In the vast encampment of the Demon Army, the key commanders and the Demon Lord gathered under a massive tent.
The third Demon Lord, Agareth, proudly flaunted his black horn while receiving reports from the higher-ups.
“How amusing!! To think the vanguard was wiped out! Those human bastards really have some bite!”
“It seems so, Lord Agareth.”
Due to an unexpected counterattack from the Southern Army, the Demon Army suffered significant losses as their vanguard was annihilated.
However, they didn’t fall into a panic.
Karuga (Yuren) swiftly recuperated the Southern Army and detected the Demons, resulting in the vanguard’s total defeat, but the overall situation still favored the Demons.
Sending a vanguard to quickly contaminate the World Tree was their first plan, but this plan was fraught with risks.
If Yuren were to normalize the troops and counterattack, or if the infiltrating Demons failed, it could lead to a collective failure.
But if they succeeded, they could achieve their goals incredibly fast, and so the plan was approved to appease the aggressive Demons.
The third Demon Lord, Agareth, was the most intelligent among the Demon Lords who invaded the surface.
Naturally, he had the next plan ready.
“What shall we do, Lord Agareth?”
“We must enjoy this delightful situation! Let the next plan commence!!”
The reason the Demons were such a threat to the surface wasn’t solely because of their ferocity or their newly displayed mimicry ability.
It was their monster taming ability.
The Demons possessed the innate ability to train monsters, which was much simpler and faster than the long, cumbersome process humans had to undergo with the help of magical tools.
While one could tame 3 to 4 monsters at a max due to mana limitations, that was more than enough.
Separately from the vanguard, the Demon Lord commanded other troops to begin training the monsters in the surrounding area, sending a call to rally them as soon as the vanguard failed.
Before they knew it, they had amassed an army of over 40,000 Demons and monsters.
That number clearly exceeded the Southern Army by several times, and the Central Army had yet to recover. Even if they did recover immediately, by the time reinforcements arrived, the situation would already be beyond saving.
“The target is the Roots of the World Tree to the west!! This time, we shall burn the World Tree to ashes along with those human bastards!!!”
[“Uooohhhhh!!!!”]
At the Demon Lord’s words, countless Demons and monsters howled.
An army several times the size of a monster wave began their march toward the World Tree.
“Hey now! Humans!! It’s time for a joyous war!!!”
*
That night, the atmosphere in the defeated vanguard’s camp was festive.
“Cheers!”
“The Demon bastards are nothing special!!!”
Although the war was not over, celebrating victory to boost morale was crucial in wartime.
Especially for a military where the superiors had suddenly dropped like flies, creating a sense of instability in the command structure.
I allowed a small amount of alcohol to create an opportunity for the soldiers to revel in their victory.
“Are you all having a good time?”
“Sir! Karuga!”
“Stay calm, I’m only here to encourage you.”
Just like the historical Karuga, I moved through the ranks, encouraging the soldiers and instilling hope.
Cheers of victory rang out, soldiers claimed the victory for themselves, and others simply wished to return home safely. Despite their various sentiments, I could feel their trust in me.
I was merely mirroring Karuga’s actions, yet here I was, basking in the effect. Truly, the historical Karuga was a remarkable figure.
It seemed like I could complete my rounds without incident until…
“Kar~uga! May I have another bottle of alcohol?”
“…Give me one more.”
With Alicia’s expression screaming, ‘If you don’t hand over the drink, there’ll be bloodshed,’ I was left with no choice but to hand over another bottle.
Some things really hadn’t changed even after 500 years.
And then my Master…
“Uh… Sergeant Irene? Is the strawberry ice cream to your liking?”
Was enjoying the strawberry ice cream I’d made specially for her, meant for those soldiers who couldn’t drink.
Upon seeing my face, she blushed and scurried away.
“Karuga, why is Sergeant Irene acting like that?”
“Well, she’s seen something she shouldn’t! Ugh! This alcohol is excellent!!”
Allen seemed flustered by my Master’s antics, while Alicia watched the spectacle, clearly enjoying the show as she sipped her drink.
Since the broadcasting accident yesterday, it had been a continuous state of awkwardness.
My Master was trying her best to avoid eye contact with me, and I thought… what should I do about this? I found myself deep in thought.
“Karuga!!!! Scouts!!! Scouts!!!!”
It seemed like my night was about to get even more complicated.
*
The news the scout brought was shocking enough to make its way into the history books.
It was the report of around 40,000 Demons and monsters beginning their march, and upon hearing this, the faces of the commanders in the commander’s office turned pale.
And why wouldn’t they?
We only had a measly 10,000 soldiers.
