This is bad...
Very, very bad.
Looking at the images displayed on the big screen, I could see that Milim was flying into a rage, on the verge of losing her rationality.
If Milim went on a rampage for real, who on earth could stop her?
Back in the ancient past, Guy had clashed with her and
"Hey, Ramiris...
I'm just asking, but while I'm holding Milim back, could you return her to her senses?"
"Wait! Are you telling me to die?!?"
As I expected.
I hadn't counted on it from the start, but with Ramiris having been reduced to a chibi form, it was ultimately impossible.
"No, I figured it would be impossible. But I can't believe they'd come up with a strategy to enrage Milim..."
I muttered to myself, deep in thought.
Honestly, this was unexpected.
I had assumed that the being calling himself Velda possessed the "King of Justice."
So truthfully, I'd been careless, thinking that no one other than Velda could possibly defeat Milim.
If Veldora had come in person, I'd planned to immediately intercept via teleportation. There was no sense in being cowardly about it—I figured we could leave some defensive forces behind and then crush them all at once.
A beautiful woman I'd never seen before was apparently being protected by the "Palace Fortress Wall" of the "King of Justice" while taunting Milim.
She'd lost her offensive capability, but the "Palace Fortress Wall" was absolute defense. Even with Milim's extraordinary destructive power, she wouldn't be able to break through that barrier.
Rather, the defensive energy would be redirected and used to spread destruction to the surroundings. If that happened, Milim's anger would only accelerate—and that was exactly what the enemy wanted.
I hadn't expected the power of ability transference—granting subordinates their own Ultimate Skills as trump cards.
This was a fundamentally different way of thinking from Yuuki, who had tried to monopolize everything. This was going to be a troublesome opponent.
"This is bad. If we don't stop Milim, she might just help bring about the collapse of the world."
"Yeah... Rimuru, what are you going to do?"
Ramiris agreed and looked at me.
Problems arising right at the start of the war. Now what should I do?
I was pondering this when the situation made it clear it wasn't going to wait for me.
Before I could make my decision, another problem would arise.
Against Milim as the opponent,
At minimum, among my subordinates, I'd need to send at least three Guardian King-class fighters to even the odds.
That was just for Milim alone. At the same time, there was
The four angels standing behind that silver-haired woman were clearly not ordinary beings.
Based on the current situation, the Monster Nation was bound to be destroyed.
From the beginning, I'd given up on defending the capital and was already thinking about reconstruction. I'd moved the leadership into the labyrinth, and all visitors had been protected.
I'd be forced to abandon the buildings I'd worked so hard to construct. But in exchange, I'd maintained a posture that allowed for full-scale resistance without relying on the structures for defense.
Using the buildings as shields, the 300,000 former Imperial soldiers were serving as a formidable defensive force.
From the First Legion to the Third Legion, each was coordinating with the others to join the counterattack.
The Fourth Legion—composed entirely of combat specialists from the last mobilization—was also standing by, giving us a fighting force of roughly 400,000.
But the angel army also numbered 400,000, so in terms of raw numbers, we were evenly matched.
The remaining 100,000 former Imperial soldiers were assigned to maintaining order within the Great Forest of Jura—making sure that angel remnants and stray angels couldn't attack the villages and settlements, maintaining communication networks and defense duties.
And the volunteer army of nearly 30,000 adventurers had been sent to defend the Western Nations under Masayuki's command.
This was total war.
"Sky Dragon King"
Oh right—how could I forget
The battle was seesawing back and forth.
The angel army that had invaded the Monster Nation had large numbers, but it lacked powerful commanders.
Two
They seemed evenly matched, but neither side was fighting seriously, so the outcome was uncertain.
Gabiru was handling the other one, engaged in an aerial battle. Also even. I could leave this to them.
I wanted to send reinforcements and wrap things up quickly, but since I couldn't gauge the full extent of the enemy's remaining forces, revealing all my cards would be dangerous.
I'd act if the situation turned unfavorable, but for now, I had to hold back.
The Monster Nation's home front was at a stalemate, so I'd set that aside for the moment.
The real problem was the situation in the other countries.
A traitor had been revealed.
