Chapter 21

I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game

[Translator: Dawn ]

[Proofreader: Alissa ]

Chapter 21: [STAGE 1] The Mercenary’s Rules to Surviving

“At least one of us must survive! Get the hell outta here, kid!” 

Jupiter shouted at the last party member in hurry. 

“I’ll buy time with magic, so run away in the meantime!” 

The crying young mercenary shouted and raised his spear forward. 

“How do I even do that? It’s best to stay here until the rescue team arrives!” 

“What?” 

“Granny, you’re a magician!” 

The young mercenary slammed the Living Armor running toward him on its side with the spear. 

“Mercenary’s rules to surviving, number 2! Always stick to your allied magician!” 

“……” 

“There’s a higher chance of survival in praying that you take care of those monsters with your magic than trying to run away without a horse!” 

The young mercenary shouted as he blocked the Living Armors with his long spear. 

“I’ll keep blocking them somehow, so cast your next spell!” 

Klang! Klank! 

The young mercenary’s tactics worked. 

He didn’t kill the Living Armors, but pushed them away with his spear and slashed them, keeping his distance. 

The heavily armored monsters took a long time to get back on their feet once they fell. 

Plus, Demian continued to give support fire from the wall in a distance. 

The flying arrows were knocking down the Living Armors one by one. 

It would’ve been enough time for Jupiter to gather enough mana to cast the next magic spell if she was in her normal state. 

However, it took Jupiter a long time to gather mana because she was injured. 

When she managed to gather enough mana to summon a ray of lightning, 

Stab! Stab! 

The spears of monsters were piercing through the body of the young mercenary who was buying time. 

“Aaargh…!” 

“God damn it!” 

Flash-! 

Boom! 

Jupiter swung her arm forward. Lightning struck, and she turned the Living Armors in the area to ashes. 

“Huff, huff…” 

Panting with her hands outstretched in front of her, Jupiter turned to her side. 

“Urgh, cough.” 

The young mercenary was lying on the floor, with blood all over his body. 

Could he have been saved if I gathered mana just a few seconds faster? 

She thought as she shook her head, blowing away the needless guilt. She was too old to have each of these deaths in her mind. 

“Hey, kid.” 

“……” 

“What’s the number 1 rule in the Mercenary’s rules to surviving?” 

The young mercenary, trembling with his lips soaked in blood, managed to mumble. 

“Don’t take… missions that pay a strangely… large amount of money…” 

“……” 

“Ah, mother…” 

Those were his last words. The young mercenary died with his eyes open. 

Jupiter raised her head. Beyond the mountain of burned Living Armors, more Living Armors were rushing in. 

A spiritless smile hung on the old mercenary’s lips. 

“Your rules of survival are all wrong, kid.” 

Spark, Spark…! 

Feeble mana gathered at Jupiter’s fingertips. 

“You won’t be able to become successful with rules like those.” 

There wasn’t enough mana gathered to use magic. Jupiter turned her last mana into a lightning bolt and wrapped it around her fist. 

“If you want to become rich by being a mercenary—If you want fame!” 

With those fists, she punched the Living Armor in front of her in the body. 

“Only take dangerous missions that pay you a load!” 

Crash-! 

The living armor was shattered by her fists wrapped in lightning. 

“You must stay as far away from allied magicians as possible! Because—! 

Boom! Boom! Ka-boom! 

Thunderbolts exploding from the tips of her fists swung in succession and swept the Living Armors. 

“Your magicians will take all the credit!” 

The thunderbolt gradually disappeared from Jupiter’s fingertips, while she shouted with all she had. Even the mana she squeezed out for the last time ran out. 

“And above all… You shouldn’t have become a mercenary in the first place if you wanted to survive.” 

Behind the Living Armors that were turned into ashes, even more Living Armors appeared. 

Jupiter calmly took a cigar out of her pocket and put it on her lips. She no longer had the strength to light it, so she just held it with her lips and laughed. 

“Ah~ I thought this was going my way, getting a high-income job…” 

Gwaaah-! 

Monsters poured out from all sides. Jupiter closed her eyes. 

“This is how it ends.” 

And right at that moment. 

Clop, clop- 

“Hm?” 

Jupiter turned back in curiosity. 

“Stay still.” 

Snatch! 

Lucas grabbed Jupiter’s back with his left hand, snatched her, and lifted her. At the same time, he swung the sword in his right hand horizontally. 

Clank-! 

The Living Armors cut by Lucas’s sword were ripped apart with splashing red sparks. 

Lucas put Jupiter on the back saddle with his left hand. 

And spoke to Jupiter who seemed confused indifferently. 

“Hold on tight.” 

“Uh, yeah…” 

“Haa!” 

Lucas turned the head of the horse and headed back to the city. 

Gaah! 

Gwaah! 

The Living Armors started throwing javelins from behind. 

But Lucas leisurely swung his sword backward and cleared all the javelins. 

Jupiter watched as the spears thrown by the monsters shattered right behind her back, and then opened her mouth slightly. 

“Hey, young Knight.” 

“What is it?” 

“Want to meet my granddaughter later? She’s a nice lady…” 

“If you have time to joke, try to heal yourself so you can start using magic again.” 

With a cold reply, Lucas spurred his horse. 

“There’s still plenty of monsters left.” 

“Haha…” 

He was very kind to his master, but he was very cold when the prince wasn’t around. 

Even so, Jupiter expressed her gratitude. 

“Thank you for saving me.” 

“You don’t have to thank me. All I did was follow His HIghness’s order.” 

After hesitating for a while, Lucas spoke out the next words with difficulty. 

“However, I’m sorry I couldn’t save you faster.” 

All four of Jupiter’s party members died. 

They weren’t mercenaries who were supposed to die this easily. They were talented individuals who would continue to protect this fortress in the future. 

