Chapter 54
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: The 703rd Wave
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It was a series of messages I'd never seen before.
Not only was it the first time the Lord had initiated a conversation with me directly.
“A rising power, he says.”
I was confused.
Did ‘rising power’ mean there was another Lord's Castle in this pixelated world of ‘MonMonMak’?
The information I could deduce was limited.
I immediately tapped on the Lord sitting on the throne.
[You waved your hand to greet the Lord.]
[Hello.]
A familiar speech bubble.
But the text that followed took a completely different direction than anything before.
[A rising power has just sent us a missive. They wish to form an alliance with our Lord's Castle. I wish to discuss this matter with you, the Lord of the present world.]
A discussion, huh.
Did that mean it would proceed via voice recognition, like when we talked about Akasha?
I was somewhat hopeful, but…
[Discussion Topics]
1. The Lord's Counsel
2. The Lord's Castle's Opinion
3. Specific Information on the Rising Power (Inactive)
“It’s another set of choices this time.”
Honestly, if they were going to use a grand word like ‘agenda,’ shouldn't they provide voice recognition?
I shrugged, staring at the pixelated selection window that had appeared.
Still, everything I wanted to know was listed in the options.
The third option was the most important, but it was grayed out, likely because information was still being gathered.
So, rather than complain, I quickly clicked the first option.
[You asked for the Lord's opinion on forming an alliance.]
A simple message appeared, followed by the Lord’s long speech bubble.
[The Lord's Castle is currently in a rather poor state, both financially and militarily, due to continuous invasions. If we can replenish our treasury and troops, pursuing an alliance would be a reasonable course of action. However, forming an alliance carries the risk of leaking information about the Lord's Castle to the outside. Therefore, we should only establish a relationship once they have been identified as a completely friendly power.]
“What are the specific advantages of forming an alliance?”
The Lord’s speech bubble appeared again.
[In the event of an external invasion, the allied force will provide defensive troops. Conversely, if the allied force is invaded, our Lord's Castle can also dispatch reinforcements.]
Ah.
Thinking about it simply, I understood right away.
The game MonMonMak had a ‘Friend System’.
It was a system where, limited to wave defense, you could borrow and deploy one monster belonging to another Lord's Castle from your friends list.
The ‘alliance’ the Lord was talking about was very similar to this.
“If a unit sent as reinforcements dies, does it disappear permanently as well?”
[Soldiers dispatched as reinforcements cannot be revived if they die.]
That’s harsh.
The MonMonMak Friend System at least brought them back.
For now, I fully understood what an ‘alliance’ entailed.
‘And the Dream Lord's stance is to wait and see until the identity of this rising power is confirmed.’
It seemed there were cases where an allied force could backstab you.
If information about the Lord's Castle were to leak, the outcome was obvious.
A wave of monsters with a type advantage, perfect for crushing our defenses, would invade the castle.
“Alright, next.”
I immediately clicked the second option.
‘The Lord's Castle's Opinion.’
[You asked for the Lord's Castle's opinion on forming an alliance.]
[First, Gono has expressed his approval of this alliance.]
“Ah, so that’s how it is.”
I had been curious about what the ‘Lord's Castle's Opinion’ meant, and it was answered right away.
It was a summary of the opinions of the monsters currently stationed in the Lord's Castle.
The opinions of all the soldiers.
Its name was a Lord's Castle, but ironically, its internal structure was quite democratic.
[…Finally, the Ice Ear Turtle has expressed neutrality.]
“Almost everyone is either in favor or neutral.”
Everyone was in favor, except for the Ice Ear Turtle and Queen Ant Akasha, who remained neutral.
It was a relief that their opinions were aligned.
If there was internal division, things could get complicated regardless of my choice.
“Now all that’s left is to find out who these rising powers are.”
‘Rising’ meant their power had grown suddenly and recently.
Just as my curiosity peaked…
[Specific information on the rising power has been collected.]
“Oh.”
Perfect timing. The remaining option turned blue.
And the moment I clicked the third option and checked the information…
My jaw dropped.
[Rising Power - Ogre Settlement led by Chieftain Grom-mel]
“Huh.”
No way.
* * *
The Ogre Sanctuary had disappeared not long after I escaped through the rift.
So I had my suspicions, but…
“It’s not the chieftain who was at the Ogre Sanctuary.”
In any case, the fact that ogres had requested an alliance with the Lord's Castle…
It was clearly related to the message I saw in the dungeon: ‘Your relationship with the other races who worship Abraxas will change.’
[Chieftain Grom-mel has made contact with the Dream Lord.]
I watched with interest as the ogre entered the Audience Chamber.
He carried a giant axe on his back and wore a helmet with two horns.
Unusually, his skin was red, not the typical brown of an ogre.
[Chieftain Grom-mel and the Dream Lord are conversing.]
The ogre and the Lord stood facing each other.
Their size difference was reflected even in the pixelated window; the Lord was about half the ogre’s height.
They exchanged a long conversation, indicated by […].
About ten minutes later.
[Chieftain Grom-mel concludes the conversation and departs.]
The red ogre turned around.
After Grom disappeared through the main road outside the castle gate…
[Discussion Topics - The Lord's Opinion has been updated.]
I clicked on it, and a speech bubble from the Lord, who had returned to his throne, appeared.
[The Ogre Chieftain's words and actions are quite crude. He said he received an oracle from Saksarva, which told him to form an alliance with us here. I barely managed to send him away after he caused a ruckus, demanding to be placed on the front lines immediately.]
…And here I thought they were having a heartwarming conversation.
Turns out this chieftain fellow just tried to strong-arm his way through.
I guess an alliance is out of the question. After such rude behavior, of course…
[Therefore, I am in full agreement with pursuing an alliance with this rising power.]
