I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 118

“Looks like we’ve got a bit of a handle on things.”

I muttered, looking down at the spot where Bernato had vanished into red smoke.

We damage them with a combined attack of silver weapons and magic.

Then, we expose their core, and Damian snipes it.

The basic tactics for fighting vampires were starting to take shape. I nodded in satisfaction.

Alright. We just need to keep moving forward step by step.

It was then.

《Well done, challengers! You have proven your worth!》

Jakal’s voice boomed from the stage.

《You have earned the right to face me, the Gladiator King Jakal, directly!》

Ding!

[Fiery Colosseum – Wave 7]

– Defeat the enemy!

– Lv.75 Gladiator King: 1

– Victory Payout Ratio: None

As the system window updated.

Thud-!

The final wave, and the final boss of this Colosseum dungeon.

Gladiator King Jakal himself descended into the arena.

I wondered why the victory payout ratio disappeared, and then I saw that all the goblins in the audience were dead.

It seemed Jakal had killed them all himself. You jerk!

《How long has it been? Since I, myself, have stood in the Colosseum!》

Jakal, twirling his twin daggers flamboyantly, struck a pose and muttered.

《This battle must be mine alone. Therefore, I have eliminated all unnecessary spectators.》

Thud. Thud.

Watching the NPC boss close the distance, I swallowed hard.

Gladiator King Jakal.

In the game, he had a special ability to always evade the first attack of each turn.

Whether it was his special ability or the Colosseum payout multiplier, it didn’t matter; his stats were way beyond what we could handle. Level 75, seriously?

If we fight, we’ll lose.

We’ll definitely die.

“Jakal.”

Even so, the reason I came here was because I had a way to neutralize this boss.

I took a breath and spoke clearly, with emphasis.

“Everblack hasn’t forgotten you.”

《……Huh?》

Jakal, who had been approaching with a menacing aura, stopped dead in his tracks.

《What did you just say……?》

“I said, Everblack hasn’t forgotten you.”

In the game, why do speedrunners rush straight to the Colosseum from the beginning?

Even if the previous waves can be cleared using gimmicks, how do you deal with this powerful boss?

The answer is simple.

You don’t fight.

You can skip it by using an event.

‘Jakal’s true identity is an agent dispatched by the Everblack Empire decades ago.’

Decades ago, the Empire’s intelligence agency (today’s Aegis Special Forces) received rumors about a dungeon under the lake and dispatched special agents to the dungeon.

However, they were unlucky enough to be kidnapped into this Colosseum during their dungeon exploration and were forced to work as gladiators like slaves.

Over the long years, all the agents died, but Jakal, who was a beastman and had a long lifespan, survived to the end.

He killed the existing Gladiator King and became the new Gladiator King.

However, in this process, decades had already passed.

Jakal realized that returning to the Empire now would be meaningless, and he decided to spend the rest of his life guarding the Colosseum as the Gladiator King.

‘That’s the background story, so how do you skip the battle?’

In the game, it was simple. You just had to give him an item called ‘Prince Ash’s Keepsake.’

Ash originally dies in the tutorial.

But the keepsake remained in Lucas’s inventory even after that.

Players complained a lot about why this useless item was taking up inventory space, but its purpose was revealed.

‘Jakal, upon receiving the royal keepsake, mistakenly believes Lucas is royalty and lets the party go without harming them. It was that kind of trick.’

Okay, that was in the game.

So, what do I need to do?

‘Just drop the name.’

If a boss can be persuaded with just a keepsake, then proving that I am the prince myself… wouldn’t that be game over?

《Everblack…… hasn’t forgotten me?》

Jakal, muttering in a trembling voice, hurriedly knelt before me.

《What is the name of the noble one?》

“Ash. Ash ‘Von Hater’ Everblack.”

I took out the black jade insignia from my pocket and showed it to him.

“I am the third prince of the royal family.”

《Oh my, this can’t be…….》

Jakal, who was moved to tears as he received the insignia, prostrated himself before me.

《The endless years…… I thought I had been completely forgotten. I thought the Empire had forgotten me, and I tried to forget the Empire as well.》

“Jakal. Even if you forget the name of Everblack, the Empire has never forgotten you for a moment.”

《Ah…….》

“And even if the Empire forgets you, I promise you.”

I placed my hand over my chest.

“I, Ash, will remember you.”

Tears flowed from under his mask, streaming down Jakal’s chin.

《Thank you. Thank you. The time I spent here was not in vain…….》

Seeing Jakal so sad and happy made me feel a little guilty, but, well, whatever. I’ll really remember him now.

***

The explanation I gave to Jakal was as follows.

I am a prince who entered the dungeon under the Emperor’s secret orders to explore it myself.

In the process, I identified the list of Imperial soldiers and agents who had gone missing in the previous dungeons.

The boss of the Colosseum dungeon, Jakal, and an agent with the codename Jakal among the missing agents, had the same name, so I came here to investigate.

Looking back, it was an explanation full of loopholes, but Jakal didn’t doubt it for a second.

“Just the fact that you haven’t forgotten my name. That alone has saved me.”

Jakal, who had changed into a normal NPC after the boss mode ended, said in a calm voice.

Is this guy really the same Gladiator King Jakal who was spouting nonsense just a moment ago?

“Jakal. Is there any way you can help with the dungeon exploration going forward?”

I asked, with a hopeful expectation.

Jakal is an incredibly strong character at level 75.

If he could be recruited, or even just called in for support, it would make things a lot easier in the future.

But Jakal quietly shook his head.

“Having risen to the position of Gladiator King, my body is bound to this Colosseum.”

“I see…….”

