There were no strong winds outside, and as the dark night spread out before us in silence, white snow fell and piled up.
After the date had changed, although there were still several hours before the sun rose, we devoted approximately two hours to covert operations within the Royal Castle just like the other day.
Just like we did last time, those who excelled at covert operations, such as the Ninja Kobolds and the goblins from my generation with small builds, slipped into the Royal Castle under the cover of darkness. Their work was simple, with the aim of gradually reducing the Nobles Faction's private soldiers by having them disappear while they were patrolling.
Of course, I didn't do such troublesome and roundabout work. I was in the secret basement mass-producing clones, which can be treated as expendable troops. If I were to keep creating Black Skeletons and Black Ogres, I might be able to easily crush the Strong Grandson to death with an overwhelming number of them.
Since I can supply myself with magic by using 【Absorb Magic】 to absorb it from the darkness, my internal magic supply is nearly endless, unless I act very rashly. In the first place, it's been proven that I'm able to prepare approximately 5,000 black skeletons using just my internal magic supply.
I'm not worried about materials either, since I can easily secure water for my clones.
I was cooperating with Kanami-chan, who has the 【Intermediate Summoning: Undead】 ability, in order to summon several Black Skeleton Commanders. They're a higher ranking species of Black Skeleton, whose summoning restrictions are lifted by consuming one of its kind. If I were to do this alone, a moderate amount of time would be necessary, but it is feasible enough to prepare more than 10,000 soldiers through synthesis with her help.
The black skeletons that the Commanders summon are an uncertain factor, since their attributes deteriorate across the board when compared with the ones I have summoned. I also have to take into account that, since most of them are undead, even if I were to prepare 10,000 soldiers, most of them would quickly disappear once the sun starts to rise.
However, despite all of that, they still adequately satisfy the standards necessary for them to be treated as expendable troops. It's not necessary for us to pay too much attention to this weakness though, since it's still several hours before the sun rises.
For that reason alone, it's very easy to pulverize the opponent with an overwhelming number of forces.
Since 【Fire】, 【Holy Light】 and 【Blunt Force】 from blunt weapons are all well known weaknesses of monsters of the skeleton variety, they're likely to be dealt with immediately, so the number of skeletons alone will be helpful.
Even if they were to adopt measures to oppose them, if 10,000 Black Skeleton ranked monsters were to launch a surprise attack from the inside, there aren't any fortresses that would not fall.
That's why, since the core of the enemy, the Strong Grandson and Sly Old Fox, have gathered in one place, I have no doubt that this is the perfect opportunity to launch an attack on them.
Although most of the main force, such as Minokichi-kun, Supesei-san, Asue-chan and Gurufu-chan aren't here, our forces are still above a certain level. We can replenish them by mass-summoning more troops, as well.
That's why I chose a strategy that slowly erodes their forces from the inside, since it's almost always a combination of strategy and the current situation that allows one to obtain victory.
The main reason this method was selected is because it suited what my employer, the Tomboy Princess, wanted.
The pretext for this is――
『I want you to keep the damage to the castle to a minimum. Since it's a symbol of the Kingdom, I want you to do as much as you can to avoid defiling it with blood, as well as destroying it with your absurd power. When it comes to the Strong Grandson, it won't end with just a simple assassination, you know. You don't need to take them directly head-on, but it's necessary to make it known both on the inside and the outside that their troops suffered a crushing defeat.』
――or so I was told.
I certainly understand what she's getting at, but that's difficult for us.
For the Tomboy Princess, she has her honor as a blood relative of those standing at the Sternbild Kingdom's summit to uphold.
It's necessary for her to display far and wide that she possesses the military power to force the nobles that rebelled to yield, but it cannot be done in such a way that will cause her to be treated with contempt.
Since they have gained control of the Royal Castle and nearly all members of the royal family, it might be possible for them to have an impact on the future of the Sternbild Kingdom's administration. For that reason, even if we assassinated the top members of the Nobles Faction that caused the coup d'etat, it's very likely that those who remain will not give up yet and will begin to act recklessly.
If that happens, it will inevitably become troublesome.
Once they've been delivered a crushing defeat, it'll be necessary to clearly determine the outcome. Otherwise, after the civil war ends and we leave, the nobles will end up having more power than they currently do and a coup d'etat will be more likely to occur again.
Most importantly, their reckless actions will influence the Sternbild Kingdom's territories and cause quite a bit of unrest. There would be an increase in the occurrence of thieves and barbarians as well, possibly coming from other countries. On top of all of that, allies of other nations might use this opportunity to create chaos so that neighboring countries, such as the Kirika Empire and so on, can attempt to use various pretexts to divide and rule the Sternbild Kingdom.
Since the very young, cute and scheming Princess intends to become the Kingdom's ruler, she wants to avoid this.
These are my employer's intentions, so it can't be helped.
The Tomboy Princess thoroughly surrounded the exterior of the Royal Capital with the powerful forces of the Duke's family, which are mostly made up of many 【Infantry】, 【Cavalry】 which ride beasts such as war horses, and so on. There were various branches of service in his army, and they numbered approximately 5,000 in total. While his forces were threatening and putting pressure on the rebels from the outside, we were poking around inside as we worked hard to reduce their forces and create distrust amongst them.
I'll be surprised if their morale doesn't fall after this, but if it doesn't happen, I will have no choice but to recognize the leadership ability of the Strong Grandson and his allies.
Well, since the current situation is progressing without any problems, I don't think any mistakes will be made.
Currently, the Royal Castle is packed with a maximum of around 3,000 of the Strong Grandson's troops. Although there are many more forces prepared and on standby in the territories of the Nobles, this is how many exist within the castle.
There are always around 300 of the most elite of them guarding the key people within the 【Nobles Faction】, such as the Strong Grandson and Sly Old Fox.
Even the weakest of these 300 possess at least three battle system 【Jobs】, so their overall combat ability is quite high. This makes them at least equal to the Rusty Iron Knight when he led his forces into the vast forest that was our birthplace, with only the influential people being stronger than him.
Many of these people carry the 【Divine Protection of a Demigod】, though there are a few that carry the 【Divine Protection of a God】, as well.
If I were to say more, some are almost 【Heroes】 and 【Great Heroes】 and may possibly be 【Legendary Heroes in the Making】. To speak badly of them, 【Heroes】 and 【Great Heroes】 are chosen because of their superior abilities and the fact that a 【God】 is fond of their personality, so those who don't have strong willpower fail to become one.
Thanks to the results of this talented group's habitual training, they've become one huge group that won't have their coordinated movements disturbed. For this reason, it can't be helped that it will be a tough fight.
If I don't use group members that are stronger than Black Skeletons against them, there's a high possibility that I won't be able to kill them.
If I pressure them with an overwhelming amount of skeletons, something along the lines of 100 or 1,000 per individual, it shouldn't be impossible to crush them by attacking relentlessly without giving them time to coordinate their attacks. I'll need to be careful though, since there will be a pointless increase in damage if we simply take a brute force approach.
Well, I'm thankful that their movements will be easy to read, since they aren't likely to stray far from the Strong Grandson and his allies.
Although the roughly 2,700 remaining soldiers have all reached at least a certain level thanks to their daily training, they don't seem to be as strong as the rest.
We can reduce the damage if I put pressure on them with at least two Black Skeletons per person, while at the same time easily killing their weaker members.
It would be nice for us to defeat them head-on using a difference in our number of forces, but we won't waste such a plan here.
Of course, the enemy's weapons, coordination, topography and affinity may make for some difficult fights, but I think it's alright to conclude that they shouldn't be a threat unless there's a large incident.
Even if it's not possible to kill them with my Black Skeletons, I can disregard the damage to the Royal Castle and, as a last resort, use my 【Human Bomb】 ability at the same time as my skeletons to change humans or humanoid monsters into bombs in order to win the battle.
It makes me shiver when I put myself in my opponent's shoes since, among other things, I could turn groups of Black Skeletons into bombs and have them explode with a high probability of killing the people within a diameter of several meters.
Although the Black Skeletons alone may make it troublesome for the enemy, when they think the skeletons have been defeated they will suddenly create an explosion that is difficult for them successfully defend against. On top of that, there will be a higher number of black bones that are sent flying at the time of the explosion. The damage from this should not be taken lightly.
The black bones that had exploded and scattered would disappear a short time later, and if they are plugging up someone's wounds when they do so, the possibility of the person dying from blood loss if they aren't quickly treated increases. This isn't any consolation, though.
Even though I would carry out this plan myself, I most likely wouldn't see the results as anything but tragic.
Of course, even though the bombs are capable of randomly exploding as long as the conditions are met, when I take into consideration the risk and return of using this tactic, I still wouldn't hesitate to do so.
For that reason, it's certainly not the the enemy forces' 300 elite soldiers that I need to be the most wary of.
What I should be most wary of are the two Heroes that are lending their power to the Nobles Faction for their own reasons, as well as the nine people that are their 【Companions／Sub-Cast】.
The Rock Hero, who has a long military record and has survived many battlefields, is lending them his assistance in order to return a favor that he received from the dead Minister personally. However, I can say with confidence that he is the most troublesome of the two, since he thinks that I'm the criminal that killed the Minister. Still, if I look at the whole picture, the Water Hero is quite an uncertain factor in the war, since he is fighting for the sake of his family that's being held hostage.
Well, perhaps I should say that he's dangerous, instead.
The Water Hero was originally a farmer just like Avenger. His family appears to have been cultivating an inferior plot of land, and it was difficult for them to grow crops. For that reason, there was not a surplus for his family and he appears to have lived a considerably poor life since childhood. Despite this, his family and their neighbors cooperated with one another and they were somehow able to survive.
However, when the Water Hero was ten years old, the Lord that governs the land collected more taxes than usual, which caused poverty to accelerate as he took advantage of his position to fill his own pockets with money.
The Water Hero that was always poor, his family, and the villagers who survived by cooperating with one another were in a troubled state over what to eat that day. When times were at their worst, they would chew on the roots of the withered grass in order to survive.
