Two days later.
Outside of Orario.
An army of 100,000 soldiers, even the weakest among them being Level 1 adventurers, had built an encampment some distance away from Orario.
"That goes there, and don't forget to distribute the rations. We'll march on Orario shortly. Get everything ready, especially our cavalry." Ares commanded from within his encampment, directing his soldiers like an experienced general.
Except he accidentally slipped mid-stride and collided with a soldier carrying rations, spilling them across the ground.
"What are you doing? Can't you watch where you walk!?" Ares roared, jabbing a finger at the soldier's nose as he picked himself up.
"I—I, my mistake, Lord Ares." That soldier hung his head low, even though it had clearly been Ares who stumbled into his path.
"Forget it. A great, magnanimous god like me won't hold it against you." He spoke while brushing dirt from his red cloak with his gauntlets.
"You are the most benevolent among all gods, Lord Ares." The soldier said after a moment, genuinely touched.
"Hahahahaha... Took you long enough to recognize." Ares rested his hands on his hips and laughed without a care in the world.
"You all continue the preparations. And tell me... where is my boy Marius?" His laughter died down as he looked around with slight confusion.
Another soldier, this one a Level 2, pointed toward the largest tent.
"Prince Marius is with the other commanders, formulating a siege strategy against Orario."
"Thanks! Give that man some extra meat in his rations and a whole bottle of wine!" Ares shuffled toward the tent, pointing back at that Level 2 soldier.
"Y-You don't have to, Lord A-Ares." The soldier gulped, feeling every surrounding gaze turn dangerous and land squarely on him.
Ares ignored him, walking inside the largest tent.
"Prince Marius... we can attack Orario from its southern gate with a small strike force of elite Level 3 adventurers while our main force keeps Orario's defenders occupied at its north." A general with battle scars across his face spoke, indicating two points on a map of Orario laid out before them.
"A viable strategy, but predictable. Loki Familia has defended Orario for years, they'll expect a diversionary strike." Marius traced the southern gate with a knuckle.
"Anyone else?"
"Forget surgical strikes. Throw bodies at every gate. North, south, east, west. Even if they send first-class adventurers, they can't be everywhere at once." Another commander with battle-hardened eyes spoke, running his finger down the map like a butcher.
"Would our numbers be sufficient to surround Orario on every side?" Marius asked, his brow furrowed.
"It's possible. But their fighting effectiveness and morale would take a hit. Strength in numbers, as they say." An Amazon spoke from a corner.
"Gentlemen... you've all received the reports from our spies inside Orario, correct?" Marius spoke, glancing around the tent.
"Yes... Freya Familia has gone cold in the dungeon. Evilus has done us a huge favor." Another commander with a metallic arm spoke.
"Orario is greatly weakened right now, so I sugges—" Marius was cut off by their tent flap swinging open.
"Marius! There you are. Come, I want to take you somewhere." Ares spoke while stumbling over to him and slinging an arm around his neck.
"But... Lord Ares, we're in the middle of a serious meeting right now!" Marius tried to protest.
"What are you talking about, boy? You can have your meeting later. My business is more important." Ares didn't bat an eye at Marius's protests and dragged him away.
Every commander watched in silence, then exchanged a collective look and shrugged in unison.
Meanwhile...
"Where are you taking me, Lord Ares?" Marius asked, slightly confused as Ares led him closer toward Orario's city walls.
Ares stopped a short distance from those walls and released him.
"Why don't you show yourself? I know you're already here." Ares spoke, his gaze fixed on a patch of empty air ahead of them.
An invisible shape shimmered into being.
A hat materialized first, followed by blonde hair and orange eyes.
Hermes.
Behind him, another figure phased into view.
Asfi Al Andromeda.
"Marius, my boy—go gather all the intelligence from that blue-haired girl." Ares spoke, gesturing toward Asfi.
Marius hesitated only briefly before moving to comply, while Ares and Hermes walked away together.
"How have you been, Hermes? Should we go peek on women bathing like old times to catch up?" Ares grinned.
