novel[26th Round] Return!
| ← Ch.372 | Ch.374 → |
"Welcome to the festival!"
"Welcome, Heroes!"
"This is the Demon Lord's camp!"
As members of the Goddess faction diligently cleared a path towards us by falling into traps, the Demon Lord faction gradually grew.
However, despite the opposing side's huge casualties, the influx of their recruitment was so great their losses almost seemed nonexistent.
But it wasn't important.
"Calm down."
All I had to do was play with my two daughters, and I would be rewarded with the certainty of my victory later.
There was no law prohibiting local residents from helping the Demon Lord, and it just so happened that my daughters ruled the Festival planet.
And the leaders of all cities here were elves, loyal followers of the King of the Elves, Elfheim.
From a young age, all of them grew up hearing, "His Majesty Elfheim is the best!"
"Oh, I lost."
"What are you talking about, dad?"
"What are you playing?"
At the moment, I played mobile games while sitting on a bench.
It would be great if we could go somewhere together, but I couldn't leave this place.
It wasn't all that bad, though. My daughters liked mobile games, which couldn't be won with the help of their strength and skills, and I was pleased to see them learning of Earth's culture.
Even though I played a role at this festival, which could be called work, I had time to rest since the graduates who needed to kill me had a hard time getting to my base.
"This is a nightmare!"
"How many traps are there?!"
"What is this?!"
"This is insane! They do so much damage... Kha!"
"Aaagghh! Help!"
Endless screams and pleas for help came from the graduates caught by the traps.
If the tertiary education course graduates weren't called up first and laid some foundation, the graduates of the secondary and primary courses would've been exterminated instantly already.
Regardless, the death toll continued to rise.
And as for Disco...
"This is sad..."
Judging by her expression, she wasn't all that happy.
It wasn't that the traps set up all over the place were too difficult or that the monsters that appeared at times were too powerful.
The issue was the worthlessness of the Fantasy graduates and their lack of skills. It was hard to even believe they were able to graduate.
... This was a big problem.
"Ah! I lost."
"Heehee. My sister's dying all the time."
"You're not any better."
"That's not true."
The graduates died as easily as the characters controlled by my two daughters, who had no talent for mobile games.
But it was worth noting that the interns were alumni as well.
They had excellent grades in their studies, and they also had a good understanding of student psychology.
This was what led to such frightening results.
"Oh, a fork in the road."
"Look. Smoke's rising on the right."
"Another squad seems to be cooking over there already. This road's safe, then."
"No. That's just bait. They've already expected us to come to that conclusion and fall into their trap."
"Woah, seriously? Let's go left, then!"
... Death.
They were losing this psychological war.
A sad sight.
"In a nutshell, the trainees are doing an excellent job, but the participants aren't living up to our expectations..."
If this continued, my daughters wouldn't even have a chance to go on stage.
The graduates were so useless that the grade the inspectorate would give us was probably spiraling down right now.
How could I deal with this... Hmm?
"Ouch!"
"Ah!"
I jumped up from my seat, apologizing to my two daughters, who leaned on me from both sides.
I felt how my power responded to the release of energy.
[Original Sin]
The source was far south of here.
Someone made mass conscription, not sanctioned by the system.
"Who did this?"
Since Ssosiel became the school director, two mysteries remained unsolved to this day even after careful research.
Lanuvel.
Fantasy's Wrath.
At first, I thought they were the same person, but I soon concluded this wasn't the case since their goals differed.
Lanuvel was in cahoots with Parmael.
On the other hand, Fantasy's Wrath didn't take sides. She simply sought to plunge this world into chaos, destruction, and oblivion.
It didn't matter right now, however.
"Lanuvel!"
I didn't even have to guess the trespasser's identity.
She led an entire army.
[Adventure]
Even now, with her devious personality revealed, she still pretended to be sweet, playing the role of the Heroes' guide.
They immediately moved to the Goddess' camp.
"Stop the intruders!"
"We'll need the senior colleagues' help to do that!"
"It doesn't matter! We must save the festival!"
"Kh! They're too strong!"
The first to encounter them were the trainees checking the traps set up across the place, but they couldn't stop them.
If this continued, Lanuvel and Parmael would make contact.
Pop!
"Handsome husband! We have a problem!"
"Wah."
Suddenly, my cowardly wife appeared next to me, anxiousness evident in her expression and body language.
Judging by the fact that she continued to breastfeed our son even in such a situation, this wasn't as bad as it could be.
Ssosiel wasn't the only one who came over.
"Brother! This is a big problem!"
"Se-e-e-e-ex~"
"Mollan!"
My pathetic sister, the obscene stingray, and Master Mollan...
All the avengers had assembled here.
"Lanuvel and her gang have nothing to do with this event, do they?"
"That's correct."
"Then we must find them and destroy them."
"Wait! Don't act rashly, husband. Lanuvel wouldn't have come here unprepared. Do not ignore those who came with her. According to the report we just received, the Heroes she brought graduated during the 1st and 2nd curricula!"
The vile power of friendship!
She fled to recruit comrades from her distant past.
"Make an announcement."
"Hmm?"
"Introduce Lanuvel as an optional boss. Label those who came with her as her evil minions."
"Oh!"
"Hurry up."
"That's a great idea, my husband. Only you could come up with such an insidious idea..."
