I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 238

Camus sat calmly in his prison cell.

Even though he knew he would likely face the death penalty for trying to kill an ally, and a superior at that, he remained unfazed and composed.

“I only regret not finishing the job due to a moment’s carelessness,” he said dryly, his voice raspy.

I pulled a chair up to his cell and sat down, feeling the need to swallow and moisten my dry throat.

“I’ve heard the reports from the investigators, Camus. You were a soldier from a nation destroyed by the Everblack Empire.”

“That’s correct. I was a soldier of the Camilla Kingdom.”

“Have you been seeking revenge against the Everblack Empire all this time?”

“I did, once.”

There was no hatred in Camus’s eyes as he looked at me. Instead, there was no warmth either.

His gaze was indifferent, as if he were glancing at a rock on the side of the road.

“But after about ten years of being a guerrilla, I realized that no matter how much a nobody soldier like me struggled, I couldn’t even scratch the Everblack Empire.”

“…”

“So I gave up. And, unable to die, I became a mercenary, throwing myself wherever I could earn a living.”

A faint smile flickered across the gloomy man’s lips.

“In this remote backwater, I never imagined I would meet the very person who killed my wife and children.”

“…”

“The Magic Corps is the main execution unit that committed civilian massacres in our kingdom. I’ve been training for anti-mage combat to kill them someday, but I never thought I’d actually get to use it in real life.”

His melancholy eyes flashed like a blade through his long hair.

“I was waiting for a moment when the guards around Commander Reina would be thin. When she brought in a young mage for healing was the perfect opportunity. It was the only time her four direct mages would be away from her.”

“So that’s why you did it today.”

“I did what I had to do.”

Camus slowly leaned back against the wall.

The sound of his chains clanking echoed from his bound limbs on the narrow prison floor.

“If that woman felt even a thousandth or a ten-thousandth of the pain my wife and children felt, then that’s enough for me. I think this is the end of what I can do.”

“…”

“Kill me. I have no regrets.”

A dry silence fell.

I ran my hand over my neck.

Even if there was justification for his revenge, I, as the commander here, could not condone it.

This monster frontline is governed by law, and no matter the reason, an attempt to kill an ally is unforgivable.

I knew that this man before me would be sentenced to death, and that I would have to approve that sentence.

“…”

Looking down at the failed avenger, I asked,

“It’s been 15 years since your country fell. Does this kind of revenge even mean anything?”

“That’s nonsense, Your Highness.”

Camus mumbled, his voice like the rustling of sand.

“Revenge doesn’t have any meaning. I know that my dead wife and children won’t be happy because of this, and my ruined country won’t come back. I know it well.”

“…”

“I… I just couldn’t bear it.”

I slowly rose from my chair and asked one last question.

“If you were going to take revenge on the Everblack Empire, wouldn’t it have been better to target me instead of Reina?”

Camus glanced at me and chuckled.

“When I first saw you, I did consider it.”

Well, he’s honest.

“But my capacity is too small. If my goal as a survivor of the Camilla Kingdom was to defeat the great evil of the Empire, I would have targeted you, a member of the Imperial Family.”

“…”

“I just wanted to avenge my wife and children. Even if I had another chance, I would target that woman, not you.”

Camus slowly bowed his head to me.

“Thank you for listening to the words of a man like me until the end.”

“…”

“This monster frontline is protecting all the worlds above it, I hear. I wish only light will fill your path, Your Highness.”

Immediately after, Camus added quietly,

“I no longer have anything to protect in this world.”

Screech-

I opened the iron bars and left the prison, with Lucas and Evangeline, who were guarding me, following behind.

“Hmm.”

Outside the prison, four mages in white robes and uniforms were standing.

Fox, Rabbit, Kitty, and Piggy.

The four mages of the Magic Corps under Reina’s command.

“He is a heinous criminal who severely injured the Commander and also injured our soldiers,” Fox said in a chilling voice as he stepped forward.

“We would like to conduct some ‘interrogation.’ Is that alright, Your Highness?”

“…”

I didn’t answer and walked past them, slowly making my way out of the prison.

The sound of the four mages rushing into Camus’s cell echoed behind me.

I didn’t look back and left the prison.

“Haa…”

Standing outside the prison, I took a long sigh as I felt the cold wind.

…I was too complacent.

Many people gather at this southern frontline.

Different nationalities, different ethnicities, even different races.

It’s impossible for them to all get along without any conflict. Conflicts are bound to happen.

Because that’s human nature.

‘I wanted to create a foreign legion by gathering those who were abandoned and wandering from all over the world.’

But they all have their own stories, and they all hold their own grudges like thorns in their hearts.

The more people join the frontlines, the more intense the conflicts between them will become.

And those who harbor resentment against the Empire might even try to harm me.

How can I integrate them into one army?

“It’s difficult, people…”

People are always the most difficult.

These elements that I didn’t have to worry about when it was a game were the most difficult part for me as a commander.

***

The Temple.

I tried to visit Reina first, but she was in critical condition and receiving intensive healing from the priests, so I couldn’t see her.

