Chapter 219: Ruler (3)

Translator: RaidenTL

Chapter 219: Ruler (3)

Before deactivating Giantization, I took a look around at my surroundings, the cavern in the center of the dark zone that had been expanded to the size of a plaza, one more time.

Right now it kind of looks like Gwanghwamun Square.

A group of adventurers easily numbering in the thousands looked my way, all packed like sardines. I wondered exactly how many there were. I didn't dare count. Including the people who were still out in the passageways due to the crowd in the center, the number would be ridiculous. I realized now that the numbers you heard and read about were different in real life.

If he saw this, would that bastard have made a different decision?

The thought came to mind but I quickly dismissed it. It was pointless to consider and not something to concern myself with right now.

"Behelahhh!"

"...We wanted you to speak. Why are you shouting all of a sudden?"

"I just felt like doing it!"

To be honest, the crowd was making me kind of nervous. Screaming made me feel a bit better. I was a barbarian—there was nothing in this world that I could not do.

"Listen up, everyone!" In a silence that was hard to imagine coming from this many people, everyone's attention locked on me. It was making me shy, but I stayed stone-faced and continued. "Let's put our heads together! With so many people, there must be some smart ones here!"

I already had plans in place from A to Z, but I figured it would look suspicious if I revealed all of that in front of this many people.

"Eh?"

"That's it...?"

Those who had awaited my announcement while holding their breaths stared at me blankly. Some of them also looked disappointed.

"What was I expecting from a barbarian?"

That was the only downside to being a barbarian. You couldn't come off as an intelligent character and take the lead. Well, without a barbarian, it would have been impossible to stop the fight earlier in the first place.

"Th-then why were you shouting so passionately earlier!?"

"A wise warrior directs his anger to the right place. It is not here that we should be shedding blood ."

"No, I know what you want to say but..."

The adventurers didn't know what to say. I adhered strictly to playing dumb. After all, I'd achieved my goal of saving the knights for now. No, not only that, I had even succeeded in creating an environment where everyone could gather and talk, leaving a deep impression on people. I'd managed to do everything I had set out to do for phase one.

A middle-aged wizard who had introduced himself as a war correspondent defended me, shifting the tone of the conversation. "He's not wrong. Everyone has their own role to play. Since this fellow has stopped the meaningless bloodshed and allowed us to gather like this, he has already done more for us than anyone else."

I guessed I'd left a good impression.

"Roles, huh? That reminds me of a passage from The Book of Monarchy. 'The role of a ruler is not to fight, but to create the desire to fight.'"

"Haha, I never thought anyone actually read that book. Nice to meet you. Was it Melter Fend, of Nartel Clan?"

"Yes, sir."

"Oh, do you know me?"

"You are quite famous."

The two conversed briefly and exchanged friendly glances. That was bad. Not only did we not have time to socialize, but these were adventurers who had already been abandoned by their leaders once. If they saw us bonding all alone, they were sure to get anxious.

"Enough of that, let's get talking! Does anyone have any information we don't know about?" I played dumb and intruded on their conversation to make sure it didn't get off-topic. These guys needed to discuss for my plan to work, and we needed to reach the conclusion I came to earlier, even if it was a bit more cumbersome than me just flat-out saying it.

When no one else came forward, Fend got the ball rolling. "First, we need to determine why the palace's troops abandoned us."

"Exactly! They haven't had any issues holding out so far, so why...?"

This was the biggest enigma here. Those who were angry at being abandoned regained their logic and expressed their confusion. Since many people were gathered, we reached the right answer quickly.

"It's probably because of the Lord of the Floor." This came out of the wizard Kyle's mouth.

"...The Lord of the Floor?"

"But we've been dealing with it fine so far!"

"Until now we have. But the knight captain was probably afraid of the thing that appears after the ninth Lord of the Floor is defeated."

"...The thing?"

"The Lord of the Abyss, Berzak. Another Lord of the Floor called by that title." Most were confused at this name they had never heard before, so Kyle provided a brief explanation. "It is because of this monster that adventurers have to report to the guild before planning a raid against the Lord of the First Floor. That's how much of a calamity it is if it appears."

"It's bad enough that even hundreds of knights and large clans cannot defeat it together?"

"No, not that bad. But..." Kyle trailed off and stared into the distance. "We're not the only ones in the Crystal Cave."

Noark and Rafdonia were both here, and soon even the Lord of the Abyss, Berzak.

"The knight captains made a judgment call. If a battle with Berzak begins, Noark is sure to attack us."

