Chapter 105: The Dwarven Kingdom

"Major Tomoyuki Tanaka….your new assignment is in Moria."

"Yes, your majesty."

The blue holographic picture of Regis Gremory flickered as he set his majestic dark eyes on my kneeling figure. The dark-haired emperor regarded me with a favorable smile, and nodded before gesturing for me to rise.

"My friend, dispense with the formalities. I know you're not exactly from this world, and even so, I appreciate your loyalty and help…even if it's all just to defeat your old foes."

I shrugged. "Well, your majesty, there are people in this world who have become pretty important to me, so it's no longer just about revenge. That said, I will still carry out my revenge, no matter what. Just not at the expense of my friends."

"Oh, right." Regis grinned mischievously. "I heard about it…your engagement with Queen Lilith Scarlet, that is."

"…huh?!"

I blanched at that. News really traveled fast…wait, that wasn't the issue…ugh.

"No, that's…uh…"

Regis held up a hand. "It's all right, you don't need to explain. And I don't want to hear it either, to be frank. It's none of my business who you marry…actually, to be honest, this engagement benefits me a lot, especially since you'll be helping me keep the political rivals in Haemorage in check. I would much rather Queen Scarlet stay in power than any of those Four Great Noble Houses, and this will cement Haemorage's place in the Demonic Alliance."

"…right…"

To be honest, I had completely no idea how that worked, but politics weren't my forte so I decided not to ask about it.

"Speaking of the Demonic Alliance…your mission to Moria is crucial. As you already know, we have a great relationship with Moria, trading and importing lots of war material and technology from them. They're responsible for manufacturing over 90% of our weapons and vehicles, and to lose them would be a massive blow."

"So like forge worlds, huh?"

"Forge worlds…?" Regis stared at me blankly. I shook my head.

"I'll induct you into the priesthood of Mars and reveal the secrets of the Adeptus Mechanicus in time, but not now. You were saying about Moria…?"

"Yes. Your battalion is to head to the dwarven kingdom effective immediately, and help in the defense against the Emperor of Humanity and his military forces. There are already sightings of Evelyn's Chosen on the move, so we'll require your battle power."

"Yes, sir!"

"There, I want you to not only defend Moria and its war industries, but if possible, to also establish a close relationship with the royal family of Moria…much like how you charmed the queen of Haemorage. We might be allies, but I want to forge stronger ties with them…and if I recall correctly, the king's younger sister, the royal princess of Moria, should be around your age…"

A dwarven princess, huh? I couldn't imagine what female dwarves looked like, but I wondered if they were bulky, muscular, short and heavyset.

"Understood, your majesty. I will try…if time affords it. But defending Moria takes priority."

"I expected no less of you, Major. Pull this off, and I'll reward you massively."

"I need no reward…except help to kill Evelyn's Chosen. If I'm not mistaken, I'll be able to convince the Iron Knights to join this fight as well."

Fortunately, I was still in contact with the Iron Knights. Takeda Tetsuo had already agreed to lend Moria a hand, and was mobilizing his group to meet the Evelyn's Chosen in combat.

"Hedas bless you, Major, and good luck. We must defend Moria at all costs…or we'll be crippled. When that happens, the humans will run over all of Morten with their numerical superiority and fanatical devotion to the current Emperor of Humanity."

"I won't let that happen," I vowed. It wasn't just to defend the demon race…but to deliver a crushing blow and ruin Kobayashi Kenji's plans would be a sweet part of my greater plans for revenge. I would love to see the look on his face when he failed to conquer Moria.

But I couldn't underestimate him.

"I have great expectations of you, Major." Regis grinned. "Don't worry. I'll also be moving out and confronting Evelyn's Chosen myself. The elite of Helsfort will march to war alongside you. Your battalion will prove to be pivotal in swinging the outcome of this war, but you won't be alone this time. Don't worry, I'll still grant you full autonomy."

"Thank you, your majesty."

"See you on the battlefield then."

The hologram blinked out and I stood up, stretching myself. Turning toward the door of my room, I took a deep breath.

It was time to dispatch my battalion to Moria.

*

Moria, the mountainous dwaren kingdom, hidden both underground and within the valleys of towering mountains. Black smoke churned and spewed out of sky-piercing chimney stacks, and factories regurgitated rows upon rows of war vehicles, weapons, rifles and other armanents. A Malthas Executioner tank rolled off the conveyor belt, only for crews of dwarves to hurry over and begin painting it in base coat. The details would wait – the regiments these tanks were sent to would decide the specific color and patterns they want for their own tanks.

