Chapter 18 - Episode 18: Witch

A team was sent by the Holy Kingdom of Qualia to investigate the disaster.

After the negotiations with them had failed and ended with annihilation, Atou quickly disposed their corpses and reported back to her King.

"Witch... That's a story I've never heard of in 'Eternal Nations'."

''Yes, Takuto-sama."

"I'm convinced after this encounter. This world doesn't belong to Eternal Nations, after all. There are parts of the game's system that apply to it, but we have to think of it as something completely different."

When they arrived in this world, Takuto and his team gathered various information.

One of the conclusions they came to is that this world is different from the game "Eternal Nations."

The main reason for this conclusion is about civilization.

Neither the Holy Kingdom Qualia nor the El-Nar Spiritual Alliance is present in Eternal Nations.

In addition to that, the two nations had an existence called a 'Saintess' that made them powerful.

Besides, various other factors indicate the unique laws of this world.

Something called "transfer to another world"...

Takuto remembers the fantasy genre that was popular in some parts of his life.

"That's the result of analyzing the holy knight memories that Atou has stolen, am I right?"

"Yes, sir. I can only see the parts of memories that they had strong feelings for just before their deaths, but even so, I understood some of what they were going through.

They lived in relative peace before they got to their current situation and had not experienced any major military conflicts in the last few decades.

There's no confirmation about the existence of a strong leader. If we're going to judge this as a player, it's definitely at the novice level."

"Is the mayhem in Northern Province also included?"

Atou has a skill to take away a destroyed unit's ability.

Although it was the first time, they knew of it when they arrived in this world.

This ability also allowed her to read the strong thoughts that her opponent had when they died.

That mechanism, which was not present in the game at all, was both convenient and worrying at the same time.

It's proof that their common sense and rules don't apply, and it's also a wake-up call that if they follow the game setting and run the state, there will be a severe problem at some point.

Takuto felt as if he was being told that this wasn't a game and that it was real, but he ignored the thought and turned his interest to something else.

The conclusion was witches are believed to be the cause of the mayhem at Northern Qualia.

This is a topic of discussion that must be the top priority at this time.

How will this event, an uncertainty, affect their country?

If Qualia were to fall in the unlikely event, would it be their turn next?

Before that, is there any possibility that with the annihilation of the earlier investigation team, Qualia will set their eyes on them?

Various worries came and swirled in Takuto's head.

"We are fortunate that Qualia does not have sufficient military capacity due to problems in the Northern Province. The chances of Qualia sending troops in large numbers here were reduced."

"So, the reason two of the black sheep holy knight sent for investigation is just in case they need to cover up the situation if something happens."

Even if it was small, the information that Holy Knight Verdel possessed was quite useful.

Because their country had a state system, the conflict between the states was intense, and Takuto found that they were pulling each other down.

Furthermore, the complex political system that is common in gigantic organizations results in a slow decision-making process.

An oracle of a Saintess had given signs of disaster in the Daijukai. Still, they actually don't want to confirm and take care of it because it will cause chaos in the country.

Therefore, they carried out investigations to sneakily hide the problem. That alone can be considered as stupidity.

Takuto was disgusted by the glitches in the Qualia organizational system. But he shook his head that it was probably an inevitable situation to maintain a nation that huge.

"We are all united by our loyalty to Takuto-sama. So why should we worry about it as much as we do about our own country?"

"Thank you."

That being said, the witches' presence and the problems that Qualia had also made the Mynoghra situation more favorable.

The fact that Qualia are pouring their energies into dealing with the mayhem in the Northern provinces is making things easier for the Mynoghra. They may have to be grateful for that.

While it is weird that another good civilization, the El-Nar Spiritual Alliance, has remained silent, the fact that there is no sign of movement from them will benefit Takuto and the others.

Takuto thought, rather than letting them go home and ending up peacefully behind the surface, it would be better to kill them all.

The longer the secrecy lasted, the more advantageous it would be to them.

If possible, he wanted to avoid having their existence exposed until they created another hero.

.....There was no pity for those who died there at all.

"Um, Takuto-sama—"

"Have you been able to find out anything about the witch?"

Atou was about to ask him something, but Takuto interrupted the question.

He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he missed Atou's words.

Of course, the first priority for her is Takuto.

If the king has questions, then there is no reason not to answer it.

Moreover, if she opened her mouth to ask, there might not be a moment's pause for thought.

"Unfortunately, there wasn't much information about the Witch... but I knew that it was causing damage to the qualia army and cities, I know one of the name of the two Witches."

"What?"

According to the Holy Knight's memory, there were currently two witches identified in the Holy Kingdom of Qualia.

Takuto couldn't help but be surprised that they had already caused massive damage. Still, he was more concerned about their identities.

What kind of person is the Witch who is identified by Atou?

Glimpsing the memory of the Holy Knight Verdel, Atou unpleasantly said a name that made the king feel uncomfortable.

"The Sobbing Witch, it was a nickname that remained in his memory."

What does the name really mean?

It probably represented the ability of one of the Witch. Still, it was certainly not a good thing.

Of course, Takuto knew that they may also belong to the evil side...

"Maybe there are others like us ..."

The Northern mayhem seemed to have occurred recently.

In fact, it seems that no information on that thing before the dark elves was expelled from their homeland.

So there is some overlap in time.

In other words, Takuto and Atou are in a strange coincidence with the time that Mynoghra came to this world.