He had mobilized his army without Luminous having declared anything.
Against an angel army [average B-class] of 200,000 plus Dagruel's Chain Colossus Corps [average B+ class] of 100,000, Luminous's forces alone were nowhere near sufficient.
It seemed Dagruel was the main target all along.
Their plan was to take down one of the Demon Lords—the "Queen of Nightmares," Luminous Valentine.
The Holy Papal State of Lubelius was essentially the linchpin of the western defenses.
If this fell, the Western Nations would have a foothold against them, and the balance of power would tip overnight.
The angel legions could fly, and with their massive Transfer Gates, they could redeploy to various locations swiftly.
I could already envision the people of the Western Nations being caught between a giant army advancing from the west and angels descending from the sky—overwhelmed and helpless.
Luminous's available forces: Holy Knights [average A-class]: 300 Crimson Blood Knights [average A-class]: 400 Commanders: the "Seven Luminaries Elder" and seven great nobles Plus a few Holy Knights led by Arnaud Main force: the Sacred Scripture Knights [average B+ class]—100,000 strong, composed of Holy Church faithful, lower vampires, and other demi-humans who worshipped Luminous.
Additionally, the Northwestern Western Nations Army [average C+ class]—100,000 total, dispatched from various national knight orders.
That was all.
Over 200,000 in total—a massive force, but barely enough against the angels alone.
Dagruel's direct upper echelons reportedly included A-rank giant-type demi-humans, and with fewer numbers and inferior quality, there was no way to match them.
Among the Demon Lords, Luminous and Dagruel were said to command the largest factions, but their personal forces were roughly equal. However, the quality and quantity of reinforcements had made a decisive difference.
If Luminous fell here, the Western Nations' collapse would be instantaneous.
Within a month, they would be completely overrun. That had to be prevented at all costs.
If that was the case, I needed to send reinforcements.
Dagruel's strength was an unknown quantity. He was supposedly a monster who'd once fought Veldora to a standstill, so underestimating him would be dangerous.
If it came to a one-on-one with Luminous, it was unclear who would come out on top.
Luminous was a holder of a Sin-series Ultimate Skill, so it was hard to imagine she'd lose easily...
But either way, sending support seemed necessary.
There were other problems too.
Against Leon's magic city-state, 200,000 angels was far too many.
Right now, Leon was managing to hold thanks to deploying all his defense mechanisms and focusing entirely on city defense. But if direct combat began, the situation could shift dramatically.
Leon's available forces: Magic Knight Corps [average A- class]: only 10,000.
They were an elite force of first-rate knights—I'd seen that firsthand during my previous visit.
But the gap in numbers was too vast to overcome, and there wasn't a significant quality advantage.
Angels had average B-class combat ability, but that varied depending on the embodied vessel. Or perhaps it was better to say it depended on the strength of their will.
Mindless angels weren't that much of a threat, but angels with willpower seemed to grow stronger.
They were the counterpart race to demons—the longer the fight dragged on, the more dangerous they became.
Moreover, individuals absorbed into Yuuki's original combined corps were expected to possess exceptional command ability and combat power.
The deployment of these higher angels wasn't fully known as of now. They appeared to be hiding their true power, disguising themselves as ordinary angels.
Some standout individuals were visible, but they were too few.
There should have been angels based on the nearly 100,000-strong combined corps. I needed to be wary of them suddenly revealing their true strength.
Leon's forces couldn't hope to match 200,000 angels.
A massive reaction had been detected over El Dorado.
This had been confirmed through analysis by
The entity possessed power equivalent to Vega, who was currently rampaging through Milim's army.
It had called itself one of the Four Calamity Celestial Generals.
If that was the case, the one who'd appeared at Leon's location was most likely Kagari of the Four Calamity Celestial Generals.
An Awakened Demon Lord-class being. No—if anything, possibly even stronger than that.
Leon was plenty strong, but given that it was unknown how far Kagari's power had grown, overconfidence would be a mistake.
The situation had remained a stalemate only because that woman was still holding back. If she went on a rampage, everything would change in an instant.
Before that happened, I'd need to make my move here as well.
So, problems had erupted across multiple fronts.
Just as the war began, this was the situation.
