Popular NPC in a Gender-Reversed Game-Chapter 121: Dolsan

Hearing the words of the opposing adventurer, I once again surveyed my surroundings.

Upon hearing that we had already lost, the scene in front of me looked a little different.

Come to think of it, the atmosphere seemed strangely heavy.

With so many people gathered, it should have been chaotic, but instead, an unnaturally heavy silence hung in the air.

No, there was some noise, but not the kind of clamor you'd expect.

"Ugh...!" "Cleric! Is there a cleric here?!"

It wasn’t the noise of people arguing or shouting, but rather the groans of the injured.

Regardless of whether they were knights or adventurers, the wounded were clearly visible.

Among them, the adventurers' injuries seemed particularly severe, with many groaning in pain from burns. Some of them were completely wrapped in bandages.

These wounded were being treated by clerics from another world, trying to help them in any way they could.

It seemed that the battle that had taken place before was of a considerable scale.

Honestly, I had no connection to these injured people... But still, seeing it all, I couldn't help but feel a bit somber.

After seeing this, I asked the adventurer I was speaking to about the details.

"When we arrived, the Remegaton guys were already entrenched."

From what I heard, the knights and adventurers had been too late. Whether Remegaton had received news earlier, they had already set up a defensive line near the altar with a large number of troops.

The knights, unable to leave it be, had issued an assault order. However, they were overwhelmed by the stronger-than-expected enemy forces and had to retreat.

"The position itself was already too disadvantageous. Tch... The altar was on top of a mountain. The attacking side had the upper hand, right? But they decided to charge blindly. Of course, they lost."

The adventurer in front of me frowned.

Still, they muttered that it was fortunate that it was a rocky mountain. Thanks to that, there was no risk of fire spreading.

Apparently, one of the senior officers in their group was quite proficient with fire magic.

In fact, the reason they were so helpless was mostly due to that person’s mistake.

Having heard all this, I lightly nodded in understanding.

In the end, it wasn't very good news.

‘...Of course, it’s an unfavorable mountainous terrain.’

Although I wasn’t very knowledgeable about strategy, I knew that a mountainous terrain wasn’t the best battlefield, especially when attacking.

While the defenders only needed to throw down anyone coming up, the attackers had to climb the mountain while also facing the enemy. It was twice as tiring.

Meanwhile, the battle was lost, and the enemy was still securing the area with their defenses. They were making barricades or setting traps along the way.

‘This is going to be a real headache for the knights.’

Of course, it didn't affect me that much. Since I was just a regular soldier, it wasn’t my responsibility to find a way to deal with it. That was up to the knights.

‘Maybe I should go check on them?’

Curious about the atmosphere, I decided to head to the knights' tent.

"Hey? Where are you going?" "I'm just curious about what the knights are talking about." "Aha, hurry back."

I made sure to tell my companions before I left.

Finding the tent where the higher-ups of the knights were staying wasn't difficult. After all, it was the largest one here.

"What is this? What are you doing here!"

As expected, I was greeted by a brown-haired knight as soon as I entered.

This time, it seemed that the commander of the knights was the 5th knight commander.

‘Her name... was it Serena?’

I couldn't quite remember her name. Honestly, it didn’t stick with me.

Compared to the 2nd commander, who had a calm demeanor, and the 3rd commander, who seemed a bit strange, the 5th commander didn’t stand out much at all.

"Damn, you’re here too? I don't know if I should be happy or not..."

The only thing I remembered was that she seemed to particularly dislike me among the other commanders. Well, considering I was the one who had taken down several knights, I couldn’t blame her.

But at least she didn’t seem to be kicking me out.

"You look like you have a headache."

I said as I looked at her. After losing the battle, she looked troubled, with no sign of relief in her expression. Perhaps due to lack of sleep, there were dark circles under her eyes.

Still, she kept her gaze fixed on the map laid out on the table.

There were numerous pieces on the map, some that looked like people, and others that seemed like obstacles. She was probably planning strategies using those pieces.

She moved the pieces around while muttering to herself.

"Don’t worry. We’ll win... No, we will win."

"....Hmm."

I quietly watched her. Honestly, we weren’t on the best of terms, but I couldn't ignore her determination in that moment.

She was trying her best for the knights and adventurers to win.

So, I decided to offer a word of support.

"Of course, we have to win. I’ve come all the way here. Since I’m participating, put me on the map too."

Clink.

I said this and placed one of the pieces that had been rolling around on the table onto the map.

It might sound arrogant, but my skills were considerable, so even one piece might be useful.

"..."

For a moment, she stared at me blankly.

Then, she spoke up.

"I heard you did quite well in the Andras subjugation."

"Of course. Wouldn’t it have been a disaster without me?"

"...Right. Thanks. I won’t refuse your help."

She sincerely thanked me, and I could see a mix of emotions in her brown eyes.

