I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 39

Charles Cross had spent his entire life killing. The city where he was born was a fortress against monsters. Even before he was old enough to understand, he followed his father to the front lines, growing up amidst the blood of monsters trying to breach the walls. Even when his father passed away and he inherited the title of Margrave [a noble title, similar to a marquis], even when he became the lord of the city at a young age, he killed monsters every single day. In truth, that was enough. Killing monsters was what he did best, the only thing he truly understood. Kill the enemy who tries to kill you, first. The world was that simple and clear.

‘Hello, my lord!’

That was until that woman came to the city.

‘What are you going to sell in this city?’

‘Flowers, my lord.’

A female merchant who requested permission to open a shop in the city. Margrave Cross was dumbfounded in front of her.

‘This is a monster frontline. What we need here are swords and spears, arrows and cannons. What use are flowers? Besides, they wither so quickly.’

‘Because they are useless, that’s why! That’s why people need flowers, my lord.’

‘……?’

‘This fleeting impermanence is precisely why flowers are beautiful!’

He couldn’t understand it. So, at first, he suspected her. He thought she was a spy from an enemy nation. Margrave Cross visited her shop, filled with flowers and plants, every day. He was looking for evidence that she was a spy. Every time he visited, she would smile and tell him about the flowers. She explained their meanings and taught him about their scents and colors. Margrave Cross learned to distinguish the colors and scents of flowers, memorizing every type. But still, he couldn’t quite understand why they were beautiful. One year later, Charles Cross proposed to her. She accepted his proposal.

***

Clop, clop, clop-!

Margrave Cross was riding his horse, wearing armor, carrying a spear and shield, and rushing towards the wall. Alone. By himself, without any escort.

“What… is he doing?”

On a worn-out horse, wearing poorly maintained, rusty armor, and carrying a large shield and lance that didn’t suit his thin frame. In that state, he charged alone towards the sewer rats, of which there were still a thousand left. He was no Don Quixote charging at windmills [a reference to a famous novel about a delusional knight].

“What are you doing, Margrave! You’ll die!”

As if he couldn’t hear my shouts, Margrave Cross didn’t slow down.

“Uwaaaaaaah!”

A hoarse shout came from beyond the old man’s helmet. The sewer rats, who were eagerly climbing over the wall or digging underneath, turned their heads one by one. The monsters’ behavior was simple, as had been explained dozens of times. – Kill the nearest human. Kreek! Kreee-reek! As the Margrave got closer, the sewer rats revealed their hostility, their red eyes glowing. But Margrave Cross didn’t slow down, charging straight ahead. Thwack-! He plunged into the middle of the sewer rat horde with a devastating lance charge. And in that state,

“Look at me! You vermin rats!”

He used a wide-area taunt, a signature skill of shield knights. I didn’t know the exact number, but his taunt skill level, honed from fighting on this front line his entire life, was incredibly high. The sight of nearly a thousand sewer rats, who had been looking at the wall, all turning around at once was… too eerie and surreal.

“…….”

I stared at Margrave Cross with my mouth agape. What? What is he doing right now? Our eyes met. In the shadow of his helmet, his deep, aged green eyes flickered dimly. I tried to read his intentions, but I couldn’t guess at all. Kreek! Kreee-reek-! The next moment, a wave of sewer rats surged towards Margrave Cross.

***

Years passed after the two were married. Even as the lord’s wife, she still planted flowers and tended to trees. From seeds, sprouts emerged, and the small, fragile stems grew strong in the summer sun. Flowers bloomed, fruits ripened, leaves turned red, and then- A daughter was born.

‘Look, dear.’

His wife, pale after giving birth, held out the bloody bundle in her arms.

‘It’s your daughter.’

That day, too, was a day when monsters attacked. Charles Cross, who had rushed back without even washing off the blood and dust, carefully held the small bundle. The baby was asleep. So small and fragile, as if it would break with the slightest force.

‘Evangeline.’

His wife whispered the baby’s name.

‘Our daughter, isn’t she as beautiful as her name?’

‘…….’

Charles Cross couldn’t answer because he didn’t know. He still didn’t understand. Why did something so small and fragile, a faint warmth that seemed like it could be extinguished at any moment, fill his heart so much? Just a little while ago, on the front lines, there was nothing he didn’t know when he was killing monsters. But now, he couldn’t understand anything…

***

“Quickly reorganize the troops! Hurry!”

