Chapter 180: The End of Pre-war Defense (1)
‘Dad will be good to you!’
It was originally an unwanted child, but that did not matter anymore. I now considered it as solid insurance, as it could protect me once I became too old.
Meanwhile, Dialugia still looked speechless, her face taking on a complex expression. However, the answer had already been decided for her.
“It was an unwanted situation, but I will do my best. Oh… well…”
“Ah…”
“I’ll head in first and finish my work, then go right after you. Pfft. See you in a minute. My baby, you should also stay there and listen to your mother.”
“W… Who… What baby…”
“Who would it be? Anyway, let’s talk about it after work. Again, don’t make a fuss about it. I don’t want to employ the rough method either. What parent would want their child to get hurt?”
“…”
I left quickly right after saying that. Though I didn’t need to be present if the pre-war defense was coming to an end, it was mandatory since I was still the troops’ general commander. It would only be right to be present when they celebrated their victory.
I didn’t do much, but I still had every right to show off.
As much as I wanted to be with Dialugia, I knew the Red Mercenaries would be enough to guard her. I nodded in thanks to them, and they nodded right back as if telling me not to worry.
‘Hmm…’
As I slowly climbed up the wall, I saw the monsters’ bodies lying underneath.
It didn’t feel like more waves could come. None at all, as long as I had Dialugia and the baby here. Most of the humans on the wall looked exhausted, yet they pushed on to clear the few final creatures.
“Don’t be pushed!”
“Let’s end this!”
Baaaaaang!
It was nice to see the troops trying their hardest to finish them off. I could even see my party in the distance running along the walls.
Jung Hayan was still spreading magic while biting her lips tightly, and Kim Hyunsung busied himself with cutting the throats of the guys trying to come up with his sword.
It is natural that I, who had not gotten a lot of experience, was in a hurry.
It was not a big spell, but I was forced to continue to attack the guys down there.
“Tankers, block the road to prevent the remaining monsters from entering the collapsed western wall!”
I had to show them that I did something, too. The conclusion of this battle was important.
Crack!
Crash!
“Groooooaaar!”
Whoosh.
“Ahhhhhhhhh!”
“Block!”
The huge hand summoned by me fell, and the monsters screamed.
I was not good physically, but my magic power was fine. I had to show a suitable example of what a competent commander was for everyone.
My overall appearance did not look bad. My whole body was covered in dirt, and I had wounds from running away. I looked no different from those who had genuinely battled hard.
Of course, the truth was far away, but who cared about it?
Unlike the command unit, which looked relatively clean, my appearance was very dirty.
Sneaking up to the front of the wall, I thought about showing myself holding Juliana in my hand and cutting through some of the monsters.
The way I held a sword was still awkward, even though I had learned from Kim Hyunsung when I had gotten Juliana. To be precise, it would be correct to say that my body simply moved in the direction Juliana would move.
After cutting the throat of a small monster coming up, I once again activated my voice amplification magic before shouting loudly.
“Don’t let your guard down until the end! Wizards who have run out of magic should lift their swords and spears! Even the priests who have lost their divine power should throw stones under the walls. This is our hometown!”
Of course, this was not my hometown.
“Victory is right before your eyes!”
This was an undeniable fact. I knew the image of me struggling would prove to be an inspiration for our troops.
‘Good.’
“Stay strong, comrades!”
“General commander.”
Of course, I didn’t forget to encourage them. I patted them on their shoulders to show support.
“Do not let the sacrifice of Little Rock be in vain!”
It was then that a small monster ran into the soldier next to me. I knew that I would not receive severe damage if I were to get bit. Thus, I pushed the soldier away and let myself get attacked instead. Its sharp canines sunk into my flesh.
‘It fucking hurts!’
This marked the first genuine wound I got in this pre-war defense.
As soon as I let go of Juliana, the sword flew and pierced the monster. The guy I had saved looked at me in bewilderment.
“Lee Kiyoung-nim! We must treat that wound!”
“It’s not a big wound. Save your divine power.”
“And… And the potion…”
Of course, I had one with me, but I was not stupid enough to use it right away.
“I’m fine. Divine power or remaining supplies must be used for the seriously wounded ones. I can bear such a wound.”
“Lee… Lee Kiyoung-nim…”
“We have to live and meet our precious family again, right?”
“Yes…”
If my endurance stats were a little higher, I might not have been able to fake the blood.
Due to my low stats, my wounded appearance looked convincing.
Anyone who sees me wielding my sword while grasping one arm would say that I indeed looked sorrowful.
