“I’m going crazy. Absolutely crazy.”
Count Halidon paced the admiral’s room.
He didn’t care about the battle. His only thoughts were how to escape alive, sneak into Duke Akirif’s Castle, and leave with the fortune he had spent his life amassing. True to his nature as a Demon of Greed, his assets were more precious than anything else.
“There’s no way…”
Getting out of the battlefield was the first problem. The monitors Duke Akirif had assigned to him were watching 24 hours a day.
‘If you’re going to die, die alone. Don’t drag me into it…’
This battle wasn’t for a Demon of Greed; it was the kind of thing those battle-crazed lunatics among the Demons of Ruin would do. It was a relief that the Outer Mind had stopped at a certain distance and hadn’t approached further.
‘Is it scared? No, that can’t be it.’
The Outer Mind had even taken down the Bluestone Fortress. The Demon Realm was in an uproar because of it, so the forces Duke Akirif had barely managed to scrape together would be nothing more than a snack for it.
“What do I do…”
Count Halidon fretted for six days, and when the report came that the enemy had begun to approach, his face turned pale.
“To hell with it!”
Count Halidon smashed through the window of the admiral’s room and jumped out. The monitors outside the room rushed forward and kicked off the window frames. However, their goal wasn’t to track Count Halidon, but to escape as well.
The Demons were fleeing together in harmony.
The atmosphere of the fleet turned chaotic with Count Halidon’s desertion. When the Apocalyd Wave reached them, rebellions broke out everywhere. Magic beasts ran wild, and lower-ranked Demons stabbed their superiors. Dimension ships exploded on their own, and those where rebellions succeeded turned their bows and fled.
“I won before the fight even started.”
In terms of Dimension Ship power, Duke Akirif’s fleet had approximately 600 ships, while the Apocalid had 300 Titans, ten Super Titans, and one Hive. In a simple calculation, Duke Akirif’s forces were double, but already about 100 Dimension Ships had self-destructed or deserted, and the condition of the others wasn’t great either.
Kuongi knew this, so his strategy was simple.
Charge and Consumption.
The opponent was too weak to even bother with a strategy. The distance between the Apocalid and the Dimension Ships gradually closed. Kuongi opened his mouth wide. Most Dimension Ships in Duke Akirif’s fleet were smaller than the size of Kuongi’s mouth.
A Dimension Ship entered the Great Mana Storm surrounding Kuongi. Its Mana Engine broke down, and one ship on the outskirts couldn’t even flee before it was sucked into Kuongi’s mouth.
*Crunch!*
The Demons and magic beasts were crushed along with the Dimension Ship by Kuongi’s massive teeth. Kuongi pushed through the enemies and fired Mana Cannons to the left and right. Thousands of shells hammered the Demon Dimension Ships, causing chain reactions and grand explosions.
Seeing the refreshing sight of the explosions, Choi Kangjoong felt relieved.
‘In the past, I would’ve had to twist my whole body just to beat 600 ships.’
Choi Kangjoong watched the battle as if he were on a drive, even stopping to eat at a decent-looking restaurant in between. The situation was perfectly overwhelming. The Super Titans tore through Duke Akirif’s fleet at will, while the Titans fired from slightly behind, sweeping up nutrients and Evolution Points.
‘I should get at least 100 million Evolution Points.’
Duke Akirif’s fleet was smashed in an instant. All Demons and magic beasts were melted in the Soil Pit. Count Halidon, the first to escape, met the same fate after being caught by Kai.
“Let’s head to Duke Akirif’s Castle.”
Kuongi turned his body. It was the direction where the Central Stealth Scout was hiding.
As the Apocalid, which had swallowed the fleet, began to move, Duke Akirif was thrown into a panic. He quickly moved his fortune to his flagship, the Olextercy, and prepared to flee. Still, he couldn’t bear to give up his duchy, so he urged his subordinates to come up with a plan.
Most had already fled, so there were few left to listen to his orders. Nevertheless, one subordinate made a suggestion that caught Duke Akirif’s attention.
