Having returned to the Dark Continent alongside Takuto and the others, the group dispersed to attend to their respective duties.
The envoys from Fonkavun were likely back in their homeland by now, deliberating over the matter. Takuto, for his part, had called an emergency meeting in the Great Cursed Realm's palace to report on the outcome and discuss future policy.
"So, when all is said and done, opening the box revealed what was essentially the expected outcome..."
While Takuto had been controlling the Failure, he had been in a state of extreme concentration. His subordinates had been unable to monitor the situation in real time.
This meeting marked their first opportunity to hear the results reported back.
And once the full account had been relayed, the expressions of the Dark Elves present were bitter and grim.
There had likely been a degree of optimism regarding security, given that Takuto had sent a body double. They had assumed that at worst, only the Failure would be lost and that Mynoghra would remain unharmed regardless of what happened. Upon learning that an event capable of deciding the fate of their nation had suddenly erupted, they simply could not keep up.
Right now, they had their hands full just processing their emotions.
Every last one of them wore such a face as they listened quietly to Takuto's words.
"So the Elven nation has fallen into such a state... And yet, I cannot fathom it. Quolia is the realm of the gods. No matter how disadvantageous their position, surely they would never consider allying with demon-kind such as the Succubi..."
"Indeed. We understand their character well. At the very least, there must be some proportionate reason for them to resort to such a measure. Even if they do regard us as a threat, this seems somewhat lacking in conviction..."
Takuto had deliberately obscured certain details regarding his abilities as a player.
This was not born of distrust toward the Dark Elves, but rather consideration for the fact that abilities originating from a "game" would be utterly incomprehensible to them.
Moreover, revealing everything risked undermining the authority Takuto currently held.
And so, he had carefully curated this information, explaining that his player abilities were powerful powers originating from the divine realm they believed in.
As for the equipment derived from Player H, even Takuto himself had been at a loss for how to explain it.
Weapons and items of such legendary power that each one was spoken of in hushed awe.
A player who possessed them in vast, seemingly inexhaustible quantities.
Compared to the RPG crowd who would only grasp the concept if you explained it as "a hero from a fairy tale," they were on another level entirely. That was precisely why Takuto planned to be more careful when sharing information about players and gods. "They're probably hiding a good bit over there too. Debating that won't yield any answers, I suspect. Still, it's worth keeping in mind. For now, having our future goal narrowed down to one is, in its own way, a relief. Simpler is better."
That said, that only applied when talking about other players. When it came to Mynoghra's abilities, the Dark Elves already understood them as the Great Power of the King of Ruin, making explanation easy. Takuto's explanation that the "Somber Nation" of the Great Ritual was a powerful magic he could only use once in a lifetime was also readily accepted. The Dark Elves remained apologetic for making him use such a precious magic, but for Takuto, it was the perfect occasion—if not now, when?—so their reaction actually felt a bit awkward to him.
"Your Majesty's power is truly admirable. With the time remaining until the decisive battle, we shall apply ourselves with even greater vigilance than ever."
"Hmm, having time is a blessing. Let's do everything we can in the interim."
Having time for domestic development was a merit, both for Takuto and for the SLG *Eternal Nations*. Unlike the game, where they had to produce results in a short timeframe, the things they could accomplish might be few, but some avenues still remained. Debts must be repaid in full. Strengthening Mynoghra was essential for that.
"By the way, Lord Takuto. The Great Ritual—how long will it last?"
"Probably one year. It might fluctuate slightly, but that should be about right."
"Most troubling..."
Atou couldn't help but let out a sound upon hearing the explanation. After parting with Yu's group, Takuto had immediately examined his abilities regarding the Great Ritual once he had time. He tried sensing the flow of mana, accessed the Epadia floating in his mind, and even meditated to ask the depths within himself.
Well, he'd tried every method he could think of to measure the most crucial point: the grace period. The result was, as expected, one year.
The answer lay in the precise figure Takuto had intuitively grasped initially—give or take a few days, perhaps a margin of error of a few days at most. That was the conclusion.
One year.
Everyone present understood the weight of those words.
It was far too short.
"Simply accumulating strength patiently... that approach won't suffice."
"Indeed. Considering the enemy's military strength and capabilities, as reported by the King, something must bring about a fundamental shift."
"For a national-scale effort, one year is simply too inadequate."
The Dark Elves' expressions were grim. This wasn't the look of those anticipating defeat, but rather the realization that overturning this situation through conventional means was impossible. At least, they couldn't conceive of any such means right now. Even formulating and evaluating a brilliant plan would take several weeks, yet the deadline was a mere year. The situation was critical, to say the least.
