sampah

Gobta, of course, ignored all this and asked a question.

“Huh. What d’you mean by that?”

“Ah, thank you for asking, Gobta! How to put it? My younger sister gripes at me all the time, you see. She keeps saying I should think about things from a more feminine perspective.”

“What d’you mean by that?” Gobta asked again, taking a bite out of his roast.

“That’s the thing, Gobta. Here we are, enjoying this meal, not worrying about whoever might be seeing us. But Testarossa and Ultima can’t afford to follow our lead in that respect, no?”

Now Zonda understood what Gabil was driving at. It made sense to him. Until he obtained a physical body, food had never been a requirement for him—and so he had forgotten something quite basic. Good cuisine, after all, was about more than just taste.

“Gee, Gabil, that’s a very good point! Not the kinda thing you normally say at all, either!”

“No, no, it’s something I’m working on as well, you see. Of course, it’s honestly more something Sir Rimuru taught me, but…”

Gabil began to spin an anecdote from when he asked Rimuru for advice not long ago. “Rimuru,” he had said to him, “I want to be as popular with the women as you are. What do you suggest I do?”

“You’re asking me that? Because, look, I’m still a virg—uh, never mind. Gabil, let me give you this piece of wisdom. If you want girls to like you, you gotta learn how to be delicate. Do that, and they’ll naturally flock to you.”

That, Gabil proudly explained, was what Rimuru had told him.

“Then I remembered what Soka told me. And it dawned on me that Rimuru was just advising me not to do anything a woman wouldn’t like—the most basic of things!”

Everyone was impressed by Gabil’s impassioned argument. Sir Rimuru strikes again, in a way. If he was overhearing this, he definitely would’ve blushed—good thing he wasn’t around, then, because nobody else was going to stop Gabil from prattling on about him.

“Lady Ultima, Lady Testarossa, please accept my apology. I promise I will do my best to meet your expectations the next time I cook for you.”

With a graceful bow, Zonda stepped in front of Ultima and Testarossa and took a knee.

“Look at that. You’ve got quite a talented servant. And meanwhile, look at mine…”

“What are you talking about? Moss seems perfectly useful to me. And if Cien’s working in your place, Testa, he must be incredibly good at paperwork, right? My servants are more about manual labor, so I envy you having someone you can assign those kinds of chores to.”

“Well, Ult, maybe you’re right. No point asking for what you can’t have, though.”

Testarossa and Ultima continued talking, all but ignoring the kneeling Zonda. Their attitude might’ve seemed cold to Gobta and the rest, but it was actually quite the opposite. Being at the pinnacle of demons as they were, they rarely even took any interest in other people, let alone praised them. Veyron and Zonda, fully aware of this, became noticeably nervous when their names came up—but at the same time, they felt a sense of elation, like their souls were set aflame, basking in the recognition their masters offered them.

But not everybody picked up on this.

“Boy,” Gobta said, “it’s tough being a lady, huh? Like, I guess they’re asking you for that thing where you have to cut it into small bites so it’s easier to eat, right? I get what Gabil’s saying, but honestly, that’s too much work!”

“Gobta, that’s the sort of thing you should never say out loud, no matter how strongly you feel about it. It’s the first step, you see, to becoming a gentleman. That—yes, that—was what Sir Rimuru taught me.”

“No, no, I understand that, okay? But this is a battlefield. You gotta eat when you can and not ask for fancy stuff. As a corps leader, I think that’s the right way to act around here!”

As long as I can eat, Gobta thought, what’s it matter what it is? And given they were in a soon-to-be war zone, he felt justified pointing out how selfish it was to say something like that. The fact that he was appointed the leader of an entire army gave him a sense of responsibility—and what’s more, he wanted to show his soldiers that he was just a bit cooler than all of them, or so he thought.

That’s why he said it. And he was right. It was a perfectly valid argument. But sometimes, people just won’t listen to the truth. And Gobta probably should have thought about that first.

“Gobta’s a pretty funny guy! That was actually hilarious!”

“You said it. I’m so glad I’m assigned to him.”

Ultima and Testarossa were all smiles. Their eyes, on the other hand, weren’t smiling at all. Oh, man, thought everybody but Gobta, these demons are serious trouble.

“Wh-whoa, Gobta. Um, Commander Gobta? Let’s keep it at that. I’m sure our intelligence officers understand, so…”

It was Gobchi, one of Gobta’s aides-de-camp, who hurriedly stepped up to stop him. He knew Gobta enough to realize that his superior officer had no ill intentions; he was just expressing his honest opinion. To him, Gobta wasn’t wrong about a thing. But in this world, being right wasn’t enough to guarantee your survival. Some people simply didn’t listen to valid arguments. As a goblin who knew how to read a social situation, Gobchi knew that Testarossa and Ultima were two people you did not want to get on the wrong side of. After all, common sense dictated that someone who enjoyed a little teatime on a battlefield was unconventional, to say the least.

Gobta, he said to himself, you really shouldn’t be lecturing those two! And as he predicted, Gobta was in a terrifyingly dangerous situation. Testarossa and Ultima weren’t angry or anything. They simply thought he was an interesting toy. But if a pair of Primal Demons thought of him as a toy, it meant nothing less than Gobta’s life hanging in the balance.

But then a miracle happened.

“Hey, uh, Testarossa, you got a moment to chat?”

Rimuru chose this exact second to throw Testarossa a contact-terminal call. Gobta’s life was spared for another day.

“Not a problem at all. What can I do for you, Sir Rimuru?”

Testarossa kneeled on the spot. Those around her immediately realized whom she was currently in “contact” with. It wasn’t long before everyone else was on their knees, although Rimuru wasn’t aware of that.

“Oh, um, wait one sec,” he nonchalantly said before sending a Thought Communication Gobta’s and Gabil’s way: (Are we connected now?)

(Yes, sir!)

(I am on the line as well, my lord!)

They both sensed Rimuru nodding. But the next thing he said surprised them all.

“I’ve just finished a meeting with King Gazel. We decided that the Tempest forces would take the lead against the Empire, but before that, we’re gonna go to the bargaining table with them.”

He really wanted to launch a preemptive attack, he explained, but before that, they planned to reach out and offer them a chance to surrender. Then Rimuru went on to explain his arrangement with Gazel, Testarossa and the others listening in without interrupting. Once he was done:

“So, Sir Rimuru, you’d like me to represent you in that negotiation?”

The ever-perceptive Testarossa spoke up first. She was confirming it for politeness’s sake, but in her mind, it was already settled business. The problem, then, was how to entrap the Empire.

“Ah, yeah, I would. As a diplomat, I’ll let you keep your authorization to act with my full powers if need be. You may also consult with me any time via Thought Communication, and you’ll still have the same status as a corps commander, so I want you to work with Gobta and Gabil to get the job done.”

“As you wish.”

Although she and Ultima were currently deployed as observers, Testarossa was also the commander of the Western Deployment. That army wouldn’t have a role to play this time, but it was still one of the largest in Tempest. In terms of rank, that put her on par with Gobta and Gabil, so she made the perfect candidate for an emissary to the Empire.

“Right. Great. Now, I imagine you’re gonna be exposed to some danger in this job, but are you okay with that?”

Rimuru seemed concerned, but Testarossa had already gleefully accepted the post.

“Nothing wrong with that, no. I will gladly show the ignorant citizens of the Empire the full majesty of your glory.”

“Okay, um, cool? I mean, I’d like to avoid war if possible, but I don’t think that’s gonna be doable this time, so…”

“So we will declare the Empire our enemies and lay waste to it, then?”

“…Huh?! Well, like, I guess, but—”

“Then leave this negotiation to me, Sir Rimuru. If they are foolish enough to reject your merciful ultimatum, they do not deserve to breathe for another minute. I will destroy each and every one of them.”

Testarossa was ready to kill. It visibly dismayed Gabil. I’d much rather not have this terrifying woman in my life, he thought. Gobta, on the other hand, was still running on Gobta time.

(I don’t think you have anythin’ to worry about, Sir Rimuru. Testarossa’s just talking a big game because she’s excited for her first trip to the battlefield. I’ll be supporting her every step of the way, so we’re rock-solid over here!)

It was a bold declaration for someone as socially oblivious as him.

(Wait, you’ll join her?!)

(Of course! I’m commanding an army; I got a responsibility to uphold, and part of that job is to keep our more vulnerable women protected.)

Gobta stuck his chest out proudly at the stunned Rimuru. Even Testarossa had to chuckle a bit.

This goblin… He’s a fool, but I can’t hate him for it.

Being misunderstood to this extent even made Testarossa want to laugh it off. The fact that he totally failed to notice that she wasn’t even trying to hide her brutality… He was a real my-way-or-the-highway guy, she had to admit.

(…All right. Then I’ll send Ranga over as well, so both he and you can be Testarossa’s bodyguards. If the Empire agrees to our demands, then great. If they don’t, it’s gonna be war right then and there, so try not to die on me, okay?)

(I’m on the job, Sir Rimuru. I got a lot of experience running from my opponents, y’know!)

(Ah yes, you do, don’t you? Then go make me proud, Gobta!)

With that, Rimuru shut off the Thought Communication. The monster armies now had their marching orders. Everyone fell quiet, collecting their thoughts…

“All right, we’re finally up! Let’s get this camp cleared out and get moving!”

Gobta’s command roared across the cave—and with it, the monster army began moving as a single entity.