However, one day he received the 【Divine Protection of a God】, which caused his life to improve just like Avenger's had. After some time passed, he went to attend a school in the Royal Capital.
As a result of his vigorous work every day so that he could support his family, he graduated with very good grades. He entered the military after that and officially became the 【Hero of Quivering Water】 shortly afterwards. Then, using his own influence, he killed the Lord that had tormented him and his family with his own hands.
When he did so, he made sure to torment the Lord with a small taste of the suffering that they had gone through by slowly cutting the tips of his hands and feet off, while only giving him the bare minimum amount of food and water necessary to survive. I heard that the Water Hero put the Lord through a lot of torture, keeping him on the border between life and death.
To sum it up in a few words, the Water Hero has a fairly extreme nature, which doesn't match his ordinary appearance. I realize that I'm repeating this, but the reason the Water Hero serves the country is so that he can support his family.
Therefore, he has no loyalty at all for the country and the royal family. Instead, he might even feel hatred towards them and as a result, probably wouldn't have a problem killing them.
It seems he'll do anything if it's for work, so the Water Hero is said to have the role of removing the Sternbild Kingdom's obstacles head-on, whereas the Dark Hero does so from the shadows.
Typical of personalities like the Water Hero's, he will struggle to the death for the sake of saving his precious family. For that reason, I guess it's not very hard to imagine him coming to kill the Tomboy Princess.
This is because one of the opponent's victory conditions is her death.
By the way, given that the Water Hero's specialty is widespread attacks that make use of vibrating water, I'm certain that he would completely eradicate the Black Skeletons if he acted violently in the places where they had gathered together unskillfully.
If I'm not stingy with my abilities for the time being and I pair up with Kanami, I'm confident that we could completely defeat both of the 【Hero】's parties, even if we fought them at the same time. However, the fight will definitely drag on if we do that, and there's no way of knowing what would happen on the battlefield.
There's no way it would feel good if we were tripped up by an unexpected occurrence, though.
For the time being, it's been decided that the only people holding these guys back are the two of us. Since that's the case, I'll set this matter aside for now and focus on adapting to the circumstances we find ourselves in.
With the exception of the Heroes, the Strong Grandson and his allies most likely have a trump card, though I can't describe it since I have yet to confirm its existence.
I'm not sure why I thought they had one, but if the Heroes alone are normally enough, then it's probably safe to say that the probability of that being the case is low.
As long as an unexpected wild card doesn't appear, I think that things should progress more or less as I planned, but it's hard to say what will actually happen in the end.
If they do have a trump card, I think we'll probably still be able to pull it off with the same tactic we're using for the others, but I'm going to be cautious about it so that this doesn't result in a loss for us.
I don't think we'll make progress very easily, but it's for the best if they don't have anything like that.
Well, that should give a rough idea of the enemy's war potential and their current status, anyway.
Now, about work. For the time being, since the Strong Grandson and his allies understood that the morale of the soldiers and nobles would be affected if the assassinations continued, they began to adopt various countermeasures against them.
The soldiers patrolling the Royal Castle at night had assembled into groups of three, according to the instructions that they had previously been given. The standard group was three people, but they assembled into groups of five when there were cowardly nobles with them, and there were sporadic instances of ten soldiers grouping together in order to go around with large families, as well.
In addition, the last time we were here, the heavy security that was spread around the Royal Castle was wearing protective gear that was close to cloth armor, which had a gaudy appearance that emphasized that it was ornamental. However, they would die with that sort of armor, so their gear was upgraded and they were now wearing metal body armor, hand and wrist guards, and so on.
As one would expect, since it would make them sluggish during these times, people aren't equipping the troublesome metal armor from head to toe just to work. Instead, they appear to have substituted the missing pieces with accessories such as earrings and rings, which are magic items that possess abilities that increase a person's defensive capabilities.
Suspended at the soldier's waist are a longsword and dagger, and in one hand they held a magic item which had a shape similar to a compass combined with a lantern, which plays a role similar to a motion sensor and also emits light.
According to the Boy Knight, this magic item appears to be called a "Beacompass." It's quite an expensive item, but its performance is guaranteed. As for the Beacompass' characteristics, it doesn't just detect moving things, but it also appears to react to the life force of creatures. It's only effective in a 180 degree arc in front of the item though, since it excludes the item's owner and people that are behind them from being counted as enemy targets when it searches.
For that reason, it's very difficult to conceal oneself from it.
Nevertheless, even though their body was wrapped in a substantial amount of equipment, they were staring intensely at the Beacompass' needle with bloodshot eyes every time there was the slightest movement of the needle point. They would then let out a sigh of relief the moment they understood that it was just the wind causing the tree leaves to move. However, the hand that they always had on their sword's hilt was trembling slightly out of fear.
They looked just like people that were in a situation where they were being hunted, though this actually was the case.
This is because a decisive opening is created when they depend on a magic item to search for their enemy instead of their own senses.
In response to this, I put a group of six people on the enemy's standard groups of three.
Although the Beacompass is an excellent item for detecting moving objects and living things, the item's structure makes it difficult for its needle to move up and down. This is because it's normally enough for it to simply detect horizontal movement.
For that reason, in the thin shadows that occurred in the corners of the passage's high ceiling, there were people wearing armor called 【Black Bone Living Mail】, which is created by weaving together durable cloth and the bodies of three Black Skeletons with 【Bone Union】. When they use the armor's eight spider-like legs that had grown on its back to cling to the ceiling, the reaction from the Beacompass becomes very weak.
Once we knew of this weak point, it was a simple matter to make use of surprise attacks to hunt them without making a single sound.
Having said that, if a soldier had used their own senses to search for the enemy, they should have been able to hear the small noises that the rubbing of the bone armor made as it moved, as well as the breathing of the goblins.
However, because they were only relying on the Beacompass, their ability to search for the enemy had been reduced. I have to say I've had just about enough of challenging people whose awareness hasn't increased at all.
Nevertheless, with our people acting in groups of six, they weren't able to hunt the same number of targets in the same amount of time as before. This can't be helped though, since the enemy's true colors have yet to be seen.
For that reason, from our work this time, approximately thirty six private soldiers from the Royal Castle quietly disappeared from this world. There were six nobles who had private residences in the Royal Capital that were killed in their homes with the same poison that killed the Minister, as well.
Just like before, the poisoned nobles were not major people like the Strong Grandson, people that depended on reading the situation themselves, people that joined in because of the decree of the leaders of families that are affiliated with the Nobles Faction, or people that reluctantly joined because of a friendly invitation or something along those lines. Instead, they were people that had been added to the lower ranks for various reasons.
Incidentally, there was advanced notice of the next murder written on the carpet that was spread over the floor where the bodies of the nobles had fallen, on the luxurious clothes that they were wearing, or on the walls where there were traces of blood because they had been leaned on. These notices, which were written in dark red paint that was a mix of the noble's blood and a special material, said, "Who on earth will become the next sack of poison?"
The notices stood out even if it was dark because the special material that was mixed into the paint made it shine mysteriously. As time passed their blood dripped and formed tracks, creating an even more bizarre atmosphere.
It was a scene that caused the maids and butlers to scream when they saw it. The mood that said they feared the criminal that wrote the notices was beneficial, as well.
At that point, the night ended as the sun began to rise. Shortly before sunrise, there began to be active movement within the Royal Castle and the Nobles District.
These noises included the footsteps of knights busily going to and coming from the Royal Castle and the royal guards that were mainly following them, the low-pitched sound of military officers boldly issuing orders to their subordinates, the small tones of the tableware resounding as maids carried breakfast to their masters, and the working noise of a great number of soldiers and wagons transporting goods.
All of these sounds were related to preparations with regards to the Tomboy Princess' approaching army.
However, the Strong Grandson's preparations appeared to be advancing somewhat on schedule, since they were almost fully completed yesterday.
The orders handed down from the top were accepted without issue, so there was little confusion.
Thanks to their speedy preparations, it can be said that they were almost finished the arrangements for the upcoming battle. Normally, it would have taken a bit more time to finish these preparations.
By the way, with regards to the previously mentioned preparations, the reason a significant number of forces were able to be assembled in a short time is because the Strong Grandson and his allies' forces, which had been left behind in the nobles' territories, had tamed Wyverns and Griffins deliver written instructions to them via airmail.
Once they are ready, the number of soldiers alone will slightly exceed that of the Tomboy Princess' army. Furthermore, the combined armies of the nobles are rounded out by the two Heroes that are supporting them.
The Dark Hero has gone somewhere with the First Queen, and it looks like the Wood Hero is going to carefully observe the state of affairs related to the coup d'etat on this occasion.
Therefore, regarding their fear of being assassinated, almost the entire enemy side was filled with an atmosphere that said that there was no reason that they couldn't win.
During this time, information spread saying that more nobles had been assassinated.
My report reached the Strong Grandson and Sly Old Fox first, who issued a gag order with the hope that it would prevent morale from dropping. However, since the actual truth was circulated anyway, the information had spread quickly.
It looks like they came to the conclusion that it was a bad idea to conceal any further information that came here about nobles being assassinated. However, concerning the advanced notice written in blood, it was suppressed to the point that it was only vaguely circulated. It wasn't entirely hidden, but it was superbly regulated so that a fair number of people didn't know about it, even though they could have found out if they tried to do so.
Although the information didn't remain hidden, troop morale didn't drop much.
It would have caused troop morale to drop either way, but it still seems to be better than all of the members knowing everything from the very beginning. The reason I say this is that people would think that those who didn't gather information were lacking in ability, since they would have learned about the notices if they had done so.
With the gag order issued, my plans were thrown off and I had to change them, since I was in a situation where I was trying to find a suitable time to circulate the information.
Anyway, since the atmosphere around the Nobles Faction was heavy, which was more or less in accordance with my objectives, that's all I'll say about that.
I wanted to bring the truth up in the rebellion at a fatal moment, but if it creates distrust among them in any way, it should be enough.
As expected of the Strong Grandson and his allies, since they were able to grasp the situation, it seems that they were able to come up with countermeasures somehow or another. However, I'm ready to outwit them every time this happens because of the information gathering abilities of my clones.