But after many misfortunes and accidents overlapped, this was the result. 

“Let us sink in regret after killing all those monsters.” 

Jupiter turned around. 

The Living Armors were pouring in and a huge Specter knight was floating in the sky. 

A blue electric current sparked out of Jupiter’s eye staring at the two of them. 

“It’s been a while since this little lady… got this pissed off.” 

* * * 

[Translator: Dawn ] 

[Proofreader: Alissa ] 

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From a distance, Lucas on horseback was seen returning safely with Jupiter. 

“…Phew.” 

I let out a sigh of relief mixed with lamentation. 

Rescuing Jupiter, the SR-rank magician, was a great harvest. 

However, four precious hero units were lost in an instant. 

‘I relied too heavily on my game experience.’ 

Although this place follows the rules of the game to a certain extent, it still was a reality. 

All kinds of variables that I didn’t have to deal with in-game came bursting out at me from all directions. 

‘The soldiers are in fear due to the appearance of the boss monster.’ 

Indeed, there were status abnormalities such as fear and confusion, and the morale of the soldiers had to be well-managed. 

However, in reality, there were much more detailed and diverse responses. I couldn’t even imagine that even the warhorses would be terrified. 

‘Because it is a reality, I must consider the variables that can happen.’ 

I bit my lower lip and lifted my head. 

‘And that too is different from the game, and happens because this is a reality.’ 

I looked toward the outer wall of the fence. 

Boom, Kaboom… 

The wooden fence was slowly falling apart. 

It wasn’t because the Living Armors attacked. It was because of the crossfire from our side. 

A fierce fire started pouring right next to it, and embers splattered little by little, and then the wooden exterior fence caught on fire. 

It was a small fire, but it quickly spread. 

The fire helped burn the Living Armors nearby, but the outer fence eventually started to tear down. 

‘If the outer fence falls, the Kill Zone will be disabled.’ 

The Living Armors poured in everywhere through the gaps of the collapsing outer fence. 

They no longer entered through the middle of the crossfire, and the Kill Zone was slowly starting to lose its meaning. 

Gaah! 

Gwaaah-! 

The Living Armors screamed as they crossed the plains. 

Demian and the ballistae troops defeated as many as possible, but the monsters were soon about to reach the wall. 

“In the end, the battle must be fought right at the fortress wall.” 

I said in bitterness. 

I wanted to finish this stage purely with artillery, rather than having to fight head-on. 

We only had around 500 people on our side. 

With mostly aged or young soldiers. 

If it comes to head-on combat where strikes are exchanged at close range, the damage will inevitably increase. 

That’s why I wanted to avoid it if possible. 

‘However, we’ve defeated quite a lot of them.’ 

I glanced at the enemy information window. 

[Enemy Information – STAGE 1] 

– Lv.25 Specter Knight: 1 – Lv.5 Living Armor Assaulter: 277 (Kill Counts: 775) 

There are a little less than 300 of them left. 

There’s still some time left before the soldiers will have to fight them at close range, so there are still some that could be taken out by artillery. Meaning that the actual amount that has to be taken out in close combat will be lower than the number right now. 

‘Very doable.’ 

This battlefield is still under my control! 

Then Lucas and Jupiter came up to the wall. They had just returned through the castle gate. 

“Your Highness. I’ve successfully returned with Ju-… Dame Jupiter.” 

Lucas reluctantly added a title at the beginning of Jupiter’s name. 

It seemed that he was reluctant because Jupiter was a dishonorable veteran, but it would be a wise choice to please the magician in a situation like this. 

“I’ve returned, Your Highness.” 

Jupiter briefly bowed her head. Blood from the wounds she had suffered when she fell was staining the old woman’s forehead. 

“Jupiter, it’s a relief to see you return alive.” 

“My sincerest apologies for disappointing you, Your Highness. This old lady has made a huge mistake, it seems.” 

Jupiter wiped the wound on her forehead with her fingertips. Fresh blood that had not yet hardened turned her leather gloves red. 

“It is my fault that my party was annihilated. Poor young people died in vain. It is truly deplorable.” 

“Nobody knew that a monster would suddenly appear in the air and that the horses would go insane. It is not your fault.” 

Because it was a party made up of hero units, Jupiter was able to return alive. 

It is a detrimental loss indeed, but through their sacrifice, the core power of the army, the magician, was able to survive. 

“No, standing on the battlefield at my age and with my experience, I should have been able to deal with a situation like this. This is my mistake.” 

Jupiter clenched her fists with blood-stained gloves. 

“So… I will repay for my mistake.” 

Jupiter’s only eye was fixed on the boss monster floating in the air. 

The Specter Knight. 

The boss monster of this stage, and the corps commander of the Living Armors. 

“I will definitely be the one to take that monster’s head off.” 

“…Recover from your injuries first, Jupiter.” 

I shifted my gaze to the fence. 

“Your strength will be needed very soon.” 

Rumble- 

The Living Armors were approaching, crossing the field. 

I shouted at the cannoneers. 

“The Kill Zone has lost its function! Cease fire!” 

“Y-yes, Your Highness!”

Sweaty soldiers next to the cannon stopped firing. 

“Demian, you take a break too.” 

I tapped Demian on the shoulder as he continued to fire his crossbow. 

“Huff, huff, huff!” 

Demian, who was firing his arrows restlessly, turned back with his face pale. His overworked arms were trembling. 

“But there’s more of them…” 

“You have to kill a bigger one.” 

I gently grabbed Demian’s shoulder and nodded my head. 

“Take a break and recover a little, alright?” 

“…Yes, Your Highness.” 

Demian put down his crossbow, and I stared at the front lines. 

Gwaaah-! 

All of a sudden, the Living Armors had reached the moat right under the fortress wall.