“Ugh! How do we deal with all of them...!”
“Let’s just swing wildly for now!”
“But if we do that, we’ll run out of mana!”
“Ugh, I don’t care!”
“Hey!!!”

I couldn’t be bothered to think about the complexities!
Charlotte, gripping the powerful sword, charged out,
and Yulia, exasperated, couldn’t help but shout.

It was clearly a dire situation.
Thousands? Tens of thousands? There were so many ant monsters surrounding the castle that I couldn’t even estimate their numbers.
Some were even climbing the castle walls, threatening the interior.

How on earth do we deal with all of them?
The immediate priority was to eliminate the monsters climbing the walls.
Thanks to Charlotte’s reckless charge, the aura she emitted was holding them back.

However, the number of monsters was incalculable.
Even if Charlotte adjusted her aura output, it was clear she wouldn’t last ten minutes before running out of mana.
We couldn’t hold out like this for long!
We had to do something...!

“Ah! What if we aim for the queen ant?”
[That species of ant typically has one queen per colony. But killing the queen will only increase the rage of the others.]
“Then what do we do...?”
“We can lure it without killing it.”
“Aslan...!”

At that moment, Aslan Vermont approached, carrying Sylvia.
Yulia involuntarily called out Aslan's name with joy,
then felt a little embarrassed and cleared her throat.
It would seem like I was waiting to see Aslan, longing for him as if we had just parted ways...

“Ahem. Luring them, you say? ...?”
“The monsters will do everything they can to protect their queen’s life. So if we find where the queen is hiding and threaten her, we can draw the monsters away from the castle. Once we gather them all in one place, we can concentrate our firepower and eliminate them in one blow.”
“Ah! That method sounds like it could work! ...!”

If that’s the case, we can protect the people while eliminating all the monsters with minimal mana!
Yulia clapped at the unexpected idea.
But since I was the one who first thought of using the queen ant, doesn’t that mean I deserve at least half of the credit?

“Then Dirt Dirt! Find the queen ant’s location!”
[Kyah! Do you think I’m some kind of tracker!?]

Dirt Dirt responded with a loud thump of his foot at Charlotte’s bold request.
But Charlotte stood her ground before the giant Dirt Dirt, not backing down in the slightest.

“If you find it, I’ll make you a ton of donuts that you like!”
[Donuts...? You’re trying to bribe a great spirit like me with food!?]
“I’ll make them covered in sugar cream!”
[...Well, given your sincerity, I suppose I can’t refuse.]

Thump, thump, Dirt Dirt began to bounce his adorable little fists.
The donuts he had tasted from Yulia and Charlotte while snacking before were incredibly delicious.
Back then, they were plain donuts, but what if they were covered in sugar cream?

Gulp.
Just thinking about it made my mouth water.
The joy of savoring food while eating was something I couldn’t have imagined before existing only in spirit form.

[I can roughly guess where it might be. But if I use my abilities, I can determine the exact location...!]

Grrrr! Grrrr!
A periodic and faint tremor resonated around Dirt Dirt.
It was as if a small earthquake was shaking the ground.

“Ugh! Not again! That damned earthquake again!!!”
“Father! Please calm down!”

Count Arien shuddered and crouched down on the ground.

[I’ve found it. There’s an entrance to the ant colony on the mid-slope of that mountain. If you enter the entrance and turn right, go up the passage, then down again and head straight, you’ll drop into a vertical shaft... ]
“Got it. Nobody will remember that. It would be better to have Dirt Dirt guide us.”

Aslan shook his head in dismissal.
The ant colony must have been a dizzying maze.
Though Dirt Dirt had the ability to see through the earth, humans wouldn’t be able to decipher the structure of the maze at all.
So it would be better to bring Dirt Dirt along for navigation.

Aslan quickly reached that conclusion.

“Sylvia and I will go into the ant colony with Dirt Dirt.”
“Why do I have to go?” I’m already exhausted from mana depletion.”
“Should I send the kids in instead?”
“I’ll go!”

If she had just said that from the start, it would have been much better.
I couldn’t understand why she would choose to make herself look worse.

Sylvia barely stood up with her trembling legs.
Aslan quickly brought Yulia over and started to recharge Sylvia’s mana with “Death’s Touch” by his side.

“Ah! Aah...!”

Countless lower spirits gathered around Yulia.
As they died from the sinister energy emanating from Aslan’s fingertips,
the sight of them gathering and dying over and over made Yulia’s lips tremble.