As I gave the order to Testarossa’s group, the main thought on my mind was Hmm, this isn’t exactly what I was expecting…

Part of me began to wonder if they thought we were being too hasty but couldn’t say anything about it. Which, I mean, I get it. If you want to be all majestic as a demon lord, it’s not natural to act like you’re freaking out. I think I handled that the right way with them, but I couldn’t be sure.

Still, it’s amazing how much I can count on Testarossa. She’s such a refined woman, and I was confident she’d make sure the Empire knew just how dignified a ruler I was. She said she was going to annihilate the imperial army, but I wondered if she was serious about that? She couldn’t be, really…? But then again, she and Diablo are like two peas in a pod. That made her a big handful for me, too, and it made me realize she was probably being serious.

These Primals are extremely dangerous. Maybe I should stop her… Ah, but it’s too late for that, isn’t it? This is war. You’ll have all the time in the world to pity your adversary after you win.

Besides, I was already seeing some unexpected benefits there. By that, I’m talking about Gobta’s growth. Maybe it’s because I’d put him in a position of responsibility, but I could tell he was making a serious effort to live up to it. He really became a man, I guess, and the more he grew, the easier things would be for me. I wanted him to keep up the good work, but I was afraid he might step on a land mine pretty soon. Yes, it had been fun to watch as a spectator, but before Testarossa got really angry, I thought maybe Gobta oughtta be let in on the joke.

With this in mind, I spoke up.

“Ranga, you there?”

“At once!”

Ranga popped out from my shadow, tail wagging and looking all cute. I had an urge to sidle up and take a nap in his fluff, but I had to hold back.

“Ranga, team up with Gobta and protect him if anything happens.”

His tail froze mid-wag. After a moment of silence, he replied, sounding rather dejected.

“…I understand, my lord. When do you want me to leave?”

He was kind of acting like a kid who didn’t want to go on a car trip. It didn’t take more than a moment’s thought to realize what he was thinking, but my orders remained unchanged. As long as we didn’t know what the Empire was fully capable of, Gobta—and Gobta alone—remained a concern of mine.

“Right now, if you could, please.”

“I am off, then…”

With a hangdog look (pardon the pun), Ranga padded off. Did he hate being away from me that much…?

“Thanks. I’m counting on you, okay? Gobta’s gotten a lot more reliable lately, but I’ll feel so much better if you’re there for him!”

I felt kind of like a heel, but for now, I needed him to pitch in. So I gave him a few more parting words, and he immediately reacted:

“Leave this to me, my lord!”

Now he seemed to be glowing with motivation. His footsteps, languid up to now, were accelerating into a brisk trot. He can cast Spatial Transport anyway, so I was sure he’d make it to Gobta and the gang before they departed. Quite a relief.

“So we’re gonna be negotiating with the Empire, but it’s all but guaranteed our talks are gonna break down. Once they do, we plan to declare war on the spot and start fighting immediately. In which case, how should we position our forces…?”

By the sound of Testarossa, we were definitely about to have war on our hands. I’d really like to avoid it, but it’s impossible. If they’ve marched this deep into our lands, I sincerely doubted they’d go back without doing anything. At the very least, we’d need to tango with them one time, in order to show off our powers. But we were facing a tank battalion, an unknown force. An ill-advised strategy could seriously cost us.

We had to decide on our plan carefully. And that was exactly the moment when Benimaru would come into play.

“If Testarossa’s negotiations lead to war, our city will be immediately isolated inside the labyrinth,” he told me.

“In that case, we’d better call Ramiris.”

“Indeed. We’ve come this far. The war is about to start. I don’t think she’s going to be bored much longer.”

I feel it’s wrong to think of war as entertainment, but… This is where a monster’s way of thinking differs from a human’s, I suppose.

“So?”

As we planned, our city would be protected by the labyrinth, the world’s best defensive structure. We’d be fighting on our turf, and I’d like to believe that gave us the initiative. The problem was Gobta’s force.

“If you think about it, the two forces are well out of proportion with each other. But at the same time, the enemy is amassed into a gigantic ball, and along those lines, we can think of these tanks as a single monster. If anything, we have the advantage.”

That, and as Benimaru confidently explained, the supply troops who came with the tanks didn’t really even count as hostiles. I wasn’t so sure about that, but his self-assured words were very convincing. I decided to hear him out.

“However, if we deploy our forces too widely, they might fall victim to the tanks’ fire. I made a calculation of their estimated power based on the knowledge you shared with me, Sir Rimuru, and the results convince me that the Green Numbers won’t be able to stand up to it. Thus, for our first sortie against the Empire, I’d like to deploy the Goblin Riders alone.”

Huh? Isn’t that a bit harsh?

“You want to challenge them with only a hundred mounted forces?”

“That’s right. We will begin with that, to see how things go. If the enemy’s tanks are as I predict, we can win if we send the whole army into battle, but if they exceed our expectations, we will have to rethink our strategy at that point. So either way, we have to try to fight them, and when we do, I don’t want to needlessly rack up casualties.”

Benimaru coolly laid it out for me. As he put it, the goblins would be used as a touchstone—and if things really went south, Gobta and his Riders would wind up sacrificial lambs. But Benimaru was unfazed. In fact, he made this cold, calculated decision precisely because it’d be the most efficient thing to do.

“So what’ll happen to them in the worst-case scenario?”

“I’ve told them to use Shadow Motion to retreat as they see fit.”

Aha. And there was another reason why he couldn’t deploy the Green Numbers, huh? Benimaru was making his estimates of the tanks’ performance based on my memory—or my knowledge, I guess. But everything I knew about tanks had come from what I’d seen on TV, essentially, so it was all pretty vague. But I also had a powerful ally in Raphael, so as vague as my knowledge was, I thought I was able to give Benimaru some pretty accurate specs.

In addition to that, we already had visual confirmation of what the Empire’s tanks looked like. We knew the length and caliber of their guns, and we were also aware of the sub-weapons they were equipped with, a bit like machine guns. They manufactured these with otherworlder expertise, I’m sure, so it should be similar in operation. Their power and performance were unknown, but as we figured, if we just paid attention to the stuff we should be wary of, it’d all work out.

Benimaru’s estimations and Raphael’s calculations were within the margin of error to each other. It was safe to say that Benimaru’s plan was the right way. It was certainly better than anything an amateur like me could come up with anyway.

His plan was as follows: First, as soon as the battle begins, the one hundred-strong Goblin Rider cavalry will charge in unison. They’ll take advantage of their high-speed maneuverability, using erratic movements to give the tank guns no chance to aim. In this way, they should be able to avoid direct hits. Given their small size, they’ll be able to nimbly respond to any situation; in fact, if they’re lucky enough, they could use a stick-and-move approach to toy with their foes.

Hearing all that, I was convinced. If you’re scared, Benimaru apparently told Gobta’s team, you lose. Of course, you never knew what would happen on the battlefield. The enemy might try pulling something wild on us, and there was every chance they’d score a lucky hit or two. I know he said that nobody’s gonna die as long as they don’t score a direct hit, but you never know until you pop open the lid. That was why we had to make sure everyone understood to retreat immediately in an emergency.

“But running away, keep in mind, is the last thing any of us want to do. I’d never allow them to sully your prestigious name, Sir Rimuru.”

Now I was more afraid of Benimaru than the Empire.

“Well, don’t make them do anything rash, okay?”

“I’m afraid that’s impossible. In war, if you want to win, it’s the polite thing to give it your all.”

Benimaru briskly smiled at me, no hesitation on his face.

That was cool and all, but I had mixed feelings. I understood his point of view, but he was making it sound inevitable that someone was gonna get whacked out there. I don’t really give a crap about my prestige. Having it helps keep my nation’s name protected and all, but if we got ourselves killed to save our good name, wasn’t that defeating the purpose? Like, I just didn’t wanna see any of my friends hurt, so…

Well, let’s just assume the worst and make sure the Third Corps is on standby, ready to be transported in at any time. If I was fighting this myself, I thought with an uneasy look in my eye, I’d never have to worry about any of this.

Lieutenant General Gaster, Caligulio’s confidant and leader of the Armored Division, was commanding the Magitank Force for this expedition. He was a muscular and fearless man in his midthirties, and right then he was on the rear guard, sitting back in his state-of-the-art command vehicle and enjoying the atmosphere of the battlefield. The forest around him was as unchanged as always, with nothing to block their way.

Gaster, who had grown accustomed to this scenery, began mulling over the fame he would gain from this battle. I’m going to defeat the Armed Nation of Dwargon, an impregnable fortress for over a thousand years—and Gazel himself, the Heroic King. How thrilling can this get?

In his mind, he envisioned all the people cheering for him. It’d be the birth of a new champion who would go down in history as one of the greatest of all time. Just dreaming about it made Gaster’s heart soar. The man who defeated Gazel, the Heroic King, would have the epithet hero applied to him for eternity; it’d come in the not-too-distant future, guaranteed to happen. Gaster’s Magitank Force had enough war power to make sure of that.

Two thousand of these magical tanks were now lined up, moving in well-drilled unison. Their formation as they lumbered across the plains at the foot of the mountains was divided into twenty horizontal rows, each with a hundred tanks. It was a magnificent view, and Gaster couldn’t have been happier to see it…but he was already falling into his opponents’ hands. Each of these tanks was around thirty-five feet long by twelve feet wide—and with two thousand of them out at once, they couldn’t just go anywhere. Gaster deployed his troops in the exact location he had surveyed in advance, and that, it turned out, was exactly where Rimuru and his advisers had expected them to be.

