The Plague-Stricken Siege

"Patron... I feel strange inside..."

"That predatory instinct is disgustingly good. You really ate them until the very last one was wiped out."

I kept my eyes glued to the monitor, focusing every nerve. But an hour passed, then two, and there were no signs of anything unusual from the Kappa. They were still throwing a mud-festival party in the contaminated sludge, or swimming idly through the filthy river, scratching their bellies and letting out unpleasant cries every now and then with expressions that clearly said, "Feed us!"

"Sigh, of course." I clicked my tongue bitterly.

No matter how much the chytrid fungus was called the grim reaper of amphibians, this was an unknown Eden. Even if it was the most notorious microorganism on Earth, there was no guarantee it would work perfectly on monsters imbued with the power of an Outer God.

"In the end, do I have to use my remaining Divine Power points to strike them down with a physical miracle or a bombardment?"

Just as I was racking my brain and calculating my remaining points, it happened.

"Gwaaaaack-!"

In the middle of the river on the screen, the largest Kappa suddenly folded at the waist and vomited something bizarre.

"Huh?" I pressed my face right up against the monitor.

The vomit pouring out of its maw wasn't ordinary stomach acid; it was a thick, deep-red mucus, the exact same color as the belly of the Fire-Bellied Toad it had devoured just moments ago.

"Guaaack! Kahaaaak!" The vomiting didn't end with just one. Dozens of Kappa in the vicinity that had picked up and eaten the toads began to flip over on the river surface in unison, spewing out the crimson slime.

That wasn't all. Their green bellies began to swell grotesquely like balloons, and black fungal spots bloomed all over their skin as they began to thrash about, unable to breathe.

"Whoa, the effect is insane!" I cheered, clenching my fist, but soon tilted my head. "Wait, hold on. Even if the fungus is lethal, shouldn't it have to infect the skin and go through an incubation period? The reaction speed is abnormally fast, like they drank cyanide."

As if to answer my question, a system notification popped up in the center of the monitor.

"Kwahahaha! Yes, that's it!"

I jumped up from my chair and danced. Since the Outer Gods had modified their monsters to fit Eden's environment, they had become defenseless sheets of paper in front of a strange fungal pathogen from Earth.

"Zero immunity to alien germs. This is exactly like the smallpox meta for the Europeans who first crossed into the Americas! The reaction from that gallery should be coming soon, too."

I chuckled and turned my gaze to the Outer Gods Gallery window on the other monitor.

Sure enough, among the posts flooding the board at dozens per minute, one post at the very top, plastered in bright red font, was racking up views like crazy.

Below the post, mocking comments from other Outer Gods were pouring in real-time.

I laughed until I was out of breath while watching the comment section.

But soon, I regained my cold composure. "It doesn't end here. I absolutely cannot miss this perfect timing while the Kappa are struggling with the plague."

Now, while the Seven Calamities was smashing his keyboard and sobbing on the board, was the golden time to safely usher the Dwarf party inside.

A perfect defense simulation began to run in my head. "I have to get those skilled Dwarves inside the castle walls and have them do the civil engineering work to repair the collapsed walls. Plus, if their heavy combat power is added, I can estimate that we can defend even if that pissed-off frog-mother-fetishist comes to his senses and sends retaliation troops later."

And above all, there was another big picture. "While I'm at it, I'll show a very subtle 'discriminatory treatment' between the Dwarves and the Saintess's group. I'll give the Dwarves plenty of meat and top-tier equipment, while giving the Saintess's side meager rations to keep them on edge. Then, even that prissy Saintess will eventually get jealous of the abundance the Dwarves enjoy, and for the sake of the children, she'll kneel before me, sign the Apostle contract, and fall... no, join as a diligent business partner."

The more I thought about it, the more perfect the plan seemed.

"Well then, shall I make them move?"

I grabbed the mouse and opened my inventory. I threw a folding aluminum camping ladder, which had been sitting in my shoe rack, into the air right in front of the Dwarves' tent.

Thud! Clang-!

"Huh?" Torbi, the young Dwarf who was rolling around in the tent nursing his injured shoulder, poked his head out after hearing the dull metallic sound from outside.

In front of his eyes lay a geometric, silver-flashing aluminum ladder. It was a light and sturdy form that couldn't be compared to a wooden ladder.

Torbi picked up the ladder, touched it here and there, and grinned at Bjorn inside the tent. "Elder! The Outer God has given us the next milestone. This time, he's given us a tool to cross the river or climb the walls directly."

Bjorn also came out of the tent, looked at the smooth finish of the aluminum ladder, looked up at the sky, and nodded.

"Everyone, get up! The Outer God has opened the way!"

