I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 607

It had been a while since I’d seen my father… While having a casual conversation with the Emperor, I suddenly noticed something odd.

I cautiously pointed it out.

“Father, your eyes are…”

“Hmm? Ah, you mean this?”

The Emperor pointed to his eyes with his hand.

“The color has changed, hasn’t it?”

His golden eyes, which had always radiated the aura of an absolute being, were… considerably faded. They were turning into something like a normal human’s, with a bit of gold mixed into the black.

“Didn’t I tell you before we parted last time? That the divinity I forcibly acquired is fading away.”

The Emperor smiled with the eyes of an ordinary middle-aged man.

“Since I’m no longer burning people as offerings, it’s only natural, wouldn’t you say?”

Last winter.

Before returning to New Terra, the Emperor had said here:

– I obtained divinity by burning the lives of my subjects as a sacrifice. And with that power, I have sustained the Otherworld Front.

– As the offerings and sacrifices have stopped, the divinity I forcibly acquired is also fading away. I am gradually losing my qualifications as a representative of humanity.

The Everblack Empire no longer sacrificed innocent people, and the Emperor was gradually losing his transcendent power.

And the fact that the Emperor had allowed his power to diminish without trying to stop it meant…

“Yes. Finally, the battle on the northern Otherworld Front has also stopped.”

“… !”

“Negotiations with the Otherworlders have been completed.”

This meant that the Empire’s northern front had finally found peace as well.

“The Otherworlders have also agreed to help us. I have opened the gates of the northern front, and the Otherworlders will come south… they will arrive here soon.”

The concept of direction in the spirit realm was still hard for me to grasp, but anyway, it seemed that the gods of the four major alien races were coming to Crossroads as reinforcements.

They were bound to be powerful beings, so I was grateful.

“But how can the divine beings in the spirit realm help us here?”

“They said they would select their own agents… Avatars, and exert their power through them. The power they use is different from ours, so I don’t fully understand the method either.”

“I see…”

“So, you might have been happy to see your father as a powerful ally. But unfortunately, I am no longer a transcendent being. I am returning to being an ordinary human.”

What a tease.

Even if he lost his authority as a transcendent being, as the guardian of humanity, the Emperor was still a formidable figure, beyond the reach of any hero gathered on this front.

If I were to rank him in a game-like manner, he would probably be SSSR or UR [Super Super Super Rare or Ultra Rare, referring to extremely high-level characters].

Regardless, without the power of a transcendent, it would be difficult for him to recklessly go to the battlefield. He was the leader of the world’s largest nation, after all.

“Don’t be too disappointed. I brought you plenty of gifts instead.”

The Emperor pointed to the southern plains. I looked in that direction as well.

Thump, thud…

They were busily unloading containers brought by airships. I gestured towards them.

“What are those?”

“Didn’t you request it from me through Countess Winter Silver?”

As the Emperor snapped his fingers, the soldiers standing in front of the containers released the magic locks and opened the container doors.

And what was revealed inside was…

“A fortress wall.”

They were disassembled fortress wall parts, stacked neatly.

“… Huh?”

I let out a dumbfounded sound, and the Emperor chuckled.

“Didn’t you request it? That the fortress wall had completely collapsed, so you needed the best engineers and materials. But after I calculated it, it seemed impossible to complete a new fortress wall before the next monster invasion.”

“…”

“So, I just disassembled the southern fortress wall of New Terra and brought it here. There’s no immediate need for it in New Terra.”

The southern fortress wall of the Imperial Capital New Terra, the very one our World Guardian Front had faced during the Imperial Capital Conquest War… he had brought it here whole!

“New Terra is a constantly expanding and swelling city… so the existing concept of fortress walls couldn’t keep up with the city’s expansion. So, after the victory of the Race War a hundred years ago, we applied new technology to make it possible to assemble, disassemble, and move this fortress wall.”

As I stood there, speechless at the extraordinary measure, the Emperor casually added,

“Well, the cost of disassembly and transportation was actually higher, so this is the first time we’ve actually moved it.”

“… I’ve never even thought of such a thing. Moving a fortress wall.”

“We still need to bring the remaining parts from New Terra, and assembling and constructing this will also be a major undertaking. But no matter what, it will be faster than building it from scratch.”

The Emperor wore a face like a father who had brought a toy gift for his son without him knowing, and then winked at me slyly.

“How is it? Will it be helpful?”

“Of course, Father. One of the biggest problems has been solved… !”

The southern fortress wall site had just finished the new groundwork.

Assembling and erecting the New Terra fortress wall would be far easier than starting from zero. Moreover, as it was the fortress wall of the Imperial Capital, its defensive power would be high, and it would also have various defensive magic cast on it. No better fortress wall repair would be possible during the remaining defensive battles.

As I was genuinely delighted, the Emperor chuckled, stroked his beard, and then gestured behind him.

“And, there’s one more gift. You’ll probably be very happy and pleased about this one too.”

“Yes?”

I tilted my head. A gift that would make me happy?

At the Emperor’s gesture, five people walked out from among the Imperial Army soldiers standing behind him.

Step, step…

Four large, heavily armored black knights wearing the Everblack Empire’s formal armor.

And in the center of them, walking with light, graceful steps…

A young woman with flowing white dress, red shoes, and voluminous beige hair.

She was holding a white parasol, and she didn’t fold it, even in front of the Emperor, which was quite presumptuous.

And the Emperor didn’t bother to point out her rudeness.

The Emperor pointed to them and introduced them.

“My personal guard – the Glory Knights.”

“… !”

“I’m giving them to the southern front. Use them well. And have a pleasant reunion after a long time.”

She bowed to the Emperor and passed him, then narrowed her red eyes at me and greeted me.

