I Became The Tyrant Of A Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 95

Feasts, bathhouses, sparring matches.

There were many things, but anyway, it had only been a day since Stage 4 ended.

After settling the chaotic, heated atmosphere, I ordered all my heroes and soldiers to rest.

I planned to have them do nothing but eat and sleep for a few days.

‘Of course, that doesn’t mean we can stay still the whole time.’

Even if the troops are resting, the others need to work hard.

Of course, the one working the hardest is me, the lord and commander… Ugh.

Anyway, that’s how it was, and the next morning.

I first summoned the N-grade hero party I had called up this time, the ‘Dion Mercenary Group.’

Dion and his five subordinates quickly rushed to the lord’s mansion.

“Did you call for us, Lord!”

“We’ve been waiting with bated breath for when you’d call!”

“Good!”

They’re not just saying it; their enthusiasm is evident in their actions, which I like.

Mansion reception room.

The five members of the Dion Mercenary Group are lined up at attention in front of the sofa where I’m sitting.

Their stiff, rookie-like posture is kind of cute.

‘Even if they have some talent, they’re still just an N-grade party of five. Their limits are clear.’

Their total combat power is nowhere near that of the main party or the shadow unit.

Nevertheless, the reason I decided to use them was, again, the dire situation on the current front lines.

‘Jupiter and God Hand are out of commission due to serious injuries.’

The combat power of the main party and the shadow unit is not at its full strength right now.

In this situation, if there’s a party that can move properly, I should be grateful and use them.

No, not just use them… I was planning to properly train them so they could function as a proper first-tier party.

“I’ll get straight to the point.”

I didn’t hesitate and got right to the matter at hand.

“From now on, you all will have to go to the ‘dungeon.'”

At my words, the eyes of all the Dion Mercenary Group members widened.

“A dungeon… you say?”

***

One of the functions of the dungeon’s free exploration is leveling up low-level sub-parties.

It involves dispatching sub-parties to the early areas of free exploration to farm experience and items.

‘Not only leveling and items, but also gaining practical experience and increasing the party’s unity.’

Going through the dungeon together is a good experience anyway.

The main party was able to quickly become a team because they suffered together during free exploration.

Anyway, until now, we didn’t have enough sub-parties to send out for autonomous farming. But now it’s time to send out one team at a time.

‘The Dried-Up Drainage Ditch in Area 1 would be suitable.’

It’s the earliest area, the structure is simple, and the monster levels are low.

Even if it’s just the Dion Mercenary Group, which is all N-grade, they should be able to clear it without much difficulty.

I briefly explained the existence and workings of the dungeon to the Dion Mercenary Group.

While listening to the story, the five mercenaries swallowed hard.

“Of course, I won’t just throw you into such a scary place from the start. That would be too dangerous… so you’ll need a guide.”

I turned my gaze to the person I had summoned along with the Dion Mercenary Group.

“So, for the first time, my knight will accompany you.”

Evangeline was sitting on the sofa in front of me.

“Evangeline will guide you and help you if it’s dangerous, but basically, you have to clear the dungeon with your own strength.”

At my words, all the members of the Dion Mercenary Group bowed deeply to Evangeline.

“We’ll be in your care, Miss Evangeline!”

“Please take care of us!”

“……”

But Evangeline has a sulky expression for some reason.

“Why? What’s wrong?”

When I asked, Evangeline hesitated for a moment and then mumbled softly.

“These people are the ones who pushed me out of the training grounds during the sparring match just yesterday…”

“Are you still hung up on that?”

“If you don’t take defeat to heart, then you’re not a knight.”

Evangeline has a serious expression.

“You have to be so upset that you can’t sleep, even over a minor defeat. You have to think it over and find ways to improve. That’s the code of knighthood I learned at the academy.”

“Hmm. Well, I understand how you feel…”

It wasn’t even a proper sparring match in the first place. I thought it was just a lighthearted contest.

‘Is it a different matter for a knight?’

I don’t know exactly what Evangeline’s code of knighthood is, but I can tell that she’s more serious about competition than I thought.

“But if that’s the case, you shouldn’t have made a mistake in the sparring match? You little brat?”

“Ugh.”

“Sparring is sparring. Dungeon exploration is dungeon exploration. Distinguish between public and private matters, Evangeline. Isn’t focusing on the greater good rather than small contests also part of the code of knighthood?”

The defeated have no words.

Evangeline just pouted her lips and stepped back. Honestly, that little brat.

‘I need to have Evangeline gain a little more experience and quickly get rid of her negative trait, [Clumsy].’

Since the main party can’t move right now, it’s better to put her in another party and have her go through the dungeon.

‘And Evangeline will inherit this territory someday.’

She needs to learn how to get along with people and how to manage them.

Taking a rookie party to that dark dungeon will be good practice for Evangeline.

It’s the same for the Dion Mercenary Group. It will help each other grow.

***

A few hours later. The backyard of the lord’s mansion.

Evangeline and the Dion Mercenary Group, who had finished their preparations, left for free exploration through the teleport gate.

“We’ll be back…”

Evangeline, who seemed somehow drained, and,

“We’ll be back!”

“We’ll do our best!”

“Woohoo!”

The Dion Mercenary Group, chirping with the newbie-like tension.