"Hurry up!"
"Alright, alright."
? Announcement: Attention! We introduce to you a surprise event! Do you remember the female archeologist who greeted you sweetly every time you embarked on an adventure? She's now taken the side of evil and is spreading lies! Defeat her and prove you are real Heroes! Worthy rewards await you! Good luck!
Judging by her enthusiasm, she liked it.
Such a fearsome woman.
"Hey! Don't portray your good and capable wife as a villain!"
"Waah!"
"Ah?! Sorry, Sid! Did mom's screams scare you? Hush, hush, don't cry."
"Waah..."
"That's it. Well done, Sid."
"..."
I never thought my cowardly wife would change so much.
I was always alone, but now that I had a family to protect, the burden of responsibility began to weigh on my shoulders.
Was this the price of happiness?
If so, then it didn't matter what the problem was. I would face it head-on, never running or turning away from it.
[Original Sin]
But...
"She's specifically aiming at the inspectorate."
That was a problem.
I, the greatest power the Fantasy Institution had, couldn't leave this citadel.
If I left the Demon Lord's camp, it would be considered as my faction's defeat, and the festival would end in a terrible manner.
If so...
"I believe in you! Captain Fantasy!"
"Wow!"
"Take care of these uninvited guests... Hmm?"
"Wow?"
"What are you chewing? Spit it out."
"... Wow."
"Now."
"... Woo."
Someone fell out of the mouth of Fantasy's cutest baby.
... Who was this?
It didn't matter. Now wasn't the time to worry about such trifles.
"Give them a good beating!"
"Wow!"
*****
As I expected, Lanuvel tried to lure the graduates over to her side through Incitement and Fabrication.
She lied openly and pretended to be cute.
"Dear Heroes! Help Lanuvel! Deceived and manipulated by the evil Demon Lord, the God-Creator is trying to plunge the world of Fantasy into darkness!"
"It's Lanuvel!"
"Is that really Lanuvel?"
"Oh! It is!"
I didn't really like it, but all Heroes knew Lanuvel.
When it came to recognition alone, no one could compare with her.
"Don't fall for the fallen Goddess's tricks and listen to me! We need to fight the evil together!"
"Hmm..."
"Who should I believe?"
"If Lanuvel says so..."
The members of the Goddess faction were confused.
If not for this announcement, Lanuvel would have already lured everyone to her side.
Her name had a lot of weight in the world of Fantasy, and she also brought strong Heroes with her.
Moreover...
"Lanuvel is the truth! Phew! Help her defeat the Demon Lord and return me to the position of God-Creator! Phew!"
Parmael also joined her cause, but for her own reasons.
While barely coping with her shortness of breath, she began to support Lanuvel.
The two became perfectly synchronized in an instant.
Or not...
"Look at Mrs. Parmael! Originally, the beautiful Goddess was transformed by the Demon Lord into this ugly creature!"
"This is my original form! Phew! Much better than skinny bitches! Phew!"
"P-Parmael ..."
"Lanuvel, you should strive to be as sweet as I am... Phh."
"How stupid..."
The Heroes that had fallen for Lanuvel's Fabrication and Incitement once again fell into a stupor.
And as they did, under Director Ssosiel's orders, the faculty members arrived.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Emerging with a brilliant flash of light, they exuded an aura that seemed to shout, "We are the apostles of justice!"
The minions Lanuvel brought in were also alumni, but they were retired. On the other hand, all teachers were currently employed by Fantasy.
This made a big difference.
? Surprise Event Announcement: Pretending to be cute, Lanuvel attempts to trick the Heroes. To believe her or oppose her. The graduates once again face a choice. No matter which option you take, you will be awarded points based on your accomplishments, so please feel free to participate in this event!
I took advantage of the next announcement.
Choosing only one side would raise suspicion, but I cleverly concealed it by calling it a surprise event.
Inspector Disco watched the situation from the sidelines.
It wasn't going so badly.
Not perfectly so, however.
"Wonderful Heroes! Help Lanuvel!"
"Of course!"
"Don't worry, Miss Lanuvel."
"We will definitely win!"
Lanuvel's minions helped her.
What made things worse was that she no longer seemed willing to hide her true strength.
[Adventure]
Like Bananael, Potatoel, and Umamiel, she shared this power among her support group.
"Kh!"
"Ah..."
The faculty members, led by Bakery, were pushed back.
If this continued, their defeat was only a matter of time!
But soon, Captain Fantasy would appear and fix the situation.
In the meantime, I would eat popcorn with my daughters, watching from the side... Hmm?
"Where did they go?"
My cowardly wife poked my side.
"They've already gone to the scene. After all, from their perspective, Lanuvel is an aggressor who invaded their territory."
"Hey! Why didn't you stop them?! Their opponent is a real deity! If something goes wrong..."
BRRRRRR!
Before I could finish my sentence, an earthquake reached us, the epicenter of which was the Goddess's camp.
I felt tremendous strength accompanying it.
[Retribution]
[Retribution]
The effects of the divine power that crushed young Noebius gave me goosebumps.
"Would you like some more popcorn, handsome husband?"
"... Sure. A lot of it."
The powers of dreams, hope, love, and friendship proved ineffective.
Sponsorship was the answer!
| ← Ch. 372 | Ch. 374 → |