Syutaro scratches his brow awkwardly.

“If you recognize that we are not lacking in strength, I believe we should split up at the next fork in the road. What do you think?” He smiles wryly as he says this, though his expression is shrouded by his black armor.

The reasoning for splitting up is that they will be more effective in warding off the invasion and saving lives if they divide themselves into two groups and work together.

While Misaki still worried about the situation, Syutaro contacted the two others via [telepathy].

“Is it okay if one of you two protects Misaki?”

“My Lord, your wish is my command.”

Bumpy responded, and Theodore nodded silently, leaving Misaki in the dark about this telepathic conversation.

Telepathy is a useful function that allows people with familiar bonds to communicate even when they are separated by great distances.

This is especially useful for Syutaro, who can’t talk about the dungeon in front of other players, so he doesn’t have to reveal information he doesn’t need to.

This feature was obtained as a reward for [adding two or more humanoid species] and was originally intended to be used as a communication tool as the dungeons grew in size.

“Theodore, I want you to protect Misaki. Bumpy, follow me and defeat the Goblin King!”

Syutaro pondered for a moment, “Would you feel more secure being protected by an adult male or a girl in this case?” He then decided that Theodore would be a better choice to protect Misaki.

Theodore said telepathically, “Acknowledged, leave it to me.”

Syutaro had a history of being nearly killed by Bumpy, by throwing an axe at him in the past, that is also a part of the reason for this judgment. That is why he asked Theodore, who always acts the most gentlemanly out of anyone he could find at the moment…

After a short while, a fork appeared on Misaki’s map.

The goblin village was to the right.

The two blue dots were to the left.

“Then we will go to join the others. I’m counting on you, Theodore. And Misaki… please don’t be too hard on yourself.”

Syutaro waved her hand and moved to the path on the right, followed by Bumpy, who gave a short bow and followed in his footsteps.

“Um……!”

Syutaro turned around when he heard Misaki’s voice.

Knowing that every second counts, Misaki wanted to thank the saintly black knight as much as she could, but all she could say was, “Will I see you again?”

She’s perplexed too; just why did she say that? Why is she causing him even more trouble than she already is?

“Of course!”

Syutaro replied cheerfully, waved his hand, and resumed his course.

* * * * * * * * *

The Monshou Guild is currently in a bind, and Goblin King’s onslaught was unstoppable.

The attackers on the front lines were severely wounded, and the recovery potions they had prepared in large quantities were running low. The second unit’s NPCs have already been wiped out, and the rate of the goblin’s attack wave outnumbers the rate at which they are being exterminated.

“The durability of this weapon is close to zero!”

“Does anyone have an extra one-handed sword?”

“AAH!! my leg, my leg!”

(We’re getting a call for help from all over the place! Our unit has no casualties, and while we could wipe them out with level three magic if we saw an opening, we can’t find one!)

Flame, covered in blood, sweat, and dirt, looks around the battlefield filled with screaming voices.

Everyone is severely wounded, and healers were desperately tending to the injured.

But the worst of all, Wataru, the one closest to death right now, has not responded to their calls for quite some time.

If he does not survive, Aristolas currently has no player who can keep the Goblin King at bay. His presence is critical for survival, so now is the time to retreat and recover, but Flame’s voice does not reach Wataru, who has already had his hands full and is fighting solely on instinct.

Flame also couldn’t get close enough to Wataru to recover his condition because Wataru had chosen to position himself on an isolated battlefield.

“Retreat now. All units must consolidate and proceed to point A! I’ll take the lead!”

Alba shout while standing with a large sword and a shaky gait.

Flame screamed desperately in the midst of despair filled battlefield “But, but Wataru still not here!”

“We’re not retreating to the city; we’re going to stay here at the pathway’s entrance. Flame! You’ll gather all the recovery medicine you can find and circle back to the road behind Wataru. You two should be able to escape if you use my black horse.”

“O-okay!”

Alba summoned his black horse, and Flame gripped the black horse’s reins as it neighed loudly.

Goblin King’s action changed when his LP was reduced to 65 percent. His weapon was transformed into a massive mallet, and within his reach was like a storm; that range had turned into a dead zone where even his fellow goblins could not approach its King.

Wataru’s eyes were vacant as he stared at the mallet.

His LP, which is gradually declining, is now less than 30%.

“Alba, how about you!?”

“Even if the goblins try to rush in they could probably only attack with four at a time if we defend this choke point, and I’ll flee when the chance comes.”

Flame noticed Alba’s determination in his eyes.

She fights back the tears as she leads the injured fighters away, passing by Alba’s side.

