第４４８堀：主役が脇役になる瞬間 (Part1)
Chapter 448: The Moment the Protagonist Becomes a Supporting Character
Side: Bitz Ranks
"What is the meaning of this?!"
I couldn't help but scream.
Hearing my voice, he approached, looking concerned.
"Is something the matter?"
"No, it seems someone has turned Ranks into a dungeon. I can't expand our dungeon any further."
"What? I see. Typical of that despicable Taiki. He must have been working with that guy."
"What do you mean? Do you understand the significance of this dungeon?"
"It’s simple. They sold Ranks to Weed. Look, the Alliance already has a gate, don't they? That means there’s a Weed dungeon there. This must be the work of that guy, Yuki, who defies the gods."
"So that’s it... Honestly, that man!! Using his head for such petty things!!"
"Indeed."
Ah, so Ranks has already been stained by evil.
I had thought, just for a moment, that if there were those who swore loyalty, I might save them, but it seems that was a waste of time.
"So, what will you do? With this, Weed’s military forces will likely emerge. Are you going to retreat?"
"It will be fine. Weed’s military strength is nothing to speak of. They have a goblin as a general, and their strongest monster is a Blood Minotaur."
"Is there a possibility of surplus forces?"
"I wouldn't say it's impossible, but even if they exist, they are no match for us. They seem to eat adventurers just like us, but the scale is different. They claim to act for the sake of the masses while installing gates that connect to other countries. There’s no way they have the luxury to defeat our army."
How foolish.
If they had just saved their DP for their own country, they might have been able to stand against us.
Well, in the end, they are just incompetent fools who can only rely on goddesses.
"I see. That makes sense. Then we shall proceed toward Ranks as planned."
"Yes. But at this rate, I won't be able to gain DP, and my instructions won't reach them. What should we do?"
"Let's see. Bitz, do you have anything that looks like armor of evil? I will wear it and take command personally. That should make it more convincing that it was Weed and Yuki who destroyed Ranks. In this world, the only ones capable of controlling monsters of that scale, publicly speaking, are the Demon Lord and Weed."
"A brilliant plan. Please wait a moment. I must prepare the best equipment possible so that you don't get hurt."
"Indeed. Well, I don't imagine a true hero like myself would get hurt, but I'll leave it to you."
Yes, he will strike down the evil hero Taiki, become the true hero, and rule the continent.
And I, as the goddess who supported him, will govern the land.
"However, they are pitiful. If only they could level up like us."
"They lack the intellect for that, which is why they still use goblins and ogres. They probably never imagined that one could level up by hunting the monsters in their own dungeon."
"True. It is not their fault for being ordinary; perhaps it is our fault for being too clever."
"Fufu, what a sin."
By now, both his and my levels are over 400.
By deceiving Nonoa and Nogosh to save DP and funneling it into our military and our own growth, we have birthed the strongest army no one can defeat, along with the true hero and goddess who are the progenitors of this world.
"That's right. How about this helmet? It would be perfect for blending in with a group of liches."
"That’s true. Then, how about this armor? It’s enough to make Taiki and Yuki tremble in fear."
"Ah, that is magnificent."
As we exchanged such lively talk, his preparations were steadily completed.
In his current appearance, he looks every bit like the leader of the liches.
"Well then, I’m off. I won't kill Taiki or Ruth; I’ll capture them. I’ll contact you as soon as the preparations are finished."
"Yes. I don't believe for a second that you could lose, but please be careful."
"Leave it to me."
With those words, he set off for Ranks as the commander of the monsters.
Now, all that remains is to wait for the news of Ranks' conquest.
In the meantime, I decided to choose that 'Katana' I promised Nogosh, so I could respond to his call immediately.
I figured that if I gave him the sword first, it might put him in a good mood, just in case of unforeseen circumstances.
That thoughtless Sword God would surely lend a hand if I did.
However, this exchange using DP is quite mysterious.
Every time I gain knowledge, the number of items I can summon increases.
As expected of the power granted by the high-ranking gods.
"But... these are strange names."
Even looking at the names of the Katanas, I couldn't understand them at all.
They didn't have names we were familiar with.
"Nagasone... Kotetsu? Himezuru... Ichimonji? I don't understand."
Well, I’ve decided that higher DP means higher quality... wait, what is this?
It’s incredibly expensive!?
It’s 20 times the price of the Holy Sword Excalibacar I gave him!?
...Hmm, it’s not an amount I can't afford. I have some leeway.
Even if I plan to defeat him eventually, I need to keep him in a good mood and have him stand on the front lines for now.
"I have to endure this. Surely the God of Swords knows the quality of a sword."
It would be troublesome if I gave him a cheap one and he turned hostile, so this is just a preliminary investment.
I have plans to recover the cost soon, so this will be fine.
"Let's see, the name is... Dou... ji... giri... Yasutsuna? How hard to read. But come to think of it, Lord Nogosh did mention 'Nobutsuna,' so perhaps it’s named after this Katana. I’ll go with this one. Oh, he said he wanted two, didn't he? Hmm, it’s quite difficult to get another one of the same level. ...This will do. Let's see. Shimazu... Ichimonji."
There are so many names with 'Ichimonji.' Is that a common naming convention for Katanas?
Well, it doesn't matter.
Anyway, I still have plenty of time, so I’ll go deliver it.
I went through the gate and headed straight for Lord Nogosh’s castle.
At this hour, he should be at the training grounds.
*Whoosh!! Whoosh!!*
As expected, even though it was the middle of the night, the God of Swords was there, swinging his blade to train.
To be honest, I couldn't even see the movement of his arms.
Even he couldn't beat Lord Nogosh in swordsmanship.
As I thought, I should move in the direction of utilizing him rather than pointlessly antagonizing him.
"Lord Nogosh. Forgive me for interrupting your training."
"Hmm. Princess Bitz. What is..."
He turned around, looked at me, and started to speak, but he immediately froze, his gaze fixed on the Katana in my arms.
"As you can see, I have obtained the Katana you desired. I have prepared the highest-grade one available, as well as a decent one."
"Why are they not both the highest grade?"
"The highest grade one costs 20 times more than the Holy Sword of my hero. With my current savings, I could only afford one."
"What!? Is it of that caliber? Then, let me see it."