Chapter 66: The Man Named Ark

[Prison of the Swamp]

The moment I crossed the main gate and entered the prison, the map name appeared before my eyes.

Revan looked around every corner of the prison to properly capture the interior, which he was seeing for the first time.

“Please follow me.”

The guard assigned to guide Revan wasn’t the kind of fat character you’d see in American comics, but rather a well-built soldier.

Following behind the guard, Revan asked,

“It’s my first time in a prison, it’s fascinating.”

“Unless you’re a guard, ordinary people rarely have a reason to come here. Actually, it’s a place one shouldn’t come to at all.”

“I heard that everyone who commits a crime in Gald Castle ends up here. Does everyone come here regardless of the severity of their crime?”

“That’s right. A crime is a crime, no matter how minor or major.”

‘Well, that’s better than Hell Joseon, at least.’

Of course, there was no way the guard would sympathize with that sentiment, so Revan thought he’d have to add it later as a caption.

‘Now, the problem is, how do I find any clues here…?’

Revan had received two quests from the Cube, but hadn’t solved even one of them properly yet.

‘I still don’t even know where the Ashen Marshes are, so the Epic Quest comes first… but is it possible the prison has nothing to do with it?’

Through Hagon, he had learned that the prisoners trapped in the Prison of the Swamp were the Nameless Exiles.

Yet even after coming to the prison with a letter of delegation, the quest system remained silent.

Naturally, Revan was frustrated.

“This is the library. Number 142! The inspector from Grey Memory has arrived. Show him around well! Oh, and Inspector, when you’re finished, just follow this hallway straight out.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Well then, I’ll be going.”

While Revan was lost in thought, the guard finished guiding him, handed him over to the library inmate, and returned to his post.

After the guard left, there was a clattering sound from inside the library and a young man poked his face out.

“Sorry about that. I tripped on the way here… Nice to meet you! I’m Number 142, and I manage the books in this Swamp Library!”

“I’m Revan. I’ve been dispatched here as a book inspector in place of Lord Hagon.”

“Yes! I’ve prepared the inspection documents ahead of time, Inspector.”

The man called 142 wore a red name tag.

Just as Hagon had said.

‘It’s not much different from reality.’

A system not unlike a real prison.

Revan glanced at the inspection documents 142 handed over.

They were neatly organized, but since he had no idea what to look for, Revan just pretended to scan them and signed at the signature field.

[You have completed the quest.]

As soon as he signed the checklist, a notification popped up stating the quest was complete. Revan instantly received the reward, which was just experience points.

142 said,

“Would you like some tea, Inspector?”

“I’d appreciate it if you have some.”

“Please speak comfortably. We’re just prisoners.”

“Is that really necessary?”

“It actually makes us more comfortable. It’s the rule here.”

“If that’s the case… Alright.”

“Thank you, Inspector.”

“So, 142. On another note, how much time do you have left until your release?”

Revan asked a question he wasn’t actually curious about, just to lighten the mood.

142 grinned and pointed to his name tag.

“I’m a lifer. So I’ll never leave here—until I die.”

“Pffft! What?”

“Haha, it’s a little embarrassing to mention right away, but the crime I committed was apparently that serious…”

Revan almost spat out his tea.

He seemed so kind, yet he was a lifer? People really can’t be judged by appearances.

But what kind of crime could make someone so young a lifer?

Revan asked,

“What crime brought you here?”

“All I did was offend the wizards.”

“…What?”

“It’s a well-known story in Gald Castle, but judging by your surprise, Inspector, you must be from elsewhere.”

“Right, I’m an adventurer.”

“I thought so. Shall I explain? Though the story might get a little boring…”

“No, no, it’s fine, I’m genuinely interested. Don’t mind me, go ahead.”

“Really? If you say so… Inspector, have you ever heard of Masterpiece?”

Masterpiece.

In Warlord, ‘Masterpiece’ refers to high-quality items crafted by master artisans.

While players with high crafting skills can make Masterpieces, it’s still the items created by NPC artisans known as Masterials that are considered true Masterpieces.

Having seen a Masterpiece in Hotpick, Revan replied,

“Of course. Masterpieces are those luxury works made by the Masterials, right? But what’s the connection with offending the wizards?”

“It’s closely related. To make a Masterpiece, craftsmen also need to be able to use magic.”

“Craftsmen need to use magic? What do you mean?”

“Exactly as I said. Human skill alone has its limits in drawing out the full potential of materials. That’s why we rely on magic. But to learn that magic, you have to affiliate with the Central Tower Association, which monopolizes magic. Recently, they announced: ‘If you want to keep learning magic from us, you must obey our orders.’”

“Orders?”

“Yes. But the orders were outrageous…”

“Can I ask what those orders were?”

“Nothing much. Just that we must thoroughly reject certain people or groups they point out.”

“Do you know why they issued such an order?”