Alba stacks his [Defensive Wall],[Steel Body], and [Strengthen] skills before unleashing a [Provoke] at the pursuing goblin horde while slinging his greatsword over his shoulder.

“You shall not pass!!!”

* * * * *

Syutaro and Bumpy check the battle situation in the open area.

They could see from a distance that the players had begun to retreat, with one man serving as a commander and one man who was already at his death door holding back the Goblin King on his own.

“Whom should we assist—?”

“The man who was alone in holding back the Goblin King was already on the verge of collapsing… … …, My Lord… could you forgive me for what I’m about to say?”

Syutaro remained silent as Bumpy spoke and stare at him in earnest.

“I am the king of the undead, and on top of it, I’m the king of the [Shizoku]{Dead Tribe}, the highest species of undead…”

Bumpy’s guilty expression and tone of voice suggested that she was about to reveal a secret she didn’t want to.

“…I am death; I spread death simply by existing; my unique skill, [Demise], will instantly kill any target weaker than me within a certain range.”

Syutaro’s face was smudged with surprise. Bumpy, on the other hand, continued as if in penitence, ignoring her Lord’s reaction.

“And when a person touches or is touched by my [Demise], a few seconds of contact can kill a being of the same level— Do you understand why I’m telling you this now?”

A memory flashed back in Syutaro minds–

(“Why are you here…?”

“Ahh! That! I’m in trouble! I can’t log out. I can’t log out!”)

“The day you arrived at Los Maolas Castle, I was touched by a living being for the first time in my life, but you were alive… you are alive.””

Syutaro looked at his right hand reflexively.

That should be natural since Syutaro is…

“My Lord. Will you listen to my selfishness?”

Syutaro recalls Bumpy’s expression from that day.

(“My Lord, can you hear my selfishness?”)

“I felt the warmth of people for the first time when I took your hand and almost killed you. But neither of those things brought you or us to our demise.”

(“Um? is something wrong with my hand?”

“E? No, it’s nothing. I just thought you have small hands.”

“Is that so?”)

Syutaro almost got killed when he held Bumpy hands; while being aware of this, Syutaro remained silent and listened. Syutaro felt no disgust, fear, or anything else, despite the fact that he was about to lose his life.

“I didn’t want to live any longer… Every day, I wished to end it all, be it the other demon kings who looked down on other races and carried their ambition in their hearts and also my world, which is filled with nothing but chaos and destruction… I thought I could perish if we killed you. Even though I am immortal, I can die. That thought had once gave me the greatest joy.”

(“If we destroy this….”

“No, no, no, you can’t destroy it.”)

“Is that why you hold my hand and say things like destroying the dungeon core.”

Bumpy nodded in response to Syutaro’s words.

“But… My Lord taught me warmth to my ice-cold self, and you gave a purpose to my realm. As I became more and more captivated with my Lord’s greatness, the need to atone for my previous mistakes grew stronger. I will gladly obey your command, no matter how deadly it is, even if it means taking my life…”

Syutaro removed his armor. He returned his normal form while holding Punio and revealed his true face.

Bumpy’s chest tightens once more as he notices Syutaro smiling at him.

“I’m not going to ask you to do that.”

“Still—!”

“I’ve only had two wish so far.””

Syutaro continues, holding up two fingers.

“I’d like you to assist my friends, the players, and I’d like Bumpy to be my friend. Oh, and don’t try to kill yourself!”

Syutaro quickly raised a third finger and muttered, “Haha, I ended up with three requests even though I was trying to be cool.”

Bumpy nodded, her face filled with relief, and leaped into the mob-infested hall.

Bumpy resolved herself to defeat the adversary and rescue people his Lord holds dear.

In order to accomplish this, she cannot blindly kill everything, her way of doing things has to change.

The ability to [help] is something Bumpy has never desired, regardless, in order to fulfill her Lord’s wish, she knows she cannot continue as she was.

And right now, Bumpy’s unique abilities, which had been slumbering for hundreds of years, were [revived] to answer her strong emotions.

A white girl dances like an angel.

And the bodies of the numerous goblins collapse, scattering particles of light and disappearing.

A white girl dances like a demon.

And the raging Goblin Kings fall to their knees and crumble like burnt-out paper scraps.

Her demise affects everyone within hearing distance, and those she wished to die to crumble and turn to dust of light.

Wataru, as the one who opposes the King, also collapses and lies on his face… But the light of his life still burns faintly.

As they sleep peacefully, the small creatures transform into particles, they vanish as if dissolving into the air, scattering light in scales to create a fantastic scene of interwoven light.

The pure white girl then turned around and said

“As you wished, my Lord.”

And she smiled.

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