It looks like their preparations will be finished today.
The Strong Grandson and his allies are being cautious of us and won't attack the Tomboy Princess' army from the cover of the Royal Capital's walls. Instead, they appear to have decided to crush them head-on at the plains that are exactly midway between her army and the capital.
They aren't using any sort of plan, but instead chose to use pure strength to defeat them.
The Tomboy Princess' forces will almost certainly be defeated if they do this.
Since not only do the Nobles Faction have superior numbers, but also higher quality soldiers because of the existence of the Heroes, the Tomboy Princess' army would not be able to win in a direct confrontation with them.
Even if they make good use of strategy and tactics, I don't know what will happen to the forces that encounter one of the Heroes, which would be the Water Hero and his party in this case.
It may be possible for them to avoid defeat somehow, but it would be better to not expect much.
In the first place, since we should think about recapturing the Royal Castle before anything else, I don't have much interest in what happens to them.
Well, it should be alright, since I took out some insurance on the Tomboy Princess' army.
Even if they are defeated, they shouldn't be completely destroyed.
【World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon], Chapter 4 【Encouragement of a Kingdom's Revolution】, Verse 6 【Final Castle Crawl (Lulu Iera)】 has been completed. The following hidden conditions were cleared: ≪Castle's Night of Terror≫ and ≪Creeping Malice≫】
====================
DAY 172
It seems that the heavens don't favor the Strong Grandson.
More than thirty centimeters of snow had fallen by the time morning came, and the depth is increasing as time passes. On top of that, there was a strong wind mixed in with the falling snow, and thick, black clouds covered the sky. This hid the sun, making the light outside dim even though it was daytime.
It's not possible for them to march in this situation.
Although they'd be able to march if they made use of magic, there would be pointless sacrifices because of things like frostbite, which would cause the rest of the troops to become demoralized.
Since the snowstorm will probably stop in a day or two, the Strong Grandson postponed the march until it passes.
Just like the Strong Grandson, the Duke leading the Tomboy Princess's army wasn't able to march either. It wouldn't be a good thing if they had to set up tents in a snowstorm and sleep outside though, so the nobles that I sent in advance, which are a part of "Grass," let the troops take shelter in the towns within their territories.
I'd say this should help a little, since we want there to be as little wear and tear on the Tomboy Princess's army as possible when they clash with the Nobles' army.
On a side note, it's been said that in the past it was rare for snow to fall in this season.
I heard that whenever a flying continent where a 【Wise Serpent/Dragon】 lives passes over the skies, the King Tsumoru clouds that support it causes weather like what we're having today. These clouds, which are unique to this world, appear to have a scale that's greater than thunderclouds.
It's difficult to predict these flying continents though, since they don't show up on fixed days.
For that reason, it's just the Strong Grandson and his allies' bad luck that the King Tsumoru clouds showed up today.
There's no way that we'll pass up such a perfect opportunity, though.
Since the sunlight is conveniently blocked by thick clouds and snow, the lowest class of undead, such as Ghosts, shouldn't be naturally purified by the environment.
Because the Tomboy Princess imposed a limitation that damage to the castle should be kept to a minimum, I was in the basement summoning a large amount of 【Ghosts】 and their strengthened version, 【Black Ghosts】.
Ghost-type monsters can't attack with purely physical attacks, but in exchange for that, everything passes through them, and they are invulnerable to physical attacks that don't make use of magic. This makes them the most suitable option to use, since they won't damage the castle.
I summoned approximately 4,000 Ghosts and Black Ghosts and modelled their faces after the dead nobles and private soldiers.
In addition to the ghosts I had summoned, Kanami summoned approximately 2,000 strengthened 【Purple Ghosts】 using 【Intermediate Summoning: Undead】, as well.
Although normal ghosts are semi-transparent, ours were given colors such as black and purple when we summoned them. This seems to be because the Divine Protections we've obtained from our Gods have had an influence on our summoning abilities. By the way, in the case of the Black Ghosts and Purple Ghosts, the black ones are stronger. However, due to the modifiers granted by 【Intermediate Summoning: Undead】, which is an ability one rank higher than mine, there doesn't seem to be a very big difference in terms of their attributes.
From the 6,000 ghosts that were summoned, I left 2,000 of the common ones behind and used 【Soul Eater】 to slurp up 4,000 of the black and purple ghosts like they were noodles.
Ability learned: 【Ghost's Touch】
Ability learned: 【Black Ghost's Touch】
Ability learned: 【Purple Ghost's Touch】
Ability learned: 【Ghost Cry】
As I expected, by eating 4,000 ghosts, it was possible for me to learn something. However, I've determined that I have to eat approximately 1,000 of them to learn one ability in my current state.
This made me wonder whether or not there was any good prey that I could gather that fills both the quality and quantity criteria.
After doing this, I became able to summon the same Purple Ghosts that Kanami-chan had summoned, because I had met the conditions to do so by consuming them.
Well, that probably doesn't mean much anyway, since I don't think that I will summon the Purple Ghosts in the future. This is because they are inferior to my Black Ghosts.
I sent the remaining 2,000 ghosts that I didn't eat into the Royal Castle.
Want to know what happened after that?
There was pandemonium.
The ghosts passed through the walls behind people and inflicted minor negative status effects like 【Fatigue】 and 【Melancholy】 on them with their contact attack, 【Ghost's Touch】. There was almost no physical damage, but their minds took heavy damage. When soldiers were attacked by this ability, they complained about feeling sick and were taken to the medics.
When the housemaids and ladies in waiting were unlucky and saw the ghosts that had the faces of the nobles and the Minister, as well as hollowed cheeks and sunken eyes, they turned pale in horror before they screamed and fainted.
Because they didn't know where the high-pitched screams of 【Ghost Cry】 were coming from, they continued to be heard inside of the Royal Castle, wearing down the minds of the people that heard them.
Overwhelmed by the large crowd of ghosts that resembled a flash flood, the excessive number of negative status effects pushed people beyond their limits, causing them to begin foaming at the mouth as they passed out one by one.
In these conditions, quite a few things happened.
All Ghosts, including the Black Ghosts, are weak to attacks with magical properties, which makes them simple to kill. Because of this weakness, the only reason it took some time to completely destroy the Ghosts was because there was a large number of them.
Because of this, it took approximately one hour to completely destroy them.
It looked like they were more effective than I expected, so I summoned Ghosts eight times today for the purpose of assaulting the Strong Grandson and his allies in the Royal Castle.
The more I summoned the ghosts to attack them, the quicker the enemy dealt with them, but the outcome was still satisfactory because it didn't give them any time to relax. Since the laughter of the ghosts could be heard throughout the night, it looks like the enemy's march in a day or two will be fairly harsh.
On my end, I took a break until each group of ghosts had been completely destroyed in order to generate and refill my magic, and then summoned them again. As a result of this, I didn't become too tired.
It was actually quite easy to do.
Today’s synthesis results:
【Ghost's Touch】 ＋ 【Black Ghost's Touch】 ＋ 【Purple Ghost's Touch】 ＝ 【Wraith Touch】
====================
DAY 173
I expected the wind to blow the snow around today, but it seems that things won't be so easy for us.
It's getting warmer and there's blue sky spreading out above us, which makes it hard to believe that there was such heavy snowfall before. There's nothing obstructing the sunlight from pouring down, and the roughly 70 centimeters of snow that's covering the ground is shining as the sunlight reflects off of its surface.
In addition, it's too bright to go outside, and those that do so have a hard time seeing the moment they go out.
In these conditions, the Strong Grandson, who was in command of 2,000 soldiers and the Water Hero's party, started marching towards the approaching forces of the Tomboy Princess.
The fallen snow was hindering their march, though. For this reason, they were using brute force to clear the snow by installing iron plates on the heads of several of the Boruforu leading the march. These plates had wards that granted heat emitting enchantments on them.
If the Boruforu were massive, they vigorously cleared the snow in the same way a snowblower would.
It looks like they weren't using their internal magic supply like they would with 【Magic】 either, so the soldiers were consuming a low amount of magic. It looks like this is a cheap and quick way of clearing the snow.
As the Strong Grandson and his allies are marching in a column, they're picking up more soldiers as they pass through the territories of the nobles on their way to meet the Tomboy Princess's army. It's estimated that the final number of soldiers they've put together will reach 9,000.
From the speed that both of the armies are marching at, they will meet in approximately two days time.
At any rate, I'll put the forces that have already left the Royal Capital out of my mind since they aren't worth worrying about.
One thousand private soldiers, normal soldiers, and the Rock Hero's party were left behind in the Royal Capital. More than half of the influential members of the Nobles Faction remained as well, including the Snake Grandfather.
The reason the influential leaders stayed behind was to take care of the work that had been delayed because of the coup d'etat. The Rock Hero's party staying behind is the result of us continuing to harass and bewilder their troops.
For that reason, the Rock Hero is currently stationed in front of the entrance to the spire that the royal family is locked up in. He has placed his favorite weapon, the battering ram ≪Hammer of Isenbal≫, at his side and is being vigilant.
He had four of his 【Companions/Sub-cast】 surrounding him and they were having a pleasant chat in order to kill time.
By the way, if I were to give a simple description of these four people――
First is the 【Torture Official】, Torturer Ikoi, a brutal man with a slender figure, thin golden hair, and silver-rimmed glasses that he wears over his golden eyes. He's wearing light armor and he has a bar that's similar to a saw with rusted nails concealed inside of his violet cloak.
The next person is the 【Large Cask Head Clerk】, Grasher Pie, a giant man with a size that's comparable to an Ogre. He's wearing full body armor that gives him a generally round form, making him look similar to a large moving barrel. He's equipped with two highly offensive, barrel-like shields that are made of metal, with numerous nails attached to them that are like many blades.
Next up is the 【Indigo Blue Knight】, Christopher Bale Azurite, a good young man that has the appearance of a common knight wearing a dark blue mantle, with indigo blue colored hair and eyes, and looks that made him appear to be faithful and tough. He's wearing dark bluish green colored metal armor below his neck, with only his head being visible.
