Great Teacher in a Defense Game

#6 Let the Games Begin

Life is but a game.

Each is born into this world clutching their own hand of cards.

Enoch’s philosophy of life, as he drove, mirrored this sentiment.

Such a notion had not particularly changed, even after he had awakened from an uneasy slumber and been transported to this other world.

“We have arrived. Come, disembark.”

“A-ah, yes sir.”

Lacrina exited the carriage, following Enoch.

The vehicle halted at a shantytown erected on the boundary between the city’s outskirts and the wall.

Even in prosperous times, beggars always exist.

How much more so in a world invaded by monsters?

Submerged by hardship, detached from civilization, such individuals existed everywhere, regardless of what world it may be.

“Wait here a moment.”

-Click!

Enoch withdrew a cigarette case from his breast pocket.

Inside were twelve hand-rolled tobacco cigarettes.

He placed one between his lips, took out his Zippo, lit it, and inhaled deeply.

-Fffft! Whoosh!

“Hoo…”

A thick plume of smoke rose into the air.

Gray smoke, exhaled from the man’s mouth, climbing towards the heavens.

Lakrina felt as if it were a beacon fire.

-Tap tap!

“They’re here.”

A faint sound of footsteps reached them.

Enoch flicked the ash from his cigarette and shifted his gaze.

A group of figures clad in black attire emerged.

Roughly twenty souls, perhaps.

They lurked in the shadows, observing Enoch and Lakrina with scrutinizing eyes.

“Welcome. Is this our first meeting?”

Enoch asked, relighting the smoldering cigarette.

The reply came swiftly.

“One could say so. Enoch. You wouldn’t know us.”

“Indeed. But, if that’s the case, why have you been following us? It seemed you were watching even from when we were at the Magic Tower branch. Is there some specific business?”

“You’re quick to the chase. You guessed right away.”

The black-clad figure who spoke stepped forward.

Judging by the circumstances, he was likely the leader of this band.

Lakrina was curious about what he would say.

Enoch gestured with his chin, as if to say ‘continue’.

“Good. You seem willing to parley.”

The man in black chuckled dryly, then continued.

“Enoch, we have been observing you for quite some time.”

“At best, a few months. For a confession of voyeurism, the tone is far too grandiose, wouldn’t you say?”

Enoch had only appeared in this world a little over half a year ago.

Even if he’d been under surveillance, the duration couldn’t be that long.

Enoch struck true, and the man in black paused, then spoke again.

“…I apologize if I offended. In that vein, I must ask, Enoch, what do you take us for?”

“Hmm. Black clothes, black masks. I’d wager thieves, perhaps?”

“Incorrect. We are those who would set the Empire aright.”

‘Indeed, separatists.’

The Empire’s state was, to put it mildly, not good.

One need not look far; monstrous beasts were invading even now.

In such circumstances, it was hardly surprising that a revolutionary faction or two had emerged.

“Grandiose indeed. How does that differ from thievery?”

“Are you speaking sincerely? I’d assumed you knew already. That the Empire is responsible for the beast incursions. Was it not you who assassinated the mages researching dimensional magic, from the shadows?”

At the word ‘assassination’, Lacrima’s eyes widened slightly nearby.

Enoch, unconcerned, focused on the response.

“Perhaps. That is your assumption. My intentions are mine alone, I fail to see why others feel entitled to interpret them as they will.”

“…I see. Regrettable. Yet, that need not signify a break. In that vein, I wish to propose something. Would you care to hear it?”

“I shall listen, then judge. Speak.”

“Cooperate with us.”

Cooperation.

The man in black spoke thus, then gestured with his sword towards empty space.

The blade’s tip pointed towards the capital.

“To assassinate the Empire’s mages implies a certain discontent with this nation. We are of a similar mind. Extremes meet, and so, if our aims align, is there any reason we cannot cooperate?”

“Hmm…”

“Consider it well. Our forces may be smaller than the Empire’s, but that does not equate to weakness. And you, too, surely harbor grand ambitions within your heart. We are ever waiting for allies such as yourself. I implore you, do not dismiss my proposal lightly.”

The man in black fell silent, as if the conversation was concluded.

Enoch exhaled a short breath and regarded Lacrina.

“Lacrina.”

“…Yes.”

“Leave this place. Return in twenty minutes.”

“……Yes, sir!”

Lacrina nodded sharply, retreating backwards until she vanished.

As the girl’s form dissolved into the darkness, the man in black sighed a long sigh.

“A deadlock, then. What a pity.”

He lowered his sword and gestured to those behind him.

“Let her pass without pain. She is a pitiful child, born of a ruined nation.”

“As you command.”

– *Swish!*

A few of the figures swiftly departed.

Perhaps two in number.

Enoch watched them recede, then spoke again.

“To send her without pain. Is that… mercy?”

“In a manner of speaking. The child is without sin.”

“That’s laughable. If you’re going to show mercy, shouldn’t you spare her life completely, without reservations?”

