I explained the traps I had prepared to the heroes.
If everything went according to plan, these traps could annihilate the Goblin Legion in a single stroke.
As I finished explaining, all the heroes looked astounded, their mouths agape. I couldn't help but smirk.
'I've decided to stand above the rules of the game.'
Therefore, I'll use everything at my disposal. Squeeze out every trick in the book.
If one doesn't work, try two; if two fail, then three; keep going until it works...!
"But we can't just rely on these traps and neglect our defense preparations."
The battlefield is unpredictable.
That's why the most crucial thing is the conventional tactics, honed by training and experience.
"It's my role to bring forth variables with unexpected traps. And your role, should these traps fail, is to carry out a standard defense."
I meticulously assigned each hero party the roles they needed to play in the upcoming defense.
This defense was likely to be prolonged.
From the forward base in front of the lake to the 3 days it would take for them to reach Crossroad, and then the defense at Crossroad stronghold itself.
It could be a long, messy, and dreadful fight.
What the soldiers needed in such a situation was a clear and core set of principles for action.
To not forget what they must do, even amidst the chaos of battle.
I worked hard to instill this into each party.
"Next is the information about the Goblin Legion."
I briefed them on the enemy we would be facing.
The Goblin God-King, Kali-Alexander.
And the field commanders who conveyed the king's orders, the Goblin Amir.
The elite guards who moved like the limbs of the king, the Goblin Janissaries.
And the regular Goblin soldiers...
A massive force unlike any we'd faced before, totaling 50,000. Not so much a wave as a tidal wave.
"Don't think of them as ordinary Goblins. They are an 'army' with good equipment and under the command of an intelligent commander."
I shared with them the equipment used by these creatures we encountered in the game.
Despite being Goblins, they managed cavalry units, professional archers, and even had chariot corps.
"I hope my traps will deal a fatal blow... but we must be prepared for the opposite case."
Now it was time to discuss the standard strategy we would need to adopt for this battle.
I pointed at the forward base on the map hanging on the reception room wall and said,
"First, we abandon the forward base."
Perhaps because it seemed like I was giving up the forward base too easily, the heroes were shocked again.
But I could assure them of this: if we face the Goblin Legion, the forward base will fall. It's inevitable.
The forward base is right in front of the Black Lake. If the Goblin Legion attacks in full force, we won't stand a chance against their numbers.
No matter how well we fight, the forward base will be overrun.
"But we can't just give away the forward base for free. Think of all the hard work and effort it took to rebuild it."
The thought of the money and manpower that went into rebuilding the forward base was almost enough to bring tears to my eyes.
Not to mention the artifacts installed there and the additional stone walls constructed—everyone worked extremely hard on those.
We can't simply hand it over.
"So first, we hold out at the forward base, inflict as much damage as we can on them, and then-"
Snap!
I flicked three spiral shapes drawn on the forward base on the map.
"We bounce. Through the teleport gate."
In the original game, if a forward base fell, the defending forces would be wiped out without question.
But in this reality, we can build something game-breaking—a teleport gate.
Thanks to this, a safe retreat is guaranteed. So, we can fight to the end.
'...I remember a story I heard once from Coco the Severer, who creates teleport gates.'
Coco the Severer had said:
- It's not difficult to enter another world. The problem is coming back to reality.
- You must carry a firm beacon of 'self' to resurface in this reality.
- Because of this, those who are not sure who they are sometimes disappear during teleportation magic. They lose the lighthouse's light and drift away.
- Perhaps that's why beings born from nightmares can't use teleportation magic. If they enter a teleport gate, they're all swept away to the other side of oblivion.
I'm not sure about the complicated reasons, but anyway, monsters can't use teleport gates. Instead, they can destroy them.
A safe passage that the enemies can't use!
We must exploit this damn good facility to the end.
"We have expanded to three teleport gates at the forward base. A small elite force will use the prepared artifacts and defensive weapons at the base to deal maximum damage, then escape through the teleport gate."
It's a pity to lose the forward base, but it's not as precious as the soldiers' lives.
"After that, while the enemies move north, we will continue to pour guerrilla attacks using small hero parties."
The road from the Black Lake to Crossroad, which usually takes three days.
There are teleport gates installed here in the past as well.
We will continuously bombard them with firepower using these gates and withdraw, accumulating as much damage as possible.
"When the enemies reach the front of Crossroad... we will use all our accumulated know-how to take down the remaining ones to the best of our ability."
Kill zone.
Death loop.
Crossfire.
The walls and artifacts.
My heroes and soldiers.
Against their overwhelming numbers, we too go all out. Total War. We will use everything at our disposal.
'The real thrill of a defense game is in grinding down the nonsensical numbers of the enemy with our arrangement and tactics.'
...If the traps I've prepared work well, we won't even have to get this far.
Nevertheless, we load all the ammunition we can shoot. No amount of preparation is too excessive.
With that, my lecture on the traps I've set and the standard tactics to adopt if the traps fail was concluded.
Then followed a detailed tactical discussion with the party leaders, and the meeting continued.
***
The long meeting ended as it was almost evening.
As I sent the heroes away and stepped outside, I saw a red-haired mage sitting idly in the chair in front of the reception room.
It was Lilly. I waved at her and approached.
"Lilly! I was just about to visit your alchemy workshop to discuss things with you. But you're here first?"
"..."
"By the way, you're not participating in this battle. Focus on managing the artifacts on the wall."
