◈ 349. [Free Exploration] Outpost
Leprosy killing squad.
A mercenary group made up entirely of lepers, they are famous for their tenacity in tracking down and killing their target.
He is also famous for his tenacity in receiving requests without fail.
As the mercenaries are a bit rough, there are a lot of clients who delay or skip payment, and they are also famous for tracking such clients to the end and making them pay the price.
That’s why the nickname attached is the killing squad made up of lepers – the leprosy killing squad.
Why do you know so well?
‘That’s because it was one of my main avant-garde parties in the game!’
Maybe it’s because I’m the type of gamer who cares more about performance than appearance. It was a leper squad that was not popular due to its ugly appearance, but I did well.
All of them possess the [Leprosy] trait, which blunts the sense of pain and makes them better able to withstand damage.
Instead, it has the disadvantage of receiving a penalty on the agility stat and being easily injured by abnormal conditions such as burns, frostbite, and bleeding.
Still, being a tanker, being slow wasn’t a big problem, and I didn’t really care about status abnormal injuries in the game, as I could handle them during battle and hospitalize them at the temple after the battle.
In addition, all of them have tank aptitude, and their skill sets are also focused on tanking and self-healing.
Even if you throw the whole party in the middle of enemy lines, they are reliable friends who can hold on all day while attracting attention.
“Welcome to Crossroads!”
When the SR-class high-performance party appeared, I welcomed them with open arms.
“Welcome, mercenary friends! Nice to meet you!”
“… … ?”
When I welcomed them, the 5 Leper Squad members looked quite embarrassed.
Among the hesitant five, the helmet man who seemed to be the leader stepped forward and said.
“In this city… … I heard you have a lot of work… … . The five of us are confident in fighting something… … .”
“Combined billion-!”
“Yeah?!”
Not only the Leper Slayers, but also the mercenaries who were watching around them were frightened.
Regardless, I led the Leper Slayer to the room inside the Mercenary Guild.
“Go in and write the contract first. Negotiate salary as well. Come on, come on, come here.”
The leader of the Leprosy Slaughterhouse – The helmet man was a man named Thorkel.
He seemed bewildered by the current situation, but clearly presented their salaries.
Instead of adding 30 percent to it and even paying bonuses, I added the condition of serving at least one year on the front here.
“Of course, you can extend the contract if you want to work more! Working conditions are unconditionally the same as in previous years or increased! That’s about it. how is it?”
“… … .”
“The form of pay is weekly, and advance payments are possible if urgently needed. Ask any more questions.”
Thorkell stuttered as he looked down at the contract with his mouth open.
“Okay… … No, too good… … is. Is it okay even under such good conditions? … .”
“Of course it’s fine! You deserve this much.”
Thorkell, who swiped the contract with his bandaged hand, glanced at me.
“We are lepers… … no see. You don’t mind, don’t you?”
“Well, it’s not contagious. Does it matter?”
Ah, is the leprosy of this world different from the earth? just contagious but?
I was a little nervous, but Thorkell shook his head slowly.
“Your Highness, it is as you said. Our disease is not contagious. It’s just ugly to look at, and there’s only ugly rumors about it being cursed by the evil god… … .”
“Isn’t that just a rumor?”
“For that alone, people shun us.”
“How are you? It’s not like I’m going to live with you.”
Mercenaries are good enough to fight well. Again, I’m the type who prioritizes performance over looks.
It is no different from the reason I accepted a different race on this front.
It doesn’t matter if you have long ears, thick hair, or leprosy, as long as you kill the monster well, and as long as you don’t break military laws.
“… … .”
A heavy silence fell between the lepers. I blinked. Did I ever say something to offend you?
“… … Thank you, Your Highness.”
Torkell, standing right in front of me, slowly bowed to me.
“Until the day our dull bodies wear out, we will be loyal.”
After that, the rest of the members of the Leprosy Slaughter Squad also bowed to me. I smiled and waved my hand.
“Of course, it would be nice if you were loyal, but I don’t want anything grandiose. Work only as much as you are given! that’s a mercenary yes?”
“… … That’s right.”
Thorkell nodded heavily.
“As much as I received, I will work. Just give me orders.”
“I am waiting. I will be calling you soon.”
After finishing the contract, I left the mercenary guild. The Leper Slayer followed me and kept bending until I walked away.
“Because the lord is really, in many ways, without manners.”
Lucas murmured as he climbed into the driver’s seat of the wagon I rode in.
