Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

Lily's face turned ashen.

She set off from the market ruins on the east side with her bodyguard Chigusa. When they arrived at the giant cemetery where Aisha and the others were, they were so stunned by the enemy's formation that they forgot to breathe.

It's all my fault for being too naive.

Despite Finn providing so much information, his own understanding was still insufficient.

Just how much the enemy commander (Herdin Thranduil) disliked inefficiency, and what a ruthless elf he was.

Lily deeply realized the vast difference in their "level" as commanders.

(He had no intention of talking to Lily, nor did he want to play chess with her! Ignoring the rounds and the rules, he demanded that Lily immediately "draw her sword" and settle the score!!)

This is equivalent to stabbing a knife into the chessboard in front of a dumbfounded chess player (Lily) and saying, "Pull this knife out right now and come at me."

In the "Seeking the Gods" game, the first actions to take are generally as follows:

Where should we investigate?

Where should we hide the gods?

Where should we set up an ambush?

To plan tactics, one must consider numerous options.

However, Hedin managed to transform the troublesome game of "Seeking God" into a "battlefield that was advantageous to his side."

Once the enemy concentrates its forces in one place instead of dispersing them, Lily's battle plan of "letting others cut off her own flesh to sever the enemy's tendons and bones in one fell swoop" will fall apart, because the situation of "searching for the gods" simply does not occur.

When the enemy builds a "fortress", the faction alliance is left with only two paths to choose from.

To attack, or not to attack.

(This elf... is practically a demon...!!)

As Lily cursed inwardly, her mind went blank.

This is arguably the worst "either/or" situation.

Moreover, there are no other options besides these two paths, at least Lily can't think of any right now.

Even though they knew they were forced to choose between two paths advantageous to the enemy, the current situation left them no choice but to accept it.

"Hey! What do we do now?! Commander!"

Each of the eye crystals emitted a sound, from which came the anxious urging of Modo and Perth.

There is no way to proceed with a protracted war of resistance.

The Freya Familia concentrates its entire force in one place. Against an opponent of vastly superior strength, sporadic attacks will only be suppressed and increase friendly casualties. If the stalemate drags on for too long, and concentration is low, a surprise attack by the enemy will result in heavy losses.

For Lily and her companions, whose combat strength is inferior, the primary premise is that they must not be reduced to a "defensive" position. Even taking food as an example, it is not hard to imagine that the faction alliance with far more adventurers than the other side will run out of food first.

Therefore, waging a protracted war is completely meaningless and utterly pointless!

The only remaining option is to accept the enemy's demands and engage in a "final battle" here!

"Miss Lily..."

"Lady Lily..."

Chigusa, who was guarding and accompanying her, and Haruhime, who arrived at the giant cemetery a little later, were all quite shaken when they found that Lily was sweating profusely.

No, she couldn't lose her composure, or it would affect the command. But the more Lily reminded herself, the more she sweated and her heart pounded. Aisha, Tsubaki, and Daphne, who were waiting for the commander, remained silent. Under their gaze, Lily felt as if she were standing in a maze with no way out.

Is the only option to engage in a "head-on confrontation" with the Freya Familia, where they have virtually no chance of winning?

Doing so would be a serious dereliction of duty for a commander. Isn't there any other solution? What would Finn say in this situation?

Is it really the only option to send our companions to that deadly place?

Just as Lily was about to be overwhelmed by the responsibilities and burdens of being a commander—

'Lily.'

The white eyeglasses hanging from her waist shone brightly.

Let's go.

The boy, who was also struggling with his own fear, said this in a trembling voice.

"Let's face this together." As he said this, Lily, who was stunned, felt as if a pair of hands had reached behind her and pushed her.

This alone has opened up a bright path through what was originally a maze with no exit.

The previously chaotic thoughts became incredibly clear, and the wildly beating heartbeat converged towards enlightenment.

The girl clenched her hands into fists.

"Please gather all the scattered fighting forces together."

Although Lily was still covered in sweat, she stared intently at the enemy lines and began to give orders.

"Lily will reorganize the team as soon as possible. Lord Luvis, who was originally serving as a scout, you will all be converted into guerrillas."

“I-I understand!”

"Lady Haruhime, please put on the double-sided invisibility cloak and hide in the graveyard. Do not let the enemy or the city's spectators discover your whereabouts. Also, stay near Lady Aisha and the others, and be prepared to use your level-up at any time."

“Okay, okay!”

Daphne was surprised by the change in Lily's expression and voice, and began to give instructions to Cassandra and the others. As for Haruhime and the battle prostitutes who served as guards, they temporarily hid in the giant graveyard.

"Lady Chigusa, you no longer need to serve as Lily's bodyguard. Please join Lady Sakura and the others and do your part in the battle."

"Miss Lily...I understand!"

"Lady Aisha, Lady Tsubaki, have you located the enemy healer?"

"...No, you can't tell from here at all."

"They should all be hiding, but this part was unknown until the fighting started."

"Then, after the war begins, please do your best to find the Grayfaces of Comfort. Lily will also help with the search as much as possible. Right now, the first priority is to destroy the enemy's lifeline... Also, hand over the magical artifacts to Lord Ruvis and the others."

Chigusa nodded vigorously in agreement, while Aisha and Tsubaki responded with upturned smiles.

Faced with the Dwarfs' clear and articulate commands, as well as their courageous and resolute attitude, the faction alliance was no longer as fearful as before.

Those who witnessed this scene through the eye crystal, including Modo and the other adventurers nearby, responded to the instructions with phrases like "Understood!" and "Leave it to me!"

"Besides the guerrillas, our army will be divided into three units. Lady Tsubaki will lead the central force, Lady Aisha will command the left wing, and Lady Daphne and Lady Perse will lead the right wing. Also, please distribute the 'Demon Sword' evenly among the units!"