It was so urgent that action needed to be taken immediately, or they wouldn't make it in time...
A dark, gloomy atmosphere began to settle over the room.
"Hehehe, everyone's so discouraged, aren't you? Have you forgotten? The one standing here is the Ruinous King of Mynoghra! The means you cannot think of... we already possess. Exactly!"
"Ohhh!!!"
But one appeared to sweep that gloom away.
None other than Takuto's confidant, the Mire, Atou.
The loyal guardian who had been protecting him throughout the entire council of all factions.
In truth, she had been doing little else but guarding him the whole time.
Perhaps that was precisely why she chose this moment to assert her presence.
It was a underhanded tactic, but as a move to change the atmosphere of the moment, it was perfect.
"I'd rather you didn't praise me so highly..."
"What do you mean, sir! For you, Lord Takuto, a hardship like this is no hardship at all! In fact, doesn't the clear indicator of our military inferiority make things easier to manage?"
"True, it's certainly better than them coming at us with some convoluted scheme."
Atou never doubted that Takuto already had a means to break this situation. Takuto gave a bitter smile, somewhat overwhelmed by her unwavering conviction.
But Atou's words were not entirely off the mark. In fact, she understood his current situation quite well.
"Clear and manageable" was indeed a sentiment Takuto himself shared.
"The enemy's objective is clear. To bring every faction under their umbrella, except their own. And our objective is equally clear. To acquire the strength to repel that."
The Dark Elves nodded deeply, and profoundly.
Takuto speaking this way meant he had already concluded that dialogue or intricate maneuvering would not work. His subordinates understood this well.
What was necessary was strengthening their military might for the war they knew was coming. They had to prepare with single-minded focus for that inevitable day.
"The enemy has shown us a military alliance, the Orthodox Continental League. So, we will form an equivalent alliance of our own to close the numerical gap."
A murmur rippled through the room.
Purely on a conceptual level, this option had existed in their minds. But hearing it stated from the mouth of their king, Takuto, gave it a completely different weight.
Mynoghra was an evil nation.
People shunned, avoided, and at times, sought to exterminate its very existence.
Forging alliances under the shadow of such a fundamental aspect of how living beings perceived them would not be straightforward.
Whether they aimed to build a partnership of equals or used force to make their position clear and demand submission, it was undoubtedly going to be grueling work.
But if they could pull it off, there was no more effective strategy.
At the very least, there would be sufficient reward to compensate for what they currently lacked.
"Actually, Pepe had already reached out to me about this beforehand. With the enemy alliance running wild this time, the neutral nations of the Dark Continent will have no choice but to hear us out."
The path to making it a reality was becoming visible.
The Dark Elf sages who heard Takuto's words all arrived at remarkably the same impression.
In fact, given the current state of affairs surrounding the continent, it was clear that the neutral nations also needed to show a willingness to come to the table.
It was easy to forget because they were protected by Mynoghra and the mighty King of Ruin, but the people living in the Dark Continent were inherently fragile beings, barely getting by from day to day on desolate land.
There was a famous saying that a drowning man will clutch at a straw, and they were drowning at this very moment.
This outcome could be called entirely natural.
"To think the talks had progressed that far already—even my eyes couldn't see through it! Oh my, this Mortar. I have touched upon the King's wisdom many a time before, but truly, his stratagems are without equal. I am utterly impressed!"
And with all of this groundwork laid, as long as the people on the ground didn't fumble it, reaching an agreement should be possible.
From Takuto's side as well, there was no particular ambition toward the neutral nations in the current situation.
Given that the alliance with Fonkavun was proceeding smoothly, if they explained that part thoroughly and made it understood, sharing a clear objective against the Continental Alliance of Legitimacy would not be difficult.
"If we can secure a certain degree of initiative on our end, the rest will follow. It would be ideal if I could direct everything myself, but that part probably comes down to negotiation."
His subordinates nodded, satisfied with the King's arrangements.
But Takuto's strategy didn't end there. In the current situation, there was an overwhelming disparity in combat capability.
Even just looking at the rank-and-file soldiers, there were elves, Succubi, and Holy Knights, all of them further enhanced by H-type equipment.
If they clashed with armies whose combat ability had been elevated by multiple tiers, then no matter how many modern weapons Takuto supplied, they would be kicked aside effortlessly.
But there was no need to worry.
On that front as well, Takuto had drawn up a plan that offered a reasonable chance of counterplay.
