I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 512

A few days later.

With a week left until the start of Stage 25.

I took Lucas to the blacksmith in Crossroads.

“Welcome, Your Highness, and Sir Lucas. We’ve been waiting for you.”

The head of the blacksmith’s guild greeted us with a bright smile.

“The armor you ordered is complete. This way.”

In the center of the smithy, a suit of sleek, light blue armor was displayed. Other blacksmiths were putting the final touches on it, polishing and buffing it with cloths.

“This is the armor [Water Moon]. I can confidently say it’s the best piece I’ve made since becoming the guild master here.”

“Impressive.”

“As you requested, we focused particularly on magical defense. But the physical defense is by no means weak either. You’ll be satisfied when you try it on.”

It was armor ordered with the anti-mage battle in mind. We might have to face the Lich Legion in the next stage right away.

‘The magic damage reduction rate is exceptionally high. There’s even a magic reflection function, though the probability is low.’

I nodded in satisfaction, checking the stats. With this, I could withstand White Night’s magic attacks a few times, even taking them head-on.

“Lucas?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

I gestured with my chin at Lucas. Lucas put on the armor right there.

Since it was custom-made after taking measurements from the start, the new armor fit Lucas perfectly.

The armor, with small plates lined up, not only looked great but also had outstanding stats.

He looks completely different from when he was wearing bone armor. I held back a laugh and gestured with my chin.

“How is it, Lucas? How does it feel to wear new armor?”

“…At first, I was happy every time I received new armor, but these days, I feel a little sad.”

Huh? Why sad when receiving new armor?

Puzzled, I stared at him, and Lucas gave a bitter smile.

“It’s a gift from you, my lord, but I’ll probably end up breaking it again.”

“Ah.”

It seems Lucas has realized it too. No matter how much you cherish it, armor is just armor. In the end, it’s just a consumable on the battlefield.

I chuckled and patted Lucas on the shoulder.

“Isn’t it enough if you’re safe, even if the armor gets damaged?”

“You are right, my lord.”

“Someday, there will be a day when you don’t have to break your armor. The armor you get then, you’ll have to wear for the rest of your life, even if you want to change it. You might even miss the days when you changed it often, you know?”

As I joked, Lucas smiled faintly. I then turned to face the head of the blacksmith’s guild.

“To be honest, I was underestimating the blacksmith’s equipment… My judgment was short-sighted. It’s excellent.”

“Haha, if the opponent is that Elder Dwarf artisan, it can’t be helped that we’re compared. But the armor manufacturing technology that the Empire has built up over hundreds of years is not to be underestimated either!”

The head of the blacksmith’s guild smiled brightly as Lucas and I expressed our satisfaction.

“It’s a pleasure to make equipment for the regular soldiers, but it’s also enjoyable to make high-end equipment like this, where we can bring all our capabilities together. Please, feel free to ask us often, Your Highness.”

“I will ask again.”

We left the blacksmith’s shop.

We went straight to the teleport gate in the backyard of the lord’s mansion and entered the base camp. This time, we headed to Kellybay’s smithy, where we saw Kellybay putting new armor on Torkel, who had arrived earlier.

“Say ‘hooray,’ say ‘hooray’~!”

“Hoo, hooray……”

“No need to make a sound with your mouth, just stretch both arms up!”

Torkel seemed embarrassed by the situation of someone putting armor on him.

However, the armor [Mount Tai] that we ordered this time was very heavy, as its name suggested, and it was a type that covered the entire body without any gaps, so he couldn’t put it on by himself.

Lucas and I stood behind for a while, watching Torkel put on his new armor.

Once he had put on this heavy armor made with the magic cores of the Gorgon sisters, Torkel looked almost like a small walking mountain of rocks, or a fortress.

His entire body was covered with thick, rock-like armor, and since his helmet, gloves, and shoes were made of the same material, I was worried if he could even move properly.

And on top of that, a huge rectangular shield.

In the center of the shield, two eyes that seemed to be shaped like the Gorgon sisters’ magic eyes were carved menacingly… It’s just a carving, right? It’s realistically scary.

