I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 661

《If this plan doesn’t defeat your father, what are you going to do then?》

Scayrian, who spoke so meaningfully, was… gently swaying a large fan in his hand.

On the other side, Parekian had attached a fan to one of his six legs and was also swaying it.

The target of the fanning was Violet, who was sitting in a fancy chair with wheels, being fanned from both sides… and sipping from a straw connected to a drink.

Violet, staring blankly into the air with unfocused eyes, opened her mouth and made a strange sound, like “bhe~.”

“Sooo gooood~”

“……”

Seriously, Violet, what are you doing?

She’s classified as a reserve in this Black Dragon subjugation, so she won’t be fighting on the front lines… but why is she so completely out of it?

“Huh?!”

Violet, realizing what was happening a beat late, flailed her arms and legs.

“P-please save me, Your Highness! These dragons are spoiling me too much! I’ve realized I’m acting like a spoiled brat…!”

“No, even so, you usually don’t fall apart to that extent…”

Even a real princess wouldn’t be like that, seriously. I clicked my tongue.

《Now, now, Lady Violet. You don’t need to think about any other bothersome things. Leave it all to us, and relax. Now then…》

“N-no… I am… the leader of the Gamble Club, Vi…olet…”

With those last words, Violet spaced out and even started drooling. She’s completely gone, totally gone.

Ignoring Violet, who had lost her mind from being treated like a princess, I faced Scayrian.

“Scayrian. Do you think this plan is lacking?”

《No… I think it’s very well-crafted. I think it’s the only way for you to exploit your father’s only weakness, pushing it to the limit for a human.》

Scayrian narrowed his eyes and smiled.

《But, will that be enough?》

“……”

《I don’t think your ‘best’ will be enough to defeat your father… that’s what I think.》

“If even our best isn’t enough, then what should we do?”

《I told you before. I’m on the side that believes you can’t defeat your father in the first place.》

Scayrian looked down at Violet lovingly and gently waved his fan.

《Wouldn’t you need something more than your best… something that combines coincidence, luck, and miracles?》

“……”

I know it too.

That it’s no longer possible to completely defeat monsters using only game strategies.

That fact was already proven during the Lord of the Flies incident, and it became clear while facing the Black Dragon Legion. The monsters’ transcendent will had already broken free from my strategies.

‘So… what can I do?’

Besides preparing strategies diligently based on the information I have.

What else can I possibly do?

《As we agreed beforehand, I will faithfully fight in this battle as you instructed.》

Scayrian said, sweeping back his long bangs.

Right. Instead of fighting and killing each other, I made a deal with Scayrian to have him fight his own father.

Scayrian’s special abilities are focused on defense and evasion. They will be useful in saving the lives of our allies in this Black Dragon subjugation.

《I want to see how you fight your father, and what the outcome will be, up close.》

“……”

I just asked something I had been curious about for a while.

“Scayrian. If we defeat your father, you’ll enjoy watching the process, right?”

《Of course. What could be more interesting than that? A story of humans defeating an invincible evil dragon, wow…》

“Then, what if. If we fail completely and are horribly annihilated… would that also be enjoyable for you?”

There was a brief silence.

Scayrian hesitated as if he had been caught off guard, and sent a nerdy look from behind his glasses.

《To be honest, that’s much more my taste.》

“……”

《When the noble history of humans, their dignified will, is shattered and trampled like insects in the face of overwhelming violence.》

I clenched my mouth shut as I listened to his words.

《If the heroes I love so much despair, cry, and eventually die trembling in fear… oh my. What could be more fun than watching that right next to them?》

Scayrian shuddered as if he was thrilled just imagining it.

I couldn’t hide my displeasure and spat out,

“You’re a pervert, just like your father.”

《Hahaha. It can’t be helped. I’ve been cooped up in the Lake Kingdom library for the past few hundred years, and I’ve seen too many stories that end with a happy ending. I’m tired of them.》

This hipster nerd…

Scayrian shrugged.