Finally, there's the 【Weeping Female Barbarian】, Jantuna Na, a crybaby Amazoness with gray eyes, long black hair, radiant dark brown skin, and full breasts. She's using a bow and machete as her weapons, and she's wrapped in native clothes made from beast fur that exposes a lot of her skin.
――That would about sum it up.
With the exception of the 【Indigo Blue Knight】, who looks like he's your typical noble knight both in outward appearance and on the inside, I think that the members of this group are quite strong.
For this reason, we slowly and silently invaded the castle from the inside, so that the Rock Hero's party wouldn't detect us.
Among the 1,000 private soldiers that stayed in the Royal Capital, I already took care of approximately 200 of the nobles' soldiers beforehand with “Grass”, so the real enemy numbers are only around 800. The only ones that I should really be careful of are the 100 elite soldiers that stayed behind, though.
In addition, with the exception of the private soldiers, we finished winning over the normal soldiers in charge of the defense of the Royal Capital during yesterday's events. This was possible because they aren't a part of the Nobles Faction, but have been following them so far only because they would be killed if they didn't.
On top of getting caught up in this situation from the beginning without having any real choice in the matter, it was very easy to win them over because they had been mentally drained by yesterday's ghost attacks.
This allowed my clones to approach Snake Grandfather, as well as some others, where I easily neutralized them during their normal routines by turning them into my 【Subordinates】 through the use of 【Parasite】.
Because the 800 soldiers that remained didn't know anything about this, I was able to command them freely. With this, it looks like the rebellion is nearly over. This is really disappointing.
It was too easy, and it's regrettable that I can't even see the Snake Grandfather and the rest of the faction's last resort. It's a good thing that there's no damage to the castle, though.
However, because the Rock Hero's party is a little troublesome, they still remain a threat.
It looks like they can sense the clones when they approach unskillfully, and it's also more difficult to use 【Parasite】 on beings above a certain level.
Although it's a very convenient ability, since the strength of my clones deteriorates considerably when they're compared with the real body, there is a very low chance that they would be able to successfully use 【Parasite】 to infect Heroes, 【Great Heroes】, and their companions.
I discovered this when I experimented on the material from the Jadar Wyvern that I instantly killed in the arena.
It's likely that even if they entered their body to use 【Parasite】, if the opponent is strong enough, then they will be immune to the parasites and the clones will surely be destroyed.
Although they were able to infect the Snake Grandfather and others like him, it looks like it would be difficult for them to infect those that are at the level of the Rock Hero and his party without their consent.
For that reason, I decided to leave it to the Tomboy Princess to try and directly persuade the Rock Hero and his party tomorrow.
If they can be persuaded, I hope to acquire their loyalty for myself.
That being said, if they can't be persuaded, then we'll have to use force.
However, since the Tomboy Princess has firmly said that I'm not allowed to kill the Rock Hero and his party, I'd like to avoid fighting them if I can help it. This is simply stimulating my appetite pointlessly; it's so unpleasant.
====================
DAY 174
The Rock Hero's party is still on standby in front of the spire today.
By the way, the Rock Hero carries the 【God of Iron Rock's Divine Protection】. He's like a rock and he has barely moved since yesterday, except to eat and to go to the bathroom. Although it looks like he's participating in conversations with his companions, he hasn't made any big movements.
The natural manner in which he has his arms placed on his legs as he sits cross-legged, as well as the atmosphere he's giving off, gives him an appearance that's similar to a great statue of Buddha in some respects.
Since it's convenient for us if he doesn't move for this, I manipulated Snake Grandfather and the others earlier and had them issue instructions to all of the private soldiers. By doing this, I was able to move each soldier to specific locations.
However, it would be unnatural if they were fully disarmed, so the soldiers were wearing a minimal amount of equipment. We were able to suppress them in no time once our preparations were complete because part of our group was on standby with each of the royal family's palace guards, and the general soldiers that had switched sides had already moved to these locations.
I used my clones to prevent the sound from escaping, so it remained quiet outside.
In this way, we were able to arrest all of the private soldiers in the Royal Castle without wasting any time. With that done, Kanami and I left for the location where the strong people, including the elites, had assembled.
While we were on our way there, we secured the nobles we found that were part of the 【Nobles Faction】, as well.
I put them to sleep and threw them in prison so that we could deal with their punishment later. In this way, we were finished with most of the cleanup less than thirty minutes after the operation began.
With this, the Royal Castle was taken back from the Nobles Faction and fell into the hands of the Tomboy Princess, a member of the royal family.
After we finished cleaning up inside the castle, the fully dressed Tomboy Princess approached the spire where the Rock Hero's party was located with a ceremonial sword hanging at her waist.
The Rock Hero's party was surprised when they first saw the Tomboy Princess and narrowed their eyes in order to determine whether she was the real thing or an imitation. However, they became even more suspicious of her once they determined that she actually was the princess.
Even though they were only suspicious of her for a short amount of time, the Rock Hero stood up as he picked up his battering ram, the Hammer of Isenbal, which he had placed beside him.
That alone caused the surrounding atmosphere to creak with a heavy feeling.
The Rock Hero stood up and his four companions followed suit as they slowly approached the Tomboy Princess.
He did nothing but stare at her with an expressionless face, and his companions were doing the same thing as they waited behind him.
A strange silence filled the room to the point that you could even hear the sound of someone swallowing their saliva.
The Rock Hero's greatest trait is his raw physical attack power.
His robust body, which has been naturally polished through many years of combat, is like iron rock and the physical strength that he exhibits can rival that of a giant. Characteristic of a 【Hero】, his Combat Arts and other things like it are matchless, and the Hammer of Isenbal that he possesses has a long, pyramid shaped lump of iron similar to a battering ram installed on the tip of its long handle, which causes destruction when the weapon swung at a high speed. One time, it was slammed into the face of a 【Gem Dragon】, a species of 【Wise Serpent/Dragon】 that has attacked the Royal Capital before. The dragon's hard scales were crushed when he did this, and it's said that he even damaged its extremely strong horns.
If you only look at the raw power of his blows, he's probably stronger than Minokichi as he is right now.
With that sort of Rock Hero in front of her, I wonder what the young Tomboy Princess was thinking about.
The Boy Knight was waiting beside the Tomboy Princess just in case he's needed, but he wouldn't even be able to defeat the weakest of the Rock Hero's four companions, the Indigo Blue Knight.
There's a hopeless difference in their war potential. If he received a single blow from the Rock Hero, the only thing left behind would be a single slab of meat that had no hint of his former self.
Despite this, there were no feelings of awe to be seen on the Tomboy Princess's face as they faced each other. Still, her dignified standing posture made her look majestic as she stared at the Rock Hero with powerful intentions dwelling in her eyes.
Before long, the Rock Hero would be able to reach the Tomboy Princess if he stretched out his hand, so she drew the ceremonial sword that was hanging at her waist.
Unlike a normal sword, the ceremonial sword had a rounded tip. The length of the sword's blade made it easy for the Tomboy Princess to handle, and the shine that remained on the blade did not have even a single speck of cloudiness in it.
The sword that she drew is a type of sword called a Curtana, and it's an 【Ancient】 class magic item that possesses the 【Mercy】 and 【Condemn】 abilities.
The Rock Hero exchanged words with the Tomboy Princess that had drawn her Curtana.
Because the conversation between the two of them was long, a summary of it would be that the Rock Hero will take one attack from the Tomboy Princess without resisting.
If I were to briefly explain how it ended up like this, it would be as follows.
Since the Rock Hero had no intention of rebelling against the royal family that he had sworn his allegiance to, he had not intended to support the Nobles Faction in the beginning.
However, because the Minister was killed, he became unable to repay a debt of gratitude that he owed the Minister for saving his life on the battlefield. For this reason, he decided to repay it by cooperating with them.
He would have searched for the Tomboy Princess if she had remained hidden, and it is very likely that he would have killed her.
However, he was impressed by the Tomboy Princess's dignified appearance as she faced him head-on, so he chose to let her cut him with her Curtana.
...What a troublesome person.
It's not like I didn't think of this outcome, but I guess it's fine since it was his decision.
The Rock Hero really is a tough guy in various ways, or perhaps I should say he's a fool that's honest to a fault. Well, maybe I should say that he's an extremely serious person instead.
Following this course of events, the Tomboy Princess used her Curtana to cut the Rock Hero.
It was a splendid blow with the aim of cutting off his head. She was able to produce a clean swing from left to right, which I think was at least partially due to the training that I had been giving her. I'm sure that it would have been fatal under normal circumstances, with the severed head falling to the ground.
However, the Rock Hero didn't shed a single drop of blood, and his neck was still connecting his head to his body.
This was the result of the Curtana's 【Mercy】 effect.
With the 【Mercy】 effect, when the user feels compassion from the bottom of their heart towards the target that they're cutting, they'll be pardoned and the blade won't cut anything.
The target won't be killed and it seems they will normally believe that the ability was what saved them.
However, if even a tiny portion of her heart has not pardoned him, the Rock Hero's head would have been completely cut off. Even with his strong defense, his body would have been defenseless in front of 【Condemn】's ability to ignore the defenses of its target, though this is restricted to living things.
I can't help but think that the Rock Hero did well, since he was aware of this fact and still agreed to let her cut him with her blade.
If he had been cut, I think the Tomboy Princess intended to make me do something just before he completely died.
However, he was pardoned by the Tomboy Princess.
By using the Curtana with an intent to kill, she had displayed proof that she had sincerely forgiven him for his participation in the current rebellion.
She didn't just do this to the Rock Hero, but she also used her Curtana to quickly cut his four companions, proving that she had forgiven them as well.
I'm certain that the five slashes would have killed them if there was even the slightest notion that they hadn't been forgiven, and all of their heads would have went flying. The Tomboy Princess had made her true feelings clear with this, because there had not been any bloodshed.
I think even the Rock Hero's party was surprised by this.
They looked dumbfounded as they confirmed that their heads were still attached, and they felt relieved after they had done so.