Gaster had no idea this was going to happen, but he was an excellent soldier nonetheless. He was a lieutenant general, and as such, his personal combat skills were formidable. As he saw it, he was as good as any knight in the Imperial Guardians. The only reason I haven’t been selected, he reasoned, is because I haven’t had a chance to participate in ranking duels. Being in charge of a division like this is akin to being on military duty all the year through.

That irked him mightily. Of course, a lieutenant general is a high-ranking position; there were only a handful in the Empire, akin in social status to high-ranking nobility. He was well out of reach of the common person, no doubt, but that wasn’t enough to satisfy Gaster. Someday, he would replace Caligulio and become a full-fledged commander himself—and then he’d be a hero.

Gaster was an ambitious man—honor, not money, mattered to him. That was why he volunteered to wage the decisive battle against the Heroic King Gazel instead of conquering the labyrinth. And Gaster had more than enough ability to back up that ambition. He possessed the unique skill Performer, which gave him command over any sort of audio phenomena, allowing him to analyze situations in detail simply by listening to the sound around him. He could also use special sound waves to issue specific commands to people, leading his allies even in the middle of chaotic battle.

It was the greatest power an army officer could desire, but that wasn’t all. Performer could also be used as a vicious attack. Gaster could manipulate sound waves and manipulate them at will, using a sonic cannon to destroy the very cells of his foes. Clearly, Gaster was one of the most powerful people in the Empire.

Pfft! The Guardians might be strong and all, but only if they bear the legendary gear granted to them by the emperor! I deserve those weapons and armor far more than any of them…

If he could only get his hands on that Legend-class gear, he confidently believed, he, too, could join the lofty ranks of the Single Digits.

Gaster’s mind was occupied with all these fantasies, but he wasn’t letting his guard down during this op.

Hmm? Something changing in the forest?

The sound around him suddenly stopped. It was the first time he’d ever experienced such a thing.

“Abort camp preparations and take cautionary positions!”

Upon giving the order, Gaster focused more intently, turning his attention to the forest to his left. The atmospheric sounds of birds and animals had disappeared; no insects were chirping at all. There was something tense in the air…that, and the sound of small footsteps, as well as that of leaves rustling closer and closer. It was far-off but moving quickly.

They’re trying to take us by surprise. Not a bad move, but they picked the wrong foe to try it on.

Gaster chuckled to himself. Based on his analysis of the ambient sound, there were approximately a hundred figures approaching. They had intelligence that the demon lord’s forces were gathering near the inn town, so they likely deployed out from there. It was proof positive that Caligulio’s plans were working out well. The demon lord’s inn-town forces had completely missed the main body of the imperial army. And when a seven-hundred-thousand-strong army weighs down upon that demon lord’s throat, oh, the sheer panic they’d all experience! Just imagining the scene made Gaster smirk.

Now they were a bit over six miles away. Before much longer, they’d be in range of their magicannons. Those could fire up to nineteen miles away, at the expense of accuracy dwindling to near nothing; the actual effective range was more like one and a half or two miles. Of course, with the right type of explosive shells, you didn’t need to worry about accuracy.

This enemy force was small—and concentrated in a tiny area. Perhaps they thought they could use the trees as cover, as long as they didn’t go out in the open.

…Well, think again. First, let’s give ’em a salute to liven things up.

Their special ammunition was still in the prototype stage, so they could prepare only two rounds, but the blast radius could extend up to a hundred feet or so. The power of that explosion was currently unmatched by explosive magic, generating tens of thousands of degrees of heat and a concussive shock wave that could deform the terrain itself. It was a one-of-a-kind weapon, one only available on Gaster’s command vehicle, but he had no intention of saving it for a rainy day.

Without hesitation, he loaded it up and pointed the muzzle of his cannon into the forest. Then he barked out orders to his battalion; in the unlikely event that the enemy escaped, he wanted them to be ready to intercept.

“Left flank battalion, turn counterclockwise!”

The soldiers had been setting up tents for their encampment, but given that the Dwarven Kingdom was under twenty miles away, they were in a constant state of tension. As soon as they received the order from Gaster, they began calmly packing up the wagons the tanks were towing. It wasn’t long before everyone was ready for battle.

Without another moment’s hesitation, the left-wing battalion of five hundred tanks floated in the air, orienting itself toward the forest. Gaster and his men were ready—and as if waiting for that moment, a single monster appeared from the depths of the lush forest. It was wolf-shaped, with two horns growing out of its forehead, and its enormity was remarkable—a good sixteen feet long, making it look proportional to one of their tanks.

This has to be the Ranga monster reported by the IIB. They call him the demon lord’s pet or some such nonsense, but supposedly he ranks an A-plus in battle…

That made him a big deal, then.

“Just one? What are they thinking…? Wait.”

Gaster considered what this wolf’s mission was. If he came alone, he’s not here to fight. It’s probably serving as some kind of warning. It figures… You want to protect your position as demon lord, so you can’t take any half measures. Heh-heh-heh… You’ll regret that.

As Gaster saw it, his enemy wanted to intimidate him with Ranga’s towering presence, sapping his will to fight.

“It seems this Rimuru is quite a proud demon lord, isn’t he? Trying to protect his lofty reputation by giving up the chance to surprise us?”

He let out a loud, ringing laugh. His officers quickly joined him, melting the anxiety among their soldiers. They were at just the right level of tension.

Ranga was close to them now, his steps relaxed. He was showing no sign of a fight; as Gaster suspected, he was here to negotiate. He finally stopped about thirty feet away, right in front of the lieutenant general and his team. A woman who had been sitting sidesaddle on him gracefully jumped off his back, making hardly a sound as she did. Then without a care in the world, she walked right up to Gaster’s vehicle.

When he laid eyes upon her, this woman with beauty beyond what any human could possibly achieve, Gaster felt a chill run down his spine, like a dagger of ice had stabbed him.

…What? The sounds this woman makes… It’s so strange.

There was the sound of a heartbeat, but it was playing an eerie melody. He could hear her blood flow as well, but it was both faster and quieter than that of a human being. Too fast, even. If someone’s blood flowed that fast, it’d be far too much for the body to bear. Now Ranga didn’t even register to Gaster. His eyes were squarely upon the woman.

Her long pure-white hair flowed beautifully, accentuating her beauty, but her body was clothed in a stern military uniform that poorly matched her looks. The bottom of it resembled a pair of riding pants, with the thighs loosely bulging out. There was someone else riding on Ranga’s back, but he didn’t even register to Gaster—that’s how much the eerie presence of the woman had taken over his consciousness.

Who is she…? The IIB said nothing about her. Ranga’s considered a high-ranking official of the demon lord’s, and this woman’s far more dangerous than him!

Gaster felt justified in criticizing the Imperial Information Bureau. But there was no one here to complain to. More important right then was the fact that someone intimately close with the demon lord was here with him. So he spoke in a dignified voice to hide his overwhelming anxiety.

“You’re an emissary from the demon lord Rimuru, aren’t you? You contacted me quicker than anticipated, but I’m glad his officers are such thoughtful, talented people. So what is your business?”

The woman smiled sweetly at Gaster’s question. “It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Testarossa, and I serve the great demon lord Rimuru, ruler of these lands. As for why I’ve come here today…”

After saying that much, the woman’s smile widened. It was a smile of pure, unadulterated evil.

“I convey to you the words of my master: Leave here at once, and we will overlook this violation of our borders. But if you invade any farther, you will be shown no mercy.”

Testarossa’s bloodred eyes glowed as she made her statement. Gaster nervously gasped. He tried to say “Surely you’re joking” or the like, but before he could, Testarossa moved—just a light wave of the hand, but at that moment, a wall of flames appeared just a couple feet in front of the tank battalion’s first row. It was gone in an instant, but on the ground, the molten remains of the fire had formed a fine line of glass in the soil.

“Do I make myself clear? Cross this line, and your lives will be extinguished. If you are not prepared for that, stay where you are. Now, good day to you.”

Testarossa gave the lieutenant general a graceful bow, then turned on her heels and walked away, as if she had lost interest in the conversation. It was her way of stating that the time for negotiating was over. Ranga, of course, was wagging his tail at her. Only the small figure swinging around on his back still took notice of Gaster, but Gaster himself no longer cared.

H-how dare you make fun of me! Who the hell do you think you’re talking to?! And attempting such an obvious bluff in front of all this firepower!

He was furious, as if everything he ever believed in had been shattered, and it instantly cost him his composure. She had said what she wanted to say, and she hadn’t given Gaster’s side even a moment of her time—the kind of approach the Empire typically used on their foes. But receiving it back in kind had ignited Gaster’s anger, and any fear he felt before had disappeared.

So he made the wrong decision. He was around fifteen feet away from Testarossa, who was now exactly halfway between him and Ranga.

Think I’ll let you get away with this?

Gaster made up his mind. Courtesy to emissaries was not a concern for the Empire. If they surrender, fine. If not, prepare to be overrun with all our might. That was the Empire’s motto, and since Testarossa just insulted the Empire with her attitude, that was more than enough reason to begin hostilities.

“Can you hear me?”

“Loud and clear, sir!”

“Shoot that cocky bastard’s head off. After that, have the twenty tanks in front fire a simultaneous volley. Let’s show the demons lurking in the forest the majesty of our empire!”

