I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 523

◈ 524. [Side Story] Tightening Discipline

Time passed, and it was the last day of February.

A memorial service was held for all those who had lost their lives on this front.

And then, another day passed, and it became March.

The chilly air of early spring lingered in Crossroads, where troops and supplies from all over the world began to arrive one after another.

“I’ve never seen Crossroads so crowded in my life…”

Evangeline murmured in admiration, looking down at the bustling city.

As troops began to arrive in earnest and supplies piled up, the city was more crowded than ever before.

I nodded, looking at the barracks area, which was congested with carriages and soldiers.

“It was a good thing we built additional barracks.”

A few months ago, I had ordered the construction of new barracks because the existing ones were almost full.

Just in time, the new barracks were completed recently, and new troops began to pour in.

‘Alright, everyone, move into your new accommodations~’

I was pleased as I received reports of the troop situation rapidly improving, when Lucas cautiously added,

“Actually, even the new barracks might not be enough… If more troops arrive, we’ll need more space.”

“I’ll have to order additional construction.”

As I was pondering where to build the third barracks, Evangeline chirped from beside me.

“But what are we going to do with those buildings after we defeat all the monsters?”

Well, that’s true.

They’ll be useful for the next year, but after that, dealing with all these barracks will be a headache. They’ll be completely empty.

Pondering, I gestured with my chin towards Evangeline.

“Evangeline Cross, the prospective Marchioness, do you perhaps have any ideas?”

“U, uhoh?! Prospective Marchioness?!”

Evangeline jumped up, making a strange noise. She seemed excited by the title of prospective Marchioness.

Evangeline crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks, lost in thought.

“Th, that’s right. By then, I’ll be ruling this city as the Marchioness… So, I’ll have to solve the problem of what to do with the remaining military facilities. Uhoh…!”

“Ah… I’ll trust you with it, Marchioness-in-waiting.”

“Uhohot!”

Good, I successfully passed it on.

Behind Evangeline, who was deep in thought, I chuckled wickedly. Lucas looked at me with a wry smile. What, man?

In addition to troops, various military supplies lined up to enter Crossroads.

As a result of the agreement, countries that had difficulty sending troops sent money or supplies instead.

The military warehouses had also been expanded in advance, so there were no problems with storage.

‘However, we need to sort out the wheat from the chaff.’

Whether it’s troops or military supplies sent from various places, the proportion that is actually useful is likely not that high.

We’re not in a position to be picky, but we still need to do the sorting.

‘I’m going to be busy….’

I’ve been busy enough so far, though. Ugh.

***

The monster front in the third year is about twice as harsh in terms of volume compared to the first and second years.

In the past two years, we’ve carried out 25 defense battles.

In the third year, we have to carry out 25 defense battles in one year. In other words, stages 26 to 50 will come all at once within a year.

Twice the number of monster waves that have come so far. It’s literally a full-scale onslaught.

It will be a very, very difficult year. But we can’t just sit idly by because it’s hard.

We have to prepare.

‘So, I’ll start restoring the forward base.’

Before the monsters start pouring in more seriously.

We need to get the forward base up and running again. In as complete a state as possible.

Fortunately, supplies and manpower are gathering from all over the world, and it’s a place we’ve restored once before. The work itself won’t be that difficult.

In the lord’s office, I twirled a pen in my hand, lost in thought.

‘The immediate tasks are restoring the forward base, sorting and redeploying the new troops and military supplies, and….’

It’s a low priority, but we also need to deal with the spoils of the last battle.

‘What kind of equipment should I make with the White Night’s magic core, and who should I give it to….’

It’s possible to create a new Nightmare Slayer again.

Since White Night was a very powerful mage, the Nightmare Slayer that can be created will also be of extraordinary power.

What kind of equipment should I make? Attack equipment? Defense equipment? An artifact? And if I make it, who should use it? A mage? Or someone else?

“……”

But in fact, there was a more troublesome spoil than the equipment.

That was the information I got from looking into White Night’s mind.

‘Demon King, Outer Gods, the Game of Destruction….’

Stories from beyond this world.

And the information I’ve gathered from various other places.

Combining all of this, it seems like I can finally see a bit of the overall picture.

‘…Anyway, this kind of thing isn’t important to me.’

The reality before my eyes.

Surviving the monster front in the third year with everyone. This immediate problem was the real problem I had to solve with all my heart.

So, I put aside the troublesome setting play and was about to look at the pile of pending issues again….

That’s when it happened.

Bang!

“My lord, it’s a big problem!”

Lucas, who had rushed into the office, shouted with a desperate look on his face. I blinked.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

It’s not the time for monsters to attack yet?

“That is, some of the new troops that have joined this time….”

Lucas reported, sweating profusely.

“They are picking fights with our soldiers!”

“Huh?”

I snorted and leaned back in my chair. I thought it was something serious.

“Well, isn’t a little bit of a power struggle common? They get to know each other by bumping heads. Kids get close by fighting~”

Our guys aren’t the type to get beaten up and lose. Unless they’re the ones doing the beating.

“Tell our guys. Don’t just stand there and get hit. If they start a fight, show them what you’ve got. The lord will take responsibility!”

“B, but, that is….”

Lucas hesitated and looked at me.

“We can’t deal with them strongly….”

“Huh? Why?”

“Because the other party’s status is high.”