“I have never seen the royal family treat a leper patient so unrestrained. No, even the priest who treats them, not the imperial family, won’t treat them that comfortably.”
“Is the treatment of lepers so bad?”
“Leprosy is the punishment for those who sin against the goddess when they are reincarnated… … is widely known. It is not officially recognized by the Goddess Church, but it is the conventional wisdom.”
There was even a religious reason. Besides, even the appearance is hideous. It seems that they are persecuted here and there.
“But those guys, their skills are enough. I will prove it in practice. I don’t care about looks.”
“But the soldiers will care.”
Lucas said as he started the carriage.
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“For them, I will arrange a separate lodging outside the barracks.”
“… … .”
okay. No matter what I think, discrimination in reality exists. It’s not something that would disappear if the lord ordered it.
Right now, the shadow unit, which is an elf tribe, and the punishment unit, which is a beast tribe, are also using accommodations in a place other than the barracks.
It would be better for the leper slaughter party to find a separate lodging outside the barracks for each other.
‘In the future, all kinds of ‘different’ people will come from all continents… … .’
Can we unite them into one army?
All of this world, where prejudice and interests are tangled together, becomes one… … .
“Hey!”
I was lost in thought, and Lucas skillfully drove the wagon. The forge was not far.
***
I ordered a lot of equipment from the smithy.
In the afternoon, I summoned three parties and entered the dungeon. It was the main party, the punishment unit, and the dragon blood knights.
“It was a car that I was tired of taking a long break!”
Dusk Bringer, who led his fully armed knights in the lead, smiled broadly.
A laugh of joy escaped from between her sharp teeth.
“Where are you going today? Is this a new dungeon? Looking at the mobilization of wine, it must be a pretty difficult place, right?”
“Haha, you will know when you go.”
One hundred words are not enough. You’ll understand what it’s like once you’ve experienced the Occupation War.
“Umm~ My whole body itches at this time.”
Quylan and the punishment squad are following in the back row, scratching their bodies.
The punishment unit has just entered prisoner mode.
In human mode, red hairs are starting to grow. Although the number of stat bonuses are slightly less, in fact, this is enough.
It’s because the biggest thing is that Quilan’s negative trait [glass body] is erased in beastman mode.
If I were to choose the top 3 combat power among my hero parties, these would be the three.
That should be enough for today’s operation.
At that time, Junior, one of the main party members who had been whispering among themselves, came to me and asked me cautiously.
“Are you going to have another occupation war, Your Highness?”
“okay.”
“You collapsed after overdoing it then… … Are you okay?”
“Don’t worry, don’t worry. I’m really used to it now.”
[Imperial Proclamation] is already the third time using it this time.
I feel my body slowly adapting.
I can’t say it’s not completely unreasonable, but it feels like my limits are expanding because I’m a bit overworked with my body’s magic power, just like muscle fibers are torn and my muscles grow.
‘The dragon heart that Nameless gave me back then is definitely effective.’
electric jade board… … No, Dragon Heart lends me power only during the [Imperial Declaration].
After all, it feels like the Imperial Declaration and Occupation War are gradually becoming doable. In order to steal all the dungeons in the future, I have to be able to do it.
‘By the way, why was it Dragon Heart?’
I thought for nothing as I rubbed my stomach with my hand.
Why did Nameless feed me Dragon Hearts? What is the most effective of the magical energy tonics? Or is there another reason… … ?
When we arrived at the Colosseum, Jackal was waiting for us.
“majesty!”
I smiled and waved at the jackal as he rushed out barefoot.
The plan agreed with Jackal is as follows.
First of all, we occupy this [Flaming Colosseum]. Then the monsters will not be able to invade this area.
And in this place, Jackal uses his ability to train his army.
Unique characteristic of Jackal, [Colosseum operator].
To put it simply, it’s a monster taming ability.
It’s a bit different from my 2nd skill [Become mine!], but if I’m on the side of forcibly controlling the mind, I ‘hire’ Jackal as a gladiator because he’s proud of monsters. Only the format is like this and it’s close to kidnapping, but anyway… … .
In this way, in a place where the enemy cannot invade, we can safely foster an army of monsters on our side.
It can be said that it is a trait that can be used because it is a Jackal, a ‘contaminated’ NPC who is half covered in the darkness of this place.
‘Even though I was swallowed up by the darkness and climbed to the position of the dungeon boss, you still obey me only out of loyalty to the empire… … He’s also quite a bitch.’
Watching the jackal explain this strategy to the party members on my behalf, I bitterly licked my lips.