"Come to think of it, there have been no raids since the first day..."

"Damn it, they planned this from the start!"

It was a kind of war of elimination, a strategy of mutually assured destruction in which Berzak was used to inflict tremendous damage on us. That was why the captain of the Royal Guard had chosen to retreat, because high-ranking adventurers and knights were valuable forces that were difficult to replenish in a short period of time. He wanted to protect them, at least, for that goddamn king.

"Wait! Isn't that a bit odd, then? If they knew something that dangerous would appear, why didn't they try to go upstairs before then?"

One of the adventurers pointed out a contradiction. This was also something I had thought carefully about, but the answer was really simple.

"I think I can answer that." This time, it was the priestess from Heindel Church who spoke up. "On the first day we entered the labyrinth, a search team was sent to the second-floor portals. This is information I learned while treating a knight who returned alive."

"Tell us already!"

"The western portal connecting to Rock Desert is unfortunately no longer usable."

"No longer usable?"

"The Fallen Scholar... That cursed wizard has apparently destroyed it."

The Fallen Scholar was a criminal who was rumored to be an executive member of Orcules. When his name was mentioned, the crowd erupted into chaos. As they all shouted and made a commotion, I quietly got my thoughts in order.

"Enough of that, let's get talking! Does anyone have any information we don't know about?" I played dumb and intruded on their conversation to make sure it didn't get off-topic. These guys needed to discuss for my plan to work, and we needed to reach the conclusion I came to earlier, even if it was a bit more cumbersome than me just flat-out saying it.

When no one else came forward, Fend got the ball rolling. "First, we need to determine why the palace's troops abandoned us."

"Exactly! They haven't had any issues holding out so far, so why...?"

This was the biggest enigma here. Those who were angry at being abandoned regained their logic and expressed their confusion. Since many people were gathered, we reached the right answer quickly.

"It's probably because of the Lord of the Floor." This came out of the wizard Kyle's mouth.

"...The Lord of the Floor?"

"But we've been dealing with it fine so far!"

"Until now we have. But the knight captain was probably afraid of the thing that appears after the ninth Lord of the Floor is defeated."

"...The thing?"

"The Lord of the Abyss, Berzak. Another Lord of the Floor called by that title." Most were confused at this name they had never heard before, so Kyle provided a brief explanation. "It is because of this monster that adventurers have to report to the guild before planning a raid against the Lord of the First Floor. That's how much of a calamity it is if it appears."

"It's bad enough that even hundreds of knights and large clans cannot defeat it together?"

"No, not that bad. But..." Kyle trailed off and stared into the distance. "We're not the only ones in the Crystal Cave."

Noark and Rafdonia were both here, and soon even the Lord of the Abyss, Berzak.

"The knight captains made a judgment call. If a battle with Berzak begins, Noark is sure to attack us."

"Come to think of it, there have been no raids since the first day..."

"Damn it, they planned this from the start!"

It was a kind of war of elimination, a strategy of mutually assured destruction in which Berzak was used to inflict tremendous damage on us. That was why the captain of the Royal Guard had chosen to retreat, because high-ranking adventurers and knights were valuable forces that were difficult to replenish in a short period of time. He wanted to protect them, at least, for that goddamn king.

"Wait! Isn't that a bit odd, then? If they knew something that dangerous would appear, why didn't they try to go upstairs before then?"

One of the adventurers pointed out a contradiction. This was also something I had thought carefully about, but the answer was really simple.

"I think I can answer that." This time, it was the priestess from Heindel Church who spoke up. "On the first day we entered the labyrinth, a search team was sent to the second-floor portals. This is information I learned while treating a knight who returned alive."

"Tell us already!"

"The western portal connecting to Rock Desert is unfortunately no longer usable."

"No longer usable?"

"The Fallen Scholar... That cursed wizard has apparently destroyed it."

The Fallen Scholar was a criminal who was rumored to be an executive member of Orcules. When his name was mentioned, the crowd erupted into chaos. As they all shouted and made a commotion, I quietly got my thoughts in order.

West, huh?

So now our odds were one in three? That was valuable information.

"If west is blocked, then we just need to go to another portal!" someone in the crowd shouted, but few even bothered responding. That was because that was common sense.

"The other portals have not been checked, but the knight said that it is highly likely the Fallen Scholar has already gotten to them."

"Then..."

"Yes, we are completely trapped here." When the priestess finished speaking, a heavy silence fell. Regardless, however, the discussion continued.

"Those bastards from Noark are really going for it this time."

"So what are we going to do now?"