They all disappeared into the teleport gate. I hope they have a safe trip.

Ding!

As soon as the party left, an alert sounded from the system window. I brought it up in front of me.

[Free Exploration – Area 1]

– Estimated time to clear: 8 hours

– Great success probability: 30 percent

– Great success rewards: Superior potion, Enchant scroll, Magic core (R), etc.

In the game, you could manually control even the sub-party leveling, but that made training too cumbersome.

There was a kind of auto-farming system.

It’s called free exploration. It occurs when you send a sub-party to an area you’ve already cleared.

The sub-party levels up on its own and retrieves items with a certain probability.

Players often called it ‘military supplies.’

The rewards are lower than clearing it by manually controlling it, but it’s still quite helpful for game management.

From now on, it would be better to organize military supplies tightly between stages.

“Are you sure about this?”

It was Lucas who asked.

Lucas, who was standing behind me and watching Evangeline and the Dion Mercenary Group leave, asked carefully.

“There are enemies in the Lake Dungeon, aren’t there?”

Enemies.

He’s not talking about monsters. He must be talking about the hostile NPC forces, the ‘Nightcrawlers.’

“If that party were to encounter them, they might not be able to return safely. Perhaps I should go with them…”

“No… they won’t come to the area in front of the ‘base camp.'”

The largest stronghold in the early part of the dungeon, located between Areas 3 and 4. The base camp.

The Nightcrawlers have occupied that place.

I was sure that they wouldn’t come out to Areas 1 to 3 in front of it. At my words, Lucas’s eyes widened.

“Why is that?”

“Hmm.”

I couldn’t answer right away and groaned.

It was because the reason was related to the system.

I had been badgering Aider to get information.

‘Why didn’t they attack us until we cleared Area 3?’

They’re a high-level party. If they had decided to attack us earlier, the main party, including me, would have been wiped out a long time ago.

But why did they leave us alone while we were leveling up and getting stronger, until we cleared Area 3 and reached the base camp?

When I grabbed him by the collar and shook him, Aider immediately confessed.

– The Lake Kingdom Dungeon Areas 1 to 3 are non-PVP areas!

The answer was simple.

– In previous playthroughs, the hostile forces kept attacking in the early stages. So, I put in a newbie protection device, you know!

Then you should have said so earlier, you jerk! Area 4 is a PVP-enabled area! Damn it!

– If you try to PVP, you’ll receive a huge penalty! All the NPCs in the Lake Kingdom know this.

…Anyway, thanks to that, there’s no burden in sending a newbie party to the early areas.

However, in the dungeons from now on.

– It’s better to be careful from Area 4 onwards. Not only monsters, but NPCs can also attack you.

As Aider said.

We have to prepare for attacks from humans as well as monsters now.

Anyway, that’s why they don’t appear in Areas 1 to 3, but it’s really awkward to explain.

I pointed my index finger at Lucas, who was looking puzzled, and said, “Hey!”

“Anyway, they don’t come out of the base camp! I don’t know why, maybe it’s because it would be a problem if we retook it while they were away!”

“……! Indeed…”

I don’t know what he means by ‘indeed,’ but Lucas nodded.

“We have a teleport gate. If we attack while they’re away, it will be easy to retake the stronghold.”

“Uh… yeah. That’s right.”

“To prevent that surprise attack, their main force doesn’t leave the stronghold… Indeed. I understand.”

Well, yeah. Anyway, it’s good that he understood.

“Ugh! It’s already lunchtime. Shall we go eat?”

“Yes, Lord. We’ll be busy in the afternoon.”

“Don’t you need a vacation? Everyone else is resting.”

“I rest when you rest, Lord, so it’s fine.”

That paragon of diligence.

I was thinking of feeding him a lot when I was about to head to the dining hall.

“Hah, hah, Your Highness!”

Damian was seen running into the mansion over the garden stone wall. Huh?

“I told you to rest for a few days, Damian. What’s wrong?”

I had been working him hard with the defense battle and the banquet, so he looked unwell. I thought he would be resting and relaxing at the temple for a few days, but what’s he doing here?

“Hah, hah, well…”

Damian, who was breathing heavily, finally managed to say the next words.

“Sir Jupiter has regained consciousness!”

“……!”

“The Saintess is checking on his condition right now. She told me to inform Your Highness…”

I turned to Lucas and nodded.

“Lunch will be hospital food, no, temple food.”

“I don’t particularly like the food there because it’s all vegetables…”

Even while saying that, Lucas quickly ran to the stables to prepare the carriage.

‘Jupiter has regained consciousness.’

I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.

He’s old, so I was worried that he might not wake up at all. I’m glad.

While I’m there, I should also check on God Hand’s condition and ask the Saintess how long it will take for Jupiter’s injuries to heal. Yes, I should.

***

At the same time.

Crossroad North Gate.

Drag.

Drag, drag.

A thin, young woman, dragging the hem of her long robe on the ground, entered Crossroad.

The wide-brimmed hat was so large that it covered her face in shadow.

In her hands, covered by long sleeves, was a long pipe, and on her back was a large bag.

“Heh…”

Having passed through the checkpoint and entered the city, the woman raised her head and slowly looked around.

“So this is…”

Between the spiky, bright yellow hair, her slanted eyes showed a sly smile.