“How about using the Orcs?”
“Orcs are more battle-crazed than the Demons of Ruin, so they’ll certainly fight the Outer Mind. But is there an Orc capable of that?”
“I heard a war between the Demons of Ruin and the Orcs broke out in Duke Dibali’s Territory, and it just ended recently.”
“The Orcs must have won.”
“That is correct.”
“That’s quite unexpected.”
Even if Duke Dibali wasn’t a particularly famous Demon, he was still a Demon of Ruin, so Akirif had thought he would easily defeat the Orcs.
“You want to drag those Orcs here and make them fight?”
“Yes, Duke.”
Duke Akirif nodded. Dragging in more enemies wasn’t usually a good idea, but there was no other choice. He could look for an opening while the Outer Mind and the Orcs fought, or no matter who won, the fallout would spread in all directions, allowing Duke Akirif to take a bit of revenge on the surrounding Demons who had abandoned him.
“If the Orcs aren’t fighting among themselves, there must be a boss. What’s his name?”
“He’s called Kuralgal.”
“Proceed with it. If you succeed, I’ll reward you handsomely.”
“Thank you!”
The subordinate who suggested bringing in the Orcs left on the fastest Dimension Ship. Choi Kangjoong, who had been watching through the Central Stealth Scout, brightened up.
“They’re bringing Kuralgal? That’s great!”
Kuralgal was the Orc Boss who had been defeated by Choi Kangjoong twice already. He was also someone who believed himself to be the smartest Orc. His intelligence was indeed higher than other Orcs, but his command was terrible, so every one of his orders had a negative effect on the Orcs.
“Duke Akirif is setting a feast for me.”
Choi Kangjoong intentionally let the Dimension Ship carrying Duke Akirif’s subordinate go. He also proceeded with the Dimensional Devouring of the Akirif Duchy at a leisurely pace. Instead of splitting into several branches, he stayed as one unit and ate through them one by one. He looked forward to Kuralgal bringing a massive horde of Orcs.
‘Since I’ll be fighting Orcs, Species Evolution would be good. Should I get a wide-range skill too?’
Orcs tended to cluster together, so if he sprayed poison mist or dropped self-destructing Apocalids, they would die in droves.
‘Or should I just buy bombs from Serad and attach them to the Bomber Giants?’
The thought that suddenly occurred to Choi Kangjoong seemed like a good idea. While poison mist or self-destructing Apocalids were effective against Orcs, the nutrient consumption was unavoidable. However, if he bought bombs from Serad and dropped them, he could significantly reduce the nutrient consumption.
‘I used the Mana Missiles well when I was destroying the Bluestone Fortress. I should ask for some bombs.’
Choi Kangjoong contacted Serad through Iselin. Serad looked very troubled and said it was difficult to sell them.
“Why? Is something wrong?”
-Orc movements confirmed. 100 million Orcs who won in Duke Dibali’s Territory are moving somewhere. Firm preparation is required. Currently, all bombs have been designated as strategic reserves.
“I’m asking for them because I’m going to fight those Orcs. I think they’re coming to me.”
Serad’s expression turned from surprise to extreme joy.
-In that case, I can provide all the bombs. Do you need more supplies? I can also provide Mana Missiles.
“Give me whatever you have to spare.”
-I will provide all Mana Missiles exceeding the wartime reserve levels.
“If you gather them in one place, I’ll go pick them up.”
-You have my overwhelming gratitude.
“And the cost?”
-The Outer Mind is the benefactor of me and M2721. No transaction is necessary.
“You’re not very calculative about this, are you?”
-Metra’s emotions are hotter than an Elf’s.
“I’ll help with the price negotiations.”
Iselin, who had been watching, spoke up. Her face was very cold.
“I’ll maximize your profits, Outer.”
-I also hope for his profit to be maximized. I will guide you to the storage location for the Mana Missiles and bombs as soon as they are ready.
Thus, Choi Kangjoong came to receive the weapons that M2721 had been frantically producing in preparation for the Orcs.