To summarize: The biggest problem: Milim's rampage.
Next: Vega's devastation, and
Dagruel's betrayal, and Luminous being in crisis.
The need to send reinforcements to Leon.
That about covered it.
However, as for Leon, unless he directly requested aid, we should stay out of it.
I hated to do it to Leon, but even if El Dorado fell, it wouldn't affect the bigger picture. If a city of a million on a distant continent disappeared, it wouldn't matter as long as we achieved overall victory.
That said, if Leon were to be defeated, I'd want to pursue Kagari afterward. Ideally, I should consider coordinating with Leon...
But according to Ciel, even if I didn't act, Guy's forces—apparently his ally—would mobilize on their own.
Guy's territory wouldn't be attacked by the angel army, and he'd likely move the army under
That was probably the safest bet.
Guy also had his own intelligence-gathering methods. He should have sensed the crisis facing his ally.
With a great force of several thousand greater devil [average A-class] troops, I wanted to believe he could handle the numerical disadvantage.
I'd leave Leon to Guy and hold off on any rescue unless a request came through.
Now then.
"What should we do, Lord Rimuru? If we're to stop Lady Milim, I believe we'd need to send several people..."
I interrupted my accelerated thought process and stated my conclusion.
"That's important too, but you've noticed, right?
Dagruel's betrayal—"
"Yes..."
"Eh!?"
"..."
"?!?"
Benimaru and Diablo had clearly already noticed, but it seemed the others hadn't.
Agitation swept through the command center.
Well, naturally. One of the Demon Lords with the greatest military power had betrayed them—of course they'd be shaken.
Stopping Milim was critical, but this couldn't be ignored either.
"Fortunately, the enemy has only just begun to move.
Therefore, I'll contact Luminous while simultaneously deploying rescue forces through the Transfer Gates.
Who we send is the question..."
Sending the right person was the issue. Against an army, we needed someone suited for the role. This called for— "Lord Rimuru! I know I'm being selfish, but I beg you— Please, let me sortie!!"
Was this her sense of responsibility as the one entrusted with Dagruel's sons?
《I believe there are no issues.》 (But what if his sons betray us too?)
《The probability of that is quite low.
However, I have concerns about Shion going alone. I recommend having Adalman and
She also had a collegial relationship with Luminous from their research, so there was some degree of friendship there.
With
"Alright, Shion. Go.
You'll be taking your personal guard, right? Don't let your guard down."
"Ha! Thank you very much!"
Shion rose to her feet with determination, bowed to me, and left.
Against Dagruel, the current Shion wouldn't stand a chance on her own. But if we were thinking of supporting Luminous, her immortality would be useful.
Luminous's Day-Night Reversal, combined with Adalman's Holy-Demonic Reversal.
If those two were combined, they should be able to handle giants specialized in various attributes.
"Adalman, you're deploying too.
It means leaving the labyrinth unguarded, but go help Shion and Luminous!"
"As you command!! I am deeply moved that you have granted me this mission.
I swear I will prove my usefulness!!"
Adalman departed with Albert and Wenti in tow.
She could apparently summon Death Spirit Knights from her domain within the labyrinth using necromantic summoning magic, making her a reliable rapid-response force.
Albert had grown accustomed to his Mythical-class equipment, and Wenti was practically bouncing with excitement at the prospect of fighting in the outside world after so long.
For now, this would have to do. We'd see how things developed.
Next: who to send against Vega.
Setting aside the question of finishing him off, I needed to send reinforcements quickly, or Milim's forces would suffer devastating losses.
Carrion had gone to intercept, but alone, it would be tough.
"So, for reinforcements to Carrion, who's fighting Vega...
I'll send Gobta.
"Guh! My lord, does this mean I may also deploy!?"
"Yeah, that's right."
"!! Gobta is a genius. Our synchronization rate exceeds 80%.
If he can gain combat experience against a stronger opponent, he'll pick up the tricks in no time!"
Leave it to Ranga to praise Gobta like that. Or rather—what exactly does it mean for a goblin to be a genius?
Ranga was wagging his tail, clearly excited at the chance to finally get into the thick of it.
