I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 14

Lucas carefully opened his mouth.

“I…”

I tensed up slightly. I was already running through all sorts of plans in my head, trying to figure out what excuse I could give Lucas to make him follow me without question.

However.

“I will simply move as Your Highness commands. I have no questions.”

That’s what Lucas said.

“I am Your Highness’s sword and Your Highness’s shield. I will simply cut and block as Your Highness orders.”

“……”

I was speechless.

There was no way he had no questions. But more than that, Lucas was telling me that he trusted me.

I was even a little touched. Sniff. Lucas, you little rascal. I’ll give you a hefty bonus later.

“Alright, Lucas!”

I pointed towards the inside of the gate and shouted spiritedly.

“Then, are you ready to enter the jaws of hell?”

Lucas nodded deeply with a firm face.

“If it is with Your Highness, even to the bottom of hell. Gladly.”

You don’t know it, but we’ve already broken through hell together, Lucas.

And we’ll do it again this time.

I didn’t say those words out loud, I just lightly patted Lucas’s shoulder. Lucas also smiled faintly.

A little while later, preparations were roughly finished. Since we were only going to do a light scout, there wasn’t much to prepare.

I stood in front of the gate. Then, a system window appeared before my eyes.

[Teleport Gate]

– Please select a destination.

> Lakeside Pier

> (Unopened Area)

> (Unopened Area)

> ……

The only place we could go through the gate right now was the ‘Lakeside Pier’.

The number of places we can go will gradually increase as we clear dungeons. I selected the Lakeside Pier and activated the gate.

As the magic door began to spin, Lucas stood in front of the gate first.

“I will go first, Your Highness. If there are enemies on the other side, I will take care of them.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. The gate is safe.”

“Still, there’s always a chance. Then, I’ll go first.”

Then he jumped into the gate. What a paragon of diligence.

“Hoo.”

I took a breath and threw myself into the gate after him.

Whoosh-!

My vision blurred, and a sensation of floating in the air enveloped my whole body.

Soon, the world turned black.

***

[Now Loading……Teleporting.]

[Tip – Heroes can become stronger by equipping gear. Gear can be obtained in dungeons or produced at the blacksmith.]

What the heck, don’t suddenly put up a tip window like that! Don’t pretend to be a kind game now!

***

Flash!

A flash of light and the gate passage was over.

As soon as I passed through the gate, I saw a lake with a dark blue surface rippling.

“We came to the right place.”

I was a little dizzy, but I arrived safe and sound.

I straightened my body and looked around. It was next to an old pier by the lake. The lapping lake was right in front of me.

This black lake is the source of the monsters. A hell that spews out nightmares.

It’s the dungeon that blocks the south of the world.

“……”

The pitch-black lake slowly swirled, emitting an ominous energy. Like an abyss.

I was staring at the lake as if I was possessed.

“Your Highness!”

Lucas’s urgent voice was heard.

Startled, I looked in his direction. I saw Lucas’s back at the end of the pier.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

“There, over there…!”

Lucas pointed to one side of the lake with a pale face. I looked in that direction too.

And, my eyes widened.

Swaaaaah…!

The surface of the black lake split, creating foam,

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Monsters began to rise, stomping their feet in unison.

Clang! Clatter!

They were empty, rusty armors.

Grabbing weapons that were red with rust, the armor monsters crawled out of the lake, making bizarre metallic sounds.

In the empty helmets, pale ghost fires flickered.

A legion of specters clad in armor.

I gritted my teeth and muttered.

“Living Armor Legion…!”

Why did it have to be these bastards!

The stage composition of is somewhat random.

The enemies in the early stages are randomly determined from a few types of low-level monster legions.

But it doesn’t go beyond the scope of low-level. It means there is no absurd difficulty cliff like a tutorial.

…Except for one case.

‘Why, why of all things!’

I gnashed my teeth.

‘Why did it have to be Living Armor!’

Goblins would have been fine, mermaids would have been fine, even wyverns would have been okay.

Out of all the low-level monsters, it just had to be Living Armor.

I tried to stay calm and opened the stage information window. Thanks to our encounter with the enemy, the enemy information was properly displayed.

[Enemy Information – STAGE 1]

– Lv.? ??? : 1

– Lv.5 Living Armor Trooper : 1052

The ‘???’ at the top must be the boss monster.

The remaining Living Armors are a staggering number of 1,000. I should be grateful that their level is low.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The scene of thousands of armor monsters parting the water and crawling out was bizarre and grotesque.

The monsters gathered on the north side of the lake and began to advance north without delay. It’s the direction of the crossroads.

“Those are… the monsters we have to stop this time.”

“……”

“Your Highness?”

Lucas, who looked back at me as I was noticeably frozen, looked worried.

“Are you alright? You don’t look well. Are you feeling unwell somewhere…”

“…Lucas.”

I think I said this line during the tutorial too.

There was nothing else I could say. I had no other words to say.

I faced Lucas and spoke sincerely, honestly, and solemnly.

“We’re screwed again, damn it.”

***

While playing , I reset the game a whopping 741 times.

If there was no chance of clearing it, I had no choice but to start over from the beginning.

The reasons for resetting were different each time. From reasons related to growth, such as Lucas dying during the process or the first party being wiped out.

To operational reasons, such as ruining the city’s finances, destroying facilities that had been invested in, or not getting high-grade heroes due to bad luck.

Even so, in most situations, I tried to stick with the game until the end.