—
Kuralgal’s tent.
Orcs didn’t know diplomacy, and such things as delegations didn’t exist. However, Kuralgal was different. The Orc, who considered himself the smartest among his kind, welcomed Duke Akirif’s envoy instead of killing him.
“Congratulations on your victory, Great Boss.”
“It’s all thanks to my brilliance. It’s because I used superior strategy and tactics with my shining intelligence. Kuhahahaha!”
The booming laughter shook the tent, which was filled with loot obtained from the Demons. The envoy nodded, praising Kuralgal’s intelligence. He didn’t show it at all, even though he knew that most of the battles were won by Kuralgal simply pushing through with brute force and killing the enemy commander.
“So, why are you Demon bastards here?”
“I have an excellent proposal to make.”
As the envoy explained about the Outer Mind, Kuralgal became excited.
“It’s them! Those stingy, fun things!”
“Y-yes, that’s right. They are stingy.”
“Where are they? Where are those guys!”
Kuralgal grabbed the envoy by the collar and shook him. The envoy, pushed to the brink of death by Kuralgal’s incredible strength, barely managed to answer.
“I… I will… g-guide you…”
*Thud.*
Kuralgal threw the envoy aside and walked out of the tent.
“You bastards! It’s a fight!”
His shout, massive enough to be heard even in the Dimensional Sea, reached the edge of the plains. Immediately, the 100 million Orcs filling the plains let out a roar.
-Waaaaaaaaaa!
The envoy had to cover his ears at the roar that felt like it would tear the atmosphere apart.
‘Vulgar and stupid Orc bastards.’
As Kuralgal suddenly walked back in, the envoy glanced at him, worried that he might have heard the insult. When Kuralgal made no mention of it, he quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
“Where are they? Tell me quickly!”
“Please follow my Dimension Ship. I will guide you.”
“Just tell me the location and direction!”
At Kuralgal’s words, which were practically a threat, the envoy quickly took out a Black Market Map and pointed out the Apocalid’s location.
“They are devouring dimensions at this location.”
“Good! We’re going right now!”
The dimension packed with Orcs and 3,000 Orc Dimension Ships began to move. The Orcs, who continued to plunder and destroy along the way, finally reached the Akirif Duchy. During the journey, their numbers grew even larger as Orcs appearing from nowhere joined them.
“Welcome.”
Choi Kangjoong had already taken his position in the largest dimension in the Akirif Duchy. It was a Super-large Dimension with a diameter of 1,000km, making it a good place to fight the Orcs. He had already thoroughly surveyed the terrain through scouting and had dug pitfalls and tunnels all over the place.
“Faster! Faster!”
At Kuralgal’s urging, the speed of the Orc dimension increased. The Orcs’ bodies were flushed with excitement as they saw the appearance and biomass of the Apocalid. Impatient Orcs picked fights with those nearby and were dealt with by the Boss.
‘Kuralgal has grown quite a lot.’
When he had last seen him, Kuralgal was an Ultra Great Boss, an Orc on par with an A-Rank Hunter. Now, he had become at least a Hyper Ultra Great Boss, larger and stronger than before.
“Row! Row harder!”
The Orc Dimension Ships, lighter and faster than the Orc dimension itself, approached first. Their durability was a mess due to their poor structure, but they were covered in Scrap Cannons and packed with Orcs and Goblins inside, so it wasn’t good to allow them to get close.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
The Apocalid units, lined up to the left and right, fired their Mana Cannons. Orc Dimension Ships were blown apart in clusters. The lead ships were literally massacred, but the Orcs steered their ships with cruel smiles on their faces.
*Rumble!*
The dimension where the Apocalid was stationed and the Orc dimension collided. An earthquake circled the dimension, and the ground rose at the point of contact, creating a low mountain range.
“Kill them all!”
“It’s a fight!”
“The Boss’s seat is mine!”
The Orcs excitedly crossed into the dimension. What greeted them was the bombardment of the Bomber Giants.
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