Secretly, Gaster used his Performer skill to lay down his orders. The first to react was the sniper attached to his command vehicle. Quickly, he lifted up his rifle and took aim at Testarossa—and then the long-range spellgun fired off a silent shot. This was an enhanced version of the standard magic-powered spellgun, its range extended to over a mile; at only a couple dozen feet away, she was as good as dead. The bullet inside was infused with the elemental magic Fireball—and what would happen if a bullet filled with that ripped into your body? Well before the target could think about it, they’d explode into flames, burning from the inside out. Even if a monster was naturally resistant to magic, that resistance often didn’t extend to its internals.

There was no way to escape from a bullet traveling faster than the speed of sound, and Gaster was thus assured of Testarossa’s impending death. But the moment the bullet was released and over the threshold, Testarossa turned around—her face so evil, and so beautiful.

Gaster’s eyes widened in astonishment. The bullet that was supposed to pierce Testarossa’s body was stopped by a single, delicate index finger. This was a bullet fired at three times the speed of sound, packed to the gills with magic force—but that magic never released itself. Instead, it was helplessly plucked out of the air and discarded, like she was playing with some cheap toy.

“So that’s your answer? Well, lovely! A very fine one, too. Let’s make it a fair fight, then.”

With that, Testarossa joined Ranga, never looking back—and then they walked away, as if nothing had happened. Gaster almost fell into a panic, but he overcame it by sheer force of will. Fear and humiliation competed against each other in his mind, and humiliation won out. The rank-and-file soldiers had no idea what just happened; only he and the sniper accurately understood.

If that was how it was, time to continue as planned—and mow them down with the tank guns, their most powerful weapons. That was the best means he had to protect his pride as an imperial soldier.

“Lieutenant General, what should we do?”

“Don’t fall back! Don’t let her tricks and illusions deceive you! We are the glorious imperial army, and we will bring victory to His Majesty the Emperor! Begin the bombardment as planned…now!!”

Responding to Gaster’s shouted command, the tanks deployed on the left flank went on the move. The warning had been abjectly ignored. The first row trundled forward in order to build space between themselves—and with that, the glass boundary line was broken.

The war was on, and it came a lot more easily than expected. The imperial troops didn’t hesitate to step over the final warning line Testarossa had burned into the ground, and with that, we were at war with the Eastern Empire.

“It’s on, isn’t it?”

“Yes. And this is just the beginning!”

Ramiris and Veldora were talking to each other, acting all haughty and laid-back in their rather lofty chairs. I let out a sigh. This wasn’t a game; it was real war. I wished they’d brace themselves and treat this a little more seriously.

“Yeah, great, uh, can you get the town evacuated now, please?”

“Right on! Just leave it to good ol’ Ramiris!”

Ramiris cheerfully answered my request—and the next moment, without a sound, our capital city of Rimuru was quarantined in the Dungeon. I had delayed this quarantine until the very last minute so we could keep pretending to be oblivious to the enemy. But now the game was over. As soon as they ignored Testarossa’s advice, there was no need to hold back.

“Oh, I had a message from Treyni,” Ramiris said after effortlessly wrapping that up, as if she’d just remembered it.

“Mmm?”

“Like, she detected some fishy-looking character or something, so she’s gonna go greet them.”

“Huh? What’s that mean?”

“Well, I’m not sure I really know, either, y’know?”

A dumb question on my part. It was useless to ask Ramiris for anything in the way of details. She didn’t even work for me anyway, so I had no right to complain. Besides, we kind of got her wrapped up in this war, so I was grateful she was cooperating with us at all. And speaking of Treyni…she can be pretty damn lax about things, too, come to think of it.

“Soei, do we need to do anything about our intruders yet?”

I was a little worried, so I checked with Soei.

“They will not be a problem for now, sir. All we have to do is keep an eye on the gate placed on the surface, as planned.”

Well, I was glad I wasn’t overthinking it, then. It sounded like a few spies had made their way in, but Soei and his Team Kurayami were making quick work of them, so I guessed there wasn’t much to worry about.

Now, let’s take a quick look at the labyrinth’s structure. Floors 91 to 95 were now where Floors 96 through 100 used to be. The town of Rimuru on the surface had been transported lock, stock, and barrel to the lowest level, the temporary Floor 101. You had to defeat Veldora to reach this level, and common sense dictated that if things came to that, we’d be screwed anyway.

The real final defense we deployed would be on Floor 95. Floors 91 through 94 were now the Dragon Rooms, and if you got past them, you’d find yourself in the vast chamber where Veldora awaited. Behind that chamber was the Control Center we were sitting in now; if Veldora was defeated, we could buy some time in there, put the town back on the surface, and let the residents flee under Geld’s protection. It was, frankly, a desperation move, so I very much preferred if our floor bosses did their best for us instead.

Either way, we could at least be assured that the labyrinth was as defended as best as it possibly could be. Really, even if your typical army tried to break through Floor 95, it’d be impossible for them.

This being wartime, all usual Dungeon services were naturally suspended until further notice. We weren’t gonna sell any more Resurrection Bracelets, of course, and the inns and bathrooms were shut down, too. Any would-be visitors would need to bring all their own food and necessities. We even planned to cut off access to the water sources every five floors, which was bound to make things a lot harder. If you really wanted to “beat” the Dungeon, it’d take you days—months, even.

In a battlefield like this, bigger wasn’t necessarily better—in fact, having too big a force could really drag you down. Based on the intel Gadora and others gave me, nearly all imperial soldiers had undergone body augmentation, allowing them to go without food or drink for a week… But even so, I couldn’t imagine them having an easy time in the labyrinth. We ran simulations with several knight corps from the Western Nations, but the chances of successfully conquering this place were slim to none. Even if the Empire’s army was that much better than them all, it wasn’t gonna be a walk in the park for them.

So maybe I was worrying too much. Still, we better not let our guard down. The enemy might try to sneak their way through unnoticed, and we’d have to adjust our tactics based on what they tried. But either way, our preparations were now complete. We’d already informed our neighbor nations of the Empire’s movements, and I was sure they were all praying for our victory. If worse came to worst, the Western Deployment was on standby, and for everything else, they’d have to take action as the situation demanded.

Now it was time to return my attention to the battlefield.

Testarossa, regrouped with Gobta, was riding away on Ranga. The Empire’s tanks were behind them, giving chase, and judging by how their gun turrets were moving, they seemed ready to fire posthaste.

“Are they all right?”

“If they’re hit, probably not, but that’s unlikely to happen.”

Benimaru seemed intrepid as always. Wasting no time, he used his unique skill Born Leader to send orders to the First and Third Corps. The Tempest forces all began moving at once.

The Green Numbers now carefully advanced toward the enemy’s rear, entering the forest and using the vegetation as a shield as they made every effort to avoid enemy detection. If they could win the fight, they’d charge; if not, they’d retreat—but until they were sure either way, they didn’t intend to make any bold moves.

Gabil’s Team Hiryu, a hundred-strong corps of flying raiders, joined three hundred Wyvern Riders picked from the Blue Numbers in the skies. Their plan was to try attacking the slow, rumbling tanks from the air, which I thought was a good idea, but the enemy had airpower of its own. Once that stuff reached the battle site, that was when the real war would begin.

Finally, Gobta’s force was currently the closest one to the enemy. As long as we didn’t know what those tank guns could do, staying within range of them would be a death wish. They were still a healthy distance away from the advancing tanks, but as long as we didn’t know exactly what their range was, we needed to stay on guard.

That, and while I didn’t think the Empire was aware of the Goblin Riders yet, it looked like those tanks were ready to shoot. Maybe they had some kinda new weapon, one not even Gadora was aware of?

Report. Based on the tank guns’ orientation and angle, they are taking accurate aim. It is believed they have a sound grasp of the Goblin Riders lurking in the trees.

Huh? Uh, that’s bad, isn’t it?!

“Benimaru, I think the enemy has some means to locate the goblins!”

“Understood. I took that possibility into consideration, so Gobta’s force is the sole group comprising the advance team.”

I was the only one panicking; Benimaru was relaxed as ever. Apparently this was all part of the script, so I decided to trust Benimaru and watch how things went.

There were two thousand tanks in total. Five hundred of them had turned around, on patrol for the goblins, and the twenty tanks in the front row were about to fire their main guns. The one big notable difference between these tanks and the ones on Earth was that these had shorter barrels, maybe? They had been traversing the foothills of the mountain range, but they still had some thick vegetation to get through. Those short barrels probably made turning easy…or I suppose they were knocking down trees with brute force, too.

Still, ease of turning makes dense formations a lot easier to organize. All of them could turn quickly without worrying about bashing gun barrels against each other. I wasn’t sure they were long enough to provide a lot of accuracy and range, but that wasn’t for us to worry about. The fact that these tanks were in actual operation probably indicated that any problems along those lines were already worked out.

And what about Gobta’s team? Well, Gobta was already back with his troops. He looked pretty pale, but I doubted it was because he was scared of the tank squad. Perhaps he realized the truth about Testarossa, and it dawned on him how much danger he was actually in. Testarossa, meanwhile, was sitting on Ranga’s back, legs to one side as she gracefully ruffled his fur. When the negotiations were over, she apparently assumed her job was done. She did deserve a lot of credit for getting back safely like this. She could afford to knock off for a little while…but I didn’t think now was the right time for it.

As I was thinking about this, the tank guns finally opened fire. Twenty-one shells flew on in. It was hard to make out through the Argos system, but one shot fired from the command vehicle looked different from the others. What was that…?

“Gobta, In-Shadow right now!”