"Aside from the monster Berzak, if they find out that our main forces are gone, they will definitely invade."

The other adventurers were participating in the conversation more actively than before, but they made little progress. There weren't enough clues to come up with a proper countermeasure.

Whenever that happened, I interrupted and provided hints. "Everyone is thinking too narrowly. A skilled warrior always anticipates the enemy's next move before acting."

"These guys spent months planning for this specific day. Surely they prepared for the possibility of us escaping through a portal."

"...To be honest, I think it would be stranger if they actually expected that."

Hmm, that was true. Certainly, it was something the average person wouldn't even consider.

Kyle and a select few did not take my words lightly. "That makes sense. Maybe their plan was to corner us and force us to use portal magic."

"Yes. Then the real battle may not be this one, but the next. From now on, there won't be many wizards in the city who can use portal magic anymore."

"They may be aiming to cause friction between the palace and the adventurers too. If this news gets out to the city, distrust toward the palace will surely hit an all-time high. Well, all of that is assuming we return alive."

These were all questions I'd had at one time or another, as we were in a situation where any and everything needed to be carefully considered.

"I just don't know what they're after..."

Since no one was coming up with an answer, Kyle turned to me. "What do you think? It seems to me that your opinion is important."

"What do you mean?"

"You pointed out the heart of the issue just now too. I am curious about your warrior's intuition."

I pondered this for a moment. Having asked many questions and come up with many theories up to this point, I had already reached a conclusion. Of course, I wasn't sure if it was the right one. "I think we were the target from the beginning."

"Oh? Not the knights and large clans?" Kyle chimed in with interest, but not everyone agreed.

"That is nonsense. If they knew the knights were going to use a portal, why would they use this strategy? If the cream of the crop have all escaped already, mutually assured destruction would only hurt them, not help them." The speaker was a bastard who had been very polite to all the other talented people over the course of the discussion, yet treated me with a particular brand of hostility.

I didn't know why he was acting like that toward me. Was it because he had no hair? I smirked. "Why do you assume they plan to die with us? They can just go upstairs."

West, huh?

So now our odds were one in three? That was valuable information.

"If west is blocked, then we just need to go to another portal!" someone in the crowd shouted, but few even bothered responding. That was because that was common sense.

"The other portals have not been checked, but the knight said that it is highly likely the Fallen Scholar has already gotten to them."

"Then..."

"Yes, we are completely trapped here." When the priestess finished speaking, a heavy silence fell. Regardless, however, the discussion continued.

"Those bastards from Noark are really going for it this time."

"So what are we going to do now?"

"Aside from the monster Berzak, if they find out that our main forces are gone, they will definitely invade."

The other adventurers were participating in the conversation more actively than before, but they made little progress. There weren't enough clues to come up with a proper countermeasure.

Whenever that happened, I interrupted and provided hints. "Everyone is thinking too narrowly. A skilled warrior always anticipates the enemy's next move before acting."

"These guys spent months planning for this specific day. Surely they prepared for the possibility of us escaping through a portal."

"...To be honest, I think it would be stranger if they actually expected that."

Hmm, that was true. Certainly, it was something the average person wouldn't even consider.

Kyle and a select few did not take my words lightly. "That makes sense. Maybe their plan was to corner us and force us to use portal magic."

"Yes. Then the real battle may not be this one, but the next. From now on, there won't be many wizards in the city who can use portal magic anymore."

"They may be aiming to cause friction between the palace and the adventurers too. If this news gets out to the city, distrust toward the palace will surely hit an all-time high. Well, all of that is assuming we return alive."

These were all questions I'd had at one time or another, as we were in a situation where any and everything needed to be carefully considered.

"I just don't know what they're after..."

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

Since no one was coming up with an answer, Kyle turned to me. "What do you think? It seems to me that your opinion is important."

"What do you mean?"

"You pointed out the heart of the issue just now too. I am curious about your warrior's intuition."

I pondered this for a moment. Having asked many questions and come up with many theories up to this point, I had already reached a conclusion. Of course, I wasn't sure if it was the right one. "I think we were the target from the beginning."

"Oh? Not the knights and large clans?" Kyle chimed in with interest, but not everyone agreed.

"That is nonsense. If they knew the knights were going to use a portal, why would they use this strategy? If the cream of the crop have all escaped already, mutually assured destruction would only hurt them, not help them." The speaker was a bastard who had been very polite to all the other talented people over the course of the discussion, yet treated me with a particular brand of hostility.