Even in the realm of equality in numbers, the Demon and monster armies posed a significant threat, and reinforcing that with four times their number made the odds impossible.
Additionally, the path to the Roots of the World Tree was an open plain, leaving no room to set traps.
To stop them, victory could only be achieved through a head-on confrontation.
“We can’t let them reach the Roots of the World Tree! We must stop them!!”
“We can’t fight now! Karuga!! It would be better to retreat to Tex and prepare for a siege!!”
“Tex is not suitable for a siege! Moreover, if the Demon army attacks, they will destroy both it and the World Tree!”
The commander’s office fell into chaos.
Some insisted to fight, others suggested a strategic withdrawal, while others called for a siege.
Without saying it outright, everyone understood.
This situation was a dead end.
If only there were some bizarre stratagem like in the Three Kingdoms, it might salvage the situation, but for that, there needed to be factors like terrain, new weaponry, or psychological loopholes in the commanders — things that could only happen when there was a crack in the enemy’s plans.
The western plain was just empty, and despite having the magic of 500 years later, it was still insufficient to turn the tide of war.
In that moment, while looking at the map, Sergeant Allen lamented.
“If only we had support from the Bihyung forces from the Kingdom of Ra at a time like this…”
“Give it up, those dark-skinned guys aren’t about to help us now!?”
If we could get support from the Bihyung forces from the Kingdom of Ra, while moving north from the southern plain towards the coast, that would be feasible.
However, 500 years ago, the Kingdom of Ra and the Zers Empire had a poor relationship, and due to the Demons’ diplomatic tensions, the Kingdom of Ra had declared neutrality.
Of course, if they realized that they were in danger too, they might send reinforcements, but by then, it would be too late as the World Tree would have already been destroyed.
Having quietly listened to the entire situation, I spoke up to everyone.
“I’ll go.”
“…What!?”
“What do you mean, Karuga!?”
The commanders began to panic at my words.
I calmly explained.
“I’ll go to the Kingdom of Ra and get reinforcements.”
“That’s… absurd!! Reinforcements from the Kingdom of Ra!?”
“No matter how you put it, it’s impossible for you to go!?”
Actually, this could happen.
Historically, the Karuga of old received reinforcements from the Kingdom of Ra and led the war to victory.
Though I didn’t know the exact method the historical Karuga used, I did know one way to obtain support from the Kingdom of Ra, albeit just once.
I spoke to the commanders.
“Trust me. I will definitely go to the Kingdom of Ra and bring back reinforcements. This is the only way we can secure our victory.”
“But, Karuga, even if the Kingdom of Ra agrees to send reinforcements, the journey is too dangerous.”
“That’s right! To reach the Kingdom of Ra, we must traverse the Demon Beast Mountain! Even for you, Karuga, it’s far too perilous!”
To get to the Kingdom of Ra from here, we would need to breach the Monster-Infested Demon Beast Mountain.
It was too far to fly, and there were no coordinates to teleport.
As I pondered this, realizing that I’d have to charge into peril, my Master suddenly spoke.
“I… I have a method.”
“You have a way!?”
As the Elf commander, my Master pointed to a location on the map.
“There’s an ancient temple built by the ancient elves here. If we pass through it, we can reach the Kingdom of Ra.”
“Oh…”
“Such a route exists!”
“But to pass this way, you’ll need the elves to accompany you. If not, the door won’t open.”
“Then, Karuga Commander and Sergeant Irene can go to the Kingdom of Ra for support.”
With my Master’s intel, the final pieces of the operations plan fell into place.
The Southern Army would set up camp in the western plain and wait for the Demon Army, while I would lead an operation to fetch reinforcements from the Kingdom of Ra to launch a joint offensive, silence permeating the commander’s office once again, filled with tension.
In truth, this operation had too many holes.
Would the Kingdom of Ra even send reinforcements? And would those reinforcements arrive at the battlefield on time? There were too many uncertainties.
And if anything went wrong, the Southern Army would be annihilated.
But this was the only plan.
The only opportunity we had to save the Empire’s World Tree lay in this single hope, and I spoke to everyone.
“This will be a challenging operation. But if we don’t do this, the Empire will fall. Furthermore, other lands will become uninhabitable due to the Demons’ invasion. Only we here can stop this.”
What I said was no empty promise.
As recorded in history, it was said that Karuga led the Imperial Army to save not just the Empire but the entire realm.
I made a final plea to everyone.
“Everyone… trust me, and stake your lives on this.”
[“Yes!!!!!!!!”]
With the weight of everyone’s lives on my shoulders, my Master and I set off toward the Demon Beast Mountain.
From this moment, it was a race against time.
The demons were predicted to reach the western plain in three days.
The longest three days of my life had just begun.