“All riders, In-Shadow!!”

Benimaru left my question in the dust as he gave the order. Gobta quickly responded. Without a moment’s pause, the Goblin Riders used Shadow Motion to disappear from the scene. Immediately afterward, a rain of shells pelted the area, a storm of twenty-one lethal blasts. It was a terrifying hellscape to imagine.

Understood. The caliber of the tank guns is 120 millimeters, so the mass of the shells is estimated to be approximately forty-six pounds. Based on the distance to the point of impact and the time of arrival, the velocity was found to be slightly under six times the speed of sound. The kinetic energy of each shell is proportional to its mass multiplied by the speed of flight squared. From these conditions, the muzzle energy and penetrative capacity can be calculated. The velocity drop is inversely proportional to the cross-sectional load, the air resistance is taken into account by simulating the surrounding environment, and these figures are multiplied by the magic power factor inside the shell—

Um, I hate to interrupt you while you’re having such a ball describing all this stuff to me, but…like, I don’t even know what a stick of dynamite can do, really, so if you could maybe give it to me in beginner terms…

…Acknowledged. In specific terms, a direct hit would shatter even the great gate of the Dwarven Kingdom. Not even an A-ranked dragon could withstand it. Anyone within fifteen feet of impact would be severely damaged by concussive force, and survival for anyone ranked C or below would be out of the question.

Right, thank you. Could’ve started with that, you know… Wait. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! That’s, like, real bad, isn’t it? That, plus there was that mystery shell mixed in with them. I began wondering if Gobta was really all right…but my fears were unfounded.

As soon as one shell landed, the ground exploded. Then it happened again, twenty times in a row, defacing the terrain. As soon as the last shot hit the target, the space the Goblin Riders were in burst into flames, a blast of wind and a localized thunderstorm ripping the land apart. All this carnage extended across at least a couple hundred feet, demonstrating the tremendous power of the blast.

That must’ve been the effect of the mystery shell. It was like a nuclear bombardment. How the heck did they develop this? Of course, I could only marvel at it because I knew Gobta’s gang was safe. Thanks to their instant response to Benimaru’s command, they had all Shadow Motion-ed out of there.

“Glad you’re okay.”

“I wouldn’t call myself okay, sir! The shock wave made it through to shadow space, too.”

“Anybody hurt?”

“No, we’re good on that. No casualties, thanks to Benimaru.”

Gobta replied in his usual cheery voice. I could hear him griping about how much it hurt or something, but—ah, I’m sure he’s okay. I’m not sure if Testarossa is capable of Shadow Motion, but she seems to be fine, so no need to worry about her.

For now, the big question is: What’s our next move?

Time to use Thought Communication to set up a conference call.

Benimaru, Gobta, Testarossa, and I were on the line. I also activated Mind Accelerate to make the best use of physical time as possible; that way, we could have a productive meeting in a matter of minutes.

(So what do we do now?)

I wanted to hear Benimaru’s opinion.

(Right now, Gabil and his troops are on their way to launch a raid on the enemy tank force. I’d like Gobta’s force to move out and help execute a pincer strike on them.)

Hmm.

(Isn’t that dangerous?)

(It is, but Gabil’s force will serve as a diversion. Gobta’s force will use that opportunity to attack. The tanks pack more destructive force than expected, but their mobility is within our expectations. We stand a good enough chance of winning.)

Bold words from Benimaru, to be sure.

Thanks to this little skirmish, we now knew that Gabil’s air force could fly faster than the tank guns could turn. According to Benimaru, if Team Hiryu focused on evasion, they wouldn’t be hit by any gunfire. He thought it’d be very hard to shoot them down, but…I mean, really, if I was flying around up there, I’d be pretty scared. Gabil, despite it all, was a pretty seriously brave dragonewt, so I didn’t think he’d have a problem with it, but still.

Benimaru had a point, though. As long as you were in flight, all you had to do was get out of the line of fire, and you wouldn’t take any damage. As for Gabil, well, I was sure his fighting spirit would get him through this.

That left Gobta’s team.

(Uh, we’re going in, too?)

(You’re going to be the star of the show. But don’t worry. Once you’re in among them all, they’ll slow down to avoid any bouts of friendly fire. So when Gabil and his force start their diversion, run as fast as you can.)

These orders sounded monstrous to me. Ogreish, if you will, which I supposed was appropriate for Benimaru’s species.

(Okay, so um, you want us to keep up Shadow Motion while we’re doing this?)

Benimaru shook his head. (That’ll be dangerous. The enemy will likely have a variety of defensive measures in place, like monster detection and protective barriers. They might have anti-skill measures as well, so it’s best not to get fancy with our tricks.)

I agreed with him on this. There was no way they enemy would keep their treasured tanks that vulnerable—it was safe to assume there was a full defensive arsenal on them. Anti-skill barriers were a known thing, too, and if they used those on us, we were in trouble. Maybe it was actually safer to just go for a frontal attack here.

(There’s a legion magic known as Interface Barrier that I am aware of. It is a magic spell that prevents surprise attacks from other dimensional spaces, but it also may potentially block the legion from moving. As Benimaru said, a head-on rush is probably the safest way to go.)

Testarossa summed up what I wanted to say very well. Gobta sure seemed convinced.

(I… I get it. If you say so, Testarossa, I’m not gonna complain about anything.)

Wow. Gobta was so freaked out by her. But after the way he slammed someone incomprehensibly more powerful than him, it’s only natural that he’d be kind of intimidated. I was hoping—or looking forward to—um, well, let’s just say that I’ll keep a close eye on how their relationship pans out.

(Gobta, you should know that people are not always what they seem. Keep that in mind and please try to avoid making the same mistakes again, okay?)

You could say that to me as well, I guess. I mean, I didn’t even realize what Testarossa and company were until it was spelled out for me.

(Righto. I’m real sorry about it…)

Good. Good idea, Gobta!

“What is he talking about?” Benimaru asked me outside the call.

“Oh… It’s not really a secret, I guess. Just Gobta putting his foot in his mouth again.”

“Ah, you mean about Testarossa? Well, he is maturing, yes, but in the most important parts of his life, not so much. It’s not a bad thing for him to get burned now and then.”

He chuckled at this.

“By the way,” he continued, “who were the people that Diablo brought back with him? I sense a certain ominous vibe from the three girls in particular, but…?”

Benimaru had accepted them without complaint, because I had clearly given them my seal of approval. But he was still wondering where those ladies came from, no doubt. Then again, these were Primals, real bad news in demon-dom. Maybe he was better off not knowing. On the other hand, I couldn’t just keep it a secret forever, could I? It’s hard for me to keep my mouth shut to the very people I trust the most. I was sure Shion didn’t know and wouldn’t care, but maybe I should tell Benimaru the truth after all.

“…Let me tell you about them in a bit, all right?”

Benimaru shrugged. “Indeed. Not a topic to worry about during a war.” And if he was willing to agree to that, time to shift gears.

(All right, Gobta. We’re at war right now. It’s good to reflect on your past mistakes, but it won’t matter unless you come back alive.)

(Yeah, I know!)

(Is there anything you don’t understand about your mission?)

(No problems here, Benimaru. We’ll move over to the edge of the forest and rush in just as Gabil launches his attack.)

(Very good. Put everything you have into this!)

(Yes, sir!)

The fright was gone from Gobta’s voice. I was sure he’d be able to concentrate on the mission now. And in another few moments, our Thought Communication conference was over.

A few minutes later, the Third Corps led by Gabil attacked the tank battalion.

“Gwah-ha-ha-ha! Behold my exploits! You slow-moving bastards are no match for us!!”

Gabil was in his usual form, making a big show out of everything he did. I had my concerns about it, but that was just Gabil being Gabil.

And indeed, the tanks struggled to react immediately to his force. As Benimaru had predicted, their guns were unable to catch Gabil and his cohorts. That was largely to Gabil’s credit—he demonstrated superb command, and everyone reacted to him with perfect coordination. That must have been the result of a great deal of training; while I wasn’t paying attention, they had acquired some remarkable skills in air combat.

So Team Hiryu was doing a fine job, but the three hundred Wyvern Riders were putting in a great effort, too. I guess we had managed to build up a decent amount of spare riders, too; once we procured some more wyverns, I figured they’d become a real force to be reckoned with.

Gabil was all about creating a diversion out there, but that didn’t mean they weren’t attacking at all. He was having the wyverns spit fireballs, providing another feint. That B-plus rank wasn’t just for show on those guys; they were easily as good as the Fireballs conjured by your average sorcerer. Not enough to break through a tank’s magic defense, maybe, but it was still effective against infantry. It was a nice primer on just how effective Gabil’s air-to-ground strikes could be, and while the results they put up were minimal damagewise, they expertly fulfilled their tactical role.

Gobta, too, had successfully switched mental gears. There was no hesitation in his command, and he was charging straight at the tank forces with head-on, perfectly timed movements. There were five hundred tanks facing Gobta’s force, with another fifteen hundred lined up and pointed toward the Dwarven Kingdom. If the Goblin Riders could get that far into their ranks, they wouldn’t be able to make any careless moves.

It’d be a huge victory for us if that happened, but the imperial forces weren’t incompetent, either. They’d desperately try to block them, and from there on, it’d be a battle of skill and speed. Gobta seemed to understand this, and as he followed Benimaru’s orders, he used his thunderous speed to zoom toward the battalion. Not a moment’s attention was paid to the muzzles pointed at them—not a hint of fear.