"Furthermore, I hear that Sutherland, the maritime nation located in the eastern reaches of the Dark Continent, possesses unknown technologies still unknown to the world through intercontinental trade. If we could obtain those, we would be able to summon even more powerful subordinate monsters."
"All!?"
I had learned through Pepe that vast unknown lands still existed in this world.
Lands beyond the so-called orthodox continent and the dark continent.
On this continent, where overseas technology was scarce, matters concerning the outside world rarely came up in discussion, but the fact that some nations engaged in trade was fortunate for Takuto.
How advanced their technology truly was remained a gamble, but if it could accelerate the development of technologies that would otherwise take years of research, it would be a tremendous asset.
One year was a short time.
Yet, what could be accomplished, what could be done, was far more than anyone imagined.
"For now, we need to establish contact with the neutral nations. Whether we're forging a military alliance on the dark continent or acquiring technology from other countries, we need a point of entry first. Leave that part to Fonkavun, but I also want our own side to intensify intelligence gathering."
"Understood! If we cannot investigate the northern continent—the Holy Nations—we will redirect those resources toward the neutral nations. I will certainly prepare information worthy of the King's satisfaction."
"Yes, especially regarding people. We need detailed profiles on individuals important to our side, those who could bolster our military strength, and those with specialized skills or abilities."
Previously, the shortage of personnel had been dire.
Considering future needs, a massive number of mid-level managers and military commanders would be required.
In a game, so-called "named characters" were of course crucial, but it was now urgent to discover a large number of capable individuals of comparable caliber.
"A year might seem like a substantial amount of time at first glance. However, if you let your guard down, it will pass in the blink of an eye. These kinds of detailed adjustments and investigations are tasks that only you can handle. I'm counting on you."
"Ha!"
The policy was set.
First, a conference had to be convened to build an alliance on the dark continent.
Takuto suddenly realized how unusually frequent conferences had become since coming to this world.
He felt a strange sense of understanding, thinking that *Eternal Nations* had conveniently glossed over this aspect.
...
...
The Dark Elves' instructions were finally over, and Takuto was taking a brief respite in his own room.
Because of the double-impersonation strategy using "The Good-for-Nothing," Takuto now had a wide range of actions he could take.
In fact, if he so desired, he could traverse the entirety of Mynoghra's nation and assume direct command himself.
He had set himself the task of working like a draft horse for this entire year, keeping rest to a bare minimum.
"Good work today."
As Takuto stretched to loosen his body, stiff from hours seated in a chair, Atou approached with deeply aromatic coffee.
For moments requiring intense focus, this was his drink. He preferred it slightly diluted and cooled to just the right temperature, gulped down in a single swig.
He took the still-steaming cup Atou offered and placed it on his desk, then turned to face her.
"Thanks, Atou. Good work to you too... Still, what on earth are we to do?"
"The enemy's military alliance? We certainly never imagined they'd rush into a decisive battle like this. It's quite the rare scenario, even in 'Eternal Nations.'"
"Normally, we'd ensure our safety by aiming for mutual destruction through diplomacy or the like, or deliberately creating a tense standoff. But we let our guard down, thinking the Succubus and the Saint's kingdom were like oil and water and would never cooperate. We should have anticipated this scenario when the TRPG faction and the two Saints joined forces."
However, Takuto felt it was too harsh to call this situation his own fault.
Demanding he examine this outcome, in terms of possibility, was far too nonsensical. It was more on the level of a conspiracy theory—suspicious and with virtually no chance of realization.
That was precisely why the Witch Vagia had prepared so meticulously, and why she had gambled everything on that absolute stratagem at the time.
Then again, there were still many things about that conference that didn't sit right. It was certain that the alliance was still hiding something, but...
Before dwelling on such matters, there was a great deal that needed to be done.
At the very least, merely forming an alliance in the Dark Continent or acquiring new technology in Sutherland would not be enough to win.
At the time, the Dark Elves had been so moved that he'd held back from pouring water on their enthusiasm, but only Atou understood that efforts to that degree would never bridge the vast disparity in their fighting power.
A situation that should, in principle, be cause for deep concern. A future where being crushed by overwhelming ability was a certainty. Seeing Takuto maintain such a composed demeanor in the face of that prospect, Atou arrived at a single, unwavering conviction.
"But Takuto, despite the critical situation, you seem remarkably composed. Could it be that you still have some strategy in mind?"
"Hehehe, you understand well. Actually—" And thus was revealed the master strategy against the Continental Alliance of Orthodoxy.
Its bold, fearless, and utterly unexpected nature left Atou momentarily stunned into a state that bordered on exasperated admiration.