At this point, the Tomboy Princess seized the opening that was created and quickly began her "machine gun brainwash talk." As I observed this from a distance, I thought that it was really dirty to be able to read minds.
Being able to understand in detail what the target thinks, desires, what they're embarrassed about, and other such things appears to suit the Tomboy Princess though, since she hasn't been concealing her scheming nature these days. I'm actually amazed that it suits her so well.
I understood that she was skillfully grasping the minds of the Rock Hero's party, similar to how one would play with a puppet in the palm of their hands.
Since there's only a small number of people that really know about the Tomboy Princess’s ability, it looked like she was even able to manipulate the Rock Hero.
Because she proved that she had forgiven them this time through the use of the Curtana's 【Mercy】 ability, they were able to have a quick discussion.
The Rock Hero's final request was that even if the current coup d'etat ends in the defeat of the Strong Grandson and his allies, the Strong Grandson is the only principal offender that wouldn't be executed. It was decided that he would be imprisoned instead of being killed.
He came to the conclusion that this is the least he could do to repay his debt to the Minister.
With this, because their reason to participate in the coup d'etat had disappeared, they took this opportunity to leave the fight.
They said that they will pay close attention to how things develop from now on.
As she finished brainwashing the Rock Hero's party, the Tomboy Princess wiped the sweat from her brow as a refreshing, yet somewhat wicked smile emerged on her face. She then saw me lying in a prone position in a remote location, using my silver arm like a sniper rifle and my red spear as if it were a bullet.
She gave me a thumbs up while she had a smile on her entire face that appeared to say that the operation was a success. She didn't look anything like the princess that had just brainwashed five people a short while ago.
====================
DAY 175
Since I spent the day dealing with the aftermath in the Royal Capital, I’ll quickly talk about what happened to the army today.
The armies of the Tomboy Princess and the Strong Grandson clashed today at around noon.
The battle began on schedule in the plains and as I expected, the Strong Grandson's forces were superior to hers.
There was the difference between the number of soldiers in each army, but I guess it goes without saying that the Water Hero's existence was a great factor as well.
Immediately after the battle began, the Water Hero and his five companions rushed forward towards the Tomboy Princess's troops, aiming for the Duke that's currently leading them.
Of course, a large number of soldiers attempted to stop the Water Hero, but unfortunately they were cut down by the shockwaves created when he used his water attacks.
Still, the soldiers who risked their lives and challenged the Water Hero were able to slow him down. Meanwhile, the battle between the two forces continued to unfold.
However, the Water Hero ignored the battle itself as he had finally managed to reach the Duke on the other side.
The Duke was capable of fighting against two of the 【Hero's】 companions on his own, but as one would expect, that was his limit. In the end, his sword was blown away by the Water Hero.
After that, the Water Hero's beloved two-handed longsword, the ≪Pale Sword of Flowing Water, Feinschubel≫, broke the Duke's stance and approached his neck. However, someone close by intervened just before the blade reached him.
The young man was hiding his identity by using the 【Angry Demon's Mask】 to imitate the well-known face of the silver demon. He had 【Sunlight’s Soul Sword, Hisperiol】 in his right hand and was wearing light armor made of silver steel with Parabellum's emblem stitched onto his cloak. In other words, it was Avenger.
Just like the Water Hero, Avenger was also chosen as a 【Hero】, and this was made apparent when he blocked the Water Hero's attack without moving a single step. As for the shock-waves of water that were created which could damage the body internally, they were rendered useless since they were evaporated by the extreme heat produced by 【Sunlight’s Soul Sword, Hisperiol】.
The Water Hero didn't expect this, and he stopped for a moment right after their deadlock, wondering just what kind of person Avenger was. During this time, he was unexpectedly hit in his blind spot by a blue flame spear. The flame spear's destruction was hidden because it blazed with extreme heat as it reacted effectively to the oxygen in the air.
However, the Water Hero had already placed a defensive layer of water around him and as a result, his body was not immediately hit by the attack. Despite this, he couldn't completely negate the damage from the attack, and he spun as he was blown several meters away.
The blue flame spear that blew the Water Hero away was a spell cast by Supesei, who was waiting behind Avenger.
Besides these two people that had confronted the Water Hero’s party, there were other members present as well. This included Burasato, Gurufu, Scarface, the squadron of five ogres, and Rusty Iron Knight, who was wearing the same mask that Avenger was wearing.
Because we had arranged for Avenger's group to act differently in the plains before the battle began, they were able to save the Duke. His group contained a large number of Goblins and Hobgoblins, as well.
Normally, it would be difficult for them to become useful war potential, but because all of our members had been given the three new pieces of equipment that we'd developed at our base, they were good enough to fight the opponent's normal soldiers.
Well, it’s probably not just because of the new equipment.
The group that was led by Avenger confronted the party of the Water Hero.
Although there was a large number of minor and serious injuries, there were fewer deaths than I expected because powerful people like Burasato were nearby, coupled with the fact that Avenger was an existence that was equal to the Water Hero.
Still, because the 【Hero】's companions were fighting without suffering much damage, they were unable to settle the fight.
However, even though Avenger and his group were wounded, they were still able to complete their task of delaying the Water Hero.
They did this because at the same time that the enemy was using the Water Hero's group to go after the Duke, Minokichi was going after the Strong Grandson.
Unlike the Water Hero who had attacked his enemy head-on, Minokichi-kun flanked his opponent where they had a low number of soldiers. Due to their carelessness, the forces surrounding the Strong Grandson were easily defeated.
I think that this was largely due to the fact that Minokichi-kun was accompanied by his pet, which had ranked up into a nine meter class Armored Big Bear, Asue and an old Thunder Dragonewt, both of which were riding on pets of their own, and some other strong members that had gathered around him, including a Praying Mantis type of Insectoid and a Dullahan in particular.
In other words, while the Water Hero was busy with the Tomboy Princess’s forces, the Strong Grandson’s forces were being overrun by Minokichi and the others.
However, the Tomboy Princess's forces appear to have suffered far less damage. This is mainly due to the difference in the size of their armies, as well as the fact that Minokichi's axe attacks and his thunder flames were powerful, being capable of cutting down enemies in a wide area around him.
In the end, the Strong Grandson's forces were forced to retreat from the plains.
The Duke that the Water Hero was aiming for was definitely leading the Tomboy Princess's forces, but he was actually just a representative in the end. Unless the Tomboy Princess herself is killed, even total annihilation of her forces wouldn’t be considered a victory.
At the same time, the Strong Grandson is simply the current leader of the Nobles Faction, so there's ultimately no point in killing him or the Duke.
However, a lot of time would be wasted trying to decide who the next representative would be, and it was clear that the Tomboy Princess's forces would attack if their solidarity weakened.
In order to avoid this, the Strong Grandson chose to withdraw.
Ultimately, the reason they had to do this was because Minokichi's group was rampaging within their ranks.
As a result of their pursuit of his forces, we found out that they had returned to the city of Sengrey in the Strong Grandson's territory after they retreated from the plains, so that they could reorganize their forces.
Since it’s possible to get to Sengrey from the Royal Capital in just a few hours, the Tomboy Princess left to take command of her forces and they plan to besiege the city.
With that, I finished my preparations and quickly went to bed.
【World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon], 【Sub-cast Member】 Supesei has ranked up】
【Since the “1st” Condition 【Rank Up】 has been cleared, the title 【Calamity Star Priestess】 will be granted】
【World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon], 【Sub-cast Member】 Burasato has ranked up】
【Since the “1st” Condition 【Rank Up】 has been cleared, the title 【Frightening Blade of Dried Rust】 will be granted】
【World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon], Chapter 4 【Encouragement of a Kingdom's Revolution】, Verse 7 【War Flames' Bullets (Evil Ballad)】 has been completed. The following hidden conditions were cleared: ≪Innovation≫ and ≪Fake Firearms≫】
【World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon], Chapter 4 【Encouragement of a Kingdom's Revolution】, Verse 8 【Horse's Retreat (Totol Tyrol)】 has been completed. The following hidden conditions were cleared: ≪Fear Value Achieved≫ and ≪Fighting Spirit Value Achieved≫】
【World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon], Chapter 4 【Encouragement of a Kingdom's Revolution】, Verse 9 【Hooves of the Destructive Axe (Aste Ruos)】 has been completed. The following hidden conditions were cleared: ≪Axe Emperor's Battle Frenzy≫ and ≪Unstoppable Flanking Troops≫】
【World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon], Chapter 4 【Encouragement of a Kingdom's Revolution】, Verse 10 【Events of a Heroic Battle (Quatre Gatol)】 has been completed. The following hidden conditions were cleared: ≪Stalemate of Both Heroes≫ and ≪Unassisted≫】
These lines of information showed up before I went to bed, but I'll just go to sleep for now.
====================
DAY 176
Due to yesterday’s war, a lot of members had ranked up; a Half Ice Lord, a Half Smith Lord, a Yafuru, and a Gill-Ogre appeared.
This time, there are many new species. Since there’s too many members to talk about, I’ll only talk about those who obtained 【Divine Protection】.
First is the 【Half Spell Lord】, Supesei, who had ranked up into a 【Spell Lord Variant】.
She had received 【Divine Protection】 from the 【God of Magic】 and the 【Demigod of the Staff】, strengthening her magic power and casting speed. Her abilities and the magic power within her body are quite extraordinary and something to be proud of.
As a Lord, her physical abilities had also improved. She is now capable of participating in more active maneuvers and is now more like a mobile artillery than a fixed one.
By the way, her physical appearance didn’t change much.
Next is the 【Half Blood Lord】, Burasato-san, who ranked up into a 【Blood Lord Variant】.
She had received 【Divine Protection】 from the 【God of Blood】 and the 【Demigod of the Sword】. Her abilities unique to the Blood Lord species, her combat abilities, and her sword wielding skill have greatly improved.
Thanks to the 【God of Blood’s Divine Protection】, a great change in her attitude can be seen when she’s in battle though for me, she just seems more reliable than before.