"Then, of course, you should thank me."

I grinned and left the tent.

In situations where you’re not on the best terms with someone, it’s always good to do something nice. It lowers the chances of troublesome situations in the future. You hold the light of goodwill, after all.

Fortunately, it seemed she was going to use me as a piece properly.

Two days after we arrived here.

Not even two days after the defeat, Serena showed her intent to charge again.

"Everyone, get ready. I plan to attack them tomorrow."

Serena, standing on the platform, briefly explained the plan.

Despite having thought about it for a while, the strategy itself was simple.

She planned to send the knights and front-line tanks first to slowly break through the path.

Since the rocky mountain had no other way to go around, they would hold firm defenses and eliminate all the attackers.

It was a standard approach, but there weren’t many variables in this situation.

Naturally, the adventurers immediately voiced their opposition.

"No, isn’t it too soon? We just lost the battle a few days ago. The injured haven’t finished their treatment yet. Shouldn’t we wait for other adventurers to gather? We still haven’t seen any S-rank adventurers."

Of course, Serena didn’t care and pushed her own way.

"No, this is exactly why it’s the right time. They must be exhausted from fighting, and they had to build their defenses. They haven’t rested properly. We need to strike while they haven’t recovered."

"Hmm... Well, if that’s the case."

At her words, the adventurers reluctantly accepted.

For the otherworlders, if the event started quickly, it was naturally better, so they agreed.

I was assigned to the front lines.

I wasn’t a tank, but someone had to clear the way ahead.

"Sorry. But I’ll really need your help this time. If we’re going to break through, we’ll have to fight head-on..."

I nodded willingly.

It might have felt unfair to go alone, but Serena would be participating in the front lines as well. Moreover, Chae-rin ended up in the front lines too, so it wouldn’t be so bad.

The next day, we went straight into battle.

The target was the highest peak of the rocky mountain, where the altar stood.

"...Reporting to the boss."

At the peak of the rocky mountain. The altar, engraved with demonic symbols, stood there.

At that moment, many mages had gathered around the altar, infusing mana into it.

Countless mana waves surged and seeped into the symbols on the altar.

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It was a ritual to summon a demon.

And standing at the center of the mages was a woman who seemed to have a somewhat eerie, wavering presence.

"Yes, yes, what is it?"

It was Libya, the 3rd faction leader.

As she turned her head, the attendant who had come to report quickly answered.

"The enemy is trying to invade again..."

"Oh, again? How long has it been since we drove them off, and they’re already coming back?"

Libya, complaining lightly, continued.

"Seriously... this time, we’ll burn them all."

Snap Crackle-

Then, small flames crackled on her hand.

It was like watching fireworks—tiny, dazzling flames flickering and disappearing.

It looked beautiful, but for the attendants watching, it was nothing but chilling.

‘...That’s scary.’

She had seen how brutally those flames had burned adventurers. Especially, her soft smile in the face of a person burning before her was enough to send chills down anyone’s spine. Even if it was her subordinate.

"Then let’s go. I’ll head down first."

Without paying any attention to those thoughts, Libya simply descended the mountain, her fingers still crackling with fire.

The attendant thought to himself.

‘Many adventurers will burn again this time...’

And that was what he anticipated.

"Haah..."

Meanwhile, in the Remegaton hideout.

It had been a while since Sephir was assigned to guard duty there, and she let out a long sigh.

It was easy, just patrolling the city, but thinking about Libya, who was out there, made her uncomfortable.

She wasn’t happy that the head of the council had chosen Libya for this mission. In fact, she just didn’t like Libya at all.

She didn’t like how Libya always rubbed her the wrong way, and their personalities just didn’t match.

While Sephir didn’t engage in unnecessary killings, Libya’s instinct was to kill anyone who looked like an adventurer or knight. Especially, her rage toward adventurers was intense.

Libya smiled constantly, but Sephir never knew what she was really thinking.

It just didn’t fit.

‘How did she end up this twisted?’

Sephir, sighing again, asked Amber, the finance manager, who was somewhat close to Libya.

"Do you know why Libya hates knights and adventurers so much?"

"Ha ha, I don’t know. She’s so thick-skinned and never talks about her past. If I die, she’ll probably just say 'Oh, I guess she died~' and forget about it."

Of course, Sephir didn’t get the answer she was hoping for.

At hearing this, Sephir sighed again.

Working with colleagues you didn’t like was always a struggle in this line of work.

"Oh, by the way..."

As she sighed, Amber, who had been watching sympathetically, added something.

"By the way, I heard Libya grew up in an orphanage [N O V E L I G H T] before joining. I think that’s what I heard."

"Is that so? She grew up without parents, so that’s why her personality turned out like this?"

"Ahh...! Don’t say things like that, Sephir!"

Of course, it wasn’t much help to Sephir, but she at least learned something new.