“None.”
Salia was so surprised that she looked up.
The face of the gold dragon looked incredibly annoyed.
“I have made every move that I can make. Surely there is no strategy left for me.”
“Dr…Dragon God…”
“Would I be wrong in assuming you are admitting defeat?”
The dragon lifted his cup and took a sip before turning his face away.
“Are you an idiot? I said that I have made all of the moves that I can. The rest is left to those below.”
“Wh-what! But what of Keita’s sacrifice!? The monster army is half destroyed. They do not have a chance at victory without your wisdom!”
“You say that, Salia. But what do you think about his divine rule?”
He spat like a sulking child.
“Not only is his army perfectly prepared, but they can restart after every mistake. If one wanted to beat them, they would need an even greater cheat.”
“Tha…that is true. But…”
“And I have used all the cheats I have. So there is nothing left to do but watch those on the ground.”
The dragon said, and then he closed his eyes as if to escape.
The Seer began to laugh. Salia could do nothing but look down at the water mirror at her feet.
In the mountains, far away from the enemy camp, lights were starting to appear. The sun was starting to descend, and the darkness of night grew thick within the forest. As the monsters began to set up camp, their faces were filled with exhaustion.
‘So these are all that survived.’
Berganda muttered bitterly as he sat under a tent, that was just a cloth that had been strung up.
Most of the captains he had seen this morning were gone.
If there was one saving grace, it was that some of the lizardmen warriors were alive, due to the many resets. Also, Komos and the captain of the throwing unit were here.
‘What is that? How are we supposed to win against such a thing?’
Said a hob goblin with annoyance. Next to him, Komos shook his head while his wounds were tended to.
‘He even used such a great army as bait in order to activate the great magic… It is impossible for us to go against such a thing. We should retreat at once.’
‘Damn it…! Master Udik, Fagou, Parokt…all are dead… And yet you want to run away with your tail between your legs…’
‘But, the enemy is, too strong. Chief, can’t you borrow, Demon King’s strength?’
Suggested a troll. Everyone’s eyes turned to Berganda. However, the minotaur shook his head with a pained expression.
‘Our king is in the Central Continent. It is unlikely that he will intervene as he did before.’
‘Then, Sheto. Do you have anything? You too, have a god on your side.’
The kobold also shook his head.
‘Probably, not. Cannot use, Salia’s power now. I helped, Demon King army. In exchange, cannot use power.’
‘Wh…what!? Why didn’t you tell us that before!?’
‘Calm down. You could also say the Sheto is still here after paying such a price. Otherwise, we would not have been able to last as long against the Hero’s army.’
In truth, it was not that she could not offer them power. In exchange for herself, it would be possible to create a powerful divine rule or divine vessel.
“Do not think about it.”
The Dragon God said coldly, as if reading her mind.
“Even if you did such a thing, as long as he understood its nature, he would create an equal power to go against it. Otherwise, he would reset, and it would be over.”
“Then…there is nothing that I can do?”
“Yes. You can do nothing. At best, all you can manage is to wear yourself down.”
Salia sat down weakly.
She had come so far. Was this really the end?
The Dragon God had given everything in terms of strategy. And even if she used her power, she could not change the situation.
‘Reset.’
Sheto muttered.
‘We make him, reset one more time. Keita, returns. Demon King army, back to normal.’
‘Doing that would mean using the lives of everyone here. If we fail, there is no turning back.’
‘But, if we wait here, we just lose.’
Still, they looked hopeful at Sheto’s suggestion. The enemy ability that had troubled them so much had now turned into their hope.
‘That’s right. Komos, hurry and gather the others. Put together a strike unit to attack the enemy main camp. We have only one purpose. Taking the Hero’s head.’