Just like Supesei, her appearance didn’t change much. However, all of her muscles are more developed and her height increased by about 10 centimeters. Overall, her body’s physical capabilities as a Lord are far greater compared to when she was a Half Lord.
After that is Redhead who, despite not participating in the battle, managed to gain the 【Demigod of War Beast’s Divine Protection】.
Recently eating monsters from the wild with a raw taste probably caused this to happen. I do think it matches Redhead whose personality resembles a wolf or a dog.
Since her movement and agility got enhanced, she might be able to defeat Rusty Iron Knight.
It felt somewhat pitiful to think of Rusty Iron Knight that way considering who the teacher is supposed to be. No, since he has a lot of battle experience, he should be alright. Probably.
In addition, the other blessings obtained are:
- Seiji-kun’s 【Demigod of Affection’s Divine Protection】
- Dodome-chan’s 【Demigod of Observation’s Divine Protection】
- Gurufu-chan’s 【God of Corrosion’s Divine Protection】
- The five Ogre squadron’s 【Demigod of Color’s Divine Protection】 which grants one color for each of them; 【Red】, 【Blue】, 【Yellow】, 【Green】, and 【Ash】. By wearing equipment which corresponds to their respective color, they will receive a large power boost.
For now, there are other matters to deal with. Though as expected of a large-scale battle, it was quite satisfactory since experience was obtained efficiently.
So today, with the Tomboy Princess who is dressed in an attire exclusively used for war on my shoulder, we boarded my skeleton centipedes and headed to the castle where the Strong Grandson is staying in, guarded by 800 troops.
Because the inconspicuous King had already been released from the spire, he is currently handling the cleanup in the Royal Capital. Due to that, it is possible to fight the Strong Grandson without any problems.
The march from the Royal Capital began early in the morning, arriving safely at the place the city where the Strong Grandson is holed in, Sengrey, around noon. Although the Tomboy Princess’ forces have already surrounded and repeatedly attacked the city, they couldn’t get close due to the enemy's 【Magic】 and arrows. As a result, they were unable to get any effective results.
Assuming that the castle walls of this world are reinforced against 【Magic】 from enemies, weak magic won’t be able to break through it. There are also defensive mechanisms incorporated such as rocks, boiling water, and spikes of iron plates which are dropped on enemies who get to close.
Usually, even the defending side would need additional troops in order to counter those besieging the castle. However, since the Tomboy Princess’ forces didn’t have much numbers to begin with, breaking through the front is already impossible.
Still, the Tomboy Princess' arrival on the battlefield is as scheduled. After quickly greeting the Duke, I decided to swiftly end the siege by using some new useful equipment.
When I said new equipment, I was referring to the 82mm caliber mortars.
Mithril, steel, and black bone materials were used for it. The main mechanism uses my clone which is located at the bottom of the barrel to shoot compressed air into the shell which generates a small peculiar firing noise.
Each mortar shell is made of 10 restructured Burst Seeds. Naturally, its explosive power is greater and it’s possible to destroy a large area with just a single shell.
There are 20 completed mortars available. Only 10 were brought along today but they’ll all be fired at the same time.
For the first time, the enemy soldiers using arrows and magic on the castle walls were blown off in an instant by attacks from the sky. Unlike magic, the shells are small and quiet so it is nearly impossible to detect and intercept them.
The soldiers on the wall are torn to pieces as the bombardment continues, not stopping until the castle wall is destroyed.
I then send out the Revolution Corps led by Minokichi-kun towards the castle gates which are now unmanned.
With a single blow from his axe, the castle gates were crushed and turned into wooden splinters, allowing us to enter the city.
Of course, our companions didn’t remain silent either. Using the Tomboy Princess’ 【Mind Reading】 to gather a lot of information while she is on my shoulder, we were able to understand that we had to get through enemies that are being forced to sacrifice themselves in order to get to the Strong Grandson. With my clones that had been turned into 【Communication Mediums】, all the corps were able to respond in real time.
Using pincer attacks, surprise attacks, traps, and dividing them into smaller groups, the enemy got cornered and could not escape other than trying to forcefully break through or surrendering. They got desperate and continued to fight, dying as a result.
We advanced while clearing the way, finally arriving at the robust mansion where the leaders of the Nobles Faction and the Strong Grandson were holed in. Naturally, we encountered Water Hero who is overflowing with fighting spirit. With his five companions at his side, he is staring at me, no, at the Tomboy Princess who is sitting on my shoulder.
With each holding a weapon in hand, the area is brimming with the intention to fight. I lowered the Tomboy Princess and entrust her to the Boy Knight. Along with Kanami-chan, I took one step forward.
Taking notice, the Water Hero unsheathed his beloved sword clad in water. Not only does it have amazing speed, the characteristics of the streams of water created had a rather peculiar movement style.
【Yatendouji 【Heresy Nemesis】 has been activated】
【From this, Yatendouji has performed “Hostile Action／Those Who Have Awakened the Psalms” against the 【Heretic／Those Who Have Awakened the Psalms】 of the 【Eschatology Conquest War】 - the start of the battle has been declared】
【Until the fight is settled, Yatendouji abilities will be increased by 【300%】 】
【Due to the 【Two God Class’】 Joint Battle compensation, Hekaterina’s abilities will be increased by 【210%】 】
【Special Skill 【Heresy Nemesis】 will last until the conclusion of the battle】
Just like that time against Avenger, an announcement flowed into my mind. The Water Hero probably received a similar message. While he was surprised for a moment, his face changed into a fierce smile as he bared his fangs and instantly attacked.
I smiled back at the Water Hero as I roared and raised my vermillion spear in one hand. After the fight started, almost ten minutes had passed.
Most of the surroundings buildings had collapsed from the aftermath of the battle while numerous cracks spider-webbed across the ground.
While we were injured, I and Kanami-chan are still up while the Water Hero and his party were now bleeding while down on the ground. The Water Hero’s five companions were already unconscious yet the Water Hero's still looking at us with hatred in his eyes despite having fallen down. It was quite annoying so I took his consciousness away by hitting him with the butt end of my vermillion spear.
At the same time, another announcement flowed into my mind.
【Conclusion has been reached】
【Special Ability 【Heresy Nemesis】 has been removed】
【Because Yatendouji won against the 【Heretic／Those Who Have Awakened the Psalms】 of the 【Eschatology Conquest War】, a reward will be granted】
【Yatendouji has obtained 【Quivering Water’s Soul Sword, Neiletis】!!】
【According to the Lunar Eclipse God, the defeat of the 【Heretic’s／Those Who Have Awakened the Psalms’】 【Those who struggle together／Companions of the Important Existence (Subcast)】 by Yatendouji has been confirmed】
【As a bonus reward, 【Random Treasure Chests ［Superior］ 】 will be awarded】
And again, just like after the fight against Avenger, I obtained some new trophies. Along with two 20 centimeter long and tall gold and silver treasure boxes, I had also received a sword similar to the Sunlight’s Soul Sword, Hisperion that I lent to Avenger.
At first glance, the blue sword looked like it was made of water yet it managed to maintain its shape and best of all, it is quite hard. I could say that it’s made of metal that had the characteristics of water.
In the meantime, I try to eat it. That turned out to be fruitless as I couldn’t even chip it. Somehow, I felt like I could eat it but that was apparently my imagination. Really, looks like the questions on why I couldn’t eat it would never run out. I wonder when I’ll be able to eat items of this level.
Not discouraged, I try to read the information of the 【Quivering Water’s Soul Sword Neiletis】.
Name: 【Quivering Water’s Soul Sword Neiletis】
Category: 【■■／Sword】
Class: 【■■■■】
Abilities: 【Neiletis】
【Heresy Nemesis】
【Quivering Water’s Explosion】
【Water Spirit Origin】
【Quivering Water Penetration】
【Ability Boost】
【Locked】
【Locked】
【Locked】
【Locked】
Description: ■ sword of ■■■■ class obtained by Yatendouji after achieving victory against the 【Heretic／Those Who Have Awakened the Psalms／Main Cast】 of the 【Eschatology Conquest War】.
The gods existing in the world can take on three forms, ≪■■／■■／■■≫, where the sword is one of the ■■. The blade has been tempered with clear water and is always transparent, constantly quivering.
Only Yatendouji has the capability to touch this sword. Any person who touches this sword without permission would have an unimaginable disaster befall them.
Since it is ■■, all exceptions other than destruction are absolutely impossible.
Do you wish to view additional information?
≪YES≫ ≪NO≫
Despite the different details, the description is similar to Hisperion. It’s just as useful though despite the different abilities.
Since I prefer weapons with longer reach like the vermilion spear over swords, it will remain in my item box until needed. Giving an item of that level to someone unskilled would be a big waste. As for the treasure chests, I decided to confirm the contents later.
Since the Water Hero is a part of the Book of Psalms like Avenger, I didn’t kill him and just left him as is as I quickly head towards the mansion.
Right now, the Strong Grandson is cornered in the depths of the mansion. Excluding the 【Hero】, he is probably still hiding other trump cards and is making a last stand.
Well, other than expecting that a Chimera formed from a Jadar Wyvern would be a hard fight, let’s put that aside. The Chimera had a shape just like a Dragon Meatball.
Sown together in its huge round body are hardened dragon meat and several layers of dragon scales that are overlapping each other. It is capable of breathing a combination of 8 different [Dragon Venoms] used for torture and has 14 wings, long claws, and fangs made with magic metal, the sharpness and hardness incomparable to poorly made swords.
While it might have a grotesque appearance, I still felt thankful to the Strong Grandson since he took the trouble in preparing such a delicious surprise. After roasting its entire body, I ate it along with everyone else. Taking the opportunity, I also ate the strong ones that I killed after putting the idea off till the last minute.
Ability learned: 【Confusion of the Dead】
Ability learned: 【Wailing Wyvern’s Body】
Ability learned: 【Demigod of Dancing’s Divine Protection】
Ability learned: 【Demigod of Shaping’s Divine Protection】
With this, the job is mostly finished.