I didn't know why he was acting like that toward me. Was it because he had no hair? I smirked. "Why do you assume they plan to die with us? They can just go upstairs."

"Like I said before—"

"They just have to leave one portal active and escape through that."

This was the conclusion I had reached. After all, wasn't this world full of efficiency fiends? If I were the leader on the enemy's side, this was the only plan of action that would make sense.

Because this is the most lucrative for them.

They could burn through over a hundred high-ranking wizards' portals in one go and then just wait for the next opening to strike. Not only that, but they could also reduce the king's influence in the city... and more importantly, though the cream of the crop may have been gone, they could wipe out ten thousand adventurers without shedding a single drop of their own blood. With our main forces gone, we would never be able to defeat Berzak in this lifetime.

But I guess it was tough to admit that. The guy was speechless for only a moment before coming to his senses and making an ignorant rebuttal. "It can't be that simple—"

Or, well, he tried to. Kyle nodded slowly. "So you think the same thing I do."

The heck, he already figured it out yet still asked me?

That made me a bit uncomfortable but I decided not to comment on it. Geez, this was why I never wanted to stand out too much. Still, it seemed more like he was testing my abilities rather than suspicious of me.

Just then, we heard a commotion outside. I couldn't hear it because it was far away but it didn't take long for the news to reach us.

"Captain!"

"What is it?"

"The Noark bastards blocking the passageways have all disappeared!"

Kyle smiled ruefully at me. "It seems you and I were right."

Now we really needed to hurry.

***

Now that we'd figured out Noark's plan, it wasn't difficult to come up with a countermeasure. Even if it may not have been a perfect solution, it was obvious what we had to do.

"We have to go up to the second floor as well."

"But do you know through where?"

"We at least know it's not west. Let's divide into three teams and search."

The group would split into three and run to the second-floor portals. Of course, that wasn't the end of it.

"Even going up will be a problem! Those guys will definitely be there!"

Out of the frying pan and into the fire. More adversity awaited us at the end of our journey, but so what?

"Isn't that better than dying here? From now on, it's your own choice what you do," Kyle said calmly, and at least around us, no one chose to stay.

"Then how will we divide our forces?" one of the adventurers asked to iron out a more detailed strategy.

Before Kyle—who was starting to lead the conversation now—could speak, I jumped in. "I think we should divide ourselves into groups of three hundred."

"Only three hundred? When we're already low on manpower?"

Ugh, this asshole again.

"Even if we put more people in each group, this terrain is difficult to fight in properly. This is for the best." In technical terms, this meant guerrilla warfare. I didn't bother saying that, but everyone picked up on the implication.

"Hmm, you have a point. A battle is one thing, but more importantly, the bigger the group, the more people will survive. Our numbers will distract the monster."

"Like I said before—"

"They just have to leave one portal active and escape through that."

This was the conclusion I had reached. After all, wasn't this world full of efficiency fiends? If I were the leader on the enemy's side, this was the only plan of action that would make sense.

Because this is the most lucrative for them.

They could burn through over a hundred high-ranking wizards' portals in one go and then just wait for the next opening to strike. Not only that, but they could also reduce ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the king's influence in the city... and more importantly, though the cream of the crop may have been gone, they could wipe out ten thousand adventurers without shedding a single drop of their own blood. With our main forces gone, we would never be able to defeat Berzak in this lifetime.

But I guess it was tough to admit that. The guy was speechless for only a moment before coming to his senses and making an ignorant rebuttal. "It can't be that simple—"

Or, well, he tried to. Kyle nodded slowly. "So you think the same thing I do."

The heck, he already figured it out yet still asked me?

That made me a bit uncomfortable but I decided not to comment on it. Geez, this was why I never wanted to stand out too much. Still, it seemed more like he was testing my abilities rather than suspicious of me.

Just then, we heard a commotion outside. I couldn't hear it because it was far away but it didn't take long for the news to reach us.

"Captain!"

"What is it?"

"The Noark bastards blocking the passageways have all disappeared!"

Kyle smiled ruefully at me. "It seems you and I were right."

Now we really needed to hurry.

***

Now that we'd figured out Noark's plan, it wasn't difficult to come up with a countermeasure. Even if it may not have been a perfect solution, it was obvious what we had to do.

"We have to go up to the second floor as well."

"But do you know through where?"

"We at least know it's not west. Let's divide into three teams and search."

The group would split into three and run to the second-floor portals. Of course, that wasn't the end of it.

"Even going up will be a problem! Those guys will definitely be there!"

Out of the frying pan and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠into the fire. More adversity awaited us at the end of our journey, but so what?

