Chapter 151

Chapter 151

I sent out a summons to my party members and headed back to the mansion, heading straight for Aiders room.

"Welcome, my lord!"

I spoke bluntly to Aider who was trying to greet me with a smile.

"Starting from the next stage, we wont be able to complete the strategy."

"..."

Aider, who had been frozen, asked in a trembling voice.

"What did you just say...?"

"Dont play dumb. You know too."

I plopped down onto any chair nearby and crossed my legs.

"Our current situation at the Monster Front is the worst. If it continues like this, itll soon be game over."

"..."

Aider fell silent.

I let out a small sigh.

"First, the majority of the hero parties are out of action."

Except for the main party who had only minor injuries.ViiSiit novelbi/n(.)c/(o)m for latest novels

The Shadow Squad, the first sub-party and the firepower team, had lost two out of three archers.

Burnout, the only archer left, was also injured.

The Dion Mercenary Group, the second sub-party responsible for low-level work, had been wiped out.

The loss was painful as they were rookies who had been diligently fed experience points and geared up for future frontline operations.

The Old Hunters, the third sub-party that was filled with AoE magic attackers, lost both mages.

Although the three tanks survived, their injuries were severe. It was almost certain theyd retire.

Out of the 20 hero characters, 9 are dead and 3 are retired.

Weve lost a staggering 60% of all hero characters.

Of course, there were reserve parties, such as Lillys and Margaritas.

But there wasnt enough time or a situation suitable to immediately train them to be a useful party on the front lines.

The loss of hero characters alone was significant.

"Regular soldiers have also taken a fatal blow. Most importantly, the Twilight Squad has lost its combat power."

The Twilight Squad, veterans among veterans who had spent their whole lives fighting monsters here under the Margrave, led the defense.

These sturdy veterans protected and taught the new soldiers, allowing us to continue the grueling battle until now.

However, the leader, who was a core member of the Twilight Squad, died in the last battle, and half of the 300 members died.

They were virtually ruined.

As expected, the morale of the remaining regular soldiers was shattered. A few, though a minority, even deserted.

"And how about the walls? They were hit by magic and torn apart by that vampires axe."

The damage to the fortification equipment, represented by the walls, was not trivial.

The wall was split by Betas axe and frozen by Alphas magic. It would take at least ten days to restore.

Various fortification equipment was also destroyed due to the vampires using blood magic from the walls.

About half of the cannons and ballistas were destroyed. It would also take about ten days to repair.

Despite the serious blows on all fronts, well, so be it.

If the next stage proceeded normally, with a normal difficulty, I would have gritted my teeth and continued with the strategy.

However, this damned game never ceased its nonsense.

[Enemy Information - STAGE 6]

- Lv.?? ??? : 3 bodies

- Lv.25 Flame Wyvern <Elite> : 30 bodies

- Lv.20 Wyvern : 710 bodies

Just yesterday, I selected five uninjured reserve party members and sent them for autonomous exploration in Zone 1.

They returned this morning, bringing back a wyverns magic stone.

At the same time, information about the next stages enemies was confirmed through my system window.

"A wyvern? Wyyyvernnn?!"

I shoved the enemy information window in front of Aider and screeched.

"Are you out of your mind?! More aerial mobs in this situation?! Weve lost all our magicians and archers!"

Aider, huddled in a corner, repeatedly bowed to me.

"I... Im sorry. It was my mistake."

"Of course it was a mistake, you bastard director! Cant you design the levels properly?! If you set a difficulty cliff like this, youre basically telling us to jump off of it and die!"

"The way to solve this situation is simple. If they send reinforcements from the capital, its over."

If they could send elite forces from the imperial capital.

It would instantly bring relief.

Because the empires standing army was powerful, even the ordinary soldiers, and the commanding officers, the knights, were top-tier hero characters.

Even though they werent permanently stationed on the monster front but lent out on a temporary basis.

Nonetheless, if they were to come, we would be able to breathe easy.

By conducting defensive operations using these forces, I could buy time to properly train my heroes and soldiers.

But the royal court kept ignoring my requests for help.

"So, we have no choice. We have to force them to send reinforcements."

At my words, Aider tilted his head.

"How on earth are you going to force them to send reinforcements?"

"Do you remember the content of the last letter I sent to the royal court asking for reinforcements?"

Aider, who had written the letter, nodded.

"Y-Yes. I remember, clearly... You said..."

- If they dont send reinforcements this time... Next time, I will show them the greatest tantrum that the youngest prince can throw. Please convey this.

"...You said that, right? I wrote the letter as it is."

I gave a devilish grin.

"Lets show them the best mess. A spectacular disaster, so big that the Imperial Palace would be so overjoyed that they would immediately deploy their forces."

"Di... Disaster, you say?"

"Exactly."

The third prince of the Empire, Ash, was originally a crazy, reckless brat.

Hadnt he been too sincere and good a commander all this while?

It was time to return to his true, reckless self.

Not just drinking a little, gambling, and wasting money - this would be on a different level. Lets show them what a real mess looks like.

"What kind of disaster would require sending elite forces to this remote place, even if something happens in the Imperial Palace?"

With a smirk plastered across my face, I replied in a hushed voice to Aider,

"That would be..."

***

" - a rebellion."

At my proclamation, everyones movements froze.

Evening.

The Lords mansion. Reception room.

A gathering where all party members had assembled as I had summoned.

In front of each sofa where they were sitting, beverages and snacks were laid out.

The time for late-night snacks that the party members had requested during the last battle was combined with this gathering.

Lightening the somber mood brought by a comrades death and funeral, party members were having a lively conversation over snacks.

In the midst of this softened atmosphere, I dropped a bombshell.

"...Huh?"

Evangeline asked, her eyes wide open in surprise. The snack she had been holding was now rolling on the floor.

"Um, senior? What did you just say-"

"I said its a rebellion, Evangeline."

Evangelines mouth gaped open. The drink she had been sipping flowed back into her cup.

The rest of the party members reactions were no different.

Either they started coughing in surprise, pinched their cheeks, or started cleaning their ears, as if they had heard something wrong.

But I have a clear voice.

They didnt hear wrong, my friends.

"Ill say it again. I plan to incite a rebellion."

The word "rebellion" for the third time.

Unable to deny the reality any longer, the party members looked at me, their eyes filled with horror.

"From today, the Fortress City of Crossroad in the southern front of the Empire is leaving the Empires jurisdiction. I declare the founding of an independent state, The Empire of Crossroad."

I shrugged and pointed at myself.

"And of course, I will be the Emperor."