“That, I don’t know. Anyway, this caused a rift among the Masterials. Some said, ‘Are we going to sell out our pride and just follow the wizards?’ Others argued that it was time to ignore the Tower Association and uphold the pride of artisans.”

“So the ones who stood by their pride are…”

“Yes. The inmates with red tags, including me.”

[You have completed the quest ‘Nameless Exiles’.]

It was at that moment.

With 142’s words, the Epic Quest was complete.

‘Wow, this is crazy…’

When 142 finished speaking, Revan unconsciously rubbed his forehead.

The Central Tower Association.

Why do these guys have a hand in everything?

‘They’re like Team Rocket or something…’

At this point, the Central Tower Association seemed like real villains.

Thanks to 142’s explanation, Revan could roughly guess the ultimate goal of this quest.

‘It feels like freeing the unjustly imprisoned Masterials is the real objective of this quest.’

Or maybe not.

But if his guess was right and liberating the Masterials was the quest’s true aim—

‘I’ll be able to build close ties with top-tier NPC artisans. The best kind.’

The kind of golden network any Warlord player would envy.

That alone made the quest worth completing.

Having predicted the final quest, Revan asked,

“But isn’t standing by your pride and getting thrown in jail a different issue?”

“True. They are separate. But for a group as powerful as the Central Tower Association, throwing us in prison was nothing.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, to explain that, I need to tell you about the relationship between the Masterials and Gald Castle.”

“Make it simple.”

“It’s simple. Masterials usually partner with the country where they settle. We get subsidies and benefits from the nation, and in return, they receive high-quality goods from us. The Tower Association’s notice came just as we had a ton of orders from the kingdom. We thought we’d just fulfill those requests and then cut ties with the Tower Association, but after we delivered, they made trouble about it.”

“For using magic arbitrarily before responding to their demand?”

“Yes. So, there was a trial, mediated by the kingdom…”

“You lost, didn’t you?”

“Yes. The Tower Association said if the kingdom didn’t side with them, they’d demolish the towers and withdraw their wizards.”

An all-too-familiar tactic.

No surprise.

‘So damn underhanded.’

“I get it. You can always find another artisan, but all the wizards belong to the Central Tower Association.”

“So the Masterials who lost the trial are imprisoned here now?”

“Some changed their minds after the trial. Well, not so much changed as gave in out of fear. After all, who wouldn’t be afraid of rotting in prison for the rest of their life?”

“That’s true. Sticking to one’s beliefs isn’t easy.”

“So the Masterials who chose to keep their convictions opted for prison. The kingdom knows our circumstances, so they don’t treat us too harshly.”

“If this is what you call not being treated harshly when you’re already in jail, I wonder what harsh treatment would be?”

“Haha, I suppose so.”

“But isn’t it odd? I get why you’re imprisoned, but a life sentence? That’s no different from a death row inmate.”

“Well… crimes are decided by the king, aren’t they? This is a kingdom, after all. If you must name our crime, it’s probably failing to pay the penalty.”

“Penalty? For using magic without permission?”

“Yes.”

“So you’re here because you couldn’t pay that penalty?”

“That’s about it. The amount is so huge, we’d never be able to pay it off in our lifetime.”

“Ha!”

He knew it was dirty and underhanded, but this was on another level.

Revan asked,

“You seem oddly calm about it.”

“Hey, I’m human too, I get angry. But what can I do? Reality is reality. It’s not like we’re strong enough to escape, and even if we did, most kingdoms have towers. How could we avoid their eyes? And more than that…”

142’s face darkened.

“…If it’s not magic from the Central Tower Association, we can’t make Masterpieces like before anymore. Without magic, we can’t push the limits of materials or methods.”

“Without magic…”

Without magic.

A curious phrase.

Which meant, as long as there’s magic that isn’t from the Central Tower Association, Masterpieces could still be made.

Hearing 142’s words, Revan fell silent for a moment, then smiled quietly and asked,

“So if I could get you out, protect you, and let you use magic again, that would be perfect, right?”

“Excuse me? What do you mean?”

“I’m saying, wouldn’t it be great if you could make weapons freely and use new magic without worrying about the Tower Association?”

“That’s true, but…”

“That’s all I needed to know. Anyway, hey, what’s your name?”

“My name? Well… I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you. In here, prisoners are never allowed to be called by name.”

“It’s fine. There’s just the two of us here.”

“Still…”

“It’s fine, really.”

“T-then, just this once…”

Like a kid sneaking snacks in class, 142 looked around nervously, covered his mouth with one hand, and whispered carefully,

“My name is Ark.”

“Ark. That’s a good name.”

“Thank you.”

“Ark. Sometimes, the stories we thought were just dreams turn out not to be.”

“Sorry?”

“Thanks for the story. I’m leaving now.”

“What? Inspector! Inspector!”

Without looking back at Ark, who called out desperately, Revan left the library and made his way out of the prison.