Chapter 3. The Moon Rabbit Siblings (2) Part-2

"Freedom? I think you misunderstood, sir." Karakul continued looking at Tom.

"This, currently, is freedom for me, and I wish to follow you of my own volition. I was granted freedom when you liberated me from Lania."

He had found freedom, thanks to Tom. Also, he didn't doubt that the person before his eyes would liberate all the Orcs captured by humans. As such, he had vowed to follow him through thick and thin.

His motto was as such: to follow him if he had nowhere else to go. Currently, the place that Karakul had to go was the path that Tom paved for him.

"Yes, let's try to find a way to stop those guys. How is the base army currently dispatched?"

Tom listened to the characteristics of the Apostles and the species following them.

Treo; they possessed a slow body but were wiser and more powerful than any demons. They were a species that never lost their calm during dangerous situations and moved with purpose. They were fearsome as a siege unit when they wielded and threw boulders. Rather than using tools, they fired with their own arms, making them more accurate than any siege engines.

Minotaurs; they had tough hides and oppressive strength. They were vanguards with ridiculous charging power, allowing them to ignore and topple pike formations of human armies and even destroy castle walls of smaller countryside territories.

Centaurs; masters of cavalry arts with one of the fastest legs among all demons. They were capable of deftly displaying expert movements even through the densest forests. As their lower halves were horses, they were powerful cavalry units, which humans could not hope to emulate.

Gnoll; they possessed dexterous body movements, stealth techniques allowing quick concealment on any geography, along with exceptional senses that synergized well with their motor instincts. They were a reconnaissance unit that relayed information on the enemy's movements or traps, depending on the situation.

"…"

When listening to Karakul's assessment, Tom wrapped his head with his arms and slammed it against the table. It was truly an unimaginable 'army' in itself. As for veteran soldiers at their level, they were powerful enough to stand their own against the kingdoms that shaped the continent. How could it be that humans fought wars against such demons and won? It was truly miraculous!

'… Now that I think about it, I didn't fight properly with these monsters.'

He was different from most Heroes and didn't receive reinforcements. So, he had hired mercenaries with gold or formed strategies to avoid large-scale battles against the demons. Even when he killed the Demon Lord, he concluded that he stood no chance in a frontal assault. Therefore, he had strategized to hide within the palace and assassinate him.

'Still, it's weird. How were the Demon Lords repeatedly getting killed until now without being able to stand on their own?'

Even with the support of the Holy Empire, why were the demons constantly losing? Did they have a weakness?

Tom reflected on this point, their battle with the Hero's Allied Army, and the current predicament.

'…solidarity, and the difference of equipment.'

The problem originated from these two points. As each of the species was different, their soldiers were segregated to respect the other races and avoided getting involved in others' affairs. As such, every species was specialized for different roles but were also acting on their own as well.

Finally, humans had overwhelmingly better equipment. Just looking at the Orcs, they were reusing the equipment left behind by the Hero's forces, but other than that, they only used crude weapons. As a nation, they lacked functionality, technology, and unity.

The sole reason that the Orcs held their own against the Hero's army was that they were multi-functional infantry as far as he could see. Also, their tactics utilizing Silver Wolves and the usage of various equipment allowed them to employ strategies that suited a balanced style.

The Orcs, with their vast curiosity, showed great interest in the specialties of different demons and asked for them to share their knowledge. As such, they were able to enhance their strengths greatly. This was exemplified when the Orc who met Tom for the first time asked about his lifestyle.

"…Do you think they have a chance?"

"Honestly, I don't. I don't know about anyone else, but if the Apostles were forced to submit, it means that their armies fell into the hands of the vampires as well."

'Damn. There's no chance of winning without using the Army of Artarrk at this point! …No, that's not truly the case.'

Tom looked at it from a different perspective, though. His opponents were an elite force, and they were almost peerless in their specialties. However, that was only if he considered their strengths and ignored their weaknesses. It meant that if they tried to form an army in that way… each division would split and move independently. Just like they had up to this point.

"There might be some chance of victory…"

"…Is that so?"

"You shouldn't be asking if that's so. Just how have you been standing against the Hero's armies until now?"

"…They shouldn't be using a much different method than I have been."

"How?"

"…Siege units would launch their munitions, archers would attack from range, cavalry would charge, then infantry would engage, and because the defense was paramount to us, we would simply defend the camp…"

When Tom looked utterly dumbfounded, Karakul swallowed drily in a cold sweat.

"…And that was how it was done repeatedly?"

"Dear God."

And I had trusted Lily and Ellin to this guy!? Tom's jaws dropped without being able to say a single word. His reaction left Karakul feeling nervous, as though he had made a mistake, without being able to do anything.

"W-what's wrong?"

"…You've truly achieved an amazing feat defeating the Heroes until now."

'Wait, then why… were the Hero's forces unable to beat them until now?'

Tom couldn't help but be suspicious about this point. They could have formed a strategy and charged through them any time they wanted to. They had faced countless battles, unlike the demons, and were well versed in military arts and tactics! If they had wanted to, they could have killed the Demon King several times over. But why? For what purpose? Why did they not stomp on the Orcs with overwhelming strength?

'…Funds?'

Tom stood frozen in shock. He had faced a similar situation before. At this point, something Salem had said before came to mind.

'A Hero sent to die returned alive.'

He had believed that he knew the ongoings of the continent well, that nothing had changed: the corrupted would still be corrupt, and they would frantically try to take anything they could from the weak. However, Tom had assumed that there had to be some dignity within them to hold them back. It was the only way the world could turn back to how it was…

Yet, he had taken the world much too lightly. The 'Hero's allied forces' from the continent was only an 'excuse' to strike the Demon Lord. As they realized that conquest against the Demon Lord was profitable, they had begun to mass-produce and dispatch Heroes once they passed the point of usefulness.

Meanwhile, they gathered funds from their subjects with the excuse of it being 'for the sake of the world!' and drafted soldiers en masse. They were using the soldiers' lives as collateral! All for the sake of filling their bellies a bit more, seeking a bit more pleasure, and living a bit more luxuriously!

They, the kings and nobles, aristocrats and priests, had become leeches sucking the lives out of their subjects.

"…They've gone mad."

Tom sighed and shook his head. It was not time for him to ponder about humans. Rather, he had to think from the perspective of demons.

"It might be surprisingly easy to fight them."

"Is it… possible?"

"That's right. For that sake, we should first…"

Tom smiled and continued.

"Gather supplies."

— Ω —