Other forces came to this world besides themselves.....

Atou's expression was filled with anxiety.

Because it was clear that if her fears were to become a reality, it would be a terrible situation.

"What would we do? If they have the same evil attributes, I think there is some friendly connection there ..."

"Hmm ... somehow, but we can't understand each other, right?"

"That's, that's right ..."

Takuto judged that calmly as he put a hand over his chin.

Atou nodded, looking a little troubled as she could only agree with him.

As it should be.

The only evil beings they knew were those whose behavior was far from the concept of understanding each other...

"The evil attribute is basically just people with their heads screwed up... And they want to destroy the world, right? What do they want to do by destroying the world? Stop that kind of behavior that never thinks of a further step afterward! "

"Ba-...basically, it's like their goal is to destroy the world and then destroy themselves."

"I've had enough of typical villainous moves."

"Evil beings basically do not get along with each other. They are uniformly lacking in cooperation and friendship. Their subordinates, the people, etc. are basically just pieces of pawn to accomplish their own goals, and other nations, or whatever their attributes are, are only enemies."

"I understand..."

There may be exceptions, of course, but it would be best not to expect too much.

After all, it was clear that whatever forces were currently in place, their relationship with Mynoghra would be like water and oil. Mynoghra wished to operate peacefully.

"The problem is there are witches in the Northern Province. Are they part of a civilization that appear in the "Eternal Nations" world?"

"The heroes of civilization in Eternal Nations are all powerful beings. Their presence will inevitably cause chaos in the world."

"Even if they not, it's almost certain that the Witches already have hero unit-class combat power ... that's troublesome."

"Although there are various factors, do we have the power to hold down the great power army? Just thinking about it makes me feel uncomfortable. I still want to have more heroes in our country."

The time will come when we will meet each other.

Takuto obscurely thinks. Their goal is to make Mynoghra prosper at all costs.

Although we don't intend to strike out, there are often times when the situation does not allow us to.It would also be natural if the force incompatible with Takuto's policy will turn their fangs on them.

There may not be much time to spare. Takuto let out a big sigh at the unpleasant world situation.

"Maybe we should consider heroes other than Isla. It might be better to make it a unit with better combat skills."

"Yes, it'll take a while before we can collect the magic power needed to produce a hero. But every time we produce a hero, the magic power and skill level required will increase. I think it's necessary to re-examine."

To produce a hero, various resources, magic power, technology is needed.

Though Takuto has managed to prepare the necessary costs to create additional heroes in the current situation, it would take a lot of time.

In other words, he must choose the next hero he creates carefully.

Suppose he summons Isla, a useful, but her combat ability is not so convincing. In that case, he may find himself in a checkmate situation in a blink of an eye.

Takuto recalls the memory of many child bugs produced by Isla in the game plane before his death, which were wiped out in just one turn by the magic used by the enemy heroes.

Witches and Saintesses. He has to be careful in choosing his battle force.

So he decided to use preliminary measures to deal with various things and decided to make significant changes to that policy.

"The strategy should be flexible. Depending on the situation from time to time--and then I'd like to change my original course a little bit."

"Understood. What kind of change?

"'An ally, I like to have a friendly country just in case."

"What!? An ally? ...Is that possible?"

Atou's surprised reaction was natural.

It was a strategy taken for granted in the management of a nation. Still, it was a bit challenging for Takuto, who has a communication disorder issue.

Besides, it was also a rather tricky strategy for Mynoghra, who had an evil attribute.

Frankly, she couldn't see the path to success.

"Of course,... That's only if the other party get benefits. But it will be limited to countries with neutral attributes..."

"Hmm, is it a nation near the forest? Surely, if there is something strange going on in the world, eventually they will have to soften their attitude."

"Though, it won't happen if we don't open our cover."

There is a human city closest to the Daijukai. We will need to do more investigations, but depending on the situation, it is possible.

They may not make a great impression on the first encounter, but even so, as long as the other side is not a nation-seeking domination, there is room for negotiation.

Furthermore, they would obtain a variety of resources, goods, and services through the exchange.

There are some things Mynoghra can give them, too.

In case of an emergency, they can work together to take on the enemy. 

Takuto carefully observes the visions that emerge in his brain and decides on a future strategy.

It was a bit of a gamble, as there was a risk that their opponents would become enemies. Still, if they succeeded, they would be able to strengthen their position to some extent.

It might be better to take the initiative here.

That was the final decision Takuto made.

"Then let's call the dark elves and work out the details of our policy as soon as possible."

Atou immediately acted to respond to her king.

*Strike while the iron is hot, on behalf of Takuto, she left to the elf village.

Takuto, who had already given words of encouragement, stared into the void while sitting alone on his throne in the royal palace.

Sitting quietly, as if there was no emotion on his expression.

= Eterpedia ============

[Witch] Unit type

A witch is a special unit.

There are only seven of them in the world simultaneously, and all of them have powerful abilities and combat skills from the beginning.

Besides, witch units often can cast debuffs against enemy units. In the presence of a large number of troops, A Witch or a Saint is essential to defeating them.

Once defeated, it cannot be reproduced, so careful operation is required. It is also a critical unit for gameplay.

The witches currently known are as follows.

"Seven Evil Witch that acknowledged as the Hydragia Continent disaster."

>The Sludge Witch Atou

>The Sobbing Witch Eracino

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