There was only about a hundred yards left to the front row. The Goblin Riders could run that distance in under six seconds. A few shots were fired their way, but the goblins didn’t flinch, keeping up their speed. In fact, the shells exploded far away from them; presumably they were warning shots. It only proved that the imperial army was in a state of turmoil.

Not a single move was wasted among the Riders as they disposed of the obstacles blocking their way with computerlike precision. Even now the infantry members guarding the tanks were trying to engage them, but the wolves made quick work of them.

Range: zero.

They had successfully approached the tank battalion, their primary target. There was Ranga, running in the lead, Gobta looking as manly as he could muster on his back. He gave a silent signal to Gobchi running right behind him, and Gobchi nodded back. The next moment, he split off from the platoon, headed up to a tank turret, and threw a little something inside—a glowing red jewel. This was an element core; Kurobe had manufactured a bunch of empty cores for me, and then I had Charys infuse them with flame magic. Flare bombs, you could call ’em.

But will these work…?

A resounding explosion shot forth from inside the tank, at its weakest point. If this didn’t have the desired effect, we were planning to abort the mission at once.

“Will this be okay?”

“Do not worry, Rimuru. Trust in our friend Charys!”

“Yes, Sir Rimuru, take heart. If I put in just enough magical power that it didn’t spontaneously explode, I am sure it’d be no problem to disable that hunk of iron.”

I’m sure it’ll be fine, too, but this is our first time experimenting with it. So of course I’m gonna be—

The tank exploded.

“See? I told you, didn’t I? I told you my plan was foolproof!”

I was the one who came up with this idea, you see. That was why I was so anxious about it… But if it worked, now I wanted to brag about it.

“Oh, sure, bask in it…”

“That is so like you, Rimuru!”

“I don’t need that from either of you!”

Charys was tremendously proud of himself. Benimaru and Beretta gave that a resigned chuckle. Shion and Diablo just smiled. The second phase of the operation was a success, and now the atmosphere around here was notably more cheerful.

So far, this was just a prelude. The next goal was to get deep inside of them—pay no mind to the battalion facing Gobta’s force and strike the middle of their army.

The goblins ran on, striking at the infantry positioned to protect their tanks’ blind spots, like a giant monster swarming across the battlefield in all directions. Their movements, shown on our big screen, had a refined beauty to them.

“Gobta’s sure done it, hasn’t he? Now none of those tank guns can target us,” I said.

“No, we can’t be too careful,” Benimaru cautioned. “Depending on their commander, they may shoot at us anyway and accept any collateral damage.”

That was absurd…but then again, this was war. We had to be prepared for that.

“Besides, the enemy has airpower, too. It’s still too early to rest easy.”

That’s right, I thought, turning my gaze to another large screen. Looking at the enemy aircraft on it, I could tell they were increasing their speed. It seemed the Empire could stay in communication with them, one way or another. Once the enemy air force arrived, Gabil would be compelled to deal with them, leaving the Goblin Riders isolated on the battlefield. After that took place, it was a race against time. We needed decisive results while we could get them.

As if answering my expectations, the battle continued to progress rapidly. Gobta and Gabil were both making the most of their training, achieving real results in the first battle of this war. But something always goes wrong sooner or later. As Benimaru just said, it was too early to rest easy…

Gaster glared at the approaching goblins with a singular abhorrence.

Damn them… Thinking they can own us…!!

He felt a deep, primal resentment for them, and he promised himself that he’d take it out on them all shortly. A few moments ago, Testarossa, her pure-white hair fluttering in the air, had put a mortal fear inside him. Not wanting to admit it, Gaster decided to instead rebuild his confidence by tearing the goblins to pieces.

No matter how fast these monsters moved, he thought, they’d just be a disruption, nothing that could damage a tank. But the explosions that roared across the battlefield shattered that idea quickly.

No?!

Gaster had to keep himself from shouting it out loud. No way could a commander show himself upset on the battlefield. He was still an able leader, and he hadn’t lost his ability to make sane decisions.

“Lieutenant General, what will we do?”

“Don’t panic. Look at the enemy’s moves. They’ve only destroyed one tank, and there’s no sign of any follow-up. That bomb was one of the few trump cards they have.”

“Yes… You’re right, now that you mention it. Otherwise, those flying lizards would be scattering them all over the field.”

Gaster nodded. He thought he had kept himself calm enough to make the right decision. But this was wrong. In fact, Rimuru had prepared over three thousand flare bombs for this fight. Every member of Gobta’s Goblin Riders carried ten of them, and every “flying lizard”—Gabil and Team Hiryu—also had ten on hand.

Team Hiryu hadn’t used them so far because they were focusing on diversionary tactics—that, and they knew flare bombs wouldn’t unlock their full potential unless used in an enclosed space. In such a space, the power of a gunpowder blast was easily doubled, and the same logic applied to flare bombs. Benimaru’s focus here was on destroying tanks, not infantry, so he refused to let those bombs go to waste. The important thing today wasn’t instant glory—it was making this op a success, and Gobta, Gabil, and all the monsters under their command were aware of this.

Gaster, blissfully unaware, was regaining his composure. I must commend you for unleashing that new weapon of yours…but we will still win the day!

He might have misread the ace up the goblins’ sleeve, but he did know what they were aiming to achieve.

They ignored the left-wing battalion because their goal is to destroy this main force, right? If that’s the case, we have our choice of ways to stop them!

Gabil and the lizards were certainly putting on a flashy show up there, but the tanks were protected from that with a magical barrier. The only thing to be wary of was this new weapon, and if that was the case, all they had to do was keep Gobta’s force at arm’s length.

“Have them deal with them in a compacted air-battle formation.”

Gaster’s order surprised his second-in-command.

“Lieutenant General, that’s dangerous! Some of us are in close-quarters battle with the enemy. We’ll be risking friendly fire…!”

“So what? If they’re in the way, just blow them away with our tank guns! Our glorious imperial army doesn’t need incompetent louts dragging them down anyway!”

“Wha…?!”

And with that said out loud, Gaster’s associate could no longer stop him. A few tanks and a lot of infantry would get caught up in the carnage, but the battle was certain to be won…and the aide knew it. Gaster was willing to sacrifice a few pawns to win the day, and without that kind of vision and determination, perhaps being an army commander was impossible.

“Are there any legal problems with that?”

“No, sir, none.”

The staff officer accompanying Gaster had no objection. Now it was Gaster’s turn to shine.

“Left-flank battalion, compacted air-battle formation!”

The order came directly from him, not through any subordinate, allowing the left wing to take formation faster than ever. Ignoring the infantry overtaken by goblins, they used their remaining vehicles to block the road, then turned their guns so the tanks at the front and rear were all but right next to each other. It was a formation that defied all common sense in modern warfare.

“What? That’s nuts…!”

It was only natural that Gobta was stunned. Taking advantage of their huge size, the tanks crowded together, deliberately trying to close the gaps in their ranks. It would make it impossible for any of them to maneuver, but it worked—Gobta’s forces could no longer run through the gaps between tanks.

But the surprises weren’t over yet. Next, the left wing spread out in a circle, forming a barricade around the goblins. In response, half of the central battalion also went on the move, floating into the air before turning around and landing right on the backs of the frontline tanks. Now they were a wall, fully blocking the goblins’ way.

Nearly a thousand tanks had linked together to form a single, gigantic fortress. There would be no destroying the central force now.

“I heard they could move like that, but I never thought they’d try something like this…”

Gobchi, Gobta’s second-in-command, was similarly stunned by the scene in front of him.

“Put up a machine-gun barrage and pin them down!”

This kicked off a three-dimensional sweep of machine-gun fire. The multifaceted barrage put the stops on the high-speed maneuvering Gobta’s team was best at. They were surrounded by tanks and the infantry accompanying them, and they didn’t care how many friendlies this strategy killed.

“Uh, this is bad. I’m not sure we can keep going with this operation!”

Gobta grew upset. Benimaru’s strategy was faltering. Seeing the imperial forces get shot by their own allies made even Gobta panic a bit.

“Nnnh… I’m sorry, Gobta. I’d love to help you, but we’ve got our hands full.”

Gabil’s force, meanwhile, was being exposed to aerial bombardment. The tank guns might not have been able to hit them, but those tanks were also equipped with machine guns, successfully keeping Team Hiryu in check.

Now Gaster, the man in command, had fully regained his composure. The difference in numbers had become a decisive advantage—and bad news often tends to come in groups.

“Sorry to keep you, Lieutenant General!”

The Flying Combat Corps, led by Major General Farraga, had just shown up. They were a hundred airships strong, and now they were Gabil’s problem, just as Gobta was facing an even more difficult situation.

“It’s about time, Farraga. It’s a dead end for them now. Now’s the perfect time to test out our top-secret magic cancelers, isn’t it?”

“Ha-ha! There’s no beating you, Lieutenant General. In that case, let’s see if we can’t get in on this.”

“We’ll share the credit today. Don’t get sloppy.”

“Yes, sir. Good luck to you!”

Gaster and Farraga, speaking on a special closed line, swore to fight together. For Gaster, he wanted to make sure this op was rock-solid; for Farraga, this was a warm-up before the main course and a way to show he could be useful in real battle. Despite piloting such valuable airships, the Flying Combat Corps occupied the lowest rung among the three divisions. In his mind, they needed to start making a name for themselves—and with him in the fray now, things were starting to look bleak for the Tempest force.

