I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 615

“Not a bad festival.”

I turned around at the sudden voice from behind and saw it was my father.

The surrounding audience members, startled, rose from their seats. The Emperor waved his hand to calm them.

“Don’t mind me and enjoy yourselves. I’ve just come to have a chat with my son for a bit.”

I don’t think that’s how it works, though…

Even if the Emperor acts casual and relaxed, there are always elite guards surrounding him, and he himself is a natural-born powerhouse.

It’s not just a matter of status; in this front line, teeming with powerful individuals from all over the world… his mere presence causes tension.

The surrounding heroes, feeling uncomfortable, quickly retreated, and the seats around me were cleared in a circle.

And the Emperor, being the kind of person he is, didn’t care whether others were uncomfortable and stuck close to me. Typical Emperor, doing things his own way.

“Is it the Glory Knights’ turn next?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Did you get a chance to greet Hecate? Weren’t you classmates back in school?”

“Well, as you know, my memories aren’t quite intact…”

As I mumbled and pointed to my head, the Emperor made a carefree sound, like ‘Oh, right-‘.

“The Glory Knights… they’re pitiful children.”

He suddenly uttered those words, looking at the five Glory Knights entering the arena.

I was puzzled and furrowed my brow. Calling his own imperial knights pitiful?

“They probably won’t last long.”

“Won’t last long?”

Was he talking about the martial arts tournament? But no, it wasn’t that.

“I mean it literally. Those knights, who were like my limbs, will die soon. No, rather…”

The Emperor continued to say things that were hard to understand.

“They will soon ‘stop’.”

“…?”

Stop, as in, like a machine breaking down and stopping. Why would he say that?

“It was Hecate who first requested to be sent to this front line. And her knights agreed.”

“…”

“If they’re going to end soon anyway… they said they wanted to ‘stop’ here. So, I brought them here to grant their wish.”

The Emperor smiled bitterly.

“They are loyal warriors who have dedicated their lives to me and the Empire, so how could I refuse such a last request?”

I had no chance to encounter the Glory Knights in the game, so I was completely ignorant about them.

That’s why I couldn’t understand. I hurriedly asked again.

“Stop? What does that…”

Whoaah-!

At that moment, cheers erupted from the audience, cutting off my conversation with the Emperor.

Looking at the arena, the match was already over.

The Glory Knights’ opponents were five young mercenaries.

It was a party of young mages, young spiritists, and young warriors who had been active on various front lines.

Although young, those five were mercenaries who had fought on the monster front. They were not opponents to be taken lightly.

However, Hecate, who had rushed in immediately after the start, shattered all the young mercenaries’ wooden weapons with her wooden sword.

The rest of the Glory Knights didn’t even move. Hecate had won all by herself.

“We, we surrender…”

The young party leader, realizing the situation a beat late, said hesitantly and raised both hands, and Hecate smiled brightly.

“Glory Knights, victory!”

With Aider’s declaration of victory, applause and cheers echoed through the arena.

“Now, they are no longer my knights. They are under your command.”

Hecate smiled demurely, grabbed the hem of her skirt, bowed, and then walked out of the arena with light steps.

Her movements, like a single flower, seemed so far removed from words like death or stopping.

“So, make sure you see them off well.”

But the Emperor said this, looking at her back with a sad gaze.

“Those pitiful patriots who have given their all for the Empire.”

***

After the match, a few hours of rest were declared before the next match. The arena and the fake dragon needed to be maintained.

I left the arena to talk to Hecate. Where is she?

‘Ah.’

I found her quickly. Hecate was standing near the southern wall reconstruction site. She was with the young mercenaries she had just faced.

“You were amazing, knight! I couldn’t even see your sword movements…!”

“How much training does it take to become that strong?”

“Could you teach us a little? Please?”

The young mercenaries, not intimidated by the Glory Knight commander Hecate’s status, were naturally clinging to her and bombarding her with questions.

Hecate, while looking a bit troubled, was also smiling gently and kindly answering each of the children’s questions.

I was about to wait a bit, watching them from a distance, when I noticed something strange.

Creak, creak…

From the reconstruction site right next to us.

The wall brought from New Terra was being assembled, and a series of ominous cracking sounds echoed. Sensing something was wrong, I shouted urgently.

“Wait, it’s dangerous-”

But it was too late.

Crack! Crash!

The safety ropes snapped one after another, and the outer wall being assembled, bending the steel frames, collapsed.

With people screaming, the huge iron wall fell straight down.

Over the heads of the young mercenaries.

‘Damn it!’

I tried to summon a magic wall to block it, but my slow casting speed wouldn’t reach in time.

The warriors among the young mercenaries quickly rolled away to avoid it, but the mages and spiritists were too slow to dodge in time.

The two mercenaries hugged each other and closed their eyes tightly, and then-

Swoosh.

They were pushed away.

It was Hecate who grabbed the two mercenaries and threw them out of the way. She herself could have easily avoided it, but she had rushed under the falling iron wall to save the two young mercenaries.

Hecate looked at the safe mercenaries with a relieved smile, and then-

Crash!

She was crushed by the falling iron wall.

Blood splattered everywhere. The young mercenaries, covered in Hecate’s blood, screamed.

“Aaaah! Aaaah!”

“Kyaaaaa!”