“It’s been a while, Prince Ash. Is this the first time we’ve met since graduation?”

“Uh…”

Were we acquainted? I’ve never seen her before?

I could only blink awkwardly, and finally, I had to ask, feeling awkward.

“I’m sorry, but my old memories aren’t very clear…”

I was about to ask who she was.

Shudder, shudder.

Lukas, who was standing next to me, was trembling like an aspen tree. I looked at Lukas’s profile, puzzled.

“Lukas? What’s wrong?”

“M-My lord. This woman is…”

“Oh my, Lukas!”

The woman covered her mouth with a white-gloved hand and laughed, then winked at Lukas.

“It’s been a long time. It seems like the first time I’ve seen you since graduation. How have you been?”

“U-U-Ugh!”

Cold sweat was pouring down Lukas’s body. I was bewildered because I had rarely seen Lukas so mentally cornered. No, why is he like this!

“Lukas remembers me so well… but you don’t remember me at all, Your Highness. I’m a little disappointed. We spent six years together.”

She stopped in front of me, gracefully swept her voluminous hair back, and introduced herself.

“It’s me, Hecate.”

“Hecate…?”

I’ve never heard that name in the game.

“Your academy classmate, and…”

She lowered her voice and whispered softly in my ear.

“The one who was head over heels for you during our school days – that Hecate!”

***

Her self-introduction was as follows:

Valedictorian of the Imperial Academy’s 369th class.

Commander of the Emperor’s personal guard, the Glory Knights.

Hecate Whiteblossom.

‘Something… is incredibly flashy.’

Her specs, her name, her attire, everything about her was breathtakingly flashy.

She looked like a noble lady from a good family, not a knight. No armor, no weapons, just a dress, shoes, and a parasol.

But she was the valedictorian of the academy, an institution for training knights, and now she was the commander of the Glory Knights.

‘The Glory Knights…’

It was a knight order that had existed since the founding of the Everblack Empire, and it was a symbolic place among the Empire’s various knight orders.

That was because it was the personal guard that directly protected the Emperor.

‘I’ve never seen them in the game.’

Well, it was natural. In the game, the Glory Knights, the Emperor’s personal guard, had no reason to come to Crossroads. I knew they existed, but there was no way to know who the members were.

‘And the commander of that place is my and Lukas’s classmate.’

Anyway, after being introduced like that.

The Emperor went to supervise the unloading of the airships, and the four black knight Glory Knights followed him.

Only Hecate was heading to the lord’s mansion with our main party, talking to us.

“I see, so you really lost your memories…”

Hecate nodded as if she was sorry. I scratched the back of my head awkwardly.

“So, I’m sorry, but I don’t remember any of those six years in school.”

“Hehe. It’s a shame that you can’t share all those memories with me… but it would be fun for me to help you remember them little by little.”

“Please do. Tell me slowly.”

Immediately after, I turned my head to the side.

“But, why is Lukas acting like this?”

Lukas was walking far away over there.

He was trembling, as if he was scared of Hecate, and he was even hiding behind Evangeline… Evangeline was also visibly flustered, as if she had never seen Lukas like this before.

“Why are you like this, mister? Can’t you stand up straight?!”

“B-But… but I can’t…”

“We’re the face of the monster front! How can you shrink like that in front of someone who just arrived! Now, hurry up! Straighten your back! Your senior is watching you too!”

Only then did Lukas, feeling my gaze, stammer as if making an excuse.

“… M-My lord. It’s because, in the past, there were many things…”

“Many things?”

What on earth happened that made him like this? Spill the beans!

“Hehe. Lukas, really. You’re still like this over something that happened a few years ago.”

Hecate covered her mouth and laughed, then winked slightly, and Lukas let out a sound like ‘Ugh!’ and crouched behind Evangeline. Hey, your character is falling apart! Get a grip!

“Anyway, I miss it. Those school days when the three of us were together.”

Hecate closed her eyes and reminisced about the past.

“With the incredible combination of valedictorian, salutatorian, and the last place. We had so much fun together for six years…”

It goes without saying, but the valedictorian was Hecate. The salutatorian was Lukas. And the last place was Kim Ash. Oh, well done, our rascal!

“I’d like to talk more, but my subordinates, and the soldiers, have just arrived. I’ll go unpack and organize the barracks.”

When we arrived in front of the lord’s mansion, Hecate smiled brightly.

“Let’s continue the story next time.”

“Sure. I have a lot to ask too.”

“Yes, Your Highness, then. See you soon.”

Hecate grabbed the hem of her skirt and bowed gracefully.

Her movements were so elegant that, I repeat, and it might be a bit of a discriminatory remark, but she really didn’t look like a knight at all…

The hem of her dress swirled as she turned around.

Hecate walked lightly back south with her red shoes, and then-

“Ah, right. I heard there’s a martial arts tournament coming up…”

She stopped abruptly. She only turned her head back.

Her red eyes, barely visible under the slightly tilted white parasol,

“Would it be okay for our knight order to go wild, Your Highness?”

Only then did she radiate a fierce light, like a true warrior.

“Of course, Sir Hecate.”

I smiled, adding ‘Sir’ to the end of her name.

“Now that you and your knights are also under my command, you are fully qualified to participate in this martial arts tournament.”

“Hehe. I’ll be looking forward to it.”

Hecate winked meaningfully at Lukas one last time, then turned around and really left.

“…”

We were silent until she was far away, then we all turned to look at Lukas. Lukas, who was wiping the sweat off his forehead, flinched.

Speaking for everyone, I shouted.

“Lukas! What on earth happened with that lady! Why don’t you confess right now?!”

I have a feeling!

A feeling of a dark history!

I smell a rare, embarrassing dark history from this upright protagonist knight!

I’m going to dig it out and tease him about it forever! Spill it all!