my eyes. Immediately, I was greeted by a girl holding a sword and another girl clutching a staff on the familiar screen.

The character selection screen of Deron. My main character, Yeo, and my alternate character, Princess Yeo.

Sorry, Princess Yeo, but right now I’ve got to focus on my main character.

With a small smile, I attempted to log in to my Yeo character.

As if looking into a mirror, my view started shifting until, at some point, my body had transformed into Yeo.

In the next moment, light burst forth again.

The place I was teleported to was familiar yet oddly foreign.

The city that first comes to mind when you think of Deron.

Lunaris Capital City.

But for some reason, it felt like my field of vision had widened.

It seems I wasn’t the only one feeling this way; most of the players logging in were looking around in awe.

The update announcement did say they were expanding all regions.

I never expected that meant this!

Did they consider the influx of users by merging servers?

Lunaris Capital City greeted them with an area three to four times larger than before.

While the locations of key NPCs hadn’t changed much, the extended map introduced brand-new streets and NPCs I’d never seen before.

“Oh.”

And then, new users began to appear as well.

Most of the max-level players were familiar enough. Guilds, too.

But the newcomers logging in right now were all unfamiliar faces.

Naturally, the guilds displayed new insignias I hadn’t seen before either.

At that moment, our eyes met.

“Oh…”

“A kid?”

The language that came through wasn’t strange at all. It was proof that Deron’s automated translation system was working flawlessly.

Avatars within a VR game conceal the identities of the people behind them.

In reality, I could’ve inferred someone’s nationality through their appearance or language and intonation, but in Deron, that was impossible.

Everyone was the same. A condition was set that allowed players to interact without biases towards nationality.

The users logging in seemed to split into two groups.

Despite the update, things hadn’t changed. Some users were rushing to new areas to level up their characters, while others strolled around, mingling with players from different countries.

I, of course, belonged to the former. Even with the server merging, I hadn’t changed.

My enjoyment primarily came from levelling up my character, so I quickly started following the main quest marker.

Like before, the spot where the main quest kicks off is the Adventurers’ Guild, bustling with players.

Most of Deron’s main quests start from this location.

Elves, Humans, Demon Clans, and all the other races were mixed together, accepting quests.

As I surveyed the scene, I frowned.

There were just too many people. Being on the shorter side meant I couldn’t even see the NPC beyond the throngs of players.

Was Deron that popular of a game?

In South Korea, Deron was seen as somewhat niche, only played by those serious about it, so the player base wasn’t that huge.

I felt like I was losing my little slice of Deron.

I waited for ages, standing behind the crowd, but the line showed no signs of getting shorter.

Letting out a sigh, I decided to utilize the newly implemented system.

The channel system.

The previous Korean servers had channels too, but players couldn’t freely jump between them based on their settings.

But now things were different. Players could switch to the channel of their choice.

The channel I was logged into was Channel 13.

It was quite different from the two-channel system used in the Korean server before.

In fact, there were other channels beneath it as well.

I swiftly moved my fingers to find a quieter channel.

Channels one through ten were packed. It seemed they filled channels sequentially based on the order of connection.

I hastily clicked on Channel 45.

Then, with a fleeting sensation of buoyancy, the surrounding scenery blurred, and all those players vanished in an instant.

While I found the system quite appealing, I was also slightly worried.

What kind of server did Deron use to manage to expand to fifty channels in a game of this scale?

It felt like they had invented some special technology that had yet to be revealed to the general public.

I shook my head. That wasn’t what mattered. I needed to level up quickly.

Unlike the chaos of the last channel, the Adventurers’ Guild was now tranquil. But that wouldn’t last long.

People like me, with the same mindset, started migrating to this channel one by one.

“Ah!”

At that moment, a woman appeared before me as she transitioned between channels, letting out a surprised squeal while her eyes widened.

Her long blonde hair flowed like honey. Her bright blue eyes sparkled, just as captivating.

“Um, ummegirl!”

“Um, ummegirl…?”

It seemed this girl recognized me.

Although I’d never seen her before, her guild name and nickname were both unfamiliar.

Donning armor from head to toe, with a pure white cloak cascading behind her, she looked impressive.

She was definitely a Tank from the Human Paladin class.

“No way, running into you here!”

[Arthur]

Arthur, or was it Asher?

Frowning, I carefully examined him.

Despite setting a different appearance for the gear, the internal stats were plastered with top-tier items from the last season.

Considering he was wearing raid-specific accessories, it was clear he was a player who tackled raids directly.

“Arthur?”

“Yep, that’s me.”

Listening to their introduction, I took a gander at their other info.

[Knights of the Round Table]

In Korean, it translates to [The Knights of the Round Table].

The guild name was rather long.

Then again, there were plenty of lengthy guild names in the Korean server.

Wasn’t there one named something like [TheGuildNameIsSoLongThatICouldHideBehindATreeButStillBeFoundBecauseOfTheGuildName]?

This person’s name, guild name, everything about them suggested they were a true role-player.

My opinion of them naturally started to rise.

“Yeo!”

“… Yes?”

[Friend Request.]

Nickname: Arthur

Level: 85

Master Level: 0

Job: Ark Knight

YES/NO

“Will you be my friend?”

“Ah…”

That was a bit sudden. Given that they were clearly a user from the global server, I had no info on this person. Yet, they seemed to know me.

Given all the goodwill they were showing toward me, it didn’t seem there was any bad intent.

And they were quite cute to boot.

Nodding, I accepted Arthur’s friend request.

“Wait, you actually accepted?”

“Yep. Do you know me?”

“Of course. I’ve been waiting for today just to meet you.”

“Uh…”

Arthur’s direct statement made me have to smooth my cheeks. If this were a tall guy standing before me, I’d feel quite uneasy. But since they were a stunning beauty, it just made me feel good.

“Are you perhaps a fan?”

“Yep!”

As expected. I nodded with a smug expression.

Outstanding individuals tend to stand out wherever they go.

After dealing only with annoying uncle fans, encountering this beautiful fan lifted my spirits.

“Were you planning on doing a quest?”

“Yeah.”

“Let’s do it together!”

Was it her beauty that made me nod without realizing it?

Arthur beamed at my reply, looking thrilled.

Our first meeting right after the server merger was off to a great start.

Given the specs of their character, achievements, and equipped titles, this Arthur user was definitely skilled.

Good tank players are rare in Deron. It wouldn’t hurt to befriend them.

Despite those thoughts grounded in practicality, Arthur’s bright personality also won me over.

Of course, the fact that they were Human concerned me a bit…

Maybe if I play my cards right, I could turn them into a Demon Clan in the next life?

I flashed a bright smile at the stunning blonde before me.