"Cut the act. Ouranos already told me everything." Hermes' lips twitched.
"Oh. That geezer, always ruining my fun." Ares' voice went flat, his slouch vanishing like it had never existed.
Hermes took in the shift and mused aloud.
"No wonder. I genuinely thought you'd become a clown after coming to the lower world."
"Forget about that... Tell me, why have you and Ouranos gotten so desperate that you've resorted to calling on me?" Ares asked.
"We want you to handle a certain nuisance for us." Hermes tipped his hat forward.
Ares studied him for a moment.
"Who?"
"Someone named...
Bell Cranel."
...
..
.
Adventurer's Guild.
Most adventurers did not dive into the dungeon today. Instead, they lingered near the guild headquarters in tight clusters. Some checking their weapons for a fourth time, others staring at the notice board without reading it.
"What do you mean the Loki Familia is out of Orario!?" One adventurer screamed, his voice harsh as he questioned a guild employee.
Eina Tulle looked at that adventurer with a conflicted expression, not knowing how to explain the situation.
"Sir... We can't do anything about that. The Loki Familia left Orario on an important mission." Ronald stepped in between the adventurer and Eina, trying to reason with him.
"What can be more important than protecting Orario? Freya Familia is trapped in the dungeon. Loki Familia is out on a mission. How are we supposed to repel Rakia then!?" Another adventurer asked while chewing on his nails.
"That is why we are here. First of all... there is no need to panic. The Nine Hells and Sword Princess are still in Orario, and don't forget the other Loki Familia members." Ronald spoke, calming the restless crowd surrounding him, if only temporarily.
"Secondly—by order of the Guild, every able-bodied adventurer here is conscripted. No arguments. Those who can fight, will fight. Those who won't, can run."
Ronald's words stirred protests from the crowd ahead.
"All of you need not worry. The Sword Princess will lead against the Rakia army, with Nine Hells and Cyclops."
That quieted the protests, restoring a very fragile thread of order.
…
..
.
Later.
Ais walked toward the northern gates of Orario with Riveria in tow.
However... their steps slowed, then came to a stop altogether.
Because a woman with red hair and green eyes leaned against a wall ahead of them, her arms crossed beneath her breasts.
"Aria... Don't struggle this time. I'll make sure that it's painless." She spoke while glancing toward Ais and Riveria.
Ais went rigid. Then wordlessly brought her rapier up, its tip aimed at her.
The woman pushed herself off the wall and started walking toward them.
"We'll do it the hard way, then." She said, her knuckles cracking against one another.
Riveria had already created some distance, her Magna Alf aimed at that woman closing in on Ais.
"Are you the same woman we fought on the 18th floor?" Riveria asked suddenly.
The woman smiled.
"Guess."
...
..
.
Northern Gates of Orario.
"Where is the Sword Princess and Nine Hells?" Tsubaki asked while looking around. Adventurers were armoring themselves around her.
Silence fell at her question.
Faces changed one after another, fear and uncertainty replacing any confidence they might have tried to project before.
"Come on, everyone! They might have been held up. We hold the line until they get here, and then we'll grind those Rakia bastards into dirt like we did last time!" Tsubaki tried to rebuild their shattering morale.
It worked. Barely.
One soldier spoke up.
"What are all of you scared of? Have we not repelled this same Rakia army countless times before!?"
"Yeah... we beat them so bad that they became a literal joke in Orario." Another gave a nervous chuckle.
"Then get up! Why are you all acting like you're attending a funeral instead of facing just another invasion!?" Tsubaki roared.
Her roar seemed to awaken something within these adventurers.
Each rose. Unsteady. Furious. Terrified. Some didn't even want to be here.
Yet... every single one rose nonetheless.
Their reasons for being here might have been different. Their actions were not.
...
..
.
***
[300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter]
[8 chapters ahead on P@tr3on = [email protected]/Not_Aaryan]
...
[Authors Thoughts]
Another day. Another chapter.
May you all have a wonderful weekend everyone!