《‘They defeated the evil dragon and lived happily ever after~’ is such a cliché and predictable story. I’m sick of it. A fresh and cruel tragedy is much more fun.》

“……You’re not on our side after all.”

《I never said I’d be on your side. I told you? I’m also part of the Black Dragon Legion. I’m on the side that wants the world to be destroyed.》

Scayrian scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

《However, while you guys are fighting my father. I just want to watch the fight from the closest VIP seat, so I’ll be on your side.》

“……”

《So, Ash. If you don’t want your long fight to end in tragedy… you’d better prepare more variables.》

“……”

《The gap between my father and you humans is still very clear. If things continue like this, I predict it will end too easily with a bad ending.》

Scayrian winked and dragged the chair Violet was sitting on away. Parekian followed closely behind.

I glared at the backs of the captured monsters as they moved away, then turned to my side.

I saw Dusk Bringer looking up at me with a worried expression. He was still wrapped in bandages, as if his injuries hadn’t fully healed.

“Are you alright, Ash?”

“……Grand Duke.”

I wondered if he was alright, if it wasn’t too much for him to go into the next battle with those injuries…

Such caring words welled up in my throat, but I forced them down.

I closed my eyes once and opened them, then brought up the cruel story I had been putting off.

“Please explain in detail about ‘how to become a dragon.’”

“……!”

Dusk Bringer’s face turned pale.

***

The next day.

Magic power concentrators were distributed to all members of the expedition, and the heroes began training to convert their magic power into light.

Different colored lights, depending on each person’s magic power, lined up like spotlights, illuminating the training grounds. Everyone was a veteran, so they adapted quickly.

“……”

I watched the training, where dozens of beams of light scattered and then shot at one point according to a signal… and someone approached me from behind.

I knew who it was without looking back. Because I had called him.

“King Poseidon.”

“……”

Standing behind me was the giant with blue hair and beard—King Poseidon, the merfolk king.

I glanced back at him.

“The resolve you gave me before, is it still the same?”

“……”

He didn’t bother to answer. It meant there was no need to say more.

I sighed.

“You must come with me. Just the two of us, secretly from the others.”

“……Where are we going?”

“We’re going below the Lake Kingdom.”

Even though they were in serious training, some heroes, feeling playful, started shooting light at each other’s faces, making strange expressions and casting shadows, or making shapes like dogs and crabs with their fingers and creating shadows on the wall.

I chuckled at the childish but endearing sight… then turned my body completely and looked straight at King Poseidon.

“To prepare a ‘variable,’ there are people we need to meet.”

King Poseidon’s stiff face finally nodded deeply.

“I will go anywhere. If there is anything I can do to help.”

***

After going through several preparations…

Time passed mercilessly, and it was already the day before the departure.

Today, a departure ceremony will be held.

It might seem like a fuss to have a departure ceremony… but it was a battle that would determine the fate of the world, and there were things to announce in this gathering of various kings, so it was decided to hold it.

Hotel Crossroads. Hall.

All the kings, lords, and generals of the World Guardian Front were gathered in one place, chatting before the departure ceremony.

“So, our North has already done enough, you know?”

There was one king who was openly trolling… ruining the mood of the gathering.

It was Miller Arian, the king of the Arian Kingdom, Yoon’s father.

“Why should our North bear the burden of the monster outbreaks in the South? Frankly, even if the monsters cross this fortress, it has nothing to do with our North, does it?”

He was destroying the atmosphere by repeating a story that had already been brought up.

“My country has lost its only airship, and countless elite warriors have died. Even my beloved youngest daughter is dying. What more damage do you want us to suffer?”

“……”

“We will now withdraw from this battle, which offers no proper compensation. You all should think carefully too!”

They say that when faced with a crisis, one’s true nature comes out.

Faced with the brink of destruction, a troll straight out of a picture book had appeared. Oh dear.

‘The problem is, that old man’s words have a certain impact.’

The kings and soldiers gathered at Crossroads were quite frightened.

In the face of this unprecedented phenomenon where the day had disappeared and the sun had become dim, morale was plummeting, and their butts were slowly sliding backward.