The previously broken morale was quickly restored, and Lily also issued a series of orders with incredible speed.

In this way, Lily's attempt to use the Eye Crystal to carve out a way out in this war—that is, the advantage of the speed of command transmission—was effectively blocked.

Since the battlefield was within Hedin's hearing and vision range, it meant that his commands covered all his soldiers. Even if there were delays, they would be within the margin of error. Moreover, a well-trained army could transmit intelligence at a speed comparable to the eye.

Based on this, the only clear advantage the alliance has left is its possession of a large number of "Krozo's Demon Swords".

Including the preparations made by the Hephaestus Familia, only the magic swords forged tirelessly by Welf can be used to break down the enemy's "strongest formation" with powerful firepower.

(Don't tremble! Don't be afraid! Lily is standing here for Lord Bell!)

We must find a way to break through the enemy's formation.

No, it absolutely must be cracked.

Quickly recall that sorrow and anger!

Freya not only "bewitched" Lily and the others, but also led her clan to harm Bell. In order to take revenge on these people, he must destroy the enemy's formation.

(Lily is the commander of the faction alliance!!)

Lily forced herself to pull herself together, yanked the knife out of the chessboard, and pointed the blade at the devilish elf before her.

"Bring it on...!"

"It's barely passing."

After Hedin confirmed the faction alliance's reorganized forces from the position, he gave his assessment of Lily's "decision".

If the opponent backs down upon seeing the Freya Familia, or displays unnecessary cleverness, Hedin plans to crush the faction alliance in one fell swoop.

"I do despise incompetent cowards, but I am also willing to give due recognition to the weak who are struggling to become stronger."

An ordinary commander would probably hesitate to pull out the knife stuck in the chessboard due to the disparity in strength between the two sides.

In this respect alone, the little girl who received Finn's guidance was just as good as the boy.

"If it were you, you could confront them head-on as originally planned."

Having privately approved of the girl's performance, Hedin began to issue instructions.

"The entire army is ready for a surprise attack. There is no need for defense; just attack."

"yes!"

After one member quickly left, the white elf kept a close eye on the movements of the faction alliance.

*

"It feels like a dream. I actually have to face off against that Freya Familia head-on..."

"I can understand... it was just a nightmare."

After receiving orders from Commander (Lily), many adventurers set out to act side by side.

After Kyle, who belonged to another faction (the Ogmar Clan), whispered something ashen-faced, Naza slightly raised the corners of her mouth.

"Since it wasn't about fighting monsters, I thought I was capable of fighting, which is why I signed up... But this situation is really scary. Super scary."

The right hand, encased in a glove—"Agateram"—was trembling slightly.

This time, the opponent was a formidable foe who seemed more like a challenger than the floor master, and was, to her knowledge, the "strongest adversary." For Nazha, who is usually calm and collected, this was the only time she couldn't help but feel fear.

"...But this time I can't run away, because I don't want to hurt Bell again, but hope to help him."

Even so, Nazha did not regret her choice at all.

Because, like Lily and the others, she was an adventurer determined to fight for Bell.

"...We're the same." Kyle, whose gaze had been drawn to her smile, returned the smile as if he had been prepared for it.

They did not say goodbye to each other, but simply walked towards their assigned seats.

Kyle, carrying an axe, heads to the guerrillas, while Naza, with her bow and arrows, joins the left wing.

"The central force consists of adventurers who will act as meat shields, emphasizing defense; the flanks are mainly composed of orcs and elves who prioritize high mobility. The [Manny Familia], whose members are all dwarves, please proceed to the central force."

Lily was in the giant graveyard where everyone except herself had been mobilized, and she continued to give commands to the eye crystal beside her.

She didn't allocate resources solely based on the adventurers' abilities. Members belonging to the same faction tended to have better chemistry and should naturally be grouped together. Apart from familiar faces like Nazha and her group, the troops were organized into faction-based units.

The central force consists of the Manny Familia, to which Tsubaki, Welf, Dorumur, and others belong, as well as the high-ranking blacksmiths of the Hephaestus Familia.

The right-wing force consists of Daphne, the healer Cassandra, Sakura, Chigusa, and a bunch of thugs brought from the inn town.

The left wing consists of Aisha and the Amazons who once belonged to the Ishtar Familia. Since this unit has fewer "magic swords" than the other two units, they also assign characters skilled in "gravity magic" with powerful and wide-range attacks to this unit.

As for the reserve forces, which included mages and Haruhime, they stayed not far behind the three main forces.

The last guerrillas used various forms of cover to position themselves in suitable "ambush" locations.

"Should we...should we switch places too?"

"No, it won't help even if the gods do this. All we can do now is remain silent and observe this battle."

Inside a certain ruin, Hestia anxiously watched Lily through her crystal eye, while Hephaestus, who was with her, crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, closing his eyes to rest.

On the eastern side of the island where the Alliance gods are hiding, there are no other clans in this area besides the adventurers who serve as guards.

On this long island, the battlefield is located in the area west of the central dividing line.

The faction alliance moved its headquarters to the giant cemetery in the center of the western district. The Freya Familia, on the other hand, deployed a large force to defend the "House of Gods" on the western border. The two armies stood facing each other at a distance.

"...This is the first time I've ever seen a war game so quiet."

In a distant city, Ibri, who is usually very talkative, is quietly expressing his thoughts into the magic stone megaphone.

Indeed, as he said, the battlefield was unusually quiet.

All that remained at the scene were the sounds of the faction alliances regrouping and moving their troops.

Apart from that, no sounds of swords clashing or shouts were heard.

Under the watchful eyes of the island's gods and the city's residents, only time slowly passed.