Chapter 263 Goddess Aurelia ⑪
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Damn it, what the hell is going on!?”
Three months had passed since my divine oracle¹—the decree of the Goddess Aurelia—had been issued. The Plaudix army had marched toward Greedia, but they were currently deadlocked at the border. The reason was simple: they couldn’t go any further. A thin, membrane-like barrier stretched across the gate of the border fortress, and nothing they did could pierce it. They eventually hauled out a battering ram, but the gate didn’t budge; instead, the ram itself shattered after repeated use. They really ought to just give up.
(This barrier isn’t something that can be broken by ordinary means.)
Fortunately, I possessed means that were far from ordinary, so I wasn’t panicking. If there was one problem, it was that I couldn’t “see” inside Greedia at all. This world is supposed to be under my management; I should be able to look down upon any location. (And yet, that specific area is a total blind spot. I have no idea what’s happening in there.) Even scouts couldn’t penetrate the film. It was troublesome, but Greedia’s military strength was negligible. It shouldn’t be a problem… Besides, even if I couldn’t see Greedia, I knew that Envyos and Wrathfiria were already advancing.
”Dammit, how do we get through!?” one of the Knights barked, his voice echoing. He was the one commanding this unit—a good boy who fought for my entertainment. But I couldn’t have him wasting resources.
”Calm yourself,” Emi said. “Wasting weapons on a wall is exactly what they want us to do.”
”Hero Emi-sama… You’re right,” the Knight replied, his shoulders dropping. “I was a bit hot-headed. Breaking more equipment is the height of folly.”
When Emi admonished him, he regained his composure. I saw the other two nations reach their respective barriers. Both were attempting to break through with sorcery. It was a lack of coordination, but unavoidable. Since they had arrived, they could just destroy the barriers at dawn and march in together. The sun was already setting, anyway.
”We wait until tomorrow,” Emi said. “Let the soldiers rest until then. They’re no use to us exhausted.”
”Yes, Ma’am!” the Knight shouted.
The plan was to destroy the barrier with Jinno Yuto’s Judgment² and take the fortress immediately. But when the time came, the place was a ghost town. We seized the fort, but there was no food, no supplies, and the wells had been sabotaged. We couldn’t stockpile a thing. I wanted to believe we were fine since the supply chain was following behind us, but five days into the march, the relief units were ambushed and stripped bare. Hearing that report made me realize I had taken this far too lightly.
* * *
”Tch! Capturing an empty castle doesn’t do us a damn bit of good!” a man spat.
This man was the former Governor of Viede. He had abandoned his wife, his children, and his people to save his own skin. Naturally, he was stripped of his title, his wife divorced him and took their son, and he was now a social pariah. He had joined this march to “clear his name,” fantasizing about a return to power. The King had defended him against Carmilla, but the man was still a failure. He had no command; he wasn’t even a Knight. He was a common foot soldier, though he didn’t seem to realize his career was dead.
The Envyos army was 25,000 strong. He hadn’t expected the fortress to feed them all, but he hadn’t expected it to be bone-dry either. Fortunately, the Knights of Envyos all carried Magic Boxes³, holding their own rations. They were better off than Plaudix. Half of our total strength had been diverted to the Demon King’s border due to suspicious movements from the Mazoku, but we were still formidable.
”Argh! How long are we going to dawdle here?” the former Governor shouted. “Hurry up and march so I can get the credit!”
”Shut your mouth!” a Knight snapped. “You’re a grunt with a dead-end life. You aren’t in a position to tell anyone anything.”
”What!? I used to be your—”
”Hah! I’m a Knight, and you’re a peasant,” the Knight sneered. “Learn your place.”
The man gnashed his teeth. This Knight had been his subordinate back in Viede, and he felt nothing but loathing for the coward who had run away. The former Governor just sulked, playing the tragic victim while everyone else saw his self-inflicted ruin.
* * *
”Sigh…” Joshua let out a heavy breath.
The oracle had come, and war was declared, but the Ice Demon General had left Wrathfiria in tatters. Even with the potatoes from Sieben, the people were starving. The turnout for the draft was pathetic. People cared more about their own stomachs than a “God-Enemy.” To make matters worse, the only reinforcement of note was his useless younger brother, Johann.
Johann was a selfish pig. Despite being made a Marquis, he spent his days taxing his people into poverty while he lived in luxury. He was a walking personification of incompetence.
”Heh… gross,” Johann snickered, his eyes glazed with greed. “I can’t wait to see the women in Greedia. I bet the food is better there, too.”
”Tch,” Joshua hissed. He hated how little respect he commanded compared to his older brother, and he hated that this moron was his only support.