“Huh?”
Wasn’t this the part where he was supposed to refuse?
But the Lord calmly stated his opinion.
[Ogres are an inherently fierce and battle-hungry race. It just so happens that our Lord's Castle was in need of such individuals. These battle-crazed warriors who do not fear death will become a sufficiently reliable force.]
“Battle-crazed, huh…”
He had a point.
The Lizardmen were well-trained and disciplined soldiers, Gono was a nimble type, and Odolph was… a gentlemanly power-mage.
None of the others fit the battle-crazed type either.
Even the Lord was in favor.
The opinions were completely unanimous.
“Then the answer is clear.”
[Form an alliance with Chieftain Grom-mel's forces?]
[You have chosen to form an alliance.]
Another window popped up.
[The Dream Lord's Castle has formed an alliance with Chieftain Grom-mel's forces. You can now deploy the named monster Grom-mel and 10 of his ogre followers during wave defenses.]
[Grom-mel's forces will periodically send spoils of war to the Lord's Castle as a gift.]
“Nice.”
I never imagined I would continue my connection with the ogres this way.
The ‘Alliance List’ window, which had replaced the old ‘Friends List’ from my ‘MonMonMak’ days.
I smiled as I looked at the chieftain’s name at the top of the list.
And right on cue, news that made my smile blossom arrived.
[Grom-mel's forces have sent spoils of war. Dark Elf's Blood ×30, Ice Turtle's Carapace ×30]
It seemed the ogres and dark elves were still at each other’s throats.
“Very good.”
I checked in the Manufacturing Room and found that one vial of Dark Elf's Blood could make two Dark Resistance Potions.
That meant sixty Dark Resistance Potions.
I immediately picked up my smartphone.
- Ye-yes, it’s, it’s been a while, Mr. VIP.
“It has, Guild Leader. I’m calling because I have some items to sell.”
- Th-that's news so welcome it brings a tear to my eye…
Time to enjoy the perks of being a VIP.
* * *
Two days passed.
[The 703rd wave will now begin.]
The 703rd wave invasion, including an 8-star Absolute monster, had begun.
The first to appear on the main road were various ice-attribute monsters.
They were 4-star on average, which in real-world terms would be C to B- danger-level monsters.
[An Ice Harpy strikes the 「Carapace Barricade」.]
The wave began striking the barricade I had crafted from the ‘Ice Turtle's Carapace’ sent by Grom-mel’s forces.
It was a kind of stockade added in front of the castle gate.
Unlike the ‘Infinite Barricade,’ it couldn't be repaired, but this barricade still held out for a full three minutes.
[An Ice Snail takes 10 damage from a ‘Dark Elf Archer’!]
[A Blue Elk takes 10 damage from a ‘Lizardman Crossbowman’!]
And those three minutes were more than enough time for the ranged monsters stationed in the barracks to deal damage.
[The Carapace Barricade is destroyed.]
By the time the wave poured into the Lord's Castle, a considerable pile of monster corpses had already accumulated beyond the gate.
“Alright, now you all fall back.”
I pulled the monsters that had been intercepting from beyond the barricade back into the barracks of each passage.
It took less than ten seconds to appropriately reposition and combine the twenty or so ranged monsters.
A moment where physical skill and a veteran’s experience combined.
[The monster wave has entered the Lord's Castle.]
The monsters, their health worn to shreds, poured into the Lord's Castle.
Straight into the belly of a beast already prepared to devour them.
[An Ice Harpy takes 100 damage from ‘Odolph’! Critical Hit! 1 Ice Harpy is annihilated!]
[A Blue Elk takes 70 damage from ‘Grom-mel’! Critical Hit!]
All I had to do was watch as the wave, split into four, was torn to pieces.
Even the monsters that used stealth to evade attacks and penetrate deeper…
[‘Akasha's’ kingdom has detected an external enemy.]
They couldn't pass the final gateway located in the wide space before the Audience Chamber, where the four passages converged.
The kingdom, occupying the spacious rectangular room, was an ant nest, but its shape was more like an antlion’s pit.
[‘Akasha's’ kingdom enters a combat stance.]
A living kingdom, from which giant soldier ants revealed themselves.
The monsters that were crushed by the cascading formic acid and sharp mandibles melted away.
It was utterly overwhelming.
Things were completely different from the last two waves.
The Dream Lord's Castle was growing stronger and stronger.
An hour passed like that.
[Current monsters remaining: 1/120]
With the exception of a single one, the 703rd wave was annihilated within an hour of invading the Lord's Castle.
Losses among the defense forces were nil.
Only the traps made in the Manufacturing Room and the Carapace Barricade were destroyed.
And then.
[The Absolute, 「Arkan of Frost」, heads toward the Lord's Castle.]
Finally, the master of this wave appeared from the north.
It was a monster with an elongated head and a gaunt body shrouded in a blue mist.
Just from the pixels, its quality was on a level incomparable to the other mobs.
[The calm before the storm. The results will show whether you are the weak ones, or we are.]
The creature even displayed a line of dialogue as it strode forward with imposing dignity.
Looking at it now, it was definitely a boss monster of an unprecedented class.
8-star, an ice attribute that slowed monsters with every attack, and on top of that, the Absolute trait.
If it had appeared in a previous wave, I would have had to watch helplessly as it reached the Audience Chamber.
[Deploying Phoenix ‘Ru’ at the castle gate.]
[A Fire-attribute Divine Beast has been deployed. As a deployment effect, all monsters in the Lord's Castle gain Ice Resistance Lv. 5.]
[Blessed by the Fire Divine Beast. All monsters in the Lord's Castle can now bypass the ‘Absolute’ trait of the Ice-attribute monster and deal damage.]
“Welcome, my dear Arkan.”
But what about now?