Chapter 350: Until Destiny Finds Me
[At that moment, the Goddess Church headquarters.]
"W-Welcome. You’ve come a long way."
Cardinal Querbels got chills at the sight of the Saintess, who had actually braved the cold and climbed all ten thousand steps. He already knew full well how tenacious she was, but he never imagined she’d actually climb the stairs.
They were called stairs, but each step was nearly a meter tall, one after another in an endless succession. The Saintess wiped the sweat dripping down her forehead and turned around.
"The place closest to the heavens. According to legend, where the Goddess descended. This is that very place."
"I see."
Brug, who had been following the Saintess, placed his hand on the scabbard at his hip. At that, the priests trailing behind the Cardinal all freaked out and rushed to block his path.
"Saintess! What is the meaning of this?!"
"You’re the one making a scene, Cardinal."
"You’ve finally come to kill me!"
"...I’m proving something. Proving it."
The Saintess let out a sigh and signaled to Brug. Brug very slowly drew a sword from his shabby scabbard.
Whooooooo--
The raging storm fell silent. The divine power of the holy sword [Taurus] that Brug had drawn scattered in every direction.
"C-Could it be...?!"
"Yes. A new Hero of the Holy Sword. ...Would you step aside? He’d like to pay his respects to the Goddess."
"O-Of course! But which noble house does this distinguished person hail from--"
"I was born a mongrel in some backwater tribal village in a faraway land."
Brug said sarcastically as he pushed through the crowd and strode forward. The Saintess let Brug take the lead and headed for the chapel.
Ahhh-ahhh-ahhh--
Sacred choral voices echoed through the air. Not a single person was singing, yet every priest trembled at the holy song emanating from the chapel.
"Oh, oh! Could this be?!"
Silver light burst from the chapel ceiling. The Saintess ascended to the altar and prayed toward the heavens, while Brug planted the holy sword--now radiating ever more intense light--into the ground before him.
"Who are you?"
"An agent sent by the Goddess."
The Saintess answered Brug’s question. The priests, just like the Saintess, all knelt and prayed before the golden-haired angel descending from the sky. The Cardinal was no exception.
[Saintess. May the Goddess’s blessing be upon you, who has completed your mission. You have guided him here well.]
She clearly spoke in human form, yet her voice carried an overwhelming pressure as if speaking from another world. Brug immediately understood what kind of being she was from that voice that seemed to shake his very soul.
"An angel?"
"Not just any angel."
[My name is Michael. Hear my introduction from the Saintess, Hero. I must complete my given mission and return.]
Michael spread her pure white wings and extended her hand toward Brug. Angel dust flowed from her hand and began to envelop Brug’s entire body.
Shhhhhh---
Centered on Brug, the emblem of the Goddess Church began to rise from the floor. Brug flinched in surprise at the appearance of the angel called Michael, but once he realized she bore no hostility, he surrendered himself to the flow.
[The Goddess has spoken. If you wish to find what you seek, protect my agent. If you stay with my agent, you will naturally come to meet the ’one’ you are searching for.]
"...!!"
Brug felt chills run through him at the Goddess’s oracle. Why would the Goddess deliver such an oracle to him--an orc, a demon? Was it truly because he was the wielder of the holy sword--a Hero?
[This is both a gift and a blessing, so that you may protect my agent.]
Shhhk.
The angel’s breath touched Brug’s body. At the same time, Brug felt something within him changing. He raised his hand for a moment and sensed the transformation within himself.
"...Was this really necessary?"
[Wherever you go, protect my agent. And....]
Whooooooo---!
Brug felt chills at the transcendent being gazing down at him through the angel’s eyes. An overwhelming pressure, as if being watched from the heavens, sent cold sweat running down his back.
[From here, this is an oracle for your ears alone, Orc Hero.]
Thud.
The world stopped. In a world dyed silver, only Brug and Michael stood facing each other.
[Until you find the other half of your soul, protect my agent. ...Even your purity, which you would offer to someone.]
"...!!"
[You understand what I’m saying. To save the world, you must protect my agent with your life. In every sense of the word.]
"...As the Goddess wills."
Brug traced the sign of the cross he had learned by watching others. At that, Michael removed Brug’s black robe with a gentle smile. At the same time, the world frozen in silver began to regain its original colors.
"Wha--?!"
The Saintess was startled. The other priests were equally shocked. Michael pressed her lips to the crown of the ’man’ beneath the black robe, bestowing her blessing.