“Wow~ It looks great, Torkel. But can you move?”

I asked, walking up to Torkel, who had finished putting on the armor, and Torkel surprisingly rotated his arms and legs with ease.

“It is heavy, but there is no problem with movement.”

“Of course! Who do you think I am? Do I look like the kind of blacksmith who would just make it ridiculously heavy because I’m obsessed with defense? I maintained the sturdiness but made it as light as possible! I even put lightweight magic everywhere! That’s how this armor was made!”

Kellybay, who had popped out, shouted proudly.

“Even if the Crossroads cannons fired a barrage, it would last for an hour! And that’s not all?! Because I used the magic cores of the Gorgon sisters, a mythical monster from the ancient times! The magic defense is also outstanding!”

Then Lucas muttered quietly.

“My armor has better magic defense.”

“Huh? What did you say, knight?”

“No, it’s nothing… Ahem. It looks good, Torkel.”

A clear look of jealousy flashed in Lucas’s blue eyes, but Torkel, oblivious, just kept making a sound like air escaping from his helmet.

“That’s what I’m saying. I wonder if someone like me deserves to use such good equipment…”

“That means your role will become even more important, Torkel.”

I clicked my tongue, looking at Torkel, who was just happy.

What does giving good armor ultimately mean?

It means that you’ll be taking a lot of hits in the front. In a way, Torkel is about to face even more hardships.

But Torkel nodded happily.

“That is what I desire, Your Highness. Throw me into the most dangerous battlefields, the most intense battles. I will protect our allies with this armor and this shield.”

“Kuh… That was a speech that is truly the epitome of a tank, Torkel.”

I was moved without realizing it and rubbed the area below my nose.

Lucas kept pouting, seemingly envious of Torkel’s armor… No, you got new armor too. And you and Torkel have different roles. You’re a mobile damage tank, and Torkel is a stationary pure tank. Okay?

I took the two knights, who were wearing new armor, deeper into the dungeon.

In the meantime, we had defeated monster legions that were difficult to deal with using Black Night, and cleared dungeons that were difficult to break through using Ssoya.

And as the monster legions and dungeon clearing became easier, we were using the remaining power of our heroes to turn all the dungeons up to area 5 into our territory through conquest battles.

Today was the day to carry out the conquest battle of the last dungeon in area 5.

As we entered the dungeon room, all of my party members were already standing there, ready for battle.

“Oh, you two look pretty cool in your armor?”

Evangeline, who had been leading the other party members in my absence, smiled.

“Well, it’s still a little less than my [Snow White]!”

“……”

“……”

A clear look of annoyance flashed across Lucas’s face, and Torkel seemed like he wanted to say something but just hesitated.

The three of them spread their arms as if showing off their armor and puffed out their chests. They’re not peacocks showing off their tail feathers, what are they doing….

“Ahem, ahem! Ahem!”

Even Quillan was clearing his throat and flapping his leather cloak next to them… Don’t join the heavy armor competition, leather armor. It’ll be a headache if you guys join too.

I left the front-line characters to their armor-related squabbles and looked at the rest of the heroes. Everyone looked bright, but I noticed five people who seemed particularly nervous.

It was none other than the five members of the Gamble Club.

The reason they were nervous was not because they were afraid of this battle, but because all five of them were on the verge of awakening.

Probably, after finishing today’s conquest battle, they would all reach level 50 and awaken their ultimate skills. They must have instinctively become nervous, realizing that the time of awakening was near.

‘I gave them all the excess experience points. Do your part, guys!’

Thinking that, I walked to the center of the dungeon room. In my right hand, I held the usual plain black flag.

Having finished preparing to declare the conquest battle, I turned around.

All the heroes under my command, who met my eyes, nodded. It’s already past the stage where I need to ask if they’re ready or not.

“This place is…”

I shouted powerfully and planted the flag on the ground.

“The forefront of the world-!”

Whoosh!

My ultimate skill [The Foremost Flag] activated, and walls made of magic rose up on all sides.