The weather had turned cold, the scars left by the Lord of the Flies were deep, and the fear caused by the Black Dragon spread along with the darkness that covered the city.

The alliance that had seemed solid easily crumbled in the face of fear that defied common sense.

People wanted to run away, and the King of Arian was leading the charge.
The barely held-together sandcastle of unity was cracking.

And now it was my time to step in.

“Ahem!”

I cleared my throat and approached the kings. The startled kings all looked at me.

“Prince Ash…!”

“Good morning, everyone. Though it’s dark for a morning.”

I looked at the King of Arian and took out a letter from my pocket.

“This is the will of the youngest princess, Yoon Arian, who served as the acting king of the Arian Kingdom in the World Guardian Front. It was entrusted to the Beast King Kuilan and then passed on to me.”

Kuilan, who had followed behind me, nodded. I smiled gently.

“Yoon asked that this be read in front of you all. So, I intend to do so.”

Before the King of Arian could say anything more, I opened the letter first.

“There are letters for her family and for Kuilan. I’ll give those to you separately, so read them yourselves… I’m going to read the will that was sent to me.”

After clearing my throat, I began to read Yoon’s will.

“To Prince Ash. When you ordered me to write a will, I thought a lot about what to write.”

Yoon’s handwriting was bold and clear, just like her personality.

“If I, a warrior representing the North and one of the most outstanding heroes in the World Guardian Front, were to fall, it would mean that the situation on the front lines is that critical and the monster invasion is that dangerous.”

Even the part where she praised herself was, as expected of her, without hesitation and full of confidence.

“As the situation is desperate, people will be afraid. It’s not because they are cowardly. It’s natural for people to feel fear in front of monsters. I was actually very scared too. Even now, as I write this will.”

“……”

“It is because they overcome that fear and fight that the struggle on this front is so great.”

The kings who had been swayed by King Arian’s fanning exchanged glances. I pretended not to notice and continued reading.

“Heroes, soldiers, kings, citizens, everyone will inevitably have moments when their courage weakens. As the leader of the World Guardian Front, Prince Ash. Please continue to comfort and look after them.”

The King of Arian’s face turned red at the following words.

“Especially people like my father.”

“What…?!”

“If I fall, my father will try to withdraw his troops. He’s the type who would never take a loss, even if he were to die. He’s someone who fears losses.”

The King of Arian, who had tried to stop my reading, paused at the next words.

“But in truth, he is more courageous than anyone else. He is someone who knows how to pursue true justice, not petty gains.”

“……”

“Please hold onto him. Please reignite the courage that is dormant within him. Prince Ash, you can do it. Just like you have done for many people, including me, so far.”

How did she manage to write a will that targeted him so perfectly?

It was something she could write because she knew what kind of person her father was and how he would act if she fell.

I continued to read, making eye contact with the King of Arian.

“If you withdraw from this great battle that is taking place here. If you retreat because of immediate losses, immediate fear. You will surely regret it later.”

“……”

“As his daughter, and as a princess of the Arian Kingdom, I ask you. Even after I fall, please encourage Arian, the North… and all the countries to continue fighting.”

I had already memorized the rest, so I put down the letter and looked around at the crowd as I finished reading.

“Many people will fall after me. Many tears will flow, and much blood will flow.”

“……”

“I hope you do not think of this as a loss. I hope you do not think of this as a failure. This is a battle that is already beyond such calculations.”

I closed my eyes and bowed my head.

“As an ordinary human, I was honored to participate in the great war to protect the world. Prince Ash. I wish you good fortune in my stead.”

Yoon’s will ended like that.

The crowd was enveloped in silence.

In fact, besides this content, there were also a lot of trivial things written, such as how I was annoying when we first met at the New Terra Ball, how she had never had a good relationship after being rejected by me, and to take good care of Kuilan… but there was no need to read those.

“I was originally going to write a declaration of war before this departure ceremony, but there was no need to do so.”

I raised my head, smiled gently, and looked around at the kings.

“Princess Yoon has written such an excellent declaration.”