Across the tank factory, rows of staff oversaw the production of ballistic automatic rifles, plasma weapons and sniper rifles, assembling cartridges of ammunition or fitting the stocks, scopes, barrels and triggers of the guns. In addition to rifles, small arms such as revolvers or pistols were also being assembled, alongside heavier weapons such as missile launchers and laser cannons.

Morten was at war, and Moria was supplying the weapons, vehicles and ammunition needed for such a vast undertaking.

"My lord!"

As the smoking factories of Moria bustled in a hub of ceaseless activity, a single dwarf with a grand beard and regal robes stood atop an overarching cliff that curved off the face of a mountain. Behind him, a soldier hurried over, carrying a scroll of printed text.

"Helsfort has sent soldiers over for reinforcements! They've crossed the foot of the mountain and are approaching!"

His eyes hidden underneath a sombrero, the thickly built dwarf continued gruffly even as the shaft of his axe poked at the huge rim of his Mexican-styled hat.

Chewing on his cigar, the dwarven king continued to look out from his perch atop the cliff, his glowing eyes piercing the shadows of his sombrero. Apparently, it was more stylish for the king to wear a wide-rimmed hat instead of a crown.

"Hell, it's about time."

"They're led by a man named Tanaka…"

The dwarven soldier who was reporting the news to his lord continued, his sombrero barely concealed his wized, battle-scared face.

"My lord…it is rumored that this man…this Tanaka is the mighty Hero Slayer who has slain six of Evelyn's Chosen…"

"Hmph."

The dwarven king slammed his mithril hammer against the ground, blue sparks of lightning dancing around its massive head as the power field activated slightly. He offered a cigar to the messenger, who took it and took a huge drag, puffing massive clouds of smoke into the air, mirroring the chimmey stacks of the factories behind them. The king exhaled a huge beath of smoke himself before sneering.

"Just more frauds…pretending to be heroes and hoping in vain to claim and defile my sister. We appreciate their help, but I don't care about all that Hero Slayer thing or stupid titles Gremory comes up with. They're not taking my sister from us."

Deep within the castle at the heart of the mountainous region, a single girl stirred in her bed, her shapely form stretching out behind silk linen and curtains. Unmoved, the dwarven king continued in a thunderous manner.

"And if they prove to be the same type of frauds who arrived before them, they will also break under my Thunder Hammer before they even get to face the enemy!"

*

Back in Haemorage, I strode forward briskly between lines of soldiers in black uniforms. They maintained their salute as I proceeded to the front of the unit, where my officers waited. Captain Elia Kratz and Lieutenant Gio Vanni of Company L. Lieutenant Benjamin Burado and Master Sergeant Michael Marko of Company H. Lieutenant Daniel Dressia and his tank commanders of Company T. They were all waiting for my command.

With a flick of my hand, I gestured for them to be at ease.

"Let's go."

Everyone swung their hands down in coordinated fashion, and proceeded to their tanks and armored personnel carriers, which were waiting for them. Drivers started their engines and opened the hatches, the doors slammed down against the ground to allow my soldiers entry into the armored interior of the Cerberus APCs. Tank crews jumped through the hatches, taking their place inside the tanks or sponsons and buckling themselves up for the long journey ahead.

Everything felt so surreal.

Even though Restia was supposed to be a medieval fantasy world…or at least that was the impression I received…the sciences and technologies were developing at a rapid rate. It was a fantasy world on the brink of the Industrial Revolution, but they were mixing magic with science and technology to achieve the best of both worlds.

The Malthas tanks, particularly, were a marvel of the fusion of magic and technology, relying on mana cores to power their devastating plasma cannons and laser cannons. The heavy, man-portable plasma guns and rifles that the men of Company H carried were miniature versions of those cannons, capable of unleashing a deadly hail of magic-infused plasma and incinerating any enemy on the battlefield.

Even Evelyn's Chosen would be hard-pressed to stop entire battalions of tanks and plasma weapons. That said, I couldn't underestimate them. They were still heroes who were granted power by the goddess Evelyn, and capable of destroying entire tank companies with their spells without receiving a single scratch in return. With magic so dominant in this world, no wonder technological advance had stagnated for a long time.

It was a good thing that there were only so many heroes, or the demon race would have been exterminated long ago.

I jumped onto my tank Purity of Faith and waved to my driver, Jason Jurgen.

"All right, Jason. Get ready. We're moving out. As expected, we're going to form the vanguard of the convoy."

"Sure thing, boss."

