I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 711

“So… it’s like this.”

After hearing a few more explanations from Aither, I summarized.

“This game between us, ‘The Game of Destruction,’ is hosted by the Demon King. You were the opposing player. Now, you’ve run out of power and passed the role to me, the proxy player.”

“Yes.”

“And there are these eyeball-candy-like foreign observers watching this Game of Destruction… the ‘Observers.’ They basically just watch, but they’ve been subtly interfering with the game without us knowing.”

“That’s right.”

“And both the Demon King and you are endlessly resetting this game for your own reasons. You’re trying to reach the ‘True Ending.’ And although it’s not clear, the Demon King also has his own reasons.”

Aither nodded, and I stroked my chin.

“To put it simply, the Demon King is also doing an infinite retry of a Hell Iron Man clear [a very difficult challenge run in a game], but in between, he’s doing viewer participation events like voting or spinning a roulette, right?”

“…Pardon?”

“Like, ‘What should we make the Dark Event for this stage? Viewer participation voting starts!’ and those eyeball candies throw in their votes to decide. ‘What about the monster legion for this stage? We’ll spin a roulette, so everyone bet your channel points!’ and the eyeball candies put their points on the roulette and spin… the more points you bet, the higher the probability… isn’t it something like that? Right?”

As I spouted out gaming broadcast terms, Aither looked momentarily dazed. But really, isn’t it essentially the same?

‘Somehow, I’m starting to get a grasp of it now.’

Just like how a streamer on Earth plays games to satisfy viewers.

The Demon King runs the ‘Game of Destruction’ to satisfy the ‘Observers.’

So, essentially, our principles of action are similar.

‘And, despite the viewers suffering, we endlessly reset the game and retry.’

Even the point of willingly undertaking this hardship to reach the one ending they desire…

It’s similar to me.

‘Then, what does the Demon King want?’

For what purpose… is he repeating this countless Game of Destruction?

“…”

Trying to guess the intentions of my adversary, I tightly gripped the royal scepter in my hand.

‘Either way, this is the last game.’

Neither Aither, the Demon King’s counterpart, nor I can continue the game any longer. This is the final round. The ending will be decided one way or another. There will be no more resets.

There’s no room to consider the adversary’s circumstances. We’ll just do our best and try to get a slightly better result.

“I’ll intentionally advance the stage progression.”

Connecting my consciousness to the royal scepter, I spoke while examining the tower defense interface.

“I’ll intentionally violate the truce period. That will cause a penalty for the attacking side.”

A smile formed on Aither’s lips.

As if he had expected me to do this.

“We should be able to face weakened enemies as much as possible.”

I quickly confirmed the timing, the monster legion, and even the Dark Event, then tapped the end of the royal scepter on the floor.

Then, an ominous black light flickered wildly from the gem on the head of the royal scepter, and soon a system message was displayed.

[STAGE 41 has been confirmed.]

[Both players, please prepare for attack and defense.]

‘Both’ my foot. I’m doing both right now.

I curled up the corners of my mouth. Demon King, whatever your purpose is for endlessly resetting the game, whatever you’re looking for in your nightmare, it’s none of my business.

While you’re not here, I’ll set up the board to make it as advantageous for us as possible. It’s not like we’re in a comfortable situation either…!

“Hey, Aither.”

While planning the upcoming stages in addition to the current one, I suddenly spoke to Aither.

“Come to think of it, you’ve never once told me what to do about the True Ending. Is it really okay?”

It was strange that a guy whose goal was the True Ending was letting me do whatever I wanted.

“Because there was no need to.”

Then, Aither smiled and gave me a similar answer to what he had said before.

“Because you’ve been doing very well so far. And you’ll continue to do well in the future.”

“…”

I’m grateful that he trusts me, but at this point, it’s a bit strange.

What exactly is the True Ending?

Where are we going?

I asked a few more questions about other things I was curious about. The Demon King’s purpose or identity, the current situation inside the inaccessible Lake Kingdom, etc.

But Aither avoided answering directly, saying, ‘You’ll find out soon, very soon.’ This yokai director [a mischievous or supernatural being]. He’s definitely on my side, but he’s so stingy with spoilers.

“Well then, it’s late, so I’ll be going now. Rest well, Lord.”

“Hey, you… you’re not going to disappear with a whoosh again, are you?”

“Hehe. Even if I’m not easily seen, don’t worry too much. I have my own things to prepare too.”

Aither bowed to me and then slowly left the office.

“I’ll see you again, Lord.”

Aither disappeared.

Looking at the closed door, I turned my gaze back to the royal scepter. I gripped the royal scepter tightly.

In any case, being able to configure the stage at my discretion is like a cheat.

I’m going to milk it for all it’s worth…!

***

“The next defense battle will be held in a week.”

The next day. The reception room of the lord’s mansion.

I spoke after summoning all the first-tier heroes. Everyone was surprised.

“Pardon? But, my lord, didn’t you say that there were still three weeks left until the next defense battle?”

I nodded to Lucas, who asked back.

“That was originally the case. But I’ve advanced it at my discretion. Because it’s more advantageous that way.”

I showed them the Lake Kingdom royal scepter and briefly explained its functions.

The heroes’ expressions changed in various ways when they heard that I could set everything, including the types of monsters that would attack, the time of the invasion, and even the Dark Event.

“Certainly… then there’s room for strategic use…”

“If we can intentionally designate only enemies that we can easily defeat and fight them…!”

“But our army’s condition isn’t normal right now either. Isn’t it too hasty in this situation?”

After letting them express their opinions for a while, I spoke again.