Even if he was hyping it up a bit because he personally wanted to fight, at least part of it had to be genuine.
I'd choose to believe that.
"Alright. Gobta should be able to teleport directly to Carrion's location.
Go, Ranga! Take Gobta and go beat the hell out of Vega!"
"As you command!!"
The moment he answered, Ranga melted into the shadows and vanished.
Ranga's fighting spirit was more than sufficient. As for Gobta's... probably not so much. He'd probably be saying something like "Hey! Why am I the one who has to deal with the scary guy?!"
But well, Gobta would manage.
He'd give it his best. I'd just have to believe that.
Finally, the main issue—Milim.
"As for dealing with Milim, I'll go myself."
The moment I said that, the room went silent.
Well, of course. The commander personally entering the fray was normally the worst possible move.
But I judged that sending a large force against Milim would only reduce our flexibility.
Ciel agreed, and it couldn't be ruled out that even Guardian King-class fighters might die in the attempt.
If the goal were to kill Milim, that would be one thing—but if we were only trying to stop her, casualties were a real possibility.
This was something I needed to handle personally.
"Kufufufu. Then I shall accompany you, Lord Rimuru.
I'll need to scatter those pesky insects that would interfere with your match against Lady Milim."
"Naturally, we will accompany you as well!"
"Yeah! I'm going too!"
"Obviously."
The most powerful fighting force—the executives of the Black Corps—all spoke in unison.
Fine by me.
I could summon them at any time, so the Black Corps could stay on standby.
There were four Awakened Demon Lord-class angels, and even if the silver-haired woman attacking Milim had no offensive power, I couldn't afford to let my guard down.
With Shion deployed, these four pillars would serve as my escort, so I'd bring them along.
There was a possibility they were bait to lure me out, but if I didn't act now, an even graver crisis would unfold.
Milim destroying her own nation—I absolutely had to prevent that.
If it came to that, it would be too late.
"Besides—that scum Vega stole my enjoyment.
If Gobta fails to kill him, I'll have to deliver the final blow myself."
Right, she was upset that her fight with Lieutenant Kondo had been spoiled. That made sense.
I'd have her eliminate the powerful angel entities first, then swing back to support Gobta.
Actually—could Gobta even win?
I'd appointed him because he could reach the front lines fastest, but that 80% synchronization rate with Ranga concerned me.
Even at 100%, it didn't seem like a guaranteed win, and according to Ciel's assessment, even with Carrion joining forces with Gobta and Ranga, taking on Vega would be a tall order.
How much had that bastard Vega grown?
He'd been absorbing corpses, steadily increasing his power.
If we didn't finish him off soon, he could become genuinely dangerous.
"Alright, understood.
Carrera, once you've taken out the powerful angel entities, immediately swing over to support Gobta and the others.
Diablo, you'll assist me. I'm counting on you."
"As you command!!"
That settled the strategy.
"Rimuru, please take care of Milim!"
"Yeah, leave it to me!"
I gave Ramiris a reassuring smile as she looked at me with worry.
Against Milim—the most powerful Demon Lord—half measures wouldn't cut it.
If I could suppress her anger, her reason would return.
But holding back while fighting her would be suicide. I was the only one who could do this.
Calming down the short-tempered Milim would be difficult, but there was no other choice.
"Benimaru, I'm leaving the rest to you."
"You have my word!"
I entrusted the situation to Benimaru.
We'd also need to prepare for a possible request from Demon Lord Leon, and Benimaru understood that.
"If Leon does request reinforcements—"
"I'll handle it. Please rest easy!"
I'd leave it to him then.
I retained command of the Black Corps, so I instructed them to contact me if anything came up.
The devil legion, which could deploy instantly via teleportation, needed to remain in a state of readiness at all times.
Even setting that aside, the Monster Nation still had forces in reserve.
Benimaru. Souei.
Zegion.
Plus the four True Dragons under Ramiris, and
If the situation demanded it, we could respond.
I left the rest to Benimaru and deployed with Diablo and the others.
I needed to snap Milim out of it as fast as possible.
(Hold on, Milim! Don't go destroying everything!)
I hurried to teleport directly to Milim's location, before things got out of hand.