"Isn't that better than dying here? From now on, it's your own choice what you do," Kyle said calmly, and at least around us, no one chose to stay.

"Then how will we divide our forces?" one of the adventurers asked to iron out a more detailed strategy.

Before Kyle—who was starting to lead the conversation now—could speak, I jumped in. "I think we should divide ourselves into groups of three hundred."

"Only three hundred? When we're already low on manpower?"

Ugh, this asshole again.

"Even if we put more people in each group, this terrain is difficult to fight in properly. This is for the best." In technical terms, this meant guerrilla warfare. I didn't bother saying that, but everyone picked up on the implication.

"Hmm, you have a point. A battle is one thing, but more importantly, the bigger the group, the more people will survive. Our numbers will distract the monster."

"Most of us will die if we come across that monster anyway, so you're saying you want us to serve as bait to raise each other's chances of survival."

It was truly a heartless strategy. However, everyone agreed without dissent. This was the good thing about the adventurer industry. No time was wasted discussing things like approval.

"Then how should we divide up the groups?"

"Let's figure that out on our own. I have no intention of working under anyone."

"Yes, we don't have time, anyway."

Once we had a rough plan set up, one of the adventurers—the leader of a small, unknown clan—ended the conversation and stepped away. Chaos promptly ensued.

Some recruited comrades to join them. "This is the Red Light Clan. I'm looking for those who want to get out of this goddamned place with me! Anyone above rank six, whoever you are, and however many!"

Some looked for shelter in the storm. "One of our team members is rank-seven. Can't you let it slide?"

In the middle of all that commotion, the leader of the Nartel Clan, Melter Fend, immediately set out to recruit the wizard. "Sir Kyle, I know you are on your own. Would you like to join our clan?"

Welp, I had planned to do that first, but seeing how friendly those two had been acting earlier, I didn't think the man would refuse.

Then I should act fast before everyone is snatched away.

"I'll be going now. See you on the other side." After briefly saying goodbye, I turned around, intending to return to my teammates, who were in the crowd somewhere, and gather some talent. It was going to be quite a challenge for a barbarian sucker like me to gather three hundred people, though.

I was about to get moving when the battle mage, Kyle, stopped me. "Wait, what are you going to do? I'm sure you'll take on the position of leader?"

"Of course."

"Then take me too."

Huh?

"Why?"

"I'm just following my gut. I have a feeling that people will come together for you."

"...You'll trust your intuition when your life is at stake?"

When I glanced at Fend, who had offered to recruit him first, Kyle grinned. "What, you think a wizard who willingly chose to remain in this chaos is sane?"

Uh, that's definitely fair.

"All right. I hope we work well together."

I had a high-ranking wizard now. This was a huge win. Using this, I could recruit better team members.

"Take us with you." Before I could take a single step, a group of knights approached me. Inspecting the familiar face of the knight at the forefront, I realized it was the same man who had resigned himself to getting beaten up when I first got here. "Four official knights and six apprentice knights. We won't slow you down."

What, are you trying to repay the favor? That works for me.

"All right. Follow me."

The group of knights moved to stand behind me. But before I could take another step, someone called out to me. "Wait."

It was Fend. What was this? Was it because I stole the wizard from right under his nose? He didn't look like that kind of sore loser, but...

"Which direction are you going?"

"East." Since the west was blocked, the east was good. That way, even if our first attempt failed, we could turn north or south depending on the situation.

"Coincidentally, that's also the direction I'm going in. Why don't we travel together?"

"I have no intention of working under you."

"Don't worry. I will follow your orders."

"What?" This was also unexpected. He didn't seem like the type of guy who would work under anyone, either.

What is this? Is there a hidden camera somewhere?

"So, your answer?"

"...If you agree to follow my orders to the letter."

"Then it's decided."

Soon, Fend and his clanmates took up a spot behind me. To be honest, I was dumbfounded. I hadn't even made any offers yet. How were this many gathered already?

"Behelaaah!"

"Follow the next chieftain!"

Before I could take more than a few steps this time, the barbarians all ran up and fell into step behind me. Well, that was to be expected.

"Mister!"

"Erwen? Where is your clan?"

"My sister thinks it will be safer this way! Will you take the two of us too?"

"Of course."

The elf sisters, who had apparently been watching things unfold from somewhere nearby, also joined in. And they weren't the only ones.

"If it's all right, I'd like to travel with you," said the leader of a rank-four team that was active on the sixth floor.