At Bjorn's powerful shout, the children and warriors who were napping in the tent all rose at once. Without anyone needing to give instructions, the children began sweeping empty water bottles and trash into their small bags, and the young warriors folded the tents and sleeping bags with practiced hands to pack their gear.

Having finished preparations for the move in just a few minutes, the Dwarf party, led by Bjorn, shouldered the aluminum ladder and began to take heavy, determined steps toward the old castle where the pandemic had broken out.

The riverbank they arrived at after descending the hill was literally a swamp of hell. The Dwarves extended the aluminum ladder given by the Outer God and laid it across the gaps in the broken bridge. Thanks to the sturdy, modern ladder that was light yet could hold three adult Dwarves at once, the party was able to cross the river safely without dipping a single toe into the extreme, filthy sewage.

"Ugh... the smell is truly terrible, Elder." Torbi said, holding his nose as he carefully crossed the bridge.

The river was completely ruined. Dozens of Kappa carcasses with grotesquely swollen bellies were floating and rotting on the surface. Those still alive were half-sprawled in the mud on the riverbank, twitching and vomiting crimson mucus like drunken revelers.

"This is truly terrible. What on earth did the Outer God do to them? There isn't even a trace of fire or lightning." A young warrior shuddered as he looked down at the gruesome sight beneath his feet.

Bjorn also responded with a stiff expression, guarding the surroundings. "I don't know. He must have unleashed a terrible curse or a deadly poison that is invisible to the eye. But just in case, everyone be careful. The plague of those monsters could spread to us, so never let your skin touch the water or their blood..."

Before Bjorn's warning could even finish.

Crack! Pop!

The belly of a Kappa that had been twitching in the mud near the bridge burst open like a balloon. Blood mixed with crimson entrails and black fungal spores splattered in all directions like fireworks.

"Gasp!" Bjorn hurriedly covered his mouth and nose tightly over his mask. "Everyone, run to the castle! Hurry!" At his urgent shout, the Dwarf party hurried their steps, crossed the last section of the broken bridge, and finally reached the foot of the castle's high, massive outer wall.

The castle gate was tightly closed, and there was no device visible from the outside to open it.

Bjorn found a gap in the crumbling castle wall and set up the aluminum ladder as long as it would go. He then called over one of the smallest Dwarf children in the party and handed him a bundle of thick rope.

"Logi. You go up first and tie the rope to something sturdy. Can you do it?"

"Don't worry, Elder!"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

The child called Logi nodded bravely, and with his solid arm muscles that rivaled an adult human's, he climbed the wall like a squirrel. Due to the nature of the Dwarf race, even children had a natural talent for handling stone and iron and climbing cliffs.

Logi wrapped the rope around a thick steel bar protruding from a gap in the wall, secured it tightly, and waved his hand toward the bottom.

Bjorn used the rope to pull the children and injured warriors up the wall one by one.

Everyone had made it up safely, and finally, just as Bjorn himself was about to put his foot on the ladder for the last time.

"Huh?" His gaze turned toward a narrow, dark drain hole at the bottom of the wall.

Inside that pitch-black hole, a small frog with a crimson belly and green spots on its back was staring intently at Bjorn with unpleasant, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠popping eyes. It was an amphibian of a deformed color that he had sworn he had never seen in Eden's ecosystem.

Bjorn stopped, holding the ladder. Within the eyes of that small frog, there seemed to be a cunning and alien intelligence, different from the blind instinct of a beast. It was as if it were one of the many agents of the giant eyes looking down upon them.

For a while, a suffocating silence flowed, and a strange staring contest continued between the old Dwarf and the Fire-Bellied Toad.

'Peep.'

Soon, the frog puffed up its throat, let out a small cry, turned around, and hopped into the deep darkness ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of the damp drain, disappearing from sight.

Bjorn wiped the cold sweat running down his spine and remained silent for a moment. A chilling intuition crossed his mind that the terrible tragedy of the plague covering the river might have originated from that small, crimson frog.

"Elder! What are you doing not coming up!" At Torbi's urgent call from above the wall, Bjorn snapped to his senses and climbed up the ladder.

Bjorn, who had safely crossed over the wall, pulled up the ladder and gasped for air. And the moment he looked up and down at the courtyard inside the castle walls, his eyes shook greatly with surprise.

In front of the ward and chapel buildings inside the castle. There, the silver-haired Saintess, dozens of terrified children, and old nuns were gathered, hugging each other tightly and glaring at the strange Dwarf party that had just crossed the wall with eyes full of wariness.

"This... there were guests in this cursed castle."

Bjorn muttered lowly, fiddling with the handle hanging at his waist.