‘Good.’
It really hurt, but it was necessary for my façade. Although I could still move my arm, my sloppier movements proved to emphasize my struggling form.
I didn’t necessarily ask them to look at me. Instead, I chose to fight in the most desperate way in an area that didn’t seem so dangerous to be in. Though I could not achieve as much as Kim Hyunsung did, I had to show that I was doing a lot, too.
I shook my head when the priest said he would treat me.
“This kind of wound is okay.”
“General commander…”
At this, I took the potions I had with me and treated the others first. It was no big deal to me if it meant this would boost my reputation a lot later.
‘There are quite a lot.’
At some point, the shouts of humans became louder than the shouts of monsters. This meant we were on the verge of victory.
It was worth saying that the victory or defeat had already been decided to some extent from the moment I joined. Unlike those who were busy dealing with the enemies right in front of them, I had already checked the overall situation and knew that we would emerge as the victors.
“Waahhhhhhhhh!”
“Don’t give up!”
The archers who had run out of arrows pulled out their swords and were now stabbing the monsters. And the warriors were now knocking the medium-sized monsters askew since their weapons had now become blunt.
“Waahhhhhhhhhhhh!!”
After the cleanup, the soldiers in the third wall dropped their weapons and cheered, and the people in the fourth and second walls dropped their weapons and hugged each other.
I also wanted to congratulate myself on the victory, but it was only right to return to an area that had not yet been cleaned up and show a little bit of despair.
It seemed like the arrangement would be over soon, but I still had to stay until the end. I guess I overdid it a little since I was out of breath, but did that matter? My fellow party members were also on the way.
I threw Juliana, who instinctively flew and pierced the neck of a monster that had been fighting with another soldier.
‘Whoa!’
That would mark another soldier who felt grateful upon being saved.
My breathing had become rough at this point – I didn’t have to fake looking so tired. At this point, I was really gasping for air.
‘Accumulating beautiful stories!’
For later evaluation, the more I upped my reputation now, the better.
“T-Thank you.”
“It’s nothing.”
Kim Hyunsung must also be working hard. One by one, the monsters collapsed, and a shout echoed from almost all walls. Most of the monsters in the western wall were almost cleared.
‘We won.’
Of course, in my case, the aftermath was the problem. There were quite a lot of things to do.
The thing with Hee-ra had to be solved, and I had to settle things with Shaolin. I also had a lot of explaining to do with Kim Hyunsung, and above all, it was important to secure Dialugia and my lovely child.
Of course, other guilds in Castle Rock could not claim ownership of her, but that was why I had to think about what to take care of first.
‘I also have to decide on my class.’
The post-war readjustment was also a problem.
It meant that I had to settle those many monsters’ corpses and have a meeting about the damage situation and the kind of benefits I could bring.
Originally, guys like me were way busier after than during the war.
“Waahhh!”
“I lived! I lived!”
“Fuck! We did it!!”
“Wahhhhh!”
In the meantime, the shouts were getting louder and louder. Each person’s appearance was different.
Some were crying because of the loss of a colleague, while others shouted with joy.
Of course, most had gone with the latter. It would be right to give a conclusive speech now. It was time to declare the end of the war.
“We are…!”
When I opened my mouth to speak, all eyes naturally fell upon me. However, it was here that the dizziness hit me.
‘Huh?’
I felt like my head was spinning. I tried to open my mouth again, but my lips refused to move.
‘Fuck…’
I wondered if someone had killed Dialugia, but that did not seem to be the case.
‘Did I bleed too much?’
I didn’t, not that much. It was then that I realized that the troops had inflicted so many scars on Dialugia before, and it seemed like some of the damage had already been passed to me. In the meantime, I had used my magic power a lot, so it was not unreasonable to look like this.
‘Ah…’
I struggled hard, but my eyes gradually became blurred and dark.
I keep staggering. I tried to stay focused, but nothing happened.
‘No… Will this even look good?’
Everyone was already at me.
“Oppaaaaaaa!”
“Hyung-nim!!!”
“Kiyoung-ssi!”
As I listened to the party members’ voices screaming, I closed my eyes.
‘Ah, perhaps this still looks good…’
It would be nice if they settled all the post-war preparations for me before I woke up again, but I knew that was useless wishing.
This was the Battle of Castle Rock, a city that suffered an enormous number of fatalities and serious injuries. The General Commander became a role model for those who passed out due to exhaustion, yet the wound he had on his body was only one wound and that from a small monster.