“Certainly, the current situation of our World Guardian Front is not good. The walls themselves are not intact, and the troop situation is also poor. Even you, who are my core cards, have not recovered from your injuries.”

And in addition to these physical scars.

Everyone has accumulated mental wounds and fatigue as well.

They had faced powerful enemies like the Fly King and the Black Dragon in succession. The city was almost destroyed, and the lives of our allies were constantly evaporating. Everyone is standing strong, but their insides must be covered in blood.

“But, despite that, I’ve decided that it’s better to have a series of quick battles now.”

It would be nice if the Demon King didn’t return until the end, but that’s unlikely. It’s not that merciful of a game, and those observers wouldn’t let it happen.

‘So… while the Demon King is gone, I’ll try to prevent the observers from interfering as much as possible. I’ll forcibly cut down the difficulty of the stages.’

The method of cutting down is to impose penalties.

There is a ‘truce period’ rule between stages. I was planning to intentionally violate this continuously.

Because the rules are violated, penalties are continuously imposed on the monster side. Even if the observers interfere and try to forcibly increase the difficulty of the stage, there will be a limit to their interference due to the penalties.

‘I’ll select a monster legion that I’ve completely mastered the strategy for, apply a Dark Event that doesn’t suit that monster legion at all, and then call them to the battlefield with a lot of penalties.’

And our elite will cleanly sweep away this weakened monster legion.

To put it simply, that was the plan.

If the Demon King returns, this royal scepter will lose all of its authority. Before the Demon King returns, I have to extract as much benefit as possible while I can.

After explaining these contents in a way that the heroes could easily understand, I continued.

“And one more thing. While we’re having these quick battles, we’ll train the volunteer army.”

“…!”

“While I can control the battlefield with the royal scepter, the battles will become easier. We’ll train the volunteer army during this time.”

Most of the soldiers currently belonging to the monster front are veterans, but the volunteer army is an exception. These guys joined after the Fly King battle, and the situation has been special since then, so they haven’t had a real battle yet.

Now that I can easily adjust the difficulty of the battlefield, it’s the perfect time to train them. No, there’s no other suitable time than now.

“I’ve talked for a long time, but once we fight the immediate battle, you’ll get a feel for it. How weak the enemy becomes. How we should fight.”

I tapped the blackboard.

“So, the opponent for the next defense battle is…”

I calmly announced the already confirmed matter.

“Living Armor.”

“…Pardon?”

The veteran heroes were all flustered. Especially Lucas, Damian, and Lily, who had been with me since Stage 1, were startled.

Well, it’s understandable. Living Armor was a monster legion we had already faced in Stage 1.

But, I didn’t say it wrong.

Because this is the ‘real’ Living Armor legion.

“The monster legion we’ll be facing this time is the strongest legion among the Living Armor series…”

I grinned.

“The army of the Wraith King.”

The Wraith Knight, who was the boss monster in Stage 1, is now spread out as a normal monster.

And the true Living Armor legion led by the Lord of the Armors, the Wraith King, who commands those Wraith Knights-

It’s the real deal.

***

After explaining about the Wraith King’s army and the tactics to defeat them.

The heroes were all flustered by the news that the defense battle would start in a week, but as expected of those who had been through so much, they immediately began preparations.

Watching the heroes rushing to various parts of the city to carry out their duties, I turned my head to the side.

Hecate and the Glory Knights were standing there. I approached them.

“Your Highness.”

“Glory Knights. You’re all gathered.”

I nodded back to the knights who bowed politely and declared.

“I’m sorry, but I’m postponing your retirement.”

“Pardon? But-”

“Until I allow it, you must continue to work on this front.”

They are currently appointed as my- the Crown Prince’s personal guard.

They have lost their curse, their magic, and are no longer able to fight on the front lines, but they can only change their assignment with my permission.

Hecate had requested retirement. The Glory Knights seemed to agree as well.

But I had no intention of letting them go.

Retirement? I cannot allow it!

“I am very sorry and ashamed to say this, Your Highness.”

Hecate, gritting her teeth, quickly drew her longsword from her waist.

The other heroes, surprised, tried to rush over, but there was no need. Hecate’s stance was awkward, her arms were weak, and the sword she had drawn trembled and fell to the floor.

Hecate, who was breathing heavily just from drawing her sword, spat out in a suppressed voice.

“We can no longer wield a sword.”

“…”

“After repeating death and resurrection too many times, our bodies are already broken. We were only able to maintain our function as knights by forcibly patching up our magic with curses. But the curse has been taken back, and now we can no longer wield a sword.”

Her swordsmanship, which was so beautiful and elegant that even the top student of the academy, Lucas, was below her.

It will never be displayed to the world again.

“It’s just a nuisance to be here. Even the salary we receive is a waste of the precious national treasury of the empire.”

“…”

“Please let us go, Your Highness. Please don’t make us feel any more ashamed. I beg you.”

But I shook my head.

Hecate’s face contorted.

“Do you think we’re trying to run away from the front lines? If so, please just execute us on the spot.”

“I refuse.”

“Then, will you at least let us die at the forefront of this battle?”

“I refuse. You will no longer go to the battlefield.”

“Then what on earth…!

“Find it yourself.”

Hecate’s face went blank at my stern voice.

“What you can do on this front, how you will live in the future with such bodies.”

“…”

“What you can do in this world without dying.”

I nodded.

“Find it. And tell me the answer.”

“…”

“Until then, your retirement is on hold.”

Confusion spread across the faces of Hecate and the Glory Knights.

After looking at the other heroes standing around me, especially the young ones whose hearts were tangled, I raised my voice and shouted.

“Alright, the next defense battle is in a week! Everyone, go prepare!”