The mastermind, the Strong Grandson, had been caught. Most of the people who participated in the coup d’état had also been arrested. How they would be treated from now on is up to the Tomboy Princess, something I have nothing to do with and had no interest in. Well, whatever happens, the princess would probably fix things up.
By the time everything is over, it's already dark. It's quite troublesome to go back to the Royal Capital right now so we decided to spend the night at ≪Sengrey≫.
Because not all the members that I recently mobilized and the members that were already present before could return to the Royal Capital right now, it's quite fine.
I was a bit tired so upon plopping myself on bed after various things, sleepiness quickly hit me.
【All hidden conditions of Section 11 【Lord of Perishing Wails (Superior Apostle)】 of the World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon] Fourth Chapter 【Kingdom’s Advancing Revolution】, ≪Courageous Enemy’s Defeat≫ ≪No Unreasonable Kills≫ ≪Excessive Gluttony≫ has been cleared】
Looks like the hidden conditions were cleared smoothly. However, just as I went to sleep, I ask in my mind if they really are hidden conditions.
====================
DAY 177
Early in the morning, a strange chill awakened my consciousness. While still sleeping, I use 【Early Warning Search Network Phased Radar Array】. The response shows the First Queen and the Dark Hero, who both should be missing, in the room next to me, which nobody uses. I continue to examine the presence in detail, and as I investigate what they are doing in the room next door, they seem to be spying in to my room by using the power of the Dark Hero. At the end of their gaze is me, lying on the bed. Without turning to Redhead and Kanami-chan, who are lying next to me, I sense them staring at me as well. I felt an additional chill.
The First Queen is breathing heavily in an excited state, which is something bewitching. The Hero of Darkness is has a similar atmosphere as the First Queen even though there is little movement, as usual.
They seem to be scolding each other through whispering. Even I cannot hear it as the Hero of Darkness is concealing it with her ability and because they are in the next room which is separated (from this one) by a wall. However it might not be a good thing, at least for me. I’m getting more convinced of this, as the chill increases.
For the time being, I raise my body and act as I’m getting up. While doing that, the excitement level of the two people next door only increases. The chill increases as well. Because my body was slightly trembling, I put on my favorite poncho made by Parabellum. Then, the presence changes and seems to be awfully disappointed. Today, for the time being, I decided not to take a morning bath. Even though I have a damp body from last night's sweat and it is a little unpleasant, I guess it should not affect my body’s hygiene.
Today, after experiencing such a situation, we return to the Royal Capital. However, aside from the ones who are scheduled to work at the Royal Capital there in the future, the other members are supposed to return to our base. Also, if all the members would go to the royal capital at the same time, it would be a bit troublesome because there are people who have not seen the world outside of the Kuuderun Great Forest yet and because I thought that it was just right to broaden their view.
That being said, as it’s not unusual that we’ll be tailed and it’s not amusing if our base is known, I made a distribution of 10 groups with Minokichi-kun and Burasato-san and the rest as leaders in order to return by various routes. I guess the total number of people of one group is no more than a few dozen, but it should be just right to practice marching in group. Transporting all members of the group should not be particularly difficult either as the skeleton centipedes already have the carriage ability.
By the way, the routes are divided based on military results. The person who got better results gets a route with more privileges, such as hot springs and tourist attractions. For a person who was less active and has worse results, there is the condition to take a more dangerous and severe route in order to raise his own strength. In case they cannot bear it, there’s no problem as only that person suffers a loss.
After we returned to the Royal Capital, I received a reward from the Tomboy Princess. Though there is a big reward from training the guards as well, the sum rewarded for participating in the war is a different figure. Because I was an important factor in repelling the coup d’état by being a pawn of the Tomboy Princess, it will be an appropriate amount of money. However, thinking about things in the future it has been decided that I will not only receive gold coins and gold plates, but also a plot of land near Osvel or a small privilege as an exception.
Since I got it as one of my rewards, I decided to relax in the mansion of a certain aristocrat that was awaiting execution for participating in the coup d’état. The mansion is located where the [Castle District] and the [Noble District] meet, which is a convenient location as I easily can move in various directions. Because the noble who lived here was rich, the grounds are spacious. The reason I took it was because a small part of the mansion was used as a store, which was what my intention is as well. Since for the time being, only a housemaid and a butler who were employed by the aristocrat were there. I hired the people who wanted to stay working here and I was referred to a person who previously worked for to the Tomboy Princess.
Because I intend to use this estate as a base for business in the future, I’m thinking to rebuild it in various ways. But let’s decide on how to do the reconstruction later.
For today, I only focus on sorting between the things that need to be done and the things that are unnecessary. Once that was done, I spent the rest of the day discovering hidden wealth with my children.
====================
DAY 178
In today’s day and age, in the back streets and the underground of the Royal Capital, there are starving children who have trouble finding a daily meal. As both men and woman considered orphans unhealthy, they were suitable for abduction. As was the norm by some countries and regions in my previous life, the orphans were either abandoned by their parents because of poverty, thrown away because a physical deformity, or they lost their parents in the war. There are countless reasons why the various orphans did not have guardians at the moment.
At one point, the Sternbild Kingdom’s [Sage from Another World] created orphanages with his own money as a way to help them. However, there are only a few orphanages because of competing interests of the nobles and the issue of cost. Even though a vital amount of orphans were able to live there, there are a number of children who were left out. Still, the fact is that the results were more than adequate as they were raised beyond a certain amount. Even with knowledge of a different world and an abundance of magical power inside his body, the [Sage from Another World] had a personal limit.
Though many of the orphans that were left out died to starvation or cold, some of them were persistently hanging on to their life. It is not unusual for the surviving orphans to group up and resort to stealing in order to eat. It is a really common thing. After living one or two months in the neighborhood, I hardly look up from theft anymore. When the stealing orphans are caught by adults, they will be hit and kicked and left in a terrible state in on the back alley. If the orphan is unlucky, it will die. As there are orphans who earn pocket change by being a traveler’s guides or by polishing the shoes of a traveler or something like that, the ones who commit crimes like theft are ignored by the people. That aside, since the citizens are also suffering in their life, it is hard to judge it as completely bad.
Even so, if such an orphan disappears unnoticed, the citizens will not mind it very much. They’ll likely think: “Did the weasel die or was he kidnapped by anyone? Either way, it’s good he disappeared.” Therefore, I’m choosing just the right targets. Because I got permission from the kind through the Tomboy Princess directly as one of the rewards of the war this time, I gather them in my mansion without any discussion.
Like that, by noon 50 children were abducted and lined up in front of me. Most orphans are weaker than average children of the same age, are dirty all over and emit a smell that is difficult to describe. Some are weakened by disease as well. However, their eyes expressed a strong will to live. While I stand in from of them, most of the orphans naturally turn their eyes to the ground, though there is one that has the guts to stare back at me. Because he’s the oldest amongst them, I assume he’s the ringleader for now.
The ringleader who is trying to protect the younger orphans is bombarding me with various questions, but for the time being I began with treating everyone to food.
Amongst the magic items I obtained in the Labyrinth City Purgatory,
there are some pans that start to cook automatically when I put
ingredients in. Because it was necessary to prepare several meals this
time, I effectively used them and put together a dish for 50.
I put the meat of Horned Rabbit and Turtle Snake in a large pan, add in plenty of vegetables which I bought at the Royal Capital’s
marketplace, throw in milk and cheese and complete something like a
cream stew. A rich, fragrant smell stimulates the appetite. While
tasting it, I’m surprised the dish is so delicious because it was
prepared in such a noncommittal way.
When the cream stew is
ready, I pour it into something like a large platter. I distributed
spoons amongst the orphans for a reason, but it is not used and they
single-mindedly eat it by greedily taking it with their hands and
putting it in their mouth. As they swallow everything down to the last
drop, they’re eyes become bloodshot from the frightening sight (of an empty platter). They seemed to be more starved than I expected.
Because I made a new batch, it did not become a problem, though the
orphans looked curiously at me after having finished eating the meal.
They leaned their head to one side as if they wanted to say: “Why did
you give us such a delicious thing?"
I don’t answer it and subsequently put all the members in the bath. As expected for a mansion that is built by a person who was rich amongst the nobles, the bathroom is big enough to house dozens of people all at once. Even though the number of maids who still remain has decreased, I order them to wash the orphans’ bodies. While they use soap created from raw materials that can be gathered in the Kuderun Large Forest in order to scrape the dirt off the orphans, it was accumulating in the bathroom. Even though the bathroom was considerably dirty, consider it a good thing as the orphans became clean and smelled normal again. Only the bathroom needs to be cleaned again.
Now that that’s done, I cure the children suffering from diseases. Regardless whether their wounds have festered, they’re on the verge of having tetanus, they have parasitic worms, or one arm and leg became hard to move because of a severe burn, it’s easy to cure if I combine a healing skill with [Blood Elixir]. Though it’s still not yet possible to completely cure an orphan who lost his eyeball and finger, I can at least soften the pain in order so that he can endure it.
After the meal, the
bath, and the treatment ended, I line the orphans up before me again and
they seemed to have changed their state of mind. The wariness of the
orphans has faded considerably and they gaze friendly at me. Even though
the boys and girls who have lived from some time in their severe world
do not loosen their wariness, they are still at a loss as to why I’m
taking such good care of them while not explaining my motives.
Seeing that, and because all the preparations were finished, I explain to the orphans why I abducted them.
There’s no way I would
let the orphans eat a meal, bathe them and cure them for a charitable
cause. I tell them my goal plain and simple: I want to raise them as a
war potential for the future. With a vigorous fertility like goblins,
and dependent on how they are used in addition with the others, their
existence will become an important war potential. While humans can
acquire [Jobs], they are only able to become inhumanly strong up to a
certain extent.
However, as humans
having few other possibilities, people that achieve an interesting
growth will appear. Humans are excellent in terms of diversity.
When taking these things into consideration, it becomes necessary to
have human group members that I have trained from an early age. However,
the normal human has a slow growth. If you want to raise them from the
time when they are a baby, it’ll take a lot of years. Though humans are
born amongst the members of my group, but it’s too slow. Because of that
reason, I concluded that a quicker way is to abduct children who have
already reached a certain age.
