Even wearing Andras stockings as armor, the quality gap in troops was unavoidable. No matter how elite our legion’s orcs were, the fact that we had considerable casualties fighting soldiers sent by the 38th rank was a critical problem.
"In your opinion, are the enemy forces the main force?"
"Absolutely not. Forgive my presumptuousness, but they’re most likely a scouting party."
"Right?"
Eila was confident the goblin-minotaur-black skeleton group wasn’t the main force. I thought similarly, and no one raised objections.
"Halphas threw troops at us to probe."
It was a clearly different style from our legion’s way of fighting. If I was the type to commit decisive force from the start to smash the enemy head-on, Halphas threw troops as disposable pieces to test the waters.
’The mindset is that if they die, just revive them. Though whether they’d even revive them is another question.’
The number of dead goblins, minotaurs, and black skeletons was roughly 50. The exchange rate wasn’t too bad for our side, but the mont you describe it as an exchange rate, it feels awful.
"Throwing subordinates to their deaths. I can’t understand it."
It wasn’t even using a scouting force to establish position and observe enemy strength—they were committing soldiers in waves.
★ not enough? Then deploy ★★.
★★ not enough? Then deploy ★★★.
★★★ not enough? Then deploy ★★★★.
Put nicely, you could call it cautious and efficient, but put badly, there wasn’t a shred of humanity toward subordinates. They definitely govern soldiers not through loyalty from the heart but through fear born of authority and power difference. Even if not entirely, it’s definitely in there.
"This is fate. I can’t tolerate fighting like this."
This wasn’t a ga—throwing living beings around like this. Fury naturally built up at Halphas’s way of using troops. My tightly clenched fist started to sting, then my nails dug into the skin and blood began to flow.
"Master, calm down."
"I’ll calm down. But I can’t help the anger surging up."
Looking at the corpse of a goblin fallen on the ground, it felt exactly like looking at myself during the three years I was pushed around by Forneus.
’Back then too, whenever I was thrown sowhere strange, I fought desperately just to survive.’
A subordinate crushed by an authoritative existence beyond control, forced to follow orders just to survive. The difference between and that goblin was that I survived to the end and the goblin didn’t.
’And there’s a more important issue. The state of those things.’
And what angered most was that unlike our Ras force’s stocking armor squad, the state of that ragtag vanguard wearing mismatched gear with no unity at all.
"Eila. In your eyes, what forces do those bastards look like?"
"...They wouldn’t an legion subordinates. Master, are you thinking the sa thing I am?"
"Seems like it."
When it ca to warfare, Eila’s eye was sharpest, and she seed to be thinking the sa as .
"Non-unified attire, formation that can’t even be properly assembled, a vanguard thrown carelessly."
"They used freshly recruited beings from other forces as sacrificial pawns."
At mine and Eila’s deduction, other subordinates’ expressions hardened.
It was basically the sa as deploying all the fla leopard beastn upfront after capturing Flauros’s dungeon and staging an uprising against another dungeon.
Win and co back, and maybe I’ll let you live.
Lose and you die, obviously.
’Is this how slave gladiators felt entering the colosseum?’
And if our legion was defeated, all subordinates would be dragged away as slaves. It felt like excessive worrying, but no matter how I thought about it, that was pretty close to the right answer.
"Damn, for now we stop Halphas’s legion on basent level 1 by whatever ans necessary. Shaitan, what happened on Gremory’s side?"
"She says after one full frontal battle, Amy pulled back once. Amy crossed over directly but Gremory says it’s difficult to co out herself."
"Why? Because of the farm?"
"Yes. She says a frontal battle might damage the farm..."
"Tsk."
I’d planned to quickly clean up Gremory’s side and concentrate forces here, but that was also difficult.
’If Gremory’s farm gets destroyed, we’re done.’
Just as Napoleon proved that an army marches on its stomach, the foundation of our Ras force’s operations is concentrated in Gremory’s dungeon.
Clothing: The large force of Andras and harpies who could produce feathers were registered in Gremory’s dungeon.
Food: The eggs they laid were the main food source for our legion’s humans and non-avian type monsters.
Housing: About 70% of our legion’s total capacity was registered in Gremory’s dungeon.
’I’d even planned to flee to Gremory’s dungeon if this dungeon got captured.’
A portal opening to Gremory’s dungeon was quite painful, but I couldn’t run away with my tail between my legs from Halphas’s forces that opened in my dungeon either.
"As soon as Amdusias returns, send a ssage to Gremory. Tell her not to worry about the aftermath and it’s fine to kill Amy. Doesn’t matter if it’s a virgin or whatever. Tell her to prioritize Gremory and the dungeon surviving above all."
With Galahad also sent as reinforcent, she should be able to handle it. Under the premise that Gremory successfully repels enemy forces, I now had to prepare to block Halphas’s second wave.
I could feel it instinctively. Just standing still, a nauseating death energy seed to echo from beyond the wall.
"Shaitan."
"Yes, they’ve arrived. ...Though it doesn’t seem to be Halphas personally."
"Then it’ll be a legion lackey. Either Halphas’s subordinate, or soone who was once a dungeon master and entered under Halphas."
I worried about whether Halphas had sent ones they trusted, but ultimately whatever bastard it was, they had to be killed.
"Eila, have the revived orcs reorganize so they can fight again. Shaitan, scrape together every magic stone and revive the orcs. From now on it’s a battle of speed."
"Master, all magic stones have already been used."
"Then go find so. ...It’ll be tough, but please."
Every dog has its day, and though the situation was difficult, it wasn’t at the point of collapse yet.
Just then, a day passed. Just as the enemy sent their 2nd wave right at midnight, we also gained an opportunity as the date changed.