[May the Goddess’s blessing be with you, Hero of Taurus.]
"...May the Goddess’s blessing be with you."
Michael dissolved into silver dust and vanished. The Saintess stared at Brug in disbelief, pointing at him in utter confusion.
"Y-You...?"
"Hmm."
Brug touched his face and removed his gloves. Beneath the gloves he had worn specifically to hide his green skin, white skin had taken its place.
"Didn’t see this coming."
"Wh-Why is an elf the Hero---?!"
The Cardinal screamed at the sight of Brug. The Saintess, too, was dumbfounded by Brug’s transformed appearance. The Cardinal had shouted about him being an elf based on his looks, but his ears were still the same orc ears.
It was just that his color was no longer green, but white--human skin tone. That was all.
"...This is what the Goddess’s gift was? Unbelievable."
She never thought that whining about being an orc would actually make the Goddess change him from one. The Saintess held back the urge to hurl curses at the sky.
"Saintess."
Brug smiled and knelt before the Saintess.
"The Goddess has spoken. Until destiny finds me, I am to protect you."
"Oh...."
The Saintess’s face flushed for no reason, and she couldn’t bring herself to look directly at Brug.
"From now on, I will protect you. Everything about you."
Even your purity.
A fierce resolve burned in Brug’s green eyes.
***
[Late at night, the war room of the Ras Vegas government office.]
The enemy was concentrating their strength at Spica Castle. When the time was right, they would certainly charge out, and their force would be immense.
"We steal the enemy’s momentum. Eila, the enemy is definitely scouting Ras Vegas, right?"
"Yes. Partly because you’ve let them, Master, but the enemy has been closely monitoring our movements with some very agile soldiers."
The enemy was watching Ras Vegas in near real-time. By turning that surveillance against them, I planned to get the Knight Commander’s heavy rear end off his seat.
"We deploy all orcs to Ras Vegas except Percival’s Worwolf unit. And we mobilize all the residents of Ras Vegas and the humans from the ranch to carry out the operation. Let’s paint the picture."
Human prisoners fitted with black leather restraints.
And a massive orc force escorting them somewhere.
"Our legion has been moving in and out of Ras Vegas strictly through portals. So they still think the same troops from the Ras Vegas siege are fully intact in our legion. Including the hostages."
"Most of them probably think the hostages are all dead. But ever since you staged that demonstration on the walls, Master, there are definitely people in Spica Castle who are praying the hostages are alive--even if they’ve been violated by monsters."
The nighttime Avalon had yielded a tremendous amount of intelligence. Among it, we could hear in vivid detail what people thought about the dungeon that had appeared in the barony, and their opinions about our legion.
For example, some said they’d abandon the barony and flee if Spica Castle fell too.
For example, some said running was the only option if even the Knight Commander was defeated.
For example, some believed that if people were alive in Zabiyaba, at least the monsters in this dungeon didn’t kill humans.
For example, some had joined the subjugation force to rescue family members taken prisoner.
I couldn’t read the Knight Commander’s thoughts, but I could read the hearts of the people living in Spica Castle well enough. And by gathering all of the public’s hopes and fears, we had devised an operation to shake their morale.
"In the dead of night, a massive force of orcs suddenly comes outside. What will the scouts do?"
"Hmm, they’ll wonder why they came out?"
"Right. Then on top of that--if the orcs are leading humans around like slaves and taking them somewhere, what will they think?"
"...To the dungeon?"
"Exactly."
Up until now, no humans had ever left Ras Vegas. And no supplies or goods had ever been brought in through physical routes.
"The Demon King’s forces alone number well over 200. They’ve been holed up in Ras Vegas for weeks. Then suddenly they come out with human prisoners. So what will the commander who receives that intel be thinking?"
"...That they’ve run out of food. They’ll think the stockpiles in Zabiyaba are completely depleted."
"That’s right, Eila. And on top of that, they’ve now confirmed that a large number of prisoners are still alive, making the misunderstanding even easier. ’Oh, the orcs have nothing left to eat, so they’re taking the humans back to the dungeon.’ So then, Lune--what will the Knight Commander do next?"
"Hmm... If it were me, I’d advance troops to seize Ras Vegas! Since the orcs have pulled out!"
"He could seize Ras Vegas, or based on the intelligence we have, he might head straight for the dungeon. Following the trail of the orcs heading back. That’s assuming we leave a trail for them, of course."