“Hecate-nim, Hecate-nim…!”

I gritted my teeth and rushed in, assembled a flag, and slammed it into the ground.

Whirr!

The magic wall I summoned rose from the ground, lifting the iron wall that had fallen to the ground.

There was no way someone under something like that could survive.

I knew it, but thinking I had to recover the body, I strained to remove the iron wall, and then-

“…?”

I saw an incomprehensible sight.

There, Hecate was… being ‘reassembled’.

The blood that had splattered everywhere gathered back into one place, and the shattered pieces of flesh and bone swirled and formed a shape.

And then, like a clay doll, they were mixed together haphazardly-

Whirr- Thud.

Bandages wrapped around it.

Old, worn-out magic bandages with blood-red magic characters wrapped around her body like a mummy.

Her hat, white dress, and red shoes were all torn to shreds and left no trace.

Nevertheless, she, who had been reassembled, stood there blankly for a moment.

And we, who had witnessed this scene, were also out of our minds, staring blankly at her.

“…Ah.”

Hecate, regaining her senses a beat late, asked with a haggard look.

“Is everyone… okay?”

“…Uh.”

The young mercenaries, their faces pale, stepped back hesitantly, then,

“Aaaah, aaaaaah-!”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

“Monster, it’s a monster…!”

They screamed and ran away.

Hecate looked blankly at the young mercenaries moving away, then shook her head bitterly.

“I’ve shown you an unsightly sight, Your Highness.”

She bowed lightly to me, who was stiff.

Sizzle…

The sun touched her skin, which was exposed by the loss of her hat, and a burning sound was heard.

Hecate picked up the parasol that had fallen nearby and opened it. Then, the burning on her cheek stopped.

I stammered for a long time, then finally asked.

“Are you… okay?”

That was all I could ask.

Hecate then smiled faintly.

“I’m fine. And no one was hurt. Isn’t that all that matters?”

“…”

“I’ll explain in detail later.”

Hecate, touching her cheek where ashes were coming off, muttered bitterly and bowed to me again.

“…I wouldn’t want Lucas to see me like this, if possible.”

I couldn’t answer, and Hecate trudged towards the city.

I, who had been frozen, muttered sullenly.

“What… did you do?”

From behind me, the Emperor slowly approached. I asked, not hiding my anger.

“What did you… do to them?!”

“That is the Glory Knights.”

The Emperor whispered calmly, but with a hint of pity.

“The darkness of the Empire, the shadow of the Empire, the evil spirit of the Empire.”

“…”

“A knight order that never falls. A knight order that cannot die. Yes.”

At the Emperor’s next words, I closed my eyes tightly.

“The best… monster our Empire has created.”

***

The heads of the production guilds who had come to see me knelt down.

I had originally told them to stop the wall construction and rest during the festival. But the guild had refused.

One reason was that there was only a month left until the next defense battle, but another reason was that they couldn’t leave the wall being assembled from New Terra for more than three days.

The crucial joining work was underway, and they couldn’t build it up with gaps.

So, construction continued even during the festival, and this incident happened.

They were joining the walls together using the magic construction technology of the Lake Kingdom, but the walls brought from New Terra had a magic-repelling barrier, so this resistance made the work extremely difficult.

With the tight schedule, they had been careful, but… in the end.

“…”

Looking around at the guild heads kneeling and waiting for my punishment, I sighed.

There were no casualties. But.

Can this be called no casualties?

The young mercenaries almost died. If not for Hecate’s sacrifice, at least two of them would have died.

And, Hecate…

“…Hoo.”

I took a breath and looked back at the guild heads. They were soaked in sweat and guilt and couldn’t meet my eyes.

But is it right to blame those who work even during the festival and give up their vacation because of an accident where no one died?

Who was it that pushed them like this in the first place?

Wasn’t it me…

“…I will not punish you. Instead.”

I waved my hand.

“After completing the safety inspection, stop the construction where it can be stopped. Rest until tomorrow. Let all the workers rest during the festival.”

“Your Highness…!”

“This is not overlooking this accident. It is a temporary suspension of execution. If the same accident happens again, I will punish you, including this accident.”

I shook my head slightly.

“It is also clear that I have been too harsh on you all.”

“No, Your Highness! It was us who gave up the festival and vacation!”

“You are also warriors. You also need to rest to fight.”

The workers who build the walls are also warriors who protect this front line together.

No matter how tight the schedule is, managing their condition is also my job.

“Rest, forget, and relax. I will apologize to Hecate myself.”

“…Yes, Your Highness.”

“Secure a wider space around the construction site and take more precautions against possible safety accidents.”

The guild heads bowed to me repeatedly and left the office. I sighed and looked out the window.

Crossroad, still bright in the afternoon, was still in a festive mood.

There was a small accident, but there were no casualties – that was how it was announced. It was the Emperor who announced this.

“Hecate was looking forward to this festival.”

The Emperor, sitting on the sofa in the corner of the office, muttered calmly.

“It’s probably the last festival she’ll enjoy in her life. If the festival atmosphere is dampened by something she’s involved in, she’ll surely be sad.”

“…Please explain, Father.”

“What?”

“Why the Glory Knights became like that. And.”

I looked straight at the Emperor.

“By entrusting them to me, what do you intend to do?”