Shifting the gear into motion, Jurgen then started the tank, and Purity of Faith roared forward with a vengeance. The rest of the tanks formed up behind me, spreading out into an armored spearhead, and we were followed by rows and rows of Cerberus APCs that ferried the infantry of Companies L and H. As usual, all the commanders were split up so that we wouldn't lose our command structure in a single stroke should the enemy target a single tank or APC.

"We're really going to Moria, huh?"

Jason's voice was filled with awe. He glanced at the glowing console of dials, screens, pict-screens, auspexes and switches before him.

"I mean…I always knew that our tanks were manufactured in Moria, but this is the first time that fact has really hit me."

"Yeah…is this the first time you'll be going to Moria?"

"Sure is! Do you know how secretive the dwarven kingdom is? Outsiders are rarely allowed inside. They hoard all their technology and guard it secretly from even all the other demons! The only reason why we're even allowed to approach Moria is because of the crisis…of the threat of the human invasion. Otherwise they would blow us out of the ground long before we even reach the foot of their mountains!"

"…I see."

"But man, this is impressive. Look at this, Major."

Corporal Gunnery spoke up. He was running his hand across the console, where intricate patterns and tiny figures that were sculpted as worship to the God-Emperor…I mean Hedas, spread out in a dizzying array.

"Look at all the details! Wow, this is really amazing!"

He's right. I nodded quietly as I studied the details of the reliefs and all the other patterns and details sculpted into the consoles around us. The interior of the tank looked like a work of art, every little detail crafted in precision.

"Dwarves are always so tough and grim…it's surprising to see them capable of making stuff as fancy as this!"

Gunnery marveled over the details as he leaned over his gun controls, thoroughly impressed by what he was seeing.

"There's a dwarven saying," Jason called back from the front in his driver's seat. "'A man should forge with his hammer as a woman sews with her needle.' Basically the dwarven women are the ones who are responsible for all the delicate and artful designs."

"Oh?" Gunnery perked up and leaned toward Jurgen. "Have you seen dwarven women before, Sergeant?"

"Nope. I have never even set foot in Moria before, and obviously only dwarven men have departed from their kingdom to do trades and stuff."

"So they're supposed to be mysterious?" I snorted, amused. "Don't tell me they have some weird law requiring you to marry them if you see one unveiled or something."

"…where did you get that from, boss?" Jurgen laughed. "That sounds like something you read from a manga."

"…no, never mind."

I didn't know they had manga here in Restia, never mind read them.

"I did hear they're pretty hot, though! Even though I haven't seen one in the flesh, I've seen photographs! At least, pictures that were supposed to be photographs of them. Of course, they could very well be a hoax."

Gunnery was on a roll. Jurgen and I exchanged glances and rolled our eyes.

"…yeah, sure."

"Well, boss, at least you'll be treating the men to a magnificent sight." Jurgen chuckled. I was half-expecting him to sound phlegmatic, but he wasn't my aide and I wasn't a Commissar either. Come to think of it, he wasn't driving a Salamander but an actual Leman Russ…I mean Malthas Executioner tank, so it all didn't match up.

"Good for them."

Other than Elia Kratz, the vast majority of the battalion were all men. Actually, wasn't Elia the only female soldier in my battalion? That was…unexpected. Then again, we were on the brink of industrial revolution, so ideals of gender equality and equal opportunity still hadn't graced Restia yet. Elia herself only reached her position because she was the daughter of Marquis Kratz.

"Um…well, boss wouldn't understand since you're already engaged, but the rest of us pitiful mortals are still single. Speaking of which…her highness Queen Scarlet…she didn't seem all too happy about you basically going on this…uh, well…delicate mission alone."

"Alone? I have you guys with me. The whole battalion's participating. I'm not alone."

"That's not what I mean…"

"And she sent us off with a smile too…"

I closed my eyes and remembered Lilith forcing a smile, even as a vein popped in her face.

"Do…do take care, Major! And I'll see you soon! Very soon!"

Why the hell was she behaving like Princess Sakura from Shinju no Nectar? It wasn't as if I was going there to suck the dwarven princess's ambrosia or something.

"Maybe you haven't heard, Major…but after rescuing her highness Dragon Princess Yuan, defeating both Count Raum and Lord Kreuger, saving Haemorage not once but twice, and slaying six heroes, you've becoming quite the big deal in Morten…"

This time it was Gunnery, who had a bead of perspiration trickling down his face.

"Yeah…what with that impressive title, Hero Slayer, eh, boss?"

Jurgen folded his arms and scoffed. I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"They really have to stop shoving these weird titles on me…anyway…" I cleared my throat. "Focus on the road ahead, Jason. Full speed! We're going to reach Moria before sundown!"