When she had done it last time, she hadn’t been able to see the spirits, so she had never dreamed it was such a mechanism.
But witnessing it firsthand was truly terrifying.
That said, she had to recharge Sylvia’s mana immediately, and there was no other suitable method...!

‘Spirits, I’m sorry!!!’

I’ll become stronger and ensure that you won’t have to suffer!
I promise I will develop a way to recharge mana without you being sacrificed someday!
With tears welling up in her eyes, Yulia made a firm resolution in her heart.

“Sylvia. Can you move?”
“My muscles are sore, but... I’m fine. Compared to the time I had to return with a broken leg after falling from a cliff, this is nothing.”
“Uh, um. Alright. Yulia, send Dirt Dirt back to doll form.”
[Kyah! Who are you calling a doll? And send me back!? You act as if I was originally a doll... Kyaaa! Damn brat! While you’re talking, I’m shrinking!!!]

Swoosh.
Dirt Dirt, who had once appeared grand, quickly shrank down.
Before long, the now doll-sized Dirt Dirt was lifted up by Sylvia.

When Charlotte picked him up, he seemed a bit heavy.
But in Sylvia’s hands, Dirt Dirt didn’t move an inch, looking just like a lightweight plush doll.

“Now, I will explain the operation. I’ll say it once, so remember it clearly. Your lives depend on what you two do. Charlotte. Yulia.”
“Yes...!”
“Uh, okay!”

Though it was a somewhat risky plan,
there was no other option.
There was no other way to save Arient, which I had to pay interest to monthly.

Aslan began explaining the plan with a solemn expression.

“Vermont has come to rescue! Support has arrived from Vermont!”
“Dark magic that annihilates monsters...!”
“Shh! Be quiet! We didn’t see that dark magic! If they find out we saw it...!”
“...”

Everyone swallowed nervously, their faces tense.
Vermont had personally come to rescue Arient.

In the process, Vermont didn’t hesitate to reveal the results of its dark magic research.
At any rate, Arient had already received help from dark magic.
It was no longer unrelated to dark magic.

If Vermont were to face punishment,
then Arient wouldn’t escape punishment, regardless of severity.
The wrath of an angry Vermont would come as an added consequence.
All the residents, including Count Arien, decided to erase every memory of what they had seen that night.

“Gah! Urrrrrr...!”
“No, that’s not allowed, Charlotte!!!”
“Eek! Just slash sideways! Slash sideways with all your strength! Quickly slash sideways! Hyah! Hyah!!!”

With each swing of the gruesome-looking cursed sword, dark flashes lit up the night sky.
Just watching those flashes made my knees weaken, and they sliced through everything in their path.
They were cutting through the monsters that had just begun to climb the castle walls.

And a girl wielding an evil god that caused earthquakes!
The silhouette of the evil god seemed somewhat familiar,
but I was too scared to look closely.

‘Dark magic, necromancy, and even a dark knight...!’

Count Arien’s pupils shook wildly.
Just a few months ago, he thought Vermont was corrupt, with a failing economy and lacking military strength.
Now, Vermont had the power to face off against this massive army of ant monsters.

Where on earth did they gather such children?
The talents of necromancers and dark knights are not common things.
They must have gathered countless orphans and completed their power through harsh experiments!

‘My brother, you are truly terrifying!’

It was said that wicked people took good care of their own.
It seemed that this was indeed the case.

Ah, brother.
I will never act arrogantly again.
I will bow down for the rest of my life.
I’ll make sure to pay my debts on time without any delay.

Count Arien felt a surge of loyalty toward Vermont.

“But at this rate, we’ll be fighting until dawn, won’t we...?”
“Count! The monsters are retreating!”
“What did you say!?”

What the hell does that mean?
Count Arien hurried to the castle wall and looked down.
Roar!
The ant monster army was indeed retreating, raising a cloud of dust as they moved away from the castle.

“Did my brother use some trick!?”

We’re really saved! We made it!
Count Arien felt a surge of joy, having finally survived the brink of death.

“Eh? No way?”

The sudden appearance of the army of monsters,
and the timely support from the staff assigned to Arient.
All these things began to feel orchestrated.

“I can’t believe I’m having such silly thoughts!!!”
“Ah, Father! Why are you suddenly banging your head against the wall!?”

Count Arien successfully erased those feelings from his mind.