Even in losing situations, there are things to learn, and there are lessons that can be used in the next game.

But there was one case. In this case, I reset the game without looking back.

That was when the Stage 1 monster type was the Living Armor Legion.

In this case, no matter what I did, I would either lose the game or, even if I cleared it, the damage would be so severe that I would have to reset anyway.

I tried to clear it about ten times, but after that, I just reset as soon as I saw Living Armor.

‘If they appear in Stage 1, the most troublesome monster legion is these armor bastards.’

I rubbed my aching forehead with my fingertips.

Living Armor are literally monsters made of armor. The main body is the specter inside.

In short, it means that they have a very high resistance to physical attacks.

Most of the soldiers fighting in the fortress are ordinary humans.

They can’t cut out the monster’s core like Lucas, or use magic like Lily or Jupiter. They have to fight with ordinary spears and swords.

But what if 1,000 specters wearing sturdy armor attack?

Other monsters die easily when you shoot cannons or stab them with spears and swords, but not these guys.

Not only is their armor sturdy, but their main body is also a ghost, so blades don’t work well.

If you just clash with them, the damage on our side is bound to be enormous.

It becomes easier to deal with them from the mid-game when our characters and party become stronger and we have various defensive equipment.

But in Stage 1 now, all conditions are poor.

‘If it wasn’t for Living Armor, it would have been fine, damn it!’

At this point, I even feel some kind of malice. It even feels like someone is deliberately trying to ruin the game…

Flash!

After scouting, Lucas and I immediately returned to the crossroads through the gate. I brought up the stage information window again.

[STAGE 1]

– Time until start: 2 days 23 hours

It’s 3 days until the stage starts.

It means that those monsters will come here in 3 days. It’s tight, but there’s time to prepare.

I have no choice but to do everything I can.

“Aider!”

I shouted as I entered the mansion, and Aider ran to me, adjusting his round glasses.

“Did you call for me, Lord!”

“What is the city’s troop situation?”

“Currently, there are about 526 people who can go to the front lines, who are being hired in Crossroads!”

In the past few years, when the monster invasions had decreased, the permanent garrison of the fortress was about 3,000.

Most of them were lost in the tutorial stage.

We had reinforced with about 100 mercenaries, but the troop situation was still dire.

‘Ash, you stupid bastard!’

I cursed the stupid prince who lent me his body once again. Damn it!

If it was another monster legion, we could easily crush them with the current troops, but with the Living Armor Legion, this is woefully inadequate.

“What about the troops that can be replenished?”

“We have already hired all the mercenaries who came to the city. We will hire more as they come…”

“Are you saying there’s no way to replenish more?”

“In this city, that’s right.”

“Then send a messenger to other nearby cities and borrow troops! Tell them we’ll pay double the usual weekly wage!”

Of course, Crossroads is a fortress that is isolated in the southernmost part of the world.

Even the nearby cities are a few days away. Still, it’s better to ask than not to.

“And send a messenger to the Imperial Family of the homeland. Tell them that the monsters have begun to stir and request as much support as possible.”

Aider, who was writing down my words, paused and glanced at me.

“…Are you really sure about this, Lord?”

Requesting support from the center of the empire triggers a fatal ‘event’ in the middle of the game.

That’s why I was trying to hold out without requesting support as much as possible, but what can I do? I have to survive now!

“It’s okay, just call them!”

“Understood!”

“And call all the carpenters, stonemasons, blacksmiths, and alchemists in the city. No, not call them, conscript them.”

Crossroads is the largest mana stone production site in the world.

A considerable number of production workers are working to process mana stones. I was thinking of using them too.

“But if we do that, the mana stone processing line will stop…”

“Is mana stone processing important when the city is about to be destroyed? Stop everything and bring them all!”

“Understood. I will conscript them immediately.”

After giving other minor instructions, I gave the final order.

“And, summon all the party members.”

“There are a total of 9 heroes that can be organized. How would you like to organize them?”

“……”

I opened the system window.

And put Jupiter and the five newly drawn heroes in one party.

And the rest, me, Lucas, Damian, and Lily in the main party.

“Organize the party like this. Tell them as you summon them.”

“Ms. Lily is in quite an uncomfortable state…”

“This is not the time to worry about that.”

I feel sorry for Lily, who is about to retire because she can’t walk. But now is not the time to let an R-grade mage sit idle.

“There’s no time. Carry out the instructions immediately!”

“Understood~!”

Aider scurried out of the mansion.

I ordered Lucas to prepare for battle as soon as the party members arrived, and then returned to my room in the mansion.

I sat on the bed and opened the system window in the air.

I had been hesitating and worrying about it, but… I don’t think I have any more time for that.

‘Job selection.’

Among the selectable jobs listed, I finally selected the last item.

‘Commander’.

The difficulty of this game is not normal right now.

From the Queen Spider in the tutorial, to the fact that the Living Armor Legion, the worst monster type in the early stages, appeared right away.

The harder the game, the more necessary it is to create variables.

That’s why I decided to take a gamble. I decided to create a variable with a hidden job that I had never seen before.

[Would you like to select ‘Beginner Commander’ as your job?]

– Yes/No

Yes. It’s Yes, you bastard.

With trembling hands, I carefully touched Yes.

[Ash(EX) has changed jobs to ‘Beginner Commander’!]

A fanfare celebrating the job change rang out.

And.

“What, what is it?!”

My eyes widened at the system message that followed.

No, what is this again?!