An opportunity to farm magic stones in sub-dungeons.
"Percival, Lancelot, Agravain—lead your units to the Andras, Sli, and Skeleton sub-dungeons respectively and scrape all magic stones! Don’t co back until you’ve completed three runs each! Agravain, after finishing the skeleton dungeon runs, link up with Percival’s squad! Only grab magic stones!"
There was no ti to bother with sli mucus or feathers from hunting monsters.
"Shaitan, when orcs bring back magic stones, revive dead subordinates! Top priority revival is Rastujad! Once Rastujad revives, I’ll use the enemy soldiers as ghouls! Buy ti and revive our legion’s casualties! Move now!"
"""Yes!!"""
The three orc squad leaders quickly led their squads and departed. Even Lancelot recognized the gravity of the situation and went up to level 1.
"Master, before going up, may I ask one thing?"
Shaitan turned to ask right before going up the stairs.
"Are you planning to fight directly?"
"Of course."
"...Then."
Shaitan spread her wings and flew to . I wondered what she was doing, then she knelt before , gave a quick kiss on the front of my pants where Junior was, and stood up.
"Normally in this kind of situation you’d kiss my mouth and say ’good luck,’ wouldn’t you?"
"Yes. But I don’t like that sort of thing. I’ll do it this way instead. When this fight ends... I’ll do a dream-and-reality double service for you."
Shaitan made her move and dashed up to level 1. Shaitan’s cute little sche made laugh naturally. Lune, who’d finished putting on stocking armor, waved to Shaitan then turned to .
"For the record, I’m doing the real-life service."
"Guess I absolutely have to survive then. Hehehe."
I had no intention of dying either, but the combat tension seed to ease sowhat. To receive service from dream-Shaitan and real-life Lune simultaneously, I absolutely had to survive.
"Then let’s go. Eila, have you practiced your swordsmanship enough?"
"Of course. I won’t be holding Master back."
Eila raised her sword. She was trustworthy and brave, but Eila was most beautiful and cool when commanding from the rear.
"Eila, I’m putting you in command."
"What?"
"Think of as a soldier under your command. You’re the squad leader of the defense unit holding off the enemy’s 2nd wave. Didn’t you say where Ras exists is Ras Vegas? You’re the defense captain of Ras Vegas."
"...Then I’ll take you up on that."
Eila hesitated briefly but didn’t refuse. Both she and I had sufficient strategic insight, but if attacking was my specialty, receiving attacks was Eila’s specialty.
"Currently our defense unit’s core strength is Master, Lune, and Hases."
Grrrr.
Hases was still alive even in dented full plate armor. Thanks to his idea, our entire legion was ard with stockings, and our defense had risen a level.
"Available soldiers are... 50 monster hunters."
"Reinforcents."
At the front of adventurers coming down to basent level 1 was Lily in leather armor. Lily with a crossbow in hand was wearing stocking armor under her leather armor. The other Ras Village hunters were the sa.
"How did you...?"
But I couldn’t readily understand the adventurers standing behind them. Female adventurers who hadn’t chosen the fairy path, and adventurers captured as prisoners in the later Ras Vegas defense battle. They were standing behind Lily ard with weapons.
"I gathered them."
Eila stood beside Lily and bowed her head.
"Fight together to survive. Set aside the species difference between humans and monsters for later, and let’s take down those wicked monsters trying to kill us. ...I couldn’t persuade everyone, but these ones I could barely convince."
"Legion Commander."
The strongest-looking man and woman among the adventurers ca forward. I didn’t know about the man, but the woman looked like soone I’d knocked out passing by because her chest was generous.
"We are adventurers. Beings who only move when there’s compensation. So if we perform well in this battle, we request appropriate compensation."
"What? Freedom?"
"...Ahem."
The man was reluctant to answer. Then the woman lifted her chin and shouted boldly.
"Why can’t you say it? Legion Commander! If we win, just lend that one handso orc for a night!"
"How co?!"
"For Ras!"
"Deal, you’re hired! What’s one ti? I’ll even give you a full-day private rental!"
I could pay that kind of compensation anyti. The adventurers in the back all seed to think similarly, their faces grinning as they burned with fighting spirit toward .
"Sli, orc, goblin, Andras, harpy, succubus—whatever you want, just say it! As long as you don’t cross the line, I’ll let you do anything! You’ll need the other party’s consent though!"
At my declaration, so adventurers looked at each other and smiled bitterly. I caught those wistful eyes and quickly added.
"Those who perform greatly in this battle will be formally recruited as mbers of our legion, not as prisoners! No wait, you’re already our legion’s mbers! Once you’ve decided to fight against the enemy, it doesn’t matter if you’re subordinates or prisoners! Follow ! Follow the princess knight’s orders! I’ll stand at your front!"
Clop, clop.
From beyond the long corridor, hoof beats began to echo. I gripped the twin battleaxes Eila had brought, one in each hand, and turned my body toward enemy lines.
"I’ll say it clearly to you all! You’re not subordinates, so you can’t be revived! So if you feel like you’re going to die, run! Live! If you survive to the end like that!"
I activated my tattoo and shouted.
"I’ll give each of you a house in Ras Vegas! If there’s soone you like in the legion, get married! Even human-to-human is fine!"
No cheers, only stirring. But that stirring wasn’t the confusion of chaos but the surprise of joy. I offered the adventurers ’freedom’ as a mber of the legion as their reward for victory, along with a bit of compensation.
And when the mood felt just right.
Clop, clop!!
"Eila—!!"
"All archers, fire at will toward the front!"
"""Raaas!!"""
Countless arrows and bolts were fired toward the black reapers riding horses charging in.
User Comments
0 comments from readers