Ah. Come to think of it, there could be cases like that.

Unlike the other mercenaries who have joined the monster front so far, there are many well-known royals and knight orders among those who are joining from all over the world now.

It might be difficult to deal with them if they’re not on the same level.

I groaned and got up from my seat.

“Do I have to sort out the wheat from the chaff and then sort out the hierarchy….”

Well, what can I do? This is something that naturally happens when organizations merge.

As I put on my coat and stepped out of the office, Lucas led the way. I shouted with gusto.

“Alright, let’s go! Let’s make sure to tighten the discipline of the new recruits!”

***

New barracks.

At the entrance of this place, which was already chaotic with new soldiers moving in, the two opposing forces were engaged in a fierce staring contest. What are they doing, blocking the road!

On one side were our soldiers and heroes.

With their imposing physiques, Kuilan and Torkel were at the forefront, along with the blind swordsman Nobody, who looked like he had a temper, and the black mage Chain, all of whom were scowling and emitting a menacing aura.

‘Reliable~.’

It was a scene that looked like they could instill manners in anyone, no matter who they were.

I felt a sense of security that they could get a refund for me no matter what kind of scam I fell for.

And on the other side… a knight order clad in silver armor and crimson cloaks.

Both the armor and cloaks, which were part of their uniform, were not ordinary, with small scratches from being honed in actual combat. But the creatures they had brought with them were even more threatening.

Creatures with the heads and wings of eagles and the bodies of lions.

‘Griffins!’

The griffins, with saddles on and even wearing armor, opened their beaks menacingly.

Our guys flinched every time, perhaps because they were bewildered by the creatures they were seeing for the first time.

‘If it’s a military group that fights on griffins….’

There’s only one on this continent.

‘The Heaven Knights!’

I craned my neck and looked for the commander of the other side. Soon, a young knight standing in the center of the knight order, who stood out, caught my eye.

He was a boy with crimson hair, with one side of his hair braided long.

Like the knights around him, he was wearing silver armor and a crimson cloak, and a rapier with a crimson jewel embedded in it was also worn at his waist.

The kingdom built between the desert and the snowy mountains in the northwest of the continent – Vermillion.

The crown prince and commander of the knight order of that country, Mikhail Vermillion!

‘He’s an SSR grade!’

Moreover, Mikhail is not just a simple SSR grade.

He’s a magic swordsman character with a unique position as an aerial cavalryman who fights on griffins.

He can move in the air, use magic, and is skilled in swordsmanship. He’s a crazy character who is heavily favored by the world.

‘The only disadvantage is… that he’s young.’

At the current point in the third year, he’s fifteen years old.

Evangeline was sixteen when she joined in the first year, and he’s even younger than Evangeline was back then.

His potential is MAX, but he’s still a long way from fully blooming.

In the game, he had the negative traits ‘Clumsy’ and ‘Reckless’ attached to him. It’s like they balanced his outstanding performance by cutting it down with various disadvantages….

Anyway, he was the number one character I wanted to recruit.

‘In the game, Fernandès destroyed the Vermillion Kingdom, so he became the crown prince of a ruined country and wandered around before joining at the very end.’

This time, my showdown with Fernandès was brought forward, and as a domino effect, the Vermillion Kingdom avoided destruction… and the crown prince and the knight order joined as members of the World Protection Front.

‘Anyway, it seems that this Mikhail and the Heaven Knights are the main culprits who picked a fight with our guys.’

I walked towards them with Lucas. Our guys noticed me first and were delighted.

“Captain!”

“You’ve arrived, Your Highness!”

I could feel a kind of desperation in the eyes of our big guys. ‘Please, show these bastards what’s what!’

“Hmph.”

When I came and stood in front of him, Mikhail looked up at me, slightly narrowing his round crimson eyes.

“Are you the famous Bonehater?”

“It’s nice to know that my name is known even in the Vermillion Kingdom.”

When I smiled at him, Mikhail frowned and grumbled.

“Well, you’re very well known. As the scum who promised to marry my sister and then broke it off after only fifteen days.”

“……”

I froze with a smile on my face.

I could feel my subordinates looking at me with shocked expressions. Cold sweat trickled down my back.

‘No, it’s not my fault, this! I don’t know anything about it!’

By the way, who is this past Kim Ash not messing with! How many times is he breaking off engagements on a global scale!

Wiping the sweat from my forehead, I cautiously asked.

“Umm, excuse me… but is your sister doing well…?”

“Ah, you don’t have to worry about my sister. She was so angry after you broke off the engagement with her that she’s had five husbands since then. She’s doing well.”

Is she really doing well?! Isn’t she messed up because of me?!

“The breakup of the engagement with my sister was a political issue between the two countries, so it’s not something to argue about now.”

The young knight, who had come to stand in front of me, opened his small jaw threateningly.

“What I want to argue about now is the front line itself.”

“The front line itself?”

“My father was coerced by you and sent our Heaven Knights, the best force in the kingdom, with the intention of giving you everything. But I won’t be fooled by you.”

Mikhail, who straightened his back and stretched out his small height, crossed his arms.

“To be honest, I don’t understand the current situation of gathering troops from all over the world for something as trivial as defeating monsters.”

“……”

The expressions of our soldiers hardened. I also narrowed my eyes, frowning.

What did you just say, kid?

Just defeating monsters?

Something trivial… you said?