One day, after clearing all the dungeons and seeing the true ending, can Jackals live in the Empire again?
‘… … I have a lot of random thoughts today.’
I put my thoughts together and took out the flag. This is a new flag made at the smithy.
During the last task force infiltration incident, I had just confirmed that [Imperial Declaration] could be used even with a crude white flag. There was no need to carry around a large flag and stick it up.
I made a flagpole that is small and cute and can be folded and stored. The flag is the imperial flag.
‘I’ll have to make a new flag to symbolize the monster front here.’
how do you design? Should I open a contest? With that thought in mind, I planted a flag in the center of the Colosseum.
“I declare this land as the territory of the Empire!”
As soon as the flagpole is planted in the ground,
Flash!
It exploded with a flash, and the mana that escaped from my body spread out in a wide circle.
The presence of the dragon heart inside his body was now clearly felt.
In my veins, the fragments of the dragon heart condensed arbitrarily, and radiated hot heat – and rotated several times along my magical path.
Kiyiing!
Well, this works, right? I don’t have this technical license… … .
Fortunately, there was nothing wrong except that the whole body was hot. And [Imperial Declaration] was cast smoothly.
Whoa!
When the air around the area calmed down, a familiar gray magic fortress was built there.
It was merged with the outer wall of the Colosseum and looked much stronger than usual. Today is the occupation war here.
[Conquest War begins soon.]
– Until start: 5 minutes
[Conquest War – Area 5: Colosseum with Sparks]
– You win by blocking three waves of monsters.
– In the monster wave, 3 random corps are selected from among the nearest monster corps.
– Boss level monsters are included in each wave.
The rules are the same as last time. Three waves of monsters. Including boss monsters every time.
I clapped my hands and looked back at the party members. Except for the members of the main party, the rest of the party is perplexed by the sudden rise of the castle wall.
“Come on, everyone heard roughly how it works, right? Monsters are coming soon! Prepare for battle!”
When I called out, everyone, like skilled combatants, immediately set up their own defensive zones and rushed to prepare for battle.
Everyone knows very well that the battle is close and questions can be solved later.
Looking at the heroes arranged in an orderly manner, I licked my lips.
‘Although they are parties with the top 3 combat power, they are not so harmonious when all three are combined.’
Our main party is a composition with its own assortment of pure tank/deal tank/sniper/mage/Ash Kim.
Punishment units are all vanguard characters, and so are the Dragon Blood Knights. It consists of five dytans, four knights and one half-man, half-dragon.
Combining the three parties like this makes it a rush-type body wave combination with the body leaning forward.
‘It’s still strong enough, but it’s better to combine one more back row dealer party.’
what are you thinking about
“Ash, you… … .”
Dusk Bringer’s trembling voice was heard.
“It’s in your body, maybe… … ?”
“yes? omg!”
Dusk Bringer didn’t deploy for battle, but came next to me and looked at me with a shocked face.
Unknowingly, dry saliva went down my throat.
‘Have you ever been caught eating Dusk Bringer’s kinsman’s heart as a nutritious tonic?’
I was quickly spinning my head about what I should make an excuse for.
“Is that, black… … .”
thud! thud! thud!
After Dusk Bringer stopped talking, the earth began to tremble.
Then, in the distance, a series of legions of monsters appeared, raising clouds of misty dust.
“dismissal! We have a large area to defend. Come on, this way!”
The Dragon Blood Knights shouted for Dusk Bringer.
“… … .”
Dusk Bringer winked at me with a pale face, pursed his lips, and ran out to meet the monsters.
“phew!”
I involuntarily let out a sigh of relief. Holy shit, but what am I supposed to say when I ask later?
It was then.
“uh?”
A monster with a slightly strange appearance caught my eye, standing at the head of an army of monsters approaching.
Damn, knock, knock-
A large physique riding a mountain goat with sharp horns like a horse… … It was a goblin.
A leather armor covering the whole body, a golden cloak mixed with dust, and a grotesque helmet made up of a mask and a crown.
《… … .》
The goblin who appeared with an army pulled the reins and stopped his goat at a distance from the Magic Fortress.
Then, if I stayed still, I raised my bitter face and looked this way.
The guy and I met our eyes.
In the middle of the turbulent battlefield, there was a strange silence for a moment.
“… … .”
《… … .》
intuitively noticed.
That guy is the nightmare corps commander I have to deal with in this defense battle.
It was the Goblin God King, Kali-Alexander.