"Right. Either way, he won’t just sit and watch."
He would dispatch at least a small unit. And it would be even better if all his forces came out.
"The orcs will head into Ras Village. Nifela, have your Cream Elves stay in the Elven Forest for now."
"What should we do?"
The forty Cream Elves had been doing an excellent job at the entrance to Ras Village, acting as if it weren’t a dungeon. Now it was time for them to move to a new location--the place where they were supposed to be all along.
"Go to the Elven Forest. And depending on how the battle unfolds, you’ll need to follow the plan."
The Cream Elves’ role would change depending on whether we had the upper hand or whether it turned into a difficult free-for-all. Either way, they would need to guard and patrol the Elven Forest.
"If any virgin elves happen to return to the Elven Forest, capture them and restrain them. From now on, turning virgin elves into Cream Elves is your responsibility."
"Hehe, it would be our honor. Thank you for the consideration."
I didn’t want virgin elves suddenly swooping in and throwing a wrench in things while we were fighting humans. I moved the slime miniature soldiers that Lime had hardened and crafted on the map spread across the table.
"Orcs in Ras Village, elves in the Elven Forest. Then naturally, Ras Vegas will be emptied of troops, right? Who should go there?"
I placed two birds on Ras Vegas.
"Andras and the Harpy Angels will be stationed here. There are also Stone Golems outside the double walls, so they’ll serve as a sufficient defensive line until the orcs return to Ras Vegas through the portal."
Andras units, harpies, and Stone Golems in Ras Vegas. The massive human force that would pour out of Spica Castle would find itself right in the center of the giant triangle formed by Ras Vegas, Ras Village, and the Elven Forest.
"And the final vertex of this encirclement."
Spica Castle. Unlike the other positions, we wouldn’t be dispatching dozens of troops here, but the perfect operative for striking at the enemy’s leadership would be heading out.
"Lime, I’m counting on you."
"Leave it to me. Assassination, possible."
I entrusted Slabdoll Lime with the assassination of Baroness Virginia Virgo, the lord of Spica Castle and ruler of the barony. Every piece had already been set in place for this.
Complete isolation.
A massive subjugation force of 1,200 would suddenly find themselves unable to go anywhere. If everything went according to plan, we could even sweep them all away on the open plains if it came down to it.
"Let’s review everything one more time."
East, the Elven Forest. 40 Cream Elves. Captain: Cream Elf Nifela.
South, Ras Village. Approximately 100 orcs. Captain: Arthur.
West, Ras Vegas. Approximately 130 Andras, approximately 100 harpy types, 20 Stone Golems. Commander: Eila.
North, Lime--just 1. And Meri.
Plus approximately 50 non-combat personnel who would move flexibly as the situation demanded.
Rounding up generously, that was a total force of around 450. For a dungeon lord whose average capacity was only 40 to 60, it was a massive army beyond imagination.
’But even with all this, we’re still outnumbered by the humans.’
Mercenaries drawn here by two things: the Saintess’s orders and the power of money.
Some citizens who had volunteered as adventurers, seeking to kill the Demon King’s forces and avenge their dead families, or to rescue hostages.
Standing soldiers who hadn’t participated in the previous Zabiyaba assault and had stayed in reserve at Spica Castle, only to finally be called up this time.
All of them had united under the name of "adventurers" conquering a dungeon, forming a massive force of 1,200 that was targeting our dungeon under the command of the Holy Knight Commander.
"We may be outnumbered, but overcoming that numerical gap is exactly what tactics and the art of command are for. Is everyone ready?"
Everyone gathered at the table nodded.
Through countless exchanges of ideas in reality, in the dream world, and in the training room, the large-scale operation they had painstakingly crafted was finally about to begin.
"Eila. I’m heading back to the dungeon. When I send the signal, begin the operation immediately."
"The signal...? What kind of signal?"
"Normally before waging a war like this, you’d pray to the heavens. This time, I’d like to test my ’luck.’"
It was nearly midnight. While everyone else moved to their positions for the operation, I headed with Shaitan to the place where I would put my luck to the test.
Flauros Dungeon. In front of the training room.
"Can’t skip the daily quest. Hehehe."
One daily gacha pull.
Summoning a subordinate through the summoning facility, hatching an egg through sowing, and farming magic stones.
"I’m here!"
"...."
Lucifer, buried in Flauros’s roots, was staring at me with her fighting spirit ablaze.