And at the same time,

[The conquest battle will begin soon.]

The final conquest battle of area 5 began.

***

The conquest battle ended successfully.

We successfully defeated the monster waves and succeeded in conquering this dungeon.

Now, area 5 is completely cleared. All the dungeons from area 1 to area 5 are now under my control.

‘Of course, the dungeons up to area 5 are overwhelmingly inferior in scale and level compared to areas 6 to 10….’

Still, in terms of numbers, it’s half of all the dungeons conquered! This is a great achievement!

And, we also succeeded in retrieving the [Fragment of the Princess’s Soul] that was dwelling in the last dungeon of area 5.

“……”

I held the soul fragments I had collected in my hand and stared at them. Since I last gave these fragments to Nameless, I had collected quite a lot again.

‘Will Nameless’s condition improve a little if I give this back?’

The image of Nameless bound by chains of darkness came to mind.

‘Of course, his condition will improve a little if I give this to him, but….’

I had a premonition.

This is not a fundamental solution.

What should I do to help Nameless not become the final boss…?

“Whew! Is today’s work over?”

Evangeline, who had removed her armor [Snow White], wiped the sweat from her forehead with a refreshing look.

Lucas and Torkel, who had been maintaining the front line together, also breathed a sigh of relief and began to prepare.

The three, wearing their shiny new armor, had played a big role today. Most of the monsters couldn’t get past these three and were completely crushed.

“Ahem, ahem! Ahem?”

Quillan was trying to assert his presence with a cough, as if he had also played a role, but he’s in human mode, so he’s a glass cannon right now… I deliberately adjusted his position so he could fight safely from behind.

“But, senior, I’ve been wondering about something for a while now!”

While collecting items from the corpses of the dead monsters and everyone was preparing to return.

Evangeline, who approached me as I was removing the magic walls, tilted her head and asked.

“When did the… the incantation for the fortress summoning change?”

“Huh?”

“Well, before, you used to say things like ‘I declare this land as the territory of the Empire~!’ It was so cool, but at some point, you changed it to ‘This is the forefront!’”

I felt a little embarrassed. Did she really pay attention to that? It’s kind of embarrassing.

My ultimate skill, [Declaration of Imperial Territory], had now evolved into [The Foremost Flag]. Several functions were added, but there was another crucial difference.

“…Because my flag is not the flag of the Empire.”

I explained slowly.

“My flag represents all the people who are trying to protect the world, so it stands at the very front.”

The monster front is no longer the southern front of the Everblack Empire. This place is the forefront of the world defense line, protecting the entire world.

That’s why the name of the ultimate skill changed, and the incantation changed as well.

In the end, skills and ultimate skills are just tools that I possess. It’s natural that they change according to my values.

Evangeline narrowed her eyes after hearing my explanation.

“Hmm?”

“…What. Why. What.”

Why are you giving me that strange look, junior?

“No! It’s just that, sometimes, you say things that sound like they’re straight out of a hero’s tale, so casually, and so…”

Kuh?! My face flushed.

“D, d, do you have a problem with that?!”

“Not at all. That’s why everyone likes you.”

Evangeline smiled slyly. The other party members were also grinning. Aish! Stop teasing the lord, you guys!

I shook off their gazes and headed towards the five members of the Gamble Club, who were huddled in a corner of the battlefield.

The five gamblers didn’t just watch; they fought together, albeit clumsily, with their weapons.

They had minor injuries, but all five of them had a much brighter look in their eyes than usual.

Finally.

All five of them had successfully reached level 50 this time.

“Alright, Gamble Club! Come to the lord’s mansion as soon as you return. We’ll check out your newly awakened skills and review the operation I instructed you on before.”

“Yes!”

The five members of the Gamble Club answered powerfully. Now they’re giving answers that sound like heroes under our command, not just gamblers.

“…So, my lord.”

Lucas asked cautiously, watching the backs of the five Gamble Club members as they returned first to prepare.

“What exactly is the operation you instructed the Gamble Club members on? Which of the two White Nights will you choose, and how will you defeat them?”