For both sides, this is
not a bad situation. I pick up orphans who do not become a problem in
particular when they disappeared, to let them live alone in order to
train them while giving them a minimum of food in order not to die.
You might say it’s for that reason that I picked up 50 orphans that
would have died in the near future, and decided that they would join as
new members of the group today. I’m thinking of leaving the ringleader
at the top position and decide to treat it as a military unit experiment
on how to raise them as a new weapon with the aim of becoming of
practical use to me.
The new experimental youth corps Solitude is formed.
====================
Day 178 Sidestory: Kid Boss's POV
Just living was a struggle. Ever since I ran away from that bastard father just like mom, I did whatever I can to stay alive. Thievery, blackmail, anything but murder.
Even in the beautiful Royal Capital, there’s things that cannot be brought to light. Orphans who live like me are numerous, that’s why we gathered ourselves for survival. Our gathering was ruled by me who was blessed in physique, and even without blood connections, we formed a family tied by a solid bond.
Orphans have their own struggles for power as well, we who know nothing but to fight. Kicking someone off, claiming that day’s food. Because of us swarming over the food, there’s also those who end up dying of starvation. Even so, we wanted to live. That’s why we never hesitated to rob.
But, us who know no other way to live, the adults directed looks at us like that of dirty rats, despised, cursed and beaten are common events. Many died from those beatings.
This world is truly strict, even just surviving poses difficulties for us.
That’s why today, when we were abducted, somewhere in my heart I already gave up. I thought I’d be sold off as a slave. In the past, there were friends who disappeared like that. That’s why I thought, this time was my turn. But, I cannot show weakness. Behind my back I have family. My younger brothers and sisters.
The kidnapper who obviously fears no enemy - I stared at the black oni. I shivered inside. He was clearly too dangerous, I felt like fainting.
Even so I will put on a strong front. I will stand my obstinacy. Without diverting my eyes I continued staring.
Looking on, I questioned multiple times but was never answered.
With no explanation, marrow, and rice were served for us. Throwing many ingredients into a large pot, what was made was a hot stew. Steaming hot from being freshly cooked, it looked very tempting. Gurgle, my throat sounded.
Was it poisoned, didn’t cross my mind. Overwhelmed from the smell, we lost ourselves in the dream and moved our hands. The stew was, very delicious. More delicious than anything we ever had, to the point we were on the verge of tears, it was that delicious. There was more than enough for all of use without having to steal someone else's, we were told to eat to our full, my mind ran in circles, I ate the stew while thinking.
After we finished eating, we were put in a bath. The warm water felt better than we imagined. It felt itchy when dirt fell from our bodies with the soap, but we adapted soon, it felt wonderful. It's been a long time really, since I was able to relax like this. The body that had felt so heavy, became light as a feather.
Next, we were told that they'll treat our injured. When the ones I thought were too late were healed one by one, I was reasonably surprised.
Then, we were lined up once again in front of the oni. There, we were informed the reasons we were gathered this time.
In short, in exchange for food, clothing, and shelter, we were to offer our labor. On top of that we would receive the education needed to survive alone, the deal was too sweet for me. Of course we all went with it.
With no reason to argue, when we were offered food and safe living, we took the hand offered to us.
- The Kid Boss was born.
- The Youth Experimentation Unit Solitude was formed.
- Investment towards the future = priceless.
DAY 179
Since the morning, I’ve been training the former orphans of Solitude. Even though I cannot do an all-out training yet as their bodies are still too weak, the doping enchantment is amazing.
Around noon the Tomboy Princess came to the mansion. Apart from the Boy Knight who is always at the side of the Tomboy Princess, the First Queen and the Dark Hero also came along for some reason. I wonder why. The First Queen and the Dark Hero stayed two to three steps behind the Tomboy Princess, once more gazing at me with a sentiment that is difficult to express. While having the hunch that I mustn’t touch on the awkward subject, I offered the Tomboy Princess some of the tea that I got from the elves. I took a breather to be more relaxed and exchanged some small talk during the tea, after which I asked about the reason of their visit.
The reason was simple, as they explained they want me to work as the Tomboy Princess' private soldier continuously.
The terms of the contract entailed a standard pay of 2 gold plates per month = 2 million gold (about 20 million yen). So as its 24 gold plates per year, it becomes 240 million yen. If there is some kind of other work, a suitable amount of additional gold is paid. Accepted expenses such as buying medicine and weapons needed in order to accomplish the mission, the Tomboy Princess will bear the entire sum. Though while it is limited to within the Sternbild Kingdom, a number of different privileges are attached, such as being able to borrow weapons. Naturally it is satisfactory considering the danger attached to the job. Nevertheless, even though the yearly income exceeds that of a lower to middle-class noble, it is not favorable enough for me anymore.
For all that, I decline it. Looking at the dumbfounded faces of the Tomboy Princess and other two from the Sternbild Kingdom’s side, Redhead, also sitting at the table, bursted into laughter. Kanami-chan only smiled friendly, but was probably enjoying everyone’s reaction. Even though it was sadistic, it cannot be helped.
Under the current circumstances, I decline the contract. In order to discover this world some more, being in the position of a mercenary who can move freely is convenient. As there might not only be 【Men of Valour】 and Heroes, but also special Psalms such as 【Demon King】 and【Demon Emperor】, which let me fight against countries with existences such as 【Beast King】 and 【Beast Emperor】, this contract will most likely become a hindrance. Being a private soldier to the Royal Family, in addition of the Tomboy Princess who is likely to become the next Queen, will bring too many mental situations. Physical challenges are welcome, I do not even dare to imagine the irritating nature attached to it. And so on.
Even though I explained it like that, I made a certain contract with the Tomboy Princess because she persuaded me too desperately. The terms of the contract is one gold plate per month = 1 million gold (I’ll be paid around 10 million yen), compensation in order to give a small preferential treatment, which is 『Do not accept a request which is hostile to the Tomboy Princess』.
In short it can be said that 『I only stop an enemy that shows a frightening hostility, because compensation is paid』. I think it might be good like this. With this, the discussion with the Tomboy Princess has ended. After that, I agreed with the First Queen and the Dark Hero in different way. I yielded to an overwhelming sense of intimidation and hot atmosphere, but I will not go in to detail.
When the evening fell, four people went back home and by that time, I was exhausted. Note to self. Zealous believers are scary. In order to heal my tired spirit, I went to sleep in a soft warm bed at night. I was surprised that right before that I was still able to see what was being displayed.
【Hidden condition of the final section 【Princess’ Command・Rubiria Mausuku】 Of the World Psalms [Legend of the Black Eclipse Demon] Chapter 4 【Kingdom's Advancing Revolution】, «Rejection of Bondage» has been cleared】
【Hidden Condition «Contract Exchange» was unfortunately not cleared.】
【Success Reward 【Great Treasure Chest［Superior］】 will be awarded.】
【Success Reward 【Demon Class Limited・Potency Rise Drugs】 will be awarded.】
【Success Reward 【Demon Liquor・Signature [Final Drop of the Cherry Trees in the Evening]】 will be awarded.】
【Success Reward 【Demon Liquor・Signature [Demon Drunken Slaughter ・Inexhaustible]】 will be awarded.】
【Success Reward 【Indicating Ancient Lithograph】will be awarded.】
【Success Reward 【■■■■】 will not be awarded, as conditions are not cleared yet.】
What…That. The final condition, I think that it might be a failure. I guess it can’t be helped so I’ll give up and go to sleep. Even though I’m very worried about the last one, it’s alright as there is liquor.
====================
DAY 180
Today I left the training of the Solitude corps to 3 people: Redhead, Auro, and Argento.
I decided to produce a new type of ear cuff. Incidentally, Kanami-chan is sitting next to me while enjoying some tea and reading the novel I got from the Tomboy Princess.
During production, the first ear cuffs were enchanted with three abilities: [Continuous Regeneration], [Lesser Increase Physical Strength] and [Lesser Increase Agility]. Because the previous batch was aimed at improving the body's performance, the new ear cuffs are enchanted with [Increase Concealment Rate], [Lesser Mind Protection] and [Lesser Attribute Protection]. This way it is likely to oppose a mental attack to some degree.
By the way, new enchantments will not be added to the first generation ear cuffs as the success rate is low and therefore it is more bothersome. To be honest, it is enough like this. Seeing as the performance is guaranteed, I will decorate it for each person if they do not like the appearance. I was able to create enough for every member by evening. Because my level of enchanting is higher than before, the speed was increased. Many of my abilities from the [Job]'s system are now satisfactory as they've become high in level.
At night a report arrived from Blacksmith-san, who remained at the base, that Gobujii had died. The cause of death was not an illness or an external factor, but old age. There certainly were signs. To begin with, he had nearly reached the limit of the lifespan of a goblin.
Recently, his body movements in particular worsened and the time he slept increased day after day. Since he used to do a lot of things energetically before and that slowly disappeared, I already thought it would be soon. Therefore, it wasn't a big surprise.
However, Gobujii dying in this way... I wonder if he died doing something erotic.
You took care of me. You taught me various things about this world. I thank you. Nevertheless you were a perverted grandpa. Probably it was you that conceived the child that I was born into. Revealing a wry smile, I pray for his soul to rest in peace, "Be safe Gobujii".
In today's night sky, a star sparkles brightly.
=====================================================================
Source from :
http://re-monster.wikia.com/wiki/Day_171-180
he died openly as a pervert I guess, that Gobujii
ReplyDeleteDid he sleep with the queen and dark hero? Well they prob just want his baby because hes so strong and rare
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI was left with that doubt ... was that really what happened?
DeleteHe didn't sleep with them. It is just worded weird that made it sound like it. It just means that they were not pleased with him leaving so they gave an intimidating aura. So he was mentally exhausted by the time they left.
DeleteOne of my favorite Characters just died. :(
ReplyDeleteYou have a really weird taste for characters
DeletePerverted Granpa you will always be my favourite characters, Rest in peace ಥ_ಥ
ReplyDelete