A priestess who had stayed behind to save as many people as possible said, "I believe you'll be able to save the most lives."

"Haha, in times like these, steadfast people like you are the most reliable people out there. Take us with you too." Even a dwarven clan that was quite famous in the city spoke up.

All I was doing was walking, but numerous people came up to me and asked to go with me.

Kyle gave me a big grin. "Didn't I tell you? I knew people would gather around you. A wizard's intuition is usually right."

"Most of us will die if we come across that monster anyway, so you're saying you want us to serve as bait to raise each other's chances of survival."

It was truly a heartless strategy. However, everyone agreed without dissent. This was the good thing about the adventurer industry. No time was wasted discussing things like approval.

"Then how should we divide up the groups?"

"Let's figure that out on our own. I have no intention of working under anyone."

"Yes, we don't have time, anyway."

Once we had a rough plan set up, one of the adventurers—the leader of a small, unknown clan—ended the conversation and stepped away. Chaos promptly ensued.

Some recruited comrades to join them. "This is the Red Light Clan. I'm looking for those who want to get out of this goddamned place with me! Anyone above rank six, whoever you are, and however many!"

Some looked for shelter in the storm. "One of our team members is rank-seven. Can't you let it slide?"

In the middle of all that commotion, the leader of the Nartel Clan, Melter Fend, immediately set out to recruit the wizard. "Sir Kyle, I know you are on your own. Would you like to join our clan?"

Welp, I had planned to do that first, but seeing how friendly those two had been acting earlier, I didn't think the man would refuse.

Then I should act fast before everyone is snatched away.

"I'll be going now. See you on the other side." After briefly saying goodbye, I turned around, intending to return to my teammates, who were in the crowd somewhere, and gather some talent. It was going to be quite a challenge for a barbarian sucker like me to gather three hundred people, though.

I was about to get moving when the battle mage, Kyle, stopped me. "Wait, what are you going to do? I'm sure you'll take on the position of leader?"

"Of course."

"Then take me too."

Huh?

"Why?"

"I'm ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠just following my gut. I have a feeling that people will come together for you."

"...You'll trust your intuition when your life is at stake?"

When I glanced at Fend, who had offered to recruit him first, Kyle grinned. "What, you think a wizard who willingly chose to remain in this chaos is sane?"

Uh, that's definitely fair.

"All right. I hope we work well together."

I had a high-ranking wizard now. This was a huge win. Using this, I could recruit better team members.

"Take us with you." Before I could take a single step, a group of knights approached me. Inspecting the familiar face of the knight at the forefront, I realized it was the same man who had resigned himself to getting beaten up when I first got here. "Four official knights and six apprentice knights. We won't slow you down."

What, are you trying to repay the favor? That works for me.

"All right. Follow me."

The group of knights moved to stand behind me. But before I could take another step, someone called out to me. "Wait."

It was Fend. What was this? Was it because I stole the wizard from right under his nose? He didn't look like that kind of sore loser, but...

"Which direction are you going?"

"East." Since the west was blocked, the east was good. That way, even if our first attempt failed, we could turn north or south depending on the situation.

"Coincidentally, that's also the direction I'm going in. Why don't we travel together?"

"I have no intention of working under you."

"Don't worry. I will follow your orders."

"What?" This was also unexpected. He didn't seem like the type of guy who would work under anyone, either.

What is this? Is there a hidden camera somewhere?

"So, your answer?"

"...If you agree to follow my orders to the letter."

"Then it's decided."

Soon, Fend and his clanmates took up a spot behind me. To be honest, I was dumbfounded. I hadn't even made any offers yet. How were this many gathered already?

"Behelaaah!"

"Follow the next chieftain!"

Before I could take more than a few steps this time, the barbarians all ran up and fell into step behind me. Well, that was to be expected.

"Mister!"

"Erwen? Where is your clan?"

"My sister thinks it will be safer this way! Will you take the two of us too?"

"Of course."

The elf sisters, who had apparently been watching things unfold from somewhere nearby, also joined in. And they weren't the only ones.

"If it's all right, I'd like to travel with you," said the leader of a rank-four team that was active on the sixth floor.

A priestess who had stayed behind to save as many people as possible said, "I believe you'll be able to save the most lives."

"Haha, in times like these, steadfast people like you are the most reliable people out there. Take us with you too." Even a dwarven clan that was quite famous in the city spoke up.

All I was doing was walking, but numerous people came up to me and asked to go with me.

Kyle gave me a big grin. "Didn't I tell you? I knew people would gather around you. A wizard's intuition is usually right."