”Why was it only you who came…?” Joshua muttered.
”Oh? Is that any way to talk to me?” Johann sneered. “I could turn this whole army around right now. Hehe, uhihi!”
It was nauseating. Johann was a bloated, disgusting man, and his personality was even worse.
”Hehe… I’m going to have my way with little Annamaria-chan. I’m really getting fired up now!”
(He’s lusting after his own sister…) Joshua’s heart sank. But even scum were warm bodies for the front line. The Wrathfiria army was 12,000 strong, and 7,000 of those belonged to Johann. Friction was already tearing the units apart. Joshua knew the men wouldn’t follow his lead.
(Greedia is fertile land,) Joshua thought. (If we take it, Wrathfiria might actually survive. I’m not doing this for an oracle; I’m doing it for us. And if Johann and his trash army get wiped out in the process? Even better. That’s just fewer mouths to feed.)
Joshua wasn’t a genius, but he wasn’t a fool either. He didn’t underestimate Sieben or the people around him. He would use Johann as meat for the grinder. Joshua’s wish would eventually come true—at the cost of his own life.
—
Summary:
The three-nation alliance (Plaudix, Envyos, Wrathfiria) begins its march on Greedia under the Goddess’s oracle. They encounter a massive magical barrier that stalls their progress until Jinno Yuto destroys it. Upon entering, they find the border fortresses abandoned and their supply lines under heavy sabotage.
—
Trivia:
- The Goddess Aurelia cannot see inside Greedia due to the barrier.
- Envyos has half its army stationed at the Demon King’s border, suggesting a two-front war risk.
- Joshua’s primary motivation isn’t religious; it’s the fertile land of Greedia to save his starving people.
- The ‘Wall of Rejection’ was actually a psychological/tactical trap to lead them into a scorched-earth zone
—
Character Insight:
Joshua shows a cold, pragmatic side, willing to sacrifice his own brother and half his army to rid his country of ‘useless mouths’ and incompetent leadership.
—
Behind the Scenes:
Author notes mention the next chapter will contain adult themes.
—
TL Notes:
Notes:
• Aurelia – An ethereal goddess, visible only through the school intercom, announces the students’ reincarnation. Described as useless and selfish by the protagonist and Administrator, she bestows Unique Skills, treats the world as a stage, and now inhabits a physical body retaining student memories. Managing the world, she views war as entertainment and is frustrated at not seeing into Greedia.
• Emi – Nagase Emi, 23, 159 cm tall with measurements 85‑56‑83, appears younger than her age. Once a popular teacher for acting kind, she secretly bullied Natsumi Sasaki and is now a hero and former classmate of the protagonist, leading the Plaudix army alongside a Knight Commander.
• Jinno – Jinno Yuto, former classmate and class president, presents a polished, upright appearance—short black hair, crisp uniform, sharp eyes—projecting a strong sense of justice. In truth he silently ignored Natsumi Sasaki’s bullying, yet as a Hero he wields the Judgment skill to shatter magical barriers.
• Yuto – The class president. He acts like he has a strong sense of justice, but in reality, he just ignored the bullying of Natsumi Sasaki. He has a tall, athletic build and a serious expression.
• Carmilla – Carmilla Viede, also known as Oribe Mira, is the five‑hundred‑year‑old founder and Board Chairman of Envyos Magic Academy, former Queen of Envyos, once a Japanese high‑school student and famed voice actress. She appears with silver hair and green eyes, but her true form has black hair and black eyes, and she wears a luxurious black robe with gold embroidery.
• The King – The protagonist and ruler of the Insect-people. He manages the reproduction and military strength of his hive. He prioritizes Queen Lil above others but maintains a harem of Kin for reproduction.
• Joshua – Leader of the Wrathfiria army. Brother to Johann and Annamaria. Pragmatic and cynical regarding his brother’s incompetence.
• Johann – Marquis and youngest brother of Joshua. Described as obese and incompetent. Notoriously corrupt and lusts after his own sister.
• Sieben – Young black-haired man under 20, masked and hailed as a “God-Enemy” by Goddess Aurelia, he is the summoned Hero who reached Level 100 and became a Transcendental demi-god, now the new Demon King and ruler of Greedia, head of Clan Renegade, former leader of a national casino guild, who recently subjugated the Maou, and is husband to Annamaria.
• Annamaria – The ten‑year‑old youngest daughter of Draguoth’s king, with long straight blonde hair, blue eyes and unusually large breasts for her size, wears a tiara and a white lace dress. Now Sieben’s wife, she is the biological sister of princes Leonardo and Johann.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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