“So you would see it. Alas, what I have learned is the way of the warrior, not the temperament of humankind. Since our paths diverge, that girl will, in time, become our enemy, whether small or great. To show mercy to an enemy is to be that much more cruel to one’s allies. Do you not understand this simple truth?”

“Truth?”

– *Ah ha ha ha!!*

Enoch, who had been listening, suddenly erupted into unrestrained laughter.

The man in black, watching him silently, asked with undisguised displeasure,

“What do you find so amusing?”

“Ha ha… Why, it’s obviously amusing. To think that con men like you would invoke such grand pronouncements. How could I not laugh?”

“What was that?”

Enoch wiped the corner of his eye and said in a cheerful tone.

“Those who would rebuild the empire. Revolutionaries. Separatists. Whatever the name, they all describe you. You have likely lived your lives believing that what you believe is always right. Isn’t that so?”

“What is it you’re trying to say?”

“At least hear me out until the end. Anyway, yes. Perhaps your ideology is righteous. Perhaps the Empire is hateful, and there aren’t a few who think so. You gathered those rebels and spouted your own brand of nonsense, claiming it all for the sake of true justice and a genuine Empire – am I wrong?”

“It is not nonsense. It is our cause.”

The man in black spoke resolutely. Enoch snorted, amused.

“Those who cannot even show the small kindness of saving a fleeing girl dare to speak of a cause? How can one who knows no kindness champion a cause?”

Silence followed his words.

To claim it was for a cause would be to admit they were a ruthless bunch.

The man in black, seemingly at a loss, changed the subject instead of answering.

“…Enough with the nonsense. Perhaps you should grasp the situation. You are alone, and there are nearly twenty of us.”

“Let’s be accurate. Excluding you and perhaps two or three others, you’re essentially rabble.”

“Even so, the difference in numbers is clear. You keep provoking us; why not surrender instead?”

At the suggestion, Enoch shook his head.

“I’m afraid not. Time is about the only thing I truly fear.”

“Time?”

“Yes, time. Only time constantly threatens me. Everything else in this world treats me with favor, but only time strangles me.”

Enoch made a square with his fingers, smiling.

Describing the status window, the greatest proof that this world was once a game.

But to the men in black, it was nothing more than a crude provocation.

-Haa.

Finally, the man in black drew his sword first.

“The conversation is over. Farewell.”

-Shring

The black mass emerged one by one.

The encirclement closing in.

Enoch tilted his head, muttering.

“Time…time…”

“What are you muttering about? Is it your last words?”

“No, nothing like that. It’s just… the word ‘time’ reminds me of something.”

“What?”

At that moment, the man dropped something into the undergrowth.

‘…A clock?’

The moment the man in black grasped the object’s nature,

a strange metallic clang echoed from the fallen timepiece.

-Click!

-Charrrrrring!

The watch erupted in radiant light, shattering into countless pieces.

But the anomaly didn’t end there.

Soon, the scattered fragments began to coalesce, growing in size and mass, raising themselves up.

-Giiiirrr

-Ka-gang!

“…What in the world…”

The man in black watched the spectacle unfolding before him, dumbfounded.

He’d have been better off brandishing his blade.

But he couldn’t.

The sight of an object defying the laws of nature, arbitrarily increasing in size and self-assembling.

No one could willingly tear their gaze away from such a bizarre spectacle.

-Wooo-ooo!!!

“…A serpent?”

No, perhaps a dragon.

Such was the impression the man in black had, gazing at the monster that had once been a watch.

The colossal serpent of steel coiled itself protectively around Enoch, its master.

Enoch, hidden behind the behemoth, leisurely savored the completion of his magic.

‘Prototype No. 1. Code name: Cyber Dragon. The player’s summoning skill, as expected, presents no issues.’

-Wooo-ooo…

The giant serpent roared in affirmation.

Enoch smirked at his white serpent before turning his attention back to the watching men in black.

“So, what were we talking about again?”

“…”

“Ah, time. You were making some remark about time.”

Enoch said, rummaging through his inner pocket.

A plethora of accessories, including rings and necklaces, emerged, overflowing from his hand.

“You might not know it, but this world is, in fact, a game.”

– *Whirr!*

“In this world where time isn’t on my side, we might actually be puppets dancing to someone’s tune. This life we thought we controlled, in reality—…Is it just me? I feel like I’ve heard something similar somewhere before.”

Enoch tilted his head, pausing mid-sentence.

In the meantime, the accessories the man had thrown began to morph, rising to their feet of their own accord.

This was a skill often seen in the defense genre.

The power to summon colossal monsters and hold back the incoming waves.

What Enoch used wasn’t magic, but a 『Skill』.

– *Keening! Clang!*

– *Rattling Rattle!*

Steel beasts looked down upon the men in black.

A serpent, a giant, a knight, and a dragon.

Enoch lowered his finger amidst the giants.

“…In any case. I’ll have to play the hand I’m dealt. That’s all it comes down to, really.”

Enoch lays his hand down upon the world.

Life is a game, after all.

Let the game begin.