I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 731

Thus, for two weeks until the next defense battle began, our tasks were set.

While reinforcing the defenses at the Crossroads main castle, we simultaneously poured the remaining resources and manpower into the ‘Abandoned Cathedral’ in District 10’s dungeon.

This place was essentially going to serve as our forward base.

Initially, we transported supplies physically using Diermuidin’s flight magic, but later, we just built a teleport gate.

Of course, this teleport gate required very strict access checks and defenses, since it was connected to enemy territory, after all.

Goo-uh…

Goo-uh-uck!

Zombies endlessly swarmed towards the Abandoned Cathedral.

《They’re coming more from the main gate!》

《Activate the artifacts sequentially!》

《The east window is broken too! Prioritize repairs!》

Thanks to the various defensive artifacts installed without any gaps, the magic barrier I periodically reinforced, and the efforts of the survivors,

we gradually became more proficient, and the dangerous moments that were frequent at first drastically decreased at some point.

‘Indeed…’

While observing the war situation here, I was also able to study the behavior patterns of the zombie monsters.

Zombie monsters basically have almost no intelligence, so they just charge straight at any living creature.

You might wonder how that’s different from regular monsters, but the difference is that they don’t fall even when their bodies are damaged.

A regular monster would become incapacitated and fall if it lost a limb or had a hole in its body.

But zombies don’t. Losing a limb is nothing; they can even crawl with just their arms after losing their lower body.

‘They even move for a while after having their heads blown off…’

So, the best method for the survivors is to avoid fighting them as much as possible and just block them with sturdy walls.

After all, zombies are endlessly swarming around this Abandoned Cathedral. Even if you defeat them, the next wave will just come.

So, we just block them with sturdy walls, leaving the accumulated zombies unable to move, blocked from the front and back.

We only clean up the groups that try to break inside.

We can’t do this infinitely, but it’s enough for the two-week period we have.

So, I devised this tactic, and the older demonkin all followed my instructions without complaint.

They knew that receiving my help gave them the highest chance of survival.

However, the young demonkin were the problem…

《Human! Who are you to keep ordering us around!》

《We can stop zombies on our own!》

《Once Cromwell-nim returns, you’re finished! We’ll destroy you along with the human world!》

Ugh, these little brats…

As explained earlier, the demonkin are a race that raises their children preciously and treats their elders harshly.

So, the kids are all spoiled. They’ve been coddled too much.

《Old geezers! What are you doing! Don’t you have any pride?! Hurry up and chase these humans away!》

《And I’m hungry! Hurry up and make us food!》

《Bring back the toys we left in our colony! Now-!》

As soon as things got a little better, they started whining and throwing tantrums.

But I tried to ignore it, thinking it was just their culture.

“You ill-mannered, insolent brats!”

Diermuidin couldn’t hold back and flared up…

“I’ll teach you about respecting your elders, you demon children who have no manners!”

Somehow, I thought he was being familiar with his old-fashioned ways, but Diermuidin, this old man, seems to have a strong Korean spirit… [Korean culture emphasizes respect for elders.]

Diermuidin, as a teacher who has taught countless spoiled kids in the Ivory Tower, activated his brutal etiquette injection machine, directly scolding and disciplining the arrogant demonkin children.

And a few days later.

《Grandfather, Grandmother, have you slept well?》

《We will prepare breakfast today. Please rest comfortably.》

《We will massage your shoulders and legs while you eat.》

They were all reborn as well-mannered kids full of benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, loyalty, and filial piety. [These are the core values of Confucianism, a traditional East Asian philosophy.]

‘……No, is this okay?’

The demonkin must have their own way of disciplining, and there must be a culture based on the life cycle of the race. Is it okay to change it arbitrarily?

Regardless of my worries, Diermuidin was very satisfied with the changed appearance of the spoiled kids.

“Ah, so comfortable~.”

Diermuidin stroked his beard contentedly, his face looking as if a weight had been lifted off his chest.

The children bowed politely to Diermuidin.

《We are glad you are comfortable, teacher.》

《We will continue to ask for your guidance in our future shortcomings.》

《So, teacher, please give us a little more of that candy…》

“……”

Oh well, I don’t know anymore. This is the forward base of the Land of Eastern Courtesy, you brats. [A humorous reference to the emphasis on politeness and respect in East Asian cultures.]

《……I had some time, so I scouted the area through the roof of the building.》

The elder, who was looking uncomfortable while receiving massages on his arms and legs from the children, said.

《There are other monster legions that haven’t been infected by zombies yet. I’ll try to ally with them.》

“Do you think they’ll listen to you?”

《Isn’t it better for us to join forces and endure than to be swallowed by the zombie wave right now? Just like we joined hands with you.》

The elder chuckled, looking at the children who were diligently massaging his neck and shoulders.

《……Even before this happened, I was just waiting to die. But now that I’m alive, I can see many things I couldn’t see before.》

“That’s right.”

Diermuidin agreed.

“Let’s live first, endure until we’re sick of it, and then think about it. Who knows what else we might see.”

Listening to the two old men’s conversation, I quietly reinforced the magic barrier.

Time was passing.

***

Crossroads. Downtown.

Today, there was training for the infantry, so Evangeline went to the restaurant district to order lunch boxes.

And she stopped in surprise at the entrance of the restaurant district.

“Ah.”

“Ah……”

It was because she had encountered the waiter who was sweeping in front of the store—the young man who had confessed to Evangeline before.

“……”

“……”

A seriously awkward atmosphere flowed.

Since Evangeline hadn’t entered this cafeteria area since that day, it was the first time they had seen each other since the incident(?).

Evangeline, who was feeling awkward, eventually just went to that store. After all, the food was good there.

