Episode 55 – Loser (5)
“Surely they’re not actually planning to keep coming in?”
With derisive laughter, I watched a small group of enemies riding their mounts rushing straight toward us, despite the meager odds.
Even if they had realized my intentions, it was already too late for them. I thought they would attempt to flee far away to save their lives. Instead, they had staked everything, their very lives, in a desperate gamble.
I too was well aware of the heavy losses my forces were incurring. Yet, with the mindset of ‘you die, I die,’ I continued to charge forward.
‘He wasn’t supposed to be this foolish?’
Of course, I understood that they couldn’t just sit there and take a beating. However, their actions were different from what I had anticipated. The Ludras I had judged was both capable and coldly calculating leader.
A reckless strategy with an extremely high probability of death certainly wasn’t something he would throw his life into.
The northern land, once a vast forest, that I had completely consumed, had now became a barren wasteland where they were currently advancing.
There are numerous nests there, but to me, these nests were nothing more than minor appendages that would be a little regrettable to lose.
They must be aware of this yet continue to advance, meaning they’re undoubtedly aiming for one thing.
“Are they trying to capture me directly?”
With a smirk, I turned around. Behind the throne where my main body was seated laid a gigantic brain, now as large as a house.
Surely they must think that brain behind me is my main body.
Although it’s merely an auxiliary brain aiding in calculations, they would logically consider it necessary to find the command entity leading the entire Legion.
But that’s not all. In the end, they’re left with the task of finding the real hive where I am hidden, among the countless hives dominating the region.
It’s bewildering how they even attempt to capture me when they know so little about me.
[Their direction is extremely accurate.]
“Hmm…”
Somehow, for some unknown reason, they are ignoring the surrounding nests and rushing straight to my location.
There’s absolutely no way they’re just guessing. If it were a desperate fight to the end, I might understand, but there’s no way they’d gamble their lives searching blindly for an enemy whose whereabouts were unknown.
I’m certain they somehow know exactly where I am, though I don’t know how they figured it out.
“Even if I don’t know how they figured it out, it seems like my only option now is to confront them.”
It’s impossible to move the auxiliary brain without causing damage. Although I could abandon it and flee, the resources invested into it make it hard to simply give up.
It’s a battle I can win as long as I drag it out, but I would feel unpleasant if I were to incur too many losses.
‘After coming this far, why don’t I show myself?’
There’s no way any of them will survive. Even if they reach me here and learn all the truths, it wouldn’t affect anything.
Contemplating this, I considered that if Ludras were to arrive here in person, we might share a word or two. I’ve grown genuinely curious to know what he, among the lords I’ve faced, thought of me, of me as an entity.
Though somewhat slow, Ludras had been a ruler thoroughly committed to the pursuit of dominance through benefit and calculation.
How he would react to my existence, which interferes with his objectives, was something I truly couldn’t wait to find out.
*
“Indeed, their forces have yet to grow large enough.”
Ludras glanced at the few crushed bodies left behind from the Legion and faintly smiled.
The final roll of the dice with the decision to lead what remained of his forces deep into the enemy’s domain seemed to be paying off.
“Look at the ground. They consume every living thing above the ground, turning it all into their nourishment. The lifeless ground left behind slowly dies. There’s a difference between land that’s dying and land that still has vitality.”
Ludras determined the direction using the ground.
The Legion, in order to replenish their nutrients, took everything, but they hadn’t completely sucked out every trace of organic matter.
Though it wasn’t impossible, their efficiency dropped since they could now produce sun grass capable of photosynthesis.
As a result, the organic matter in the soil was gradually deteriorating in the devastated ecosystem, showing a clear difference.
The closer to where the Legion had recently established themselves, the less dead the soil was. The Shamans who served under Ludras, particularly the ones skilled in earth magic, had the ability to sense this.
“By tracking backwards, we can locate their main base. The first created nest. There must certainly be their command entity.”
“What about the other nests?”
“There’s no power left to eliminate them. Anyway, once new enemies emerge from other nests, we’d be surrounded from all sides and die. We can’t afford to stop for even a moment.”
For this reason, they were racing forward, eyes set ahead, disregarding everything else. They were even prepared to leave behind those who were tired or injured.
At this point, there was no other choice for anyone. Even if they were to turn back and desert, there was no way they would survive long enough to return to their territory.
“Keep moving forward!”
Having already committed their lives, they no longer feared anything. They kept running without rest.
Each time, a few units from the various nests gathered to try and stop their advance, but it was impossible against forces unprepared enough to stop them.
“Unless we mobilized every worker.”
It was necessary for the Queen, who knew exactly where her main entity was located and from whom they were coming, to halt them.
It wasn’t as if mobilizing wasn’t an option.
Though the combat units had been wiped out, tens of thousands of Workers were still around, alive, and working.
Of course, Workers had no combat capabilities, barely any defense, and would be easily wiped out by a single area magic spell, making them highly inefficient in combat.
[What method should we use to counter them?]
Seeing the two contrasting choices for the upcoming decisive battle, the Queen smirked.
“Right here. Definitely around here!”
“Indeed, the emanating energy is different.”
Ludras’ final force, which would normally have taken several days, had traversed the distance in an instant, finally entering what was estimated to be the oldest territory of the Legion.
As expected, it was an area where the ecosystem was completely destroyed, the ground as dry as a barren wasteland, akin to hell on earth.
“What on earth is…?”
The area was covered with massive mushrooms. These house-sized fungi, with their enormous caps pointing towards the sky, exuded a mysterious sinister aura whose purpose was unclear.
“All of these are interconnected by tentacles. These are undoubtedly parts of their nests.”
“Look over there. There’s a path.”
A few Hobgoblin Knights pointed to a path visible far in the distance. The sun grass densely covered the ground, forming natural pathways where the Workers walked.
From here on, following this path would lead to important facilities nested within.
“Prepare for battle. We’ll fight our final battle here.”
Ludras confidently entered the decisive battle, sure that his choice was the correct one. With this, he aimed to strike the heart of the Legion, which was not yet fully prepared to defend itself, flipping the situation.
“Lord, they’re sending a force to engage us in battle. However, they aren’t that numerous and seem to be unprepared. Look, their bodies still haven’t fully hardened.”
“We could tell just from how their workers avoid us. On the contrary, this response is proof we’ve found the right place.”
During this moment, a group of defensive troops appeared.
It was a force that seemed hastily gathered, determined to block the path. There were no large combat units that required a lot of time and resources to produce.
‘Then we can win!’
Ludras personally unsheathed his sword. Through the battles that they had endured, they had transformed into elite troops skilled in combat against the Legion.
Because they had nothing left to lose, there was no fear of breaking from within.
“Charge forward!”
Time wasn’t on their side. Hence, without hesitation, Ludras ordered the attack and personally joined the fray.
There is one single value shared by countless demons who have wildly different appearances and habits.
That value is the belief that strength equates to qualification. Ludras himself believed in this.
He had become the strongest knight to claim the title of Lord and had emerged victorious in the succession competition to become the most powerful leader and secure his position as Lord.
In this situation, entrusting everything to subordinates would disqualify one as a Lord in the Demon Realm.
“Reveal your true form now! Enough with these minions, come out yourself and fight!”
And this would apply to the ruler of the Legion as well.
With certainty that this entity would hear him, after splitting the head of an attacking Legion soldier in two with his sword, Ludras shouted at the Queen demanding her personal presence in the battle.