Gobta’s Riders, of course, understood the change of tides better than anyone.

“What do you say, Commander Gobta?”

“Ah, this ain’t gonna work. Let’s get outta here!”

“A good idea. With the situation changed, there is no need to force matters.”

Gobta made the right decision. From the get-go, he’d had one golden rule drilled into him: Don’t try to force your strategy, and if something unforeseen happens, retreat to fight another day. And with Benimaru, who had overseen the Riders for quite a long time, giving the retreat order, every one of the goblins realized the danger.

Even in fleeing, they all worked in unison, turning around without the slightest delay. Then they tried Shadow Motion to retreat, but:

“Gobta, the enemy is not that unintelligent. They have begun a magic-jamming operation that prevents you from engaging Shadow Motion.”

Ranga gave the warning the moment he sensed something was wrong, but it came a little too late. Even by then, the goblins were already under the influence of the Empire’s wide-ranging magic interference. Ranga might have been able to sprint his way out of it, but the rest of his kin couldn’t. The only way out was to run.

“Everyone, head to the forest as fast as you can!”

Gobta was frantic as he shouted, and the goblin riders quickly heeded him. They had about six hundred feet of terrain between them and the woods. It’d usually take ten or so seconds to traverse, but being shot at from behind like this, it seemed hopelessly far away.

It was now a battle to retreat, and it would prove to be one filled with hardship.

Looking at the fleeing goblins, Gaster flashed a brutal smile, then quickly ordered his crew to prepare the tank gun on their vehicle.

Don’t think you bastards are getting off that easy!

They would be using the special ammunition on board; there was just one round left. Following his order, it was loaded into the gun and fired without delay.

This special round landed in the forest in front of the goblins, instantly spreading intense flames across it. The aim was to block their path, and while they could use their super-honed intuition to dodge incoming shells, there wasn’t much they could do when their route of escape was burning.

“Bad news there… Geez, I wonder if I’m gonna make it back alive?”

“You better not kid around like that, Gobta. If I’m here, we’re all coming back, got it?”

“You’re always super confident, aren’t you, Gobto? Hearing all that baseless confidence, I feel like a doofus for worrying about anything.”

“I wonder if Captain…I mean, Commander Gobta is worried, too?”

“What’re you talking about? If he is, it’s probably over what’s for dinner tonight. That or how he’ll apologize to Rigur for partying with Sir Rimuru until late.”

The Goblin Riders started laughing, Gobchi and Gobto joining the mix. It was a desperate situation, but the goblins hadn’t lost their usual swagger…and with his ears honed, Gaster overheard the entire conversation.

…Don’t you dare mess with me. Now that you’re fully surrounded, your fates are in my hands!

Gaster’s heart burned with passion. But in front of his gaze, there was now a beautiful woman with pure-white hair—Testarossa. Her face looked cool, despite the blasts of hot air surrounding her, and she didn’t seem the least bit threatened by the flying bullets.

And you, too. I’ll never forgive you for messing with me like that! That pretty little face of yours will be weeping in terror!!

Gaster was not personally conscious of the faint, dark desires within himself. He hadn’t noticed that his fascination with Testarossa was causing him to make increasingly rash decisions. So with his face evilly twisted, he made another order.

“All remaining vehicles! Fire our tank guns at the enemy!!”

The order completely ignored the safety of the remaining forces on the left flank, busy hassling the goblins—but nobody was going to argue the point with him. So the remaining one thousand tanks turned their guns around, just as the fortress wall of tanks was checking the Goblin Riders’ moves. Adjusting their angle, applying anti-shock protection to withstand the force of firing at point-blank range, the muzzles of these deadly, life-reaping tanks were ready to flash in unison.

Fierce battle was also unfolding in the skies, the airships launching all sorts of enhanced magic. Gabil and his team found themselves at a loss to respond. The magicule flows around them had been disrupted. The Empire’s top-secret magic cancelers were affecting Gabil just as badly as the Goblin Riders.

“Nngh… What a menace. The closer we get to those flying ships, the heavier our bodies get.”

“What now, Sir Gabil?”

“I’d like to go help the goblins, but there’s no time for that.”

They might have had the time if it was Team Hiryu alone, but they were accompanied by the Wyvern Riders as well, and they lacked real battle experience. Any wrong moves, and both Gobta’s and Gabil’s forces could fall at the same time.

“Dahhh, we have no choice! We’ll take those ships down first; we have the numerical advantage. Team Hiryu, concentrate on the enemy in front of you!”

“You got it, Boss!”

“But they’re bigger than us, aren’t they? Comparing our numbers may not matter…”

“Shut up, you moron! Sir Gabil knows that, but that’s the only order he can give us!”

There’s always one person in the crowd who can’t get the picture. But despite that exchange, Gabil and his cohorts prepared to dive right into full-scale battle with the fleet of airships.

One of the pilots aboard regarded Gabil and his force with cold, cruel eyes. This was Major General Farraga, leader of the Empire’s vaunted Flying Combat Corps. He was very capable, with a hunger for promotion to match; no officer wanted to find higher office more than he. Despite that, however, Farraga took great pains to lift up his other colleagues, striving to keep them on his side.

There was a reason for this, of course—he had been around to see the end of the Magic Division, his former stomping grounds. This Magic Division boasted immense power, once upon a time, but now it was dismantled, a relic of the past. Perhaps it was a sign of the times, but they had grown to be judged as too inefficient for warfare—that was the main reason.

People think that magical warfare is this flashy fireworks show, but in reality, it boils down to a few core tenets—analyze the enemy’s magic and interfere with it. In the meantime, you’d activate your own magic and try to strike the enemy’s army. Repeat ad nauseam.

This tended to never produce significant results, mainly because magically enhanced knights were much stronger in real-life battle situations. For example, nuclear magic (regarded as the most powerful kind out there) took around a dozen sorcerers to invoke. No one person could cast it, and the time to construct, or cast, the spell was far from trivial. Some champion-level fighters could indeed control nuclear magic solo, but at best they could engineer an explosion the size of a football field. A direct hit from this was powerful enough, yes, but armies could have the Anti-Magic Shield legion magic cast upon them, and only group magic had the power to overcome that. In other words, individual magic-casters were not expected to be active contributors on the battlefield.

What’s more, while it was important to have the necessary number of casters on hand, it wasn’t a case of “more is better.” Every battlefield had only so many magicules to harness, and once they were used up, magic-users were essentially useless. Thus, while wizards and their kind were indispensable, they were not seen as star performers in battle.

Farraga was an excellent wizard in his own right, an art he honed studying under Gadora. He respected his teacher, honoring what he taught him, and he didn’t neglect his own diligence, either. But then he realized something: With Gadora helping to modernize the Armored Division, they would soon have no place left in the military. The times were changing, and soon there would no longer be a need for well-trained casters. With the right spellgun, even ordinary people could control extraordinary magic.

And Farraga hated Gadora for it. He felt that his master was strangling himself through his own actions, but Gadora rejected his pleadings at every turn. And so the Magic Division declined to nothing.

And that’s exactly why I betrayed my teacher and swore my allegiance to Sir Caligulio.

The move had earned him his current position. He took in the people who worked under him, all talented magic-casters, and gave them a place to shine. And someday, sooner or later, the Flying Combat Corps would enjoy the honor of being called the strongest in the world. Until then, he’d happily kiss up to his colleagues and keep a low profile. That was Farraga’s plan, and he kept to it with a strict discipline.

Now, finally, the perfect opportunity had arrived—an operation to defeat Veldora. The Flying Combat Corps had been chosen as the keystone of the mission. The core plan was to contain Veldora with their magic cancelers while assisting the other units. Logical support was one of their original roles, but they were exempted from it this time.

Three hundred of their airships, out of four hundred total, were on other missions, and the remaining one hundred were staffed by elite sorcerers to the limit of their capacity. It was a completely battle-focused formation, which showed just how much importance Caligulio placed on this operation.

Farraga understood well enough that he needed to succeed. We’ll perform out here and prove our usefulness. It will be a new era for us!

He smiled to himself. Once that new era dawned, he’d no longer have to curry favor with the other officers. The tables would be turned, and nobody would be able to ignore Farraga’s wishes. That was how he thought his life should be, and he never doubted it for a moment.

Compared to defeating Veldora, this isn’t much of a warm-up at all, but fair enough. Those flying lizards and earthbound dogs are good practice fodder for our new weapon.

“Why should we share the credit, I ask? By the time we’re done, Lieutenant General, you’ll owe us big-time!”

Farraga lifted the wine glass in his hand as he shouted.

“Comrades! We have been patient until now, but that ends today! It’s time to show them our true power!”

“““Yeaaahhh!!”””

The crew drowned him out.

As a sorcerer who should’ve been among the elite, he could no longer face the reality of the hardships he had to endure. All that humiliation was about to be overshadowed by the glorious days to come. Every member of the crew was of one mind—and in tune with this, a hundred airships stepped up their attack.

The most unique feature of the airships was their magic-canceling engines, but they were also equipped with other cutting-edge weapons. These were controlled by magicians well versed in elemental and summon magic.

An airship’s structure could be roughly divided into three sections: operations, defense, and offense. Each section was assigned a crew of one hundred, with another hundred serving as reserves, liaisons, and medics.

The operations section, needless to say, operated the airship. At least fifty people were required to keep a ship aloft, but if the fleet wanted to operate at full strength, not even a hundred were quite enough.