“Um, I’d like to order some lunch boxes. 20 servings. By lunchtime. Can they be delivered to the barracks?”

“Ah, yes, yes! Of course! Of course, it can be done. This way……”

The waiter took the order and passed it to the kitchen.

“Yes. Your order has been placed. We will deliver it by noon.”

“Okay, then……”

Evangeline awkwardly greeted him and quickly backed away. She was planning to run away before the atmosphere became even stranger.

That’s when it happened.

“Um, I’m sorry about that day!”

The waiter bowed deeply and apologized. Evangeline was even more flustered.

“Huh? No, you don’t have to apologize……”

“I got scolded a lot after that. They told me how much of a nuisance a sudden confession is… They told me not to think only about my feelings, but to think about the other person’s feelings first……”

The waiter even teared up a little.

“You told me to get to know you better that day, but I have some sense. You could have rejected me right away, but you were considerate enough to be nice about it……”

“……”

Evangeline smiled wryly and waved her hand.

“No, it’s okay. It was a chance for me to reflect on my own feelings.”

“……”

The waiter, who was staring blankly at Evangeline, cautiously asked.

“Um, Miss Evangeline……”

“Yes?”

“Um, I know it’s weird to ask this… but, is it okay if I keep liking you?”

“Haha. Are you asking for permission for that?”

Instead of giving an immediate answer, Evangeline turned her head and looked south.

“……There are no proper walls in this city anymore.”

The waiter also looked south. The walls, which were being desperately restored but were a mess after being slashed by the Night Bringer, were visible.

“The next invading monsters are a horde of zombies. If they break through and you get bitten even once, you might become a member of that terrible monster army.”

“……”

“I appreciate your feelings for me. But, I’ll give you some honest advice.”

Evangeline said sternly.

“If the reason you’re staying in this city is because you like me, forget about it and leave quickly. Before you get hurt or lose your life.”

“It’s okay.”

But the waiter smiled calmly.

“If I was going to run away because I was afraid of losing my life or monsters, I would have left a long time ago. So, don’t worry too much about a guy like me.”

“……”

“And, if you finish this battle well… please come back to eat again.”

Following that, the waiter hurriedly packed some snacks and handed them to Evangeline.

“Ah, and this is on the house!”

“……”

“Then, good luck with today’s training and the next defense battle!”

Evangeline left the restaurant district, leaving behind the waiter who was bowing, waving his arms, and seeing her off busily.

“……”

Evangeline put one of the snacks the waiter had given her in her mouth and mumbled.

“This restaurant is really good……”

The human heart is so difficult that even the clear goodwill of others is hard to know how to handle.

Not to mention one’s own heart, which one doesn’t even know…

Crunch!

Evangeline put another snack in her mouth instead of sighing.

***

Barracks corner. Closed training ground.

This training ground, which was half-destroyed by the breath during the last Night Bringer battle, was a place that no one used, but now, one person was diligently swinging a sword.

“Hoo!”

It was Hecate.

She was desperately trying to maintain her sword path, sweating profusely with her broken body.

Clang-!

Eventually, she dropped her sword.

“Kuh!”

She roughly gasped for breath, tightly gripping her right arm, which was not listening to her and was trembling slightly, with her left arm.

“I……”

Hecate put her head against the training ground’s scarecrow and vented her frustration.

“What am I supposed to do now… In this world, what can I, like this, do……”

Lukas was quietly watching Hecate’s suffering from behind the shadow of a pillar far away.

“……”

Lukas, who had been observing with a blank expression, turned to the side.

At the opposite entrance leading to the training ground, Junior was also seen standing there, 고민하며 [Korean word meaning ‘pondering’ or ‘worrying’] with a complicated expression.

“……”

Lukas quietly took a breath, stepped away from the pillar, and turned around.

The hearts that were passing each other had not yet reached any conclusion.

Time was passing.

***

South wall, under reconstruction.

Chain was sitting idly on this place again today.

“Chain-ssi.”

Then, a heavy footstep echoed.

Turning around, it was Torkel.

Torkel, who had come closer, gestured to the south.

“They say the next defense battle is soon. It’s a large-scale monster offensive that comes once every five times.”

“……”

“The battlefield will be here again soon… Are you going to keep staying here?”

It wasn’t a question of whether he would keep sitting idly on the wall.

It was a question of how long he would stay in Crossroads.

“……”

Torkel asked Chain, who was silent and unable to say anything, again.

“Have you tried sending a letter to your wife?”

“……Letter?”

“If you’re afraid to go see her right away, how about contacting her first and letting her know the news?”

Torkel explained awkwardly.

“I also wrote a letter to my hometown island, which I hadn’t contacted for a long time… and we reconnected. I’ve decided to visit once this battle is over.”

“……”

Chain, who had been silent, let out a long sigh.

“Courage, huh……”

“……”

“I never thought that contacting my wife would be more frightening than facing monsters. That it would require more courage. Geez.”

Torkel nodded.

“But we can’t just keep hesitating forever.”

“……”

Chain, who had closed his eyes tightly and opened them, turned to Torkel.

“Torkel.”

“Yes.”

“I have a favor to ask… Actually, I don’t know how to read well. Can you write a letter for me?”

Torkel’s mouth under his helmet made an awkward smile.

“My handwriting is terribly clumsy.”

“As long as I can understand it. It’s better than mine, anyway, right?”

“Alright. Let’s go.”

Torkel gestured towards the temple.

“I will do my best to write a beautiful letter.”

“It’s not just about the writing, please use pretty words too. I don’t have that kind of talent……”

“You keep asking me for talents that I don’t have either……”

Torkel supported Chain, who was using crutches, and they slowly headed towards the temple together. The two men walked slowly, limping side by side.

Time was passing.