*

"Tomoyuki Tanaka the Hero Slayer…what a fearsome title!"

Back in the dwarven castle, Mariachi music blared out from an esemble of guitars, violins and trumpets. Fancily dressed servants played the music with grace while dwarven soldiers with sombreros and smoking cigars knelt down before the princess, whose silhouette was concealed behind velvet and silk curtains that flowed down her bed.

"Do not worry, your highness! As your guards, we have been appointed by the King himself…and we will protect you with our lives!"

"Uh…huh? Protect me from…the Hero Slayer? Isn't he supposed to be on our side? I thought he's coming here with his soldiers to fight the human armies from invading our kingdom? Aren't you supposed to protect me from the humans and Evelyn's Chosen instead?"

"Sh!" the dwarf in front raised his head, his eyes barely visible under the rim of his sombrero, and placed a finger on his lips. "Don't mind the details, your highness! We're trying to rip off Shinju no Nectar here, so just play your part!"

The princess rolled her eyes and sighed.

"The moment you wore all those sombreros and smoked cigars, you kind of failed the spoof, like, totally."

"Ugh…"

The elite guard looked at each other, then sighed.

"Well, we'll do our best to protect you from the hated humans and their Evelyn's Chosen then!"

"I am very grateful to you all, but don't force yourself. I'm not sure how you're supposed to defeat Evelyn's Chosen."

"Hah! See this?"

The lead dwarf rose to his feet and pounded the gleaming armor that he wore, a powerful suit that doubled his size and encased him in a protective power field. Massive gauntlets that allowed his fists to grab an adult human's head in one hand and crushed it, with a single combi-bolter attached to one arm, and the other arm wielding Thunder Hammers.

"We're dressed in Terminator Armor! Also known as Tactical Dreadnought Armor, these are sophisticated armors available only to the most elite warriors of Moria! It grants us a 2+ armor save and a 5++ invulnerable save, not to mention 2 wounds and Teleport Strike! With our Strength 4 Rapid Fire 2 combi-bolters and a Thunder Hammer that doubles our Strength and deals 3 Damage in melee. Not to mention, we have at least 1 heavy weapon in each 5-man squad, like plasma cannons or heavy flamers. Oh, and if you're worried about us falling to the humans' massed blades or arrows, or even the spells of Evelyn's Chosen, we can alternatively trade our combi-bolters for storm shields, which would give us a 3++ invulnerable save!"

"…"

The princess merely stared at them blankly, completely confused by their tabletop talk. The lead dwarf then cleared his throat, realizing that he had momentarily turned into a nerdy neckbeard who mixed up reality with wargaming.

"Sorry, that's how it works in the crunch, but obviously everything is gonna differ in the fluff. I mean, in reality."

"Oh. I see. So that's how it is."

The princess nodded and bowed.

"We're at your command, your highness! So don't hesitate to call us when you need us!"

"Um, of course. For now, a little bit of privacy, please?"

"C…certainly!"

The neckbeard…I mean Terminator dwarf with a sombrero and cigar realized that he had overstepped his boundaries and quickly rose to his feet. With a single gesture, the brother-sergeant gestured for his Terminator squad to leave the princess's room as quickly as possible.

When they did so, and the princess was finally alone in her room, she wrapped herself in her covers and contemplated.

"Major Tomoyuki Tanaka…the Hero Slayer…"

Within the sparkling castle, the princess stayed in her bed and dreamed.

At the same time…

"Ah…ah choo!"

"Hedas bless you, boss." Jurgen didn't glance back, his eyes focused on the visual display in front of him. "Catching a cold?"

"No, definitely not."

Could undead catch colds? Since we were technically dead, I couldn't imagine bacteria infecting us, but then I could still feel pain, emotions, eat food, digest them, and basically behaved like a living person, so…

"I think someone's talking about me behind my back."

"Ah…that makes sense." Jurgen shrugged, but he obviously didn't care enough to argue. "By the way, we're almost here."

"Finally."

Consulting my own pict-screen at the command console, I couldn't help but gasp at the breathtaking view as we proceeded across a magnificent bridge that connected mountains. The armored convoy had lined up in a single file to traverse the relatively narrow courseway, but the undertaking of such an engineering marvel in an early modern fantasy world was incredible.

These guys have just barely stepped into the industrial revolution age and they're already capable of such engineering feats!

I couldn't help but be impressed. Clenching my fists tightly, I glanced up and studied the awe-inspiring sight of the subterranean cities buried within the mountains, vowing to ensure they didn't fall to the self-proclaimed Emperor of Humanity and the might of his fanatical armies.