“Fortunately, she’s passed the critical point,” said Saintess Margherita, who performed the surgery, wiping her blood-soaked hands.

“She’s strong, like a soldier. There are still many hurdles to overcome before she recovers…”

“You’ve worked hard, Saintess.”

I gave Margherita a small smile.

“But, weren’t you afraid of Reina?”

I thought she was scared because she almost died from wind magic when we first met.

“I have to save the injured person in front of me, what else can I do?”

Margherita shrugged and went back into the sickroom.

“That’s why I’m here.”

I watched Margherita’s back as she went to heal the other soldiers who had been attacked, then I turned around.

I was going to see Junior.

Junior was staying in a regular sickroom.

Fortunately, she wasn’t injured, but her already pale complexion was even more haggard, and she was huddled in bed.

“Junior, are you feeling a little better?”

“…Your Highness.”

“Reina has passed the critical point. Don’t worry too much.”

Junior hesitated before asking carefully,

“What about that man?”

Camus, I suppose.

I nodded heavily.

“He’s in prison now. He’ll receive a just punishment.”

Junior, who had been holding back, slowly opened her mouth.

“…That man was from the same Camilla Kingdom as me.”

I sat on the edge of Junior’s bed. Lucas and Evangeline, who had followed me in, stood beside the bed.

Junior continued haltingly,

“He asked me why I was protecting Reina… She’s the one who destroyed our country and made my body like this with magic bombardment.”

Junior covered her face with both hands.

“I… I don’t know. I’m from the Camilla Kingdom, but I’ve grown up as a citizen of the Empire for the past 15 years. Of course, that’s natural, because the Camilla Kingdom no longer exists. It was annexed by the Empire, and all its citizens were incorporated under the Empire.”

Junior was adopted by Jupiter and grew up as a citizen of the Everblack Empire.

Her identity was already that of an Imperial citizen.

“I forgave my mother. She regretted what she had done her whole life, apologized, and raised me.”

“…”

“But what should I do about Reina?”

Junior’s hands, covering her face, trembled.

“She’s the one who killed my country, my village, my parents… She doesn’t seem to regret it much. But she guided my magic and healed my illness. We fought monsters shoulder to shoulder on the frontlines.”

“…”

“I wanted to forgive her. The more she treated me kindly and the better we got along, the more comfortable I became. The more the resentment in my heart melted away, the easier it was to breathe.”

“…”

“Because nothing would change even if I didn’t forgive her. If I forgive her, at least I’ll feel better… But was that wrong?”

Junior looked at me with tearful, drooping eyes.

“I’m confused. Am I a citizen of the Camilla Kingdom? Or am I a citizen of the Everblack Empire? Should I seek revenge? Should I forgive? I don’t know, I really don’t know…”

“…”

“What should I do?”

It was such a difficult question that I couldn’t give a clear answer.

So, the only answer I could give was this obvious one.

“Let’s think about it together.”

I carefully patted Junior’s shoulder.

“I’ve got a similar problem this time.”

“You too, Your Highness…?”

“I don’t know what the right answer is, or even if there is a right answer…”

I smiled bitterly and looked at Lucas and Evangeline.

“If we all think about it together, we might find a direction that makes a little more sense.”

Lucas smiled silently, and Evangeline nodded, saying, “Uh-huh!”

“Ah!”

At that moment, Damian, who was running down the hallway with bandages and sheets, noticed us and quickly came inside.

“Me too, me too.”

“Alright, come on in.”

For the first time in a while, the five main party members were gathered in one place.

“We’re a party, Juju unnie!” Evangeline reached out her small hand and took Junior’s trembling hand.

“Even if we can’t solve your worries, we’ll be here for you!”

“…”

Junior looked at each of her companions surrounding her and lowered her head.

“Haha, what is this, you guys are so cute…”

Fortunately, she was smiling a little.

***

Outside the Temple.

“Huuuuuuuuu~!”

I let out a long sigh and turned around.

I saw Lucas, Evangeline, and Damian, who had followed me.

My party members were looking at me with trusting eyes, as if they would support whatever choice I made in the future.

“…”

I don’t know.

How to integrate the many people with different interests who gather on this frontline.

What choices my companions, who are agonizing between forgiveness and revenge, grace and resentment, life and death, will ultimately make.

What is right and wrong.

I don’t know.

There’s no way I would know.

I’m just a player who has delved into this game.

But because of that, there is one thing I know clearly.

“The next exploration is in two days.”

Kill monsters.

Protect the frontlines.

Even if I can’t always make the best move, I won’t stop walking.

I know that this is what I need to do right now.

“Commander Reina is out of action, and the skilled warrior we just recruited is now a prisoner. We have to pull off another feat.”

I smiled at my party members.

“Like we always do.”

All the party members smiled and nodded.

If we get all five main party members to level 50 and complete their third job advancements, we can carry this defense battle with the main party.

‘If we keep moving forward step by step…’

The answers to our worries will gradually become clearer.

I wanted to believe that.