The defense section was in charge of the airship’s defense barriers, which came in various flavors—anti-physical, anti-magic, anti-attribute, and so on. An airship’s outer walls weren’t particularly thick (a weight-saving measure), so if they neglected to protect themselves with magic, they’d be shot down in a flash. No crew would dream of flying without a defensive staff.

Finally, the attack division was the most important one. Each airship was equipped with magic amplifier cannons that made it easier for magicians to work together. Multiple magicians would focus their power on a magic ball placed on top of a pedestal; by casting on it at the same time, they could trigger large-scale magic much easier than usual. One cannon was in the front of the ship, and two were on the sides; there were a total of five per ship, with up to ten magicians per cannon awaiting orders and backups standing by to keep up the magical barrage.

It’s worth noting that a magic amplifier cannon’s power increased in direct proportion to the number of people using it. If two people were on it at once, the resulting magic force doubled; if a full complement of ten magicians worked together, it increased twentyfold. This was a serious threat; even simple fire magic could become more powerful than a full-fledged Fireball. It went without saying just how incredible this invention was.

The airship’s defenses were perfect. The fireballs spat out by the wyverns were no threat at all; their barrier even prevented damage from ramming the walls. No half-hearted attack had a chance of working, and that kept Farraga satisfied.

And we haven’t even gotten to their offense.

“Our airships are the strongest there are,” proclaimed Farraga, “and it’s time to show their true power. Give me maximum force, and let’s knock those annoying lizards out of the sky!”

Up until then, only two or three magicians had been casting spells at once. But they had done enough testing. It was time to go onstage. A spell controller, an orb nearly twenty inches wide and made of purified magic stone, was perched atop every magic amplifier cannon; channeling magic power into it would activate the device. The magicians, sitting quietly until then, lifted up their hands, and on a signal, all ten unleashed large-scale force. Lightning, icy snow, flames, vorpal blades, and all kinds of other terrifying magic blasted through the sky, amplified twenty times their average strength…and all its fury was focused on Gabil and Team Hiryu.

I had been watching the battle unfold with rapt attention, but now I couldn’t help but leap out of my chair. Gobta’s forces were being blown away by the impacts of the tank shells; Gabil’s were falling out of the sky, mercilessly exposed to all-powerful magic. Things were intensifying fast out there, and we were starting to take casualties.

I had expected that, of course. I did, but maybe I was still too optimistic, deep down. Benimaru seemed so incredibly confident, and Raphael didn’t say anything, so I naively thought there wouldn’t be any problems. But that wasn’t the reality. Of course it wasn’t. We were waging war, after all. There was no way we could win without taking any damage at all.

Now my lack of foresight made me feel angry and impatient. But Benimaru remained as cool as ever.

“Please, Sir Rimuru, take your seat. This was within our expectations, and there are no problems to speak of.”

His words made something blow up inside me.

“What? We’re taking casualties out there! Shouldn’t I have used Megiddo to help you guys out…?”

…No. I’d already come to a conclusion about this. Megiddo was affected, yes, but I had already decided it was pretty pointless. Benimaru questioned its effectiveness as well, and even Diablo was negative about it.

Apparently there were several reasons for this. First of all, since we had started this whole thing as a nation, we couldn’t always rely on our master, the demon lord—that is, me—to be there for us. The demon lord was responsible for protecting the monsters under his command, Benimaru asserted, but it was the duty of his subordinates to protect the country. The rest of my staff agreed. If they did not feel that Tempest was their country, and they had to protect it with their own hands, they had no right to live here.

“You don’t have to take on everything, Sir Rimuru,” as Shuna put it. I was glad to hear that, and for that matter, I agreed with it. So that was one reason.

The second was that Megiddo had a weakness, one Diablo pointed out to me.

“This Megiddo is quite a beautiful magic. It provides high power at low cost, it’s versatile, and it can be applied in a variety of situations. But once you are familiar with it, you can counter it in so many ways.”

I could have launched it from here in the Control Center, and if I did, I’m sure it’d be pretty damn useful, too. But once my trick was exposed, it’d never work a second time. As Hinata had told me, all they’d have to do is conjure up some wind and create a dust cloud or a smoke screen, and its accuracy and power would be lethally compromised. I was pretty surprised that Diablo asked Hinata for her feedback; what an information gatherer he was. But enough about that.

Last time I took out Megiddo, I killed every single one of our enemies. The survivors—namely, Edmaris and Razen—weren’t going to blab about it, so there was no worrying about information leaks. That definitely wouldn’t be the case this time. There was no way we could keep the deaths of hundreds of thousands of imperial soldiers and officers quiet.

“A trump card is best always kept safe for the last moment,” advised Benimaru. Magic that has such an awesome effect at first blush was best not used carelessly, he thought, and Diablo was with him on that. They were pretty convincing.

Megiddo is a super-high-temperature heat ray created by concentrating sunlight to extreme levels, and it’s almost impossible to avoid once sighted. As an antipersonnel magic, it’s only really an option when used at the right moment. Meanwhile, our opponents here weren’t really flesh and blood; they were tanks, hulking piles of iron. I’m not saying that Megiddo wouldn’t work, but I don’t think it’d be too effective. Raphael calculated that it’d take a long time for that magic to destroy the tanks; to penetrate one, I’d have to increase the power—in other words, the focal temperature of the heat ray—up to tens of thousands of degrees. And since these tanks aren’t powered by oil or gasoline or the like, I couldn’t count on it bursting into flames for me.

If a penetrating heat ray didn’t stop a tank, I’d have to plug it full of holes until it finally stopped moving, and at that point, it’d be a lot easier to blow it away with nuclear magic instead. But doing that meant having to break through layer upon layer of anti-magic barriers, and you’d have to kill off the magicians behind them first, which leads to this long, drawn-out magic battle… Tactically, it made no sense. It wasn’t going to work.

So since I’d given command over to Benimaru, my job was honestly just to watch over things. That was all, really, but…

“I should go out, and—”

I was about to say that, but I was interrupted in the middle of my statement.

“You can’t. As the commander, I cannot put our leader in danger. Above all, I am concerned with the story the Hero Chloe told us. In another time line, someone out there managed to murder you, Sir Rimuru. Asking you to fight out there while knowing such a dangerous person may exist—it’s simply impossible.”

I had shared the story of this potentially lethal foe with all my officers, framing it as a potential what-if coming for us. What did they think about it? The answer was obvious from the look on Benimaru’s face.

“Currently, I would consider as a threat the commanders of the Empire’s three divisions, along with the hundred members of the Imperial Guardians serving under the emperor. There might be other hidden figures as well, and we are investigating any potential leads. Please forgive us if this sounds weak-spirited.”

It was Soei who gave me that report. He and his team were currently risking their lives to gather information—all for my sake, to eliminate this potential threat to me.

“With the enemy’s strength unknown, it is out of the question to send you, our lord, to the front lines. The operation is underway without any problems. Please, I ask you to trust in me, Gobta, Gabil, and all who serve them.”

At his bidding, I sat down in my chair. I still had this unpleasant feeling in my chest—not quite annoyance, not quite frustration—but Benimaru’s words were simply too true. He was right. If you thought about it, from the very beginning, Benimaru had been thinking about me as he carried out his plans. And not just him—Shion, too, standing behind me—and Soei by my side. Diablo went without saying, but even Shuna, looking at me all worried; they all prepared for the reality that anyone who went to battle would have to face sacrifice.

Likely, that was true for everyone on the front lines, too. They were standing out there, ready to use themselves as bait to catch a threat they didn’t even have a visual picture of yet. And even the incredibly self-indulgent Veldora was sitting quietly in the Control Center, ready to protect me if push came to shove.

It was all for the sake of protecting me, the king of this nation. The only person who hadn’t resolved himself to it was me.

Right then…

…And that is why I have to be perfect…

…I thought I heard a voice from somewhere.

Great. Are you worried about me, too? Well, I’m fine now. It’d be disrespectful to be so sad while all these people are so resolved. It’s time for me to join them.

“…Sorry. I lost some of my cool.”

Benimaru nodded at me. “Don’t worry, Sir Rimuru. Victory will most assuredly be yours.”

He flashed me a fearless smile as he made the promise. He was a commander responsible for the lives of his soldiers, and his face was serious to match—and hearing that, I felt the irritation, the conflict, and all those other unpleasant feelings disappear. I had long prepared for my own death, and for killing my enemies, but I tried to avoid thinking much about the concept of people dying for me. I needed to accept that. I needed to accept that it wasn’t only for my sake, but for those of their families, the framework of the nation that guarded and defended them, and the fact that I was here to symbolize all that.

For these very reasons, I could never allow them to be defeated. As a symbol, I needed to act the part—I needed to put in a suitable performance. Realizing this, I resolved to begin by giving Benimaru the relaxed response he hoped for.

“Of course. I want you to tell everyone what I’m going to say. All right?”

“By all means!”

With Benimaru’s consent and cooperation, I was going to transmit my will to each and every one of my people. Thanks to the unique skill Born Leader, they’d receive my statement in their minds.

“Listen to me! Crush the enemy with all your might. There’s no need to go easy on them, and of course there is no need to show mercy. Use everything you’ve got to eliminate the enemy as quickly as possible.”

I tried my best to put my entire heart into it. Benimaru nodded his approval, the other officers smiling as well, because to them, the order meant one thing…

…the full release of the power kept under control.

Correctly understanding the meaning of my words, the monsters resumed their assignments. And thanks to that, the battlefield was about to drastically change.