I urgently relayed the orders. The sewer rats that had infiltrated the walls and inside could all be dealt with. It was because there were no follow-up troops. The sewer rats were all pushed back outside the wall. Towards Margrave Cross, who was standing alone there.

“Don’t use cannons or ballistae [large siege weapons]! The Margrave could get caught in it. Only use crossbows or bows, aim for the sewer rats on the outskirts!”

“Yes!”

The archers took their positions and began to snipe the sewer rats one by one.

“Lily! What about the flame thrower artifact?”

“It’s ready to use!”

“Burn all the ones within range!”

While the activated artifact was roasting the sewer rats near the wall, I shouted to Lucas on the first floor.

“Lucas!”

“At your command!”

“Lead all the soldiers capable of melee combat outside the gate! We must rescue the Margrave.”

“No, Your Highness. It’s not a rescue.”

Lucas, with his helmet pressed down, shone his bright blue eyes.

“We are in a position to strike the sewer rats from behind. We can finish them off in one go. We will annihilate them and return with the Margrave.”

“…I’m counting on you. As quickly as possible.”

“Yes, sir!”

Kugugung-

The gate opened, and Lucas, mounted on his horse, raised his sword high.

“Let’s go! Kill those bastards and save the Margrave!”

Uwaaaaaaah-!

The soldiers shouted in unison and poured out. Old veterans who had once been the Margrave’s direct soldiers were at the forefront, charging forward.

‘Don’t be late!’

I clenched my fist tightly.

‘Don’t be late, please!’

***

“Uwaaaaaaah!”

Margrave Cross roared. Every time his massive lance was swung, a dozen sewer rats fell to the ground, spilling blood. And several times that number of sewer rats were biting at his entire body. Even though it was rusty, the armor he wore was of the highest grade. His skills were also focused on enhancing defense. Nevertheless, the damage was steadily accumulating. Even amidst the pain of being gnawed at all over his body, the Margrave continued to roar and swing his lance.

‘I don’t understand.’

Margrave Cross couldn’t understand himself, why he was doing this. He had promised to be by his wife’s side at the end, so why did he choose the city again? What was it about this hateful city that had him… fighting again?

‘I just can’t understand it.’

Even after all these years, the world was still full of things he couldn’t understand. The impermanence of flowers, the warmth of life, the beauty of the world. Even his own heart. He had tried to understand it his whole life, but the Margrave couldn’t figure it out at all. …But there was something he knew very well.

“Uwa, aaaaaaah!”

Flowers, his daughter. That fragile and fleeting things – he had to protect them from these monsters. And that the thing he was best at was killing monsters.

“Behind the wall, my daughter lives.”

So he fights.

“There is a world where my daughter lives.”

Because he only knows how to fight, even if he knows it’s foolish, this is how he has to live.

“Not a single one of you will pass, not a single one…!”

The Margrave roared again. To somehow keep even one more monster away from the wall. Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of sewer rats swarmed over the Margrave at once. The Margrave couldn’t hold on and fell backward. His helmet was covered in monster blood, and he couldn’t see ahead. His aged arms no longer had any strength. His legs, which had long since reached their limit, wouldn’t move.

“Kuhhh…!”

He knew. No matter how much he tended the orchard alone. No matter how many monsters he killed here. Those days would not return. His dead wife, his departed daughter, the happiness he had lost, none of it could be recovered.

“Uwa, aaaaaaah!”

But the man, who didn’t know how to live except by fighting, stubbornly raised his lance again and stood up. And that was the end. The moment he stood up, swung his lance, and raised his shield. Snap. Something inside Margrave Cross broke. He couldn’t feel anything in his body, which had been eaten away through his armor. The pain that had exceeded its limit was no longer being transmitted to his brain. His vision was dark. The Margrave sensed his end.

‘Just one more…!’

To take one last companion with him, Margrave Cross gritted his teeth and stood firm. ……. ……. …But, it was silent. The sewer rats were no longer attacking him. The Margrave was puzzled. Why weren’t the monsters attacking him? Perhaps, was he already dead?

“Margrave Cross.”

Then, a clear voice was heard. It was the voice of the young knight who followed the new lord.

“We have defeated all the monsters. The battle is over.”

“…….”

“Now… you can rest.”

At those words, the lance that had been stuck in his hand fell to the ground. Following that, Margrave Cross collapsed forward like a puppet with its strings cut.