“I can provide all the help I can within this area, but I cannot use any power outside of this region. I’m sorry…….”

Jakal bowed his head repeatedly, looking genuinely apologetic.

No, no, I was trying to get too much for free. My bad.

“Anyway, Jakal.”

I decided to get to my main purpose.

“I need an item called the Dark Crystal… do you happen to have any?”

“Of course, of course! How many do you need? Just say the word!”

In the game, if you skipped the boss fight with Jakal using that trick, he would turn into a merchant NPC afterward.

One of the items he sold was the Dark Crystal.

But this time, I got it for free. I decided to take just three for now. I didn’t need more than that right away.

[Dark Crystal]

– Category: Material

– A crystal formed from the condensed darkness of hell. If you listen closely, you can almost hear whispers. Rarely found in dungeons of area 5 or higher.

It was my first encounter with the Dark Crystal, a material item that would be endlessly needed for crafting the highest-tier items later on.

I quickly put it in my inventory. With this, I’ve gathered all the materials needed to craft Sung’s weapon.

“Is there anything else you need, Your Highness?”

Jakal seemed eager to do anything for me.

He was fidgeting, even twitching his shoulders in front of me.

“It’s a bit awkward for me to say this myself, but I am the absolute strongest in this area! Just give me the order!”

“Hmm, then…….”

I hesitated for a moment, then smiled sheepishly and asked.

“Is there a place where we can get some rest? My party members have all been through a lot, and I think we need to rest.”

***

“You said it was a one-night, two-day trip, and you even brought camping gear, so I thought we’d be camping.”

Inside the Colosseum.

The gladiator’s quarters.

Our party entered this unexpectedly clean room with rows of beds. Evangelin continued, putting her bag on the floor.

“I didn’t expect we’d be able to rent such a nice place. I was surprised.”

“Me too. And it’s right in the middle of the dungeon.”

Junior agreed.

“I was prepared to sleep on the hard floor, but a bed! Hooray!”

“Hooray~!”

Evangelin and Junior jumped onto the beds at the same time.

I smiled wryly and put my luggage next to the bed.

“I’m surprised too. He’s being too nice.”

“To change such a seemingly strong enemy into an ally with just a few words.”

Junior smiled brightly.

“Your Highness is really amazing.”

“Well…… yeah…….”

It’s not that I’m amazing, it’s just that I’m using the original walkthrough.

Well, they say information is the greatest weapon. I should be thankful for my brain for remembering all the walkthrough information.

“But, are we all sharing this room?”

Evangelin, who was rolling around in the blanket like a bagworm, frowned and asked me. Huh?

“Of course, we’re sharing. Did you think we’d be sleeping separately?”

“Even so, there are two ladies here…… and they say men and women shouldn’t sit together after the age of seven…….”

“Oh, please. Ladies, my foot. Where are the ladies in this room?”

All I see is a bagworm kid and a blood-coughing machine.

“What?! I’ve had enough!”

“What are you going to do if I say you’ve had enough?”

“I’m going to do this-!”

Evangelin picked up the pillow next to her and lightly tapped my back. You little brat!

“I’ll teach this impudent brat a lesson!”

I also picked up a pillow and smacked Evangelin on the top of her head. Thwack!

“Squeak!”

Evangelin, letting out an unladylike scream, glared at me. I glared back. What!

A moment later.

“We’re back from washing up…….”

When Lucas and Damian, who had gone to wash up first, returned, Evangelin and I were having a serious pillow fight. Thwack, thwack, thwack.

“Lucas!”

With feathers from the burst pillow all over my head, I threw a pillow at Lucas.

“Join the fight!”

“Yes, my lord.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Lucas grabbed the pillow with both hands and charged.

“Uwaaaah! A two-front attack is cheating!”

Evangelin, screaming as it became 2-on-1, shouted to Junior.

“Help me, Juju unnie! You’re on my side, right?!”

“No…… I don’t want to take anyone’s side…….”

“If you don’t help me now, I’ll stick to you and bother you when you sleep!”

“Hmm…….”

Junior, after hesitating, snapped her fingers with a sigh.

Then, wind magic activated, and the blankets flew up, covering and hitting Lucas and me. I screamed, “Uwaaaah!”

“That’s unfair, that’s cowardly! Using a mage!”

“You were the one who started the 2-on-1 first, senior!”

“If that’s how it is, fine! I’ll use my strongest cheat character! Damian!”

I turned my head, calling out to my sniper who had not yet joined this pillow battle.

“Hurry and help me! You’re on the prince’s side, right?!”

“…….”

But Damian was lying on the bed in the corner, not even acknowledging my words. Damian?

“……Snore…….”

“He’s already asleep!”

In the end, Lucas and I were wrapped in blankets and laid down side by side on the bed next to Damian. Damn it, I can’t move at all…….

“I’m sorry, my lord. It’s because of my inadequacy…….”

“It’s not your fault, Lucas…… it’s because of that evil alliance of those two ladies…….”

It was then. Junior, who was watching our state, covered her mouth and laughed quietly.

“Pfft…….”

“…….”

Unlike the smiles Junior had shown before, there was no pretense in that laugh.

It felt like she had opened her heart to us a little.

And so, I felt a little relieved.

“Let’s just go to sleep, everyone. You must all be tired.”

“Yes, my lord…… this feels…… like I’ll sleep well…….”

“Haha. It’s so sweet to sleep after a victory. Good night!”

“Good night, everyone.”

“……Snore…….”

After each saying a word, the party members soon fell asleep one by one.

They were all exhausted and fell asleep quickly.

Listening quietly to the sleeping children’s breaths…… my eyes also closed.

I drifted off to sleep.