To prepare for the defense, we had installed almost all of Crossroad's artifacts on the wall.
Lilly, who was in charge of using these artifacts, realistically could not participate in the battle.
And there was a bit of consideration as well.
'Lilly was attacked by goblins when she was young.'
Her village had been raided by goblins. She lost her family then, and to avoid being hurt by the goblins' spears and swords, Lilly awakened the trait [Flame Skin].
A trait that deflects all physical attacks at the expense of magic power. It was very handy when breaking through Stage 0.
...Assigning Lilly to combat goblins was a command too cruel by any measure. Thus, I never intended to deploy her in this defensive battle from the start.
'Now that I think about it, wasn't it an elven slave under the care of Lilly's family who had opened the village barriers during that attack...'
It was a tale I had heard a long time ago, but the memory came back to me.
It was the story Lilly shared when she first met Godhand, which led to her disdain for elves.
And yet, now they were in a relationship.
They seemed to have argued again this morning, though...
"..."
Turning away from Lilly, who sat with a gloomy expression, I saw Godhand had approached and stood before her with a stern face.
"..."
A dark and awkward silence hung between the two.
Feeling the awkwardness myself, I hastily backed away with a fake cough. Sshh.
'This is exactly why I don't date...'
Seriously. It's not that I can't. It's just that it's too complicated, too much to worry about, too many heartaches. That's why I choose not to.
Seriously.
No, really!
"...Lady Lilly."
Godhand, as if resolved to something, stepped forward.
"We need to talk more..."
"Let's do it later, Godhand."
Lilly offered a bitter smile and avoided Godhand's gaze.
"I need to discuss the artifact installation with His Highness."
"..."
Godhand closed his mouth and stepped back, while Lilly signaled me with her eyes.
"Let's go, Your Highness. Time is of the essence, we need to finish the installation quickly."
"Yes, yes..."
Lilly pushed the wheels of her wheelchair and moved ahead.
Godhand remained rooted to the spot, watching her departing figure.
In the midst of this, I hesitated before quickly following after Lilly.
'This is why romance on the front lines... No, romance within the squad is problematic!'
My heroes in love on the front lines, I beg of you! If you're going to date, see it through to marriage and a harmonious life! Otherwise, if it ends, it turns the atmosphere terribly sour!
***
Forward Base.
Arriving here with Lilly, we could see workers busily constructing stone walls, despite the sun preparing to set. The alchemists were also diligently installing artifacts.
Lilly was drained of energy, but she performed her tasks meticulously.
We reviewed the artifacts installed at the Forward Base, discussing their operational sequence and combination efficiency.
As we finished inspecting the Forward Base's artifacts, Lilly, with a sigh, said,
"Your Highness, you are truly remarkable."
"Huh?"
I was startled. Why the sudden praise?
"Since the time we faced the Black Spider Legion here. You've never given up, no matter how dire the circumstances, always managing to secure victory."
"..."
"If it were me... I would have given up long ago."
Lilly shook her head slowly.
"You know? When an insurmountable wall appears before us, most would despair and give up."
Her hand pressed hard against her immobile legs.
"Only heroes like you, who think of ways to overcome the wall and actually do it, change the world. I don't have that kind of courage or will."
"Lilly."
"I'm... just a normal human. So..."
"Lilly!"
Interrupting her, I offered a broad smile.
"Did it seem to you that I've been overcoming those walls at once?"
"...Yes. That's what you did, isn't it? You never failed..."
"No."
Standing before Lilly, I smiled faintly.
"To overcome just one wall, I failed 741 times."
"...What?"
"No, in reality, far more than that. Completely shattered."
There were 741 attempts just in the game rounds.
Within those rounds, countless defeats I had to face.
How many times I had to suffer defeat before I got the hang of this game.
"I wonder if you know how many battles I've lost on my way here, or how many subordinates I've had to watch fall."
"..."
Lilly had a look of incomprehension, but I continued nonetheless.
What's important isn't how many times I've failed. It's about the possibility of failure that might be in front of her.
Because that fear of failure...
"I'm just an ordinary human like you, Lilly. I'm scared of failure, and right now, I want to run away and give up."
"..."
"But there's something about myself I take pride in. Yes, I never gave up."
On the 742nd attempt,
I finally reached the end of the game.
And trusting the memory of that victory, I'm challenging it once again.
"There are no great people in this world, Lilly. There are only ordinary people facing great challenges."
...That's not my line, just a quote from some famous soldier on Earth.
But I like it.
Because I truly believe it, too.
"Everyone faces walls in their lives. And whether those walls are high or low, the very act of attempting to overcome them, I believe, is greatness."
Whether it's facing a monster,
Battling against prejudices,
Or interracial marriages, whatever it may be—
All challenges against the wall are great.
"Lilly. You've already overcome great challenges. You helped me defeat the Black Spider Queen and even with your inability to walk, you've been working flawlessly here as the lead magician at the front against the monsters."
I moved behind Lilly and took hold of the handles of her wheelchair.
"Even if you decided not to scale one more wall and gave up now. Everyone would understand."
"..."
"But if you choose to overcome this wall too... I'll give it my all to help you. As just another ordinary person by your side."
"..."
"What do you want to do?"
Lilly, head bowed, finally let out a choked voice after a long silence.
"...I like it, Godhand."
I couldn't help but give a small smile.
Lilly clenched her fist tightly and declared as if making a vow,
"I want to be with that person for the rest of my life..."